Freedom Eastern review (finally!)

[tor548]

Cruisechic -- I'm loving your review!! Thanks so much for sharing your experience w/ Freedom EASTERN!

 

 

 

BodyandMind -- May I ask why the ships excursion transportation to/from was a hassle? How crowded was the excursion and did you feel you got to enjoy The Baths totally or was it rushed to get back on the ferry?

[jinxnb]

The photo made me think of something I just read on John Heald's blog yesterday. (He just started back as CD of the Freedom this week.)

I wanted to tell you about the time I was Fun Ship Freddy.

John, let me tell you about the time I worked at Chuck E. Cheese's as a cashier and was forced to perform the macarena as Chuck E.

 

 

Before the show started, I wandered around the promenade deck and showroom, waving to the guests and having my photo taken with small children and some adults. Such is the role of the mascot.

 

My role as the mascot included being hit, kicked, and punched by small children allowed to run wild in a small space.

 

This was a truly liberating experience.

 

I cannot say the same! I can now say that if I had to choose what HOT, bulky costume I'd have to wear in my lifetime, it would be Funship Freddie. I've lived the Chuck E. experience, and I've heard horror stories from friends who have worked at DisneyLand.

 

Those are my two cents about life as a polyester and fiberglass mascot.

[jinxnb]

Cruisechic, THANKS for the great review. I'm enjoying it very much!

[Cruisechic470]

I'm glad everyone is enjoying the review as much as I'm enjoying writing it! If anyone has any questions- ask! I'll try my best to answer them.

 

We finally let ourselves sleep in! We were exhausted and sunned-out!! We hung out around the ship all morning (inside) and just relaxed. My daughters and I went to Eli's dance class at 2. We all fell in love with Eli over the cruise, he is part of the activity staff and hilarious. He would make a really good CD one day! Anyway, the dance class was fun - we did latin and swing. Then we went up on deck to watch the marriage game at 3 - always a favorite. We did the walk for the cure at 4:30. It's a mile walk for breast cancer - $10 a person and well worth it. Everyone gets a T-shirt and bracelet. The raise $20,000 a week fleetwide!! The morning show was in the afternoon today and funny as always. John Heald (the new CD and blogger) was on the show.

:)

After that we went to dinner,tonight was the second formal night; then karaoke. The main showtime was a production, singer/dancer show. We skipped that. Happy Cole was also doing an adult comedy show tonight, but he wasn't that funny the first time so we skipped it.

 

[Astep@atime]

Cruisechic - great review! We did the Eastern on Freedom in late May and your review is bringing back many good memories.

 

We did several different excursions. For anyone looking for more info and pics from this itinerary, link to the review is in the sig at the bottom.

[lbruinlane]

We were up at 6:30 because we had a early excursion. We booked a trip to the baths with Patouche, and I can't recommend it more! It's a little pricey, but well worth it. We had a taxi driver pick us up and drive us to the docks. Taxi fare was included on the way, but we had to pay our way back ($4 pp). We got our fins, masks and snorkels and boarded a catermaran. There was only 10 of us. Drinks were included. The ride was very scenic and they narrarated the whole way to Virgin Gorda. We beat the cruise ship excursion, which made me very happy when I saw the loads of people. We snorkeled into one beach, went througn the baths (gorgeous!), then had time at the other beach before swimming back to the boat, for drinks and snacks. We sail back, we powered there and it's so relaxing. We were back before 1:00 and had a taxi waiting. We had to pay, but he dropped us of at the flea market right outside the port. It was more expensive then most. There's no drinking age in Tortola, and no open container laws (in cars). I found that interesting! It was the best day of our vacation!! We watched us sail away then went to get ready for the past guests party in the main lounge because there was so many repeat guests, then we went to dinner. We went to the comedy show with Happy Cole tonight, it was funny but not hilarious - then karaoke. We were tired!

