RC Freedom of the Seas or Carnival Breeze? Multigenerational family

[novaLady]

I'm trying to plan an August 2014 cruise with my family and extended family. Some of my extended family have never cruised before. My husband and 2 kids (5 and 7) have been on Carnival twice.

 

My dilemma: I am considering the Breeze and it looks perfect for us. Being that some of us are past Carnival cruisers, the perks/price will be good for us. However, one thing I've never liked is the crowds and the shows. The "Family" shows on our last cruise showed the thongs of the dancers a lot during the show. However, the Camp Carnival and food have been just fine for us.

 

Pros of Breeze:

Many of us are past passengers and can get better rates

Cheaper

Camp Carnival

Food

Waterpark

Ropes Course

 

Potential Cons of Breeze:

Crowd

'Un'family friendly shows

Have to fly to Miami

 

Pros of FOS:

Can Drive to Port Caneveral

Great Ports

Great Reviews

 

Potential Cons of FOS:

Too big of a ship for first time cruisers

Crowds looks more ... mellow. Videos/Reviews don't mention much of a deck party.

Some reviews say food is not that great.

More Expensive

 

 

So I know this is the Carnival forum but I'll ask anyways..what would you do? Breeze or FOS?

[Georgiagolfer]

I voted both are great options. DW and I have sailed FOS and hope to sail on Breeze in 2014.

[Havingfun2010]

FOS is definitely better than any Carnival Ship. Just the shows and facilities for kids are better alone for families. Kids will love the activities for them on the ship. Teenagers will be much better entertained. The ship is not too big for anyone.

[qwerty119]

I'm trying to plan an August 2014 cruise with my family and extended family. Some of my extended family have never cruised before. My husband and 2 kids (5 and 7) have been on Carnival twice.

 

My dilemma: I am considering the Breeze and it looks perfect for us. Being that some of us are past Carnival cruisers, the perks/price will be good for us. However, one thing I've never liked is the crowds and the shows. The "Family" shows on our last cruise showed the thongs of the dancers a lot during the show. However, the Camp Carnival and food have been just fine for us.

 

Pros of Breeze:

Many of us are past passengers and can get better rates

Cheaper

Camp Carnival

Food

Waterpark

Ropes Course

 

Potential Cons of Breeze:

Crowd

'Un'family friendly shows

Have to fly to Miami

 

Pros of FOS:

Can Drive to Port Caneveral

Great Ports

Great Reviews

 

Potential Cons of FOS:

Too big of a ship for first time cruisers

Crowds looks more ... mellow. Videos/Reviews don't mention much of a deck party.

Some reviews say food is not that great.

More Expensive

 

 

So I know this is the Carnival forum but I'll ask anyways..what would you do? Breeze or FOS?

 

I have also been on both. Carnival breeze wins hands down In my opinion. I just don't care for Miami as homeport

[LRY229]

I haven't sailed the Breeze, but sailed the Dream and Freedom of the Seas. I would pick FOTS hands down. Its a beautiful ship and has loads for your family.

 

BUT if it was a substantial price difference then I would pick Breeze.

[halos]

I just don't care for Miami as homeport

 

OMG. I love Maimi and book as many cruises as I can out of that port.

Goes to show you everyone is different.

[qwerty119]

OMG. I love Maimi and book as many cruises as I can out of that port.

Goes to show you everyone is different.

 

It's very nice but expensive to fly into. We usually fly into ft lauderdale

[Mysticks1]

I voted Freedom of the Seas. From my signature you can see we aren't loyal to any one cruise line. I really liked the Promenade area on Freedom and loved the cookies and snacks from the Promenade Café and the parades that they have there. My daughter loved Freedom and was a teenager when we sailed on that one. For that age the Flowrider and Rockwall are really great and the teens/kids seemed to really like Johnny Rockets.

[Out to sea!]

Definitely Freedom of the Seas. It's a larger version of the Mariner, which I've sailed twice, and is still my favorite ship!

[Georgiagolfer]

Definitely Freedom of the Seas. It's a larger version of the Mariner, which I've sailed twice, and is still my favorite ship!

 

Off topic somewhat, but DW and I actually liked the Mariner of the Seas better than Freedom of the Seas.

[halos]

It's very nice but expensive to fly into. We usually fly into ft lauderdale

Absolutely...9 out of 10 times we fly into FLL as well and then just get transportation into and stay in Miami. It's rare to find a good deal on a flight into MIA

[Tutankhamen]

I was a long time Royal cruiser. Stayed away from Carnival because I bought into the party/drunk boat theory.

 

Last cruise with Royal was 3 years ago on FOS. I was disappointed in the food. Did not like the mall feel of the ship. I was even looking forward to the royal promenade. Walked away and thought, I could of spent the last 7 days at a mall and even enjoy better food.

