UMDelt

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

My better half made sure we’d have a nice, quiet evening at Chops Grille for my birthday.

…just kidding.

Surprise! Who could have seen this coming…

I knew they’d sing for my birthday :D

Birthday (cheese)cake

Aside from birthday (cheese)cake, we ordered this chocolate fruit thingy… If you’re eating at Chops, ORDER THIS. JUST DO IT. Trust me, it’ll change your life (and your weight, but that’s why there’s a gym onboard).

Chocolate thingy… SO GOOD

Here she is… The myth… The legend… “Jamaica Mama”

Margaret, a.k.a. “Jamaica Mama”

I wrote earlier in this thread about our Chops Grille experience, including pictures. Head on over to post #45 to check out some awesome steak pictures and me in my tuxedo.

A big shoutout to my DW for making this an amazing birthday dinner :*

COMING UP NEXT:

Next port of call, Jamaica

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

After our snuba excursion, we roamed around the area near the ship and grabbed a bite to eat. During our meal, we made quite a few wildlife friends.

We named him Ted… Ted, say hi to everyone

Lots of iguanas on the island

We were encouraged by the restaurant to throw our food to the wildlife…

Overall, it was a fantastic day. In fact, Grand Cayman was our favorite port of call. Like most good things, they must come to an end though. BUT, the day wasn’t over. DW had a birthday meal planned for me.

Returning back to our (temporary) home

COMING UP NEXT:

Birthday dinner at Chops

Come back OP - finish up! I hate when real life interrupts a good review. ;)

I know, I know - I'm slacking! I need another vacation already :o TONIGHT, more to come - PROMISE!

Loved your review. Will be on the ship in May. Question: Did the ship ever feel crowded to you?

Thanks! For the most part, no. There were a handful of expected crowds. Few examples:

• Windjammer (especially when we boarded on day 1 - literally, it was standing room only to eat your food)
  
• Sporadic times in the Royal Promenade, especially when there's a jewelry sale and tables are set up in the aisles
  
• As mentioned before, pool areas on sea days
  

But for the most part, it never felt "overcrowded" on the ship at all.

Was Sabor's lunch extra price? We haven't tried it yet but might on our April 15th cruise.

Yep, Sabor is a "speciality restaurant" with a cover charge.

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

Unlike Cozumel, there’s no dock for cruise ships; passengers must board tenders. Earlier tenders were prioritized based on excursions. We had a relatively early booking, so we were one of the firsts to go ashore.

These guys didn’t want to wait for the tender

Waiting for the tender to fill could take a while, especially if you’re the first onboard. The actual trip to shore was rather quick; only 15 minutes or so. Not too bad at all!

Like any port, they bring cruise passengers to a shopping center. (Go figure, right?) We only had a few minutes before our excursion, but DW was hungry. The only quick food in the immediate area was a hot dog stand. Let’s just say they won’t be handing out “hot dog awards” anytime soon to this establishment, but I guess what would one expect!?

We came all this way… for a hot dog…

I couldn’t help but snap this picture while waiting for our excursion:

Our excursion was fantastic. We went “snuba” diving. It’s a cross between snorkeling and scuba. To describe another way, think of “snuba” as “scuba with training wheels.” You having a breathing apparatus just like scuba, but your tank is floating on raft ~20 feet above the surface. The depth you dive is completely up to you and your comfort zone. Gorgeous fish, lobster, and a large shipwreck were just some of the awesome sights we saw. Unfortunately, my Canon camera isn’t waterproof and I don’t own a GoPro, so no pictures.

COMING UP NEXT:

More Grand Cayman pictures

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

I was excited to visit Grand Cayman. I’ve sailed to the Caribbean many times, but this was a new port of call for us. It was also my birthday, so DW promised to do only things I wanted to do… except for shopping. I couldn’t escape shopping on my own birthday. Aw well, “happy wife, happy life” ’n all… :D

Sea salt on our balcony railing

I started my day running on the top deck to enjoy the morning sun. If I had one gripe about Voyager/Freedom class ships, it’s the jogging track. Who thought it would make sense to combine an exercise track and a sun deck with chairs together!? Seriously. Oasis class ships were designed well, having a large track around the promenade (life boat) deck connecting to the gym.

Sunbathers + Runners = Smart idea?

