HBCcruiser

I must say that the Roll Call for our cruise here on CC has been a little sparse. On the sitethatshallnotbenamed, though, it is hoppin! In fact, there are about 8+ of us who have cabins fairly close to each other on Deck 8. Needless to say we started a seperate group called: Harmony Deck 8 "Might fall into the bushes" friends. There may or may not be some late night shenanigans and/or dance parties happening in our cabin because someone may or may not have packed a disco ball, JBL, and such. Neighbors to be invited if said events occur.

Yes, we plan on participating in the Theme Nights. The costumes are packed and ready to go!

We plan on being up and ready to leave the hotel by 9:30 a.m. I booked an Uber for 9:30. Hopefully we will be at the port a little before 10. I told our Genie, Wendy, that we would be there by 10. Then let the FUN begin!

We are all flying into IAH on Saturday, April 6th - one day before we board. I booked a large room that con hold up to 5 people at the Home2Suites in Galveston a long time ago, so I got a great rate! This was way before they even know about the solar eclipse on April 8th. In fact, I did not know about this event until after I booked the cruise. We are bringing on the approved eclipse viewing glasses in the hopes that we will be able to watch at least a partial eclipse on our sea day! Anyhoo – We all arrive in Houston at different times, but within a few hours of each other spanning from 11:45 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. assuming flights are on time. Our plan is to meet at the Marriott in the airport (at the bar, of course) then catch our scheduled car to Galveston. Hopefully we will arrive at the hotel by 5:00. Once we get settled, we plan on precruise-gaming at the Founder’s Bar in the Grand Galvez Hotel. It looks so cool!

We have never sailed from Galveston before, so that will be a first for use as well. Any hints for this port?

I just love the Genie-speak!! So fun. She attached a wonderful daily itinerary for us to edit if needed. We loved what she had planned and made very few changes.

Our most recent email came yesterday, April 2, 2024 from Wendy:

Thanks! We are so excited we are about ready to explode!

We responded to his email listing info on our excursions, our pre-booked events, listed our requests, and asked that he and Wendy book our dining and show reservations based on what they think will work best with our schedule. Because this was our first experience we really just wanted to let them have the freedom to plan what they believed would be best for us. We had a few back-and-forth emails where we gave dates for events we booked (Chef’s Table and Wine Tasting) to help them plan our itinerary.

Bertie sent this second follow-up email on the same day:

Our next Genie contact was on March 10, 2024. Bertie emailed us our Welcome email because Wendy (our Genie) was on vacation. He let us know that we would be working with him, and that he would be sharing our info with Wendy.

Here is a copy of the survey and the questions we were asked: The NEXT button submits the survey.

First Contact🧞‍♀️: We first heard from Genie-land on February 1, 2024 when I received the Genie Survey email. They request that you forward their email onto everyone in your party, which I did.

I have to step into a meeting at work - next up FIRST CONTACT. 🧞‍♀️

Cozumel: We wanted to do an upscale-ish bar crawl, so we hired a private driver from Viator and created the following plan of action:

Costa Maya: We wanted to do one day at a Beach Club so we selected Malecon21. It is not too far from the port which helps too.

I am glad you are interested in learning about it like we are. I'll try to answer any questions you might have along the way.

Excursions: We booked all private excursions because we are snobs like that. Actually, it is cheaper when you book on your own, even through Viator. Our plans are as follows: Roatan – We booked a private tour through Toucan Adventures. They have high ratings on TripAdvisor.

Our Itinerary: Western Caribbean Cruise:

Our Cabin: We will be staying in a two-bedroom Aqua Theatre Suite on deck 8. I love the large deck and the ability to watch the aqua shows right from our cabin! Also, being on deck 8 should allow us easy access to the restaurants and bars, including the wine bar, on deck 8. Yes, we adore our wine! I am excited to try some of the wine tasting events there. Cabin Layout: Balcony Location:

I planned this cruise years ago during the Covid cancellation crisis for two reasons; one to celebrate my upcoming retirement (in June), and two, to thank my SIL for taking care of my MIL who suffers from Alzheimer’s. If anyone deserves a cruise, she does! I can’t even imagine what she goes through on a every day. God bless that woman! Because I booked this cruise during the Covid crisis, I was able to get a good price, especially for Star Class. This may be a one and done for Star Class considering current market values! Jeez-o-Pete! 💰💰 There are 4 of us on this cruise – my older DD, SIL, a sister-like friend and me. All fun, life-loving, cruise-loving gals! Yup GIRLS CRUISE! Leavin’ the boys at home.

Welcome to my Harmony of the Seas LIVE review. I thought it might be fun to do a live review on the Harmony Star Class experience, especially from a point of view from people who are experiencing it for the first time. When I was researching the experience I found a few great Star Class reviews – thanks to @LittleMissMagic and @A&L_Ont - There were not many reviews that really described the experience in detail. Hopefully I will be able to assist those trying to learn more about Star Class as we experience it for the first time. We have done NLC Haven and really LOVE it. I anticipate that Star class will put the Haven experience to shame. Am I right?

The description lists age 6 as the minimum age.

I get it when I am not staying in a suite. Loved it! I think it depends on what you prefer. We love priority boarding/embarkation, priority theatre seating, the Chops lunch and the disembarkation breakfast. We always buy internet so it is worth it if the price is close to that fee. My opinion.

On the Navigator it was 9 AM but people were lined up by 8:30/8:45. If you don't care about the location then just show up around 9. Your casita is reserved. The line is just to select choice locations. Navigator had casitas by the pool but Harmony does not as far as I know.