Liberty of the Seas, September 18th Sailing Review by First Time RCI Cruiser

[Getting Started]

Reading the reviews prior to my sailing was really useful, so I’d like to “pay it forward” and give you all my two cents. I have a lot to say/share, so this would probably take a couple of posts.

 

Before I get started, a little info about us. We were a group of six people (my wife, myself, our two daughters -4 & 2-, and mother- and aunt-in-law) with two inside cabins on deck 10, not connected, but close enough. We drove from (and back to) El Paso, TX.

 

Embarkation

We arrived at the Galveston Cruise Terminal around 12:15pm. I dropped off my family and our bags in front of terminal 2 and drove to EZ Cruise Parking to leave the car. We had prepaid for parking (around $48.00 since we opted out of the shuttle service) so I just walked back to the terminal. This whole process took only about 15-20 minutes. There was a bit of a line to get through the security checkpoint as well as to check-in and get our SeaPass cards, but both lines moved at a reasonable pace and we were on the ship around 1:30pm.

 

Stateroom

We had an interior cabin on the very aft of deck 10 (#1395). The stateroom was small, but we knew it would be like that. However, we had enough space to store our clothes and luggage. Our attendant came to introduce himself as soon as we arrived and told us his schedule (and if we had any preferences regarding when we would like to have our room made up) as well as some information regarding the Pullman beds, which he had promptly set up the first night. He was always very friendly and attentive to our requests as well as quick and thorough when making up the room. The only ‘bad’ thing we have to say about the room and the hotel is that there were no ironing facilities available for our use, which made it really inconvenient to get our clothes ready for both formal dinners. Other than that, we were really happy and our children loved sleeping and hanging out in the Pullman beds and playing with the towel decorations left by our stateroom attendant.

 

Pools

The main swimming pools were never too crowded, except when they had the various contests/competitions. We also didn’t have any issues finding a couple of loungers but this might have been due to the times when we were using the pools. We enjoyed hanging out there until around 1:00pm on sea days and a little bit after getting back on the ship on port days.

Splashaway Bay was a big hit with our children. They had one small, dual slide that our daughters could use but the other two had a minimum height restriction that my children didn’t meet. Maybe because of that and the fact that the children’s pool seemed to be busier during the times we were there, we would go back and forth between the main pools and this area.

 

Sports Deck

The Perfect Storm. All the water slides were very good. Cyclone and Typhoon were a little ‘rough’ on my back until I figured out that if I arched it, I could prevent some of the friction and go faster. There was a bit of a line a couple of times I wanted to use them, but never had to wait more than 3 or 4 minutes, if that. The Tidal Wave slide was short but super fast and fun. The line was non-existent when we tried it.

Flowrider. I had never done anything like this before so this was a highlight of my cruise. All the staff was really helpful in demonstrating how to ride and getting me ‘suited’ with the right board. There was always a line of about 4 to 8 people but it moved pretty fast. I only did boogie-boarding and I was happy that a couple of times I went they had divided the Flowrider with a big inflatable tube in the middle to allow two people to be on it at the same time. Overall, this was a great time and I could have spent a lot more time ‘perfecting’ my skills but I didn’t want to keep my family on the stands for too long.

Rock Climbing Wall. I tried this the last day and it was pretty good. This was probably the place where I had to wait in line the longest but, even here, the wait wasn’t more than 10 or 15 minutes. The staff was also really helpful in getting me suited up and directing me to the ‘most accessible’ wall given my limited experience climbing. Climbing was kind of scary but accelerating and the view from the top was just incredible.

 

Food

Main Dining Room

We really enjoyed the food and service at the Rembrandt Main Dining Room. We had My Time Dining for which I had made reservations online for 8:00pm every night for six people: four adults and two children. We liked the table location and the waiter and assistant waitress on the first night, so I went back each day to request/confirm that we had the same table and tweak the time (as we wanted to make sure to have enough time to see the shows, take photos etc. before dinner). It also gave me a chance to start thinking about what I wanted to order that evening, since they had podiums with electronic copies of the menu just outside the dining rooms. By the third night, the maitre d’ knew exactly what I wanted and made sure to have our table ready with high chairs and the correct number of wine glasses, silverware, plates, etc. (keep in mind that our two daughters were ‘distracted’ by so many things on the table the first couple of nights) upon our arrival.

