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Honeymoon- any tips for first time on Harmony?


RCIDreamer96

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Hi all, newby here. We set sail for our honeymoon Dec 13th on Harmony of the Seas, with our ports being Perfect Day, Cozumel, Roatan, and Playa Costa Maya. This will be our third sailing with RCI, but neither have ever been on an Oasis Class ship- any recommendations for Harmony? I currently have an oceanview room booked because I was told that a balcony room may not be worth it for all of the activities we have planned. As for the ports, we've been to Perfect Day twice, but have never been to Cozumel, Roatan, or Costa Maya. Are there shore excursions, ship activities, or beaches you recommend for these ports? We have Rays and Sharks in our cruise planner for Cozumel, ATV jungle adventure for Roatan, and the Mayan Ruins for all day in Costa Maya but nothing set in stone. 

 

Thank you in advance!

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Went on the Allure for my honeymoon. It is Oasis class as well. They are wonderful ships with lots to do. The shows are wonderful! My #1 thing I would say to do is find some time to just sit on the beach and relax and do nothing for a few hours. Take it all in. Don't get preoccupied with trying to do too much. The best day we had was when we just sat on the beach under an umbrella holding hands. I wish you the best and smooth sailing!

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We just cruised on Harmony last week. We originally had an interior but upgraded to a balcony because it came down in price but I don't think it was necessary since we were rarely in the room. I agree with the Central Park recommendation, we spent a lovely hour with a glass of wine watching the amazing guitar player one evening he was fantastic. If you don't want to pay for specialty dining (we didn't) make a reservation one night at Solarium Bistro. Its such a beautiful setting to watch the sunset while you dine. Let them know it is your honeymoon. We went on Explorer of the seas for ours and they arranged a lunch for the honeymooners in the main dining room that was so delicious. The carousel in the evening is also a sweet way to spend a few minutes. If you are at all interested book the Escape Room. It was challenging and SO MUCH FUN!

We did the same itinerary as you but had to skip Costa Maya due to high seas. We had booked the Chacchoben ruins and Lagoon tour with Native Choice it seemed like it would be a really great day. If you like ziplining we had a really fun excursion in Roatan ziplining and playing with the monkeys in Gumbalimba Park

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My wife and I honeymooned on Oasis back in 2017 and it was awesome!!!! Central park is amazing. We book now book cabins toward the rear on deck 8 when we cruise Oasis class just to make it easier to stroll through central park every night on the way to dinner. It sounds like you have great excursions booked so I my only advice would be to book your onboard shows as early as possible. Try to see them all including the aqua and ice shows as Oasis class entertainment is second to none. Enjoy and CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!

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4 hours ago, RCIDreamer96 said:

I currently have an oceanview room booked because I was told that a balcony room may not be worth it for all of the activities we have planned.

Depends how much more a balcony is, but money saved on a room = more money for other fun.

4 hours ago, RCIDreamer96 said:

As for the ports, we've been to Perfect Day twice, but have never been to Cozumel, Roatan, or Costa Maya. Are there shore excursions, ship activities, or beaches you recommend for these ports

Cozumel: 

 

 

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Congratulations!

You will really enjoy the Harmony (and Captain Johnny if he's there - depending on his schedule).

We did this itinerary last May. In Roatan, we did an excursion through Royal Caribbean - snorkeling with Jolly Rogers! It was by far the BEST excursion we have ever done. Roatan has the second largest barrier reef (next to Australia), so the sights under the water are magnificent! We swam over a cliff and honest to God it felt like you were going to fall off (lol), but the beautiful sights were nothing like I have ever seen before (coral, fish, etc.). After snorkeling, they fed us grilled chicken, rice, pasta salad and watermelon along with an open bar (Nice!). One of the crew members mom made all the food and it was delicious! Overall, that experience was fantastic. We have snorkeled other places since, but nothing compares to Roatan (IMO). 

Whatever you do, just remember to have fun!  :)

 

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We were just in Coz and Costa Maya in Dec. Been there numerous times before. We did the Secret River tour through the ship in Cozumel this time.  It was great.  Keep checking your cruise planner as the prices go up and down.  We did Maya Chan in Costa Maya last Dec.  Well worth it for a beach day. You have to book directly through Maya Chan online. It will fill up.  We did the Chacchoben Mayan ruins (Native Choice Tours) last year as well. It was very interesting if you like ancient history. Well worth it.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi! I'm writing from Costa Maya, if you'd like to set your day for Mayan ruins be advised that there are 3 different Mayan ruins that can be visited from Costa Maya port, and there are 5 different tours that include Mayan Ruins. Pretty much depends on how long you'll like to spend on the tour.

Most popular tour:

Chacchoben Mayan Ruins, 4 hours total time.

Other tours to the same ruins:

Chacchoben Mayan Ruins Exclusive Drive. The tour from start to finish takes only 3.5hours and you're in a small group. Includes refreshments.

Chacchoben Mayan Ruins and the blue lagoon for 6.5 hours this last one includes a buffet at the lagoon.

PROS of Chacchoben short drive (1 hour each way) Souvenirs and Snack shopping possible at the ruins. 

CONS of Chacchoben, can't climb all buildings, no carvings neither decorations on walls left. Sometimes can be crowded, depends on the number of cruises in port that day.

The other two Mayan Ruins are Kohunlich and Dzibanche Mayan Ruins, but be advised that these ones are much further away than Chacchoben, because they nearly reach the border between Mexico and Belize. 

There is Kohunlich Tour for 6.5 hours and there is the combo visiting Kohunlich and Dzibanche for 8 hours. Neither of these two include a big meal, is just snacks for the ride and a simple sandwich for the way back. 

Pros of Kohunlich Only Tour: Easy itinerary, drive, visit, drive back. Plenty of time to explore the ruins, site is big so 2 hours there is the right time. You can climb most buildings, it has a ball game, and it has beautiful carved and stuccoed masks on one temple, everything is original. 

CONS, long drive, NOTHING to buy on site because is in the middle o the jungle. Not much time left in port when you go back.

Pros of KOHUNLICH + DZIBANCHE COMBO

Dzibanche has the tallest structures in the area, and guests are allowed to climb all temples, you get to see a great overview of all the Mayan civilization from residences, temples and plazas. Two sites in one day chance is a must do for some people.

Beautiful scenic drive and you get to see the real Mexico in a safe way.

Cons...

This tour will consume all your time in port, you depart to the tour at the ship's docking time, and when you finish the tour, you have to go back to the ship because they're only waiting for you... Check your ship arrival and departure times. 

Because of the long drives to and from the ruins and the driving time in between them, you are only given 1hour on each archaeological site, one hour is the right time for Dzibanche, but sometimes an hour may seem short for kohunlich. Well, also you can take into account that by the time you get to the second ruin, you may have already consumed great energy and you won't feel that eager to explore much of the second site. 

Only light snacks, water and a sandwich provided, remember it's 8 hours so you may want to bring some food.

Hope this info helps you decide!

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