Freedom of the Seas - A family review 2/8/2015

[nanatutu]

Hello Everyone -

 

Sorry that I have not finished up this review yet.....it is coming. I had previously contracted to work an event 2 days after this cruise. While on the ship I had my phone stolen and then when we got back our motorcoach which had been in the shop for 2 weeks getting some repairs done was not finished. So I had about 48 hours to scramble to figure out accommodations for the family while I was out of town and at the same time get me a phone. On top of that I've worked 120+ hours while at this event so I haven't had a whole lot of free time. I fly back tomorrow and have already asked the kids to put together some feedback while I was gone. So hopefully if all goes well Ill get this wrapped up in the next week.

 

-Sean

 

We have all enjoyed your review so far. Please don't worry about us. We are patient and will wait. Your family the priority over us. Sorry you ran into so many problems after your cruise. Not a great way to come back off a vacation.

 

Look forward to your review when you are able.

 

Pam

[wilmingtech]

I think this may be the most discontiguous review of a cruise ever!

 

Just to start - For anyone who has ever written a review before...thank you! It takes a lot of time and effort to put together a good review. I can now truly appreciate the work that has gone into many cruise reviews before this one.

 

Also - My phone was stolen while on the ship so alot of this will be from combined memories. I took a lot of notes in evernote but we never got connected to the internet until the first port and that was the morning that my phone was stolen so my notes and pictures up to that point sadly had all been lost. My wife and our dear friend who cruised with us have supplemented some photos for your viewing pleasure.

 

So here it is 4+ months later and I finally have some time to get back into this review. A lot has happened in the past 4 months. Primary reason I have not posted is that I have been buried in work and as soon as I got finished with my spring season my wife and I jumped on another ship in Europe to cruise around Norway but that is another story for later (Stay on Target....Stay on Target...)

 

Back to where we left off -

 

I think I'll give a quick overview of the cruise itself, our expectations and experiences for each day and then do a review of the food services, entertainment and other things onboard.

 

Day 1 - The Departure

 

It was a whirlwind. As you may have sensed at the beginning of this review there was a lot of excitement and energy getting to the port, getting our set sail cards/passes and getting us all through security and onto the ship. It was amazing the size of the ship. I think the thing that really just wowed us was the Promenade. It really was amazing and hard to believe you were on a boat. The first thing we did was grabbed a pizza snack and then we were just overwhelmed with all there was to do. The kids all wanted to do everything all at once...all chatting away about where to go and what to do and what to see.

 

I think the first thing we did was go to the room so that we would know where it was. I don't think they were ready but we wanted to get the kids acquainted with the layout of the ship. Next thing we did was to head out to the Bow of the ship for the sail away. It was uncrowded on the bow and the weather was beautiful.

 

 

Jetty Park

 

After that we got the kids setup for the Kids Club and got our cards punched for lanyards (no one had lanyards so my wife ended up knitting some). After all that we headed up to the pool deck on the way to the buffet to grab some more food.

 

My eating goal for this cruise was to never be full. Snack all day. So This would be our second lunch or maybe dinner appetizers if you will. As we passed by the pool deck we did see Gloria the Hippo dancing away. We watched for a few minutes but we were all more intrigued by what lay ahead on the buffet.

 

Our first impression as we walked into the buffet area was that it was huge. Well thought out in design with easy access to both sides as you walk in with the kitchen in the middle. Kitchen staff were able to maintain the salad, soups and sushi parts of the buffet from the center behind the counters. The separate buffet islands for hot food helped to alleviate the lines and it was over all a very appealing decor and layout. We grabbed some light plates of food and sat and enjoyed the view as we cruised out to sea.

 

After the buffet we explored the ship some more. The kids wanted a free hour in the arcade so I took them to that. Wifey went to do her free spa raffle so the kids and I went to check out the climbing wall and the flowrider. Kids wanted to do the flow rider but it was pretty chilly without a wetsuit or shirt to pull over. There was only one person riding with appropriate attire. Next time I go I am bringing a Jersey for sure. We also wanted to watch a rocket launch from the cape. We had seen two from land at this point but thought it would be great to see one from the ship as the sun was setting. This never happened as the launch was scratched but we did watch the sunset.

