Freedom 6th January, 2008 quick review

[AussieSunGirl]

Wow this holiday exceeded all our expectations!!!!! As Australians we really didn't know what to expect and had the time of our lives.

 

We had inside staterooms with two in each room and found them to be more than adequate. Enjoyed the darkness in the morning which allowed us to sleep if a particularly big night was enjoyed by all and excursions allowed it. Didn't sleep during the day but would imagine if required you could rest comfortably at any time of the day. Looked in some bigger rooms when walking past whilst they looked fantastic not worth the cost to us and would book the same rooms we had in a heartbeat. Tip inside staterooms are built for two only, luckily we had done this but many people were disappointed when trying to squeeze in more. Two people could live comfortably in these rooms. Beds were fantastic. Bathrooms were adequate but there were some people on the boat who would have struggled for larger people you may need to look at bigger suites for the bathroom size. Had a fantastic room attendant who did his job and more and was a real pleasure to have around. Never intrusive but very efficient and a lot of fun. Found deck 10 a perfect location quiet but close to everything. Didn't need the lifts could walk the stairs comfortably.

 

The sheer size of the ship is overwhelming for Australians but we soon felt right at home. Learnt the layout pretty quickly and felt comfortable. Enjoyed the Bull and Bear, Scott was amazing but has now headed off to Vegas. Will be returning to the Freedom in May. All the entertainment was top notch and a lot of fun. Richard Spacey is an amazing talent and fantastic Cruise Director. Never met him but found him absolutely unbelievably entertaining. He made me laugh every evening.

 

Enjoyed every meal in the Dining Room and had fantastic wait staff who made it a real experience. All breakfasts were eaten in the Windjammer with absolutely no complaints. Returned to the Windjammer for lunch a couple of times in port as it was most enjoyable and of course already paid for. Warm chocolate cake mmmmmmmmmmmm?

 

Ports were great fun we usually did an excursion followed by a wander and shop. Returned to the ship relaxed and ready for another fun evening. Pleasantly surprised on some of the ports as negative comments and reviews had prepared me for the worst. Enjoyed each and everyone with probably Labadee being the least favourite as we live on the coastline of Australia and can beach anytime, but loved those drinks!!!!!!!!!

 

Must sees on board would be all evening shows every one was most enjoyable (the Platters were amazing) and of course the ice show. Loved the promenade and the solarium as places to chill. Bolero's and Bull & Bear for drinks. Shopping was cheap on board and really worth looking there before shopping in port. Cozumel best shopping on Western but still need to put in legwork.

 

In conclusion I would recommend the Freedom to everyone all ages. First holiday I can remember where everyone was teary to finish and it is still being talked about constantly. A tip: If you choose to cruise just to whinge please go to another cruise line because the constant moaning of some people is a total pain in the x#@% relax and enjoy your holiday. The only thing we could find wrong with the whole cruise was the perpetual pains in the @#$% and unfortunately you always find yourself next to or behind the biggest ones. The nit picking will kill you! The idea of a holiday is to relax don't sweat the small stuff. Never met an inefficient or rude staff member all week but came across arrogant, unpleasant, overbearing cruisers who fortunately were in the minority but certainly live in a world of gloom of doom and feel it necessary to drag the rest of the world down their black hole. This was a full cruise and we never waited more than five minutes for anything including tendering. Use your own initiative to make your holiday as relaxing as can be and you will have a blast!

[IBookHePays]

Thanks for taking the time to post a review. We're looking forward to exploring the Freedom in the fall. :)

[nanaj1]

Thank you AussieSunGirl

I will be on the Freedom on Feb.24th can't wait. You never said a truer word, I get sick and tired of hearing other people groaning about everything and it is a real downer.

