Carnival Liberty Review Eastern Review w/ Pictures

[Cupcrazy]

Great cliff notes. Looking forward to seeing more pictures

[navybaby1113]

Saturday, February 2nd (Embarkation Day)

 

The hotel included a complimentary breakfast with a night’s stay, so we got up early and headed down to eat. They had an OK selection to choose from. They had a pancake maker, but the pancakes came out kind of chewy. The best thing on the buffet was the warm cinnamon rolls. Yum!

 

I was a little anxious about still having to drive two hours to port, so we made sure to leave the hotel with plenty of time to spare. I had heard some stories about bad back-ups getting into the port, so we were hoping to bypass some of that by getting there early. We left the hotel at 9am. Since the hotel was right off of I-95, it was a straight shot down to Miami.

 

Now we drive to Jacksonville a lot, so traffic in large cities doesn’t normally bother me. But that drive down to Miami was scary! I was very close to kissing the ground once we arrived in the parking lot.

 

Thankfully the directions that we printed off Mapquest were accurate and we were able to find the port easily. Once we arrived at the port though is when things got crazy. They really need better signage in the port and have separate lanes for cars and taxis/busses. There were plenty of times when we were almost hit by a taxi driver.

 

Leading up to the cruise, I read reviews about all the parking options for the Port of Miami. We decided that the best option for us was to actually park at the port. Even though it was more expensive, we liked the thought of having a more secure location for our car and not having to rely on a shuttle service to get to and from the parking area. The Port of Miami charges $20 per day to park your car there.

 

The Liberty was parked in Terminal E, so we had a parking lot instead of one of the parking garages. When you drove into the lot, it gave you a ticket saying what time you arrived. We were a little confused by how to pay, so we went on a search to find a Port of Miami employee. They told us that we could pay at the self-service terminals that were located in the parking lot and that we had the option to pay now or when we return. We decided to just pay when we returned. We placed the ticket in our glove compartment for safe keeping, grabbed our bags, and headed across the road to the terminal.

 

After we crossed the road, a porter immediately approached us and asked if we were checking in. He glanced down at our bags and noticed that we had FTTF, so he grabbed a sticker to put on each of our bags. He said that they would be delivered to our stateroom immediately after boarding and that he would take care of them for us. I tipped him $3 right then and hoped to get out of the speech about him taking care of our bags, but we had to hear it anyways. He wished us a great trip and we were on our way to security.

 

We arrived at the terminals around 11am. Before we were able to walk through the doors, we had to show our boarding pass. He directed us to security. I needed to use the restroom and noticed it was right near the front of the building. There were about 6 people in line, so I figured I had time. Wrong! It ended up being a one person bathroom with 3 people waiting in line. After I got back from the restroom, DH told me that they moved him straight to the front of the line and people ended up going in front of him while he waited for me. Oops!

 

They then sent us on our way to the scanners. There was no one in line, so that part was just as quick. They asked to search our bag that was full of drinks. We had one twelve pack that was closed and one that was opened. He took all the drinks out of the open one (because obviously we’d be stupid enough to put beer in a case and not bother closing it back shut). He didn’t bother to open the twelve pack that was still closed. He also shook all our bottles of water to make sure there was no alcohol. Thankfully he was nice enough to pack the stuff back in the bag for us.

 

After we were done getting searched, we proceeded on our way to check-in. They directed us to a line for FTTF. They had two agents working on FTTF passengers. We waited about 5 minutes for one of them to be free and then were called over.

 

 

This was our first experience with the new VIFP program, so we were interested to see how everything would work. Prior to this cruise, we had 22 days at sea. Since this was a 7 day cruise, it would bump us up over the 25 days required to be gold. When the program rolled out, John Heald had mentioned that if a cruise would move you up to the next level, then you would receive the benefits starting at the beginning of the cruise. When I printed our boarding passes, they said gold, so that was a good sign!

 

The check-in agent handed us our gold sail and sign cards and a priority boarding placard.

 

 

As soon as we were done with check-in, they called priority boarding, so we were able to walk right onto the ship.

 

We were on board by 11:30am. By far one of the quickest embarkations I have ever had.

[navybaby1113]

One of the perks of FTTF is that our rooms are supposed to be ready immediately after boarding the ship. This was one of the major reasons we wanted to book FTTF because we feel like we’re wasting a few hours of our vacation by having to tend to the bags.

 

After boarding, we headed straight to our room to drop off our carry-on bags. The doors that are normally closed were wide open, but they had a sign on them stating that Diamond/Platinum/FTTF guests were welcome to come to the staterooms. It also stated that anyone else could return at 12:30pm and their rooms would be ready then. I have never seen rooms ready at 12:30pm before, so that was a surprise to me.

 

 

We arrived in our room to find it all ready as promised.

 

I mentioned in my Freedom review that we would book room 2470 again and that’s exactly what I did for this cruise. It’s an oceanview room all the way aft on the port side of the ship. The room is huge and has two windows, compared to the one window in a normal oceanview room. There is definitely a lot more noise and movement in this room than you would feel in the middle of the ship, but I love the extra space (and window) that we get with it.

