Freedom - May 19-26 - Southern Caribbean Maybe, Kinda Semi-Live?

All:

I have been voraciously absorbing every morsel of information possible from this board and others for the last 12 months in anticipation of an anniversary trip with my wife on Freedom. While I find some of the snarky comments and discussions on the board unnecessary (i.e. chair hogs, smoking, etc.), which are more suited for junior high social media, I have obtained some very useful information from those brave enough to post. I want to thank Bob and others for their insight, and I hope I can provide a semi-live review while I am on Freedom next week. This is a VACATION with no child, so I will not break my back to post every day, but I will try and provide some information, especially since this is one of the first Southern itineraries for FOS.

My wife and are are in our mid-late 30's, live in sunny San Diego (truly one of the most amazing towns on earth, in my opinion. If anyone needs suggestions on where to go/what to do in San Diego - let me know.), and have never been to the Southern Islands. We are not "cruisers" per se, but have been on 3-4 cruises with RCI. I have read all of the doom and gloom about the cruise industry trending down, and am interested to see how much truth there is to the rumors. We dabble in the bar/restaurant industry, will over-tip almost as a rule, consider ourselves semi-foodies, and enjoy a proper cocktail. We have a balcony cabin, the drink and internet packages, and will be dining in one specialty restaurant. We decided on the MDR, as we have met some fun couples on prior cruises. Per Bob's suggestion on another board, we emailed Royal a few weeks ago with our dining preference (i.e. couples our like age and no kids), and were promptly responded to and advised our request would be granted, so - we'll see...

My wife and I are professionals, but still like to dress up we we get the chance, so we will be the couple with cocktail dresses and coats in the MDR every night. We may visit a show or two, but will likely be found in the R Bar, casino, Pub and/or Olive and Twist most nights.

I am extremely excited for our get away, and will try and provide a fun and engaging review. Thanks again for the all wonderful info. Happy sailing.

Cheers.

Sounds great! Looking forward to it.

Yay! Can't wait to hear your thoughts as we will be on FOS in September.

Can’t wait to hear all about it!

Following

have a great trip. We're doing Freedom for the third time this coming October. We will be visiting three new islands so we are very excited.

Following. Sailing Freedom in 37 days. Bon Voyage!

Look forward to your semi live review. Have sailed Freedom before and will be on her again next year. Which islands are you visiting?

Following. Enjoy your cruise!

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Very interested in your trip report. Doing a B2B on her this July. Curious to formal nights and what time you board. Have a great cruise!!!

Barbara

Following, can’t wait to hear about you and your wife’s adventures :)

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Test. Did the image come through?

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Yes it did.

I also am looking forward to your review since the ship has a new home port.

Have a great trip. Thanks for sharing. I was just on Freedom a month ago and boy do I miss her. :'(

OK - looks like I figured out how to post a photo from the mobile app. Good start. Today is the commencement of our adventure. To begin, we are breaking one of the ten CC commandments by flying into San Juan the day of embarkation (gasp!). Truthfully, flying times from San Diego were not great, so we would not have gotten to spend any valuable time in San Juan today anyway. As such, we are taking a red-eye tonight, landing in Miami around 6:00 am, and should be in San Juan by 10:00 am Saturday. Our plan is to board as soon as possible, and start putting that drink package to good use (kind of like TimeToGetNauti did....). We like to meet and mingle with bartenders and explore the ship before the masses get on board. If we survive embarkation lunch in the Windjammer (fingers crossed...), we will likely grab a lounge chair in the sun, or even take a nap depending on our level of exhaustion. We have late (8:30 pm) dining, so we should have plenty of time to unwind before then.

Only a few hours left to go...

Cheers.

bon voyage

looking forward to your posts

Can't wait to hear...we will be on Freedom June 2-9th.

I am excited to read your review. We are taking this cruise next June and I can't wait. Doing the Outer Banks this year, but I am more excited about the cruise. Have a great time and take maximum advantage of that drink pkg!

Very interested in your semi live review. My husband and myself are going on FOS in March 2019 for my husbands late 30th birthday present and our delayed honeymoon. Leaving 3 children at home with my mum for some us time. So excited. First cruise for my husband and my first proper cruise. I went on one with my dad and sister when I was a child.

Very interested in your semi live review. My husband and myself are going on FOS in March 2019 for my husbands late 30th birthday present and our delayed honeymoon. Leaving 3 children at home with my mum for some us time. So excited. First cruise for my husband and my first proper cruise. I went on one with my dad and sister when I was a child.

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Nice! I'll be following along since we are on Freedom on June 2! Keep this ship in good condition for me LOL! Here's to a great time on Freedom :-)

Safe flight and happy embarkation day!

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Looking forward to reading about it! Do you mind posting the compasses? Thanks!

We survived the red-eye, and even got a few winks. $24 taxi from San Juan airport to the terminal. (Traffic was terrible.) Arrived at the terminal at 11:00. On the ship at 11:15. Painkiller at 11:20. Ahhhh... Windjammer not too packed. Food is fresh; wide variety. Having a blast already. Cheers.

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Following. Have fun. Will be on FOS in Dec for 20 yr Anniversary with wife and brother and his wife. Looking forward to hearing about the ship and ports.