Loyal RCI guest goes Carnival Liberty....

Well, here we go! Where do I srtart? Let's try the beginning...

Embarkation

Arrived at Port Everglades about 11:20 AM and were on the ship at 12:10. We waited outside the terminal for about 15 minutes, but once they opened the doors, we were moving continually until we were on the ship. After the nightmare stories we had heard, this was a GREAT beginning!

Ship

Decor in the public areas of the ship was horrendous! It was like they ran a contest to see who could come up with the most clashing colors and mix of patterns possible! Being used to the pure elegance of RCI ships, this was rather shocking, but having read about the "glitz" I was somewhat prepared (although I wouldn't describe it as "glitz"). Our balcony cabin(6387) was very comfortable and the beds were WONDERFUL! We were across from the Self Service Laundry and never heard a sound. I never even saw anyone come to use it. Cabin size comparable to Category D-1 on RCI for HALF the price - that's why we tried Carnival this time. Times for In Cabin movies never posted anywhere - thought this was odd as we were never able to get in on the beginning of any of them.

The ship was VERY unstable even in the relatively calm Caribbean waters. We decided it was possibly because, while the ship is very long, it is also extremely narrow. Movement doesn't really bother us but staggering back to the cabin after dinner (unfortunately NOT because of alcohol, LOL) was kind of dangerous for my 80 year DH. We still laughed about it, though.

I never noticed a restroom closed or a stall Out of Order. This was common on RCI most cruises. Also never noticed that slight sewage odor which has been common in the past. Possibly because of it's a new ship?

Everything on this ship always clean and in good working order.

FOOD

My least favorite food was at dinner in the Silver Olympian Dining Room. Partly this was because there was SO much movement (vibration, rocking, thudding). I must say that the meat servings were the largest I've ever seen on a ship - prime rib and filet mignon were HUGE! Every night, I was saying "Wow" as I was served. However, the "sides" were miniscule: one night, 2 tablespoons of au gratin potatoes and 2 tablespoons of creamed peas. Our table mates remarked a few times about the serving of green beans - four beans. We did have the 4 beans 3 times this cruise.

Food on the Lido was spectacular! Those Shanghai chicken spring rolls were KILLER! Enjoyed all the oriental food I tried. DH was especially impressed with the steak sandwiches and cheeseburgers from the grill. Buffet items were always hot and fresh. Deli sandwiches very good also. Did not try the fish place. Never saw any used dishes on a table for more than a few minutes - someone always on patrol.

Service

This was always great. We didn't meet our steward until the third day. Left sticky notes asking for ice in our cooler, but didn't get any until we ran into him in the corridor, asked if he was our steward and asked for the ice. He always brought it twice daily afterward. All others on the ship were always smiling and offering help with everything.

Fellow Passengers

I was very surprised at the great mix! I would say that the median age was 45 to 50. Almost no children, and those who were on this cruise were very well behaved. We complimented their parents. I saw absolutely NO instances of any drunk or unruly passengers. These were folks who knew how to have a good time pleasantly!

Ports

In Freeport, we took a cab to the Sheraton Our Lucayan Beach Hotel. This has a great, flowing pool and lots of great areas on the beach, bars and food. This was the best weather day of the cruise. Walked through the straw market before returning to the ship.

At least we did get to go into Grand Cayman - last 2 cruises waters were too rough. However, more bad weather was coming so we had to be back on board by 2:00 instead of 5:00, and since we didn't get off until around noon, it was no beaches for us (boo-hoo).

Costa Maya was a total loss. No sooner than they were letting people off (I'd say maybe a couple of hundred had debarked) we were told we had to sail as quickly as possible because the ship was in physical danger from high seas washing over the pier. It was kinda fun watching the captain maneuvering the ship to keep it far enough away from the pier to prevent damage and keeping it close enough to the pier for the gangways to be useable for returning passengers. Wish we could have gone in but them's the breaks. We received a $25/person credit on our Sail & Sign, as opposed to a shipboard credit - we were pleased with this as they didn't have to do anything. On RCI we never had any missed port charges refunded - a free hour of Screwdrivers or Bloody Mary's for one hour when missing Jamaica and Grand Cayman ports a few years ago.

Debarkation

Went very smoothly. After our color was called, we waited about 40 minutes and went down to get off - our color was almost gone and the next had not been called as yet. Saw our Luggage right away, a porter was waiting, loaded into a cab and off to the airport. We were there by 10:30.

To Sum Up

We were very leery of a Carnival cruise - RCI passengers seem to be the most opinionated. That's why I'm posting this. We had a wonderful time on the Liberty. I won't say we had a blast 'cause at my age an actual "blast" might kill me. Every one of my expectations was FAR exceeded. I didn't expect alot, and even searched for negative comparisons but failed to find anything significant. Sure, RCI gives you bottled water to take into port and Carnival SELLS you the water, but this type of thing is totally minor. Thanks, Carnival,:D for the wonderful cruise! I'll be delighted to answer any questions, so fire away!:D

I'm considering Carnival and am very concerned about the decor. I love the traditional look of the old ocean liners. (I'm on a cruise, not in Vegas.) Were the staterooms similarly decorated? Maybe I can book a great balcony room and avoid the migraine if it gets to be too much???:rolleyes:

Glad you enjoyed!

We're on the Liberty Apr 1.

I'm considering Carnival and am very concerned about the decor. I love the traditional look of the old ocean liners. (I'm on a cruise, not in Vegas.) Were the staterooms similarly decorated? Maybe I can book a great balcony room and avoid the migraine if it gets to be too much???:rolleyes:

The decor isnt as bad as it may seem. The staterooms are not done like the rest of the ship. They are pretty boring and standard.

