A First-timers Review: Carnival Liberty 5-2-2009 (with photos and capers)!

[Hollybelle]

Thanks so much for this wonderful review! My husband and I are going on our first ever cruise in October on the Liberty, and I was thrilled to read your review and learn the ropes before we go. (For example, I couldn't figure out what "capers" were and why everyone was talking about them before reading the review...!) I have a blog, so I really appreciate all the time and effort it takes to write the review and get pictures ready to post.

 

How was your Disney cruise? Have you reviewed that cruise yet? If so, I would love to know where I can go to read it!

 

Thanks again!

 

Thanks, tkb23! Like you, I had no idea what capers were before we went on our cruise. We were lucky to have my parents show us the ropes, but this board helps out tremendously so I'm sure you'll be more than prepared.

 

You're so right about the time and effort it takes to blog and write reviews. But for me it's really a way to relive our adventures and journal it, so even though it's time consuming I really enjoy the process!

 

We actually just returned from a 9 night Disney trip... I have yet to try a Disney cruise! Although I really can't wait to get on one of those beautiful ships! If you're interested in reviews on the parks and resorts we stayed at (Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge), I just started my report over on wdwmagic.com (http://forums.wdwmagic.com/showthread.php?t=470131).

[Indiansbaseball]

Hi Holly...I just spent the last hour and a half reading this from beginning to end. LOVED IT !!! We took our first cruise this past March and I loved reliving my first cruise through your words :) I now have two more booked and would love a third..LOL

 

Thanks for the hard work and lovely pictures.

 

Jen

[dew386]

Thanks for a fantastic review! We leave on the Liberty in 15 days and this has made me totally pumped for the trip. I can hardly wait.

 

Thanks.

[Halftocruz]

Thank you so mych for the review. My family and I are going on the Liberty on December 19th and are so excited. I wanted to show my husband a review of the itinerary and yours was perfect!!!! He loved it and we are so excited. Thank you for all the work you put into it.:D

 

Kellie

[JackieH]

Well I am a late comer to this post.. I loved your review. We are going(Waiting on TA go call back to formalize our cruiseplans)Aug 2010..Although Still over a year to go, it was still enjoyabler reading your review as well as the photos..

 

Thank you for sharing that all with us.:)

[Hollybelle]

Hi Holly...I just spent the last hour and a half reading this from beginning to end. LOVED IT !!! We took our first cruise this past March and I loved reliving my first cruise through your words :) I now have two more booked and would love a third..LOL

 

Thanks for the hard work and lovely pictures.

 

Jen

 

Thanks, Indiansbaseball!! I wish I had another one booked already :D. My parents are actually on the Fascination right now and we're trying to get something set up for December. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on that one!

 

Thanks for a fantastic review! We leave on the Liberty in 15 days and this has made me totally pumped for the trip. I can hardly wait.

 

Thanks.

 

You're so welcome. I always love the last week before leaving on a trip... I love the feelings of anticipation and excitement for the adventure to come. Have fun!!!

 

Thank you so mych for the review. My family and I are going on the Liberty on December 19th and are so excited. I wanted to show my husband a review of the itinerary and yours was perfect!!!! He loved it and we are so excited. Thank you for all the work you put into it.:D

 

Kellie

 

Thanks, Kellie. I'm glad you both enjoyed it. Have fun!

[Hollybelle]

Well I am a late comer to this post.. I loved your review. We are going(Waiting on TA go call back to formalize our cruiseplans)Aug 2010..Although Still over a year to go, it was still enjoyabler reading your review as well as the photos..

 

Thank you for sharing that all with us.:)

 

Thanks, JackieH! I hope all goes as planned and your TA confirms the reservation. Just think of it this way, since the cruise is a year away it gives you plenty of time to research and plan the most exciting cruise ever!!

[oncruisecontrol]

Great review so far. Panchito Beakman is way cool! One of our cruising gals had a little stuffed flamingo named Fernando who met his unfortunate demise after a trip to Australia (a long story). But, in any case, her Mom sent her another stuffed flamingo that resembled Fernando. Thus, we dubbed him "Fernando el segundo". But, he does not travel with us, instead he holds down the fort at home. Happy cruising.

