CreativeCruiser119

Day 0 - Friday, April 7th

Travel Day from Hell, Part 2

So we booked our connecting flight with American, and sighed a huge sigh of relief. It would land in Fort Myers at midnight with a layover in Dallas. So my father called back Enterprise and moved our reservation to the location at Fort Myers airport for a one-way trip across the state to Fort Lauderdale upon arrival in Fort Myers. The only problem: we had 3 bags (one for me, one for my brother, and a larger one for my parents to share). My brother and I held onto ours, but our parents checked theirs and somehow, they found room for it on another flight and flew it off WITHOUT OUR PERMISSION. Really Delta? Haven't you made enough mistakes today? So that was the only problem. We were assured it would be at FLL before we boarded the ship the following day, otherwise it would be brought to Port Everglades from FLL and they would have it delivered directly to their stateroom. So we ate lunch at MSP and boarded our flight to Dallas. Smooth flight, we ate dinner in the airport there and were ecstatic that we had made it after all (so far). Talk about a sudden stroke of luck! The evening came and we boarded our flight to Fort Myers, and enjoyed the night lights from the air. Around midnight Eastern time we arrived in Fort Myers, picked up the rental car and drove across Florida. We got to drive through the Everglades, but unfortunately could not see anything as it was the middle of the night. We arrived at our hotel around 2:30 in the morning, received a discount since we spent less time there than expected, and my mother, brother and I got settled in while my father dropped the car off at FLL and retrieved our missing luggage. So needless to say at this point we were all extremely relieved- we made it, we had everything we needed, and we were going on a cruise that we had feared missing less than 24 hours prior! Sidenote: on Day 4, my mother noticed a few guests with luggage and was told by a crew member that 14 guests had missed the ship on embarkation day due to flights. Scary to think that was almost us, since there's no airport in Labadee and we would have missed half the cruise! Anyway, with everything back under control, we went to bed knowing we had a big day ahead. Granted we each only got about 4 hours of sleep that night, so everyone was extremely tired by the end of the next day. Next up: exploring Fort Lauderdale before boarding the ship! I will say in advance, a fair amount of the pictures in this report will be from embarkation day, as this is when I was still connected and able to share. Since we don't pay for wi-fi on cruises, we all put our devices in Airplane Mode before setting sail and unplugged for the eeek, which is actually nice since it allows me to enjoy my vacation without worrying about notifications and such! So after we set sail I kept everything in the room and just enjoyed myself, although my mother always takes a ton of pictures on vacation so I will definitely share those as well. Thank you to all who have subscribed, I hope you enjoy it and apologize again for my amateur skills! I'll be back in my next post, which will be my last post that doesn't involve the cruise itself! See you all in a bit!

