Liberty of the Seas - WAY too detailed EPIC review - March 5th-12th, 2017 sailing

[Lordnlkon]

Loving the review! Will be on Liberty in 3 weeks. I actually love both Whataburger & In-N-Out. I can have Whataburger anytime I want, though. I have to drive to Dallas to get In-N-Out. So, it's more of a treat. Can't wait to hear more!

 

Was mostly said in jest. I have some friends who are "die hard" Texans and everything from Texas is always better than from anywhere else.

[mark290]

Lost me at, Christopher Cross's "Ride Like the Wind" :)

[AmyJA]

Fun wordsmithing. I'm in.

[OKCcruiser8]

Was mostly said in jest. I have some friends who are "die hard" Texans and everything from Texas is always better than from anywhere else.

 

Oh, believe me. I've been on a diet for the last few weeks because, cruise in 3 weeks, and I would seriously tear up some animal fries right now! :')

 

Then again, I would probably tear up some whata-anything right now, too. ;)

[Collierln]

Fellow Austinite here! Going on 3rd RCL cruise departing Galveston May 21,2017. Very appealing story!

[gekko1980]

DAY 1, 2, 3 - EMBARKATION AND SEA DAYS

 

We woke up with a plan in mind to get to the boat as early as possible. Our four friends from Austin who accompanied us drove down from Austin starting at about 6:30, so they would probably board a little after us. We dressed, and grabbed the hotel breakfast. The Harbor House breakfast room had some pastries, yogurt, a banana or two, coffee, and orange juice. No waffle maker or boiled eggs or anything, but we planned to eat at the Windjammer as soon as we boarded.

 

A downpour started pretty heavily as soon as we got to the lobby. The three of us dashed to the car with our overnight bags. We drove the few hundred feet to the terminal baggage dropoff. Because of the rain the area was a little extra mobbed, but the porters were really helpful, and it only took us about 5 minutes to get everything unloaded.

 

I purchased advanced parking through the EZ Cruise website. We used them on our previous cruise, and the entire staff is incredibly friendly and helpful. I regretted not purchasing the shuttle passes, but luckily the rain let up just as we arrived. We walked the few blocks to the port past the cool Railroad Museum and the cigar bar that never seems to be open.

 

Let's get down to the nitty gritty. As soon as we boarded, I lost all sense of time and continuity. I can't remember which day we went to Johnny Rocket's, or which night we sat out on the 4th floor deck watching the waves until 2am. From here forward, and especially for the sea days, I'm going to give my impression of each part of the ship by experience and impression, but not necessarily chronology, to make sure I don't forget anything.

 

BOARDING PROCESS

The boarding gate area was comfortable, and there was plenty of seating. It's like a small regional airport terminal. Everyone at the check-in desk was cheery and helpful. The Carnival terminal did have a refreshment station with water and coffee. The RC had one too, but it was in the roped premium status section. There was a Coke machine for soft drinks and water, but it was out of order.

 

We sat as close to the gangway entrance as possible. We were all checked in by 9:30a, and were given boarding group 1, which I thought meant we'd board fairly quickly. I think the rain slowed disembarkation a little, and we were waiting a good 90 minutes. We were all still in high spirits, and couldn't wait to get on the ship. Boarding finally commenced, but I was surprised by the number of status groups that boarded first. First there was Platinum Plus boarding group, then Platinum, Diamond, Emerald, Gold, Silver, Bronze, Tanzanite, Copper, Krypyonite, etc. Finally Group 1 was announced, and 3,000 people rushed the doors. We actually made it on the boat fairly quickly, and were having lunch in the Windjammer in no time.

 

DINING

We bought the 3-night dining plan, and initially booked one night each in Chops, Giovanni's, and Sabor. My wife and I both really love food, and all of our vacations revolve around dining to some degree. We ate at Chops the first night, and loved it so much that we moved our Giovanni's reservation for the final night of the cruise to Chops. We ate in the Windjammer every day for breakfast, saving once when we ordered room service, and twice for dinner. We ate in the MDR twice. We ate lunch at Johnny Rocket's once. We also ate massive banana splits and sundaes at Ben & Jerry's for lunch one day.

 

-Windjammer-

The Windjammer was was surprisingly good. From some reviews, I was expecting something between an elementary school cafeteria and a buffet at the kind of Vegas casino where the slot machines still pay out coins. Everything was immaculate. I love the way the buffet was set up in the center with the dining area looping all the way around. It was always really easy to find a seat, usually a window seat. We're early risers and usually ate breakfast around 7:30a, lunch at 11:30a, dinner when they opened at 6p, so your mileage may vary.

