Royal Caribbean Blog

Is The Key worth it? Matt recently did an updated review of The Key, in our post-Covid cruising world. From his perspective, The Key is not worth it.

However, I’d like to present a counter argument, as Mr. Mills and I love The Key, and have purchased it on every cruise since it debuted!

Early Arrival

The first benefit is the early arrival, and we take full advantage of that.

We always fly in the night before, since we live in the Midwest, where weather is unpredictable. Since we can’t stay at our lodgings past morning anyway, we want to get on the ship as early as possible. With The Key, we are usually some of the first people on board.

This was especially helpful when, on our latest cruise, Symphony of the Seas, the check in lines were atrocious. We were on board by 11:15, but the regular guests stood in line for hours, as no one was paying attention to the assigned times. From what we heard later, it was one of the worst check-ins our fellow cruisers had experienced. We were very glad to not have to go through that!

Embarkation day lunch

We also love the Chops Grille lunch in the Main Dining Room. Sure, there are other options, like the Windjammer and Park Cafe, but they are always so crowded

That sit down lunch, after a whirlwind of travel, gives us a chance to breathe and relax before moving on with the rest of our embarkation day to-do list.

And with only one exception, our room is always ready with luggage at the door when we are finished! That’s the only reason we don’t take advantage of the carry-on luggage drop off. We haven’t needed it yet!

Room service

This most recent cruise was the first time we’ve taken advantage of the free room service, but it certainly won’t be the last. Like Matt, we’ve always been Windjammer folks in the morning--Mr. Mills is an early riser for his workouts, so we’d just get our own breakfast before whatever activity was planned for the day. But, since tables were tough to find this time, that room service came in handy!

And, it was so easy (as long as we remembered to put the request out the night before). I recommend the blueberry pancakes.

Disembarkation

The debarkation breakfast is nice for similar reasons to the Chops Grille lunch.

We can take our time in the morning, have one final relaxing meal before we are evicted, and we don’t have to stress about what order we are getting off the ship. Our luggage is also placed in one special Key area, so no hunting for our baggage. Just grab and go, straight through security.

Other benefits

One more benefit that we took advantage of this trip, was the added 25% off specialty dining.

This was originally added because the Chops lunch had been taken away due to Covid protocols. It was added back to our sailing, but they kept the 25% off too! I hope they keep that on the list for future Key benefits, as it was nice to get a little extra off of dinner. 

I will agree with Matt about the reserved seats for shows--there really aren’t any bad seats in the house, and having to show up so early kind of takes away the point. We aren’t big FlowRiders or Rock Climbers, either, so we haven’t taken advantage of those benefits. 

Since we aren’t top tier members yet, and we don’t stay in suites, we find that The Key just makes some things easier for us during the cruise.

We are going to pay for the internet anyway, so for the two of us, it isn’t much more expensive to upgrade.

Having The Key takes a lot of anxiety and stress away at the beginning and end of the cruise, especially, and for us, that makes the additional cost well worth it!

Mr. Mills and I just returned from Symphony of the Seas, and boy do I have so much to share!

Since it was our first one back post-COVID, we knew this cruise would be different, but we had no idea how special it would end up being. This trip will definitely be in our memories for a long time. 

Pre-cruise testing & covid protocols

As with any post-covid cruise, it must start with the test. We opted for CVS rapid antigen tests, and it was simple.

Not only did it cost us nothing, it took us almost no time at all. We have several CVS stores around us, and we both got online two weeks prior to our test, found a time for test day (2 days prior to Embarkation), and we were set.

CVS has you drive up and park in a designated spot, then they call you when ready. You walk into a little double sided booth (it reminded me of a confession stall). The technician takes some information, and then passes you the swab, and instructs you how to test yourself.

I had my results within an hour. It was very easy, painless, and though I was anxious about results--even though I had no reason to be--getting that negative result meant I was clear to cruise!

Onboard, we didn’t struggle too much with the covid protocols. I thought I’d struggle with wearing a mask everywhere since I work from home and don’t have to wear it all day normally, but it soon became second nature.

I did trade out the heavy cloth one I brought from home for a more athletic fit Royal Caribbean mask from the gift shop.  Royal Caribbean also provides a medical grade mask in your state room each day, if you’d rather wear one of those.

