smurfm69

  The end of your review is almost as sad as the end of a cruise. Lol  Great job as always and thanks for taking the time to share your pics and family vacation with al the Cruise Critic peeps.

One of my favorite things about cruising is locking my cell phone in the safe and being unplugged for a week not having to carry it around.  This Carnival hub app looks quite useful though.

38 minutes ago, boobear1 said:

This may be common knowledge, but for newbie's it might be helpful.  If you're unsure about purchasing the drink package because you're not sure you would "drink that much" here is an option that I'm using for my cruise next week.  I've been buying cruise cash, not the bar or photo, but the cruise cash.  We'll be boarding the ship knowing we already have "drink money" and we won't lose it because we can use it anywhere or cash it out in the casino.  

 We always buy about $200 in cruise cash and it works out great for us!  Takes care of the one night we eat in the steakhouse, plus drinks, and gift shop purchases.  It helps keep the final sail & sign bill down too.

 Enjoying your pics and review and anticipating the ports!  Your reviews keep me coming back to cruise critic more often than usual.

  We have had those 4J cabins on most of our cruises.  We love having the large deck in front just a few steps away and the price is much less than a balcony cabin.  Great place to watch the ship sailing in and away from the ports!

 Congrats on finishing school!  We are doing this itinerary on the Horizon in May so I have been looking for reviews of this cruise.  I'm extra excited to read your review because you do such a great job and have great pics as well. 

On 12/22/2018 at 12:04 AM, WorkerBee74 said:

 

I swear this song immediately popped in my head when I read the post heading.  Lol

 Never have tried the cove balconies.  Sounds like you got an awesome upgrade for a good price!

 I bought my wife a ring in St. Thomas years ago and it was a great deal and a quality piece of jewelry that still looks great!  I was able to negotiate the price down from what it was listed at.  You can't usually do as much bargaining at stores here in the states. 

 We are staying there for one night before our cruise.  Great location and I understand it may not have huge rooms but we just need a place to sleep pre cruise not throw a large party. 

Ready to read more of your review as we are doing this same itinerary in May. Don't feel guilty about the naps. We do the later dining time so that we can squeeze in a nap before dinner and stay up later to party!

One of the best things about cruising is turning off my phone and locking it in the safe for a week.

Do lots of research here on Cruise Critic and you will find info, pics, and reviews of third party tour operators.

We also had cabana #10 and loved it! It's far enough away from the big crowds but you can still hear the music from the pirate ship bar a little. Also there are bathrooms behind cabanas 9&10 which is convenient.

Guy's Burgers, Alchemy Bar, enjoying a movie out on the lido deck at night, the water slide, and of course the big lido deck party.

We did it years ago and really enjoyed it. The cool water felt great on a hot day. I will agree with the others on here though. It's one of those been there done that things that I probably wouldn't do again. Doing it with an independent operator is much better than through the cruiseline.

Thanks for all the info on the ship. Counting down to our Horizon cruise next year.

The fare viewer was an easy way to check for price drops, but unfortunately that is gone now. I just call my PVP to check the rates.

An Alaskan cruise is definitely on my bucket list! Looking forward to your review and pics.

Love the Alchemy Bar and the martini tasting is a great way to try different concoctions!

I agree! Gotta have Guys Burgers and the Alchemy Bar!

Enjoying your review so far. I definitely want to do the beer tasting on our cruise next year.

I'm looking forward to doing this next year. I think it's $25 per person.

I really enjoyed your Vista review and was happy to find this one. You do a great job on your reviews! Totally sucks that y'all missed St. Thomas. That is one of our favorite ports, so hopefully you guys will get another chance to go there soon. Thanks for taking the time to post the info and pics from your cruises.

We love dressing up for 80's parties and plan to do so on our Horizon cruise next year. I'll be looking for your 80's gear Checkers! :cool: