Just back from Harmony - some info to help you

[Thorben-Hendrik]

The ship is beautiful and high tech and has many positive features.

 

 

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What would you consider a "positive feature" and does it make up for all the down's Harmony "features"?

[yknot13]

The service-level on Harmony is consistently very low....read the reviews in the CC review section...

 

Just returned as well and totally agree.

Crew was not engaged with the passengers.

Had a great time, dined in specialty restaurants all nights and had excellent service at a price.

[alfaeric]

Yes you have to remove most of the times - at some locations they have a scanner that can be moved so you can touch it - but I would say at 9 out of 10 times you will have to remove the band.

 

???

 

We had the wow bands, and never had to take them off once to make them work. Not sure what you are doing wrong. Dunno.

Edited November 27, 2016 by alfaeric

[Joe12]

Very interesting how desperate you are to stop others from posting their opinion.....

Breaking news: There is no way you can stop them!:D:p

 

You yourself have not sailed on many cruises to begin with - NO cruise on Harmony - yet you claim to be the one to control others opinion or have the right to police their postings.....I find that pretty loco!

 

By calling people who liked the ship "cheerleaders" I would say you are also desperate to stop others from posting their opinion.

And FYI, don't post 3 times in a row either.

[travelgoddess1]

Thanks to the OP for the information posted. I was not aware of several features, which are helpful to me for my upcoming Harmony cruise.

 

We were on the Quantum 2-day naming ceremony, when it first came to NJ in 2014. We were less than impressed, and not long afterward, Richard Fain came onboard to hear about service issues, etc. If I recall correctly, a second hotel director was sent to the ship, along with several assistant waiters, who had been replaced on Quantum by iPad. :eek: Again, if memory serves, many of the initial complaints were resolved.

 

The reason I posted this is because it is good to see that the company is responsive to these issues, and hopefully they will respond to meet the service levels expected in this market.

[Thorben-Hendrik]

Germanfflyer, I too saw the same style of ice bin in Park Cafe on Harmony and the first thing I thought about how unsanitary it was. When washing your hands is touted as the right thing to do, this seemed counter productive. We skipped the ice there, and any locations in which ice was available in this style of dispensing. When I needed ice I got it from the freestyle machines. In all honesty the ice makers on Oasis and Allure beside the water machines never kept up to their needed production in locations like Park Cafe and the Wipe Out Cafe.

 

It's highly obvious that you don't like Harmony, but was it just the service that did it or was there more? I'm asking an honest question as whatever it was it really must have got you. If I remember you were on the TA. In my live review I posted our downfalls that we encountered and I wonder how parallel and varied yours were to ours.

 

The other thing we think has happened is that RC has taken to technology to reduce staff in some areas. I would be curious to know if the staffing levels are less across the ship, and if so to what level on Harmony compared to Oasis and Allure. A prime example is the shore excursions area with multiple iPads/tablets with less crew to assist guests. A few other simple service cut locations, no drink service in Park Cafe putting more pressure on the bar in a Central Park. The staffed Champagne Bar is now manned by two robots. We have also never seen just 2 waiters at night in JR and 2 waiters in Sabor. Typically there are 3-4 working these venues. Yes these are simple and small locations for a few staff cuts but it does decrease the service levels.

 

I wonder out loud, could there have been a change in the MDR that led to the inept service that your waiter spoke of? Obviously your waiter feels as though there is a problem since he wants to go, and it is obvious that there is a service issue as other cruisers have made note about it. I noted issues in Specialty Dining venues where we ate, where they are supposed to be even better, and weren't for us.

 

I honestly think they need to do a major shakeup to get thinks running better. Harmony has been in service for half a year and we expected service equal or better to our past recent experiences. When our food arrived it was great, for mass market cruising, but the patience that we needed for the long waits for it's arrival was exasperating.

 

As said before it is a mix of very bad service and personnel preferences.

Well there is not much RCI can do about my personnel preferences but the 2 areas where I feel RCI is accountable is service and design or better yet design flaws!

To keep it short - management on Harmony sucks big time! We had interaction with 2 senior officers that was unbelievable bad - to the point that they are not fit for the job - because they are not able to communicate with customers - their wording and excuses were a PR nightmare and if they are not capable to address customer complaints they are not fit to run a work-crew and address those - both resulting in unsatisfactory service levels. It does not make sense to go into the details as there are so many ways the service fails on that ship. No bread-choices in the MDR is a stupid as it gets here....