There are plenty of vaccinated only spots on the ship, where masks are not required, and if you’re sitting at a table with food and/or drink, you do not have to wear a mask there either.

Crew will serve you at almost everywhere that used to be self-serve:  ie the Windjammer, drink stations, condiment stations, etc. There are lots more hand sanitizing stations, and crew will remind you to use them! I think that was the toughest part, because I always had something in my hands. I’m going to have to find a better bag for onboard, but otherwise there really weren’t any changes I couldn’t handle.

Capacity

Our cruise was just under 50% full, around 3200 people. This meant that though the Windjammer was open for breakfast and lunch, it was not open for dinner.

We were also told, by some folks that were doing a back to back into our week, that there had been a promotion announced prior, to try to get guests to stay on board. I didn’t see anything about that for our sailing, and they were expecting to open the Windjammer for dinner the next week, so they must have been expecting a larger capacity for the holiday.

We noticed that there were very few children on board, as well as a much lower volume of international guests. 

Dining reviews

We only ate at two specialty dining restaurants this time around:  Chops and Izumi. Chops was outstanding in service and quality. You really cannot go wrong there, and that’s why it is a must if you’re going to do one specialty restaurant. 

We actually had Izumi twice: once for dinner with our Chops +1 dining package. We had the option of doing this a la carte, with a $35 per person credit, or there is a new option of a pre-fixe menu.

I think this is a very good change, as it fits in more with the dining packages. You could choose 1 appetizer, two mains, and a dessert. Unfortunately, I was extremely seasick and did not get to enjoy this at all. 

Thankfully, Mr. Mills had booked a Sushi and Sake tasting for later in the week, which I very much enjoyed! I highly recommend doing this activity if you are a sushi fan. There were four courses each paired with a different sake, plus mochi dessert.  

Things new to you

This cruise was originally scheduled for the same week last year, but was cancelled due to Covid. We lifted and shifted to the exact same cruise for 2021, and so began the agonizing wait. Our itinerary changed from San Juan and Labadee to St. Maarten and St. Thomas.

Through it all, we chatted not so patiently with the fellow cruisers in the Facebook group created for our cruise week. We’ve joined such groups before, but this was the most active cruise group we’ve ever been a part of. Whether it was because we all had so much time to wait, or because we just all wanted to get back out to sea--we were already pretty close by the time embarkation day came around.

We’d planned a pub crawl for Day 2, which happened to be my birthday, and if you’ve ever had your birthday with a bunch of strangers--it was one of the best birthdays I’ve ever had.

We started at the pub with shots, and it only got better from there. What a fantastical fun day! We were all fast friends by the end of the week, from the crawl, to the solarium cruise, bonding over lost luggage, and dancing the night away at Dazzles. I have no doubt we will be cruising with these folks again!

On the flipside, I don’t think I’ve ever been as seasick as I was on this trip. Normally, I’m a little nauseous on embarkation night as I find my sea legs. But I was sick almost every evening at dinner time. It was much windier than I’ve experienced in the Caribbean, and I’m not the only person who was feeling it--though it didn’t seem to affect Mr. Mills at all. It didn’t completely ruin my trip, but I also missed out on a lot of the after dinner activities we usually enjoy, like the piano singer in Schooner. 

Stray observations

The vaccinated areas were always busy, especially the Solarium. Even on sea days, the Solarium remained a peaceful place to go and relax, pre-covid. But on this cruise, it was as hopping as the regular pool deck, and pretty noisy. That didn't keep me from enjoying my time there, but it was certainly a different environment.

Also, the Bionic Bar has completely lost its novelty. I never saw the robots moving, and only one or two people the whole week had the Bionic Bar plastic cups. The area was mostly used as extra seating for those in the Promenade. From my observations, we've missed the personal interactions we receive with a human bartender, and while fun--a robot cannot give you that. I'll be interested to see if Royal continues to add this to their ships, or if they try another concept instead.

I’ve always been impressed with Royal Caribbean’s service, but the crew on Symphony of the Seas really was extraordinarily attentive. From the big stuff--like making sure guests were safe in an emergency--to all the little things Royal Caribbean is so good at--like remembering names, drinks, preferences. They really make a ship feel like a home away from home.

