Our "Not-Quite-As-Planned" Horizon 8/8 Adventure

So we grabbed the last havana inside (on deck 6).....But I WILL be booking another Horizon/Vista cruise and getting a havana cabana cabin. Yup.

Thanks for this review and this specific detail about where you boarded. We will be in the family harbor area in December. I have not found FTTF available. It will be tough to be so close to our room and not be able to drop off the bags..

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

I think they hold FTTF for the new ships because there are a lot of platinum/diamond members sailing. I did speak to a few people who said their stewards let them drop their bags early.

Only you can decide if you'll like hanging out on your possible future lanai or saving money by booking another Havana inside. If you imbibe, the savings can be used for Cheers. I'll be in a Havana inside next week, so look for my review in early September.

We are actually going to do the Horizon southern sailing out of Miami next year and decided on Havana interiors because we spent most of our time on the Havana deck rather than our balcony.

We always book with YTD because we don't like to be tied down to a specific time. We've also found that if we find a particular service team we like, we can request to be in their section on the nights we go to the dining room.

Horizon I believe is the first ship in the fleet that allows you to check in to YTD via the Hub app if you choose to use that. My husband and I have jobs where we are tied to our phone/computer so we made a conscious decision to completely "unplug" this vacation even if that meant giving up some conveniences of the Hub app (chat, viewing pictures, etc.). We also wanted to set an example for our kids that you can unplug and still have fun. (I can honestly say, this was one of the best decisions of our vacation.)

Since we have been on ships where the YTD check-in is not directly at the dining room, we had no problem going to the check-in desk near Ocean Plaza/Java Blue Cafe on Deck 5. I think there were a lot of first time cruisers on this sailing though and I really felt bad for the girls doing the check-in because people were upset because they had to wait for a table during peak times. Honestly, we only went to the main dining room 4 of the 8 nights, but we never had a problem getting a table when we went to check in.

Only you can decide if you'll like hanging out on your possible future lanai or saving money by booking another Havana inside. If you imbibe, the savings can be used for Cheers. I'll be in a Havana inside next week, so look for my review in early September.

Thanks. Will be anxiously awaiting your report. Enjoy your cruise.

I believe we ate in the main dining room 4 of the 8 nights. The first night was pretty lousy service-wise. We only saw the two assistant waiters on our team once each the entire dinner. The rest was left to our head waiter. While I'm sure he would be great (he certainly had a personality and was friendly), he didn't have a team supporting him. As a result, dinner was slow and we were so tired already we ended up leaving without dessert.

We went back to the main dining room for elegant night and were assigned to a different team on the 4th deck of the Meridian dining room. Service was much better; however, we found drink service to be non-existent in the main dining room.

We took a couple of nights off from main dining room for a variety of reasons :halo:, but returned on "Amber Cove" night to the same service team per our request. I found the YTD team very willing to accommodate our requests for a specific team. Sometimes this may mean you will need to wait, but we never had to wait. There was a definite change in the level of service on this night. We were asked repeatedly for drink orders. I think this was probably a function that they wanted everyone happy after missing port because the next time we went to the dining room, the service was back to "normal".

I want to add that my comments about the main dining room are just our personal experience. Our family may be an exception, but we do get tired of the main dining room experience and don't feel like a long dinner every night. I think the servers are great individuals, but they are clearly being made to take care of more tables and this has affected the quality of service over the years. I also think we tend to graze throughout the day so we aren't necessarily hungry for a large meal.

I think they hold FTTF for the new ships because there are a lot of platinum/diamond members sailing. I did speak to a few people who said their stewards let them drop their bags early.

Thank you! (That's actually what I was hoping for with the stewards allowing for bag drop).

I will keep checking for FTTF...

I haven’t been on the Vista/Horizon yet. I have Havana interior booked for January 26th. Probably the most excited I’ve ever been about a room and it’s an inside. I will spend most of the time in the Havana area and I won’t miss the balcony at all. Wife and I both get tired of the madness of the pool area. But we don’t want to totally be cut off from people, drinks and good conversation. So it will be worth every penny.

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Since we were so tired from our cross country journey the night before, my husband and I headed back to the cabin. My kids are 12 and 19 so they had a little more stamina than us. :) My daughter went to the meet & greet party at Circle C and my son checked out Sports Square.

