Review: Freedom of the Seas - 09/02 - LONG!

[Sunsetfire]

--Introduction--

 

A little bit of background for you. I am a 36-year-old Caucasian American (born and raised in the USA) and my husband is a 35-year-old American (born in India..moved here in 1997). We have one 2-year-old son who we did NOT take with us on our trip. :) This was our third cruise with Royal Caribbean (fourth cruise altogether). Our very first cruise was a Western Caribbean jaunt on the tiny/old/boring Carnival Holiday (circa 2002 - we were cruise virgins and did not know any better!). Our second cruise, in 2004, was the Alaskan Inside Passage cruise on Serenade of the Seas...which was lovely (despite my being pregnant!). The third was last year (2006) - Eastern Caribbean on Explorer of the Seas. That cruise totally rocked. We set sail 30 minutes from my home. You cannot beat that convenience. You can bring as much luggage as you want without worrying! It was the best. And I absolutely loved the boat. I did not think I could love another boat more than Explorer of the Seas. But then I sailed Freedom...

 

As soon as we heard about Freedom of the Seas we wanted to try it out. We were already in love with Royal Caribbean and so we had very high hopes for this cruise. Much of those expectations were met...but some fell very short. As a matter of fact, the events of the first day of our cruise almost ruined our entire vacation right off the bat!

 

--Boarding the Ship--

 

First of all, it took us about 1.5 hours to board the Freedom. We assumed that it was due to the increased size of the ship and the large amount of people that needed to be processed. However, we later found out that the delay was due to a bomb scare. Knowing that, I cannot knock Royal Caribbean for the delay because it is MUCH better to be safe than sorry.

 

--MAJOR Gripe about Royal Caribbean--

 

But here is where I can, and will, knock Royal Caribbean. When our luggage arrived (after 9 pm!!), we discovered my video iPod was missing from our bags. Now, I am completely obsessed with my iPod...I have a definite unhealthy idol worship thing going on there. It was new, had a lovely pink butterfly skin on it, contained well over 5000 songs and also 4 movies, TV shows and my son's cartoons, as well. I was DEVASTATED that it was stolen from me. That fact alone had me upset but, when I went to Guest Relations to fill out the report, the representative said to me, "Well, you are allowed to carry a bag on board...you really should have kept it with you." WHAT? I am nearly in tears and they basically tell me I got what I deserved? I was furious. :mad: I seriously wanted to turn around and get off the boat right then. But I had one of two options...I could either get over it and enjoy my trip, or I could wallow in self-pity. I chose the former! However, my opinion of Royal Caribbean dropped a great deal that first day onboard.

 

--Freedom of the Seas: The Boat--

 

Let me tell you about the boat...it is gorgeous! Definitely lived up to our expectations! The design is exactly like Explorer of the Seas...my husband knew his way around the second we boarded (I didn't...I am not the human map that he is). But the additions of the FlowRider and the H2O Zone make the ship so much cooler than Explorer! Despite the increased size of this ship, it did not *feel* massive. We were told we would never see the same people twice but that is not at all the case!

 

When we boarded the ship (and were still blissfully ignorant about my missing iPod), it felt like walking into a beautiful hotel. The first impression is striking. This is due, in part, to the fact that the ship is still quite new. And it is also due to the fact that the ship is well-designed. I will now tell you about the various parts of the ship, broken down by section...

 

--Our Cabin--

 

We had a balcony stateroom right by the Port Side Forward elevators...which was very convenient! The stateroom was larger than I expected and VERY nice. Flat panel television, TONS of storage space (and you can fit your luggage under the bed) and loads of hangers in the closet. The bathroom is tiny but that is to be expected. The bed was SO comfortable! The balcony was not perfectly private but that is okay. There was plenty of room. All-in-all, very happy with the room and with our attendants. They did a great job keeping the room clean and making nice towel animals. Our toilet did get stopped up once but a plumber came within minutes to fix it. We took advantage of the ironing service they have, too. I got my red formal gown ironed and it only cost me $3.00. Not bad at all!

