Eight Reasons to Be Excited About Royal’s Wonder of the Seas

Wondering what’s exciting about yet another Oasis-class ship? Though Wonder of the Seas will feature many Royal Caribbean staples your clients know and love, it will also have a few new features that will quickly become favorites.

But best of all, it combines elements of both the Odyssey- and Oasis-class ships, while adding in an eighth neighborhood, putting it in a class of its own.

“What people have said to me is it [Wonder of the Seas] is the Odyssey and Symphony combined – with the Lime and Coconut, Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen and Wine Bar, Central Park and Boardwalk, all in one. It’s the best of both class of ships,” Mindy Breitman, owner of a Parkland, Florida-based Cruise Planners franchise, told Travel Market Report.

Largest Ship at Sea
For clients looking for bragging rights, Wonder of the Seas is a perfect match. It’s the biggest cruise ship at sea, taking the mantle from sister-ship Symphony of the Seas (236,857 gross tons vs. 228,081, respectively). Wonder of the Seas has 100 more cabins than Symphony and can carry 308 more passengers and 100 more crew. 

The Suite Life
One of the most exciting features of Wonder of the Seas is its all-new eighth neighborhood, the suite-class neighborhood.

“My clients are most excited about the new suite area,” said Breitman. She already has several clients booked in suites in the new neighborhood.

Only the second ship in the Royal Caribbean fleet to have an exclusive suite area, Wonder of the Seas is the first Oasis-class ship – and the first Royal Caribbean ship in the Western hemisphere — to dedicate an entire neighborhood to suite passengers.

With the Suite Neighborhood, suite passengers never have to leave their ship-within-a-ship complex if they don’t want to. Inside are all the best suites, along with Coastal Kitchen (Royal Caribbean’s signature suites-only restaurant), an elevated sun deck with infinity plunge pool and bar.

Ultimate Family Suite
Speaking of the Suite Neighborhood, one of the suites you’ll find inside is Royal Caribbean’s over-the-top Ultimate Family Suite. The ship is the third in the fleet to offer this two-level suite that features an in-suite slide and a private ping pong table on your balcony.

Downhome Cooking
Royal Caribbean joins the rest of the cruise industry with its first Southern cooking and barbeque restaurant, The Mason Jar, featuring comfort food classics, Bayou staples and good ol’ American BBQ. Mix in some live country music and U.S.-based cruisers can have a taste of home no matter where they’re cruising to. (Instagram-happy cruisers will love the front porch swing, perfect for that vacation selfie.)

The for-a-fee Mason Jar is open for brunch, dinner and late-night snacking. Brunch features items like breakfast biscuits with sausage and grits, Chicken ‘n Waffles, Johnnycakes topped with barbecue pulled pork, cinnamon rolls and jalapeno cornbread. The dinner menu includes creole-style lobster ‘n crawfish gumbo, gran’s fried chicken, fried green tomatoes, and crab beignets. Desserts include American favorites, along with spiked shakes, including a peanut butter, banana and bourbon option.

And what downhome eatery wouldn’t be complete without drinks liked spiked peach tea or a classic mint julep. You can also try out the Mississippi Moonlight, which comes loaded with blackberry moonshine, blackberries and lemonade served in a chilled mason jar.  

Little Italy
Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen and Wine Bar is Royal Caribbean’s most recent Italian eatery concept that replaces Jamie’s Kitchen and Giovanni’s Table on other ships. Unlike the others, Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen and Wine Bar is more casual, with a bistro-style atmosphere. The wine bar section of the space offers up an extensive wine menu, along with pair-worthy appetizers. Wonder of the Seas is the first Oasis-class ship to get the venue.

A New Vue
Some of Royal Caribbean’s most memorable bars can be found on Oasis-class ships. Like the Rising Tide Bar or the Bionic Bar. With Wonder of the Seas, the line introduces a new drinking spot that will quickly become a favorite. The Vue is a cantilevered pool bar that offers panoramic views during the day. But at night it comes alive with a digital canopy overhead that lights up with a kaleidoscope of colors.

A second bar onboard will also be new to the line. Cantina Fresca is located next to the ship’s casual Mexican eatery, El Loco Fresh. Here you’ll find a variety of non-alcoholic “aguas frescas,” as well as classic Mexican cocktails.

Lil Playscape
Royal Caribbean gets even family friendlier with the addition of an outdoor play area for toddlers on Wonder of the Seas. The Wonder Playscape is an underwater-themed playground with slides, climbing walls, games and puzzles. Inside the “cavern,” kids can interact with a touchscreen mural of sea creatures. In other areas, they can pretend to be giants with life-size versions of their favorite games like tic tac toe.

Big Playscape
If there’s one thing the Oasis class of ships is known for, it’s all the outdoor fun you can have. Wonder of the Seas is no different with a FlowRider (one vs. the two on other ships), the Perfect Storm trio of waterslides, an Ultimate Abyss slide that drops riders from Deck 16 to Deck 6, three swimming pools, and the two-story Lime and Coconut bar.