Ladies and gents, the former Legend of the Seas

COMING UP NEXT:

More Grand Cayman pictures

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

More pictures from the sailing excursion:

COMING UP NEXT:

Grand Cayman

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

Being a life-long Parrot Head, I remember how excited I was to visit a Margaritaville restaurant for the first time. That was several, several years ago. Now, they’re flippin’ everywhere, including 2 of 3 ports we visited this trip!!! They’re the Starbucks of the cruise circuit. But that didn’t stop me from snapping a picture in front of a classic Buffett lyric:

For you non-Parrot Heads, this is from the Buffett song, A Pirate Looks At Forty

See those clouds? It was about to POUR

DW and I have been to Cozumel quite a few times - most recently this past March. We booked an excursion, but that didn’t stop her from darting toward the over-priced jewelry once we disembarked the ship. Fortunately, our excursion couldn’t wait for those “priceless” items (the same items that are sold in every store you visit, BTW).

12 Metre America's Cup Challenge… but then again, does a sign need a caption?

The America's Cup Challenge is pretty cool. They’re two racing sailboats from the late 1980s that competed in the actual America’s Cup. The point of the excursion is to race against one another - that simple. Everyone is a member of the crew, so it’s certainly no joy ride - they put you to work! I’ve done this excursion in St. Maarten a few times and it’s always a thrill. Although, it’s a photo-finish each and every time… wonder if it’s rigged. (Pun intended.)

COMING UP NEXT:

12 Metre America's Cup Challenge pictures

Enjoying this review!! We are on the LOS with this same itinerary in July. It will be our first cruise with Royal. We have been on one Disney cruise, and are so excited to be on the Liberty!! Thanks for taking the time to do this, it is appreciated!!

We'll be on her this Sunday, the 11th in a Grand Suite. Thank you for taking your time out to do this with all the wonderful photographs! :-)

My pleasure! Enjoy your cruises and come back and let me/everyone know how it went!

We too were on this sailing as well as the week before. I agree, Margaret was awesome. We had her 3 nights the week before. Enjoying your review, since we were on there with you!!

She greeting us - BY NAME - every morning in the Windjammer. She truly had that Royal "WOW!"

Thanks for taking the time, I hope to cruise out of Galveston someday and always enjoy seeing Freedom class pictures.

My pleasure, Bill!

UMDelt, We loved The Schooner Bar, too. In fact, our favorite bartender on the ship was a guy called Albert. That guy was straight money. By chance, is he working your cruise?

Hmm, sorry I don't recall.

Hope they keep the Schooner Bar tradition for decades to come. Broke my heart a bit when they phased out the Viking Crown Lounge on other ships :(

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

Day two was formal night onboard Liberty of the Seas. Like most evenings, my wife started to get ready around 1PM… just kidding, but it seemed that early.

She had no idea I was taking this picture

A nice perk for suite guests is the complimentary pressing on the first formal night. Our cabin steward, Bart, made sure we had this ready before our Chops reservation.

Pressed tux

Formal nights done right…

Canon selfie as I wait for the wife to get ready

DW wanted to take a few in-room pictures before we headed out…

We dined at Chops Grille. The cabernet reduction that accompanied my filet really made the dish. I also noticed the portions of the “family-style sides” were smaller than I’ve had on other ships, shared on a single plate as well. (Which is good, since there’s always TOO much food!)

9oz filet with cabernet reduction sauce

Family-style sides

Our waitress Margaret (a.k.a. Jamaica Mama) was such a treat and undoubtably our favorite waitress this trip. In fact, my wife asked the maître d' to ensure we had her again for Wednesday's upcoming reservation (birthday dinner). He was most happy to accommodate. More pictures later for that meal!

COMING UP NEXT:

Cozumel, Mexico and the “12 Metre America's Cup Challenge” excursion

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

We had speciality dining reservations later that day, but were eager to try the “Sabor Modern Mexican” restaurant onboard for lunch. Our waiter, Luis, was absolutely fantastic and truly took pride in his work.

The fresh guacamole was great, although it needed to be more spicy… I don’t blame Luis, but my wife for that specific request ;p

Fresh, made-to-order guacamole

Red and green salsas, pico, and some cucumber thingy with spices

The bacon-wrapped jalapeños were superb. I highly recommend!

Bacon-wrapped jalapeños

We also ordered “chorizo con queso” (pork sausage with cheese). Although it was tasty, I was very disappointed in the lack of chorizo. It was 99% cheese with just a “sprinkling” of pork:

Chorizo con queso

We barely ate our entrées after over-eating appetizers, chips, and guac; however, Luis wouldn’t let us leave until we took a “to-go” plate of desserts. All were very good, but the dark cannoli-looking ones on the right were out of this world!

Collection of Sabor desserts

COMING UP NEXT:

Formal night and Chops Grille

who is the captain? Just want to verify my chart.

Captain James MacDonald

So on the first sea day you were able to lose the hoodie?

