Freedom - Eastern Caribbean January 30-February 7 2010

[goodtoglow]

I'm home from my wonderful vacation and can't wait to start posting my review! Just wanted to start by saying that other than the incredibly tacky decor (I thought I was prepared... but honestly, the ship looks like it belongs in the 1980's.... my boyfriend could not believe it was built in 2007!), the cruise was amazing! The food and staterooms were much better than I expected (and I expected good things!), and the itinerary has got to be the most perfect itinerary ever.

 

I'll start posting my review soon... I want to include photos and have about 2000 photos to go through!

[beachchick24]

:D Im typing up mine as we speak too !

[goodtoglow]

I can't wait to read yours and see how we experienced the trip similarly and differently!!

[LBumb]

can't wait . we are going on freedom in may.

[goodtoglow]

Here we go!

 

FACTS

Myself and my boyfriend Colin, both 25, booked this cruise last April as a delayed celebration for my graduation from nursing school in September. We picked January to go as we went for our last cruise in October 2007 and felt that coming home from somewhere hot that early in our dark, cold season, really made the winter drag on. As well, we initially wanted to escape when the Olympics were in town to avoid the mayhem! (I'm glad we didn't though, because this morning, our first morning home, the Olympic Torch ran right past our house! We got up early to watch it!)

 

Our friends Jess and Rich knew how much we loved cruising (this cruise was my 3rd and Colin's 2nd) and wanted to try it as well. Without much encouragement, they booked it in May!

 

Then, in November, Colin's brother Jeff and his girlfriend Christin (Beachchick24 on here) decided they wanted in on the fun too!

 

The difference between flying out of Vancouver or Seattle is substantial ($600 versus $300 - even with parking and fuel, it is much cheaper, and only 2.5 hours driving difference from our house assuming the border lineup is small). Christin found a motel about 10 minutes from Sea-tac that has great park and fly rates and a free airport shuttle, so we booked a room there with plans to park Rich's truck there, and Jess and Rich would stay the night after they finished the trip (Colin and I stayed in Florida longer).

 

Day 1 & 2 - Travelling & Florida

 

We left our house in a suburb of Vancouver, BC on Jan 28th at 2pm, with plenty of time to make it to Sea-tac Airport in Seattle for our 12:52am flight early the next morning. The drive is only 3 hours, but us girls wanted to stop off at Target, and eat dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. The drive down was smooth, and we made it there with plenty of time to spare.

 

 

Our flight schedule wasn't the greatest - we had a 2 hour flight to Minneapolis, and then a 4 hour layover! It was the middle of the night and we picked a section on the floor and huddled up together, using our carryon bags as pillows.

 

Jess, Colin and Rich:

 

We finally made it to Fort Lauderdale at 3pm local time, grabbed our rental car, and headed to Birch Patio motel where Christin and Jeff were awaiting us (they flew out the day before). This motel was very cute. It had a laid back feel, and was clean and in a great location, within walking distance from the beach. I would recommend it, especially if you want a cheaper vacation where you can have a kitchen and make your own meals!

 

 

Bedding at the hotel:

 

Christin may not like me for posting this picture, but it's the only one I have with a good view of the room!

 

We grabbed some dinner at Coconuts, a restaurant recommended to Jeff and Christin by a local: http://www.coconutsbahamagrill.com/

 

View from Coconuts:

 

 

Dinner was delicious, although a bit pricey! We drove over to Sawgrass Outlets after although only had an hour to shop before the stores closed. Luckily Target stayed open later so we spent some time in there too (We don't have Target in Canada!).

 

We went to a liquor store and were SHOCKED at the prices...... 60's of Bacardi for $22?!!!!! We would pay $100 in Canada for that! We stocked up on liquor to fill our rum runners with, and headed back to the hotel to fill them up!

[goodtoglow]

View across the street from our hotel:

 

Excited to be in town just before Superbowl!

 

Our liquor stash, plus the champagne we were each 'allowed' to bring on:

 

We wanted to finish off the liquor that wouldn't fit in our rum runners this evening, but we were all way too tired to stay up past 1am. We called it a night and set our alarms for 8:30am to get up in the morning for the cruise!

 

Cruise Day!

 

Wow, getting to the cruise port was a hassle! Our rental SUV wouldn't fit all 6 of us plus our luggage, so we dropped Christin and Jeff off at the cruise terminal around 10:30am. Of course, we had to wait for the drawbridge on our way to drop them off AND pick up Jess and Rich from the hotel, which was at least 10 minutes each time. After dropping off the rental car at the airport, we took the free rental car shuttle to Port Everglades - What a mistake that was!!!! It took FOREVER! With so many cruise ships in port, it was absolute mayhem. Once we -finally- made it to Port Everglades, it was smooth sailing. There was a line up but it moved pretty quick, and we were on the ship within 30 minutes.

 

I was quite shocked when we first got on the ship.... I thought I knew what to expect of the decor, but there was no way I could have been prepared enough for the 80's decor! It was so busy and hard to look at! One of the first things Colin said to me was "Whoa..... when was this ship built?"

