Just off Symphony. Quick review - any Q's?

[amurray88]

Just got off Symphony of the Seas this morning. Few things that I wondered about beforehand...snapshot review but feel free to ask Qs.

 

Boarding - our check in time was 11:30-12:00. We arrived early (10am) due to car hire/shuttle timing and couldn't believe we were on the ship by 10:45am. Check in was extremely fast (too fast as you'll see in a min) and before we could blink we were on the ship. No hassle with tests/Covid passports etc.

 

We got on and realised after an hour or so that we got on so early that they hadn't opened bag drop yet so only us and another few people were on with all our suitcases. Guest services (after a bit of persuasion) took our bags off us.

 

The ship is amazing. 

 

Food and Drink -

Food on board was brilliant. We ate every evening (and breakfast) at MDR and although not Michelin star it was much better than expected. Sorrento's pizza was lovely, windjammer was ok...we found it only ok hence why we stuck with MDR for breakfast. Park Cafe and Cafe Promenade both great. Big shout out to the staff too, they were pleasant, welcoming and went over and above. You could tell they were tired but didn't stop them from being excellent. They're not allowed off the ship at all just now apart from at CocaCay to work.

 

Now the bad... Solarium bistro wasn't opened at all. Jazz on 4 has no bar in it or service so had to go out to get a drink. Solarium bar closed at 5pm each night and Park Cafe had limited hours. Because of this it pushed people into a smaller number of bars/cafes making them busier. One night we went to the Schooner bar at 4:50pm and waited til 5:25 to get our drink (and that was going to the bar to order).

 

Entertainment -

I wasn't overly pleased beforehand that Hairspray wasn't showing BUT 99% of the other entertainment was incredible. Hiro, Flight, 1977 and I-Skate were absolutely brilliant. The comedy juggler was very very good given it was a comedy juggling show (he was excellent). The comedians weren't funny.... I like my comedy, go often to comedy shows and festivals and although sometimes I don't find comedians funny I can normally see why others do. These guys just weren't....2 guys for 50mins telling us how they're going to get arrested because they're black. Hilarious (sarcasm).

 

People -

On the whole we found most people polite and pleasant but there's always a few who are rude and obnoxious. Some parents let their kids run wild - including in the solarium which is adult only. Kids were extremely rude to staff at times which I would imagine reflects their parents attitudes too. People are told no flash photography during shows and to be mindful of screen brightness if taking pictures. 2 different women sitting next to me in 2 shows sat and recorded the full show with their screen brightness full and their light on. Thankfully they were next to me and not infront of me as it would have been hugely annoying. 

 

Any Q's? Sorry not used to writing reviews so not sure what is/is not helpful.

 

[amurray88]

Night one queues at Main Dining Room. Thankfully other nights were better but showed the impact of closing other venues and pushing everyone to a certain place. We had a reservation and were there 5mins before our reservation time.

[amurray88]

Just now, amurray88 said:

Night one queues at Main Dining Room. Thankfully other nights were better but showed the impact of closing other venues and pushing everyone to a certain place. We had a reservation and were there 5mins before our reservation time.

Sorry should also have said...floor 5 of MDR was closed the whole week too.

[amurray88]

[AlohaLivin]

Was it freezing? We are boarding today, but for our last Symphony sailing I needed a parka (or close). This time I brought 2 long sleeve sweaters, 2 wool wraps, and the RCCL sweatshirt that I bought on my last sailing. 😂 

[ARandomTraveler]

I know you didn't have the dining package, but did you by any chance keep an eye on prices throughout your planning phase? And if so, what was the lowest price you saw the Unlimited Dining Package go? 
 

I'm also curious about the Refreshment Beverage Package.

 

How hard was it to make reservations for the shows and other activities like the puzzle room and laser tag? I keep reading reviews that say you have to make a mad-dash to make reservations as soon as you get on the ship or everything will be booked (I've been reading a lot of older reviews though so this may no longer be the way things are done).

I've never sailed on an Oasis class ship before, mostly because it seemed really stressful to make sure you could do anything on board, (among other reasons), but I've become intrigued and am finally thinking of sailing on either Symphony or Harmony soon. 

Edited April 16, 2022 by ARandomTraveler

[amurray88]

12 minutes ago, AlohaLivin said:

Was it freezing? We are boarding today, but for our last Symphony sailing I needed a parka (or close). This time I brought 2 long sleeve sweaters, 2 wool wraps, and the RCCL sweatshirt that I bought on my last sailing. 😂 

Not at all.... In fact the opposite 🙈 Coco Cay was rainy and very windy but apart from that it was marvelous!

