Carnival Liberty 8/30/14 Review

[erby2283]

I wasn’t planning on writing a review but then I remembered how much I enjoyed reading the limited Liberty reviews before my cruise and thought I would pay it forward.

 

I wasn’t planning on taking a cruise this year b/c my bf started a new job and wouldn’t have time off to take one. But earlier this year, one of my best friends told me that her Mom and stepfather were going to renew their vows in celebration of their 25th wedding anniversary. Her mom narrowed her cruise options down and finally decided on the 8/30 Carnival Liberty Sailing.

 

I am not used to sailing in the summer (I usually cruise in November) and couldn’t believe how expensive these cruises were for this time of year. 4 rooms had already been booked 6442, 6450, 6481 (All L-shape rooms with double long balcony on the 6th deck – Upper) and 6452 – and aft wrap on the upper. So, to cut costs, we (my roomie and another good friend) booked an inside. However, I am a stalker when it comes to price watching and when I saw that we could upgrade to an 8A balcony for around $100 each, I jumped all over it. We were able to book a balcony close to the group. About a month later, friends who had booked room 6481 had to cancel and I immediately called my friend and TA to change to that room b/c it is also an 8A and there would be no difference in price! I had already sailed in an L-Shaped balcony on the Victory a few years ago and loved the layout of the room and the extra long balcony!

 

We had 3 parties (of 2) flying in from Colorado, and then me and two other bff’s drove down with a 2.5 daughter of one of my bff’s from Charlotte. The father of the 2.5 flew down so that we could guarantee that all of our luggage would fit. In fact, we even took one of his bags in the car with us so he didn’t have to pay to check a bag.

 

We set out for Port Canaveral at 7:30 am on Friday (cruise leaves Sat). We knew we would be stopping a few times since we had a 2.5 year old with us; but she was extremely good in the car. Where were ipads when I was little? We stopped two times, both at McDonald’s, and made it to our hotel by 4 PM. My friends were kind enough to book a 2 bedroom room at the Residence Inn @ Port Canaveral. The other parties would be coming in later that evening and staying at the same hotel. I am usually really good at taking pictures of EVERYTHING, but for some reason, I didn’t take any pictures of the room; or that entire day for that matter. My friends had used their Marriot Reward points for the room so a hot breakfast buffet was included with our stay.

 

For dinner the 4 of us went to Fishlips. We ordered shrimp tempura, scallop risotto, Fishlips tacos and a pizza for the 2.5 year old. We all thought the food was very good. The place was packed and even though it was raining out, we still had a good time.

 

When we got back to the hotel, the other parties were just getting off the shuttle from the airport. They were delayed for 3+ hours at the airport waiting for baggage b/c of lightening. Once they were settled, we set off to buy a few last minute items. When we got back, we went down to the pool/bar and sat around having a few drinks and catching up with everyone.

[michiganredrose]

Looking forward to reading more. These reviews are helping pass the time until I get to sail in March. Great job so far!

[erby2283]

Day 1

We had reservations for the 10 AM shuttle to the pier. It was only a 5 minute ride to the port and then we waited while the driver unloaded everyone’s luggage before we were allowed to exit the shuttle. Once our parties had its entire luggage, we flagged down a porter who loaded all our bags onto a few carts. We tipped $25 to the porter and another $20 to the shuttle driver.

We walked straight in and were escorted to the x-ray machines. Absolutely no one in line! We each carried a bottle of wine (with screw cap) and each bottle was checked by security. I was also carrying a 12 pack of coke in my back pack.

 

We each had FTTF and were shown to a separate line to check in. There were 2 parties ahead of us. We were checked in within 10 minutes and were shown to a separate area to wait. It appeared to me that they had several different waiting areas. One area for weddings and maybe diamond/platinum members(?), one for general boarding and an area for us. At 10:45 we saw the weddings walking past us onto the ship and we were told that FTTF would begin boarding at 11 AM. We boarded close to that time and we immediately went to our rooms to drop off our carry-on bags. No one even attempted to stop us on our way.

 

Again, our room was 6481 and it was ready as soon as we boarded. Excuse these pictures as they were taken on the last day instead of the first. You have to walk all the way to the end of the hallway and through a door to get to our room.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course the best part of the room is having a double long balcony for the price of a regular one. There were 2 chairs, a small table and a lounger on the balcony.

