Quick Thoughts on the Panorama

[PlayTheAces]

We were on the Panorama the week of 1/11and I'm just now getting around to posting about it.  I'm getting old and slow I guess.

 

Let me preface this by saying we avoid the bigger newer ships so some of the features we found new may be old news to some.  But here are a few random thoughts regarding the Panorama.

 

The ship was 4 weeks old when we boarded so obviously everything was fresh, clean and new.

 

Our cabin, 9487 had a extra large balcony. This cabin is next to a wraparound and benefits with some additional balcony real estate due to the layout. The shower temperature was intermittent, constantly changing from hot to cold every couple of seconds.  We found the bed and pillows to be extremely comfortable.   The USB ports and outlets in the cabin (2 each) were great for electronic charging. We were in one of the Havana cabins so we had access to the Havana pool area. We loved it.

 

The elevators are the latest tech which we hadn't encountered before. You punch in the deck you’re going to on a touchscreen outside the elevator and it assigns you a car number. The second person repeats the process and so on. So for three people you punch the deck three times. It works fine assuming everyone uses it. If people just jump on a car when it opens without entering the deck and number of passengers it screws up the headcount plus they’ll be stuck going to whatever floors have already been punched in.  It was really entertaining to watch people get in the elevator and look for buttons to push for their floor. No buttons - it’s all touchscreen entry before you board the elevator

 

If you have Anytime Dining and have downloaded the Carnival Hub app you can check in to the main restaurant via the app and you’ll be assigned a table or given a waiting time for your table to be assigned. 

 

We saw some comedy shows in the Limelight Lounge and I was amazed they keep copying the layout of this lounge on all the ships.  It's truly impressive how many columns that block the view of the stage the builders manage to squeeze into such a relatively small space.  Even one of the comedians made fun of it.

 

I had really mixed feelings about the Liquid Lounge where the main shows are performed. First, it seemed small compared to every other cruise ship showroom I’ve ever seen but maybe my perception was off. The lower level is different from what I’m familiar with as well. Rather than inclined stadium seating to provide a good view of the stage, most of the first level is flat with movable chairs. This allows each show to be configured differently with runways, portable platforms and props to be placed right out into the audience. It provides a much more interactive experience as the performance takes place all around the audience. I felt there were a couple of downsides though. The chairs are pretty uncomfortable after an hour or more of sitting in them. And should you happen to have a drink, you either have to hold it for the duration of the show or try to find a safe spot on the floor to place it. Also as the shows may be taking place all around you you may not be able to see everything that's taking place. In viewing the main stage, unless you’re right up front you’re going to be looking at the back of the head of whoever is sitting in front of you due to the lack of stadium seating. We found the second level to be much more comfortable seating wise while providing a good view of show and and action. The sound system was very good and the video screen simply incredible. And don't forget to get there early as the showroom fills up fast. 

 

The crew was outstanding in every way possible.  Probably the best crew on any cruise ship I've ever been on.  The smiles on everyone's face is genuine.  And Emma, the cruise director is a class act.  It's a happy and proud ship.

 

And of course the biggie - food.  Simply stated, we found the food to be extremely good regardless of where we ate. Everything we had was of good quality and taste with nice selections to choose from. One change we noted on the Panorama is that Carnival is following NCL and installing more extra cost restaurants. We didn’t try any but the options are there.

 

That's it as far as a quick review.  It's a great ship that we thoroughly enjoyed.  It's bigger than I prefer with a capacity of over 5,000 passengers, but I'd gladly go back anytime.

Edited January 26, 2020 by PlayTheAces

[PekingeseLady]

Thanks for your review.  Exactly my opinion too. Loved our cruise.

[Northwest Cruiser]

Thanks for the review, great to hear as we will be on Panorama in a couple of weeks.

[glrounds]

Just got off the PANORAMA yesterday. My milestone cruise and I loved it. The elevator thing is easy to figure out and I thought an excellent idea, but there were those the first few days who had no clue until they entered the elevator and discovered there were no buttons for deck selection. Most were quick studies it seemed, however.

 

I was amazed to find the casino was 100% smoking. I don't smoke anymore , but vape now for the last 10 years. But this amazed me. The Promenade goes straight through the casino and the part of the circular bar that is tangent to it has smoking people asked to move around a little bit. Kind of funny, I thought, since the whole place is smoking.  Surprised there weren't more guests complaining about this on CC.

