Fun Times Turning 50 on the Vista! April 21-28 (MoBay/GC/Coz)

[Beachiekeen]

This won't be a day by day review because we mostly just relaxed on this cruise but I will hit some highlights, post some pictures, and detail what we did in each port.  

 

Hubby and I took a cruise out of Galveston on the Vista April 21-28.  The cruise was for my 50th birthday and our best friend and his girlfriend went with us.  We live in Dallas and enjoy cruising out of Galveston since it’s so easy for us to get to.  The only drawback is it limits our choice of ships.  

 

We have already been on the other main ship in Galveston, RCL’s Liberty of the Seas so in 2017 when we saw the Vista was coming in fall 2018, we booked the cruise for my birthday. Since it was a special birthday, hubby and I booked a Havana Premium Vista balcony, room 7459, and our friends booked a Havana interior.  

 

Room:  Our room was very roomy with a nice closet with three drawers, and three big picture windows.  The balcony was great too. I have read complaints that the Havana aft balconies don’t have enough privacy and while I would say I can see how that might be true, I am not sure what people are doing on their balconies that they need that much privacy anyway.  For us, it was a non-issue.

 

 

 

 

The one negative would be the soot.  This was our first aft balcony and the soot was indeed present and coated the balcony floor, the wicker table, the wicker loungers, etc.  I stopped sitting on the wicker loungers the second or third day.  There were also metal chairs that I felt more comfortable using.  We did have scheduled balcony maintenance during Grand Cayman and it was clear they tried to clean it.  The windows were pretty clean also which was nice.  I have never noticed soot before, but we saw it a lot even on other decks.  On deck 11, we were trying to find a place to watch sunset and couldn’t stand where we wanted because of the soot blowing out.  So I’m not sure if there was more of it on the Vista or if it is something I was simply never aware of before.

 

 

 

This is hubby and I -- our sailaway picture.  Let the birthday cruise begin!

 

 

[Beachiekeen]

Havana:  If you are wondering if the Havana is worth it--it is.  It was awesome, we never had to fight for chairs at that crowded pool deck, we simply strolled down every morning after breakfast and chose our lounger, and had our own bar the entire day
 
We also loved the location of the Havana on deck 5 and our room on deck 7.  We were very close to the dining room, Ocean Plaza for a quick snack or trivia, etc.  If we wanted to go to trivia or Ocean Plaza or the coffee bar, and then go back to the Havana, it was easy.

 

The Havana allows children over 12 but we did not see any.  And honestly—I wouldn't advise people with kids under 18 to book the Havana.  There is nothing for kids to do there so it becomes essentially an adults-only area made up of adults day drinking at the pool.  Which I found awesome since I am an adult that likes to day drink.  Even at the busiest time, the area never felt crowded and we all knew/recognized each other by the end of the week so it was a lot of fun.  

 

I will never sail on a Carnival ship without the Havana. I think I read they took out the pool on the newest ships?  If that is correct, it was a huge mistake.  In my opinion, the Havana is the best thing about the Vista.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Ship:  I have read lots of negative reports about the Vista:  terrible layout, long lines, awful elevators, crowds, etc. Many people in my FB group that were on this cruise had the same complaints. We did not experience much of that at all and had a great time.  

 

Yes there were lines at peak times but that is to be expected.  The Lido on embarkation day was a madhouse but it always is every cruise.  Same with the elevators—if we didn’t get one right away, we just took the stairs.  I understand that this is not an option for everyone and that we are lucky in that stairs are not a hardship for us. But we always end up taking the stairs every cruise. 
 
We did encounter a few lines but nothing we felt was out of the ordinary and they seemed to move quickly.  We got in the long line at Guy’s on embarkation day but it moved quickly and we were seated and eating in probably less than 10 minutes.  We never saw a line at the Alchemy bar and we went several times.

 

I have read reports that there seems to be a ratio of less staff to guests and I would say I agree.  There was often only 1 bartender in the Havana for all of us.  The bartenders were fast, but not the friendliest.  I can see why.

 

Also MDR service was very slow, that would be one complaint.  But hey, we’re on vacation, we aren’t rushing to get anywhere. If we were, we ate elsewhere. 

 

We did YTD, the biggest tip I have would be to download the Carnival Hub App, it worked great and you can check in for dinner on the app, we realized this after the first day and never stood in the check-in line on deck 5 again.  It was also great to look at menus, schedule activities, etc.  You can chat with family members on the ship for $5 pp but we never downloaded that feature.  

 

If I had another complaint, it would be the bland décor (which I had also read about) and the lack of open spaces.  I didn’t think I would miss the décor of the older ships and thought I might actually prefer the Vista, but when we got there, we all agreed it was underwhelming.    

