A Halloween Escape on the Horizon

[tradewinds traveler]

I called my PVP today about our assigned dining table problem & she said in 10 years being a PVP she never herd  of this happening. She said that we shouldn't be brushed off by the Maitre D. She sent me an email to someone at corp. to let them know. We are an older couple & we wanted assigned dining due my husband meds that he takes. He had heart surgery in May. Neither of us needed the stress about our table.

[ninjacat123]

2 hours ago, Steph0224 said:

I did look up the website. They have all the cruises they are doing listed. I checked my future bookings to make sure they aren't on the same cruise. 

What's the name?  I don't want to encounter them either.

[DebOinKC]

10 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

What's the name?  I don't want to encounter them either.

Yeah I would like to know too.

[cruisinsly]

On 11/7/2022 at 4:28 PM, Indytraveler83 said:

Day 2: The First Sea Day

 

 

"What do you want?" asked the server.  Ok, so maybe he was new?  He's failed to introduce himself or his team, simply pulling out his notepad and taking our order.  Jake ordered steak, I ordered the striped bass, and the server left without another word.  

 

"Will someone else take our drink order?" Jake asked.  

"Usually," I replied.  

 

Our appetizers were quickly dumped on our table without a word, and no time to order drinks or even a water refill.  The plates were pulled from us without a word, and the main courses dumped before us unceremoniously.

 

I found the striped bass to be dry and tasteless, but had no chance to request a change.  After spending too much time with it, it was ripped from before me and our desserts slammed on the table with a clank.  We started watching our serving team then, and saw the head waiter angrily motioning to his team and storming around the dining room. 

 

We left shortly after the single worst dinner service we'd ever had on a ship.  The Maitre D was nowhere to be found, and the hostesses had lines to visit them.  After swearing we'd never go through such a service again, we decided to handle this issue later and not let it ruin our night.

 

UGH!  I am not sure how I would have handled this.  I definitely would have said something.  There is no reason for the server to treat you that way.  

[cruisinsly]

13 hours ago, Steph0224 said:

I did look up the website. They have all the cruises they are doing listed. I checked my future bookings to make sure they aren't on the same cruise. 

please share the name of the group so we can all check.

[coops]

21 hours ago, Indytraveler83 said:

 

Our friends at dinner suggested making a fake profile on their website just to monitor when they cruise, so that it doesn't happen again.  I may just do that...

What is there website as I am hoping we don't have them on our cruise in Feb. 

[Indytraveler83]

11 hours ago, cruisinsly said:

please share the name of the group so we can all check.

I'm pretty sure I can't share specific website links, but "singles cruise" within the familiar www. and .com should get you to where you need to go.  😉

[Indytraveler83]

I'll be back and sharing more tomorrow.  We had a long day of work and moving duties to work on today, and just now getting to bed!

[Indytraveler83]

12 hours ago, cruisinsly said:

UGH!  I am not sure how I would have handled this.  I definitely would have said something.  There is no reason for the server to treat you that way.  

 

Yeah, I wasn't happy.  Had the Maitre D been around, I would have handled it with him.  Not sure what was up with that server on that day.

 

I certainly don't want to characterize the entire cruise that way though.  We didn't always remember to ask for Mark during breakfast, and the other serving teams were up to normal Carnival standards.  Just a really weird day, and a really angry guy apparently.

[ninjacat123]

3 minutes ago, Indytraveler83 said:

I'm pretty sure I can't share specific website links, but "singles cruise" within the familiar www. and .com should get you to where you need to go.  😉

so far my cruises are in the clear. Thx!!

[Pellaz]

Great review!   We're on a similar itinerary on Horizon next October, and we did a W. Caribbean sailing on her last October!

 

Had to laugh at your "just bought a house" tale.   Years ago I closed on my house the very day before I left for a SF/fantasy/cosplay convention in Atlanta, so I was walking around with two sets of house keys and no chance to visit my new home for a week!  🙂  

 

So sad to hear that Aruba has suffered badly from the storms.  The last time I visited, I did a snorkeling excursion right from the pier and didn't see much beyond the port area.  