 

[erby2283]

I had read so many good things about Guy’s Burgers that I decided to eat there for my first meal. The rest of my party wanted alcohol, but I don’t drink so I went straight for the food. There was no line whatsoever and then headed over to the toppings area where I added sautéed onions. Now, I am definitely in the minority, but probably because I am a plain jane when it comes to food. I like everything PLAIN. So to me, the hamburger was just okay; but the rest of my party who loaded up their hamburgers with onion rings, lettuce, tomato, pickles, etc., thought it was great!

 

We grabbed a table at the back of deck 9 by the adults only pool but the area is shaded by the deck above. We hung around for a while and then I went back to my room to see if our luggage had arrived.

 

This is the 3rd time I have had FTTF, and last time, the luggage arrived before I even got to my room! This time was different. We waited and waited and by 3:15, I headed down to guest services to see if there was a problem. While waiting in line, a platinum member had mentioned that they didn’t have their luggage and was unusual for them to get their luggage before muster. So at that point, I just left the line and headed back to my room to get ready for muster b/c I realized that on previous cruises, we must have just been really lucky to get our bags that early in the day and didn’t want to bother anyone.

 

Muster, as usual, was long, hot and stuffy! I thought I showed up late enough so that I’d be in the front line but I was wrong.

 

After muster, the party headed to room 6452 (the aft wrap) for sail away. The steward had already opened up the divided between 6452 and 6450 making the balcony even longer! I knew from watching previous sail away’s from the port cam that these rooms were on the opposite side of where Fishlips’ cameras where. So I went back to our room and called my parents so they could try and see me via the web cam as we pulled out of port….and they did!

 

Picture using zoom from #6452

 

Our luggage showed up shortly after muster. One of our bags somehow had the FTTF tag removed but because we had a separate luggage tag with my name on it, they were able to track down my room number and get it delivered. One in our group had the same thing happen to them and when their luggage still had not arrived after dinner, we went to guest services and there it was in the hallway – the tag had also been ripped off. Kind of weird how they came off b/c I hole punched them and used a zip tie!

 

We had to go meet with the maître d b/c we were not assigned to the same table as the rest of our party. I was really nervous that he would not be able to help us b/c we were a party of 11 but with a few clicks of his mouse, he said we were all set. At dinner that night, we were seated, then moved, then reseated at the same table, and then moved again. Our NCL fans were shaking their heads at this, but I realized it was b/c they changed table numbers to accommodate adding two more to the table; OUR FAULT. But we ended up with a large round table at the back of the ship. There is a lot of vibration back here while eating dinner but nothing that bothered me too much.

 

Room from my seat at our table – Early Dining:

 

 

We were in the Silver Dining Room but this is from the Golden Dining Room:

 

 

 

I wanted to take a picture of the menu each night, but I forgot many times. This was the dessert menu for the first night:

 

[erby2283]

After dinner, most of our group decided to go to the comedy lounge for the adults only show. I cannot, for the life of me, remember the guy’s name but he was hysterical.

 

Some in our group had already discovered the Alchemy Bar and fell in love with the bartender, Anna. She is funny and has skills:

 

 

 

I went back to the room to do my favorite thing: read on the balcony while listening to the sound of the ocean. After an hour, I headed to bed.

 

I’ll try to post more later – need to get back to work.

[Lovefuninthesun]

I am enjoying your review -- great so far!

We'll be on Liberty in 23 days, I am "taking notes" (e.g., check out Alchemy Bar with Anna!)

[erby2283]

I am enjoying your review -- great so far!

We'll be on Liberty in 23 days, I am "taking notes" (e.g., check out Alchemy Bar with Anna!)

 

This post is for you then! 23 days....wish I was going again.... Anna also made me a very delicious Virgin drink...although she gave me a nasty look for not wanting alcohol. :p My roomie LOVED the Cucumber Sunrise!

 

Edited September 18, 2014 by erby2283

[keerle]

I can't wait to read more we leave in 23 days also!:D

[Lovefuninthesun]

I can't wait to read more we leave in 23 days also!:D

 

Keerle, looks like we are on the same sailing!

I can hardly wait!

[loppster]

Looks like we are all on the same ship!!

 

Looking forward to the Alchemy Bar.

[Tutontow]

I can't wait to read more we leave in 23 days also!:D

 

Okay I will rub it in....We leave in 3 days and have a Grand Suite. To say we are pumped is an under statement.

[Buffettfan 225]

Following your review. Looking fwd to beverage comments as I am a non drinker also.

[Buffettfan 225]

Following your review. Looking fwd to beverage comments as I am a non drinker also.