Once at our table, it would take a little while to place our order but, once we did, the food would come out right away. I had read horror stories about the food (in terms of the quality, quantity and temperature) but I never had any problems. There were nights when the options were more appealing but, overall, I was happy with the food. Since we ate all our dinners there, we had so many things from the menu that mentioning only a couple would not be fair. We were impressed with the variety of items in the children’s menu and our servers did a great job at bringing the girls’ food first. The only comment about the children’s menu is that the portions were fairly large (probably intended for 8 to 10 year-old rather than 2 and 4) and we felt bad about wasting some of it. Also, I wish we had been able to use the My Family Dining option but since our youngest is only 2 years old, the Adventure Ocean program would not take her and it just didn’t make sense to “send away” only one of our children.

We only had lunch at the Royal Brasserie (located on Rembrandt Dining Room) on the last sea day. We particularly liked our table on the far corner (right next to a window), which came handy to entertain the girls and stay away from other passengers. We ordered several things from the menu and everything was tasty and arrived promptly. I’m not sure that the set up was the same on other days, but they had the Tutti Salad station, a made-to-order pasta station, a sushi table, and a dessert table with various cakes and mousses (sp). In retrospect, I wish we had eating lunch there a couple more times but their hours were limited (11:30am to 1:00pm) and we were usually at the pool during that time.

Windjammer Café

This is where we had breakfast whenever we were hungry. The selection seemed to be the same everyday and it was definitely lacking toward the end of the shift. I remember seeing a lot more different kinds of bread and other items early on but, by the time we were all ready and could finally make it there, there wasn’t much to chose from. Regardless, we were always able to find something and, since one of my girls is somewhat of a picky eater, the tater tots and sausage, along with boxed cereal and yogurt were a big hit for us. I can’t say much about the service, as we were usually in ‘a hurry’ to eat and make it to the pool or port, so we would get our own drinks.

Lunch was similar to breakfast, in terms of the selection throughout the shift. We would usually grab something we could take back with us to the pool deck, so we ended up eating a lot of hamburgers and fries and salads. The couple of times we actually had lunch there were on embarkation day, right before the muster drill, and upon getting back on the ship in Falmouth, so we were somewhat rushed by the staff to make our selections and finish our meals. I guess it’s the nature of any buffet but I saw a lot of food going to waste and inconsiderate people. This was particularly irritating in Falmouth when the two people in front of us took 6 and 5 ribs respectively leaving nothing but an empty tray and, since it was nearing closing time, staff did not replenish it.

Since we always had a late dinner (8:00pm or later) in the Main Dining Room, I went to check out the Windjammer Café's dinner buffet a couple of times. I ate a few things here and there and they were OK.

Overall, I was not very impressed with the Windjammer Café, specially because it closed so early (9:00pm) and there weren’t any places other than Sorrento’s Pizza and Café Promenade to get something to eat.

Sorrento’s Pizza

We only had lunch here once and the pizzas and salads we had were good. This particular lunch was right before the Ice Skating show, which made it really convenient to just walk down couple of flight of stairs to reach our “destination”. We also grabbed a couple of sandwiches on the way to our room when we got back on the ship in Grand Cayman (since the Windjammer was already close by then) and they were really good. Maybe they weren’t THAT good but we were pretty hungry and they tasted great to us. On a different note, I only saw water and ice tea there, so I wish they had other complimentary drink options, such as lemonade. Besides that, we were happy with our meals there and could have visited a few more times but didn’t have time.

Café Promenade

We mostly went here during “odd” hours (early in the morning, after dinner, etc.) just to grab a cup of coffee and something sweet. The cookies and pastries were good but they got to be a little repetitive toward the end of the week.

Sprinkles

This was a great treat for us and we all enjoyed several cones throughout our cruise with strawberry and chocolate being our favorite flavors. The staff would replenish the machine several times during the day and we never had any issues with it malfunctioning or out of the flavor we wanted. The only bad thing about Sprinkles was that it closed very early (9:00pm) and it would have been nice to have a free ice cream after dinner while taking a walk on the pool decks.

Room Service

I really wanted to try the room service but the only time I intended to place an order was in Grand Cayman when the Windjammer was closed and the only places opened were Sorrento’s Pizza and Café Promenade, so I was on hold and just gave up after a few minutes. I also thought about placing my order using the TV but the system might have been overwhelmed because it crashed on me a couple of times and I finally gave up.

 

Since we were on a budget, we didn’t try any of the specialty restaurants this time.

 

I'll continue with my review, which should include entertainment, ports of calls and other activities, in the next couple of days.

 

Thanks for reading and feel free to ask any questions. I'll try my best to answer them.

[Cel_cruise]

Thanks for sharing your experiences/review! I have previously read about the height requirements fort he water slide in splash away area - I think that this was a miss by Royal...they needed a slide design with a slightly lower height there!

