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Finding Harmony on Harmony??? HM 3/11/2023 – 3/18/2023


Lovetocruise2002

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On 3/18/2023 at 10:27 AM, Lovetocruise2002 said:

- Because we wanted to do all dinners together, this SC sailing was probably the least flexible with dining times and switching. Our pre-cruise planing with Marla

@Lovetocruise2002 I’m pretty sure OP asking Genie for favors such as including Non SC gyests to dinner reservations and entertainment venues cannot possibly help the Genies arrange flexibility for paying Star Class guests. I’m pretty sure that if SC guests want changes on their reservations, genies are not likely going to go back and remove other non SC guests who may just be added on to a SC guest reservation. We didn’t experienced  the lack of flexibility in a reasonable time.   I’m also not sure that all Genies are equally flexible. 

11 hours ago, MLH said:

HM runs a “tighter ship” with their SC program. 

@Lovetocruise2002 Perhaps you remember Harmony was my favorite ship— Well while I and other SC guests felt a bit differently on the our last Harmony pre Covid cruise.  Ofcourse there has been  changeovers in concierge, genie, some CK personnel and we had become very fond of the regulars. I think I mentioned a genie discouraging me from ordering room service spontaneously (as opposed to going through the genie) and we also felt discouraged from grabbing our own Starbucks.  OP suggested the Genies were just being extra helpful, but intuitively I felt things were changing by design on Harmony gradually tightening the reigns. It is certainly not the Harmony we boasted about at the inception of Star Class. 

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2 hours ago, MamaShark said:

It is certainly not the Harmony we boasted about at the inception of Star Class. 

I know exactly what you are trying to say. While HM holds a very special place in my heart, and we had a perfectly good time on board this past week, it was hard not to notice and compare some of the things that have changed on board that ship since we last sailed her in 2019. It was also hard not to compare this sailing with our sailing a few months ago on SY. I would still sail HM again given the right opportunity but it definitely was a different experience in more ways than one.

1 hour ago, Ampurp85 said:

Thanks for blogging. I am glad everyone made it home safely and had a wonderful time.

Whenever I think I want to do star class again, you help me see it would be wasted on me🤣. Sky class is the "suite" spot for me.

I have not changed my mind in that when it’s Hubby and I, Sky class is our happy place as well. With the kids, star has it’s advantages. Heck, who I am kidding, I would book Star every time if I could lol. Pricing these days is not making that easy though.
 

 

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I was pleasantly surprised how “good” star class was on our recent cruise on Anthem, maybe it was because there were just the two of us!  I do worry that there will be eight of us next January, and it will be too much for our Genie. 
I just didn’t get the star class “wow” factor from your blog this time. Would your dad want to star class it again?  Did he see the advantages?  

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6 hours ago, Yesiamthere6 said:

I was pleasantly surprised how “good” star class was on our recent cruise on Anthem, maybe it was because there were just the two of us!  I do worry that there will be eight of us next January, and it will be too much for our Genie. 
I just didn’t get the star class “wow” factor from your blog this time. Would your dad want to star class it again?  Did he see the advantages?  

I think that is what I have been trying to explain. SC was not bad on HM, but compared to our other SC sailings it was the least flexible, and most restrictive. That is in no way a reflection of our genie, it is the way the ship is run. Now, is that because our group was large that made it more restrictive? I don’t know. Was it because we were on a sailing with many other large groups? Also don’t know. 
 

As far as my Dad goes, he would never do star on his own, that is just not in his personality. But did he enjoy the benefits of star this time? He most definitely took full advantage 🙂

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I'm certainly not referencing this to anyone....this is just my personal opinion, as a long-time Star Class customer.

I think that a lot of the WOW HAS come off.  The program itself hasn't changed that much but frankly, as they say, "familiarity breeds contempt" and I think I am just jaded from doing SC so many times.  Yes, the price is definitely having a tamping effect but I just can't get that excited about SC anymore.  Maybe Dan is just wearin' me down... LOL.  We paid less than $5K for our first SC trip (Harmony, 2014).  That was a bargain.  It's just sooo incredibly expensive now, and with the services and options dwindling, I don't see the value, sadly.

We have a SC booking for Icon in Dec. 2024 and honestly, I'm willing to pay the exorbitant price tag ONLY b/c it will be an entirely new and unique experience, but I don't see myself booking any other SC cruises at the moment.  I'm always super excited for those who are doing SC - particularly those that are doing it for the first time.  It's fun.  It's different....and it does make you feel special.  I really enjoyed being Sky Class this past week on OA.  I enjoyed having somewhere civil to eat (particularly breakfast) and the room (GS) was very comfortable.  We have seen all of the shows so no need for reserved seats anywhere.  I think Sky Class may be my new comfort zone, too !

