PHOTO Review ~ 11/4/2012 ~ Freedom of the Seas Eastern Caribbean

[M&JfromSDL]

The Who, What, Where and Why:

 

My girlfriend (now fiancé) and I just returned from an awesome 7-day Eastern Caribbean cruise aboard the Freedom of the Seas (11/4-11/2012). We are a twenty-something professional couple from the Northern Virginia/DC area. We’ve cruised before and were looking forward to this cruise [understatement].

 

Below is a quick synopsis of our pre-cruise travel. I have lots of pictures to share and will add a link to my Flickr account where more can be seen. I did a terrible job with finishing my Allure review and commit to finishing this one in a timely manner.

 

November 3, 2012

 

Flight:

United Airlines

Washington-Dulles [iAD] to Orlando [MCO]

Boeing 737-900

 

We flew out of Washington-Dulles aboard United Airlines the night before the cruise. I had to work Saturday until about 6pm so my better half met me at work, which is roughly 15 minutes from the airport. From there we continued on to drop off our extra car (National Rental Car) and check our bags. Luckily I have a Mileage Plus credit card and was able to check 2 bags for free.

 

Our flight departed at 10:08pm and was scheduled to arrive in Orlando at 12:26am. Upon landing we grabbed our rental from the National Rental Car Emerald Aisle, a 2012 Chrysler Sebring Convertible.

 

Pre-Cruise Hotel

Sheraton Suites Orlando Airport

 

We spent the night at the Sheraton Suites Orlando Airport. The hotel was nice: a quick drive from the rental car garage and the room had a separate living room as well as a kitchenette. Overall we were in the hotel for just about 8 hours. It was clean, provided a good nights rest and at 3,000 StarPoints a relative bargain.

 

November 4, 2012

 

Our day started with an 8am wake up call. We were excited to hit the road so within an hour we were out the door and in the car. A quick stop for sodas for the cabin and Dunkin Donuts and we were ready for a [brief] road-trip

 

We stopped off at the terminal and dropped off our bags so we would not have to cart them over from the rental car drop-off. But first, we were on a mission. A mission for good Cuban food.

 

DSCN0031 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0032 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0036 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0037 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0047 by directenterenter, on Flickr

[M&JfromSDL]

Being part Cuban I can’t take a trip to Florida without scouting a good Cuban place. I found a place called Rubio’s Cuban Café located a short drive from Port Canaveral and just down the street from the Enterprise/National/Alamo location.

 

I highly recommend this quaint restaurant. The food was very good and the service was attentive.

 

After lunch we dropped off the rental and took the quick shuttle ride over to the cruise terminal. We arrived at 12pm and could tell this process would be a disaster.

 

Food PORN:

 

Papa Rellana

 

DSCN0052 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Cuban Sandwich

 

DSCN0054 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Black Beans

 

DSCN0055 by directenterenter, on Flickr

[Yorkvillain]

More! More! More!

[M&JfromSDL]

Embarkation

 

There were people lined up outside the building in two lines that spanned to each of the sidewalk ends. Thank goodness the weather was nice and it was a comfortable wait outside. This process was nothing like the one we experienced while boarding Allure last year. I understand the terminal is being renovated but it was a major disappointment. Now, nearly 2pm we were finally on board and it was time to head to our cabin!

 

Cabin

 

We booked cabin 8712, an aft-facing balcony cabin. I ordered a bottle of champagne and a plate of chocolate covered strawberries via Gifts & Gear beforehand. I’ve done this for each cruise we have sailed on together. Usually it is just a special treat but soon after walking onto the balcony we would have something to celebrate…our engagement.

 

Hurricane Sandy delayed and flooded my plans to propose here at home. So I ended up proposing on our balcony just before sail away.

 

We were somewhat disappointed with this particular cabin. It was our first balcony stateroom and we loved having the outdoor space. However we had a bone to pick with the setup of the balcony. For one, the superstructure of the ship blocks the view a bit. It didn’t bother me as much as my fiancé but it did get in the way. What bugged me most was the general lack of privacy. I was under the impression there would be a slight overhang to provide some shade and prevent my upstairs neighbors from seeing me stroll out on the balcony in my boxers, but I digress.