 

Although décor is not a deal-breaker, the lack of open spaces could be.  When we turned back to Galveston and we couldn’t see sunset from our balcony anymore, we scoured the entire ship looking for an open space and deck 11 (which you can smoke on) was about the only option.  There really isn’t much else available.  Luckily, you can only smoke on one side (port side I think) and sunset that night was on the other.

 

The Serenity deck on 15 was so windy I never even bothered to go up there although I would have loved to make a salad at the salad bar on a sea day. They tried to close it in (so once again, no open space) but it just doesn’t work. Thank goodness for the Havana.

 

I took very few ship photos, sorry!

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Service:  Many in our FB group complained about the service but with maybe 1 or 2 exceptions, we thought the staff was great, always smiling, always friendly, always apologetic if service was slow.  We saw lots of cleaning going on and I thought the ship was very clean.  The dining room staff always greeted us by name—I don’t know how they can remember everyone.  We loved our room steward, Elena.  

 

Food:  Overall, we thought the food was pretty good, much better than our one other Carnival cruise on the Magic. Guy’s burgers was yum, I could have eaten there every day.  The BBQ was pretty good too, the guys had it twice.  Hubby couldn’t wait to try the Seafood Shack but he ended up saying it was only OK.  

 

The MDR was serviceable, there were a few hits and misses like always.  Breakfast was pretty good, we did Sea Day brunch twice and sat with our friends once while they ate on a sea day.  They have cold pressed juice on the sea day brunch for $5 and I got it both times we ate there.

 

The elegant nights were Monday and Thursday.  Monday was prime rib, lobster and crème brulee, Thursday (when we were at the steakhouse) was steak night (with Grand Marnier soufflé which I was sorry we missed).  The last night (Saturday) had prime rib again and baked Alaska (but we ate at JiJi).  We ate in the MDR the first elegant night and after Cozumel—I got the tortilla soup and tacos on the Mexico menu and they were ok, nothing to write home about.  Lobster was good but crème brulee was a miss.  On embarkation day, I just got a salad and baked potato, which is my go-to when nothing on the menu really grabs me.

 

We are not buffet people—our BFF ate at the Lido on embarkation day and said it was ok but hubby and I have learned it isn’t for us.  Also he and our BFF tried the ocean plaza breakfast and while the actual buffet food got a thumbs down, it was fine for pastries, cereal and juice.  One day I got a plain yogurt and added all the dried fruit and nuts from the oatmeal bar and had a delicious parfait.  So it is certainly fine for a quick alternative and the setting is much nicer than the Lido.

 

I read in the Fun Times that they also had a light lunch during the day at Ocean Plaza but we never went then.

 

Bonzai Sushi was terrible, it’s sushi on a cruise ship, I don’t know what the heck we were thinking.  Avoid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Specialty restaurants:  We ate at the steakhouse on my 50th birthday.  My filet was delicious, restaurant-worthy.  The side of mac and cheese was a miss but the bread and my salad with the steak were plenty.  Hubby enjoyed his surf and turf and shrimp cocktail.  We brought our own champagne and wine to dinner but they also gave us a free round of champagne at the end which was a nice touch.  We did Art at the Table for dessert and while the dessert doesn’t taste as good as it looks, we still enjoyed the experience.  Service was very good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We decided to try Ji Ji Asian restaurant one night and liked it so much we went back the last night.  The crème brulee here is outstanding, it blows the one in the MDR away.  I wanted to go back just to get it since I didn’t get it the first visit, I just tried a bite of my friend’s.  We loved the food here, we gobbled up everything, and it’s a lot of food.  Service was great the first time, a little more rushed the second time but still fine.

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Bars:  We did not have the Cheers package, we’ve done the math and with 3 port days, it isn’t worth it.  Our drinking was done mostly in the Havana and these were the best drinks we had.  We drank a lot of pina coladas and had them make them with better rum than just Bacardi.  It only cost an extra dollar or two for this.  I tried several different ones and they were all delicious. I liked Appleton best, the guys preferred Bacardi 8.

 

We got a drink at Tides bar for sailaway on the first day but never made it back there.  We got a couple of drinks at the Atrium bar, they were just ok.  We got a glass of wine the last night and took it with us for sunset and once I got an ok chocolate martini.

 

We went to Alchemy a few times, the drinks were ok.  The bartender asked me what I liked and I said sweet and fruity and he made me a drink that was tart.  I should have just ordered what I wanted. The guys got Manhattans and they were ok and once hubby got a Sidecar that he liked.  I had heard so many great things about this bar but we thought it was just ok, although in fairness, still better than what you find on most cruise ships.  (We go to Las Vegas every year and have very good cocktail bars in Dallas so our standards on mixology bars are high.)  We also had the same bartender every time so maybe he just wasn't the best.

