Harmony & Me Live - Eastern 11/25 to 12/2

[h20skibum]

The rain was pretty constant, but it did taper off long enough for us to spend a little time in the water. 

 

The advantage of the rain, was it cleared out the loungers. Even st 2:00, there is no sun.  

 

What is a little rain when you are going to be wet anyway. 

 

 

[h20skibum]

At this point, we decided to go back aboard the ship, and spend the rest of the afternoon in a hot tub.  Many others had the same idea, as the rain continued. 

 

I think this was the first time I was on a ship that left port, before the all aboard time.  All aboard was 5:30, and we left the dock at 5:20. Evidently, everyone else got back onboard early too. 

[h20skibum]

3 hours ago, CruiseMomTX said:

Enjoying the review!  We just booked the Harmony for January, the two of us and my parents.  My dad has some mobility issues and we will get a wheelchair.  We have the same ports, St. Maarten, San Juan & Labadee and all are new ones for us if anyone has recommendations that would be easy for my dad.  He can walk but not for a long time and uneven pavement/ground/sand is  hard for him.  Maybe resort pool days?  Can you take a power strip, no surge protector, onboard?  Would appreciate any must do's eats etc. onboard.  Have fun!!

 

I will try to answer a few things here, but if anyone else wants to add, please feel free.  We are all here to help answer questions. 

 

First, about the power strips. They are not allowed, but they really are not needed. The nice thing about Harmony is, there are enough outlets and usb charging ports.  I had even taken a foreign converter, thinking I would use it to gain an extra outlet, but I didn’t need it. 

 

As far as the must do’s, make sure you book the comedy show if you haven’t already.  It fills up fast, and there is always a long standby line.  

 

We liked Grease, and Columbus. The shows in the Aquatheatre are always amazing.  We found the music a little edgy, as well as the productions.  

 

If you have never been on an Oasis class ship before, you will find there is more to do and see, than you will have time to do. It all depends on your likes.   You can probably see the daily activities on the Royal Caribbean app now, since they just added Harmony, and did away with the Royal IQ app.  I think our sailing was the last for IQ. 

 

Do try the MDR for lunch one day.  You may also want to try a specialty restaurant.  We didn’t do them on this cruise, but we always like Chops. 

 

As far as the ports, Labadee should be easy.  Royal runs trams and carts from the pier, and all around the area.  I seem to recall seeing wheelchairs with beach wheels too.  You may want to check on it, once you are onboard. 

 

For San Juan, look at what things may interest you.  There is a lot of history in the old city.  They do have a free hop on / hop off tram that operates in the old city. Some of the places may not be accessible, so be aware of that. 

 

In St. Maarten, there is much to see.  There is a large shopping area at the pier, and you could take the water taxi to Phillipsburg. One trip, we just got a taxi at the pier and had them give us an island tour and drop us at Orient beach for a few hours.  Parts of the island are still rebuilding, so there may be some traffic delays when you venture out. Just leave time to get back to the ship. 

 

Maybe someone else can add to this, especially if someone has experience with mobility issues. 

 

Enjoy your trip. 

 

[h20skibum]

2 hours ago, luv2sailAgain said:

Thanks for the review! 

 

Thanks for following. I hope to finish before CC goes off line this weekend. 

[JMTtor]

Thanks for the tip on the new Royal Caribbean app. I just downloaded it, and it’s the best cruise app I’ve seen across several different lines.

 

Question: the app lists Cruise Critic meet & greet on both day two and day three at 9:45A in Dazzles. Are there really two, or do they just not have the particular day picked for our cruise which is still a few weeks away? 

[h20skibum]

2 hours ago, JMTtor said:

Question: the app lists Cruise Critic meet & greet on both day two and day three at 9:45A in Dazzles. Are there really two, or do they just not have the particular day picked for our cruise which is still a few weeks away? 

 

On the western itinerary, there is only one sea day before you are at port, so those are on the first sea day. 

 

On the eastern, there are two sea days before port.  Ours was on the second sea day.  If your sailing is eastern, the only way you will know, is they will deliver an invitation to your cabin the night before. 

[h20skibum]

We spent the evening, after dinner, shopping on deck 5.  We didn’t have our sea passes with us, so I tried using the wow band to make a purchase. We had mainly used them for access to our cabin. 

 

They encountered a problem in reading mine, so they had to try Susan’s, and it worked. I did notice other people having the same problem.  I guess my feelings are mixed about them. You can’t use them to get on and off the ship, and they don’t always work for other things, but they worked for the cabin door. 

 

Everyone is at the sale. 

 

[h20skibum]

We decided to take in the late night showing of Hideaway Heist at the Aquatheatre. 

 

Here is a quick tip.  You can see the shows from the balcony on deck 7.  You don’t need reservations to watch from here.  Just go to deck 7, walk aft, and go thru the glass door. If you are there early enough, there are a half dozen loungers. 

 

 

[h20skibum]

I did film a few periscopes during the cruise, and I did part of this show.  Hope this link works.  It will show a little of the performance. 