Day 0 - Friday, April 7th

Travel Day from Hell, Part 1

This is going to be a long and entertaining story, so grab the popcorn! As much as I don't ever want this to happen again, it all worked out in the end and it sure makes for a fun story to tell! Every year, we fly in a day before the cruise to ensure that we make the ship, and also enjoy the port city. Our plan was to arrive in Fort Lauderdale on Friday afternoon, spend the day at the beach, eat dinner, go for a night walk on the boardwalk before heading to bed to board the ship the next day. This has always worked out just fine for us in the past, but I guess our time for bad luck had come! During my free period at school, I am a student aide in the Principal's Office and was warned in conversation with the office secretary the previous day that there had been several delays and cancellations in Delta flights due to weather and that an administrator at the school was caught up in the debacle. So I immediately texted my parents and told them the news, only to have them tell me the weather where we were going was fine (which it was) and that we wouldn't be affected. Fast-forward to the next day. We arrive at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (I'll just call it MSP from here on out) with all our luggage, ready for a smooth trip and a fantastic vacation. We checked in and everything was good to go, so we went through security and proceeded to the gate. We checked the electronic board to see if our flight was on time, and couldn't seem to find it. Didn't say it was on time, didn't say it was delayed, didn't say it was cancelled, it wasn't on there at all. So we got to the gate ready to wait to board, only for the gate agent to tell us that the flight had been cancelled altogether and to go to the help desk. We should've known something was up when we saw someone giving out free drinks outside the gate :mad: anyway, the help desk line, as expected, was insanely long, so we waited. While my mother kept our place in the line my father attempted to use the wall phones to call Delta directly, which he eventually did but they were no help. What's funny is, remember earlier in this post when I mentioned how an administrator at my school was affected the day before? Well, I ran into her at the help desk line and we had a long discussion about how terrible the situation was and how badly Delta messed up! For the record, she didn't end up flying out that day either, we just simply had to figure something out to get to our ship so we were open to anything! They tried to put us on a flight on Saturday morning that would land in Fort Lauderdale (FLL) by 3pm, which obviously wouldn't have worked as muster would be at 3:45 followed by a scheduled 4:30 departure. So we called the Enterprise location at MSP and were preparing for a 25-hour drive to Fort Lauderdale, we had it reserved and everything. (We drove to the airport but weren't about to drive our own car that far). But with my mother's back issues, we didn't want to have to go through with this, so we tried other airlines to no avail- until American was able to get us on a connecting flight that would have us in Florida by midnight. Of course we got completely robbed on last-minute airfare fees, and because we were paying almost as much for the flight as we were for the cruise, we decided that we would have no choice but to remove our summer Wisconsin Dells trip from the budget. Luckily, Delta did end up reimbursing us for the difference between the 2 flights, so we will able to make that summer trip after all (another annual trip we do, as it's only a 3-hour drive from our area). To be continued...

Introduction

Hello all,

I will be starting a trip report on my recent Western Caribbean cruise sailing April 8th through the 15th on Royal Caribbean International's Harmony of the Seas.

Our itinerary:

Day 0, Friday, April 7th: Travel Day from Hell (I'll get to that in my next post)

Day 1, Saturday, April 8th: Board the ship in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Day 2, Sunday, April 9th: At Sea

Day 3, Monday, April 10th: Labadee, Haiti

Day 4, Tuesday, April 11th: Falmouth, Jamaica (That was the plan)

Day 5, Wednesday, April 12th: At Sea

Day 6, Thursday, April 13th: Cozumel, Mexico

Day 7, Friday, April 14th: At Sea

Day 8, Saturday, April 15th: Disembark in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and fly home :(

We did this exact same itinerary on the Allure in 2015 (minus the travel day from hell) and absolutely loved it! We did the Eastern itinerary on Oasis in 2014 and still would have gladly taken that if that had been the cruise the week we were sailing. But our spring break fell on a week during which Harmony was scheduled to sail the Western itinerary, which excited us nonetheless since we had just returned from the Allure and loved the itinerary. So we called Royal Caribbean and booked our Harmony sailing 2 years in advance! We also booked our 2016 Liberty cruise while onboard the Allure, and our 2018 Freedom cruise onboard the Harmony- you can say we got extra lucky in that my college spring break next year lines up with my brother's spring break here in the school district (I'm currently a high school senior preparing for graduation). Or maybe it's like that every year, which I doubt, but that would be nice as it would allow us to sail Symphony in 2019, which we are still hoping to be able to do!

Our family:

Me- Kevin, 18

My brother, Matt, 14

My mother, Beth, 46

And the planner of the whole thing- my father, Jeremy, 45 (he plans everything but I'm the one who got them into cruising!)

We love Royal Caribbean and had been on Monarch, Oasis, Allure, and Liberty prior to this. We went on the Disney Dream in 2013 and don't get me wrong, we loved it, but have come to love Royal Caribbean for the amazing ships they have! We have fallen in love with the Oasis-class design, although we also enjoyed our time aboard the Liberty so we booked Freedom for next year as we will get to experience a new ship and 2 new ports of call. We are from the Twin Cities area, living in a suburb of St. Paul, Minnesota and while the weather here was starting to warm up when we left, we all needed a vacation from life!

