What Are the Different Oasis-Class Cruise Ships?

While Royal Caribbean’s Oasis-class might not be its newest class of ships any longer, they are still some of the biggest, best and newest in the the industry.

If you’re considering taking a Royal Caribbean cruise in the near future, you’re likely considering sailing on an Oasis-class ship. So what can you expect from each and this class overall? Here’s what you need to know.

What is the Oasis Class?

Royal Caribbean’s Oasis class contains six ships, currently. These include Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, Wonder of the Seas and Utopia of the Seas. A seventh, yet-to-be-named ship is expected to be added to the fleet in 2028.

For quite a while, the Oasis-class ships were the largest cruise ships in the world, with Oasis of the Seas taking the world’s largest cruise ship title upon debut and each cruise ship getting bigger and better as the class expanded. Now, that’s not the case, as Royal Caribbean has begun developing an even larger line, with its Icon class.

Still, the Oasis-class ships remain some of the largest cruise ships in the world, even if one of them is not THE largest. Utopia of the Seas is the largest Oasis-class ship overall and the second-largest ship in the world as of late 2024.  

So, just how big are all the current Oasis-class ships? Here’s how they stack up.

What Makes the Oasis-Class Ships Different?

There are a few things that make the Oasis-class ships differ from really any other cruise ships out there, Royal Caribbean or otherwise. Here’s the distinct experience you can expect when you cruise on an Oasis-class ship.

The Ship Neighborhoods

Each Oasis-class ship is split into seven or eight neighborhoods. The neighborhood concept isn’t limited to just Royal Caribbean’s Oasis-class, but neighborhoods on other classes of ships may differ in terms of how many neighborhoods there are overall, as well as what each neighborhood offers.

On Oasis-class ships, the neighborhoods include the Royal Promenade, Central Park, Entertainment Place, the Boardwalk, the Pool and Sports Zone, the Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness Center, and the Youth Zone. However, two ships have neighborhoods beyond these seven. Both Wonder of the Seas and Utopia of the Seas have an eighth neighborhood simply called the suite neighborhood.

The Boardwalk is a family-friendly, oceanside boardwalk-inspired setting, where you can find features like a carousel and a Johnny Rockets’ diner outpost. 

Central Park is just what it sounds like as well — a centralized park-inspired setting with lots of lush greenery and an open-air top. On most ships, you’ll find shops and restaurants lining the park space.

Entertainment Place is where you’ll go to find the theater, as well as venues like clubs and lounges. 

The Royal Promenade is a favorite throughout all Royal Caribbean ships and is, in many ways, the heart of each ship, offering restaurants, shopping, bars, live music, entertainment and just generally always something to do and see, at any time of day.

The Pool and Sports Zone is your place to go for adventure activities, multiple pools on the pool deck, waterslides, Flowrider surfing simulators and sports courts, as well as zip lines. Do note that not all of the slides on the Oasis-class ships are the same.

Some have the Ultimate Abyss slides and The Perfect Storm slides, but some do not, as is the case with Allure of the Seas, which will be getting these features after its planned refurbishment in 2025. 

The Vitality at Sea spa and fitness center neighborhood is home to — you guessed it — these two venues. There’s also The Youth Zone, which is home to the kids clubs.

And, lastly, the suite neighborhoods are special enclaves for VIP cruise guests, where those staying in suites can enjoy their own private sun deck and plunge pool, as well as a restaurant.

Industry Firsts

Beyond just offering seven (or eight, depending on the ship) unique neighborhoods to the cruising industry, the Oasis-class also made waves due to just how many industry firsts it introduced.

Just Oasis of the Seas alone introduced the first carousel at sea, the first zip line at sea, the first levitating bar at sea, the deepest pool at sea and the first non-ocean view balcony suites on a cruise ship. 

A Picture-Perfect Vacation

Additionally, the Oasis-class stands out as being a top-tier option for cruisers, where families, couples, groups of friends and anyone else can enjoy a cruise that packs in tons of fun from every angle. These modern and mammoth vessels provide near-endless entertainment and activities, alongside tons of dining options, stateroom selections and more.

If you want that picture-perfect vacation you see in cruise line commercials, you’ll get it on an Oasis-class ship.

Differences in Oasis-Class Ships

While the Oasis-class ships share quite a few features, that doesn’t mean that they’re identical across the board. Beyond differing slightly in size, they also have a few differences when it comes to venues, staterooms and similar details.

For example, Harmony of the Seas offered two restaurants upon debut that weren’t found on previous ships Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas: Jamie’s Italian and Wonderland.  

Symphony of the Seas likewise debuted with certain restaurants and venues that were not on its sister ship predecessors, including El Loco Fresh, Playmakers Sports Bar, Hooked Seafood and a laser tag arena. (Now, both laser tag arenas and Playmakers are practically staples on most newer Royal Caribbean ships.)

Meanwhile, Wonder of the Seas introduced the largest-ever Ultimate Family Suite, the new suite-only neighborhood and The Mason Jar restaurant. 

Harmony of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas and Wonder of the Seas also all feature the Bionic Bar, but Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas and Utopia of the Seas do not.

Symphony of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Wonder of the Seas and Utopia of the Seas all have the virtual balcony cabins, but Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas do not. Utopia of the Seas introduced the first Solarium suites to the line, a brand-new suite category. 

