Unabridged/unbiased review of LOS

[IRcruisin]

At the risk of being slammed and after posting a short review immediately after our cruise this is my honest opinion of RCL and LOS. (1st time w/RCL)

 

Port of Miami: Very easy to find and park

Embarkation: RCL is quicker than my 2 previous cruise experiences with Disney and Princess, although these weren't that bad either, but RCL calls by Group # or Suite etc. which I think the other cruise lines should copy.

We were able to board the actual ship before 12:15 and went to explore since our cabin wasn't ready until 1pm and I will say that again, the time was right on because at 1pm we were checking our cabin out and meeting our attendant Balfour who was excellent all through the cruise.

We then went up to the Windjammer for lunch, usual buffet crowd although if you skip the first line which is the Asian line you can get into the rest of the WJ easily..most people stop there first (nothing against asian food :D I like it too) but it's a loooooong line unless you go around to the back/front of the WJ where they have a carving station which changes daily..however the other items do not/ except for the breakfast buffet. Let me interject at this time that I personally think Princess serves better food (ie better variety) but we didn't starve so it's not that bad!

After lunch we went to Chops and made res. for both formal nights, highly recommend Chops...great service/atmosphere/food good, but as others have said the steaks are not fantastic, had better but they were good enough that we didn't go away hungry!

We decided to go see if our luggage had arrived...some had, but one got lost somewhere on the ship until 8pm and then we had to track it down to the Deck 2 :rolleyes: but nevertheless we didn't let that stop our vacation.

 

Cabins: we had a JS on Deck 9...will NEVER go back to a regular cabin again...this cabin was wonderful, plenty of room/great balcony

heavenly bed and the sofa bed wasn't bad either! Bathroom was bigger than we had expected, needed a ladder to get into the tub/shower combo...boy it was high! Great cabin

 

Dining: as stated above Chops was great, the $20pp price was worth it.

We didn't eat any of our dinners in the dining room (before ya'll yell we did PREPAY our tips and I made sure I took it to the DR before we disembarked) We also told our Head waiter we weren't eating there, for the simple reason our stomachs are used to eating around 5/5:30 and that late seating was not going to work...plus we didn't want to be "regulated" to a certain time..so I can't say anything about the food in the DR.

We did eat at Johnny Rockets several times, the $3.95pp was worth it everytime....for the onion rings alone! We also made it to Sorrentos several times..very good..and to WJ for dinner several times.

 

Entertainment: we attended several bingo games....if I remember correctly Princess/Disney only charge $20 for the same amount of cards whereas RCL charges $35...but we had fun playing anyway. Of course we didn't win, we never win anything lol

We attended the Karaoke/Boogie Bodies, which was funny but the place is very small didn't hold many people. Love and Marriage game with Ken Rush was pretty funny, don't miss it. "Somewhere in time" the singers were great, story line kinda got muddled up somewhere in time..lol

70's dance party was okay....but with the demographic of people we noticed a 60's party would have been more appreciated. The ICE show tickets were gone before we could get them so can't comment. The trivia contests kept the same theme of the 70's which we found odd..and maybe that's why we only saw about 6 people playing? We wanted to attend the dance instruction but they only offered line/salsa not ballroom which would have better suited this crowd IMO. The only thing salsa lessons would have done for me is throw my hip out of joint..lol

We wish there had been more things offered for those who don't like the pool games etc.

Passengers: a lot of different cultures represented, different ages, the only "problem kids" we encountered where quickly snagged by a their parent (elevator pushing all the buttons etc.)

Rude pax? Yes, pushing ahead in lines etc. But for the most part the whole group were pretty nice.

Ships Crew: we encountered so many nice people working in various areas of the ship, pleasant with the exception of some of the bartenders looking at you like you had three heads when you asked for a soda (with card) everyone was very nice and smiling. kudos to the LOS crew.

 

 

Sea days: not enough activites for those of us who get bored easily. Did make my daily donations to the slot machines but after you lose that $100 what else is there? lol

 

Port days: Labadee RCL own island...we didn't like it very much, not enough beach for 4000 peeps....this is where Disney and

Princess shine ...we never felt crowded on their islands AND you weren't followed around until you felt like you just had to sit down..I don't mind tipping at all..so this wasn't the issue. Just not impressed with the whole thing...but thats MO

Mo'bay Jamaica...decided to take the shuttle to the shopping area then to Margaritaville....I didn't buy a thing (I'm a shopaholic too) so what's that tell you? And Jimmy Buffet needs to come on down and eat one of his cheeseburgers...they were TERRIBLE.

