Cruise Line: Celebrity
Sailing Date: November 10th, 2002

The port: Embarkation and debarkation from Tampa is the easiest that I've experienced. Absolutely a breeze. Being a Captain's Club member helps (second group to debark).

The ship: The Horizon is second-class when compared to the Mercury or Century, and not even in the running for the super-liners (of course). From a maintenance perspective, rust bubbles are evident under the paint, which just feels second-class. It's a small boat with no aqua-spa compared to Celebrity's other ships (come on, a jacuzzi ain't a thallasotherapy pool, it's a jacuzzi).

Service: In a word: bad. Possibly the worst haircut I've ever received (how hard is a crew cut?) We were shoved out of line when on the tenders by crew who shouted "we're late for work" and cut in line. We had to compete with crew members (specifically the band) for seats at the restaurant, and when they left they actually put their trash on our table (half-eaten ice-cream cones). I'm not used to cleaning up after the crew ... maybe I'm old-fashioned.

I have always maintained that Celebrity was the best, but I was embarrassed to have invited 8 friends on this cruise ... all had horror stories to tell about the rude crew.

Bars and restaurants were hard to find and late in opening, so when they would finally open there would be a line reaching around the deck.

One exception: The martini bar. Excellent service, excellent drinks.

Summary: I've always been pleased with Celebrity, but I was disappointed (dumbfounded, perhaps) with every interaction that we had with the Horizon crew (with the exception of the Martini Bar, and no, I'm not a drunk).

Celebrity is great ... stick with the Mercury, the Century, or the Millennium (if you're a fan of the super-ships).