9-3-2011 Liberty tidbits

[sk84fungirl]

Had a great time on the Liberty this past week.

 

Disclaimer: I have never had a bad cruise...:D

 

Stayed one night pre-cruise at the Intercontinental. Booked hotel via Delta Marketplace. Rooms were on the 12th floor with view to the city. Had breakfast there. Wonderful stay and very helpful staff. Two in our party were new to cruising and Miami. So it was the perfect location as we walked to the very lively Bayside Marketplace Friday night. BUT, before heading there that night, we had an awesome dinner at Garcia's Seafood Grille. YUM!!!!

 

Headed to the ship via taxi about 11:15 a.m. Fare was about $6 plus tip. Only ship in port, no traffic at all!

 

Mother is 81 yrs old and uses a cane. While we ordered a walker through Carnival, it was in her stateroom. So we needed a wheelchair. We asked for one and was advised we had to go inside. So we progressed inside. Once inside we asked for the wheelchair. We were told we had to go through the security line, upstairs, and then to another area for the wheelchair. We were not happy!!!! We were told that we could leave my mother and wait in the little sitting area and that it would be at least an hour before someone could assist. SERIOUSLY?! NOT HAPPY!!!!

 

So, my mother decided she could do it and we progressed through the line. Now, this was not like the airport, we were not taken to the front. But security was not really crowded so she did ok. She took the elevator up and my niece found her a wheelchair. We got her checked in and I pushed her onboard. Noone from Carnival to assist in sight then or later. And yes, I understand they are busy so please NO FLAMING! I kept the wheelchair until our stateroom was available as her rollator was there. Other than than, embarktion went smoothly.

 

Unlike the two new cruisers in our party, we printed all of our info and were good to go. Because I was manning the wheelchair, I went through with mom and set her up in the main lobby on 3. Again, not too crowded yet, so I breezed through. Once onboard I headed straight to the excursion desk to select my Half Moon Cay cabana. Mind you, it was just about noon or so and my first cabana choice #10 was gone. However, everything else was still open. The lady at the desk started whipping out maps and little did she know I was a cruise critic member and did not need her suggestions...:p.

 

I selected cabana #9 and gave her all of my shoe sizes. I then got in the guest services line (3 deep) to provide account information for my sail and sign card. Took about 15 minutes. Went to sit with mom, 5 minutes later the rest of our party joined us. Lido deck, here we come!

[momonthego17]

Looking forward to more of your review!!

[sk84fungirl]

So, after we finished at the Lido deck we headed to our staterooms...8255 (balcony) and 1301 (outside). Mom and I were in the balcony. The room is forward very near the elevator. Perfect. Sister's room was mid-ship with a picture window. The window was larger than I expected and the room about the same size as ours. We were pleased with both rooms.

 

When we arrived to our rooms about 1:45, we each had our large bags. We unpacked and stored the luggage under the beds with no problem. Only challenge with the room was outlets. If you want to plug up anything, bring some type of electrical strip.

 

Because my mom has limited mobility, we participated in the emergency debrief in the library. We were released a few minutes early so that we could grab an elevator. We headed straight to deck 10 where we could see Miami beach as we departed and look below to watch the dancers at the Sail Away Party below on deck 9.

 

After the Sail Away, we headed to the Silver Dining Room for dinner. Our table was dead center back of dining room with a wonderful view every evening.

 

MDR service was solid (Roger & Rolando). Food was OK. Some menu favorites of our table of the course of the cruise included:

• Tilapia
  
• Sweet & Sour Shrimp
  
• Broiled Mahi Mahi
  
• BBQ Ribs
  
• Stuffed Mushrooms
  
• Lobster tail & Shrimp
  
• Greek Farmer Salad
  
• Smoked Chicken Quesadilla
  
• Short Rib and Filet
  
• Red Snapper
  
• Spring Chicken
  
• Lasagna Bolognese
  
• Crab cake
  

These are items that folks commented on at our table that they really enjoyed. The first night (and every night ;)) was pretty casual dress. We turned in early the first night as we also wanted go unpack our smaller bags. They were there and we were good.

