Cruise Spotlight
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Carnival Horizon vs Carnival Spirit
The Carnival Horizon was built in 2018. It's 17 years newer than the Spirit, which was built in 2001 and renovated in 2025.
Comparison Overview
- Ship Size
- Number of Passengers
- Food and Restaurants
- Bars and Drinks
- Pools and Hot Tubs
- Ship Features and Activities
- Cruise Costs
- Onboard Costs
- See Our Detailed Cruise Blog
Ship Size
The Horizon is considered a medium size ship. Coming in at 1,055 feet long and 122 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 2.9 football fields, as wide as 2.3 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 15-story building. Compared to the Carnival Spirit, the Horizon is 51% larger in terms of overall tons.
Number of Passengers
Carnival Horizon holds 86% more passengers than the Spirit based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you look at the "Space Ratio," or the total tonnage of a ship compared to the number of passengers, the Horizon has less space per person compared to the Spirit.
| Carnival Horizon | Carnival Spirit | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Vista | Spirit |
| Gross Tonnage | 133,596 | 88,500 |
| Length | 1,055 | 963 |
| Beam/Width | 122 | 106 |
| Passenger Decks | 15 | 12 |
| Passengers (double occupancy) | 3,960 | 2,124 |
| Crew | 1,450 | 930 |
| Passenger to Crew Ratio | 2.7 | 2.3 |
| Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 34 | 42 |
Food and Restaurants
Food is a big part of any cruise, and the ship you choose can make a huge difference in your food experience.
The Horizon has twenty different dining options like Captain's Pasta Bar, Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse, and Guy's Burger Joint. Of those options, sixteen are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other nine options have an additional fee.
The Spirit has eight fewer dining venues. Some of its popular venues are The Chef's Table, Bonsai Sushi, and Pizza Pirate. twelve of these restaurants are complementary and the other five have an additional fee.
If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Horizon might be a better choice. It has 67% more dining options than the Spirit.
Both ships have a similar number of paid versus included dining options.
Restaurants on Carnival Horizon & Spirit
Bars and Drinks
The Carnival Horizon has 4 more bars than the Carnival Spirit.
In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. Both ships serve the Pepsi family of products. That means Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Starry, Mug Root Beer, and Mountain Dew, although the selection can vary by ship.
You can check out recent the bar menus for the Horizon and the Spirit below.
Pools and Hot Tubs
Nothing beats relaxing by a pool with a nice drink in hand as you feel the fresh sea breeze pass by you. The Carnival Horizon has a total of 3 pools and 6 hot tubs. 1 of the pools and 2 of the hot tubs are exclusive access, which means there's either an extra charge to access them or you need to book a certain class of cabin to have access to them.
The Carnival Spirit has the same number of pools as the Horizon and fewer hot tubs. There are fewer exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Spirit. If you like ships without extra charges or exclusive areas, this might be a better choice since everyone will have access to these areas.
Looking to get away from the kids onboard? Try relaxing in the Serenity Adult-only area, for guests 21 and older only. Only the Spirit has an adult-only pool in its Serenity Area (it’s a full-depth pool). The Serenity Area on both ships is unenclosed and open to the elements. The Horizon’s adult-only area is in the front, while the Spirit’s is in the back. Typically, the back of the ship has less wind and better views than the front of the ship.
| Carnival Horizon | Carnival Spirit | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Pools | 3 | 3 |
| Pools - General Access | 2 | 2 |
| Pools - Adults Only | 0 | 1 |
| Pools - Exclusive | 1 | 0 |
| Total Hot Tubs | 6 | 2 |
| Hot Tubs - General Access | 2 | 1 |
| Hot Tubs - Adults Only | 2 | 1 |
| Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 2 | 0 |
Cruise Coloring and Activity Books for Kids
Get your kids ready for their cruise or keep them entertained while on board with our custom made coloring and activity books. These are the Carnival editions with featuring places Pizza Pirate and mini-golf.
Cruise Ship Coloring Book for Kids 3-5 - Carnival Edition
Let's Get Cruising Activity Book for Kids 6-8 - Carnival Edition
Ship Features and Activities
Both ships have lots of activities to keep you busy throughout your cruise. Below you'll see a list of some of the major features on these ships. You might up paying more while on board the Horizon. Only 62% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Spirit, 71% of the activities are included at no additional cost.
| Carnival Horizon | Carnival Spirit | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Only Relaxation Area | ✓ | ✓ |
| Arcade | ✓ | ✓ |
| Basketball | ✓ | ✓ |
| Brewery Tour | ✓ | ✗ |
| Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
| Comedy Club | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dr Seuss Breakfast | ✓ | ✓ |
| Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
| IMAX Theater | ✓ | ✗ |
| Jogging Track | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mini golf | ✓ | ✓ |
| Outdoor gym | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pool-side Movies | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ropes course | ✓ | ✗ |
| Shows - musical review | ✓ | ✓ |
| Skyride | ✓ | ✗ |
| Spa | ✓ | ✓ |
| Splash park | ✓ | ✓ |
| Thermal Suites | ✓ | ✗ |
| Thrill Theater | ✓ | ✗ |
| Water slides | ✓ | ✓ |
| Learn more | Learn more |
Cruise Costs
Carnival is a mainstream cruise line. Mainstream cruise lines cater to a variety of guests, hoping to provide something for everyone. These typically cost about $100 - $350 per person per day.
Cruise pricing is dynamic and varies for each specific sailing based on factors such as departure point, ports of call, and time of year. Typically newer ships cost more, so a cruise on Carnival Horizon will likely be more expensive than on Carnival Spirit.
The cost will also vary depending on the type of cabin you book. You can see the differences between the Carnival cabins and how to choose the best one here:
Onboard Costs
Another way to gauge the cost of a cruise is to consider how much you'll spend on board. Even though a lot is included in the base cruise fare, you may still spend money on things like spa treatments, specialty dining, drinks, and excursions. In addition, guests can also have to pay for things like gratuities and tips.
Typically guests can expect to spend about 25 - 40% of the cost of the cruise on onboard expenses. In other words, if the cruise fare is $1,000 per person, you might spend between $250 and $400 on extra expenses.
The table below will help you understand what you might spend onboard a Carnival ship.
| Carnival | |
|---|---|
| Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day) | $16.00 |
| Tip added to drinks & services | 18% |
| Soda Price | $3.00 |
| Domestic Beer Price | $8.75 See drink menus |
| Drink Package Price | $83 - $88 Learn more |
| Internet Plan | $18.70 to $23.80 per device per day |
| *Daily gratuities for a standard cabin. Suites or specialty rooms may have higher rates. | |
We sailed aboard the Carnival Horizon
Follow along on our sailing on the Carnival Horizon. We take you through every aspect of our sailing, from getting to the port to debarking the ship. See the schedule of events, menus, what excursions we did, and what we really thought about the ship.
Carnival Horizon - Cruise Blog - Day 1 - Miami
Carnival Horizon - Cruise Blog - Day 2 - Sea Day
Carnival Horizon - Cruise Blog - Day 3 - Amber Cove
Carnival Horizon - Cruise Blog - Day 4 - Grand Turk
Carnival Horizon - Cruise Blog - Day 5 - Sea Day
Carnival Horizon - Cruise Blog - Day 6 - Nassau
5 Hits & Misses of the Carnival Horizon
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