Harmony of the Seas 5/8/22 Review

[mickeygirl78]

I cruised on Harmony of the Seas 5/8/22.  This was my third cruise since the pandemic restart.  

 

Initial Booking/Boarding

I booked this cruise in February of 22, I decided to gamble and book an ocean view guarantee.  About a month before the trip I was assigned a room on deck 3.  I bid on a royal up to a neighborhood balcony for $50/pp and won an upgrade to a boardwalk balcony on deck 8. I was notified a few days prior to sailing of the upgrade.  My check in time was 11-11:30am.  We arrived at the port around 10:15am (it took less time to return the car and get the shuttle to Port Canaveral than expected).  The line was already quite long, no one was checking arrival times and we were motioned to join the back of the queue.  The coast guard was having them do drills, so it was around 11:30 that the boarding process started.  We had made it through the document checks, security and screening and were boarding quickly once it began.  The new process of muster is very convenient and easy.  Before we even got to the ship we were able to do 2 parts of it, and just check into the muster station once onboard.  Tip - as soon as you can connect to the ships wifi, you can book the shows.  I booked our shows while waiting to board.  

 

Room

Rooms were ready a little past 1.  Not sure if the coast guard delay factored into this but there were several issues in our hall with keys.  The room I was traveling with had no set sail passes on their door mailbox, several others in the hall had other peoples set sail passes either instead of or in addition to theirs.  I had my correct pass, so the others I was with used my phone to contact guest services and they rectified the issue immediately.  There were a few issues in my room - I had no table on the balcony, no hairdryer, no tissues, and my safe was not working.  I wasn't concerned about the missing items, as I'm sure those could have been brought if I had asked.  I did ask to have my safe fixed, they first attempted to come when I was heading to dinner (they require you to be in the room when accessing the safe), but I was able to get it resolved later.  The location of the room was great.  I was in 8705, it was a short walk to Central Park and I like deck 8 as it's very central to take stairs to the Promenade and Boardwalk.  The room steward was not the best I ever had, I found myself wiping down things daily, still having to ask for washcloths/towels cause he would forget to replenish them, but he met my basic needs.

 

Food

We chose My Time Dining and also purchased the 3 night specialty plan.  We made reservations in the dining room for 3 nights (Night 1, 3 and 6) for 6:45pm.  Our assistant waiter, Barrow, was utterly amazing.  Even only going 3 nights, he would seek us out in the Windjammer, always was ready with our soda orders and refills.  The food in the main dining room was good.   The only item I did not like was the Maryland Crab Cake as it was very gummy.  Everything else we ordered was cooked perfectly, tasted great and the service was top notch.  We also ate breakfast in the dining room twice and lunch once.  I enjoy taking time out for a sit down meal and it did not disappoint.  For our 3 night specialty package, we chose 150 Central Park for night 2, Chops for night 5 and Jamie's for night 7.  We ended up booking Sabor last minute for night 4 instead of our planned visit to the dining room.  The food in all of the specialty dining locations was excellent.  150 Central Park was my favorite for both food and service.  Our waiter Alex was outstanding.  We mentioned that I was going to order Lobster Thermidor and my mother the Beef Tenderloin so we could share and he actually brought us out each a plate of lobster thermidor and then a plate of tenderloin to share.  If you only do one specialty, this is where I'd recommend.  Chops had average service but the food was very good, steak cooked perfectly.  Jamie's also had average service and average food.  I enjoyed Jamie's much more when I was on Harmony in 2019.  I loved the appetizers but the main courses were just so-so.  Sabor was a very pleasant surprise.  We did not intend on going there but decided at the last minute to try it.  One of the people I was traveling with doesn't eat Mexican food, so we weren't sure if she'd find anything to eat but our waiter had some great recommendations for her and she left very happy.  Sabor is about half the cost of the other venues for dinner and it's a nice change of pace.  We ate at the Windjammer for a few breakfast and lunches.  It was as expected for a buffet.  After being on the Odyssey in April, I found the buffet on Harmony to offer less variety than Odyssey.  The wait staff in the Windjammer was phenomenal, I don't think I've ever been asked so many times if I wanted coffee or juice in the morning.  We also ate at Johnny Rockets twice for breakfast.  The menu had changed since the last time I had been on this ship (Oct 2019), and I enjoyed some of the new items.  The food was very good, the potatoes were my favorite.  I did buy the breakfast burger one morning and enjoyed that.  Side note - Johnny Rockets serves Mr. Pibb, as they don't have that in the freestyle machines and coming from the North it's not something offered much here, it was a great bonus.

