Hockeyman55

Great live blog and awesome photos!  Looking forward to your next cruise and blog.

Beautiful family! Beautiful pictures! Thank you for sharing.

This occurs daily.  New transmission?  That's a 7 night cruise to the Caribbean!  That sweet lens Art Sigma just released, that's an Alaska cruise!     New hardwood floors?  That's a Hawaiian cruise!

You know you have a cruising problem when you see numbers like that and think, "Wow, an ocean view balcony cabin just for the body! And a promenade balcony per lens!"
::raising hand:: Hi, my name is Joe...

$2k for camera + $800-1k for the lens.  
Your pictures are great! I can't personally justify spending that much for a camera set up, but you cannot argue with the results. Maybe someday I'll upgrade to that level of stuff...in the name of research!

Indeed.  I'm pretty heavily vested into my Nikon full frame.  The camera body is easy, it's the lenses!
I have the Rokinon 12mm and 14mm which for the price are great lens and f2.8 to boot.
Sony is really doing a great job taking on Canon/Nikon and leading mirrorless advances.  If it weren't for the lenses, I'd be pretty tempted to jump ship (pun unintended).

Fantastic blog and stunning photos! Thanks so much for sharing!
Do consider the late traditional dining slot (8 or 8:30, depending on ship). Having done it myself, I can say that there wasn't one time when I went there feeling ravenous or wishing our dining slot was just a little bit earlier. And since we usually saw a show or did some other activity afterward, it wasn't like we were eating and going to bed right after. Service was great every night, and I think the staff wasn't feeling nearly as rushed or pressured as they might have with an earlier seating.
We normally eat at 6:30 when at home, so I attribute the lack of major hunger at 8:30 to the ready supply of snacking items you can get for free on board. Well, that and probably the sail-away margaritas I had most days!

love the blog next time in Falmouth book the beach buggy ride with lunch ride was ok lunch was good but definitely jerk the real treat was the van ride through the real Jamaica it takes well over an hour to get there well over you will se how it really is and on the way back you will stop at a well guarded shopping mall for some shopping the poverty is incredible and right in the middle of the shanties is a mansion saw dozens of examples of this Jamaica is a fascinating place to visit but you must see it with a guide never alone

@Hockeyman55 loved this blog! So happy that you and your family enjoyed Harmony and that all that planning played out well for you. Fantastic pictures! 
Your line about Cozumel made me laugh. We usually don't care much about the ports these days but whenever Cozumel is on the itinerary, we bring extra money! lol! 

Thanks for a great review, loved the photos ?

A quick recap of our cruise along with some more pictures
 
Where do I even begin . . . rating these on a scale of 10
 
Cruise 10/10
Id give the cruise itself a 10 out of 10. Was everything I knew it would be, well actually better than I thought it would be. Can't wait until we can book another cruise and have already begun talking about it.  More than likely will be in 2020 and the revamped Coco Cay is on our list of stops we would like to hit up. 
 
Room 9.5/10
Besides being on the smaller side, which being on a ship, I totally understand, our room was great. Loved the location overlooking the boardwalk and being able to see the water and The Fine Line was a wonderful thing. I am deducting half a point because of the rock hard beds. Other than that we were totally happy. Also being able to watch the movies on the big screens at the aqua theater from our balcony was super cool. 
 
Crew 10/10
Everyone we interacted with was wonderful. Our room attendant Sydney was the man and took care of us and  anything we needed. The few times at customer service went smoothly with no issues. No complaints here from us. 
 
Food 8/10
There were a few things we came across that was so so, like super burnt and crispy toast and french toast in Windjammer but then there was some amazing food as well, like our meal in Sabor. 
 
Shows 10/10
The shows blew our minds, didn't expect them to be that good, even the ice skating shows. I preferred Iskate over 1887 and Columbus over Grease but all were spectacular. The Fine Line was an action packed spectacle and a must see. We did miss the headliner act and comedian. The character meet and greets and breakfast was a lot of fun as well as the parade in the promenade.  
 