I always sleep really well on cruises. It's odd because the mattresses are quite firm and I usually like a softer mattress. In any event, I slept like a baby and woke up recharged.

One of the nice things about being in the Havana area on Deck 5 is the proximity to the Java Blue Cafe and Ocean Plaza. I will admit, I wasn't shy about throwing on my robe and sneaking out for that first cup of deliciousness! One of the hardest working people on the ship is Donnapathi (sp?) in the Cafe. She makes a mean latte and she is quick! The lines moved quickly.

Since it was the 2nd cruise day, Cheers was in effect. If you are on the fence about Cheers and love your specialty coffees (as well as drinks ;)), this is a no-brainer since all of your coffees/milkshakes are included with the Cheers package.

Now, for those of you who don't want to fight the craziness of the Lido buffet at breakfast, consider heading down to Ocean Plaza. They utilize the area formerly known as the Taste Bar and set out breakfast. The Fun Times will list it as "continental"; however, it always had eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, etc. as well as pastries and oatmeal. I usually grabbed a croissant or a muffin to go with my morning coffee. This area was never really crowded for breakfast and Ocean Plaza only became busy once activities started around 9-9:30

I haven’t been on the Vista/Horizon yet. I have Havana interior booked for January 26th. Probably the most excited I’ve ever been about a room and it’s an inside. I will spend most of the time in the Havana area and I won’t miss the balcony at all. Wife and I both get tired of the madness of the pool area. But we don’t want to totally be cut off from people, drinks and good conversation. So it will be worth every penny.

You are right to be excited! Enjoy!

Thank you! (That's actually what I was hoping for with the stewards allowing for bag drop).

I will keep checking for FTTF...

We have 2 more cruises before we are platinum so we typically do get FTTF for itineraries with tender ports or the larger ships. We missed having it this cruise (as it wasn't offered) even though there wasn't a tender as the lines at guest services were REALLY long!

We are actually going to do the Horizon southern sailing out of Miami next year and decided on Havana interiors because we spent most of our time on the Havana deck rather than our balcony.

We are going on Horizon in 40 days. Not great ports, but since we are in Havana interior, I was fine with that. I may not get off the ship, lol. We had originally been going to Siesta Key, but the red tide made us rethink our vacation plans. We had taken a break from cruising recently. I kind of felt cruised out, but since we booked this one and one in 2019! I guess I'm back in the cruising frame of mind.

I am loving your review and honestly your whole attitude.

We have our first Carnival cruise booked for June 2019 in the Havana, with a aft balcony and inside.

Thanks for the breakfast tip.

Love this review and LOVE your attitude. I work in travel and I'm always impressed with clients who can go with the flow the way you have done... life happens! Glad you enjoyed your trip and thank you for sharing!

That's the itinerary we're doing the last week of August next year. Looking forward to first time visits to Curacao and La Romana.

This is one of our favorite itineraries. My kids choose this over everything else and my husband is just thankful we aren't stopping in St. Thomas as I usually get in trouble there. ;) For La Romana, check out the Seavis excursion to Sanoa Island. It was a lot of fun and very beautiful!

We are going on Horizon in 40 days. Not great ports, but since we are in Havana interior, I was fine with that. I may not get off the ship, lol. We had originally been going to Siesta Key, but the red tide made us rethink our vacation plans. We had taken a break from cruising recently. I kind of felt cruised out, but since we booked this one and one in 2019! I guess I'm back in the cruising frame of mind.

If we hadn't booked excursions, I would have been perfectly fine staying on the ship. My daughter loved the big beds on the Havana area. If I couldn't find her in her usual spots on the ship, she was usually there without fail!

While we are on the subject of food, anyone who says there isn't enough variety onboard is crazy! Here's my take on some of the spots I tried (because I didn't get to all of them). It will probably take me a bit to go through them all because there are that many :)

Guy's Burgers: we love them! My kids don't like the seasoning on the fries but they loved that they could get plain ones in the deli. It's open from noon until 6. Longest lines were right when it opened, but after about 1:00 or so, you could pretty much walk up. Burgers were always fresh, fries were always hot and the toppings bar was always stocked.