It took an eternity to make it back to sea, and like a flash it was over. Now I’m back in cold Indiana, dreaming of the next trip back out to the deep blue. Keep an eye out for more posts in the coming weeks, as I have much more to share! 

The last day of our cruise brings us to Perfect Day at CocoCay. 

Ideally, I prefer to have my last day onboard be a sea day, but I will never complain about spending time at CocoCay because of how much fun it is spending time there.

While this may have been my fourth time visiting CocoCay in two weeks, the weather last week was far from perfect, so today looked to be a way to end on a high note.

We did not arrive to CocoCay until almost 10am, which meant there would be a rush among guests to get off the ship at the same time. Moreover, we were sharing the island with Independence of the Seas.

What does two ships mean? There are 4100 passengers on Harmony and 3000 passengers on Independence, so while far from a full capacity day (CocoCay can handle 9-12,000 guests), it certainly would be busier than earlier this summer.

We started off with breakfast at Park Cafe, partially because I neglected to put a breakfast order in with my Genie the night before. I certainly don't mind a bagel and schmear to start my day.

By the time we finished eating, the gangway was open and we were on our way downstairs. 

Walking down the pier, it certainly looked like a great day. Not oppressively hot and low humidity meant a comfortable outdoor experience.

We had nothing reserved, so grabbed a chair near Oasis Lagoon and then hopped into the pool.  The pool was indeed very cold. We all braved the temperature and shivered a bit before getting used to it. 

Later in the afternoon, the sun came out more and that helped make being in the water a bit warmer.

The kids went to Splashaway Bay for some kiddy slide time. While not the CocoCay water park by any means, it got some energy out for the kids.

For lunch, I had to go to Snack Shack for my favorite complimentary food: mozzarella sticks and the "secret sandwich".

To my surprise, the line for Snack Shack was really long and moved slowly. I'm not sure if they were just overwhelmed with a lunch rush, or something else, but it was the longest line I've ever experienced there. Regardless, they got the line moving and I had my food soon enough.

The afternoon was spent at the pool, and it was an opportunity to hang out with friends from the group cruise one more time.

All aboard was 4:30, so we headed back to the ship in mid-afternoon. 

Since it was a 7-night cruise, unvaccinated kids needs to get a covid test done prior to disembarkation. Our genie escorted us in and got the tests complete quickly.

Back in the room, we showered, changed, and snuck in a quick nap.

Chips and dips from Sabor were waiting for us in the room, which was a nice pre-dinner snack.

We were not sure which restaurant to go to for dinner, but decided on going back to 150 Central Park.

I was glad we went back, because their entrees are really good. I really liked combining the halibut with cauliflower to combine flavor and texture.

After dinner, we said our goodbyes to friends in the pub before calling it a night.

Overall, it was a fantastic group cruise and it felt so good to see friends and make new ones along the way. After two other cancelled group cruises, this was an especially important sailing that I am glad happened without any incident.

If you'd like to join us for a group cruise in 2022, we have two more scheduled.

Thanks for reading this live blog. Our next live blog begins in a month when we fly to California to sail on Navigator of the Seas!

It appears Royal Caribbean is going to increase the size of the name on the side of it's newest cruise ship.

While docked in Marseilles, France, Wonder of the Seas is getting some painting done on her hull to increase the size of her name.

When the ship departed the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard, Wonder of the Seas' name was painted like nearly all ships have in the fleet. Now, it appears Wonder's name will move to a large size that is similar to Odyssey of the Seas' name.

The Ready for Cruise Facebook page noticed the change in a video posted by Instagram user victoriabalabaeva, where the outline for the new name can be easily seen.

The new name is positioned lower on the hull compared to other Oasis Class ships so that the larger size letters can fit better.

In the case of Odyssey of the Seas, the "O" alone measures 11.2 meters (36 feet) in height.

When Wonder of the Seas debuts next year, she will become the new largest cruise ship in the world.

The inaugural sailing of Wonder of the Seas is scheduled for March 2022, when Wonder of the Seas departs from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

She will then transition to the Mediterranean, beginning May 2022.

Our last sea day on Harmony of the Seas isn't our last day onboard, but it does give us a nice break after two port stops in a row.