 

--The Gym--

 

The Ship Shape fitness center is incredible. Loads of equipment that looks brand new. Lots of treadmills, bikes, stair climbers, weight machines and free weights. There is also a separate room for classes (yoga, pilates, etc.) and a full-sized boxing ring (never saw anyone use it, though). My husband (bless his soul) got up at 6 am every morning and made full use of these facilities. He said they were wonderful. Although I only ever stepped foot in there to find him so we could go to breakfast <g>, I could see that it was above average in its offerings!

 

--The Ship Shape Spa--

 

I am sorry to say I cannot review this because, while I meant to get a massage onboard, I never did. I have heard good things about it, though.

 

--The Solarium--

 

The Solarium is such a wonderful area. It is the adults only pool area and they really do enforce that. The pool and surrounding area is lovely and they have cantilevered whirlpools on both the Port and Starboard sides. What this means is that the Jacuzzis (large enough to fit at least 15 adults) actually jut out over the ocean so, while you are sitting in it, you have full view of the sea. Just beautiful! The lounge chairs are very comfortable and there are also several hammocks if you are lucky enough (early enough) to grab one! There is also a bar (of course) and waiters are constantly coming by (without being pushy at all) to ask if they can get you anything.

 

--The "Sports" Pool--

 

What I would have called the main pool is actually called the Sports Pool. This is another great area. Tons of lounge chairs (not as comfortable as the Solarium chairs but not bad at all). This is the area where the party is! There is a live band playing Reggae tunes, a bar (naturally) and a deck that splits the pool in two. This is the location of such events as the Men's Belly Flop Competition, the Sexy Legs competition, pool volleyball and basketball, etc. They also give dance lessons on the deck here. It is a great environment with loads of energy!

 

--H2O Zone--

 

For those of you who say you never want to relive your childhood, I challenge you to say that after seeing the H2O Zone! I never wanted to be a kid so much in all my life. This area is a wonderful addition to the RC Cruise Line! Waterfalls, statues spouting fountains, geysers, little wave pools and 100% fun! I seriously loved looking at this section. The colors are bright and wild and the kids had an all-out screaming good time! However, it is only for the potty-trained. We will definitely bring my son on this ship when he is older! Then we will have an excuse to play in that area, too!

 

Just beyond the H2O Zone is another bar. The interesting thing about this bar is that you could get protein powder mixed in your drinks. Gross in my opinion, but helpful for those who do Atkins/South Beach!

 

--The Windjammer--

 

I love the Windjammer restaurant. I really do. We had breakfast and lunch here almost every day. If you are a buffet person, this place simply rocks. They have everything: cereal, croissants, toast, biscuits, two different kinds of scrambled eggs (I was hoping they would repeat the scrambled eggs with salmon that they served the first day at sea but they never did, made to order omelets, hash browns, fruit, oatmeal, grits, etc. I would honestly be surprised to hear if someone could not find something they like there at breakfast. Windjammer at lunch was fine, too. Meats, rice dishes, international dishes, etc. Again, I would be surprised if someone did not care for the lunch buffet. But there are other options if you don't. What I cannot speak to is the Windjammer for dinner. We never went there because we enjoyed the companionship of our tablemates in the dining room too much!

 

--Chops/Portofino--

 

Sorry...cannot review this...did not go there. But I have personally heard glowing reviews for both restaurants.

 

--Johnny Rockets--

 

Who does not love this place!? We ate there for lunch because, being a Crown and Anchor member, you get a complimentary dining experience. You do not have to decide between onion rings or fries because, as soon as you sit, they give you both (along with ketchup in a smiley face design) and a side of ranch dressing. The onion rings are killer. K-i-l-l-e-r! I had the regular hamburger with cheese, minus the bun and my husband had a chili dog. They were both awesome. Better than your average burger/dog. For dessert we had the Oreo sundae. We could not eat more than two bites, though...we were completely stuffed! The only thing you have to pay extra for here are the sodas (if you do not have the soda package) or any shakes you might order (regardless if you have the soda package). Definitely worth a visit to Johnny Rockets (even if you AREN'T a Crown and Anchor member...it is worth the $3.95 per person to eat there).

