wilsonzoo4 Posted February 19, 2008 #1 Share Posted February 19, 2008 First time cruiser, myself, husband, 12 & 18 year old sons. Initially I struggled with choosing between the easter and western route. I wasn't thrilled about going to Jamaica or stopping at 4 ports 4 days in a row. I want to have a few days to enjoy what the ship has to offer. So I chose two promenade cabins on deck 8 for the 7 day eastern caribbean on Liberty of the Seas for Oct 12 08. Our stops are : San Juan, St. Maarten and Labadee. I am considering changing to Mariner of the Seas 7 day eastern caribbean Oct 12, 08. Stops are CocoCay, St Thomas and St Maarten. Is it true that the Freedom Class is a "stretched out" version of Voyager Class plus the flo-rider? Is the surfing simulator reason enough to book this class of ships? My kids saw a doc on travel channel about Freedom of the Seas. They were impressed with what the ship had to offer including the flo-rider. There is only a $150 difference in the two cruises. I would appreciate any advice or opinions about the two ships and ports of call. I'm sure we'll enjoy this cruise and book another on in the future. I'm still anxious about choosing the right ship and ports for our first experience. Also, should I be concerned that I am cruising during hurricane season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhinsAndGills Posted February 19, 2008 #2 Share Posted February 19, 2008 CocoCay is a beach day. If you're not into snorkeling, sand, and sun, it's not for you. There's no real shopping (a very small area) or anything like that. It's a small island with beautiful beaches and cool snorkeling. :) It's my favorite stop. I really liked St. Maarten. All we had time to do (we didn't pull in until 3:00 and shops all close around 5:30) was shop around uptown, but it was fun. I would like to go back and see the sights a little more. The main area is a street of small shops to wander through, and a long street of bars and restaurants along a beautiful beach. You can also take day trips to the French side of the island, which I hear is VERY nice. Can't tell you about St. Thomas. I've never been there. I'm the opposite of you! :) I search out cruises with the MOST ports! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue L Posted February 19, 2008 #3 Share Posted February 19, 2008 With your sons I would stick with the Liberty. But yes to answer your question the Liberty is basically a stretched version of the Voyager class. Your stops on the Liberty are all wonderful. BTW Welcome to the boards and to cruising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raina*faith Posted February 19, 2008 #4 Share Posted February 19, 2008 Welcome to the boards and enjoy which ever cruise you choose! (hey that rhymes!) :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator0178 Posted February 19, 2008 #5 Share Posted February 19, 2008 As previously stated, yes the Freedom claas ships are basically a stretch Voyager class with the flow rider and a boxing ring. The factors that I would decide on are: 1) How much would the kids miss the flow rider? 2) Is it easier for you to go out of Port Canaveral or Miami? 3) How much into snorkeling is your family? CocoCay is the best for snorkeling, but isn't much to look at. It is a flat island. Labadee by contrast has large hills and rocks. It is prettier to look at but very limited snorkeling. It does now have a zip line as well. In addition the Eastern route on the Mariner goes to St Thomas which has good shopping and snorkeling/scuba. Bottom line is that it really depends on your family and what they like to do.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veryhotred Posted February 19, 2008 #6 Share Posted February 19, 2008 Mariner still has the ice skating, mini golf, inline skating, promenade, just no flo rider... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
veryhotred Posted February 19, 2008 #7 Share Posted February 19, 2008 one more thing, sorry..lol..I am doing the Mariner in November and we have three sea days I believe. We are going to Coco Cay, St. Maarten, and St. Thomas and then the others are sea days so there are plenty of sea days left over to enjoy the ship! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piercetc4 Posted February 19, 2008 #8 Share Posted February 19, 2008 i would pick the liberty- your kids would probably love the flo rider- you really can't go wrong either way- have a great time- we usually cruise during hurricane season and have not had any problems- we almost did a western cruise one yr but did eastern instead- a hurricane visited the western so all those ships came eastern route that week- lol so no matter what we would have ended up in the same place Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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