Freedom Review 6/19/2010

[cruiseaddict05]

Background: This was our (DH-29, Me-28) 6th Carnival Cruise in under 5 years. We were back with the Caribbean after a Mexican cruise last year. Our stateroom was an interior (9215) on the Lido deck. We love being up there.

 

Pre-Cruise: We flew in a day early to FLL and stayed at the Hyatt Place North - Airport. We had the opportunity to volunteer our seats in ATL but I wanted to have that 4 hrs in FLL. We arrived around 2 pm and got our luggage in record speed. FLL airport has a very handy system for calling the hotel and we were on the free shuttle no more than 20 minutes later and checking in before 3 pm. The hotel was very nice and we got a very good deal on Priceline. The room was very cool with 2 parts and a big L shaped couch.

 

The day was beautiful so we got help from the front desk (very willing to help) on what to do. We found the Sun Trolley stop at the grocery store (it is a big name that is escaping my mind right now) and were on our way to the beach for 50 Cents a person one way:) We got off and I went to my first FL beach (pretty funny considering I have been to tons of ocean beaches) and did some shopping. We were hot and the shopping was not seeming to appealing that day. We paid $3 for a bottle of water at a big souvinier shop and then walked one block down and discovered a CVS where we got water for a dollar! We walked around the shopping area a little bit (reminded me a lot of Grand Cayman with the multiple levels) and caught the trolley back. Before we headed back to the hotel we went shopping at Ross (we don't have them in MN) and headed to GILBERTS to eat. Gilbert's was recommended by a local and the hotel staff and was great! The owners were there and greeted us at the door and were very friendly! DH got a brie bacon cheeseburger and I got a Cod Fish Sandwich... delicious! and affordable! We went to the grocery store to get some pop, water and Sangria for the ship and went back to the hotel. At the hotel we did some swimming and tested out our new Fuji Digital water camera. It worked well. The pool was not as clean as we would have liked...

 

DH decided 2 pairs of swim trunks was not enough so we headed back to Ross and that added a trip back to Gilberts to get an amazing cookie sandwich and trip to the liquor store for some mini bar items.

 

The Big Day! We got up early to eat the complimentary breakfast (no hot items), work out and get ready for the shuttle. We had signed up at the desk they day before and were first on the list for 10:30. We were a little nervous because there were 2 large groups waiting that would have overpowered us if he would not have called names. We were first and were to the ship by 10:45 I believe. We tipped the porters $5 and were off to begin the vacation of waiting:) We did not have to wait to long for embarkation. The getting through security went quickly and smoothly (although I did get stopped as they screened our carryons with all our of liquids). I was honest and told them I had pop and water and he asked if I had beer. I said no but told him about the 4 single bottles of Sangria, he let it slide by. We waited maybe 10-15 minutes to sign in and then had to wait about 45minutes to an hour before they called our zone. Once they called our zone there was no waiting at all - besides the pictures - grrr! We were onboard by 12:03 (DH and I had a bet) and eating on the Lido. Very crowded and lines already! I did get Mongolian as I was pretty sure that was the shortest the line would ever be. We were in our rooms by 1:30 on the dot as promised.

 

More to come...

[cruiseaddict05]

Embarkation Day - Continued...

 

After dropping of our bags and emptying out our mini bar- which was actually pretty cold, we unpacked what we could. Eventually we found our steward, Jose from Costa Rica, and tipped him $10 to take the mini bar stuff (which he could not do but did move it to the bed table out of the way) and he also got us a mattress cover to keep the beds from separating. There were only 2 problems with our room.

#1- a backup in the bathroom which was fixed very quickly

#2- our across the hall neighbors were very strong smokers. The smell stayed in our room for at least 5 minutes when we would open the door and it infiltrated the hallway... instead of banning smoking in the cigar bar, lets start with staterooms (sorry smokers- we have been near smokes before and it was not this bad).

 

We did go to dinner in the MDR (late seating) as we always do and were paired with great table mates. Our head waiter, Lalu, was not the best waiter we have had:( He forgot entrees and we watched many people leave before us and we were first in there.

