***LIVE*** From the Carnival Freedom

[Sandyweena]

How exciting!! I'm sailing on June 6. I can't wait ANYMORE!!

 

Just wondering...hows the karaoke lounge? Also, is there a basketball court? How are the inside cabins?

 

Thanks!! Hope your having a great time!!

 

--Sandy

[micro yaya 13]

I should be able to remember "Gate of the Virgin"!!

 

But, since you've given such excellent directions for an ATM in Rhodes....I might as well bug you about other places: Civitavecchia, Athens & Katakolon. Also, I assume there are ATMs at FCO airport, hopefully they will be easy to find.

 

I probably need to learn how to say ATM in Italian, Turkish and Greek! *L*

hi terri, we fretted just like your doing so we got euros from our bank. we paid $1.40 for them, but i'm so relieved to have them. why not just get some to have to get by and then use the atm's in europe. you'll pay a fee anyway you look at it. just tell larry that by doing it this way you'll be able to sleep at night. ask malcome i fretted for a month about the euro check those early pages on our roll call until we finally came to a decision.. it took three days for us to get the money from our bank. hope this helps you :Dkathy

[terri910]

hi terri, we fretted just like your doing so we got euros from our bank. we paid $1.40 for them, but i'm so relieved to have them. why not just get some to have to get by and then use the atm's in europe. you'll pay a fee anyway you look at it. just tell larry that by doing it this way you'll be able to sleep at night. ask malcome i fretted for a month about the euro check those early pages on our roll call until we finally came to a decision.. it took three days for us to get the money from our bank. hope this helps you :Dkathy

I think I may order at least a couple hundred Euro. I don't know.

 

I wish the whole world took American Express! *LOL*

[micro yaya 13]

I think I may order at least a couple hundred Euro. I don't know.

 

I wish the whole world took American Express! *LOL*

ME TOO;)

[summerdays]

Dear all,

 

We are sailing on 25 May, and are catching a late afternoon flight on debarkation day. Hence, we'd like to be among the last guests to get off the ship.

 

Could some of the past cruisers please kindly advise

 

=> when is the lastest guests are expected to get off the ship?

 

=> When is the latest guests need to vacate the cabin?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciate.

 

Thank you!

[terri910]

summerdays,

 

I don't have that info from actual experience, yet (still a couple of weeks till we sail!), but I seem to remember John Heald mentioning on one of his blog entries that debarkation started at 6:30 a.m. and by 9:30 a.m. they had all 3000 passengers off the ship.

[CasaM]

summerdays,

 

We had a 1pm flight and had a Carnival transfer to the airport. We went to breakfast and came back to the room thinking we could sit and relax a little but they called us right away at about 7:10am to disembark. We were at the airport by 8:20. When checking in at the airport, they didn't want to take our bags because they said it was too early. But the bags were already tagged so they let it go. So be prepared if you have a Carnival transfer to be called early. And I also heard that they get everyone off the ship by about 9:30.

[raynvic]

Wed. April 25th - Day at Sea. The weather was nice enough for us to lay out on deck for awhile. We had no problem finding lounge chairs at around 9:30, but it is still early in the season. The Big screen is something new to us and we are really enjoying it as no one has to go to the port talks as it is shown on the big screen at the same time. We chose tonight to eat at the Sun King. It was a marvelous meal and we even got our pictures taken with “Uncle Bob”. I had the Surf and Turf, DH had the largest Porterhouse I have ever seen. It was as good as we remember from our last time.

 

I sent my third bag of laundry for Platinum free wash and fold. You are allowed one bag a day, but I have mastered a way to get 4 pairs of pants, 4 shirts, 11 pairs of underwear and 6 pair of socks into one bag. When it is returned to me, it comes back in 2 bags folded. The trick is to roll everything tightly and STUFF the bag. I did tip the cabin steward as he is very good about getting it back to me the same day (if I leave it in the morning).

