Freedom! Live From The Freedom of the Seas 8/11-18, 2024

[dbancroft]

@jam19872016also thanks from me and also thanks for letting me chime in. 1st time in a long time i was on the same cruise as someone doing a live review

 

[perfect match]

I’ve been somewhat MIA due to internet connection issues. Somehow without really knowing what I was doing I got the problem fixed a little while ago. 

At the rate I’m going lately I’m just hoping it stays fixed! It’s been like Groundhog Day around here. Something stops working, I fix so it’s working again - until it isn’t! 😡 That cycle continues on repeat. I’m out of patience with it. 
 

Hope your cruise weight gain proves to be as easy to lose as it was to gain. You’ve come too far overall to spoil your progress now. 
 

Thank you for another great trip report. I’ll be checking for your next one. 

[jam19872016]

21 hours ago, mo&fran said:

You must live in Jupiter.  Did yow see FHP doing speed enforcement north of PGA this morning. Their plane was in the air for quite a while. I live just south of PGA and it is one hour from my door to walking on the ship.

Just north of Jupiter.

 

Yes there were an unusually large number of FHP in the area. Luckily my slight speeding was not enough to catch their interest 😬

[jam19872016]

20 hours ago, kris816 said:

I am considering Mardi Gras for Halloween. How does Carnival differ from Royal for Halloween? 

I have not actually sailed anybody but Carnival for Halloween so for all I know, Royal does a great job. That said, that would be a tough feat to achieve. There is a certain level of buzz in the air, that "fun" aspect that Carnival brings to every sailing that gets kicked up a notch.

 

There will be tons of themed activities, trivia, drinks, trick or treating for the kiddos, a deck party/costume contest. The ship will be decorated and there will usually be themed desserts in the buffet and and dinner. A true ship wide immersive experience, they really go all in.

 

I would highly recommend you book a Halloween cruise on Mardi Gras, I think you will love it so long as you enjoy the Carnival product already.

[jam19872016]

17 hours ago, bluewater1298 said:

Glad you found something al bacon worthy! I'll search for them on our cruise.

 

Look forward to your live review on Reflection. If I can't be on board, having you there is the next best thing!

 

Thanks for another great review! I enjoyed sailing along. I'll continue to pray for your mom. Hope all goes well with her appointment and possible surgery. Take care!

Thanks so much for joining me again for the thoughts for my mom! I appreciate it. 

 

I love Reflection, but I would trade her for Allure in a heartbeat 😄

16 hours ago, Husky1987 said:

@jam19872016 Thank you for the great live review!  We're on Freedom in December and your thread has been fantastic.

Thank you 🙂

 

[jam19872016]

14 hours ago, dbancroft said:

@jam19872016also thanks from me and also thanks for letting me chime in. 1st time in a long time i was on the same cruise as someone doing a live review

 

You're very welcome! Always enjoy getting multiple perspectives 😄

 

 

5 hours ago, perfect match said:

I’ve been somewhat MIA due to internet connection issues. Somehow without really knowing what I was doing I got the problem fixed a little while ago. 

At the rate I’m going lately I’m just hoping it stays fixed! It’s been like Groundhog Day around here. Something stops working, I fix so it’s working again - until it isn’t! 😡 That cycle continues on repeat. I’m out of patience with it. 
 

Hope your cruise weight gain proves to be as easy to lose as it was to gain. You’ve come too far overall to spoil your progress now. 
 

Thank you for another great trip report. I’ll be checking for your next one. 

I think perhaps Andrew is to blame! He has turned out to be quite the troublemaker! Glad you made it back from your internet issues!

 

First day back and I have lost 5.2. Definitely huge swings and I am they continue to swing down.

 

Thanks for following along and I look forward to seeing you again on the next one!

[mo&fran]

1 hour ago, jam19872016 said:

Just north of Jupiter.

 

Yes there were an unusually large number of FHP in the area. Luckily my slight speeding was not enough to catch their interest 😬

Just have to go with the flow.

[jam19872016]

Just now, mo&fran said:

Just have to go with the flow.

