Horizon 3/12/04 review--sorry it's long

[mcmarya]

We arrived at the ship around 1:30 p.m. after a bit of a detour on the other side of the channel. Check in was a breeze with no one waiting at the security checkpoint. There were probably 75 or so waiting in line to check in, but the person directing traffic sent us to the red carpet (Captain’s Club check in) when he found out we were members, even though we volunteered that we were only classic members. There was no line and we were on our way shortly.

 

Our cabin (9083) was an obstructed view category 7 (I think it will be an 8 in the future). I personally like these cabins for a number of reasons. 1. They are located on deck 9, which can be very quiet as it has a deck of cabins above and one is careful about what is below. Cabins located on the port side above the library, card room and duty free shop are the quietest. Probably many other locations are fine, as well, but avoid cabins above the Zodiac lounge if you are a light sleeper. Another great advantage of deck 9 is location. The pool deck and buffet area are 2 floors up and the gym is 3 floors up. There are wonderful back decks on the last 5 decks—8-12—which are easily accessibly from cabins toward the rear of the ship. The other public rooms on decks 7 and 8 are also very convenient. The only negative about the location is distance from the disembarkation area so it is a bit of a hike when coming back in from port. 2. These cabins are often the cheapest on the ship. On this cruise we ended up paying $25 each more than the very cheapest inside cabins on deck 4. On our last cruise, a category 7 was actually the cheapest available. Though you don’t have a full view out the window, if you choose your cabin carefully, you will have a bit of view between the lifeboats and you can see the ocean and sky. There is still plenty of light coming through the window.

 

Anyway, the cabin was ready so we moved in the stuff from our carryons and headed for the buffet. The buffet had a good variety of fruits, salads, breads, hot dishes, and desserts. By the time we went back downstairs, our luggage had arrived and was quickly unpacked. There is plenty of storage for clothing and personal items. We didn’t even use the drawers located in the closet with the safe. There are several hangers in each closet. I brought along 3 throwaway plastic hangers so that I could hang up things to dry somewhere other than the closet. I always also bring a couple of those plastic skirt/pants hangers used in stores. There were enough hangers without these, though. The room safe is large, with room enough for decent sized cameras and the small video cameras. Apparently they are not burglar proof, though. The couple 2 doors down had their safe broken into and jewelry and money taken.

 

The bathroom is adequate with a decent sized shower. There is a drying line in the shower and “shampoo plus†you can use if you want. There is also “lotion†I did not use as it was odd. If you need a plug for the sink, it is located behind the faucet.

 

The TV worked OK but there were periodic outages on this itinerary I guess due to the ship’s location in relation to the satellites. The TV in our room did not have any inputs or outputs even though the back of the TV was accessible. There is one electric outlet next to the desk. Ice and water are provided twice a day when the steward prepares the room. Some music stations are available in the room. The curtains actually keep the room fairly dark if you wish to sleep in the daytime. There are extra pillows and blankets in the top of the closet.

 

Ports:

 

Grand Cayman: The ship arrived a little early so we actually arrived on shore by about 9:15 a.m. Since the bus service is sporadic on Sundays, we ended up taking a cab to church in Red Bay. After the service there, our cabbie returned and took us back to town. Taxi fares are high—it was $20 each way for 4 people. Since the Horizon was the only ship in port that day and therefore fairly close to shore, we tendered back to the ship for lunch. After lunch we went back to shore where we snorkeled the wreck of the Cali. To do this, take a left at the dock and walk past Fort George to Kirk Water Sports. It is located behind a restaurant in a 2 story green building. Behind the building is a patio area with red painted cement low wall around it. You can rent lockers ($3) and equipment (?) and they will point you toward the wreck. It is a fairly interesting wreck but the underwater life is also worth seeing. There are always large tarpon in the area and we spotted a large barracuda. There is a large reef area adjacent to the wreck. After checking out the Cali, we walked over to the Eden Rock snorkeling area. Tarpon were swimming very close to shore in just a few feet of water. There were the usual parrot fish, etc. It looked like rain so we headed back to the ship again.