[Hollybelle]

Your review was awesome!! It's after midnight--I am so tired from working all day, but I couldn't stop reading it. I loved your humor--you remind me of my good friend who travels with my sister and me on all of our cruises! She even has a little stuffed bird (a pink flamingo named Fernando) and although he doesn't cruise with us, he did travel with us on the drive home from Key West where she met him! :D

 

Great review so far. Panchito Beakman is way cool! One of our cruising gals had a little stuffed flamingo named Fernando who met his unfortunate demise after a trip to Australia (a long story). But, in any case, her Mom sent her another stuffed flamingo that resembled Fernando. Thus, we dubbed him "Fernando el segundo". But, he does not travel with us, instead he holds down the fort at home. Happy cruising.

 

 

Panchito Beakman graciously accepts your compliment! I love the new flamingo's name, Fernando el segundo. Reminds me of a parakeet we had when we were little... my brother named him Pete. As you might guess, when he kicked it, his replacement's name was easy to come up with... Repete.

 

No chance you and alreadypacked are related, right?! Surely, Fernando can't be that popular a name for a stuffed Flamingo? :D

[bunnydickson]

Thanks for all of the time and effort it took to write this review and post all of your pictures! I am going on my first solo cruise AND first back to back cruise on the Liberty in October (2 weeks, eastern and western Caribbean!!). I've been married for 21 yrs and have two teenagers (love them all and love to cruise WITH them), but it's a gift I'm giving myself. I can't wait to just relax and do whatever I want without taking anyone else into consideration. (It's been a long time since that's happened!) There are people all over that sail solo, and say it's fantastic! (..she said nervously excited!)

 

It looks like you all had a wonderful vacation, and you've inspired all of us who have read your review! Congrats on your first cruise and here's wishing you many more!!! (I love the "cry" pics at the end..in fact, that is the specific reason that I booked a b2b in the same cabin on the same ship..It's just so difficult to leave the ship... I finally want that feeling of "I don't have to"..just once!)

 

By the way, I have cruised on the Disney Magic..and she's a beautiful ship with all the service and specialness that you would expect from Disney (her horn bleeps out the opening from "When you wish upon a star.."...and when I was on--not a holiday--they had fireworks!) We brought our kids, but there were quite a few people who came without kids, and LOVED the adults only areas/pool.)

 

Happy sailing and thanks again for your review!!!!!!!!!!!!:)

 

(By the way..a little advice...I've booked an inside so I could afford a b2b...but, be careful about booking a balcony..they're addictive and once you sail w/ a private balcony, it's tough to go back to an inside or even an ocean view! Trust me..I know from experience..they're awesome!:D)

[manateelover]

Thank you! I'm so glad to hear you feel as if you've been along with us on our cruise... that's what I'm going for, so yay! As for our next trip, Brett and I are headed to Disney in July for his birthday :D. And because we loved cruising, we're keeping our fingers crossed that we can get on another ship with my parents before the end of the summer! I enjoy writing the reviews so much, they'll be sure to follow.

 

 

 

Certainly! I'll email those to you sometime later today. And although I have no other ships to compare it to, I think the Liberty made for a great first cruise!!

 

 

 

Thanks, abw. We did have a great time and I suspect you will to when you get on her in January.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time for the excellent review, and beautiful pictures of the Liberty. My hubby and I will be on the Liberty in February 2010. We will be on the eastern itinerary cruise and cannot wait!!! Thanks so much for the review-I truly enjoyed reading all of it!!!!

[mississauga]

Saw your posting on the Princess Emerald thread. Did not want to hijack on her thread so hope you are still reading from your own thread.

 

Loved your review of the Liberty. We went on the Eastern Itinerary in Oct. 2009 and loved it. Since I loved your Liberty review, when I saw the RCI one in your signature, I just had to read it too. LOL........great review also. You are quite the writer and photographer.

 

You will love the Emerald Princess. She is a beautiful ship. We spent 16 days nearly 2 years ago on a Transatlantic and had a wonderful cruise. You will like Princess Cay .....never went to Coco Cay so can't compare. However, if you ever see a Carnival cruise again with Half Moon Cay ( is on the May itinerary on Liberty that you were considering ) as a port, book it. It is a private island that belongs to Holland America and since CCL owns them, Carnival gets to use it too. Even though you may like or even love Princess Cay, it does not compare to Half Moon Cay. HMC has white powdery sand on the beach and is one of my favorite ports in the Caribbean. I hear it is only surpassed by Castaway Cay ( never experienced it so can't say ).