For a northerner like myself, the mid-70s on the first sea day (day after departing Texas) was fine for shorts. Don't mind my wife's hoodie in the pictures.... she's cold everywhere she goes, regardless of the outside temp ;p

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

Now the port side with the extended promenade deck near the MDR

Being the second day and a sea day, we continued to wonder around the ship. While I can’t remember completely, I believe that involved more adult beverages… Not too much though, because I remember grabbing some coffee. Hmm, wait… maybe the coffee is what jolted my memory after the alcohol.

Well, regardless, we had coffee and took more promenade pictures…

On the stern. So cute… and yes, I had permission from DW to post this one.

The plot “thins…” There’s a shopping bag in that picture, so I guess we went shopping too :D

Promenade deck on the starboard side, aft of the MDR

COMING UP NEXT:

Sabor Mexican Restaurant

Happy belated birthday sir! And thanks for the review and photos. I’m typing this from the solarium aboard Vision and will be on Liberty again later this year. She is a wonderful ship!

Have a cold one for me :cool: Enjoy your cruise!

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

After our Schooner Bar excursion, we headed out for a few laps around the promenade deck. Unlike the foggy day before, our first sea day was sunny and much warmer.

Didn’t take long for her to finish off that Schooner Bar champaign

DW takes a better photo than I do…

Don’t think it works like this…

Promenade deck extends outward around the MDR

On Freedom and Voyager Class ships, you’re able to access the bow of the ship! No photo collection is complete without a few snapshots of the bridge.

COMING UP NEXT:

More promenade photos

These are great photos.

 

How are those photos being attached. I give up all the time as I am told my photos are too big, and I am not going to resize them all. So I just checked one of these on this thread, and they exceed the size requirement as well. How are they being posted... I am doing something wrong.

There are a handful of third-party photo hosting sites. I've been using Flickr for these images. It's easy-to-use and even provides the "code" for pasting into boards like this.

As an example, take one of my Schooner Bar photos from my earlier post. Here's the page on Flickr to view its details:

It'll also show you cool meta data about the photo too. For example, the camera and settings that were used:

In short, Flickr is easy-to-use, convenient, and free. Hope this helps.

Since it wasn't a direct flight I'm not surprised you went thru ATL. ATL is a major Delta hub, but it's also where they have their headquarters.

True, but Detroit (DTW) is also a major Delta hub :)

I actually did a little digging since I posted this last night. Turns out, Delta does have non-stop flights to Houston from Detroit. But they're exclusive to George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) and not Houston Hobby. I recall checking out flights into IAH, but perhaps I was striking out for my preferred time/day.

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

Day two. Sea day. These are my favorite days and I love to take full advantage by doing a lot of NOTHING. More accurately, doing “very little,” starting with an early visit to my favorite bar and a Royal Caribbean classic… The Schooner Bar.

Schooner Bar drink menu

While the bar’s menus are technically for drinks, they’re also little history books. They showcase interesting photos from classic Royal Caribbean ships.

Check out the old Royal Caribbean logo, plus ships like Song of Norway, Song of America, Sun Viking, etc.

I’m typically a bourbon and/or beer drinker, but I'll try new drinks every now and then. The menu was featuring various twists on the "Old Fashioned." Being a Caribbean cruise, I went for the a “Tropical Old Fashioned." Let’s just say it was very “eh.” Just boring more than anything else, but at least the drink was very photogenic:

Tropical Old Fashioned, along with my DW’s champaign

Cheers, y’all!

COMING UP NEXT:

Enjoying laps and scenic vistas around the promenade deck

Did you have to use your sea pass card to get into the Suite Lounge?

Yep :)

We went into the Suite Lounge only a few times. There was one occasion where we entered and had the concierge greet us by name. I suspect he was able to use his computer to see who had just "badged in" to lounge. Otherwise, I would have no idea how he'd know our names.

Liberty of the Seas Review - Continued

The Return of Pepper Ginder

I thought the pepper grinders were a cost savings measure onboard Royal ships? Not only are they back (on Liberty, at least) but each waiter had a little “holster” for his/her pepper grinder. Pepper quick draw! :D

I just had to have some fresh ground pepper with my appetizer and entrée.

French onion soup

Prime rib, with the largest helping of horseradish I’ve ever had

DW and I were very satisfied with our MDR meal the first evening. We both ordered the same thing, so I can only speak to the Prime Rib and French Onion Soup :D

COMING UP NEXT:

Day 2: Our first sea day

We were on this cruise too, in a balcony on starboard side. Interested to see how your review compares to our experience. Thanks for all the photos.

Awesome! Likewise, curious about your experiences too - keep chiming in with your experiences throughout the review :D

We're boarding Liberty next week. Not in a suite, a balcony, but following your review will add to my excitement.

Awesome! Although I just got off Liberty, I'm still jealous of you ;p She's a great ship and the crew was AMAZING.