Mardi Gras Havana cabin over Christmas

[ohiopednurse]

Looking at booking a cruise on the Mardi Gras, anticipating the ship being very crowded.  With that being said there is an approx $1200 difference between a standard balcony and Havana cabana, is it worth the extra $$ to have a separate pool area and more private lounge chairs and less little kids (have to be over 12).  Also do all the exterior Havana cabins have the swing chairs? I have never cruised over a holiday week.  Thanks!

[jimbo5544]

46 minutes ago, ohiopednurse said:

Looking at booking a cruise on the Mardi Gras, anticipating the ship being very crowded.  With that being said there is an approx $1200 difference between a standard balcony and Havana cabana, is it worth the extra $$ to have a separate pool area and more private lounge chairs and less little kids (have to be over 12).  Also do all the exterior Havana cabins have the swing chairs? I have never cruised over a holiday week.  Thanks!

I am a def big fan of Havana class rooms and have stayed in them on all Vista class ships and on the Mardi Gras.  While the Vista class (Vista, Horizon and Panorama) are by far the best, the Mardi Gras (and Celebration) are def worth the price.  They will have much less traffic, exclusive use of the pool (not huge, but was never crowded) and there is a swing.  My advice is do it.

[kabux]

We had a Havana Cabana on Mardi Gras last year - we were definitely underwhelmed by the extras that we were allowed.  The pool area is small, pool is small, and the area is on the side of the ship, so at some point during the day, it is in the shade.  The balcony is obviously not private, which we were well aware of but it also does not look out over the ocean, you have to step out into the walkway to do that.  It was very nice that we did not have to get an elevator to get to our room as it was on the same floor as most of the activities.

 

We have not tried the Havana area on Vista/Horizon.  We did not think it was worth the extra money on Mardi Gras.

[csm5986142]

I'm the minority here who absolutely loved our Havana Cabana on Mardi Gras.  Our sailing was over capacity at spring break and I loved the fact that we always had the Havana deck area as an option for a quiet spot with no kids. 

I'm not a pool/hot tub person so I don't care about the smaller pool/no hot tub (in fact I prefer it as it kept the Havana area deck so calm and quiet).  Yes, the pool is smaller but when people did use it, they pretty much had it to themselves (I never saw more than 1 family at a time using it and that was rare). The loungers were never more than 50% full.    

Although there is a walkway in front of your cabana balcony, we only saw someone walk by it once or twice the entire cruise.  Yes, all of the Havana Cabanas had the swing chair (loved it for relaxing and reading).

We had 3 family members in the Havana Cabana and 2 in an interior across the hall, and had more than enough space on our balcony area (and the area in front of it which also has lounge chairs) for all of us to hang out.

Over Christmas, I would definitely pay $1,200 for Havana Cabana.  

[crewsweeper]

1 hour ago, kabux said:

We had a Havana Cabana on Mardi Gras last year - we were definitely underwhelmed by the extras that we were allowed.  The pool area is small, pool is small, and the area is on the side of the ship, so at some point during the day, it is in the shade.  The balcony is obviously not private, which we were well aware of but it also does not look out over the ocean, you have to step out into the walkway to do that.  It was very nice that we did not have to get an elevator to get to our room as it was on the same floor as most of the activities.

 

We have not tried the Havana area on Vista/Horizon.  We did not think it was worth the extra money on Mardi Gras.

The Havana decks on the Vista and Horizon and panorama are different from the Mardi Gras. The reserved area has a larger pool better spa and more seating.  While you still have to step out to the walkway to look over the ocean from the Lanai cabins patio, your only traffic is your neighbors with cabins more toward bow than yours.  There are Havana cabins one deck up aft as well. Great choice if traveling over holidays.

 

 

 

   

[Drazil65]

We have a Havana Cabana cabin booked for the week before Christmas this year and we are pretty sure we will enjoy it.  We dont care about the pool thing as we rarely use them (if ever) on any ship and if we do its to sit on the side with feet in water.  We will use the bar opportunity in the Havana area for sure and also just enjoy less people period. 

 

We are balcony/suite people but we are ok with having to "step down" to see the ocean directly below (I have read many reviews and seen the pix (and walked past some of the cabana cabins) and you can see out to ocean with no problem).  We love the MG and were on it last Christmas in a suite, we were able to see the Havana area as we met a couple at one of the bars that had a cabin and showed us around a bit and it looked wonderful.  They said no issues with people walking past and if there were it was someone that had cabins in the area but never a big deal. 

 

They always had loungers available and we sat at the bar outside in the Havana area for a while with them (they asked the bar server if we could sit for a drink and they said yes as long as we were with them) and it was quite nice to basically have it to ourselves, great bar server (there were 2 servers working the inside and outside but inside was not crowded at time).   

 

We were lucky to have booked this cabin 1.5 yrs ago when we had some great offers coming through so I am not sure what the prices are now but they are probably in the same category as what we would spend for a balcony or suite I imagine.  We love that it gives us another option on the bigger ships for a cabin and cant wait to experience it for ourselves.  

[ohiopednurse]

Thanks everyone for your replies 🙂  I think you convinced me!!!

[Illbcruzn4life]

20 hours ago, csm5986142 said:

I'm the minority here who absolutely loved our Havana Cabana on Mardi Gras.  Our sailing was over capacity at spring break and I loved the fact that we always had the Havana deck area as an option for a quiet spot with no kids. 

I'm not a pool/hot tub person so I don't care about the smaller pool/no hot tub (in fact I prefer it as it kept the Havana area deck so calm and quiet).  Yes, the pool is smaller but when people did use it, they pretty much had it to themselves (I never saw more than 1 family at a time using it and that was rare). The loungers were never more than 50% full.    

Although there is a walkway in front of your cabana balcony, we only saw someone walk by it once or twice the entire cruise.  Yes, all of the Havana Cabanas had the swing chair (loved it for relaxing and reading).

We had 3 family members in the Havana Cabana and 2 in an interior across the hall, and had more than enough space on our balcony area (and the area in front of it which also has lounge chairs) for all of us to hang out.

Over Christmas, I would definitely pay $1,200 for Havana Cabana.  

 

On 6/14/2023 at 10:54 AM, ohiopednurse said:

Looking at booking a cruise on the Mardi Gras, anticipating the ship being very crowded.  With that being said there is an approx $1200 difference between a standard balcony and Havana cabana, is it worth the extra $$ to have a separate pool area and more private lounge chairs and less little kids (have to be over 12).  Also do all the exterior Havana cabins have the swing chairs? I have never cruised over a holiday week.  Thanks!

I don't think it’s worth it. If it’s a Vista class ship yes.

 

on sea days we couldn’t find a chair so we had to go with plan B and go elsewhere. It’s underwhelming compared to Vista class ships.