 

You haven't REALLY visited Curacao unless you were stopped by the Swing Bridge at least once.  We walked all the way to the government offices to get our passports stamped, and we got blocked twice.  And yes, it is brutally hot there.  Not too far from the Equator, really.  🙂  

 

Sounds like that singles group was the bane of your existence...I'm just glad it wasn't 300 or 400 people.  We noticed some "hot spots" on the ship back in early October, but it wasn't a major issue for us.  

 

As for your first-night dining service, that sounds terrible.  We've had some lackluster service and some very slow service (Liberty), but never what I would call deliberately rude service.  I'd have gotten a photo of their crew card (on the table as a "tent") and notified the maitre'd.  We get photos of good serving crews so we know who to ask for...and who to mention in our post-cruise surveys.  😉  

 

 

 

Edited November 11, 2022 by Pellaz

[sprint180]

Enjoying your review.   Can't wait for more.

[Indytraveler83]

7 hours ago, Pellaz said:

Great review!   We're on a similar itinerary on Horizon next October, and we did a W. Caribbean sailing on her last October!

 

Had to laugh at your "just bought a house" tale.   Years ago I closed on my house the very day before I left for a SF/fantasy/cosplay convention in Atlanta, so I was walking around with two sets of house keys and no chance to visit my new home for a week!  🙂  

 

So sad to hear that Aruba has suffered badly from the storms.  The last time I visited, I did a snorkeling excursion right from the pier and didn't see much beyond the port area.  

 

You haven't REALLY visited Curacao unless you were stopped by the Swing Bridge at least once.  We walked all the way to the government offices to get our passports stamped, and we got blocked twice.  And yes, it is brutally hot there.  Not too far from the Equator, really.  🙂  

 

Sounds like that singles group was the bane of your existence...I'm just glad it wasn't 300 or 400 people.  We noticed some "hot spots" on the ship back in early October, but it wasn't a major issue for us.  

 

As for your first-night dining service, that sounds terrible.  We've had some lackluster service and some very slow service (Liberty), but never what I would call deliberately rude service.  I'd have gotten a photo of their crew card (on the table as a "tent") and notified the maitre'd.  We get photos of good serving crews so we know who to ask for...and who to mention in our post-cruise surveys.  😉  

 

 

 

As far as Aruba, I'm not sure how much of it is direct storm damage, vs abandon buildings from the long pandemic pause in visits.  Either way it's a little sad.  

 

For some reason crew cards weren't on any of the tables.  Mark told me they were supposed to get more on the next cruise, but all were completely out.  He hand wrote ones for all of us, so we could leave positive remakes for them. 

[Indytraveler83]

Day 6: La Romana!

 

Today Jake selected the Monkeyland excursion for our visit to La Romana.  Most onboard had little intention of getting off at this much maligned port.  Our excursion was set to take up the entire port stop, so we were ok with that.  

 

After a quick breakfast, we got on a typical air conditioned bus and started the long journey across the Dominican countryside.  Our guide proved to be interesting and funny, with a hint of dark humor in many of his jokes that we quite appreciated.  We crossed a large city (can't remember the name) that looked crowded and crazy.  

 

Then the bus started up a steep mountain pass that seemed more intended for a Jeep than a tour bus.  Clear hurricaine damage made the road look even more treacherous, and at one point the bus snagged a live power line, bringing it down.  They didn't seem to worry though, bringing us to our first stop: a farm that makes cocoa, coffee and other organic foods.

 

Now I'm not usually a fan of these types of things, especially knowing there would be sales at the end.  But our guide actually did a fantastic job of both showing and describing how cocoa especially goes from seed to hot chocolate, giving us samples to taste and see all along the way.  Above you can see the raw form, plucked straight from the plant and cut open.  We actually found the entire experience charming and quite interesting.  After buying a little cocoa, coffee and vanilla, we all moved on to the main attraction: Monkeyland!

 

 

This was a really unique experience, where they hand you food bowls, then stand you in a half circle.  As they drop food into the bowls, the monkeys climb, jump and run across everyone to get food.  The best part, was while they did take photos for us to buy, they also encouraged us to use our own cameras, and provided equal opportunity for us to get good photos on our own.  They monkeys were of course adorable, and about a dozen babies were running around as well, increasing the "AWWWW" factor tenfold.  

