Currently on Harmony of the Seas

[DCLMP]

We found a similar situation on Allure in December. I couldn't even find a diet option on multiple days.

I wonder if this is just due to supply problems. It seems to be a common theme everywhere in 2022.

 

[Jhondy]

My family sailed on the Oasis when it was new and had many of the same complaints. The ship was huge and had some fun things to do but we somehow found it hard to find the ocean when we’d be doing activities.

The biggest complaint we had is we had a lot of things get screwed up by RCCL on this cruise (so much so that they actually ended up refunding us almost half our cruise cost) and when we were trying to make the best out of the situation, the crew was not very helpful and at times really didn’t care. Like once we asked concierge person (or whatever they call that level on RCCL) about setting up a private photo shoot in room since they wouldn’t photograph how big our family was. The guy said it wasn’t a problem and gave us a time to be ready. We waited and waited and a photographer never showed up. When we called to ask, the concierge person goes oh yea I meant to call you and tell you we actually couldn’t accommodate that request. I’m fine with a request not being accommodated but I was upset with the lack of communication about it when he had told us when to be ready and we were sitting around just waiting.

I still go on RCCL cruises but I generally don’t do their mega ships anymore and I don’t expect any personal service, just average service

 

[NoodlesMom]

In the last year, we’ve done 2 DCL cruises and 1 RCL. We’ve been on many more but these were all Covid time cruises. Our RCL experience was just not Disney. We took the cruises within a month of each other and we’ve decided that we won’t bother with RCL anymore. Honestly one of the only things we enjoyed was the pizza and wings from room service. All of the other food was pretty bad and the drinks were expensive and poorly made (we visited multiple venues and bars.). We also enjoyed the steel drums by the pool. I wish DCL would do that. We’re not married to DCL. We actually cruise on Carnival next week but in the future, we’re just going to stick with DCL.

 

[tidefan]

Did you try El Loco Fresh on Oasis? That was probably our favorite place to eat on any ship we've been on.

Yes, but IMHO the eateries on Carnival Mardi Gras (especially Shaq’s Big Chicken) are far superior.

 

[epcotrulz]

In the last year, we’ve done 2 DCL cruises and 1 RCL. We’ve been on many more but these were all Covid time cruises. Our RCL experience was just not Disney. We took the cruises within a month of each other and we’ve decided that we won’t bother with RCL anymore. Honestly one of the only things we enjoyed was the pizza and wings from room service. All of the other food was pretty bad and the drinks were expensive and poorly made (we visited multiple venues and bars.). We also enjoyed the steel drums by the pool. I wish DCL would do that. We’re not married to DCL. We actually cruise on Carnival next week but in the future, we’re just going to stick with DCL.

I was hoping to enjoy some zero proof drinks on the ship on the beverage package I purchased and they were generally awful. None of the bar tenders really knew how to make anything . . . the alcohol drinkers in my group said the same thing as well. Zero quality control on what those bars are turning out …

 

[MissDaisyofTexas]

Thanks for sharing your experience. We sailed on Harmony of the Seas a few weeks before you, on May 22. The ship was 96% full but there weren't a lot of kids. My teen boys LOVE Royal Caribbean. I know it's not the same as DCL, and we do have a cruise planned on the Disney Wish next year. For anyone looking at Royal Caribbean, here are some things we liked:
https://milesforfamily.com/2022/06/13/top-5-hits-on-harmony-of-the-seas-2022/

 

[MissDaisyofTexas]

And on my gosh yes, the Solarium was always SO HOT! It's a very large area and I really wanted to hang out there and read, but there's no breeze.

 

[epcotrulz]

Thanks for sharing your experience. We sailed on Harmony of the Seas a few weeks before you, on May 22. The ship was 96% full but there weren't a lot of kids. My teen boys LOVE Royal Caribbean. I know it's not the same as DCL, and we do have a cruise planned on the Disney Wish next year. For anyone looking at Royal Caribbean, here are some things we liked:
https://milesforfamily.com/2022/06/13/top-5-hits-on-harmony-of-the-seas-2022/

I could see how teens might find the ship more appealing….

