Liberty review 8/26/07-9/1/07

[huxlemo]

Overall: The cruise was awesome. I would rate it an A+++ with a few minor improvements to be made.

 

Who went? Husband (turned 30 on the cruise), me (36), mother in law (54), and father in law (55). 2nd cruise for us, 1st cruise for the parents in law.

 

Staterooms: 1243 and 6354

 

Embarkation: Took hotel shuttle from Sleep Inn in Dania at noon. Arrived at Port Everglades at 12:30. We were with someone who was in a wheelchair, so we were able to go to the VIP line. If we had to stand in the regular line, it probably would have taken about an hour to get through the lines outside and inside the terminal. We got on the ship and went right to the Lido deck for lunch. After lunch, we were able to get into our staterooms. My parents in law were in a handicapped room and were told at booking that there was a refrigerator in the staterooms.....my father in law needed it for his insulin. When they got to their stateroom, the refrigerator was locked. Guest Services called them about something else and they asked about the refrigerator. Carnival told them that the insulin needed to be kept in the infirmary because the refrigerator was not cold enough for the insulin. Eventually it was rectified by keeping a bucket of ice in the refrigerator to keep the insulin cold. The room steward came and unlocked the refrigerator. He was good about keeping the ice bucket filled with ice throughout the cruise. The handicapped room's bathroom is very large. Because the bathroom is large, there is less closet space. A wheelchair is easily able to maneuver around in this cabin.

 

Key West: We have been there a few times before. Took the Trolley Tour. Highly recommend this tour. It was very hot, sunny, and humid. The Trolley Tour was nice to be able to get on and off when you want for the day. The drivers are very knowledgeable and funny. The breeze felt great also. Did some shopping and returned to the ship early. I tried the chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick. Yummo!

 

Grand Cayman: Didn't do an excursion. We just wanted to wander the area around the port. Did some shopping for a few hours and returned to the ship. The tender process was very easy. Since we didn't have an excursion, we went to the Venetian Palace at 10 am. We got tender ticket 16. We were on the tender within a few minutes. It was painless. The most popular thing to do in Grand Cayman is swimming with the sting rays. If you don't do that excursion, there isn't much else to do besides hit the beach and shop.

 

Ocho Rios: Jamaica was very beautiful to dock at. It is picturesque. We had breakfast and went into port around 11 am. Again, we didn't do an excursion here. We just wanted to do some shopping and visit Margaritaville. Island Village shopping area is the safest place to be. Items in the stores were very cheap. We were shocked at the souvenir prices. Margaritaville was awesome. Free beach and pool. Drinks were delicious. Atmosphere was great. We left port about 45 minutes late due to 2 people that didn't know what time it was. The cruise horn honked and these woman were running up the port to get on the ship. They were lucky the captain was nice to wait for them.

 

Lido deck: Employees were great and efficient. Once someone got up from their table, it was immediately cleaned. Lines were not long at the buffets. Pizza is delicious. Hamburgers were tasty. Deli sandwiches were

good. The fish and chips station was tasty. I wish I would have tried the Oriental station. It smelled so good everytime I walked by and the fried rice looked delicious. Ice cream 24 hours a day is heavenly. I can't even

count how many ice cream cones we had. The bar wait staff were fast and friendly. The music was good and the big movie screen was neat. It was cool watching movies under the stars at night, especially the Wizard of Oz. The outside decks were very clean. There were employees constantly walking around picking up after people. We spent a lot of time on deck 10, Panorama deck. We layed in the sun numerous times at the back of the ship away from the commotion. It was quiet and there was always a breeze.

 

Dining Room: Our wait staff, Maya and Inyoman, were wonderful! They were so friendly and fast service. When we saw them working the Lido Deck buffets, they would stop and talk with us. They are truly wonderful people. We had the 6:15 seating in the Golden Dining Room. When we cruise again, I will choose the later dining time. I was always too full from lunch and ice cream to enjoy my dinner. But I did manage to have the chocolate melting cake every night. It is the best dessert I have ever had! My husband needs to eat gluten free. We told the hostess,