 

DSCN0059 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

 

DSCN0648 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0655 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0634 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

 

 

DSCN0631 by directenterenter, on Flickr

[M&JfromSDL]

I know, I know! Less typing, more photos!!!

 

Disney Dream from our muster station:

 

DSCN0079 by directenterenter, on Flickr

Sail away from the bow:

DSCN0091 by directenterenter, on Flickr

Carnival Sensation:

 

DSCN0083 by directenterenter, on Flickr

Pre-Dinner Drink at the Champagne Bar:

 

DSCN0104 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Dinner:

 

We were seated at a table of 6 with 2 other couples. They had a huge role in making this trip the success that it was. We had a blast sharing dinner with them and having fun afterwards too!

 

Sorry, I forgot my camera tonight. I have dinner pics for later evenings but for tonight I ordered the following:

 

Asian Coconut Seafood Soup – Very good! Rich with lots of seafood chunks.

 

Mojo Marinated Grilled Pork Chop – Mojo is a major component to Cuban pork dishes. I had a feeling my standards and expectations would be too high and I was correct. The pork was dry and the flavor was just okay. Our table mates ordered the Prime Rib and it looked fantastic.

 

Blueberry-Peach Crumble – AWESOME! Get it!

 

That’s day number 1 folks. Long day. We hit the casino after dinner and donated a couple bucks to our favorite slot machine, Kitty Glitter. Afterwards we caught the Love and Marriage Show. I made it through the first 10 minutes and fell asleep. I woke up and went straight the room and collapsed on the bed.

[GatorGirl]

I look forward to reading more of your review!

[DarthGrady]

Great start to your review, I'm looking forward to seeing more! Freedom is my favorite ship.

[918baker]

Congrats on your engagement! :)

 

Love all of the pictures so far! My husband and I are going on a rather belated honeymoon on Freedom in June and can't wait!! We recently changed our room to a balcony as well but it's not an aft or a hump, fingers crossed I can beg my way into a lounger ;)

[Ren1216]

Congratulations on your engagement! Great start on the review, your pictures came out really nice. Looking forward to the rest.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the pics and review.

[swwake]

Congrats on your engagement. I love photo reviews! Thanks for posting.

[BillOh]

Nice start. As I'm considering a return to Freedom in 2014, I'm paying attention in case we decide to go Eastern again. I've tendered twice at Coco Cay on Majesty, and am curious to see how it goes on Freedom. I've tendered at Freedom at Labadee and Grand Caymen, and that went ok, but looking forward to your report and more pictures! I understand, with the picture support, your feelings about the balcony privacy. Next time on Freedom I recommend a center hump balcony. I think it was 9640 I had and will look for again.

[clochette]

Congratulations, and thanks for sharing, I cannot wait to read more.

[nerak11]

We were on the same sailing! Just to let you know the reason for the chaos at the terminal was because they were doing a "deep clean" on Freedom due to higher than normal number of noro cases on the previous cruise. We arrived at port at 11:00, were checked in by 11:10 and sat in the chairs for 1.5 hours before boarding. They had to stop checking people in because there was no more room inside the terminal! I felt very sorry for the hundreds of people that had to stand in a line for so long inside and outside!

[ckrobyn]

Loving this review!!!

Congrats on your engagement :D:D

[2thesea]

More pretty please :D from your neighbor in Central VA - UVA Country!

[JimAOk1945]

I'm enjoying your review very much. My wife and I are thinking about the same itinerary next year. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of your review. Congrats on your engagement! :D

[medfordgirl]

congrats on your engagement, how exciting! and I am loving your review and pics. we will be back on freedom on dec 9. we have been on freedom a couple times already, love that ship.

[M&JfromSDL]

Let's keep it going with another update. Glad you are all enjoying it, I appreciate the feedback. Let me know if you have any questions or would like to see something specific. I took 800+ photos so chances are I caught an image of it.

 

November 5, 2012 – CoCoCay & Formal Night

 

Sleeping in was a major goal for this vacation and you would think I would have accomplished that on the first day, but nope. I was up bright eyed and ready to go at 645am. My significant other slept like a rock.