 

The drink I got at Tides was called the Cruiser.  I might have had a few of these throughout the week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Entertainment:  We are not typical cruisers in that we don’t see most of the shows, and we don’t do a ton of activities, but we did do a few on this cruise.  
 
Our days were mostly: get up and have breakfast, stay in the Havana most of the afternoon with the occasional activity, back to the cabin for a rest and to get changed, then meet up for dinner and sunset and have drinks and listen to music afterwards.  This is a typical cruise for us.  We got off the ship at each port and then went back to the Havana or our balcony for sailaway, then did the same drinks/dinner/music if we weren’t too tired.

 

We LOVED the band Powerline, absolutely a blast and we tried to catch their show in Ocean Plaza when we could.  I might have even gotten up and danced on my birthday. My apologies to anyone who was watching.  

 

We also enjoyed the Electric Violins a few times but they played in the Atrium which is hectic and noisy so I felt like I never got to really enjoy them.  The Atrium was good for getting a quick drink and not much else.

 

[Beachiekeen]

Activities:  Our friend did trivia (she was a first time cruiser and won a coveted ship on a stick!).  She and I also went to a disco dance class that was a ton of fun.  (We had meant to go to the Latin dance class the next day but missed it.)  

 

Us at the dance class.

 

 

We did the usual wander around the shops, and hubby and I did the Skyride while in port in Jamaica.  The line wasn’t that long but it takes a while to get through—it was probably an hour from the time we got it line until we were finished. 

 

I really wanted to see the Lip Sync Battle but it was scheduled during sunset the last night and we never miss the last sunset. Also Karaoke in Ocean Plaza was on a night we were really tired so hubby wanted to turn in early but it looked like it was fun and I was sorry to miss it.  

 

I was surprised there wasn’t more going on at the pool each day.  I would look at the Fun Times but there was never anything that looked appealing.  Also the white party (which was Wednesday) and other things that Matt the CD had going on were often in the Atrium area.  On NCL, the white party is on the pool deck and it’s so much fun.  We dressed in white when we went to dinner but ended up being too tired to go.  But if it had been outside at the pool, I might have thought more about it.  I just did not like that noisy Atrium area and I don’t know how there was even any room there to do it.  But maybe it was fine, in fairness, I never saw it.

 

They did have a hairy chest contest, Groove for St. Jude and something called Miss Carnival Vista at the pool.  I have no idea what the latter was though.

 

I know everyone loves Matt the CD but we really didn’t have any interaction with him during the cruise.  He did see me wearing my birthday sash on my birthday and gave me a high five!
 

[Beachiekeen]

Spa/fitness:  Hubby went to the gym every day and said it was fine but it was narrow and cramped to me.  We inquired about day passes at the spa and were told they were $45 but we never got one.  The spa bathrooms had a dry sauna—I went in to use it one day and they had wooden pallets all stacked in there so I couldn’t use it.  I prefer a steam room anyway.

 

Embarkation/Disembarkation:  On embarkation day, members of our FB group reported that there was a delay and that boarding wouldn’t start until noon.  Our time was 11:30 so we went ahead and got there around 11:15 and got in line.  

 

When we made our way to the person checking our boarding pass, they said we could go through the priority line since were there during our assigned time.  So we passed up a lot of people and got seated, then boarding started and we were on the ship and on the Lido deck by 12:15.  We ate and got a drink and then it was time to see our rooms at 1:30 so it was perfect.  Luggage came quickly too.

 

On leaving day, we just waited for our deck to be called and left with no problems, we were to our car and on the road probably by 9:30 am.  We didn’t get FTTF and didn’t miss it at all and saved $90.

 

Pictures:  We never buy the pictures on board and don’t pose for many either.  On elegant nights, since we were all dressed up, we took sunset  pictures on our balcony. 

 

You can view the pictures on the Hub App and also on the TV in your room as well as in the gallery.  Some of ours came out good but we would rather just take our own.
 

[Beachiekeen]

I’ll post some pictures and detail what we did in each port.

 

Jamaica:  We had planned to stay on the ship here.  I had wanted to do the Hilton Rose Hall resort day but it’s expensive so I got out voted.  When the GF decided to join us, since she is a first-time cruiser, we decided at the last minute to just do the Hop on Hop Off bus.  The cost was $25/pp.

