Cruise Review - Carnival Liberty 1/24/09 LONG

Cruise Review Carnival Liberty 1/24/08 – 1/31/09

This cruise there were 3 of us: I am a single female, 37 my single brother 34, and our mother. I have been on 7 other cruises, my mother had been on 4 others, and this was the second cruise for my brother. On Friday (1/23/09) we flew from DFW to Miami. Due to some freak of time, it took us way too long to get to the airport and we arrived 35 minutes before the flight was scheduled. We were able to check our bags on the next plane and were given boarding passes for standby on the flight with our luggage. Strike one - this is not a good way to start a cruise! We were told to go straight to the gate to see if there were still seats available on the original flight, so we flew at the original time, but our luggage flew 90 minutes later. When on the plane and arranging my carry-on, I found that the sunglass clips to my prescription glasses snapped in two pieces somewhere between parking and boarding the plane. Strike two - OH NO! Once we arrived in Miami, we had to wait for over half an hour at the gate waiting for the previous plane to leave - they had a mechanical issue. Once we deplaned we had about an hour to wait until our luggage arrived, so we ate Burger King at the airport. When our luggage arrived, my checked suitcase was missing a wheel. American said that they do not cover wheels, so I am once again out of luck. Strike three - I hope this is all for the trip!

We stayed at the Springhill Suites Hotel by Marriott. Once we retrieved our luggage we called the hotel for the free shuttle. It took about 45 minutes to arrive, but we were at the hotel by 9:00. We booked this hotel because it had two beds plus a pull-out couch and there were 3 of us traveling. The hotel was fine for the night although I was told that the pull-out bed was not too comfortable. At about 10:30 we checked out and requested a taxi, but the desk clerk tried to get us to take cruise transport instead. I specified we wanted a taxi because we wanted to make a stop, and the cab was there in about 5 minutes. We went to CVS then Walgreens to purchase superglue to try to repair my sunglasses (I can’t believe CVS doesn’t carry superglue!) then went straight to the port terminal. We arrived at the terminal around 11:15, left our luggage with a porter (and a warning about the three-legged suitcase) and went through security. As at the airport, no opened liquids but they didn’t say anything about unopened liquids in the carry-ons. We went in to check in and there were people there but it wasn’t too busy. We were on the ship by 11:45. At this time, we were informed that we were assigned to anytime dining instead of late dining as requested. We decided to try it and see how we like it. Since we couldn’t access the room to drop off the carry-ons until 1:30, we went straight up to the lido and found lunch. While at a table my brother superglued my sunglasses and we found a Capers at a bar to peruse. At 1:30 we went to the room and dropped off our carry-ons and started to explore the ship.

The atrium is beautiful, but one of my favorite spots was on the chairs on the Promenade looking out the windows at the ocean. At 3:00 we met the roll call members at the aft bar on the lido deck - hi everyone! Mom and brother were not social and sat at a table while I talked to the others. We were called to muster drill, which took place on the 4th floor outside deck, and lasted through sail away. Brother took the life vests back to the cabin, and Mom and I met him on the lido deck where we saw the most awesome red sunset behind Miami. Unfortunately none of us had our cameras at that time! We went to the casino for gaming lessons at 6:30 and learned that craps is hard and blackjack is simply luck of the draw. We were told that the dealers now use auto-shuffle shoes that reshuffle after every hand making it impossible to have a system for winning. After gaming lessons we went to dinner. Upon arrival at the desk, you are asked for your room number. A slip of paper is printed, and the hostess seats you wherever there is a table of the appropriate size available. On this day, we were told there would be a 15 to 20 minute wait and we were handed a pager that was good all over the ship. We decided to run down to the room for a minute, and the pager went off about 5 minutes later. We found out that the busy time for the anytime dining is between 7:00 and 7:30, so we tried to go earlier or later than this time period in the future. We went to the Welcome Aboard show and turned in afterward.

????? There's more I hope with pictures to match. Cant wait!

Day 2 - At Sea

We were woke up around 7:15 this morning by an announcement evidently stating an emergency in a specific cabin. After lying back down we then woke up a little later and went for breakfast about 10:00 on Lido deck. We did some exploring of the ship and went back up to Lido for the Ice Carving demonstration and stayed for the Hairy Chest competition. I wanted to sit outside on deck 3, but it was so windy we could not stay too long. We relaxed, read, played in the casino and generally wasted time all day long - I miss the cruise!