 

 

After exploring and arcade games we went to the MDR for our first dinner. We had great service and the menu was fun to read through and choose from. Our Server and his Assistant had 3 larger tables assigned to them. One moved to a different section/time and the other table never showed up for the week so we experienced first class service all week long. The kids loved being treated like adults and enjoyed very much trying all the items on the menu. Usually we (unless it was something we all wanted) ordered different things and shared and ordered extra if it was good. Our server kept saying - "If you cant make up your mind, I'll be glad to bring both" which we did on more than one occasion.

 

1st night in the MDR

 

After dinner we walked around the ship a little, caught up on the schedules for the following day and then got the children back to the room to go to bed. I think we were all exhausted and comfortably sleeping (out cold) by 11pm.

 

 

Next - Day 2 Cocoa Cay

[debsters41]

Glad to see this update! Sorry about your phone. I love seeing all those smiling faces in the pictures!

[ampc007]

Awesome what a great surprise! Thanks for coming back :) so looking forward to this as we are first times with our 5 kids...

[ommax2]

Following with bated breath!

[hernonmom]

Leaving on the freedom in 4 weeks so curious about the rest!

[wilmingtech]

Day Two - Coco Cay

 

I've gotta be honest. As first time cruiser's, my wife and I thought Coco Cay would be our least favorite port. We totally thought it would be a touristy cheese ball ripoff Disney wannabee everything cost an extra buck island. We woke up early that first morning before the kiddos did and we had a date in the gym. Jumped on the treadmill by 6:30am and wow, the view from the treadmills in the gym is amazing. As we started running the island came into view in the distance. It felt like we were running toward the island. Almost as if we would get there earlier if we started running faster.

 

After a good run we washed up and grabbed the kids and headed off to the windjammer for some brekky. Breakfast was good and we were there early enough where the lines weren't too bad yet. After breakfast we pulled together our backpacks for our trip to the island and headed downstairs to jump on the tenders. Some things we were surprised about. For 1st time cruisers the water in the Caribbean was unbelievably blue. We thought maybe they were dumping blue dye into the water as it was an amazing color. Very beautiful. The other thing that was surprising is the quickness with which we were able to get on the tender and on to the island. We thought it would be a 30 minute wait for two tenders but we were on in 10 minutes and five minutes later we were on the island.

All Tendered Up

 

Our first impression was what we thought...all the stores with the crappy touristy stuff for sale right as we got off the ship.

 

Before the trip I had bought each one of us masks and snorkels so we could go snorkeling in the islands. So as fast as we could we walked past the stores and huts and off to the right as far away from where we expected the crowds of people to be. We found a nice stretch of beach with some rock croppings that we decided would be good for snorkeling. The best part about it was that it was all of my lids first time snorkeling and the water didn't get more than waist deep until you got about 50 feet out. Perfect for sticking your head in the water and learning to breathe through the snorkels. The kids had a great time. We saw all kinds of fish and some rays. There were quite a few drop offs and lots of underwater reeds and grass that just created a magical little place to snorkel in.

 

 

[wilmingtech]

Looking for Rays in the Cay

 

After snorkeling we all headed back up the beach to the common areas and BBQ stand. We took the hiking trail and back road through the woods and passed some of the people on the "Ship Sponsored Excursion" which seemed to be a hokey history walking tour of the man made structures on the island. We stopped and listened for a few and it really makes me wonder why people pay 49.95 for a walking tour of a man made island.

Will the real Blackbeard please stand up!

 

The more popular area of Coco Cay

 

The local entertainment

 

The Lizard Walk

 

BBQ was okay. Not excellent but being hungry from swimming all morning the hot dogs, overcooked hamburgers, BBQ chicken and grilled corn, coleslaw and salad toppings hit the spot. After lunch we hung out with the local celebrity lizard and lounged around on the hammocks for an hour. We briefly walked through some of the touristy market stands and by then it was about 3:30 or so and we headed back to the ship.

 

[wilmingtech]

Once back on the ship we decided we were still hungry. It would be the 1st Formal night and we had standing reservations for the 8pm seating. Because it was still rather early we figured we would do an early and late dinner each night on the cruise. Rather than eating to our hearts content we just sampled the buffet around 5-6pm as evening appetizers and then ran off to discover the rest of the ship and soon after we all took showers and got ready for our 1st Formal night in the MDR.

 

We were all looking forward to our 1st formal night on the ship. My wife, the kids and myself had all spent a good deal of time shopping for outfits the weeks leading up to the cruise. The little guy and I got ready first and headed out scheduled to meet up with the girls later.