 

We did not go to the opening show, we sat on the Promenade and played our new game, Slug Patch:) It was entertaining and then we went to bed.

 

More to come (unfortunately we are dealing with unwanted water in our basement right now:()

[LizaMM]

Great start!! Thanks!! I am Looking forward to the rest of your review!!

[yogimax]

Thank you... and you were probably right about Mongolian. The only time there isn't a long line is early the first day.

[cruiseaddict05]

Sea Day #1: I woke up at 7:00 and went to claim a clam shell on the Serenity Deck. It was very windy up there but that clam shell was like heaven! DH even joined me for 20 minutes which is a record for sun and him. Thanks to my DH bringing me breakfast and watching my clam shell so I could go potty I was able to sleep and tan and read and listen to music:D til almost noon when I decided it was time to go in.

 

At 4 I went to spin class which was actually full. It was a good workout and entertaining to watch everyone try to figure out how to get out of the gym:)

 

Captain's Party:( Carnival is cutting back... no more free drinks, just $1 off drinks. We took some pictures and waited for dinner. NOTE: we did find a favorite photographer from India (I don't remember his name but he was letter B).

 

We went to the show "The Big Easy" because it was new for us. I personally was tired and thought it was a little slow but the end was very cool! There was also an adult comedy show that night that we skipped (Eddie Falcone) because we thought we had seem him on our last cruise and he was not that good but our table mates and some people from our excursions said it was pretty good.

 

:rolleyes: Only 1 shore excursion ticket got delivered for San Juan so we had to wait in line at the shore excursion desk to get that fixed, it appeared we were not the only ones with the problem...

 

San Juan- San Juan was a 5pm-12 am stop so we had the day to relax. We went to breakfast in the dining room and my french toast and eggs benedict was yummy! After dinner we went to another new stop from Carnival. They had a big "final sale" in the middle dining room because "they can't fit all the deals into the shop." Most everything was $10 and a lot of it we saw later in the week. It was very crowded!

 

DH and I went to the gym at 11:00 and it was packed. I was training for a July 4th half marathon and needed to run so I went outside. I got a mile and then went in because of a few factors (a- wind, b - people do not understand the concept of slower walkers to the right, c- people do not accommodate actual runners up there). There was a treadmill open so I finished my run.

 

We went to lunch at the Lido and I got my fish and chips, there was barely a line- more people knew about it though that in the past because there was a sign for it on deck 9.

 

At 2:15 I went out to "tan" ( it was misting) and people were already out watching our arrival to San Juan. We saw dolphins at the front of the ship going in:)

 

We did the BIO BAY excursion through Carnival. This was our only ship excursion as we did not want to take chances at night. We went straight to our excursion which involved sitting in rush hour traffic on an aged bus with loud air conditioning. We stopped at a McDonalds and Walgreen's about 30 minutes away from Fajardo where we could get "dinner." I really have no recollection of time this night. We got to our excursion and were given life jackets and a demonstration on kayaking. It started to downpour so we waited it out under a shelter. We loved this excursion! Although the kayaking was a lot of work (physically and communicating with your partner:p) the beauty of the glowing water was amazing! It started raining on our way back through the channel which felt good. Our main guide was Tommy and he was great. On our way back through the channel there were "enemy kayakers" that were not staying on their side but our group handled it pretty well! We got back to San Juan at 11:30 ish and were not the last ones back. FEEL FREE to ask more questions about this excursion if you want- so fun!

[cruiseaddict05]

St Thomas: We had booked a private excursion through Island Marketing called the VIP sailing experience. You can book it directly through Simplicitycharters.com though. AMAZING- private sailboat with a max of 6 passengers. The crew consisted of Charlie, Josh and Hinkley (there dog). We went over to St. John's to an amazing beach (I wish I remember the name) that was 2 beaches down from where Kenny Chesney and Renee Z got married and snorkeled and swam. We also had a delicious lunch of BBQ chicken, bread with olive oil and salad. Josh also always made sure you had something to drink:) Charlie cooked the chicken on the grill on the back of the boat - it was very cool! On our way back to St. Thomas we stopped at honeymoon beach was cool because DH and I had wanted to go there last time we were in St. Thomas.