 
 
 
Labadee 10/10
Was really more than we were expecting. Could have spend a few more hours here. Zipline and coaster were highlights for me and my kids loved the beach and aqua park. 
 
Falmouth 7/10
For me this port was just ok. Probably the one port I would have been ok skipping, would have like to see more of the country side though 
 
Cozumel  8/10
The rain really did put a hamper on the day but made the best of with some shopping and lunch, the shopping did make up for a lot for us. Along with Jamacia, would have loved to see more of the real country 
 
 
Things we would have done differently 
Packed less, we severely over packed. Being our first family cruise we didn't know how much to bring and really could have brought less. 
Sign up for my time dining. I selected the 5:30 dining time and only made it to one meal at that time. Next time will def do the my time dining. 
Bring/save more money to spend in Cozumel, lol.  
Book back to back cruises. This is a pipe dream but would have been really great
 
Odds and End
Embarking and disembarking the ship couldn't have gone smoother for us. I was pleasantly surprised how smooth and really didn't have to wait in any long lines either day. Even finding our luggage was a breeze
Ship could use a few more Coke Freestyle machines IMO ?
Elevators could be a pain sometimes but with that many people its understandable 
Ship could use a few more of those frozen yogurt stands also ?
Getting to and from our home in Palm Beach Gardens to Port Everglades was pretty easy as was dropping off our bags and parking

A day late but here is day 8 
Today was the day nobody looks forward to, the last day of the cruise. With our bags put outside the night prior, there wasnt much left to pack up to carry off. We had decided to wake up early so we could enjoy one last breakfast at Windjammer. After that we grabbed our carry off bags and headed down to Silk to wait for our number to be called. Number called, left the shipped, found our bags and loaded up into our SUV and was back home in less than an hour. That last sentence was such a depressing sentence to type  ?
Overall thoughts and pictures to follow

A quick recap of our cruise along with some more pictures
 
Where do I even begin . . . rating these on a scale of 10
 
Cruise 10/10
Id give the cruise itself a 10 out of 10. Was everything I knew it would be, well actually better than I thought it would be. Can't wait until we can book another cruise and have already begun talking about it.  More than likely will be in 2020 and the revamped Coco Cay is on our list of stops we would like to hit up. 
 
Room 9.5/10
Besides being on the smaller side, which being on a ship, I totally understand, our room was great. Loved the location overlooking the boardwalk and being able to see the water and The Fine Line was a wonderful thing. I am deducting half a point because of the rock hard beds. Other than that we were totally happy. Also being able to watch the movies on the big screens at the aqua theater from our balcony was super cool. 
 
Crew 10/10
Everyone we interacted with was wonderful. Our room attendant Sydney was the man and took care of us and  anything we needed. The few times at customer service went smoothly with no issues. No complaints here from us. 
 
Food 8/10
There were a few things we came across that was so so, like super burnt and crispy toast and french toast in Windjammer but then there was some amazing food as well, like our meal in Sabor. 
 
Shows 10/10
The shows blew our minds, didn't expect them to be that good, even the ice skating shows. I preferred Iskate over 1887 and Columbus over Grease but all were spectacular. The Fine Line was an action packed spectacle and a must see. We did miss the headliner act and comedian. The character meet and greets and breakfast was a lot of fun as well as the parade in the promenade.  
 
 
 
 
Labadee 10/10
Was really more than we were expecting. Could have spend a few more hours here. Zipline and coaster were highlights for me and my kids loved the beach and aqua park. 
 