[AussieSunGirl]

You will have a fantastic time! Relax and enjoy this special boat. Enjoy Richard Spacey and enjoy all the fantastic staff on board the Freedom. Visit Bailey at the Bolero's bar he will look after you all week and is a lot of fun. Don't try to do everything just enjoy everything you do you can always cruise again on a freedom class if you feel there are still things you missed. So many people are irritated because they are trying to do to much and not stopping to smell the roses. It is a holiday leave yourself time to unwind, in saying that I struggled sitting by the pool because i felt there was to many other things to do but then as I said before I live on the coast and can swim and lie around anytime but if you are cruising for the sun and swimming then pull up a chair don't read your compass and relax with a cocktail until you are ready to move on. Move at your own pace. Oh and even on a full cruise always got a chair whenever I wanted and certainly never hit deck in the early mornings. Use the solarium if you children are older or non existent as this is a great place to unwind get some sun and swim and very peaceful.

 

Oh I am so jealous even though I am just back!!!!!

[cathyr4561]

Thanks for your post. I'm sailing on the Freedom on Feb. 17th and was concerned about the complaints, including the food and service not being what it used to be. I live in Chicago and it's extremely cold right now so I will be happy just to feel some warm weather.

[uksimonusa]

Wow this holiday exceeded all our expectations!!!!! As Australians we really didn't know what to expect and had the time of our lives.

 

We had inside staterooms with two in each room and found them to be more than adequate. Enjoyed the darkness in the morning which allowed us to sleep if a particularly big night was enjoyed by all and excursions allowed it. Didn't sleep during the day but would imagine if required you could rest comfortably at any time of the day. Looked in some bigger rooms when walking past whilst they looked fantastic not worth the cost to us and would book the same rooms we had in a heartbeat. Tip inside staterooms are built for two only, luckily we had done this but many people were disappointed when trying to squeeze in more. Two people could live comfortably in these rooms. Beds were fantastic. Bathrooms were adequate but there were some people on the boat who would have struggled for larger people you may need to look at bigger suites for the bathroom size. Had a fantastic room attendant who did his job and more and was a real pleasure to have around. Never intrusive but very efficient and a lot of fun. Found deck 10 a perfect location quiet but close to everything. Didn't need the lifts could walk the stairs comfortably.

 

The sheer size of the ship is overwhelming for Australians but we soon felt right at home. Learnt the layout pretty quickly and felt comfortable. Enjoyed the Bull and Bear, Scott was amazing but has now headed off to Vegas. Will be returning to the Freedom in May. All the entertainment was top notch and a lot of fun. Richard Spacey is an amazing talent and fantastic Cruise Director. Never met him but found him absolutely unbelievably entertaining. He made me laugh every evening.

 

Enjoyed every meal in the Dining Room and had fantastic wait staff who made it a real experience. All breakfasts were eaten in the Windjammer with absolutely no complaints. Returned to the Windjammer for lunch a couple of times in port as it was most enjoyable and of course already paid for. Warm chocolate cake mmmmmmmmmmmm?

 

Ports were great fun we usually did an excursion followed by a wander and shop. Returned to the ship relaxed and ready for another fun evening. Pleasantly surprised on some of the ports as negative comments and reviews had prepared me for the worst. Enjoyed each and everyone with probably Labadee being the least favourite as we live on the coastline of Australia and can beach anytime, but loved those drinks!!!!!!!!!

 

Must sees on board would be all evening shows every one was most enjoyable (the Platters were amazing) and of course the ice show. Loved the promenade and the solarium as places to chill. Bolero's and Bull & Bear for drinks. Shopping was cheap on board and really worth looking there before shopping in port. Cozumel best shopping on Western but still need to put in legwork.

 

In conclusion I would recommend the Freedom to everyone all ages. First holiday I can remember where everyone was teary to finish and it is still being talked about constantly. A tip: If you choose to cruise just to whinge please go to another cruise line because the constant moaning of some people is a total pain in the x#@% relax and enjoy your holiday. The only thing we could find wrong with the whole cruise was the perpetual pains in the @#$% and unfortunately you always find yourself next to or behind the biggest ones. The nit picking will kill you! The idea of a holiday is to relax don't sweat the small stuff. Never met an inefficient or rude staff member all week but came across arrogant, unpleasant, overbearing cruisers who fortunately were in the minority but certainly live in a world of gloom of doom and feel it necessary to drag the rest of the world down their black hole. This was a full cruise and we never waited more than five minutes for anything including tendering. Use your own initiative to make your holiday as relaxing as can be and you will have a blast!