I will relife the "travel day from hell" in my next post which makes for quite a story, so stay tuned! Once we get past that I'll get into embarkation and Day 1! I hope you all enjoy my trip report, and I apologize in advance for my amateur reporting skills as this is my first TR. I encourage everyone to ask any questions you may have at any point along the way, and I look forward to sharing my experience with all of you here on Cruise Critic!

As precipitously mentioned, I know this is an old thread but since people are still adding to it, I thought I would too. I have stayed in all of the categories- we sail as a family and when we do, my brother and I stay in an interior room and our parents are always in an oceanview Balcony directly across the hall. I love it all, as our arrangement allows us all to enjoy the best of both views. I stayed in Boardwalk Balcony 8707 on the Allure in March 2015, and Central Park Balcony 10207 on Harmony just earlier this month, on the April 8th sailing. The BW balcony was nice because it was always action-packed, especially at night. The CP balcony was always peaceful and again, especially so at night with the lights and peaceful live music. I will say those are probably the 2 best cabins I've stayed in, with my Promenade window cabin on Liberty coming in at 3rd. With Freedom class coming in at a close second for me (going on Freedom next year with the family in 2 oceanview balconies this time), I absolutely love the uniqueness of the Oasis-class ships and have been on the Oasis as well, but since that was our first time on an Oasis-class ship we just went with the OV balcony and interior stateroom option. I recall spending A LOT of time on my balcony on my recent cruise, as I loved the serenity of it all. I would highly recommend either, and looking into your preferences before you book. If you like relaxation, go with Central Park. If you like excitement, go with Boardwalk. Like I said they were both great for me, and it's all a matter of preference. Another thing to consider is the obstruction of the Ultimate Abyss for the Boardwalk balconies, if you are getting on Harmony. So if you are going on both Oasis/ Allure and Harmony and want a neighborhood balcony without obstructions, I would recommend getting the Boardwalk Balcony on Oasis/Allure and Central Park Balcony on Harmony. Because we booked our Harmony cruise long before the Abyss was announced, the obstruction played no role in our decision, which was based solely on the fact that we struggled to make a decision for Allure and ended up going with BW for my brother and myself, so we wanted to try CP next. I hope this helps, and if anyone has any questions, feel free to ask! Happy sailing!

I was on Harmony 2 weeks ago and stayed in 10207, a C2 Central Park Balcony cabin on Deck 10, port side, and midship just 6 cabins forward of the living wall at the very center of the park. First of all, I will say this is probably the best cabin I have ever stated in, absolutely LOVED having Central Park right outside my window. If you're into peaceful things like that, you will love the category- I will mention it was a bit noisy during the day with the music from the pool deck, but I found myself using the balcony most at night, when the overhead action quieted down and there was beautiful live music playing in the park below. I absolutely loved it.

To answer your questions, yes, the beds can be separated with about 1-2 feet of space to squeeze in begwwwn the two beds. I believe in my cabin had the option to pull out into a bed, although not 100 percent certain as we never used it. It was my brother and I in this cabin and our parents directly across the hall in D6 Oceanview Balcony cabin 10206 (aft-most cabin on the port side forward hump, so a slightly angled balcony with a great view but for the price of a regular OV balcony). While the couch in cabin 10207 had the option to turn into a bed, I cannot comment on whether or not this is the same for other Central Park Balcony cabins, for example C1s. As mentioned, mine was a C2 and while I would assume this feature would be the same for all cabins of this category, will not say for sure as I have no solid evidence and do not want to spread false information. I will add, however, that my parents' D6 cabin 10206 also had the exact same bed arrangement, the only difference being that they had the bed by the balcony, while my brother and I had the couch by the balcony. The bed setup rotates every other room, as has been mentioned on here several times. I hope this information helps you! Happy sailing, and like I said you will love the cabin category and Harmony as a ship overall!

Didn't you already ask these questions a couple weeks ago?

As I mentioned, yes, I have asked before but I'm just looking for as much feedback as possible since I'm starting to hear mixed reviews from different sources and it does not appear that thread is being visited anymore! Just my anxiety talking :') I do apologize for the repeated question, just excited an anxious as I prepare to set sail on Saturday!