 

There was a big storm brewing as we pulled out of Coco Cay that night and you could certainly feel the waves picking up as the ship started rocking by the time we got to dinner. We love the excitement and rocking of the ship so the little guy and I headed out to the bow to see some wave action.

 

We met up with the girls and had a lovely dinner. It was really nice to have a Formal night and we really enjoyed the time together as a family. Our waiter and his assistant were fantastic and we got to know them really well as we were there only table and they waited on us hand and foot.

Hemsley - Our Assistant Waiter who kept us thoroughly entertained and full of bread.

 

As we walked back to the room that night the boat was really rocking. It looked like everyone was drunk as we would all slant to one side of the boat and then the other.

 

It was amazing having a room at the front of the boat with 8-12 foot seas. We heard the boat creak all night and we were certainly rocked to sleep. Best sleep I had in a long time.

[wilmingtech]

Day 3 - At Sea

 

Good Morning!

 

In the AM the waves were still pretty big. After breakfast 2 of the kids took some dramamine as they were feeling a bit queezy. We took a video that shows how much the boat was moving.

 

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

This was our first relaxing day of the trip. We had nothing planned except for the Ice Show that afternoon. We all ended up going Ice skating before lunch and enjoyed it immensely. I remember thinking to myself that this sheet of ice is way too small to really skate on. Certainly wondering what the ice show would be like later in the afternoon. The members of the skate show take turns helping check people in and out of the rink as well as helping with shoes and protective gear.

A good friend of ours showing the kids how its done.

 

 

We did alot of the activities on the ship this day. Rock Climbing, eating, flow rider, Jacuzzis, eating, Ice Skating, kids club, eating, flow rider, mini golf, eating. Some of the activities were closed in the morning because of the waves, but there was plenty to do and they opened up later after lunch.

My 9yo crushing the monster cliffs on FOTS

 

Afternoon came all to quickly. We had made an appointment to see the The Ice Show on our first sea day and it was amazing. There are definitely some incredible skaters on that ice. The costumes were great and the flow and set design were awesome. One of the girls in the show that was checking us in for ice skating earlier had befriended my 7yo son. During the show, she would smile at him as she skated by and once she waved at him. He didn't recognize her right away but was bubbly and blushing and telling us all excitedly how the girl ice skater was smiling at him and waving. Because of the costumes it took him a few rounds to figure out who it was. If you make it on the freedom and do nothing else, at least go see the ice show.

Edited September 9, 2015 by wilmingtech

[breezy_carol]

So glad to get notification that you had added more to your review.

[wilmingtech]

Day 4 - St. THOMAS

 

Good morning day 4!

 

Before we got onto our cruise we were not really sure what getting off the boat and tooling around the islands was going to look like. With 4 kids excursions can add up, especially the ones offered from the ship. I really wanted to do a catamaran and snorkel trip but wifey didn't want to spend more money to get off a boat and go on another boat. She is more of an adventurous type and wants to go see and do things, not lay in the sun on a boat.

 

There were 5 other cruise ships scheduled to be in port so we decided the port shopping was sure to be busy. I ended up pre-arranging what I call "the poor man's excusion". This would be a hike through port, then a cab, a boat ride to water Island and a free ride on the back of a pickup over a big hill over to honeymoon beach to spend the afternoon. The challenge to this was mostly time. It took us a good hour and a half to get over there to water Island and an hour or so to get back. On top of that I had my phone stolen that morning and it put us an hour or so late getting off the ship. So in the end we only ended up with 2 - 3 hours at honeymoon beach.

35$ Cab ride for 7 from the port to Crown Bay.

 

Once we got to Crown Bay we had missed the water taxi by about 15 minutes and we had to wait another 45 for the next taxi over to Water Island. This was a killer. Had it just been the wife and I we could have had drinks and maybe a bite while we waited. There was a nice little restaurant there by the water taxi stand. But we had packed a lunch and snacks for the kids and didn't want to spend more money than we had to. So we waited.

 

When we got to Honeymoon beach it was really nice and quiet. Maybe 2 dozen people around the bar and on the beach. There were no bathrooms or changing rooms to speak of. (being a guy...its something I never really thought about) We hiked around water island for a bit over to Flamingo Pond and there really wasn't anything to see. Most nice homes were too far from the road to see and the others were not much but Honeymoon beach was nice.