 

Cruised on Dream twice. Felt that the food was better and enjoyed the ship.

 

I voted for Breeze.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

I have also been on both. Carnival breeze wins hands down In my opinion. I just don't care for Miami as homeport

 

Could you elaborate as to why it wins hands down please.

 

Bill

 

 

Sent from Iphone 4S using Cruise Critic App

[Cruzaholic41]

I'm one of the few who can say I've been on both ships.

 

Let me go back a few years. When I cruised Dream, I was done with Carnival. It was the most uncomfortably crowded ship I have ever been on. I thought Destiny took the cake, but Dream was awful. The lido deck was a joke and even while in port, it was shoulder to shoulder people in the 1 pool. Never have I experienced buffet lines like I did on the Dream. It was just a beefed up version of all their other ships, except Spirit Class, and I was tired of the gaudy, cheap experience.

 

Fast forward a few years. I just completed a cruise on Breeze. I went for next to nothing because I was accompanying a travel agent who was cruising for free. If there's one good thing I can say about Breeze, it's that they decorated the ship nicer. Thank goodness they finally woke up and ditched Faucus.

 

But that's it. All my bad memories of Dream came back. This whole class of ships is too crowded. If you are looking for a relaxing, family vacation, this is not your ship.

 

About Freedom. I don't know how else to say this other than RCI's Voyager, Freedom and Oasis Class ships are all in a league by themselves. Their design is unique and they do not resemble other major cruise lines' ships. On Freedom, the buffet is set up in an island design. This almost completely eliminates lines and you spend no time waiting for food. The lido deck is gigantic. Rather than 1 overcrowded pool, there are 2 huge pools and a kids H2O Zone, spanning the entire width of the ship. Just forward of that is another pool and 2 cantilevered jacuzzis, saved for adults only. If the word "wow" doesn't come out of your mouth when you see the Royal Promenade or the 3 story dining room, then your eyes aren't open.

 

Another plus for FOS is the ship is a lot larger than Breeze. Yet, the passenger count is about the same. What's that tell you?

 

If you go on Breeze, it's likely you'll have a good time. But mark my words, if you happen across a Freedom Class ship, you'll wish you made the other choice. If you pick FOS, that will not happen. The only way you'd be jealous of the other ship is if you happen upon an Oasis Class ship.

 

And for what it's worth, as of Jan 1, smoking is no longer allowed on RCI balconies. If you are a smoker who loves to balcony smoke, Breeze may be your better choice. If on the other hand you prefer not to suck in your neighbor's smoke, you will be free of that on RCI.

[KPfromCT]

I have never cruised on FOS, however, I did have the pleasure of cruising on the Breeze in April, and it was AWESOME!!!!!! We are not into the shows, so I cannot comment on that, however, the ship is gorgeous and our ports were the BEST!!!!! Food was wonderful. We also flew into FLL and took a shuttle to POM. I say the Breeze, and that was my vote. I don't think anyone will be disappointed.:)

[LMaxwell]

Freedom; not having to fly is just the icing on the cake.

[cjknox]

Both are great options.

 

Both ships are comparable and each comes with their pros and cons. With Freedom you don't have to fly and with Breeze you have a better itinerary.

 

I'd go with the Breeze.

[droy]

I have done FOS and the Carnival Dream. Both were great.

 

Things I liked better about the Dream

Food (it was amazing, I hated the FOS food)

cost

atmosphere

more to do

staff

port options

 

Things I liked better on the FOS

layout

pools

 

 

The rest was comparable IMO

[Lerin]

I personally wouldn't want to go on either, so voted whichever.

If those are really your only options, then go with the cheaper one.

[cruise_girl2002]

I haven't sailed the breeze, but have sailed the magic and dream. I have never had an issue with carnival, always had great service, food, shows etc. I have never felt crowded on the ship either. Has every carnival cruise been perfect? no. but if I had a problem, they took care of it asap.

 

My own opinion of the FOS was that I did not like that if you wanted pizza, you had to go down several decks inside to get it. it wasn't available near the pool area. I didn't like they had their hamburgers sitting under heat lamps, that was gross. The service in the main dining room was awful. If you have anytime dining on RCL, you must prepay tips. (we found that out when we decided to pay in cash since our waiter and room steward were AWFUL), we were disappointed in that. The shows were so-so (my mom didn't like them at all). our bathroom ceiling leaked, and when we brought that to their attention, they never did do anything. the halls smelled like urine. I didn't like the pools on the FOS, deck and windjammer café were packed, johnny rockets always had at least a 40 minute wait. I felt RCL didn't have as many activities going on at night or trivia's, which is what I like. disembarking was a nightmare, same with embarking (something happened with my sail card, when the first rcl employee took my pic, something happened...lord knows what). One thing I did enjoy was the flow rider, watching people on that cracked me up

 

I said I was swearing off RCL after that. well, I gave them another chance...NOW I can officially say..im done with them

 

This was my opinion and what I have encountered on my cruise. FOS is a beautiful ship, I just have had the worst service with RCL

[novaLady]

Just posted this on the other thread:

 

I'm glad I asked this question in both forums because it had helped reading peoples experiences either way.