 

HALF MOON CAY - Woo Hoo! Absolutely beautiful. We were up early for breakfast at Lido. Sat right at Mongolian Grill. Order omelet and got other items from buffet. At this time, the there was not a crowd. We met the Cabana group in the Victoria lounge (very back) and then headed to deck 0 to tender (very front). The tender was very large and had reserved disabled seating. It was wonderful. My mother rolled right on and pretty much did the same to get off. Best tender experience ever. We got off and caught the pick-up shuttle to the cabana. We were right in front of the bathrooms in the eggshell cabana, #9. It was perfect. close to restrooms for my mom and we could still here the music in the distance.

 

The beach, water, and area was beautiful. The water near us was never too crowded. Over the course of the day, it got VERY HOT. It was great to have some space to get away. We hung out at the cabana until about 3. Plenty of snacks for the day. With the grilled lunch provided by Carnival, it was more than we could eat.

 

The lunch included burgers, dogs, and grilled jerk chicken as well as salads and desserts. It was very good. YOU MUST GET OFF the ship and take a dip! Beautiful, even after IRENE.

 

One of the local 4x4's took us back to the tender. We did not have to worry about the shuttle. Again, a great experience.

 

As you can see, this is more detailed than I ever expected. Will return later for highlights about the rest of trip.

[Katty891]

Ive enjoyed reading this. I did have one question though.. Do you know what some of the movies they had playing on the seaside theater at night?? Also, what where some of the in cabin movie options?? Thanks!

[sk84fungirl]

There were a couple of things that I remembered being shown on the big screen:

 

Tina Turner's Farewell Concert and the Bengals vs. Saints Football game...:o

 

The only reason I remember those is because I happen to walk through.

 

My sister watched several movies in the room. I did not see any. So sorry I could not help you. However, if you post that question in our roll call, I'm sure someone can answer.

[Katty891]

There were a couple of things that I remembered being shown on the big screen:

 

Tina Turner's Farewell Concert and the Bengals vs. Saints Football game...:o

 

The only reason I remember those is because I happen to walk through.

 

My sister watched several movies in the room. I did not see any. So sorry I could not help you. However, if you post that question in our roll call, I'm sure someone can answer.

Thanks for that!!

[MSRussell]

How was the humidity?

Melanie

[sk84fungirl]

How was the humidity?

Melanie

 

Oh my, oh my, oh my!!!! It was terrible...LOL

 

It was hot everyday and let's just say my hair suffered from the humidity more than I did...:p

[bills blasters]

Love reading your review. Keep it coming.

Will be going on the Liberty soon, and love to hear all the details.

Claudia

[ibcnusoon]

Looking forward to your review too! We are sailing on the Liberty in November, but doing the exotic western caribbean, but still like to read other's trip reports!

[sk84fungirl]

Day 3 - Sea Day

 

We decided to eat in the MDR for breakfast this day. Really enjoyed it. While it was probably not much different than the food on Lido, we preferred to order our eggs and other items to order. After our experience this day, we decided this was the way to go for the remainder of the cruise. We had breakfast in the Silver Dining room each morning with the exception of debarkation.

 

While the water was beautiful and looked pretty mild, the head winds and waves made for a rocky ride. Too rocky for many. My mother was pretty ill. We could not do too much because she got sick. So we ordered room service and she stayed in the room until dinner. I ventured out to a few activities including the casino. Pretty relaxing day. This is also elegant evening. Unless you want to take pictures, dont overdo it. IMO it is not worth the lbs in your luggage. Dinner was great. Of course this was lobster and shrimp. And I must say, they were awesome. I've often had overcooked lobster, but not this night.

 

Day 4 - St. Thomas

 

We arrived in St. Thomas a little before 9:00 a.m. Disembarking in this port and every other was a breeze. They encouraged you to walk down the steps from the 3rd floor. We could not do that with my mother so always took the elevators down. When arriving to deck zero, they would have to unrope the elevator entry so we can exit. No problem.