 

 

 

 

 

I'll continue with pictures of the bathroom in the next post because of the 6 photo limit.

[navybaby1113]

 

 

 

[Weezerwoo]

"Prior to this cruise, we had 22 days at sea. Since this was a 7 day cruise, it would bump us up over the 25 days required to be gold. When the program rolled out, John Heald had mentioned that if a cruise would move you up to the next level, then you would receive the benefits starting at the beginning of the cruise. When I printed our boarding passes, they said gold, so that was a good sign!"

 

I am currently a 22-day VIFP, too! So I should be gold on this 7-day cruise as well!

 

Thanks!

[AryMay]

Thanks for taking time to write this review...and a special thanks for including the photos! This itinerary is one I've had my eyes on so I am anxious to read about your days in port.

 

It looks like they were a little stingy on the samples in your bathroom...did you notice if any of the other rooms had items you didn't receive? This happened to us on our last cruise and after mentioning it to the room steward he got us several things that had been left out of our basket.

[pbmsmile]

I know some people don’t enjoy long reviews, so before I start, I’ll post my general thoughts and cliff notes.

 

Overall Cruise: Very good! Absolutely loved the ports and really enjoyed being on a ship that we were familiar with (we sailed on the Freedom previously, which is a sister ship to the Liberty). I wouldn’t say this is my favorite cruise we have ever taken, but it was a ton of fun and I was sad to be kicked off the ship at the end. The majority of our fellow cruisers were older (most over the age of 40), so that made the ship a little quieter than normal, which was very nice! It was also really interesting the majority of the ship was not from Florida. We only met 2 or 3 other couples from Florida the entire trip.

 

Overall Thoughts on the Ship: Love the layout of the Conquest class ships. By far my favorite. I did not like the decoration on this particular ship, but that’s no big deal. I loved the new 2.0 additions. My only complaint is with the sports bar. I love the new space and would have loved to have spent even more time in there, but the smoking machines in the casino are right around the corner, so the sports bar has a really strong smell of smoke.

 

Overall Thoughts on Food & Dining: Love the 2.0 upgrades made to the dining areas! Guy’s Burgers were very good. Wasn’t a huge fan of Blue Iguana cantina for lunch, but really enjoyed it for breakfast. The Punchliner Brunch is a fantastic addition and their menu items are really tasty. The Taste Bar is a great idea, but I wasn’t such a fan of most of the offerings.

 

Overall Thoughts on Entertainment: There were a total of 4 shows including Carnival Legends and they were all very good. The ship was in the middle of a cast change. You could tell in some parts that the cast was inexperienced, but they were still very talented. Emilio, the guy who ran the trivia, was one of the most fun people on the ship and made our experience great.

 

Overall Thoughts on FTTF: Completely worth the money when sailing out of the Port of Miami. We were through security and check-in with 15 minutes and onboard before 11:30am. Went straight to our room and dropped off our carry-ons. The remainder of our luggage was delivered around 1:30pm. Had to use guest services a couple times and was able to walk right up to the desk in the Plantinum/Diamond/FTTF line. Did priority tendering in HMC and they escorted us straight down to the tender when we were ready. We used the priority debarkation and we were off the ship around 7:15am. It took a while for us to find our luggage, but we were still out of the port and on the road before 7:45am. This was fantastic because we were able to beat all the traffic.

 

Half Moon Cay: This is by far the most gorgeous place I have ever visited. The sand is so white and the water is so clear. We walked all the way down the beach and we were the only ones down there for a while. The beach area next to the ship was packed though, so if you want quietness, walk further down the beach.

 

St. Thomas: We used Godfrey Tours and this was a fantastic decision. He did a fantastic tour and it was very inexpensive. I would highly recommend his tour to others.

 

San Juan: We took the trolley up to El Morro, which was very simple to figure out. El Morro was huge and took us about 3 hours to look through the entire place. The view is gorgeous. Do not miss sailaway if you’re going to San Juan. It is one of the most scenic sailaways I have ever seen.

 

Grand Turk: We got off the ship for about 30 minutes and then went back on. We were not in the mood for another beach day and all that is really here is a beach and Margaritaville. Would not really be interested in visiting this port again.

If you ever do visit Grand Turk again I would highly recommend that you rent a golf cart and explore the island on your own. It is safe and an adventure without the restraints of a tour group.

[navybaby1113]

"Prior to this cruise, we had 22 days at sea. Since this was a 7 day cruise, it would bump us up over the 25 days required to be gold. When the program rolled out, John Heald had mentioned that if a cruise would move you up to the next level, then you would receive the benefits starting at the beginning of the cruise. When I printed our boarding passes, they said gold, so that was a good sign!"

 

I am currently a 22-day VIFP, too! So I should be gold on this 7-day cruise as well!

 

Thanks!

 

Yes, you should be gold on your upcoming cruise. Double check your boarding pass when you print it out to make sure it says gold.

[navybaby1113]

Thanks for taking time to write this review...and a special thanks for including the photos! This itinerary is one I've had my eyes on so I am anxious to read about your days in port.