In dining, Utopia of the Seas also introduced a new restaurant experience called Royal Railway Utopia Station, as well as the Izumi in the Park restaurant and Spare Tire food truck. 

Of course, as the class expands and some of the older Oasis-class ships are refurbished, they’re getting refreshed and new things are being added to the older ships that first appeared on the newer ships. 

So, with that in mind, if you have a certain venue, restaurant or stateroom you’re wanting to experience, just double-check it’s actually on the Oasis-class ship you’re planning to book, as they’re not all the same. 

Oasis Class vs. Freedom Class

Before the Oasis-class, there was the Freedom-class. Just like the Oasis-class, the Freedom-class once boasted the largest cruise ships in the world. Additionally, just like the Oasis-class was surpassed by the next class of Royal Caribbean cruise ships in size, so was the Freedom-class, which was surpassed by the Oasis class.

The Freedom-class ships — which include Freedom of the Seas, Liberty of the Seas and Independence of the Seas — were introduced in 2006 and are about 60% the size of the Oasis-class ships, on average. The largest Freedom-class ship is Freedom of the Seas, at 156, 271 GT.

While the Freedom-class ships do have a lot of cool features — they were the first to introduce surfing simulators and they have staple attractions like rock-climbing walls, for example — they just don’t have as much to do and enjoy as the Oasis-class or Icon-class ships, like zip lines or quite as many stateroom and suite options.

Oasis Class vs. Icon Class

So what class of ships has surpassed the Oasis class, and is there really that much difference? It’s the Icon class and, yes, absolutely. There’s a huge difference between the Oasis class and the newer, bigger Icon class, which debuted in 2024, with lead ship Icon of the Seas. (Coincidentally, the Oasis class welcomed its latest ship Utopia of the Seas, around the same time that Icon of the Seas debuted!) 

In size difference, there’s not such the big gap that you see between the Freedom class and the Oasis class. Icon of the Seas is only about 6% larger than Utopia of the Seas. However, there are other differences that stand out starkly.

For example, the Icon class has completely reimagined the neighborhood format that all the Royal Caribbean cruise ships use, with eight neighborhoods that are named things like Chill Island and AquaDome.

Read Also: Icon of the Seas vs Wonder of the Seas – A Giant Comparison

These new neighborhoods have unique vibes all their own, even though you’ll still find staple neighborhoods like Central Island and the Royal Promenade on the Icon class ships. 

Likewise, the Icon class introduced more than a half-dozen new stateroom options to the cruise line, and a handful of new restaurants. Icon of the Seas also has the largest waterpark at sea. 

Oasis Class Staterooms

But enough about those other classes! What else can you expect when you take an Oasis-class cruise?

You’ll have a few different stateroom options that go beyond just your basic interior, balcony and suite staterooms. The Oasis class also offers Boardwalk and Central Park balcony staterooms (for the first balcony staterooms on a cruise ship that did not look out over the ocean, when they premiered), AquaTheater suites, the Ultimate Family Suites and, on the newest ship, Utopia of the Seas, Solarium suites.

Read Also: Wonder of the Seas Cabins to Avoid – What You Must Know!

In general, you can expect a wide variety of staterooms, but the most variety overall, and the most modern staterooms overall, are found on the newer Oasis-class ships.

Oasis Class Dining

Oasis-class cruise ships offer a wealth of dining venues. On most ships, you can find around 20 restaurants, including a mix of complimentary and specialty dining restaurants. 

Staples in the Oasis class include the main dining rooms, the Windjammer Café buffet, the Solarium bistro, Park Café, Vitality  Café, Café Promenade, Sorrento’s Boardwalk Dog House, 150 Central Park, Chops Grille, Giovannie’s Italian Kitchen, Izumi and Johnny Rockets.

However, most ships also have a handful of other restaurants that are unique to them or maybe only on a few other ships. For example, Wonder of the Seas introduced The Mason Jar, as the first ship to have this restaurant, but it also has some older restaurants that Utopia of the Seas does not have, like Wonderland.

Likewise, Utopia of the Seas has a few restaurants that its other, older sister ships do not have, like Izumi in the Park, The Spare Tire and Royal Railway Utopia Station.

All in all, expect a nice array of restaurant options on these ships, but a few small, slight differences from ship to ship.

Oasis Class Bars and Lounges

Likewise, you can expect Oasis class vessels to have a few standard bars and lounges that are found across the Royal Caribbean fleet in general, such as the Solarium Bar, Schooner Bar, an English-style pub and several poolside bars.

Newer ships like Utopia of the Seas and Wonder of the Seas both have new additions such as Boleros, Cantina Fresca, The Attic, Trellis Bar, The Lime & Coconut and Vue Bar. As mentioned, though, Utopia of the Seas does not have the Bionic Bar, and it actually introduced a brand-new bar to the lineup, The Pesky Parrot. 

What to Expect from Future Oasis Ships 

As mentioned, there is an Oasis ship coming down the pipeline, set to debut in 2028. Royal Caribbean International made the announcement of the ship’s order in February 2024. It will be built by Chantiers de l’atlantique.

Worth Reading: Symphony of the Seas vs Titanic – A Giant Comparison

However, not much is known about this next Oasis-class ship yet. Originally, this seventh ship was intended to be built earlier in the decade, for a 2026 debut date, but the Covid-19 pandemic delayed construction.