Harmony of the Seas made waves when she brought escape rooms to the high seas when she launched in 2016, but some future passengers may not get to experience the unique attraction.
While it’s unclear which specific voyage is impacted, some guests who pre-booked the experience offered by the Oasis-class vessel, which is called “Escape the Rubicon,” have been notified that their experience cannot go ahead due to maintenance needs.
“Due to routine maintenance, we will temporarily close the Escape the Rubicon experience during portions of your sailing and cannot guarantee availability. As a result, we have to cancel your My Royal Cruise reservation for this activity,” Royal Caribbean wrote in an email to impacted guests.
Since the cruise line states that the experience will only be closed for portions of the sailing, hopefully guests who had the escape room on their must-do list will get another opportunity to partake in the themed experience.
For now, guests who pre-booked the experience, which costs $40 (USD) per person, will receive a full refund within two weeks.
“We’re sorry for the inconvenience and apologize for any disruption to your plans. We’ve issued a full refund to your original form of payment, which you should see within 14 business days,” continued the email.
While multiple Royal Caribbean ships now have their own unique stateroom experiences, the “Escape the Rubicon” experience on Harmony of the Seas was the first to join the fleet.
What makes the experience really unique is that it was designed with a story in mind and is immersive, almost like a Hollywood movie set. The “Escape the Rubicon” is a puzzle break that is designed to make guests feel like they are on the bridge of a steampunk-themed starship.
While in the experience, guests have an hour to solve clues that allow them to “escape” – with each clue unlocking new steps to complete and revealing more of the narrative.
The same escape room is now offered on Symphony of the Seas, with escape rooms with different storylines also featured on Mariner of the Seas, Navigator of the Seas, Independence of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas, Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, and Icon of the Seas.
More Amenities on Harmony of the Seas
While the temporary removal of the escape room will be disappointing to some, there is still plenty to do onboard the 5,480-passenger vessel.
First of all, guests won’t actually be onboard for the entirety of their sailing. While it’s not clear which specific voyage the escape room will be out of order for, the 227,500-gross ton vessel is currently operating a series of six to 8-night cruises to the Western Caribbean.
The itineraries are quite port heavy, calling on destinations like Roatan Island, Honduras; Costa Maya, Mexico; Cozumel, Mexico; Nassau, Bahamas; and Perfect Day at CocoCay, the cruise line’s private island destination.
Even with no port calls, a full week onboard might not be enough time to fully experience all that the current fifth largest ship in the world has to offer. Indeed, the massive ship is packed with family-friendly entertainment from bow to stern.
Read Also: Royal Caribbean Amenities You Should Pre-Book
Just to name a few examples, guests can spend their sea days watching high caliber shows on stage and on ice (plus ice skating with friends and family), swimming in the three pools, testing their balance on two surf simulators, and getting their adrenaline pumping on three separate water slides.
If the water slides don’t bring enough thrill, guests can take advantage of the zipline, which gives a birds-eye-view from nine decks above the action on the boardwalk. Alternatively, guests may opt for a family-friendly but high-intensity game of laser tag.