 

This was pretty much a waste of time but better than nothing I guess.  It mainly just takes you to shops.  We went to the first shopping stop and on the way got a little bus tour and narrative from the driver.  We went because we thought we would be able to see Rose Hall from the stop but it is a far walk across the street and up a hill.  We had read the story about this house that morning and I would have loved to have toured it.

 

 

So then we got off at Margaritaville.  We were approached for drugs so many times, I stopped counting.  I would say the locals were persistent but not necessarily aggressive.  We went here for some drinks and an appetizer.  The drinks were actually really good, I got a Painkiller with Appleton rum and it was the first time I tried that rum and it was yummy.  The guys got a bucket of Red Stripe.  You also have a nice view of the ship from here and we could see Dr. Cave’s beach.

 

 

 

 

The GF said she wanted to put her feet in the ocean so we walked to Dr. Cave’s and her and I paid the $6 to get in.  This was the most crowded beach ever, if you are looking for a relaxing beach experience, this isn’t it.  It was total chaos.  We took one picture and got out of there.

 

 

 

Next time I would do the Carnival excursion to Secrets (it was sold out by the time we looked) or a tour where you get to see Rose Hall.

 

When we got back to the ship, hubby and I went straight to the Sky Ride since we wanted to do it while the ship was in port to see the views.  I had thought maybe I could take pictures during the ride but you really need to be paying attention the whole time.  So I just snapped a few while we waited in line.

 

 

 

Then it was back to the Havana and the hot tubs, then we went to our balcony for sailaway. We ate at JiJi that night.  (I keep trying to delete this duplicate picture but it's not working, sorry.)

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Grand Cayman:  This was my 50th birthday.  We booked the 2-stop stingray and snorkel tour with Captain Marvin and then had lunch at Guy Harvey’s.  The GF and the BFF had not booked the tour in advance with us but decided to come with us to see if they could get on and if not, would just walk around until we were done and have lunch with us.

 

We got up early and got in line and made the first tender at 7:15 am and were at Captain Marvin’s by probably 8:00 am for our 8:30 tour.

 

When we got there, the GF had forgotten her license but she got in with just her Sign and Sail card.  Crisis averted.

 

Capt. Marvin’s was able to add them to the tour so we all got to go together.  The boat ride was fun and when we got to the stingrays, hubby and I were standing close by and got volunteered to be the first to hold the stingrays and take our pictures.  

 

 

 

 

 

We snorkeled at the Coral Gardens.  I hung back and took pictures and was the last one in and almost immediately had to get out but I saw lots of fish and stingrays.  Hubby was one of the first ones in and while he enjoyed it, he did say it was very crowded with lots of novice snorkelers and it was hard to move around.

 

 

 

 

 

The water was waist deep at the sandbar and 10 ft deep at the coral gardens.  Safety belts were provided.

 

I enjoyed the whole experience and we saw lots of stingrays but for some reason I thought there would be more swarming around but mainly they just swam under us.  Capt. Marvin’s crew took lots of time to explain and educate and were concerned with safety first.  I don’t have anything negative to say about the company at all, we all thought it was very well done.

 

Pictures were $50 for all or $25 each.  We really didn’t feel like messing with it on the boat but I got the business card and will at some point get one just to have a memory of it.

 

After we got back to the port area, we walked over to Guy Harvey’s which is a restaurant recommended on the Grand Cayman board.  I picked it because it was within walking distance, would have a view and came recommended.  It’s about a .30 mi/10-minute walk.  We had a lovely lunch overlooking the water.  It was really nice.  This is not the cheapest place in the world but GC is expensive everywhere anyway and it was worth it for the convenience and the view.

 

 

 

 

We started making our way back to the tender at 1:00.  The last tender is 2:15.  We went to the Havana and stayed there for sailaway, then went to get ready for my birthday dinner at the steakhouse.  

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner, I got my chocolate martini at the Atrium bar while the Electric Violins were playing, then we went to Ocean Plaza to hear Powerline.  It was a fantastic 50th birthday!

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Cozumel:  Our plan for Cozumel was to spend the day at Nachi Cocum, where we had been before.  Now that we were in Cozumel, we could see sunrise from the balcony instead of sunset.  Aft balconies really are great for that.

 

 

We were off the boat at 9:15 and found a taxi for the $17 ride to Nachi Cocum.  We remembered all the same people from 2016—our waiter even remembered my husband.

 

We picked Nachi for several reasons:  it has shade, it limits the number of people allowed per day, and it does not have rubber water toys which means fewer kids.  And when I am looking out at the ocean from my chair, I want to see the ocean, not inflatable rubber toys.

