We recently completed a seven-night Western Med cruise on Harmony, embarking in Rome on October 6. We are my 62 y.o. husband, and me, celebrating my big 6-OH on the cruise. I’d consider us well-traveled and energetic, but not committed cruisers. On this trip, we started with a cruise around Greece on a very small ship, which needless to say, was a completely different experience. We had cruised on RC’s Enchantment of the Seas (pre-enlargement) in the Caribbean about 12 years ago and liked it, so it seemed like a good choice to go with Harmony.

I would describe our priority with cruising is to find a good itinerary of ports more than just cruising on the ship itself. With six of the seven days of the cruise in different ports, Harmony provided a good selection for us. What I didn’t take into account was the huge number of passengers descending on the ports, not even considering the other megaships visiting at the same time. Places like Palma de Mallorca and Capri were mobbed and very uncomfortable. You really had to work on finding your way away from the throngs. As to be expected, these same crowds wanted to use elevators and the Windjammer and the Main Dining Room and get on and off the ship, often leading to long lines. That got tiresome, day after day.

I finally figured out how exactly to describe the experience of vacationing aboard a megaship: Las Vegas of the Seas. On a ship like this, you’re living in a mega resort for a week. Everything seems so fake aboard the ship; Central Park, Broadway, the “theme” bars, the entertainment. For many people, it’s their opportunity to eat and drink and gamble too much where such behavior is generally acceptable, sometimes the entire goal of people’s vacations. In so many ways, the cruise seemed very impersonal, no warmth and few connections. Read more