Liberty 2-17-07 Western Review (Long)

[nybumpkin]

We had a great cruise aboard Carnival Liberty, sailing from Fort Lauderdale February 17, 2007 to Costa Maya, Limon, and Colon. We’re a family of five – Dad, Mom, sons 15, 10 and 6 (turned 7 during the cruise). This was our fifth cruise, but first cruise outside the summer season. Since we’re from New York, our kids have a school break the week of President’s Day. (For those of you who’ve ever wondered why some school districts are off that entire week – back in the 70’s during one of the energy crises, the folks in Washington decided that if all schools closed during that week in February, we could save lots of energy by turning down the heat in the schools, and students could attend school one week later in the school year when there was no need to run the heating systems. After the energy crisis died down, most schools went back to their original calendar – but some schools decided they liked the week off in February and kept it in the calendar.) There weren’t as many kids as I expected on this cruise – they announced there were 300 (compared to the announced 900 when we sailed on Conquest in July 2005).

We had a fairly active roll call before our cruise, and it was great meeting so many CCers on board. We met right after boat drill, then on the first two sea days in the morning. The roll call also paid off in Panama, as you’ll read below. Hi to scperk, boatnick, giofamily, beachbumscanada, star10, Maggie, Dr. Jack Daniels, and anyone I missed; I’d love to cruise with all of you again!

Fort Lauderdale: We arrived the day before sailing and stayed at the Best Western Oceanside on Seabreeze Boulevard. It’s a smaller, older hotel, but it worked just fine for us since we wanted to be near the marina for the Jungle Queen dinner cruise. It’s also a short walk to the beach – which was too cold to enjoy during our visit, but was very nice for a walk. The Best Western also has a full buffet breakfast included. There’s no shuttle to the port; you will need to call a cab.

The Jungle Queen is a riverboat that takes you on a one-hour ride along the New River through Fort Lauderdale, past some of the most expensive real estate and yachts you will ever see. It was certainly an unbelievable comparison to the living conditions we’d see later in the week in Central America. You then arrive at the Jungle Queen’s island home, where your dinner consists of all the ribs, BBQ chicken, shrimp and side dishes that you can eat. The ribs especially were wonderful. Then there’s a revue; on our tour, it was an impressionist, a magician, and juggler. We ended up in the front simply by virtue of being seated there for dinner and it being too cold outside to have the revue at the outdoor theater – with the result being that our younger sons were picked on, much to their (and our) amusement.

Embarkation: We arrived at Port Everglades around 11:30 and were aboard by 12:30. Lots of lines, but they moved fairly well. Despite having taken the time to complete the FunPass and having my print-out stating that FunPass for all of us was complete, we still had to fill out a form with this information – somehow it never made it into Carnival’s computer system. Also, in a change from our past experiences, we had to activate our S&S cards once aboard ship, in the Golden Olympian restaurant. It wasn’t a big deal, but I expect to stand in lines portside – once I’m aboard, the last thing I want to do is stand in another line! However, I figured we’d grin and bear it – after all, there wouldn’t be a drink of the day until there was an activated card. We also had continuing confusion regarding our younger sons’ cards; they deliberately weren’t activated, but we kept getting memos from the Purser to advise us they weren’t activated. We finally ignored the memos, which worked out fine.

Carnival Liberty: Doug and I both thought this ship had much more subdued décor than the other Carnival ships we’ve sailed. We liked the ironwork and flowers in the atrium and along the Promenade deck, as well as the ever-changing lights. Both dining rooms have “dinnerware” themes – one in gold, the other in silver. The Venetian Palace, the main show lounge, is just that – Venetian themed. I liked the harlequin figures on either side of the stage “holding” back the curtains, as well as the blown-glass lighting. I’m not a disco fan but I thought the hands and feet in the disco were fun, and the piano lounge with its keyboard theme was done well. The Cabinet, which is the cigar bar and also hosts afternoon tea, was okay but rather plain - not nearly as nice as the comparable Ionian Lounge on Victory.

Food: In the past, we’d always been so satisfied with the dining room food that we never opted for the supper club. This year, as a belated Valentine’s Day gift to each other, we went to Harry’s one night. What an experience! The first thing you notice is just how much quieter Harry’s is. The service is highly polished and personalized; between the hostess, sommelier, and wait staff, I think we had five people wait on us. And as much as I’ve enjoyed meals in the dining room, this meal shone. I had lobster bisque and filet mignon and Doug had onion soup and surf and turf; both were definitely a cut above the versions served in the dining room. Dessert was a chocolate trio; any one of the three would have been a filling dessert. There was also a musical duo – nice music for dancing.

