FREEDOM SPRING BREAK trip report with PICS! 3/25-3/31

[kwazi07]

Around 10 we decided to get our main breakfast from the Windjammer. It was absolutely insane. I’ve really noticed the crowds on this ship, much worse than Navigator, IMO.

 

The omelet bar is extremely popular, so the line is always long. I was kind of annoyed when a woman cut me in line to order omelets, but I didn’t feel like saying anything—trying to keep the good vibes. It payed back though when my omelet came out before her’s—the look on her face was priceless.

 

 

 

MSC Armonia and NCL Dawn in port today. Did y’all see that video of the MSC Armonia smashing through the dock in Roatan this last week??

 

 

After breakfast we still weren’t docked, so we went back to the ship to finish getting ready and to watch the ship pull in.

 

 

 

It’s always pretty fun pulling up next to a ship. We always wave to the people on the other ship’s balconies like mad men.

 

 

 

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[VPIcruiser]

Quote: The next five photos are screenshots from my Instagram story of the line we had to wait in for the tender back to the ship. Granted, it moved reasonably well but the length was insane. It snakes back and forth at least four times over. I can guarantee every single person in these photos is waiting for Freedom...

 

 

 

When we visited Grand Cayman a few years ago on Freedom, the line for returning tenders was very long and the worst part was it was thunderstorming. All the surrounding restaurants and bars were packed and most people had to just wait in line. We were standing in ankle deep water while there was lightening. The irony wasn’t lost on us when we thought back to all the times we had to clear out from swim meets and practices due to thunderstorms. The pools in our area won’t even let people wait in the locker rooms when the pools close for storms.

 

 

I am enjoying your review and photos.

[CreativeCruiser119]

For the rest of the evening, we didn’t really have plans until 9pm, which was the ice show. Our cousins wanted to play shuffleboard, so my mom went back to the room to wash up while we stayed on deck four.

 

Being the Floridians we are, we used to have a shuffleboard court in our backyard--our house was built in the 50s, during the height of stucco homes, orange groves, and St. Augustine grass. Our house only has one of those now--the grass. Where we live used to be an orange grove forever ago, so when it was redeveloped, the developers “gave” each house a tree or two--we had one in the front yard and one in the backyard. Sorry for the digression...we always complain about Florida, but I do really love living here.

 

Anyways, all of the shuffleboard courts were occupied, except for one that didn’t have any equipment. We decided to go up to deck 12 to play ping pong, which was also taken. So we just kind of chilled by the Flowrider for a little. It was only boogie boarding, but some people were really good--one guy would throw the board forward and have it come back to him.

 

 

I went down to the Schooner Bar to grab my brother and mom who were doing some music trivia before we went back up to deck 12 to meet up with everyone else. They were actually at the ping pong tables near Adventure Ocean, and it was just so quiet and peaceful there. Being on the higher decks is always so wonderful--the breeze, lights, and the ocean air are just awesome.

 

 

Soon enough it was time to go to the 9pm ice show, Freedom-ice.com. We tried getting there early to avoid crowds, but the line to get in stretched almost all the way out of On Air. We still got front row seats, on the left side of the ice. The show was great! I liked it a little bit more than the one on Navigator, but the best thing about it was not the music or the themes but the skaters. We get annual passes to Busch Gardens in Tampa which has great ice shows, but the skating here blew that out of the water. These were definitely the best jumps I’ve seen outside of competitions. The show closed with a pretty nice standing ovation.

 

We were planning on watching karaoke for a little, but the lounge was really crowded and we were all tired after an early morning, so we just decided to go back to the room. But we couldn’t resist a slice of pizza and a glass of water for a late (ish) night snack.

 

Another towel animal was waiting for us when we got back to the room:

 

 

After washing up my mom and I sat on the balcony for a little. Personally, even though I thoroughly enjoy them, balcony rooms are not a must. I don’t spend all that much time on the balcony aside from pulling into port and at night. But I would really miss being able to go outside in your pajamas before going to bed

 

That’s it for day 3! Up next: a mini sea day and our first Mayan ruins!

 

 

 

We were in the front row during the ice show as well, and on the same side as you! My brother even got high-fived by one of the performers!

 

 

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[CreativeCruiser119]

Around 10 we decided to get our main breakfast from the Windjammer. It was absolutely insane. I’ve really noticed the crowds on this ship, much worse than Navigator, IMO.

 

The omelet bar is extremely popular, so the line is always long. I was kind of annoyed when a woman cut me in line to order omelets, but I didn’t feel like saying anything—trying to keep the good vibes. It payed back though when my omelet came out before her’s—the look on her face was priceless.