 

Freestyle machines - I may have a slight obsession with Dr. Pepper, so I purchased the soda plan.  I picked up my cup on day 1 on the Promenade.  They have 2 freestyle machines on the Promenade at Sorrentos, two in the windjammer (one on each side) and one by mini-bites.  The machines were frequently having issues - running out of ice, out of several soda flavors (mostly the one by mini-bites) or shooting syrup out (happened a few times on the Promenade).  It became easier to just swing by a bar (Trellis bar being my favorite) to get a drink.  

 

Shows/Things to do

Grease - The entertainment cast on Harmony does a great job with this production.  The singing, acting and general performance were top notch.  I really enjoyed watching this again.

1887 Ice Show - Bring a sweater, it gets chilly.  I always forget that.  The show is worth seeing.  The talent these skaters have is really phenomenal, especially when you think about the size of the rink and that it is at sea.  

Comedy Show - We saw the comedy show early in the trip in the attic.  It is a very small venue, so make sure to make reservations and get there early.  The show was good and we had some good laughs.

Temperature Band - Wow!  We saw them a few times between dazzles and the promenade.  If you have the chance to see them on a trip, make sure to go.  The female lead has such an amazing voice.  The place was packed whenever they performed.

El Gaucho (Showman/Headliner) - This was my least favorite show.  If I had not been in the middle of a row, I probably would have left.  The gentleman was a good performer but I found it got old after about ten minutes.  

Kevin Johnson (Ventriloquist/Headliner) - I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed this show.  I wasn't expecting to like it, but he was hilarious.  He really is more of a comedian.  The way he throws his voice is so impressive! 

Aqua Theater Showcase - I did not attend this show, but I did catch it from my balcony a few times.  As I was only on deck 8 and further down the boardwalk, I didn't see a lot of it, but what I could see was really good. 

Love & Marriage Game Show - The couples they picked for this really made the show.  It was so much fun to watch.

Pools - We spent a lot of time by the pools.  Chair hogs were certainly out in full force but we were able to find chairs, it helps that we typically went to the pool right after breakfast.  The pools got very busy by lunch time.  We primarily went to the beach pool.  Maybe it's because I'm from the north, but I did find the water in the pool to be very warm and not as refreshing as it should be.  If you decide to stay on the ship at one of the islands, it's the perfect time to lounge by the pool, hardly any crowds and your pick of chairs. 

 

Other general thoughts:

The cruise was wonderful, I really enjoyed the trip.  The staff was so friendly, working hard and doing their best.  I've sailed on the Oasis class three times before this trip, however after sailing Quantum class in April, I think I prefer that class.  I loved my week at sea and look forward to planning my next one. 

 

[swsf99a]

Nice review. We will be on the ship June 5th. Thanks for the tip to book shows once ship wifi connects. It is a pain not being able to book entertainment  30 days ahead. Did you have to be on the ship to book your specialty dining? We also have a 3 night package. Lastly, was the ship full and how many kids?

Thanks !!

[OCSC Mike]

Thanks for the review, will be on Harmony Sunday, tests permitting.

 

We're going to Sabor and my wife doesn't eat Mexican either (although she loves yucca fries and can eat a cheese quesadilla). May I ask what that person in your party ate?

