Very Disappointing

Item: Carnival Horizon
Rating: 2.2
Author: CarnivalFailed

Carnival Horizon Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

CarnivalFailed

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 25

Overall rating:

2.2 out of 5

Verified Review

6 Night Eastern Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: July 18, 2021

Ship: Carnival Horizon

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 6262

Traveled as: Family (young children)

Reviewed: 3 years ago

Review summary

After saving for three years to take our grandkids on this specific cruise with specific excursions, Carnival changed all the destination ports. At every port, we woke up to find a paper pushed under our door telling us our "Bubble" excursions have been cancelled due to "Operational Issues". I was, and remain very frustrated and angry about what happened. We reached out to Carnival several times but never received any responses. The front line people did their best but they were constrained in what they could do by exceptionally poor leadership.

Embarkation

2 out of 5

A good amount of confusion with one person from Carnival telling us to wait and another telling us to proceed.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5

They cancelled most of the children's activities

Entertainment

2 out of 5

Children's Programs

1 out of 5

Most children's activities were cancelled

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

They all seemed to do their very best.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

Everything was fine. Always kept very clean.

Ports of call

Amber Cove (Puerto Plata), Dominican Republic

1 out of 5

Primary excursion (swimming with Dolphins was cancelled). 45 minute bumpy bus ride to beach was lousy.

Thumbs Up 0

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Private Island)

1 out of 5

Bubble snorkeling tour was cancelled and no other tour was offered. We reserved clam shells for beach chairs and after walking a long way down the beach, we were told the ship oversold them by more than a 100 people. After insisting that I meet with someone from Carnival, and waiting 45 minutes in hot sun I was told that this was not true and there were covered chairs available.

Thumbs Up 0

Bimini, Bahamas

1 out of 5

This was the worst! Once again, our bubble excursion of swimming with the stingrays was cancelled (now for the 3rd time on our trip!!!). We disembarked ship and found there is absolutely NOTHING to do in the area. One store selling six dollar waters! What make Carnival think Bimini is a good place to stop? Kids were confined to ship.

Thumbs Up 3

Disembarkation

2 out of 5

Confusing. We were asked to pick a number for disembarking but the numbers did not correspond to any given time.

15 Comments

WarrenPeace 3 years ago

For what it’s worth, if you read down in the legalese that you scrolled through & then probably didn’t read—it says Carnival won’t guarantee ports, arrival dates, excursions etc because it is, after all, travel & it’s subject to the whims of nature, storms, political trouble & now we learn —pandemics. So when you click the “I Accept” thingy on your ticket it pretty much absolves Carnival from any real liability. That said, 99.9% of the time it’s never an issue, they refund excursion fees, you can gripe & get your port fees you prepaid back—-but if you planned a wedding or to meet family at an event at a certain port on a certain date & the ship reroutes or switches dates for weather concerns—-you’re pretty much SOL from getting any kind of reimbursement. We missed Mahagony Bay due to high winds one time. Unfortunately—it is what it is.

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javawoody 3 years ago

Thanks for the review and sharing your story, sorry things didn't work out for you, I don't think cruising is back to normal, and may not be for some time, because of covid

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leog 3 years ago

Just wondering if you are a vaccinated cruiser? Obviously the kids arent. Sorry you had a rough time but it has to be expected right now. Goin in 40 days and..... I'm going on a cruise!!!!!! FINALLY!!! Dont care if the ports get messed up.

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taacman 3 years ago

Currently in the Bahamas the Bahamian government controls the ports that can be visited and the functions allowed. The cruise lines can only stop at ports that are opened by their governments which can change daily.

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missnotanlines 3 years ago

This is what I was afraid of rccl canceled our Oct cruise have a feeling most ports will be closed again.

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RetiredRay 3 years ago

Even though I disagree on some things, at least you stated a reason for the negativity, even though the issues most likely were unavoidable. That is what I am worried about in December, way too many folks not getting vaccinated and then (at least in the US) lying about it.

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AuntPinkie 3 years ago

Thanks for sharing your experience. It points out that while cruising is back it isn’t back to things as they were. Not sure when that will happen. 🛳

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Curt34 3 years ago

Thanks for the review. Sorry it didn’t meet your expectations. I have a feeling Covid 19 had something to do with your experience.

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cruiselover1977 3 years ago

During this come back time- it is hard for the cruiselines to give everyone a perfect cruise. But one thing I promise is that THEY AND ALL THE WORKERS ARE DOING THERE BEST.... EVEN WHEN it strinks that a excursion is canceled last moment.. I promise u that it was only done bc they had to cancel bot bc they wanted to cancel. The workers have all done alot to get back on the ship between many many weeks of quarantines... and etx etx. I'm sure the cruise may have not been what u were expecting and I'm sure it wasn't fun with kids if many things closed. But it's not fair to give such low reviews when a company and workers r doing there absolute best during a transition back to a new cruise time that noone has ever had to deal with before. I wld suggest people to not cruise right now ,if they can't be flexible during this transition of the cruise lines finding what works.... I'm sorry it wasn't all u hoped it wld be .. but maybe wait a few yrs before u try again. BC they r adjusting during this back to cruise start up. Try again... but wait a year or two in my opinion... Happy travels cruise family 👪

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BeachDiva 3 years ago

Sorry to hear about a crappy cruise. I think cruising with kids right now is too much of a gamble. Not much for them to do if everything is closed to them. Sorry.

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15mustang 3 years ago

We are still in the middle of a global pandemic. I really don't know what you expected.

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DerekMire 3 years ago

Don’t care

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CruzeFan 3 years ago

Sorry that it did not meet your expectations. Cruising currently is a gamble and changes are inevitable. Port changes, excursion cancellations, etc. are always a possibility and with Covid are almost guaranteed. If a specific port is of importance, the only sure way to experience it is to travel directly to that location and not depend on a cruise ship.

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izrgreen 3 years ago

Thanks for your point of view. Have you cruise before?

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profile 3 years ago

Thanks for sharing.

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