 

We booked a tour with Godfrey at $25 per person. It was HOT, HOT, HOT! We exited the ship and looked for Godfrey. As we asked others for him, they said. "oh, he's always late". Ahhhh!!!! We remembered we were now on island time. He was just a few minutes late. My mother is 81 and used a rollator. He kept the rollator in the front with him and we sat on the front row of the open air vehicle. While it was a hot day, when we were moving, it was awesome. We spent 2 hours in the shopping area and then toured the island for about 2.5 hours. It was a great day and I highly recommend him. We returned to the ship about 3:00 p.m. 2 of us walked Havensight and the others boarded. We left port at 6:00 p.m. By this time, we were seated in the dining room. Great view of St. Thomas and the sunset. Fabulous!

 

Day 5 - Grand Turk

 

Not much to do here...BUT, we had a great day. Once again exiting the ship was not a problem. There is a short walk down the pier in the heat. I later learned that wheelchair assistance is available if needed. We did not take my mother's rollator and could have used it.

 

If I recall, we were in port from 11 - 5:30. We rented a golf cart from Nathan's. Many mentioned it is right outside of the gate. Please note: if you have a disability, this is not a close walk. It was very HOT! Mom had to find a seat while we went off to search for the carts. Once my niece and I arrived, it was quite an interesting experience. There was a small group there kind of flipping out. Apparently, some carts were damaged in Irene and he ran out. After a while of standing there, I just said credit my account and I will be fine. He offered me a small jeep with air conditioning at the same rate and free gas. I jumped in the jeep, went back inside the gate, and picked up my crew!!!! We were HAPPY to have air conditioning.

 

We drove through neighborhoods and landed at a few scenic locations for pictures. Absolutely beautiful. Went to the lighthouse and have wonderful shots (attached 2). After driving around the port, we went to Margaritaville for lunch. Wanted to go to Jacks Shack but decided to be in port for my mother's convenience. We landed a seat table right on the aisle facing the pool. It was a great spot to people watch as they participated in all of the different contests. The food was OK and overpriced. But we had a good time. We returned to the ship about 4:15. Everyone was due back at 5:00 p.m. About 5 I decided to go on the balcony as I had the TV channel turned to the ship's forward camera view. I was amazed at the number of folks streaming in! 20 minutes later, I'm looking over and folks are still coming. Now, we're supposed to leave at 6:00. I may have my times a little confused. But here is the fact. We left late. So much so that there was an officer standing on the pier to help shuffle people along. Believe it or not, folks were pausing to take pictures while folks were yelling from the balcony for them to hurry. I heard the officer say, we're still missing 2. A few minutes later, here comes the last two! I'm sure this cost Carnival some $$$!

 

Once again, we were able to watch the depature from our dinner table.

 

Off to San Juan!

[sk84fungirl]

Day 3 - Sea Day

 

We decided to eat in the MDR for breakfast this day. Really enjoyed it. While it was probably not much different than the food on Lido, we preferred to order our eggs and other items to order. After our experience this day, we decided this was the way to go for the remainder of the cruise. We had breakfast in the Silver Dining room each morning with the exception of debarkation.

 

While the water was beautiful and looked pretty mild, the head winds and waves made for a rocky ride. Too rocky for many. My mother was pretty ill. We could not do too much because she got sick. So we ordered room service and she stayed in the room until dinner. I ventured out to a few activities including the casino. Pretty relaxing day. This is also elegant evening. Unless you want to take pictures, dont overdo it. IMO it is not worth the lbs in your luggage. Dinner was great. Of course this was lobster and shrimp. And I must say, they were awesome. I've often had overcooked lobster, but not this night.

 

Day 4 - St. Thomas

 

We arrived in St. Thomas a little before 9:00 a.m. Disembarking in this port and every other was a breeze. They encouraged you to walk down the steps from the 3rd floor. We could not do that with my mother so always took the elevators down. When arriving to deck zero, they would have to unrope the elevator entry so we can exit. No problem.

 

We booked a tour with Godfrey at $25 per person. It was HOT, HOT, HOT! We exited the ship and looked for Godfrey. As we asked others for him, they said. "oh, he's always late". Ahhhh!!!! We remembered we were now on island time. He was just a few minutes late. My mother is 81 and used a rollator. He kept the rollator in the front with him and we sat on the front row of the open air vehicle. While it was a hot day, when we were moving, it was awesome. We spent 2 hours in the shopping area and then toured the island for about 2.5 hours. It was a great day and I highly recommend him. We returned to the ship about 3:00 p.m. 2 of us walked Havensight and the others boarded. We left port at 6:00 p.m. By this time, we were seated in the dining room. Great view of St. Thomas and the sunset. Fabulous!

