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My WONDERFUL Liberty Cruise

cathyoo

By cathyoo,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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I cruised on the Liberty 2/12-2/18. I was part of a CC group run by Serene56. This is my experience and be forewarned: I had an absolutely Wonderful time.

 

My little group consisted of three couples (me and dh from Phila)(others from the Phila area). The youngest in group was 53 the oldest celebrated her 60th on the cruise. For 4 of us this was our third cruise, it was the second for the other couple.

 

The first couple flew into Fort Lauderdale early on the 11th. They stayed at the Marriott Marina (absolutely beautiful hotel). The rest of us had reservations on a 1:35 flight made in Sept. We all flew on US Air.

 

My first hint of trouble should have been when I could not print a boarding pass. When we did curbside checking they told me my seats would be assigned. Evidently the plane was overbooked. For an hour they kept asking for folks to take the next flight and they would give a free round trip ticket as a bonus. Yeah right with a major snowstorm waiting in the wings. For the most part I was calm and kept saying to my dh and traveling companions, "they are going to get us seats". Finally they boarded the plane and we still had no seats. Now I was starting to lose my cool. I asked how they decide who to bump. In my opinion it should be last in, first out. There were two no shows but they had checked into the airport. They came running up (10 minutes after the plane should have left) and were very willing to give up their tickets. We thanked them profusely and boarded a very crowded plane but at least we were on it.

 

Uneventful ride and no problems with our luggage (although the other couple on the early flight did not get one of their suitcases until 10 that night.) We were staying at the Holiday Express courtesy of my BIL's points. We called for a shuttle but after waiting 45 minutes sucking diesel fuel we grabbed a cab. Problem was that by the time the shuttle got to our area it was full. We took two cabs because of our luggage. It was $17 including tip to our hotel. The Holiday Express was not the Marriott Marina but it was fine for our purposes.

 

Thanks to TrentS over on the Pre and Post hotels board we decided to check out Bravo's Italian Restaruant across from the hotel. There was a wait but we had a few drinks and enjoyed the balmy Florida weather (while it lasted). It was a good thing we were in great moods with no where to go because once seated our server was extremely slow. But we were vacation mellow, the food was great and the prices were extremely reasonable. By the time we finished dinner it was after 10 and it had been a long stressful day so we headed back to our hotel rooms for some much needed sleep. We are definitely all getting old. While the Holiday Express is clean and convenient, the mattress was a bit too soft for us.

 

The next morning we woke to a COLD and DREARY Fort Lauderdale. The HEX offers a free breakfast but their dining area consists of about 5 tables. Very small. We walked to a near-by Walgreens and then to a little café in the mall near the hotel. Not very good and very expensive but we don’t care, we are full of anticipation. I’m a little nervous since I have read horrors stories about embarkation. On my recommendation (because of information from a CCer) we call for a cab around 10:10. The doorman at the hotel advises the 4 of us to get one cab since the trunks are deep and they will use a bungee cord for the trunk. The four of us and our eight pieces of luggage (very large bags) were able to fit in one taxi. We got to the port around 10:20. About a 20 minute wait outside and then we were allowed into the building to check in and sit for about 45 minutes. I think we first set foot on the Liberty about 11:40 -11:50.

 

Our first stop was at the Purser’s desk as we had received Funship dollars as Christmas gifts and wanted to apply them to our account. Then we headed for the Lido Deck stopping and gawking all the way.

 

Sorry this was so long and I haven’t gotten to the good parts like meeting my fellow CCers. Need to attend to real life stuff. I’ll be back.

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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Day one - after embarkation, stopping at the purser's desk and making our way to the Lido deck our adventure began. Lunch was being served, no lines and the food was hot. Our first experience with the staff was when we asked a young lady which way was the bathroom. Instead of pointing us in the direction she said "follow me" she led us there pointing out different things as we went. Big sigh of relief for me. I had read such negative reviews about the staff and I had been very apprehensive.

