Return Review from FOS 5/8 - 5/15

[Deedleann]

Good day to you all! My husband, parents, and I just returned from Freedom of the Seas and thought I would give a not so quick review of our trip from someone that has cruised but not for a while. Perhaps a different perspective from previous posts. Please forgive errors in terminology and these are solely my opinions.

 

Pre-Cruise Accommodations: We stayed at the Country Inn and Suites at Port Canaveral for one night. We got the park and cruise rate but we didn’t keep the Budget Rental for the week. Check-In and Check-Out was quick. Room was clean. Pool was small but nice. Close enough to port to see the ships docked. We did not eat breakfast there due to it being too crowded. Price was right for what we got. Recommend Zachary's for breakfast; good food and was very inexpensive.

 

Special note and thank you….. Graham Seymour, our cruise director, was just amazing and I think I’m spoiled for life! His morning show had us laughing and he made everything he touched fun! Thank you Graham…this is for you…. (does dance) “Cupcake Cubbaaarrrrdd”

 

Day 1 Embarkation: We got to port about 11:45 am. Embarkation was very quick. Short line to get into the transit authority. All in all it took about 30 minutes to get through all the security checks and documents for embarking.

 

We spent the first couple of hours just exploring. The layout of the ship makes it easy to get around. The new electronic LCD screens offer a high tech way to find where you need to go as well as displaying current activities around the ship.

 

I know there is varying opinion regarding the quality of food at the MDR. We ate there the first evening and never went back. Our waiter did not give us the time of day and the food was mediocre at best and everything was lukewarm if not cold. I was jealous when hearing the other waiters talk to their diners (as if they really cared about their experience) but the food wouldn’t have been any different.

 

Our room was ready at 1pm (luggage came around 5pm). We had a balcony room on the 9th deck. No complaints. Our cabin steward Jenny took care of all our needs and was always pleasant. My parents, without asking, got a hump balcony. The balcony was a bit bigger with a better view but I wasn’t bitter. :}

 

The Royal Promenade is lovely. We spent quite a bit of time there every day just walking around, shopping, and getting coffee, icecream, and cupcakes from yes….the Cupcake Cubbaaarrrrrd….Cupcake Cubbaaarrrd. (you had to be there)

 

Day 2 CocoCay: There was quite a long line to catch the tenders at 8am but after the line got moving it went very quick. I have to say that CocoCay is a beautiful island with LOTs of things to do. My husband and father went Jet Skiing which they both highly recommend even though it is a guided tour. The BBQ lunch was wonderful. Lots of options and enough stations where there were few lines. A note about the snorkeling……make sure you venture out as far as the red balls allow you to go; especially past the last rock jetty toward the ship. If you cross over a very shallow rock bed (be careful!) it opens up into some wonderful crevices and coral formations. Saw some beautiful fish there (many thanks to the gentleman that clued us in)!

 

The production show was Once Upon a Time. Very good!

 

I’m sorry we missed the Meet and Greet! We had a conflict in time that couldn’t be helped.

 

Day 3 At Sea: Breakfast at the Windjammer was adequate. Again, a lot of the food was lukewarm but still edible.

 

Spent most of the day by the pool. Water in the hot tubs was too cold for my father’s taste but I enjoyed it. Loved that the H2O Zone for kids is not near the Solarium! For a couple that does not have kids this was very important. Deck Patrol was doing nothing to those that saved chairs in the early morning and did not come back until late morning. You basically had to camp out and hope you could find a chair.

 

I had a manicure at the Spa. We had a lively group of ladies in there so I laughed the entire time. Worth the cash!

 

Husband and I attended a lecture on Chinese herbs. We were the only ones there so Natalie (from Spa) just sat with us and chatted about anything we wanted to know about health and herbs. Very informative and she sent info to our stateroom.

 

Mom and I attended Chefmakers Small Bites cooking class. Let me tell you, this was one of the highlights of my trip and I would do several others if given the chance. There were 8 of us in our class, our head chef, and an assistant. We made 7 dishes/sauces (all of us helped make each dish); free wine, apron, recipe cards, and then we ate what we cooked! We had such a fantastic time. Our Chef was patient, informative, and a lot of fun! I never knew I liked Lamb!!!! The husband and father got pizza at Sorrento’s so they were happy.

