My mother set up a family vacation. The ship it self is very beautiful. The ship have lots of entertainment and food. 1 thing they need to change is the elevator. SMMART ELEVATORS MUST GO. No one should have to wait 10 minutes to get from 1 floor to the next. Another thing is the food. Its lots of food but pizza every night. Need to change up the mean. My group was sick of eating the same thing. And another thing if I pay for a soda package I should be able to get my can of soda with a glass of ice. They give everyone a hard time about giving them their can of soda. We paid for that soda so we should receive our can of soda.. Nowhere to heat your food up late night. Must places have fruits and vegetables out at all times. Its was hard to relax in hot and swimming pool due to parents not attending to their children. Kids all over the food also Read Less

This is not a new topic. I just want to write about what I was feeling. I just came off the Carnival Horizon Oct 5-13. There were many things that took place during this time. First I miss my flight with Southwest and had to find another flight. AA wanted to charge us 1300 for 2 people one way that is not including baggage. WE found a nonstop flight with Delta that would get us there in time to get on the boat. Thanks Delta. We finally get to the boat at 1:55 to find out that the people that normally take our luggage doesn't take luggage after 2.. So my husband and I had to carry our own luggage through security. I put my back pack on the conveyor belt and left it when I walked off. As I was going to get on the escalator my luggage was too heavy for me and my luggage tumble to the ground, my shoe went the other way. Security came to help. When I reach the top of the escalator I realize my back pack was left and my hubby realize that he had lost the slip that security gave him. I went back to get my back pack to find that the security officer had my back pack in the lost and found but then he tried to come on to me. I retrieve my back pack from him. I left to join the Mr then he had to go back to get the slip that he lost so we could continue through security. Once we get to the next security he lost the slip again after searching he found the slip stuck to the back of his cell phone. After this I told my husband lets go back in prayer again so we prayed. After all this we were glad to be on the Carnival Horizon. While on the ship for the week a lot of unfortunately things took place. MY husband met a couple on the 11 deck and later we found out that her husband was taken off the ship because he had died. Also a fight broke out that included about 25 people and they were put off the ship in Curaco. I didn't see the fight. But I did see a little boy got burn with hot chocolate and on the first floor I witness two young boys in handcuff laying face down on the floor screaming "I am going to sue yall." I met a mother that daughter left her medication and she share with me that her daughter had to pay the doctor 100 to see him and pay 100 for the shot that she needed every day. I shared all of this to say After all I been through I still have my joy!!! And after all the mistake mishap having COOKIE as our cruise director made it all right. COOKIE you were AMAZING. MY cruise would not have been a success if it weren't for you, not only are you amazing you are AWESOME. Carnival should allow you to TRAIN ALL the cruise director on all the Carnival fleet except for MATT. YOU & MATT is a force to be reckon with. Canival please pay attention to your Customer. WE Need people like Cookie & Matt that are gifted for this job as a CD. . Who wants a boring CD. NOT me. I will go on a cruise just because MAtt & Cookie is there please take heave. Someone please show this to Cookie & Matt. I want them to know how VAUABLE they are. Read Less

I was very disappointed with this ship. Starting from the staff down to the food. I have cruised 3 different times in the past. Twice with Royal, and Once with Carnival. I can honestly say Carnival seems to be slowly falling off a cliff. You can definitely tell they're cutting around every corner they can to save money. The food wasn't up to par, with any of my previous cruises. The food on the menus at the restaurant, would stay the same almost every day. And only 2 or maybe 3 things would change on the menu. The buffet seemed to lack variety, and the 5 options they had weren't edible. The wax they put on the floors makes it very slippery. I slipped on it and fell carrying my 2 year old. Carnival and the crew aboard the ship know about this issue but just don't seem to be worried or care to fix the problem, so people just keep slipping and falling all over the place. Our rooms weren't cleaned thoroughly enough. The plumbing in our bathroom stunk from the first day we walked in. The curtains and floors had stains on them. Finger prints on the balcony glass door. Dust build up on top of the tvs. Trash inside one of the cubby compartments under the kids tv in our family harbor suite. Also it seemed to me and a few other passengers aboard that some of the staff seem to be overworked and unhappy. The whole ship seems to be way too crowded. Especially in the buffet and main attraction areas. Allure is twice as big of a ship and Royal will only put 1200 more passengers. I did however like the bar, my kids loved the kids pool area. I like that in camp ocean they watch my kids for free. And also that Carnival does offer better ports to visit. But i do not think that for the $3200 i paid this ship was worth it. This ship changed my overall view of Carnival as one of the best in the cruising industry. And i do not see my self ever cruising again with Carnival, even with all the ports they offer to visit. Read Less

Loved this ship design, loved the itinerary. But the service varied from excellent, to adequate, to poor. First time on one of Carnival's big ships. Plenty to do every day. Cabin service was excellent, some of the best I ever had. Entertainment ran the gamut, some very good music groups, I thought the show performers were quite average (the Cuba show was great), bar service was overall fine, but the dining service was poor. Slow, inattentive, and often wrong. The restaurant management did try to address it, but it never got solved. The comedy club is too small. Plan to arrive at least 15 minutes early for the adult shows to make sure you get a seat. The main theater is oddly designed. I'd guess at least half of the seats have some level of obstructed views due to odd seating angles, a flat main seating area, and metal posts. Loved the itinerary with plenty to do in all ports Read Less

First time and we wanted to go to Jamaica, Grand Caymon, and Cozumel. Trip was diverted to the Bahamas due to Dorian, but Cookie, the cruise director, made the trip. He was witty, funny, and brought great energy to every event. We are still quoting him days after the trip and always looked forward to his announcements. If we book again, we will actually try to book one with him. The comic, Macio was for real funny. Best comedy I’ve ever heard. Activities were amazing and the excursion was fun. We did the stingray experience but would have done the dolphin swim if it would have been available. It looked amazing to watch others swim with the dolphins. Leo was a lot of fun too and a good host and comic. The swimming pools were a little crowded but expected. Would have stayed at the Havana area for the private pool if it would have been available. Spa tour seemed a little pushy and I’ve had treatments before and those were expensive and the benefit claims were a little exaggerated. Overall, great cruise and experience. Read Less

