World's Biggest Cruise Liner Oasis of The Seas


Dave Gittins

Dave Gittins

Member
Cheer up! At least Aker Yards can't build them any higher. To get to the open sea, the ships must pass under Denmark's Great Belt Bridge, which has a minimum clearance at high tide of 65 metres.

Personally, I preferred the cat and the lion cub on the same page.
 
Michael H. Standart

Michael H. Standart

Member
>>Personally, I think it's way, way over the top. Gimme portholes any day.<<

They do tend to be a lot more resistant to damage in heavy seas. Let's hope that they manage to steer clear of any nasty weather.
 
J

Jason Schleisman

Member
Holy Cr*p! What a monstrosity! What's the point of being at sea in a thing such as this? Might as well stay in a fancy land-based resort and enjoy Neiman Markus and go-carts to boot.
 
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Joe Russo

Member
Give me portholes too. That thing reeks of a suburban mall placed on a barge.
Also with 6000 guests, I'd say they are targeting the same demographic that enjoys walking the crowded strip in Las Vegas or a packed Epcot Center. Although I wouldn't see myself flocking to this, I'm sure they know what they are doing to attract people who will love this and aren't currently cruising.
This isn't my thing, but at the same time I'm totally fascinated and can't look away.
 
J

James Smith

Member
quote:

This isn't my thing, but at the same time I'm totally fascinated and can't look away.
Click to expand...
Kind of like a car crash, no?
evil.gif
 
Dave Gittins

Dave Gittins

Member
"Might as well stay in a fancy land-based resort and enjoy Neiman Markus and go-carts to boot."

Don't give them ideas! These ships could easily accommodate a go-cart track. How about a roller-coaster?
 
J

Joe Russo

Member
There is already a carousel on the stern in those renderings if you look closely.
Maybe Disney will get an idea from this and have a theme park on their next mega cruise ship!
 
J

Jason Schleisman

Member
Right on! Let's see now, we'll have:

*The Little Mermaid Beauty Salon wherein the staff spontaneously swirl around and burst into song with renditions of "Under the Sea" as they brush their patrons' hair with sharp forks;

*Finding Nemo Activity Center wherein patrons are led to believe they are entering a theater to watch an instructional program, but really, they enter a one-way submersible which sends them 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea (literally) to really find Nemo. A good way to get rid of the whiny kids and less-than-stellar parents if you ask me.....

*Pirates of the Caribbean Water Show where the bullets are real, the swords are sharp, the rum is strong, and among other possibilities, you WILL get wet.....

For an additional non-refundable fee, special passes to Davy Jones' Locker are available for the lucky few.....
 
J

Jim Kalafus

Member
I like it. To be blunt, with the exception of the period of roughly 1950-1965, liners have NEVER been examples of good taste or advance design. What they HAVE been, at least in first class, is gloriously vulgar and at least ten years out of style when brand new. Except for the Ile de France.

Today there is the familiar wail about ships that look like buildings and not ships. In my youth there was the wail about ships that looked like buildings and not ships (Michelangelo and Raffaelo/QE2 come to mind) which seemed VERY evocative of the reviews of the Berengaria and Majestic which likened them to seagoing hotels and bemoaned the passing of ships that looked ike ships...and so on and so on clear back to the Atlantic (1851) whose straight bow sans sprit, odd rounded stern, and grand hotel interiors caused certain reviewers to cavil...and bemoan the death of graceful ships and their replacement by 'floating teakettles.' Glad to see that the same TRULY Victorian sentiment has now entered its third century.

>Might as well stay in a fancy land-based resort and enjoy Neiman Marcus and go-carts to boot."

Why should those NOT be on a ship? Seagoing malls date back as far as the Bremen and Europa~ witness the wonderfully crass galleria on l'Atlantique, complete with auto dealership and....come to think about it...moaning reviews about ships with overly florid interiors and exteriors that did not look like ships. And the go-cart runs are no more....bizarre....than the multiple efforts in Victorian days to coordinate bicycle runs that did not propel passengers overboard in inclement weather.

>Also with 6000 guests, I'd say they are targeting the same demographic that enjoys walking the crowded strip in Las Vegas or a packed Epcot Center.

