My View: Harmony of the Seas - 8 days of semi-live tips & too many pics!

[APDMOM]

2 hours ago, George C said:

Hi we seem to have similar taste in cruises, enjoyed meeting you and your family on last years navigator cruise, we sail next week on the oasis and also doing msc yacht club on seaside next November. 

Hi, George! 

 

We remember you very well!  Enjoy Oasis!  We did the “cruise budget thing” for MSC.  We opted for 14 days in a Bella experience, rather than 7 days in the yacht club.  I am sure the yacht club is great!  We just prefer more days at sea on a budget.  Hope to catch you on a ship again sometime!  🙂 

 

If you run into Wilson, tell him we said hi!  André still loves that Christmas lights suit! 😁

[APDMOM]

Our morning:

 

We avoid the mad dash for the islands by enjoying time on the ship.  Like our St Thomas day, we spent time walking around the ship, playing mini golf, and swimming.

 

 

Mini golf with a view!

[APDMOM]

Port Zante, St Kitts:

 

We always get a great bargain at this store in the port...  

 

Tip:  If you like tropical shirts, this store has the best prices in the Caribbean for Rima shirts (Best quality we have found for a low price).  They sell them for $10 each, or 3 for $25!  Beware... don’t fall for the knock off “Rema”.  Look for Rima with an “i”.  🙂

 

 

Most of the tropical shirts DH and DS wear are Rima.  Here is one of my new finds of the day:

 

Walking around port...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 16, 2018 by APDMOM
typo

[APDMOM]

Evening views of St Kitts, from the ship:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Seeing the Pilot means another great day on our cruise is coming to an end:

 

 

[GigiK]

Thank you so much for sharing your trip with us. Going on Harmony this summer, and our room is Deck 7, aft and port as well. Don't know whether the bed is by the door or closet. Hard to say which we would prefer - by the balcony for sleeping, but by the closet during the day! Also, we have been looking at going on the Sunshine because it sails out of Charleston sometimes, which is so much closer for us, so loved seeing them side by side. Thanks again - we can't wait!

Edited November 16, 2018 by GigiK

[Tee & Chilli]

Thank you for the tour information.

[JamesEM]

In your photos I did not see any of the men in green shirts with the monkeys that were all over the place this past Nov., are they still there?  

[perfect match]

8 hours ago, Tee & Chilli said:

Another excellent review by ADPMOM. Are there any tour operators at the port in St. Kitts offering reasonable priced island tours? The cruise planner has $29 per person for a 2 hour drive.

 

Thank you

 

5 hours ago, APDMOM said:

Hi, Tee & Chilli!  

 

Thank you for following along. I did not find out about pricing in St. zkitts.  However, the tour that Thenford Grey offers is the same I had done through the cruiseline.  I paid a lot more than it would have cost through Thenford.  I will highly recommend that tour, which stops at Caribelle Batik and the Brimstone Fortress.  Also, Thenford comes highly recommended by all here on CC.  

 

If you are not interested in that option, I am sure you can get a $10 to $20 tour in the port for the 2 hours.  I would just be careful in St. Kitts to find a reputable company.  Maybe look at Tripadvisor.  🙂

 

Hope this helps!

 

Tee & Chilli, I would definitely second ADPMOM's recommendation of Thenford Grey's tour. We toured with him the last time we visited St Kitts. We had an excellent day, and very much enjoyed our tour. We would absolutely tour with him again.

[Tee & Chilli]

My mom cannot walk distances. We toured Caribelle Batik a few years ago. I hope we’re able to find a scenic drive. Thank you 

[APDMOM]

4 hours ago, JamesEM said:

In your photos I did not see any of the men in green shirts with the monkeys that were all over the place this past Nov., are they still there?  

 

Hi, JamesEM!  

Yes, they are still there.  I can not believe they escaped my camera lens 😁 

[APDMOM]

Day 5 Dinner Mishap:

 

It was our intention to have dinner in the Solarium Bistro again.  We thought we had reservations for 5:30 p.m.  When we showed up, there was a private function.  

 

Tip:  Learn from our experience 🙂 The best way to make a booking for dinner is on the app.  When you make it directly with the restaurant, it only shows on their spreadsheet, not on your Royal iQ calendar.  If you make it through the app, or online before you board, it shows up in your app.  It is easier to track all reservations that way.

 

Note to Royal:

It would be great if the app could be set up to customize the calendar, so that we can manually input spa appointments and activities that are not on the Compass. 🙂 A girl can dream.

 

Due to my hearing loss, I did not want to go to the MDR, so I grabbed something from the Windjammer, while DS and DH went to the MDR.  It was finally my chance to splurge on the CHEEEZZZY Mac ‘n’ cheese in the Windjammer, which I love!  After my quick dinner, I had some quiet “me” time in Central Park.  I found the perfect little nook to relax with a “fake” cosmo (the cheap diamond version).  It also had a nice view of the promenade:

 

 

[APDMOM]

Favorite Show: Columbus! The Musical

 

This was our night to see Columbus.  This ended up on our top 3 list of favorite cruise shows, in 29 cruises.  The musical talent, stage, and lights were spectacular!  The comedy was excellent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michele described some of the interesting facts about the show to us, including that the ship on the stage weighs 5 tons.  It is also only a few feet shorter than one of the  original Columbus ships (I believe it was the Niña).  

[APDMOM]

Seating in the Theater:

 

We thought we had found some great box seats on deck 5 in the theater, but it turned out to be a poor choice (green arrow).  There is a bar right in the middle of your visual field, so I had to sit forward in my seat the whole time.  

 

There are a couple of great options for families, the best being by the blue arrows.  On deck 5, they have booths with a table.  It is a bit far back, but a popular option(blue arrow).

 

There are also two areas far removed from others, at the edges of deck 5.  There are 4 soft chairs, and it is easy to slip out if you have a young child.  The view is from the side of the stage, but DH went to sit there for a minute, and could see the whole stage, including the backdrop (yellow arrow).

 

 

[APDMOM]

My View... End of day 5.

 

[crusinpeg]

Was there a charge for breakfast at Johnny Rockets?

 

Also enjoying your review very much..have been on the Allure and Oasis but Harmony will be new to us.

[accio_7]

1 hour ago, crusinpeg said:

Was there a charge for breakfast at Johnny Rockets?

 

Breakfast at Johnny Rockets is included in the cost of your cruise fare aboard Oasis-class ships. 

[crusinpeg]

30 minutes ago, accio_7 said:

 

Breakfast at Johnny Rockets is included in the cost of your cruise fare aboard Oasis-class ships. 

Excellent! Thanks for the quick reply.

 

[PhoenixCruiser]

Really enjoying your review!

 

Do you use an app for the name stamp on your photos?

[APDMOM]

50 minutes ago, PhoenixCruiser said:

Really enjoying your review!

 

Do you use an app for the name stamp on your photos?

 

Yes, I use Skitch... However, I may need to look for something easier.  With Skitch I have to stamp every one individually, including typing the word.  Thanks for asking!  It made me think there must be something less time consuming out there. 🙂

[APDMOM]

My View: Day 6 - San Juan

 

[PhoenixCruiser]

Thanks, the one I'm looking at is OnShot

[APDMOM]

Day 6: Cruise Compass

 

 

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

Morning Views - Early Sunrise

 

 

[APDMOM]

Views sailing into San Juan - A Hazy Start

 

 

 

 

 

 

[APDMOM]

Coast Guard playing soccer:

 

 

 

 

Another McAllister?