 

Porto Limon: We joined a group of people who frequented Cruise Critic on the internet and had hired Oscar Brown to take us to Almonds and Corals Lodge for the Crazy Monkey Zip Line Tour. The ship was a little late docking and it was raining as we arrived. Oscar was waiting at the pier with a sign and he had his brother in law, Danny, along to provide a second van since there ended up being 18 of us. The first stop was a Del Monte banana plantation not too far out of town. We saw all stages of the production and processing of the bananas before they are shipped. After touring the banana plantation, we headed down the road to a house where we could see a baby monkey and a sloth. There was a fruit stand across the road where we were shown all of the fruits grown in that area.

 

The road to Almonds and Corals ran next to the ocean a good part of the way. After passing Cahuita, there seemed to be many North Americans in the towns. In one town, some teenagers who looked like they were from the US were doing manual labor in a church yard. Apparently there is a good sized population of retirees from the US who have come to Costa Rica to live. For several miles before reaching Almonds and Corals, the road was terribly potholed. With decent road, the drive would have been much shorter.

 

The lodge was located in the middle of the rain forest. Upon arrival, we registered (signed a waiver), and were fitted with harnesses, straps and helmets and given a bit of training before heading for the first platform. Participants were divided into groups of five with 2 guides per group. Safety precautions were observed religiously. Each participant had 3 safety straps, each capable of supporting 3,000 lbs. Even after a few days on a cruise ship we were covered! Once we climbed up on the first platform, one of the straps was always hooked to a safety cable or to one of the zip line cables. While zipping, 2 cables are attached o the wheel that runs along the zipwire and one cable is just attached to the zipwire. I am not an adventurous person at all, but I never felt any fear or concerns about safety. There are (I think) 11 wires and 2 rope bridges between the platforms. The last ends near the black sand beach—not suitable for swimming. There were blue crabs everywhere along the wooden walkways back to the lodge.

 

Back in Porto Limon, Oscar took us up to the highest point in the city where we could look down on the port. On the way back to the ship, a stop was made at a grocery store in town for those who wished to purchase coffee. Just inside the port premises, internet access is available in the information building. The cost was $2 for 30 minutes or $1 for 15. There was a market in the dock area where handicrafts could be purchased. Some of the nicest souvenirs were wooden puzzle boxes—small wooden boxes that required a number of steps to open. The small ones were only $5, much cheaper than in Panama or Roatan though they could be found at these other ports.

 

I highly recommend Oscar Brown for touring in Costa Rica. He speaks excellent English—his first language I believe since his parents are from Jamaica. He has 5 children and is working hard to provide for them. While driving us, he provided commentary and drove carefully. His brother-in-law (I think) Danny was also a good tour guide. We each paid $30 for this almost 7-hour tour (plus tip) which was a bargain. The Crazy Monkey Canopy Ride was $40 and could be paid for with a credit card. This included a fruit plate for after the ride. You can reach Oscar at cbrown@costarricense.cr. He usually responds within a few days.

 

Panama: We had arranged in advance to tour with Ricardo Laurie, a former employee of the U.S. Army. When the U.S. pulled out of Panama he lost his job, but had enough service to receive an early retirement. He drives a cab now to put his children through college. The price for his services was quite reasonable and he spoke excellent English. With the increased price of gasoline, taxi prices have gone up in Panama so it will be more in the future. His e-mail address is ricolaurie@hotmail.com and we highly recommend his services.