Port of Miami would not let passengers board the ship on our sail date. Totally NOT Carnival’s fault. Carnival wants nothing more than their ship sailing the full length of time and packed with passengers. We stayed a total of five nights in Miami at three different hotels. We got in on Friday and expected to sail Sunday. Long story short, we got on the ship on Wednesday. I LOVED the look of this ship! The decor is beautiful and toned down compared to the other Carnival ships we have sailed! I didn’t find the ship confined like others have noted. Also, if you have half a brain, the elevators will not outsmart you. We tried Anytime Dining and I loved it. Will definitely do that from now on. Servers were all wonderful. Food was tasty and we enjoyed the Italian restaurant as well. Only miss in the dining room was Eggs Benedict. The sauce was soooo bad! I would guess there were about 3000 passengers on board. A lot of people decided to go home versus stay in Miami for three nights. FYI—no cruise line will pay for your pre cruise hotel in the event of a hurricane. This was a great example of why we travel with a good sized contingency budget. If you can’t afford to be stuck somewhere for a few days or get home if you miss the boat, don’t go! We loved the water slides and the string quartet was so amazing!! I loved listening to them! As a comparison, we sailed on the Allure of the Seas last November, and we both preferred the Carnival Horizon. The bed on the Horizon was so comfy! Definitely much more manageable in size, and this ship did not feel like a shopping mall. Carnival does attract a “different” crowd, i.e. loud party animals, but a vacation is what you make of it. I try not to judge others, and I know I will have a wonderful time if I go with the flow. I’m personally surprised by the negative reviews here. We are already planning our next cruise on this same ship. We stayed in a spa balcony cabin, and that will now be our go to. Worth the extra $$$! We did a couples massage, but won’t do that again. Almost $400 after gratuities. We did enjoy the nice warm tiles loungers! The spa cabins are in a nice quiet area and are so pretty and calming! Nancy was our room steward. She was the best! Read Less

We had a great time on the Carnival Horizon. The kids enjoyed the water park and activities. The movie theaters were great and Antonette was always so kind and happy to help. On the last 2 days of our journey, we were in the middle of Hurricane Dorian. The captain did a awesome job in keeping us informed about the situation and how he will continue the sailing. The captain definitely went above and beyond to make us feel safe. The show were great and all the restaurant server, cabin steward, bar staff were wonderful. One thing that can you use improvement is the customer service area. There was always a line if you go after 10:00am. One day, I waited almost an hour just to ask about my card. If you have kids, this will be the perfect cruise to keep them entertained. Overall, great service and great cruise. Will definitely book it again. Read Less

I have been on many carnival cruises, royal Caribbean cruises and Norweign cruises. Pros of the Horizon: Italian specialty restaurant, food was spectacular. Dining staff was great, as was the whole crew staff. Good movie selections in cabin. Cons: Low ceilings throughout ship. Atrium small with generic decor. No windows and sitting area to just sit and gaze outside to look at ocean and just watch people walking by (very confining). No band and dance area in casino like they have on other carnival ships. Casino is small with poor layout. "Smart Elevator" system was terrible extremely long waiting time. Floors are very slick on lido deck. Lunch buffet horrendous. You will be eating a lot of Guy hamburgers, pizza and deli selections. I was never informed of the "Family Harbor" section of the ship so if you decide to go on this ship inquire about the Family Harbor. No pool in the serenity area. The entertainment was amateur hour. There are much better carnival ships just remember the newer the ship does not mean it's better. Read Less

