Freedom Feb. 24 to Mar. 3 Review

We sailed on the Freedom February 24 to March 3. Our ports were Cozumel, Belize and Roatan. We were a group of 19 after one member couldn't get his visa from South Africa. The group was made up of my familiy and some friends and several members of my daughter's fiance's family. 9 of our cabins were Lido balconies and had FTTF. We had one interior on Deck 8. We had a few hiccups but most were self inflicted. We almost all used Lighthouse Parking and stayed near Galveston the night before. It had been foggy all week and when I went to bed Friday night at 11 pm the Royal ship that was supposed to leave at 4 that afternoon was still sitting at the dock. I went to bed that night sure we were going to be delayed the next day. I woke up at 7 and went straight to my laptop and the Galveston webcam page and much to my surprise there was the Freedom. We ended up having perfect weather the whole trip.

As I said we all had FTTF and arrived at the dock around 11:30. We had one couple who lost their boarding pass and had to have one reprinted. This caused a minor issue as the reprint did not indicate FTTF. Luckily we were able to show they had purchased it on their phone. Most of our group pretty much walked straight thru to the picture area. My wife and I got sent to the second check-in area as somehow Carnival lost our on board account information and we were marked as a cash account. We finally got thru that and started on to the ship and our group was kind enough to wait for us so we could all take a picture together. One of the best improvements I thought was the forward elevators were worked by a staff member and was setup as an express elevator from dectk 3 to deck 9. It was called the lunchtime express. Since our cabins were on 9 it was a godsend. All of our cabins were ready with the keys waiting for us in the mailbox as expected. None of them had the FTTF stickers but that was quickly remedied by guest services. We all went our seperate ways to have lunch and explore the ship. This was when I discovered I had left my phone charging cable in my car. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise as I really enjoyed being cut off from my work and stayed that way the rest of the week even after I bought a replacement cable. My wife quickly made friends with one of the cocktail waiters on lido who made sure she was always taken care of for drinks the rest of the week. I had BBQ which was probably the only disappointing meal I had all week. We had early seating for dinner and had 2 tables at the very front of the dining room. One was a table for 14 right when you walked into the dining room and a table of 6 next to it. Denton and his team of waiters were fantastic all week and eventually I didn't even have to tell him what I wanted from the menu. I was late the last night but had given my wife what I wanted and Denton took a look at the menu and told her what I was ordering. I felt the food all week in the dining room was outstanding. I do know one of our group had issues twice getting their steak cooked properly but mine were perfect all week. Went to the welcome aboard show and hit the casino. This was a premier cruise so the casino was a little crowded and very smokey. My soon to be son in law was already at the craps table and I was able to take the sport right next him. The dealers started calling us Matt and Matt's father-in-law. I was pretty worn out and went to bed around 10 pm after playing craps for about an hour breaking even for the night.

The first sea day was a very nice day. My wife and daughter did the Spa while I just relaxed. I knew the Red Frog Pub had a darts board but no darts so we bought some inexpensive plastic tip darts to bring. So we played some darts and had a few beers. That night was elegant night so we all got dressed up and had a nice dinner. Some of us went to the show in the theatre. It was enjoyable but easily forgotten. I headed back to the casino had quickly went thru $200 in about 45 minutes. Beaten down I joined some friends at the 11:15 comedy show. My last few cruises I have been very pleased with the comedians and this cruise was no different. After the show we headed up to lido and had some pizza. I'm not sure what was different from our December 2016 cruise but it was a major improvement. I made it a point to have late night pizza as much as I could. The next day was Cozumel.

They moved us to the downtown dock instead of the one farther south. This worked out perfectly for almost everyone in group. Some of us had rented a taxi for the day and we met up with him on the street. First stop was getting the replacement cable to charge my phone. Even though the driver let me charge my phone I kept it turned off the entire day. We then hit a local grocery store to buy some liquor and local beer for the day. We then had a nice leisurely lunch at Coconuts and hit the reagae bar by Punta Sur and relaxed the rest of the day. We got back to the boat in plenty of time. Dinner in the dining room and then the show in the theater. Once again enjoyable but nothing special. Went to bed right after the show to prepare for our day in Belize.

I've been looking forward to our day in Belize for a long time. I had a stroke about 18 months ago and after rehab and all my medical tests I was finally cleared to resume non-deco scuba diving. I had planned to dive in Belize until I had a TIA in September and was put on some new blood thinners and that ended my dive plans. I was disappointed but started looking around at something to do and despite my extreme fear of heights I decided ziplining and cave tubing was what I was going to do. We booked thru shoreexcursioneer.com. I do still have some disability from the orignal stroke but I went back to physical therapy and worked extremely hard with the therapists to prepare me for the climbing and walking that would be required. By December I was feeling really good as my physical therapy ended and was so excited. My work situation changed a little and over January and February my physical strength began to weaken but I was still determined. Then my left knee started swelling up on the first few days of the cruise. I was still determined. It was quite a drive to get to the site and we went straight to the ziplining company as soon as we got there. My sister and wife explained my situation to the guides. They were so helpful and understanding and was so patient with me and made sure I got to do all the lines and it was incredible. Next up was the cave tubing. They make it clear that it is quite a walk to get to the entrance of the cave so I thought I was prepared. The walk wasn't that bad except we had to cross the river 3 times. This I was not prepared for. The first cross there was a rope so I made that ok. The next two I could not have done without having two people for me to hold their arms. Between the current and the uneven surface it proved to be quite the challenge. Then we made it to the entrance of the cave and I was so relieved as now we had a nice leisurely float down the river. I wish. About 15 minutes into the cave I started feeling very uncomfortable around my neck. It turns out my headrest deflated. So I spent the majority of the trip extremely uncomfortable. It couldn't end soon enough for me. We finally got to the end and the tube next to mine and almost completely deflated also. All that being said the guide was amazing and worked as hard as possible to take care of us and was really good. Thanks to me and my slow pace for everything we couldn't have a sit down lunch so the guide got us lunches to go. I didn't have high hopes for the lunch but it turned out to be quite tasty. Despite all the issues, the most of which were caused by my disability, I would recommend this excursion. The local company Shore Excursioneer use is Belize was awesome and very personal. We made it back to the tender boats with 15 minutes to spare. This was the night of the Cruise Critic meet and mingle which was a conflict with our groups plans. This was the first time in 8 cruises that I failed to eat dinner in the dining room. I ended up eating at the buffet which I will make sure I do not miss dinner again. I was exhausted and was in bed by 9.