[amurray88]

5 minutes ago, ARandomTraveler said:

I know you didn't have the dining package, but did you by any chance keep an eye on prices throughout your planning phase? And if so, what was the lowest price you saw the Unlimited Dining Package go? 
 

I'm also curious about the Refreshment Beverage Package.

 

How hard was it to make reservations for the shows and other activities like the puzzle room and laser tag? I keep reading reviews that say you have to make a mad-dash to make reservations as soon as you get on the ship or everything will be booked (I've been reading a lot of older reviews though so this may no longer be the way things are done).

I've never sailed on an Oasis class ship before, mostly because it seemed really stressful to make sure you could do anything on board, (among other reasons), but I've become intrigued and am finally thinking of sailing on either Symphony or Harmony soon. 

55% off for UDP (approx £145-150pp) was the cheapest it went...and yes I checked every day from the start 😂.

 

HOWEVER people couldn't book before boarding and some didn't get the restaurant they wanted so be careful, it's definitely not as easy as you'd hope....I heard of a few (even some doing back to back) who didn't get the restaurant they wanted

[amurray88]

7 minutes ago, ARandomTraveler said:

I know you didn't have the dining package, but did you by any chance keep an eye on prices throughout your planning phase? And if so, what was the lowest price you saw the Unlimited Dining Package go? 
 

I'm also curious about the Refreshment Beverage Package.

 

How hard was it to make reservations for the shows and other activities like the puzzle room and laser tag? I keep reading reviews that say you have to make a mad-dash to make reservations as soon as you get on the ship or everything will be booked (I've been reading a lot of older reviews though so this may no longer be the way things are done).

I've never sailed on an Oasis class ship before, mostly because it seemed really stressful to make sure you could do anything on board, (among other reasons), but I've become intrigued and am finally thinking of sailing on either Symphony or Harmony soon. 

We were in the first 10 people on the ship outwith the VIPs and literally sat down as soon as we stepped on board and booked the shows so we had no issues...I can't comment on if you leave it till later. I think you will get in to the show but you may be standing or have worse seats.

[amurray88]

Just now, amurray88 said:

We were in the first 10 people on the ship outwith the VIPs and literally sat down as soon as we stepped on board and booked the shows so we had no issues...I can't comment on if you leave it till later. I think you will get in to the show but you may be standing or have worse seats.

We had the refreshment package including coffees, milkshakes etc..we got it black Friday for £14 pp which was the cheapest by far. It was between £18-22 pppd mostly. Definitely worth the £14. We drank an average of 6 drinks per person per day but towards the end of the week we were starting to get a bit fed up of sodas, coffees, milkshakes, mocktails to be honest.

[ARandomTraveler]

1 minute ago, amurray88 said:

We were in the first 10 people on the ship outwith the VIPs and literally sat down as soon as we stepped on board and booked the shows so we had no issues...I can't comment on if you leave it till later. I think you will get in to the show but you may be standing or have worse seats.

Oh wow, that's terrible! I can't believe they're selling so many of the packages that people can't even eat at all the restaurants. I wonder if that's typical because if so, I'll rethink buying one. Thank you for the info. 

[amurray88]

Also...sorry I'm not very good at answering in one post haha.... remember, you can cancel packages for free. If you see it at a good price get it booked and keep an eye ok the price. Cancel/rebook if it goes down.

 

Our Royal Up prices were - we were guaranteed interior and was £15pp to neighborhood view or virtual balcony, £75pp for neighborhood balcony or £115pp for oceanview balcony.

[amurray88]

1 minute ago, ARandomTraveler said:

Oh wow, that's terrible! I can't believe they're selling so many of the packages that people can't even eat at all the restaurants. I wonder if that's typical because if so, I'll rethink buying one. Thank you for the info. 

Hibatchi/Sushi seemed very popular and certainly sold out very very quickly. The person doing back to back couldn't get booked last week so asked to book in advance for this week and was told they couldn't. Tried to book as early as they could and it had sold out so complained and hospitality manager said only time they could do was 5:30pm one night if they wanted it.

[ARandomTraveler]

7 minutes ago, amurray88 said:

We were in the first 10 people on the ship outwith the VIPs and literally sat down as soon as we stepped on board and booked the shows so we had no issues...I can't comment on if you leave it till later. I think you will get in to the show but you may be standing or have worse seats.