Grand Cayman...tendering to the dock was very rocky but we made it, walked to the Hardrock Cafe where we ate lunch which was a $62 dollar holdup..lol walked around about an hour then went back to the ship/noticed alot of people were back on the ship very early too!

Cozumel...got off the ship at the pier and thought we had walked into an oven..wow was it hot even for us Florida peeps..we shopped for the requisite T-shirts/vanilla and then went back to the ship, where again we noticed alot of people stayed on or got back on asap. We didn't do any shore excursions, two reasons...one we had been to these ports before and two we didn't think they were worth it the first time.

 

Disembarkation: we were light blue 1 tags which stated that we were scheduled to get off around 9:30...we went down to our wait area at 7am, we didn't have to wait that long maybe about an hour ..we went through customs very quickly, we were kinda surprised that they didn't check our carry-on/off bags? anyway we were clear and went to that long tunnel where our luggage was going to go around and around etc. I snagged a very aggressive porter who was wonderful, he got our luggage, AND took it all the way to our car in the parking garage! Getting out of the port and Miami was a breeze. I would have been a nervous wreck had it been a workday for Miami..thank God it was Saturday!

 

All in all our vacation was great, we were with the Paula group and had a good time meeting her and family...the LOS is a beautiful ship, very clean..except for the SMELL at times....smelled like sewer gas:eek: lol

Our complaints are small, better food on Princess/island better/more activities.....would I sail RCL again..of course, but I think my next cruise I'll go back to Princess and see if what I remember is still correct, if not then no harm no foul and if I got a chance to sail again tomorrow and it's with RCL you can bet I will be on it!

[Merion_Mom]

Thank you for writing such a thorough review. I just thought that I would comment on a thing or two. :)

 

We then went up to the Windjammer for lunch, usual buffet crowd although if you skip the first line which is the Asian line you can get into the rest of the WJ easily..most people stop there first (nothing against asian food :D I like it too) but it's a loooooong line unless you go around to the back/front of the WJ where they have a carving station which changes daily..however the other items do not/ except for the breakfast buffet. Let me interject at this time that I personally think Princess serves better food (ie better variety) but we didn't starve so it's not that bad!

I have never understood someone saying that there is not enough variety in the Windjammer. There are hundreds, literally hundreds of different items in there. Many DO change, but even those that do not........do you eat all of them on the first day? Is that what makes it boring/repetitive the next day? I just don't get it.

After lunch we went to Chops and made res. for both formal nights, highly recommend Chops...great service/atmosphere/food good, but as others have said the steaks are not fantastic, had better but they were good enough that we didn't go away hungry!

I haven't eaten in Chops on Liberty, but I have had nothing but impeccable food on Chops on other ships. I am sorry if you found the steaks "not fantastic".

 

 

 

 

Entertainment: we attended several bingo games....if I remember correctly Princess/Disney only charge $20 for the same amount of cards whereas RCL charges $35...but we had fun playing anyway. Of course we didn't win, we never win anything lol

I noticed also that on Princess the winning jackpots were considerably smaller. They were at most in the few hundred dollar range. On RC, I have seen many jackpots in the thousands of dollars, even more than ten thousand! :eek: (disclaimer: I rarely play bingo)

 

The ICE show tickets were gone before we could get them so can't comment.

It's too late to help you now, but generally you can just show up at Studio B and walk in without a ticket. Did you check at the Purser's Desk for the tickets, when someone told you that ALL the tickets to ALL the shows were gone?

Sea days: not enough activites for those of us who get bored easily. Did make my daily donations to the slot machines but after you lose that $100 what else is there? lol

You are kidding about this, right? You were BORED on the Liberty? Not enough to do? :eek: :eek: :eek:

 

Port days: Labadee RCL own island...we didn't like it very much, not enough beach for 4000 peeps....this is where Disney and

Princess shine ...we never felt crowded on their islands AND you weren't followed around until you felt like you just had to sit down..I don't mind tipping at all..so this wasn't the issue. Just not impressed with the whole thing...but thats MO

Did you just go to the beach closest to the tender dock? There are a number of beaches all over the peninsula; if the first one looks crowded, just keep going to another.