Hello,

My apologies as I know I have asked these questions in older threads but am looking for as much input as possible as I set sail on Saturday and am beyond excited, yet anxious at the same time!

My first question is about the cabin. I know this is a weird question but are there outlets in the bathrooms? I assume this would be the same throughout the ship regardless of category but just in case, I am in C2 cabin 10207.

Second of all, I'm a little nervous about the Ultimate Abyss! I have heard mixed feedback and take after my mother in that I am afraid of big drops and can't stand that stomach feeling when on rollercoasters! For those who have ridden it, what's it like? Is it a big drop? Is anyone here a little more on the timid side like me and happened to enjoy it? Those kinds of things. I am planning to try it out the morning of day 2, which is a sea day. Just want to know other people's experiences with it in terms of the speed and drop factor.

Thank you all in advance for your replies, and happy sailing!

If you are OK with water slides than the Abyss will seem pretty mild. The view from the top is great. There are no large drops. There are flashing lights inside to increase the intensity factor. If the lights bothers you, just close your eyes for a second.

I am sailing Saturday and am getting nervous! I do not mind flashing lights at all - I actually think that will be cool. My main concern is the drop feeling!

Hello, we stayed in 10207 on our December sailing.Here to answer your questions.

 

-The view was nice, I loved this room. I enjoyed sitting outside the balcony and listening to the music at night. Jamie restaurant and Central park cafe are right under this room. Just watch for the balcony door step,the first day I kept tripping. And for more privacy I had the closet door wide open and changed behind it so people from the other side can't see :p

 

- I love the his and her closets

 

- It was quiet. You barely hear anything when you close the doors, except sometime when your neighbor flushing their toilets. I know, it's weird.And I don't recall if I heard noises from the pool areas

 

- Muster station is D4, studio B

 

- We had the king size bed, but I think you can request to have 2 twin beds. This room comes with a nice size couch, comfortable too

 

Here are some pictures of the room and the hallway on deck 10. Hope it help.

 

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Moon Orchid,

I know I already replied awhile back but I cannot thank you enough for these pictures of my cabin! I sail in 5 days and it looks wonderful! I just have one last question about the cabin (or any cabin on Harmony, as I'm assuming this would be the same for each one)- is there an outlet in the bathroom? (I know that's a weird question, again, just curious!)

Thank you again for all your help, and I hope you enjoyed your cruise as much as I plan to enjoy mine!

We saw long lines outside the WJ on embarkation days during our b2b HOTS cruises in Dec. I would suggest elsewhere. We tried to eat dinner one night and it was a nightmare. We left. Thankfully, we had access to Coastal Kitchen!

That sounds terrible! We usually rotate between the MDR and WJ for dinner, and we are not suite guests so we do not have access to Coastal Kitchen. Do you have any other embarkation day lunch suggestions? What time did you go to the WJ on these days?

For your phone, get a portable battery pack. I have several that I picked up on Amazon pretty cheap, and they're a great help for staving off battery depletion. (I use mine when I'm in court for work, lots and lots of sitting around, sometimes for hours, waiting for a case to be called.)

I have been thinking a lot about your suggestion and cannot thank you enough. With the cruise being one week out, I am looking into it. Where and how can I get one of these for an iPhone? How does it work exactly? Thank you so much again!

Would be nice if all cruisers who keep asking where their muster station is would read your post and then print it if they are sailing on Oasis class and "need to know."

 

I have been checking in for years and receiving permission to sit during muster. Do not go to Guest Services, just go early and check in with crew member in charge. Another back/hip/can't stand for long periods cruiser.

 

Nice job

Thank you very much for the compliment. It's funny you say that because I used to be one of those people myself- just had an odd curiosity! While it is a much more convenient process on Oasis class, it can still be a bit of time to those who cannot stand for long periods of time so you have the right idea and it's good to see RC accommodating cruisers like you to make for a more enjoyable experience. Thank you again!

I've sailed mostly on Freedom and Voyager class ships which have both indoor and outdoor muster stations. I always hope for an indoor station because of the incredible difference in how you are treated. Let's say your muster station is in a dining room - just arrive, get your card scanned, find a seat, relax and pay attention and leave when it's over.