Falmouth 7/10
For me this port was just ok. Probably the one port I would have been ok skipping, would have like to see more of the country side though 
 
Cozumel  8/10
The rain really did put a hamper on the day but made the best of with some shopping and lunch, the shopping did make up for a lot for us. Along with Jamacia, would have loved to see more of the real country 
 
 
Things we would have done differently 
Packed less, we severely over packed. Being our first family cruise we didn't know how much to bring and really could have brought less. 
Sign up for my time dining. I selected the 5:30 dining time and only made it to one meal at that time. Next time will def do the my time dining. 
Bring/save more money to spend in Cozumel, lol.  
Book back to back cruises. This is a pipe dream but would have been really great
 
Odds and End
Embarking and disembarking the ship couldn't have gone smoother for us. I was pleasantly surprised how smooth and really didn't have to wait in any long lines either day. Even finding our luggage was a breeze
Ship could use a few more Coke Freestyle machines IMO ?
Elevators could be a pain sometimes but with that many people its understandable 
Ship could use a few more of those frozen yogurt stands also ?
Getting to and from our home in Palm Beach Gardens to Port Everglades was pretty easy as was dropping off our bags and parking

A quick recap of our cruise along with some more pictures
 
Where do I even begin . . . rating these on a scale of 10
 
Cruise 10/10
Id give the cruise itself a 10 out of 10. Was everything I knew it would be, well actually better than I thought it would be. Can't wait until we can book another cruise and have already begun talking about it.  More than likely will be in 2020 and the revamped Coco Cay is on our list of stops we would like to hit up. 
 
Room 9.5/10
Besides being on the smaller side, which being on a ship, I totally understand, our room was great. Loved the location overlooking the boardwalk and being able to see the water and The Fine Line was a wonderful thing. I am deducting half a point because of the rock hard beds. Other than that we were totally happy. Also being able to watch the movies on the big screens at the aqua theater from our balcony was super cool. 
 
Crew 10/10
Everyone we interacted with was wonderful. Our room attendant Sydney was the man and took care of us and  anything we needed. The few times at customer service went smoothly with no issues. No complaints here from us. 
 
Food 8/10
There were a few things we came across that was so so, like super burnt and crispy toast and french toast in Windjammer but then there was some amazing food as well, like our meal in Sabor. 
 
Shows 10/10
The shows blew our minds, didn't expect them to be that good, even the ice skating shows. I preferred Iskate over 1887 and Columbus over Grease but all were spectacular. The Fine Line was an action packed spectacle and a must see. We did miss the headliner act and comedian. The character meet and greets and breakfast was a lot of fun as well as the parade in the promenade.  
 
 
 
 
Labadee 10/10
Was really more than we were expecting. Could have spend a few more hours here. Zipline and coaster were highlights for me and my kids loved the beach and aqua park. 
 
Falmouth 7/10
For me this port was just ok. Probably the one port I would have been ok skipping, would have like to see more of the country side though 
 
Cozumel  8/10
The rain really did put a hamper on the day but made the best of with some shopping and lunch, the shopping did make up for a lot for us. Along with Jamacia, would have loved to see more of the real country 
 
 
Things we would have done differently 
Packed less, we severely over packed. Being our first family cruise we didn't know how much to bring and really could have brought less. 
Sign up for my time dining. I selected the 5:30 dining time and only made it to one meal at that time. Next time will def do the my time dining. 
Bring/save more money to spend in Cozumel, lol.  
Book back to back cruises. This is a pipe dream but would have been really great
 
Odds and End
Embarking and disembarking the ship couldn't have gone smoother for us. I was pleasantly surprised how smooth and really didn't have to wait in any long lines either day. Even finding our luggage was a breeze
Ship could use a few more Coke Freestyle machines IMO ?
Elevators could be a pain sometimes but with that many people its understandable 
Ship could use a few more of those frozen yogurt stands also ?
Getting to and from our home in Palm Beach Gardens to Port Everglades was pretty easy as was dropping off our bags and parking

A quick recap of our cruise along with some more pictures
 
Where do I even begin . . . rating these on a scale of 10
 
Cruise 10/10
Id give the cruise itself a 10 out of 10. Was everything I knew it would be, well actually better than I thought it would be. Can't wait until we can book another cruise and have already begun talking about it.  More than likely will be in 2020 and the revamped Coco Cay is on our list of stops we would like to hit up. 
 