 

Entertainment for the evening was the Nelson Brothers. Wow, ok….I never would have guessed I knew both the late Ricky Nelson and the Nelson brothers’ new and old music. Very good show and we were blessed to have them on our cruise.

 

 

Day 4 St. Thomas: Getting off the ship was quick. We grabbed a cab for Red Hook where we met Bobby from the Rumbaba. We had booked a private sail for the 4 of us. Everything the reviews say is true; we had a great time. Bobby was funny and his first Mate Karen was very nice. The lunch they served was very good and snorkeling was a lot of fun. Highly recommend for a private excursion.

 

We had reservations for Portofino’s that night. If I can suggest one thing make sure you do at least one night for dinner(we did two!) and ask for Catherine’s table (if she is still there)!!! The service was better than Morton’s/Ruth Chris and they made every moment special…and the food was incredible! The second night we went there my mom wasn’t feeling well so they gave dad and I extra lobster and when she said she wanted nothing for desert, Catherine brought out a plate with two raspberries and spelled out the word “nothing” in raspberry sauce. My mom was brought to tears. First class and top notch guys!!!!

 

The Ice Show is very good. Amazed at how much they do in such a small space! Kudos to the ice crew!!!!

 

Love and Marriage Game Show is well worth staying up for!

 

Day 5 St. Maarten/St. Martin: On recommendation from the boards we booked a private 4 person tour with Bernard’s tour. I had no idea that our tour guide would be Bernard himself and his brother who was visiting. I can’t say enough about these guys. His brother needs to be a tour guide on St. Lucia!!!! He was so pleasant to talk to and we learned a lot. We skipped Orient Beach but went to the Butterfly Farm and Marigot. All the while just chatting it up with the brothers who stopped for photo ops. The Straw Market in Marigot has some nice stuff…unlike Jamaica where everything is the same. I bought some spices, jewelry, linens, and shawls. What a great day!!!!

 

We had reservations for Chops. Although another very good meal, the service and food can’t be beat in Portofino’s. Our steaks were fantastic though.

 

The headliner was a Drew Thomas a magician. We were all impressed and left wondering how he did it! The Orange trick still has me perplexed!

 

Day 6 and 7 At Sea: Spent the last two days just relaxing by the pool. If you want a quiet spot to read, grab a chair though the doors on the left and right front of the ship near the spa/fitness center. It’s in the shade but open air windows and away from the pool sounds.

 

My husband had a shave, facial/arm/scalp massage, hot towel, and haircut at the Spa. He came out with the biggest joker grin. He kept asking her questions to hear her accent the entire time.

 

The last two shows were good. Marquee is Broadway tunes and the finale show was a combination of things.

 

We ate at Portofino’s for the 2nd formal night and Johnny Rockets the other sea day. Don’t knock Johnny Rockets, we had a lot of fun in there and the food was really good! After eating heavy meals, you need a burger and fry night! Pay extra for the milkshakes, they are yummy!

 

Graham’s late night comedy show was hysterical but definitely for open minded adults! Thank you again Graham!!!!

 

Day 8 Disembark: We chose to do the early dis-embark. We took our own luggage off the ship which meant we did not leave our luggage outside the night before. We got off the ship at 7am. From the moment we left our room it literally took is 15 minutes to get our shuttle to the rental car! Talk about easy!

 

Just a couple of FYIs….

- We prepaid our tips which I highly recommend.

- We did not gamble due to the smokers. Last night is smoke free though.

- Watch the compass for shopping specials in the Promenade and get there early! Got some nice stuff for $10!

- We had a balcony room; and yes, it’s worth it! Especially during the storm on the horizon!

- We did not get a beverage package; we did use our minibar.

- Bingo is a rip-off! But the BINGO leader was funny!

- If you want spa treatments on formal nights, book the first day!

- Trivia in the Schooner Bar is a hoot!

- Promenade parades were fun but can be missed if you don’t have kids.

- Tickets for the ice show are given out ONE DAY ONLY for all three days they are showing. Make sure you go to get tickets at least a half hour early. You can grab coffee at Café Promenade on the way!

