Traveler1977

Just to let you know, Brightline stops in downtown Miami, it does not take you directly to PortMiami. You’ll still transportation to get to the port. It’s not far, just a mile or two. 

In your rush to select the most desirable excursions first, be aware of the fact that some excursions (including the premium ones) are often offered at multiple times.  Make sure you select the time slot you want. 
 

I made this mistake. Didn’t realize it until after I had purchased all of my excursions and was reviewing my selections. 

OneSixtyToOne & Peregrina651, 

Thank you for your responses. 

On 3/15/2024 at 5:26 PM, OneSixtyToOne said:

Inside is self guided via the LSG phone app. Since COVID the church no longer hands out headphones or listening devices so be sure to bring something compatible to listen with your phone.
 

BTW you can download the LSG app anytime and listen to the tour. It may be better to do that ahead of time to be aware of what you are seeing.

The LSG app sounds like a great suggestion, but I can’t seem to find it in my phone’s App Store. Can you provide a little more information on the name of the app?

I’ve done a Virgin cruise out of Miami to the Caribbean and found that Virgin definitely caters to a younger “hipster” crowd. Their demographic target group for other destinations might be different. 
 

I will say that their restaurant venues were creative and interesting and their food was excellent.
 

The swimming pool area almost seems like it was an afterthought, in my opinion it’s very poorly designed. Even the common areas on the ship were choppy and not conducive for relaxing. The cabin layouts are unconventional. The balconies include a hammock to sit on; while it was a fun novelty, they weren’t very comfortable to sit on for any length of time. 
 

There is probably a market for their brand, but it doesn’t include me, as I don’t plan on cruising with them again. 

A couple of disappointing last minute updates. Boarding Freedom tomorrow. Hoping the decorations are up. Whether they’re up or not won’t matter, we are going to have a great time on our cruise either way.  

Thanks for all the feedback. 

Thanks for the responses. Something to look forward to. 

Now that Thanksgiving is behind us, does anyone know when Royal Caribbean decorates its ships for the Christmas holiday season? It would be nice to see festive decorations on Freedom for my upcoming cruise. 

I’ve been quietly following the thread. Glad for the happy ending. Enjoy the cruise. 

8 hours ago, DeerJod said:

Decided no Blantons for me. 

 

 

Getting two JD’s single malt, not a bad decision. I’ve enjoyed your review and photos. Thanks. 

6 hours ago, DeerJod said:

 

 

@DeerJod You’ve made a cruise that I was already excited about seem even better. A Jack Daniel’s single malt I’ve never seen before (and not available in local liquor stores) and Blanton’s both available on the ship makes it an even better cruise. I’m also looking forward to CocoCay and having some relaxing time on the ship. 

We’ll be on the Freedom very soon. Enjoying your review, including the great photos. Any tips or recommendations you can give regarding the ship or the cruise would be appreciated. As bourbon fans, we are also drinking up your comments on that fine adult beverage.  

I had two cruises on hold with a 40% discount on the total cruise just before the Black Friday sale prices were released. The BF sale is a 75% discount on the second person and a bonus savings. The pre Black Friday prices were considerably better for both cruises. Booked both cruises at the prices I had on hold. As others have said, it’s a shell game. 

Vancouver, plenty of great hotels and restaurants nearby and a lot to do in the area. 

In the past, being a Florida resident has gotten me discounts on Caribbean cruises out of PortMiami. Haven’t found these same discounts being applied recently. I suspect most of these discounts are only available when bookings are slow to encourage locals to sail at a discounted price. With bookings up, I’m not sure we’ll be seeing these discounts much in the near future. 

Amsterdam is a very walkable city.  Easy to navigate but as others have said, watch out for bikes. They come from every direction without any warning. I have stayed at the Movenpick hotel and enjoyed it very much. 
 

My biggest tip for Amsterdam is to plan ahead what museums (including the Anne Frank House) you want to visit. Make reservations and purchase your tickets well in advance of your trip. You can do this online. They often sell out early or you could wait in long lines just to purchase your entrance tickets.  Some of the museums even have discount bundle packages.  Enjoy your trip. 

14 minutes ago, Mich3554 said:

I think my only gripe about having the door and window combo was at the end of the WC we were in the Arctic where we had 24 hours of light.  Having light peek through the cracks in 2 sets of drapes was just a little annoying at 1 am in the morning.  Your brain sees ‘light, no more sleep!’ And your body says ‘nope, only been asleep 2 hours, that’s not gonna do it’.  

In a pinch to keep drapes tightly sealed so cracks of light don’t peek through, we use pant hangers that have the two clips on them. Overlap the two sides of the drapes together and clip them. The hangers are usually readily available in the closets. We also do this in hotel rooms. Works great. 

Again, thank you to those who provided feedback on the different doors. 

Thanks for your comments on the door types. 

Since the topic is being discussed, which type of door is preferable, sliders or conventional doors?  Any downside/upside to one type or the other?

We have been to almost every major cruise line’s private island or resort in the Caribbean. Coco Cay is our favorite; great location, beautiful beaches, the ocean is refreshing, it’s a great place to relax. We never do anything other than use the free lounge chairs and umbrellas. We always have a great time. 

Two weeks ago we disembarked a ship in Vancouver. It was a different cruise line but that shouldn’t matter. There were two ships in port at the time and we thought that might be a problem, it wasn’t. We did self-disembarkation and it could not have gone smoother. Getting through Port customs was little more than turning over your declaration paperwork. Vancouver airport does have a Global Entry/Nexus lanes so once at the airport inquire where they are. Have your Global Entry cards and passports in hand. 
 

The only issue is what day of the week you’ll be disembarking (I don’t recall you mentioning that). Weekday rush hour hour in Vancouver could delay your 30 to 40 cab/Uber ride to the airport. Either way you should make it in plenty of time. 

As an earlier poster mentioned, be careful what you ask for. Once you start receiving them, they seem to arrive several times a month. Viking mails out brochures more often than most of the other cruise lines.
 

The information in the brochures is readily available on its website. 

Thanks to @chengkp75 and @NavArch64 this has been one of the most interesting and informative threads I have followed on CC. Thank you!