Room 9.5/10
Besides being on the smaller side, which being on a ship, I totally understand, our room was great. Loved the location overlooking the boardwalk and being able to see the water and The Fine Line was a wonderful thing. I am deducting half a point because of the rock hard beds. Other than that we were totally happy. Also being able to watch the movies on the big screens at the aqua theater from our balcony was super cool. 
 
Crew 10/10
Everyone we interacted with was wonderful. Our room attendant Sydney was the man and took care of us and  anything we needed. The few times at customer service went smoothly with no issues. No complaints here from us. 
 
Food 8/10
There were a few things we came across that was so so, like super burnt and crispy toast and french toast in Windjammer but then there was some amazing food as well, like our meal in Sabor. 
 
Shows 10/10
The shows blew our minds, didn't expect them to be that good, even the ice skating shows. I preferred Iskate over 1887 and Columbus over Grease but all were spectacular. The Fine Line was an action packed spectacle and a must see. We did miss the headliner act and comedian. The character meet and greets and breakfast was a lot of fun as well as the parade in the promenade.  
 
 
 
 
Labadee 10/10
Was really more than we were expecting. Could have spend a few more hours here. Zipline and coaster were highlights for me and my kids loved the beach and aqua park. 
 
Falmouth 7/10
For me this port was just ok. Probably the one port I would have been ok skipping, would have like to see more of the country side though 
 
Cozumel  8/10
The rain really did put a hamper on the day but made the best of with some shopping and lunch, the shopping did make up for a lot for us. Along with Jamacia, would have loved to see more of the real country 
 
 
Things we would have done differently 
Packed less, we severely over packed. Being our first family cruise we didn't know how much to bring and really could have brought less. 
Sign up for my time dining. I selected the 5:30 dining time and only made it to one meal at that time. Next time will def do the my time dining. 
Bring/save more money to spend in Cozumel, lol.  
Book back to back cruises. This is a pipe dream but would have been really great
 
Odds and End
Embarking and disembarking the ship couldn't have gone smoother for us. I was pleasantly surprised how smooth and really didn't have to wait in any long lines either day. Even finding our luggage was a breeze
Ship could use a few more Coke Freestyle machines IMO ?
Elevators could be a pain sometimes but with that many people its understandable 
Ship could use a few more of those frozen yogurt stands also ?
Getting to and from our home in Palm Beach Gardens to Port Everglades was pretty easy as was dropping off our bags and parking

A quick recap of our cruise along with some more pictures
 
Where do I even begin . . . rating these on a scale of 10
 
Cruise 10/10
Id give the cruise itself a 10 out of 10. Was everything I knew it would be, well actually better than I thought it would be. Can't wait until we can book another cruise and have already begun talking about it.  More than likely will be in 2020 and the revamped Coco Cay is on our list of stops we would like to hit up. 
 
Room 9.5/10
Besides being on the smaller side, which being on a ship, I totally understand, our room was great. Loved the location overlooking the boardwalk and being able to see the water and The Fine Line was a wonderful thing. I am deducting half a point because of the rock hard beds. Other than that we were totally happy. Also being able to watch the movies on the big screens at the aqua theater from our balcony was super cool. 
 
Crew 10/10
Everyone we interacted with was wonderful. Our room attendant Sydney was the man and took care of us and  anything we needed. The few times at customer service went smoothly with no issues. No complaints here from us. 
 
Food 8/10
There were a few things we came across that was so so, like super burnt and crispy toast and french toast in Windjammer but then there was some amazing food as well, like our meal in Sabor. 
 
Shows 10/10
The shows blew our minds, didn't expect them to be that good, even the ice skating shows. I preferred Iskate over 1887 and Columbus over Grease but all were spectacular. The Fine Line was an action packed spectacle and a must see. We did miss the headliner act and comedian. The character meet and greets and breakfast was a lot of fun as well as the parade in the promenade.  
 
 
 
 
Labadee 10/10
Was really more than we were expecting. Could have spend a few more hours here. Zipline and coaster were highlights for me and my kids loved the beach and aqua park. 
 