 

An outdoor muster station is a whole different story on Freedom and Voyager class. You arrive and will be led you your specific line, you MUST stand in straight lines, facing forward, don't worry, you WILL be told if you are out of line or not facing forward, NO mobile phones, NO talking, NO eating or drinking, an outdoor muster is a very intense experience. This continues until the very last of the stragglers have arrived, so perhaps around 30 minutes, by which time people around you are starting to get annoyed. Finally, the 5 minute demonstration will take place and you'll be permitted to leave.

 

For this reason, I always hope for an indoor muster station. Such an enormous difference!

 

Please, if you have trouble standing for long periods of time, request a seat or indoor muster station.

I agree. Back pain seems to run in my family, I have not yet experienced any in my 18 years of life but incorporate back exercises into my weightlifting routine just in case! If we ever brought my grandmother on a cruise, I would recommend an Oasis class ship for this reason, and book a cabin in an area that musters in an area with seating- if limited seating I would be sure to arrive early. My mother has back pains on occasion and is a bit worried about the Dunn's River Falls excursion in 2 weeks, but is taking medication and expects to be able to do it. And the timing is another thing to note about muster on Oasis class- it goes by QUICK. Just a short introduction and then a video, so you're getting the information necessary for a safe cruise in a convenient fashion. A win-win in my opinion. I won't neglect to mention, however, that dismissal from muster is one of the times when you can kind of tell that there are really 6,000+ guests onboard. Despite that, this period doesn't last long and even though Freedom and Voyager class ships have a slightly lower capacity, it would be no different and the post-muster crowds would likely be worse on those ships because of the way everyone is lined up. In this case, I definitely agree with the idea of requesting an alternate muster station, as long as you get shown at a less-crowded time where your station is so you are familiar with where to go in the unlikely event of a real emergency. This will eliminate a lot of pain and stress! After all, it's your vacation to relax!

OP,

I hope you enjoyed your cruise and that you are feeling better!

Just for future reference here on Cruise Critic, I have compiled a list of all muster stations on the Oasis class of ships.

A1 - A2 - Vitality At Sea Fitness Center, Deck 6

B1 - B2 - Main Theater, Deck 4

B3 - B4 - Main Theater Balcony, Deck 5

C1 - Jazz on 4, Deck 4

C2 - Blaze Nightclub (Oasis & Allure), The Attic (Harmony), Deck 4

C3 - Comedy Live (Oasis & Allure), Diamond Club (Harmony), Deck 4

C4 - On Air, Deck 5

D1 - D2 - D3 - D4 - Studio B, Deck 4

E1 - Royal Promenade, Deck 5 (Next to the Rising Tide Bar)

E2 - Royal Promenade/ Cafe Promenade, Deck 5

E3 - Royal Promenade, Deck 5/ Champagne Bar (Oasis), Champagne & Martini Bar (Allure), Bionic Bar (Harmony)

E4 - Royal Promenade/ Guest Services, Deck 5

F1 - F2 - F3 - F4 - Main Dining Room, Deck 5

G1 - G2 - G3 - G4 - AquaTheater, Deck 6

So all stations are inside, except for the AquaTheater. Many have seats, however the ones in the Fitness Center and some of the ones on the Royal Promenade do not. Others have some seating, but not enough for the capacity at that station, so it's all a matter of first-come, first-serve. The stations go in alphabetical order from forward to aft with even numbered stations on the port side and odd numbered stations on the starboard side. Therefore, if you are on the port side, you will more than likely have an even muster station, and odd if you are on the starboard. As far as I know, only exception to this is C1-4 in Entertainment Place, which can have even and odd on both sides because unlike the others, while 3 of the 4 are in the same area, they are all in different rooms (that's the only explanation I can think of). Other than this section of the ship, the muster station assignments should follow the pattern. On Oasis mine and my family's muster station was B2 in the Opal Theater, and on Allure it was F3 in the Main Dining Room. Both times we had seats. We are going on Harmony in 2 weeks from today and our muster station is D4 in Studio B, so I imagine we will be able to find seats without any issue. This was not the case last year on Liberty. Hope this helped for anyone who was wondering. We always stay in 2 cabins directly across the hall from one another, so we always have the same muster station as muster stations are determined by fire zones. Happy cruising to all!