 

 

 

MSC Armonia and NCL Dawn in port today. Did y’all see that video of the MSC Armonia smashing through the dock in Roatan this last week??

 

 

After breakfast we still weren’t docked, so we went back to the ship to finish getting ready and to watch the ship pull in.

 

 

 

It’s always pretty fun pulling up next to a ship. We always wave to the people on the other ship’s balconies like mad men.

 

 

 

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Good to know I’m not the only one who noticed the crowds on this cruise!

 

 

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[kwazi07]

We were in the front row during the ice show as well, and on the same side as you! My brother even got high-fived by one of the performers!

 

 

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That’s so interesting! My little cousins stood up and and got hi fives from the skaters too!

 

 

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[deltableh]

We are sailing on FOS May 6 and I am enjoying reading your review about what we can expect and am very excited! Do you happen to have pictures of the cruise compasses for the rest of the week as well? Thanks again for your report!

I'm going to second this, and can't wait for you to post them (I saw you said you would shortly, thanks in advance!). I like having a bit of an idea what food is in the MDR and what movies are playing before boarding :)

[kwazi07]

 

 

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

 

 

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

 

 

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

Quote: The next five photos are screenshots from my Instagram story of the line we had to wait in for the tender back to the ship. Granted, it moved reasonably well but the length was insane. It snakes back and forth at least four times over. I can guarantee every single person in these photos is waiting for Freedom...

 

 

 

When we visited Grand Cayman a few years ago on Freedom, the line for returning tenders was very long and the worst part was it was thunderstorming. All the surrounding restaurants and bars were packed and most people had to just wait in line. We were standing in ankle deep water while there was lightening. The irony wasn’t lost on us when we thought back to all the times we had to clear out from swim meets and practices due to thunderstorms. The pools in our area won’t even let people wait in the locker rooms when the pools close for storms.

 

 

I am enjoying your review and photos.

 

 

 

Thank you! And that sounds like a nightmare...reminds me of a time we took a cave tour near Tallahassee, FL. Going into the cave, it was bright and sunny, but walking out was easily the hardest non-hurricane downpour I’ve seen. It was flooding the sidewalks and since we were heading downhill back to the parking lot and bathrooms, it only got worse as went went down. Lightning was SUPER close and loud, and after a while I stopped running because I was already completely drenched (then started running because I realized my phone was in my pocket).

 

 

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[kwazi07]

We started to head off the ship sometime around 11am. The line to get off was all the way up to deck 3, but it went by quickly as it was a docked port.

 

The dock was very crowded and very long. The NCL Dawn had halted disembarkation while we were docking, so the pier was crowded with an influx of people from both ships.

 

 

 

 

 

I heard Costa Maya was very Disney-esque but I wasn’t prepared for how “nice” it was! Plenty of signage, and it’s very easy on the eyes...but also so artificial.

 

We had heard glowing reviews of the company “The Native Choice” for tours of Chacchoben. We initially booked the ruins only tour, but the reviews rave about the Mayan Experience tour which includes an authentic Maya lunch at a Maya village, plus a smaller group size. It was only $20 extra per person, so we booked it.

 

Since this is not a company that works with the cruise lines, their office is outside the port. The port complex is pretty confusing, but the directions provided by NC were pretty clear: stick to the right once you pass under the entrance arch, and exit under the tower. The exit was pretty small and easy to overlook, but I think there was a sign that said “private tours” or “already booked”. We had no problem finding our way out of the port.

 

The directions provided continued to be helpful, as we found our way to the office very easily. The walk wasn’t long per se, but I could see how it could feel like a long time if you’re running late to the ship.

 

A church (?) just outside the port area:

 

 

This is the road the above building is located on, the first of two streets you need to walk on to get to the office.

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

Once you reach a tall, fakey Mayan pyramid, you veer a left on Paseo del Puerto, which looks like this:

 

 

It’s only the length of a few city blocks before you reach the office!

 

 

If you have mobility problems or just aren’t up to the walk, you can catch a taxi just outside the port area. There are plenty of drivers, and most seemed pretty friendly. A few even made sure we knew our way to Native Choice after we said no thanks!

 

Once you get to the office, you simply go to the counter to pay off your balance if you didn’t pay 100% beforehand. You also get a wristband:

 

 

There is a cooler with ice cold bottled water—nice after the walk!

 

 

We had to wait about 15 minutes for a few stragglers to arrive, but overall it was very efficient. We boarded our Mercedes van (18 passengers) and we were off!