 

While I enjoyed the day, I did notice some changes.  I had read that they had upped the occupancy a bit and they did this by adding a row of chairs under palm trees instead of just the palapas.  So it doesn’t look as nice and spread out.  However, it obviously wasn’t at full occupancy so it didn’t seem any more crowded to me.  A lot of people stay at the pool anyway.

 

They were more aggressive this time with selling excursions and what was annoying was they have added rubber mats and huge inflatables for rent.  And to try and get people to rent them, someone puts out all the inflatables right in front of you and also sits on a jet ski right in front of you.  We actually complained and ask that they remove the huge inflatables because they were blocking our view, but to their credit, they did move them.  

 

It just didn’t make for as nice of an experience as last time.  I get that they are trying to make money but when we tell you that we are just here to relax, that should be the end of it.  And please don’t spoil that beautiful view—next time I will ask for chairs away from the rubber mats. 

 

Also our waiter always took forever so instead of using him, we just went to the bar for every drink ourselves.  (It’s not his fault it took so long, but it was still kind of annoying.) The food was great though and the whole day was peaceful and the weather was beautiful so it was still a great time.

 

After drinking in the Mexican sun all day, we were pretty much done for the day.  Hubby took a nap and I sat on the balcony.  I had a great view of the pier so I could watch for pier runners but I didn’t see any.  I sat out there for sailaway and then hubby and I went to the MDR for dinner.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Final thoughts:  We had a great time on this cruise, it was a blast and made for a great 50th birthday.  We are not typical cruisers in that we don’t do a ton of activities, see shows, and we don’t mind spending extra for the things we want.  We are also not loyal to a line and like trying them all.  While the ship wasn’t our favorite, we easily overlooked the minor annoyances and still had a great time.  A vacation is what you make of it.  
 

The weather was fantastic the entire time.  We often sail during spring break and have done February, March and now April.  April was by far my favorite and crowds were definitely less.

 

Would we sail on the Vista again?  The Havana makes it a hard decision.  We loved it and it made the cruise the great time it was for us.  Overall, we agreed we like the Liberty of the Seas more.  We liked the adults-only area that has a pool, I loved that it has a free steam room, it had a great bar with huge windows overlooking the ocean (although I think I’ve read that might be for suites only now which is a bummer). But assuming nothing has changed, I think LOS has the edge as a ship.  But the Havana and our room was so awesome, I would definitely go on Vista again just for that alone—although it definitely increased the overall cost.  

 

Without the Havana, I am not sure where we would have gone to relax.  The noisy pool deck is fun for like one day for me and then I don’t want to go back unless something fun is going on there.  It’s not a place I want to hang out.  

 

The Serenity was very windy and since it’s the only place for adults to go, I imagine it got extremely crowded.  I did see some shady chairs on a few decks that might have worked but overall, without the Havana, I don’t love the Vista.  But since the Havana is an option, I can’t rule it out either.  

 

Vista does have a great aft pool area and if Carnival would make that adults-only, that would definitely make things better.  An adults-only area with a pool and not just a hot tub is a selling point of a ship for me, something I indicated on the Carnival survey. Technically, even the Havana is not adults only.  (This is why I am not a huge fan of Princess, adults should not have to pay extra to have their own area.)

 

The bottom line is, we had a great cruise and a fabulous time with our friends and in the end that’s all that matters.  The Vista had everything we needed and if you sail on her knowing the pros and cons, you’ll have a great time.  Happy cruising.

 

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by Beachiekeen

[watermelonqueen99]

Great review, thanks for sharing! And happy belated birthday, I would never have guessed you were 50!

 

And just an FYI, the Hilton Rose Hall IS expensive, but it's worth ever single penny. We're going back for the third time this fall. If you're ever in MoBay again, it's definitely worth the splurge.

 

[TNcruising02]

Nice review and pictures!  Thanks for posting such a detailed review.  I am glad you had such a great birthday cruise.  The Havana area sounds wonderful.

[Breezychikin]

Looks like a HOTT time!! 😎

[JaniceB]

Nice review and pictures and belated Happy Birthday!

[Beachiekeen]

On 5/4/2019 at 7:10 PM, watermelonqueen99 said:

Great review, thanks for sharing! And happy belated birthday, I would never have guessed you were 50!

 

And just an FYI, the Hilton Rose Hall IS expensive, but it's worth ever single penny. We're going back for the third time this fall. If you're ever in MoBay again, it's definitely worth the splurge.

 

That's good to know.  We did this itinerary in 2016, didn't get off the ship in Jamaica and missed Grand Cayman.  So now I want to do it one more time and do Rose Hall in Jamaica, Mr. Sanchos in Cozumel and 7-mile beach in Grand Cayman!