 

--A Word About the Soda Package--

 

Paying for the soda package, for me, is a no-brainer. I am a Diet Coke-a-holic! So it is COMPLETELY worth it for me to get this package. Plus, quite honestly, my husband shares the soda with me and no one cares. If you are a big drinker, it is worth the $6.00 per day (and 15% gratuity that they tack on). If you and your spouse are both big soda drinkers, I still think you could get away with just one of you getting the package. If you drink one or less sodas per day, it would NOT be worth it for you to get this! Since I drink an average of 60 oz. of diet soda per day, the package pays for itself ten times over!

 

I cannot speak to the Wine Package because we never tried it. I guess it is worth it if you are a big wine drinker.

 

--The Sports Deck--

 

This place is so cool! Just beyond the deck is a ping pong table...always fun unless it is windy! On the deck itself, there is a huge basketball court (which is used for basketball, soccer, dodge ball, volleyball, etc.). If you are hesitant to get involved in a group sport, throw caution to the wind! It is FUN to be a part of something...even if you are not athletically gifted. People on vacation are generally very forgiving! The rock wall is enormous and, really, how freakin' cool is it to have a rock wall on the ship! There is also a golf simulator if that does it for you...and a 9-hole miniature golf course!

 

--The FlowRider--

 

This is the second coolest addition to the RC Cruise Line (the first being the H2O Zone). Even if you NEVER use the FlowRider, it is good for hours of entertainment! I honestly could have sat there all day watching people attempt to stand on the surf board! I may be one sick puppy, but EVERY time someone wiped out, I got a chuckle out of it! My husband tried both the boogie board and the stand up surfing and enjoyed both activities. I did not try either after I saw a poor woman completely lose her bathing suit bottom (hence the reason they STRONGLY recommend women wear t-shirts over their suits!). This is just fun, fun, fun!!

 

--The Dining Room--

 

The dining room is glorious to behold. It is just really, really pretty. We had the early seating in the Galileo dining room on Deck 5. Mahmud (sp?) was our waiter and Yemliha (sp?) was our assistant. They were both very (overly) friendly and did a pretty good job of taking care of us. Interestingly enough, out of the 1400+ staff members onboard, only 14 are from Turkey. Our waiter, assistant waiter AND head waiter were all from Turkey. Weird, eh? Onto my review of the food... I have to say, I am not a big fan of the food in the dining room. The breads are hit or miss as far as freshness. The appetizers are generally very good (especially the escargot, crab cake, and the Vidalia onion tart). The soups were okay, salads were very good. What RC CANNOT do well is red meat. Their red meat is just awful. Their steak, filet and prime rib were all bad. Tasteless and, well, borderline gross to me. Also, their cheese tortellini should be avoided at all costs...it was ghastly. The lobster was good, the shrimp is good, the mahi mahi tempura was very good. My husband said the lamb was very good and I also heard the pork chops were decent. On the whole, the food is not phenomenal but I always found *something* I could eat! And, always remember...if you do not like something, ask for something else. If you want 12 appetizers, that is no problem, either! The waiters are very accommodating and are happy to get you anything you ask for. The desserts are pretty good (the Baked Alaska is WONDERFUL!!) but I always just asked for vanilla ice cream with strawberries and was always able to get it!

 

We enjoyed the dining room primarily because we had great tablemates: Nicole and Bryan from Chicago and Melissa and Randy from Texas. I am not sure if they do age matching for tables but, honestly, they could not have placed us with a better group. So good company won out over mediocre food every time!

 

--The Promenade--

 

This area is just too cool. Bars, shops, eateries...what's not to like! To be honest, we buy nothing from these shops (well, except for the two Twix bars I bought at the General Store). We are just not the type of people who will wear RCCL logos or Hawaiian shirts. :) The pubs are nice...the entertainment in them was decent. The pizza place (Sorrento's, I believe) is FANTASTIC and the coffee shop has 24-hour cookies, sandwiches and snacks! Whoo hoo! You can purchase Seattle's Best Coffee there (my husband loves it) and there is also a Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream Parlor (again, this is available for an extra charge). Parades are held in the Promenade and little shows are held here, too...they are all worth seeing. Plus, the kids have a pirate parade here which is SOOO cute!

 

**WHERE THE FREEDOM FAILED!**

 

WHY no sports bar? WHY OH WHY?!?! Explorer of the Seas has one and it was always packed. Why they did not put one on the Freedom is beyond me. We ended up spending more time in our cabin than we would have liked because we did not want to miss the US Open. We would have been MUCH happier sitting in a public area, spending our money on beer while watching the matches. Their loss of revenue, if you ask me!