 

https://www.pscp.tv/w/buIkxjEzNzU1Mzc5fDFPeUpBeVJ6TVJuSmJ4AQKsH9bFMx8iX83J3SzmeOeGxEjQbsHJ4E7S2tmnWg==

 

 

Our towel animal animal tonight was a peacock 

 

 

Edited December 13, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

I finally made it to the last full day of this Live?  Not quite live? Dead? Whatever review. 

 

Our final sea day is a day for relaxing and enjoying.  We were good, and exercised the entire week.  

 

We went to the solarium for some quiet, and a little sun. We had never had a problem finding loungers in the solarium this cruise. 

 

Today, the place was crawling.  Literally. Not with people, but with ants.  First time I ever saw ants on a cruise. 

 

 

 

I hope they got rid of these by now. 

Edited December 13, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

Time for a lunchtime break.  We still have quite a bit of OBC left on our account, so we are trying to spend it down.  I know, what we have left is refundable, but we try to spend it all. 

 

Susan wanted to go to Johnny Rockets.  We did the free breakfast a couple times during the week, but now she was craving apple pie.  JR’s is the only place you can get apple pie without raisins.  

 

 

 

We actually got one more to go, to take to dinner this evening 

 

Edited December 13, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

The afternoon was for enjoying more pool time, water slides, then getting ready for our last dinner.  

 

Lamb shank was on the menu.  Large and tender, it was done just right. 

 

 

It was time to say goodbye to Rico, our waiter for the week.  I can’t say enough good things about him.  In all of our cruises, we both agree, he was the best we ever had. 

 

If you get a chance to choose a waiter, ask for him.  You will not regret it.

Edited December 13, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

After dinner, our immediate plan was to watch the farewell parade.  I know these get pretty crowded along the parade route, so we decided to head up to the schooner bar for an elevated view. 

 

Many people had the same idea, and all the seats along the rail were taken.  We walked all the way back to the bar, and the bar stools were empty, and there was space along the rail there.  We ordered drinks, and asked the bartender if we could move our stools.  Along the rail gave us a perfect view of the parade, and also of several altercations, as people jockeyed for position below. 

 

We got in place around 7:00 for the 7:45 parade start. 

 

A few still photos from from the parade. 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 14, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

I also did a periscope for a portion of the parade.  I was new to doing scopes, so I don’t know how well any of these turned out.   I was filming with an iPhone 6S.

 

Not sure how long they keep the links active, but here is the one for the parade.

 

https://www.pscp.tv/w/buGc3TEzNzU1Mzc5fDFqTUpnT2F5d21PSkwhR-KJB9fPcSiJ0daU7F9q6kXBtR7kbYrXfp10VZBVcw==

 

To hear the sound on these, I guess you have to tap on the video, and select the unmute button.  At least it is that way on an iPad.

Edited December 14, 2018 by h20skibum

[skiierx131]

23 hours ago, h20skibum said:

The rain was pretty constant, but it did taper off long enough for us to spend a little time in the water. 

 

The advantage of the rain, was it cleared out the loungers. Even st 2:00, there is no sun.  

 

What is a little rain when you are going to be wet anyway.

Right on both accounts! The rain cleared almost everyone out, but I just grabbed my drink and went into the water. It was warmer in there.

[h20skibum]

3 hours ago, skiierx131 said:

Right on both accounts! The rain cleared almost everyone out, but I just grabbed my drink and went into the water. It was warmer in there.

 

Now that sounds like an excellent plan.

[h20skibum]

After the parade, we went to see the family friendly comedy show in the theatre.  No need to have reservations for this show.

 

Both comedians we had on this cruise were great.  Jim David, and A.J. Jamal both had good routines.  Look them up online if you want to see some of their material.

 

We had seen them earlier in the week for the adult show.  I don’t think I mentioned that we had front row seats for that show.   Those in the few front rows will always get picked on during their act.  In fact, A. J. drug me up on stage, and compared me to one of the BeeGees.  I still don’t know if that is a good thing or a bad thing, because two out of three are no longer with us.

 

After the show, we head to the cabin.

 

Our alcohol has been delivered

 

 

We found our heart in the cabin

 

 

All of this means our cruise is drawing to a close.

Edited December 14, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

Disembark day has arrived.  We go to Starbucks to get lattes to go with some of the treats we stashed in the room, so we would not have to fight the breakfast crowds.

 

A word about Starbucks.  You can use the app on your phone to pay, but if you have any rewards, you cannot use those.  Expect to pay about a buck more for items onboard.

 

I know, everyone wants to know if I will go to guest services this morning to tell them all goodbye, since we have developed such a bond on this cruise.

[h20skibum]

So we get back to our cabin, and I notice all the papers stuffed in the slot by our door.

 

Me:  “That doesn’t look right.  We shouldn’t have that many pages for a final statement.”

 

It looks like our goal to spend down our OBC has succeeded.  They want more money from us.

