First Cruise Dec '24 questions

[newcruiser24]

Hi, We will be taking our first cruise in Dec.  Of 24 to celebrate my mom's 70th birthday.  Our party will include me (40s), her (69/70), and my son (3).  We will be in a junior suite on Harmony of the seas. We will be going to Roatan, Cozumel, and Costa Maya.   I would love guidance on these questions.  

1.   What is your favorite speciality restaurant for a birthday meal?  We are not super adventurous eaters. 

2.  What is your favorite breakfast/lunch spot?

3. What are your favorite non-water excursions for the 3 ports?  

4.  What are your Favorite items to pack to make our week easier?

5. What is your must dos/advice for first time cruisers?

 

[Ryan79]

For the birthday dinner, it would be hands down 150 Central Park. If you were adventurous I might swing a little more towards Wonderland because it’s more unique that the other options, but 150 would probably still be my pick.

For breakfast, Johnny Rockets is a hidden gem. No lines, no wait and good food that is free.

can’t comment on the excursions, as I’ve only done water excursions. 
 

my favorite pack item are small magnetic hooks. These are great to hang smaller items and your sea pass lanyard on. Both the hooks and lanyards are on Amazon for dirt cheap

[CrznTxn]

1.   What is your favorite specialty restaurant for a birthday meal?  We are not super adventurous eaters. 

If you want standard specialty restaurant, Chops has the steaks, Sabor's has the Mexican food, Jamie's has the Italian and 150 some specialty which is really good. All of these we have visited and each unique and in our opinion, good. It is the dessert, in my opinion that really makes the meal. Go to the Royal website, go to Harmony in the ship listing, click on "Things to Do" and scroll down to the dining options. Each of the Restaurants has the menus and you can see what each offers.

2.  What is your favorite breakfast/lunch spot?

Second and Third Johnny Rockets for breakfast. Get there a little before 8:00 to really have no waiting. We eat there everyday.

3. What are your favorite non-water excursions for the 3 ports? 

Roatan: Book the Sloth tour. Very interactive and very good.

Costa Maya: We haven't done much non-water tours at this port but they say the Mayan Ruins tour is good.

Cozumel: If you take a non-water tour here it generally involves the larger two Mayan Ruins which are on the mainland and involves water transportation and bus rides which are very long. There are tours around the island that highlight the many things on the island and do not involve water.

4.  What are your Favorite items to pack to make our week easier?

Multiple USB outlet adapter for all the devices. We use a triple outlet adapter that plugs into an AC plug from IKEA that is inexpensive.

5. What is your must dos/advice for first time cruisers?

Go to Dollar store and buy some simple, lightweight decorations that you can glue magnets on to decorate your door. Makes it easier to find amongst all the cabin doors that look the same. For general advice, do not try to do everything available on this trip, it is impossible and will only wear you out. Also look for the "Spyglass" displays scattered throughout the ship with little tidbits and information.

[Traveling Mike]

1.   What is your favorite speciality restaurant for a birthday meal?  We are not super adventurous eaters. 

I like 150 Central Park for a nice upscale restaurant with the best service.  If you want a more casual one, I would go with Jamies Italian.

2.  What is your favorite breakfast/lunch spot?

When I am in the mood for Breakfast, I go to the Windjammer Buffet and get an omelet or fried eggs to order.  If I am in the light mood, I go to the Vitality Cafe.  It is a light healthy snack.  Some ships will have light food items and some just healthy snacks.

3. What are your favorite non-water excursions for the 3 ports?  

Costa Maya:  Rent a golf cart with Red Carts and go see the town and beach area.  Mayahual Red Shirts Golf Carts in Costa Maya - USED 2-4ppl carts (60us) BRAND NEW XRT(80US) BRAND NEW FANCY (90US), 6ppl USED carts 80US, Rest of the day, GAS & COLOR MAP INCLUDED. (business.site)

Cozumel:  I did one that went to the Chocolate Factory and Mayan Bee Sanctuary that I really liked.

4.  What are your Favorite items to pack to make our week easier?

Magnet Clips for the wall.  It allows me to put all my paperwork on the wall that is out of the way but I can see it to remind me what I have coming up.  With kids I pack a couple of Tide Pods to be able to wash things out in the sink.

5. What is your must dos/advice for first time cruisers?

Don't try to do everything:  Plan to do everything and settle on doing 1/2 of it.  

Do try new things at dinner.  At meals you can order anything you want including multiple items.  If there is something on the menu you have never tried get it and if you do not like it ask the waiter to bring something else, you know you will like.  

[Diesel]

I agree with most of the previous suggestions so will just add some additional suggestions:

Choose your specialty restaurant based on the cuisine you prefer (Steak, Italian, Sushi, etc.).  They're all great.

I'll add another vote for breakfast at Johnny Rockets.  You need to pay for lunch at Johnny Rockets, but breakfast is free!

We've rented a Jeep in Cozumel a couple times to explore the eastern side and southern end of the island.  Ernesto's is an option that is a short walk from the pier and can reserve online.

We bring clips to attach our beach towels to our pool loungers.  We also like to spend a good amount of time in the casino which results in smoky-smelling clothes.  We also use the clips to hang those clothes on our balcony furniture to air them out.  There is a sign that says not to leave personal items on the balcony so take this advice at your own risk

Be sure to ride the Rising Tide Bar at least once.  We like to ride it up to Central Park before a dinner reservation for a pre-dinner cocktail and then ride it back down to the Royal Promenade with an after-dinner drink.  

[Riley]

A small plug-in night light is really helpful - the bathroom lighting has a "nightlight" effect but a little extra light in the cabin at night might be helpful and they take up zero space.  Also a refillable water bottle (whereas you can't refill directly from the water spigot in the buffets and restaurants for health code reasons, pouring from a glass to the bottle works really well and your ports are going to be HOT) plus a travel umbrella... portable shade for when you're in port can be a major consideration, especially if you do any of the ruins tours.

 

[Linda R]

15 hours ago, Diesel said:

I agree with most of the previous suggestions so will just add some additional suggestions:

Choose your specialty restaurant based on the cuisine you prefer (Steak, Italian, Sushi, etc.).  They're all great.

I'll add another vote for breakfast at Johnny Rockets.  You need to pay for lunch at Johnny Rockets, but breakfast is free!

We've rented a Jeep in Cozumel a couple times to explore the eastern side and southern end of the island.  Ernesto's is an option that is a short walk from the pier and can reserve online.

We bring clips to attach our beach towels to our pool loungers.  We also like to spend a good amount of time in the casino which results in smoky-smelling clothes.  We also use the clips to hang those clothes on our balcony furniture to air them out.  There is a sign that says not to leave personal items on the balcony so take this advice at your own risk

Be sure to ride the Rising Tide Bar at least once.  We like to ride it up to Central Park before a dinner reservation for a pre-dinner cocktail and then ride it back down to the Royal Promenade with an after-dinner drink.  

On Oasis class ships the Jazz Club is now a non-smoking casino.  No more stinky clothes.