New ship, new destinations. Pre-Cruise: We decided to fly into Ft Lauderdale from NYC, instead of Miami, and arrived on Thursday giving us a full one-day buffer in case of travel delays. We stayed at the Embassy Suites on the 17th Street Causeway, just a few minutes from the airport by cab. We have stayed at this hotel numerous times, and it’s fine for our needs. Included in the room rate is complimentary breakfast and a Manager’s Happy Hour in the evening. Because your rate will be dependent on a few variables, I won’t quote our pricing, but we thought it was reasonable. We booked transfers from the hotel to Port of Miami with QLS (limo service) and they were great. Transfers each way were $145 including gratuity (which we added to with cash for the drivers) for four adults with 11 pieces of luggage. The large private SUV was plenty big enough and the drivers were on time, professional and courteous. The ride from the hotel to Miami at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday took about 45 minutes, and by 10:00 a.m. our bags were checked with a porter at the terminal, and we were inside. The scene outside the terminal was a little hectic as arriving and departing passengers were on hand, but no drama at all. There were two or three other ships in port too, but really no traffic to speak off and the Horizon is impossible to miss. The terminal: It was nice; we didn’t plan on spending too much time there, and we didn’t. We quickly got through security checkpoints, used the washrooms to refresh, and we were on the ship by about 10:45. To be honest, the whole process was so smooth, I don’t really remember anything remarkable about it. The Ship: quick summary We all liked it a lot. This is our first Carnival cruise, and the third for our traveling companions; they had trepidations as their first two cruises on older ships were not great experiences. Within one hour of being on the ship they immediately commented on how “this was different, and Carnival seems to have gotten their act together”. I can see why. Overall, having been on over 15 cruises, I can say that the quality of food services was better on this ship than any other, and the service of the staff was on par with the best we have seen. As far as the ship itself, overall we loved it; sure there are some areas that could be improved upon, but taken on a whole, this boat is great. Our initial experience: Upon boarding, we were immediately directed to the Lido Deck, 10, where the buffet is located. We had pre-booked dining, but bought the dining package that saved us $8 bucks per head off the rack rate for the steakhouse, Italian restaurant and Asian fusion venues (combined). We didn’t purchase beverage or spa packages. We did a walkabout to get acclimated, and paid a visit to guest services which was surprisingly quiet; the folks there were very helpful. We were able to get into our staterooms and our luggage was in the process of being delivered, so we decided it was a good time to have lunch at the buffet, then returned to the staterooms to unpack. The stateroom: We had a balcony stateroom, nearer to the rear elevators, on deck 8. This ended up being perfect for us, and if I’m on this class ship again, I’d pick the same stateroom. The bed was large and comfortable, plenty of storage for folks that tend to over-pack, and the bathroom was sufficient to make showering and refreshing a pleasure. You can get room lay-outs and dimensions on the Carnival website, along with pictures. The room has a hair dryer, and the shower has those gel dispensers for soap and shampoo. No conditioner. That was fine for me (shaved head), but my wife prefers her own toiletries. Plenty of towels, TP, and tissues, and the bathroom has a vanity mirror. It’s fine. The balcony itself does not have sliders, but instead has a heavy-duty single door that swings out; it is heavy, slams with a thud, and in windy conditions can cause a “whistling” sound, heard inside the stateroom. The balcony was of ample space with two chairs and a small table. We used the balcony for pre-breakfast coffee and for drinks in the evening; we tried our best not to have laundry on the balcony, but on a few port days we did have bathing suits out there to dry. The nice thing about this location is that it’s a few steps from the stairs (more on that later) which we used a lot, and two decks below Lido with buffet, Italian and Asian restaurants and a few decks above the MDR, shops, and the Havana Bar. The theatres, two specialty restaurants and other points of interest tend to be mid-ship and forward there is some walking required. Our stateroom attendant Lawrence was great; rooms are made up once per day, and he gave us a choice (mornings or evenings); we chose mornings. He was very helpful with information about the ports and the ship, and made our stay very enjoyable. Always had clean towels and a daily planner. Oh, and the TV. Flat screen with very poor programing choices; perfect for us, we are on vacation and didn’t book a cruise to watch TV. I know, there are going to be times when you are in the stateroom and want to check the stock market, get news events, check a baseball score, or watch I Love Lucy. My suggestion is to get the internet package. BTW, after 8 days with little or no contact with the outside world, we found that the world didn’t miss us, and I didn’t miss it. The ship’s layout: You can get from here to there! Unlike many retrofitted ships that have broken up deck plans to squeeze in restaurants and attractions, this new build has very walkable decks both in the private areas (e.g., hallways to staterooms) and public areas. You can check out the deck plans on the Carnival website for specifics, but you can basically get stem to stern on public decks 5 and 10; and I had a similar experience on deck 8 where our stateroom was located. There may be a few exceptions, and because I didn’t do a Lewis and Clark type mapping, I don’t know what they would be. Just know that you won’t be wandering around the ship wondering how you can get to something. We also liked the placement of the serenity area and the spa/gym at the front of the ship. More on that later. Overall we found that things made sense, and were where they were supposed to be. Except the elevators. The elevators: This topic is probably covered the most often in reviews; many times from the perspective that people don’t know how to use the system. While that may be true, it’s not the sole cause of the issues folks are having. In the NY metro area many large office buildings, hotels and hospitals have gone to a similar system, in which the elevators have no passenger accessible floor buttons; my experience is that this can work effectively. Typically, a passenger selects the floor they wish to visit in the vestibule on a touch screen, and that same screen tells you which elevator to board by number or letter designation. The elevator will take you and other passengers to your pre-selected floor(s). Carnival’s system also asks that you make a deck selection for each passenger, so if four of you are traveling from deck 3 to deck 10, you must enter the selection four times. That seems to bug people; the idea behind this is that the elevator assigned should know how many people it has on it already, and how many are expected to enter/leave on each deck. The system overall doesn’t work well. The wait time for elevators even during non-peak periods can be very long. Frequently elevators show up full (because people jump on “any” elevator); also folks call for elevators, get impatient and leave (taking the stairs). Finally, it could be that the programing for the system is not effective; if that’s the case then a software upgrade is in order. My advice: take the stairs, or give yourself plenty of time. And if you book far enough in advance and can swing it, get a mid-level deck stateroom which limits the amount of decks you need to traverse. Finally, the elevator situation wouldn’t affect my decision to book this ship or others in its class. It really is not that big a deal to me, because I don’t mind walking, but I do get the point that the elevators should work better, and for people with mobility limitations, etc. this is a major consideration. The Spa/gym: I walked past the spa; looks nice, very clean. People in white coats stand around ready to help; sort of like a sanitarium. I did use the gym; not too crowded in the early hours (6:00 am), and it was empty on one mid-day visit while at sea. Has the requisite fitness stuff; it’s not going to replace the major fitness chains, but the treadmills, stationary bikes, etc. are more than enough for most of us. If your work-out routine is more demanding, you will likely be disappointed. The Track: Seven laps to a mile, located on deck 12 aft; near other activity centers including mini-golf, basketball, outdoor fitness equipment, etc. Get there early when the serious folks are training; after the “sleep-ins” wake up they will continually turn the track into an obstacle course, and refuse to heed the signs pointing out the direction to run/walk. The track provides a good view of the smoking area in the aft of the ship; here you will witness the effects of nicotine, caffeine and sedentary lifestyles. The Ride Thingy: It doesn’t work. It didn’t work. It never works. It won’t work in the future. Thankfully, the pedals don’t power the ship. The pools and deck chairs: What can I say. The pools and the whirlpools were in a word “overcrowded”, but hey, that’s not very different than other ships I’ve been on, although the issue here seems to be worse. Simply put, the pools are not big enough given the size of the ship and passenger count. Even though the pools were crowded, I found the fellow passengers to be polite and respectful of each other. The whirlpools are never hot enough for me, and Horizon’s are no exception. They were warm at best, which some passengers thought was fine. There were plenty of deck chairs, including claim shell lounges in which you become the baked clam. After a few days of relentless sunshine, shade was at a premium. The clam shells throughout the ship get taken up quickly, and the lounge chairs near the pools, especially those with some shade or umbrellas go fast too. There were always some chairs available in the direct sun, especially on deck 11, which is a few stair steps away from the mid-ship pool. We did find two spots on the ship that were not very crowded and provided shaded areas and lounge chairs. • On deck five in the forward areas there are cushioned lounges under an overhang (deck 6) that are peaceful and shaded. You won’t be near a pool or whirlpool, but you can cuddle up and relax. These are limited, but very few people go to this area. • On deck eleven aft, there is limited seating facing the tides pool (on deck 10) and a good deal of lounge chair seating on the port and starboard sides of the ship outside JiJi’s and Cucina Restaurants. This area is under the sports track on deck twelve and provides a good amount of shade. It’s also near enough to the tides pool, so you can go for a dip. Entertainment: There are many things to do on this ship, and we only scratched the surface, but here are a few thoughts: • The opening night showcase that features the comedians and production show cast is worth attending, although many folks may be tired from all the first day activities. We enjoyed the performers and performances, and it gave us a good idea as to what we would try to see later on. We absolutely loved Cruise Director Mike Pack, who is fun, entertaining and visible throughout the cruise. • The punch-liner comedy shows/venue is fabulous, as was our host Leo!! We went to the shows geared for both families and the adult only shows, and we never laughed so hard. Now the comedians rotate so your experience can will be different than ours. The venue is small, so we arrived 30 minutes before showtime and we had a selection of seats that could host four adults. The bar is open during shows, and there are drink specials. • The Liquid Lounge is the main theatrical venue; I liked it. Bingo, production shows, information seminars and the quest happen here. Some folks complained about poor sight lines (they have a point), limited seating (I saw that some seats were available for each event I attended), and movable seating on the stage level to support multi-functions; meh. It was all fine, just needed to get there a little early. o Soulbound was the first production show on the rotation; Jesus couldn’t save this show. It’s a mess from the word go, and I would avoid it at all costs. The folks from Motown should be suing Carnival. o Celestial Strings was not as bad as Soulbound, but it was close. Thankfully the folks sitting behind us wouldn’t stop talking during the show, and that provided ample distraction from the lunacy of the performance, an un-cohesive jumble of I don’t know what. The three string players who appeared at a number of venues throughout the ship are very talented, but their talents are wasted here. o We were too afraid to see Vintage Pop after seeing the first two shows. o The Carnival Quest. Clearly and far & above the best quest game we have ever seen. Not for the faint of heart, but it was hilarious and good fun. o Bingo with Lucky Linsey was a nice distraction during slow times • Imax Theatre. We saw two movies, also during slow times on sea days and enjoyed the experience. We didn’t do the thrill ride thingy. • The sky ride thingy: not operational on our cruise; an idea who’s time may have passed. • We didn’t do the poolside activities, so no comment there. Food and beverage: this was a hi-light!! • The buffet on Lido: we are not buffet people, but we actually did have a few meals here and they were fine. Firstly, there is a lot of seating in the buffet area, and it runs about half the length of the ship. For that reason there is less space for serving areas, and they are divided into two sections, often having different foods. We liked that coffee and ice tea/lemonade was available throughout, and juices were available in the mornings. The omelette station made eggs to order, the deli made sandwiches which could be custom tailored (e.g., no tomato), plenty of hot and cold food for self-service. We liked that salads and fresh fruit were available. No complaints. • The Specialty restaurants: We loved them!! Cucina is Italian food and it was excellent. Try the pappardelle pasta with shrimp. Also opens with limited menu on sea days and is complimentary!!!! JiJi. What can I say; I’ll call this Asian fusion. I had no idea what to order so we asked and the hostess made suggestions which were all great. You share appetizers, and of course we shared main courses which were plentiful! Also complimentary on sea days!! Fahrenheit: Great steakhouse, and our favorite bar! They will paint your desert! Just go! Bonsai Teppanyaki: Another "just go"!! I had the lobster; wow! Look, I’m not going to get into detail on the four specialty restaurants because everyone has a different idea of quality, choice and presentation. All I can say is that after 15 cruises with all the major lines on all the newer ships, this is the best set of specialty restaurants by far. • Main Dining room: We had four dinners here, using my time dining and the hub app, never had more then a one minute wait, and that was during peak periods. Food was very good, but not memorable. I did have rabbit for the first time. Better for dinner than breakfast. On sea days the MDR has brunch, and limited choices for traditional breakfast foods; when they served a full breakfast, it was hit and miss. The pancakes, waffles and breads tasted like they were pre-made and kept warm under heat lamps (chewy); the eggs and things that needed to be cooked and ready to serve were fine. Very good coffee btw, and the best grits I’ve ever tasted, and the granola was very good too. Fresh fruits always available and good; you needed to ask for pastry assortments for the table. Look, we worked around the food in the MDR that was so-so, and focused in on ordering things they seemed to excel on. And we supplemented by using room service and the buffet. We didn’t go hungry! • Other venues: Pizza: No, not so good. Sure, kids will eat anything. Burgers: The best, but you will die young. We did it once, as I prefer to live longer. Seafood shack: excellent and worth the up-charge. BBQ: Complimentary on sea days, yummy! Try the collard greens baby!! Others: we didn’t try others. • Adult beverages: o Havana bar is a favorite, but it does get loud, so conversations aren’t really possible. Get doubles for a small up-charge, and dance the night away. Pool open after 7:00 pm to everyone. o Piano Bar. Sure, and it’s adjacent to the steakhouse. We did like the steak house bar better. o Library bar. More of a library with books and games; bartenders come and go o Plaza bar and Alchemy bar didn’t attract us, nor did the bars on Lido deck. • Finally, the ship itself is very stable, although we did have fair seas and winds. We were able to dock at all four ports (Turks, DR, Curacao, and Aruba). We did some tours, but those are very personal experiences, and there are many choices; we enjoyed ours. Dis-embarkments and embarkments went smoothly; we always brought the “card” and photo ID. We really enjoyed our first Carnival Cruise and are now planning to book Mardi Gras. Read Less

