Horizon vs. Century--comparison?

[Joby]

Hello, could anyone with prior experience on both ships compare the Horizon to the Century?

 

We will be on the Horizon's 10 night Western Caribbean in March. We sailed on the Century's 7 night Eastern Caribbean in October. We loved the Century! It was our 1st cruise and a great way to begin.

 

We have read the CC's reviews on the Horizon, but wondered if anybody with experience on both ships would compare the good and not so good qualities side by side.

[greydog]

We're doing 3d Century in 3 weeks, third Horizon in 6 months. Have been on M-class a couple times too. We prefer the C-class overall for the mix of size and service (and value). 'Modern' M-class seem to have less ambiance, more impersonal, institutional but win big in the fancy public areas, verandas, etc. The staff on Horizon/Century seem more experienced, settled-in.

 

If you've been on the new mega-ships with 3-level dining rooms, specialty restaurants, etc. then the Horizon will seem lacking feature-wise (e.g. 1-level main dining room, no T-pool). But Horizon has a low-key relaxing ambiance with great service.

 

For Caribbean, you may not lose much with few verandas on Century/Horizon but I would recommend M-class balcony for Alaska (we've had great FV's cat. twice for AK).

 

ONLY SOLUTION - TRY THEM ALL SEVERAL TIMES - THAT'S OUR PLAN.

[Bholling]

DH & I have sailed both ships (Horizon on a 9-nt Caribbean-Bermuda in 2001, and Century on a 7-nt Western Caribbean in 2003)- and while we loved both, and would be happy with either, I think Century takes the overall prize. A few reasons I say that (keeping in mind that either or both ships may have had updates since I sailed...)...

 

1) Century has a much nicer dining room - brighter, higher ceilings, more elegant, more comfortable. The two-story feature is very nice, as is the rich decor.

 

2) Nicer shops, and it seems like, more of them - the atrium area on Century is much more airy and modern, more of a "heart of the ship" than the shopping area on Horizon.

 

3) It seems like I recall a newer, better-equipped exercise room on Century - but I could be mixing up my ships here...having been on a total of 8 different ones...and Horizon may have been updated since we sailed her in 2001.

 

4) The "front desk" (purser, short tours) area on Century seemed a lot larger, and better laid out than Horizon.

 

5) Cabins layouts were fairly similar - we were in a lower outside cabins on each, but Century had beautiful wood paneling & features, while I recall Horizon was more of an off-white formica decor. (Again, may have been updated.)

 

We didn't do a lot in terms of clubs & shows, so I don't have much to compare on those topics. BOTTOM LINE - both ships are nice, and I would make my final decision based on price and itinerary. Hope this helps!

 

We'll be back on the Century (this time in CC!) on Janaury 8.......counting the days! Happy sails!

[Joby]

Just for reference--I got this 10 day Horizon Western Caribbean (Cayman, Panama, Costa Rica, Roatan and Cozumel) for $636 total (inc. all taxes and charges) each for a cat. 5 ocean view handicapped room.

 

We found the Century to be perfect for us. Although, it was our 1st ever cruise and we have never been on the mega-liners or other ships to compare to.

 

We thought the food and service on Century were wonderful! Both of which are very important to us. The public spaces and our handicapped room fine. We thought it was clean and big enough for us to roam the ship.

 

Just looking for some opinions on comparisons of the 2 different ships.

[fireguy091]

A friend just got back from the Horizon and after being on the Serenade with us a yr. ago he said never an old ship again. He also wasn't impressed with the overall service or food. I say, oh well, I'm still going on the Galaxy in March...:)