 

I'm still torn however, so I'm going to keep researching it and eventually just make a decision.

 

From pictures alone, I don't like the closed in look of FOS. I believe someone referred to it as a shopping mall. I would hate this. Also we are going during the NFL season and I know my family will want to watch the games. Apparently, there are no sports bars on FOS...

 

However, I really want to try RC to see what I could be missing out on.

 

As far as itineraries, here are the options:

FOS: 7 nt, St maarten, St. Thomas, coco cay

 

Breeze: 8nt, puerto Rico, st maarten, st Kitts, Grand Turk

 

Breeze: 6nt Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Key West

 

Price for 8nt is about $50/pp higher than FOS and $150/pp higher than 6nt

[novaLady]

I'm one of the few who can say I've been on both ships.

 

Let me go back a few years. When I cruised Dream, I was done with Carnival. It was the most uncomfortably crowded ship I have ever been on. I thought Destiny took the cake, but Dream was awful. The lido deck was a joke and even while in port, it was shoulder to shoulder people in the 1 pool. Never have I experienced buffet lines like I did on the Dream. It was just a beefed up version of all their other ships, except Spirit Class, and I was tired of the gaudy, cheap experience.

 

Fast forward a few years. I just completed a cruise on Breeze. I went for next to nothing because I was accompanying a travel agent who was cruising for free. If there's one good thing I can say about Breeze, it's that they decorated the ship nicer. Thank goodness they finally woke up and ditched Faucus.

 

But that's it. All my bad memories of Dream came back. This whole class of ships is too crowded. If you are looking for a relaxing, family vacation, this is not your ship.

 

About Freedom. I don't know how else to say this other than RCI's Voyager, Freedom and Oasis Class ships are all in a league by themselves. Their design is unique and they do not resemble other major cruise lines' ships. On Freedom, the buffet is set up in an island design. This almost completely eliminates lines and you spend no time waiting for food. The lido deck is gigantic. Rather than 1 overcrowded pool, there are 2 huge pools and a kids H2O Zone, spanning the entire width of the ship. Just forward of that is another pool and 2 cantilevered jacuzzis, saved for adults only. If the word "wow" doesn't come out of your mouth when you see the Royal Promenade or the 3 story dining room, then your eyes aren't open.

 

Another plus for FOS is the ship is a lot larger than Breeze. Yet, the passenger count is about the same. What's that tell you?

 

If you go on Breeze, it's likely you'll have a good time. But mark my words, if you happen across a Freedom Class ship, you'll wish you made the other choice. If you pick FOS, that will not happen. The only way you'd be jealous of the other ship is if you happen upon an Oasis Class ship.

 

And for what it's worth, as of Jan 1, smoking is no longer allowed on RCI balconies. If you are a smoker who loves to balcony smoke, Breeze may be your better choice. If on the other hand you prefer not to suck in your neighbor's smoke, you will be free of that on RCI.

 

Thanks, this is good info. Smoking not an issue...we're all non smokers.

 

Is live music played on the pool decks?

[DarthGrady]

I would go with FOS, as she is currently my favorite ship overall. Shes just an amazing ship and unlike anything offered by CCL. We've had two excellent cruises on her and I love cruising out of PC. However, I would like to see the Breeze someday, her interiors look very nice.

[rickechambers1@aol.com]

The Breeze is stunning...one of my new favorites...just great. Room 7455 was excellent!

[Notaworryintheworld]

If the prices are close, including taking into account airfare, go with freedom. If breeze is significantly cheaper, go with that.

 

I simply don't agree with the shopping mall comments. There's way more open deck space on freedom (or any rccl ships) than the dream class ships. When I was on the dream, we were next to freedom ots one day in port and it was just overwhelming how much nicer it looked when we were side by side. We swore we wouldn't do carnivals again after our less than exceptional experience on the dream. I also disagree with the food comparison. It seems like over the past few years, royals food has improved and carnivals got worse.

 

However, we got our next cruise pretty much for free so we are giving the dream another chance. In my opinion, the two lines don't compare. But then again, there's a lot to be said for a really cheap cruise.