Carnival Horizon 7/3-7/11/18: An Accidential Havana Cabin and Lots of Creme Brulee

[nybumpkin]

At the top, we toured the gardens and the statue of Christ the Redeemer, a replica of the statue in Rio on Sugar Loaf Mountain. We then went to wait for the Teleferico and had great views of Puerto Plata below, while our driver returned to town to wait for us. The tram cars fit about 20-25 people, which explains why Carnival cannot offer this as a ship’s tour.

 

009 Christ the Redeemer by baxted, on Flickr

Christ the Redeemer

 

012 Teleferico, Puerto Plata by baxted, on Flickr

Looking down the teleferico route

 

230 Teleferico - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Coming up the mountain

 

015 Teleferico by baxted, on Flickr

Teleferico arriving

 

[url=https://flic.kr/p/26ujvCj][/url]237 Boys Teleferico - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Boys on teleferico

[nybumpkin]

At the bottom we met our driver, who took us through the city streets to Fortaleza San Felipe (St. Philip seems to have been pretty popular in this part of the world). This is a small fort that dates from the 16th century. The city itself dates from the early 1500s. We had an audio tour to guide us in the fort.

 

023 Mount Isabel from San Felipe by baxted, on Flickr

Mount Isabel as viewed from San Felipe

 

017 San Felipe by baxted, on Flickr

Entrnce to the fort

 

018 San Felipe by baxted, on Flickr

Main fort

 

021 San Felipe by baxted, on Flickr

Guard tower

 

022 San Felipe by baxted, on Flickr

Mom and boys

 

025 Steve, San Felipe by baxted, on Flickr

Steve, guard tower

[nybumpkin]

We then drove to Independence Square, the heart of the colonial city. Most of the buildings date to the Victorian era, as the city was rebuilt several times during its history.

 

031 Independence Plaza, PUerto Plata by baxted, on Flickr

Plaza de la Independencia

 

036 Boys, Independence Plaza, Puerto Plata by baxted, on Flickr

Boys, Plaza de la Independencia

 

038 St. Philip the Apostle Cathedral, Puerto Plata by baxted, on Flickr

Cathedral, St. Philip the Apostle

 

040 Kathy and Boys, Independence Plaza, Puerto Plata by baxted, on Flickr

Mom and boys

 

044 Bishop Greeting Communicants by baxted, on Flickr

A bishop sighting

 

045 Cathedral, Puerto Plata by baxted, on Flickr

Cathedral entrance

[nybumpkin]

We were back at the ship around 12:30, plenty of time to visit some of the shops (I bought a bag of coffee for $10) and be back aboard before the crowds appeared. After lunch, DH and I headed for a swim in the Havana pool. Entertainment for the night was Will Marfori’s adult comedy.

 

046 Amber Cove Entrance by baxted, on Flickr

Amber Cove entrance on the main highway. This is where our tour ended.

 

047 Amber Cove Main Gate by baxted, on Flickr

Walking back to the ship. We're still outside the main gate to Amber Cove so you can get an idea of the walk to the independent tours.

 

255 Leaving Amber Cove - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Leaving Amber Cove

 

267 Leaving Amber Cove - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Amber Cove in our wake

 

251 Havana Pool - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Havana pool. DH had it all to himself!

[MsJersey84]

Following.. Thank you

[SonoranDevil]

Thanks for such a detailed review. We've booked a Havana Aft Balcony for the Panorama in 2020 and love all of the information you're including!

[nybumpkin]

Thanks for such a detailed review. We've booked a Havana Aft Balcony for the Panorama in 2020 and love all of the information you're including!

You wil absolutely love Havana!

[duncmelsmom]

We're on the Horizon July 13 (next summer) and can't wait. I wish we had some Havana rooms available when we booked. It looks so fun. Thanks for all of your info!

[nybumpkin]

Day 7: Day at Sea and Second Elegant Night. And Behind theFun….

 

Alert: This is a rather lengthy post. If you're not interested in Behind the Fun, you may want to skip. DH and I are boat nerds, so this tour is right up our alley.