Falmouth 7/10
For me this port was just ok. Probably the one port I would have been ok skipping, would have like to see more of the country side though 
 
Cozumel  8/10
The rain really did put a hamper on the day but made the best of with some shopping and lunch, the shopping did make up for a lot for us. Along with Jamacia, would have loved to see more of the real country 
 
 
Things we would have done differently 
Packed less, we severely over packed. Being our first family cruise we didn't know how much to bring and really could have brought less. 
Sign up for my time dining. I selected the 5:30 dining time and only made it to one meal at that time. Next time will def do the my time dining. 
Bring/save more money to spend in Cozumel, lol.  
Book back to back cruises. This is a pipe dream but would have been really great
 
Odds and End
Embarking and disembarking the ship couldn't have gone smoother for us. I was pleasantly surprised how smooth and really didn't have to wait in any long lines either day. Even finding our luggage was a breeze
Ship could use a few more Coke Freestyle machines IMO ?
Elevators could be a pain sometimes but with that many people its understandable 
Ship could use a few more of those frozen yogurt stands also ?
Getting to and from our home in Palm Beach Gardens to Port Everglades was pretty easy as was dropping off our bags and parking

So here we are on day 7 which means tomorrow we are back home  . . .booooooooo.
Currently sitting in Sabor for dinner and I'll go out on a stretch and say the shredded short rib tacos have been the best meal I've had the whole trip. 
We skipped breakfast and ended up sleeping in until 9:30 which is super late for us.
Rushed down to promanade to check out the glassware and t-shirt sale and of course walked away with some goodies. Also went to the other gift shops to do some last minute shopping. 
After shopping we had some time for ice skating. Myself and our 2 oldest went and had a blast.
At 2:30 we had our showing of Grease. Was a fun show but not my favorite thing. My wife and kids loved it however.
So her we are finally caught up. Will try to post more later but anticipate a busy evening and morning. Have tons of pictures to share so stay tuned

Day 6 was the day we were most looking forward to and one of the reasons we went on the Western Caribbean cruise, our day in Cozumel. 
 
About 3 days prior we knew it was going to be a rainy day so we cancelled our reservations for Mr Sanchos and decided to spent the day in port shopping and eating. Was initially disappointed but it turned into a good day regardless. Our hual included some jewelry, chocolate, tequila, cologne and trinkets for the kids. 
Once back on board we spent some time in the hot tubs and then dinner at Windjammer again. After that we played mini golf again and ping pong, by that time it was 10pm and I was spent. Off to bed for day 7

OMG, Matt.  Please do NOT forget:
Shows:  Do you want to sleep through Cats or dance in the aisles to Grease ?
LOL.  Just kidding !

So here we are on day 7 which means tomorrow we are back home  . . .booooooooo.
Currently sitting in Sabor for dinner and I'll go out on a stretch and say the shredded short rib tacos have been the best meal I've had the whole trip. 
We skipped breakfast and ended up sleeping in until 9:30 which is super late for us.
Rushed down to promanade to check out the glassware and t-shirt sale and of course walked away with some goodies. Also went to the other gift shops to do some last minute shopping. 
After shopping we had some time for ice skating. Myself and our 2 oldest went and had a blast.
At 2:30 we had our showing of Grease. Was a fun show but not my favorite thing. My wife and kids loved it however.
So her we are finally caught up. Will try to post more later but anticipate a busy evening and morning. Have tons of pictures to share so stay tuned

So here we are on day 7 which means tomorrow we are back home  . . .booooooooo.
Currently sitting in Sabor for dinner and I'll go out on a stretch and say the shredded short rib tacos have been the best meal I've had the whole trip. 
We skipped breakfast and ended up sleeping in until 9:30 which is super late for us.
Rushed down to promanade to check out the glassware and t-shirt sale and of course walked away with some goodies. Also went to the other gift shops to do some last minute shopping. 
After shopping we had some time for ice skating. Myself and our 2 oldest went and had a blast.
At 2:30 we had our showing of Grease. Was a fun show but not my favorite thing. My wife and kids loved it however.
So her we are finally caught up. Will try to post more later but anticipate a busy evening and morning. Have tons of pictures to share so stay tuned

Day 4 note, today was finally able to checkout the waterslides after our day in Jamaica. I was highly excited to try these but left somewhat disappointed. The Perfect Storm slides both myself, brother and daughter both stalled out halfway down. The toilet bowl was the saving grace, I shot out of that one like a cannon and ended up coming out head first?
 
