Random Harmony Questions

[CreativeCruiser119]

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!

[setsail]

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

[CreativeCruiser119]

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!

[flyingandcruising]

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.

[CreativeCruiser119]

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.

[flyingandcruising]

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.

 

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.

[Jobeth66]

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.)

[CreativeCruiser119]

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!

[CreativeCruiser119]

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.

[39august]

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!

[CreativeCruiser119]

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!

[CreativeCruiser119]

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?

[Jobeth66]

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!

 

Amazon is going to be fastest - just do a search for 'portable battery pack'. You use your regular charging cable to connect your phone to the pack, and it charges it up. You then re-charge the battery pack via USB to a wall wart or laptop, etc. The ones I have are Anker, and they all have pretty good ratings (4-5*).

 

 

You can probably also pick them up at WalMart, Target, BestBuy, etc, but you'll pay more.

[WisconsinFan]

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?

Windjammer was horribly crowded on embarkation day on our 3/18/17 Harmony cruise. No tables, ran out of silverware, worst experience of any WJ on other ships. Suggest Solarium Bistro.

Went to the WJ on another day at 10:30 am for breakfast with our son who was a late riser that day and found the same thing. Got lucky on a table as someone was leaving just as we passed by. Only two times we visited the WJ.

Edited April 3, 2017 by WisconsinFan
addition

[dtagirl]

Just got home from Harmony, and we went to the pier at 11:30 AM and walked on, no problem. The kids explored and we ended up for lunch at Mini Bites, deck 15 aft. It was quick, not even crowded and good! They also serve breakfast omelet station and all.