Mardi Gras - Havana Review

[soulsistah007]

Just off the 10/1 sailing of the Mardi Gras. I greatly appreciated all past reviews of this ship on this forum as all the insights were incredibly helpful. I thought I would add my perspective on the Havana Staterooms as it was hard for me to find specific reviews on this cabin/experience type so away we go! 

Background info: We booked this during covid and thus, before the ship first set sail. This cruise was to celebrate our 10th anniversary so we wanted something other than our typical oceanview room. Since we would not be bringing our kids, we figured this was a great opportunity to go for a Havana. While we could only rely on the deck plan instead of pics and videos, knowing that it was different than the Vista class, I had certain criteria I knew I wanted from our cabin selection. I wanted minimal foot traffic so opted to not be on the side of the bar and pool, and wanted to be as close to mid ship as possible.

Room: We had room 8284. Plenty of storage space, bed was comfy, bathroom was tiny, shower pressure and temperature was fine. The robes were comfy! 

Patio: Patio furniture was good and is a decent sized space. I spent lots of time out here relaxing, reading, and just simply watching the ocean and enjoying nature. It was so peaceful! Our neighbors were great, we barely saw either of them, and if we did, we had quick pleasant conversations. Everyone on our side was respectful of the space in that no one was overly loud. As for foot traffic, there was barely anyone that walked by and if they did, they didn’t linger. I found that most people barely used the deck chairs outside of the patio. The only time there were lots of people out and by lots, I’m talking no more than 10, was during sail away. It would have been nice to have lights on the porch for night time. There are some underneath the patio chairs in the open area but none on your actual porch.

Privacy: While I’ve read that privacy is a concern for some with Havana’s, it was never an issue for me. I don’t and wouldn’t do anything private out in the open to begin with. The windows are not tinted and if you are standing outside, you can see into the room, not clearly but you can still see in (depending on the glare from the sun). Simply close the curtains when you want and you’re fine. When I was standing outside, I could see into the balconies above so nothing is ever truly private.

Havana Bar & Pool: The bar itself was good. The staff do support both the indoor and outdoor bar but service was never slow. The pool is small but nice to take a quick dip in. I did hear there were some folks that were hogging the pool but I never saw it. When the events were running in the Havana bar, they weren’t checking wristbands so anyone could have walked to the outdoor area but I didn’t see it. If people were outside, they were staying in Havana’s as well as we saw them regularly out there. We only used wristbands the first night.

Location: Being on deck 8 was perfect! It was super close to everything and a quick walk across all the great things deck 8 offers or down to the lower decks. 

Overall, Mardi Gras is a great ship! Lots to see, lots to do, and lots to eat! We loved the Havana as it was exactly what we wanted. We would book again if the price was right. We never had a price drop but over the 18 months from when we first booked, prices increased by at least $600. Hope this helps and happy to answer any questions. 

[csm5986142]

1 hour ago, soulsistah007 said:

Mardi Gras is a great ship! Lots to see, lots to do, and lots to eat! We loved the Havana as it was exactly what we wanted. We would book again if the price was right.

 

Great review, thank you.  I totally agree with you - we absolutely loved our Havana Cabana on Mardi Gras during spring break.  But also like you, we booked at the height of the pandemic and got an incredible deal.  The prices now seem so high, I'm not sure we'll do it again.  

[pirate4me2]

Thanks for the review! We debated on a Havana cabin for our upcoming sailing, but decided to just go with an aft balcony since we are splurging on a Excel cabin for our Celebration cruise in March. I'm glad to hear you say Mardi Gras is a great ship....I am getting excited!!!!