Those low service levels are also reflected very well in the reviews that you can read on these boards - I was really surprised to see our observations being repeated by many.

A 3rd senior officer that is definitely not doing his job is the Chief of the kitchen - we can argue about menus a lot - but food consistently not being prepared well is something that falls into his domain. His failure is also well documented by now.

 

Then there is the design flaws:

There are so many of them and it is not understandable why RCI does not fix it.

I will just mention some to give an examples of what I am talking about....

 

- Entrance to the WJ everybody want to enter into the exit by design - also the washy-washy thing is not working - 4 sinks are not capable of handling the crowds - also IMHO the whole thing is more unsanitary then the hand-sanitizer, the washbasins are unsanitary, the water is not really hot and there is mold all over the sides of the washbasins already, also the towel dispensers are dirty and moldy

- lots of 5 and 6 seat tables in the WJ taking up unneeded space as most will only have 2 persons sitting at them

- the slides splashing the deck making it slippery and creating noise when the crew has to constantly use machines to pick up the water. Someone wrote it is a crew of 4 constantly mobbing and picking up the water...why don't they fix the too short "splash-glass" ?

 

- Last but not least a SWING_DOOR in the main mens-room that will cut or scratch the back of your legs as it will swing back to the guys standing in front of the urinals doing their thing....outsch! This is the stupidest thing I have EVER seen -and I have witnessed numerous men being hurt by the door - because you do not realize what will happen when someone lets it flip when he exits...

 

There is a lot more....but I am tired of typing....:D:rolleyes:

[indychiro]

A few questions...

 

Any info on chef's table? And how where the shows?

[Thorben-Hendrik]

I would assume the ice scooper would have about the same amount of germs the serving spoons do on the buffet.

Worse - lots of folks will use their hands as it is hard to catch the ice-cubes floating around in the bin....

[Thorben-Hendrik]

A few questions...

 

Any info on chef's table? And how where the shows?

 

Generally there is no Chefs-Table - but they were improvising it in the Solarium-Bistro

 

We liked "Grease"

We disliked "Columbus"

Aqua-shows were very good!

Headliners were very weak...

But that is a question of taste - that will vary from person to person...

[jules815]

Worse - lots of folks will use their hands as it is hard to catch the ice-cubes floating around in the bin....

 

That, and the scoop was usually laying on top of the cubes, handle right in there with the ice.

[A&L_Ont]

That, and the scoop was usually laying on top of the cubes, handle right in there with the ice.

 

Yes, I noticed that too. For some reason I have little issue with germs on the elevator buttons, and regular areas around the ship but when it comes to food my "spider senses" start to tingle.

[CruiseDiver]

We had a similar experience in the dining room. Not asked about drink orders. Not replenishing water or iced tea, bread, butter, etc. Very slow service...2 hours to eat dinner in the dining room. I'm not a fan of the new menu either. I think they have lowered the quality of the main dining room to get people to go to the specialty restaurants.

 

 

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I agree Totalelf.

 

 

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[CruiseDiver]

I absolutely agree!

It is the Harmony-Cheerleaders that want to shut up any other opinion - that is why I pointed out the "truth".

A fact is that only 56% of the reviewers were happy with their experience currently.

Another fact is that Harmony currently has the lowest review rating of any big RCI ship.

So some may be aware - that there is a bit of a risk they might not get what they expected.

 

If you are new to cruising and have nothing to compare the service to - it will be OK - as you have nothing to compare it to. But for RCI the service-standard is well below average....

 

 

I agree, some of us are used to getting better from RCI. Some were lucky enough to get good service from the MDR. Not from most I talked to on board. Our room steward was excellent. Wonderland, excellent.

 

 

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[CruiseDiver]

To the OP,

 

 

 

You mention there are no clocks in the room. Is there a phone with the time? We always request a wake up call on the phone. Will we still be able to set that up?

 

 

Phone sitting on nightstand next to bed. Nice feature, touch screen to wake it up to see time, but tried to use the wakeup feature twice, but never worked. Maybe others had luck in other cabins. Had to use my phone, no big deal.