Today was elegant night, so Mom went to the cabin to get ready, and myself and then brother followed separately. We did not take any pictures this cruise (or buy any!) and did not make it to the Captain’s Welcome Aboard Cocktail Party. We went to dinner around 6:45 and there was no wait tonight. After dinner we went to the first show called Wonderful World. It was OK, but nothing compared to other shows I have seen on other ships. Next we went to the Adult Comedy Show with Tommy Drake - very funny!! We were in the Victoria Lounge, and my brother and mother selected a large booth while I went to the room to change out of my formal clothes. When I got back, we waited as the room filled up, then a group came and asked to sit with us. It turned out they were siblings who came on the cruise courtesy of their father, who had the medical emergency that morning. They were very pleased with the doctor and medical staff, and stated that the charge for services was very reasonable. After the show I went to bed! Tonight we had to adjust our clocks ahead one hour to be on the same time as the islands.

Lovin the review!!!

Great start. Looking forward to the rest. Love the pictures.

Day 3 - At Sea, Evening San Juan, PR

Again woke up late, and had breakfast on the Lido deck. My brother has discovered that they will make eggs to order at the omelet station, and is in heaven! We watched part of the Morning show on the big screen, and decided that Steve and his puppets are definitely NOT our style! We continued to relax, read, and take in the relaxing movement of the ship until it was time to get near San Juan. We arrived a bit early, and were the 5th ship to dock! There was one MSC ship, two RCI ships, and the Carnival Splendor arrived just before us.

As we were getting close to San Juan, a very nice man stopped my brother and asked him if he would like a photo of him and his wife! Brother firmly stated that he would love a photo with his mother (he was not amused!!)

Splendor's Extra Large Funnel

cant wait to read more....

Mom and Brother got off the ship and walked around for a while. I had been to San Juan several times before, and wasn’t interested in walking around downtown at dusk. We arranged a rendezvous time and place, and off they set.

Mom in San Juan

Brother in front of the Hard Rock (sorry to the lady we don't know in the photo!)

Brother taking a photo of the ship...

While I took a photo of him and Mom

We again had dinner in the dining room, and while Mom and Brother went to the comedy show, I turned in early in anticipation of tomorrow in St. Thomas!

Day 4 - St. Thomas

We decided to wake up at 7:00, and went to the dining room for breakfast. We ate with a very nice couple who owned a breakfast and lunch restaurant, and did catering. After breakfast, we walked around a bit taking pictures, and left for our Carnival Excursion at 10:45. There were 3 other ships docked with us at Havensight, NCL Dawn and two RCI ships. We also saw the funnel of another Carnival ship in the distance, evidently docked elsewhere.

Here you can see the other Carnival ship in the background

We did the St. John Trunk Bay Beach & Snorkel for $78. We got off the ship and headed aft. Between our ship and the RCI ship behind us was docked a ferry that held about 250 people. It took us to St. John, and then we taxied to Trunk Bay where we were issued snorkel gear and given about 2 hours to swim or snorkel.

Trunk Bay, St. John, USVI - one of the most beautiful places in the world!

Afterward, we rode the ferry back to where we began, and we re-boarded the ship for lunch. At this time it was after 3:00, and most lunch offerings were closed. We were able to get deli sandwiches, burgers and other grill items, and pizza. We did not get back off the ship, and watched as darkness fell during our sail-away from St. Thomas.

We were not hungry for a full dinner tonight, so we snacked from the Lido deck, and went to the casino, checked out the piano bar and the karaoke lounge, and retired a bit early again in anticipation of St. Maarten tomorrow.

I was on the Liberty in September. She is a beautiful ship!!! I liked Steve, the CD, he was funny, but that doesn't mean he is funny for everyone...

I'll be on the Splendor in September and he said he will be the CD on the Splendor in Spetember...I'm looking forward to that!!!

This was my second cruise with Steve, and he is funny and sweet if you approach him on the ship. I just wasn't a fan of the constant puppetry on the Morning / Afternoon show!

Day 5 - St. Maarten / St. Martin

We woke up at 7:30, and had breakfast on the Lido deck. I had pre-arranged a tour with Bernard, and we were to meet at 9:00. At about 8:45 we left the ship and went to meet up with Bernard. We were docked next to the Crown Princess, and then the Independence of the Seas and the Crystal Symphony joined us later.