 

There were big waves left over from the storm which killed any chance of a good snorkel. My youngest daughter and I gave it a shot going through a shallow more protected part of the beach but visibility was maybe 36 inches.

 

We were snorkeling in maybe 2-3 feet of water which was a little scary as every time the waves would roll through we would get lifted up and then sucked back down toward the rocks and shallows as the waves passed. We saw a few fish but the most stunning thing was the number of sea urchins.

 

The sea urchins had long spines of maybe 8-12“ and if you were close it was scary as the waves rolled over and you got pulled a little closer than you wanted to be. I stopped, looked down at the sand and made sure it was clear to put my feet down and then chatted with my daughter to make sure she was comfortable. She wasn't nervous at all but we both decided to head back to the beach. So I sent her off and turned around and as I took a step I just happened to land my foot right onto a sea urchin. My foot was on fire. I continued swimming behind her toward the shore as all kinds of images raced through my head of bloody spines and flaps of skin hanging off my foot, infection and blowing up like a balloon, wondering what kind of poison was on the tips of those sea urchins.

 

As we got back to shore we got the phone number for water island rescue and gave them a call. They comforted me and explained that sea urchins are not extremely poisonous but that I should try to pull out the spines that I can and keep the remaining area clean with antiseptic so that it doesn't get infected. While I was relieved to hear that it certainly didn't take away the pain and we had a bit of walking to do to get back to the ship. So we headed back around 2:30 and got back to the port by about 4.

The ride back to the water taxi in the back of a covered pickup

 

Waiting again for the water taxi

[wilmingtech]

Freedom of the Seas - The last ship to leave St. Thomas. Patiently waiting our return.

 

The ships all aboard was at 6pm. So the girls shopped for about an hour while I rested my foot. The girls all wished we had more time to shop around as they liked all the stuff they found and the prices were not bad. Cheaper then what we would expect to pay in a touristy port.

 

Once back on the ship, I treated my foot and we had our first dinner with the kids around 6 and then sent them off to Ocean Academy. Our youngest daughter was more interested in room service. She had never heard of room service before and thought it was fascinating that you could stay in your room and people would bring you food and drinks.

 

So we let her stay in with our son and they watched a movie and ordered room service all on their own. My wife and I had a nice quiet dinner with some friends and we were all back in bed before 11pm. It was really nice being able to have some adult time. And to have this type of environment where all the kids had something to do was great.

[wilmingtech]

Day 5- St. Martin

 

We found a car that would fit all 7 of us!

 

In St. MARTIN we rented a car for the day. We headed off in a counter clockwise direction with our first planned stop at Maho Beach. It was a bit crazy there packed with people standing elbow to elbow. Parking was tough to find. We ended up parking on tthe side of the road about a half mile back up the Beach. We certainly didn't want to pay to park and we wouldn't be there long. Just long enough to see a plane fly overhead. The waves were still pretty large and it looked a bit scary, dangerous even to jump into the water at Maho. So most of the people there were all standing up on the edge of the beach.

 

Back to the car we headed off to the French side of the island. We found the little town of Margot and spent a couple hours shopping in town and the Market they had setup by the marina. Lots of touristy stuff at the market. We thought the prices were a little high but some of the vendors would make a deal and the prices were cheaper than what we saw by the pier. For what its worth, St. Martin seemed a little more expensive than St. Thomas.

 

We left there after an hour or so and headed to the beaches. We found a quaint little beach called Friars Bay and hung out there for a bit. No bathrooms or changing rooms to be found. The waves were still pretty big. This made for fun in the surf but still not ideal for snorkeling.

 

After swimming we decided it was about time to head back to the boat. We were unsure of what the traffic would be like on the way back and since we never made it past Friars bay we figured it would be best to stick with what we know and go back the way we came. Traffic was never that bad. It is slow in most places but we got back and returned the car with about an hour or so to spare. If you do rent a car do make sure you leave time to get back. Google maps might tell you 15 miles to the port but 15 miles can take 45 minutes to an hour to cover when driving on a single lane 3rd world country road.

 

I didnt have my phone so I was unable to take any pictures and my wife was busy enjoying the island so we didnt get many pictures while in St. Martin but we did enjoy it. I think between the two Islands we preferred our experience at St. Martin more than St. Thomas. It's funny because we were talking to some locals in St. Thomas (Ex Pats) who said that St. Martin is flat and a dump compared to St. Thomas. Granted both Islands have their dumpy spots but I think we enjoyed the hills and scenery in St. Martin more. Will have to go back and do some more exploring next time.