 

I guess Vintages replaced the sports bar and, while a wine bar is nice, I guarantee a sports bar would be much more crowded, fun and would generate much more alcohol revenue for RCCL!

 

--Studio B--

 

How cool is it that a ship has an ice rink? I was planning on taking a learn to skate class but never got around to it! But I am just happy knowing that it is there if I wanted it and the ice show on Explorer was phenomenal...I am sure Freedom-Ice.com was great on this ship.

 

This is also the site of the Adult Quest Show. This is a rip-roaring adventure! ALL adults should see this show and should participate if you can. It was a total blast! There was also an 80's dance party here that was really enjoyable.

 

**WHERE THE FREEDOM FAILED AGAIN**

 

They gave away ALL the tickets to ALL the nights of the ice show in ONE day. We totally missed that on the Compass so we were not able to get tickets. We waited to get in one day but were turned away. We were quite miffed about this! They should advertise the ticket distribution more and have more than one day of distribution, as well!

 

**Arcadia Theatre**

 

Very comfortable theatre...great shows! Marquee was fantastic (despite their mauling of some of the lyrics in Phantom of the Opera AND having the Phantom call MADAME GIRY his Angel of Music...blasphemous!). The comedy was good...and we heard that Once Upon a Time was wonderful (we fell asleep and missed it!). The magic show was not for us...little too corny! The Farewell show was terrific and the comedian they had on that night (Phil Tag, I believe?) had me laughing my butt off! A lot of cruise humor!

 

This is also the site of the Love and Marriage Game Show. This is, hands down, the ultimate highlight of the cruise. I have not laughed so hard in a long, long time. I was literally shrieking during some parts. And now I have to mention the one thing that made this cruise PHENOMENAL and that one thing is...

 

:D **CRUISE DIRECTOR BECKY THOMPSON!!** :D Hello, luv! This gal is amazing...talented, wicked high energy and funny as hell! For those on the 9/2 sailing who attended the Love and Marriage Game Show...when Becky skipped around the stage yelling, "Farting, farting, farting" I thought I would bust a gut from laughing so hard. She could easily be a stand-up comic...but maybe she is too cute for that. She was also a complete riot at the Adult Quest when she would not give back the bra of a woman who was more endowed than she is. I had planned on sailing the Freedom again next year because of Becky...but I am sad to say that I have since read that she is leaving Freedom to take a corporate job. I am NOT surprised...I cannot imagine expending as much energy in a day as she does. She is the best of the best and I wish her all the luck in the world in her future endeavors!

 

**Oh...and someone requested this information in a post I read here...the name of the song that is played before the evening shows is called, "Love Today" by Mika. I fell in love with this song the first night I heard it. I actually used the video feature of my digital camera to capture the audio of the song. Then I looked it up on the internet and was thrilled to have found it! You can see the Mika's video if you do a search on YouTube. It is a very 80's sounding, upbeat song!

 

--On-Air Club--

 

This is the karaoke club. Now, normally I am a karaoke-a-holic (watching not singing) but, the first night I went, it was very slow so I did not make it a point to go back on other nights. However, staff member Carlito's entertaining rendition of, "I Believe in Miracles" is forever etched in my memory. It was very, very funny!

 

--Casino--

 

The casino is your typical "rape you of your money" casino. I hate it there, actually, because it is VERY smoky and I just can't handle that. But my husband ventured there every night. He loved it and said the dealers were great...very helpful and friendly.

 

--Game Room--

 

This place is fun. Loads of arcade games that all seemed to be in full working order. There are three air hockey tables which is a big draw for me and my husband. I bet you never knew that air hockey could be an ultra-competitive, aerobic sport! My husband and I make it such! And, I am proud to say, that I whooped his butt again this time around!

 

...So that wraps up what I have to say about the ship! I am sure that I missed telling you about much of what the ship has to offer (we did not use the library, internet lounge, etc.) but I hope I gave you some idea of how awesome this ship is! Bottom line, the ship and staff (most of them!) are wonderful! The Guest Relations Staff is terrible (not only the iPod incident but we had asked them about an event that was listed in the Compass and, not only did they know NOTHING about it, they were rude to us and had no idea where we could go to find out information about it).