 

We started the day as we do most days aboard a cruise ship, with a big carafe of coffee and a fruit plate. This time we had the pleasure of doing it on the balcony.

 

DSCN0108 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Afterwards we headed up to the Windjammer for some breakfast.

Each morning they had a carving station with ham which was usually pretty good. Today I had blueberry pancakes (very good!), scrambled eggs and a cup of yogurt.

 

We were a bit disappointed by the Windjammer breakfast especially after experiencing the Solarium breakfast on board Allure. There didn’t seem to be as many healthy choices here.

 

DSCN0110 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

We went straight from breakfast to the tender. Tendering is generally a pain in the neck but it was pretty easy here. The tenders were high capacity and frequent. It wasn’t that big of a deal to get off the ship soon after arriving.

 

DSCN0111 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

We could see our stateroom as we rounded the aft of the ship.

 

DSCN0116 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

We passed these great looking [under construction] cabanas.

 

DSCN0122 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

After landing at CoCoCay, we decided to walk towards the other end of the island. Along the road we saw many wild chickens running around. We did not participate in any excursions. We just laid around on the beach like a bunch of bums.

 

DSCN0123 by directenterenter, on Flickr

[M&JfromSDL]

November 5th, 2012 Continued:

 

Bar

 

DSCN0125 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0126 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

My personal Corona commercial:

 

DSCN0133 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0137 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0139 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

The weather in CoCoCay started out a bit cool but the sun started to warm things up in the early afternoon. The water was a bit chilly too. Overall I was impressed. It’s a little different than Labadee but equally as relaxing.

 

After laying out for a bit we grabbed a quick BBQ lunch of ribs, chicken and Spanish rice. The food was pretty good and there was a decent selection of other items as well.

 

DSCN0155 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Afterwards we jumped back on the tender and returned to the Freedom.

[M&JfromSDL]

Back on board we posted up at the Pool Bar and enjoyed a couple cocktails. I fell in love with Frozen Mojitos last year on the Allure and had to have one on Freedom. This one wasn’t as good as I remembered but I conducted additional research during the week and found out which bar was better to order them from.

 

DSCN0167 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

After a cocktail or 3 we returned to our cabin to get ready for formal night.

 

We got dressed and ready WAAAAYYY too early for our 8pm seating. So we found the 2 most comfortable chairs on the ship which happen to live Promenade-side at Vintages. We enjoyed a wine flight while people watching then proceeded to dinner.

 

DSCN0186 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

I remembered to bring my camera to dinner this evening but failed to take any pictures. Must have been the mojitos and wine. My dinner comprised of the following items:

 

Lobster Bisque – Quite good.

Filet of Beef Tenderloin – Very good.

Double Strawberry Cheesecake – Also very good.

 

My significant other started ordered the Fillet of Barramundi and did not like it. She struggled with her entrée choices this week.

 

After dinner we went straight back to the cabin. The entertainment tonight was a bit weak and we were exhausted. I tucked her in to bed and took a quick spin throught the RCCL Online area to check in on work. Then I packed off to bed as well.

 

[Eng23]

Good job so far. The Freedom is a great ship, I have sailed her twice. :)

[Eng23]

Hmmmmmmm? Frozen Mojito, I've never tried that before but it sounds like a good idea. I'll have to keep that in mind for next year while on the Allure. :)

[M&JfromSDL]

November 6, 2012 – Day at Sea

 

Continuing with our inability to sleep in…

 

Today I was awake at 5:50am. That’s a touch earlier than I wake up to go to work during the week. But alas I got to catch a nice sunrise on the balcony and explore the ship with all of the other early birds and insomniacs.

 

DSCN0192 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

 

DSCN0194 by directenterenter, on Flickr

DSCN0198 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

The Solarium

 

DSCN0200 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0201 by directenterenter, on Flickr

[M&JfromSDL]

Coffee by the Pool as we read our Compass.

 

DSCN0203 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

DSCN0204 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Then we had the Windjammer practically to ourselves:

DSCN0205 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

Breakfast ham + Pineapple = Yummy:

DSCN0206 by directenterenter, on Flickr

 

My DF loves RCCL Muesli:

DSCN0207 by directenterenter, on Flickr