Freedom of the Seas 8/18/13 Western--VERY LONG & DETAILED PHOTO REVIEW

[evelyn51]

Just wanted to say thanks, the pics are making me even more excited to be back onboard in 17 days!!! Also I think it's really neat how your first beach pics have cruise ships sailing by out in the distance:p Very cool.

 

 

 

Same here only we won't be on her in 17 days! :(

[adamken]

Love the review

[mets550]

Sorry for the delay in getting the rest of the review up..been very busy between some wedding planning and the Jewish holidays. However, I am currently working on day two's review and photos, which will be up later today.

[Llmtax2000]

I just graduated from law school in May and took (and hopefully passed) the New York bar exam this summer, so this cruise was what got me through my final semesters of law school and the bar.

 

Fingers crossed for you on the bar exam results--when do you find out?

[mets550]

DAY TWO: Monday, August 19, 2013

 

AT SEA

 

We woke up to a beautiful morning at sea today.

 

 

 

 

We are not big breakfast eaters, so we just ordered some coffee and pastries to have out on our balcony.

 

 

We ended up waking up at around 7:50 a.m. today to ensure that we could get good seats by the pool. We were up there by around 8:15 a.m. and had our choice of any chairs we wanted. One of my biggest complaints with all RCI ships is that there are just not enough poolside chairs in the sun. If you don’t mind sitting on the deck above the pool (by the jogging track), then you will likely be able to find a chair even later in the day. However, we enjoy being able to go in and out of the pool with ease and also like to be in the sun. It seems like the pool deck is set up with numerous structures that block the sun at some point during the day, and the amount of chairs on the deck is really not sufficient. True, if no one hogged chairs at all, then maybe the problem would be alleviated. However, until RCI figures out a way to adequately enforce this, I will never feel like I can sleep in on a sea day and still get a good seat by the pool. Okay, enough with this rant.

 

At 10:00 a.m., three others in our group and I went to play in a ping pong tournament. On our Liberty cruise a few years ago, I was a two-time ping pong tournament champion (yes, I still have the gold medals). However, I haven’t played in a long time and ended up losing in the first round. The others in my group also lost rather quickly. Nonetheless, we had a good time and met several other nice people. One complaint about ping pong is that, even though the tables are at the back of the ship, it is still very windy. One of the tables was almost unplayable due to wind. I would love to see them put these tables inside in one of the less-used lounges.

 

After ping pong, we headed back to the pool. Our group ended up splitting up between the solarium and the regular pool today. DF and I were at the main pool, while our parents were at the solarium. Normally, I enjoy the main pool over the quieter solarium, since I like watching the poolside activities and the main pool tends to have a more lively atmosphere. However, on this cruise, I really came to enjoy the solarium over the main pool. It is easy enough to walk over to the main pool for the belly flop contest and so on, and the band is extremely loud and makes relaxing difficult sometimes. The chairs in the solarium are also padded and more comfortable than in the main pool. Finally, in the past, I’ve always felt that the crowd at the solarium was a much older crowd. Maybe that is the case when the solarium is completely indoors, but I don’t believe there is a roof at all in the solarium on Freedom and we saw just as many people our age as older. Thus, we will definitely frequent the Solarium on future cruises, as long as it is outdoors.

 

Since we didn’t eat much for breakfast, we went to the MDR for lunch right when it opened at 11:45 a.m.

 

[mets550]

Fingers crossed for you on the bar exam results--when do you find out?

 

Thanks so much. Not until November, so I'm trying not to think much about it until then.

[mets550]

As always, the Tutti salad is amazing. For those who don’t know, the Tutti salad is really just a salad bar in the MDR. You point to what you want and they make it for you. They have fresh chicken and shrimp and—my favorite—fresh mozzarella cheese. They will also chop the salad for you (a lot of people didn’t realize this until they heard me asking for it).

 

 

I love the chopped kalamata olives they give you to put on the bread.

