I choose this ship for my family vacation because of the size as well as the variety of activities, entertainment and open air spaciousness of Central Park and the Boardwalk. Members of my family vary in age and interests and there was something on the Symphony for everyone. I first considered the Harmony until I discovered that the Solarium didn't have a pool. The Solarium is my favorite Sea day spot so this was an important feature for me.
Dining: I read reviews about the food being average so we went to four speciality restaurants. Two for lunch and two for dinner. The service in the Main Dining room was amazing but the food was hit or miss. The food in the speciality restaurants was an all around amazing experience. Chops, Wonderland, 501 Central Ave and Hooked. We also had a Mediterranean buffet dinner in the Solarium which was also quite tasty. The only place that we would never eat at again was El Loco Fresh which was crowded, messy and did not have good food.
Service: March Spring Break was a sold out sailing and a very full ship. The staff was on point and had everything under control. The waiters and bartenders kept orders moving quickly, the room attendant was pleasant and did a great job. Customer service was efficient and the ship was immaculate with the crew detailing the ship daily.
I loved my boardwalk balcony cabin and it's location at the Aft of the ship. It is on the same floor as Central Park which is a pleasant walk thru when going to the front the ship for places like the Gym, Theatre or Solarium. The cabin is a good size in length for two people but a little tight in width especially between the foot of the bed and the wall. The bed was closer to the door while the couch was closer to the balcony door. My kids were in #8317 which had the opposite layout with the bed by the Balcony and the couch by the door. The balcony was a nice size overlooking the boardwalk directly across from Johnny Rockets with a peek a view of the ocean which was mostly blocked by the Abyss slides. This room is two floors above Playmakers but we weren't disturbed by noise. The boardwalk balcony is very noisy and it has limited views of the Aqua shows. Once the doors are locked, the cabin is very quiet with no outside sounds. The room attendant will open up the balcony partition for side by side balconies which gives families more balcony space.