 

After lunch we to check out our rooms around 1:00. Although we had been told to wait until 1:30 our rooms were ready. We had room 7365, one couple had 7367 and the other 8381. For 4 of us this was our first balcony. The other couple will never sail without a balcony. My DH and I are in the minority on this. While it was wonderful, it was not a necessity and we will have no problem going back to a oceanview. The cabins are nicely appointed and you could actually turn around in the bathroom. Since I am a large sized person some regular size foks could probably waltz in there.

 

Some sightseeing than the Muster drill. Afterwards we were to meet fellow cruise critics at the AFt bar on the Lido deck. My first bad experience. I could not find my sail and sign card. We backtracked our steps. My DH grumbling all the way. I'm upset since I want to get to the meet and greet. We went to the Purser's desk to report the card lost and of course there was a very long line. We were in line about 15 minutes and I decided to aske an officer if I was in the correct line. I did not want to stand in line for 45 minutes to be told I was in the wrong line. He told me I was in the correct line and suggested I should use Joe's sail and sign and come back later. My husband voiced a concern that someone else would you use my card. At first the officer started to say "we do not have that type of problem on this ship" then I think he thought twice about making that kind of statement and said to the staff person behind him " can you help these folks". She said "sure what is your name and room number I'll make you a new card". When I gave her my name she said "I have your card, I forgot to give it back to you when you put the funship dollars on your account". Now this was over 4 hours later. Don't you think she should have left a phone message, sent the card to our room, or done something that would have prevented me from running all over the ship? Oh well, it was time to meet my fellow ccers.

 

By the time we got to the meet and greet some folks had already left. I did have the pleasure of meeting Serene56 and her SO (who made it to the stage that night), QueenGlitterBunny and her DH and MissPiggy543 and her DH. By a wonderful concidence MissPIggy and her DH were seated at our dinner table.

 

Back to our room to unpack and get ready for dinner. We had table 507, (upstairs) the late seating in the Silver dining room. I enjoyed our area. Very intimate, like dining in a small restaurant. I don't know if it is the late seating or the small area but we did not see a lot of underdressed people. I can't remember seeing anyone in shorts. Our waiters were Dominic and Wahono. I enjoyed them very much even though they made me get up and dance.

 

I often asked for something different such as lite dressing or no sauce and it was never a problem. We also bought the wine that part of our group package to dinner (3 bottles) and were never charged the corkage fee. Some of our party asked for two entrees or two desserts and it was never an issue. My food was never cold and I found it to be fine. My DH ordered the pasta dish as a starter every night and really enjoyed them. I tried the basil ice cream and actually enjoyed but others did not.

 

After dinner we went to the Welcome Abroad show. The cruise director John Heald was a hoot. We spoke to other staff and they sang his praise as being very down to earth and caring about every employee on the ship. I was told most cruise directors do not associate with the lower level employees. When I said "I guess he is considered one of the best Carnival cruise directors", I was told "he is the best cruise director in the WORLD".

 

First day postive impressions:

Easy embarkation

Friendly staff

Beautiful ship (a little much in some areas but not enough to annoy)

Nice rooms

Food was excellent

meeting my group leader (Cheryl) and other CCers

 

First day negative impressions

I have no problem with smoking (ex smoker) but I understand the complaints others have posted. Bars are very smokey, especially the piano bar.

Piano bar player Not good and drunks can be very loud .

Weather was very cold and the only people taking advantage of the pools and hot tubs were the kids. Seemed to be no supervision of kids in the hot tubs. But since I don't do bathing suits it was not really a problem for me.

Purser's desk employee. However, since I did not stand in line for an hour I was able to get over my annoyance quickly

Not getting to meet all the CCers who went to the meet and greet.

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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I'm amazed at how different the same experience can be for different folks.

