Freedom of the Seas -- review of 10/4-11 sailing

[SimonTemplar]

We just returned from our first sailing on Freedom of the Seas, and we wanted to add our experiences to the collective knowledge posted here at Cruise Critic.

 

We sailed Sunday, October 4 and returned a week later (7 nights onboard). The itinerary was:

 

Day 1: Embark at Port Canaveral

Day 2: CocoCay

Day 3: At Sea

Day 4: St. Thomas

Day 5: St. Maarten

Day 6: At Sea

Day 7: At Sea

 

We had 11 people in our party, including 7 rookies. Me, DW, and DDs (3 3-year-olds) were in 8200, a family stateroom that was perfect for us. The girls had their own room with bunk beds and an air mattress we brought with us (which meant we also had to pack an air pump) and they loved their private room with a door. So did we because we could relax in the living room, play Rook a couple of nights, enjoy our anniversary champagne on another night, and not worry about waking them, which was important because they skipped naps every day of the cruise except one.

 

DW and I have cruised before on Norwegian, and I've cruised before on Carnival. FoS was our first RCI cruise, so in a sense, DW and I were also rookies on this cruise, but rookies with some experience.

 

We booked this cruise on the last day of January 2015, and we took advantage of both the DreamWorks package offered through our travel agent and the BOG50%O.

 

We live in Atlanta, and drove the 502 miles to Port Canaveral. We planned to leave at 5:00 A.M. Saturday morning, put the girls in the car in their PJs in hopes they would sleep in their car seats, stay at the Best Western in Cocoa Beach, have a little beach time Saturday afternoon, have a nice breakfast at the BW Sunday morning, pick up our 40% off PC parking voucher at the front desk when we checked out, and be at the terminal between 10:30 and 10:45 for embarkation. A nice plan.

 

We left at 5:40 A.M. in the midst of a thunderstorm, we returned home for flip-flops and left again at 6:00 A.M., the girls never slept on the way to Cocoa, but the heavy rain did stop before we hit I-285, we did have beach time Saturday afternoon, the BW breakfast was tasty (note: the elevator at our BW building was quite possibly the s-l-o-w-est elevator currently operating in the United States), parking at the PC terminal was $72 for the week, and we were onboard by 11:15 Sunday morning.

 

I plan on recapping our days, features of the ship, some of the activities, including Adventure Ocean, our MDR and WJ experiences, and our stateroom. We brought back the Cruise Compasses and the Aquanauts programs. If you have any questions, let us know and we'll answer as best we can. But if the questions are about cocktails and drinks of the day, we had 1 scotch and soda and 2 Redhook Longhammer IPAs during the entire cruise, so we are not the best resource for alcohol Qs.

 

More to come!

[CookieDiva]

Good start. Looking forward to reading the rest.

[ddebaets]

Great Start!! Taking the same cruise in April! Excited to hear the rest of your review!

[schusterj]

Excited to read your post. We are leaving on Nov. 1 and will be in the same cabin. Would love to see a cabin picture if you have one.

[pmfan]

We are leaving on Nov.1 as well and I am interested in the menus for each night. (ex. which night is Saffron, Basil, etc.)

[loeytalldog]

Thanks for starting your review! Looking forward to the rest of it!

[ken_nyc]

Thank you! Appreciate you taking the time to post.

[swoopy2110]

Looking forward to reading the rest :)

[ommax2]

Can't wait to read more... :)

[BlueSkySailing]

Also looking forward to reading more. Did I read that you only paid $72 for parking at the terminal? I thought parking was $15 a day and a total of $120. Is there a cheaper why parking at the terminal? Can you prepay?

[SimonTemplar]

I was impressed by how smoothly embarkation proceeded at Port Canaveral. Dropping off DW, the girls, and the luggage in front of the terminal at 10:45 was easy. Checking in was also easy, and we were sitting in Windjammer for lunch by 11:45. We had 5 backpacks and a stroller to keep us in swimsuits, a change of clothes for the dining room, and diversions until our stateroom was ready at 1:30.

 

After checking out 8200, the largest stateroom we have ever had (but the bathroom was still the usual, s-m-all size), we changed into our swimsuits and headed to the H2O Zone.

