Freedom of the Seas drydock

[Ocean Boy]

How many people do the new cabins increase the capacity of the Freedom class ships by? I never really had the sense that more people aboard was something that would particularly enhance the cruise experience.:rolleyes:

[DeepFreeze]

How many people do the new cabins increase the capacity of the Freedom class ships by? I never really had the sense that more people aboard was something that would particularly enhance the cruise experience.:rolleyes:

Same here. Last time I was on FOS, it seemed busy. Going again in a few weeks. Sure hope it's not "State Fair" crowded this time.

[ryano]

How many people do the new cabins increase the capacity of the Freedom class ships by? I never really had the sense that more people aboard was something that would particularly enhance the cruise experience.:rolleyes:

 

Several hundred I believe? My biggest concern is the elevators. They were already over crowded and Freedom almost needs another whole new bank of them. Seems I had to plan way in advance and come up with a strategy to get up and down anywhere much worse than the other two RCI ships I was on. I know adding more elevators is not possible now but I guess the point Im trying to make is the elevator crowds will only be that much worse with more passengers on board. Especially if she is jammed to capacity and with the deals they are running right now on my sailing, I feel like she will be.

Edited January 23, 2015 by ryano

[Clarea]

How many people do the new cabins increase the capacity of the Freedom class ships by? I never really had the sense that more people aboard was something that would particularly enhance the cruise experience.:rolleyes:

If they put in the same number of staterooms as they did on NV, then the increase would probably be 160-200, depending on how many 3/4 guests they get.

[orville99]

If they put in the same number of staterooms as they did on NV, then the increase would probably be 160-200, depending on how many 3/4 guests they get.

 

 

Probably a solid rangr. I think I saw the number 67 somewhere on these threads, so it would be at least 134, and from the deck plans it looks like a lot of them can hold 3 or 4.

 

 

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[A2Mich]

If they put in the same number of staterooms as they did on NV, then the increase would probably be 160-200, depending on how many 3/4 guests they get.

 

 

With the info I got of 67 new cabins, your estimate is probably pretty close

 

 

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[Ourusualbeach]

How many people do the new cabins increase the capacity of the Freedom class ships by? I never really had the sense that more people aboard was something that would particularly enhance the cruise experience.:rolleyes:

 

67 cabins added which is 134 pax. 16 of those cabins can hold 4 so add 32 which would be 166 additional pax.

 

I'm just curious as to how they increased the lifeboat capacity. As it was before they added the cabins the captain was telling us that there are far more berths already on board than there was lifeboat capacity. He said that they could sail at full capacity yet still have many empty cabins on board when more people booked 4 into a quad cabin.

 

While they did add 166 berths that may not have increased the capacity by that much.

[Clarea]

With the info I got of 67 new cabins, your estimate is probably pretty close

 

My estimate was based on 84 staterooms, which I believe is what was added to NV. I'd lower the estimate if FR only got 67 staterooms.

[MADflyer]

I think the number of new cabins is 77, with 44 on deck 12, including a couple of 'family' cabins up front that hold 6 passengers each along with 29 cabins down on deck 3.

 

The 160 to 200 additional passenger range seems about right.

[A2Mich]

My estimate was based on 84 staterooms, which I believe is what was added to NV. I'd lower the estimate if FR only got 67 staterooms.

 

With the official number I got from RCI of 67 (of course that may not be 100% accurate either) if a fair number of them are 3-4 pax (and at least 2 cabins are FO designed for 5-6), you're probably still fairly close. My guess is from 150-180 more pax.

 

 

 

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[Clarea]

...I'm just curious as to how they increased the lifeboat capacity. ...

Maybe they reduced the number of crewmembers.;)

[Teacherloves2Cruise]

Several hundred I believe? My biggest concern is the elevators. They were already over crowded and Freedom almost needs another whole new bank of them. Seems I had to plan way in advance and come up with a strategy to get up and down anywhere much worse than the other two RCI ships I was on. I know adding more elevators is not possible now but I guess the point Im trying to make is the elevator crowds will only be that much worse with more passengers on board. Especially if she is jammed to capacity and with the deals they are running right now on my sailing, I feel like she will be.

 

For me, it is deck space near the pool and the buffet. So many people like to be by the pool on sea days. Most everyone eats breakfast and lunch at the buffet. That may feel quite tight. Because I do so much eating on cruises, I never take an elevator except with luggage. The crowd waiting most times also dissuades me from taking one.

[ryano]

I never take an elevator except with luggage. The crowd waiting most times also dissuades me from taking one.

 

I dont blame you :) If I could walk, no one would EVER see me on a cruise ship elevator again. Ever!

 

Maybe 180-200 more passengers wont be such a big deal.

Edited January 23, 2015 by ryano

[orville99]

With the official number I got from RCI of 67 (of course that may not be 100% accurate either) if a fair number of them are 3-4 pax (and at least 2 cabins are FO designed for 5-6), you're probably still fairly close. My guess is from 150-180 more pax.

