It’s new year and new adventure aboard Harmony of the Seas with the Uram Family! This year we escaped the bitter cold just in the nick of time and headed South.
Last month, our family embarked on a new adventure- Sailing 7 nights on one of the largest ships at sea, Royal Caribbean’s Harmony of the Sea. Last year we sailed her sister ship, Oasis of the Seas, had a blast and decided to try another in the Oasis Class.
Time to Go!
Our adventure started as flew in two days prior to Texas! Weather patterns caused our original flight to cancel, several reroutes later and a car rental we flew into Austin, Texas and drove a couple hours to Houston. I would like to point this out for two reasons- first, there are many airports within a 3-hour drive to the Port of Galveston. Second, the importance of travel insurance. We were able to make a claim for parts of our trip due to a trip delay. Don’t leave home without it!
In Texas, we were able to stop at 2 Bucc-ee’s (Leo’s favorite mascot)-where else can you shop, get amazing BBQ, and clean bathrooms under one roof?
Port Arrival
After a day of driving adventures in Texas, it was time to embark on our cruise. As we headed to the Port of Galveston, there she was, The Harmony of the Seas. Unlike last time, we opted to try the Junior Suite (Sea Class). Suite class members have a separate embarkation lounge, where a port agent greeted us and there were complimentary refreshments. I also spoke to others in the non-suite area, embarkation was quick as well- great to know with over 5,500 passengers boarding.
Once onboard, were on a mission to complete our to-dos before settling in for the week- make specialty dining reservations, register our kids for the kids’ club, complete the muster drill. Afterwards, grabbed lunch at the Park Cafe, then headed to our room to unpack.
Our Junior Suite was spacious and beautiful. In additional to the expedited embarkation, the junior suite provided extra room compared to a traditional balcony. It featured a walk-in closet, bathtub vs. shower only, larger balcony, in room coffee maker and dinner access to Costal Kitchen, only available for the Suite Guests. (Bonus: If you are a Crown and Anchor member, a Junior Suite and above are double points!)
With 17 decks in total, there was so much to do! Ship was clean, crew everywhere cleaning behind guests and hand sanitizer everywhere. Crew was very nice and always smiling!
Our family tried to see and do everything, but in one week its hard to do! Here are some things we enjoyed:
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- Flowrider- you can surf or boogie board. One morning we were watching the sun rise as the kids had a lesson by the Flowrider pros- so many tricks learned! This trip Eric and Charlotte were among the brave to try the stand-up surf.
- Ultimate Abyss- Dry Slide situated at the back of the ship, where you plummet 10 stories and end in the Boardwalk area of the ship
- Zip Line- Zip line 10 stories above the boardwalk area
- Riding the Carousel
- Conquer the 3 awesome waterslides on Deck 15
- Enjoy a friendly round of mini golf
- Learn how to make Guacamole and have a Mexican Fiesta at Sabor
- Playoff Games and Movies on the Big Screens at the back of the ship
- Leisurely walks thru Central Park, looking for Hidden Rubber Ducks
- Riding Rising Tide Bar and enjoying refreshments
- Listen to live music- loved the Stowaway Piano man serenading in the elevators
- Karaoke and trivia
- Played BINGO
- Clubbing at the Silent Party
- Enjoying many live shows at sea! Grease (Broadway worthy production) and 1887: A Journey in Time (an ice-skating production)
With all the activities, we also ate a lot! Dining was a treat. For our 7 night we decided to split our time between Costal Kitchen and specialty dining. 150 Central Park, Chopp’s and Jamie’s Italian did not disappoint! We also dined in other complimentary dining in Central Park, and Windjammer (buffet)- Park Cafe (this was our favorite) as well as grabbing late night pizza. All in all, food was everywhere and we did not go hungry.
Off the ship, we took an excursion to Chacchoben ruins while in Costa Maya. Here we felt like Indiana Jones, on the search for ruins. Along the way, we saw Spider Monkeys playing in the trees before reaching ruin sites from around 1000 BC. Truly amazing opportunity to see something so majestic.
Once back in Houston, we took a detour to Houston Space Center before heading home. We purchased our tickets in advanced and you can store your luggage for $7 a bag. Like the cruise, we did not have enough time to see it all, but we trammed to Rocket Park, home of the Saturn V rocket, toured the Space Shuttle, and main parts of the museum. Highly recommended from our crew!
As you can see there was so much, we need to go back. Happy to report we used our NEXTCruise credit for a family cruise to start off 2025 to continue our explorations with on Oasis Class. Until then…
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