That's the demograpic liners have sought since at least 1920. The Atlantic crossing could never have been described as MENSA at sea~ we've all seen the entertainment programs from prewar voyages; nor did the lines seem particularly determined to separate themswelves from....uhhh..."The Low Arts." Because they WANTED a clientele impressed by the fact that Mary Pickford or Marlene Dietrich had recently been aboard....

You seldom saw mathematicians or professors of logic as the coverboys or covergirls on the "Aboard Our Ships" monthly magazines distributed by the various companies. From early on it was mass-market celebrities all the way, because they did not to corner the niche market of the true urban sophisticate....what they wanted was the LARGE demographic of people with disposable incomes and questionable taste who's be impressed by the fact that...Snitz Edwards..."had been amongst our guests last month." So, the Vegas crowd has been a staple of the industry since at least the moment that publicity photos of Jack Pickford and Olive Thomas were issued to the press by their shipping company of choice.
 
J

Jim Kalafus

Member
>The Little Mermaid Beauty Salon wherein the staff spontaneously swirl around and burst into song with renditions of "Under the Sea" as they brush their patrons' hair with sharp forks

Less bizarre than CGT issuing multiple PR blurbs about the triumphant crossing of "Fred Snite: The Man In The Iron Lung" including a line-sanctioned press photo of a formal dinner party in either Caen or Rouen Suite... with formally attired service staff at attention and Mr. Snite suspended upside down at the head of the table in his iron lung, viewing the party in a mirror mounted to the devise.

Poor taste and relentless publicity are hardly new in this aspect of the travel industry.
 
Michael H. Standart

Michael H. Standart

Member
>>witness the wonderfully crass galleria on l'Atlantique, complete with auto dealership <<

Uhhhhhh...an auto dealership? That's...that's....words fail me. How long did it last?
 
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Jim Kalafus

Member
>Uhhhhhh...an auto dealership? That's...that's....words fail me. How long did it last?

The ship made its debut circa October 1931 and burned ca. January 1933, so the auto dealership lasted a year and three months. It made sense to have one~ first class on l'Atlantique was aimed at wealthy Argentines, and wealthy Europeans, making their seasonal 'avoid winter' pilgrimages to and from their respective countries. Buying a car on board simplified the grand tour considerably.

>As for myself ~ gimme masts, funnels, and actual portholes any day o' the week.

Is that not unlike choosing a hotel on shore based upon the fact that it has a water tank on the roof and awnings over the windows, rather than upon the services provided within? Funnels, while they existed, were the bane of travelers because of the endless rain of clothing-ruining smut, and their acrid reek, which made walking or sitting on deck far less romantic than advertising photos (taken whilst the ship as docked, I may add) suggest. Masts in no way affected, or affect, the passenger experience, and portholes were eliminated because of the VERY real sense of claustrophobia induced by being in a small room with a circular window a foot or less in diameter as its only source of natural light. Plus, people on cruises WANT to see the ocean~ which is why they are on cruises~ and giving them an all-but-nonexistent view in the name of design tradition makes no sense.

One can contrast what constituted contemporary good taste in design, and what constituted 'pouring it on for the yokels' quite easily in NYC at the moment. Take in the Normandie panels at the Met. Then walk over to the "east 40s" and check out the Lescaze residence (1934) at 211 East 48th. After which, subway up to the Grand Concourse (after checking out Radio City Music Hall) and take a look at the artwork which adorned ca 1935 apartment building aimed at the 'comfortably well off urban professional.' Now, having made that trip, one must then ask after removing the rose colored glasses of nostalgia, did the Normandie favor what constituted smart design and progressive architecture (put another way, "good taste?") when she was brand new, or did she strike one as being a bigger and better version of the lobby of a movie theater or apartment house aimed at the middle class of her era?

She was the spiritual forerunner of this new Oasis ship....
 
G

Grant Carman

Member
Jim

Great post, and I agree 100%. I remember when my grandparents used to come to Canada every second year, and would fly one way, and take one of the Cunard liners back, (I think Sylvania was their favorite). When those liners were withdrawn, they took CP a couple of times, but complained that it was like staying at the local office building.

Some things never change. I'm sure that when the QE and QM were launched, that people complained about them as well. After all, the styling of them was what we now call Mayfair Modern, (art deco is reserved for French design), which many many people didn't like.

It all comes down to the fact that cruise ships are in business to make money. So they design the ships to give people what they want. Most people don't want to spend a week sitting on a deck chair, and the companies take that into account.
 
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