Long Review: Fos 1/7 - 1/14/07

[pandaTO]

Flagger,

 

Thanks for posting the great photos. Please post details about your excursion in MoBay. How long did you spend at the bird sanctuary? Did you do anything else in MoBay that you can recommend? What did this tour cost? Our kids would really enjoy this. Did you feel safe on this tour? Any info would be appreciated.

 

I posted this on your MoBay thread as well, but it does not seem to get as much activityas this review.

[Sky Sweet]

We elected to do self-disembarkation. We were up at 5:15, left the room around 6:10 and there were 100 folks ahead of us. WE were in a cab by 6:49 and at the gate by 7:30.

 

Do you have to take your own luggage off the ship if you do self disembarkation, or is it put in a special section of the terminal?

[flagger]

Yes you have to do your own bags. Hence the SELF in self-disembarkation.

 

No, when customs clears the ship, you get off. You go through customs and immigration in the terminal.

 

We did the Jamaica trip via A-Z Jamaica Planners. Check out the Jamaica board for their website. We emailed her the Wednesday before. The trip was a modified rockland's bird sanctuary, Dr. Cave's beach shopping one. It was $149 for 2 adults and one child. We were back at the ship by 2 which included lunch (which we bought separately as well as for our driver at the famous PORK PIT.

[i-m-ed]

The only reason I would have gone up to the gym would be to try and film my own "OK GO" video by moving the treadmills around, but I think they might not have liked that.

 

Do you mean this video??? LOL

[flagger]

Something like that.

 

Renee: I am not looking at the deck plans so not sure where that other spot is. I think having a daughter myself, made me think what I did walking back to the aft. I just don't think you can let your guard down when it comes to a ship of that size. I am not prone at this point of allowing my 13 year old wandering around the mall alone, certainly not in another country and quite frankly you are in another country when you are on a ship.

 

Finally: Ms. Flagger read this and said that I was too critical. We really did have a good time on this trip. I probably notice more things than the average passenger. I talked to several who had not noticed the same things as I.

 

I also ran into one passenger that had a conniption when I took seats she was saving. She continued to make cracks every time she ran into me on the ship. I also ran into others who were either looking for a fight or looking NOT to enjoy the trip.

 

Maybe I have high expectations when I plunk down $500 a day for a family of three, but then again as I said no cooking or cleaning is a bonus. Seeing my daughter have a great time was great and spending as much time together with my dear wife for our 13th anniversary is wonderful.

 

And who can forget all the good friends I made on this cruise.

[mercuryfan]

we got off the ship by 8:30am had red color coded luggage tags and got through customs in 15 minutes.. found our bags in 10 minutes and grabbed a taxi to get to our hotel Best Western Oceanside in ft. lauderdale arrived there at 9:45am.. had our bags secured check in was at 1pm.. walked to the beach and then toured the intercoastal waterway via water taxi. spent the afternoon napping.. then did water taxi again.. found a cool resturant. headed back to the hotel and left monday moring to the airport. flight left at 12:40est and landed in milwaukee at 2:40pm my dad picked us up and got home at 3:45pm

 

Hotels:

 

We arrived two days before our cruise stayed at The Thunderbird resort in Sunny Isle very cool hotel, very good staff.

 

Oceanside in Ft lauderdale was ok it was a hotel no atmosphere

[mercuryfan]

Something like that.

 

Renee: I am not looking at the deck plans so not sure where that other spot is. I think having a daughter myself, made me think what I did walking back to the aft. I just don't think you can let your guard down when it comes to a ship of that size. I am not prone at this point of allowing my 13 year old wandering around the mall alone, certainly not in another country and quite frankly you are in another country when you are on a ship.

 

Finally: Ms. Flagger read this and said that I was too critical. We really did have a good time on this trip. I probably notice more things than the average passenger. I talked to several who had not noticed the same things as I.

 

I also ran into one passenger that had a conniption when I took seats she was saving. She continued to make cracks every time she ran into me on the ship. I also ran into others who were either looking for a fight or looking NOT to enjoy the trip.

 

Maybe I have high expectations when I plunk down $500 a day for a family of three, but then again as I said no cooking or cleaning is a bonus. Seeing my daughter have a great time was great and spending as much time together with my dear wife for our 13th anniversary is wonderful.

 

And who can forget all the good friends I made on this cruise.

 

 

I had no concerns on the ship with our 11 year old son.. We had it set to check him out of adventure ocean and he actually requested that do that... On the last full day saturday we did let him go to the h20 zone by himself get 3 deck chairs and go have fun I got there 20 minutes later and found the three chairs he reserved for us and he was playing with some of the friends he made on the ship...

[i-m-ed]

I too would be hesitant to let my child roam the ship without supervision, she's only 10 though. At 13 I think I would cautiously let my child go places alone onboard a ship, but I would not let her come and go as she likes. I would also be more inclined to let her go on her own if she were with friends too. Last summer my MIL was watching our kids and she had my daughter so afraid of being kidnapped she wouldn't ride her bicycle on our street unless we went out with her, we live on a culdesac.

[KillaFee]

Thanks for the detailed and honest review. Every now and then I read great things about the Freedom and a I have a tiny urge to book, but I think I'll stick w/the smaller, more intimate ships.

Laura

[BuyReallyLow]

Thanks for the review. We will be on Freedom in 20 days! It is always good to discuss the goods and bads of any trip - but I'm glad you had a enjoyable time.

[BillyMetz]

flagger, I don't know if this is something you would have noticed but if you did I would appreciate an answer. Did you are your wife, or really anyone else who has sailed on the FOS, notice how many people can be seated at the largest tables in the main dinning room? Just curious if there are tables as large as 10 or if 8 is the largest?

[flagger]

I believe it is 10. We had a group that wanted to get 11 in (including my DD). It would have been VERY tight. This was in Cielo I believe. We ended up at a table of 6 but we had no one join us the entire week. Our table (344) was right by a port window so that was a bit of an entertainment until it got dark or they shut the shades because people were getting sick looking out at the waves.

[andy1962]

flagger, I don't know if this is something you would have noticed but if you did I would appreciate an answer. Did you are your wife, or really anyone else who has sailed on the FOS, notice how many people can be seated at the largest tables in the main dinning room? Just curious if there are tables as large as 10 or if 8 is the largest?

 

the largest table I saw seated 14 ppl this was Leonardos first level by main staircase, I had table for 4 next to them....

[andy1962]

my apologies for the double post

[pandaTO]

Thanks Flagger for the tour info. Did your daughter enjoy the 'Pork Pit' lunch stop? Our son is a picky eater. I was considering a big breakfast & passing on the lunch stop.

 

Was there an extra entrance fee to Dr's Cave beach? How long was the beach portion & did you bring your own towels?

 

Thanks in advance for any additional info!

[GMoney]

That's a great review.

 

The fact that things are already broken doesn't surprise me at all. Voyager was exactly the same way with the misting showers on the main pool deck. They still do not work to this day, and they never will. Hopefully they fix Freedom's H20Zone, but I wouldn't count on it.

[vikeqn]

Dear Sir,

I am from Hayward WI and also staying at the Thunderbird Resort in Sunny Isles Fl. before our cruise on the Freedom 3-11 cruise. I have been very nervous about this resort as it hasn't had the greatest reviews. We have quite a few of us and quite a few rooms - is this place and the beach OK?

Them da Bears - well what can we say?

Please give me all info you got on this place.

Thanks,

VikeQn

[flagger]

PandaTO,

 

We did NOT go to the beach, but all entrance fees were included in the price of the tour. You need to bring your own towels from the ship though.