Freedom on the Seas Questions - Planning Family Reunion

[southwestgal]

Hi everyone,

 

My husband and I are in charge of planning the logistics for our first ever family reunion. This is a bit like herding cats but we are hoping to set sail on the Freedom of the Seas, July 12, 2009 leaving from Port Canaveral sailing the Eastern Caribbean.

 

The last time we sailed RCCL was 2004 on Vision of the Seas to Alaska. We had a fabulous time. Other than that cruise, we always sail Princess (platinum level). We consider ourselves experienced cruisers (at least on Princess), but need information on Freedom of the Seas to make sure that we made a great choice for the reunion.

 

The age range for our reunion is 9 to 75. Everyone's pretty active, no mobility or health issues. One thing - FIL is a heavy smoker. Is smoking allowed anywhere on the ship (cabins, bars, outside)?

 

The ship itself looks pretty spectacular and it appears that there is something for everyone. Has anyone had experience with the kids clubs? It might be an option for the younger set (9 and 12). We also have teenagers/young adults ranging in age from 17-21. Are there good activities for these kids (mostly girls and one boy).

 

My biggest question would be around the cabins. We have two couples, 2 adults with two kids (9 & 12), 2 adults with two kids (17 & 19), 2 adults with 2 kids (10 & 15), 1 adult with 2 kids (18 & 21) and one single adult. Grand total of 20 bodies. What the heck are we going to do with cabins? The only ones who can't sleep alone are the younger kids. Please send me all the suggestions you can about the best configuration of cabins to try to reserve. Please keep in mind that we are not Rockefellers :p and need to try to keep things reasonably priced. We are definitely open to Promenade cabins and window only. I don't think too many people in our group would be open to inside only.

 

We're on the RCCL website now and they have information on the various restaurants. Other than the buffet and the main dining room, do all the other eating venues incur an extra charge? Is there a "cheatsheet" on the ship that lists what's included in the cruise fare and what is extra?

 

Another question would be around booking. I've lurked around this board and am under the impression that RCCL is price fixed (for lack of a better term). Would the price from a TA and the price directly from RCCL be the same? Any advantages to booking either way? Are there any kind of breaks for a group? I'm a total newbie in booking RCCL. For the Alaska cruise that we took, we went with AAA (due to our sailing companions) which just resulted in us booking rack rates. And this was before RCCL changed their policies - what a rip off. Do you know what kind of deposits are typically charged? Are deposits 100% fully refundable until final payment? How far in advance of the cruise is final payment due?

 

I appreciate any and all comments, suggestions, etc. I know we're going to be sailing during hurricane season, but one of the families won't fly and they are based in Orlando. So that limits our options. We also have to sail during the summer when school is out. We are hoping that we are planning far enough in advance to get good pricing and cabins.

 

Thanks so much for everyone's input and knowledge. Looking forward to reading everyone's comments. Sorry this was so long.

 

Oops, just noticed that I called the ship Freedom ON the Seas. I can't edit the title, so sorry!

 

Happy Cruising!

 

Southwestgal

[Rcl Obsesd]

Hi everyone,

 

My husband and I are in charge of planning the logistics for our first ever family reunion. This is a bit like herding cats but we are hoping to set sail on the Freedom of the Seas, July 12, 2009 leaving from Port Canaveral sailing the Eastern Caribbean.

 

The last time we sailed RCCL was 2004 on Vision of the Seas to Alaska. We had a fabulous time. Other than that cruise, we always sail Princess (platinum level). We consider ourselves experienced cruisers (at least on Princess), but need information on Freedom of the Seas to make sure that we made a great choice for the reunion.

 

The age range for our reunion is 9 to 75. Everyone's pretty active, no mobility or health issues. One thing - FIL is a heavy smoker. Is smoking allowed anywhere on the ship (cabins, bars, outside)?

 

Hi i'll do my best to answer most of your questions!:p Smoking is allowed in quite a few places on the ship. I'm not 100% on this but i do believe that you can smoke in the casino, pool deck, and balconies. Once again i'm not 100% but i'm prettty sure. Mabye someone else can clarify this!

 

The ship itself looks pretty spectacular and it appears that there is something for everyone. Has anyone had experience with the kids clubs? It might be an option for the younger set (9 and 12). We also have teenagers/young adults ranging in age from 17-21. Are there good activities for these kids (mostly girls and one boy).

 

I will be on this ship in early july, and yes it does look amazing. I was on Navigator of the seas which is a step down from this ship but they have many similar features. The kids club is called "Adventure Ocean" it is broken up into different age groups. The 17 year old will be allowed in the kids club if they are 17 at the time of sail. Otherwise there is a nightclub onboard called "The Crypt". The Teens also have their own special club called "Fuel". Theres also the rockwall, mini golf, swimming, ice skating, and surfing! :D

 

 

We're on the RCCL website now and they have information on the various restaurants. Other than the buffet and the main dining room, do all the other eating venues incur an extra charge? Is there a "cheatsheet" on the ship that lists what's included in the cruise fare and what is extra?