 

I ordered the steak sandwich as my entrée. It was decent, although they only give you one half of the bread, which makes eating the sandwich (which has an egg on it) difficult. However, I didn’t finish the sandwich because I was so stuffed from the salad. Anywhere else the Tutti salad would be a meal in and of itself—and possibly a large one at that—but, of course, on a cruise, why have one meal when you can have two? Or three? :D

 

After lunch, we headed back to the pool. We watched the belly flop contest at 1:30 p.m. and then joined our parents in the solarium.

 

I had reserved seats for us for the 4:30 p.m. ice show (you can make reservations online in advance for this), so we went to that. Although we’ve seen several RCI ice shows on other ships, we are continually blown away by the level of skill exhibited by these performers. They do everything from tricks with hula hoops to flips in this tiny little ice rink. The show was different from all previous shows on other ships and is definitely not to be missed. Everyone in our group agreed.

 

 

 

After the ice show we ventured onto the promenade. This is definitely one of my favorite parts of the ship. Since I hadn’t finished my steak sandwich from lunch, I was famished by 5:30. I got a slice of pizza from Sorrento’s (definitely not NYC quality but enjoyable) and a snack from Café Promenade (they have little sandwiches, cookies, etc.).

 

DF and I then went to shower and get ready for formal night. I sat on the balcony for a bit and then headed to the casino to make the first of many deposits there. We normally enjoy going to the Captain’s Reception on the first formal night, but DF was still getting ready and no one else wanted to go. I walked through it on the promenade and grabbed some free champagnes (always a perk!). This is a nice part of the cruise, though, and I think we will try to make it for the whole reception next time.

 

We then all met in front of the MDR to take a formal photo together. Unfortunately, the line was extremely long and we were late to dinner. We should have gotten ready and met to take pictures earlier—not on the way in to dinner. I imagine the line is not nearly as long if you go down at 7:15 p.m. rather than 7:45 p.m.

 

When we were finally done taking our pictures, we headed into the MDR.

 

I got the duck (nothing special) and the prime rib (very good). We also got an order of the sliders for the table (they come with two, so they were really for me :D).

 

The duck:

 

[mets550]

Prime rib:

 

 

Sliders (well, one of them):

 

 

DF ordered the shrimp ravioli:

 

 

It was someone’s “birthday” tonight. In fact, our table had a “birthday” almost every night of the cruise. Here are the waiters singing:

 

 

This dessert is some type of chocolate cake. It is decent but nothing to write home about:

 

[mets550]

Don’t remember what this was:

 

 

Cheesecake (very good):

 

 

By the time dinner was over, we were tired and had been up since early this morning. Thus, we hung out for a bit and then called it a night. I snapped these on deck three:

 

 

[mets550]

This guy was waiting for us when we got back. Wait until you see the surprises we had later in the cruise ;).

 

 

I think this was from the first night:

 

 

Day two was another long and tiring day, but we ended up eating, drinking, and lounging all day. In my opinion, there is no other way to spend a day at sea.

[mets550]

DAY THREE: Tuesday, August 20, 2013

 

LABADEE, HAITI

 

Based on our past visit to Labadee while aboard Liberty several years ago, I was looking forward to this port more than anything else. After experiencing it again, I can now say that Labadee is my overall favorite port. It is absolutely beautiful, with clear, blue water and lush green mountains in the background. I know Haiti is a very poor country, but RCI really did a great job of making Labadee a beautiful, serene beach stop.

 

 

 

The ship’s gotta get clean!

 

 

I got up on the early side again (a bad habit of mine while on cruises) and went for a short run on the track, although part of it was closed off throughout the week for renovations. I finished my workout on the elliptical in the gym while overlooking the beautiful Labadee.

