Gators77

Headliner I believe was Earl Turner. 1887 was OK, we actually enjoyed iSkate better. And Columbus was average. We never left any of their shows and were like "wow". The Fine Line was good, but their sound system left a lot to be desired.

I am sorry for your unfortunate experience. We were also on this sailing and did not find the same issues. However, we rarely eat in the main dining room as my children prefer other choices. Of the two nights we did eat in the main dining room one was better than the other as far as the service was concerned. The cabin steward was amazing and we enjoyed our cruise immensely.

Did you guys visit a beach in St Maarten? Curious to know how your experience was and which one you went to. We loved Labadee over St Maarten hands down and we definitely thought it would be the other way around.

Thanks for your review of Harmony. It's a shame you were disappointed in your cruise. I too am surprised as we also had an entirely different experience and service was superb. I have sailed Princess and Disney also and I don't recall their food being any better or worse than RCCL (but food is subjective). We enjoyed Harmony so much we have two more sailings booked on her!

It's been a while since we've done Princess but we remember their food being the best of the 3. The shows on Disney were much better than RCL too. We didn't care for Grease or the Headliner Show at all. The Fine Line was good, but the sound issue was really distracting and disapponting.

I am sorry for your unfortunate experience. We were also on this sailing and did not find the same issues. However, we rarely eat in the main dining room as my children prefer other choices. Of the two nights we did eat in the main dining room one was better than the other as far as the service was concerned. The cabin steward was amazing and we enjoyed our cruise immensely.

The cabin steward was very good. But nothing over the top that gave a "wow" factor. The main dining room on night 6 was excellent and night 5 with the Lobster tails was very good. My kids also preferred Windjammer to the MDR. The Boardwalk dogs was a disappointment as well as Sorrento's Pizza as they both just served the exact pizza and hot dogs that you could get at Windjammer. They did have some extra sausage options.

Also bringing water bottles on board is no problem at all. The drinks at Windjammer especially their Iced Tea tasted terrible. The lemonade was below average as well.

What cabin were you in? Thanks

10692, easy access to aft elevators too!

We just got back from our 7 day Eastern Caribbean sailing to St. Maarten, San Juan, and Labadee. We had a oceanview balcony on the 10th floor aft starboard side. I wanted to share our experience of things we wish we knew before sailing.

First off, we were very happy with the Starboard side. We had the best views at all 3 ports compared to the Port Side of the ship(they just looked at water), we got to see the towns and water. I'll start with the ports. St. Maarten still looks heavily devastated, we took the advice we read on here to go to Mullet Bay with our kids, ages 5, 11, and 14. What a MISTAKE! Mullet Bay is a horrible choice for young kids. There are so many rocks at the beginning of the water's edge. There's a steep cliff from where you can get beach chairs to where the water is. The waves were very strong and big that day. Thankfully we didn't waste money on an excursion, just grabbed a taxi, $18 per person roundtrip. Beach Umbrella and 2 chairs - $15. A smarter option would have been to just take the water taxi at the port for $7 per person roundtrip to the beach that you can see from the port. It certainly couldn't have been any worse and would have been cheaper. Maho Beach is deff not for kids. There are no beach chairs, and minimal beach area. Older teens and adults may go for the thrill of the planes and for drinking, but deff not a family atmosphere.

San Juan was very enjoyable. We walked from the ship to one of the forts. We enjoyed seeing the town, buying some souvenirs and visiting the fort. Definitely get there for when it opens at 9, as it gets crowded.

Labadee surprised us. After reading so many negative reviews on here, it pleasantly surprised us. Their beach was so much nicer than St. Maarten. Nellie's Beach is by far the best beach to with kids. We hopped on the tractor trolley at the 1st stop and takes you right there. Across the way is the kids splash area that is enjoyable as well. The water was so calm, no rocks to have to deal with to get in and out of the water, and beach chairs were free. We got some in the shade and were set. We rented a float for $20 that the kids loved to float on.

Now moving on to the ship experience. By far the #1 disappointment was the food, especially the main dining room. We had 1st seating reservations. The first night, nobody was at the door greeting you and helping you find the table. You had to seek out someone for direction. While the servers were nice, they were nowhere to be found at the beginning of the meal sometimes. It also took over an hour some nights just for dinner to appear. But we did find if we told them we had a 7:30pm show to make, they expedited things for us. The quality of the food was very disappointing. My son's children's menu has something they call a "Minute Steak". It is literally the exact same cut of meat served on the adult menu for their Steak Diane, Beef Strip Loin, and NY Strip Steak. The piece of meat is about 1 cm thick. The night we were hoping for Filet Mignon, beef tenderloin, it was served as 3 thin sliced pieces of tenderloin. They couldn't even afford to serve a piece of Filet Mignon for dinner one night. If you wanted that, apparently you have to pay the $16.95 upcharge. One adult in our party tried it one night, and it deff was not worth the money. Had much better at steakhouses back home. We've sailed both Princess and Disney before, and both of their dinner menus surpass RC and it's not even close.