We decided to go with Carnival Horizon because we had previously been on it’s sister ship the Vista which was amazing. We expect the same level of service and cleanliness from the Horizon. Everywhere you walked the floor was wet, not from people walking after coming from the pool but there were leaks everywhere. The entrance to the Havana area always had a foul smell specially in the early mornings. The Havana bar offered espresso however you couldn’t order one until 10am which I found a little late..The staff was attentive, I just think upper management didn’t schedule them correctly. Sometimes you’d have a bar full of patrons and only one bar tender, it was the same for the specialty restaurants. We did one of the carnival excursions on Grand Turk with Mark (Marky Mark), he was a great captain made the trip fun and always made sure all guests were comfortable during our snorkeling trip. Our trip was truly made by our room attendant Myat, his friendly smile everyday was just so warm and welcoming. He always accommodated our every request and left all the lovely towel animals. Thank you Myat!! You’re the best! Read Less

This ship was beautiful, decor, clean, several restaurant, all great. The staff, crew and service was top notch. Food was great everywhere we ate. The elevator system on the other hand is nightmare. If you push the button like 10 times it thinks there's more people so it comes quicker. But overall the engineer that designed that system needs a new job! Our cabin was an ocean view and very comfortable. The entertainment was great...and our cruise director Mike was awesome! Go to the Quest...it's late night, but ton's of fun. If you are easily offended not a good choice, but if you like to have some adult fun...take advantage of this event. Visit the wonderful IMAX Theater, they have a great selection of movies, a variety of show times and super nice theater. Also take advantage of the ships two floors of shops. I found several good deals with great choices. Read Less