 

My husband’s father worked for the armed forces YMCA in the Panama Canal Zone while my husband was growing up, so he was interested in seeing familiar places he had not seen in at least 30 years. First, we drove to Ft. San Lorenzo, a wonderful old fort which was captured by the English pirate Henry Morgan. It is located at the mouth of the Chagras river and has a breathtaking view. The road is poor and most drivers will not want to take you there. Mr. Laurie borrowed an SUV to take us there. On the way we saw a family of white faced monkeys in the trees above the road, a coatimundi, and an iguana. After touring the fort, we saw the Gatun Dam, the Gatun locks, and saw all of the places my husband remembered—Gatun, Margarita, Coco Solo, Ft. Gulick, the Melia Panama (former School of the Americas), Colon, and Cristobal. Many things have changed but a few were surprisingly the same, particularly Gatun and the house in Cristobal where my husband lived 50 years ago. We stopped at a small market on the waterfront where the Cuna Indians were selling molas. Ricardo was just a bit younger than my husband so he was familiar with many of the locations that my husband wanted to see.

 

We never felt unsafe during the time that we spent in Colon and environs. If you are not interested in doing one of the tours offered in this port, don’t feel that you must stay on the ship. I highly recommend Ricardo Laurie if you wish to tour on your own. The shopping area at the port had many shops offering local handicrafts. There were many tourist police on duty.

 

Roatan: Again, the weather looked iffy as we approached this island. In fact, it started raining just as the ship was tying up. There is room for only one ship at this port. The taxis line up hoping to make some good money when a ship is in port. We walked to town—to the right—and found a new internet café just before the road to West End. It was $3 for an hour (you have to pay for an hour whether or not you need it). After doing e-mail, we stepped outside and quickly found a cab. There was some confusion over where we wished to go, so we ended up paying $20 each way to West Bay. The driver came back at the arranged time. The beach at West Bay is really idyllic with palm trees right on the beach. We went to the end to the left where the beach stops at some rocks. The snorkeling there was quite unique with massive coral formations that came quite close to the surface of the water. This sometimes made it difficult to get through. The fish were plentiful and diverse and much of the coral was in excellent condition. On the beach we met a woman who is a property manager. She told us that control of Roatan will revert to Great Britain next year when the 100 year rental of Roatan to Honduras expires. She hoped that the money being paid to the Honduran government by the cruise ship lines would then go into improvements in Roatan instead of into the pockets of government officials. Roatan is a very poor, but beautiful country. On the way to the beach we followed a very small pickup truck with 6 or 7 pigs in it and no tailgate. A few pieces of rope were tied across the end of the bed so that we kept expecting one of the pigs to end up on the road. There is a craft market near the port where you can purchase hand carved wooden items and souvenirs.

 

Cozumel: We have been to this port a number of times so we skipped San Miguel this trip. There is plenty of shopping right at the pier (International) and my sister got some good buys on silver items there. The shopkeepers are not nearly as aggressive as they are downtown. Our main activity was snorkeling. We took a cab to Dzul Ha and actually went in north of the Palmar beach club. The current was quite strong so drift snorkeling was the order of the day—we put in a ways up the beach and got out at Dzul Ha and walked back up the road. On one “run†we saw a school of huge parrot fish, the largest I have ever seen. There were probably 10 of them and there scales were bright turquoise and orange. The cab ride was $7 each way, but you could walk the 2 or 3 miles if you want the exercise. There is a walkway/bike and scooter path next to the main road until you get to the Chankanaab turnoff.

 

After lunch on the ship, we got back in the water right next to the pier behind the La Ceiba hotel. There was not a lot of coral but we saw several squid and a good sized barracuda. The ship left a couple of minutes before 6. The next day we heard a couple tell of their exciting return from a trip to Cancun. They missed the 4 p.m. ferry and ended up taking the 5 p.m. They barely made it back before the ship left.

 

Other comments:

Time zones:

We were instructed to move our watches back on Thursday morning to put us in the Central Time Zone. So, the only port where ship’s time and local time differed was Porto Limon. Colon, Panama is in the Eastern time zone, which is why the change was not made earlier. We changed our watches back on Monday morning before arriving back in Tampa. So, keep this in mind if you are trying to make independent plans in any ports.