 

Thursday April 26, Athens - Our CC group hired Paul from Greek Taxi for the day. He took us out to the Temple of Poseidon which cost 4 Euros each for entrance. It was very cold and blustery but beautiful views. It took a good 45 minutes to an hour to get there and then the same time back. If I had to do it all again I would skip this as a matter of time. We then went to see the changing of the guards which was to be a 15 minute stop, Paul let all 12 of us out and told us to meet him in 15 minutes. Unfortunately the President or Prime Minister elected to visit at this time and so it turned out to be a 30 plus minute stop and we did not get the close up pictures of the Guards like normal. Paul then did some drive by spots. (he drove by and told us what it was) and then dropped us off in the Plaka after showing us the way to café’s where we had Gyros (to die for) It was less than 4 Euro for 2 Gyros. We had about an hour and a half here (not long enough) and Paul picked us up again. We hit the ATM here with no problem. We then went to the Acropolis where Paul again dropped us off to find our way. It was 12 Euros a piece here. They had no maps and of course none of us had guide books or maps, but there were some markers telling us what we were looking at. Paul then picked us up about 3:20 and we made our way back to the ship. We were less than impressed with Paul, he was simply a taxi driver and not what we were expecting. Could be our expectations were too high. He did not listen well to what we told him we wanted to do. The highlight of the day was the Acropolis.

 

Friday April 27, Katakolon - Wow, what a great spot. We took the ship tour to Olympia and the Village. Olympia was terrific and has signs everywhere to tell us what we were looking at and give us a little history. Most of our group left the tour guide we had as she was much to lengthy about Greek history and we knew she would never get through the whole site in the time allotted. The village was time enough for a few souvenirs and then back to Katakolon. Here we sat at a café and had a Greek lunch. We had 1 greek salad, 1 fried cheese, 1 spinach and cheese pie, and 1 order meatballs in mushroom sauce with the house wine. Total was 33 Euros which was a great experience. I wish we had more time to look around in Katakolon. Over all we have had very little shopping time on this itinerary, could be a good thing. This is a place I would like to visit again.

 

Sat. April 28 - Sea Day and last formal night. Another great day on deck. We passed the Stromboli around 10 a.m. and although not a big eruption, there was smoke coming from the top. We have Florence tomorrow and are looking forward to another great day.

 

Debarkation talk today said debarkation would start at 5:30 a.m. as some guests have flights that leave at 9 something a.m.

[richcrow]

Raymon & Vicky,

 

Thanks once again for your on site reviews.. We will be on the cruise right after yours. We are all packed and are flying to Rome tomorrow. If we knew who to look for, we would give you a big hi-five when you disembark. Have a safe trip home.

 

Richard & Judie

[jkeller527]

Dear all,

 

We are sailing on 25 May, and are catching a late afternoon flight on debarkation day. Hence, we'd like to be among the last guests to get off the ship.

 

Could some of the past cruisers please kindly advise

 

=> when is the lastest guests are expected to get off the ship?

 

=> When is the latest guests need to vacate the cabin?

 

Any advice would be greatly appreciate.

 

The latest to vacate the cabin was around 7 which is when we went and had breakfast but if you are on a Carnival bus they may call you early. We had one of the later transfers and they called us before 7. We went when we knew our driver was there but they definately have the ship empty by9. If you have a late flight you can take one of the excursions.

[lindasuej]

What is the earliest you should book a flight on disembarktation day?

 

Linda

[ScootsMom]

What is the earliest you should book a flight on disembarktation day?

 

Linda

 

I was on the 7 Apr sailing and my flight was at 10:15. We got to the airport in plenty of time. If you have any questions call Carnival.

[Rosstu]

What is the earliest you should book a flight on disembarktation day?

 

Linda

 

I believe their official answer is you shouldn't book a flight before 9:45, but we had several people on our cruise who had a 6:30 AM flight, which means they had to debark around 3:30, but Carnival did accomodate them.

[micro yaya 13]

dear raynvic, thanks for all the info, we have paul for the same tour, the only difference with us i hope is that we are 15 people, but my husband and i are greek, so we are hoping to let him know this is not a drive by or cc review will be heard around the work. thanks for all you info it is really appreciated as we leave for the may 13 cruise next week.:D

[funat55]

I'm on the June 30th Western Med. Cruise. Is there anyone who has done this itinerary who can suggest what night would be the best to skip the main dining room and try out the specialty restaurant?