 

There are a lot of ways to spend extra on board your ship –restaurants, the spa and of course the casino. We just did a Chef’s Table last year on Carnival Pride, and although Horizon’s menu is new we figured back-to-back years was unnecessary. What I did want to spend some extra money for, though, was “Behind the Fun.” This is a tour of a number of crew-only places, with presentations by various department heads. We did this tour in 2010 on Carnival Conquest, and since eight years had passed and Horizon is a brand new ship, we figured it was time to try it again. It’s $95 per person, the same price we paid in 2010. There are very limited places available, so if you’re interested I’d recommend booking it at the Shore Excursions desk soon after you board the ship.

 

We met our guide, a Human Resources staffer, in the steakhouse, where we were given an overview of the tour and wanded by a security officer. Cameras, cellphones and the like are not permitted; however, we did have photos taken with the Captain on the bridge and in Guy’s Smokehouse with the brewery in the background. Our first tour was of the galley, where we met with the executive chef for a tour and had a watermelon carving demonstration. (I think I’m pretty good to cut a watermelon in half, scoop out balls of fruit, and mix it with cantaloupe and other fruits to put back into the watermelon halves.;)) We had chocolate-covered strawberries at this stop. Other touring sites included the storage areas, crew mess and lounge, environmental center, and laundry.

 

We then went to the engine control room and met the Chief Engineer. This is where we noticed significant changes from Conquest – many more 3-D schematics, and video cameras showing the azipods in action. What made this portion particularly interesting was that we knew we were sailing toward Hurricane Chris, and the Chief Engineer (“Cheng” in marine parlance) was very forthcoming as to how the crew planned to deal with the hurricane. He gave a great demonstration of how the stabilizers (which he said were already deployed) would work. He said he couldn’t guarantee a smooth sailing, since storms can be unpredictable, but they would do their best to keep everyone comfortable.

 

This tour involves a lot of walking, so we then took a break in the human resources center. Our guide showed us some of the training materials they use for the crew and educational opportunities aboard. He had videos of a couple of the crew cabins – as you might imagine, for privacy reasons you don’t see an occupied cabin.

 

We then made our way to deck 8 and the bridge. The Captain was waiting for us; there were three crew members on duty. We had our pictures taken with the Captain, and he then gave us an overview of bridge activity. We were next to the starboard control console (there are port and starboard consoles used when docking and a central console when underway), and he showed us theforecast path of the hurricane and his planned course to avoid the storm: sail faster and farther east then normal to get in front of the storm (which at the time was more or less stationary).

 

FunTour001 by baxted, on Flickr

Group photo on the bridge with Captain Gigliotti

 

FunTour003 by baxted, on Flickr

DH and me with the Captain

 

Our final stop was the brewery in Pig & Anchor, where we had a presentation by the brewmaster and a sample of the toasted amber brew. Another photo, and we were done.

 

FunTour002 by baxted, on Flickr

Brew pub photo

 

Our tour ended in the Havana Bar, where they handed out our gifts: a backpack, cap, and lanyard. There were chocolate-covered strawberries waiting for us in our cabin. (Side note: when we did this tour in 2010, our youngest son was 10 and in the 9-11 Camp Carnival group. We had started letting him sign himself in and out of camp, but our rules were that either we would meet him at camp or he would go directly back to our cabin to wait for us. This day, he did the latter. He arrived back at the cabin and found the chocolate-covered strawberries. When we arrived at the cabin we were greeted by a plate of stems.:')) All in all, this was a great way to spend a morning.

[lottiegreen56]

That strawberry story sounds like something my boys would do! Great review, enjoying you sharing your family.

[JaniceB]

Enjoying your report.

[nybumpkin]

We decided to try the barbeque buffet at Pig & Anchor. It’s served on the lanai outside Pig & Anchor; there are plenty of things to choose from on the menu, along with several Guy Fieri sauces to go with your meal. We opted to eat inside, where I washed down my meal with a couple of Farmhouse Ales. Then another trip to Havana.

 

281 Beer menu - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

The brewhouse menu.

 

279 Smokehouse barbeque menu - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

The BBQ buffet menu.

 

277 Smokehouse barbeque - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

My BBQ buffet selection.

 

This evening was the second elegant dinner. It wasn’t as dressy as the first but folks still dressed well.

 

020 Horizon Dining Room by baxted, on Flickr

We dress up fairly well.