Chose cruise on horizon for family of 5. Day before cruise, get an email from carnival sky ride is closed....... of course my kids really wanted to do that. Ship was new and spotless, crew members and director was also amazing. Food was absolutely horrible and I really miss the ability to create your own salad from the salad bar (buffet) like on the dream. Guys burger joint went from being good to just okay. Dining room food horrible and if you wanted an edible steak, it costs $20 extra. Flat iron steak sucks! Made reservations in MAY, and had a confirmation email in writing from bonsai teppanyaki and when we showed up for our reservation, there was no record, nor did we have any place to eat that night......... email or not....... screw you.......lord forbid we were going to eat the rancid left overs in the buffet!!!!!! Pizza and ice cream were good. Guys pig and anchor, was good when it was free for lunch.....would NOT pay for it. Seafood shack had good fish and chips for $6......we were so hungry we were desperate for decent food. Any questions please ask. I personally felt nickel and dimed to death, and would not sail on this class of ship again. Read Less

Stayed in 7458 which is an aft-facing Havana balcony. This ship is so immense, having access to the Havana-guests only pool deck was a vacation-saver. Lido pools were constantly jammed, but most I ever counted in the Havana pool was 14 one sea day. Some different shows on the Horizon which is a nice change of pace from the repeats in the rest of the fleet. However, the volume is ear-splitting. I complained a few times to no avail. One Liquid Lounge manager said they check the decibels every night. That may be true, but they are setting the volume way to high. You can't even understand the lyrics from the singers. It was so bad, my ears are still ringing three days after our cruise ended. Our itinerary was the 6-day from Miami with stops in Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. Ocho Rios is kind of dumpy. We did not do an excursion but wandered over the Margaritaville (which is just as lame as all the other locations). Touts descended on us nonstop, with some even calling to us through the fence in the port area. We stepped onto our balcony during docking and it already reeked of ganja. Our Cozumel excursion was canceled due to lack of interest: Elite Champagne Sail & Snorkel. Kind of surprising as there were three Carnival vessels in port that day. Pretty much stayed in the Havana area. Lido deck was jam packed with blasting music from a DJ, and a bunch of idiots who brought their own speakers. The cacophony was too much to handle. Elevators work fine if you use them correctly (press button once for each member of your party). Problem was that people in general are morons, and would just press the button once or just ask if a car was going up or down and jump on without pressing a button. Smart elevators, dumb people. Some crew was great. especially Havana and Alchemy bar staff. Atrium bar staff was efficient but not at all friendly. Piano bar player Dara was excellent, but you had to tolerate her playing her own stuff and constantly reminding people to tip her (which I don't blame her for, because the hayseed crowd seemed to not understand the concept of how a piano bar works). Read Less

Elevator system on the Horizon was HORRIABLE. We took the stairs most of our cruise. They also need to have a separate elevator for the handicap and scooters. my mother had to spend most of her time in the room because of the lack of working elevators on the ship.Our stateroom was only cleaned once day after asking for twice a day am/pm. Food was not that great. Mike the cruise director was excellent he made the ship experience a little better. Also they need to start breakfast at 6am instead of 7:30 some folks get up early. Guest services employees need to be a little more friendly to there guest and not have attitudes. I have cruised on Carnival several times this was the worst. I do plan on crusing again on carnival to give them another chance and if no improvement I will be going on another ship.. Read Less

I just came of a 8 day cruise on the Carnival Horizon and it was the worst experience I have ever had on a Carnival ship. I will start by saying that the boarding process was fine. Once on board we went to the Lido deck while waiting for the cabins to be ready. When we did go to our cabin #6445, we found that the cabin was nice, but we found that there were not any bathrobes in the cabin which your advertising states that there should be. I will say that the cabin steward Muh was very good and did a good job throughout the week. My party had the any time dining and on the first night we went to dinner and were seated at the back of the dining room walking past numerous empty tables. We ordered our dinners and appetizers and then waited for them to be served. The appetizers came and some were good and others were inedible. When the main course arrived not all of my parties meals arrived at the same time and when they did they were either warm or cold. We all agreed that it might just be because it was the first night. The next morning was a sea day and we all met for breakfast for the sea day brunch. We we were seated it wasn’t very busy yet. We again ordered our meals and the same issues occurred. The food was not brought out at the same time. One of my party order the Seafood tower and the bagel that came with it was so hard it was inedible. We constantly had to keep asking for coffee to be refilled instead of the wait staff offering to do it. We also had to refill our own water. One morning my wife tried the 12 hour French toast and it came out and it was raw inside. That afternoon and every day we went to the Lido deck for lunch and I will tell you that the only thing in our opinion that was good was either the Deli which you had wait in a very long line or Guy’s Burgers which also had long lines. In my opinion that was due to the poor quality of the food on the buffet. That evening we again met for dinner and we we again escorted to the very back of the dining room past many empty tables. We were put in a secondary dining area that was so dark you would not have be able to see the food when served. At this point I went to the hostess to complain and the Maitre D heard me and I explained the situation to him. He did arrange for us to have a table closer to the from and also gave us a very good waitress named Healene who we had for the remainder of the trip. Unfortunately the quality of the food never improved for the remainder of the trip. We were constantly having to asked for something else to eat or just not finishing our food. We went to several shows in the lounges and found them to be of very poor quality and actually walked out of several of them. The one that we looked forward to called the Celestial Strings was a huge disappointment. They also offered one that was Music that was from the Big Band time that was ruined by interjecting modern music into it. I know that this is a new and bigger ship, but I found it to be not a easy ship to get around in. In my opinion, to get to certain areas of the ship you have to either go up or down a deck to get to them. Even though I found the dining experience to be bad, there was one thing that surpassed that and that is the elevator system. I have never heard so many complaints by so many people about the elevators in all my years of cruising. It has to be the most idiotic system I have ever seen. You press a button and you are assigned to an elevator and you have no idea when that elevator will arrive because you don’t see what floor it is on. Many a time after waiting several minutes we would end up taking the stairs. This is not a big deal when it is one or two flights, but is very annoying when you are on deck four and you want to go to deck 10. The ship has a Serenity area that is just for adults, but it is beyond my understanding how you don’t have a pool on that same area. We did use the pool at the stern of the ship but found it to be overcrowded and felt like sardines when in it. We also went into the hot tubs on several occasions and they were just warm and the jets were very weak. No air in the jets for the relaxing feel. My wife and I both enjoy going to the casino when we cruise and I will tell you that we found the casino staff all very nice. The only complaint I have is that the cigarette smoke and smell is so bad that being non smokers it is very hard to stay for very long. You would think that this being a new ship they would have done a better job on recirculating the air in the casino to remove the smell. Even when the casino was closed when in port if you had to walk thru it, it stunk. I have been a frequent cruiser on Carnival and have never had a bad experience until now Read Less