The main dining room food was just fine, even if Harry’s spoiled us. We had a great server, Eveline, and assistant, Par; Eveline always gave us recommendations for dinner, and she never steered us wrong. Although I’m not fond of the 5:45 dining time (we requested 6:15 but didn’t get it – I think one of the groups aboard had a lot of tables reserved at that seating), I’m glad we didn’t try to change. The Lido deck fare was good as well. And for some reason, I never had to wait long for the deli line.

Activities: We’re very partial to trivia contests, having won ships-on-a-stick in the past on Conquest, Legend and Victory. It took a while (Dr. Jack Daniels was successful early in the cruise – thanks for skipping some of the later contests, Pat) but we finally won our Liberty ship-on-a-stick on the last sea day. Okay, it looks like a Spirit-class ship (funny – our Conquest award looks like one too) but it says Liberty! I’ve never been a fan of the hairy chest contest, but we managed to walk in on it – and it really was rather funny. “Fear Factor” was good as well: shaving-cream “hot potato,” holding breath underwater, and eating a rather disgusting concoction of buffet foods (you know a mixture that includes both Jello and raw onion can’t be good).

The CD was Todd Wittmer; we sailed with him two years ago on the Carnival Conquest Hurricane Dennis Tour. While a CD doesn’t make or break my cruise, I do like Todd; he’s down to earth, funny (even if we did hear some of his jokes on Conquest) and not terribly intrusive with the announcements. He had a good staff working under him.

At night, we had planned on visiting the Cabinet after shows so Doug could have a cigar; however, most nights the Cabinet had little entertainment going. We did visit the piano bar one night, with Robert at the piano. Heard “New York State of Mind” twice in the two hours we were there; no offense to either Robert or my fellow New Yorkers, but being on vacation I certainly was NOT in a New York state of mind!

Shows: The two main productions shows were “Wonderful World” and “Rocking Down Broadway.” “Wonderful World” was probably the most elaborate show I’ve seen yet on Carnival, both in terms of costumes and sets, and we really enjoyed it. “Broadway” was okay, but I felt as if the cast and crew had given their all for the first show. Another night’s show was “Swinging with the Big Band,” a tribute to Sinatra and Sammy Davis Jr. We saw this show last year on Legend, and it was just as enjoyable the second time around.

Costa Maya: Based on what we read on the “Ports of call” board, we booked the “Mayan Experience” tour with David and Ivan’s “The Native Choice” company. This tour is fantastic! The first part of the tour takes you to the Chacchoben ruins, about a 45 minute ride from Costa Maya. Along the way, Ivan gave us some of the history of the state of Quintana Roo and some of the villages we’d be passing along the way. At the ruins, Ivan gave a very personalized talk about what life would have been like at Chacchoben, as well as pointing out some of the native plants and their uses. My oldest son was fascinated by the tour; the younger ones loved the ruins, if not the talks. After visiting the ruins, about half the group returned to Mahajual, while the rest of us journeyed to the modern-day village of Chacchoben for a pre-Hispanic lunch with a Maya family. Our oldest son won an ear-to-ear smile from the grandmother when he greeted her with “Hola – Cómo está?” Four years of Spanish started paying off for him. Grandmother demonstrated how to make tortillas just right, so they would puff up when placed on a flat stone over a fire; the best tortillas any of us ever had. Making tortillas isn’t easy, as we learned. Lunch was a stewed chicken with rice and vegetables, a version of “Mayan sushi,” and a variety of fruits, accompanied by an iced tea made from the hibiscus flower. After lunch, two family members demonstrated traditional dances and then gave us a tour of their homestead. If you’re worried about “Montezuma’s Revenge” taking such a tour, everything is prepared with purified water. Don’t be afraid to try it.

Limon: Enough has been said about the “incident” that led Carnival to first drop Limon as a port of call, then add it back given safety assurances by the Costa Rican authorities. My own thought: No matter what port you’re in, do your research ahead of time. Use a tour guide with a good reputation; there are lots of recommendations on the CC “ports of call’ board. Use a ship-sponsored excursion, if you’re more comfortable with that. But whatever you do, unless you’re only aboard for the ship and not the ports, don’t stay on the ship because you’re leery of the port, since you’ll miss meeting some really nice people and having the chance to see places you’re unlikely to see again. Bad things can happen in any port – just be careful of your surroundings.