[micro yaya]

we were on your cruise with you guys. we are platinum, and when we got to the port our shuttle driver said there was a THING gong on with the longshoremens union. there were not a lot of porters and people who were getting off were slow, because of lack of sufficient porters. our luggage didn't come until after 3, in 25 carnival cruises this was really a first. looking forward to reading your review and seeing if you liked the things we did too.:)

[Crusin Karen]

Great review! We were in an L shaped balcony cabin on the Splendor and loved it. That bartender is AWESOME! :eek::eek:

[erby2283]

This was my first time in Nassau and the group didn’t really have any plans other than walking around and maybe go to a beach. We were in port from 8:30 – 2:30.

 

View of Nassau from Room # 6452

 

 

We headed off the boat around 9:30 am and began walking.

 

 

On the way to the Queens Staircase, we stopped at Fort Fincastle. Not much to see here but was nice for a photo op with the ships in the background. $1 entrance into the fort and they also sell bottled water for $1.

 

 

 

 

We also stopped at a little bar called Bahama Rock Café. My friends said they made awesome drinks. They also had soda and bags of chips. They may have had food available but I never looked at a menu.

[erby2283]

Right around the corner from the bar was the Queen’s Staircase. There are locals waiting at the staircase to tell you the background of the Queen’s Staircase and in exchange for the story, you’re supposed to give them a tip. My friends who had been here before said that the last time they came, the guy told them a 20 minute story and it was very interesting to hear. This time, our guy just talked for roughly 5 minutes and to be honest, I couldn’t even tell you one single thing he said about the Queen’s Staircase.

 

 

 

Our group split up after we walked back into town. Some went back to the ship and other’s shopped. I picked up some aged rum and coconut rum as gifts for friends back home. My group had a good laugh about the fact that the non-drinker was the only one bringing liquor off the ship!

 

Nice picture of Atlantis of the way back to the ship.

 

 

We headed back to the ship and shopped some more in the area right outside the pier. There are lots of handmade items to purchase.

 

We got back on board and I went straight to my room to lie down as I started getting a migraine (I am a migraine sufferer). I slept from 2-9 PM after taking one of my expensive migraine pills that I only use in extreme cases b/c they cost so much! I only got up because I was hungry and headed up to get a slice of pizza. I ran into my roomie on my way to get pizza and she told me that a few of the girls were heading up to the hot tub. I was feeling a little better and thought that the hot water might help with the migraine so I joined them. It was around 10 pm and we were the only ones in one of the adults-only hot tub and there were a few people in the second one. As is normally the case, the water is not hot enough for my liking. It's more like warm bath water. One of my friends went to ask someone if they could adjust it and make it warmer but when he walked up to the hot tub, he said they were "fixing it" and was aware that it wasn't warm. I've been on several different Carnival ships and the hot tubs are never really hot, IMHO.

 

Around 11 pm we headed back to our room. I went to sleep and my roomie went to grab one more drink from alchemy before turning in for the night.

[jimbo5544]

Nice start to your review and good pics. Keep it coming.

[erby2283]

Following your review. Looking fwd to beverage comments as I am a non drinker also.

 

The lemonade is like crack! And I also enjoyed a virgin pina colada every now and then. I also brought a 12 pack of coke and it was plenty while I was on the cruise.

[erby2283]

we were on your cruise with you guys. we are platinum, and when we got to the port our shuttle driver said there was a THING gong on with the longshoremens union. there were not a lot of porters and people who were getting off were slow, because of lack of sufficient porters. our luggage didn't come until after 3, in 25 carnival cruises this was really a first. looking forward to reading your review and seeing if you liked the things we did too.:)

 

Well that would certainly explain why it took longer than normal to get our bags. ;)

[Jamman54]

Enjoying your review! Thanks for posting. Isn't the Liberty a great ship!

[erby2283]

I’m used to getting up early on sea days to get a coveted chair in the Serenity area. I was out of my room by 8 and went up to the buffet to grab my usual breakfast of a hardboiled egg, toast, potatoes (whatever kind they make), sausage & onions, and a chocolate muffin.

 

It is now 8:30 and there is NO ONE in the Serenity Area. I walked all the way to the front of the ship thinking I would lay out up there but it was so windy, I couldn’t stand it. Not breezy, extremely windy.

 

 

So I walked down the side a ways and grabbed a chair and waited to see who else would be joining me. It was still windy enough that (women will understand this…and some men) those tiny fly-away’s that are too short to reach your pony tail will annoy the heck out of you by constantly blowing into your face; but at least it wasn’t too hot. At 9:30, there were still plenty of chairs and loungers available but by 10:30, it was starting to get busy and hard to find 2 loungers together.