Natasha, the first night at dinner and she had my husband pre-order his dinner for the next night. That was very nice of her to do that. He was able to enjoy the dining room and the good food gluten free. They even made him gluten free bread. He said it was very good. Since my husband's birthday was while we were on the cruise, my sister ordered him drink coupons. We have ordered these before and the hostess is supposed to give you these at your first night in the dining room. I knew my sister did this, so I called her while in Key West to tell her we didn't get the coupons. She called Carnival and they said we didn't go to dinner in the dining room our first night. They also told her they tried to call us in our cabin and we didn't answer. Our second night in the dining room, I told the Maitre d' our situation. He talked with the hostess and about 15 minutes later Natasha came to the table with the drink coupons, a note from my sister, and 4 complimentary drink coupons because she forgot to

give them to us on the first night at dinner. She apologized for her forgetfulness. The food was delicious. No complaints on anything. Maya's last day was the day we left. She is heading back home to Indonesia until November 10. She will them be on the Glory. Formal nights were Tuesday and Thursday. The dress code was not enforced.

People came into formal night with jeans and t-shirts. Other nights I saw people with shorts, jeans, and t-shirts. The capers say the dress code will be enforced but the Maiter d' doesn't do it. That's too bad.

 

Steward!!!: We arrived the first day and our stateroom smelled like cigarette smoke. It was the first thing you noticed when you walked in the room. The bathroom smelled the worst. It was like the people prior to us smoked in the bathroom. Even the shower curtain smelled! The first evening after dinner, our Steward knocked on the door and told me I had to sign this paper saying he introduced himself to us. The thing is, is that he didn't. When I went to grab the clipboard that he wanted me to sign, I looked down and his zipper was down. I couldn't believe my eyes. And to top it off, he didn't even tell me his name. I couldn't even look at his name tag because I couldn't look at him due to his zipper down. So, the whole cruise we called him "Zipperman". The next morning, my husband asked the cleaner guy to spray the room due to the cigarette smoke. That was done by the time we got back to our cabin. One evening after dinner we noticed our beach towels were gone. My husband tried to call the Steward and housekeeping but got no answer. He then went to Guest Services and someone came up with bathroom towels. So, the next morning I peeked my head out the door to tell the cleaner and Zipperman that our beach towels were not returned. Zipperman did not even acknowledge me. He yelled at the cleaner saying, "You are killing me

mon." Because I wasn't acknowledged, I turned my back and went back in my room. A few minutes later the cleaner was there with our beach towels. The last night when you are to receive your customs papers, guest surveys, maitre d' envelope, luggage tags, and disembarkation information, we got nothing. According to Todd, the CD, we were

supposed to get all these things after our room was cleaned in the morning. After dinner we checked our cabin again and nothing was there. So, we had to spend 45 minutes of our last night of the cruise waiting in line at the Purser's desk to get this information. We were mad. Our Steward was a disappointment. He was unprofessional and not friendly. He did clean the room. I am a very neat person so all he had to do was make the bed and change the towels. I just wish he was more talkative with us. He just seemed very harsh. This is a definite area for

improvement.

 

Entertainment: The comedian and juggler shows were hilarious! The broadway style shows were ok. The music outside was good. The 4 pm tv show was fun to watch everyday. The marriage show made us laugh very hard.

 

Cruise Director: Todd Wittmer is great. He is very active and always to be heard and seen. He is very professional and knows what he is doing. It was funny.....there is a 4 pm show he does live on tv every day. He sits for an hour telling about the day and what is coming the next day. The last day at sea, he was almost in tears because someone told him he talks too much. That's his job but he took the comments to heart. He was visibly upset. My husband called into the tv show telling him he does a good job. It just shows he takes his job seriously. But I think he does a great job! And he looks like Ryan Seacrest.

 

Disembarkation: With the new procedures, we had number 20 and my parents in law had 18. So, we went to the Purser's desk to see if we could get the same number. They asked if we had an early or late flight. Since we had a late flight, they gave us a later number, 26. We ate breakfast that morning and then left the ship at 10:05 am. We were in no rush to get off. Our flight wasn't leaving until 3:10. There was a line at customs and we got to our limo at 10:40 am.

 

Overall: We will definitely cruise with Carnival again. Our only complaint was our room steward. But how much time do you really spend in your room, besides sleeping? At least he kept the room clean. The one thing I

will remember was the first night at sea. My husband and I were standing on the Panorama deck at the rails. We were staring out at the ocean. I saw a falling star. I made my wish. It was beautiful.

