Harmony Review - Dec 10-18 (Aruba, Curacao, Labadee)

[JamesEM]

Thanks for the review and photos.

[ocean sounds]

Great and entertaining review!  

[A&L_Ont]

18 hours ago, NateUpNorth said:

Our guides were Patrick and Eddie. For major reviews check that other (Advisor) for (Trip) website, read the 5 star ones, and that was our experience. Then over to a beach spot for an hour. They provided soft drinks (sorry – for you Murica’s that’s Soda) and water. Amazingly Patrick also GoPro’d the event in the water with us and Apple AirDrop’d, Facebook’d or Whatsapp’d the photo’s to each person on the tour FOR FREE. I think we got 3 vids and 180 photo’s in total!!!

 

Airdropping photos to random people has become a thing.  When you return home perhaps send a vacation photo to a random person at the mall food court. Certainly they’d be jealous.😉😂

 

 

18 hours ago, NateUpNorth said:

That evening we saw the Skate Show. So disclaimer – Canadians……. Southern Ontario…. so the family has grown up in rinks and spent more that our fair share of time both as kids and adults on a sheet of frozen water with the steel blades attached. So personally – I can live without the Skate show.

However I’m gonna try to be objective here. I’ll give it an 8 outta 10. The music was great. The skating was above average and there were one or two lifts/jumps that can be impressive to view. Go see it, you’ll have a good time. I went in with "do we have to?" and came out with "hey, that wasn't half bad".

As a Canadian you have fulfilled your duty by going. The mandatory customs agent question of, “how long has it been since you were in an arena” can be answered honestly and you will be allowed back in. 
 

As for the ice show, if it was 1899 (or some variation of that) I too have left the presentation with more questions than answers after seeing it more than half a dozen times. Clearly that is the sign of a great ice show. 
 

Thanks for the review Nate. Great, humorous writing with Canadian spelling to confuse the readers some. You have me excited to return to Harmony in less than 2 weeks. Getting away from the cold helps as well. 

[NateUpNorth]

 

11 hours ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

I could have sworn last November Harmony had 4 in the buffet (2 on each side next to the exit), 2 next to Sorento pizza and maybe one somewhere close to Mini Bites.

 

 

Apologies, I should have said 3 locations.... Buffet, Sorrento's and Mini-Bites.

There was 1 at mini-bites
2 at Sorrento's with frequent lines. (granted people did take their time choosing which probably contributed to the line, and they're in a really bad spot on the side of the pizza line there, about 3 feet in front of tables where people are eating)
Windjammer - I'm gonna say 1 at each end? I honestly don't know, we sat same side same area when we were in there. I'll defer and say your estimate is probably better than mine.
 

Edited December 23, 2022 by NateUpNorth

[NateUpNorth]

10 hours ago, FlGoodShips said:

Never been on RCL, but going on Harmony on Jan 7th...

Can you disembark and take your own luggage?? If yes, what time?? 

Thank you. This was a great review..helped us out so much. Again, thank you.

I want to say....... and I'm not 100% certain..... but you can walk off with your luggage at any point in time after the ship "clears" in the morning.
IIRC it's the "self assist" option. 
 

[NateUpNorth]

28 minutes ago, NateUpNorth said:

 

Apologies, I should have said 3 locations.... Buffet, Sorrento's and Mini-Bites.

There was 1 at mini-bites
2 at Sorrento's with frequent lines. (granted people did take their time choosing which probably contributed to the line, and they're in a really bad spot on the side of the pizza line there, about 3 feet in front of tables where people are eating)
Windjammer - I'm gonna say 1 at each end? I honestly don't know, we sat same side same area when we were in there. I'll defer and say your estimate is probably better than mine.
 

 

Edit - In the interests of not assuming I'm always correct  I've just google'd it and found this from February that says only 4 total but I will confirm 100% that the one at mini-bites exists also bringing absolute certainty to 5 total minimum.  
 

And the google quick hit says this:

Edited December 23, 2022 by NateUpNorth

[WELDON]

I was on this cruise also. I always carry my luggage off the ship. They begin disembarking approx. 6:45. I was off the ship a little after 7. I have a driver that I use to get to the port and he was waiting for me. I was home by 7:45 (live in the area for the winter).

[erinsmom03]

Enjoyed the review! We just booked an ABC cruise for the first time for 2025 (only have 9,897,632 days to wait lol!), and I am filing away your tips for Aruba and Curacao! We will be on Adventure, and even though it is smaller than Harmony and hasn't been amped, it is a great ship for hubby and I! 

[NateUpNorth]

2 minutes ago, erinsmom03 said:

Enjoyed the review! We just booked an ABC cruise for the first time for 2025 (only have 9,897,632 days to wait lol!), and I am filing away your tips for Aruba and Curacao! We will be on Adventure, and even though it is smaller than Harmony and hasn't been amped, it is a great ship for hubby and I! 

Awesome!! Jealous you've already got one booked!
I was sad we didn't get Bonaire on this trip. (think Harmony is too big to use their pier) If you're into snorkeling it's AMAZING. "World best" site.
Woodwind tour provider comes highly recommended here and elsewhere. We used them for a morning tour and I can't say enough good things about them.

[Husky1987]

9 minutes ago, NateUpNorth said:

Woodwind tour provider comes highly recommended here and elsewhere. We used them for a morning tour and I can't say enough good things about them.

Nice to hear.  We're in Bonaire on Voyager next month and have a snorkel tour booked with them.  I've heard nothing but good things about them here on CC.