 

 

Because we got on the ship fairly late, our room was ready. We were in room 2426 and Jess and Rich were in 2420 (sorry to the people in between us!). Jeff and Christin were on the 1st floor in room 1453, and I am sure Christin will discuss how much they loved her room (sarcasm) in her review. We definitely liked our room. It was an ocean view and the first room you saw coming from the elevators. The location was perfect, and other than noise from the galley above us, there were no problems. We gave our room steward $20 to start and he kept our two ice buckets full the entire time! I am not sure how to spell his name, but we called him AJ for short and he was great!

 

[mitchpam]

great start ... looking forward to more

[serene56]

oooo , im so excited to read your review. Very few things about Freedom here.

[goodtoglow]

We did some ship exploring after this, and tried to warm up to the interesting decor. We cruised last on RCCL Mariner of the Seas, and liked the layout and design of that ship MUCH better. We had an interior room last time, so I can't compare the rooms, but I do think that Carnival's rooms were bigger in general.

 

 

Serenity:

 

Theatre:

 

Piano Bar:

 

Dining Room:

 

Habana Club:

[goodtoglow]

That's it for now! Uploading the pictures to Photo Bucket is taking forever and I still haven't finished unpacking! Hopefully I will be able to continue more tomorrow! Thanks for the comments so far!

[fishnfun]

Thanks for the review, only 43 days until we set sail on the Freedom.

[ubermama]

Keep up the good work. We are sailing on the Freedom in just 5 weeks. Your pictures and comments are great. We are also Canadian and love that certain slant to the way you are saying things. Can't wait to read the rest.

[Alegeeter]

I miss the Freedom, and the tacky decor. I gotta admit, it grew on me over the week this past January and all I can think when I see your pictures is "...home".

 

Though, I don't remember the hammocks in the serenity area!

[scm200]

we are sailing in 71 days eastern carrib and wanna know all about it.....we are in 13xx hope the deck will be ok...

 

sharon

[Rach257]

OHHHHHHHHHHH i am loving this! i am so excited that you are posting your review!! i heard that eastern itinerary was incredible and i'm jealous! next time we're doing that one for sure! your pictures are awesome, your review is delightful and i am READY for more!

 

i almost started crying a little bit...i miss it so!

[goodtoglow]

I'm back to post some more!!

 

I'll just be posting some more ship pictures for now, as it's a pretty festive night in Vancouver and I want to enjoy the opening ceremonies!!

 

Adults Only Pool:

 

Atrium from Deck 4 (Photo Gallery Area):

 

Close Up of the Theatre:

 

Stunning Sunset View:

 

Christin, Jess and I on the first night:

 

Another gorgeous view of the ship at night:

[goodtoglow]

Dance Club:

 

Dining Room:

 

Sun King Supper Club (I am drooling just thinking about it):

 

Side of the ship taken from the secret, marvellous deck:

 

Because I know there are people who care..... room service menus:

 

[Mary49]

Thanks for those great pictures. By chance to you happen to see my favorite group "Music Boardwalk? They are a great rock band and usually do the Beatles show as well. Thanks Mary49

[clogcruisers]

The location was perfect, and other than noise from the galley above us, there were no problems.

 

I'm staying a few cabins away in March. What kind of noise and at what time of day? I thought I did good with location (not above disco or lounge)...

[staceyvols]

Love seeing the pictures!!! Thanks.

[serene56]

The location was perfect, and other than noise from the galley above us, there were no problems.

 

I'm staying a few cabins away in March. What kind of noise and at what time of day? I thought I did good with location (not above disco or lounge)...

 

 

Noise= would depend on how "under" the galley you are located. One cabin in either direction could make a difference

[Mestiza Queen]

Here we go!

 

 

We went to a liquor store and were SHOCKED at the prices...... 60's of Bacardi for $22?!!!!! We would pay $100 in Canada for that! We stocked up on liquor to fill our rum runners with, and headed back to the hotel to fill them up!

 

 

I had to laugh when I read this - because it's so true!! We were in Maui last summer and we couldn't believe the cheap prices for Grey Goose and Patron, AND they were being sold at the local Costco! Everytime we have friends travelling to the US, we always make sure to get them to bring back some premium booze for us.

[SMSACE6]

Enjoying your review, and especially the photos! I am looking forward to my next Carnival cruise on the Freedom next September! Thanks for posting your review. I am hoping to figure out how to post photos so I can do these types of reviews too.:)

[goodtoglow]

The location was perfect, and other than noise from the galley above us, there were no problems.

 

I'm staying a few cabins away in March. What kind of noise and at what time of day? I thought I did good with location (not above disco or lounge)...

 

Which direction are you in? If you were in rooms 2628, 2630, etc... you probably wouldn't hear any noise from the galley. Our room was the last room under the galley from what the pictures showed. Our friends were in 2620 and they heard it as well. It wasn't terrible noise that would keep you up, it sounded like people moving chairs around by dragging them. I would say I heard it at any time during the day and night, since they are always in the kitchen. It wasn't constant, just here and there. I think you will be ok! Be thankful you aren't in "the engine room" as we called our friends cabin (1453) - I would NEVER book a room on the 1st floor!!! I actually will probably only book floor 6+ for future cruises.

[clogcruisers]

We are staying in 2404...just a few doors away. I would rather have random noises like that than being above the thumping of the disco music at 3 a.m. or near the deck hearing chairs repositioned before sunrise.