‘But Who’s Running Canada?!’ - Freedom of the Seas March 13 2016 Review

[CanadaCathi]

I want to do the chef table for the experience but I am so damn picky that they might kick me out!!!

 

There were a few diners with some pretty particular requests and allergies/intolerances, and the chef did a great job of accommodating them. But you really don't have much say in what you're served, which you might be more nervous about.

[CanadaCathi]

Nice. Your daughter is so cute!! Two peas in a pod!! We loved cozumel last time we were there! !

 

Thanks! Yes, we look a bit alike, I'll never be able to claim she isn't mine :).

 

It would be tough to pick a favorite stop, but Cozumel would come out slightly ahead of Labadee for me, and then Grand Cayman, and Falmouth would of course be last. Poor Falmouth.

[mtns2sea]

Considering that were were 'regular' resort guests in addition to cruise beach break day pass guests (we saw a few other folks from our ship), it did not feel crowded at all, I was pleasantly surprised. I talked to someone who did a day pass who ended up booking a week stay there for next year, it really is that amazing, I certainly considered it!

 

Thanks. I will have to add this to the possibilities list next time we are in Cozumel.:)

[nativetexan]

Thanks for taking the time to do this and share your vacation story with us! Your daughter is adorable and a lucky little lady! Fun trip!!

[mumeof3]

You are makng me wish we did not book the Eastern cruise but the one you were on😰well maybe we will book something again when we are on ours in May

[mi_momof3]

Subscribed! We are on the Freedom Easter week 2017. Planning ahead!

[cruzin Phillis]

There were a few diners with some pretty particular requests and allergies/intolerances, and the chef did a great job of accommodating them. But you really don't have much say in what you're served, which you might be more nervous about.

I think that's it. I'm nervous about what would be served. But it looks awesome.

 

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

[reallyhooked]

Excellent review

[CanadaCathi]

And then there were none. It was our final day.

 

I woke up on Day 7 and realized I never wanted to drink again. Ever. At least until I got off the ship. I’d finally hit my alcohol wall, so it was nice to learn that I had one. Thanks, Royal.

 

This morning I had reserved the DreamWorks Character Breakfast. This was the kind of thing that Jelly had done at Disney World when she was four years old and had really loved, but it was a little underwhelming for a 7-year old. I waffled a bit on booking it at all but figured it’d be something to look forward to on the last day. Really, it was a stupid idea, because we did NOT want to be up at 7am on our last day! HEED MY WARNING. Do it earlier in the cruise if you decide to do it. Our reservation had said 7:30a, but the Compass said the doors opened at 8a, so we split the different and were there for 7:45a. We were late. We got a cruddy table off to the side. I should’ve gone with my gut. Damn you, sleepiness! <shakes fist angrily>

 

The characters they had available were Fiona, Puss in Boots, and Po. After they were introduced they walked around for individual pics with the kids, which was a great way to do it instead of having everyone make a mad dash to line up. Po did a kung fu thing with the kids that Jelly liked.

 

 

The menu was really cute and had some very kid-friendly (chocolate) items, however everything was horrifyingly cold and rubbery. Jelly ate a pastry and that was it; I had a single bite of my waffles and tapped out. I’d been warned about this but didn’t see how it could really be that bad – IT WAS THAT BAD. So there you have it, as honest as I could make it.

 

 

After breakfast we went for a swim; it was sunny but hilariously windy on deck. After that it was time for the galley tour! The galley tour was interesting, but there were a lot of people in the group, and we didn’t get to see as much as I’d hoped. I really wanted to see more of the serving logistics, and the walk-ins and stuff like that, but I guess it makes sense for various reasons why we couldn’t. A note if you plan on doing the tour; you’re supposed to wear close-toed shoes.

 

Escargot, anyone?