 

We're on Freedom in April, going to cruise with our friend Shane Tapper, who replaced Scott in the Bull and Bear, he is an Aussie, from Sydney, and we always have a great time with him:D

[Dr. VP]

AussieSunGirl,

 

As cruisers from New England, we were with you on the cruise (Deck 7) and agree with your review. It is a great ship, with a great crew and a fun itinerary.

 

And here, here...folks should learn to just m-e-l-l-o-w out and r-e-l-a-x - there is enough food and drink for everyone, a tender seat for all, plenty of lounge chairs, etc.! Just enjoy the vacation!

 

Happy cruising!

[luvjftffc]

My parents and brother were on the same cruise. They said it was fantastic and they thought the food was much better then previous times. This was their 11th cruise.

[RCCL 1]

Wow this holiday exceeded all our expectations!!!!! As Australians we really didn't know what to expect and had the time of our lives.

 

We had inside staterooms with two in each room and found them to be more than adequate. Enjoyed the darkness in the morning which allowed us to sleep if a particularly big night was enjoyed by all and excursions allowed it. Didn't sleep during the day but would imagine if required you could rest comfortably at any time of the day. Looked in some bigger rooms when walking past whilst they looked fantastic not worth the cost to us and would book the same rooms we had in a heartbeat. Tip inside staterooms are built for two only, luckily we had done this but many people were disappointed when trying to squeeze in more. Two people could live comfortably in these rooms. Beds were fantastic. Bathrooms were adequate but there were some people on the boat who would have struggled for larger people you may need to look at bigger suites for the bathroom size. Had a fantastic room attendant who did his job and more and was a real pleasure to have around. Never intrusive but very efficient and a lot of fun. Found deck 10 a perfect location quiet but close to everything. Didn't need the lifts could walk the stairs comfortably.

 

The sheer size of the ship is overwhelming for Australians but we soon felt right at home. Learnt the layout pretty quickly and felt comfortable. Enjoyed the Bull and Bear, Scott was amazing but has now headed off to Vegas. Will be returning to the Freedom in May. All the entertainment was top notch and a lot of fun. Richard Spacey is an amazing talent and fantastic Cruise Director. Never met him but found him absolutely unbelievably entertaining. He made me laugh every evening.

 

Enjoyed every meal in the Dining Room and had fantastic wait staff who made it a real experience. All breakfasts were eaten in the Windjammer with absolutely no complaints. Returned to the Windjammer for lunch a couple of times in port as it was most enjoyable and of course already paid for. Warm chocolate cake mmmmmmmmmmmm?

 

Ports were great fun we usually did an excursion followed by a wander and shop. Returned to the ship relaxed and ready for another fun evening. Pleasantly surprised on some of the ports as negative comments and reviews had prepared me for the worst. Enjoyed each and everyone with probably Labadee being the least favourite as we live on the coastline of Australia and can beach anytime, but loved those drinks!!!!!!!!!

 

Must sees on board would be all evening shows every one was most enjoyable (the Platters were amazing) and of course the ice show. Loved the promenade and the solarium as places to chill. Bolero's and Bull & Bear for drinks. Shopping was cheap on board and really worth looking there before shopping in port. Cozumel best shopping on Western but still need to put in legwork.

 

In conclusion I would recommend the Freedom to everyone all ages. First holiday I can remember where everyone was teary to finish and it is still being talked about constantly. A tip: If you choose to cruise just to whinge please go to another cruise line because the constant moaning of some people is a total pain in the x#@% relax and enjoy your holiday. The only thing we could find wrong with the whole cruise was the perpetual pains in the @#$% and unfortunately you always find yourself next to or behind the biggest ones. The nit picking will kill you! The idea of a holiday is to relax don't sweat the small stuff. Never met an inefficient or rude staff member all week but came across arrogant, unpleasant, overbearing cruisers who fortunately were in the minority but certainly live in a world of gloom of doom and feel it necessary to drag the rest of the world down their black hole. This was a full cruise and we never waited more than five minutes for anything including tendering. Use your own initiative to make your holiday as relaxing as can be and you will have a blast!