 

 

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[CruiseDiver]

Just returned as well and totally agree.

 

Crew was not engaged with the passengers.

 

Had a great time, dined in specialty restaurants all nights and had excellent service at a price.

 

 

We shouldn't have to be forced to go to specialty restaurants to get excellent service for what we pay.

 

 

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[A&L_Ont]

As said before it is a mix of very bad service and personnel preferences.

Well there is not much RCI can do about my personnel preferences but the 2 areas where I feel RCI is accountable is service and design or better yet design flaws!

To keep it short - management on Harmony sucks big time! We had interaction with 2 senior officers that was unbelievable bad - to the point that they are not fit for the job - because they are not able to communicate with customers - their wording and excuses were a PR nightmare and if they are not capable to address customer complaints they are not fit to run a work-crew and address those - both resulting in unsatisfactory service levels. It does not make sense to go into the details as there are so many ways the service fails on that ship. No bread-choices in the MDR is a stupid as it gets here....

Those low service levels are also reflected very well in the reviews that you can read on these boards - I was really surprised to see our observations being repeated by many.

A 3rd senior officer that is definitely not doing his job is the Chief of the kitchen - we can argue about menus a lot - but food consistently not being prepared well is something that falls into his domain. His failure is also well documented by now.

 

Then there is the design flaws:

There are so many of them and it is not understandable why RCI does not fix it.

I will just mention some to give an examples of what I am talking about....

 

- Entrance to the WJ everybody want to enter into the exit by design - also the washy-washy thing is not working - 4 sinks are not capable of handling the crowds - also IMHO the whole thing is more unsanitary then the hand-sanitizer, the washbasins are unsanitary, the water is not really hot and there is mold all over the sides of the washbasins already, also the towel dispensers are dirty and moldy

- lots of 5 and 6 seat tables in the WJ taking up unneeded space as most will only have 2 persons sitting at them

- the slides splashing the deck making it slippery and creating noise when the crew has to constantly use machines to pick up the water. Someone wrote it is a crew of 4 constantly mobbing and picking up the water...why don't they fix the too short "splash-glass" ?

 

- Last but not least a SWING_DOOR in the main mens-room that will cut or scratch the back of your legs as it will swing back to the guys standing in front of the urinals doing their thing....outsch! This is the stupidest thing I have EVER seen -and I have witnessed numerous men being hurt by the door - because you do not realize what will happen when someone lets it flip when he exits...

 

There is a lot more....but I am tired of typing....:D:rolleyes:

 

Germanfflyer, thanks for the greater elaboration of what you saw and experienced. I appreciate you taking the time respond because it gives me a better understanding than just what is perceived to be a general lash out. I think people are loyal to the product, but I too found faults on my favourite Class of ship.

 

We have both discussed food concerns at different times relating to Harmony. I didn't have the same interaction with officers that you had but someone has to get things running smoother.

 

My father was an architect for 40 years when he was alive, so you can believe that design and functionality ranks high in our family. I personally did not see any mold in the WJ washing station. The human flow through was hard to get smooth. I know it's not an assembly line but if guests finished washing and stepped back to dry your hands, the next person could start their washing process making less delay. There were also garbage cans at the exit of the wash station away from the sinks. That being said, I'd rather someone take longer and wash properly :) than the people who refuse to and just walk through putting everyone else at risk.

 

The splashing around the kids pool was bad on some days, espically when sailing. They shut down sone of the sprayers which in turn reduced the spay onto the walking area of the pool deck. I'm not sure if you have sailed on Oasis or Allure but we have a lot. There is typically a wet area on the pool deck around the kids pool. Some from the spray features and some just from the kids dripping wet. Our son is now 9 and we have spent a lot of time at the kids pool. I always feel for the crew member that has too run the hand squeegee no matter the Oasis Class ship.

 

As for the automated cleaning machine it is being used for more industrial levels of water clean up on the pool deck. We actually use this type of floor cleaner in our family business when needed in the right application. I actually saw it used more at the Champaign Glass water slide ending more than anywhere. Perhaps they have gotten quicker at shutting off the offending sprayers on windy days at the kids pool when we sailed compared to yours. Your idea of the glass around the kids pool, in select spots, to reduce the spray is a great one. I like the design of Harmony's kids pool area over her sister ships but there is room for improvement.