Now if you want to see some color...take a gander at some pictures of Norwegian Jewel!

I'm considering Carnival and am very concerned about the decor. I love the traditional look of the old ocean liners. (I'm on a cruise, not in Vegas.) Were the staterooms similarly decorated? Maybe I can book a great balcony room and avoid the migraine if it gets to be too much???:rolleyes:

We enjoy both CCL and RCL. If you are concerned about the decor, avoid CCL. Not only are the ships we've been on reminiscent of LV, they are reminiscent of LV in the 70s! They tend to be dark and the buffet on the Celebration is somewhat of a joke as far as decor goes. Having said that, there is much to appreciate on CCL. Perhaps you can close your eyes in the public areas and imagine you are on the Queen Mary II.

Trishalee,

thank you so much! It is nice to see a review from someone that prefers another cruiseline. Carnival gets a bad rap, unfortunately most of which is from people whom have never sailed any of their ships.

I say if you want to know something then find out first hand!

Thanks for a great review.

Hope to see you onboard again soon!

I'm considering Carnival and am very concerned about the decor. I love the traditional look of the old ocean liners. (I'm on a cruise, not in Vegas.) Were the staterooms similarly decorated? Maybe I can book a great balcony room and avoid the migraine if it gets to be too much???:rolleyes:

The staterooms pretty much look like these pictures.

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/Staterooms/Liberty-Staterooms.aspx

P.S. did you post this on the RCI board too?

I agree about the decor of Carnival ships - they can take a fairly contemporary looking room and turn it into a circus with their use of light and color. I don't mind too much (I am afraid the colors in the Liberty disco can ruin retinas though!!) because I don't live there, I'm just visiting!!!

Sorry I forgot to mention stateroom decor. Carnival does seem to love orange, which dominates the staterooms. I felt a little like I was living in the Tin Woodman's house because of the little cone-shaped lamps. The cabins are much more restful looking than the public rooms, although the artwork doesn't match anything in there either. They are much more "spartan" in furnishing and decor than RCI but perfectly comfortable. You do have to turn on the overhead lighting rather than a lamp to read anything though. Don't let decor stop you from this ship - we actually enjoyed going from venue to venue to find the "winner" in tackiness. (We both thought the elevators had the most patterns in the smallest space.):D

For LoveTheDeepBlue - I would love to post my review on the RCI board. How do I do this? DoI have to start typing it all again over there?:p

Thanks Trishalee - I leave on Sunday for our Liberty cruise and I have been assigned the same cabin as you had! Too Funny!

Thanks for the review!

Jen

I'm considering Carnival and am very concerned about the decor. I love the traditional look of the old ocean liners. (I'm on a cruise, not in Vegas.) Were the staterooms similarly decorated? Maybe I can book a great balcony room and avoid the migraine if it gets to be too much???:rolleyes:

I was a bit concerned as well when I first started to read some of the reviews. We were in 7431 and it wasn't to bad. The color is a soft peach or orange. I'm not a big fan of either color, but it was somewhat muted so it was tolerable for the week. I was even able to overlook the colors along the promenade. :p

The only thing that gave me a migraine that week was the lobster bisque I had in the dining room. :confused:

Well, here we go! Where do I srtart? Let's try the beginning...

 

 

To Sum Up

 

We were very leery of a Carnival cruise - RCI passengers seem to be the most opinionated. That's why I'm posting this. We had a wonderful time on the Liberty. I won't say we had a blast 'cause at my age an actual "blast" might kill me. Every one of my expectations was FAR exceeded. I didn't expect alot, and even searched for negative comparisons but failed to find anything significant. Sure, RCI gives you bottled water to take into port and Carnival SELLS you the water, but this type of thing is totally minor. Thanks, Carnival,:D for the wonderful cruise! I'll be delighted to answer any questions, so fire away!:D

Thanks for your review. We too, are loyal RCI cruisers and are trying our first Carnival cruise this weekend. You've definitely taken away some of my anxiety.

For LoveTheDeepBlue - I would love to post my review on the RCI board. How do I do this? DoI have to start typing it all again over there?:p

Just find your review again, should be easy, it's at the top of this thread. Highlight it, do a copy, go start a new thread in RCI's boards and paste it in there. It should work.

Anyway glad to read your review, I'm going to sale her in a year. We can't wait. Being a chef I can be quite critical of the food,so glad to hear it was good,not that 1 lousy meal would ruin my cruise.

I think your review is very good and very closely represents my own opinion about my many Carnival cruises. Great food, great service, great fun, crazy decor :eek: ! I do prefer the beauty and elegance of Royal Caribbean's decor but I have a great time no matter which cruiseline I'm on! It's all good!

Did you just walk into Our Lucaya in Freeport and use their facilities? Is there a charge?

Thanks Bonnie Voyager for posting my review on the RCI board - I couldn't figure out how to do it being an almost computer illiterate!

Jerseygirl, we just walked in the front door of the hotel and out the back leading to the pool, beach, beach rentals, bar, etc. No one questioned us and I saw some other passengers from our cruise there also. There are signs here and there that you should be staying at the hotel to use the facilities, so we kept our Carnival towels with the name turned inward. If questioned, I was going to say that we were checking the place out to stay at a later date - which we plan to do - the place is amazing!:D

Thanks for the info. Our family is going on the Liberty on March 12th. Glad to hear that you enjoyed it!