 

284 Boys, second elegant evening - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Boys on elegant night

 

This evening we opted for one of the shows, “Celestial Strings,” which featured “Imprint,” the electric violins trio. Some of you that have read my past reviews may recall that I’m not a fan of Playlist Productions; in fact, in my review of our 2014 Glory cruise I panned them. The last few years I’ve skipped the shows. However, I had heard good things about Celestial Strings, so we decide to go. It proved to be an excellent show.

[nybumpkin]

Day 8: Last Day at Sea

 

We started the day with breakfast from the buffet followed by a last round of coffee and cards in Havana. Since we had our platinum drink coupons we decided to have brunch in the aft dining room – along with our drinks. I was able to enjoy some corned beef hash. They used to serve it at the buffet a couple of times during a cruise but in recent years I’ve seen it only at brunch.

 

296 Last towel display by baxted, on Flickr

Last towel design.

 

285 Towel Animal Collection - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

A week of towel animals

 

This afternoon our cruise director Chris “The Flying Scotsman” Williams had a solo show which featured some of his stories and songs. What a great show – and you wouldn’t think that this guy who sang Whitesnake and Queen could then sing an opera aria. Absolutely fantastic.

 

 

298 The Flying Sotsman - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Chris Williams

 

301 The Flying Scotsman - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Another photo of Chris

 

This was followed by the Platinum/Diamond party in the Liquid Lounge. It was well attended, but my biggest complaint was that the lounge wasn’t set up to handle a crowd with drinks and appetizers – there are only a few seats with tables.

 

297 Liquid Lounge - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Liquid Lounge

 

303 Past Guest Party by baxted, on Flickr

Buck & Oz, the Platinum/Diamond party entertainment.

 

After dinner we saw one more comedy show, then did the unpleasant chore of packing.

[nybumpkin]

A few more last day photos....

 

305 Baked Alaska Parade - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

Baked Alaska parade in the dining room.

 

307 Darma and Bked Alaska by baxted, on Flickr

Darma, our headwaiter, with Baked Alaska. Once again, creme brulee for us.

 

275 Havana Bar - Copy by baxted, on Flickr

A last view of the Havana Lounge.

 

309 Last sunset by baxted, on Flickr

Last sunset from our balcony.

[nybumpkin]

Disembarkation

 

Horizon arrives in New York early – when I awoke at 5 a.m.we were already well past the Verrazzano Bridge and near the Statue of Liberty. No photos, I’m afraid – when I awoke and saw where we were I went back to bed. We docked around 6.

 

We opted for self-assist debarkation – we tried it last year on Pride and loved that we were off the ship and on the road early. We figured with NYC weekday traffic it would be worth lugging everything off ourselves. Our Platinum meeting spot was the Reflections dining room at 6:30; we were disembarking at 6:35 and were through Customs and on the road home by 6:50. Picked the dog up on the way and were home by 9:45. I think people were still disembarking when we arrived home.

 

This ends the "what we did" part of my review; I will add the "what I thought" part next.

[nybumpkin]

The Ship

 

I'm going to start with the area that most had an impact on our cruise: Havana. As I mentioned at the start, we didn't plan on Havana when we booked this cruise. We did want an aft wrap though. When we booked the cruise 8465 wasn't a Havana cabin, and the same cabin on Vista isn't Havana. During fitting out, Carnival made the decision to add Havana cabins, and 8465 became a Havana cabin. So, no extra cost to us and now we had Havana. What a great experience - if you can, book a Havana cabin. The cabin itself wasn't special - we had better balcony furniture and some bath amenities, but this aft wrap cabin was smaller than that aft wrap cabins we had on Victory and Glory, with less storage space. The balcony wasn't as nice as the deck 8 aft wrap balconies on Victory an Glory. However, the cabin was perfectly serviceable and since our sons were booked in 8461, the cabin just forward on the starboard side, we were able to open the balcony partition and have a giant aft wrap. Having the Havana benefits made all the difference. we found the Havana deck a great place to sit, enjoy a drink and play cards. The pool/hot tubs were never crowded and were most enjoyable. And there is a "hidden" staircase on the port side that lets you access the Havana area without having to go out through the aft lobby area and Ocean Plaza. If there was a "down" side, it was that we enjoyed Havana so much that we spent very little time on the Lido deck, except for breakfast and some lunches. We missed most of the deck activities, as well as the morning of the towel animal invasion. However when we were on Lido and saw the over-crowded pools we knew we lucked out with Havana.