 

Chilly! The wind, pretty much 20 mph throughout the afternoon, turned the sprayground into a perpetual misting machine, which is great if you're running the Peachtree Road Race and need to cool off. The girls did not enjoy being splashed indiscriminately (more on that later) and the water guns were completely lame-o, so we headed for the kids' lazy river, which was a lot of fun for them and us, but also chilly.

 

After about 45 minutes of wet frivolity, we went back to the stateroom to change into dry clothes before checking out Adventure Ocean, the kids' playroom and activity center, on deck 12. Unfortunately, we got there a little early and the girls wanted to try every driving game available in the arcade. 3-year-olds have no chance to succeed on any of the Fast and Furious tracks, but then neither do I, so I am not mocking my daughters' driving abilities.

 

When the door opened to Adventure Ocean, we liked the rooms, the features, the counselors, and the girls loved the slide. Hooray! A place for the girls to go if we signed up for a shore excursion that might be too much of a challenge for them … and us.

 

We then checked out the Royal Promenade and the girls enjoyed the bridge that changes colors. We must have crossed that bridge 4 times before we could herd them farther down the trail, past the Bull and Bear, the Morgan, the cafe, the cupcake shop, and it was great to see them enjoy the sights of that thoroughfare.

 

And then it was time to head to the main dining room for the early seating in Leonardo's on deck 3. We were there at 5:20 and had to wait a few minutes before the doors opened.

 

More about the MDR later, and I'll apologize now for the late posting, but so many tasks to take care of once we returned home and I'm trying to fit this recap in as best I can. I'll try to reply to questions tomorrow. Thank you for reading this far!

[Russ Lomas]

We just booked 8200 on a future cruise on the Freedom a couple hours ago for our in-laws. I would love to hear more about the set up of the cabin - number of windows, looks kind of like 3 "rooms" from pictures I found - a bedroom with a curtain (how many windows in this room), a living area with a couple of chairs and a pull out couch (2 windows here right?) and the small washroom and the little room with the bunks to the right side (no window in this one right?)

 

We have one of the new panoramic family rooms booked for the same cruise (1804 on deck 12) and are really excited to have it booked. It is supposed to be about 100 square feet bigger than 8200, has one and a half bathrooms (imagine how small the half will be if you thought your full bathroom was small), and full floor to ceiling windows.)

[SimonTemplar]

Also looking forward to reading more. Did I read that you only paid $72 for parking at the terminal? I thought parking was $15 a day and a total of $120. Is there a cheaper why parking at the terminal? Can you prepay?

 

Here's the quote from the Port Canaveral Web site regarding their partnership program with certain hotels:

 

Driving to Port Canaveral?

Many cruise passengers driving to Port Canaveral arrive at least one day before their cruise and stay in a local hotel, yet they would prefer the convenience of parking near their ship at the Port rather than taking a hotel shuttle. If this is your desire, why not save 40% on Port Canaveral parking?

 

Port Canaveral has partnered with 20 of our local hotels that now offer a Port Canaveral discount voucher at check out. The program is very simple. When making a hotel reservation with any of the active partner hotels listed below, tell them that you would like to take advantage of the Port Canaveral parking voucher program. During checkout the morning of your cruise, the hotel front desk will issue a voucher that you present to our parking attendant and you will receive your discount on the spot.

 

And the link to the list of partner hotels is http://www.portcanaveral.com/PortCanaveral/media/Cruise-Assets/Parking-Voucher-Program_3.pdf

Edited October 13, 2015 by SimonTemplar

[Russ Lomas]

Here's the quote from the Port Canaveral Web site regarding their partnership program with certain hotels:

Driving to Port Canaveral?

Many cruise passengers driving to Port Canaveral arrive at least one day before their cruise and stay in a local hotel, yet they would prefer the convenience of parking near their ship at the Port rather than taking a hotel shuttle. If this is your desire, why not save 40% on Port Canaveral parking?

 

Port Canaveral has partnered with 20 of our local hotels that now offer a Port Canaveral discount voucher at check out. The program is very simple. When making a hotel reservation with any of the active partner hotels listed below, tell them that you would like to take advantage of the Port Canaveral parking voucher program. During checkout the morning of your cruise, the hotel front desk will issue a voucher that you present to our parking attendant and you will receive your discount on the spot.