 

We didn't have an issue finding seating at the WJ, but I justed my wife and she thought there were more 6-8 person seating areas at the back of the WJ than on her sister ships. If this were Europe more people would ask to join a half empty table but this is a cultural difference between the continents.

 

I didn't see the men's washroom that you referred to with the leg eating door but do you remember where it was exactly? I know the men's washrooms on deck 15 forward, port side have a swinging door separating the urinals from the rest of the washroom. It is the same set up on all Oasis Class men's washrooms at that exact location and I've never been hit by the swinging door. If it is a different location let me know as I will definitely check it out and if I use it I want to make certain that my legs are safe.:) We have a few more cruises booked on Harmony so I sure don't want my legs getting banged up.

 

Generally there is no Chefs-Table - but they were improvising it in the Solarium-Bistro

 

We liked "Grease"

We disliked "Columbus"

Aqua-shows were very good!

Headliners were very weak...

But that is a question of taste - that will vary from person to person...

 

As for the shows we liked the Aqua Shows, 1887 Ice show, and comedy. We haven't been to a headliner for years but have found them to be hit or miss. I am glad to see read that you enjoyed parts of your holiday even though there were more negative issues.

 

This thread is a good spot for you to express them VS on some one's personal review, as your issues can be discussed without stepping on anyone's proverbial toes. I now better understand where you are coming from VS the fact that you just dislike Harmony. I'm glad you took the time to respond to my question. Are you going to give RC another try, over and above this ship, or are you done with RC?

 

A bit off topic but where in Germany are you from? I've had a number of visits over the years from West to East before the wall came down. I've been fortunate enough to have travelled to Hamburg, Berlin, Jena, Leipzig, Munich, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart and a ton of places in between. I haven't been there for a while but when we return Colonge will be one of our stops to visit a family friend.

Edited November 27, 2016 by A&L_Ont

[riclop]

The Royal IQ is awesome; it has your compass and scheduled events on it. $7.95 gives each unit an ID number and you can text anytime or place without using the Internet. You need to download it at home first. The

only drawback is there is no sound alert to let you know you're getting a text.

 

You need a card to turn your lights on in the cabin. Instead of using your seapass, I'd suggest taking an expired credit card or similar card and leaving it in the slot all the time.

 

There is no clock in the cabin.

 

Holes cannot be punched in seapasses. If using a lanyard, you need one with a clear plastic holder. You can get on/off the ship, purchase items and open your doors while in the plastic sleeve. Lanyards are $7.95 on the ship; I'd suggest a trip to the dollar store before you go.

 

A lot of people were getting brush burns on the Abyss, especially when the mat slid out from under you. Plan on long pants and keep your elbows away from the edge.

 

Sorentos, Promenade Cafe and the hot dog place only served water, no ice. Park Cafe had lemonade, flavored water, but also no ice. The only place to get iced tea was main dining room and Windjammer.

 

All 3 dining rooms had same menu. 3rd floor one had 6 and 8:30 regular dining. 4th and 5th floors were MTD. I booked 120 days out for 6 people and could only get 8:45 - no regular dining available. When I got on the ship, all they had left was 5:15 MTD. We wanted same table, same waiters, so we took it. It was early, but allowed us time to snack later in the evening.

 

Hope this answers some of your questions if you're going on the Harmony soon.

Not good reviews from the Harmony so far , we are glad we cancelled 3 cruises on the Harmony due to NO pool in the solarium.

[flossinstructor]

Overall, we enjoyed our cruise on Harmony. I think everything has been discussed.

 

We only ate in specialty restaurants. Our food was always very good. The service was good, it just took a while.

We had a very nice time-food and service-in Wonderland. It was really different, but enjoyable!!

 

The shows that I saw, I liked.

Grease-if you like the movie/play, you will like it. If not, you may find it a little long.

Fine Line-was good. Not as much diving and acrobatics as I had anticipated. But, still good.

I skate (don't need reservations)-I really liked this show. It was fun!

The comedy show was good too.