 

Were on this itenerary in October... I was thinking about booking this tour in Tortola but was a little worried about arranging transportation to get back... how far away was the baths? Or I guess... how long did it take you to get back? Were you worried about making it back to the pier in time? I'm mostly interested in doing it through a private company just to avoid the bus rides etc... on carnival. You said you paid about $4 per person for the taxi back right? And they arrange transportation for the way there? Just curious....

[kcparrothead]

Thanks so much for the review! We'll be on the same itinerary in about 10 weeks (!!) and have booked Patouche, too. Can't wait!! Hope you give us a review of Nassau. We're still undecided. Maybe Blue Lagoon or carriage ride, Ardastra Gardens & Fish Fry. Thanks again!!

[Cruisechic470]

Were on this itenerary in October... I was thinking about booking this tour in Tortola but was a little worried about arranging transportation to get back... how far away was the baths? Or I guess... how long did it take you to get back? Were you worried about making it back to the pier in time? I'm mostly interested in doing it through a private company just to avoid the bus rides etc... on carnival. You said you paid about $4 per person for the taxi back right? And they arrange transportation for the way there? Just curious....

 

It was a 15-20 minutes taxi ride back to the pier. Don't worry! It was about an hour ride there and an hour and a half back on the boat. As I said, we were back before 1 and had plenty of time. Carlton, the same guy who drove us in the morning was there to take us back. Patouche uses him all the time, so I'm sure he's very dependable. I wouldn't worry, and highly recommend Patouche! I'm so jealous - I want to go back!!:D

[Cruisechic470]

Cruisechic - great review! We did the Eastern on Freedom in late May and your review is bringing back many good memories.

 

We did several different excursions. For anyone looking for more info and pics from this itinerary, link to the review is in the sig at the bottom.

 

Astep@atime - I loved your review!! I still remember it - it was one of the few I could find for the Eastern route before I left :)

[Cruisechic470]

Thanks so much for the review! We'll be on the same itinerary in about 10 weeks (!!) and have booked Patouche, too. Can't wait!! Hope you give us a review of Nassau. We're still undecided. Maybe Blue Lagoon or carriage ride, Ardastra Gardens & Fish Fry. Thanks again!!

 

You're welcome :)

You'll love Patouche!! 10 weeks? Can I come? :)) My review for Nassau will be up soon. But I'm sorry to say that we didnt do much at all in nassau. (sorry!) But you seem to have a lot of ideas. Good Luck.

[RAVI360]

loving your review keep it coming

[Cruisechic470]

We woke up and realized it was our last full day. We went to have breakfast in the lido then we played ping-pong. We had to play once, since I always win. It was only 10:00 and we could already see Nassau. We pulled into Nassau at around 11:00, even though we weren't scheduled to get there until 1:00. We had lunch on the lido and waited for the rush of people to get off. There was 3 ships in port when we got there and another came in right behind us. It's a long walk from where you get off the ship until you get to the port building. We got a walking tour at the information desk, but were convinced to take a tour with a man named Cliff. We waited about 20 minutes while he tried to get more people to cram into his taxi, so we just left. We walked along the water until we got to the straw market where a man gave us "free" necklaces that we didn't even want. He put them on our necks and asked for just a donation. We gave him $5 and he said "Thats it?". I remembered reading this on Cruisecritic before I left and tried to walk past him, but he got us anyway. Then we came along to children that sang to us for a dollar. This made me sad to see how young they start here! We finally made it into the strawmarket, which was basically just knock-off purses. But, we did buy a straw fan, which the lady put our names on. We continued on and saw a gorgeous church, the government house and a few other things. We were planning on going to the queens staircase, but the only way to get there was a road with no sidewalks. So we skipped it. We went back to the port area and shopped, and stopped at Starbucks. We went back to give the kid who sang to us another dollar, but this time there was about 8 or 9, singing and beating each other up to sing. I only had one single, and a couple 20 dollar-bills. I felt so bad, but I gave the dollar to the kid who sang to us before. He was the reason I came back. The other kids weren't too happy, but what could I do? We got some conch fritters inside the port building for $3, and they were very good. of course :) We got back on the ship and relaxed, and before we knew it - it was time for our last dinner. They sang to us tonight. The dining room was empty, and the lido was so packed that they sent our assistant waiter Renato up to help. So, we didn't get to say goodbye. But, dinner was really good tonight. They had ribs again. We went to the activity extravaganza at 8:00, which was pretty much just a bunch of cheesy games, but it was fun. We also went to Bingo at 9:45. I had two cards that were both 1 number away from winning $1,000. That would have been nice! The main show was Carnival Legends (glorified karaoke) and was very funny.