 

[mousefan73]

I could see how teens might find the ship more appealing….

My kids have somewhat outgrown DCL. I mean there’s only so much trivia and crafting my teens will do. Characters are no longer there. it’s hard to explain but they prefer to be on Disney but then still always seem to have more fun on Royal. And then it does make me wonder is Disney really like a cult lol

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I appreciate your experience, we're in the early stages of potentially planning a greek island cruise and so we're checking out multiple cruise lines, although I will echo was someone else said there's a lot of comparing DCL to Royal Caribbean. It's hard to get an idea if most of your viewpoint is just coming from wishing and hoping it was like DCL and it's not meeting that expectation rather than just giving your experience as a first timer on Royal Caribbean (which is what I personally was selfishly hoping for as that would help me out). It's a lot like people who are really loyal Disney fans who try out Universal and just can't help from comparing everything to Disney while they are in Universal. It ends up being less about the experience and more about wishing it was Disney, so in this case wishing it was DCL.

I tend to recommend on the Disney vs Universal stuff if you're so loyal to Disney that's okay, you don't have to force Universal. In this case if you're loyal to DCL no need to force Royal Caribbean.

Back to the actual thread what made you want to try out Royal Caribbean as opposed to sticking with DCL? Was it the ports of call? Was it the price point? Was it the size of the ship? I realize this was/is a group trip I just wondered if you were not really wanting Royal Caribbean but that was the cruise line settled upon

 

[holula]

I’m going to add to this: I just got off the Fantasy and I know the OP mentioned that venues were packed for quizzes etc. Well, the same thing happened at least 3 times on the Fantasy - people had no seats and were having to stand to do trivia. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen that on DCL.

 

[mousefan73]

Back to the actual thread what made you want to try out Royal Caribbean as opposed to sticking with DCL? Was it the ports of call? Was it the price point? Was it the size of the ship? I realize this was/is a group trip I just wondered if you were not really wanting Royal Caribbean but that was the cruise line settled upon

Can I chime in on the thought process on how we did our first Royal sailing after only have been on DCL`?
We had only done DCL up until our first Med cruise. This was the first time we did Royal. Reason why we choose Royal was.
1. Price point!!!! when one line was almost $9000 (DCL) vs 4500 (Royal Oasis) for a verandah you're more open to consider other options. Price difference factors in the non-alcoholic package we got on RCL. As much as we lovel DCL we dont love it 5000 more. Any I did the math, we could take that money and do another cruise on DCL from PC.
2. Itinerary. We did NOT want a cruise that had Rome as a port stop, but instead we embarked there. (you couldnt pay me to do Rome as a one day thing). DCL started in BCN.
3. Royal had Mallorca as a stop.
4. DH was with and he finds DCL "childish"
5. My teens really wanted to do the surf simulator ( and they did that 5 of the 7 days on the ship)

We liked that ship, service and sailing. I have to admit I love DCL's rotational dining and having that part of the day planned. I was not a fan of Royal's open /need to book dining system. Though we LOOOOVED dinner in the Solarium, once we discovered that place we stopped going to the MDR.

For me I do DCL if my mom is with and no DH . My mom and I love the oceanliner, calmness and promenade strolling vibe. That is a DCL USP.
DH and the teens we look at Royal ( or other lines) based on price, dates and itinerary. DCL is limited on sailings besides Alaska and Carribbean.

Now we most likely will book as a family of 5 ( DH and my mom) DCL's northern europe with island (IF MY AGENT GETS BACK TO ME THIS WEEK ) but that is because the price might fit and the DATES in this case work best. We are doing this after deciding to cancel our 4 night Wish as when we think about it, that is simply too much for what we are getting. I get its a new ship, but 5000 grand can buy you a lot more even on other DCL sailings.

 

[epcotrulz]

I appreciate your experience, we're in the early stages of potentially planning a greek island cruise and so we're checking out multiple cruise lines, although I will echo was someone else said there's a lot of comparing DCL to Royal Caribbean. It's hard to get an idea if most of your viewpoint is just coming from wishing and hoping it was like DCL and it's not meeting that expectation rather than just giving your experience as a first timer on Royal Caribbean (which is what I personally was selfishly hoping for as that would help me out). It's a lot like people who are really loyal Disney fans who try out Universal and just can't help from comparing everything to Disney while they are in Universal. It ends up being less about the experience and more about wishing it was Disney, so in this case wishing it was DCL.

