Harmony of Seas: Yes or No?

[cblaney]

Hello, please HELP!!! I have only been on 1 cruise (carnival splendor) last March and really want to go on Harmony of Seas. My family and I are looking to cruise in May, June, or July on Harmony of the Seas. However, I keep seeing such negative reviews regarding crowds, wait times, cleanliness, and rude staff. Curious as to what everyone else's experience on this ship were like, PROS/CONS. We are so close to booking Harmony of the Seas and then see these bad reviews so we are very hesitant! Any advice helps! Thanks in advance :)

 

Also, is Allure or Oasis better than Harmony? Which one would you recommend?

[brunello22]

Hello, please HELP!!! I have only been on 1 cruise (carnival splendor) last March and really want to go on Harmony of Seas. My family and I are looking to cruise in May, June, or July on Harmony of the Seas. However, I keep seeing such negative reviews regarding crowds, wait times, cleanliness, and rude staff. Curious as to what everyone else's experience on this ship were like, PROS/CONS. We are so close to booking Harmony of the Seas and then see these bad reviews so we are very hesitant! Any advice helps! Thanks in advance :)

 

Also, is Allure or Oasis better than Harmony? Which one would you recommend?

 

Hi, welcome to Cruise Critic! I suggest you post this on the Royal Caribbean International forum; I trust you will receive many responses to your questions.

[easyboy]

Yes. We always take negative reviews with a grain of salt. It is what you make out of a cruise.

 

 

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Edited December 6, 2016 by easyboy

[Clarea]

... Also, is Allure or Oasis better than Harmony? Which one would you recommend?

These ships are very much the same as Harmony. Shows are different, and Harmony has slides.

[Nanny8]

Hello, please HELP!!! I have only been on 1 cruise (carnival splendor) last March and really want to go on Harmony of Seas. My family and I are looking to cruise in May, June, or July on Harmony of the Seas. However, I keep seeing such negative reviews regarding crowds, wait times, cleanliness, and rude staff. Curious as to what everyone else's experience on this ship were like, PROS/CONS. We are so close to booking Harmony of the Seas and then see these bad reviews so we are very hesitant! Any advice helps! Thanks in advance :)

 

Also, is Allure or Oasis better than Harmony? Which one would you recommend?

I've never been on a Harmony of the Seas but my SIL and her hubby love all the the RC ships. We like the mid sized ships like the Celebrity M class but we are looking into the RC Adventure for the spring because it has a ridiculous deal and we can only travel at certain times as educators. I think you have to listen to your gut and do what's best for you. Look at pics of the ship, see what it has to offer and decide if that is right for your family. Remember that there is just no pleasing some people so some reviews may be biased and can throw you off. I agree with easyboy take the reviews with a grain of salt.

[RSLeesburg]

We just sailed on Harmony over Thanksgiving. Here is link to my review.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2426935

 

To summarize here, Harmony is an amazing ship. The entertainment is outstanding and tons to do. We found the food to be good to great, but we only eat in specialty restaurants or in the buffet - we did not deal with the MDR, which I heard was a mess.

 

In terms of negatives, I would say that Harmony does require a bit more pre-cruise planning than most other ships. You would be wise to book reservations for dinner and entertainment ahead of time - but this may just have been because our cruise was so full.

 

We had over 6,400 guests on board, but double occupancy is only about 5,500 - but we never felt that the ship was crowded. After shows you do get a rush of people, and on formal nights the promenade can get a bit full as everyone tries to get pictures taken. But other than that, you will wonder where everyone is.

 

I think Harmony is a ship that should be tried at least once. It is that amazing, but she will be in FLL for a few years, so there should be no rush to try her out - especially if money is an issue as it is not cheap to sail on her.

[SuiteTraveler]

Harmony is extremely different from the Carnival Splendour. It is a massive ship and dining and shows are handled differently than on Carnival ships. You must make reservations for both dining and shows prior to boarding. This is something that confuses some people and then they are dissatisfied with their cruise. If you have a large group, then you make your dining reservations on a couple of people's cruise reservations and join them when you arrive onboard if you want a large table. Some people have not figured this out, so when they arrive onboard with a large group and no dining reservations, it is too late to get the dining reservations they actually want.

 

Because the ship is very new, Harmony will be more expensive this year than in succeeding years. So you need to decide if it is important to you to go on this ship in her maiden year or if you would rather wait for the price to go down a little bit.

 

In terms of cabins, my suggestion would be deck 8 ocean view balcony - this deck is very uncrowded as there are very few inside cabins on these halls and it is nice to walk through Central Park on your way "home" at night. Also it is convenient to get on the Rising Tide bar in this area. The reason I'm suggesting an ocean view balcony is that the inward facing balconies offer views into other people's cabins and, of course, they can see into your cabin as well. The other issue with the inward facing cabins is that they tend to feel more like you are in a hotel than on a cruise. The ocean view balcony gives you plenty of time to see the ocean.