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On 3/17/2023 at 2:49 PM, Mike6453 said:

If it is just two of you, I recommend the beach club ...super nice and chill also faces sunset so you have the sun longer. Drink service is nice as well. 

On 3/17/2023 at 3:30 PM, asquared17 said:

we did the beach club last time as we had gotten the passes on the black friday sale and it was GREAT. wasn’t over the moon about the food but loved the peace and quiet. am curious if the new adult (hideaway?) beach will be calm and mellow too. well worth it in my opinion if you can get the passes on sale. 

It's definitely something I was looking at buuuut the food options (as seen in vlogs) never really appealed to me as neither of us eat shellfish or really appreciate steaks...and right now passes are $236 per person and that's too rich for our blood.

I'll keep an eye on the cost as we near Memorial Day. If it can come down to about $150-ish each may be worth it for the private area if nothing else.

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10 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

SC was not bad on HM, but compared to our other SC sailings it was the least flexible, and most restrictive. That is in no way a reflection of our genie, it is the way the ship is run. Now, is that because our group was large that made it more restrictive? I don’t know. Was it because we were on a sailing with many other large groups? Also don’t know. 

This was our take away as well over Christmas and we too had a full ship with many large groups. Like you, we had a fantastic genie who did what he could to work around some of the “rules”. The restrictions can be challenging for the genies when star class guests bring their expectations and experiences from other ships that are less strict. It’s just another reason I wish the star class program was consistent fleet wide.  

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7 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

It's just sooo incredibly expensive now, and with the services and options dwindling, I don't see the value, sadly.

I totally agree with your entire post Raye. Hubby and I actually discussed this a bit over the past week. For us, some of the value is in the cabins too because we are "those people" who do enjoy spending a lot of time in our room. Especially me. That is relaxing for me. We like the SC rooms. I know that Hubby (he won't admit it) missed Deck 17 a bit as well this past week. At the moment, we have 3 more SC in the books, all 3 with our girls. When our kids stop sailing with us (I am so sad about that), we will re-evaluate at that point. That is pretty much the decision we have come to.

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Catching up now with your live blog, as we were on Wonder the same week as you.

The running joke for us on Wonder (my family and Earl's family) was "Let's see what Sabrina is up to" and we were monitoring your ability to get into each port, since you were one day ahead of us.

Great job, as always, with the live blog! Looks like everyone had a great time, although I didn't see any Windjammer photos.......... 🧐

Thanks for sharing this here!

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SC prices are certainly getting a bit outside my comfort zone, especially our next Oasis cruise but i *have* to sail in the OP after so many covid cancelations and that's the only way i justified it. However, one thing that makes me nervous about trying Sky is dinner reservations at specialty restaurants. Have any of you had issues with that, getting decent times? Do you get help from that precruise from the concierge? Literally the only thing that i care to plan ..  where am i eating dinner and when ... 😆 I've read various blogs, but none provide the OCD level i need in this one regard. 😏

What I've also learned is that you must absolutely book SC early if you're a regular Joe with no status otherwise. I booked two recently at or near itinerary releases, and it was a no brainer on each to book Star over Sky, once you factored in the UBP, UDP, and grats (all things we purchase and prepay normally). For the Sky rooms we would book, the $$ difference was negligible. Oasis on the other hand ... it was way too late before i realized this was Oasis's last season in NJ (at least for now) and i certainly felt that price difference 😢 😔

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1 hour ago, SweetPea said:

SC prices are certainly getting a bit outside my comfort zone, especially our next Oasis cruise but i *have* to sail in the OP after so many covid cancelations and that's the only way i justified it. However, one thing that makes me nervous about trying Sky is dinner reservations at specialty restaurants. Have any of you had issues with that, getting decent times? Do you get help from that precruise from the concierge? Literally the only thing that i care to plan ..  where am i eating dinner and when ... 😆 I've read various blogs, but none provide the OCD level i need in this one regard. 😏

What I've also learned is that you must absolutely book SC early if you're a regular Joe with no status otherwise. I booked two recently at or near itinerary releases, and it was a no brainer on each to book Star over Sky, once you factored in the UBP, UDP, and grats (all things we purchase and prepay normally). For the Sky rooms we would book, the $$ difference was negligible. Oasis on the other hand ... it was way too late before i realized this was Oasis's last season in NJ (at least for now) and i certainly felt that price difference 😢😔

In my experience the concierge for Sky class reached out to me about a week before sailing asking about dinner and show times. They booked my times, and I had no issues. I believe they can book your specialty dining at around 3-5 days before you sail, so no issues. 