 

I must admit that I prefer the Serenity area at the back of the ship - like it is on Legend! The Legend has it laid out very well with the pool/showers and serenity all in one area.

 

I headed in around 1 PM b/c staying in the sun too long will give me a headache. My friends parent's were renewing their vows at 4 PM so I just headed back to my room and sat on the balcony with my book for a bit before getting ready for the ceremony. The vow renewal took place on the aft-wrap balcony and was officiated by their best friend. Rum Cake and the toast was held after the ceremony.

 

Tonight was formal night so we just stayed in our wedding attire before heading down for dinner. Our group had a “rule” that you had to switch seats each night and sit next to someone you hadn’t sat next to before. Just our way of getting to talk with our friends who live in CO. This did, however, create a little mix-up for the drink waiters as they accidentally charged wine to someone else one night b/c someone different was in that seat the night before. Not sure how that happened since they ask for your S&S card to charge it.

 

Here is the menu for formal night #1

 

 

 

After dinner, we took some pictures with the group and eventually we all met up at Alchemy. One of the bartenders told us we couldn’t miss the “Quest” show so we went to the last comedy show of the night and then hung around for Quest. What a nightmare that turned out to be as...well let's just say that you should heed the warning about the show that they make...what happens at Quest, stays at Quest. And BTW, that theatre in the back on Deck 4 is FREEZING! So bring a sweater at all times!

 

After Quest, it was the usual last drink at alchemy and then up to bed to get ready for St. Thomas!

[erby2283]

Enjoying your review! Thanks for posting. Isn't the Liberty a great ship!

 

Thank you. It is a nice ship although I must seem to be in the minority as I really can't say that one ship is nicer/better than the other. Some layouts are better but overall but I haven't yet been on that one Carnival ship that would make me say, "This is my favorite ship!" Maybe I haven't found her yet.

[AnnaNimitee]

Enjoying your review! Thanks for taking the time to post. Very happy to see they've added the Indian vegetarian choice back to the menu. Do you recall if they had an option like that every night?

[Buffettfan 225]

Right around the corner from the bar was the Queen’s Staircase. There are locals waiting at the staircase to tell you the background of the Queen’s Staircase and in exchange for the story, you’re supposed to give them a tip. My friends who had been here before said that the last time they came, the guy told them a 20 minute story and it was very interesting to hear. This time, our guy just talked for roughly 5 minutes and to be honest, I couldn’t even tell you one single thing he said about the Queen’s Staircase.

 

 

 

Our group split up after we walked back into town. Some went back to the ship and other’s shopped. I picked up some aged rum and coconut rum as gifts for friends back home. My group had a good laugh about the fact that the non-drinker was the only one bringing liquor off the ship!

 

Nice picture of Atlantis of the way back to the ship.

 

 

We headed back to the ship and shopped some more in the area right outside the pier. There are lots of handmade items to purchase.

 

We got back on board and I went straight to my room to lie down as I started getting a migraine (I am a migraine sufferer). I slept from 2-9 PM after taking one of my expensive migraine pills that I only use in extreme cases b/c they cost so much! I only got up because I was hungry and headed up to get a slice of pizza. I ran into my roomie on my way to get pizza and she told me that a few of the girls were heading up to the hot tub. I was feeling a little better and thought that the hot water might help with the migraine so I joined them. It was around 10 pm and we were the only ones in one of the adults-only hot tub and there were a few people in the second one. As is normally the case, the water is not hot enough for my liking. It's more like warm bath water. One of my friends went to ask someone if they could adjust it and make it warmer but when he walked up to the hot tub, he said they were "fixing it" and was aware that it wasn't warm. I've been on several different Carnival ships and the hot tubs are never really hot, IMHO.

 

Around 11 pm we headed back to our room. I went to sleep and my roomie went to grab one more drink from alchemy before turning in for the night.

You did get a nice Atlantis photo, very well composed. I too have suffered migraines since puberty. I always travel with a portable ice bag (at home use gel ice packs) and placing on head or back neck helps. Also check with physician about pain med Fioricet ( a narcotic)- which is cheap in generic form (non codeine one) - one tab is a dose but sometimes just half a tab gets me relief in 20-25 minutes. The med I know you take did nothing for me. :( Also on cruise/ restaurants watch for salads as sometimes help lettuce crispness sets off a migraine,msg in a broth, and pure heat / sun I am sure you already know.

Best of luck. Just thought maybe a nice alternative pain med that have as extra option. My dad likes Exedrine Migraine, but I cannot tolerate it or have it help migraine. Enjoying the review as we sail Liberty next June for our 30th Anniversary w/ southern route.