 

Again, thanks for posting. Happy sails!

[reallyitsmema]

Thanks for the review. Everyone is entitled to their opinion without being slammed. Hopefully you won't need a fireproof suit;)

[Lynnees]

Very good reviewed. Sounds unbiased to me. Food is subjective and just because one person finds a steak just OK doesn't mean you're wrong.

 

 

I agree with your assessment of the WJ. They just have the same thing on both sides and meet in the middle. There's a fair amount of variety but certainly not 100's of items.

 

I very seldom gamble and have stopped wasting my money on bingo as I think they are gouging on that game.

 

All in all - an excellent review.

 

M

[ruskatab]

I too think 35 is ridiculous for bingo. Ive also tried to go to the ice show with no tickets and was not allowed in. Thanks for your review, sounds like the smell is still on the Liberty.

[IRcruisin]

Thank you for the kind words( in spite of my "criticisms" of some things on LOS )I did have a great time.:D

Merion Mom: Yes I did get bored and I should have expanded on that...I'm on medication (lol not that kind) that pretty much prohibits my "sun worshipping" at poolside, and I can read all the books I need to read at home so laying around reading was not quite the prize as it is to others. I did enjoy people watching but even that gets old especially when you start seeeing the same people..:eek: lol so I needed a distraction that didn't cost money...ie casino/bingo and I just didn't find that much to do on LOS but that is just me.

I didn't find 100's of items to eat at the WJ, if you did I want to go with you sometime..lol they did vary the items on the other cruises I have been on and not just the meat.

Chops steaks are good...but I found that my husbands "grilling" was just as good..however the service was wonderful and if I get a chance to cruise again LOS I will definitely go again.

Yes the casino on LOS was paying more than I had seen on Princess although I did win some on Princess my last night!

 

And last but not least, the ICE show tickets went so fast we didn't think about just walking in..and Labadee...we walked until our tongues were dragging the ground and still found each area to be small and crowded..just my opinion though..Thanks for reading and happy sails to you all too!!

[LynnAB]

Thank you for the kind words( in spite of my "criticisms" of some things on LOS )I did have a great time.:D

Merion Mom: Yes I did get bored and I should have expanded on that...I'm on medication (lol not that kind) that pretty much prohibits my "sun worshipping" at poolside, and I can read all the books I need to read at home so laying around reading was not quite the prize as it is to others. I did enjoy people watching but even that gets old especially when you start seeeing the same people..:eek: lol so I needed a distraction that didn't cost money...ie casino/bingo and I just didn't find that much to do on LOS but that is just me.

I didn't find 100's of items to eat at the WJ, if you did I want to go with you sometime..lol they did vary the items on the other cruises I have been on and not just the meat.

Chops steaks are good...but I found that my husbands "grilling" was just as good..however the service was wonderful and if I get a chance to cruise again LOS I will definitely go again.

Yes the casino on LOS was paying more than I had seen on Princess although I did win some on Princess my last night!

 

And last but not least, the ICE show tickets went so fast we didn't think about just walking in..and Labadee...we walked until our tongues were dragging the ground and still found each area to be small and crowded..just my opinion though..Thanks for reading and happy sails to you all too!!

 

 

 

I'm soooo curious. I've been on many cruises, including twice on Navigator, once on Freedom, and once on Liberty. I'm just wondering, though: What activities do you want that are not on Liberty?

 

Lynn

[Maxiecat3]

I'm soooo curious. I've been on many cruises, including twice on Navigator, once on Freedom, and once on Liberty. I'm just wondering, though: What activities do you want that are not on Liberty?

 

Lynn

 

Hello Lynn,

I finished reading the review and I was wondering the same thing. We didn't come close to doing everything we wanted to do when we were on there with all you guys back in May. See you enjoyed it so much you have a B2B scheduled. Hope everybody is doing alright over on the other side of the state.

Gregg

[LynnAB]

Hello Lynn,

I finished reading the review and I was wondering the same thing. We didn't come close to doing everything we wanted to do when we were on there with all you guys back in May. See you enjoyed it so much you have a B2B scheduled. Hope everybody is doing alright over on the other side of the state.

Gregg

 

 

HI, GREG!!! It's good to hear from you!