 

After Monkeyland, we headed back to the ship, but the bus was running a little late.  Thankfully it was a Carnival excursion (I don't always book with the cruise line), so the Horizon waited for us to get onboard.  

 

We were alarmed to realize that we boarded the ship at 5:35, and we're already 5 minutes late for dinner!  Changing only our shirts, and re-applying deodorant, we raced to the dining room for prime rib and conversation.

 

This night we were EXHAUSTED from the three intense port days in a row, so rather than our usual routine of drinking and listening to music, we settled on hydration and made a visit to the IMAX theater to see Halloween Ends (Jake is a huge horror movie fan, and this was his only opportunity to see any Halloween film in IMAX).

 

Unfortunately tickets are $16.99, which is a little steep.  However, the screen and sound are very good quality and even a knock on the door can be felt through the seat.  Our theater at home is falling apart, so it was nice to have a decent moviegoing experience. 

 

After that, we fell into our old pattern of room service and TV, thankful we hadn't scheduled anything specific for Amber Cove.  

 

Next up: Last stop: Amber Cove

[cruisinsly]

10 hours ago, Indytraveler83 said:

 

Yeah, I wasn't happy.  Had the Maitre D been around, I would have handled it with him.  Not sure what was up with that server on that day.

 

I certainly don't want to characterize the entire cruise that way though.  We didn't always remember to ask for Mark during breakfast, and the other serving teams were up to normal Carnival standards.  Just a really weird day, and a really angry guy apparently.

So glad it was just that once and they redeemed themselves for the remainder of the cruise.

[RenoNanaOz]

3 hours ago, Indytraveler83 said:

Day 6: La Romana!

 

Today Jake selected the Monkeyland excursion for our visit to La Romana.  Most onboard had little intention of getting off at this much maligned port.  Our excursion was set to take up the entire port stop, so we were ok with that.  

 

After a quick breakfast, we got on a typical air conditioned bus and started the long journey across the Dominican countryside.  Our guide proved to be interesting and funny, with a hint of dark humor in many of his jokes that we quite appreciated.  We crossed a large city (can't remember the name) that looked crowded and crazy.  

 

Then the bus started up a steep mountain pass that seemed more intended for a Jeep than a tour bus.  Clear hurricaine damage made the road look even more treacherous, and at one point the bus snagged a live power line, bringing it down.  They didn't seem to worry though, bringing us to our first stop: a farm that makes cocoa, coffee and other organic foods.

 

Now I'm not usually a fan of these types of things, especially knowing there would be sales at the end.  But our guide actually did a fantastic job of both showing and describing how cocoa especially goes from seed to hot chocolate, giving us samples to taste and see all along the way.  Above you can see the raw form, plucked straight from the plant and cut open.  We actually found the entire experience charming and quite interesting.  After buying a little cocoa, coffee and vanilla, we all moved on to the main attraction: Monkeyland!

 

 

This was a really unique experience, where they hand you food bowls, then stand you in a half circle.  As they drop food into the bowls, the monkeys climb, jump and run across everyone to get food.  The best part, was while they did take photos for us to buy, they also encouraged us to use our own cameras, and provided equal opportunity for us to get good photos on our own.  They monkeys were of course adorable, and about a dozen babies were running around as well, increasing the "AWWWW" factor tenfold.  

 

After Monkeyland, we headed back to the ship, but the bus was running a little late.  Thankfully it was a Carnival excursion (I don't always book with the cruise line), so the Horizon waited for us to get onboard.  

 

We were alarmed to realize that we boarded the ship at 5:35, and we're already 5 minutes late for dinner!  Changing only our shirts, and re-applying deodorant, we raced to the dining room for prime rib and conversation.

 

This night we were EXHAUSTED from the three intense port days in a row, so rather than our usual routine of drinking and listening to music, we settled on hydration and made a visit to the IMAX theater to see Halloween Ends (Jake is a huge horror movie fan, and this was his only opportunity to see any Halloween film in IMAX).

 

Unfortunately tickets are $16.99, which is a little steep.  However, the screen and sound are very good quality and even a knock on the door can be felt through the seat.  Our theater at home is falling apart, so it was nice to have a decent moviegoing experience. 