We chose Carnival because it seemed to be the cruise line that appealed to our family in the past. Things have changed in the last 5 years on Carnival. We chose the Horizon because of the timing and because it was a newer ship. The Pros - New Ship and very clean, the embarkation and debarkation were excellent, Never tried Your Time Dining before and was leary but we would up being ok with it. The Cons - My family hated the elevator system (I used the stairs so it did not effect me often), the food in in dining room was not as tastey, varied, and as plentiful as it used to be, the entertainment was not appealing to us, and the comedians onboard that week were awful. We never paid to eat in one of the extra $ dining rooms, but we did try the Mongolian Wok and Guys Pig and Anchor at lunch when they offered free meals. We liked the Mongolian Wok, but were disappointed in the BBQ options (except for the pulled pork, it was good) The excursions we chose were great. We did an ATV ride in Grand Turk, Dunebuggies and Monkeyland in Dominican Republic (these two excursions were the best we have ever done on any cruise), no excursion in Curacao only walked around town, and De Palm Island in Aruba (this was very nice). The excursion for my husband and son in the Domincan Republic was late getting back to the ship, but as promised the cruise line waited for the group to return (there were only 8 of them on this dune buggy excursion) and did not leave them! The overall experience was a good one, but we were bored a lot of the time while on the ship. Maybe it's because our children are now in their 20s and we have cruised about 9 times. It could just be getting old for us. Read Less

We are a family of five who have cruised Carnival, RCL, and Disney. We have no particular allegiance to any line, and I wanted to comment on a few things from our trip. When I read reviews, I tend to disregard the ones that say everything was perfect and also the ones that complain about everything. I was particularly motivated to write this after reading someone say that their location in the dining room was so dark they couldn't see their food! So, here's some perspective... EMBARKATION: The assigned boarding time was new to us, and we pondered just going earlier, but travel plans actually ended up getting us there about our time. We saw people who tried to line up prior to their time and were put in a line/waiting area for their time. As disappointed as they were, it is for a reason. This was the fastest we have ever boarded a ship. Curb to atrium in less than fifteen minutes. You essentially get all of your "paperwork" and id pictures done with a representative using a tablet-device. The result is a very speedy process. What slows it down is people who don't respect the boarding time window (and then they are the ones who complain!) We got onboard around 1:30pm and our room was ready. Major improvement, Carnival! SHIP: We have been on the Dream class vessels several times and chose the Horizon to see the upgrades and the also were attracted by itinerary. The ship itself is beautiful, clean, and has several upgrades from the Dream class that are great. It is a little more muted in terms of decor throughout the ship...think classy, not glitzy....classy, but not stuffy. The LED sculpture is nice, but we missed the soaring atrium and glass elevators. Speaking of, the elevator system is not as bad as the reviews indicate. The key is using them properly, and many people simply did not listen to the instructions given at the beginning of the cruise (during muster drill, the cruise director explained how to best use them). If you think about it, in a normal system, if you just get on the first elevator that opens, and press button and go, you are the mercy of everyone else in that elevator and where they are going, as well as people on successive floors. With this system, it tells you which elevator to go to, avoiding all that potential. Good in theory, as long as people understand how to use them and listen the first time. We got used to them very quickly and rarely had a problem. CABIN: Standard balcony. Similar to other cabins on other ships. Comfortable and clean. DINING: Overall, we almost never had to wait in a line for food. Once or twice, Guy's had a line, but not bad at all. The buffet area was well apportioned, with so many stations that there was never a wait. The buffet was food was very good...the quality and variety was impressive considering the amount of food they are producing. We did anytime dining. You can reserve a table on the app, which is very easy, or go to a kiosk and reserve. The drawback to the app is that you are assigned whatever table and cannot request location or waiter, but you can make requests at the kiosk. So, it's a tradeoff. We did the app the first few nights and then found a waiter we really liked and then ended up doing the kiosk the remaining. We were able to get seated with him and by a window. We did not eat in the pay per eat rooms, but so much variety onboard for those who did. ENTERTAINMENT: As far as the main entertainment, it's mainly production shows (dancing/singing) or comedians. The production shows were ok, but they were essentially the same format (song, dance, and LED backdrop that jazzes up the shows). The dedicated comedy area was nice, and comedians were hit or miss. No complaints, but just some are better than others. They did have a couple of other shows (Quest, love and marriage, etc) in the Liquid Lounge (which is not nearly as bad as has been described...there are a few poles that block sightlines, but we were always able to find a non-blocked seat), but not enough variety. We wished though there was more variety in the theater...magicians, jugglers, etc instead of all the production. CRUISE STAFF: Mike, the cruise director, was incredible. Many a cruise director come across as holier than thou and disappear when not on stage. Not true with him...you saw him everywhere. He was so energetic and friendly. His staff was very good. Almost everyone was very friendly, with a few exceptions, but isn't true at any office on land? ACTIVITIES: Always something to do. A cruise is what you make of it. You can get involved in everything or not do anything in relax. Anyone who says they couldn't find something to do...well, that is ludicrous! We thought the IMAX/thrill theater would be a novelty/gimmick for the new ship and wouldn't be using it much. What a great add...we went several times throughout the week. PORTS: Again, ports are what you make of them. We did not get off in La Romana, as just looking from the dock, it wasn't appealing to even get off and look around. Turks, Aruba, and Curacao were awesome though. DISEMBARKATION: Self assist or zones...if you want to do zones, make sure you go early to pick up your tags when they start offering them, as the first numbers are gone quickly. Dismebarkation itself was quick and smooth, but the terminal itself in Miami was a train wreck. The luggage comes out on carousels instead of being placed in areas on the floor. Complete chaos and we waited 45 minutes for bags to come around despite getting off at the correct zone number. Room for improvement. OVERALL: Wonderful cruise, the Horizon and crew are just great. We would certainly sail it again. Read Less

The reason was the new ship, the ports and the cost. It wa a perfect time and the staff was wonderful and always called me by my name. Our steward NATAN was the best I have ever had. The casino waiter also the best I ever had he had my name down and drink of choice everytime without me asking. THank the VIFP club for the free appreciation drin, And of course the Casino, had a gret time. The Quest show was one of the funiest nights ever! The White nights and 80's were alot of fun and great msic. We ate in the speciality restaurants compliments of the casion it was fantasic Teppanyaki. Also ate at Guys Pig and Anchor great service for dinner and so much foo and great prices. Also thank the Casino Host he was wonderful and even got a T-shirt which made it more special. Read Less

