7 Day Mexican Riviera on Carnival Panorama. Stateroom 9216. Round Trip from the Port of Long Beach. September 18 – 25, 2021

Finally, back where we belong after a very rough year and a half of no cruising. As you’ve read, we have done this itinerary several times, so this post is more about the ship and the experience than about the ports. Due to the pandemic, we did not book any excursions or wander off the ship too much.

We’ve done four Carnival Cruises in the past:
Our Honeymoon cruise on Jubilee
Our first cruise to the Caribbean
Our first cruise to Europe (Mediterranean)
Family Vacation to Catalina and Ensenada

We’ve always had a great time but once we got hooked on Princess, we really didn’t look towards any other cruise line. Until now.

Due to the relocation of the Ruby Princess, our Sept 18, 2021 cruise got canceled. Since I already had the time off work, we scrambled to find a replacement.

Since we live in Long Beach, when the Carnival Panorama made its return to sailing, it made all the local news channels. Even Doug Parker from Cruise Radio and Sheri from Cruise Tips TV were there. It was doing the same 7 day itinerary and offered one on Sept 18th. PERFECT and BOOKED!

We made our way to the ship and parked at the cruise terminal parking structure. We arrived about 10:30 as some passengers were still debarking the ship. The staff let us in where we had to show our vaccination cards along with a negative COVID test done two days prior. The COVID test was super easy. Did the Rapid Antigen test at a CVS nearby. The test was self-administered under the watchful eye of the technician. We did the test at 4:00 PM and had the results by 5:00 PM. Negative!!!!

We had heard that all passengers over 12 years old were vaxed and everyone had to show a negative test. Everyone seemed to be following the masking guidelines. A little after 12:00, they started the boarding process. The anticipation was growing.

Walking towards the ship on the gangway was just an incredible feeling. Seeing the crew cheering us as we stepped aboard was phenomenal. One of the first things you notice is how awesome this ship is. As I recall, this ship was only in operation for three months when the pandemic hit, so it was like being on a brand new ship!

The Atrium is great! The fluted video screen could keep you mesmerized for hours but too much to do.

After watching Doug Parker’s video on the ship, I was looking forward to the elevators. Yes, I said elevators. You see, on the newer Vista class ships, you select the deck you want from outside the elevator. There are several touch panels that display each deck. You select where you want to go. Each elevator is designated by a letter, so… You want to go to the Lido Deck, simply press Deck 10 Lido and it will tell you which elevator to go to. The letter above each elevator will light up to help you locate which one. Once you board the elevator, your deck is preselected.

What’s really nice, in regards to COVID, if multiple parties all want to go to the Lido Deck, the system will send more elevators, so you are all not trying to cram into one. Just wait and yours will be there soon.

We were able to drop off our carry-on’s before the 1:30 PM designated time. Here is a shot of our stateroom. Spacious and very comfortable.

We headed up to the buffet. This ship, and I assume the other Vista class ships were outfitted with, what I called, Hand Spa’s. Basically, you place each hand into a cylinder and it start spinning with a warm soap solution for 12 seconds. You dry your hands and you are all sanitized and ready to eat. I wanted to bring one of these home!

Due to the reduced capacity, I believe 60%, not all serving stations were being utilized, but it was all self-service (except for the bacon. Rationed and every other day…) Good selection and we found plenty.

The food choices on the Panorama were absolutely phenomenal. We never set foot in the Main Dining Room (MDR). we did, however, take a look at each of the two MDR’s and found them well designed. If it were a longer itinerary, I’m sure we would have tried them.

You have Blue Iguana Café, Guy’s Burger Joint and Guy’s Pig and Anchor. Blue Iguana and Guy’s Burger is included with the base fare. Pig and Anchor is ala carte at dinner time but they do offer an awesome buffet for lunch at no additional cost. Pulled Pork, Chicken, Baked Beans, etc.

Also available for lunch at no extra cost were selections from Cucina Del Capitano and Mongolian Stir-Fry at Ji Ji Asian Kitchen. I did have Pasta for lunch one day and I was impressed.

One of our favorite hangouts was the Havana Bar. Very nicely decorated and generally quiet during the day. They have karaoke, then a really talented Latin Band in the evening.

If you happen to follow Sheri from Cruise Tips TV, you know that her husband and son always travel together but are usually in the background. In fact, you usually see them in her vlogs and photos from their backsides. They like to keep a low profile and don’t use their names. I can respect that. Sheri is Cruise Tips TV!

So I was waiting for my wife, Suzi, near the Blue Iguana Café and I saw a family of three from the backside and I knew it had to be them. I texted Sheri and sure enough. it WAS them. I think it was day 5 while Suzi and I were having a Pina Colada in the Ocean Plaza that I saw them again, so we said hello and introduced ourselves. She called me one of the OG’s of her YouTube channel. It was nice to meet Mr. Cruise Tips and their son (who shall remain nameless out of respect).

As I said at the top of the article, we did not plan any excursions due to the pandemic. The ship did suffer from a propulsion issue that kept us from attaining top speed, so the itinerary was reversed. Instead of Cabo, Mazatlán, then Puerto Vallarta, we did PV first and Cabo last.

It was very hot and humid in all three ports. In PV, we ventured all the way across the street the PV Shopping Mall. At the entrance, you had to have your temperature taken and had to sanitize your hands. As we were sailing out, we did catch a bit of a rainbow.

In Mazatlán, we took the tram to the port entrance and ventured out for a bit of a walk. The city painted a blue line that you could follow into the downtown area. We never made it all the way due to the heat. We felt safe as there were police or security personnel on every corner. Here we are heading out of the port.

As for Cabo, short stay and didn’t want to hassle with the tender, so stayed on board. Due to my work and scheduled vacation days, we knew we were coming back at the end of October, so didn’t miss anything.

All in all, great trip. Would highly recommend Carnival Panorama to anyone and will definitely sail on her again. The food was great. The comedy in the Punchliner was great. It was just a wonderful cruise and exceeded all expectations.