Freedom in Dec. Random Notes and Pics

[renech]

This was our first December cruise, and I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it. We were early enough in the month to not have all the Christmas break crowds yet, but we still had a lot of holiday spirit and decorations to enjoy. This was also the cruise that made us Diamond Plus (whoo hoo!... only took 18 years of cruising. :D).

 

This was our 3rd time on the Freedom, and it's never failed to be a wonderful experience. I didn't take notes, so if this is a bit rambly... sorry! :o

 

A definite standout for us were the new dinner menus. All 5 of us enjoyed having new options, and I truly don't remember a single disappointing meal. We opted to eat in the MDR, late seating, every night, and we also tried the Chops Filet and the Atlantic Salmon. Perfect, each time. They did have violin and guitar duo playing during every dinner - I don't remember that happening before, so I'm not sure if it's new or just a holiday thing. Either way, it added to a nice dinner ambiance. Service was great and the couple of times that we mentioned needing to get done early for a show, our server accommodated nicely. Breakfast was either room service (port days) or WJ - which was the usual. The WJ greeter wore his Santa hat and sang Christmas tunes - and he was good! He always had a smile and great energy which I made sure to note on my comment card. We really enjoyed our late afternoon "4th meal" from either Sorrento's or the Park Cafe. The Antipasti offerings were a big hit with all of us to go along with a slice or two of pizza.

 

Since one of our party was on his first cruise, we did use the D lounge as much as we might otherwise have.

 

 

Activity-wise, we enjoyed the usual shows, however the Love and Marriage game seemed incredibly rushed for some reason. Also, the newlywed couple was pre-selected (?), something we have never seen happen before. I kind of missed the fun auditions. ;) The Quest was great fun as always, my son was a Captain this time. There didn't seem to be much "cheating" happening, just a lot of laughs, which is how it should be. I only saw part of the Illusionist/Magician show - but my family who did see the whole thing said there were a few great tricks, but mostly they found the guy annoying and over the top self-promoting. I always enjoy the ice show, but mostly because I give those skaters a lot of credit for what they do in that small space.

 

We did go to a few other smaller games that were offered. Trivia was fun, some of the others, notsomuch. Jamie, who was the assistand CD (I think) did our M&M and I feel like I saw him as much if not more than our CD, Graham Seymour. Both are very entertaining.

 

Coco Cay was the most enjoyable than I ever remember it. Although, the lines for the tenders were the worst that I can remember. Maybe it was bad timing on our part. We did have perfect weather (for most of the cruise, actually), and the water was really calm. We ate at the Diamond buffet, which was just okay food-wise, but avoiding the longer buffet lines was a huge plus for me. I had seriously debated booking a cabana this time, but ultimately, I'm glad I didn't. I really dislike where the cabanas (the bigger ones) are. They looked like they were all on concrete. I do recommend that anyone who goes to Coco Cay be sure to walk around to the further beach areas away from the crowds. It's beautiful and almost empty back there.

 

In St. Martin, we did a 3rd party excursion on the Random Wind sailboat. This was hands-down, our favorite day of the cruise. None of us had been on a sailboat that size before and we wanted to try something different. It's a fairly mellow day, sailing, some snorkeling, eating, a bit of drinking (but not a booze cruise at all), but everyone had a blast. They have a Tarzan trapeze thing that goes out over the water that my kids couldn't get enough of. The meal is cooked fresh on board by the owner and it was delicious. I highly recommend it if you are looking for a relaxing, fun day. Not a lot of great snorkeling though, and not a big party time.

 

In St. Thomas, we just booked the ferry to St. John through the ship. We have gone to Trunk Bay several times, so this time we tried Cinnamon Bay. We all agreed it was just as beautiful, and even a bit less crowded.

 

I'll add a few pictures in the next few posts. I'm happy to answer any questions (if I can remember the answers!). :)

[renech]

 

 

 

[renech]

 

Coco Cay

 

 

St. John

 

[renech]

St. Martin - Random Wind

 

 

[renech]

Wanted to add that we DID bring our 2 bottles of wine on board with us, per cabin, and had absolutely no problems at all.