For your phone, get a portable battery pack. I have several that I picked up on Amazon pretty cheap, and they're a great help for staving off battery depletion. (I use mine when I'm in court for work, lots and lots of sitting around, sometimes for hours, waiting for a case to be called.)

Thank you so much! I will definitely look into this, as I will be doing a lot of exploring and picture taking/sharing in those hours between boarding and muster! Thank you very much again for your helpful suggestions.

Our appt was also 11-1130, but they did not start boarding until 1145 that day. RCCL does not pay attention to the boarding times at port everglades.

Really? I did not know that, as we did the online checkin through them so that's how we set the appt (hence it being printed on our pass). 11:45 is still plenty early, anything will be better than last year! I'm sure Port Everglades has outlets in the terminal anyway if I need to charge up, whereas last year's cruise was out of Galveston which I believe was being remodeled so our terminal was just a room in a large inflatable dome, and the bathrooms were port-a-potties. We do love sailing out of Fort Lauderdale, for the city and the boarding process alike!

Yes we were in G3. In looking at the emergency exit map on the back of the cabin door it appears the last 4 cabins are in one muster station and the rest are in a different muster station. We were also in the dining room when we had a BW balcony that was further from the end.

 

We had a great cruise, second time in a BW balcony and we also have a CP balcony, deck 11, booked on Oasis next year and then back to a BW on Symphony.

Yes, that is correct, the last 4 BW balconies on either side of decks 8-12 muster in the AT (last 2 BW on deck 14 as the very last 2 are interior cabins due to the crossbridge) and all the others muster in the MDR. There is, however, another section just forward of the Boardwalk that musters in the AT as well. My deck 7 forward interior cabin 7141 on the Oasis 3 years ago mustered at B2 in the Opal Theater.

I don't blame you at all, that's exactly what we did- tried out BW first, then CP. In all cases my brother and I get the interior-facing cabin and our parents stay directly across the hall in a cabin with an OV balcony, so we all get to enjoy the best of both. I got to stay in a deck 7 Royal Promenade View cabin (7297) on Liberty last year and plan to stay in the same category on Freedom next year. Loved that view as well. I am somewhat torn on cabin ideas for the Symphony, as I want to do it in 2019 but it will be extra expensive then due to being brand new- the only reason my parents agreed to cruise Harmony now is because I graduate high school in June! So sort of an early gift, as the second week of April is when I am off of school for spring break and they are not too big on the idea of cruising in the summer because they say it will be too hot in the Caribbean (and I say that's why you go in the water!) But I degress. And we splurged and booked 2 balcony cabins again for this cruise, them in an OV as usual and my brother and I in the CP. So, in 2019 I plan to go on Symphony either with friends or with family again (if we can get a good price, and if I can either convince them to cruise in the summer or if my college spring break lines up with my brother here in the local school district again- we got extra lucky with SB 2018), so I am looking for cabins that are cheaper. I have my eye on the forward OV window cabins, as I've heard they have a great "Captain's View" of the helipad and ocean aheae, but are cheap compared to balcony cabins. I do like balconies, however for the budget, I don't necessarily need it when I have other areas around the ship like the sundeck and walking track. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to have one on my upcoming cruise and will use it a lot. Can't really go wrong with anything, just happy to be onboard! Sorry to bore you with all the details, I get a little carried away with excitement when it comes to discussing cruises :D

As mentioned above, it's the same with or without the 0. You are correct that your muster is in the Aquatheatre. We had the 3rd and 4th cabins from the end last week on deck 12.

 

Bring earplugs if you are a light sleeper and like to retire early as you definitely hear all the shows and movies even with the door closed.