 

After that, we fell into our old pattern of room service and TV, thankful we hadn't scheduled anything specific for Amber Cove.  

 

Next up: Last stop: Amber Cove

We are some of those staying on board. Question, is the port worth getting off to do a little shopping?

[ninjacat123]

1 hour ago, RenoNanaOz said:

We are some of those staying on board. Question, is the port worth getting off to do a little shopping?

When we went to La Romana (at least 5 years ago) I didn't see much of anything but a big parking lot.  Maybe something's been built up by now?  My least favorite port, but then I haven't been to Freeport😉

[RenoNanaOz]

1 minute ago, ninjacat123 said:

When we went to La Romana (at least 5 years ago) I didn't see much of anything but a big parking lot.  Maybe something's been built up by now?  My least favorite port, but then I haven't been to Freeport😉

Thank you, we rarely stay on board but figured this would be a good one. Also we are in Havana area so sounds like a nice relaxing day. Never been to Freeport either and from what I hear, not missing much,

[chosbor2]

Can’t wait to read the rest, we are doing this same cruise next year!

[Indytraveler83]

2 hours ago, RenoNanaOz said:

We are some of those staying on board. Question, is the port worth getting off to do a little shopping?

We unfortunately didn't stop long enough to see much.  There is a very small area with vendors you can shop a bit, but that's about it.  Unlike most other ports, there's just highway and fields within walking distance.  

[Indytraveler83]

4 hours ago, cruisinsly said:

So glad it was just that once and they redeemed themselves for the remainder of the cruise.

 

And I think it's a reminder that I'd something isn't right, it can be fixed.  I see a lot of reviews where people suffer through things like that the entire cruise.  Carnival is usually pretty flexible if you need something adjusted during the cruise itself. 

[cruisinsly]

6 hours ago, Indytraveler83 said:

 

And I think it's a reminder that I'd something isn't right, it can be fixed.  I see a lot of reviews where people suffer through things like that the entire cruise.  Carnival is usually pretty flexible if you need something adjusted during the cruise itself. 

Absolutely. It is one of the reasons that they are my favorite cruise line.  It amazes me the people who complain but do not give Carnival a chance to correct it.

[Indytraveler83]

Day 7- Amber Cove!

 

We got off the ship fairly early, with designs on spending the day by the pool.

 

Amber Cove is fun, pretty and the pool has quite the pool party going for sure.  However, the DJ makes sure you know you can buy drinks.  Again.  And again.  And again.  Oh, and don't forget the drink of the hour!

 

I personally enjoyed relaxing in the pool where it was far less crowded than the small ship pools, but after a few hours, we missed Cheers, food and the Carnival staff.  So we headed back onboard, dropped off our things and made our way to the aft deck to lay in the sun.

 

The view back here was spectacular, and after a Guys burger (which was far better than I remember), we settled into our usual pattern.

 

The rest of our day went as it typically does: dinner, music, room service, then sleep.  A few things were worth pointing out however.

 

The ship's A/C struggles got worse this day, with ocean Plaza being unbearably stuffy and humid, even at night.  The 2ns floor Hallway seemed to be struggling more with water and the smells of the weeklong fight against overflowing showers seemed to go down the entire hall.  Thankfully we keep air fresheners in our cabin, so it went unnoticed once we got back to our home away from home.

 

We also noticed the staff overall was becoming increasingly edgy.  Not unfriendly, but cautious and constantly aware of their surroundings.  Security was highly visible, and something just felt "off" as the evening wore on.

 

Still, the bar service and music was top notch, which in all honesty is 90% of our cruise.  So happy, but getting a bit homesick, we prepared for our last day at sea!

 

Up next: Day 8- Our final Sea Day

 

[Horizon2021]

Heading out on this cruise in the near future and haven't left out of Port Miami since before Uber existed. As I'm Ubering to Port Miami myself, how do you know what letter cruise terminal to go to?

Edited November 15, 2022 by Horizon2021

[ledges1]

On 11/11/2022 at 10:45 AM, RenoNanaOz said:

We are some of those staying on board. Question, is the port worth getting off to do a little shopping?

I was on this cruise. I would have preferred to stay in Curacao a few more hours and skipped La Romano. Not worth the port charges. The cruise ship backs into a big ditch to dock.