 

Yes, we LOVED Liberty. The only reason I felt like we knew where everything was on the ship and what the activities were going to be was because we had already sailed on Freedom the year before. Even then we were overwhelmed with all the activities, the amazing ship, our amazing cruise director, Ken, the food, the service, etc. I could go on and on and on.

 

To be honest, I hope I never get so jaded as to not appreciating a vacation on a ship like Liberty. I feel very fortunate to be able to experience such a trip. Our son will be finishing his undergraduate studies this coming May, so our back-to-back will be a combination graduation trip for him and early 25th anniversary for my husband and me. AND mostly we NEED something wonderful to look forward to since my mother passed away two months ago, and I have been severely depressed since then. I'm trying to focus on good things in life as much as I can (not easy, by the way).

 

So how are you? Are you planning any other cruises or have I missed out on any you've taken or mentioned?

 

Again, Greg, it was nice to hear from you!

 

Lynn

[funfamilyfun]

Can all of you that felt that the Liberty had tons of activities to do during the day, please tell me what type of things you did? We just came from the Mariner, and although we had a great time, we didn't feel there was a lot to do during the day. We like the sun, but I think we spent 3 hours total each day outside.

 

Keep in mind, we have the Independence booked for March, 2009, so we are hooked. I'm just curious if we are missing things. Thanks!

[roe2ship]

 

Entertainment: we attended several bingo games....if I remember correctly Princess/Disney only charge $20 for the same amount of cards whereas RCL charges $35...

Port days: Labadee RCL own island...we didn't like it very much, not enough beach for 4000 peeps....this is where Disney and

Princess shine ...we never felt crowded on their islands !

Yes Princess does charge $20 for the same amount of cards.

 

I agree with "Merion Mom" comments...........Labadee is almost twice the size of Princess Cays, not sure about Castaway Cays.

 

I noticed also that on Princess the winning jackpots were considerably smaller. They were at most in the few hundred dollar range. On RC, I have seen many jackpots in the thousands of dollars, even more than ten thousand! :eek: (disclaimer: I rarely play bingo)

I have seen the jackpots on Princess in the thousands, maybe not ten thousand, but definitely thousands of dollars.:)

[LynnAB]

Can all of you that felt that the Liberty had tons of activities to do during the day, please tell me what type of things you did? We just came from the Mariner, and although we had a great time, we didn't feel there was a lot to do during the day. We like the sun, but I think we spent 3 hours total each day outside.

 

Keep in mind, we have the Independence booked for March, 2009, so we are hooked. I'm just curious if we are missing things. Thanks!

 

 

I'm sure other people will join in on this one. I feel you either love cruising or don't love it and enjoy land-based vacations better. Cruising to me is the best type of vacation. My family and I even repeat eastern/western Caribbean itineraries just because we love the RCCL ships. To us the ships are a destination in and of themselves. We swimming in the pools, soaking and just talking with each other in the hot tubs, walking the decks, working out in the gym, reading a little bit (I'm an avid reader but don't find enough TIME to devote to reading on a cruise), eating, dancing, socializing, playing bingo, playing basketball (for our son), gazing at the ocean and breathing the briny air, relaxing and feeling our stresses melt away ...

 

I'm still not sure what ELSE everyone wants on a cruise. Am I missing something?

 

Lynn

[cruiserbryce]

I loved Liberty and it was probably our best cruise yet..thankfully, being on the Maiden Voyage we seemed to miss the smell that everyone else has encountered...Winjammer is good enough...the variety has always been sufficient for us...an important thing to remember is that each person has their own preferences and will like different things that the next...but overall I agree that the food on Princess s a bit better

[Maxiecat3]

Can all of you that felt that the Liberty had tons of activities to do during the day, please tell me what type of things you did? We just came from the Mariner, and although we had a great time, we didn't feel there was a lot to do during the day. We like the sun, but I think we spent 3 hours total each day outside.

 

Keep in mind, we have the Independence booked for March, 2009, so we are hooked. I'm just curious if we are missing things. Thanks!