While part of my wishes I could have spent the day sleeping in and lounging, there was plenty of fun in store.

I started off my morning with breakfast in the main dining room, where I ran into two crew members that were on Adventure of the Seas earlier this summer.  It was great to see these two again, and both on the same ship again.

Just like yesterday, the ship was still rocking quite a bit due to the ocean swells. The crew even deployed the vomit bags in stairwells.

Luckily, the motion would calm as the day progressed.

After breakfast, I grabbed Starbucks coffee and went to Dazzles for our first group meet of the day: a Royal Caribbean Blog podcast recording.

In this episode that will air next week, we listed our favorite things we really like on Harmony of the Seas.

After the recording was complete, I went back to my suite to enjoy lunch arranged by my genie.

The other day I was talking about favorite foods with him, and he heard that I really like Indian food, so he sent up a few different types of curry to sample.

Since the weather was so comfortable out, we had lunch on the balcony and it was a wonderful break.

After lunch was over, we spent some time in the cabin before our genie's next wish was granted.

Bertie had the idea to have an ice cream sundae cart brought to the room. I think my kids thought it would be two or three flavors of ice cream, but there were a half dozen flavors and just about every topping they could want.

Little things like this are a fun part of what makes staying in a Star Class suite so much fun.

While my kids burned off all that ice cream energy, I went back to Dazzles for another group cruise meetup to play the card game Moniker.

Moniker is a game where two teams compete in a cross between charades and Scattegories, where you take turns trying to describe people or things listed on the card. 

As afternoon turned into evening, we spent a little bit of time on the Boardwalk before getting changed for dinner.

Dinner tonight was back in Izumi for another round of hibachi.

We had the same chef as earlier this week, and it was another tasty meal.

We rounded out our evening with music before calling it a night.

Tomorrow is our last day on Harmony, and we will be visiting Perfect Day at CocoCay.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Our next stop is St. Thomas, where we get to enjoy a port day along with celebrating Thanksgiving.

I had booked a snorkel and beach excursion to take us to St. John. The last time I tried to get to St. John, I failed when I could not get a taxi.  This time, I booked a tour through Royal Caribbean so there would be no problems.

I was a little surprised when I noticed our meet time for the tour was 6:45am, which as you might imagine is very, very early.

Everyone met in the Royal Theater before heading off the ship to board a bus. 

The bus ride took about a half hour to get us to the marina on the east side of the island, where our catamaran was waiting.

We boarded the Stars and Stripes catamaran, where Captain Matt (great name, but not me) and First Mate Paul took us out.

Almost as soon as the boat departed the marina, it began to rain. While the rain was unwelcome, luckily it only rained for the duration of the trip out to St. John.

After about a half hour, we reached Honeymoon Beach on St. John. Almost immediately the rain stopped, which allowed us to enjoy time outside and in the water. In fact, the weather continuously improved as the morning went on.

Guests had the choice of snorkeling around or taking a dinghy to shore. My oldest went snorkeling while we went to the beach. 

In terms of snorkeling, there was an area between the beach and our catamaran where there was sea grass that was home to many types of marine life, including sea turtles.

Over on the beach, you could sit on the sand as you saw fit. There was a vendor renting chairs, but I did not inquire how much they were.

According to Captain Matt, we had 90 minutes of time once we arrived in St. John to be in or around the water.

What I love about St. John is the beautiful water colors and clarity, and today did not disappoint. While it would have looked better if the sun was shining, the clouds kept the temperatures comfortable and it felt great just wading in ocean.

All too quickly, our time came to an end and we took the dinghy back to the catamaran for our ride back.

On the return journey, complimentary snacks, drinks, champagne, and rum punch was served.

The tour was fun, and my kids really liked the beach time.  In fact, my oldest now wants to snorkel again as soon as possible. 

I wish we had more time at St. John, but that's a problem to consider for my next visit.

Upon returning to the ship, we grabbed lunch at the Windjammer.

By now the early morning wake up and beach time caught up with all of us, and it was time for a nap.

Our ship departed Harmony of the Seas around 3, but I was still sleeping when that happened. I woke up to a beautiful ride out of St. Thomas.