 

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

Our tour guide (Enrique) talked for the entire 50 minute drive, giving us information on the area and the ruins we were about to visit. Every person we met working for this company was extremely professional and friendly. Our driver was great, relaxing me after we were a little apprehensive after the bus crash on a RCI excursion to the same ruins. There was only one curve in the road the whole drive there!

 

About 2/3rds of the way there, we drove through “pineapple town”, where TONS of local vendors sell locally grown pineapple. Enrique told us that the pineapple was a little different than the kind we got at home...we shall see!

 

 

A bag of pineapple was only $1 (USD). Enrique collected the money from everyone on the bus before he got out to buy the pineapple. They also sold pineapple juice, but I can’t remember how much it was. There was a little confusion when someone on the bus offered to pay for people who wanted pineapple but didn’t have change, but soon enough we all had our little bags of pineapple in hand:

 

 

The pineapple was definitely sweeter and less tart than the ones I’ve had at home...it was so delicious. I love the tart pineapple, but this was just so tasty...and that was before the chile powder. I’ve heard of people putting chile powder on pineapple before, but never tried it. It was so amazing—the chile powder had some salt in it to contrast the sweet, and the slight kick added an entire other dimension to the fruit! I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to eat pineapple again without chile powder. I didn’t think it was that hot—but I also love spicy food. A few people were coughing from the heat but the vast majority of people enjoyed it.

 

 

In about 10 minutes we were at the ruins. Before you entered the actual park, there was a little peek at what was to come:

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

After a short bathroom break, we walked down the short path to the ruins. This was the first pyramid we saw:

 

 

Since RCI cancelled all of their excursions to the ruins, they weren’t too busy. There were a few groups from NCL or MSC, but most were from the Native Choice.

 

You couldn’t climb up very far on these ruins. I think Kohunlinch (both NC and RCI offer excursions here) offers pyramids you can climb. Where the woman is in the far right of this photo is as high as you were allowed to go:

 

 

 

On the way from the first pyramid to the second area, we saw some interesting plants, like this tree strangling a palm tree.

 

 

The next area offered two other pyramids, one smaller and one (the one we saw from the road) larger than the first.

 

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

There was a little climbing you could do—it was up this staircase to this platform (?) overlooking the ruins. It was pretty easy for me, but if you have a hard time doing stairs otherwise, I would not recommend as they are narrow and made of stone, therefore uneven.

 

 

 

View from the top:

 

 

The “backside” of the stairs:

 

 

Around 2:10, we made our way back to the van, which made for about an hour at the ruins. We knew that the ruins portion of the tour was shorter than it would have been if we took the ruins only tour, and we were okay with that. The ruins only tour was a larger group, but they did get to see the other half of the ruins site and seemed to have a little more in depth commentary. However, my mom and I were happy with our tour of the ruins. I feel like it was something I only need to do once—if I’m ever in Costa Maya again, Maya Chan looks awesome!

 

It was a 20 minute drive from the ruins to the village of Chacchoben, where we were having our lunch. We drove through a non-Mayan village on the way, which was interesting. People really do live such a different life than us in the states...I’m grateful for what I have.

 

The central square of the town (Las Cadenzas?) we drove through:

 

 

[kwazi07]

Some houses on the way:

 

 

 

 

This is actually the local tortilla shop for the town. Apparently they have a tortilla machine which makes it very efficient to make—faster than the handmade tortillas we were looking forward to making...

 

 

Once we got to the Mayan village, we noticed lots of the houses had painting on them. Enrique said that an artists was actually sent into the village to paint the outside of the previously austere, white houses. The families got to pick a design for their house. This one had a cute flamingo motif:

 

[kwazi07]

This was the central town square of the Mayan village (Chacchoben). It looks like the community takes pride in this area...but I wonder where everyone is. Our guide said that schools were off for Holy Week, but there were no kids to be found...

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we came to the house we would be eating lunch at, I noticed some tiny clothes hanging. Later found out they were for sale, along with a few other small handmade items:

 

[kwazi07]

Our first part of the “experience” was a tour of the garden, which our tour guide was much larger than most gardens houses in the area would have. The “house” isn’t actually a house that people live in—the women who host the lunch live nearby, and this is where they work. We later found out their husbands and sons work in the tourist towns during the week—Cancun, Playa del Carmen, Cozumel. However, it still wasn’t glamorous, I believe but offered a comfortable glimpse into modern Maya life.

 

The gardens were small and had lots of spice plants in them. Look at this cool palm with curling tips:

 

 

 

After the gardens we got a brief tour of the grounds, including one of the huts that was typical for the Mayans to live in. This one was used as storage for food, but it was interesting how our guide explained the architecture maximizes airflow.

