Great ship; Great crew; great ports; great time. Carnival knows how to do it....5000 of your closest friends but never felt crowded. So many places to eat and things to do spread the masses around.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Fast and seamless...arrived a little early and still went without a hitch
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
So many places to eat. Great variety of dining locations as well as food type options at each. You just cannot go hungry!Many specialty restaurants offer lunches at no cost so a great opportunity to sample their offerings. Bars at times were slow but thats not unusual in high traffic areas.
Guy's Pig & Anchor BBQ Smokehouse Brewhouse
5 out of 5
Nice place to sample Guys BBQ during the day....no need to "pay" at night. Nice selection of beers and cocktails...a cool place to hang out...more than just a food venue....live music. and big TV's for sports
Shake Spot
4 out of 5
Alcoholic milkshakes? Oh my....nice place to hang out....unusual choices as well as the standard fare....pasteries looked amazing....we resisted...so many food options all over the ship
Meridian Restaurant
5 out of 5
Great staff....great food. We did anytime dining....never waited more than 10 minutes for a table. Servers called us by name even though we had different servers each time we ate there
Guy's Burger Joint
5 out of 5
What can be said about Guys Burgers? This helped tip the scales (literally I guess) to choose Horizon
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Three days at sea can be an activity challenge but we were never bored. 3D and 4D IMAX theater was a nice diversion. Trivia all over the place...Skyride was down for repairs but looked like it would have been a lot of fun. Water park looked like a lot of fun for those inclined....physical fitness areas adequate and seldom crowded.
Horizon Casino
4 out of 5
At times very smokey! Ventilation seemed to come and go. Unfortunately it was a "hangout" for the smokers even if they weren't gambling...taking up space in a rather small casino.Roulette table always crowded...many black jack tables not....get another roulette table in their place
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Stage shows seem to have taken it up a notch since our last Carnival cruise. Energetic and quite talented group. Although there was a "stage show" every night....2 nights were audience participation events. One night had a "juggler" that was very entertaining and interacted with the audience to get the place rocking. Cruise director "Cookie" kept the energy levels high at the dance and party events. I thought Punchliner Comedy Club took a step back....comedians were..."good" but not great. Ok we are on a cruise ship...the bathrooms are small....talent just seems to be stretched and shows by same comedians were "repeats" Do they have more than 20 minutes of material?
Limelight Lounge
5 out of 5
Much smaller than expected for a ship with 5000 passengers but there was always a seat! Entertainment was excellent...nice variety of entertainment
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
We did anytime dining so we had different servers every time but entire dining staff was friendly and catered to every need. Almost always addressed us by name. Room steward always greeted us by name and did a great job caring for our room.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Best overall design of our many cruise ships. Easy to get around. Almost all public areas were on 3 or 4 floors so easy to get to by elevator or stairs. Maps at every elevator helped identify venues. Elevators were great once you got used to it. You pick the floor (and # of riders) you want to go to outside the elevator and you are assigned an elevator. Your wait at times seemed a bit long for busy times but when you got on...often times non-stop to your floor.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Excellent layout. More than adequate storage and closets. Bathroom had plenty of shelf space for sundries. Room decor was subtle and pleasing. Room size was better than most newer ships that seem to be shrinking our cabins
Relaxing "beach stop" Free lounges and shade shells right off the pier. Restaurants and bars abound. Nice beach....although a bit rocky....just a nice place to chill
Ill go back when it gets better. None of the excursions drew our attention. Shopping area close to the pier were just flea markets. One bar....terrible service even though it wasn't crowded. Just not a "fun vibe" We didnt spend more than an hour off the ship.
We did an island bus tour excursion. I would describe it as "just ok" The area around the port was vibrant and fun...numerous bars and restaurants; nice shops and stores. a real European feel of the Dutch roots. Ship stayed til 10pm giving us the opportunity to see Curacau "lit up" A nice port to enjoy the culture and food.
Island bus tour....Natural bridges were quite interesting....light house was...ok...plenty of shopping and things to do at the pier. Hang onto your hat....Aruba is always windy!! 18 inches of annual rainfall makes for an arid desert environment.....so not as colorful as we expected (first visit) Beaches were plentiful. soft sand and blue-green waters....did I say windy?
For some reason seemed a bit disorganized??? We weren't in a hurry so we didnt care but by the time we got off the ship...a lot of new cruisers were already processed and waiting to get on.
Thanks for the positive review! Even the points that you found may need more attention you made it seem like it wasn't much of a big deal. A vacation is what you make it and it semms as though you made the most of yours! Thanks again!
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