 

We got off the ship at 9:30 a.m. and walked all the way down to Columbus Cove, the farthest part of the beach. While the walk was far, I have to say it was worth it. Other parts of the beach are extremely rocky and make getting in and out very difficult. Columbus Cove, however, is much easier and less crowded as well because it is much farther. We had rented floating beach mats for $12 per mat. I know this is a rip-off, but these mats greatly enhance our experience and were totally worth it. Several of the workers on Labadee got us chairs and umbrellas. Two of the guys even walked back to the floating mats area and brought our nine mats to us. Piece of advice: if you are going to Columbus Cove, either pick up your mat on the way (it is not nearby) or ask one of the Labadee workers to do it for you (for a nice tip).

 

 

[mets550]

We spent almost the entire day floating in the water. The water felt like bath water and was a pleasure to be in. The sun was also out all day and shining bright—we definitely got the most color today. The lunch barbeque was okay. The food is mediocre—chicken, burgers, hot dogs, ribs. Definitely nothing special and one of the lower quality meals of the cruise. Nonetheless, it did the trick for us.

 

Two observations about Labadee. Despite its beauty and apparent separation from the rest of Haiti, it is still very much part of Haiti. While heading to the buffet, one of the musicians in the Haitian band playing by the tables asked my brother if he could get him some food. I’m not sure if RCI doesn’t feed its Labadee employees or doesn’t feed them enough, but either way this problem lies with RCI and its treatment of its workers.

 

Second, we noticed an adult woman with several young children on the beach where we were sitting who looked a bit out of place. One of the kids came over to someone in our group and sat on her chair, starting touching the person in our group, and tried to take our floating mats. At the end of the day, one of the young boys threw up in the water near us. We later noticed one of the Labadee employees discreetly bringing food over to the woman and the kids, leading us to believe that these people were the family of one of the Labadee employees (they didn’t seem like cruise guests). I’m not sure how they got in or even what RCI’s rules regarding family on Labadee is, but I can’t believe that this is allowed. Because of the initial experience with the kids coming over to us and trying to take our stuff, we felt uncomfortable leaving our belongings and had to have someone contasntly watching them. The fact that a Labadee worker brought his family to the beach for the day would not have bothered us at all but for the fact that they made us uncomfortable and tried to take our belongings. Neither did we see any RCI supervisory people on the beach to even mention this to. I did say something to Guest Relations when we got back onboard, but RCI should do a better job of enforcing whatever policies it does have at this port.

 

Overall, though, we had a great time on Labadee and stayed until the very end of the day. We headed back around 3:00 p.m., took a dip in the pool (we waited in line to get back on the ship in the beating sun for at least twenty minutes), and then went to the WJ for some snacks.

 

DF and I then stopped into the Welcome Back event for a quick cocktail but didn’t stay for the rest. DF went back to the room while I made another deposit in the casino. Once I came back, we ordered some room service to hold us over until dinner: a steak sandwich, spinach dip, fries, and a pizza (just a small snack). I think my eyes were bigger than my stomach on this occasion.

 

We then went to the headliner show “Now You See It” at 7:00 p.m. This show stars Drew Thomas from America’s Got Talent. I had read good things about this show, and I was not disappointed. Drew combined a few singing and dancing numbers with his regular magic routine. His best trick was when he supposedly cut a woman in half with the help of several audience volunteers. I have no idea how he did it, but it was fascinating.

 

 

 

After the show, we went to dinner. It looks like there was some dancing going on, although I don’t quite remember what they did:

 

 

I got the Manhattan Strip, which looked better than it was:

 

 

Chocolate ice cream for dessert:

 

[mets550]

This was a special dessert prepared especially for the captain’s table the night before. We asked if we could get some and the chef made it for us:

 

 

This I remember: all the waiters sang an italian song.

 

 

We decided to make it another early night again and head to bed after dinner (don’t worry, we make it up later the next few nights). We found this waiting for us when we got back to our room:

 

 

It was another great day aboard Freedom of the Seas.

[BillOh]

(they didn’t seem like cruise guests). I’m not sure how they got in or even what RCI’s rules regarding family on Labadee is, but I can’t believe that this is allowed. Because of the initial experience with the kids coming over to us and trying to take our stuff, we felt uncomfortable leaving our belongings and had to have someone contasntly watching them.