 

I've heard complaints that the food was repetitive, especially for breakfast, but there are only so many types of breakfast food. Every morning there were fried, scrambled, and boiled eggs, and an omelette bar; bacon, several types of sausage, and fresh-sliced ham at the carving stations; a charcuterie bar with deli meats and salmon; fresh bananas, apples, pears, and kiwis; seven or eight types of cereal; an oatmeal bar with dried fruits and nuts; pastries, doughnuts, bagels, and toast; and juices, coffee, water, several types of tea, and milk. The home fries were my favorite, with lots of peppers and onions. There was lots of other stuff available for breakfast as well, but I'm not sure what else anyone could want. It seemed like complete breakfast option saturation to me.

 

Lunch in the Windjammer was the first meal we had when we got on the ship, and again, it was great. My favorites throughout the week were the "chop salad," which was just marinated cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and black olives; the "beef strip" which was the Windjammer's not-ready-for-prime rib with horseradish; the mustard potato salad; and the BBQ chicken. My wife says her favorites were the chicken, anything in the Jade area but especially stewed beef and vegetables, the meringue puffs, and the cheese selections (brie every day!)

 

We ate in the dining room the second night, and again on lobster night, but soon realized that the entire MDR menu was also often available in the Windjammer that night, along with dozens of other options. Also we could eat with our friends, (they had late dining and we had early), and it didn't take two hours. All the dinner options were, again surprisingly good. The sushi was as good as any buffet sushi I've ever had, (and I know that's a big qualifier). There was hardly anything I didn't like.

 

Something heartbreaking did happen. On Thursday night we sat in the Windjammer and a waiter came by and chatted with us for a few minutes, making sure we enjoyed the cruise, and hoping we were please with the service. He said there would be a big surprise in the Windjammer the final night. We were eating in Chops the final night anyway, but were curious. On Saturday night we came out of Chops stuffed to the gills, and wandered over to the Windjammer just to see what they had. I went around to the back of the buffet line and there were MOUNTAINS of lobsters tails and boiled shrimp, and a crepe station. We were way too full to eat anything else, but if I'd know that we would definitely have shuffled our specialty dining schedule.

 

-MDR-

We did eat in the main dining room twice, on Sunday and again on Friday. Our servers were very friendly and accommodating when we wanted two apps or dessert. The three of us were at a table with three couples but only one couple ever showed up when we were there. They were...interesting. The cheese rolls were amazing. One night we had the duck, which was massive and pretty good, but really fatty. The lobster night was fun, it didn't seem like you could get more than one. The room was incredibly beautiful and ornate, which my MIL enjoyed, but seemed really understaffed. It was amazing that our servers got our orders perfect, and were always there with extra bread and drink refills, as scrambled as they were.

 

-CHOPS-

On Sunday night we ate at Chops, and it was the best meal of the cruise. If you've ever been to Ruth's Chris or Smith & Wollensky, it was comparable to us. I'm not a food snob, and really only care how inventive and delicious the food is. I'm sure there are different levels of prime meat, and some people really take their beef seriously. I only know my wife said her filet was the best steak she ever had, and "cut like butter." The Crispy Goat Cheese Salad was awesome. There was a big deep-fried goat cheese wheel smashing it, so you couldn't really say it was balancing the meal, but we loved it. The crab cakes were incredible. We also had the shrimp cocktail and jumbo scallop, which were were small (3 shrimp, 1 scallop), but really fresh and delicious. We each had the 9 oz filet cooked rare, which was perfect. I had the au poivre (peppercorn) sauce, and my wife had the bearnaise sauce, both of which nicely complements the meat. My wife and MIL also both really loved the lavender gin and tonics at Chops. We tried most of the sides which ranged from amazing (croquettes, mushrooms) to just okay (creamed spinach). For dessert my wife and her mom had the huckleberry cheesecake, which they both really liked. I had the chocolate mud pie, which was really great. It's a slightly bitter dense mousse cake, and a side of berry compote which compliments it really well.

[widallas]

Loving your review! We were on LOS and had heard negatives about Chops....we agree with you that it was delicious and one of our better meals.

 

Great detail....hope maybe you can add some photos too!

 

 

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[gekko1980]

DINING (Con't)

 

-Sabor-

We also all really loved Sabor. I had a cucumber jalapeno margarita, and my wife had a avocado margarita, both of which were great. Mine was actually really spicy, (and I'm from Texas). I will say that's something I really enjoyed about RC in general-they aren't afraid of bold flavors. I do remember everything on Carnival tasting a little bland and under-seasoned. I like the family-style presentation of Sabor. Our waiter brought out all of the appetizers and sides for us to share without asking. The guacamole is really as great as everyone says. I really loved the marinated chili powder cucumbers, (I love anything pickled), and could serious eat them every day. I had the mole short rib for my main entree, and it was incredible. My wife had the snapper, which was also great.

 

-Johnny Rocket's-

We hadn't planned to eat here. (We didn't see the point in paying for burgers and hot dogs when there was so much food we liked better for free). But one of our friends wanted to go one afternoon, so we ended up chowing down here one sea day. It was fine. It's a Johnny Rocket's. We have one at the San Marcos outlet mall here. I last ate at one at Boston-Logan Airport over the holidays. I had a great strawberry shake. Some people really like this diner-style burger with patty and bun both grilled in butter. I think I made a mistake getting the patty melt, which made an already greasy burger literally the greasiest thing I've ever eaten. My wife says her burger was really good. We both also really loved the chili cheese fries.