 

Then I look at what else is in the stack.  A letter telling us to pay the balance on our cash account before 11 p.m. the night before disembarking.  Two problems.  First, it was printed three hours after their deadline, and second, we don’t have a cash account.

 

 

 

So I grab my wallet and credit card and head off to guest services.  The screener is all cheery.

 

Him: “How is you morning? Can I help you with something?”

 

Me: “My morning was okay, until I found this letter about a cash account.  I don’t have a cash account.  What about the three times I handed over my credit card during the check-in screwup?”

 

Him: “You will have to see someone at the counter.”

 

So now I am released from the line and meet another guest services representative.  This is now the fifth different one I have had during this cruise, although a couple I met with more than one time.

 

Their explanation was that obviously, the card did not register properly during embarkation.  So they took the card and charged the balance so we would now be able to get off the ship.  I am glad I looked through the papers before heading off the ship.  Otherwise, security would have probably grabbed us for trying to skip out on the bill.

 

Edited December 14, 2018 by h20skibum

[h20skibum]

We had chosen to do the self disembark, and if we were rushing to get off and make an early flight, this extra encounter with guest services would have only added to the stress.

 

We were staying in Florida for an extra day, and flying out the following morning, so we weren’t rushed.  We have found that flights are expensive when many ships are disembarking, and that rooms are cheap, as are flights early the next day.  The choice is, fly home to the cold, or for about the same price, stay in the warm and fly out the next day.

 

Now we are late enough in the disembark process that the Customs mobile passport is working.  This is the first cruise that it has worked, because it is usually not running during self assist.  I am filling it out as I walk through the line and hit the submit button to get my receipt.  Just then, they say I can put it away, and they usher us through the checkpoint.

 

And with that, we are off the ship and on our way to our hotel.

[h20skibum]

As we take our cab to the hotel, I keep looking for the post-cruise survey.  Nothing in my email.  Then Susan gets one.  Maybe it was because she was the only one who was supposed to be on this cruise. 😬

 

So I tell her, I am going to help you fill that out.  And don’t say anything about them sticking this strange guy in the cabin with you. 

 

I always fill out the post cruise survey, and give them an honest rating for everything.  Our waiter and our cabin steward both received well earned 10’s.  However, guest services for this cruise was at the other end of the spectrum.  Granted, they tried to help, but when you have to go as many times as I did to straighten out problems not of my creation, something should have been triggered. I know they record each encounter, because each new person I dealt with made note of my prior contacts with others.  

 

The problem with the survey is, they  don’t give enough space to expand on the reason for your low ratings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[h20skibum]

I know some have asked if Royal did anything for us, and I guess the short answer is “No, not yet”

 

No one onboard treated our experience as any big problem, and I am not the type to complain and demand a free cruise or something.  

 

What I did do, after returning home, was to contact both the Crown and Anchor representative and the guest relations department.  I sent guest relations a detailed narrative of the check-in and subsequent problems related to it. I included copies of the three setsail passes, the five seapass cards, and the cards from five different guest services representatives I dealt with. 

 

My main purpose in contacting them was to detail the problems encountered so they could determine what went wrong, and address it so no one else would have to deal with what I did.  

 

I didn’t demand anything, but indicated I would welcome some additional OBC on a cruise we have booked for July, if they agreed our inconveniences warranted anything. 

 

I did receive an email a little over a week ago, that they are looking into it.  

 

I will do some follow up posts once I have some response. 

 

In the meantime, don’t let my experience frighten you.  Just make sure you take all your booking and confirmation documents.  If problems crop up, make the best of them, and don’t let them ruin your vacation. We eventually got to a point of making a game of “What can go wrong next?”

 

My final thoughts will probably not be until after CC is back up after the weekend. 

[beachys]

Was one formal night more formal than the other?  The last time we cruised with two formal nights the second one was more formal. 

Thanks! 

[h20skibum]

3 hours ago, beachys said:

Was one formal night more formal than the other?  The last time we cruised with two formal nights the second one was more formal. 

Thanks! 

 

Didn’t really notice a difference between the two.   Maybe half dressed decently both nights.  Many of the ladies were dressed in nice cocktail dresses or gowns.  I don’t recall seeing any other tuxes either night.

 

We didn’t keep ours on for long the first formal night, since we had reservations for the Aquatheatre, and wanted something more casual for that show.

 

The second formal night, we stayed dressed in formal wear, since we were at the ice show, and I could give Susan my tux jacket if she got cold.

[GigiK]

On 12/12/2018 at 10:10 AM, h20skibum said:

 

Thank you. I only hope your check in goes smoothly.  You will have the new app on your sailing. 

 

Thank you for your review. All the reservation problems have me a little worried now - I know I would have been more flustered than you were to not have everything settled  when I got on the ship. We will make sure to take all documentation with us. Have always taken the basics, but might might not have thought we would need to prove the pre-purchased packages or excursions. Also, do you know if the new App better than the old and did they say they were putting the new app on Harmony in January? Right now our reservation shows up on the app, but it says not available on our ship (Harmony!)

 

Thank you for all the information!