 

Next, we washed our hands (and used the bathroom if we needed to) before our tortilla making lesson! “The lady of the house”, who was the eldest there, spoke first in Maya, then in Spanish (which I actually understood!) on how to form the tortillas. Enrique then translated into English. She made them effortlessly!

 

 

After this, it was our chance to try our forming our tortillas. It helps to work with a quick but light touch as the dough (ground up corn and water) can be sticky. I think mine turned out okay for never making them before! Be aware these are corn tortillas, which are smaller than the more popular (in the US) Tex-Mex style flour tortillas.

 

 

We then gave our tortilla to another lady, who cooked it on a hot surface—looked to be made of clay—for a few moments. After they were flipped, they would puff up, and that’s when you knew they were done!

 

They offered a sauce made of tomatoes, spices, and ground up pumpkin seeds (pepitas) to put in the tortilla, which was delicious. This tortilla was 100 times better than the ones you buy at the store!

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

Everyone could smell the food (and saw them frying blue corn empanadas), so we were all eager to eat. However, before we ate, we were offered an explanation of all of the ingredients used, which really helps you develop an appreciation for the food that was prepared. All of the food (except tomatoes, I believe) were either grown on property or at nearby farms!

 

 

 

Soon enough it was time to try the food! It was served buffet style, and there was more than enough food to go around.

 

 

Starting at the top and going clockwise: rice, stewed chicken, veggies (sweet potato, squash, jicama), chicken tamale, blue corn empanada, and beans in the middle.

 

Wow. The food was AWESOME. The rice was the perfect medium for the chicken, which had an amazing, flavorful sauce. The veggies were tasty. I know gourds are common in Mexico, but I never tried them cooked this way. They were all tasty and the cooked jicama was tasty—I’ve only had it raw before. I LOVE tamales (kind of a cornmeal patty wrapped in corn husk) and this one was no different. The empanada was awesome and the beans were super flavorful.

 

This meal confirms I’ve only had semi-authentic Mexican food at one other place—at a little place called Señor Taco near my house. The owners are from the Yucatán Peninsula and cook up both great Mexican food (like the tamales and stewed chicken) and tasty Tex-Mex with the authentic sauces (similar to the red sauce on the tamale or the sauce in the tortilla).

 

For a drink, we had hibiscus tea, which I have had before at a Spanish NHS party. If you haven’t had it before, it’s kind of floral and sweet. If you don’t like it, our driver had more bottles of water!

 

There was enough food for seconds—I couldn’t resist one more tamale.

 

Once everyone had finished their meals, we were brought a simple dessert: flan and fruit.

 

 

The flan was some of the best I’ve had anywhere, and the fruit contrasted well with the caramel and custardy flavors of the flan (I feel like a judge on Chopped). Up top is a piece of jicama, then pineapple, watermelon, guava, and cantaloupe. The guava was SO good and made me crave a “pastelito de guayaba y queso” (guava and cheese pastry) and a cortadito from our favorite Miami bakery so badly!

 

Once we finished dessert, it was time to head back. We thanked the ladies who hosted us before washing up and using the bathroom. I walked around the grounds a little while waiting for my mom and saw this dog just chillin in the shade:

 

 

On the ride back, Enrique kept talking to a minimum so we could sleep off our food comas. I never fell asleep, but just zoned out for a little. Before we knew it we were back in the port area, where we were dropped off pretty close to the port. It was a very short walk back to the complex, about five minutes.

[kwazi07]

We were back in the port area at 5pm. But who would have guessed that getting back to the ship was going to be way harder than getting off?

 

As an attest to the Disney factor of this place, there is a fountain just like this at Disney Springs (shopping and dining district) at WDW...

 

 

These “streets” had some interesting stores in them...one being a pharmacy. Considering you need to work there or be a cruise passenger to get in, this seems to be a place to get discount prescription drugs...they sold Retin A (tretinoin)...a prescription topical (usually from a derm) in the US.

 

 

Free pool and swim up bar:

 

 

Bar area and obstacle course (maybe?):

 

 

Finally back to the dock.

 

 

Booty of the MSC Armonia:

 

 

 

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[kwazi07]

Butt of NCL Dawn. I wonder what those oddly shaped windows are near the bottom—dining room maybe? Later found out my sister said one of her friends from school who was in line to get back on the Dawn, which sails from Tampa! We drove three hours extra to end up at the same place as they did, lol!

 

 

Back to “our” ship!