[amybear912]

Thank you for your review and photos! We board in February... It's been 4 years since we sailed with RCCL and we always wanted to try Freedom...

 

Do you happen to know how they choose couples for Love & Marriage?

 

Also, tell me about the poolside movie screen... Intrusive during the day? Good selection of movies in the evening?

 

Hot tubs crowded at night... We are looking for a few quiet, laid back evenings...

 

I may have more questions... We just made this decision and booked a few days ago...

 

Thank you again... Looking forward to more photos...

[renech]

I think you'll love Freedom. She's one of our favorites.

 

Normally, they have a slightly racy, but funny, audition for the couples who want to play. You have to get there early and it seems to help if you sit near the front. They have you stand up and earn it by doing something a little crazy and attention getting. The winners are chosen by applause. Usually... as I said, this trip, they had pre-selected the newlywed couple, and Ive never seen that happen before. The oldest couple is usually just picked from whoever has been married the longest.

 

The poolside screen... I meant to mention that. It's fine, for seeing replays of the poolside games, and even music videos when there isn't a live band playing. Our guys enjoyed watching a bit of football one day too. What we did NOT like, was when there was a live band and they still had the random music videos playing with no sound. It's unnecessary and annoying. In general, I don't hate them, but I wouldn't miss it if the big screens went away.

 

Hot tubs weren't crowded in the evenings as far as I know. My DH did go for a soak a few early evenings and never had an issue.

[amybear912]

I have mixed feelings about the big screens also... I could see us being annoyed by it during the day but enjoying good programming at night...

 

Can you expand a bit on some of the new menu offerings? We plan to eat in both specialty restaurants at least once but if the MDR food hasn't improved much from what we remember, it may be more than once..

[renech]

I have mixed feelings about the big screens also... I could see us being annoyed by it during the day but enjoying good programming at night...

 

Can you expand a bit on some of the new menu offerings? We plan to eat in both specialty restaurants at least once but if the MDR food hasn't improved much from what we remember, it may be more than once..

 

I don't remembering watching any programming on the big screens in the evening. Perhaps someone else would be better able to answer that for you. I wasn't on deck too often in the evenings though.

 

We almost always eat in a specialty restaurant one night, but for whatever reason, we just never got around to deciding when for this cruise so we just skipped it. I wouldn't hesitate to eat in them though, the dining is still a notch above the MDR, IMO. We just really enjoyed having new options.

 

I just did a search for the new menus and someone nicely posted them HERE.

[will773]

Thanks for the review and great pics!

[kruzerci]

I love love love the Freedom! thanks for the review.

[edk136]

Love the Freedom but from your pics., I don't know if I would get off of the 'Random Wind' ;)

[renech]

You're welcome!

 

Love the Freedom but from your pics., I don't know if I would get off of the 'Random Wind' ;)

 

We definitely could have spent a few more hours on Random Wind. We were actually the only cruise people on it that day. The rest were staying on St. Martin. We got off to make it back to the ship, and they did get to stay on for a while longer.

[Sue's Mom]

Thank you so much for your time in posting. The pics are awesome.

[murfturf]

Thanks! That's the itinerary we are going on in March. I think a Holiday cruise would be so much fun some day!

 

This will be our 2nd time on Freedom - looking forward to seeing the changes, since it was 3.5 years ago we were on.

[Goes Cruising]

I second your recommendations for Random Wind. We had a great time sailing with them a couple of years ago. It felt like being asked out on a friend's boat for the day.

 

Your Christmas photos are really nice!

[renech]

Thank you so much for your time in posting. The pics are awesome.

 

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed them. There are so many pictures' date=' it's hard to pick which ones to share.

 

Thanks! That's the itinerary we are going on in March. I think a Holiday cruise would be so much fun some day!

 

This will be our 2nd time on Freedom - looking forward to seeing the changes, since it was 3.5 years ago we were on.

 

Have a great time. It's never let us down. *knocking on wood*

 

I second your recommendations for Random Wind. We had a great time sailing with them a couple of years ago. It felt like being asked out on a friend's boat for the day.

 

Your Christmas photos are really nice!

 

Thanks! I was worried how we'd like the Coconut Curry dish she made for lunch, but it was amazing. Still trying to get the recipe.