Day 5 
Today was our second sea day. Today was also the day we wanted to do all thing things on the ship we have yet to experience. 
Breakfast today was down at Johnny Rockets. Was nice to not be at Windjammer and have somewhat of a relaxing breakfast, let's be honest, that place can be an adventure to navigate.
After breakfast we headed straight to mini golf. The course was really fun and ended up getting a hole in one on the last hole. 
The Abyss, oh boy that was so much fun. Was a little nervous standing on that top deck looking down waiting to slide but was a breeze once we went down. 
Day also included the usual pools, hot tubs and ice cream. 
We decided to skip formal dinner and went to Jamie's Italian. I had the chicken cacciatore while my wife had the ribeye and we loved both. Dessert they brought out the dessert plank and we'll just say that was a hit with everyone ? 
After dinner we had a reservation for Columbus and that has been hands down our favorite show by far this trip, this show was hilarious.
Well that pretty much sums up day 5. On to day 6

Day 6 was the day we were most looking forward to and one of the reasons we went on the Western Caribbean cruise, our day in Cozumel. 
 
About 3 days prior we knew it was going to be a rainy day so we cancelled our reservations for Mr Sanchos and decided to spent the day in port shopping and eating. Was initially disappointed but it turned into a good day regardless. Our hual included some jewelry, chocolate, tequila, cologne and trinkets for the kids. 
Once back on board we spent some time in the hot tubs and then dinner at Windjammer again. After that we played mini golf again and ping pong, by that time it was 10pm and I was spent. Off to bed for day 7

So here we are on day 7 which means tomorrow we are back home  . . .booooooooo.
Currently sitting in Sabor for dinner and I'll go out on a stretch and say the shredded short rib tacos have been the best meal I've had the whole trip. 
We skipped breakfast and ended up sleeping in until 9:30 which is super late for us.
Rushed down to promanade to check out the glassware and t-shirt sale and of course walked away with some goodies. Also went to the other gift shops to do some last minute shopping. 
After shopping we had some time for ice skating. Myself and our 2 oldest went and had a blast.
At 2:30 we had our showing of Grease. Was a fun show but not my favorite thing. My wife and kids loved it however.
So her we are finally caught up. Will try to post more later but anticipate a busy evening and morning. Have tons of pictures to share so stay tuned

Thank you everyone. Will go back and reply to everyone tomorrow once I get home. I've fallen behind and wanted to catch up. 
Day 4 Jamaica
We initially had the dolphin encounter palnned for this day but with the weather forecast showing some potentially bad weather we cancelled that excursion and decided to spend the day in port shopping and having lunch.
We spent most of our time at Margaritaville which worked out great for us. The food was great and the drinks even better. I got the clock cup with the electric lemonade and it was outstanding and super strong. Everyone enjoyed thier food and drinks minus the ketchup, lol, my kids were just not having it. 
After we ate we spent some time at the pool there, was a fun party atmosphere and a swim up pool bar, score! My only complaint was the hot tub wasn't so hot. Other than that we all came away happy. 
After lunch we did some shopping, nothing too crazy, mostly just small Jamaica trinkets and dresses. 
After some shopping we headed back to the ship, might have been around 2-3pm at this point. Kids wanted to play in the pools and hot tub so off we went. After swimming I believe this was a late night dinner in the main dinning room for us. I had lasagna this time and was outstanding. Way better than the meal I had on formal night. This was pretty much the end of the day and off to bed we went.
Day 5 up next