And the link to the list of partner hotels is http://www.portcanaveral.com/PortCanaveral/media/Cruise-Assets/Parking-Voucher-Program_3.pdf

Thanks for that info and the pdf file. We are staying at the Comfort Suites and it looks like they participate in the program.

[SimonTemplar]

You're right, no window in the little bunk room, 2 round windows in the living room, and 1 round window in the bedroom. The couch is more like a futon than a pullout, but it's a better couch than any futon and a better bed than any pullout sofa. And lots of storage! 8200 was a great room for us. You do have to keep the curtains closed at night or the bridge will call you (and it could be at 2:00 A.M.) and ask you, very politely, to close the curtains.

[EllaDuChien]

More about the MDR later, and I'll apologize now for the late posting, but so many tasks to take care of once we returned home and I'm trying to fit this recap in as best I can. I'll try to reply to questions tomorrow. Thank you for reading this far!

 

I would love to hear about how the girls liked Adventure Ocean...we leave on Sunday and I am travelling with my 3yo (almost 4) DD.

 

Can't wait to hear more overall, we love the Freedom and will be on her for our third time on Sunday!

[SimonTemplar]

I would love to hear about how the girls liked Adventure Ocean...we leave on Sunday and I am travelling with my 3yo (almost 4) DD.

 

The girls had a great time in Adventure Ocean, but they were initially reluctant to go with the counselors when we dropped them off Wednesday morning so we could go shopping in Charlotte Amelie. I never should have mentioned that DW and I were leaving the ship to go onto the island. Will I never learn?

 

After we finally persuaded them that we weren't leaving the ship (and to those gentle readers horrified that we would lie to our children, I say "whatever"), they skipped off with the counselors. When we returned to the ship about 12:30, we discovered an eerily empty Adventure Ocean. All the happy and laughing children were gone! To lunch. We found the girls having a giggly lunch session with counselors and their fellow Aquanauts in Windjammer. They told us they had a great time playing, reading, and sliding, so the next day when we dropped them off at AO, they were excited and they had another big time. And we were happy, too.

[casinostreer]

Boarding Freedom on Sunday on the same itinerary. Glad to hear that your girls had a great time in Adventure ocean. Our 3 year old daughter has seen pictures of the place and is very excited about going. Will following your review. Hope you had a great time!

[JKbermuda2014]

Looking forward to seeing your daily compasses! Thanks for sharing

[SimonTemplar]

In Leonardo's, we had a table with a view of the ocean for all 11 of us, a satisfactory and personable waiter (Miss Pauline), and her trusty sidekick (Miss Rose). The first night's menu was Mojo. I do suggest that parents should bring to the main dining room some snacks for any hungry children at the table because it always seems to take forever to be served appetizers and entrees the first night. Rolls, that's a different matter. Only one of our girls was interested in the tasty rolls, but boy, was she interested.

 

The other two needed the distractions of the children's menu and cuddles to stay pacified until appetizers were served a little after 6:00. That's a long wait for the little ones and some adults. The appetizers were acceptable, entrees were acceptable to very good, and the desserts were also acceptable. We quickly learned that the food in the main dining room at dinner is acceptable and not exceptional. Windjammer fare may be better most nights because of the variety, but food is subjective, which is why I've never understood why some people ask the waiter what he or she likes on the menu. If I ask the waiter what he likes and he replies "gazpacho," I am not suddenly going to be able to stomach gazpacho.

 

While we're on the subject of food, I strongly advise avoiding the white or wheat bread at breakfast unless you have an affinity for tough, chewy crust; instead, choose the croissants. If you like a variety of fruit, breakfast will be good to you. I advise trying Leonardo's for breakfast either day 2 or day 3 and then deciding whether you want the variety and hubbub of Windjammer or the more limited choices and calmness of the MDR. As for lunch, we always ate at Windjammer (lunch hours are 11:30 to 3:00), but the Cafe Promenade had its supporters among our party and others enjoyed the salad bar in Leonardo's (but lunch hours in the MDR are only 11:45 to 1:00).

 

After dinner, we returned to our stateroom to unpack, prepare the bunkroom for our brood, put the girls to bed, and review the day 2 Cruise Compass. DW was a little worried about our girl in the top bunk, but with the bed rail, the proximity of the cabin wall, and an extra rolled-up towel under the sheet, our girl wasn't going anywhere, and we had talked many, many times with her about what to do when she wanted to get down. We had a laugh the next morning when her 2 sisters came into our room and told us their sister was ready to get down and I needed to come get her out of the top bunk!