- Take advantage of getting formal pictures done! Yes, it can be expensive but how often can you get formals done? It ends up being cheaper than having a private photographer do it because no sitting fees. We got the CD with all the pictures so we can get them developed where-ever we want to off the ship.

- Get free regular or decaf coffee from the Café Promenade (better than the swill they serve elsewhere). And the sandwiches/pastries in the glass display case are FREE too!

- Buy travel size toiletries and throw everything away before you leave to make more room in your suitcase on the way home.

- I brought Bonine but never used it. My parents used patches from the doctor.

- Things I brought that were helpful; highlighter, hanging cosmedic case for all my toiletries, bug spray (for island flies), ziplock bags, and binoculars.

 

 

If anyone has any questions, please feel free to email me at deedleann@gmail.com and Ill try to answer any questions you have. I can always send pictures.

 

Take care and happy cruising!

[LBumb]

nice job

[cruiselvr04]

I haven't heard of the chef makers small bites class. What was the cost for this? Sounds like a lot of fun!

[Deedleann]

I haven't heard of the chef makers small bites class. What was the cost for this? Sounds like a lot of fun!

 

The classes vary in price. This was one $90 per person. Honestly, I would pay double for what we got. Here is some further info...

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/experience/html.do?exCode=989&shipCode=FR

[BrytEydBelle]

Thanks for the review! We were on the same cruise and I am impressed that you were already able to post. I am still in post cruise stupor and will be doing my review over the weekend :p Have to agree with you on Graham for sure...we absolutely loved him. He upgraded the cruise so much and now I only want to cruise with him as CD.

 

Special note and thank you….. Graham Seymour, our cruise director, was just amazing and I think I’m spoiled for life! His morning show had us laughing and he made everything he touched fun! Thank you Graham…this is for you…. (does dance) “Cupcake Cubbaaarrrrdd”

 

[SeminoleFan]

Really enjoyed your review. Thank you for sharing!

[heavenlysea]

Leann-

How much was the photo CD?

 

Thanks for the review and tips.

[Ander026]

Excellent review. I was on the Freedom last month. Grahm was fantastic. I even bought his DVD that he was selling last year when I sailed. I was also on deck 9 in 9250. Glad that you had a great cruise.

[Pumbaamd]

We were also on this Freedom cruise. The OP has done an outstanding review and we can confirm most of all she has posted. Great review!

We will do Freedom again!

Rick and Deirdra

[Deedleann]

Leann-

How much was the photo CD?

 

Thanks for the review and tips.

 

If I remember correctly, the CD was $249. It included all the pictures they took on the ship as well as when you embarked and disembarked from the ship. Its worth it if you take advantage of getting as many pictures as possible. We had our pictures taken on formal night using 6 different backgrounds. Each 8 x 10 print is $20.00. I dont believe the were able to print any other sizes. So if you wanted wallets, you had no choice but to get the CD.

[39august]

Graham Seymore and the Nelsons too! Lucky you. Could you please advise what dishes you ordered in Portofino? We used to eat there but the current menu doesn't look very good to me other than the seafood skewer and the filet. Seems the appetizers and salads are not interesting.

[proudpatriot07]

I was on the same cruise :).

 

I totally agree with you on Zachary's! We did eat breakfast at the hotel, as it wasn't crowded when we went down there (early risers), but we had lunch the day before at Zachary's. The Greek food was the best and not a bad price either. All the breakfast dishes also sounded super yummy but both of us had Greek food :). We will definitely be going back there to eat the next time we cruise from PC.

 

Our server was very overwhelmed, in my opinion. I noticed he had several large tables. This was my first RCI cruise, but I do remember our servers on Carnival only having one large table and knowing our names, etc. He was a good waiter, I just feel like maybe the ship needs some more staff so that the experience could be better. That, and the fact that there were no veggie burgers besides Johnny Rockets, are the only things I had any issue with :).

 

Glad you enjoyed the Chefmakers class! All of those sounded super cool but we never got the chance to do one... will remember it for next time!

[Luetta]

Glad you did and liked the small bites class, I was thinking of doing it. I love all the cooking shows so figured it would be fun to do. I am definitely going to book it now for June since reading it was so good.