[Hollybelle]

Mississauga, it's probably a good thing you posted again on the Princess review; otherwise, I don't know if I would have ever seen this!!

 

Half Moon Cay was definitely one of the draws of that Liberty sailing we were looking at. After experiencing Coco Cay, I decided I really liked the idea of the cruiselines having their own private islands.... now I'm on a mission to check 'em all out! :D What would you say is the biggest difference between Carnival and Princess? We really like what others refer to as the "party" atmosphere on Carnival... if nothing else it makes for some GREAT people watching. And seeing that there are so many more similarities than differences among the lines, the one thing that I think concerns me most is that it will be a more sedate, maybe somewhat older crowd. I'm looking to cruise with all the young at heart folks!! :)

[mississauga]

As others have said, the cruiselines are more similar than they are different. I totally agree. I used to think that Carnival had younger passengers. Not so anymore. It seems that the passenger mix is getting older on Carnival and younger on Princess. I guess it all depends on the mix on the week that you are cruising. I think Carnival stll has more children but Camp Carnival do such a great job that we hardly ever see them except in the dining room.

 

The biggest factor IMHO is the mix of passengers. I think the cruiselines all do a great job to give us a good cruise experience each and every time. I love cruising...been on 22. LOL. You can have a totally different experience each time even on the same ship.......different mix of passengers and crew.

 

Shipwise, I personally prefer the Emerald to the Liberty, even though I liked the Liberty too. Here's a tip for you. Horizon Court ( buffet ) is set up different than Carnival's buffets and may always seem crowded. However there is also a Cafe Caribe in the back of the Lido deck. DH and I always met back there and never had problems finding each other or a table. Alot of people don't bother walking all the way to the back and do not even know about it. The only time CC and HC are open at the same time is for breakfast. The other times, they sort of off set each other. One opens and the other closes. HC is opened after midnight for those midnight munchies. The International Cafe ( everything no extra charge except for the gelato...$1.50 for 3 scoops ) on the 5th deck, next to the Piazza is also a great place to get food. Delicious pastries, muffins and croissants in the morning, salads and sandwiches for lunch and quiches and tapas in the evening. Try the shrimp and/or chicken salads...they are to die for. Oh, in the afternoons, they have wonderful cookies, fresh out of the oven. If you're there at the right time, they'll come around and offer you cookies and milk. That is the only time, you can get a no charge beverage (milk ). All other times, if you want a coffee or tea, you have to pay for one. If you are a coffee drinker, get a card for specialty coffees. It's a good deal...about $28 tax included for 15 punches. With this card, you can get unlimited freshly brewed regular coffee ( no punches ).

 

Since you say you like to people watch, the Piazza (atrium ) is a good place to hang out. Besides watching passengers, there are mini shows or acts scheduled to give you a taste of the entertainment on board.... could be a magician, acrobats, a musical group, jugglers, dancers etc. A favorite place for me.

 

I know you will love the Emerald. Can't wait for your review after you get back! Enjoy your cruise!

[Jeafl]

Although I read this review last year, I just sat here and read the whole thing again. It was really informative and entertaining, plus the pictures were great!

[mississauga]

Although I read this review last year, I just sat here and read the whole thing again. It was really informative and entertaining, plus the pictures were great!

 

Glad I brought it back to the top for you. I was feeling guilty for bringing an old thread back to page 1 but I guess if a review is this good, it's worth reading again or perhaps be helpful to others going on the Liberty and did not see it last year.

[purdueamanda]

Glad I brought it back to the top for you. I was feeling guilty for bringing an old thread back to page 1 but I guess if a review is this good, it's worth reading again or perhaps be helpful to others going on the Liberty and did not see it last year.

 

 

I'm definitely glad you brought it back to the front page! I'm going on Liberty in November and this review was so informative. Reading it makes me super excited for our trip!

 

Great review Holly!

[SueG]

I was on this same cruise last year. It is my BEST cruise to date. I loved it! I almost booked the Liberty again for this May, but went with the less expensive ship this time.