 

Freeport - weather was not beach weather but than again back home they were shoveling out of 2 ft snow drifts. DH and I took a shared van cab ride over to Port Lucuya (sp). ($6 pp) Walked around a bit, stopped in the casino and donated $20. Dh went to the men's room and I put $20 in the 2 cent machine (BIG spender) DH came out in time to see me hit and when he saw that I won 2000 he got excited until he realized it was 2000 pennies. I always find cab rides interesting so I was content with my time in Freeport. Glad I got off the ship but will not choose a cruise for this port. It appears to be the graveyard for ships.

 

Grand Cayman - rented a car and drove to RumPoint Beach. Very nice and I need to stop over on the Ports of Call and thank the CCers that recommended this beach and Avis rent a car. Our second trip to GC and DH would rather not go back next time.

 

Jamacia - Bus tour, very nice, got the flavor of the island and learned a few new things and I always enjoy that. My heart aches for all this island has went through and hope it can find a way to thrive.

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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Our dining experiences:

We did lunch a few days at Emile’s on the Lido deck and twice in the Silver dining room. We did breakfast two days at Emile’s and the rest in the dining room. In my group of six we all had our preferences but no one found anything to be as bad as some of the reviews I have read.

 

Emile’s while there were lines they moved extremely quick. There were so many choices I am at a lost as to how anyone could complain. My husband is not fond of buffet food especially breakfast buffets so I knew he would not be a fan of Emile’s. He did like the deli sandwiches. One person in our group did a hamburger and mentioned the lines were long (about 15 min). We never ate there for dinner as we really enjoyed our dining partners and our wait staff.

 

Emile positives: large selection at lunch, fast moving lines everywhere but the grill, really good low fat Italian dressing, excellent hot chocolate

 

Emile negatives: grill line, coffee not always available, NO half and half (the reason I tried the hot chocolate)

 

Silver dining room – Our service was always quick. Excellent burgers with lots of toppings and the best bread pudding I have ever had. Breakfast was hot, eggs made to order, DH really enjoyed the Eggs Benedict. On our last day our breakfast waiter was a real sweetie. He took the time to talk about our trip home, thanked us for using Carnival and wished us Godspeed. There was the occasional lapse in service but nothing worth us getting our knickers twisted over. My over medium eggs were usually over hard but at least I didn’t have to cook them. There was more movement in the lower Silver Dining but no we didn’t need to hold the plates down and our forks had no problems finding our mouths.

 

Except for the night we ate at Harry’s we ate all our dinners in the Silver dining room. Enjoyed our waiters, our company and our food. While the meat portions were large the vegetables were not but never a problem asking for extra. We had the 8:00 dinner and really found this time worked well for us.

 

Silver positives: Being waited on and getting the chance to meet new folks. Food was consistently good and at dinner there were sufficient options. DH loved the Pasta starters and I loved the Bitter Melting Chocolate dessert. My steaks were always done to my request. No standing in lines at all for breakfast and lunch.

 

Silver negatives: A bar waiter came to our table encouraging us to try an after dinner drink. He had a full tray of these little Kailua type drinks. My DH and others at the table took one, thinking they were free. In fact, my DH encouraged other people to take one. The bar waiter didn’t ask for the Sail and Sign until we were done. So Joe ended up buying a round. I had a feeling but I have to admit the guy was smooth. The drinks were very good and we all had a laugh over it. The next night when he came around Joe told him “got me once buddy and you were smooth”.

 

Sometimes the service at lunch and breakfast was a little spotty or left a little to be desired. Toast not bought, my eggs a bit off, juice or coffee forgotten. But again when we spoke up the problem was generally rectified quickly.

 

This was our 3rd cruise. First was RCI, second Carnival and until now we always said we liked Carnival but loved RCI’s food. No longer, the Liberty beat out RCI.