[Cruisechic470]

We did self-assist off. We were up around 6:30, finished packing, went to breakfast in the dining room and were off and outside waiting for my brother to pick us up before 8. If you can manage your luggage, and live close enough to drive home; this is the way to go!

 

 

Some side notes:

 

**We loved our cabins! We were in 6295 and 6297. They were connecting interior rooms, down a side hallway. This made it very quiet. They seemed more spacious then normal interior rooms. It was convieniently located very close to both the forward and midship elevators/stairs. We missed the balcony, but for the price this was very nice. We always decorate our doors too, to make them easy to find. Our cabin steward, Henry, was very creative with his towel animals. We got more then just the standard monkey/rabbit/dog towels, although some nights we had no idea what our towel animal was. Anyway, He was very efficient and friendly.

 

** Our favorite port was Tortola - in case you couldn't tell from my review. We had been to all these ports before, except for Tortola and Nassau.

 

** We found that the ship had less activities then you'd normally find on Carnival, during the day, especially inside.

 

** The gym has a couple free classes, but in general it's a pretty small gym. There's only a few treadmills (about 10), so take advantage of the jogging track. Spinning, Yoga and Pilates classes were all for a $10 charge.

 

Any questions?

[dna515]

Thanks for the fabulous review! I'm so excited to board the Freedom in T-minus 3 days!!! I will write a review for all when I get back...

[Cruisechic470]

Thanks for the fabulous review! I'm so excited to board the Freedom in T-minus 3 days!!! I will write a review for all when I get back...

 

You're very welcome! I'm so jealous! Have fun and I'm looking forward to your review!

Are you doing eastern or western?

[Cruisechic470]

I'm sad that I'm done with the review!! It makes my vacation officially over. :(

[LUV THE SEA]

I hate that feeling when you realize it is over...but thanks for the review...since we will be in your cabin the end of July...I will think of your review...hopefully we will enjoy it as much as you did..thanks again.

:p

I'm sad that I'm done with the review!! It makes my vacation officially over. :(

[jinxnb]

Thanks for the great review!

 

I was in Nassau for my very first cruise when I was 9. It is my least-favorite port ever.

[manateelover]

Hello CruiseChic470,

My family of 4-boys ages 11 and 15 are also going on the Carnvial Freedom in August. Can I ask about the other ports-did you go to Nassau, Tortola and Antigua?We were thinking about Brewers Bay in Tortola, or going over to Jost Van Dyke for the day. In Antigua I think we will be heading to Long Bay Beach to snorkel. What is there to do in SanJuan when you arrive at 5pm? Can we still walk around the fort -El Morrro? If so, what did you do or could you recommend anything in particular? Is there a fee for the mini golf? Was it crowded or do you sign up to play? This will be our boys' 4th cruise and our 6th cruise. We enjoy Carnival and really liked the Eastern itinerary in August. Hoping for smooth seas-but I'm a teacher, and kids are out of school...so we like to cruise :) Any other info that you want to share would be most helpful. What is Island Girl -is there a website? Thanks again-glad you enjoyed the Freedom. I cannot wait to go!

