Freedom of the Seas-October 2012

Just read an interesting article about a british couple having a terrible time on the Freedom in October. The article was on the daily mail today, uk section. RCI failed to inform guests of a biker week on the ship.

It is hard to predict when specialty groups will book a large number of cabins. As the article states, no warning is given by the cruise line (not just RCL) ahead of time since most people would switch away from that sailing date. The only way to confirm is to Google search the cruise date and ship name and see if there are any offers for a specialty group. Of course you have to go through a million legitimate travel agency links so that takes time as well.

I have never been on board with a specialty group. I would just adjust my schedule and assume as a non group member I will be in the minority and plan accordingly. It is also why I always bring headphones, good reading material, and ear plugs for sleeping on every cruise.

For this one, I would think watching their motorcycles getting loaded off and back on at ports would be interesting. I would also enjoy sharing a dining room table with them just for the conversation.

Specialty groups make money for cruise lines and are here to stay. If you are that concerned about them, always check before final payment. :)