 

5 minutes ago, amurray88 said:

We had the refreshment package including coffees, milkshakes etc..we got it black Friday for £14 pp which was the cheapest by far. It was between £18-22 pppd mostly. Definitely worth the £14. We drank an average of 6 drinks per person per day but towards the end of the week we were starting to get a bit fed up of sodas, coffees, milkshakes, mocktails to be honest.

Thanks for all of that info!! 

[AlohaLivin]

11 minutes ago, amurray88 said:

Not at all.... In fact the opposite 🙈 Coco Cay was rainy and very windy but apart from that it was marvelous!

I should have been more specific 😊 It was the ship that was a refrigerator! As for outdoors, Cococay had a storm our last trip with some cold rain, but otherwise nice weather.

[rad798]

Was Johnny Rockets opened for breakfast?

Also, thanks for all the info.

[amurray88]

6 minutes ago, rad798 said:

Was Johnny Rockets opened for breakfast?

Also, thanks for all the info.

...some days it wasn't opened until 5pm believe it or not.

 

Day 1 - all day

Day 2 - 11:30am - 5pm

Day 3 - 2-5pm

Day 5 - 2-10pm

Day 6 - 11:30am - 10pm (sea day)

Day 7 - 5-10pm

 

We don't have day 4 cruise compass 🤦

 

[amurray88]

13 minutes ago, AlohaLivin said:

I should have been more specific 😊 It was the ship that was a refrigerator! As for outdoors, Cococay had a storm our last trip with some cold rain, but otherwise nice weather.

Ah, yes there were parts that were cold! I did notice it a few times!

[rad798]

Oh, also I forgot to ask about the Royal Promenades parades and parties. Were they still having them? Also, did they have Quest?

Been over on Princess forum with a Majestic Mexican Riveria cruise. Never been so bored in our lives (Got Covid at the end too). Ready to come back to Royal with a Halloween cruise and get the party started.

[amurray88]

Also...Covid... As soon as you're on the boat it's game over. Kids get a badge on the way on to say they're vaccinated. Kids over 2 are to wear a mask if unvaccinated I believe. After 2pm on day one it was all forgotten about and anything went. 15 people on a lift? Sure. Pick up a utensil at windjammer, lick your fingers and put it back. Sure....so much so that a person we spoke to who was doing back to back had a meeting with 5 on board managers (proper, arranged meeting) to say if they test positive at the end of week one that they want Royal Caribbean to take responsibility as they have to test before week 2 as well.

Edited April 16, 2022 by amurray88

[amurray88]

4 minutes ago, rad798 said:

Oh, also I forgot to ask about the Royal Promenades parades and parties. Were they still having them? Also, did they have Quest?

Been over on Princess forum with a Majestic Mexican Riveria cruise. Never been so bored in our lives (Got Covid at the end too). Ready to come back to Royal with a Halloween cruise and get the party started.

No parties or parades unfortunately! Sorry, is quest the escape room? I think that was opened...maybe $20pp?

[rad798]

6 minutes ago, amurray88 said:

...some days it wasn't opened until 5pm believe it or not.

 

Day 1 - all day

Day 2 - 11:30am - 5pm

Day 3 - 2-5pm

Day 5 - 2-10pm

Day 6 - 11:30am - 10pm (sea day)

Day 7 - 5-10pm

 

We don't have day 4 cruise compass 🤦

 

We always enjoyed the free breakfast at Johnny Rockets on Oasis class ships. With those hours, I guess they are still not doing breakfast on Symphony.

I heard Harmony was open 1 hour for breakfast each day this past week.

[rad798]

1 minute ago, amurray88 said:

No parties or parades unfortunately! Sorry, is quest the escape room? I think that was opened...maybe $20pp?

Quest is the adult late night scavenger hunt in Studio B (ice rink).

Not a big deal for us but we may have some first time Royal cruisers going with us in October. Hoping they will get to experience all Oasis Class ships have to offer.

Hopefully things will be better by then but not holding my breath.

[tropical83]

Thanks for posting! I’m sailing Symphony on May 7th. I was really hoping for the Solarium bistro to be open. 
 

Do you know if they had the silent party or not?

Edited April 16, 2022 by tropical83

[jerseyjjs]

2 hours ago, amurray88 said:

Night one queues at Main Dining Room. Thankfully other nights were better but showed the impact of closing other venues and pushing everyone to a certain place. We had a reservation and were there 5mins before our reservation time.

 

 

 

       Were the buffets closed for dinner?  With a line like that, it seems the MDR was the only complimentary venue to eat.