 

 

For lunch I’d heard that there was a ‘FreedomFest’ event on the Promenade that sounded Prom-ising, so we headed that way and snagged a table in front of Sorrento’s while they were finishing setting up. This was an AWESOME thing, don’t miss it if they do it– they set up a whole bunch of different food stations. Indian food in front of Sorrento’s with rice, curry etc; a chocolate station in front of the pub; a roast pork and apple sauce station; a veggies and dip/cheese station (omg the cheese was so freaking good!); a bread station; several drink stations, and a giant apple pie/ice cream/cookie station. Everything other than the drinks was at no additional charge, as a thank you and good bye. It was really nice and we enjoyed it very much.

 

 

That afternoon Jelly went to Adventure Ocean one last time, I loaded $20 on her SeaPass card to blow in the arcade, and I went to the adult pool FINALLY.

Ok, the adult pool was gross. To be fair it was a sea day, so it was wayyyyyy crowded, as to be expected. I had to do unmentionable things to get a chair that was wedged in so tight I think I got someone else’s suntan lotion on me. The pool deck was littered with spilled cups and debris, and the pool itself was filled with people positively desperate for that last bit of fun. They ordered drinks from the pool… talked to new friends in the pool… didn’t get out of the pool for hours and hours… you get the idea. The kiddie pool was way safer that last day if you were concerned about hygiene.

 

A note here on the hot tubs – I went in once or twice when I had a little chill, but really, who’s enjoying a hot tub when it’s sunny and above 80 degrees? I would have LOVED to have gone swimming or hot tubbing after dinner, in the evening, but at no time on the cruise could I find one still open. This was a very disappointing item for Jelly, who absolutely adores a ‘night swim’, and a -1 for Freedom and +1 for Disney. I don’t know if they were supposed to stagger the closings while they were cleaning or what, if anyone knows the deal here with pools closing up by 8p let me know.

 

At some point this day there was an announcement that there had been some issues with one of the passengers the night prior, and that we needed to meet up with the coast guard near Key West; I never did learn what happened, but it didn’t slow us down too much or delay us.

 

So after the Beer & Desperation Stew that was the adult pool we cleaned up, packed up (wahhhhh!), and then headed to the MDR for a final dinner. We were excited to see our besties that we hadn’t seen in a few days and catch up and swap stories. The menu the last night was the one that this website censors that is a type of mushroom, and was probably my favorite. I had a non-alcoholic Passion Guava Lava and the chowder and ceviche to start (both pretty so-so), while Jelly had a Chicken Caesar salad and INHALED it (note, the chicken was breaded, which I wasn’t expecting but she was loving). For dinner she had two orders of gyoza (I asked them to put some plain rice on the plate to make it a main, which was perfect), I had one order and, uh, a few cheese rolls, and then she forced down her favorite Chocolate Sensation for dessert while I had the Pavlova, which was just perfect and the only dessert I really truly loved; it was light, it wasn’t overly sweet, it was fruity, it was a terrific end. We bid a fond farewell to our dining staff, and headed to the show.

 

Yes, we FINALLY made it to a show that last evening, the ‘Happily Ever After’ performance. They had some technical issues at the 6:30p show so it was postponed to 8p and the timing worked out perfectly for us. Even Jelly liked it. I thought the singing was amazing and the dancing etc. very well done.

 

 

Then it was our last ship sleep.

[cruzin Phillis]

You came back!!! I was hoping we didn't scare you away!!! The last night is a somber one.

[CanadaCathi]

That last morning was a rough one. Jelly had cried herself to sleep the night prior, tres desole that the trip was over, and I had woken up in the night sensing weird ship movement (the only time on the trip), and then woken up bright and early as I tend to do when I have an alarm set.

 

 

We decided to eat a nice quiet, calm, and graceful breakfast in the MDR, which we’d done on Magic the last day and had really liked, and it was a good decision. I was still able to have my fresh OJ and the food was much better. We were in a really late group to depart the ship (like, #23), so weren’t scheduled to leave until 9:15a. Our group was supposed to wait in the Promenade area, so we hung out in the coffee shop in comfy chairs until it was time.

I’d booked a shuttle to the airport for 9:30 that would leave at 9:45 so I was a little tense, but despite the long lineup at that time (stretching through the casino), it moved quickly and we found our bags right away.