 

 

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[2Ccruisers]

Thanks for the review, I'll be following along. I'll be on her Sunday!!

[sellwingri]

What time did they start letting people off the ship when you returned?

[womack214]

Following

 

 

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[Getting Started]

What time did they start letting people off the ship when you returned?

 

We didn't do self carry but the schedule stated it was going to take place between 7:30am and 8:50am. Judging from the amount of people with their luggage around the ship on Sunday morning, I would say that it started a little bit later than scheduled, but don't quote me on that.

[freedom-lover]

How were the beds? We were on Freedom last year and I ended up sleeping on the couch because the beds were so hard. We go on Liberty next year and are hoping they are not the same way.

 

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[widallas]

Yeeeah...another LOS review! Thanks for sharing so much helpful info--and glad you enjoyed your first cruise!!!

 

 

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[Getting Started]

Here’s the second and, hopefully, last part of my review of Liberty of the Seas, September 18th Sailing.

 

Entertainment

We made it to In the Air, the Elvis’ Tribute show and Saturday Night Fever in the Platinum Theater and Encore! An Ice Spectacular in Studio B. Traveling with two little girls, the fact that we made it to as many shows as we did is quite remarkable. With that said, we didn’t think that comedian shows would have been enjoyable to them (and consequently, us), so we decided to skip them altogether.

 

With respect to the shows in the Platinum Theater, we always went to the early show (at 6:30pm) and sat on the fourth deck balcony. The view was good for all shows and there were plenty of seats around us and even on the main floor. All three shows were very different from one another but really enjoyable. I liked In the Air because of the acrobats and various scenery changes. The Elvis’s Tribute was also very good and entertaining, as he would improvise and make fun of people arriving late. Finally, I was impressed with the talent of the performers in Saturday Night Fever who could sing and dance pretty well. It also helped that the music on all three of these shows was familiar and upbeat, so we got a kick out of seeing our girls dance and tap their feet in the aisles.

 

Encore! An Ice Spectacular was probably our favorite show. We arrived a few minutes before showtime but didn’t have problems getting good seats. The skaters were good and did some amazing things in such a tiny rink. Once again, it was really sweet to see the look in our daughters’ faces as they watched in awe what was happening in front of them.

 

All in all, we were happy with all the shows we attended.

 

A couple of things about the “logistics” of the shows is that I wish they would reconsider the times the evening shows are done, since 6:30pm and 8:30pm (9:00pm for Saturday Night Fever), meant that we either had to have a super early dinner or cut our time in the pool short, which is what we ended up doing. A 10:00 time-slot for the late show would have been a lot more convenient for us and several other passengers we spoke to. Finally, I understand it is logical to have Saturday Night Fever on Saturday but having to pack and leave our luggage out by 10:00pm was definitely hectic. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if they extended the deadline for preparing the luggage to 11:00pm or 11:30pm.

 

The Captain’s Welcome Aboard Reception on the first formal night was good. In addition to getting our pictures taken with the captain, we got to enjoy a couple of glasses of champage and there was even a live band (Bubba Feathers Band) playing some good music. Even though it was crowded, everybody was friendly and seemed to be having a good time.

 

The DreamWorks Move It! Move It! Parade was also nice. It took place at 9:30am on the day we were in Grand Cayman but since tendering didn’t start until after 10:00am, it didn’t really matter. The parade itself was loud and colorful but it only lasted about 15 to 20 minutes. It was crowded! Even though we got to the Promenade a little after 9:00am, we were only able to find a standing spot.

 

The Dancing Under The Stars Pool Party (on Wednesday night) was pretty lame. It was supposed to have a live band but by the time we arrived (around 10:30pm) there were only a few people there and the DJ was playing not so dance-able music, so we actually only stayed for a few minutes.

 

The 70’s Disco Inferno Street Party on the Promenade (on Thursday night) was good but too short. We rushed out of dinner to catch the beginning of it. After the ‘headliners’ finished singing (around 10:15pm), we went to the photo gallery to talk to the photographers. When we went back to the Promenade, around 10:40pm, the music was ending and everybody was leaving.

 

The latin group Azucar in the Boleros Lounge always had people dancing to their music. You could hear the music from the other decks and this lounge seemed to be most happening place after dinner. Once again, it was a joy to see our girls dancing and twirling to the music.