 

And we should have left our monitoring system at home. The bunkroom does not have an outlet.

 

We checked out the captain's log on the bedroom TV (also a TV in the living room, but that TV was initially confusing to me because its starting channel setting was 44, which gives you a blank screen and the impression that the TV is not on). Our captain thought our chances of spending day 2 at CocoCay looked poor at best, but we would know more in the morning. The apparent wind readings were stuck above 40 mph and you could feel the boat heave and sway. DW toddled off to check on her parents, and I read a couple of pertinent passages regarding St. Thomas and St. Maarten in the guide books we brought along.

 

When DW returned, I staggered to the guest services desk to claim our cup for the soda package, another bonus from our travel agent for booking through them. Then it was sleep time in our comfortable bed, which was occasionally interrupted by the clack-clack-clack of the wooden hangers in the closet as they collided.

 

Would we be able to play on CocoCay on day 2? Would our tender find the splendor of a private island? Or would we spend an extra, unplanned (and unwanted) day at sea? Stay tuned!

[Russ Lomas]

You're right, no window in the little bunk room, 2 round windows in the living room, and 1 round window in the bedroom. The couch is more like a futon than a pullout, but it's a better couch than any futon and a better bed than any pullout sofa. And lots of storage! 8200 was a great room for us. You do have to keep the curtains closed at night or the bridge will call you (and it could be at 2:00 A.M.) and ask you, very politely, to close the curtains.

Thanks for the additional info. My in-law wants me to ask you two more things...How do you thing the cabin would be for a couple with a 13 year old and twin 9 year olds? Did you like the set up of the cabin or would you have preferred it more open concept like the family oceanview cabins on decks 7 and 9 at the bow.

Edited October 13, 2015 by Russ Lomas
found info elsewhere

[cruisedreamin-gang]

Here's the quote from the Port Canaveral Web site regarding their partnership program with certain hotels:

 

Driving to Port Canaveral?

Many cruise passengers driving to Port Canaveral arrive at least one day before their cruise and stay in a local hotel, yet they would prefer the convenience of parking near their ship at the Port rather than taking a hotel shuttle. If this is your desire, why not save 40% on Port Canaveral parking?

 

Port Canaveral has partnered with 20 of our local hotels that now offer a Port Canaveral discount voucher at check out. The program is very simple. When making a hotel reservation with any of the active partner hotels listed below, tell them that you would like to take advantage of the Port Canaveral parking voucher program. During checkout the morning of your cruise, the hotel front desk will issue a voucher that you present to our parking attendant and you will receive your discount on the spot.

 

And the link to the list of partner hotels is http://www.portcanaveral.com/PortCanaveral/media/Cruise-Assets/Parking-Voucher-Program_3.pdf

 

Does anyone know if other cruise ports do this with hotels? Port Everglades especially

[SimonTemplar]

Thanks for the additional info. My in-law wants me to ask you two more things...How do you thing the cabin would be for a couple with a 13 year old and twin 9 year olds? Did you like the set up of the cabin or would you have preferred it more open concept like the family oceanview cabins on decks 7 and 9 at the bow.

 

If our girls were older, 8200 would also be a good choice. The bunk beds and the door give 2 of them their own room (albeit small) and the living room becomes a third bedroom in the evening. During the day, you have a sofa, 3 chairs, a desk, a table, and a couple of storage ottomans, so lots of surfaces for sitting and going over the day's activities. My only hesitation when the girls are older would be 4 females and 1 small bathroom. I would probably go to the locker room to shower and shave!

 

As for the more open stateroom plans, I prefer the layout of 8200 but the open layout may make for more of a communal atmosphere.

[loeytalldog]

In Leonardo's, we had a table with a view of the ocean for all 11 of us, a satisfactory and personable waiter (Miss Pauline), and her trusty sidekick (Miss Rose).

 

I think we've had Miss Rose as our waiter on FOS, did she sing everyone's name?

[Podie]

Does anyone know if other cruise ports do this with hotels? Port Everglades especially

 

Yes, there are some at Port Everglades. Just google it and several come up. I think one is a Comfort Suites but there are several.