 

I, as others, found bar service to be slow. It seems like they have to punch an awful lot of info into the computer just to get one drink. Very time consuming. It seemed to take the bartenders awhile to "find" things. One bartender told me they didn't have any Mic Ultra. I just needed to point out to him which draw it was in. Perhaps all of the bars are set up a little different???

 

I really like the way they do the photographs now. When they take your picture, give them your cabin number. You can go to the photo shop and check your photos on computers by just tapping your key or wow band to the pad next to the screen. So much better than them printing all of the pictures and you having to search for them.

 

Also, if you put your card on a lanyard with a clear sleeve, you do not have to remove it from the sleeve for any reason.

 

My one question all week was concerning the public ladies rooms. What was with the gigantic white trash cans in every stall? It was weird!

 

I think they will get everything worked out. I will sail Harmony again!

[Thorben-Hendrik]

Yes I was referring to the Deck 15 forward men's wash-room - maybe they used a different way to attach the door but it sure hit and ate the legs of the men regularly.

 

I am from Hamburg.

 

We really like RCI generally and have always had better experinces than this time on Harmony!

As long as other cruise lines do not have a Flowrider there is no alternative at least for myself :D.

 

 

We have many more issues with the O-class layout in general it does not really fit our liking - especially the useless Solarium ( IMHO ) with the cheap plastic foil roof - so we will stay away from O-class and especially Harmony!

F and V-class have never let us down so far!

So that is what we will do in 2017! :cool::)

 

Depending on alternatives and timing we might consider giving O4 a try in fall 2018 - but not sure yet - it also depends on what she will feature and how the Solarium will be set up on her.

 

Really looking forward to trying Q4 in 2019 that class also has a very nice Solarium!:)

Edited November 27, 2016 by germanfflyer

[CruiseDiver]

A few questions...

 

Any info on chef's table? And how where the shows?

 

Chef's Table was in the Solarium Bistro with tables pushed together inside a curtained off area. Was told it was moving to 150 restaurant, but probably not until next cruise. We cancelled our reservation since we were not only paying a premium for specialty food and meeting great people, but for the ambiance also.

[mikad]

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[C & L]

Just off the Harmony of the Seas Thanksgiving cruise. Have to say that all repairs/touch ups/ punchlist problems were repaired since the first sailings in Europe.

 

In Our Humble Opinion:

 

Entertainment: A+: great costumes, wonderful stagecraft, talented performers.

FINE LINE AQUA SHOW - an unusual 'skirt' dancer, and then lots of dynamic, foot splashing water dancing with some diving. Unfortunately, 3 times during the show there were mechanical problems (aerial, floor and fountains not working properly).

GREASE - talented performers, good stagecraft, spouse loved it.

HEADLINER - Journey tribute band, spouse loved it, but many walked out (next day some people said show was 'too loud').

1887 ICE SHOW- great costumes, interesting ice 'projections', and a "bubble blower"

COMEDY SHOW - 1st comedian was great, 2nd comedian had a difficult time connecting with audience, gained some momentum at the end of act

COLUMBUS SHOW - talented performers, creative writers, and once again, exceptional stagecraft.

In addition, there was an I-SKATE SHOW and BIG DADDY'S HIDEAWAY HEIST Aqua show where no reservations were required.

 

Food:

Windjammer: C (spouse), D (me) spouse consistently ate chicken, fish, mashed potatoes, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower. I sampled lots of dishes.

We both like the fries.

MDR: B (spouse), C (me) We had 5:30 MTD and had very good service (though as the crowds came, service slowed slightly, as to be expected) There were about 4 choices of bread and our water was replenished frequently. The food in the MDR was better than WJ.

 

We felt RCI falls significantly below par in the Complimentary Food Restaurants. There is lots of room for improvement.

 

CABIN: A- (spouse) A (me)

RCI has done an excellent job of organizing the cabin. User friendly for electronics, large TV (needs more varied programming), good size balcony (2 chairs, footstool and small round table), bathroom- easier to maneuver, good water pressure; Closets provide ample storage with numerous hangers, plenty of drawers for your clothing; sophisticated color scheme, HARD mattress and pillows. The refrigerator had a periodic hum and the glass divider between balconies rattled. Stain on balcony floor.

 

SERVICE:

Cabin Attendant- did his job, though the threshold from our room to balcony was always dirty.