 

I wasn’t sure where to include the Ice Skating (entertainment or sports) but I opted to put it in this section. They had a couple of sessions (both morning and afternoon) on the last two days at sea, so we tried it on Saturday. Everything I had read about the ice skating make it sound almost impossible to get a spot but that was definitely not the case. We showed up around 10:45am and didn’t have to wait at all to get checked in, get our skates and be on the ice. Most people, including us, were beginners so there were a lot of us (although it wasn’t really crowded; I would say 20 to 30 people at most) were along the rails/walls but it was fun. We pretty much stayed until the end of the morning session (11:20am). The only bad thing was that the smallest children’s skate size they had was 9, so our youngest daughter could only watch us from the stand.

 

Ports of Call

Cozumel

Even though the ship arrived to this port early, we didn’t get off until around 10:00am. We had contracted the Dolphin Encounter at Chankanaab Park directly with the vendor, so upon getting off the ship, we just walked to the taxi station and, after waiting approximately 10 to 15 minutes, hopped on one. The trip to Chankanaab for all six of us was $350 pesos, around U$S 18.00, each way. Before entering the park, we got our wristbands and an orientation about the program and were ready to explore this amazing place. We were running a little bit late, so we only had a chance to walk to the crocodiles’ pond before it was time to meet our dolphin trainer. By the way, the crocodiles were awesome and we even saw them walking and swimming because we tagged along a tour guide who knew how to make them do that. Back to the dolphin encounter, it was an awesome experience. It seemed to last longer that 35 minutes (maybe because the trainer had to say everything in both English and Spanish) but everybody had a chance to pet, shake “hands” and kiss our dolphin. After the dolphin experience, the program included hanging out with some manatees (while the trainer fed them lettuce) but our daughters were getting tired of being in the water and hungry, so we didn’t enjoy this portion of the program as much. Participating in the Dolphin Encounter entitled us to a lunch buffet that was pretty good. Most of the dishes were Mexican but weren’t that spicy and they tasted fresh. After lunch, we went to the beach for a few minutes and then to the sea lions show. The show was very entertaining so we’re glad we stayed for it even though it meant that we had no time to do any shopping or hang out around the port area before getting back on the ship. All in all, this excursion was excellent and buying directly from the vendor/provider was the way to go, since it only cost us $75.00 per adult and both our children were free. The only thing extra, besides the taxi, that we ended up paying was the picture package. It was originally offered for $ 70.00 per person but after doing some negotiating, we got all of our girls’ pictures (about 45 pictures including the hand target, hand shake, and kisses) for $80.00. Word of advise, don’t assume the price they quote you is final and definitely bargain with the sales person if you’re interested in having some fun memories of this experience.

 

Grand Cayman

Since we didn’t get a chance to hang out at the beach for long in Cozumel the day before, we decided to just do that in Grand Cayman. I was up early and got our tender tickets a little bit before 8:00am, even though they weren’t supposed to start handing them out until 8:30am. It didn’t matter after all because by the time we were ready to disembark, they were letting everybody go. We made it to the port around 1:00pm and found a taxi that took us to Seven Mile beach. The ride for all six of us was $20.00 (while the ride back on a bus was only $15.00). We ended up in a public beach along Seven Mile that was called Sea Turtle, I believe, and it was great. We rented an umbrella for $10.00 (and they gave us a chair for free) just to have a little bit of shade for the girls and to keep our stuff cool. The sand was fine and the water was warm and very calm. Unfortunately, a little bit before 3:00pm some clouds were starting to roll in so we had to cut short our day (afternoon, really) at the beach. Looking back, we’re glad we did because by the time we got to the port, it started pouring! The line to get on a tender back to the ship was pretty long, it took us about 30 to 40 minutes, but luckily the rain stopped after a few minutes and it was sunny again. In summary, this was a pretty inexpensive “day” at the beach, since we had a good breakfast before disembarking and grabbed something immediately after getting back on the ship. Finally, even though we had thought about going to a beach club with a swimming pool, we’re glad we didn’t since according to several taxi drivers, those swimming pools are “adults only”.