 

 

Interesting, I haven't been to Labadee since 2008 and I've never seen this, but your writing seems to indicate you knew what you were looking at. While I feel for the people of Haiti who live nearby this would great affect my enjoyment of the day. While we kept an eye on our chairs while in the water, I've never felt the need to be overly conscious of it. I am planning a 2015 cruise that I hope will put me back on Freedom in Labadee, so I'll keep an eye on that topic.

[mets550]

Interesting, I haven't been to Labadee since 2008 and I've never seen this, but your writing seems to indicate you knew what you were looking at. While I feel for the people of Haiti who live nearby this would great affect my enjoyment of the day. While we kept an eye on our chairs while in the water, I've never felt the need to be overly conscious of it. I am planning a 2015 cruise that I hope will put me back on Freedom in Labadee, so I'll keep an eye on that topic.

 

Yes, we were almost positive they were the family of a Labadee employee. When they came up to our chairs, one of the kids just kept saying the word "friend" to someone in my group but didn't speak any other English. They were also sitting on or near some of the rocks at the end of the island and didn't pack up to go at the end of the day. These observations, combined with their behavior and the fact that we saw a Labadee employee discreetly bringing them food, made us believe it was highly unlikely that they were cruise ship guests. My heart too goes out to the people of Haiti, and part of me feels guilty for enjoying Labadee's beautiful beach while others just a few miles away are living on just a few dollars a day. However, we were a bit concerned about our belongings and had to keep an extra vigilent eye on our stuff throughout the day. Also, it was frustrating that there did not appear to be any RCI crewmember who was in charge of supervising the staff there. Either way, though, it did not ruin our day by any stretch and we still had a great time.

[mets550]

DAY FOUR: Wednesday, August 21, 2013

 

FALMOUTH, JAMAICA

 

We awoke to another beautiful, sunny morning.

 

 

 

I got up around 8:00 a.m. and headed up to the gym to use the elliptical again. I find that working out in the morning on a cruise—especially after eating my brains out—makes me feel…that I deserve to eat even more! :D

 

Though, as I mentioned before, we are not big breakfast eaters, the rest of our group was going to the MDR for breakfast. Thus, we decided to join. We’d never eaten breakfast in the MDR before, instead preferring a quick bite at the WJ or room service, if we have anything at all. I ordered an egg white omelette with cheese and vegetables as well as a plate of bacon. Unfortunately, the omelette came without cheese and I never got my plate of bacon. The latter was not a big deal, since I just got up and went over to the mini buffet that they have in the center of the dining room for it. The lack of cheese was annoying, but our orders took a long time to come out and we were on a schedule to meet our excursion, so I decided not to say anything. I will get to an overall assessment of the dining room service on this cruise as well as the specific problems we had with our dining room waiter later in the review, but this morning’s breakfast was—unfortunately and a bit surprisingly—rather typical of the lackluster MDR service we received on this cruise.

 

I had never been to Jamaica before today, so I was excited to experience a new port. We are not big into tours or exploring, prefering a relaxing beach day to an action-packed walking tour in almost every port. However, I wanted to make sure we were going to a safe beach with prearranged transportation, since we didn’t want to venture off the beat and path in Jamaica. After researching all of RCI’s beach excursions and not being impressed with any of the reviews, we decided to book a day pass at the Hilton Rose Hall Resort and Spa through JamaicaForADay. I was a bit weary about booking an excursion not through the ship, but JamaicaForADay, which is a company that specializes in resort day passes on a lot of Caribbean islands, had great reviews and seemed reputable. The price was $94 per person and included roundtrip transportation on a bus and an all-inclusive (food and drink) at the Hilton.