Pool slides close at 7pm. That was another disappointment as the kids hoped to use the slides in the evening/night. Our Fine Line show we had tickets to was stopped 5 minutes into it due to "technical difficulties". When we went to see it another night during the cruise, the sound system was so bad it kept cutting and fading in and out.

We definitely recommend getting a balcony as there are very few parts of the ship(other than the pool area or buffet) that you are frequently on where you can see the ocean. We were very glad we had a oceanview balcony room.

As far as the pool areas go, if you want a chair in a prime location, I recommend throwing a towel on it at 7am like everyone else does. They do not enforce their "30 minute policy". All the good chairs are gone by 9am. When we questions a worker on the pool deck, they stated their policy, but nothing was done about it. You have to just "play the game" apparently.

We picked the Harmony because of all the amenities the ship has on it for both kids and adults. Unfortunately it didn't quite live up to the hype, and the overall service and friendliness of the staff on board didn't match what we've previously received on both Disney and Princess.

has anyone recently tried connecting to the Royal wifi and putting their phone in airplane mode and having it work?

We are on the Harmony now and the messages just stay stuck in sending. Is there a password that needs to be mentioned? It was said on here that you can use iMessage for free but it doesn't seem to be working anymore.

Does anyone know if there's snow cones on the Harmony of the Seas? Also, someone mentioned about them maybe being available in Old San Juan?

Most likely.

Is ESPN a station that you get in your stateroom? Was hoping to watch the College World Series next week.

Two twin beds that your steward will make up either together or separate. Just let them know. They come out to just under a king when together.

 

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Is this something you should do ahead of time over the phone and have it noted on the reservation or just let the cabin steward know on the 1st day?

If someone orders a soda in the MDR at lunch or dinner and does not have a beverage package, is it served in a can or in a glass from the fountain? Do you get free refills? What is the cost?

Trying to see if the soda pkg is worth getting for us. Thanks!!

What are the choices of bed configuration in the room on a 2 person cabin on the Harmony? Are they two beds that can be separated or pushed together? What size are they if together vs separate?

Has anyone ordered the savoury bites on the 1st night in the MDR? It's supposedly some type of sampling of breads thatt have to be ordered a day in advance. Is it available on all ships? We will be on the Harmony.

My go to RCCL dessert!

Can you still order that even if it's not on the kids dessert menu?

You need to bring towels, they are not provided on Labadee. You can use the ship's pool towels.

How about the other ports of call? Like at St. Maarten for example, can we take pool towels off the ship to use at the beach as long as we bring them back?

Thanks!

Lobster night is the second formal night so night 5!! Glad you're liking the review thank you so much!! :)

 

 

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Thanks for all the great info you've shared. We leave on 6/23 for our Harmony cruise, same itinerary. Did you visit the casino, is it a smoke-free casino? If not, how bad is the smell on this ship?

Also, do you remember what the cost of the bingo games were?

Someone mentioned they were able to sign a waiver to have their 11 1/2 year old be with their sibling in the 12-14 group. Is that something they allow if there is room?

Can kids also order from the adult menu if they prefer something on there?

Can someone help explain how the kids clubs work on the Harmony? What age groups are the children broken up into. I have a 11 and 5 year old that were hoping to be able to spend some time together in the kids club. Do they allow siblings to be together or is it strictly based on age?

Do they have any "open house" times where parents can go into the kids clubs with their younger ones?

This is a common complaint about Columbus Cove. However, if you want to avoid the aggressive vendors, there is an alternative path which is actually shorter and bypasses the market. From the main strip where the trams travel, go to Nellies beach and stay to the left (facing the water). When you get close to the shore there is a path that goes under the water slide and directly to Columbus Cove. There are a few stairs to climb so it is not wheelchair accessible, but it is short, easy, and it avoids the vendors. The path takes you to a beach area close to the pier for the Aqua Park and far away from the vendors. They are not allowed to come out to sell to you on the beach.

To take this alternative path, do you recommend walking, using the ferry in the morning, or using the tram?

What part of the beach is the Aqua Park located? Does anyone know how much it costs per child?

Grand Case or Mullet Bay? We leave in 2 weeks. Which would be best for kids ages 5 and 11?

It works only on Quantum class ships and Harmony due to a hole in the ship's filtering mechanism. No telling when it may be fixed, but right now you just connect to the Royal WiFi service and iMessage works. No login or VOOM required.

Ok thanks. We leave on 6/23 so hopefully it will still work. Just to verify, put phone on airplane mode and connect to the Royal wifi service for free and iMessage works? Am I able to use the Royal IQ app to view the daily activities for free too?

Yes.

Is mini bites the only location on the ship that does made to order omelettes?

Are guests allowed to bring their own bottled water on board?