 

 

 

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I think the difference between the official 67, and the 77 count that some people are getting is that there are 10 cabins on deck three that were constructed either during, or sometime in between, the "Oasis-izing" work done a few years ago and the current dry dock that are being counted as "new".

[MADflyer]

Maybe they reduced the number of crewmembers.;)

 

Let's hope that is not the case. They can easily add additional Viking rafts for crew.

 

I wonder if RCI have bought or considered buying any of the new hybrid LIFECRAFT lifeboat / liferaft systems now available from Viking. Not sure if these give them any flexibility in this area.

 

http://www.viking-life.com/viking.nsf/public/passenger-lifecraft.html

[Clarea]

I dont blame you :) If I could walk, no one would EVER see me on a cruise ship elevator again. Ever!

 

Maybe 180-200 more passengers wont be such a big deal.

It does not sound like a big deal, but because Freedom class is basically a stretched Voyager class, I always felt a bit more crowded on Freedom, especially in the theater and Windjammer. The stretch added around 500 pax, and now this makes it even more tight.

 

In other words, I feel like the 200 or so pax added to Navigator still makes it less crowded than an unmodified Freedom class ship.

[orville99]

I dont blame you :) If I could walk, no one would EVER see me on a cruise ship elevator again. Ever!

 

Maybe 180-200 more passengers wont be such a big deal.

 

DW will likely be recovering from double knee replacement in March, and stairs will not be an option for her either. I wish they would designate an elevator for pax with ADA requirements (maybe key card activated?) that would alleviate the problems.

[Clarea]

Let's hope that is not the case. They can easily add additional Viking rafts for crew.

 

I wonder if RCI have bought or considered buying any of the new hybrid LIFECRAFT lifeboat / liferaft systems now available from Viking. Not sure if these give them any flexibility in this area.

 

http://www.viking-life.com/viking.nsf/public/passenger-lifecraft.html

That system looks pretty slick. I wonder how small it is when it's packed up on the ship.

[MADflyer]

I think the difference between the official 67, and the 77 count that some people are getting is that there are 10 cabins on deck three that were constructed either during, or sometime in between, the "Oasis-izing" work done a few years ago and the current dry dock that are being counted as "new".

 

Yes, if they were open for sale prior to this dry-dock, that would be the case.

 

It is then interesting that they did not add those to Liberty previously when they 'Oasis-ized' her around the same time.

 

It is interesting that RCI did not feature those 'new cabins' on their revitalization flyers where they featured all the new additions being done to each ship.

 

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/Flyers/12028421_Revit_QuickReference_Guide.pdf

 

It is also interesting that the 5 'deck plan websites' I just checked on the internet all had them wrong and did not show those cabins on their current Freedom featured deck plans.

 

That is sure a lot of incorrect information out there concerning those cabins.

[MADflyer]

That system looks pretty slick. I wonder how small it is when it's packed up on the ship.

 

They can place 4 of them in each unit. They each hold 200 passengers. That means that they can hold 800 passengers each in about the area of one current life boat.

 

I think their greatest advantage is that they can be used in various 'list' situation and they also have a 'chute' system for disabled, the elderly and children that improve the evacuation.

[John&LaLa]

Let's hope that is not the case. They can easily add additional Viking rafts for crew.

 

 

http://www.viking-life.com/viking.nsf/public/passenger-lifecraft.html

 

I used to tell my son those were depth charges in case we came under attack by submarines

[orville99]

Yes, if they were open for sale prior to this dry-dock, that would be the case.

 

It is then interesting that they did not add those to Liberty previously when they 'Oasis-ized' her around the same time.

 

It is interesting that RCI did not feature those 'new cabins' on their revitalization flyers where they featured all the new additions being done to each ship.

 

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/Flyers/12028421_Revit_QuickReference_Guide.pdf

 

It is also interesting that the 5 'deck plan websites' I just checked on the internet all had them wrong and did not show those cabins on their current Freedom featured deck plans.

 

That is sure a lot of incorrect information out there concerning those cabins.

 

Those cabins show up on both Liberty and Indy deck plans.

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/ships/ship/decks/deck/home.do?deckCode=03&shipCode=ID&shipProfile=1585&sailDate=1150125&hasNavigation=false

[wilmingtech]

Seeing as they are overhauling the Azipods on the Freedom, can anyone speculate as to whether will they be doing a test run before the 28th to make sure everything is working correctly?

[MADflyer]

Those cabins show up on both Liberty and Indy deck plans.

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/findacruise/ships/ship/decks/deck/home.do?deckCode=03&shipCode=ID&shipProfile=1585&sailDate=1150125&hasNavigation=false

 

Thanks, it seems the movement of the private dining rooms wording creates an optical illusion that they were not there prior.

 

I saw them directly this time on your link, but they are still missing from many deck plans out there at agencies and deck plan websites, which is what I was commenting on that I found interesting, not the fact that they did not exist prior.

 

It is amazing how much 'incorrect' info is still out there on these cabins, that seem to have existed for some time now.

[orville99]

I used to tell my son those were depth charges in case we came under attack by submarines

 

When we were on Enchantment in October, they held a crew training session with one of these in the main pool.