 

Perhaps I will post about the excursions in a separate post because this is getting VERY long and I will sign off here.

 

If you have ANY questions, feel free to contact me. This was my very first post here on CruiseCritic and I hope I have not bored you too much! ;)

 

Until next time...happy cruising!

 

Sunsetfire

[Cruising89143]

Very nice detailed review. Yes, the sports bar on the RP disappeared starting the with the Navigator OTS. It was moved to the Viking Crown lounge on the Navigator and Mariner and removed starting with the Freedom class.

 

As for your IPod. Lesson learned that you never put anything in your checked luggage of value. Keep in mind that it may have happened before your luggage was placed on the ship with the porters. What you were told at Guest Relations may not have been what you wanted to hear and is the reality but you had the right attitude to let it go and not let it ruin your cruise. Thanks again for a nice detailed report.

[mcgore83]

Great review!!! Thanks for the larger print and highlights, so easy to read. I am torn between the Mariner and Freedom, so may have made the decision for me. Thanks again.

[johnlcruise]

Sorry about your IPod.

But I really enjoyed reading your review. Sounds like you had a very nice time.

Thanks for taking the time to tell us about your Adventure.

[Pat&Liz]

Thanks for the review - I can't believe how excited I am just by reading it!!

 

I'm sailing on Freedom on the 11th November, and can NOT wait that long (I get married before then though, so that ought to keep me busy ;) )

 

Thanks again for the review - sorry about your Ipod - what a bummer!!

 

Lizzi xx

[It'sRC4ME]

Great review! Sorry to hear about your iPod. Actually, this is the second time recently that someone on these boards has mentioned an iPod being stolen from checked luggage.

[Apoggi]

Great review. Thanks for posting. I am sorry about your Ipod but I carried mine with me on our last cruise. Didn't want to take the chance of it being stolen. Sorry.

 

Ann

[oakleys]

thank's for the review. sorry about your ipod, that's why we always put them in our carry on. plane's or ship's.

[ChristieNJ]

GREAT review!!! It was like reliving my cruise.

I, too, am OBSESSED with my video iPod, so I can relate!! However, that thing NEV-ER leaves my side. When we board Explorer next month right here from Jersey, I had grand visions of boarding with NO carry ons whatsoever!!! How cool would that be? However, it won't happen. My iPod, digital cam, and video cam will be at my side for the boarding. Which is ok since I'm going to want to take pics anyway. Hope you get another one soon! I know I would be lost without mine, for sure. My condolences. :(

I also liked how you colored your review and separated it. Great review and great format!! :)

[robntawn]

I would just like to chime in and say what a great review that was! It was informative, honest, and balanced. You were upset about certain things but did not let your disappointment unfairly cloud the rest of your review. I wish more people could be just as fair when doing their reviews. Thanks again!

[callaghan0416]

Great review...I am getting so excited for my turn on FOS!

 

callie

[KRAZYKRITTER2000]

I guess you have to watch what you pack in your checked luggage. We were on the 8/19 sailing and didn't receive my DH luggage until 11:00. We found that his lock had been broken but luckily he didn't have any valuables in there. I agree the Guest Relations staff was awful to us as well. The dining room staff definitely made up for that. We had Edwin from India and Vladan from Serbia. They were wonderful. We had a fantastic cruise.

[thelemalove93]

I am sorry about your IPOD, but as another person mentioned on this post I have learned from experience to never, ever put anything of value (like my MP3 player or DVD player) in my checked luggage. I actually just carry my MP3 player in my purse. Anyhow, I was also on this sailing and had a great time! Feel free to check out my review if any of you have an upcoming trip.

[gerif]

Great review - sorry about your I-Pod, but, again, I would never put anything of value in my checked luggage. I also don't ever lock it - figure if anyone really wants to get in, they'll only damage the luggage or break the lock in order to do so.

[cot427]

Thanks for the great, very detailed review. You made some good points I will list below.

 

Sorry about your ipod being stolen. I know that my family (especially women) put valuable in their luggage, especially women with jewelry. They would be devestated if they were stolen.