[molly361]

8 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Thanks for the review, will be on Harmony Sunday, tests permitting.

 

We're going to Sabor and my wife doesn't eat Mexican either (although she loves yucca fries and can eat a cheese quesadilla). May I ask what that person in your party ate?

Not the OP although I was on her sailing but a family came into Sabors while I was eating and one of them ordered food from JR across the way

[OCSC Mike]

15 minutes ago, molly361 said:

Not the OP although I was on her sailing but a family came into Sabors while I was eating and one of them ordered food from JR across the way

 

That's thinking outside the box.

[ejnsb]

This is very informative and helpful.  We are on the Harmony in September.   It will be our first Royal cruise in almost 10 years (although we have sailed 3 times since the restart).  I rely heavily on cc for inside information,  especially like booking your shows from the terminal.   Thanks!

[mickeygirl78]

4 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

Thanks for the review, will be on Harmony Sunday, tests permitting.

 

We're going to Sabor and my wife doesn't eat Mexican either (although she loves yucca fries and can eat a cheese quesadilla). May I ask what that person in your party ate?

They had the steak and the waiter also added some shrimp from another dish. She also had the calamari appetizer with the sauce on the side. The waiter Omar was excellent about suggesting what wasn’t spicy and more generic for her.

[mickeygirl78]

5 hours ago, swsf99a said:

Nice review. We will be on the ship June 5th. Thanks for the tip to book shows once ship wifi connects. It is a pain not being able to book entertainment  30 days ahead. Did you have to be on the ship to book your specialty dining? We also have a 3 night package. Lastly, was the ship full and how many kids?

Thanks !!

Yes, we had to wait to board the ship to book the specialty reservations. There was a desk set up on the promenade as soon as we got on that we stopped at. It was right by the next cruise location. 
 

The ship felt very full, they said there were 5073 people on board. I did not see a lot of kids.

Edited May 26, 2022 by mickeygirl78

[mickeygirl78]

4 hours ago, molly361 said:

Not the OP although I was on her sailing but a family came into Sabors while I was eating and one of them ordered food from JR across the way

We did joke that if she didn’t like her food I would run to Johnny Rockets to get her a burger, lol!

[barb in ga]

We're on Harmony on Sunday and even though I have sailed on her 2 times previously I really am looking forward to this trip. We are bringing DS, his wife and their 6 YO daughter; it's their first time cruising.

 

We always enjoy the shows, but may skip Grease as we've seen it twice. My favorite is always the ice skating.  We always book entertainment asap, I miss being able to book online 30-45 days out. We'll plan to log onto the Royal app while waiting and also do the muster app.

 

We'll enjoy a mix of dining while on ship; DH and I are D+, so we'll use our BOGO to take DS and DIL for a specialty meal, most nights we'll do MDR, lunches are usually Windjammer. I like breakfast in Johnny Rockets or Solarium Bistro. We'll be doing the 5PM dinner to accommodate my granddaughter's early to bed schedule, so I'm sure we'll check out Windjammer, Sorrento's Pizza, Promenade Cafe or Sabor for a snack. Afternoon snacks are usually from Central Park Cafe; great fruit cup and cookies. Their mushroom soup is almost as good as Chops, and the panini grilled sandwiches are awesome! I wish they stayed open past 6 for a light meal or snack.

I can't forget about the ice cream and toppings bar in Windjammer...yum!

 

Tomorrow is packing day and haircuts, Friday is testing day at Walgreens, Saturday we drive to Florida, Sunday we board, hurray! Hope to meet some of you onboard.

 

Barb in Georgia

 

[OCSC Mike]

10 minutes ago, mickeygirl78 said:

They had the steak and the waiter also added some shrimp from another dish. She also had the calamari appetizer with the sauce on the side. The waiter Omar was excellent about suggesting what wasn’t spicy and more generic for her.

Thanks. Wouldn't work for my picky wife but appreciate it.