🌟💫⭐️A “Starry” Christmas - Harmony Dec 24-31, 2023⭐️💫🌟

[Jax]

️A “Starry” Christmas - Harmony Dec 24-31, 2023️

@Jax is back with a “Starry” Christmas ️

For those that have followed my blogs you know we have a habit of spending Christmas on the Seas.  This year we will be back on Harmony doing our first ever Western Caribbean cruise.  We spent last Christmas on HM and although my preference would have been to try another ship, the fact it was sailing out of Galveston was too good to pass up. Direct flights from Calgary are plentiful and considerably shorter than going to Florida so this was an added perk. Our son graduates from high school this year so future vacations/cruising are up in the air until we sort out his apprenticeship schedule at trade school and work schedule.  So there is a very real possibility we will be on a land vacation next Christmas because I have no cruises booked beyond summer 2024.  

We have a lot planned so let’s get started…..
 

 

 

 

[asquared17]

YAY! here we go!!

[Sweety]

Have a joyful Christmas.

 

[Jax]

Who's Going

Me (Jacquie), Hubby (Lindsay) and son (Reyd). Our friends from last year are back so in total there will be 8 of us. But they are staying in their own rooms. Only the 3 of us in the ATS.  

One set of friends are travelling with a respite worker for their 13 y/o daughter and will be accessing many of the Autism Friendly Ship programming and supports.  If you have any questions on this program feel free to ask and I will try to get answers. They have been able to schedule an expedited boarding time in a quieter area of the terminal along with various special requests/accommodations ion their staterooms.  

Flight

WestJet from YYC - IAH in Premium. Leaving this Sunday Dec 17th. 

Pre Cruise Stay

We will be doing quite a bit of driving and have multiple pre cruise stops/hotels.  
Marriott in Terminal hotel at YYC airport Dec 16th

Embassy Suite at The Woodlands Dec 17/18th (this was through points accumulated from staying at the Hilton FLL Beach Club last year)

Live by Loews in Arlington Dec 19/20

The Tremont House in Galveston Dec 21/22/23

JW Marriott, Galleria in Houston Dec 31

Itinerary

Western Caribbean with stops at Roatan, Puerto Costa Maya and Cozumel. If I am being honest the itinerary didn't thrill me but it may end up being the one we enjoy most.  We have excursions in every port that we are really looking forward to! 

Day 1 Galveston, Texas

Day 2 Cruising 

Day 3 Cruising 

Day 4 Puerto Costa Maya, Mexico 

Day 5 Roatan, Honduras

Day 6 Cozumel, Mexico 

Dau 7 Cruising 

Day 8 Galveston, Texas 

Cabin

2 bedroom ATS #9730. We loved this set up last year.

[Jax]

Car Rental - Enterprise 

Booking early definitely paid off this year as prices have gotten really crazy. We pickup at IAH and drop off at Enterprise in Galveston. Car rental options are limited in Galveston and are closed Sundays and holidays so we are doing an after hours drop on Sunday Dec 24th.  We have booked a full size SUV, not due to the number of people (only 3 of us) but due to our luggage (more on that in a bit). 

[Jax]

Excursions 

Puerto Costa Maya - Chacchoben Ruins Exclusive Drive. I booked the exclusive drive as it sounds like it’s a smaller van. This was covered in social studies so Reyd is looking forward to this. 

Roatan - Turquoise Bay VIP Beach Break. After last years overcrowding issues at Maho Beach I have tried to plan excursions that will hopefully avoid a repeat of that horrible experience.  Reviews are very good and they say the VIP guests have a section of the beach cordoned off to avoid overcrowding   We shall see but .  The drive over there sounds interesting…..royals cruise planner says this

 

Cozumel - Paradise Beach all inclusive passes and daybeds are booked. We booked this direct with Paradise Beach. Reviews are very good but I am definitely concerned with overcrowding so we plan to arrive early and book our activities.  You could not pre book these. Check out the ships and passenger counts.  What could possibly go wrong?  
 

Our whole group is going and it should be a fun day. Reyd is excited because he can rent a seadoo now that he is 18.  Dealing with the resort has been a breeze. Our itinerary changed and within a few hours they moved our reservations. They also recently honoured the promo code RCBLOG which saved us 10%

[Jax]

Royal Up 

I received the royal up email shortly after final payment. We want to stay in the ATS so I didn’t bid on anything. Regardless I couldn’t justify the extra cost when we are already star class.  