Almost as soon as we departed, the motion in the ocean returned.  In fact, all night the ship was rocking quite a bit.  The notion that Oasis Class ships don't really feel motion has been quickly dispensed.

Being Thanksgiving, we got changed for dinner to enjoy a family meal together. Rather than feeding the kids first and then dropping them off at Adventure Ocean, we opted to have a family Thanksgiving dinner together.

You may be wondering what Thanksgiving on a cruise ship is like, and there were all sorts of special add-ons. There were decorations around the ship, arts and crafts activities, and a special Thanksgiving menu.

Our group enjoyed a celebratory drink together at Dazzles, before heading to dinner.

This evening, we went to Coastal Kitchen for dinner. In addition to their regular menu, they also had Thanksgiving offerings.

This was my first time eating at Coastal Kitchen for dinner. It's a lovely location on deck 17, although I prefer the Coastal Kitchen set up on Quantum Class ships because it does not share a space with the Suite Lounge.

After dinner, I went down to the pub for live music.  A good time was had by all.

Tomorrow is a sea day.

Our first port stop is in St. Kitts.

Originally, we were supposed to go to Antigua, but Royal Caribbean informed us that work on dredging the port will not be complete in time. As a result, Royal Caribbean swapped out Antigua for St. Kitts.

Our tour was not until 11:45am, so we had time to sleep in and take things easy.

I would have slept in longer, but my phone jumped ahead an hour to match local time, so my alarm went off an hour early. Oh well.

Our Genie delivered Starbucks coffee to the room, and then after the kids managed to get up, we went up to the Windjammer for breakfast.

We then took a short walk around the Boardwalk before heading back to the room to get ready for our plans ashore.

I booked the Safari Island Drive tour, which is a 3 hour tour in an open-air truck around the entire island. 

Once the tour got underway, we drove up one side of the island, and made three stops along the way.

Our guide narrated the entire journey and pointed out various points of interest. There were lots of goats, chickens, cows, and horses to see, in addition to beautiful flora and very scenic views.

Our first stop was at an estate where we got to walk the grounds and do some light shopping.

We then made our way to the point where the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea meet.

There was even time to grab a beer at a shop.

Our final stop was near Frigate Bay, where you got a fantastic view of St. Kitts and Nevis.

I enjoyed the ride, and it was just long enough to see the countryside without feeling too long. Luckily there was a nice breeze for most of the ride, which made it comfortable. I'm not sure how comfortable it would be in July, but our weather was great.

Once we got back to the pier, we got onboard the ship to relax and recuperate before our evening plans.

Our Genie had chips, salsa, and guacamole from Sabor waiting for us in the cabin when we got back.  Since we didn't eat lunch during the tour (only water was provided), it was a welcome surprise.

After relaxing in the cabin, we headed out for dinner.

This evening, we went to 150 Central Park for dinner. 

As usual, the assortment of modern American fare did not disappoint. Between the various dishes, it had a sort of Thanksgiving feel to it all, with the mashed potatoes, pumpkin bisque, and various vegetables.

We decided to call it an early night because we have to wake up super early for our excursion tomorrow in St. Thomas.

A successful business leader heading up Royal Caribbean International, Michael Bayley manages a cruise line with over 78,000 employees, and a total of 24 ships visiting 270 locations. No doubt a considerable task.  

Bayley has seen a lot during his 40-year career with the company and he clearly loves his job. He shares many stories on social media profiling employees, featuring great passenger stories, engaging with cruisers, and breaking the latest news.

Digging a little deeper, we found some unexpected things you might not know about the man at the helm of Royal Caribbean.  

He comes from Wales

Bayley is a native of Cardiff, Wales. A small country bordering England, it has a population of just over three million people. It is characterized by its ancient roots, rugged coastlines, and strong Celtic culture. A sharp contrast to his current home in sunny Miami, Florida.

Upon finishing school, Bayley ventured to England for university, graduating from the University of Bournemouth with a degree in business.

After a friend told him about a cruise line hiring in the United States, he took his first ever flight and trip to the United States for the job.  His career in the cruise industry has taken him all over the world including some of his favorite places such as Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai, Rome, New York City, and Morocco. Quite a journey

He started as an Assistant Purser

Photo by Michael Bayley

Bayley’s first position at Royal Caribbean was assistant purser on the Nordic Prince.