 

Customs Tip: You can’t all do this, because then you’ll ruin it for me next year, but you have two options to go through customs; the regular way, after you’ve picked up your luggage, and with a porter’s assistance. At first I headed to the regular line up, but it was NUTS; then I noticed there was a special line for the porters. Ah ha! So we flagged someone down and hopped over in that line. It was easily twice as fast, and for the price of a tip I was willing to pay that (again, most impatient person ever). Only to find out when we got outside that we had to stand around for ½ hour and wait for more people to fill up a shuttle anyhow. Ah well!

 

 

The remainder of our travel home was uneventful; we had a very short layover at LaGuardia and made it safely back to the sketchy hotel where we’d left the car (where my driver’s side mirror was damaged, grr, thankfully I drive a POS car), and thankfully there was no snow since I was wearing capris (I just couldn’t bear to put jeans on!). One final tip – if you can, take the following day off work. I’ve only just started doing this the past few vacations and it makes a lot of difference. For one, you have a shorter work week to come back to, and every little bit helps. It also gives you a buffer in case of travel delays, and a day to catch up on laundry and wring your hands and lament that you’re not still on a cruise ship (mentally adjust), and for me, to get a jump start on all those emails while not technically being ‘back’ to work yet.

 

Final Summary –

We decided that we liked Royal more than Disney. Don’t get me wrong, Disney dazzles – they know how to impress everyone from the baby to the grandpa. When I ate dinner in Animator’s Palate I actually burst into tears, it was so beautiful and frickin’ magical. REAL TEARS. But given the choice to go on two Royal cruises or one Disney cruise? Yeah, I’m going to take two Royal cruises.

 

Room – For the money Royal wins hands down in our book. No, it wasn’t as new or pretty or perfect as the Magic, but it was bigger and we had a balcony (still can’t believe there are people who never go out on their balconies) and I liked the layout more and there was more storage and that shower was perfect. I missed having the drop-down bed for Jelly, but I could’ve slept on the floor of the closet I was so exhausted, so didn’t mind the single bed as much as I thought I would.

 

 

Ship – There were little things here and there that were nicer on Magic, like the poolside snack bar. And the Magic is definitely a pretty ship, and has nice touches like the special shaped cutlery, and people pouring my kid’s ketchup in a Mickey shape. But Jelly liked the Freestyle machines on Freedom, and Sorrento’s. I think if she were more into Disney and the characters in general that would have been a bigger deal. But the lineups to see the characters on the Disney ship were usually crazy – people were NUTS for photo ops on that ship. I will admit that we dressed up for Pirate Night on the Magic, which was fun, but it was just more stuff to pack. And don’t get me started up again on the Fish Extenders pressure.

 

I don’t gamble (other than with my liver) so couldn’t care less about a casino, although I didn’t particularly like walking through it with my kid on FOS (you have to do this for a few events). So it was nice that Disney didn’t have this taking up space. The fireworks at sea on Magic were really hyped and were kind of cool, but Jelly was so exhausted and hot by the time the show started that she was over it, and we just mostly grumped at each other and cried, and it was impossible to find a spot where we got any cool over-the-water effects.

 

There seemed to be more scheduled ‘fun’ (activities) on the Magic, like wine tastings and Mixology classes and such, but I preferred having more down time on this trip, so didn’t feel like I was missing out.

 

Staff – I felt like the Disney ship folks had been drilled on how to be happy and magical, and that sometimes it was a little forced. I definitely didn’t feel a need to tip my housekeeping double or take a picture with my waitstaff like I did on Freedom. I loved those people! Why couldn’t they come home with me and make my beds and serve me cheese rolls?! I felt like the FOS team were very genuine. A perfect example; Disney shows bashed Carnival constantly, but at the end of Freedom’s ‘Happily Ever After’ show the announcer made a statement about how there were like 70+ nationalities among the crew, and that if they could live in harmony, so could the rest of the world; I loved that. Way to stay classy, Royal.