I tend to recommend on the Disney vs Universal stuff if you're so loyal to Disney that's okay, you don't have to force Universal. In this case if you're loyal to DCL no need to force Royal Caribbean.

Back to the actual thread what made you want to try out Royal Caribbean as opposed to sticking with DCL? Was it the ports of call? Was it the price point? Was it the size of the ship? I realize this was/is a group trip I just wondered if you were not really wanting Royal Caribbean but that was the cruise line settled upon

Try posts #1, #4, #8, #17 and #22

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Try posts #1, #4, #8, #17 and #22

None of that answered what I was asking. All of those were just complaints and negative comparisons and things I had already read which prompted my questions/comments.

I knew it was a group trip..hence why I said that..but why did RCL get settled on the choice if you were so loyal to DCL? Just wondered if it was a choice made by others in the group or if something captured your attention as for why opting to try a different cruise line when you seem so clearly attached to DCL. We have not cruised DCL although it did come up on the option, we don't have that attachment to any cruise line so it would be helpful (like I said selfishly so) to know what pulled you away from a cruise line you seem to so love.

 

[epcotrulz]

I’m going to add to this: I just got off the Fantasy and I know the OP mentioned that venues were packed for quizzes etc. Well, the same thing happened at least 3 times on the Fantasy - people had no seats and were having to stand to do trivia. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen that on DCL.

That’s disappointing to hear!! Hopefully they address that situation :-/

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Can I chime in on the thought process on how we did our first Royal sailing after only have been on DCL`?
We had only done DCL up until our first Med cruise. This was the first time we did Royal. Reason why we choose Royal was.
1. Price point!!!! when one line was almost $9000 (DCL) vs 4500 (Royal Oasis) for a verandah you're more open to consider other options. Price difference factors in the non-alcoholic package we got on RCL. As much as we lovel DCL we dont love it 5000 more. Any I did the math, we could take that money and do another cruise on DCL from PC.
2. Itinerary. We did NOT want a cruise that had Rome as a port stop, but instead we embarked there. (you couldnt pay me to do Rome as a one day thing). DCL started in BCN.
3. Royal had Mallorca as a stop.
4. DH was with and he finds DCL "childish"
5. My teens really wanted to do the surf simulator ( and they did that 5 of the 7 days on the ship)

We liked that ship, service and sailing. I have to admit I love DCL's rotational dining and having that part of the day planned. I was not a fan of Royal's open /need to book dining system. Though we LOOOOVED dinner in the Solarium, once we discovered that place we stopped going to the MDR.

For me I do DCL if my mom is with and no DH . My mom and I love the oceanliner, calmness and promenade strolling vibe. That is a DCL USP.
DH and the teens we look at Royal ( or other lines) based on price, dates and itinerary. DCL is limited on sailings besides Alaska and Carribbean.

Now we most likely will book as a family of 5 ( DH and my mom) DCL's northern europe with island (IF MY AGENT GETS BACK TO ME THIS WEEK ) but that is because the price might fit and the DATES in this case work best. We are doing this after deciding to cancel our 4 night Wish as when we think about it, that is simply too much for what we are getting. I get its a new ship, but 5000 grand can buy you a lot more even on other DCL sailings.

This is extremely helpful!

The price was one thing we've been weighing heavily. Although we've been dabbling at looking into Virgin Voyages which is costlier than many other cruises but is also running a lot of good deal and is kinda a 180 from normal style cruising sooo we're a bit all over the place. Plus originally my husband mentioned Wonder of the Seas (which actually jumpstarted our renewed interest in looking at cruises since just before the pandemic started when we were soooo close to booking a cruise; glad we didn't though) and well that's just a gargantuan ship right there which is a pro but also a con in ways.

Mollorca looks stunning. We know we want either all Greek stops or at least 1 to 2 (preferably at least 2) but wow Mollorca makes you want that side.