I take it you were G3 also? My BW cabin on Allure was assigned to F3, in the Main Dining Room. As for the noise, my category B2 Boardwalk balcony cabin on Allure (8707) was not too far from the carousel so I constantly heard the bell ringing coming into my cabin. However, it did not continue late into the night and my sleep was not affected at all, and closing and locking the balcony door did muffle most (but not all) of the noise. I definitely agree with your suggestion of bringing ear plugs- if you bring one of those things, you will be completely fine and will love this cabin category. I am booked in category C2 Central Park balcony cabin 10207 on Harmony in 2 weeks and will do the same, although with my cabin being close to the live classical music, I imagine that will be quite peaceful to listen to, especially out on the balcony at night among the lights and plants. I love the neighborhood balconies and although this will be my first time in a CP cabin, expect it to be just as good and unique as the BW, but for different reasons. I would highly recommend booking a cabin with a balcony view of either of these neighborhoods. I hope you had a great cruise, and enjoyed your deck 12 BW balcony!

Hi,

You all have the same muster station, when you board you will all have G3 as it is the same with or without the zero. For instance, my family and I are sailing on 4/8 and my brother and I will be in a Deck 10 Central Park balcony cabin and our muster station is D4, while our parents across the hall in an OV balcony cabin have D04. Since they are directly across the hall, they have to have the same muster station as stations are separated by fire doors. Therefore, I know that we all will be assigned to muster station D4, which is in Studio B. So to answer your question, G3 and G03 are the same station, and it is indeed located in the Aqua Theater. On another note, you will love your cabin. I had a Deck 8 Boardwalk balcony on Allure 2 years ago, so just one deck down from you. Mine, however, was closer to the middle as opposed to far aft, as you will be able to see the Aqua Theater shows closely from your balcony- and straight down on the landing for the Ultimate Abyss, which may slightly obstruct your views of the theater. Not to worry, there are plenty of seats in the theater itself and you will have spectacular views nonetheless. I loved my Boardwalk cabin and being able to see all the action from my balcony, and am excited to enjoy the serenity of my Central Park balcony on my cruise in 2 weeks. Just be sure to stay mindful of the fact that people on the Boardwalk and across the way can see into your cabin when the curtains are open. This is never a problem for us, as we just close the shades when changing. I hope I was able to help, and if you have any other questions I would be happy to try and answer them! Happy sailing!

We boarded at around 1215 and were told the WJ was full so we headed to the solarium bistro and it was empty. For lunch on other days, we ate at around 1200, and the WJ was not crowded at all, and there was no lineup to get through the washing stations.

Our arrival appointment at the port, as indicated on our SetSail passes, is the 11:00-11:30 AM time slot. I don't know what time we will be onboard then, but I imagine not too much later since it's a quick process. Thank you very much for your reply, and if anyone knows any other venues (such as the Solarium Bistro, Park Cafe, etc.) that you may recommend for embarkation day lunch, please feel free to let me know here! Thank you all again.

Can't predict if the HW station will have an affect on your cruise, or 1 that has not happened. It was always quick in/out when we used the WJ on harmony.

 

Charge your phone Before hand. Did not notice charging stations

Thank you for your reply! I definitely do plan to charge my phone before hand, just hoping for no ship inspections this time around (wasn't an issue on previous sailings out of Port Everglades on Oasis and Allure, which were both very quick and convenient boarding processes). I'm pretty sure the reason for my phone dying last year shortly after boarding Liberty was the amount of time I spent using it in the terminal at the Port of Galveston, as our boarding time was pushed back about an hour and a half and needless to say everyone was bored and had nothing else to do but wait and use their phones! As far as the hand washing station and crowds, I was just curious about other cruisers' experiences on embarkation day and other times during the week. Thank you again for your help!