 

Food – I think presentation may have been a little nicer and there were more options on the Magic, but stacked up together, mediocre food is mediocre food; I’d rather have all the options of a Royal ship. My mum and I did the specialty brunch on Magic and it was OMG AMAZING – but I liked the Chef’s Table in the Windjammer just fine.

 

Kids Club – Definitely Disney has the advantage here. IT’S WHAT THEY DO. So it’s kind of unfair. And they have ridiculously awesome hand-washing stations, and more character visits.

 

 

But the Oasis Adventure Ocean looks supremely cool…

 

Miscellaneous – This is going to be really lame, but we liked the Freedom muster station much more than on Magic – on Magic we were outside crammed together like sardines in life vests; on Freedom we sat comfortably in the dining room. Yes, I get that it’s a safety drill. But I can learn about safety in a nice chair.

 

So in case you hadn’t figured it out, I RAN to rebook during our final sea day, which I hadn’t felt the burning need to do aboard Magic. We realized that we were Royal Caribbean people and happy with that. I sat down in the chair across from the agent and literally twirled my finger in the air in the internationally-recognized symbol for ‘another round’ or ‘let’s do this again’ and said, “Again, please, same dates, same ship, same port”.

 

Sadly I learned that Freedom was moving on, and since we loved the Radisson so much and I’d promised two nights there again, we decided that with the 30% onboard discount we could spring for Oasis, leaving out of Canaveral. So that’s what we’re doing next March Break!! Awesome, right?! They’ve got TWO Flow Riders, so we’re sure not to miss out. The only thing we miss is Grand Cayman (because of the tender; no Royal Palms next year sadly!). We are VERY excited, and have something to look forward to all over again!

 

Thanks for reading and keep those questions coming! And look for my Oasis of the Seas March 12 2017 review in oh, about a year :).

 

Happy sailing, no matter where you go, no matter what the ship, and no matter how long the trip!

[mtns2sea]

Fun review. Thanks again for writing it. We will be on the new Freedom itinerary out of Ft. Lauderdale next year.

[CanadaCathi]

Jelly got a ‘Marty’ souvenir, and the one evening when she was in Adventure Ocean I decided to take him on a tour. So here are some shots of the ship…

 

The arcade

 

 

A beautiful sunset

 

 

The H2O Zone

 

 

The Library

 

 

The pub

 

[Fox23]

Thanks so much for the review Cathi it was awesome! Really enjoyed hearing about your's and Jelly's adventures and it has made me super excited for my trip with my boyfriend in 2 weeks 6 days time :eek:

[CanadaCathi]

A Tour of the Promenade

 

 

Cocktail Hour

 

 

Big Winner

 

 

Live Music

 

 

Photo Op

 

[CanadaCathi]

Thanks so much for the review Cathi it was awesome! Really enjoyed hearing about your's and Jelly's adventures and it has made me super excited for my trip with my boyfriend in 2 weeks 6 days time :eek:

 

YAY! I LOVED reading Freedom reviews before I cruised, it totally helped get me ramped up (because we need to be MORE excited, right?!). I hope you both have a blast!

[CanadaCathi]

Fun review. Thanks again for writing it. We will be on the new Freedom itinerary out of Ft. Lauderdale next year.

 

Awesome, I loved Freedom and hope to see her again some day. Have fun on your trip!

[A&L_Ont]

Thanks for a great review.:)

[CanadaCathi]

Thanks for a great review.:)

 

You're welcome, I had fun :). I think Jelly is getting tired of me saying, "Do you remember..." and wanting to re-live it, lol!

[A&L_Ont]

You're welcome, I had fun :). I think Jelly is getting tired of me saying, "Do you remember..." and wanting to re-live it, lol!

 

The post cruise blues will fade with time.:)

[Cruzin-K]

menu the last night was the one that this website censors that is a type of mushroom

 

Only if you misspell shiitake

 

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

[cruzin Phillis]

That last morning was a rough one. Jelly had cried herself to sleep the night prior, tres desole that the trip was over, and I had woken up in the night sensing weird ship movement (the only time on the trip), and then woken up bright and early as I tend to do when I have an alarm set.