 

All arrivals and departures were according to schedule, for the most part. We were a few minutes late docking in Porto Limon and left Cozumel a few minutes before scheduled departure of 6 p.m.

 

Weather: We really had good weather for the most part. It was windy and the seas were quite rough going in and out of Colon. A couple of other days were windy as well, but we only had a few showers here and there. The clearest days were the sea days leaving and returning to Tampa.

 

Food:

Excellent selection, presentation, and quality. We only ate lunch in the dining room once because it took so long. We never ate at any of the midnight buffets or gourmet bites though we took pictures at the Grand Gala Buffet on the second Friday night. There is food available almost every hour of the day somewhere. Breakfast generally begins earlier when there is an early arrival in port.

 

Dining Room: The formal nights are the first Saturday (at sea), Tuesday (Porto Limon), and Friday (Roatan). The Grand Gala Buffet is the second Friday. There are 2 informal nights (Monday and Thursday), 5 casual nights and one Elegant Casual night (Cozumel), whatever that means. We had table 18, a window table for eight, which our party of 4 shared with 2 delightful couples from the UK. Our waiter, Severino from Goa, and assistant, Wayan from Indonesia did a great job. We learned that a high percentage of the dining room staff and stewards are from Goa, an island off of India once owned by Portugal. So, the residents speak Portuguese and have names common to Portugal, not India. The beef dishes were uniformly excellent. The veal was a little inconsistent, seafood generally good. Pasta is not a Celebrity specialty. The breads were always good, and the appetizers and desserts were excellent. We never did the casual dining, though our tablemates did one night. They said that the selection was not as extensive as it is in the dining room.

 

Sushi: Available every evening from 6 until 10 p.m. It was delicious and quite a production so check it out—on one side of the Coral Seas.

 

Grand Gala Buffet—last Saturday night, open for pictures at 11:30 p.m. for pictures and midnight for eating. Very elaborate spread, worth staying up to see. Apparently the lines were long for partaking—who could be hungry already?

 

Cruise Critic Party: Held Saturday morning (1st full day of cruise) in the America’s Cup Lounge. The Cruise Director and Social Hostess attended and pastries were served. The meeting was quite well attended and it provided an opportunity to meet other Cruise Critics and staff members. After a conversation with Christine Costerman, the new Social Hostess, we were invited to dine with the Chief Engineer that night at the head table.

 

The Gym: The gym has actually improved since I was last on the Horizon about 15 months ago. There are now 7 treadmills (you can reserve the day before for 30 min.), 2 stationary bikes, 2 recumbent stationary bikes, 2 stair steppers, and 1 rowing machine. There are also “free†weights and a few weight machines. The equipment seemed to be in good working order unlike on my last cruise. After the first couple of days the treadmills were usually available except at 7 a.m. There is a walking deck on the top deck. The only problem is that in the afternoon at sea it gets a little congested at times and if it is windy, you get more of a workout than expected.

 

Shows: We were very surprised to see a tremendous improvement in the quality of entertainment offered this cruise. The production shows were much improved from our last outing on the Horizon. The dancers were really excellent. The male singer, Todd Pettiford, was terrific, the female singer, Gail Cook Howell (wife of the cruise director) quite good. We also enjoyed the Magic/Comedy show by James Brandon, concerts by pianist Samantha Newbold, and comedy by Beni Mason.

 

Other Activities: There were several Celebrity Discovery series offerings on this cruise. The best were Slide shows by James Blair, a National Geographic photographer. There were also a couple of excellent digital photography sessions done by Beni Mason who also did comedy shows. There were also cooking demonstrations. Numerous trivia contests were held including a battle of the sexes series. The latter was annoying as led by Romeo, the assistant cruise director. The other trivia contests were led by less annoying members of the staff and we won several time. Jim Deatsch of cruise critic won the King of the Horizon contest one of several poolside activities.