I can see the childish part, it does take I think for many to enjoy still getting that Disney fix, most don't seem to start with DCL before having found a passion for Disney.

My husband would love the surf simulator.

One of my DISer friends is doing DCL in Europe although I can't remember the stops at this moment. I do know they will be doing DLP just not sure at what point (before or after their cruise), which another couple from our DISer friends who just got married they will be doing their honeymoon in europe with a stop in DLP as well. You're right about the concentration of DCL, the DISer friends that just got married live in FL and have done multiple cruises in that area (actually just did one a few weeks back) although usually fairly quick 3-5 day ones.

I like how you compared what you would do depending on who would go. We asked our DISer friends if they wanted to do a trip to Greece (either cruise or island hop) but next year traveling is jam packed for all of us (we also have a Mexico trip next year) so we understood but in terms of our plans it is different planning for just my husband and I than if we are planning around with our friends to come join.

Again thank you for your information you've shared

 

[Kwami]

Mollorca looks stunning. We know we want either all Greek stops or at least 1 to 2 (preferably at least 2) but wow Mollorca makes you want that side.

Disney is doing a 7-night Mediterranean cruise next May that stops in Mallorca! It obviously doesn't make it to Greece, though.

https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/...ruise-from-Barcelona/2023-05-20-Disney-Dream/

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Disney is doing a 7-night Mediterranean cruise next May that stops in Mallorca! It obviously doesn't make it to Greece, though.

https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/...ruise-from-Barcelona/2023-05-20-Disney-Dream/

Oooh that's super fast after our mid-April trip but I will def. pass that along to my husband, just to even look at, thank you

 

[tidefan]

This is extremely helpful!

The price was one thing we've been weighing heavily. Although we've been dabbling at looking into Virgin Voyages which is costlier than many other cruises but is also running a lot of good deal and is kinda a 180 from normal style cruising sooo we're a bit all over the place. Plus originally my husband mentioned Wonder of the Seas (which actually jumpstarted our renewed interest in looking at cruises since just before the pandemic started when we were soooo close to booking a cruise; glad we didn't though) and well that's just a gargantuan ship right there which is a pro but also a con in ways.

Mollorca looks stunning. We know we want either all Greek stops or at least 1 to 2 (preferably at least 2) but wow Mollorca makes you want that side.

I can see the childish part, it does take I think for many to enjoy still getting that Disney fix, most don't seem to start with DCL before having found a passion for Disney.

My husband would love the surf simulator.

One of my DISer friends is doing DCL in Europe although I can't remember the stops at this moment. I do know they will be doing DLP just not sure at what point (before or after their cruise), which another couple from our DISer friends who just got married they will be doing their honeymoon in europe with a stop in DLP as well. You're right about the concentration of DCL, the DISer friends that just got married live in FL and have done multiple cruises in that area (actually just did one a few weeks back) although usually fairly quick 3-5 day ones.

I like how you compared what you would do depending on who would go. We asked our DISer friends if they wanted to do a trip to Greece (either cruise or island hop) but next year traveling is jam packed for all of us (we also have a Mexico trip next year) so we understood but in terms of our plans it is different planning for just my husband and I than if we are planning around with our friends to come join.

Again thank you for your information you've shared

Don't just limit your search to Royal. Check Princess, HAL, and Celebrity too. You won't have a surf simulator (but in the Med, how many days would you use that on such a port intensive itinerary), but the food will be much better and price-wise it may be the same or cheaper...

Also, if you can swing it, definitely do Virgin Voyages. We loved it...

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Don't just limit your search to Royal. Check Princess, HAL, and Celebrity too. You won't have a surf simulator (but in the Med, how many days would you use that on such a port intensive itinerary), but the food will be much better and price-wise it may be the same or cheaper...

Also, if you can swing it, definitely do Virgin Voyages. We loved it...

Oh yeah no reason to just limit ourselves on choices you're right about that, I think my husband likes the idea of all the opportunities that Royal has on their big big ships but we're def. open to others. I'm glad there's someone whose done Virgin so far, I've just been relying on blogs to get an idea (plus checking out the website).