 

The instructions on where to meet the excursion were pretty simple. The meeting location was at the end of the port area after all the shops, but it was still within the secure area and was next to most of the RCI ship excursions. This was adjacent to our meeting spot:

 

 

After arriving, a guide checked us in and walked us to the bus, which was waiting nearby. I snapped this on the walk to the bus:

 

[mets550]

The bus driver and the guide were both rather pleasant, and the driver had some funny jokes. The ride was about twenty minutes long. This is a picture of the school that a famous Jamaica runner went to, although I can’t remember his name:

 

 

The Hilton, along with most of the other big resorts, is in Montego Bay, but the Hilton is one of the closer properties. Having read that check-in sometimes takes a few minutes, I told my group to sit at the front of the bus so we could get off and check in right away. We did and were given our wristbands within minutes.

 

We then set off to find chairs on the beach. Unfortunately, the beach here is not very nice. It is extremely rocky, so we never made it in more than a few feet. I noticed people farther out, so maybe it wasn’t as bad out there. However, the rocks and lack of people even trying to wade in were discouring. Also, there is not much of a “beach” either. There is a small strip of sand with a handful of lounge chairs (we did get lounge chairs on the sand), but it is nothing like Labadee or any other normal beach, and most people were sitting by the larger pools. I probably would not return to the Hilton for this reason alone. Thus, if you are looking for a “beach” day, the Hilton is not the place to go.

 

After settling down, we went to find the complimentary lockers that were included in our day pass. Unfortunately, it took over half an hour to actually get our stuff locked up. No staff members could tell me where the lockers were and looked at me like I had three heads; only the woman who checked us in could tell us. When we finally found them, none of them would open. I went back upstairs and told the woman, who called security to come down. We waited about ten more minutes but no one showed up. I then went to a different woman at the front desk and asked if they could store our stuff there, but she said all they had were safety deposit boxes. That woman then called security again, who then actually showed up and fixed the lockers. The guy said that they had all been programmed, although there was nothing in any of them. We set our code and tested it several times to ensure that it worked, which it finally did. This would not have been a big deal, but it took a lot of time to get this issue resolved and put a very sour taste in our mouths.

 

The rest of the day was very nice. We spent much of the day in the lazy river pool, which has a current, several waterfalls, and two water slides. It was difficult finding tubes in which to float (they didn’t have any extra stock by the time we arrived—we had to wait for people to abandon theirs), but the water was very nice. Alcohol was included in the day pass, so we got a few frozen drinks from the swim-up bar in the pool.

 

Lunch was very good. I wasn’t expecting much from it, but I got jerk chicken from the pool bar and grill and was quite impressed. We even ordered an extra jerk chicken before leaving.

 

After lunch, the wind started to pick up and ominous clouds formed overhead. It looked like it was about to pour, but—miraculously—it never did. We spent the rest of the day in the pool and even sat in a hot tub with a woman who lived nearby and had brought her son for the day. Even though we went straight from the tourist-central cruise port to the tourist-central resort, we still got to interact with a local person and learn a little about life in Jamaica.

 

Here is a picture of the main pool at the Hilton (not the lazy river pool):

 

 

Overall, we had a nice day at the Hilton, despite a few setbacks at the beginning. However, I would not book this excursion again and would not recommend it. The beach was not very nice, there weren’t enough floats in the lazy river, and it was extremely crowded. For $94, I expected a more relaxed environment, but the Hilton definitely did not provide that. However, we still had a nice time while we were there.

 

We went straight back onboard when we got back and headed to the room to rest. The one good thing about the Hilton was that we stayed until 5:00 p.m. and really had a full day, unlike many of the other ship excursions, which include just a few hours at the beach. I sat on the balcony for awhile and snapped these shots as we pulled away.

 

 

 

[mets550]

After showering, I went to the casino and left another chunk of change in there. Seems to be a common theme. I played craps and three card poker, neither of which brought me any luck.

 

Tonight’s dinner was at Chops Grille. DF and I absolutely love Chops and were excited to bring the rest of our group here, since none of them had ever experienced it before. Our reservation was at 8:30 p.m. and out waitress, Rubi, served us at the perfect pace to have us out in time for the Love and Marriage game show at 10:30 p.m.