 

This excursion is a must do and we will do it again if we are there again! You are the VIP for the day and Charlie and Josh will take you anywhere you want and/or to beaches that are not crowded. Charlie is a history guy so shared about that aspect and Josh majored in marine biology so you have an awesome snorkel guide! DH and I saw a sea turtle and an octopus at Honeymoon beach! Another cool thing (maybe only to me:) because I am a sucker for celebrity) is that we saw where Brangelina and the whole clan stayed while Brad was filming Benjamin Button.

 

The only downfall to this excursion is it starts at Red Hook marina so plan on another $40 per couple for transportation via taxi. We stopped at Havensight to do some shopping and came up pretty dry but bought a place mat, and key chains at our standard store across the street from the "mall." We passed the Dream on the way to the ship and also just beat the unloading of the "cattlemaran" of a Carnival Excursion.

 

After we got cleaned up we went to get our nightly sushi and DH likes to go to the Lido to preview dinner. We had the best dessert up there, the vanilla cookie cake:)

[cruiseaddict05]

Antigua: I was able to go out to the "secret" spot as we were docking to check out the view. It WAS sunny when I was looking. When we got off of the ship around 8 it was sprinkling:( We intended to shop but it appeared shops don't open until 9 so we basically hung out in front of the "Exotic Antigua" building to escape the downpour/wait for our excursion that was to meet at 9:50 (I tend to be on the careful side of time- a little too much). We did explore some shops but there was not much to explore, I basically got my DI charm and we went back to wait...

 

At 9:40 ish a kind of scary local kept telling us about the boats that were coming and then asked me for a dollar. Our boat for "Eli's Eco Tour" arrived at 9:45 and we boarded the boat. We were given the option to opt out because of rain but the captain said it should clear up by 11 and that has always been the case...

 

Unfortunately it was not:( We had some time with no rain but mostly with rain. I will start with the no rain part- we did stop at one place were there were tons of starfish, then we went to Bird Island where we basically went in the water to warm up and it did clear up a bit so we went to a "hike" to the top. At the top I mentioned to our guide, Nikola, that it looked like another large cloud was coming and sure enough it caught up with us as we were eating lunch. LUNCH was delicious, we had BBQ chicken with an amazing sauce, pasta salad, plantains and banana bread. During lunch the monsoon hit. We stayed in the harbor to wait it out for what seemed like an eternity. They took us back about an hour early. Everyone was soaked and cold. Eli did have us only pay 50% of our balance as we did not get to experience the excursion as they would have hoped. I thought that spoke very highly of the company so despite our bad experience because of the rain, it was purely because of the rain. The crew did the best they could with the weather.

 

We skipped the show that night (Jump, Jive and Wail) as I think we had seen it before. We got our past cruisers invites with no pins:( Turns out as part of the cost cutting that is one of the things they cut along with the cookies for kids on formal nights (I asked for one for DH).

 

Tortola: Another early wake up:) We were off the ship by 7:20 after a breakfast of a banana and Carleton from Patouche was already waiting to bring us to the marina to meet our catamaran (The sheet said to meet him at 8). We got to the marina at 7:40 and met Nicole and Captain Clive. It was overcast... It was a rough ride to the Baths but so fun! The seas were rough and we were sitting on the front of the boat on the trampolines. DH and I were 2 of the 4 that stayed up there the whole trip to the baths. My eyes stung from the salt water and sunscreen. When we got to the Baths the snorkeling was amazing! I could have snorkeled all day. The bad thing about the Baths is that it was packed -I would not be surprised if 75% of the ship was there. It made the climb through the rocks crowded and I did not feel like I had as much time to explore. We had around 30 minutes to stay at the beach before we swam back to the catamaran. Our snacks were beer, rum punch (very good), a banana from Nicole's yard, and nature valley granola bars.