 

Just keep in mind that that not everybody will like doing all the activities. The obvious activities include: Flowrider, rock wall, basketball, ping-pong, shuffleboard, golf simulator, putt-putt, pool & hot tubs, walking track, spa, bingo, casino, gym and of course shopping. Each evening the next days Daily Compass is left in your stateroom. I have heard that some people bring highliters and highlite activities that interest them for the following day. I went through my compass from the Liberty OTS from May for the first sea day and found the following: Cards & Games, Trivia, Ice Skating, Cinema, Coffee Tasting, Sudoku Challenge, Vegetable Carving, Scrapbook Workshop, Bellyflop & Sexy Leg contests, Art Preview(Auction), Diamond & Jewelry show, Makeover Demo, Dodgeball Tour., Tea Tasting. Later in the week they have towel folding demos, cooking demos, etc. Read the compasses the night before and everybody should be able to find things to do.

 

Gregg

 

PS: Lynn- sorry to hear about your mother. I know she was having health problems just before our Liberty cruise. No cruise planned for 08 - brother getting married. 09 cruise will be Southern for DD college graduation.

[madforcruising]

Thanks for your review.

 

Just out of curriousity, what daily activities do they offer on the other lines you have sailed that you missed on Liberty?

 

I rarely participate in any of the onboard activities, I´m not going out into the sun, howevr I´m never bored just doing nothing.

 

As I´ve never cruised on Princess or Disney I´d like to know about the activities they offer.

[IRcruisin]

Isn't it wonderful when we can go on the same vacation, same ship and some find too much to do and others don't find enough? :) that's why we are all different, just think how boring we would be if we all liked/disliked the same things! For clarification anytime I can go on vacation and not have to cook/make beds/clean bathrooms is a great time for me! I have no complaints on the aspect of cruising or of RCL..just not enough inside activities to keep me occupied during the day and sometimes at night but that's just me and my family! I am in no way "jaded" and I do appreciate the fact that we can go on vacations at all whether it be cruising or a weekend to the mountains!Thanks for the comments, happy cruising to all!

[Lynn the Cruiser]

Thanks for your review.

 

Just out of curriousity, what daily activities do they offer on the other lines you have sailed that you missed on Liberty?

 

I rarely participate in any of the onboard activities, I´m not going out into the sun, howevr I´m never bored just doing nothing.

 

As I´ve never cruised on Princess or Disney I´d like to know about the activities they offer.

That was my exact question, too. I've never been on any other cruise line besides RCI so I don't know what other lines offer. One thing I do know....I've taken a book on ever cruise and not once have I ever opened it!!! I've also only ever been on the voyager class and have seen the ice show on all 4 cruises and have never had trouble getting tickets. Is it that much harder on the LOS because that is my next cruise coming up?????

[LynnAB]

Just keep in mind that that not everybody will like doing all the activities. The obvious activities include: Flowrider, rock wall, basketball, ping-pong, shuffleboard, golf simulator, putt-putt, pool & hot tubs, walking track, spa, bingo, casino, gym and of course shopping. Each evening the next days Daily Compass is left in your stateroom. I have heard that some people bring highliters and highlite activities that interest them for the following day. I went through my compass from the Liberty OTS from May for the first sea day and found the following: Cards & Games, Trivia, Ice Skating, Cinema, Coffee Tasting, Sudoku Challenge, Vegetable Carving, Scrapbook Workshop, Bellyflop & Sexy Leg contests, Art Preview(Auction), Diamond & Jewelry show, Makeover Demo, Dodgeball Tour., Tea Tasting. Later in the week they have towel folding demos, cooking demos, etc. Read the compasses the night before and everybody should be able to find things to do.

 

Gregg

 

PS: Lynn- sorry to hear about your mother. I know she was having health problems just before our Liberty cruise. No cruise planned for 08 - brother getting married. 09 cruise will be Southern for DD college graduation.

 

 

Thank you, Gregg. I'm sorry I hit "send" before proofing and putting the extra "g" in your name. I swear I knew there were two g's <g>.

 

Lynn

[LynnAB]

Isn't it wonderful when we can go on the same vacation, same ship and some find too much to do and others don't find enough? :) that's why we are all different, just think how boring we would be if we all liked/disliked the same things! For clarification anytime I can go on vacation and not have to cook/make beds/clean bathrooms is a great time for me! I have no complaints on the aspect of cruising or of RCL..just not enough inside activities to keep me occupied during the day and sometimes at night but that's just me and my family! I am in no way "jaded" and I do appreciate the fact that we can go on vacations at all whether it be cruising or a weekend to the mountains!Thanks for the comments, happy cruising to all!