 

I always buy the soda package like you did I am also a diet cokaholic. I love the stuff. I also love the souvineer mugs, I have collected 5 at home.

 

I am also dissapointed about the sports bar. But, the explorer was the only ship I was on that had it. Navigator and Mariner also replaced it with Vintages, but on there, they had the 19th hole bar in the crown, which was nice. But, the Freeodm did also take out the 19th hole bar. I am so disappoined, but somebody said that occatinoally, they put sports on in the kareoke bar and the schooner bar.

 

I hope my boarding process doesn't take as long as yours did. I know also that the Promenade, H2O zone, and Flowrider are going to be the highlights of my cruise.

 

Thanks again.

[Sea Trekker]

Thanks for you great reivew on the Freedom.

I have adifferent take on this cruise.

I loved everything about it!!!

Freedom of the Seas September2-9,2007

Itin: Miami,Labadee Haiti,OchoRios Jamiaca,Georgetown Grand Cayman, Cozumel Mexico

this is our first cruise on a ship of the size.

Embarkation: Arriving at the port of Miami, we find that traffic is backed up, police are routing everyone away from the area. What should take 45 minutes to board ended being 3 hours. Later we were told that a security breach caused the problem.I'm happy to be on board. Let the fun begin! We leave the carry on luggage, make our way to the sail away party, book on board services( massage,Portifino's,etc)

Ordered the drink of the day and watch as Miami slowly disapears.

the ship: Freedom of the Seas is the largest built so far..160,000 grt, passengers 3,634.

Length 1,112 feet. Amenities:rock climbing wall,casino,Promenade, ice rink, vitural golf,Solarium & pool(adults), 2 specialty restruants, H2O Zone (children),fitness center, basketball, boxing ring,Sea Teck Dive shop,several bars, online internet,conference Center, movie Theater,This ship is HUGE! but easy to navagate;on each of the decks you can get to one end of the ship to the other.At the glass enclosed elevators there are replicas of F-16 fighter jets.& stop lights hanging in mid air near by.

I couldn't figure them out?

Promenade deck 5; Pursers desk,Champagane bar, shopping, Ben & Jerrys Ice cream,Barber shop, Vintages Wines,Bull & Bear Pub, Café Starbucks, Book Nook, Pizza, Cigar club, Pharaoh's Palace.

Deck 11: Jade & Windjammer Café,Portofino & Chops Restaurant,Sprinkles soft ice cream(free),Squeeze Bar,Pool Bar, Fitness Center, boxing ring, solarium.

Cabin:balcony, port side. nice and spacious,lots of storage. Decor:aquas blues,peach,shades of green and cream. I like the little touches;night light over the bed to read by,hair dryer in the drawer by the make up table,a safe you can program with a code instead of a credit card,flat screen t.v., rotates to view on other side of room. We like to order breakfast & cocktails in our cabin, watch the water and enjoy the open sea.

Only one problem.;the shower is small. If you drop the soap your back side is out the shower door.sink and counter top also small.

Dining Rooms:(3 levels)(Isaac's,Galileo's) we ate at Leonardo's second seat:Table of 14. We moved to different seats each night to talk to everyone. Food & service were very good.

A different nationality menu each night. Steaks done to perfection, seafood just right. I ordered my seafood plain,& use only lemon(don't like a lot of season)Deserts are the usual fare pies,cakes,icecream. One night there was baked Alaska. The chocolate cake was very good.

Entertainment: Every night there is a different program in the Arcadia Theatre. The cruise directior, Becky Thompson is energetic, funny and beautiful. First night was the Broadway review song & dance. What great talent they are. Motown Live with 'Spectrum' from Las Vegas,

Magic show staring Phyllip Kaiser,Comedian Phil Tag, Once Upon a Time,by the freedom singers and dancers. We really like the stage shows the best.What talent!

The Royal Promende had parades down the middle of the ship. What a sight to see.A flying bridge came down from the top deck to showcase the acts. Any thing you desired to see and do they have it all: Jazz, Classics, Piano,ballroom Dance, Latin Music, 70's & 80's music,D.J's nightclub in all the different bars & clubs.

Of couarse, there is the Ice show. What can I say...WOW it is incredible !! Try doing jumps, spins,on ice skates on a moving ship in a 30'X 40' ice rink.You have to see it to believe it.