[AtSeaAlways]

21 hours ago, NateUpNorth said:

Mini Bites – free food – keeps you out of the Windjammer – had breakfast here once and a couple snacks. Not bad, but I’m reliably told it’s no comparison to poolside Guy’s Burgers over at that other joint. Is this a fair comparison? I don’t know, I haven’t sailed that other conglomerate…. But the reviewer that advised me of this compared them to each other. So grain of salt and all that. Lunch was Burgers/Hot Dogs/Nachos…. That type of fare.

 

Carnival has an insurmountable lead in poolside dining.  This is also handy during outbreaks of airborne illnesses. 

[FionaMG]

What a fun review! Loved it and it really cheered me up after a tough day at work. Thanks for taking the time to do it. 😊

 

[Coralc]

Thanks Nate! Great, and entertaining review. 😃

[zoepipes]

On 12/22/2022 at 1:16 PM, NateUpNorth said:

Day 8 was our final Sea Day.



 

Also known as the last day. Many decided to make sure the Excel spreadsheets were hauled out and the race to break even on drink packages began. Bar lines were LONG in our experience. A few tipsy passengers were spotted. It seemed like the day was ready to bubble over but fortunately everyone kept a lid on it, so good for you all you Mr.& Mrs Getmymoneysworth!

Halfway through the day was the Men’s Belly Flop Competition. There were a few dudes that went in with a thrust and a gyrate and a different sort of flop (Q-tip to brain time!!) and a few dudes that went in with winning via bellyflop in mind. Good fun, great laughs.

I shall now mention the Flow Rider. In order to convince my daughter to have a go at the boogie boarding……. I hurled my pride overboard, cinched my suit strings as tight as they’d go….. and dropped in on my elbows. And then the Flow Rider beat the living daylights out of me. It was AMAZING FUN.
This convinced my daughter to have a go…….. and a MASSIVE shout out to the staff because they were patient, kind, fun and enthusiastic about every single person that tried this thing out. From the experienced showmen/women to the “3 seconds and wipeout” attempts they were above and beyond great at the guest experience. Wait times were about 30 minutes and the line was approx. 9-10 people long. If you’re on the fence about trying this – DO IT. Don’t worry about dignity, professionalism or what the people in the bleachers think. You won’t regret it.

 

I’m also going to throw the zip line review in here.
Yes it’s about a 10 second ride. Yes it’s only about a 10 storey height over the Boardwalk. No it’s not terribly fast. But for being on a Cruise Ship in the middle of the Ocean I’m giving it a 9.


 

I think this was the day we also attended the towel folding demonstration thing for the kids. 3 room attendants, each created 2 towel animals. Not sure what else to say. Kids liked it. There’s a reason I don’t even remember which day it was. LOL

That evening we went to the Cabaret Show with the Cast of Grease. This is where (6?) of the performers came out and did songs they enjoyed performing from other musicals and/or theatre events. Quite enjoyable.

Couple other “not first person” reviews.

At some point during the week the friends we were with did the Izumi Sushi/Sake pairing – they gave it a 10 out of 10.

They also did the Ship Tour Brunch – they said it was very interesting but they likely wouldn’t do it again. So there’s that.
 

 

 

On 12/22/2022 at 1:16 PM, NateUpNorth said:

Day 8 was our final Sea Day.



 

Also known as the last day. Many decided to make sure the Excel spreadsheets were hauled out and the race to break even on drink packages began. Bar lines were LONG in our experience. A few tipsy passengers were spotted. It seemed like the day was ready to bubble over but fortunately everyone kept a lid on it, so good for you all you Mr.& Mrs Getmymoneysworth!

Halfway through the day was the Men’s Belly Flop Competition. There were a few dudes that went in with a thrust and a gyrate and a different sort of flop (Q-tip to brain time!!) and a few dudes that went in with winning via bellyflop in mind. Good fun, great laughs.

I shall now mention the Flow Rider. In order to convince my daughter to have a go at the boogie boarding……. I hurled my pride overboard, cinched my suit strings as tight as they’d go….. and dropped in on my elbows. And then the Flow Rider beat the living daylights out of me. It was AMAZING FUN.
This convinced my daughter to have a go…….. and a MASSIVE shout out to the staff because they were patient, kind, fun and enthusiastic about every single person that tried this thing out. From the experienced showmen/women to the “3 seconds and wipeout” attempts they were above and beyond great at the guest experience. Wait times were about 30 minutes and the line was approx. 9-10 people long. If you’re on the fence about trying this – DO IT. Don’t worry about dignity, professionalism or what the people in the bleachers think. You won’t regret it.

 

I’m also going to throw the zip line review in here.
Yes it’s about a 10 second ride. Yes it’s only about a 10 storey height over the Boardwalk. No it’s not terribly fast. But for being on a Cruise Ship in the middle of the Ocean I’m giving it a 9.


 

I think this was the day we also attended the towel folding demonstration thing for the kids. 3 room attendants, each created 2 towel animals. Not sure what else to say. Kids liked it. There’s a reason I don’t even remember which day it was. LOL

That evening we went to the Cabaret Show with the Cast of Grease. This is where (6?) of the performers came out and did songs they enjoyed performing from other musicals and/or theatre events. Quite enjoyable.

Couple other “not first person” reviews.

At some point during the week the friends we were with did the Izumi Sushi/Sake pairing – they gave it a 10 out of 10.

They also did the Ship Tour Brunch – they said it was very interesting but they likely wouldn’t do it again. So there’s that.
 

We were on HOTS the week before you and I have to agree on the Flow Rider staff, especially Dennis - I'm a 64 year old woman and he had me kneeling on the board on my second try with no wipeouts!  I attribute that to his instruction and patience!  It was great fun and if you can get out there on a port day, the line was almost non-existent!

Edited January 1, 2023 by zoepipes