 

 

I'm still curious as to what other activities might be on other cruise lines. That's kind of what I was trying to ask. We're very partial to RCCL after a not so great cruise on another cruise line a few years ago. I would love for other people to jump in with what activities they've experienced on other cruises and loved that maybe RCCL doesn't have.

 

I see you were on the Paula Dean cruise. Lucky, lucky! I would have loved THAT. I've seen Paula at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival, and she is very entertaining. I have all her cookbooks, too. Was it a blast? Did she do cooking demos? Gosh, I'd love to hear about what it was like.

 

Lynn

[IRcruisin]

I'm still curious as to what other activities might be on other cruise lines. That's kind of what I was trying to ask. We're very partial to RCCL after a not so great cruise on another cruise line a few years ago. I would love for other people to jump in with what activities they've experienced on other cruises and loved that maybe RCCL doesn't have.

 

I see you were on the Paula Dean cruise. Lucky, lucky! I would have loved THAT. I've seen Paula at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival, and she is very entertaining. I have all her cookbooks, too. Was it a blast? Did she do cooking demos? Gosh, I'd love to hear about what it was like.

 

Lynn

 

 

To answer your last questions first:D You will get very mixed feelings on the ??? of was it a blast to cruise with Paula Deen..lol..to us it was worth the extra $$ which I understand was considerably more than non-Paula cruisers paid..to others they were disappointed. She tried to do a cooking demo...apparently there were shortages of porkchops/collard greens/mac/cheese..lol so she did a little cooking and alot of talking..but we loved it..she is the same woman in person as she is on tv and my family and I got to chat with her one on one quite a bit..however the "planned" activities were few and far between, that's why I said there wasn't enough to do during the day hours....Paulas family were just as fun/funny and very gracious about pic taking etc. We love them all.

To answer your first question: we have sailed Disney and Princess, Disney was a 3 day trial to see if we even liked cruising..WE DO! But unless you have small children there was not that much to do either...BUT their island Castaway Cay was super...lots of room/beach etc.

Princess was our 2nd & 3rd cruise....we were never bored, we went to morning classes of dance...pottery..trivia both at day and night...bingo (cheaper on than RCL)...horse racing...karaoke...Sock hop dancing...watching a first run movie on their GIANT outdoor screen with popcorn and nice blankets over our legs (they had family movies during the day it was nice) We lost/won in the casino...they had dance competitions with prizes (pretty good ones!) of course they had the same carving demos..and their island Princess Cay was gorgeous...lots of room to spread out, nice little shops too. Maybe this doesn't sound like much compared to LOS and the rockclimbing/flowrider/skating rink but to those of us who aren't into being that physical..we needed more to do and we found more to keep us busy on these 2 trips than on our last with RCL...BUT again..I would do RCL in a heartbeat..cuz I LOVE CRUISING:D

[LynnAB]

To answer your last questions first:D You will get very mixed feelings on the ??? of was it a blast to cruise with Paula Deen..lol..to us it was worth the extra $$ which I understand was considerably more than non-Paula cruisers paid..to others they were disappointed. She tried to do a cooking demo...apparently there were shortages of porkchops/collard greens/mac/cheese..lol so she did a little cooking and alot of talking..but we loved it..she is the same woman in person as she is on tv and my family and I got to chat with her one on one quite a bit..however the "planned" activities were few and far between, that's why I said there wasn't enough to do during the day hours....Paulas family were just as fun/funny and very gracious about pic taking etc. We love them all.

To answer your first question: we have sailed Disney and Princess, Disney was a 3 day trial to see if we even liked cruising..WE DO! But unless you have small children there was not that much to do either...BUT their island Castaway Cay was super...lots of room/beach etc.

