Overall, I had a wonderful, relaxing, entertaining experience aboard the Horizon. I would recommend this cruise, but you MUST do your research in order to fully enjoy everything this cruise has to offer.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
Somewhat expedient. Nice waiting area in the cruise terminal. However, once we boarded, things became disorganized, and it was hard to manuever throughout the boat, but I am not sure if anything can be done about that with a ship of this size.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The food in the buffet area was ok, nothing special. The food in the main dining room was about the same, except during breakfast/brunch. The specialty restaurants were ALL especially delicious. Furthermore, I would highly recommend eating at the Fahrenheit steakhouse and the Bonsai Teppenyaki restaurant as both had really delicious high-end restaurant quality food. The service at all food venues was outstanding.
As far as drinks were concerned, I had the best experience at the Pig and Anchor brewery which had great beers on tap and an exceptional collection of bourbons. The staff was great and lively. (Shout out to Keviel and Shareefah.)
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
There were plenty of fun trivia contests, games, and shows throughout the boat.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
I felt the shows, musicians/DJs, and performers were fun and more than appropriate.
Children's Programs
4 out of 5
No children were present.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
This category is where the Horizon stood out to me. I felt like my expectations were exceeded and my appreciation was valued.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The ship was very well kept. The layout and design is modern for a Carnival ship. The elevator system is interesting. I am not sure if I like it or not. It's supposed to be more efficient, but I felt like the wait time seemed rather excessive and the size is small depite saying that it can hold 18 passengers.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
The sheets could have been changed more frequently and the carpet should have been more thoroughly vacuum cleaned. There were stains on the surface of the foot rest and the desk area hard water marks.
Ship tip
Remember that you are on vacation to enjoy yourself, and do your research about activities, venues, and ports prior to booking.
Beautiful. We went to Eagle Beach. It was not overcrowded, however, there were only a few facilities here to get food/drinks. In the evening, we ventured in the local port area, and there were nice bars with dancing and music. There were nice places to shop, too.
Awesome experience THIS time! I had been to this port three-four times. If you do not book an excursion, you will regret it. The taxis at the port are very expensive. I visited this port in November, and the taxis were charging about $120 to go the beach and back. On a previous visit, I went to a local beach to snorkel, and I discovered the most disgusting treasure... a woman's femine napkin! Prior to that, I just hung out at the port for a little while and bought over-priced food and drinks and got back on the ship.
This time was different, however. I took the Puerto Plata Highlights and Golden Beach Escape tour which was booked through https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com/ which was reffered to me by Priceline. The tour was a mere $59 per person which is about the cost of a taxi to a beach. The tour guide Xander was very cool, and the tour took us throughout Puerto Plata and gave a lot of information about the history and culture of Puerto Plata. We got to sample local coffees and rums. We visited significant historical landmarks, and more. The tour made us feel connected to Puerto Plata in a meaningful way.
Then, we went to one of the most beautiful beaches that I have gone to in the Carribean. It was very clean. It was not overcrowded, and the local food was great and inexpensive as compared to the cruise port.
I liked this port so much that I am planning to return without a cruise for a fully immersive experience.
After what was a great cruise experience, this part needs to be completely revamped. Of course, you need to be out of your room by 8:30, which is fine. So we cleared out and went to eat breakfast. After breakfast was when everything brokedown. People were not following disembarkation instructions and trying to get off the ship before it was their time. They were crowding the staircases, lobbies, etc. So we went into the designated waiting area, which was fine, until it was our time to get off. This process took over 2 hours to leave the ship itself only to find even more hysteria out side of the terminal to get a taxi. All in all, it took from 8:30 to 11:30 to get to the airport. Carnival Horizon should consult with the Norwegian Escape to streamline this process as they do it seemlessly.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. I share your appreciation for the service and staff. We love the Horizon and look forward to sailing on her in the future. We were so fortunate to have Donkey as our CD. I'm happy to hear that overall you enjoyed your sailing ⛵️ 🛳⛴️🌻
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