Okay, off my soapbox. I have to start out my description of Costa Rica with a humorous story. As we arrived in Limon, we noticed another cruise ship was already docked. Well, it piqued my interest, since cruisecal said we were the only ship in Limon that day. I took younger sons up to deck 10 to watch the docking. As we came closer, I could see that the other ships was AIDAaura, a cruise ship (also owned by Carnival Corporation) catering to European cruisers. We came closer to the dock, with both bow and stern thrusters hard at work to bring us alongside. Liberty being a much larger ship than AIDAaura (110,000 tons as opposed to 42,000 tons), we had a clear view of all of AIDAaura’s decks. Suddenly, those of us on Liberty’s port side watched as an AIDAaura passenger stripped off his bathing suit in plain view, then laid out on a lounge chair. Yes, AIDAaura’s top deck apparently is a “clothes-optional” deck. During our day in Limon, Liberty’s port side decks proved to be fairly popular. And yes, my 7 YO went back to school the next week telling his schoolmates about the “naked people on the other ship”! I’m just waiting for the phone call from the school…

We opted for the Carnival-sponsored “Caribbean Train, Boat, Bus Excursion.” This tour involved a 20-minute bus ride to the docks at the Tortuguero Canal, followed by a canal ride where we saw birds and sloths, along with one small-ish American crocodile. After the boat tour, we boarded the train for another 45-minute excursion. In between the two portions, we were treated to a snack of fresh pineapple, banana, coconut, and other fruits – really good. After the train, we visited a banana plantation and viewed the packing process. I will never, ever complain about the price of bananas after watching this very labor-intensive process and understanding that these people receive relatively little pay for what they do. Then we rode back to the pier, after which we did some shopping – lots of coffee. There was some really lovely woodworking available as well, though.

Panama: Several months before we sailed, we booked My Friend Mario’s “Panama Canal and Beach Break” tour based on reviews we’d read about Mario and figuring that after two full days of educational experiences our kids would be ready to kick back and enjoy a beach. A few weeks before sailing, Mario e-mailed me and advised that he didn’t have enough booked for this excursion and wanted to re-book us on a different one. That’s when the roll call really kicked in; Dr. Jack Daniels posted about trying to book this tour and being directed to the alternate tour, then scperk and crew joined in with interest, then beachbumscanada – ultimately, we had about 40 people from the roll call interested in the tour! After that response, Mario agreed to the original tour. The beach was “Playa Langosta,” on the way to Portobelo. Nice beach with a bar and restaurant as well as changing facilities ( $.25). Mario’s crew provided soda, bottled water and beer, and later made margaritas. They also had breakfast pastries (we arrived around 9 in the morning) and empanadas – meat-filled pastries. Never, but never, have I had three beers and a margarita before 11:30 in the morning! Even if you buy the beer, it’s only $.75 a bottle. After the beach (some of us weren’t sure we wanted to leave) we went to the Gatun Locks to watch a ship lock through. On the way back, Rey, our guide, showed us where the new set of locks is planned. If you have kids and think they won’t have the interest in a longer Canal tour, this is the tour for you.

Debarkation: Since we had a late flight, we booked Carnival’s “Everglades Experience” airport transfer tour. A nice way to spend time before our flight. After a 20-minute bus ride, you board some airboats (the most uncomfortable boats I’ve ever been aboard, I must say) for a 45-minute ride through the Everglades to see wildlife (yes, we did see alligators), then back to the park for an alligator show. We were at the airport by 12:30.

Our “negatives” for this cruise – obviously, not many:

(1) 5:45 dining is just too darn early. On our first day, it meant missing a good portion of our CC get-together; on other days, it was just too rushed to get ready for dinner. That’s why we reserved our table at Harry’s for 6:30; that’s our perfect time. Understanding that our perfect time is not a perfect time for Carnival, we managed just fine with 5:45.

(2) Noisy neighbors. None of our neighbors seemed to understand the advantages of not slamming cabin and balcony doors, and twice I had to break up an impromptu meeting taking place late night right outside our cabin.

(3) Cabin location. Our cabins were 6259 balcony and 6257 inside. I had read that forward cabins on deck 6 above the main show lounge tended to be noisy, but since we weren’t directly above the lounge I though we’d be okay. Not so – the noise from the lounge came right up the stairwell and into our cabin. At the same time, though, deck 6 is a great location – just one deck down to Promenade and just 3 decks up to Lido. I’d just book a cabin aft of the forward stairs/elevators, if possible.