Princess was our 2nd & 3rd cruise....we were never bored, we went to morning classes of dance...pottery..trivia both at day and night...bingo (cheaper on than RCL)...horse racing...karaoke...Sock hop dancing...watching a first run movie on their GIANT outdoor screen with popcorn and nice blankets over our legs (they had family movies during the day it was nice) We lost/won in the casino...they had dance competitions with prizes (pretty good ones!) of course they had the same carving demos..and their island Princess Cay was gorgeous...lots of room to spread out, nice little shops too. Maybe this doesn't sound like much compared to LOS and the rockclimbing/flowrider/skating rink but to those of us who aren't into being that physical..we needed more to do and we found more to keep us busy on these 2 trips than on our last with RCL...BUT again..I would do RCL in a heartbeat..cuz I LOVE CRUISING:D

 

 

Good answer! Wow. The pottery class sounds like FUN. I would love to try something like that. Dance class? Hmmm. I did that on Navigator but don't remember it on Freedom and/or Liberty. I wonder if I just missed it or if didn't exist. I honestly can't remember. It's funny you mention a dance class because my husband and I still laugh about my experience on Navigator. I wanted SO BADLY to learn the Electric Slide. I went to the class feeling like I had two left feet but determined to learn with other beginners. As luck would have it, I felt like the ONLY person who didn't already know the Electric Slide. When the music started, everyone except me went right into the moves. I felt pathetic, but it was funny, in retrospect. There used to be horseracing, but I believe that's gone now. As far as the dancing contests, etc., I don't remember anything like that during the days, but again I could be wrong. I know there's a LOT of dancing in the evenings ... rocking through the ages night is wonderful, in particular. OUr son loves the physical surfing, basketball. My husband and I love the ice shows, which we always go to. The movies to me don't make a difference because I figure we can always watch movies at home. The live shows on RCCL are a lot of fun, I feel, and I try not to miss anything. Basically, I'm just happy cruising. It's funny how cruises mean different things to different people, though. We're going on the eastern and western cruises again so we'll have more time on board ship when everyone is off on the islands that we've done enough and don't care to see again.

 

As far as the Paul Dean cruise, though, I wanted sooooo badly to go on THAT and just couldn't right now. I know that had to be fun. I wouldn't even care if she cooked at all. I just like being around her and talking about food. That's good enough for me <g>.

 

I'm curious about Princess in general, though, since I've never been on any Princess ship. Would you say you like that line better than RCCL? How was the food in comparison?

 

Lynn

[RevSmith]

Thanks for your honesty...although I probably would disagree with much of what you said, as our tastes are definitely different...I would like to comment that I wish RCI would have a seafood buffet like the Caribbean Princess has in the Windjammer. Here is what is served in the Horizons: split King Crab legs, you peal um shrimp, lobster claws already cracked and a big roast beef at the carving station. The seafood is served on ice...but who cares...they give you drawn butter and plenty of lemon and cocktail sauce...yummy.

[SheilaSailAway]

At the risk of being slammed and after posting a short review immediately after our cruise this is my honest opinion of RCL and LOS. (1st time w/RCL)

 

 

 

Hi, great post and great review! Don't worry about being slammed/flamed...some people can't stand when others have their own opinions, LOLOLOL

 

I was on the LOS in Septemebr, I did not post a review because I feel that there were enough up there for ppl to make their minds up about it. I will say this however, when ppl post reviews and say silly things like "I don't know how ANYONE did not love LOS blah, blah, blah" or "Anyone who says it wasn't perfect blah, blah, blah"...it just drives me nuts. Some folks we were with thought everything was great, whilst others thought things were lacking. Everyone on the same ship has a totally different experience and others should just deal with it. LOL Ok, I am done.

 

Happy cruising to all!!!

[IRcruisin]

LynnAB....Princess would be the better choice for food...like RevSmith posted the seafood buffet was wonderful, so many choices..the whole buffet in general was better than WJ anytime IMHO..the breakfast buffet on Princess was awesome, the grits were actually good (I'm from the south) they did fried eggs perfectly and the toast/bagels would be hot (they offered the big do it yourself ovens, big hit) Sterling Steakhouse on Princess would beat Chops for the flavor of the steak..BUT the service at Chops might be a tad better! So overall I would say Princess has the food hands down...the activities more suited to our taste, but to each his own right?!!:D

 

Sheilasailaway...LOL I agree we met a few people who complained about everything..(no not us:D we did have a good time folks) then you had those who thought everything was perfect (get real folks, nothing is perfect!)then you had those who 6 days into the cruise still couldn't find aft and forward..lol:eek:

[copper6606]

We're sailing on the Liberty VERY soon and I was wondering where you go to get the ice show tickets? I really would be upset if I missed the shows. Thanks in advance for your help.:)