Questions from a newb.

After months of lurking I finally made an account here. We will soon fly to Miami and embark Harmony of the seas (in Fort Lauderdale). Off to the eastern route. (Nassau, St. Thomas & St. kitts)

Hopefully someone can help me answering the following:

1. We have already checked in through the RCCL website, but was not able to check in earlier than 01.30 PM, will it be possible to board the ship at an earlier time? If so, how early? (10-11 am?)

2. My wife and our 2 children (aged 11 & 12) would love to do "swim with dolphins" where do people recommend they do this? (on this route)

Thanks for all the replies!

Boarding usually starts around 11am. Royal has not enforced suggested check-in times at US ports.

Nassau is a good place to swim with the dolphins. :)

Try Blue Lagoon in the Bahamas. Make reservations in advance.

Welcome to CC. Others in the roll call thread for your sailing are probably discussing these issues.

Is this your first cruise? If so... you picked a great ship and will be spoiled from here on out.

We did the dolphin swim in St. Kitts and really enjoyed it. Only time we have done that excursion so I can't speak to it compared to the others. It was a really fun experience. The pictures are way over priced. I knew I couldn't leave without buying the pictures of my kids being pulled by a dolphin. But, I knew that before I ever left the ship. I am a sucker for pictures. Haha!

Have a great cruise.

I just hope you are prepared for the addiction. :D

We also have done the dolphin swim in St Kitts. Haven't done it in Nassau, so I can't compare, but I do recommend it in St. Kitts. My kids were 10 and 11 at the time. As for check in, I wouldn't get to the port earlier than 10:30 if I were you or you'll just be sitting around with bored kids, but any time after that (unless the ship was late into port for some reason) should be fair game.

Try to arrive around 11am...they don't enforce check-in times. If you are there too early, you will simply be standing and waiting...

I plan to show up early.

Welcome to CC Don! Just got off the HOTS, hope you love it as much as we did. We too had a 1:30 board time but got to the port about 2 hours early and had no problems boarding earlier than scheduled. Problem was the rooms weren't available till 1:15 or 1:30 if memory is correct. Might be worth while to wait closer to the time when rooms are ready so you can take luggage immediately to the room. Of course with kids I'm sure that plan won't be well received and you'll have babysit the luggage until the room is ready. Enjoy!

We swam with the dolphins at Atlantis in Nassau twice. It's beautiful and very enjoyable, with luxurious locker rooms and bathrooms for changing into the wetsuits. but be prepared for a heart attack at the cost of photos. The first time we did it, in 2014, we got all the photos on CD for about $70 (not exactly a bargain, but we bit the bullet). In 2017, it was $270, and you could no longer buy individual prints, only the whole CD. We didn't buy them the second time. And they don't let you take your own pictures, for the safety of the dolphins. Only their photographer is allowed to photograph in the water.

Is this your first cruise? If so... you picked a great ship and will be spoiled from here on out.

Yes, it is.

Thank you everyone! Good to hear that you can probably board earlier.

After months of lurking I finally made an account here. We will soon fly to Miami and embark Harmony of the seas (in Fort Lauderdale). Off to the eastern route. (Nassau, St. Thomas & St. kitts)

Hopefully someone can help me answering the following:

 

1. We have already checked in through the RCCL website, but was not able to check in earlier than 01.30 PM, will it be possible to board the ship at an earlier time? If so, how early? (10-11 am?)

2. My wife and our 2 children (aged 11 & 12) would love to do "swim with dolphins" where do people recommend they do this? (on this route)

 

Thanks for all the replies!

Don Corleone : It is my honor to post to you .It is not likely that you can board before 11AM .You could try making an offer that cannot be refused.:)