 

Internet Service: Very poor on this itinerary. It was not available for a good part of the trip so don’t count on being able to get service onboard. Internet café’s could be found in all of the ports, though. We checked e-mail in Porto Limo (in building inside port) and in Roatan (near intersection with road to West End).

 

Debarkation: Amazingly efficient—best for any cruise we have taken. From the time our group was called to check-in at the airport was less than 30 minutes. There are plenty of processors available and all phases were handled very efficiently. We took the Tampa Bay shuttle ($9 per person) to the airport—no advance reservations needed. You can also take a cab or get the transfers from the cruiseline—not sure how much this costs but I am sure it is more than the shuttle and you have to wait for a bus to fill. For two, the shuttle is the cheapest option.

[catmand]

Thank you for taking the time to post your review.

 

Star Princess 9/03 Alaska

Celebrity Mercury 3/04 Mexico

Next: Sapphire Princess 10/2/04

Mercury Cruise Pic's 3/13/04

http://community.webshots.com/user/catmand100

[Seabee]

Mary Anne,

 

You nailed it!! A great review superceded only by the cruise itself!

 

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With Compassion for others we build...we fight for peace and freedom

[CaribbeanBound]

Nice review. Very thorough.

[ctflag]

Thanks for a great review! Will be sailing on Horizon this fall and found this info quite useful. One question for you, how about dancing on the Horizon? Are there any lounges with dance floors (besides a disco). thanks!

[Seabee]

CT..we danced every night before dinner in the Rendez Vous and after dinner in the Zodiac. good ballroom dance music. Dance floors are small but then so is the crowd, particularly in the Zodiac. After about 10:00 the Zodiac becomes the disco.

 

******************************************************

With Compassion for others we build...we fight for peace and freedom

[mcmarya]

Thanks. In spite of all the verbage I forgot to mention what a great mix of ports and sea days this itinerary offers--and a good mix of beach ports and more sightseeing/educational ports.

[moni]

mcmarya: Thank you for the nice review. Did you get a look at the refurbished cabins? If yes, is the bed still against the wall, or is there room on each side to get in? Will be sailing Horizon in Dec.

 

Holland America-Maasdam 2002

Celebrity-Summit 2003

Princess-Golden 2003

Celebrity-Horizon 2004

[Kevinc6969]

Mcmarya,

That was an awesome review. Thanks. We are leaving on Horizon on 4/11.

I have a couple questions. I saw that there had been some sickness on recent sailings. Did you hear of alot of sickness on this sailing or see many people getting sick?

Were they still giving hand sanitiser at the buffet lines?

 

Zenith 2004, Galaxy 2003, Norway 2003, Disney Wonder 2002, Norweign Wind 2000, Fasination 1999, Rhapsody of seas 1998, Sovereign of seas 1997, Norweign Star(origional) 1996, Extascy 1995, Norweign Sea 1993.

[mcmarya]

Did not hear of a lot of people getting sick, though one of our cruise critics did have to miss the zip line in Costa Rica because of illness--never got the details. They did not have hand sanitizer at the buffet, just as you got back on the ship at the ports.

[Kevinc6969]

Thanks for the info.

 

Zenith 2004, Galaxy 2003, Norway 2003, Disney Wonder 2002, Norweign Wind 2000, Fasination 1999, Rhapsody of seas 1998, Sovereign of seas 1997, Norweign Star(origional) 1996, Extascy 1995, Norweign Sea 1993.

[BlueStarz]

Mary,

 

Thanks for a great review!

 

Kevin, you mentioned you will be leaving on the Horizon on 4/11, did you mean 4/12? We are leaving on 4/12 for 12 night repositioning cruise? If you are leaving on 4/12, we have a thread over on the roll call board for this cruise please come join in and sign up for the CC party. We're also meeting for a drink at the Mast Bar after the lifeboat drill.

 

Cheers,

Cheryl

 

~~Sensation~~5/2000

~~Millenium~~4/29/02

~~Horizon~~4/12/04