 

Was tickled that the NFL games were carried. The first one in the sports bar was impossible to get seating as booths and tables were all gobbled up HOURS BEFORE the game. Small, although 6 large bar screens. Almost like Carnival got the point and put the second game on the big screen at the DIVE IN movie center. That was great, although my Packers didn't prevail. Excellent picture, far better than I expected on such a huge screen. Deck 11 overlooking the pool and the movies was also smoking on the starboard side so that made it much better for me.

 

Enjoyed everything immensely except for the food in general has gone downhill. Dined at Fahrenheit555 twice and that was great service at least, but just not the same. ATD was not that great for me, either, so I did most of my "dining" from the buffet, which I thought was terrific as buffets go. I'm not a big foodie so take my thinking with a grain of salt.

 

I'm not big on showtimes, but the 60s Revolution show was phenomenal and only being done on the PANORAMA. Don't miss it.

 

The P&D drinkathon filled the main showroom to standing room only. Quite impressive, the youngest DIAMOND being an 8-year-old little girl ! Big change from the days when checking with the cashier at the casino for the FREE slot ticket when there would be 20-30 Platinums onboard. 🙂

 

The cabin, my always favorite porthole cabin was great. The decor or the entire ship was terrific also. I started out trying to write a review, but just couldn't maintain. There was just too much to do. Sorry. 🙂

Edited January 27, 2020 by glrounds

[Sagittarius traveler]

Good review.

 

Did the ship feel crowded? 

 

Was the serenity deck overly crowded because Horizon's deck you wouldn't be able to find a spot until dinner time.

[Saint Greg]

1 hour ago, glrounds said:

 

I was amazed to find the casino was 100% smoking. I don't smoke anymore , but vape now for the last 10 years. But this amazed me. The Promenade goes straight through the casino and the part of the circular bar that is tangent to it has smoking people asked to move around a little bit. Kind of funny, I thought, since the whole place is smoking.  Surprised there weren't more guests complaining about this on CC.

 

Actually the main promenade is deck 5. They moved the casino down to deck 4 on the Vista class as a result of people complaining about the promenade going through the casino. Deck 4 has the casino, sports bar and comedy club but they moved to the casino down there so you don't have to walk through it to get to most things. 

[glrounds]

2 minutes ago, Saint Greg said:

 

Actually the main promenade is deck 5. They moved the casino down to deck 4 on the Vista class as a result of people complaining about the promenade going through the casino. Deck 4 has the casino, sports bar and comedy club but they moved to the casino down there so you don't have to walk through it to get to most things. 

 

Very true. All I noticed there was a "promenade style" walkway all through there. Many people going through waving their hands in front of their face (never quite understood how that somehow helped) and many holding garments in front of their face. The last sea day the bartender asked several of us to move away from this walkway, otherwise there were always ashtrays on the complete circular bar.

[Saint Greg]

2 minutes ago, glrounds said:

 

Very true. All I noticed there was a "promenade style" walkway all through there. Many people going through waving their hands in front of their face (never quite understood how that somehow helped) and many holding garments in front of their face. The last sea day the bartender asked several of us to move away from this walkway, otherwise there were always ashtrays on the complete circular bar.

 

Yeah they call it the lower promenade but really there's no reason to walk through there unless you're going to the sports bar or the comedy club. And you can avoid that by just taking the mid or aft stairs/elevators. The smoke doesn't bother me but I very rarely walked through the casino on Vista. If I came out of the comedy club I was always going up and I either took the aft or mid elevator/stairs.

[PlayTheAces]

3 hours ago, Sagittarius traveler said:

 

Did the ship feel crowded? 

 

Was the serenity deck overly crowded because Horizon's deck you wouldn't be able to find a spot until dinner time.

 

It felt a little crowded on the last sea day as everyone was inside as the weather turned colder as we headed back north.  Otherwise no, it didn't seem overly crowded.  I never made it up to the serenity deck - we hung out at the Havana pool area.

[Are.we.there.yet?]

glrounds,

 

Could you please tell me when the P/D Drinkathon was held?  We made early dinner reservations at JiJi’s and was hoping it wasn’t the same night.

 

Thanks to both of you for your thoughts and reviews.  We sail in a few weeks are are looking forward to our new ship!

 

Thanks,

Tina

 

 

[Sagittarius traveler]

The Havana pool area oh wow was it worth it to pay extra? 

 

I had family Harbor but if I book next time with my mom hahaha little one can room with grandparents lol .

 

 

9 hours ago, PlayTheAces said:

 

It felt a little crowded on the last sea day as everyone was inside as the weather turned colder as we headed back north.  Otherwise no, it didn't seem overly crowded.  I never made it up to the serenity deck - we hung out at the Havana pool area.