 

 

Does anyone else love being in these “ship canyons”?

 

 

We got back to our room around 5:30, which is when dinner starts. However, our waiter said since some excursions run late, we could come as late as 6 and it would be no problem. So I changed real quick and snapped some photos of the line to get back on the ship:

 

 

 

My mom and I were in the room for maybe five minutes before my siblings and dad came crashing through the door. We left them to their own devices today and they had a blast! Our cousins had a dolphin swim excursion, which my family watched before they grabbed lunch at the big restaurant next to the pool. While my mom and I had this quaint Mexican lunch they were out at the port ordering nachos and strawberry daiquiris served in (slightly phallic) palm tree cups, while watching “wrestling matches” which my uncle actually participated in...they also bartered with the people selling stuff in the market and even bought me a mini Gators surfboard to hang! I’m glad they had fun...but not my kind of day.

 

Up next: dinnertime!

Edited April 17, 2018 by kwazi07

[CreativeCruiser119]

We started to head off the ship sometime around 11am. The line to get off was all the way up to deck 3, but it went by quickly as it was a docked port.

 

The dock was very crowded and very long. The NCL Dawn had halted disembarkation while we were docking, so the pier was crowded with an influx of people from both ships.

 

 

 

 

 

I heard Costa Maya was very Disney-esque but I wasn’t prepared for how “nice” it was! Plenty of signage, and it’s very easy on the eyes...but also so artificial.

 

We had heard glowing reviews of the company “The Native Choice” for tours of Chacchoben. We initially booked the ruins only tour, but the reviews rave about the Mayan Experience tour which includes an authentic Maya lunch at a Maya village, plus a smaller group size. It was only $20 extra per person, so we booked it.

 

Since this is not a company that works with the cruise lines, their office is outside the port. The port complex is pretty confusing, but the directions provided by NC were pretty clear: stick to the right once you pass under the entrance arch, and exit under the tower. The exit was pretty small and easy to overlook, but I think there was a sign that said “private tours” or “already booked”. We had no problem finding our way out of the port.

 

The directions provided continued to be helpful, as we found our way to the office very easily. The walk wasn’t long per se, but I could see how it could feel like a long time if you’re running late to the ship.

 

A church (?) just outside the port area:

 

 

This is the road the above building is located on, the first of two streets you need to walk on to get to the office.

 

 

 

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Love the pictures! One observation my family had that for the photo with the life preserver upon disembarkation, the backdrop was, of all things, the water stand! We joked how we got “photobombed,” still can’t tell if it was legit or if he just happened to be standing there! Keep up the great work!

 

 

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[CreativeCruiser119]

There was a little climbing you could do—it was up this staircase to this platform (?) overlooking the ruins. It was pretty easy for me, but if you have a hard time doing stairs otherwise, I would not recommend as they are narrow and made of stone, therefore uneven.

 

 

 

View from the top:

 

 

The “backside” of the stairs:

 

 

Around 2:10, we made our way back to the van, which made for about an hour at the ruins. We knew that the ruins portion of the tour was shorter than it would have been if we took the ruins only tour, and we were okay with that. The ruins only tour was a larger group, but they did get to see the other half of the ruins site and seemed to have a little more in depth commentary. However, my mom and I were happy with our tour of the ruins. I feel like it was something I only need to do once—if I’m ever in Costa Maya again, Maya Chan looks awesome!

 

It was a 20 minute drive from the ruins to the village of Chacchoben, where we were having our lunch. We drove through a non-Mayan village on the way, which was interesting. People really do live such a different life than us in the states...I’m grateful for what I have.

 

The central square of the town (Las Cadenzas?) we drove through:

 

 

 

 

 

Looks like you enjoyed the ruins! Something I hope to explore one day - but I can imagine how hot it got for you guys! Loving the photos!

 

 

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[kwazi07]

Looks like you enjoyed the ruins! Something I hope to explore one day - but I can imagine how hot it got for you guys! Loving the photos!

 

 

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Thanks! It was pretty hot! I think it was 87? We’re not strangers to heat but the water bottles were definitely welcomed, haha.

 

And the ruins are cool! We’ve been meaning to go for a while too, but the hour long ferry from Cozumel plus a bus ride always seemed like too much, so when we were on the mainland we took the opportunity. I have heard amazing things about Tulum since it’s on the water, and Chitzen Itza due to it’s magnificence, so you can’t really go wrong!

 

 

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[MightyMike]

Booty of the MSC Armonia:

 

 

 

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She's only showing booty because she crashed her front into the Roatan pier a week ago.

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2622601