 

 

We decided to eat a nice quiet, calm, and graceful breakfast in the MDR, which we’d done on Magic the last day and had really liked, and it was a good decision. I was still able to have my fresh OJ and the food was much better. We were in a really late group to depart the ship (like, #23), so weren’t scheduled to leave until 9:15a. Our group was supposed to wait in the Promenade area, so we hung out in the coffee shop in comfy chairs until it was time.

I’d booked a shuttle to the airport for 9:30 that would leave at 9:45 so I was a little tense, but despite the long lineup at that time (stretching through the casino), it moved quickly and we found our bags right away.

 

Customs Tip: You can’t all do this, because then you’ll ruin it for me next year, but you have two options to go through customs; the regular way, after you’ve picked up your luggage, and with a porter’s assistance. At first I headed to the regular line up, but it was NUTS; then I noticed there was a special line for the porters. Ah ha! So we flagged someone down and hopped over in that line. It was easily twice as fast, and for the price of a tip I was willing to pay that (again, most impatient person ever). Only to find out when we got outside that we had to stand around for ½ hour and wait for more people to fill up a shuttle anyhow. Ah well!

 

 

The remainder of our travel home was uneventful; we had a very short layover at LaGuardia and made it safely back to the sketchy hotel where we’d left the car (where my driver’s side mirror was damaged, grr, thankfully I drive a POS car), and thankfully there was no snow since I was wearing capris (I just couldn’t bear to put jeans on!). One final tip – if you can, take the following day off work. I’ve only just started doing this the past few vacations and it makes a lot of difference. For one, you have a shorter work week to come back to, and every little bit helps. It also gives you a buffer in case of travel delays, and a day to catch up on laundry and wring your hands and lament that you’re not still on a cruise ship (mentally adjust), and for me, to get a jump start on all those emails while not technically being ‘back’ to work yet.

 

Final Summary –

We decided that we liked Royal more than Disney. Don’t get me wrong, Disney dazzles – they know how to impress everyone from the baby to the grandpa. When I ate dinner in Animator’s Palate I actually burst into tears, it was so beautiful and frickin’ magical. REAL TEARS. But given the choice to go on two Royal cruises or one Disney cruise? Yeah, I’m going to take two Royal cruises.

 

Room – For the money Royal wins hands down in our book. No, it wasn’t as new or pretty or perfect as the Magic, but it was bigger and we had a balcony (still can’t believe there are people who never go out on their balconies) and I liked the layout more and there was more storage and that shower was perfect. I missed having the drop-down bed for Jelly, but I could’ve slept on the floor of the closet I was so exhausted, so didn’t mind the single bed as much as I thought I would.

 

 

Ship – There were little things here and there that were nicer on Magic, like the poolside snack bar. And the Magic is definitely a pretty ship, and has nice touches like the special shaped cutlery, and people pouring my kid’s ketchup in a Mickey shape. But Jelly liked the Freestyle machines on Freedom, and Sorrento’s. I think if she were more into Disney and the characters in general that would have been a bigger deal. But the lineups to see the characters on the Disney ship were usually crazy – people were NUTS for photo ops on that ship. I will admit that we dressed up for Pirate Night on the Magic, which was fun, but it was just more stuff to pack. And don’t get me started up again on the Fish Extenders pressure.

 

I don’t gamble (other than with my liver) so couldn’t care less about a casino, although I didn’t particularly like walking through it with my kid on FOS (you have to do this for a few events). So it was nice that Disney didn’t have this taking up space. The fireworks at sea on Magic were really hyped and were kind of cool, but Jelly was so exhausted and hot by the time the show started that she was over it, and we just mostly grumped at each other and cried, and it was impossible to find a spot where we got any cool over-the-water effects.

 

There seemed to be more scheduled ‘fun’ (activities) on the Magic, like wine tastings and Mixology classes and such, but I preferred having more down time on this trip, so didn’t feel like I was missing out.

