We chose this cruise because it added Harvest Caye and Grand Cayman to the usual round-up for Western Caribbean ports. To those of you eager for news about Harvest Caye: the small island is beautiful--with lush landscaping and a huge pool with everything you would want--a swim-up bar, a "walk-in" side, an automatic chair to lift the handicapped in and out, fountains and underwater bench/ledges along the sides. There are plenty of lounge chairs and umbrellas to use at no charge. There is also a small but very nice butterfly garden to walk through. The lagoon area is reserved for waterboards, kayaks, etc. There are 3 or 4 restaurants. We ate in one called the Landshark Grill and had grilled fish sandwiches with really fresh, flaky fish, nicely seasoned. Don't expect to see Manatees--the people who went on the Manatee excursion saw none. There are cages with a Boa Constrictor, a Toucan, and some empty cages with more animals to come. All of this makes for a great day of lounging by the pool with a cool drink.

Now, for the not so great part. The beach area is man-made. The sand is a beige-brown color with broken shells which makes for precarious walking. The water is murky and has an unpleasant, rotting vegetation smell that comes from the nearby mangrove swamp. When you walk into the ocean, your feet sink into the mire up to your ankles. Disappointing. Nonetheless, we enjoyed our day here. One warning: the zip line was not ready for prime time. The riders are not in a sitting position, they are in a "Superman flying" position. One rider on a line too lax plunged headfirst into the water. We heard that another rider on a too tight line failed to stop at the end and was injured. The zipline was then closed for the day.

We have cruised with Celebrity, Norwegian and have done one cruise with Carnival. Celebrity is definitely a step up in general. Carnival versus Norwegian: we feel Carnival does a better job with food, both in the buffet and the main dining room and free venues. We never felt that we needed to try an upscale restaurant on Carnival, because we were enjoying the food so much. The food on Norwegian in the free venues is OK to good, not great. We ate 6 dinners in upscale restaurants--Cagney's (excellent), Le Bistro (good, enjoyed the mussels), and Los Lobos (loved it!). Los Lobos is the new upscale Mexican --authentic not Tex-Mex. The guacamole is the best I have ever eaten. The cheese and chorizo dip is delicious. Servings there are unusually large for a cruise ship. Our son and DIL ate at Modernos one night and said most of the meat ended up hidden under a napkin--not good. They enjoyed the salad, the grilled pineapple and the sirloin. Read more