As he described it, he was at the front desk dealing with lots of people.  He talks fondly of that time on the ship, interacting with crew and passengers. He especially loved the sirloin steak and french fries served for dinner on Saturday nights, exclaiming that it was one of his all time favorite cruise meals.

Setting sail in 1971, The Nordic Prince was the second ship built for Royal Caribbean, with a passenger capacity of 741, just over 550 feet in length, and sailed mostly in the Caribbean.

For those fans of the 80s classic cruise show “The Love Boat” they will remember that the loveable character Gopher was also a purser. His career did not seem to keep pace with that of Bayley’s though.

He’s a foodie

One of the great things about traveling on a Royal Caribbean ship, especially with the Oasis class, is the abundance of food options. All a good thing, as it is evident that Bayley is a foodie.

When recently asked about his favorite restaurants in the world, he listed a diverse selection of places. His top three include The Tree restaurant in Sao Paulo (which is actually covered by a century old tree), he then followed up with a giant leap across the world to the Cantonese restaurant in the Intercontinental in Hong Kong, and finished with My Mommy’s Kitchen In Buenos Aires, Argentina. He gets around.

He can also be seen trying his hand as a Teppanyaki chef, or frequently posting polls about great good options to choose from at the Portside BBQ or lamb and seafood options at Jamie’s Italian.

His son claims his enchiladas are the best things he cooks.

Dad jokes are his thing

Bayley loves to tell Dad jokes, often posting videos of his informal comedy routines. Captain Shawn seems to be a popular co-star in his video posts, and as a test audience, he doesn’t always seem to find the jokes that humorous.

His dog Thunder appears equally ambivalent about this joke telling skills seemingly preferring to nap.

A sampling of some of the highlights:

How does the penguin build his house? … he igloos it together.

Why did the coach go to the bank? … to get his quarter back.

He used to be President of CEO of Celebrity Cruises

Prior to his current position, Bayley was the head of Celebrity Cruises, moving there after being promoted from his position of Executive Vice President for International Operations at Royal Caribbean.

At Celebrity he was tasked with improving profitability with a focus on the premium segment. In his short time at Celebrity, he produced strong results and quickly switched back to Royal Caribbean to his current role of President and CEO.

Celebrity is a sister company to Royal Caribbean International, both owned by the broader parent company of Royal Caribbean Group. Celebrity targets a different segment, with a smaller fleet, and is known for its sophisticated ambiance, including food and service.

He once drove a lifeboat into a ship

In another memorable video titled “A special gift from Captain Shawn”. Bayley is presented with the original ship log from the Empress of the Seas. It was found while cleaning things up prior to the ship’s sale in 2020.

When handed the log, Bayley began to reminisce about his days aboard the ship. One particular event that stands out was a fun night out in Freeport after a long 10 day cruise. Unexpectedly they had to do a drill, and while acting as a Lifeboat Commander he drove the lifeboat right into the ship.  

As he recalls, the captain was none too pleased, surely an experience Bayley will never forget.

Favorite job

Bayley has had a number of jobs during his 40 years with the Royal Caribbean Group including work as a printer, payroll department, and hotel manager to more senior positions.  Beyond his current position, he says that the role of Chief Purser on the Sovereign of the Seas was one he truly loved. The days of fun, travel, and camaraderie made it so special.

The Sovereign of the Seas started sailing in 1988 from the port of Miami. With a passenger capacity of 2278, it was dubbed the world’s first mega-ship, although is now considered small in comparison to more modern ships.

Under Bayley's leadership, Royal Caribbean will launch the Wonder of the Seas with a capacity nearing 7000 in early 2022.

He has his own TikTok channel

Mr. Bayley is not one to shy away from almost anything, including TikTok.

His username is captaincruiseguy, and it's where he shares all kinds of videos from onboard the ships, at his home, and from many other places in his travels.

CEO's are not often known for sharing their fun side, but Mr. Baley does not hold back to share his personal side with fellow cruise fans.

Another day on Harmony of the Seas, another sea day to enjoy.

We started off our day with our first group cruise event: water slides!

Our group rented out the Perfect Storm water slides for an hour in the morning, meaning only our group could ride the slides as many times as we wanted.