(4) Chair hogs and seat savers. I’m not a sun fan, so chair hogs don’t affect me that much – but the chair hogs were definitely out in force on this cruise. Two mornings, we had the wonderful sight of chair hogs’ belongings getting very wet when a sudden shower came up and none of the hogs were out on the Lido deck to rescue their belongings. I’m more bothered by seat saving in the main lounge, and for the first time I actually confronted one of the seat savers. He saved about 8 seats in row 3 where we were sitting, insisting that his family was having a portrait taken, it was taking too long, and that justified the seat saving. I finally invited another couple to join us, which resulted in the seat saver calling me “rude” among other terms. His family finally showed up minutes before the show began – wearing tees and shorts. Hope it made for some nice portraits!

All in all, not many negatives, but we’re aboard to have a good time – and we did. I’d be happy to help with questions.

[Travel Angel]

Very Nice Review... we will be onboard the Liberty with several clients next Sunday. thanks for the input and we can't wait to get onboard !

[fastphil4u]

Thank you for the review! Well thought out and informitive.I will be on her april 28th.Can't wait!

[Prairie_Gal]

Thanks for taking the time to share your review. We will be in 6281 & 6283 in December. I think I am going to revisit those deck plans as I think we are right by the elevators, but above the shops. Do you think the noise would carry up there?

[tedtrs]

Thanks for the review. How was the beach in Panama? Did they have chairs etc? How long did you stay at the beach?

[Ljp5365]

Thanks, Great review.

[krazy4kruisin]

Since we had a late flight, we booked Carnival’s “Everglades Experience” airport transfer tour. A nice way to spend time before our flight. After a 20-minute bus ride, you board some airboats (the most uncomfortable boats I’ve ever been aboard, I must say) for a 45-minute ride through the Everglades to see wildlife (yes, we did see alligators), then back to the park for an alligator show. We were at the airport by 12:30.

 

How would yourate the Everglades Experience? I have a 70 yr old Mother that will be with us. Would she enjoy it? Is it worth the money? Is it a rough ride? Our flight leaves FL at 4:45pm....

 

Brenda

[cruisinbuddy]

We sailed the Liberty in Jan. and had a great time. I agree with most of what you said. We didn't go to Harrys. When we went to change our 5:45 dinner time to the 6:15 that we requested a year in advance, the assistant M. said, well we have a window seat and why not be fashionably late everynight. So we were. We never arrived before 6:15. Yes 5:45 is too early. I have to say we went to see Robert everynight. We had a core group of people there and had a blast. I keep in touch with them and Robert.

[nybumpkin]

tedtrs - The beach had picnic tables under palapas, as well as a seating area nearer the restaurant. No beach chairs as what you see with places like Cozumel. The beach itself was clean (although farther down the shore, off the beach property, you could see a fair amount of garbage - our tour guide described littering as a "national pastime") and sandy, not rocky at all. We were there about 3 hours.

 

Prairie_Gal - our problem was not being above the lounge, but the sound coming up the stairwell. The farther you are from the stairwell, the better.

 

krazy4cruisin - Since we had a long wait before our flight, I thought the tour was worth it. It gave us something to do, rather than spending many hours in the airport (we were there long enough as it was), and seeing the Everglades was great. Unless your mom has mobility problems, she should be fine with the tour, aside from the boat seats being uncomfortable (steel, with no padding).

[texasnana]

how much was the Caribbean Train, Boat, Bus Excursion?? Great trip report:cool:

[scperk]

Great review Kathy..We had a great time meeting you and Doug...Hope to see you again on another cruise soon....Dennis & Carolyn

[nybumpkin]

how much was the Caribbean Train, Boat, Bus Excursion?? Great trip report:cool:

If I remember correctly, it was around $60 a person.

[nybumpkin]

Great review Kathy..We had a great time meeting you and Doug...Hope to see you again on another cruise soon....Dennis & Carolyn

Thanks so much to both of you for "leading" the CC group and making our cruise that much more enjoyable. I'm going to try to post some photos on Webshots when I get them downloaded.

[markandstacie00]

Thanks for the report, we leave in 14 days for the same trip. Do you know how strict they were about height requirements for the water slide? My son is about an inch short and excited by the pictures.

 

The beach tour in Panama is the best thing I found for our family too. Many people have asked for reviews and pictures on the Panama page of this website. How was the water clarity and food at the beach in Panama?