The first thing we saw was John holding a sign for Bernard’s tours.

Bernard provided bottled water, sodas, and a potent rum punch with guava berry for his customers. He took us first to Rima, the “Wal-Mart of souvenir shops” for a brief stop. We got back on the bus, and went to the French side of the island. Bernard explained that the Dutch side of the island, St. Maarten is smaller but is where the airport and cruise ship terminals are. The French side of the island, St. Martin is where Orient Beach is, one of the most famous beaches in the Caribbean. We stopped at a beautiful cove for sightseeing and photos. There was a show of the local sea urchins and other marine life.

We drove around and saw local animal life including goats, chickens, lizards, etc. and received information about this island and its inhabitants. We then went to Orient beach for a two-hour stop. We purchased the use of two loungers, an umbrella, bathroom passes, and two drinks for $15.00. While here, we ate lunch at Pedro’s - we had barbecued chicken, rice and peas, and salad for $11.00. It was a beautiful stop!

WONDERFUL....can't wait for more :D

Jen

After Orient Beach, we went to a shopping area on the French side, near the Fort.

We then went to Maho Beach in front of the airport. For those who don’t know, the aircraft land immediately in front of the beach, and leave with their exhaust blasting the beach. For those who love aircraft, Maho Beach is THE stop in St. Maarten! On the way to Maho Beach, the bus got very hot and it was noted that the air conditioner had problems and a new bus would be brought while we were at Maho.

After Maho we drove through town, and saw the area where the luxury yachts are docked.

We got a shot of the cruise ships even though we can’t see our ship on the other side of the Crown Princess. Those who wanted to shop were dropped off in downtown, and those of us who wanted to go back to the ship were dropped off where we started. At this time we paid Bernard, and said goodbye to him and his crew. This was an AWESOME excursion!

We left St. Maarten first, and were out to sea before you knew it!

I love the light and shadow in this photo!

We went to dinner, and Mom and Brother went to see the comedian / ventriloquist but I wasn’t interested so I went to the casino instead. Tonight the two teams (red and blue, based on whether you have an even or odd cabin number) met in the disco and outside the casino for dancing and fun, then the teams switched locations. This was the beginning of the Mardi Gras deck party. Later, to bed!

great review...thanks for taking the time to post.....

Loving both your review and pictures...waiting for more!!

Day 6 - At Sea

We woke up at our leisure, and ate breakfast on the Lido deck. I had my first omelet today, and it was very good! We went to observe the Battle of the Sexes, then went to lunch on the Lido. This afternoon was the past guest party, and we all went and cheered the ships we have been on in the past. We put in a little casino and relaxation time in the late afternoon. Today was the second “Cruise Elegant” evening, and at dinner the wait staff on the lower level of the Golden Olympian dining room we could hear a show. This is one of the three things we missed with the Anytime dining. The others are having an assigned dining team (although we were informed halfway through the week that we can request to be seated in a specific team’s area) and meeting others at the table. All in all, it worked well for us this cruise!

After dinner, we went to the show “Just Rock” which was better than the first show! We went back to the casino, and tried again to see the Piano Bar, but he wasn’t performing (again). Tonight we were to set our clocks back one hour to be back on Eastern time. When tired we went to bed.

At first I didn't like this light much, but it grew on me pretty quickly!

Day 7 - At Sea

Our final day at sea started with us waking up relatively early, and we went to breakfast in the dining room. I had the eggs Benedict, and it was very good! They did serve the “hockey pucks” as hash browns in the dining room while they had different potatoes in the Lido deck lines. We relaxed a lot today, and actually skipped the debarkation talk.

We saw the towel folding presentations, marriage show which was hilarious, and went to tea time for the first time. We had our choice of chicken salad sandwiches, smoked salmon sandwiches, and cucumber sandwiches, and several desserts and pastries including scones, a wonderful chocolate tart, and orange profiteroles. The Walk for the Cure was also today and I paid to participate in that (although I didn’t bring any walking shoes or tennis shoes, so I just watched). We just relaxed before dinner and played in the casino, then went to the Carnival Legends show in the evening. After the show, we walked around and went to check out the movie on the big screen for a while (Prince Caspian), then headed to bed.

Our Towel Animals (in no particular order)