Sports deck 13:

Lots of activity here. Basketball, jog/running track,flowrider, mini golf,golf simulator,

sports contests,Surf & Sports shop.

I tried the flow rider... what a blast! You have to sign a injury waver for each day.There are many try outs for best trick,etc.at different times. The boogie board is twice a day with a divider so 2 people can surf at the same time. I tried my weak skills on the flow rider, What a Blast! Pictures in the Gallery.

Itinerary Port of call:

Labadee, Haiti Private Island owned by Royal Caribbean. Very clean, nice beaches,Restrooms, buffett lunch, beers, frozen drinks. Don't drink the water. We swam, and enjoyed the beach.

The activties were Zip line,parasiling,kayak, power boat, water slide, scuba & snorkel.

Ocho Rios, Jamaica, We went to Dunns River Falls,Coyaba Gardens, Museum.

I didn't want to climb the fall after I saw many people fall. The gardens and flalls in Cayaba River were the most tranquil, in paradise. Many tropical flowers, birds, a very pleasent stroll. Shopping in the park was a hassel, vendors were at you all the time. We hurried out.

George town, Grand Cayman. We have been to G.C many time, so choose not to tender from the ship.

The many adventures there are wonderful. We liked the Sting ray city the best.

Cozumel Mexico. We took the tour Wonders of Mexico & Cozumel highlights. "Discover Mexico" is a miniature replica of the history and the people & buildings(pyrmids) thru the ages. From pre Myan, Columbus, Spanish, all the way to modern times. All the buildings were to scale in detail. Next we traveled to a working Hacienda and sampled Tiquela. Then on to the city for shopping & lunch. We had a very nice lunch at Pancho's Backyard (corner of Waterfront & 8th St)

Over all the Royal Cribbean line is trying very hard to please everyone. The children,adults, grandparents. Lots of tailored prgrams for all ages.

all seemed to have a good time. We met many woderful people from The Florida Pharmacy Association.

They held a continuing education seminars on board. What a way to get educated.

The only bad experience was a freek storm returning to Miami at 2:00am. The ship listed port side about 5 degrees. That caused some people to become worried. The captain announced to everyone we were fine. An interpreter came over the pa system speaking in several foriegn languages to translate the same message. It was all over in 30 minutes.

[eisco17]

Lizzi xx -

I too am on the Nov 11 sailing. It's so nice to hear good things about the ship before you board, isn't it? I

will NOT pack anything valuable in my luggage.

 

Thanks for all the tips, Sunsetfire.

[Sea Trekker]

I also want to say it was nice to meet all the great friends at the meet & mingle.

We may not have been able to get to know all of you , but it sure was a wonderful time.

Thanks to willys grandmaw for getting the ball rolling.

Looking forward to anouther cruise on RCCL

Sea Trekker

Carole & Earl ;)

[codyboy]

We are oing on Freedom of the seas on OCt 28 and thanks for all the update details. And some hints. My husband is deaf, so he will be bring his pager (blackberry 8703) I will not use it as I am on vacation and do not want ot be both with that at all. :) However I sorry to hear about IPOD which I do not know nothing about it but I do know $$$ that much of IPOD :rolleyes: :D

[willysgrandma]

I was also on the Sept. 2 sailing and agree with your review. We ate at Chops and Porto fino, Portofino was okay, loved Chops. If I had to choose one of the other, I'd choose Chops.

 

In speaking to other people ont he ship, the one thing several people mentioed is that there wasn't any place that people who want to dance could dance. The bars are too small that they had music in.

 

Since I am not a dnacer, it never occured to me, but I did enjoy watching the people in Boleros dancing to the Latin music, and there wasn't enough room for everyone.

 

I had two complaints about the cruise - the hand cleaners at the Windjammer were in a terrible spot - right at the entrance. They were hard to see and if you took the wipe and walked into the buffet with it, there was no place to put it - the only garbage pail was at the entrance. With a ship of that size, they need to have sanitizers EVERYWHERE in the buffet and SHOULD have them at every spot you pick up a dish.

 

I was watching to see how many people took the sanitizers and most people walked right by them (But a lot of people didn't wash their hands after using the bathrom either - I was pretty shocked.)