 

I'm not sure I'd book a Havana cabana, though. We like our ocean balcony view, and with the cabanas you're looking through Plexiglass. It would have been nice, though, to walk right from the cabana area to the pool area.

[sb4ever]

Love your review. Will be in a Havana Cabana on 8/8 and am really looking forward to it - especially with so many sea days! Do you happen to remember which morning was the towel animal invasion? We always enjoy that!

[BENHANDEL]

Enjoying your trip report! I will be on the Horizon in December and I am thirsty for details and reviews!

[nybumpkin]

Love your review. Will be in a Havana Cabana on 8/8 and am really looking forward to it - especially with so many sea days! Do you happen to remember which morning was the towel animal invasion? We always enjoy that!

I think it was the morning we were in Amber Cove - that's the day the following week's cruise had. We missed it altogether - since we had to be off the ship early for our excursion, we had a quick breakfast before leaving the ship.

 

This is a cruise for sea days - four full days. The port times aren't the gretest if you're a ports person.

[SNJCruisers]

And there is a "hidden" staircase on the port side that lets you access the Havana area without having to go out through the aft lobby area and Ocean Plaza.

Could you please provide some more details about this for those of us that will be staying in the Havana area. (32 days, but who's counting). I am assuming that this staircase comes in handy for those who are staying up on the higher decks in Havana cabins.

[nybumpkin]

Could you please provide some more details about this for those of us that will be staying in the Havana area. (32 days, but who's counting). I am assuming that this staircase comes in handy for those who are staying up on the higher decks in Havana cabins.

Sure - If you walk into the Havana bar area from the Havana deck andpool area, the staircase is on the left (port) side of the bar and goes up to deck 9. Since we were on deck 8, it was very useful. From whatever deck you're on, walk along the back corridor that accesses the aft balcony cabins across to the port side, and the stairs will be tucked between the port aft wrap and the cabin just forward.

[shineonmesunshine]

Thank you so much for this review; it's by far the best from this summer! I appreciate the details and well-thought-out notes. I'm glad you had a great time, and your family is lovely. DH & I depart Tuesday and are in a Havana aft, and your review has gotten us more excited! Thanks again.

[nybumpkin]

Thank you so much for this review; it's by far the best from this summer! I appreciate the details and well-thought-out notes. I'm glad you had a great time, and your family is lovely. DH & I depart Tuesday and are in a Havana aft, and your review has gotten us more excited! Thanks again.

I hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we enjoyed ours!

[nybumpkin]

Outside Deck Areas on Horizon

 

If you're planng on a deck chair near one of the Lido deck pools - well, good luck. The pool areas are not large given the number of passengers and it's crowded. The pools and hot tubs were mobbed. If you don't need to be near the pool though, there are plenty of places to sit. One of our favorite places for breakfast and lunch on Lido was the booth area near the Seafood Shack - we always found a place to sit with a nice ocean view. Another favorite place for me was the deck 5 Lanai -nice chairs and tables with umbrellas and ocean views. Deck 5 is also a nice place to take a walk, since the Lanai goes around the ship.

 

Sports Square - Our sons spent a lot of time here. Older son was a regular on the basketball court - he could always find a pickup going. (Incidentally, the basketball court is directly above JiJi's and Cucina. You will have noise from the court during lunch, but they close the court at 5 when dinner starts.) Both sons did the Sky Ride and really liked it. I think they went when we returned to the ship in Grand Turk - there was less of a line. A ship's photographer took their pictures, but we never did figure out how to find them since they weren't able to give their cabin number to the photographer. DH and I tried the miniature golf. It was challenging - challenging enough that some kids simply abandoned their clubs and golf balls on the course and went to find something else to do. DH picked up after them. :)

[SNJCruisers]

Another favorite place for me was the deck 5 Lanai -nice chairs and tables with umbrellas and ocean views. Deck 5 is also a nice place to take a walk, since the Lanai goes around the ship.

Wouldn't the lanai only go about 80% around the ship on deck 5 because of the Havana area?