 

Being our first cruise, we now wish we had not done Honeymoon beach in St. Thomas or rented a car in St. Martin. We feel like there was lots to do and see within walking distance of the port that we missed out on. Going to Honeymoon seemed like forever to get there and back waiting for the water taxi (over 1 and a half hours wasted waiting around) and there was a bit of stress with renting the car and driving around having no idea where we are going and where to park. I think the next time we will just walk off the ship and enjoy whats in and around the port in both of these islands.

Edited September 9, 2015 by wilmingtech

[wilmingtech]

Sea Days -

 

Its nice having two full sea days before you have to get off the ship. Mostly because of this ship! There was so much to do on Freedom that I think we rarely sat down and just relaxed. The schedule for things happening was busy, busy, busy. We truly enjoyed doing the flow rider, rock climbing, ice skating and mini golf. Add to that the entertainment and activities they had and then all the programs with Adventure Ocean and it got almost hectic at times. It was alot of fun for us and the kids. I could see where being on a smaller ship might be a little bit slow on sea days but not on Freedom.

 

Here are some more pics of fun things around the ship (there was a lot of stuff we missed) -

Our kids loved Sorrentos and the Promenade Cafe. They would always stop to grab a piece of pizza or little sandwich or mostly a dessert. They thought it was the coolest thing to not have to pay for anything they wanted to eat.

 

This is where most of their time on sea days was spent. Wet in the water.

 

Mini Golf anyone? If you are uber competitive this is the place to duke it out.

 

On being a monster

 

We will take a window for 4 please.

 

Spying on our kids through the one way glass in the Adventure Ocean Teen Club

Edited September 9, 2015 by wilmingtech

[wilmingtech]

Since we have been on this cruise (Freedom of the Seas) My wife and I also did another cruise with Norwegian through the fjords of Norway. It is really hard to compare the two ships and cruises as one we did for the ship (Freedom) and one we did for the ports (NCLStar) One thing my wife did mention that she absolutely loved about the Freedom was the Promenade. It was really nicce to have a place that you could walk through and meet up at in the middle of the ship. To grab a coffee or tea and have a little snack or just sit and watch the waves go by. A great place to meet new people and old. The much smaller NCL Star had a little foyer area but it just didn't make you want to go sit there and relax.

The Promenade

 

Another difference between the 2 ships was a lack of Formal Night on the NCL Star. We didn't mind this, again as we were on it for the ports. But we did like the idea of not having to go and shop for semi-formal clothing for ourselves. In the case of our kids we had to buy an outfit for everyone of them. We didn't spend tons of money but it was easily 5 or 6 days over a 2 month period of trying on clothes, returning clothes...(maybe thats just what girls do all the time and I only noticed because I needed clothes too) I preferred the NCL cruise where formal wasn't even noticed. No regrets though as we did hit both formal nights on the Freedom and I do appreciate the time we spent with the kids all dressed up for dinner (the kids all loved it).

[cajuncowgirl13]

Love the review!!! I can't wait to get onboard in December

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[wilmingtech]

I'll wrap it up here -

 

The last night of the cruise was sad. We all had heavy hearts. We truly enjoyed our waitstaff and the kids enjoyed them as well. It was also a bit of a shuffle trying to figure out which bags to carry and which bags to leave out for the porters. Still not sure if we could just carry all the bags with us but that might be our preferred route in the future.

 

Coming into port was really trying knowing that we would all have to leave the ship. We were still covered by this euphoria of joy that was quickly fading away. Knowing now what we know now...we would stay on the ship as long as we could until our number was called. We sat in the theater for an hour and a half and really had no flights to catch or anyplace to be. We would have slept in until 7:30, had breakfast until 9 and walked off the ship at 9:30 or 10.

 

Im sure it is different for those that have same day flights.

 

Overall a great cruise.

 

Entertainment

BOSTON -

On our cruise we saw the Boston Tribute band (This band is no longer on board now its a show called "Its all about the Musicf)

We loved this. I was born and raised in Boston and grew up on this band so it was great for me. The band was superbly talented. The best thing about it was the theater was half full an you could sit wherever you wanted. I think a large part of the crowd on our cruise liked classical broadway shows and performances. Not rock concerts. Some of the people were leaving in the middle of the show. So I guess you just have to know your audience. It would have been hilariously funny if they broke out into Frank Sinatra in the middle of the show but thats what i think most of the cruisers in Mid-February were looking for.