 

We got back to the boat by 1:30 and walked to the shopping area. There was not much too it and I walked away with a $5 t-shirt. We offered $3 for a $5 place mat and were turned down.

 

The past cruiser party was at 5:15 and the same old party. The same video... We did end up getting 4 drinks a piece but at first the waiters would walk right past us with no drinks in sight (on us) but replace empties people had. Like I said, we did get some but it was annoying as they would walk right past us and not even look.

 

There was a guest talent show that night at 10:30. We went with our table mates and saw 3 music acts. They were followed up by Lewis Nixon (comedian) who pushed the family friendly limits which was pretty funny. I was excited for the Mexican late night buffet that night but decided not to because of tiredness and feeling bad about calories:rolleyes:

[cruiseaddict05]

Day at Sea #2: I went back to my favorite place to get some sun, deck 10, at the back of the ship. I love watching the waves:) I went to spin class at 4 again, and it was full again. This has not been my experience in the past. For those who are wondering, yes spin is extra ($12 per class) but I think it is well worth it! It is a great workout and you feel great afterwards!

 

It was elegant evening and Baked Alaskan night (my favorite)!

 

We skipped the Vegas style show and went to the 10:45 Lewis Nixon adult comedy show. It was packed at 10:15 with people waiting. There was also karaoke going on, but we did not see too many people leaving after that... We stood for the show as of course people were saving seats. This is where I wish I was cruising with a bigger group... The show was not as good as I thought it would be though. I enjoyed Phat Kat's show a few cruises ago.

 

I do have a complaint about the late night adult only shows:rolleyes: They are always crowded... they always give the 18 only speech and I am fairly sure there are people younger than that occupying the high demand seats. I get that parents can give their kids permission to be there but there are also plenty of people of age that are that would appreciate the seats. I just wish Carnival would monitor the shows that get that busy more closely. The only staff I saw were waiters and the assistant cruise director introducing the act.

 

Almost done... Nassau, debarkation and an adventure at the ATL airport to come!

[cruiseaddict05]

Nassau: I worked out early in the morning and then got out to see the arrival. It was fun to see Atlantis across the way. We arrived in Nassau around 11:15 but were unable to get off the ship until noon. There were 3 other ships in port before us too so it was a crowded island.

 

DH and I had booked a day pass at the British Colonial Hilton which is right next to Senor Frogs. After a brief 5-10 minute walk to the hotel we were "checked" in and onto the beach to find our chairs. It was very quiet at the beach. We went to the restaurant and ordered our $15 meals of burgers and a mahi mahi wrap. OH YEAH: we paid $50 for the day pass which ended at 5 but we got $30 pp back in food. So after our $30 meals, our 2 local beers $6 a piece and a very strong banana daquiri, $12, our money was spent and we were off to sun worship. The water and beach was not the best sand or beach we have seen. DH and the vacationers we were visiting with found glass buried in the sand in the water. After about an hour of ocean water I was ready for shade (which is odd because normally it is DH hiding from the sun:D). I went to get DH from the water after 20 minutes of trying to escape the sun and we went to the pools for 10-15 minutes.

 

We ended up leaving the hotel at 3:45 so we could get some shopping in. We had heard shops close at 5 - 5:30 and the rumor was true. We did some shopping at the straw market (did not buy anything- I was looking for Kate Spade purses and the few they had were dirty looking). The straw market is really a huge tent full of rows and rows of the same thing. If you walk down one you have seen everything. We went on to other stores and bought a t-shirt for my little buddy and a "walking" turtle. We also bought some cold drinks. After the shops had closed and other ships were boarding we headed to Senor Frogs and got a yard. Even though they fill it with ice there is a lot of drink in there! I sipped on my yard on the way to the ship where we did some shopping in the terminal, I ended up getting a necklace there.

 

Note: They have certified hair braiders in Nassau if you were concerned:)

 

Dinner was very slow that night, Lalu forgot not only our entree's, but got them mixed up the table next to us. We were all good sports and patient with Lalu though. It was sad saying good bye to our new table mates:( We did go to the Carnival Legends show with them though. Again- something that is the exact same- I am wishing Carnival could change up the songs/singers.