This. I stay in the middle lane and try to keep pace without being the guy flying or the one out for a scenic stroll.

 

Once I get out of heavy Ft . Lauderdale traffic I let cruise control do its thing until Jupiter when the lanes shrink. I hear they are going to expand the road there, that will help.

 

 

[kris816]

5 hours ago, jam19872016 said:

I have not actually sailed anybody but Carnival for Halloween so for all I know, Royal does a great job. That said, that would be a tough feat to achieve. There is a certain level of buzz in the air, that "fun" aspect that Carnival brings to every sailing that gets kicked up a notch.

 

There will be tons of themed activities, trivia, drinks, trick or treating for the kiddos, a deck party/costume contest. The ship will be decorated and there will usually be themed desserts in the buffet and and dinner. A true ship wide immersive experience, they really go all in.

 

I would highly recommend you book a Halloween cruise on Mardi Gras, I think you will love it so long as you enjoy the Carnival product already.

Thank you for the response! (I am actually in Jupiter)

[perfect match]

11 hours ago, jam19872016 said:

I think perhaps Andrew is to blame! He has turned out to be quite the troublemaker! Glad you made it back from your internet issues!

 

First day back and I have lost 5.2. Definitely huge swings and I am they continue to swing down.

 

Thanks for following along and I look forward to seeing you again on the next one!

Yes! It must have been Andrew causing all the problems. I’ve got a few mort that he must be responsible for as well. 😂 Maybe he’s the one who put the wrong sail date for our January Utopia cruise in my signature because I know I couldn’t possibly done that myself. I did fix it as soon as I saw it tonight. 
 

I am so jealous that you could drop 5.2 lbs just like that! It would take me wayyyyy longer than it took you. I’m happy for you though. 
 

I will definitely be looking to sail along with you on  your next cruise. Just don’t expect me to keep up with your eating. Oh, and don’t bring that troublemaker Andrew again please! 🤣

[jam19872016]

14 hours ago, kris816 said:

Thank you for the response! (I am actually in Jupiter)

Small world, howdy neighbor!

 

7 hours ago, perfect match said:

Yes! It must have been Andrew causing all the problems. I’ve got a few mort that he must be responsible for as well. 😂 Maybe he’s the one who put the wrong sail date for our January Utopia cruise in my signature because I know I couldn’t possibly done that myself. I did fix it as soon as I saw it tonight. 
 

I am so jealous that you could drop 5.2 lbs just like that! It would take me wayyyyy longer than it took you. I’m happy for you though. 
 

I will definitely be looking to sail along with you on  your next cruise. Just don’t expect me to keep up with your eating. Oh, and don’t bring that troublemaker Andrew again please! 🤣

I will try and keep Andrew away. I never did see him, but I felt his presence for sure!

 

I'm sure that 5.2 was mostly excess water weight, keep in mind I put on over 15 in the previous week so not that impressive really 🙂. Down another 1.4 today but still got a ways to go.

Edited August 20 by jam19872016

[Missusdubbya]

Thanks for the review!

[Lionesss]

I thoroughly enjoyed your live thread. 

Very informative. 
 

It has held me over till our September 8 cruise on Freedom. 
 

Now, I do not know if I can be as interesting as yours if I post live. 
 

We shall see. 
 

Thanks again. 
 

 

Edited August 20 by Lionesss

[jam19872016]

20 hours ago, Missusdubbya said:

Thanks for the review!

Happy to do it 😄

 

 

17 hours ago, Lionesss said:

I thoroughly enjoyed your live thread. 

Very informative. 
 

It has held me over till our September 8 cruise on Freedom. 
 

Now, I do not know if I can be as interesting as yours if I post live. 
 

We shall see. 
 

Thanks again. 
 

 

Thank you!

 

I hope you will do a review I always enjoy them! And maybe you can take Freedom for some money at the casino! Something I was not able to do 🙂

 

[dbancroft]

18 hours ago, Lionesss said:

I thoroughly enjoyed your live thread. 

Very informative. 
 

