Big Ship Big Fun
Harmony of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern
Contributor Level:
Third Mate
Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Reviews: 2
Helpful Votes: 41
7 Night Eastern Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)
Sail date: June 09, 2019
Ship: Harmony of the Seas
Cabin type: Inside
Cabin number: 8441
Traveled as: Family (older children)
Reviewed: 5 years ago
Review summary
We had a wonderful time and booked our next cruise through NextCruise for next April! We chose to do a smaller ship for next time just because this larger ship really does seem more targeted for families with small children and large groups. We didn't need all the "extras" but we did enjoy what extras we wanted to experience!Embarkation
There wasn't much of a "Hooplah" when the ship began sailing away from port. I did not get the "sail away party" vibe I got from previous cruises, which was surprising since it was a larger ship that more "hooplah" could've been done on.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Food was awesome from beginning to end. There wasn't an Omelette station like other ships, but they did have a fried egg station and pre-made omelettes to save on long lines. Wonderland was amazing! I had the experience years ago on Quantum of the Seas and this time was just as impressive-if not more. I didn't personally care for the tomato water, but my group loved it. I wasn't very impressed with the selections available for Mexican Night at the WJ as they do not serve corn tortillas for the enchiladas and tacos and I couldn't eat the flour ones due to gluten avoidance preference (for a medical condition). The pre-made nachos were soggy. I liked that the ship offered mini-bites and a variety of other places to have snacks and alternate food varieties, including gluten-free pizza at Sorrentos. It would've been nice to have been able to order appetizers a la cart at the Sabor bar while watching sports without the whole $20pp fee. Sabor has AMAZING drinks and an awesome Bartender (Yoshi). The Lavender Daiquiri at the Schooner bar was also delicious. On other (smaller) ships, I was able to order Mocha Lattes with my breakfast at the Main Dining hall but on this ship/sailing, they stated they could not do it. This was disappointing and the coffee was sour that day. I had the ultimate drink package therefore I ordered plenty and often, a variety of drinks. Areas to improve: they could've had more soda fountains throughout such a large ship. I hardly had any soda because of this (but that is probably a good thing). The bar in the WJ was in the beginning of ONE side of the buffet which is a LONG walk if entering in from the other side (or the side it's on is closed) and wanting specialty coffee/OJ with breakfast.
Onboard Activities
I mostly accessed the gym/fitness center. As much as I'd like to rate 5 stars, unfortunately it reeked of cigarette smoke due to the "poor ventilation" of the ship design. The staff smoke area apparently is venting into the fitness center. It was pretty bad and some moments/areas worse than others. The pool areas were nice and it was convenient to have the children separate from the adult/sport pool. There was opportunity to get a lounge chair throughout the day if paying attention. The weather effected the ability to enjoy/participate the rock climbing wall and flow-riders. The Abyss was a very short trip down the slide, spent more time in line waiting for mat deliveries! The water slides were fun but literally couldn't have any jewelry or anything on you so you had to leave it behind (like the Abyss as well) and hope nobody took off with your belongings (staff wouldn't watch it, no lockers, no cubbies, etc.).
Entertainment
We saw Grease on night 1 and The Fine Line on night 3 and both were amazing! I hadn't seen an off-broadway show before on my previous cruises so I was ecstatic to get reservations early on this time. We saw another water show towards the end of the cruise which was fun and light-hearted. Very talented performers! Harmony has a lot more nightlife entertainment than the smaller ships I've been on, even Quantum, with great DJ/song selections. It did seem like there was a standard/predictable music list formula that the DJ worked from (early 90s, late 80s to start, move to some R&B, some 70s early 80s, 90s again, hip hop, 2000s, to current). I felt like I was dancing to the same playlist a few times at different venues (same DJ) but we did dance nearly every night of the cruise so repeats were bound to happen. Also! Our assistant-waiter performed magic tricks every night which was a lot of fun.
Children's Programs
No children
Service and Staff
Our waiters were phenomenal and we were all impressed with how attentive they all were. Our room steward was very good, and I really cannot complain about the service he provided. However, I am used to having a towel animal to look forward to every night, and we got 3 made out of a 7 night cruise. We even gave him a tip with "towel animal extraordinaire" and cartoons on the envelope and still didn't get one the night of disembarkation. We still rated him highly on the official review and tipped him well, but expected more.
Ship Quality
The Fitness center smelled like cigarettes from being around the designated staff smoking area venting into it. I liked that the running track was below deck and not on top where people would site-see and walk around crowding it up. There were staff cleaning and maintaining the ship throughout the cruise and staff on pool deck squeegee-ing the standing water off to keep thing dry.
Cabin / Stateroom
It was an ideal size and just what we needed. We assumed the bed would face towards the door but it didn't.
Ship tip
If you want to have photos taken on formal night, be prepared to stand in longer than usual lines. Book any shows pre/post dinner with plenty of time to accommodate the long wait.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
We went to Cocoa Beach after the cruise was over for an extra day of beach time. It was good. There was more seaweed around than further south in Miami, FL beaches.
We went to Magen's Bay for the day and it was gorgeous and picturesque. I haven't been in water so clear before in my life! There was one bar on the beach that offered drinks via a wandering waitress who was fun and polite. A Sex on the Beach was $9.50. Rentals for an umbrella and chairs were available and the umbrella was pretty necessary! We had a relaxing beach-lounging afternoon and a quick ride back to the ship. We did some, but not much, port shopping for souvenirs.
We booked the Big 3: Flying Dutchman, Sentry Hill zipline, and schooner tube ride, through Rainforest Adventure's website when it was on sale and got a great deal. We joined a small group through each part, with 2 rounds on the schooner tube, 4 total sentry hill (canopy tour) ziplines, before finalizing the excursion on the Flying Dutchman. It was awesome!! They said summer was low season, so there really weren't any lines like I suppose it could be when there are more ships in port. There's a bar at the top of the mountain and free wifi. The locals were friendly on port.
Disembarkation
There was a cluster of multiple lines throughout the luggage claim rows attempting to merge into one before getting to the area that is roped off and it was at a practical standstill for a long time before staff guided the line into something that made sense and moved better.