 

The Buffet (Windjammer Cafe & Jade), Royal Promenade Cafe, Main Dining room, and Sorrentos Pizza are all included (FREE!!:p ) However the other restaurants (Portofino & Chops Grille) are not included and have surcharges of $20 if i am correct. Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream you must pay for, and Johnny Rockets has a surcharge just under $4. Drinks are extra.

 

I appreciate any and all comments, suggestions, etc. I know we're going to be sailing during hurricane season, but one of the families won't fly and they are based in Orlando. So that limits our options. We also have to sail during the summer when school is out. We are hoping that we are planning far enough in advance to get good pricing and cabins.

 

You will not be sailing during Hurricane Season! Hurricane Season in the Caribbean Normally runs from August to November. I will be sailing the Western Caribbean on Freedom in a few weeks, i will post a review when i get back. I hope this helped some what.

 

Have a great cruise, and have fun learning everything!:D

[willysgrandma]

First of all, if you are going to book at least 8 cabins, get yourself a good TA who knows how to do group cruises. If you book 8 cabins, you would get a tour conductor and someone will be able to travel for very little money.

 

Do you want 4 people in a cabin? If not, you need to have either connecting cabins for some ofthe kids, or the kids would need cabins across from yours if they are minors.

 

Why not put four kids in two inside cabins? Our four and three and one kid with the single adult? Your second and third in the cabins are less expensive.

 

We did a family reunion and all the kids got inside cabins. Cousins shared cabins with cousins, boys with boys, girls with girls.

 

There are a LOT fo different ways you can do this, but book early for the best choice.

 

This is one case in which a good TA would be ideal for you.

[southwestgal]

Thank you to both Rcl Obsesd and Willysgrandma for great information! I appreciate your replies.

[It'sRC4ME]

One more thing to keep in mind, as you are travelling with young persons aged 17, 18, 19, and 21. The 18, 19 and 21 cruisers will be able to enter the casino, the disco, and any other "adults only" venues. Only the 21 year odl will be able to buy alcohol. The 17 year old will not be able to enter those venues, but will have access to the teen club/disco. The 18, 19, and 21 year olds will not have access to the teen club/disco.

 

Obviously, I don't know whether they would all hang out together anyway, but it's better to know this now and have correct expectations than to find out once on board and have it "ruin!" their/your vacation.

 

Also, I suggest that once you have a preferred cabin configuration worked out, call RC and get the cabins held on your credit card. Your family can then call in with the booking numbers and change the reservation over to their own credit card. We did this and it worked out just fine, since we knew if someone didn't call and put their own card down we were just going to cancel the reservation. It saves you trying to collect checks.

[Geema]

Like someone said - you'll probably have 8 cabins and get a good TA to handle the group. We had 20 people on our November, 2006 cruise on the Navigator and our families had connecting rooms. The adults had one room and the kids had the other. It worked great. You can get inside, oceanview and balcony connecting rooms - depending on what you want to spend. Or you can get them across from each other since some are older than what we had. We had two tables of 10 right next to each other and it was terrific. This year we had 18 in our group and still had the two tables of 10 on the Liberty.

 

 

Book early so you have a choice if you need connecting rooms.

[lv2cruisgrl]

Freedom is a great ship and all ages will enjoy it. We were on her last year and go again in Oct. We loved it!! You picked a good ship.

 

We were on Jewel in May and Chops was $25 per person for dinner. Portofino was $20pp.

 

Get a TA to book you as a group I believe you will do better.

 

Have a great time....:)

[bajanterry]

An important clue which seems to run through the responses is to book early and this is absolutely true. We took a family reunion cruise in 2007 aboard the Adventure of the Seas and booking early was the best thing we did. Also, someone in your group has to step up and take the responsibility of staying on top of things and everyone else to make sure everything runs smoothly. Paying attention to detail prevents little things from developing into problems. We had a mix of experienced and first time cruisers, but we published a family cruise newsletter periodically to keep all informed of important items such as payment dates, airline information, dining room arrangements etc (for example: placing all medications in carry-on luggage instead of checked). To emphasize a suggestion made earlier, may sure to get a good travel agent who will look out for your (the group's) interests and will be responsive to any questions or problems that may arise.

 

In the end, all 30 of us had a great time and nothing went wrong. The hard work upfront definitely paid off in the end.

Regards and good luck.

[southwestgal]

Thanks to everyone who replied. Sorry I didn't get back earlier, but I was away on business and couldn't check the boards.

 

All of your suggestions were great and I will definitely keep them in mind when planning this reunion.

 

Thanks again.

 

Southwestgal