Symphony Med cruise 6-3 to 6-10

I am going to review the ship and the itinerary in different threads. This one is for the Symphony. We cruised out of Barcelona in a Junior suite on the 10th deck, starboard. Here are my thoughts on the ship:

The good:

The color scheme of the ship is more subdued than many other of RCCL ships. There are many earth tones. The designers obviously learned some lessons from other ships of the class.

The Windjammer has been redesigned, and it is more friendly to the large groups of people that eat there for breakfast. One deck below, Loco Fresh, the replacement for Sabor, is also open for breakfast. That is where the omelette station is found.

The Solarium has been redone, the solarium pool is now on the upper level, and has transparent sides. The bridge wing viewing area is now accessed from the lower level of the Solarium. This lower level can be accessed from deck 14 port side.

The Windjammer now has sinks at each entrance for hand washing, and the exit and entrance are now separated, which has relived a lot of the congestion that used to be in that area.

The Aquatheater show (Hiru) and the ice show (1977) are the best ones we have seen on any cruise.

The bad

There is no Viking crown lounge, because the suite lounge and Coastal Kitchen are now taking up that area. Olive or Twist is also gone.

The diamond lounge has been relocated to where the comedy club used to be on deck 4. The comedy club is now where the lower level of the catacombs is on the other Oasis class ships.

On the craps table, the casino has some rather strict rules in place, while other rules are oddly unenforced. For example, if the dice do not reach the opposite wall, the roll doesn't count. No exceptions. On the other hand, players who wave their hands in the way of shooters' dice are ignored.

As a side note, this was (purposely) the cruise where we received our crystal block. The Symphony block looks great, and we are excited to have it.

We are on the ship until tomorrow, so post questions soon.

The hand wash stations are also on Harmony and are excellent idea it's just a shame some folks still choose to ignore them.

Omelet's are also freshly prepared in the Solarium Bistro Windjammer and Jonny Rockets.

We also enjoyed Hiro and 1977 but preferred the Harmony and Oasis shows only our opinion.

Coastal Kitchen has been gradually taking over most Viking Crown lounges for quite sometime.

Diamond lounge is in the same place on Harmony.

Pleased the crystal block looks great.

I will be on the Symphony. I have not been on a RC ship for a few years.

I have reserved Anytime dining for 6:15. What time are the shows?

Is there a grill for hamburger/hot dog?

Where are the towels for the pool, in the cabin, or near the pool? Can you just take a towel or do you have to scan you card?

Do you have to use a card to turn on the cabin lights?

Do you get your card at check in or is it at the cabin door?

Did you find it crowded with so many passengers?

1. See thread below

2.No outside grill for hamburgers or hot dogs except dog house for hot dogs.

3.Occasionally.

I have not yet sailed the Harmony. That one is on the list.

Show times vary each day. There is another thread with a comprehensive listing.

There is no grill for hamburger/hot dog outside, other than the dog place on the Boardwalk.

The towels are on the pool deck and in the solarium. You need a card, and they charge you for not turning them in. However, they don't count them when you turn them in. You could check out five towels, turn in three, and they wouldn't know, but it isn't like the pool towels are worth all that trouble.

You have to use a card to turn on the lights. We used an old hotel room key. Your sea pass is on your door when you check in. If you are in a suite, you get a wristband as well.

It is no more crowded than the other Oasis ships. This time we are lucky, as there are only 600 kids on board. That is due to the fact that Scentsy has booked about 1000 cabins on this ship, and they did not allow kids. The downside to that is the people are MLM salesmen, and we had a Scentsy cruiser try to sell us a timeshare the first day. (LOL)

Oh no. Loco Fresh is also opened for breakfast? On Allure we had a hard time deciding which place to try each day as so many good options..and now another option...lol.

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Is Johnny Rockets still free for breakfast.

Yes Johnny Rockets has a free breakfast option