 

Debarkation: Debarkation was sooo smooth!!! We literally had no lines in fact customs was waiting for us! We were off the ship by 7:30 and in a cab and to the airport by 7:45. The cab ride was only $15 to the FLL airport. When we went to pay with our credit card he asked for cash... we gave it to him. What the heck:rolleyes:

 

Unfortunately our flight did not leave until 11:41 so we had to wait until 8:41 to go through security( Thank you FLL airport for free WI-FI). The airport was packed with cruisers! That being said, security actually went pretty quickly.

 

ATL Adventure: We were supposed to fly back to MSP in the same plane after our layover in ATL but we volunteered our seats and we "won" 2 free RT tickets cost us 9 hours in the ATL airport. We went to the B, C and D terminals (B is the biggest) and explored and ate at a restaurant (Juke Joint) which was tasty and had free WI-FI! Funny story about ATL... we were waiting and all of a sudden this alarm went off telling us to go to a safe place and not use elevators... no one did a thing nor was phased:rolleyes: Apparently false alarms happen often...

 

Final Thoughts: Believe it or not this cruise addict is done cruising for awhile. At least with Carnival with the 2 of us. We would do Carnival again in a group but not the 2 of us. We may try a different line next time but we are thinking all inclusive somewhere. Cruising has taught us the islands we would like to spend more time at so we have a lot of islands to think about. Of course Bora Bora would be my first choice:D

 

If anyone has questions I would love to try to answer them for you! Happy cruising fellow CCers!

 

[jstblj6]

Thank you for the review! I enjoyed reading this and am thinking of looking into this cruise. Sounds like you had some great excursions.

[cruiseaddict05]

Thank you for the review! I enjoyed reading this and am thinking of looking into this cruise. Sounds like you had some great excursions.

 

Our excursions were great! I highly recommend non ship excursions (with research of course!) The best one was the St. Thomas excursion... highly recommended!!!

[pcrum]

Great review. We got off the Freedom the day you got on!! Sounds like you had a wonderful trip!

[ragu]

"We did not go to the opening show, we sat on the Promenade and played our new game, Slug Patch:) It was entertaining and then we went to bed."

I am always looking for new games to play with family. Please send rules of play. Thank you. Enjoyed your review too. We sail Feb 2011!!!

[cruiseaddict05]

I am always looking for new games to play with family. Please send rules of play. Thank you. Enjoyed your review too. We sail Feb 2011!!!

 

LOL:) the rules are just like slug bug with VWs. Everytime you see a motion patch on someone say "slugpatch" and slug your neighbor ( in your paryt of course:D

[ragu]

cruiseaddict05 ~~ That is so funny! We people watch but now I will need to look a little more closely. Thanks for the info. I do have to admit, when I read your post, I burst out laughling. :D Happy Sunday.

[ragu]

Hey, I just noticed you are from MN, we are too. Central MN, around the Brainerd area. How about you?

[tiggerlover]

Hello! I enjoyed your review of the Freedom as we will be on it in October. :) In regards to the BioBay excursion, are you in pitch black while paddling or do you turn off your "lights" when you get there? I am thinking cavetubing with the headlamps. lol! Can you please explain this excursion to me? thanks! :D

 

i understand we will be kayaking thru the mangroves but i am at a loss regading how you see where to go. :confused:

[Quigley10]

Thanks for the review! We were on the Carnival Freedom w the same itinerary last summer...had sunshine everywhere but St Thomas and Nassau - utter monsoons in Nassau, but it gave us great pics. Thanks again!

[cruiseaddict05]

Hello! I enjoyed your review of the Freedom as we will be on it in October. :) In regards to the BioBay excursion, are you in pitch black while paddling or do you turn off your "lights" when you get there? I am thinking cavetubing with the headlamps. lol! Can you please explain this excursion to me? thanks! :D

 

i understand we will be kayaking thru the mangroves but i am at a loss regading how you see where to go. :confused:

 

Yeah, it kept us well entertained:) I am hoping more people can enjoy it as much as we did!