It has held me over till our September 8 cruise on Freedom. 
 

Now, I do not know if I can be as interesting as yours if I post live. 
 

We shall see. 
 

Thanks again. 
 

 

As long as Andrew stays out of the casino....lol

[Lionesss]

7 hours ago, dbancroft said:

As long as Andrew stays out of the casino....lol

Who is this “Andrew” I’ve been reading about?????

 

 

Ty 

[perfect match]

On 8/11/2024 at 1:41 PM, jam19872016 said:

Standard inside cabin as far as I am aware. I may need the curtain, when I gave my room number to the host at Giovani's he said "John and Andrew". I am not sure who Andrew is, but I will insist on a curtain if he is booked into this room with me. 

 

I have always made my changes onboard with the Loyalty Ambassador. I believe if you want to do it before boarding you will need to call in and have it taken care of.

Nobody knows who Andrew is, or if he really exists. His name keeps coming up throughout the cruise though. 

[perfect match]

On 8/20/2024 at 6:57 PM, Lionesss said:

I thoroughly enjoyed your live thread. 

Very informative. 
 

It has held me over till our September 8 cruise on Freedom. 
 

Now, I do not know if I can be as interesting as yours if I post live. 
 

We shall see. 
 

Thanks again. 
 

 

When I saw that you were sailing on September 8 I was hoping you’d be on Wonder because that’s where we will be. I would have loved to meet you. I wouldn’t have followed you into the casino though because I wouldn’t want my casino luck - all of it bad luck - to rub off on you! 

Edited August 22 by perfect match
My typing, just like my luck in the casino is bad!

[jam19872016]

On 8/21/2024 at 1:37 PM, dbancroft said:

As long as Andrew stays out of the casino....lol

Yes but maybe that will mean he has taken up residence on Freedom and not decided to follow me around!

[jam19872016]

Work has been super busy. I will try to wrap this up on Saturday but most likely it will be Monday. Sunday is definitely not going to happen, very busy day for me but I will get this wrapped up soon 😄

 

[Lionesss]

On 8/21/2024 at 10:23 PM, perfect match said:

 

 

On 8/21/2024 at 10:23 PM, perfect match said:

When I saw that you were sailing on September 8 I was hoping you’d be on Wonder because that’s where we will be. I would have loved to meet you. I wouldn’t have followed you into the casino though because I wouldn’t want my casino luck - all of it bad luck - to rub off on you! 

 

 

 

Your too kind. 
 

And I would love to talk with you in person. 
 

I can always be found the first night in the casino. 
 

After that depends on how much money I win or lose. 
 

 

Take care. 

On 8/21/2024 at 10:23 PM, perfect match said:

 

Edited August 24 by Lionesss

[flcraigs5]

On 8/11/2024 at 12:06 PM, jam19872016 said:

I think they gave me the dinner menu by mistake because filet is not listed in the app. 

 

 

[flcraigs5]

Just now, flcraigs5 said:

 

Is this restaurant open at a special rate on embarkation dsy?

[bluewater1298]

On 8/23/2024 at 2:30 PM, jam19872016 said:

Work has been super busy. I will try to wrap this up on Saturday but most likely it will be Monday. Sunday is definitely not going to happen, very busy day for me but I will get this wrapped up soon 😄

 

Please let us know how your mom's doctor's appoint goes. Praying! 😊

[jam19872016]

On 8/24/2024 at 8:22 AM, flcraigs5 said:

Is this restaurant open at a special rate on embarkation dsy?

Not really. It is open for lunch on embarkation day and on sea days which will be cheaper than going for dinner. The onboard price for lunch is $22.99. If you book onboard like I did, you will also get hit with the sales tax so best to book ahead or pick a sea day. Online ahead of time was $18.99 although it will occasionally go on sale for cheaper than that.

 

I think I would like to try it again on a newer ship with the ability to order a la carte from the wine bar. I would like to try the pizza again, but paying $23 for the whole meal makes the pizza a poor value and I really struggled with that much food. Another reason to keep Wonder and Utopia high on my wanna try list 😄