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6 hours ago, Matt said:

although I didn't see any Windjammer photos.......... 🧐

Funny WJ story...

I told Marla right after we boarded that the goal during the week was to keep my parents out of the WJ. My parents are both early risers and it's part of their cruise routine to head to the buffet before 7am. I told them leading up to the cruise that CK is way better and more calm and they should take advantage of that.

First morning of the cruise, I woke up around 7am to find my parents gone. Got a text from them that they went to the WJ because they complained that CK opened too late for them. I got ready and headed to CK myself around 7:45am and texted them back that I was there. They ended up meeting me there and "tried a few things". Still unwilling to admit that CK was better. Second morning I asked if they wanted to go CK with me, they said they would "check out WJ first". They ended up doing a walk around but didn't eat anything. They joined me in CK for breakfast. By Day 3, I woke up at 7am to find a text from them saying they went to Starbucks to get coffee and were waiting in the suite lounge for CK to open up. They never went back the WJ after that. 🤣

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6 hours ago, SweetPea said:

However, one thing that makes me nervous about trying Sky is dinner reservations at specialty restaurants.

I have only purchased the dining package on a non-OA/QN class ship. The suite concierge reached out a week prior and I listed all the restaurants and dining times I wanted and she booked it for me. It was not a problem. I don't know how well it works on OA/QN class.

I will be trying that for Wonder this July. We are booked in Sky and I purchased a 3 night package so I will ask when the suite concierge reaches out.

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53 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

I have only purchased the dining package on a non-OA/QN class ship. The suite concierge reached out a week prior and I listed all the restaurants and dining times I wanted and she booked it for me. It was not a problem. I don't know how well it works on OA/QN class.

I will be trying that for Wonder this July. We are booked in Sky and I purchased a 3 night package so I will ask when the suite concierge reaches out.

I did sky on oasis in February 2022, the concierge reached out to me two weeks prior. I was actually able through him to reserve playmakers' private room for the Superbowl for my kids. We ate mostly in coastal kitchen besides that.... concierge was super nice and very accommodating.

 

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2 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

I have only purchased the dining package on a non-OA/QN class ship. The suite concierge reached out a week prior and I listed all the restaurants and dining times I wanted and she booked it for me. It was not a problem. I don't know how well it works on OA/QN class.

I will be trying that for Wonder this July. We are booked in Sky and I purchased a 3 night package so I will ask when the suite concierge reaches out.

I am in Sky on the Wonder (Crown loft) June 25th, 2023. I will give you all the details while onboard. We booked this on another sailing with friends, parted ways and were going to cancel. (Well teens parted ways, so.....) Devil on one shoulder had the phone dialed to cancel, Devil on the other was waving around my credit card, needless to say....

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I have never had an issue with UDP dining reservations through the concierge.  When I get the concierge email, I email back with everything that I would want to reserve once on the ship.  The only thing the concierge has not been able to reserve are escape room times — that you need to do on the ship.  On Odyssey, the concierge found helpful times for iFly and the thing that goes in the air as well.  Given our great experiences with the concierge, Sky Class is a great option for a smaller group.  For my whole extended family, Star is great, but without priority for activities, it loses much of its appeal.

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On 3/9/2023 at 11:59 PM, Lovetocruise2002 said:

My 16 year old gave me the lecture on climate change yesterday when I mentioned that. I don't know about Alberta, but here in Ontario, we had unusually warm temps in December/Jan and now winter doesn't seem to want to go away.

I was shocked flying over Canada last week at how white everything was! 

20230314_134132.jpg

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As you know, hubby and I just got off star class on Anthem.  Best room ever, and genie was awesome.  He did make the trip extra special, but do I really need “extra” in front of the special?  The cost has gone beyond the reach for many, and services offered are declining.  I’ll admit it was pretty neat to be made “more special than I really am” for a week.  

