After reading some of the other posts regarding the Holiday, I am not sure that we were all on the same ship. My husband and I and our family (10 of us in all) including our 1 year old grandson, had a great time. We found it very organized during parking, unloading luggage, sign-in, and debarkation. Immediately upon boarding, we went to the Lido deck and enjoyed lunch and then went to our staterooms. No delays or problems. Luggage was delivered within an hour.
We enjoyed the shows and the meals. We had wonderful waiters in the Seven Seas restaurant and our room stewards were great. The maite' d did come by our table each night and spoke to us and made sure we were having fun and that everything was good. Everyone we encountered was very friendly and helpful. I am not usually one that sleeps well away from home, but I found that I was very comfortable and slept very well each night. They provided a crib for our grandson, and a roll out for our daughter that shared our cabin with us.
One of the best things about this cruise was the cruise director, Steve Cassell, and the social hosts, Byron and Matt as well as Jaque' the assistant cruise director ( he is South African, very cute, and has a very sexy accent). They made all activities fun and made everyone feel like participating. They were very funny and had great personalities. Steve Cassell, the CD, is an exceptionally talented man. He played the fiddle ( during the country show), played the violin (during the guest talent show) and even juggled one evening during the variety show. He is also very very funny and is suited perfectly for this job. He is extremely knowledgeable about the ports and the excursions.
We had good encounters with the pursers staff. They were very helpful with booking an excursion and even gave information about an activity that was not related to what they offered.
My father-in-law is a very picky eater and managed to find something that he would eat at each meal - whether it was pizza or a hamburger we managed to keep him from starving. I do agree with the earlier comment about the soft drinks. Our family doesn't drink alcohol, but we do like soft drinks. It would be very nice if you didn't have to pay so much for them. $1.75 is a bit much for a Diet Coke, but $2.25 is crazy for a bottle of water. However, there is so much included in the price of your cruise, that I guess they have to make their money back on the extras. I will say that the lemonade on the Lido Deck is really good. They just need to add a little caffeine.
As far as weather is concerned, we had great weather for the whole trip. It was a bit chilly leaving Mobile, but we left snow back home, so it wasn't too bad. By 10:00 pm the first night, the temperature had warmed up to around 65 degrees. The rest of the week was like summer around 85 degrees. We had beautiful weather in Progresso and in Cozumel. The night sailing into Cozumel was a bit rough, but not enough to make you sick. Cozumel is a beautiful tourist town. However, Progresso is extremely poor and in some places dirty. But it was extremely interesting. We took the Flamingo Tour that was offered at the place where the shuttle bus stops. We saw some of the Mayan Ruins, flamingos, and a lot of the town. Our little tour guide, Jasmine, was a doll and was very interesting. We enjoyed it and learned a lot.
We must have gotten lucky on Cozumel day because we were docked at the pier. No tenders needed. We just walked down the pier and into town and found us a taxi to take us to Paradise Beach. It was beautiful. HOT but beautiful. But not as beautiful as Half Moon Cay. My husband and I visited Half Moon Cay last year and it is the most beautiful place I have ever been. If you are looking for another place to go, I strongly suggest Half Moon Cay.
The only trouble we had was on the last day when getting back to Mobile. As per the other posting, we were delayed by fog. We were supposed to dock at 8:00 am but due to extremely thick fog weren't able to until around 10:00 am. This just allowed us a little more time to eat a leisurely breakfast and finish gathering the rest of our things. We were finally able to get headed back around 12:40 pm. Customs was not a big deal. Our luggage was in the zone area and we just had to pick it up and get in line for customs. We waited in the loading area with our bags while other members of our party went to get the vehicles and we were able to load without getting drenched. It was pouring at that point.
All in all, we had a great time. My husband and I were the only past cruisers in our party, but the rest of the gang had a ball. There is a lot of stuff to keep the kids interested. However, the kids that were with us were 17, 19, 20, 21, and 24, and a 1 year old who did great. If they did get tired or a bit bored, they just took a nap. Trust me, you will need a nap because you will get very tired. Just keep up with your Carnival Capers (available at the Pursers desk if you lose it) and you will know everything that is going on and that is a lot of stuff. Dance classes, Bingo, shows, parties, karaoke, internet cafe, library ( we found this a good place to play cards), and all kinds of entertainment in the different lounges. The food is great. The towel animals are always fun. Just remember to take a watch. There are no clocks throughout the ship and we found ourselves asking about the time quite often.
Just keep in mind, everyone has a bad day now and then, and you cannot control the weather (especially in winter). We had a ball and would definitely cruise on this ship again. As far as the island shopping, good luck. It is hit or miss. You won't really know if you got a good deal until you see your purchase elsewhere. But don't settle on the first price. They will come down. The places away from the pier are usually more willing to haggle.
Oh yeah, about the intercom, on our last cruise ( on the Fantasy) the announcements would come into the staterooms and all public areas. But I found it a bit difficult to hear on the Holiday sometimes. I found myself opening the door to my stateroom at times to be able to hear clearly. But I will say that I couldn't understand the captain at all, regardless of how loud it was. He has a very thick accent.