[OCSC Mike]

33 minutes ago, Jax said:

Cozumel - Paradise Beach all inclusive passes and daybeds are booked.

Eagerly awaiting this part of the review but you already knew that.

[AlmondFarmer]

All 8 guests in 9730 or just your family of three?

[Jax]

Onboard Purchases  

100 Digital photos package - I snoozed on this one and ended up paying the new higher prices. Regular price is $399.99 and I picked it up for $219.99. Ugh, but we are celebrating a lot and I can’t put a price on memories. So it is what it is.  I won’t think twice about the cost when I am looking at all our pictures.  
 

Private Photo Shoot - I  have considered doing this for a while but I was influenced by @Lovetocruise2002 and her beautiful family pics.  I got it for $199.99 and it includes 5 digital prints. So not bad at all.  The question is will I  leave with only my 5 included digitals?    
 

Ultimate Flowrider Experience - the changes to this star class perk have annoyed me so I booked this.  It happens on Day 2 Christmas Day at 7:45am. The star class 1 hour session is happening on day 2 or day 3 at 8:30am..still to be confirmed by our genie. If there are more than 15 star class guests that show up they will add a second session on another day. Hopefully there are no shenanigans with bathing suits But if there is I will be there with my camera.  

[Jax]

8 minutes ago, AlmondFarmer said:

All 8 guests in 9730 or just your family of three?

Oh no!!! Just our family of 3. I can’t even imagine that

[Jax]

25 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

Eagerly awaiting this part of the review but you already knew that.

Yes, Surprisingly I am too!! 

[Jax]

Thermal Suite 

In previous cruises we have always purchased the couples thermal suite pass but with our busy port schedule we decided to use our free star class day pass and then pay as we go.  Oh and in new news we receive a spa discount for being emerald so we will save a bit on day passes.  Honestly maybe this isn’t new because I don’t pay attention to C&A perks. Maybe star class gets a discount.  No idea, but it is nice to know anyways. 

[Jax]

Star class questionnaire was received a few days before the 60 day mark.  I had some fun with it as I had a pretty good idea that Berty (genie from last year) would be back onboard for our sailing. So I answered the questions like this: 

Q: Are you a morning or night person A: Ask Berty 

Q: What are your morning routines A: Berty knows 

Q: Favorite foods A: Not to sound repetitive but ask Berty 

Q: How can we deliver an amazing onboard experience A: We want Berty 

Q: Are you celebrating anything A: Berty if you are reading this you know we have lots to celebrate 

I think you get the idea.  

[asquared17]

22 minutes ago, Jax said:

Hopefully there are no shenanigans with bathing suits But if there is I will be there with my camera.  

you know my fears!!!!

[Jax]

Genie news …… so did we get Berty ???? 

I wonder what Hossain thought when he read that questionnaire. I may have been stalking Berty’s contracts; as I said I had a pretty good idea he would be back onboard. At exactly the 28 day mark I heard from Hossain that Berty would be our genie. In fact Berty had just boarded that day and was set to takeover on Dec 3rd. I heard from Berty a couple days later and we scheduled a call to discuss everything later that week. I don’t know if Berty arranges phone calls with all his guests but this is one perk I love!  It is the best. It stops the need for lengthy email threads. I outline requests and preferences in a word document; that way everything is contained in a single document.  Berty likes this format too.  I expect to see a draft schedule sometime next week.  

[Jax]

20 minutes ago, asquared17 said:

you know my fears!!!!

Ditto! My feet will remain squarely on the deck. 

[Jax]

Celebrations

As I mentioned we have a lot to celebrate this cruise. 

Reyd’s 18th In Alberta the legal drinking age is 18 so I have a feeling I will be ordering a lot of beer and jack/coke (neither of which I drink) Berty will be soooo confused on my drink preferences.

Reyd’s graduation along with his classmate Michael (son of our friends Mike and Jessica). They have gone to school together since pre k.  This will be fun! 

Chanon and Simon’s 25th anniversary (Chanon is Mike’s sister and Simon is Jessica’s brother….I know right!)

