Just of Symphony. Observations

[leisuretraveler223]

Greetings all!  Just returned from a great week on Symphony of The Seas.  I thought I'd share some observations here.  I also welcome any questions.

 

Sailed Feb 3-9, hitting Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Kitts.

 

Lucked out weather wise, as it was BEAUTIFUL almost the whole time.  Only real rain was the first half of the day in Nassau, and we were diving, so it was mostly during our bus ride.

 

I'll share my observations in replies.   But the overall conclusion was a fantastic week on a fantastic ship!

[leisuretraveler223]

Boarding:   The new terminal is great!  We were in a loft suite, and boarding was a breeze. In the door, up the stairs and sit down in comfortable sofas.  A woman came by with a tablet, scanned our set sail passes off the app on our phone and we were good to go!  Easy as that! Boarding started right about 10:30 and we were whisked on board no problem.

 

One observation about the new terminal:  The roadway access it a complete CLUSTER!  It is wedged into the edge of the shipping port and the roadway snakes around the garage and backs up quite a bit.  They are busy building the new NCL terminal next to it, and I can only assume once that is done, they are going to completely reimagine the road access.

[leisuretraveler223]

The ship:  This is about the newest ship I have been on. I was on Oasis about the same time and it's a treat to see everything so new.  It is kind of funny, it's most noticeable in port, when you are boarding on deck two and look at the hull and realize there aren't layers and layers of paint on every surface LOL!

 

Obviously highly similar to Oasis and Allure (haven't been on Harmony), but with some noticeable improvements.  Among them, probably the best is the redesign of both the solarium, by incorporating the deck below (14 forward) as well as the new design of the Solarium bistro.  Just a much better layout and use of the space.

 

Being in a loft suite, the biggest game changers are the suite deck and the suite lounge/coastal kitchen.  I don't tend to care for the Diamond lounges/ concierge lounges on other ships as they are often either too cramped, or in a forlorn windowless room somewhere.  But the spacious suite lounge, with great seating and full bar service was outstanding!  

 

Especially appreciated during the superbowl when four of us decided to watch in our suite.  We ordered a bunch of room service from the MDR menu and then made regular visits to the suite lounge to get drinks!

 

The suite deck provides a relaxed haven, particularly on sea days.  With a great mix of sun, shade and breezes.  The bar staff up there was AWESOME!  Never even had to show them a card after day one (we all had the drink package), and they were on top of everything.  The redesign of this deck provides a large open area forward with great views and breezes even if it is a bit underutilized.

[leisuretraveler223]

One change I DON'T like?  The rising tide bar.  The high tops that are on Allure and Oasis are absent on Symphony.  In their place? regular chairs and tables.  The problem with this is the appeal of Rising Tide is looking out over the promenade as you ascend or descend.  With regular chairs, the sight lines are all different, and you are left staring at the railing.  And when it is stopped on the promenade, it just kind of feels weird- you're sitting at a table surrounded by a railing in the middle of a large space with people walking all around.  Maybe I'm just used to the high tops, but this definitely didn't work for me.

[nelblu]

1 hour ago, leisuretraveler223 said:

Greetings all!  Just returned from a great week on Symphony of The Seas.  I thought I'd share some observations here.  I also welcome any questions.

 

Sailed Feb 3-9, hitting Nassau, St. Thomas and St. Kitts.

 

Lucked out weather wise, as it was BEAUTIFUL almost the whole time.  Only real rain was the first half of the day in Nassau, and we were diving, so it was mostly during our bus ride.

 

I'll share my observations in replies.   But the overall conclusion was a fantastic week on a fantastic ship!

 

 

Just a slight nit--sailed on same cruise and the sailing period was Feb. 2-9.

 

Agree with you on the entrance road, however, slightly better than getting in/out of the old terminal.

[leisuretraveler223]

4 minutes ago, nelblu said:

 

 

Just a slight nit--sailed on same cruise and the sailing period was Feb. 2-9.

 

Agree with you on the entrance road, however, slightly better than getting in/out of the old terminal.

LOL! My bad!

 

The roadway is awful.  I sailed out of the new terminal at PC last summer and that has much better traffic flow with the horseshoe driveway around the parking structure.  No one ever has to cross in front of moving traffic there.  I can see why that wasn't possible in Miami, but long term, there must be another solution coming.

[nelblu]

1 hour ago, leisuretraveler223 said:

 

 

Obviously highly similar to Oasis and Allure (haven't been on Harmony), but with some noticeable improvements.  Among them, probably the best is the redesign of both the solarium, by incorporating the deck below (14 forward) as well as the new design of the Solarium bistro.  Just a much better layout and use of the space.

 

Agree, better usage of solarium space layout  with the larger Solarium Bistro and above the Hooked on Seafood restaurant. However, took away shading that was available around and surrounding the bar.

 

Also, noticed two large cavities near forward on deck 5 (running/walk track) on both the aft & starboard side which had table top tennis and shuffleboard games respectively.  Both cavities provided light & allowed you to see the Ocean/Seas via plexiglass.

Edited February 10, 2019 by nelblu

[leisuretraveler223]

One issue I did encounter on Symphony that seemed a bit odd was the fitness center. It was H.O.T. HOT!!!!

 

Kind of strange as I never had that issue on Oasis or Allure.  Hopefully they're still working out the kinks in the system, but it was pretty bad.

[nelblu]

3 minutes ago, leisuretraveler223 said:

One issue I did encounter on Symphony that seemed a bit odd was the fitness center. It was H.O.T. HOT!!!!

 

Kind of strange as I never had that issue on Oasis or Allure.  Hopefully they're still working out the kinks in the system, but it was pretty bad.

 

 

Yes, certain areas on the ship was warm.  Most annoying was the smoke in the Casinos.  Been on Allure & Oasis and never experienced the smoking problem as on Symphony.  I'm sure they've got the same purifications system.  Smelled smoke as soon as I got off the elevators close to the Casinos