We sailed on the "New" Carnival Horizon in July 2019. A family of four (2 adults and two teenagers) who have all cruised before on Carnival and Royal. We get two adjoining ocean front rooms. What we liked - In each room we had two bathrooms - one is a shower, toilet and sink and the other is a tub/shower and sink. We found this very useful for getting ready so all of could shower at the same time. Guys Burger Joint - great food as always Reflections Dining Room - great dinner service and awesome staff; attention to detail Punchliner - they had three different comedians and each did family or late night comedy - lots of variety Pig & Anchor - this was like a hidden gem - BBQ food for lunch was free and was good Getting on and off the boat was very easy and quick - no issues at all. Room - size was good (standard), had enough room to unpack comfortably. Comfortable beds. What we did like - Sea Day Brunch - same menu every day and very limited; extremely slow service Entertainment - the evening shows (with the exception of lip sync battle) were really not good. Themes were very limited. Show times - their timing did not match up with the dining times - was so annoying. Times every night were 7:30 or 9:30. So with the 8:15 dining time, we either had to show up late to watch a 7:30 show or rush through to make it to the 9:30 show. Seating was very bad in the main theater. Too many poles blocking view and very small theater for the size of ship. Chargers/Plugs - Need more places to charge/plug in. They only had a spot near the vanity mirror - very annoying since I like my phone near the bed and this was not achievable. There should be a plug or two near the bed area. Bring an extension cord. Teen Clubs - The way they break up the age was terrible - my daughter is in HS yet they had her lumped in with 12-14 year olds. She was a month out from 15. They would make no exception so they did not use this as my kids wanted to hang together. Lido Buffet - they were never fully equipped. We had multiple occasions where the buffet was still open for an hour yet they were closing it down. With only 1 section open, the lines were horrible. When they ran our of something we were told they have nothing else and we had to chose from what was in the buffet. Food at the buffets was not good. Salad stuff looked like it was about 5 days past expiring. Nothing looked fresh and did not taste it either. Deli - they had 1 or two people here and that was simply not enough. The line was sooooo long every day no matter what time you went. Since the buffet was often out of stuff or had long lines, many went to the deli. Very frustrating. Pizza - was just ok. It would be better if this was located someplace away from buffet so you could avoid having to walk through that mess to get to pizza. On Royal - it is nice that their food places are located in different spots so everyone does not congregate in one location. Elevators - this new system where you enter a floor number then wait for your elevator to arrive was awful. Many times there would not be enough room; if you made a mistake you were stuck, waited so long for elevators. Terrible system. Overall, we had good ports. Was not thrilled with LaRomana but Aruba, Curacao and Grand Turk were good. Grand Turk - you can walk right off boat to the beach and there is also a large pool there. Plenty of drinks, music, etc. Water had a lot of seaweed which made for not wanting to get in much but we walked to pool and jumped in to cool off. Umbrellas and chairs for rent - there is no set price so just negotiate. Overall, for a ship that was so new, the only new thing we noticed was the sky ride (which was fun). Need better shows and timing. This was probably our last Carnival cruise for a while. Have been enjoying Royal much better. Read Less

f you want to be overwhelmed by inefficiency, and get a good laugh to keep your sanity, and be extremely frustrated at the same time, the elevator system on the Horizon will invoke all sorts of feelings I did not meet one passenger that did not criticize the elevator system. Even crew members laughed at it’s inefficiency. People walked multiple decks, constantly, because they could not bear the wait for an elevator. Guess Carnival installed a system for passengers to keep weight down. Go luck if you are handicapped or a senior. Disembarkation was a nightmare. There were other negatives in addition to the elevators. On the plus side my wife made a small amount of money in the casino. Just so you don’t think these comments are from a new cruiser—this was my 91st cruise on 9 different cruise lines on over 30 different ships. I would place this Horizon cruise amongst the 5 worst. Read Less

I have cruised on Carnival a few times before. We left out of Miami after staying at the Hilton Cabana Miami Beach, which I would not recommend. We had Faster to the Fun, which is always worth it. Got on the boat in a breeze. Rooms were ready around 1:30pm. I felt like the rooms were bigger than those in the past. The lights confused us - your sign and sail must be in the holder for the power and lights to work. This also caused issues with charging - when there is no card or lights, no phones, etc. are charging. Seating was limited upon arrival at the Lido deck until rooms were available, but able to grab a table and have some buffet food for lunch. Our boys got pizza. Dinner was in the dining room, where our head waiter was not the most friendly of people, but they got the job done. Paid extra for the surf and turf, which in my opinion, was not worth it. Day two - day at sea. Did the brunch in the Meridian dining room, very good. Little one had the skillet cake, older the steak and eggs, hubby the French toast, which he ordered again. All very good. Very fun, so much for the boys to do. My oldest tried to do the Sea Ride, but the wait was an hour, so he passed. The boys did the water slides, pool, all the activities like golf, soccer, ping pong, etc. Dinner was in the Italian restaurant. It was good, but not the best I’ve ever had. Lunch was with the hubby at the sushi restaurant, which I highly recommend. It was so good. Day three - Jamaica. Did the bobsled excursion. The line was very long, like at least an hour for my kids and husband before they got on the sleds. Once they did it was very fun. The changing stations were not the best, so wear your suit under your clothes. Dinner was in the main dining, decent food. Day three - Grand Cayman. Did the turtle excursion. The bus we got on was hot and overcrowded, which is not unusual for these excursions, but one family went rogue and we were stuck on the bus waiting for them forever, sweating to death. Got to the turtle place, and it was pretty cool, but the heat was pretty unbearable. Their pool and slide were amazing! Had a decent lunch in their little restaurant. Took a public bus back to avoid the hot bus again, which was quite the adventure. But we arrived faster than the tour bus, which was good. Had dinner at the Teppanyaki place, which was so good. I highly recommend if you are lucky enough to get a reservation. The service was great and so was the good! Day four - Cozumel. Due to a late excursion to Passion Island were able to have a lazy breakfast at the Meridian. Good omelette, just a bit small. The excursion was ok. It was a 40 minute boat ride to the island, but they then make you wait in line to take yet another picture (which judging by the crowd, everyone was hot and over pictures at that point and just wanted to do their own thing). You then walk over to a meeting point where they tell you all about the island while the sweat trails down your back, and then they spend several minutes talking about tipping. The water was nice, we floated in it for quite some time. The open bar is not worth it, we ended up buying a couple of drinks from the cash bar to avoid warm well liquor. The buffet was meh, most food being out, they ran out of plates, and at the end, I found a hair in my food. When it was time to go back, we literally sat in the blazing sun for 20 minutes while they talked about tipping them. Enough. It’s hot. We had dinner at Guy’s Pig and Anchor. OMG. So amazing. Hubs had the prime rib which was delicious, I had pulled pork, my oldest had the ribs. All were so good. I would have eaten there every day for lunch had I known!!! Day five - Day at sea. Pools, basketball, sportsing, all the fun. Lunch was at the taco/burrito place which was ok. Dinner was at the steakhouse, Farenheit 555, on the boat. It was amazing. The only complaint was that they told us our oldest had to wear pants (which we bought but he forgot to pack), so we spent $65 on pants for him. When we got to the restaurant there was a family there that was wearing shirts with swear words on them, sweat pants, backwards baseball hats, half shirts and jeans, I could not believe that we were told our son could not wear his nice Gap khaki shorts, but this is ok with dress code, When I brought this to the restaurant’s attention, their comment was we just require pants. When I questioned if he wore his pajama pants, would that have been ok, they stated they just require pants. At the end of the day, they took care of us and we felt fully compensated but not sure that the requirement of pants is truly the requirement. We went to some comedy shows, did some trivia (I came in 3rd place for Mean Girls trivia), had a ton of pool time. I will say, this cruise had the most people I have ever cruised with, but with the use of space on the Horizon you would never know. With the exception of the embarkation day, there were no lines for food or issues with seating. You could actually use the pools and get a chair, and there were no issues with people. The restaurant food far surpasses the dining room and was a pleasant surprise. I loved the Horizon and would go back in a heartbeat!! Read Less