 

Before I get into what we actually ordered, just some food for thought on the specialty restaurants. In the past, we’ve been told that an extra entrée incurs a $10 additional charge at the specialty restaurants. Tonight, our waitress said that we could only have two appetizers as well and that an additional appetizer would be $5. I know that the portions are much larger at Chops and Portofino, but I’d never heard of this rule before and I like to eat a lot—especially the appetizers. I might sound like a huge pig (maybe that is because I am :D), but I like to get three or four appetizers, and I sometimes order a second of something that I like. The two-appetizer rule got to me a bit, so I got up and asked the restaurant manager if we could order a third appetizer. He said it was no problem, and we gave him a tip at the end of the meal. I know that, for many, two appetizers and one entrée is enough, but aren’t cruises about unlimited food? Isn’t that part of what you think of when you think of cruising? Also, where does it say—on the menu, the compass, or even RCI’s website, that you are limited to one entrée and two appetizers? If your $30 cover at Chops Grille does not include unlimited food—which is unlike anywhere else on the shop (aside from a la carte venues)—then that should be made clear up front.

 

Okay, sorry for the rant, but this is something that has bothered me for several cruises now. Either way, though, it worked out for us and we ordered whatever we wanted.

 

The shrimp cocktail is of course AMAZING. Much much much better than in the MDR.

 

 

This tuna dish is probably my favorite. It is small also, which is why the two-appetizer maximum doesn’t work for me. :D

 

 

We LOVE the Not So Traditional Caesar Salad, although they didn’t cut it up for me like on other ships.

 

 

There was no shortage of side dishes. I’ll let these pictures speak for themselves. (Please remember that these were for all nine of us before denouncing me as a glutton.)

 

[mets550]

 

 

 

 

[mets550]

 

They don’t have pasta on the menu, but they got it for us without a problem when we asked. This was just to have on the side.

 

 

I got the filet, which was delicious. I am usually not a big filet mignon eater, but Chops does it better than any other steakhouse I have been to, including some of the top NYC steakhouses.

 

 

Here is a close-up:

 

 

The red velvet cake is amazing.

 

[mets550]

As is the crème brulee, which literally comes out of the kitchen on fire.

 

 

But the winner has to be the chocolate mud pie. No piece of chocolate cake beats this delicious piece of pure ecstasy. (If you couldn’t tell, I really like food!)

 

 

After dinner, we made it to the Love and Marriage game show. DF and I go to this on every cruise that has it. I know most of the questions are the same, but it never gets old and is always funny. This show was no exception.

 

 

 

The couple on the left had been married over fifty years and was absolutely hysterical, especially when they both gave the exact same answer as to where the craziest place they had ever made “whoopy” was.

 

[mets550]

After the show, we headed to bed and found this waiting for us. Our cabin attendant said it was a “walrus,” although he was not all that convincing. I’ll say no more.

 

 

We were sad that the cruise was now officially more than half over—it seemed like it had just begun. However, we knew that we really needed to get the most out of our remaining days and looked forward to another amazing day in Grand Cayman.

[mets550]

Again, please feel free to interject with comments or questions. This cruise is still rather fresh in my mind, so I'm happy to field specific questions that might be lurking out there. I hope you are all enjoying my review!

[BillOh]

Again, please feel free to interject with comments or questions. This cruise is still rather fresh in my mind, so I'm happy to field specific questions that might be lurking out there. I hope you are all enjoying my review!

 

Looking forward to what you do in Grand Caymen. I'm considering going back on Freedom again in 2015. The only disappointment of my Freedom cruise was they canceled my Grand Caymen Excursion the night before we went so we just walked around the port. How was tendering there? Did you have to wait long to get a shore?

[cruzegurl104]

Thanks for the review! Looking forward to more, as we're doing this route on Oasis in a FEW days!!!!:):D