 

And my other complaint that RCCL can't do a thing about is how rude many of the passengers were on that particular cruise. I don't think I've ever seen a cruise full of so many loud and rude people.

 

BTW - did you feel the ship roll the last night? I almost rolled out of mybed - we were on the starboard side.

[JsWife07]

Great review

I am on the freedom in 17 days and I am now way more pumped! I can't wait! :D

And sorry about your Ipod, but glad it didn't ruin your trip!

[Sunsetfire]

I was also on the Sept. 2 sailing and agree with your review. We ate at Chops and Porto fino, Portofino was okay, loved Chops. If I had to choose one of the other, I'd choose Chops.

 

In speaking to other people ont he ship, the one thing several people mentioed is that there wasn't any place that people who want to dance could dance. The bars are too small that they had music in.

 

Since I am not a dnacer, it never occured to me, but I did enjoy watching the people in Boleros dancing to the Latin music, and there wasn't enough room for everyone.

 

--You could dance in the Vault but I never went there. I went there every single night on the Explorer of the Seas and loved it. On the Freedom, though, it was reserved for teens from 11 until 1, I think. I can't stay up that late, anymore! I, too, enjoyed watching the Latin dancers in Boleros but, you are right, there was no room there! The 80's dance party in Studio B was a hoot but very few people showed up for it! Weird.

 

I had two complaints about the cruise - the hand cleaners at the Windjammer were in a terrible spot - right at the entrance. They were hard to see and if you took the wipe and walked into the buffet with it, there was no place to put it - the only garbage pail was at the entrance. With a ship of that size, they need to have sanitizers EVERYWHERE in the buffet and SHOULD have them at every spot you pick up a dish.

 

I was watching to see how many people took the sanitizers and most people walked right by them (But a lot of people didn't wash their hands after using the bathrom either - I was pretty shocked.)

 

--I have no idea why the Freedom switched from the gel sanitizers to the cloth sanitizers. First of all, the cloth ones are so environmentally unfriendly! Second of all, it is far more convenient to just take a squirt of sanitizer and rub it in than have to wipe with a cloth and, you are right, then have to find a garbage pail for it!

 

And my other complaint that RCCL can't do a thing about is how rude many of the passengers were on that particular cruise. I don't think I've ever seen a cruise full of so many loud and rude people.

 

--I am not sure I experienced this. On my last cruise on Explorer, there was a HUGE group of people...not sure what nationality they were but they were all quite aged and EXTREMELY rude and pushy. They practically comandeered the Solarium so we were never able to enjoy it. I did not see that happening on this cruise. What did you experience?

 

BTW - did you feel the ship roll the last night? I almost rolled out of mybed - we were on the starboard side.

 

--I cannot believe I forgot to mention this in my review! My husband was in the casino and I hit the hay early (because we took advantage of the express checkout..WHICH ROCKED!). I decided to leave my balcony open a little because I wanted to hear the surf. I awoke to the sound of wind howling LOUDLY and I had a difficult time fighting the wind to close the balcony door! I tried to go back to bed but the wind got even louder. I was a little disoriented and thought the wind might be loud because perhaps I had left the main cabin door open. So I got up and walked to the main door. Outside the door, I could hear people speaking in Spanish sounding very panicked. That was when the boat had the 5º list. When walking back to my bed, I actually started running because it was like I was going downhill! It was very unsettling but, luckily, did not last long! I should update my review with this information...again, can't believe I forgot about it!

 

 

Glad you had a good time for the most part!

[Tralynn222]

GREAT review..thank you for making it so easy to read!!!

 

Just curious, what did RCI do for you in regards to your loss of your ipod? Did you get compensated in any way or is this something you have to put through insurance? Just curious.

 

Thanks!

[Sea Trekker]

Yes, I was awaken by the motions of the ship.

I got up to see the wind and wave very strong and the ship was listing to the port side.

Just then the captain announced we were in a freek storm. He was steering the ship into the wind so that the ship would be even keel.

This I mentioned in my review here. It was all over in 30 minutes and the seas were calm after that.

I have been on rougher seas.

Carole

[aces389]

The OP's review was nicely done very easy to read and informative. Enjoy your next cruise with your son:)