Flip that coin, then it’s kind of silly that I’m paying thousands extra for someone to make me feel special. 🙂   I’m afraid there are many people spending their yearly savings on that one week.  I know that all that extra monies spent is giving you more than feeling special.  It’s neat NOT to have to worry about shows or dining, but I felt I did have to worry about a genie.  We decide not to go to the show, we gotta tell the genie.  And, it can be a bit odd to know that someone on that ship is kind of following you by you using your room key.  

We do have our kiddos for a star class on Harmony next January.  After that, if it is just hubby and myself then we are going to “sky class” it, unless we get a really good deal.  (Our first star class was in the 8th floor two bedroom aqua suite on Allure, five of us for just over seven thousand). I’ll buy a three night specialty restaurant and use our four free drinks per day for being diamond.  I’ll sit in the reserved suite area for shows, and eat at Coastal for their steak night. I’ll check in at their suite entrance and make my specialty dining as soon as I board.  Sounds very doable!  

The main (ick) about not being star class is the laundry service, which we used every single day.  

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After being SC a few times I felt the need to try and mimic the SC amenities when we were not SC.  For YEARS I purchased the DBP, the internet package and the UDP.  All I was missing were the Genie and the extra large suite.  I was sure that this was the way to go !  Then, we began to realize that the UDP was just too much food.  Not just that it was too much food, but that we were forcing ourselves to eat at specialty dining venues when we really weren't hungry AND going back to the same restaurants again and again.  It finally occurred to me that if I only had a 3 night package I would have the freedom to eat just a snack at lunch time or even better, just skip lunch altogether !  No more guilt about passing up a specialty restaurant at lunchtime when I had already paid for it.  Then, when the 5 vouchers for D+ started, I KNEW that we no longer needed the DBP since I rarely drink any alcohol to begin with.  I still purchase the 2 person internet package b/c Dan and I don't share well LOL.  But I no longer purchase the UDP or the DBP and I haven't missed either of them.

SC is a wonderful treat.  I am going to return to using it as a [rare] treat.  Hopefully that will bring back some of the WOW that has gotten somewhat tarnished - at least, for us.

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I'm curious to get your thoughts regarding SC on an European cruise?  We have SC booked for next summer on Oasis, and I am wondering if we'll have time to enjoy the onboard Star Class services.  With six of us, we can book three balcony staterooms for about half the price of Star Class.  We'd lose all the amenities that come with SC, but. . .

Thoughts?

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I will admit, this is the first live blog I've actually read from start to finish. I LOVE YOU @Lovetocruise2002, and your family, and your writing style, and all the other comments mixed in. You may have started a new addiction for me - reading these live blogs! 🤣 (or maybe I'll just search for your other ones, lol)

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3 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

It finally occurred to me that if I only had a 3 night package I would have the freedom to eat just a snack at lunch time or even better, just skip lunch altogether !  No more guilt about passing up a specialty restaurant at lunchtime when I had already paid for it.  Then, when the 5 vouchers for D+ started, I KNEW that we no longer needed the DBP since I rarely drink any alcohol to begin with.  I still purchase the 2 person internet package b/c Dan and I don't share well LOL.

That is exactly what we do when we sail Sky. 3 night dining package or just all meals in CK and use our D+ vouchers. I stopped getting the beverage package when those vouchers came out.

2 hours ago, Cactus527 said:

I will admit, this is the first live blog I've actually read from start to finish. I LOVE YOU @Lovetocruise2002, and your family, and your writing style, and all the other comments mixed in. You may have started a new addiction for me - reading these live blogs! 🤣 (or maybe I'll just search for your other ones, lol)

Aww...thank you for following. I've been trying to blog all my sailings since 2018. It's a good way to pay it forward. I learn a lot from other people's blog. I linked each one in my signature below so no need to search too far lol

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8 hours ago, Ray said:

I was shocked flying over Canada last week at how white everything was! 

That looks like some parts of Canada even in the summer!

3 hours ago, Cruising to Retirement said:

I'm curious to get your thoughts regarding SC on an European cruise?  We have SC booked for next summer on Oasis, and I am wondering if we'll have time to enjoy the onboard Star Class services.  With six of us, we can book three balcony staterooms for about half the price of Star Class.  We'd lose all the amenities that come with SC, but. . .

Thoughts?

Honestly, no. European cruises are so port heavy that you don't get to take full advantage of Star on those sailings. I only did star on Norway because Anthem was the only ship doing that sailing and I wanted the aft views for Norway. That forced me into the Grand Loft. No other rooms have that view. My first choice was to sail a smaller ship and save some money.