Hello all,

My apologies for all the random questions as my Harmony cruise is in less than 3 weeks and I have questions, not to mention planning helps pass the time. I have been on Oasis and Allure, so I am familiar with the Oasis class experience (and love it- Loyal to Royal), but also understand Harmony is different in a few areas, such as the Windjammer. I know this isn't advised but my family and I always find it most convenient to eat in the Windjammer on embarkation day, and I have heard one new thing with the WJ on Harmony is the hand washing station, which everyone is required to pass through upon entry (not a bad idea actually). My question about this is, how does this affect crowds? We usually eat in the WJ on embarkation day, for lunch on most sea days and for some dinners. I know that the ship is spread out and not crowded most of the time, and can confirm from experience on the sister ships. However, I know that major events can be a crowd point. Just trying to plan my first day, as due to the cost of wi-fi, we go Internet free for the week (really nice to unplug) but I like to spend the first day sharing things with friends back home so I would love an idea of how the crowds are then (information on WJ crowds on other times of the day would be helpful too). I am not too concerned with the post-muster crowds, as by then it will almost be time to disconnect anyway (our station is in the back of Studio B, so I imagine we may experience a bit of a crowd upon dismissal). Final question, I doubt anyone has paid attention to this but if anyone has, are there plugin outlets in the Windjammer on Harmony? The reason I ask is because last year on Liberty, my phone died on embarkation day and that was quite the inconvenience! Granted that was due to boarding delays following an inspection but I just like to be prepared anyway, since the cabins will not be ready at our boarding time for me to charge if necessary. Thank you all in advance for your answers, and I apologize for the random and long, and probably at times confusing, post! As you can tell I am extremely excited for my cruise. Happy sailing to you all!

Hello all,

Please pardon the silly question I am about to ask. I am going on the Harmony of the Seas in just under 3 weeks (so excited) and could use some help from experienced Harmony cruisers. I am looking at images of the Ultimate Abyss dry slides, and want to do it- the only problem is, I take after my mother in the sense that I am extremely wimpy when it comes to big drops. I have heard that the Abyss is not all that bad considering the twists and turns, however am looking for as much input as possible! Almost everyone I've asked says I should do it, because I will get to say I did it and likely want to do it again, and I feel almost as if the anticipation will be more painful than the actual ride down. My question to you all is, is it suitable for those who are not all that fond of extreme drops? I love mild coasters and most waterslides and things of that nature, I just absolutely cannot stand that feeling of a big drop! So anyone who has done it, feel free to chime in as I want to be able to brave it out (but not before letting my thrill-seeking father and brother test it first and tell me what it's like). To me, it looks fun yet scary at the same time, at least in pictures. Does it give that feeling in the stomach, or is it not as bad as it may seem? Thank you all for your replies!

Central Park is located on Deck 8, and the Boardwalk on 6. Deck 7 Boardwalk view cabins are CV - window only with no balcony, and there are only around eight, I believe. B1 and B2 cabins on Decks 8-14 contain balconies with Boardwalk views. As for Central Park view, Deck 9 is home to all the CV cabins, with a picture window in place of the balcony overlooking the park. C1 and C2 cabins are located on Decks 10-14 and contain balconies overlooking Central Park. My cabin on the Allure was B2 balcony #8707 on Deck 8, which was nice because it was on the Central Park deck, meaning I got to conveniently enjoy the best of both CP and the BW. My family and I are booked on Harmony in April and I will be trying out a Central Park balcony cabin for the first time, C2 #10207 on Deck 10. Deck 8 is a great deck for Boardwalk balconies because like I said it gives you the best of both worlds, but if that doesn't matter and you want minimal noise then I would go for more in the middle for BW balconies, like Deck 10-11 being relatively from both the BW below and Sports Deck above, as my cabin was right above the carousel and I heard the bell ringing constantly - however, this did not go on late and did not at all affect my sleep or experience. I loved this cabin and deck and wouldn't hesitate to book it again. But, with Central Park being on Deck 8, as mentioned the lowest level for CP balconies is 10. I have heard a lot of good things about my upcoming cabin location on that deck, if you're leaning more that route and are having trouble making a decision. Whatever you choose, you will be happy with your selection. Have a great cruise on this wonderful class of ship!

I am hearing a lot of good things from you all about Paradise Beach and Mr. Sanchos. Once again, anyone with information is encouraged to let me know as my family and I very much appreciate all the feedback from experienced cruisers. Thanks so much again for all the replies. I hope you all enjoyed your excursions!