Having the water slides to ourselves meant minimal waits to try each of the slides.  I found the champagne bowl slide to be much faster than I remembered.

After the slides, we transitioned over to the pool for some time to relax. The weather was great today, and very comfortable to be outdoors.

For lunch, we decided to go to Izumi for sushi.

While the Izumi hibachi is for vaccinated guests only, the sushi side is available to all guests.

After lunch, a few of us in the group went down to the casino for a few rounds of blackjack.

While lady luck did not shine upon any of us for this go-around, we did have a good time trying our best.  Plus, having a table at the casino just for our group made it far more enjoyable to lose our money.

Our other group event today was the bar crawl, where we try a number of bars around the ship.

We managed to visit 4 bars along the way:

1. Bionic Bar
2. Schooner Bar
3. Wipeout Bar
4. Ride down Ultimate Abyss
5. Sabor

The real fun in any bar crawl is getting to know everyone in the group as you go from bar to bar and share a drink together.

Tonight is formal night, so it was back to the room to change and get ready.

Dinner took us to Jamie's Italian, where our genie, Berty, was waiting for us.

Jamie's Italian rarely disappoints, and while I prefer the updated Giovanni's Italian Kitchen menu, I did not leave Jamie's disappointed.

After dinner, we went down to the comedy show. Once again, Berty had reserved seats for us.  I was happy they were not in the first row so that I could avoid becoming part of the show.

After the comedy show wrapped up, I had a couple drinks in the pub before calling it a night.

Tomorrow is our first port stop in St. Kitts.

Our first full day on Harmony of the Seas is a sea day, which means an opportunity on an Oasis Class ship to knock out a few favorites.

We slept in a bit, but I was too excited to stay in bed for long. After getting the family up and going, we headed down to Park Cafe for a quick breakfast.

After bagels for breakfast, it was over to the Boardwalk to stop by Starbucks for coffee.

Starbucks drinks (but not food) is included with Star Class. There are few things not included with Star Class, in terms of places you can spend money. The arcade is another area where Star Class does not cover the charges there.

Speaking of Star Class, so far it's been a bit of a different experience than I thought it would be.  Our genie is great, but the onus is on the guest to reach out and make requests.  While the genie can sometimes surprise you with things based on conversations they've had with you, ultimately it is up to you to ask for things.

I think the "learning curve" behind Star Class just means to not assume as much and simply ask. It has become a quick lesson for me so far.

Our first group cruise event today was a Royal Caribbean version of the classic game show, "Match Game".

As an example, here is one of the questions. Please share your best answers in the comments below: "Michael just invented a talking scale. After going on a 9 night cruise it yells, '_____!'"

My kids wanted to do the Ultimate Abyss, so we headed to try it. My youngest was too short last time to try it, so we had a chance to all do it.

This time, I actually scraped my knee on the side of the slide on the way down as I tried to avoid rolling over. Luckily the scrape was not too bad, although I haven't tried swimming yet.

For lunch, we decided to go to the main dining room since sea day lunches there are always so nice.

After lunch, I took my oldest daughter ice skating during an open skate session. 

Another nice Star Class perk is our genie was able to sign us up for a session without having to wait in line for it. Saving a few minutes here or there is a major source of value for what the genie provides.

Ice skating went well, although the bottom of my feet always hurt me after a bit. 

Being a sea day, I decided to enjoy a time-honored cruise tradition: an afternoon nap.

After my wonderful nap, it was time for our welcome aboard party in Dazzles.

We rented out Dazzles for an hour to serve everyone drinks while getting a chance to officially say hello and thank you for cruising with us.

This is an event we typically do on every group cruise because day one can be a bit rushed, but by this point on the second day, everyone is ready to get to know each other.

Dinner this evening is in Izumi hibachi, to enjoy one of my favorite meals on every ship.

I love teppanyaki because of the combination of great food and entertainment.

We wrapped up our evening with a few rounds at the roulette table, followed by music at the pub.

Tomorrow is a sea day.

Stray Observations

The ocean conditions steadily improved throughout the day. It was still fairly rocky in the morning, but the movement onboard seemed to subside as the day progressed.

I spotted the stowaway piano player onboard Harmony.