 

[PlayTheAces]

46 minutes ago, Sagittarius traveler said:

The Havana pool area oh wow was it worth it to pay extra? 

 

I had family Harbor but if I book next time with my mom hahaha little one can room with grandparents lol .

 

 

 

 

We had a Havana cabin so access to the pool area was part of the deal.  But yes, I'd make it a point to book a Havana cabin if we go on the Panorama again.

[pinto18]

8 hours ago, Are.we.there.yet? said:

 

 

Could you please tell me when the P/D Drinkathon was held?  We made early dinner reservations at JiJi’s and was hoping it wasn’t the same night.

 

 

 

 

 

It was held the last night..Friday at 5

[glrounds]

10 hours ago, Are.we.there.yet? said:

glrounds,

 

Could you please tell me when the P/D Drinkathon was held?  We made early dinner reservations at JiJi’s and was hoping it wasn’t the same night.

 

Thanks to both of you for your thoughts and reviews.  We sail in a few weeks are are looking forward to our new ship!

 

Thanks,

Tina

 

 

 

Tina, I believe it was held on the first sea day of the return to Long Beach which would be Thursday. (confusing to me since I'm used to the old Sunday to Sunday itinerary). I would check immediately with customer service to be sure.

 

Now, I've got little messages in the back of my 80-year-old head saying, "But, you met someone there you really liked and didn't have time to contact this person", which would make it the LAST sea day (Friday). Sorry, for the confusion I may have created. I think, now Thursday was ELEGANT night and Friday was open for a party, I guess. FWIW, it was a short party 5:00-5:45 so maybe this won't conflict with your reservations.

 

Now, I've probably confused the hell out of you and Pinto 18 has cleared this up. I'm sorry. 😞

 

Edited January 27, 2020 by glrounds

[nissach]

Any additional feedback/opinions on the Havana area?

Were you always able to get a place to sit?

How was the bar service?

We cannot wait till we board in March and have our first visit to the Havana area!

[sanmarcosman]

Thanks to the OP for your thoughts, they were helpful. We'll be aboard February 1st and like Gary (glrounds) we have a 2-porthole cabin forward on Deck 2 which we like. It will be interesting this time, our first Vista Class ship.

Edited January 27, 2020 by sanmarcosman

[pinto18]

2 hours ago, glrounds said:

Now, I've got little messages in the back of my 80-year-old head saying, "But, you met someone there you really liked and didn't have time to contact this person", which would make it the LAST sea day (Friday). Sorry, for the confusion I may have created. I think, now Thursday was ELEGANT night and Friday was open for a party, I guess. FWIW, it was a short party 5:00-5:45 so maybe this won't conflict with your reservations

Yes, it was Friday for sure...and very quick...they really got us in and out of there! That being said there were drinks and appetizers galore

[Are.we.there.yet?]

Thanks to pinto18 and glrounds for the answer to my question.  Very helpful! 

 

Thanks OP for starting this thread.  I'm looking forward to reading about anything Panorama.

[five.]

20 hours ago, glrounds said:

Quite impressive, the youngest DIAMOND being an 8-year-old little girl !🙂

Wow, that's 22 days per year, including the birth year. Amazing!

[glrounds]

1 hour ago, sanmarcosman said:

Thanks to the OP for your thoughts, they were helpful. We'll be aboard February 1st and like Gary (glrounds) we have a 2-porthole cabin forward on Deck 2 which we like. It will be interesting this time, our first Vista Class ship.

 

If your cabin number is 2211, sanmarcosman, look for a little duck I placed high up in one of the shelves way back out of sight almost. I found the duck placed on the top of a clock at the elevators placed by The Stokes of Pismo Beach on the same cruise. If the current guest in cabin 2211 don't find it and it's your cabin you'll now know where to look. 🙂

Edited January 27, 2020 by glrounds

[sanmarcosman]

19 minutes ago, glrounds said:

 

If your cabin number is 2211, sanmarcosman, look for a little duck I placed high up in one of the shelves way back out of sight almost. I found the duck placed on the top of a clock at the elevators placed by The Stokes of Pismo Beach on the same cruise. If the current guest in cabin 2211 don't find it and it's your cabin you'll now know where to look. 🙂

Not my cabin but if I see anyone going in or out I'll mention it to them 😉 

[Sagittarius traveler]

I'm thinking about booking a Havana Cabin soon it looks so nice there and way from the crowd.

 

7 hours ago, PlayTheAces said:

 

We had a Havana cabin so access to the pool area was part of the deal.  But yes, I'd make it a point to book a Havana cabin if we go on the Panorama again.

