Love2cruise2002

This is my attempt to share my experience on the Harmony this past week with a site that has helped me greatly in the past year. Just a bit of background, this was our 9th cruise overall and 6th on RC. We have now sailed all 3 Oasis class ships so there was lots of opportunities for us to make comparisons. We sailed the week of August 19 in a Grand Suite for the first time. We normally book an oceanview balcony cabin but came across a good deal on a GS in early July that we could not pass up. My husband and I arrived in Fort Lauderdale the night before and stayed at the Renaissance Fort Lauderdale Cruise Port hotel on 17th street. Excellent property. Very clean, lots of restaurants nearby, and 5 min by car to the port. They have a shuttle service but we chose to just take a cab. Cab fare was $12 for both of us. We arrived at Terminal 18 in Port Everglades on Saturday around 10am. If you arrive early then check in is a breeze. We had priority boarding with Sky class but I took a good look around the terminal at that time and even regular boarding was moving very quickly. They opened up boarding for the ship at 10:45am. They start with B2B cruisers, then suites and pinnacle members, then they move through crown and anchor levels and finally general boarding. We were on early at 10:45am had a quick coffee in the Promenade cafe and then made our way to the Windjammer around 11:30am. There was still lots of space at that time. After grabbing a quick bite we waited upstairs in the Suite Lounge until our rooms were ready. Rooms were ready by 1pm. On this particular sailing there was technical issue with stage part that they discovered early on embarkation day. This resulted in them having to reschedule all shows in the theatre for the week. So basically Grease and Columbus were shown later on the week and the headliner show and comedian went earlier in the week. The cruise director, Bobby, explained that they did not reschedule those who had made reservations ahead of time because that would result in mass chaos so many were left scrambling to reschedule their dinner reservations to make the new showtimes. This was not really Royal's fault. They could not control the broken part. They flew in a technician from Finland the first chance they got (Day 3) to fix it. However, because of the unfortunate event some people were not able to see everything. Sailing in Sky class we were fortunate because you do not need to make reservations for any shows except the comedy show. Over the week we ate mainly in Coastal Kitchen, Park Cafe, Windjammer, Mini Bites. We tried Jamie's and Wonderland and also made it to the MDR once for lunch on the last day. Overall food was great. No complaints. We loved Coastal Kitchen. The quality of food and service there was beyond excellent. The view there is spectacular. Park Cafe was great for breakfast. Not too busy even on sea days. Windjammer was a zoo but the food was ok. Mini bites was a favourite for a quick snack. Wonderland was definitely something to be tried once for the experience of it all. Very creative presentation and pairing of food. Food was good but I don't think we would need to try it again. Jamie's was wonderful. Food was very tasty, pasta was cooked perfectly. Also worth the extra charge. We never tried room service so I cannot comment on that. My husband tried all the slides and rock climbing and the lines moved well for these activities. The shows on this ship are top notch and I am comparing with the shows on the Allure and Oasis. This ship did it the best. Crew members, waitstaff, and bartenders were always friendly in public areas. Our room attendant was one of the best ones we have had ever. And the crew in Coastal Kitchen and the Suite Lounge went well and above expectations every day. Overall the ship never really felt busy except when leaving shows. This was a full sailing with about 1800 kids and the crowds were well managed. Disembarkation was quick. We went from ship to customs to cab in less than 30min with priority disembarkation. The other lines were long but moving steadily. So to sum it up I feel that Harmony is the best of all 3 Oasis class ships. It's almost like they took what they learned from the Allure and Oasis and made it better. Harmony is a beautiful ship. Well maintained and always clean. The decor is more modern than the other Oasis ships. If you have the opportunity to upgrade do not hesitate. My husband was on the fence about our upgrade but after this week even he can agree that the extra suite benefits are worth the extra cost. I am sure I am forgetting a lot. Feel free to msg and ask more questions. We had the best time this week on the Harmony. It was probably our most favourite cruise so far. It did not disappoint in any way. Cannot wait to try Symphony! 😊