Blue Iguana Cantina: This is my "go-to" breakfast place. I love the breakfast burritos! They are so filling that I typically wasn't hungry until after the big lunch rush. They also have breakfast tostadas and heuvos rancheros (sp) I think they are open for breakfast from 7-11:00 (? - don't quote me) and then they close to prepare for lunch at noon. During lunch, they have burritos with your choice of shrimp, chicken or steak (they may have pork, I was a little fuzzy) or you can forego the tortilla and get a salad in a shell - YUM! Be sure to ask for extra guacamole because you can break apart the shell and dip it :) The other side of the cantina serves tacos with fresh made tortillas. I believe you have the option of fish, chicken or beef. I had tacos one day and a salad another day. There is usually a pretty big line for burritos during the lunch rush but the tacos are pretty much walk-up.

Great review!

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Blue Iguana ...During lunch, they have burritos with your choice of shrimp, chicken or steak (they may have pork, I was a little fuzzy) or you can forego the tortilla and get a salad in a shell - YUM! Be sure to ask for extra guacamole because you can break apart the shell and dip it.

Do you know if they allow for an additional portion of shrimp on a salad bowl?

Do you know if they allow for an additional portion of shrimp on a salad bowl?

I never honestly asked, but I really don't see that they wouldn't. The guys at Blue Iguana were some of the friendliest on the ship! They will probably joke that they need to "charge you extra" (they did that when I asked for hashbrowns at breakfast:)

Pig & Anchor: We experienced Pig & Anchor food on both Vista and Dream, so food-wise, we knew what to expect. I was a little disappointed with the design of Pig & Anchor. It was really dark and "meh" compared to it's counterpart, the fun and airy Red Frog bar on Vista. We missed the games and hanging out. The interior is completely black and gray.

The food, however, was great for lunch. Unlike other ships, there really never was a line at lunch. It also helped it was just outside the Havana area so we could sneak out, get food and then return. Lunch items included chicken, pulled pork, beef brisket, baked beans, mac & cheese and greens. There was also sausage but I didn't try that. Brisket was my favorite of the meats. After you get your meat, there are 4 or 5 sauces to choose from. My favorite was the KC sauce. They have little portion cups so you can try the different sauces if you are undecided.

***MY TIP*** Go up to Guy's (or the Deli). Ask for a plate of fries (Guy's is better because they tend to be fresher). Take that plate of fries and head for the stairs (yes, the stair! You are going to need it after this!). Now, head to the lanai and get in line at Pig & Anchor. Get yourself a plate of pulled pork and mac n' cheese (do you see where I am going with this?). Walk over to the sauce table and douse your fries is your favorite sauce. Add your pork to the top and add some more sauce. Then take that creamy mac n' cheese and top the pulled pork with it. Grab a fork and you're welcome! Pig & Anchor is open for lunch on sea days but I also think they were open the day we did Grand Turk because I somewhat remember them trying to direct us to the lanai from the promenade (but more about that later ;))

Great tip regarding the combination of the seasoned fries at Guy's with the BBQ sauce etc from the Smokehouse. I will try the same thing next week with the brisket. I believe it's open on embarkation day, but since Mongolian at Jiji's takes so long, I will probably hit there as soon as we drop off our bags since we have Platinum status. ;p

Great tip regarding the combination of the seasoned fries at Guy's with the BBQ sauce etc from the Smokehouse. I will try the same thing next week with the brisket. I believe it's open on embarkation day, but since Mongolian at Jiji's takes so long, I will probably hit there as soon as we drop off our bags since we have Platinum status. ;p

Assuming Mongolian is open on embarkation day, and you are platinum, that could be the day to head up there. Fewer people on the ship, most congregating on the Lido and Guys could easily have a line.

Let us know what works though. I'd be up for grabbing some pulled pork and then hitting Blue Iguana for tortillas topping off with the salsa bar. Side of Mac N Cheese would work too.:)

Speaking of JiJi's and Cucina, I didn't eat there. The one day we were going to go at lunch (I think third "official" sea day), people were lining up at 11:00 (it didn't open until noon). At one point, I saw they were handing out pagers and it was a 45 minute wait. The lunchtime reviews from those I talked to were "meh" at best or not worth the wait.

Because we were already doing one night at Chef's Table, we didn't eat at either for dinner. However, I heard rave reviews about JiJi's at dinner. I think we may try this on the next sailing.