[connergirls]

Awwww, great review!! Bad steward tho....zipperman.... yikes :eek: :eek:

[jennat]

Wonderful review. Thanks for taking the time to write it. we are on her next Sun...woooo hhooooo!

PS HOpe we don't get your cabin steward!:(

[CARIBBEANBLUESKY]

We were on this cruise, too, and we had a great time. I can't believe somebody said Todd Wittmer talked too much!! He was fantastic. A very funny man. Did you catch the talent show where he sang a song to open the show?? He has a very nice singing voice.

 

It sounds like you had a terrible room steward. We were in Cabins 9214, 9222, 9246 and 9254, and we had Nyoman, who was just wonderful. He was friendly, attentive, just an all-around great steward. We wanted to pack him in our suitcase -- along with the bed and those wonderful pillows -- and take him home with us.

 

We will be on the Valor on November 25th for the Western Caribbean, and before we went on this cruise, we were thinking of changing our November 25th cruise to Norwegian just for a little change of pace, but we had such a great time on this cruise, we are definitely going to stick with the Valor.

[huxlemo]

If anyone has any questions, I would be happy to answer. I am planning on scanning all the capers.

[AllyCat81]

We're going to be on the Liberty in 3 weeks. Thanks for posting such a good review! When you get the capers up, can you post the link to them?

 

Did you go to the piano bar at all? If so, what were your thoughts on the piano player?

 

Thanks! :D

[LeslieAnn1024]

If anyone has any questions, I would be happy to answer. I am planning on scanning all the capers.

 

Great review ! Thanks for posting it. We sail the Liberty on 9/23, with the same itinerary, so I appreciated the input !

[PirateGal]

Great review! I love reading everyone's reviews 'cause it makes the time go by until we're on the Liberty.

 

Sorry to hear about Zipperman :(

[huxlemo]

We're going to be on the Liberty in 3 weeks. Thanks for posting such a good review! When you get the capers up, can you post the link to them?

 

Did you go to the piano bar at all? If so, what were your thoughts on the piano player?

 

Thanks! :D

 

We didn't go to the piano bar. But the decor is neat.

[Payd]

Happy to hear you had a good time.

 

Did you complain about "Zipperman"?

 

Payd:)

[Pegs222]

Great review. But I think now that I have been on this board I would not have signed "Zipperman's" sheet since he did not only not introduce himself to you, but did not do as you had asked him. I know I am going to watch things more closely next year when we go on our cruise.

[Cozumelandbill]

Thanks for the review. We'll be sailing next Sunday! Now I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we don't get "Zipperman"..My husband would kill him! Do you have any pics from the cruise? If so, we'd love to see them!

[WendyCn]

Thanks for your review. We will be on the Liberty on the Western Caribbean in a few weeks. I am getting so excited. I love reading the reviews!:D

 

The times we've cruised, we've had very good stewards and one indifferent one. During the last cruise was the only time we actually knew her name. Although you don't spend much time in your room, we like'd feeling welcomed and pampered. Which cabin was Zipperman the steward for 1243 or 6354? The cabin we've booked is right down the hall from 1243; could we possibly get the Zipperman:eek: . What type of stateroom was 1243 - inside or balcony? This is our first cruise that I was not able to book a balcony & I am a little hesitant about being on one of the lower levels.

 

How was your night at the Sleep Inn. Ww will be staying the pre-cruise & based on recent reviews we're wondering how it has been for other pre-cruisers? Were the rooms clean? The staff personable? Did you have to wait long for the shuttles?

[kids1stcruise]

i would love to know how it was being in 1243.

looking at next aug--usually on deck 10- but inside riviera deck price is looking good.

[huxlemo]

1243 was an inside cabin on the Riviera deck, deck 1. We booked that cabin because it was the cheapest. It is in the forward part of the ship. The cabin was nice. Our luggage fit under the bed, so it was out of the way. There are 4 closets and many drawers to put your things in. I thought maybe we would feel the vibrations of the ship or movement. But we felt nothing.

 

"Zipperman" was the steward for this cabin. He had the cabins from the elevators forward in that section.

 

Hope that helps.