 

[SDPadreFan]

First off - Great Review.

 

To those contemplating using a public usb port to charge your phone (cruise ship, airport, plane, hotel, etc.), give it careful consideration. Those are easy to modify (hack) and you could basically be hooking your phone to the equivalent of a credit card skimmer but on a much more serious level. There have been numerous articles on this at various tech sites on the web. You have 2 choices to prevent this from possibly happening to you. Get a "charge only" usb cable (Amazon, ebay, etc carry them). On these cables, the data pin is disabled/removed preventing a hack via the USB cable. Or bring your charger with you and only use the standard 115v outlet to charge your phone. The 115v outlets are more difficult to modify so they are generally considered safe to use.

[glrounds]

Yes, it took up a little extra space in my luggage, but I used the Samsung flat-plate charger for my phone. No wires attached to the phone whatsoever. I didn't see any USB outlets in my cabin. Used a 3-directional plug in the 115v outlet for tablet, phone charger, and vape batteries.

[jimbo5544]

On 1/26/2020 at 5:47 PM, PlayTheAces said:

We were on the Panorama the week of 1/11and I'm just now getting around to posting about it.  I'm getting old and slow I guess.

 

Let me preface this by saying we avoid the bigger newer ships so some of the features we found new may be old news to some.  But here are a few random thoughts regarding the Panorama.

 

The ship was 4 weeks old when we boarded so obviously everything was fresh, clean and new.

 

Our cabin, 9487 had a extra large balcony. This cabin is next to a wraparound and benefits with some additional balcony real estate due to the layout. The shower temperature was intermittent, constantly changing from hot to cold every couple of seconds.  We found the bed and pillows to be extremely comfortable.   The USB ports and outlets in the cabin (2 each) were great for electronic charging. We were in one of the Havana cabins so we had access to the Havana pool area. We loved it.

 

The elevators are the latest tech which we hadn't encountered before. You punch in the deck you’re going to on a touchscreen outside the elevator and it assigns you a car number. The second person repeats the process and so on. So for three people you punch the deck three times. It works fine assuming everyone uses it. If people just jump on a car when it opens without entering the deck and number of passengers it screws up the headcount plus they’ll be stuck going to whatever floors have already been punched in.  It was really entertaining to watch people get in the elevator and look for buttons to push for their floor. No buttons - it’s all touchscreen entry before you board the elevator

 

If you have Anytime Dining and have downloaded the Carnival Hub app you can check in to the main restaurant via the app and you’ll be assigned a table or given a waiting time for your table to be assigned. 

 

We saw some comedy shows in the Limelight Lounge and I was amazed they keep copying the layout of this lounge on all the ships.  It's truly impressive how many columns that block the view of the stage the builders manage to squeeze into such a relatively small space.  Even one of the comedians made fun of it.

 

I had really mixed feelings about the Liquid Lounge where the main shows are performed. First, it seemed small compared to every other cruise ship showroom I’ve ever seen but maybe my perception was off. The lower level is different from what I’m familiar with as well. Rather than inclined stadium seating to provide a good view of the stage, most of the first level is flat with movable chairs. This allows each show to be configured differently with runways, portable platforms and props to be placed right out into the audience. It provides a much more interactive experience as the performance takes place all around the audience. I felt there were a couple of downsides though. The chairs are pretty uncomfortable after an hour or more of sitting in them. And should you happen to have a drink, you either have to hold it for the duration of the show or try to find a safe spot on the floor to place it. Also as the shows may be taking place all around you you may not be able to see everything that's taking place. In viewing the main stage, unless you’re right up front you’re going to be looking at the back of the head of whoever is sitting in front of you due to the lack of stadium seating. We found the second level to be much more comfortable seating wise while providing a good view of show and and action. The sound system was very good and the video screen simply incredible. And don't forget to get there early as the showroom fills up fast. 

 

The crew was outstanding in every way possible.  Probably the best crew on any cruise ship I've ever been on.  The smiles on everyone's face is genuine.  And Emma, the cruise director is a class act.  It's a happy and proud ship.

 

And of course the biggie - food.  Simply stated, we found the food to be extremely good regardless of where we ate. Everything we had was of good quality and taste with nice selections to choose from. One change we noted on the Panorama is that Carnival is following NCL and installing more extra cost restaurants. We didn’t try any but the options are there.

 

That's it as far as a quick review.  It's a great ship that we thoroughly enjoyed.  It's bigger than I prefer with a capacity of over 5,000 passengers, but I'd gladly go back anytime.

Thanks for doing the review