 

Magician - Drew Thomas

We saw Drew Thomas and didn't care for him. My 9 year old told me how he did all of his tricks. We were at a slight advantage being upstage balcony right (You could see how he was hiding and making things disappear from our angle) but we really didn't enjoy the adult themed costumes on the women in the show. It was a little less classy and a bit too trashy.

 

Freedom Ice - This show was phenomenal. A must see. Great performances and amazing choreography. I was very surprised at how well this show was and I think you will be too.

 

Once Upon a Time - This was another great performance. The scenic and costumes were truly first class. it was a well balanced show of music and dance and was top notch.

 

Comedian - I do not remember who the comedian was but he was funny. We went to the family version of his show and it kept us and the kids laughing.

 

The other entertainers in the bars and around the ship were hit and miss. I remember sitting in the Bull & Bear pub and thinking the guitarist was awful. It was the same three chords in the same key with the same strumming pattern for every song he played. There were some great pianists though. Their playing was so good it would suck you right into the venue as you walked by. Alot of the smaller performances we just didnt get a chance to see or enjoy because we were exhausted by the time we got to the end of our 8pm dinner.

 

The best thing about the Freedom is that the ship is so big that if there is something you just don't enjoy, there will be plenty of other things that you will enjoy.

[Fionat29]

Excellent job of reviewing!! Sorry about your phone and the sea urchin but it looks like you managed to have a great time anyway.

You have a beautiful family and you all scrubbed up well for the formal nights! Lol!

Thanks for the review, very useful.

[canuck1234]

Thanks for the review ;) We are actually booked on the same cruise but in 2016 :p (Feb 7-14) I'd be interested on your children's take on the kids club offered by RCCL. I have two boys who will be 7 and 9 at the time of sailing and wonder if they will enjoy that aspect of the trip or just keep them with us most of the time <shudder....> :eek::D

[wilmingtech]

Thanks for the review ;) We are actually booked on the same cruise but in 2016 :p (Feb 7-14) I'd be interested on your children's take on the kids club offered by RCCL. I have two boys who will be 7 and 9 at the time of sailing and wonder if they will enjoy that aspect of the trip or just keep them with us most of the time <shudder....> :eek::D

 

Our kids all liked the kids club.

 

The 7 year old would stay in there all day. He loved it. He enjoyed the activities they had and all the stuff they got to take with them. He met a few of the kids but never really connected with them outside the kids club.

 

Our 9 yo liked the kids club as well. She is typically a complainer but met one or two girls in the club she connected with and would see them outside the club at the pool and around the ship. So she liked to go to the club to see if they were there and if not would go meet up with them by the pool.

 

My 9 year old is super independent. Being 9 she was able to sign herself into and out of the kids club. She was really good at communicating where she was going and what she was doing and would regularly check in with us. So she would get up in the morning and pack her bag and head off to the kids club with her brother.

 

She would leave us a note of her daily schedule -

"Going to the kids club with (little brother), if I don't like it I am going to sit by the pool (we had a prearrange location she was allowed to go to) and if I am not at the pool I will be at the buffet for lunch"

 

She was to call the room and leave a message when she left the kids club (we could check messages from a house phone if we were not in the room) then we would follow her at a distance which was fun to do as parents. We did notice she really loved going to the self-serve ice cream machine out by the pool. She also made a couple friends and they would hang out at the pool together.

 

I will note that we never once felt "unsafe" with the kids on their own. There were quite a few kids on this sailing (The girls working in the kids club said it was one of the slowest weeks of the year for kids in the club) and we found if our girls made a connection with other kids they loved it and if the boy had fun activities he loved it. So your boys will have a blast.

 

They have great participation games, dodge ball, make your own ice cream (with ice and fresh milk) then have contests and the kids would win prizes (Slap Watch and Medals for placing in contests). They also had video game stations for the kids (Just Dance, Mario Cart) they could use between activities. They had crafts, face paint, valentines out of paper, coloring a RCL pillow case with markers (they still have it on their pillows) making buildings out of Jenga blocks and then Fiona an Shrek came by and knocked them all over.

 

Your kids will have a blast. It was a nice couple of hours each day my wife and I got to spend together. I'm sure you will love it just as much as the kids do :)

 

-Sean