 

Our experience at Harry’s was very nice. I enjoyed it mainly because I never can get my filet mignon done well. It is usually pink somewhere. This was perfect and tender to boot. Amazing since it was a very thick piece of meat. The rest of my group loved every single thing about their meal. I did not like the Tiramisu but everyone else raved about it. The band was excellent and added a very nice touch to the atmosphere. We went on Wed to celebrate a birthday and my DH tried to talk me into going back on Thursday.

 

As you can clearly tell my Liberty experience was Wonderful.

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martdm

martdm

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I love your way with words cathyoo...very amusing :) Thanks again for all the great and detailed info. Sounds like you had a good time...glad to hear it!

 

Did you have any problem finding a cab back from Lucaya? Are they congregated in a single area or will we have to search for one?

 

Anything remarkable to look for at Rum Point or is it just a really nice beach area (we booked a jeep tour that stops there for a few hours based on the same rave reviews your read on the Ports of Call board).

 

Thanks again! Love the review!

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born2crooz

born2crooz

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Cathy:

 

We have a car reserved at Avis also. Not sure if we're going to pick it up or just hit Seagrape.

 

We arrive in Grand Cayman at 8:00. What time did you end up hitting land??

 

My reservation is for 10:30, but I'm afraid after travel time, we won't have much beach time.

 

Was Rum Point crowded?

 

Did Avis pick you up downtown? If so where?

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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Cathy:

 

We have a car reserved at Avis also. Not sure if we're going to pick it up or just hit Seagrape.

 

We arrive in Grand Cayman at 8:00. What time did you end up hitting land??

 

My reservation is for 10:30, but I'm afraid after travel time, we won't have much beach time.

 

Was Rum Point crowded?

 

Did Avis pick you up downtown? If so where?

 

We had a very pleasant experience in GC. We went to breakfast and than to the Venitian Palace to get our tender tickets around 8:45/9:00. We had about a five minute wait and than a very smooth tender trip to the port. We walked a couple of blocks to the giftshop listed on the reservation. We advised the salesclerk we had reservations with Avis. She dialed the phone, I gave my name and in less than 10 minutes we were picked up in a mini van and taken to the Avis location near the airport. Our reserved car was not available and we received a free upgrade. We were on our way by 9:45/10:00. Easy ride, we enjoyed the countryside and were at Rum Point Beach by 10:45 or so. The water was very very cool, so we just hung around, some sunbathed, some played cards, ordered drinks, chips and salsa and then lunch. Please remember the menu prices are listed in GC dollars and the American dollar is something like .80 cents to a GC dollar. We were a bit surprised at our bill. We left Rum Point about 2:00, returned the car and the Avis driver (very friendly, lots of info) dropped us off at our tender point before 3.

 

Our all inclusive car rental was $83 (American dollars) which included a full tank of gas and all insurance. Figuring there were four of us, I don't think we could have gotten a better deal.

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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Entertainment – From art auctions to trivia games, from bingo to slot tournaments, from tea to adult comedy, I would think there was something for everyone. Truthfully, there were so many things to do I need another cruise to do the stuff I missed.

 

Games – If you want to win a ship on a stick you should try the early morning shows, the young and bright might just be nursing a hang-over and you might have a chance. I enjoyed the games in the Cabinet lounge more than the poolside games. I did not witness but my DH told me about a group of ignorant young men who kept calling out the answers ever though the game hostess asked them to stop. Way too many bingos and I still have the same complaint about the bingo prizes. Carnival takes in way too much money on these games to offer such small prizes. I came in second on the second slot tournament and was thrilled to get my entry fee and a bag of goodies for my efforts. My thrill factor would have been higher if I had won 1st prize of $500. I did miss horse racing which I played on my last Carnival cruise. Heidi and Ivan (game hosts) were super and took the time to answer questions after their games. Ivan really had great praise for John Heald and how Carnival treated their employees.