[ashleycrew]

We were on the same cruise and I would agree with the OP. It was not perfect but certainly a blast. The food was great, the ship is beutiful with a lot of activities. There were time service was a bit lacking but as a whole it was good. I would suggest to anyone to be at the Pier by 11 am on embarkation day as we breezed through in about 45 minutes but I hear the people after noon had to wait over an hour before beginning the process. I also will say that I understand why people speak badly of Jamiaca it is the armpit or the world. We had our excusion canceled and we only got notice the night before with left us on our own to fill the day. It is really bad there and we experianced it all. If I had it to do over I would book through the ship and go to either the falls or one of the resort beaches for the day. Grand Cayman and Key West are awesome.

[pacerzfan]

Thanks for your review, huxlemo.

[Montana Mom]

excellent review :D - my husband and i are really looking forward to cruising next week to the same destinations. we have cruised twice before, once on carnival and once on royal carribean. both were great trips. i am a real stickler on service, i really hope that we do not get the zipperman as well :mad: . sounds to me like he needs an attitude adjustment. being from montana i am pretty forward and would probably say something to him.:eek:

 

is there anyone else going on september 9? we would love to meet people and say hello. i just hope the weather will settle down a bit before we get there.:confused:

 

let us know - shopladyavon@msn.com

 

happy sailing everyone;)

[jennat]

There are a bunch of us going on this cruise on the roll call http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=437407&page=22

come on over and say hi. we love meeting new people!

[huxlemo]

Thanks for your review. We will be on the Liberty on the Western Caribbean in a few weeks. I am getting so excited. I love reading the reviews!:D

 

The times we've cruised, we've had very good stewards and one indifferent one. During the last cruise was the only time we actually knew her name. Although you don't spend much time in your room, we like'd feeling welcomed and pampered. Which cabin was Zipperman the steward for 1243 or 6354? The cabin we've booked is right down the hall from 1243; could we possibly get the Zipperman:eek: . What type of stateroom was 1243 - inside or balcony? This is our first cruise that I was not able to book a balcony & I am a little hesitant about being on one of the lower levels.

 

How was your night at the Sleep Inn. Ww will be staying the pre-cruise & based on recent reviews we're wondering how it has been for other pre-cruisers? Were the rooms clean? The staff personable? Did you have to wait long for the shuttles?

 

The Sleep Inn was good. I read some bad reviews of the hotel on here but we did not have a bad experience. In the baggage area in the airport, there is a phone to call them for the shuttle. We waited a few minutes and the shuttle was there. The rooms were very clean. We were on the 2nd floor with a king bed and my parents in law were in a handicapped room suite on the 1st floor. We arrived at the hotel the night before our cruise at 7 pm. When I checked in I signed up for the shuttle right away. They run every hour on the hour. We went at noon and it was fine. By 7 pm, the 11 am shuttle was full. Breakfast in the morning was free and delicious. You can make waffles. They were yummy. Not a bad thing to say about the Sleep Inn. I highly recommend it.

[huxlemo]

Here are some pictures. There are a bunch of the inside of the ship.

 

http://www.staffannouncer.com/cruise07/index.htm

[WendyCn]

Thanks, Monica. It helps to know that you had a good stay at the Sleep Inn. I appreciate you letting me know about the rooms, shuttle & breakfast.:)

 

I'll have to pull out the layout of the ship's Riviera deck to see if it's possible that we'll have Zipperman.

[SusieM]

Did you try the supper club? Did you happen to get copies of the menus in the dining room?

 

I have cabin 1275, which is just down the hall from where you were, but I think in the wrong direction for "Zipperman" at least I have my fingers crossed! How did you like the deck, did you have any noticeable noise?

 

Sounds like you have a great cruise and the sunset pictures are amazing...

Hope I enjoy mine as much as you did!

[Nancy717]

1243 was an inside cabin on the Riviera deck, deck 1. We booked that cabin because it was the cheapest. It is in the forward part of the ship. The cabin was nice. Our luggage fit under the bed, so it was out of the way. There are 4 closets and many drawers to put your things in. I thought maybe we would feel the vibrations of the ship or movement. But we felt nothing.

 

"Zipperman" was the steward for this cabin. He had the cabins from the elevators forward in that section.

 

Hope that helps.

 

we were on that hall the week before and someone was smoking , heavily all week, my DH and I smelled everytime we passed. I called the purser about it, as I believe smoking on that deck in prohibited.

[buckeye12]

I'm curiouse as to what side the ship docks on. Starboard or Port, I'm about to book my cabins and kinda want to be able to see when we dock and all...

Thanks

Tiffany