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Just off Harmony 6/9-16 - quick thoughts

GatorTide
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GatorTide

GatorTide

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I'll preface this by saying this was my second time on Harmony so I'm probably doing some comparing between this trip and the last one.

 

First, the positives:

 

* The ice and aqua shows were just as amazing as they were last year. I also really enjoyed the comedians on board - I think they were among the best I'd seen.

 

* Embarkation and debarkation were a breeze.

 

* I signed up for a group Flowrider lesson, and even though only two of us showed up, they still held it (despite saying they usually cancel without having four people). And it was great!

 

* Quest was a lot of fun with new and different challenges - lots of laughs.

 

* Specialty dining at Chops was delicious, and the cheesecake was especially outstanding.

 

My main issue with this cruise was that I didn't think the service was very good. I've cruised RCI a number of times and I've never had that experience so it was kind of disappointing. Two crew members mentioned they'd sent a lot of their staff to work on Symphony, which could explain it. And absolutely I know these people work hard and I could never do what they do, but it felt like there was just an overall lack of enthusiasm/care.

 

* We were supposed to have adjacent rooms midship. We got neither (consequently, we were given vouchers for 15 percent off our next cruise).

 

* MDR - the food wasn't bad, but three nights in a row I was told they were bringing me an item (two nights a glass of wine, one night a side dish and a salad) that never came. As a result, we were invited to take a galley tour, which was interesting and I appreciated the head waiter offering that option to us.

 

* Plates, cups, etc. sitting out - not a lot of cleaning was going on.

 

* I saw a number of people slip and go down hard on next to the bar by the kids pool.

 

* Trivia - the hosts were constantly late, and for at least one, the person didn't even show up. I know - not a tragedy or anything, but I always look forward to trivia and it was kind of annoying.

 

Anyway, it was still a good trip - I just found the service aspect lacking and it definitely impacted my opinion of the vacation. I'll live, though! If anyone has any questions, feel free to post and I'll do my best to answer them!

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CapeGal

CapeGal

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It seems to me that Harmony almost has a new crew given that so many transferred to Symphony. I can see why that would have an impact on the service.

 

 

 

I wonder when this transfer of staff occurred. We were on beginning of May and it was awesome with no noticeable staff issues. I’m sorry to hear of all the little glitches you encountered.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

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GatorTide

GatorTide

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I wonder when this transfer of staff occurred. We were on beginning of May and it was awesome with no noticeable staff issues. I’m sorry to hear of all the little glitches you encountered.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Thanks - I still had a great time and I am not really one to get nitpicky - just noticed these things and wanted to pass them on!

 

RE Royal IQ - I didn't use the messaging, but I did use the app and it was very helpful. I bought the Internet package and with discount for Crown and Anchor, it came out to $95 for the week. Internet was overall good - a little spotty here and there but no complaints.

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JMTtor

JMTtor

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What is the $ or % discount for C&A on the Internet package? Trying to decide whether to prepay for the $19.99/day package (or $24/day with soda package) or to wait until we're on board to get the C&A discount. Would be nice if they'd allow you to prepay WITH your discount; haven't figured out a way to do that yet. TIA -

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Clarea

Clarea

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What is the $ or % discount for C&A on the Internet package? Trying to decide whether to prepay for the $19.99/day package (or $24/day with soda package) or to wait until we're on board to get the C&A discount. Would be nice if they'd allow you to prepay WITH your discount; haven't figured out a way to do that yet. TIA -

Depends on C&A level, what is your C&A level?

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2Long2NxtCrz

2Long2NxtCrz

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It almost sounds like we were on different ships!

 

We were on HOTS the week before you and I was amazed at the service that I received in every venue.

 

The "worst" thing was that our cabin steward was a little lackluster. But that week was his last before he could return home to spend time with his family so I didn't blame him at all. He just wasn't the usual friendly, chatty steward I am used to. But he serviced our rooms quickly and efficiently, so really it's not a complaint at all.

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JMTtor

JMTtor

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Diamond internet discount is $23 off a package OR one free continuous 24-hour period of unlimited internet.

Thanks, Bob.

Forgive me for being a bit dense: since the $19.99/day on the RCI Cruise Planner says it's "an exclusive discount off onboard prices", is the onboard price for VOOM $23/day? I'm calculating seven-day pricing at $139.93 on the Cruise Planner. If onboard pricing is $23/day, then one free day would bring it to $138 for the week ($23 x 6). Assuming there's no Diamond discount for the soda package (IIRC, you said in an earlier post that there's no discount below Diamond Plus onboard for any beverage package), the teeny difference in pricing on VOOM wouldn't seem to change the benefit of purchasing the VOOM/soda combined package on Cruise Planner. Am I thinking correctly here?

Since you're a great resource, would you mind answering one more question? Since Harmony has a Diamond lounge, I'm guessing the nightly happy hour (5-8p IIRC) for Diamond members is there, plus we'll have the three drinks for that time loaded onto the SeaPass/WOW bands. Does the lounge scan for the drinks there? I know three years ago on Allure they didn't bother to scan you for drinks at the lounge, so we were able to have our drinks there and still use the SeaPass preloaded beverages to get a couple of glasses of wine from one of the bars to take to dinner. I understand some ships may differ, though.

Given the nightly Diamond free beverages, I don't really drink enough alcohol to make the Deluxe package worth the cost, even at the presale discount price of $50/day. But I'd like to know in advance how Harmony handles the three Diamond freebies.

Thanks in advance for your input - grateful for your expertise! :)

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