[Hollybelle]

I just got an email saying there were posts here... I had no clue the thread subscriptions lasted so long. :eek:

 

As others have said, the cruiselines are more similar than they are different. I totally agree. I used to think that Carnival had younger passengers. Not so anymore. It seems that the passenger mix is getting older on Carnival and younger on Princess. I guess it all depends on the mix on the week that you are cruising. I think Carnival stll has more children but Camp Carnival do such a great job that we hardly ever see them except in the dining room.

 

The biggest factor IMHO is the mix of passengers. I think the cruiselines all do a great job to give us a good cruise experience each and every time. I love cruising...been on 22. LOL. You can have a totally different experience each time even on the same ship.......different mix of passengers and crew.

 

Shipwise, I personally prefer the Emerald to the Liberty, even though I liked the Liberty too. Here's a tip for you. Horizon Court ( buffet ) is set up different than Carnival's buffets and may always seem crowded. However there is also a Cafe Caribe in the back of the Lido deck. DH and I always met back there and never had problems finding each other or a table. Alot of people don't bother walking all the way to the back and do not even know about it. The only time CC and HC are open at the same time is for breakfast. The other times, they sort of off set each other. One opens and the other closes. HC is opened after midnight for those midnight munchies. The International Cafe ( everything no extra charge except for the gelato...$1.50 for 3 scoops ) on the 5th deck, next to the Piazza is also a great place to get food. Delicious pastries, muffins and croissants in the morning, salads and sandwiches for lunch and quiches and tapas in the evening. Try the shrimp and/or chicken salads...they are to die for. Oh, in the afternoons, they have wonderful cookies, fresh out of the oven. If you're there at the right time, they'll come around and offer you cookies and milk. That is the only time, you can get a no charge beverage (milk ). All other times, if you want a coffee or tea, you have to pay for one. If you are a coffee drinker, get a card for specialty coffees. It's a good deal...about $28 tax included for 15 punches. With this card, you can get unlimited freshly brewed regular coffee ( no punches ).

 

Since you say you like to people watch, the Piazza (atrium ) is a good place to hang out. Besides watching passengers, there are mini shows or acts scheduled to give you a taste of the entertainment on board.... could be a magician, acrobats, a musical group, jugglers, dancers etc. A favorite place for me.

 

I know you will love the Emerald. Can't wait for your review after you get back! Enjoy your cruise!

 

Thanks for all the great info, mississauga!! I'm definitely going to have to check out the International Cafe... the chicken and shrimp salads sound perfect!

 

Although I read this review last year, I just sat here and read the whole thing again. It was really informative and entertaining, plus the pictures were great!

 

Thanks, jeafl! I've got myself a DSLR camera this time around so I'm hoping to improve upon the pictures... this photography thing is an expensive hobby!

 

I'm definitely glad you brought it back to the front page! I'm going on Liberty in November and this review was so informative. Reading it makes me super excited for our trip!

 

Great review Holly!

 

Oh you're going to have so much fun on the Liberty! Thanks for the kind words!

[Hollybelle]

I was on this same cruise last year. It is my BEST cruise to date. I loved it! I almost booked the Liberty again for this May, but went with the less expensive ship this time.

 

We almost booked it again, too. But I'm actually glad we didn't... it's fun to explore the different ships and lines. I see you're going to Half Moon Cay!!! Have fun on the Glory!

[jagsfan]

Fun reading!

[rpouls]

Thanks so much for the great review! My daughter and I will be sailing on the Liberty for the first time next June. Loved you pix too!

[chachi]

I read over half of this before realizing it was an old review. I enjoyed it very much. Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed review. You have some great photos. What were the blue drinks from the first day? Those look great!

[Hollybelle]

Fun reading!

 

I'm glad you enjoyed it!!

 

Thanks so much for the great review! My daughter and I will be sailing on the Liberty for the first time next June. Loved you pix too!

 

We loved the Liberty... have fun next summer!!

 

I read over half of this before realizing it was an old review. I enjoyed it very much. Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed review. You have some great photos. What were the blue drinks from the first day? Those look great!

 

Thanks, chachi... I LOVE writing/posting reviews. The blue drinks were classic margaritas, with just a splash of blue curacao. You couldn't taste it, it just gave them that blue tint. They were DELICIOUS!

[Biffer1997]

Trying to decide between Valor and Liberty next June. You're review was great!!! Thanks!