[caneguy]

Hello Funat55,

 

Be too, also 55. I am on the June 6th Freedom. I booked the supper club for the night we leave Venice. The first full day at sea (after Naples) is the 1st formal night and there is another one between Messina and Barcelona, which I also booked the Supper Club.

 

Caneguy

[Cruising Retired Army SGM]

I'm on the June 30th Western Med. Cruise. Is there anyone who has done this itinerary who can suggest what night would be the best to skip the main dining room and try out the specialty restaurant?

 

Your best bet is to book the Sun King Restaurant on your 2nd Fun Day at Sea. Remember you have to count on a 3 hour meal and you must book the restaurant on you first day when you board the ship. Last year they had a table set up right across from the Info Desk where they took reservations.

[24butterfly]

Anybody have any things to tell us about the shore excursions?

[summerdays]

Hi, Terri910, Casam, Jkeller527

 

Thank you very much for sharing on your insights on debarkation day!

 

Mm . . . I think to empty the ship by 9.30am is really very early. I was

expecting something like 11a.m - 12p.m (like a hotel check-out). : )

Since we've booked for Carnival, guess we don't have a choice.

 

Regards

Fiona

[scvgirl]

Where on the Freedom would you recommend that we arrange our Meet & Greet? We leave Rome at 7pm and I thought 5pm would be a good time to catch most people, before Muster and dinner. It won't be a large group. Thoughts anyone?:confused:

[wrk2cruz]

Hi

Has anyone taken the Sorrento/Pompeii Tour????? :confused:

[ETHS1965]

This is our last night on the Freedom. to those of you who are about to start your trips, I am envious. we have had a wonderful time. We had several private tours arranged, two carnival excursions and three excursions that we did on our own. The only bad experience that we had was on one of the carnival excursions to Florence. I, as well as others, contacted the excursion desk as soon as we got on board. i will be following up when I get home. That was just a small blip on an otherwise wonderful trip.

 

We are debarking at 6:00 a.m. for a 10:30 flight. Another couple has arranged transportation with Stephano of Rome. There will be 3 couples to share the cost. Equal to 61 euros per couple. Cheaper than carnival. Carnival says that there is no problem leaving early. They even have arranged for breakfast buffet to start at 5:00 a.m.

 

good luck to all of you still to sail. I will write more when I get home.

[jkeller527]

We did the Sorento/Pompeii excursion. We did the Carnival excursion as it was the first day on the trip and wanted to be sure that we had our bearings and it was Easter. Also the traffic is horrific and did not want to be late. All said and done the excursion was fine. Had time in Sorento and the snack at the farm was ok. If you had Capri it is too rushed. The guide at Popeii was very good and they had the wisper earphones so you could hear everything. There was not any time for shopping or a break at Pompeii but knowing that it is a standard ship excursion then it was better than normal. We were at the back of the bus and somewhat uncomfortable but looking back would probably have still taken this excursion.

[jkeller527]

Unfortunately even 930 am is probably later than most people will see. THey have to get the ship turned by 1130 for the next sailing so our with the old and in with the new. If you have a Carnival shuttle you can be assured that they will have you off earlier than need be.

[wrk2cruz]

We did the Sorento/Pompeii excursion. We did the Carnival excursion as it was the first day on the trip and wanted to be sure that we had our bearings and it was Easter. Also the traffic is horrific and did not want to be late. All said and done the excursion was fine. Had time in Sorento and the snack at the farm was ok. If you had Capri it is too rushed. The guide at Popeii was very good and they had the wisper earphones so you could hear everything. There was not any time for shopping or a break at Pompeii but knowing that it is a standard ship excursion then it was better than normal. We were at the back of the bus and somewhat uncomfortable but looking back would probably have still taken this excursion.

 

Thanks for the reply. We are going on the July 12th cruise. I was hoping we would be able to have a little time in Sorrento for shopping... and maybe some lemoncello(sp?) We will try to get seats in the front of the bus!!!:D

Thanks again

Lynn