 

I am glad that you had a great time. As a long term RCCL cruiser and frequent visitor to Freedom I agree with your viewpoints. The tone of the ship is set by the Captain in large measure, and that filters down to the attitude and demeanor of the crew, and eventually your perception of how well you were treated. Captain Erik Tengelsen is an old friend of mine from his days on the old Sovereign of the seas, and has been a Captain for over 20 years now. He is one of the better Captains RCCL has, and together with Captain Manolis Kasselas, who recently joined Freedom after the departure of Carlos Pedercini, you have a great set of Masters. I will be visiting again in September and look forward to having another great cruise with old friends. Thank you for travelling with RCCL, and let your friends know you had a great time!

[hipster1]

Thanks for your post. I'm sailing on the Freedom on Feb. 17th and was concerned about the complaints, including the food and service not being what it used to be. I live in Chicago and it's extremely cold right now so I will be happy just to feel some warm weather.

 

 

Hey Cathy!!

WE are sailing Freedom on March 2...I am from Chicago too!! The Caribbean cant come soon enough..its 10 degrees today!!:eek:

[trvlbug08]

We were with you on the same cruise! We traveled with a group of 10 and had 5 inside cabins on deck 10. We had the time of our lives! Fantastic service in the diningroom and the best cabin steward in all of our 7 RCCL cruises. It was probably the best cruise yet.

[TonyRic]

Thanks for the review. Scott is amazing. Did he happen to tell you if his next contract on the Freedom is a 3 or 6 month contract?

 

Thanks

Tony

[renza]

Did you try the anytime dining?

[AussieSunGirl]

I am pretty sure that Scott said he would be back on the Freedom for four months after his return in May. He was a great entertainer and an even nicer bloke. A lot of fun!!!

 

We never saw any hint of anytime dining but then after our first night in the dining room we were hooked. Our tablemates were fantastic and a lot of fun and our waitstaff were fantastic so weren't going anywhere. If it existed on that cruise it was kept under wraps. As a first time cruiser dinner was probably the event I had most questions about but it was fantastic everynight and I enjoyed getting to know the staff and mates at the table.

 

As I said nothing to complain about on this cruise everyone we encountered was terrific. By the way our teens loved this cruise even more than us!!! and the teen staff and cruise director staff were absolutely accommodating with the teens and really took time to entertain them. The fact that all kids on the cruise were made to feel so comfortable was obvious in the fact that I didn't encounter any children of any age at anytime misbehaving in fact they were MIA most of the time and those you passed in hallways and lifts were very well mannered and pleasant never saw some of the antics read about on here, great family ship!!!!!!

[Dadofsara]

Hey Cathy. We will beon the Feb 17th Freedom sailing as well.

[chirpy007]

Did you try the anytime dining?

 

 

We got back yesterday and we saw the anytime dining advertised and were put straight on it, just filled in a form to have our tips re-assigned.

 

Sorry to have to tell that for time being Richard Spacey has left FOS. I chatted to him on the plane home briefly and he said he wasnt sure if he would be going back, I really hope he does.

[Conanc]

Thanks for posting your review. Glad you liked the Freedom. Great ship!

[gemz]

Richard Spacey left?! When is he returniing? I'm back on Freedom in a few weeks! I didn't know Captain Eric was gone too.

 

Is the ice show still Freedom-Ice.com?

[TonyRic]

Thanks guys. We just received an email from Scott. He is back on the FOS on April 8 and will be on until Sept 27. We have booked on her for the Aug 31 sailing. :)

[TonyRic]

Thanks guys. We just received an email from Scott. He is back on the FOS on April 8 and will be on until Sept 27. We have booked on her for the Aug 31 sailing. :)

[RCCL 1]

Richard Spacey left?! When is he returniing? I'm back on Freedom in a few weeks! I didn't know Captain Eric was gone too.

 

Is the ice show still Freedom-Ice.com?

 

My schedule indicates Captain Erik Tengelsen will be on until 2-17 when relieved by Mannolis Kasselas. If this has changed please advise..