 

Staff – I felt like the Disney ship folks had been drilled on how to be happy and magical, and that sometimes it was a little forced. I definitely didn’t feel a need to tip my housekeeping double or take a picture with my waitstaff like I did on Freedom. I loved those people! Why couldn’t they come home with me and make my beds and serve me cheese rolls?! I felt like the FOS team were very genuine. A perfect example; Disney shows bashed Carnival constantly, but at the end of Freedom’s ‘Happily Ever After’ show the announcer made a statement about how there were like 70+ nationalities among the crew, and that if they could live in harmony, so could the rest of the world; I loved that. Way to stay classy, Royal.

 

Food – I think presentation may have been a little nicer and there were more options on the Magic, but stacked up together, mediocre food is mediocre food; I’d rather have all the options of a Royal ship. My mum and I did the specialty brunch on Magic and it was OMG AMAZING – but I liked the Chef’s Table in the Windjammer just fine.

 

Kids Club – Definitely Disney has the advantage here. IT’S WHAT THEY DO. So it’s kind of unfair. And they have ridiculously awesome hand-washing stations, and more character visits.

 

 

 

But the Oasis Adventure Ocean looks supremely cool…

 

Miscellaneous – This is going to be really lame, but we liked the Freedom muster station much more than on Magic – on Magic we were outside crammed together like sardines in life vests; on Freedom we sat comfortably in the dining room. Yes, I get that it’s a safety drill. But I can learn about safety in a nice chair.

 

So in case you hadn’t figured it out, I RAN to rebook during our final sea day, which I hadn’t felt the burning need to do aboard Magic. We realized that we were Royal Caribbean people and happy with that. I sat down in the chair across from the agent and literally twirled my finger in the air in the internationally-recognized symbol for ‘another round’ or ‘let’s do this again’ and said, “Again, please, same dates, same ship, same port”.

 

Sadly I learned that Freedom was moving on, and since we loved the Radisson so much and I’d promised two nights there again, we decided that with the 30% onboard discount we could spring for Oasis, leaving out of Canaveral. So that’s what we’re doing next March Break!! Awesome, right?! They’ve got TWO Flow Riders, so we’re sure not to miss out. The only thing we miss is Grand Cayman (because of the tender; no Royal Palms next year sadly!). We are VERY excited, and have something to look forward to all over again!

 

Thanks for reading and keep those questions coming! And look for my Oasis of the Seas March 12 2017 review in oh, about a year :).

 

Happy sailing, no matter where you go, no matter what the ship, and no matter how long the trip!

You review is hands down top 3 of my favorites!!! I am going to miss you (until next year!!)

 

My son is all into Mickey Mouse but the price for three on Disney is eye gauging :eek::eek::eek:

 

For that price, I can do 3 week long cruises on carnival, and two weeks with royal.

 

Went on Oasis and you and Jelly will love it. It really feels like a city. It will not disappoint. Thinking about going on Allure next year and do a B2B. I don't want to say good bye but I guess I have to for now!!! Stay in touch..don't forget to write!:D:D

[perfect match]

Cathi, Thanks for a great review! I've really enjoyed it, and yes, it has gotten me even more excited for our upcoming cruise on Freedom - if that is even possible! :D

[nativetexan]

I'm not even sailing on Freedom anytime in the foreseeable future but I LOVED the review. Sounds like you girls know how to party!!

 

My family sailed on Oasis in 2011 with another family and we all loved it! Great ship and loads to do. I'm certain we didn't see it all. Guess we'll have to go back...

 

Thanks for sharing your fabulous vacation. So glad you had a ball. Next year will be even more fun!

 

Cheers!!

[wolfganghowell]

Great review - I must warn you. Jelly's head might explode on Oasis. You have lots of time to prep and plan but keep in mind - Sabor, Izumi hibachi and Oasis of Dreams show.

 

best wishes! (I'll say hello to Royal Palms for you on June 1st!)