Next summer, I looked at those Oasis sailings out of Barcelona. We booked a similar itinerary on Voyager instead. Same (and some better) ports and way cheaper. You're barely on the ship for those European sailings.

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52 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

That looks like some parts of Canada even in the summer!

Honestly, no. European cruises are so port heavy that you don't get to take full advantage of Star on those sailings. I only did star on Norway because Anthem was the only ship doing that sailing and I wanted to aft views for Norway. That forced me into the Grand Loft. No other rooms have that view. My first choice was to sail a smaller ship and save some money.

Next summer, I looked at those Oasis sailings out of Barcelona. We booked a similar itinerary on Voyager instead. Same (and some better) ports and way cheaper. You're barely on the ship for those European sailings.

I totally agree, we did radiance for Alaska, and in August we booked a GS and the next room balcony on odyssey. We figured well be off the ship so much that sky class was enough. We're not getting the kids internet either.

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6 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Next summer, I looked at those Oasis sailings out of Barcelona. We booked a similar itinerary on Voyager instead. Same (and some better) ports and way cheaper. You're barely on the ship for those European sailings.

Thank you and good to know! I figured the itinerary was really port intensive! I think we'll go with OV balcony. My wife has switched gears now from Alaska to possibly a Mediterranean cruise in 2025. Just have to wait to see which Oasis class ship is assigned to Europe for Summer 2025! ... and figure out how much that airfare is going to cost us! 😱

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Thanks to @WAAAYTOOO and @Lovetocruise2002, my family tried our first SC on Wonder last March. We had an awesome experience with Marla.  Our second SC was on symphony last Oct and it was still good. But I agree that the wow factor wasn’t there the second time. We still like the bigger SC rooms but I think we’ll try a 2br GS next time.  
 

the amount of food was ridiculous. I didn’t even get to enjoy some of the specialty dining because I was still full from lunch/snacks 
 

 

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@sammy79 big fans of the two bedroom grand suite! (When there is no #deck17, I enjoy a Crown Loft for sure) We stayed in the 2 bedroom on Odyssey & Adventure (huge balconies) and finally my lovely Serenade, balcony on deck 7 was smaller but the space is  comfortable. Two bathrooms, well everyone knows I'm a super fan of that with a teen. Sky class amenity(yes on Odyssey it was great) or similar WOULD be nice on the other class of ships but it's a nice respite while on vacation. I sound like a broken record but I just wish Royal would get their act together & streamline the suite product across the fleet. It's a really enjoyable cabin. 

 

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make sure to book those 2br gs when it posts as they go fast esepcially on the higher demand iteneraries, they have been building fewer of them even on the newer ships even in the same class. I think oddyssey only has two. we did one on oasis and it was great. Although i have always felt that they should be a star class suite, what is the real differecne between that and an aqua 2br???

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1 hour ago, Mike6453 said:

 Although i have always felt that they should be a star class suite, what is the real differecne between that and an aqua 2br???

Yikes, price! The price point is high enough. I fear if they designated it Star on the Ships that run that program the price would most likely price us out. I can be my own genie, I maintain I enjoy a larger cabin and I wish I could purchase it without the Star price tag or designation/perks.  This one is perfect, I enjoyed the Star perks on my one Star sailing but I would rather pay a little less for my cabin. 

In my perfect world you purchase your cabin and then had a choice to add on the "Star" package. 

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2 hours ago, Neesa said:

Yikes, price! The price point is high enough. I fear if they designated it Star on the Ships that run that program the price would most likely price us out. I can be my own genie, I maintain I enjoy a larger cabin and I wish I could purchase it without the Star price tag or designation/perks.  This one is perfect, I enjoyed the Star perks on my one Star sailing but I would rather pay a little less for my cabin. 

In my perfect world you purchase your cabin and then had a choice to add on the "Star" package. 

Apparently on icon you can kind of do that with Junior suites, there are ones that are sea class and ones that are sky class which isnt on any other ship....

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10 hours ago, sammy79 said:

my family tried our first SC on Wonder last March. We had an awesome experience with Marla.  Our second SC was on symphony last Oct and it was still good. But I agree that the wow factor wasn’t there the second time. We still like the bigger SC rooms but I think we’ll try a 2br GS next time.  

Truth is, nothing really beats the first star experience. But I still enjoy star very much, along with the perks of the Genie. I just dislike the inconsistency from ship to ship. And when I do sail Sky (like I did on SY a few months ago), I am not going to lie, I definitely miss star. That's sort of where I am right now.

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