Freedom of the Seas - Nightlife after closing of crypt?

Hello All,

Could you elaborate on the nightlife you experienced on Freedom after coming out of dry dock? I'm debating between a royal or carnival for my honeymoon in October. I know the time frame of the cruise makes a difference so there's no definite prediction, however I'm hesitant to book on royal due to the closing of "the crypt". Now it's in the Olive or Twist.... which from the pictures just looks like an open layout lounge, opposed to an actual room dedicated to dancing with a floor and lights.

Are the pictures I'm seeing accurate to what you saw/experienced? Were there people actively dancing or utilizing it as a nightclub? From the pictures, it just looks like an awkward layout to be considered a nightclub.

Not that a nightclub will necessarily make or break my decision, but we're in our mid twenty's, very social, tend to stay up late, and am hoping to do a little dancing and not feel weird. Booking 2nd week of October for 2016 between Freedom of the Seas or Carnival Pride (only options available for the date we need to depart). Any thoughts/observations/advice appreciated!

Hello All,

 

Could you elaborate on the nightlife you experienced on Freedom after coming out of dry dock? I'm debating between a royal or carnival for my honeymoon in October. I know the time frame of the cruise makes a difference so there's no definite prediction, however I'm hesitant to book on royal due to the closing of "the crypt". Now it's in the Olive or Twist.... which from the pictures just looks like an open layout lounge, opposed to an actual room dedicated to dancing with a floor and lights.

 

Are the pictures I'm seeing accurate to what you saw/experienced? Were there people actively dancing or utilizing it as a nightclub? From the pictures, it just looks like an awkward layout to be considered a nightclub.

 

Not that a nightclub will necessarily make or break my decision, but we're in our mid twenty's, very social, tend to stay up late, and am hoping to do a little dancing and not feel weird. Booking 2nd week of October for 2016 between Freedom of the Seas or Carnival Pride (only options available for the date we need to depart). Any thoughts/observations/advice appreciated!

There is a dance floor although rather small and a stage for a band and lights. it was packed most nights late and people were definitely dancing and having a good time. i was not a fan of the Crypt but I enjoyed going up to Olive or Twist late. That was April of last year

There is a dance floor although rather small and a stage for a band and lights. it was packed most nights late and people were definitely dancing and having a good time. i was not a fan of the Crypt but I enjoyed going up to Olive or Twist late. That was April of last year

Was there generally a DJ or live band? Thanks for the quick reply!

Was there generally a DJ or live band? Thanks for the quick reply!

Late at night it was a DJ. :)

I was on Freedom last week, and Olive or Twist seemed to be packed most nights. The rest of the ship will usually close down around 1am, so everyone who is still up will generally gravitate up to the top.

Was there generally a DJ or live band? Thanks for the quick reply!

Late night it will mostly be a DJ with typical modern dance hall music. During evening hours, they may have various bands playing (we've seen the pool deck band, a jazz combo made up from singers and musicians from the theater shows, etc). We found that the quality of the disco experience, whether in Olive & Twist or the Crypt, largely depended on the time of year that you went. It's been packed up top as noted by others, and I've also seen the Crypt dead. Spring Break cruise, it will be hopping. First week of December, maybe not so much. Seemed to me the actual dance space itself is probably about the same.

Dancefloor and DJ booth

Late night it will mostly be a DJ with typical modern dance hall music. During evening hours, they may have various bands playing (we've seen the pool deck band, a jazz combo made up from singers and musicians from the theater shows, etc). We found that the quality of the disco experience, whether in Olive & Twist or the Crypt, largely depended on the time of year that you went. It's been packed up top as noted by others, and I've also seen the Crypt dead. Spring Break cruise, it will be hopping. First week of December, maybe not so much. Seemed to me the actual dance space itself is probably about the same.

Thanks for your response! All of these replies are truly helping me so much in my decision making process! I totally agree the time of year has a large play on what the atmosphere will look like. Any thoughts on what it might be early/mid October? I think for some, fall break happens around then.... I've read on other threads it tends to be more laid back though

It totally depends on the passenger mix. I was on Indy (sister to Freedom out of Fort Lauderdale) at end of October and Crypt was packed every night. 3 weeks later on same ship on a holiday weekend and not so much. Just a different mix that can't be predicted. I've been on a Carnival weekend cruise where the night club is dead, too.

And it really won't matter if it's Crypt or Olive or Twist. If the crowd is there they go where the party is. I've been on ships with both configurations. It made no difference.

I would truly look at the other features of the ships in comparison. Freedom offers a lot of bells and whistles that Pride does not.

Sort of comparing apples to oranges, but my boyfriend and I went on Navigator right out of dry dock, where they removed the nightclub and moved it to the same location as on Freedom. I do think there were a lot of factors involved (not a popular time of year, leaving from Galveston, smaller ship than we had previously sailed on), but we noticed a huge difference in the spaces and did not like the night club area up there near as much. We're 26 so right about the same age, and we have since made a conscious effort to search for ships that have the designated night club now. We also search for cruises from Florida even though Texas was closer, so I do think it was a lot of factors, but it was definitely different and not what we were expecting. We made the best of it, but had a much better time on Indy, which we booked instead of Freedom last year just for the night club.