[Cruisechic470]

Hello CruiseChic470,

My family of 4-boys ages 11 and 15 are also going on the Carnvial Freedom in August. Can I ask about the other ports-did you go to Nassau, Tortola and Antigua?We were thinking about Brewers Bay in Tortola, or going over to Jost Van Dyke for the day. In Antigua I think we will be heading to Long Bay Beach to snorkel. What is there to do in SanJuan when you arrive at 5pm? Can we still walk around the fort -El Morrro? If so, what did you do or could you recommend anything in particular? Is there a fee for the mini golf? Was it crowded or do you sign up to play? This will be our boys' 4th cruise and our 6th cruise. We enjoy Carnival and really liked the Eastern itinerary in August. Hoping for smooth seas-but I'm a teacher, and kids are out of school...so we like to cruise :) Any other info that you want to share would be most helpful. What is Island Girl -is there a website? Thanks again-glad you enjoyed the Freedom. I cannot wait to go!

 

 

Hi!

As you probably read, we went to the baths in Tortola- gorgeous! I recommend it highly. But people we met onboard went to brewers bay and said it was great. As for Jost Van Dyke, I don't know much about it - but who are you planning to book with? Patouche, the people that took us to the baths will also take you to Jost Van Dyke. They we're great.

 

In Antigua we went to Dickensens bay beach, which was breathtaking (you probably saw the pictures already). But, not good for snorkelling. I don't know much about any of the other beaches there. So I can't help you there.

 

In San Juan, you will have time to walk around and see the forts. Just go there first! I don't know if I said this in my review, but the captian got us in to San Juan early :) It stays light till around 8 since it's summer so you should have plenty of time here. We just walked around, as we'd already seen the forts.

 

Mini Golf is free, you just have to check out the clubs and balls with your room number. It was only crowded on sea days, but everything tends to be crowded on sea days.

 

Here's the island girl website, it's a sail/snorkel trip. They only take 6 people at a time, and our family of four got a private trip

http://www.yachtadventures.biz/

 

I hope I helped and I hope that you have a great time on the Freedom and love it as much as we did!

:)

[manateelover]

Thanks so much for the information! We are really excited and can't wait to go.

[ElvisLover1]

Hey Cruisechic470-

 

A great review I was thrilled to read as we sail this same itinerary on the Freedom in 2 weeks. One question, it seemed from your review that the formal nights in the dining room were your two sea days, Sunday and Friday, would that be correct? My sister was excited to hear you had lobster. She has been on several cruises and lobster has only been served in the dining room on one! Thanks also for the great pics!

[Cruisechic470]

Hey Cruisechic470-

 

A great review I was thrilled to read as we sail this same itinerary on the Freedom in 2 weeks. One question, it seemed from your review that the formal nights in the dining room were your two sea days, Sunday and Friday, would that be correct? My sister was excited to hear you had lobster. She has been on several cruises and lobster has only been served in the dining room on one! Thanks also for the great pics!

 

Thanks! :)

Yes, that's correct - Sunday and Friday. Lobster was served on Sunday, it was called like "seafood duo" and came with shrimp. Have fun!!

[newlife_2010]

Finally an Eastern review. I see more Western Freedom. This was a spectacular review. I leave in 20 days!!!

[Gater Girl]

I'm boarding Freedom this weekend and can't wait to see the rest of your review, but, as another poster requested, can you post it in regular blue? I love the colors, but they are difficult for my eyes. I'll still read it if you don't, though!!

 

Shay

 

I love your "please, no more strays" comment on your signature line. I just left my once feral cat at the Vet's for a few days. It absolutley lays me out to leave that cat anywhere. She was abused and thus very antagonistic to anyone but my DH and me. She is sweet and loving with us, as we do exactly whatever she wants to do..she has anytime dining every day...chicken from the deli yet..low salt. We thought we were done with pets. Loved them all...wanted to be free to travel with no guilt. Not to be. I would not trade her for anything now...but...but...I know what you mean..no more strays. No more kitties needing rescuing. She is it. Final. No More. Period.