 

Falmouth

There were several excursions that looked appealing to us (Dunn’s Falls, Ocho Rios, etc.) but we didn’t want be on a bus/taxi for more than 30 minutes each way and after a nice time at the beach in Grand Cayman, we opted for another beach day in Jamaica. We asked around in the port and decided to go to Montego Bay, since that would not only allow us some time at the beach but also proximity to the hip strip and some shopping. We didn’t leave the ship until later, probably 11:00am, so we had to wait almost 30 minutes until our van “filled up” but our driver was entertaining and pointed out some interesting things along the way to Montego Bay. We arrived at Aquasol Beach Park and were amazed by the beauty of the beach. If we thought that Seven Mile beach was nice, Montego Bay’s beach was even nicer. It probably helped that it was less crowded and we were directed to a wooden table with a couple of benches in the shade and right in front of the beach. The facilities themselves were a little old and run down but we didn’t care since the beach (fine, white sand and warm, calm water) was exceptional and we only used the showers and restrooms before leaving. There was a DJ playing music and calling out the various groups arriving at the beach throughout the day, which made it entertaining. Even though they had some inflatable water slides and such, we weren’t sure they were operating them and, besides, we really enjoyed just hanging out on the beach. When it started to get cloudy around 2:30pm, we told our driver that we wanted him to take us to the hip strip a little bit earlier than when we had originally asked him and he didn’t have a problem doing that. I guess it worked out well that we were with a fairly small group (only 11 people total), since we all agreed on this earlier departure from the beach. The hip strip was OK. There weren’t a lot of people there, so a lot of the vendors were “going after us” to visit their shops. We only had time to visit a couple and buy a couple of Red Stripe beers (the first one for $3 and the second for only $1 at another store). Once again, we had a pretty nice and inexpensive day: the round trip taxi fare and entrance to Aquasol was $25.00 per person but we didn’t have to pay for the girls.

 

Photos

We purchased in advance the unlimited photo package (for $149.99) and it was one of the best investments we’ve made. In the end, we got a USB drive with over 400 pictures! We made it a point to go to as many photo opportunities before and after dinner. On casual night they usually had 4 to 5 “photo studios” in front of the dining rooms, the bridge leading to the Royal Promenade and in the photo gallery. On formal nights, the number of photo studios jumped to 11 or 12 but they were still located mostly on decks 4 and 5. We also had a few pictures at our dining table. In addition to this evening pictures, we got photos with almost all of the DreamWorks characters, at every port of call, around the pool, and even in the Flowrider. All the photographers were awesome with our girls and really patient with us. Toward the end of the voyage many of them already knew our stateroom number and they even wanted to take some pictures together with the girls.

 

Disembarkation

We didn’t feel like getting up too early, rushing through breakfast, and “fighting” with other passengers to get off on arrival day and, since we were in no real hurry to leave the ship, we requested one of the latest departure times. We had number 47 and out of 50 and even though the schedule stated an estimated departure time of 10:15am to 10:30am, they were letting everybody off around 10:00am. At any rate, before getting off, we paid a last visit to the Windjammer Café and took a couple plates with us out to the deck to enjoy our last breakfast. The girls even had time to play around in the mini golf course one last time while the adults enjoyed their last cup of coffee. I had read a lot about “self carry” being the way to go but I beg to differ, specially if you’re not catching an early flight.

 

Final Thoughts

Overall, I would rate my first cruise with Royal Caribbean a solid 4.5. I’m easy going but somewhat critical and since I saw some areas for improvement, I can’t give it a 5. I would say, though, that service was exceptional. The quantity and variety of activities also deserved the highest rating. The only reason why I can’t give the entertainment a 5 is because the timing of the shows was not ideal for what we wanted to do. In terms of the food, I wished the had more options after dinner and late night, so until they do, I still give them a 4.

 

Finally, we had a fantastic time and hope to be back on Liberty of the Seas soon. We’re already looking at future sailings in the late winter or early fall and hope that the “Kids Sail Free” promotion is happening again at the time we’re ready to book.

 

That’s it folks! Thank you for reading my review and feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

[Clarea]

Very nice review, thank-you.:)

[Getting Started]

How were the beds? We were on Freedom last year and I ended up sleeping on the couch because the beds were so hard. We go on Liberty next year and are hoping they are not the same way.

 

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We thought the beds were OK. They had a mattress top and were neither too hard not too soft. Our girls didn't have any problems sleeping through the night in the Pullman beds (so that should mean something) and we also slept pretty well every night.

I hope you have a similar experience to ours when you're on Liberty next year.

[JaniceB]

Thanks for doing a very detailed review of your trip on LOS. I enjoyed it and can't wait to board LOS.

[oma2ejg]

Glad your family enjoyed the LOS.. We first sailed on RCCL on LOS 4/10/16, (previously Carnival and NCL) immediately booked another cruise for 10/16 and 6/4/2017 with our daughter and 6 yr old granddaughter(previous cruise with them on Carnival Magic 9/15)... Appreciate your thoughts on the beaches and your girls enjoyment of various activities. Little ones seem to brighten the whole experience!

[Getting Started]

I finally figured out how to do this. Sorry about the delay.