 

Day 5 - Grand Turk

 

Not much to do here...BUT, we had a great day. Once again exiting the ship was not a problem. There is a short walk down the pier in the heat. I later learned that wheelchair assistance is available if needed. We did not take my mother's rollator and could have used it.

 

If I recall, we were in port from 11 - 5:30. We rented a golf cart from Nathan's. Many mentioned it is right outside of the gate. Please note: if you have a disability, this is not a close walk. It was very HOT! Mom had to find a seat while we went off to search for the carts. Once my niece and I arrived, it was quite an interesting experience. There was a small group there kind of flipping out. Apparently, some carts were damaged in Irene and he ran out. After a while of standing there, I just said credit my account and I will be fine. He offered me a small jeep with air conditioning at the same rate and free gas. I jumped in the jeep, went back inside the gate, and picked up my crew!!!! We were HAPPY to have air conditioning.

 

We drove through neighborhoods and landed at a few scenic locations for pictures. Absolutely beautiful. Went to the lighthouse and have wonderful shots (attached 2). After driving around the port, we went to Margaritaville for lunch. Wanted to go to Jacks Shack but decided to be in port for my mother's convenience. We landed a seat table right on the aisle facing the pool. It was a great spot to people watch as they participated in all of the different contests. The food was OK and overpriced. But we had a good time. We returned to the ship about 4:15. Everyone was due back at 5:00 p.m. About 5 I decided to go on the balcony as I had the TV channel turned to the ship's forward camera view. I was amazed at the number of folks streaming in! 20 minutes later, I'm looking over and folks are still coming. Now, we're supposed to leave at 6:00. I may have my times a little confused. But here is the fact. We left late. So much so that there was an officer standing on the pier to help shuffle people along. Believe it or not, folks were pausing to take pictures while folks were yelling from the balcony for them to hurry. I heard the officer say, we're still missing 2. A few minutes later, here comes the last two! I'm sure this cost Carnival some $$$!

 

Once again, we were able to watch the depature from our dinner table.

 

Off to San Juan!

 

 

OK, typed a very long edit as well as the final details of my review. Unfortunately, I received a message that the time expired. At this point, I'm too tired to start over right now and will have to come back another day. It should be noted that I have my days confused.

 

San Juan is Day 5, and Grand Turk is Day 6.

 

I'll be back in a couple of days...:)

[CrimsonQueen]

We have this same cruise booked for March, 2012.....thanks for the confirmation that HMC is as wonderful as I've heard! Can't wait to get there!!!:D

 

Enjoying your review....thanks for talking the time to share.

[mystical25]

we where on this cruise also

 

a few tidbits I know one of the movies on the big screen was remember the titans we where walking thru, and I think if I remember correctly they had rio one night to.

 

food was good very good the meatloaf and mac and cheese where both very good for a comfort food, sure didnt look like the normal meatloaf and mac and cheese we make at home didnt taste like it either, southern fried chicken was also very good.

 

all the islands where very beautiful couldnt tell anywhere that a hurricane had been there a week before us. my favorites for both grand turk and half moon cay, but would definatly go and stay a week in san juan as I say that soo much to do and see.

 

 

gettting on and off the boat was a breeze, and a older couple was very late in grand turk, the guy was drunk we where in a balcony and watched them get escorted to the ship it was funny lol. in st thomas we watched another guy fall in a fountain because he was drunk his gf or wife was not very happy lol.

 

buffet lines in the morning and sometimes lunch was ridiculous but normal, I seen worse whats funny was the amount of grumpy people who didnt like waiting in line and where budging just really had to laugh at them. and then they would seriously get mad.

 

the only complaint I had all week was besides the first day when we boarded the ship only 1 grill station was going all week I didnt understand this and first time I ever seen it every time I have cruised before inless we where in port both stations where going. thats where I experienced the 20 min lines.