I still have to finalize celebrations for Reyd’s 18th but it will be in suite as will the graduation celebrations. 
The current plan is to surprise Chanon and Simon with a cake at a specialty restaurant.  

[Jax]

4 hours ago, Sweety said:

Have a joyful Christmas.

 

Thank you  

[Jax]

Luggage  

It is a well known fact to some on these boards that I do not pack light. This cruise is no exception.  I could say it was because of the cooler temperatures in Texas but it likely wouldn’t matter.   

This is the current state of packing.  I set a goal to get the majority of packing done before the cleaners came this morning. I am in good shape. I have employed a new strategy this year by numbering the suitcases 1-5 and have packed all cruise wear in suitcase 1 & 2 so we won’t need access to those bags until we board. I love my packing cubes but they are so efficient it is easy to go overweight on bag limits. Suitcase #5 will be done on Saturday after all the last minute things are packed. I invested in Monos luggage last year and love it!! Definitely worth the investment.  They wheel like a dream.  I purchased protective covers for them last year but Lindsay thinks the covers will somehow send our luggage to Timbuktu so he won’t let me use them   I am tempted to put a cover on his luggage to test his theory.   

I feel after @SweetPea underwear debacle I need to confirm Underwear although Lindsay has a slightly different formula he uses in a pinch. #N/2 + 1 (the turn them inside out method) 

 

[Jax]

In other genie news 

I found these fun cards on Red Bubble last year; I purchased extra so I would have some for upcoming cruises. It’s fun to give Berty cards throughout the week. Generally we tip our genie in cash but I have heard where an increasing number of genies prefer tips go to their onboard account.  I asked Berty and he prefers onboard account so that is what we will do.  
Gift giving is tricky given their limited space but being we are on a holiday cruise I try to come up with something small for Christmas Day. This year we are doing something a bit unique being that we know Berty.  Lindsay worked on The Last of Us (filmed in Calgary) and they got talking about this last year. We learned that Berty loved the PlayStation game version so we are gifting him an original crew gift from The Last of Us.  Hoping he can use this on his travels. 
 

[Jax]

Happening Now

Anyone else find clumps of fur on their clothes while on vacation and wonder where it came came from.

[Jax]

Travel tip 

I am sharing a travel tip that lets you plot attractions, hotels, restaurants for your upcoming trip. I realize new to me doesn’t mean it’s new to you. But I am excited to try it! 

I set up a guide called Houston in the Maps app for our upcoming trip and then add any stops we want to make, restaurants and hotels. It helps figure out the order in which you may want to schedule stops.  I will report back on how we like it.  Anyone else use it?? 

[Jax]

Some highlights while in Texas. What should we do that’s not on our list? 

- NFL game at NRG Stadium on New Year’s Eve vs Titans in club level seating. All 8 of us are going and it should be a fun afternoon. The games at noon so I need disembarkation and travel to Houston to be uneventful.  I have heard horror stories of interstate delays  
- Lunch at Magnolia Table in Waco. I have followed Chip & Joanna Gaines for years so I am really looking forward to this stop. 
- I follow Turtlecreeklane and would love to see this years Christmas around the world theme. 
- NASA
- We wanted to do a self guided tour of AT&T stadium but there are only vip group tours which require a bigger time commitment than we wanted. We decided to wait and see what our options are when we arrive.
- Texas Motor speedway. The guys would have loved to do a racing experience but there are no track events. We are use to Las Vegas Motor speedway where there always seems to be something going on. 
- JFK Memorial

 

 

 

[OCSC Mike]

9 hours ago, Jax said:

NFL game at NRG Stadium on New Year’s Eve vs Titans in club level seating.

Very cool add-on! Since I grew up in Philly and am an Eagles fan, if you were going to a Cowboys game I would have had a different response, lol.

[MLH]

19 hours ago, Jax said:

 

Ultimate Flowrider Experience - the changes to this star class perk have annoyed me so I booked this.  It happens on Day 2 Christmas Day at 7:45am. The star class 1 hour session is happening on day 2 or day 3 at 8:30am..still to be confirmed by our genie. If there are more than 15 star class guests that show up they will add a second session on another day. Hopefully there are no shenanigans with bathing suits But if there is I will be there with my camera.  

