LittleMissMagic

This is adorable!!! I love it!

I'm not a maritime pilot, but your question sparked curiosity, so I did a little digging.... This is a little dated (2008), but I think it will give some more insight on a Pilot's day - https://cms3.revize.com/revize/americanpilots/A_Career_as_a_Ship_Pilot.pdf There are women pilots. Here's an interesting article about Jane Stone, Commercial Marine Pilot in the UK - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/meet-one-only-two-female-commerical-marine-pilots-uk-john-ferguson-/ Also Davinia Monclus on the River Medway - https://hec.lrfoundation.org.uk/whats-on/rewriting-women-into-maritime-history/online-exhibitions/davinia-monclus#null If you're interested in learning more, Maritime SheEO is a group empowering women in the maritime industry - https://maritimesheeo.com/

I've always thought bed by the balcony was the superior configuration. Gives you more space by the bathroom and entry door, and you don't have to squeeze by the bed to get to the vanity/sitting area. Also, you can lay in bed and look out at the ocean - so nice!

Just catching up on your review, my musings - The mozzarella sticks look so good right now! Agree with you about Royal and wine.... not a lot of options, especially by the glass which is typically what you have to do with the drink package. And I concur that wine offerings are much better on NCL (especially with their upgraded drink package). The disco light on the balcony is so fun! What a great idea!! The high winds are a bummer, but at least you have an awesome room and balcony to hang out in! I'm glad Wendy is pullout out all of the stops! Thanks so much for sharing, I can't wait for more!

Congratulations!! That is correct - the room decoration packages are typically set up on the first day of the cruise. Also, the decoration packages that they offer are Birthday, Anniversary, Just Married, and Bon Voyage. No "Just Engaged" - what a miss on Royal's part! Royal used to offer a "Royal Proposal" package, but it looks like that was removed from the brochure when they updated their Wedding packages. If you happen to be staying Sky or Star Class, definitely reach out to Concierge/Royal Genie - that will be the easiest. Otherwise, I wouldn't trust that your room decor package would be delayed, even if that is something that you are able to request. Do you happen to be sailing with friends/family, and could they help with decorating your room? Honestly, your own decorations would look better than the Royal decor packages. If not, maybe you could join your Roll Call and recruit some help from fellow cruisers?

So excited for this review! I think Star Class is perfect for a girls trip!! I’m glad my Allure review was helpful - I also had a really hard time finding detailed information on Star Class pre-cruise. I had read about the survey on CC, but we didn’t receive one for Allure - I’m assuming because Allure is 3/4 night sailings. I’m looking forward to hearing about your week long cruise on Harmony!

No, Sky Class is only accessible to those staying in Sky Class suites. The only way to extend your Sky Class amenities to your adult children would be to add them to your stateroom (or have them book a separate Sky Class stateroom).

From what I understand, the maximum and minimum age requirements are set by the excursion tour company, likely due to insurance coverage. Age restrictions are really the only restrictions that Royal can enforce by prohibiting the ability to book (unlike height and weight which are up to the individual to acknowledge whether or not they meet the criteria). On our recent Southern Caribbean Cruise, I ran into this issue with tours in Trinidad and Tobago that had maximum age of 60 - I could not book my parents on those tours through the Royal website. Some of the tours had a physical element to them, but they also had age restrictions on sightseeing and birdwatching tours. We ended up booking tours independently, rather than through Royal.

Hello, welcome to Cruise Critic! I have not sailed with a service animal, but I offer my assistance in leading you to other people who have.... Magically.Mozart on Instagram sailed with her service dog on Harmony of the Seas last year: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cufu4LqtvgU/ I opted for just the single service dog relief spot on the jogging track but an additional sod box on the balcony was available if pre-requested 30 days prior. Cruising With Wheels on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLvKay70Fuo Us and More on Youtube sailed with a service dog on Serenade of the Seas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cEG-TFFmzU

I'd say it depends on your risk tolerance. Depending on what credit card you used to book, you may already have some trip insurance covered. Definitely look into the trip insurance/purchase protection plan for your credit card so you understand what coverage you already have. Trip cancellation coverage would reimburse you for prepaid, nonrefundable expenses if the tour operator goes out of business or you have to cancel due to a covered reason outlined in your policy (your illness, illness/death of family member, natural disaster). You may also look into trip interruption insurance and trip delay coverage. You do not need to purchase travel insurance through Royal Caribbean - there are many independent travel insurance providers who can offer more customizable coverage.

I agree that the drink package price on Royal is pretty steep. Once you hit Diamond C&A and get the 4 free drinks per day, it's even harder to justify the additional cost of the drink package. Why so steep? The pricing makes me think that Royal wants to discourage people from buying it....

Thank you!! Ambassador for Star Class - I'm flattered! (pssst... RCCL, do you hear that?😉)

No, I wouldn't say that I've experienced better bar service with or without the drink package.

I've done the escape room on the Harmony, and I would not recommend it. If you're a fan of escape rooms, this will be a disappointment. If you've never done an escape room before and this is your first, you'll probably wonder why people even enjoy escape rooms. The escape room on Harmony is just one room, and they send you in with a group of 12 people (most escape rooms max out at 6-8 people per group). Also, the crew member stays with you in the room the entire time (usually, in escape rooms, they watch you on security cameras and can PA into your room if you need hints or are doing something wrong that may break the room). When we did it, we were a group of four adults, and we were paired with two other families that had children, so we couldn't really participate because we had to let the kids try and solve everything first. We ended up not escaping from the room, but I was super glad to get out of there because an hour locked in the room watching other people's children attempt to solve puzzles was not very fun.

I had a feeling this thread was going to get moved from the Royal Caribbean forum to the San Juan, PR forum, so just wanted to clarify.