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I'll write more about the sea days, hopefully tomorrow, and the different bars and entertainment options.

[Annabanana1234]

Great review! I was on the fence about spending the money for specialty dining but now I'm giving it strong consideration. Ty.

[lbjen]

Thanks for the Houston tips, we've lived here for a few years but it's not that easy to figure out what there is to see and do, surprisingly. Loving your review, it is renewing my faith in RC's dining. It sounds like your MIL had an awesome time which is great!

[luv2sailAgain]

Enjoying your review! We have a cruise scheduled for July on Liberty. Your review is appreciated.

[J_Busworth]

Loving the detailed review, can't wait for more!

[BecciBoo]

You really did yourself an injustice moving your last dinner to Chops...Giovanni's is fabulous! O well, you'll just have to book another...isn't it sad;p

 

Still lovin your review...makes these last 30 days go much faster. BTW, we've never eaten in WJ for dinner, your comments make me want to try, maybe on the last evening they'll repeat the seafood crepes, I could go for that:hearteyes:

[Crash1965]

Great review it is nice to hear from someone who seems to just enjoy life on a cruise instead of just complaining about every little thing

[TNcruising02]

I am loving your review. Thanks for providing so many details. They are very helpful to those of us who have never cruised on the Liberty.

[crusinot]

Following! Great review so far! I think that we will now have to consider cruising out of Texas! Your review has swayed us!

[MrsDeee]

I agree, your detail is wonderful! Enjoy!

 

 

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[Familygoboston]

Excellent review! Thanks for all the details! First, I have great respect for anyone who can (also :')) make ice cream a whole meal, so kudos. Second, here's a little tip for the future to keep the days from "blurring" each night I either jot down or circle on my compass, the places we ate, things we did, just for my reports, lol! It's pretty easy! Three, I'm hoping you have more to share, we just booked this same week next year, and I'm curious to hear about the shows, the ports and to see if dare try those water slides! We just went ziplining with spring breakers 1/2 our age in Belize off of Rhapsodyl so I'm thinking yes, but I'll await your reviews! :eek:

Looking forward to more, pictures, Maybe?

[wolfganghowell]

OP where are you? You can't promise an epic review and then disappear. Work and sleep are not valid excuses!

[Wisteria101958]

Where is the "Like" button....

Keep it coming...

[George C]

You really did yourself an injustice moving your last dinner to Chops...Giovanni's is fabulous! O well, you'll just have to book another...isn't it sad;p

 

Still lovin your review...makes these last 30 days go much faster. BTW, we've never eaten in WJ for dinner, your comments make me want to try, maybe on the last evening they'll repeat the seafood crepes, I could go for that:hearteyes:

 

I totally agree on Giovanni's by far our favorite RCCL restaurant ( about a dozen visits in last 3 years) but Chops was really good on Liberty last year and I think we will try Sabor for 1st time next month ( will eat at least 5 dinners out of 7 in specialty)

[MrsHBrand]

My husband and I are sailing Liberty on Sunday & we are both younger without kids so we are enjoying getting the perspective of someone similar to us :)

[mrrickyg]

Thanks for the tip -- We'll be overnighting in Galveston and that place sounds amazing for dinner

 

DAY 0 - GALVESTON (I STILL HEAR YOUR SEAWAVES CRASHING)

 

Shrimp n' Stuff! This is one of those places I loved as a kid that I love just as much at 36. My MIL had never had a po' boy before, and she was amazed. (This will be a recurring theme throughout the review). We chowed down on fried oyster and shrimp po' boys, and crab balls (sort of a hybrid crab cake and hush puppy). We cruised along the seawall and looked at all of the big hotels and tourist traps. We passed the "historic" Pleasure Pier (even though, as a point of reference, it's newer than the first Hunger Games movie). The three of us stopped at Spec's to pick up our stateroom limits of wine, and then headed to the industrial side of the island to check in to our hotel. It still Saturday afternoon, and the Carnival Freedom was in port getting ready to embark. MIL couldn't believe how big it was. I told her to wait until she saw our ship.

 

[TxStacey]

There is nothing like sailing with someone who is on their first cruise..I love to see their expressions when they get on the ship for the firs time. Hoping you will come back and tell us what your mother in law thought of her first cruise! Im from DFW but DD lives and works in Austin..we bleed burnt orange in our family! Hook-Em!

[Junkhouse]

Thanks for your review and confirming that people can still have a good time on RC, because we had a great time when we cruised in January. We had the late seating for dinner. Every night was very relaxed but we were always finished in about an hour. Looking forward to our cruise in May when we will be with four other family members.