Just got off and they had 1 1/2 hours starting at 8:30.  Only 3people showed up and the other 2 only rode once or twice.  Sweet!

[Jax]

2 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

Very cool add-on! Since I grew up in Philly and am an Eagles fan, if you were going to a Cowboys game I would have had a different response, lol.

I actually started following the new heights podcast about a year ago and would have loved to see either the Eagles or Chiefs. 

[Jax]

17 minutes ago, MLH said:

Just got off and they had 1 1/2 hours starting at 8:30.  Only 3people showed up and the other 2 only rode once or twice.  Sweet!

Wow that worked out!  Was it scheduled on day 2 or 3. I am hoping it’s day 3 and not day 2 when our private session is happening.  Berty didn’t know when I spoke with him.  

[ScottD]

27 minutes ago, Jax said:

I actually started following the new heights podcast about a year ago and would have loved to see either the Eagles or Chiefs. 

Did you watch the Kelce doc on Prime? It's SOOOO good! 

[Jax]

4 minutes ago, ScottD said:

Did you watch the Kelce doc on Prime? It's SOOOO good! 

Yup I sure did! Loved it. 

[OCSC Mike]

40 minutes ago, Jax said:

would have loved to see either the Eagles or Chiefs

They're both kind of hard to watch at the moment.

[DDaley]

3 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

NFL game at NRG Stadium on New Year’s Eve vs Titans in club level seating.

Love this! I am a lifetime watching-football-because-of-others person (first with my parents, now my husband) and I attended my first NFL game right after Thanksgiving at the new Sofi stadium in LA, it was AWESOME. If I could watch every game live from the club section I would absolutely be converted to a football fan. I was so engrossed I didn’t even think to LOOK at the score until the 3rd quarter! (No surprise there, Chargers were losing) Not to mention all the free food and cocktails! Have the best time!

Your itinerary sounds great, Roatan and Costa Maya are still on my to-cruise list so I will be happy to gather port suggestions from you guys. 

[Jax]

5 minutes ago, DDaley said:

I attended my first NFL game right after Thanksgiving at the new Sofi stadium in LA, it was AWESOME. If I could watch every game live from the club section I would absolutely be converted to a football fan.

I don’t think I mentioned but this will be our first nfl game too! The tickets were pricey so I am glad to hear you liked club seating.  We are all excited! 

 

9 minutes ago, DDaley said:

Your itinerary sounds great, Roatan and Costa Maya are still on my to-cruise list so I will be happy to gather port suggestions from you guys. 

First time for us too! I will definitely report back on the excursions.  

[Jax]

With all the talk of Florida weather on @asquared17 blog I thought I better see what’s happening in Texas. This is interesting……but not looking bad by the time we get to Galveston. 

[Jax]

Ok, I am trying a self tanner for the first time….it could be a disaster so I did a test run this morning on my arms and lower part of my legs. I tried to talk Reyd into being a Guinea pig but he is no fun anymore. Anyone have a good self tanner story they want to share. 

[MLH]

3 hours ago, Jax said:

Wow that worked out!  Was it scheduled on day 2 or 3. I am hoping it’s day 3 and not day 2 when our private session is happening.  Berty didn’t know when I spoke with him.  

It was  Day 2.Day 3 was the Key.I went early  to stand  in line and there was 1Key person.  

[MLH]

3 hours ago, Jax said:

Wow that worked out!  Was it scheduled on day 2 or 3. I am hoping it’s day 3 and not day 2 when our private session is happening.  Berty didn’t know when I spoke with him.  

In case you dont know. It opens at 11am on Day 1.  The staff was incredible for sure.

[Jax]

27 minutes ago, MLH said:

It was  Day 2.Day 3 was the Key.I went early  to stand  in line and there was 1Key person.  

Darn! Hopefully the key gets day 2 and star gets day 3. That way Lindsay could go to back to back sessions.  

[Jax]

27 minutes ago, MLH said:

In case you dont know. It opens at 11am on Day 1. 

No I didn’t know that so thanks. I will let Lindsay know but his priorities always seem to be food related.  Hotdog followed by another hot dog

[asquared17]

3 hours ago, Jax said:

With all the talk of Florida weather on @asquared17 blog I thought I better see what’s happening in Texas

hopefully it will all have long cleared by the time you get aboard!!!