Wide variety of activities and plenty of room to spread out. We loved the Playlist Productions shows - especially Soulbound and Celestial Strings. Only complaint was that the comedy club was too small. We still got in to see some good shows but that was the only area with large waits. Sky bike was fun. Excellent food service. We had early seating and it was fast and efficient. Some of the dishes were fantastic. All were good. Dining room breakfast service was also fast . We had our own hot buffet in the family harbor area - great for the kids and for excursion days. Staff and activities in the kids clubs were great. Jane made sure that the kids in Circle C made friends and had fun. We are used to smart elevators but many are not - some posted instructions would be helpful for those that have not used them. Many people did not understand that they had to push once for each person and then were frustrated when their group could not fit on. Unnecessary frustration. Ports - DR - we stayed on the boat as did many others. The rest of the ports were great. Aruba- nice tour and mini sub ride, Grand Turk - went to the beach next to the ship, Curacao - walked to town and shops. We always have fun on Carnival. Read Less

We chose this cruise because 3 of the 4 ports we have never visited. The ship was very accommodating for our needs. We enjoyed everything the Horizon had to offer! We really enjoyed the ease and convenience of the smart elevators. The entertainment was amazing! I certainly understand why Carnival is named the fun ship! There is something to do every minute of the day for all ages! Our dining experiences were awesome! Our first time dining at the Fahrenheit Steak House was an amazing experience from start to finish! We also enjoyed the ease and safety of our excursion. We purchased the UTV excursion in Aruba. The experience was amazing and the tour guides we had were also amazing! We highly recommend this tour! It's a great way to see Aruba, there are plenty more amazing excursion for this Island, but this is the one we selected! Happy Cruising! Read Less

We just got back today! This was a family cruise for my husband and I and our 2 kids, ages 10 and 9, and my Mom. I absolutely loved it, loved all the activities on board, found my happy place on the 2nd level shaded area by the pool (must reserve your spots early with towels) they go fast! The bingo was fun, enjoyed the comedy shows, laughed my head off at the hairy chest competition by the pool, kids had fun on all the kid friendly game area including mini golf, my son was obsessed with billiard soccer, loved the chocolate extravaganza, my mom won $80 in the casino, the excursions we went on were amazing!!! Curacao has fantastic snorkeling, La Romana had a blast zip lining into a pool at Bavarian Adventure Park, fantastic!! We had a tour guide going to Aruba’s Eagle beach that was over the top funny, entertaining and passionate about Aruba: Albert Washington! Loved the ride to the beach because of Albert! Learned so much about this happy place!! The 2 guys that kept our cabins pristine: Midhun and Liberado, thanks for all your hard work to give us the best vacation ever! We loved our cabin!! #8386, of course the food was amazing! Nobody does it like Carnival! Xo Read Less

We chose this cruise because of the ship’s ratings as well as the itinerary. We could not have had a better time. Getting on and off the ship was a breeze. The food was all AMAZING. The staff all around the ship were friendly, outgoing, and helpful. We ate in the dining room for breakfast and dinner each night. Not only were the food choices perfect, the whole dining experience was exceptional. We fell in love with 2 pairs of wait staff so made sure to ask for their sections as we had chosen anytime dining. One group was David and Woody and the other was Peter and Sovi. The anytime dining worked out well for us and even with requesting wait staff, we never waited longer than 10 minutes. It was so nice not having to adhere to a specific dinner time. The ship is so clean and well maintained. Everywhere you go, you see someone cleaning and/or doing some sort of maintenance around the ship (painting, fixing, etc..). Comedians were hilarious, also enjoyed the cruise director. We loved the Love and Marriage show as well as the Quest. There was always something to do and you can stay well informed both on your app as well as with the daily newsletter you receive. We decided to get the drink package after much debate and I would definitely do it again. We never had a problem getting a drink. Some of the bars are more crowded than others but we never waited more than a few minutes at any of them. There are tons of bars around the ship so we found a few to frequent and the bartenders get to know you and what you like which is so nice. Take advantage of the BBQ lunch when it’s open, DELICIOUS! We had a balcony room, our steward always had it so nice and clean for us. The bed and pillows were super comfortable and trust me, I am picky about that. The ports were fun, do your research though as that’s something I wish we had done prior as we didn’t do as much as we would have liked to while ashore and excursions do sell out so don’t wait if you see something you like. On the first full day at sea the cruise director does a morning show that tells you about each port and some of the available excursions which was very informative. I really can’t think of anything negative to say as we had such a fantastic time. We are already looking at cruises for next year!! Read Less