Roatan was the one day where the majority of our group did the same excursion. We had rented a private catamaran charter with Radical Adventures. 15 of the 19 members of our group went on this excursion. My 81 year old mother skipped the catamaran so she could go parasailing, which she loved. We booked her thru Shore Excursioneer who took great care of her and now she has photographic and video proof of her daring. The rest of us met our driver just past the gate as directed and started our 1 hour commute to the catamaran. Once we arrived everyone finished paying and were given drinks and food as we started out. This excursion was easily the highlight of our trip. Captain Matt and his crew were amazing. They made sure we didn't want for anything. They made sure we had food and drink the whole trip. They were friendly and talkative. My future son in law spent quite a bit of time talking English Premier Leage Football with the crew. The food was plentiful and good. It started with muffins when we boarded followed by fresh fruit and freshly baked cookies. This was followed by homemade pizza bites. When we got to the mooring point they made sure we all had snorkeling gear and led a group of us on a swim around this little island and rock. It was beginner snorkeling but was still impressive. Everyone played in the water around the boat as the crew kept everyone in beer and drinks while we relaxed in the water. Up next was lunch. Freshly grilled chicken kabobs and shrimp kabobs with rice and beans. It was really good. We spent some more time swimming before a very leisurely return to the dock. I can't recommend this excursion enough. It isn't cheap, $120 per person, but it is worth every penny. Once back on the Freedom we had a nice leisurely dinner and had another early night.

Our second sea day began with my wife at the spa and me relaxing on lido. I played bocci ball in the atrium where we go second place before my darts teammate and I went to the pub to play some more darts. This was the second elegant night so I went and got all dressed up for another wonderful dinner. Some of us had planned on going to the comedy show but Matt and I got on the craps table for what was planned to be about an hour before the show but the table was super hot and we ended up staying there til midnight. All of a sudden I had recouped all my previous losses and Matt got his drinks on us card. Ended the night with more pizza. My wife was a little pissed about me coming in at 1 am but it was a nice day.

The last sea day we had a private engagement pary in the piano bar for my daughter and Matt and Matt's cousin and his new fiance. The waitstaff made sure no one had an empty glass and the red velvet cake was better than expected. After dinner Matt and I had planned on hitting the craps table but it was full and super hot so there was no chance we were getting on. We ended up meeting some others at the comedy show and Killer Beaz was really good. Glad I went to see him. We headed back to the casino but the craps table had not cooled down. Matt went to bed but I wanted to play something so I went to the Let it Ride table and it didn't take long til I was at the end of my money but every time I played blind with my last $20 I won so I kept playing. Then on what was going to be my last hand as they were about to change the decks I hit a straight flush on the 3 card bonus bet and all of a sudden I had some money. But being the idiot that I am I say the craps table open up so even though I knew it had cooled off I went and played anyway. It took 20 minutes to go thru my $250. Upset at my stupidity I then went to bed knowing that the next day I had to go back to reality.

Our debarkation was very smooth. Our zone got called at 9am and by 10am we were in our car driving home. Overall this was a great vacation. Looking back on it there was a lot of good things I liked. Service was extraordinary like always. I thought the food was really good and I was really impressed with the pizza. There was a real lack of activities for the week. They did have cornhole and beer pong everyday but very little trivia and there didn't seem to be much else as far as organized activities. After my last cruise I had to learn how to pace myself for my new reality and that worked really well for me this cruise as I was able to keep my energy level up a lot better. This trip I decided to book on the Lido after the last 2 cruises being on Panorama. I did not think when I picked our cabins and we ended up being right by the elevators. I was concerned that the noise would be really bad and would be a problem for my wife. Surprisingly the noise from the elevator and Lido were almost non-existant. However the noise from the Atrium music was very loud and the smoke from the casino managed to work its way up to us. It turns out the atrium noise didn't reach very far down the hall as my sister, who was 5 cabins down from me said they couldn't hear anything from the atrium. I will definitely book Lido again just further down the hallway. My biggest complaint on the trip was actually the few cruisers who had no common courtesy with regards to the elevators. I don't expect people to recognize my disability as I look normal and don't really need a cane, but I don't know how many times I watched people cut in front of elderly people with canes, walkers, and scooters who were waiting on elevators leaving dinner. I just don't understand how people can be that self absorbed to not recognize othe people and their needs. This is my new soap box issue along with people parking illegally in handicap spots and taking handicap seating on the train. I'm really looking forward to going on our next cruise with our new family.

Thanks for the review.

Thank you for your review! We are going on this same cruise in August 2019 and it's good to get first hand info!

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Thank you for the review/report.

Keith

Thanks for your review. Our first cruise on the Freedom is still over a year away but I enjoy reading all I can about her.

Nice review, we fly out today and are totally ready to go. Did the same ports a couple years ago on RCCL at Thanksgiving and had a blast.

Freedom is a great ship.

As far as carnival losing your account, your boarding pass said cash account, that's how they knew to send you upstairs to the "second" check-in. If you set up your account after you printed or saved your boarding pass you should have reprinted it.