MDR - Excellent head waiter and assistant

WJ - Offered beverages and also offered to get food

GUEST SERVICES - very good

NEXT CRUISE - slow, unfriendly, too early in the morning?!??!

 

 

Royal Caribbean needs to STEP UP taking care of this brand new ship. Hire more staff to maintain it and have managers who make sure things are clean!

 

We could not see through the glass balcony. It was so filthy. We actually cleaned the railing and glass as best we could so that we could sit and see out. Later on in the week, Thursday to be exact, the Crew cleaned all balcony glass in our area.

 

In the WJ, it was disconcerting to pull out a chair at breakfast and see food still on the carpeting from the previous night. It was dirty along the WJ window sills and tables were many times poorly wiped down.

 

In addition, too many times it was chaotic entering the WJ. Someone at RCI thought it a good idea to have the hungry hordes of people wait in line to wash their hands at 4 sinks! Some days we entered through the 4 sink line and other days we were able to enter through the double doors. It was/is just poor, poor planning on someone's part.

 

Dirty, stained cushions on outdoor furniture in Central Park.

 

In the Solarium there was peeling back of some type of material on the glass that flapped and rattled in strong breeze.

[Fruggers]

I'm just off this Thanksgiving sailing as well and echo all of your comments. This was my first Royal sailing and I found it to be terribly disorganized. We were in Silk for dining and our waiter was constantly apologizing for the slow food coming out of the kitchen and asking to please come back the next day and it should be better.

 

Went to Johnny Rockets one night for a hot fudge sundae. Got seated right away and then took 20 minutes for a waiter to come and take our order (this is with all of 7 guests in the restaurant). Then a 20 minute wait to get the sundae which doesn't have hot fudge (they were out on day 2???).

 

Had a bunch of other issues as well and don't think I'll be back on Harmony any time soon.

[A&L_Ont]

Yes I was referring to the Deck 15 forward men's wash-room - maybe they used a different way to attach the door but it sure hit and ate the legs of the men regularly.

 

I am from Hamburg.

 

We really like RCI generally and have always had better experinces than this time on Harmony!

As long as other cruise lines do not have a Flowrider there is no alternative at least for myself :D.

 

 

We have many more issues with the O-class layout in general it does not really fit our liking - especially the useless Solarium ( IMHO ) with the cheap plastic foil roof - so we will stay away from O-class and especially Harmony!

F and V-class have never let us down so far!

So that is what we will do in 2017! :cool::)

 

Depending on alternatives and timing we might consider giving O4 a try in fall 2018 - but not sure yet - it also depends on what she will feature and how the Solarium will be set up on her.

 

Really looking forward to trying Q4 in 2019 that class also has a very nice Solarium!:)

 

The positive is you know what you like and what you don't. As a stand up flow rider addict I suspect we could spend a lot of time in the line talking about the pros and cons of the wave we are riding and comparing notes of the ship we are on.

 

Did you notice the new public washroom on the starboard side flowrider between the sports desk and the zip line? I also like the new showers back there on port and starboard side of the Wipeout Bar for cooling off in when the line gets hot from the sun. At least that's what I used them for. I will need to keep my eyes on that swinging door on our next Harmony cruises. As for Oasis 4 we have concluded that we will wait for a while before trying her out, but I don't know how long I can wait.

 

As for Hamburg, I was there on my first ever visit to Germany almost 35 years ago. I was almost 10 and I remember being in the square at the Rathaus during a festival in the summer. The evening ended with fireworks but I don't remember much more than that though. That is a few;) years ago.:D

 

Here is a little flowriding scope for you from Harmony with my best of the best victory win. Hopefully the video works for you and maybe one day we will meet at the flowrider.

 

Andrew

 

https://www.periscope.tv/w/awo-vTFheWpWd3JOb1ZFcHJ8MU1uR25Ydm1XcGV4T1WPOGyYqAUS3LXS8N9aEAP4yy1u2J8oWcf1QFFzK2x8

Edited November 28, 2016 by A&L_Ont

[cpayne]

Did they offer a discounted drink pkg later in the wk for remaining days? If so, how much? We usually have our 2 bottles of wine we bring on board the 1st 2 nts and then a port day where we don't drink much. By Day 3 or 4 it may be worth it for my husband.

 

 

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