 

 

Shows – the biggest positive was the cruise director.. John Heald .. he was a hoot and a half. I read some complaints about his hawking during dinner. We had the second dinner and he must have been occupied or my hearing is actually worse than I thought. His bedtime story was hilarious. I thought his characters were picked randomly but that the last show was rehearsed. Others in my group thought it was staged from day one. However, on the way home I ran into a major player (Robert from VA) and he was in line at the airport without his wife. So maybe I was wrong. Regardless, I laughed a lot.

 

I loved the two product shows put on by the dancers. You can tell from the sets and the choreography that Carnival wants to “entertain you”. The male singer was fantastic and had a killer smile. The late night comedian was very funny and I heard his G rated show was excellent. The Guest talent show was very nice and John really made it enjoyable. My only negative was the “Village Idiots” probably one of the worst shows I have had to sit through. We didn’t leave because so many folks were walking out we were embarrassed for the “Idiots”. Real shame was that this was the last show on our cruise and not the greatest last impression. Another night of guest talent would have been better.

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2funcruzin

2funcruzin

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Cathy since we never met at the meet & greet I didn't know it was you but we were sitting at the table across from you for 4 people at table 551. We had Dominic @ Wahanoo as well. Too funny! The drink guy got us too! They were good drinks though and we got hooked on them each night!

 

Glad you enjoyed everything!

 

Tammy

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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I love your way with words cathyoo...very amusing :) Thanks again for all the great and detailed info. Sounds like you had a good time...glad to hear it!

 

Did you have any problem finding a cab back from Lucaya? Are they congregated in a single area or will we have to search for one?

 

Anything remarkable to look for at Rum Point or is it just a really nice beach area (we booked a jeep tour that stops there for a few hours based on the same rave reviews your read on the Ports of Call board).

 

 

No problem with a cab at Lucaya. I'm sure a private cab would be expensive since gas is sooo high. But they fill those cab vans up quickly. It was 6.00 per person.

 

I've been to Seven Mile Beach and Rum Point and I liked Rum Point much better. The sand is very soft not like the sinking sand at Seven Mile Beach. I am sure you are going to have a wonderful time. Just remember those 7.95 drinks are really going to run you over $10 when they convert and add the tip so be sure to drain your glass.

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FrannyK

FrannyK

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We are in the process of making our reservations for the Liberty Thanksgiving sailing. I really enjoyed your trip review! Thanks for taking the time. We're from the Phila area also. A couple of questions, did you have any trouble getting reservations at Harry's? How many formal nights are there on the 6-night cruise? Would you go to Harry's on a formal night or regular night? Thanks!

 

FrannyK

 

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cathyoo

cathyoo

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Cathy since we never met at the meet & greet I didn't know it was you but we were sitting at the table across from you for 4 people at table 551. We had Dominic @ Wahanoo as well. Too funny! The drink guy got us too! They were good drinks though and we got hooked on them each night!

 

Glad you enjoyed everything!

 

Tammy

 

Ahh, my husband noticed your group. He said something about people from Cheryl's group sitting near us. But I never pay him any mind. Did you like that area? I was missing my grandchildren so I noticed the kids sitting along the side. Love your pictures, I'd like to steal a few since mine did not turn out so well.

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serene56

serene56

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MILK

 

no way was that milk.. it said creamer on it... lol

Tasted like half and half to me. I think they did away with the single serving of half & half for a variety of reasons-- those containers take up too much room when all the people are using them--creates a lot of trash.

NoroVIrus is another reason. You just dont know who touched that one you are about to pick up. Plus I bet kids have a field day with stomping on them for the fun of it.

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annpk60

annpk60

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We ran into "Virginia" at the airport......... we talked to him and his wife......it was COMPLETELY staged. We were dissappointed to hear how staged. They were upset that we weren't going to Costa Maya. At the drill, someone pulled them aside and asked if they could come to their cabin and talk to them. The rest is history. It was all funny and our group had a wonderful trip, but surely they could actually do some random stuff. Robert and his wife got some great gifts for their acting including a 7 day cruise anywhere they want to go plus other stuff.

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