pinkrosesdeb

Seems like the western routes may get a lot of traffic if Maria doesn't change her path

Two best cruises as far as weather and seas were in May! Perfect

We got that notice on one of our cruises and soon after were advised that it was chartered by "it's HUGE" KIA dealer and it was for the next week also

Thanks to all of you for the info. We were on in April this year and filetwas nowhere to be found. ITA that it was always better than the one in Chops. Our scallop app was like shoe leather (no one could chew them). So many misses last time and that had never been our experience previously. Will give them one more try

Our meal at Giovanni's on Freedom was a REAL disappointment and Giovanni's has always been my favorite. Terrible service and worse food. My daughters loves tiramisu and it came out like soup it was all runny. And, they did NOT offer the filet any more which I understood to be the new menu change. Can anyone verify if they have indeed added the filet back. Our previous trip on Freedom we did 4 dinners in Giovanni's because our waiter was awesome and the filet was the best we ever had. Going on Harmony this year so anxious to try the new offerings and Coastal Kitchen. Thanks for all the info.

No other cruise ship out there can offer the same kind of cruise as the Oasis or Quantum class ships. They are truly unique. I would say try it and see if it works for you. They are BIG for sure but broken into "neighborhoods" so you will frequently find yourself wondering where everyone is. I actually prefer the Freedom class for size but we are on Harmony in April 2018 because it is a change of pace and lots of fun. I just don't ever sit down on those ships because there is so much to do and see. (I am seriously ADD!) Please check in with your opinion when you are done.

Is the size of 1702 substantially smaller? I can book it for same price as L1 and have the ocean view.

We were recently on the Freedom and had almost exactly the same experience as yours at Chops. We were not impressed but the larger filets were good. It makes me sad that some of our favorite things to do on a cruise are becoming a little less wonderful. Giovanni's had always been our favorite and our previous cruise on Freedom we ate there 4x because it was so good...this time we ate there once and it was not good. I hope this changes before we try Harmony in April 2018. We have booked our first Crown Loft on her and I actually moved from our original boardwalk view to a port side for much the same reasons as you noted. I do like more privacy and I love watching the ocean! Thank you for all your information and I hope you continue to have calm seas and blue skies!

I saw posts before we cruised about sabor being open atembarkation on freedom but it wasn't open on our sailing.

It wasn't open at embarkation on Freedom.

We board Freedom on Saturday! So excited to follow your report. I wanted to add a little info I got today from the concierge...I had read several threads recently on the greatly increased price of cabanas on Labadee ( I know you don't care about it! and I love that about you) but I wanted everyone to know we were able to book a standard cabana at Barefoot Beach for exactly the same price we paid 2 years ago on Freedom. Enjoy the rest of your time and please continue your great suggestions on ways to cut your costs without losing any of your enjoyment. Your review is wonderful! Thanks so much.

Usually a spouse is upgraded to the other spouse's level. So, when I made Diamond Plus so did my husband.

Different strokes for different folks for sure. I love that we have the ship options for that reason. Since you love the Centrum you need to stick to the smaller ships. We love the Freedom and I do NOT like the centrum because it begins to feel like at "cattle call" at night when everyone gathers there. We enjoy the larger area of the promenade. I think the advise from John&Lala is probably your best because it sounds like just what you want. We have not done Enchantment because our girls (adults) hated the Grandeur and didn't enjoy Brilliance a couple of cruises ago so we now stick to the larger ships. I am ok on any class as long as I am cruising. I hope you find just the right fit for you! It will be interesting to hear what you do.

Thanks so much for that teeJ, that may be a good option for us. I enjoy the "away from the crowd" experience on first day.

ocean boy, you would NEVER want to try that with me...just ask my husband and my kids!

With you on the coffee and the cruising...totally freaked out by caves!

Go right to the dining room when you board and ask the maitre'd for help. We had a similar issue one cruise and he was able to fix it right away. Good luck, I know it is so frustrating to have this happen last minute but I hope it gets fixed for you. Also, I would keep calling customer service. It is odd but funny how one person will tell you it can't be done and the next person will get it done for you.

That's what I thought too, KeywestK, we see most of the same people every night. I was one of the hold outs who insisted I would never do MTD...Never say never! We have really enjoyed as you say the best of both worlds since we switched.

Well, let's hope they will fix those issues because she is beautiful and I believe the majority of people will love their time onboard.

Our experience with MTD so far has been that we are almost always at the same table with the same staff and the same people seated in the same section. We have been in the same exact AREA several times a table or two over from our original but still close to the other passengers we have met. I don't know if this is typical but we have enjoyed meeting new people every time we have done MTD. And, no one waits for us if we decide to go somewhere else one evening. Nor do we wait for our other tablemates to show up when they go somewhere else. We did traditional dining one cruise and sat at a table to 8 all by ourselves except 1 night because the others assigned to our table did alternatives. We waited 10-15 mins every night to see if they would show.

I thought PC cruisers would be really excited to get Oasis! She is still beautiful and in new way should be considered 2nd class! It is like complaining about only getting a Cadillac instead of a Lexus.

Robyn, we have also really enjoyed that stir fry in the WJ. We had some great meals one cruise when we completely avoided the dining room because we just didn't want to get dressed up or spend the time there. We did go in and meet our waiters and take them their tips though since it was before prepaid gratuities. Good to know the WJ is still a great option. You are so sweet to do this on your cruise...thanks again!

Thanks to everyone for the "positive: Chops posts! They are encouraging for sure and I guess we will give it one more try. I certainly hope they changed the "greeter" who followed me to my table to tell me over & over again how wrong I was for booking online for 1 person instead of 2 since we had the BOGO. People 4 tables away were staring at us, it was very embarrassing. She must have told me 4 times but the fact that she came to our table to continue to berate me was beyond my patience. I don't like to be embarassed! But, I managed to have a wonderful cruise in spite of her LOL And, we had 4 wonderful meals at Giovanni's that cruise!

I would love to think Chops has changed but I have read so many negative posts specifically about Freedom Chops that I was giving up hope. Our filet there was AWFUL, both mine and hubby's, neither of us finished it. And, no one asked why but we were full from the starters and sides. Most of our displeasure was the very rude person who "greeted" us and if she is gone we will give it a try again maybe.

Thanks so much for the info on Giovanni's and your thoughts on the new menu. We had heard from my dd's friends that they were not really happy with the MDR on their Freedom cruise 2 weeks ago. We are considering the 5 night dining package at this point. I AM sad about the filet in Gio's but I will live. We were really turned off by both food and service in Chops on our last Freedom cruise but maybe it has improved.