 

What nights were formal? What was your favorite food during the day?

[nybumpkin]

Thanks for the report, we leave in 14 days for the same trip. Do you know how strict they were about height requirements for the water slide? My son is about an inch short and excited by the pictures.

 

The beach tour in Panama is the best thing I found for our family too. Many people have asked for reviews and pictures on the Panama page of this website. How was the water clarity and food at the beach in Panama?

 

What nights were formal? What was your favorite food during the day?

I'm not sure about the waterslide - our sons only used it one day. It was closed all but one of our sea days due to wind. Last year when we sailed on Legend, they had one of those amusement park-type height charts to measure kids, and I did see some get turned away - but I'm not sure just how close they were. Maybe if he stands up extra-tall?

 

The water was stirred up when we were at the beach in Panama, so it wasn't the clearest (it's definitely not a snorkeling-type beach) - but it was warm and had nice, gentle waves. It was great for our kids. As for food, the only food we had at the beach was that provided by Mario - some breakfast pastries, packaged cookies, and empanadas - so I'm not sure about the beach's restaurant. We left right around lunchtime. They seemed to have a fair local following, though.

 

Formal nights were Sunday and Friday. As for daytime foods, our sons hit the grill every day for a hamburger and/or hot dog. They also have great onion rings at the grill closest to the main pool, as well as good tortilla chips with salsa, fresh jalapeno peppers, and sour cream. Doug and I varied our daytime choices. Both of us went to the deli a couple of times - me for a grilled corned beef on rye, Doug for a reuben. Both of us also went to the Chinese station as well; I love their soups especially. There's also a great fish and chips restaurant on deck 10; Doug liked the fish and chips, but they also have other dishes as well.

[boatnick]

Hi kathy, your review made me feel like I was back aboard Liberty! It was a pleasure to finally meet your family and all the cc'rs after all the long weeks posting on these boards. We had a fantastic time also, I just wish the band that was to play in the Victoria lounge hadn't missed the boat at the first stop, a little more choice in music and more dancing would have been nice.(I know Dennis was looking for them also). Say hi to Doug and the boys for us. Lets all keep in touch on the roll call boards.

John, Carrie & Cody.

[nybumpkin]

I just wish the band that was to play in the Victoria lounge hadn't missed the boat at the first stop, a little more choice in music and more dancing would have been nice.(I know Dennis was looking for them also). Say hi to Doug and the boys for us. Lets all keep in touch on the roll call boards.

John, Carrie & Cody.

Is that what happened to them? I noticed they disappeared and the jazz group (which had its own problems - one member of Opus 3 had to leave the ship due to a family emergency, so they were down to Opus 2) moved to the Victoria Lounge. The original band was pretty good at the Captain's party.

[newistcruiseaddict]

Prairie_Gal - our problem was not being above the lounge, but the sound coming up the stairwell. The farther you are from the stairwell, the better.

 

Well that makes ME feel a little bit better. Was so excited to finally find out my room assignment (inside guarantee). Here I was thinking I got a great room! We're in room 6233...much further from the stairwell than you were but directly over the stage. What are the hours for all the ruckus? Just during show times, right? We tend to fall into bed after midnight on our cruises. Do you think we'll have any problems?

[corky1]

Read yor review from previous cruise. Are just deciding which cabin categories for feb 2008 President's week vacation with same itinary. DH, myself, DD (15 1/2 at that time ) and hopefully her BF (same age). I am worried they will be bored with so many days at sea. Any imput before I book?

[TennisLover]

Nice review. We were on Liberty during Presidents Week in 2006. You are right -- definitely less kids that regular Caribbean cruise.

 

We were lucky to get the 6:15 seating. That is still rushed; next time, with our port-intensive itinerary, we have requested 8 pm. Hope we get it.

 

For those selecting cabins, we were in 6300 (balcony) and 6302 (inside). We had absolutely no noise problems at all.

 

I agree with the OP - Harry's was excellent! Definitely worth a treat for one night.

 

In Panama, we did the ship excursion on the Panama Canal. It was the one thing I wanted to do on this cruise. The whole family enjoyed it.

 

Anyone looking for a cruise next February, join us on the Destiny and it's great new itinerary! Rates are great, and you can get airfare from NY (if that's where you're coming from) for a decent price now -- if you wait, forget it! It's a much more beach-oriented cruise than the Liberty, if that's what you're looking for!

 

As for the Liberty, it was a great ship -- I would do it again anytime (with a different itinerary!).