 

It looks like they were a little stingy on the samples in your bathroom...did you notice if any of the other rooms had items you didn't receive? This happened to us on our last cruise and after mentioning it to the room steward he got us several things that had been left out of our basket.

 

Yea, the bathroom basket was definitely smaller than what we've seen in the past. I didn't notice any other things on the carts, but I wasn't looking terribly close. There was some Gold Bond lotion in our basket that I loved and have bought since we returned home though!

[navybaby1113]

If you ever do visit Grand Turk again I would highly recommend that you rent a golf cart and explore the island on your own. It is safe and an adventure without the restraints of a tour group.

 

We'll definitely have to try that. The lighthouse looks like something I would enjoy.

[michelle1836]

Looking forward to some Liberty pictures and the review! Doing the Western caribbean in July

[Catrin]

I have been looking forward to your review!!

 

I am glad you took the free shuttle to El Morro! We loved our day there and it really was the most economical excursion ever!!!

 

Cannot wait to see your review, pictures and to re-live our week through you!!

 

Catrin

 

(there are pics of the Free Trolly and El Morro on my review too!)

[Hazelroo]

I can't wait to read your review...we are on this same cruise in 48 days! :D

[Silent Penguin]

Enjoying your report and love the pictures!

[navybaby1113]

The steward had already left our copies of the Fun Times in our room, so we glanced over it to make a plan for the rest of the day.

 

I haven't had the chance to scan the documents yet, but I'll upload these as soon as I am able to.

 

Also waiting in our stateroom was our past guest free drink coupons and gold VIFP pins.

 

 

We were getting hungry at this point, so we decided to head up to the Lido deck to grab some lunch.

 

It was nice to be able to go up to the Lido deck and not have to worry about lugging our bags with us. Normally we would take turns going to get food while the other sat with the bags. We’re going to be spoiled from now on.

 

I had been reading reviews on Cruise Critic for months and my mouth watered every time I scrolled past a picture of Guy’s Burgers. I knew that was the first thing I had to try. I’m a bit of a burger snob, so for me to like these burgers, they would have to be really good! DH was also pretty excited about them, so we both made a beeline for the grill.

 

 

They were running two lines. The one near the pool was extremely long and the one near the entrance to Emiles was half as long. Make sure to double check both lines if one looks huge.

 

People have mentioned in previous reviews that they did not have the menu items and they would just give you a plain burger to doctor up at the condiments bar. This was not true of the Liberty. You could order any item on the menu and they would make it up for you.

 

For my first burger (I was sure there would be many to come on this cruise), I ordered the Plain Jane burger with super melty cheese (SMC). Then, I took it over to the condiment bar to add some toppings. I ended up just adding bacon to make a classic bacon cheeseburger, which I feel is the best way to judge whether a burger is good or not. Be aware that these are not bacon strips, but actually crumbled bacon. It actually made it a lot easier to get full coverage on your burger.

 

DH decided to order a The Ringer, which comes with SMC, Guy’s Bourbon and Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce, and a Rojo Ring (fancy name for a spicy onion ring). He added bacon, jalapenos, and banana peppers from the condiment bar.

 

 

After we finished doctoring our burgers, we headed up to the second floor of the Lido deck by the Fish and Chips restaurant. That was always our favorite spot to sit on the Freedom because it’s normally empty. Plus, there’s a drink machine up there so you don’t have to keep going up and down the stairs to get a refill.

 

After I bit into my burger, I noticed that it didn’t have much seasoning on it. I opened up the bun and added a bit of salt and pepper and then took another bite. Oh my, it was delicious! The burger was extremely juicy and it had two different kind of cheese on it. One was a cheese slice on top and then the other was like some kind of cheese sauce that they put in the center. The cheese sauce added a different element to the burger that you’re not expecting. The bacon added just the right amount of saltiness. All in all, it was a very successful addition to the ships.

 

The fries on the other hand were not near as delicious. They were way too fat, so there was just too much potatoey-ness and not enough crunch. The seasoning was a nice addition though. Add that seasoning to the fries they used to serve and I would be a very happy burger eater.

 

 

[smokenmadelia]

Thank you for the review,great so far looking forward to more. We will be going next Jan. You already give me some great ideas.

[gelo7]

Enjoying your review.

[MarriedInStThomas1807]

Thanks for posting about the gold VIFP status. I'm at 22 right now and will be gold when we sail too. I ran to check my boarding pass to make sure it says gold and it does.. yay!

 

I do have a question though.. now that they have that gold, platinum and diamond VIFP party, do they do the past guest party anymore?

[navybaby1113]

Thanks for posting about the gold VIFP status. I'm at 22 right now and will be gold when we sail too. I ran to check my boarding pass to make sure it says gold and it does.. yay!

 

I do have a question though.. now that they have that gold, platinum and diamond VIFP party, do they do the past guest party anymore?

 

The past guest party is now only for gold, platinum, and diamond. So no party if you're red.

[parttimr]

Following your review as we are planning this next January as our second cruise either on Liberty or Glory

[Lefty Writer]

Lovin' it so far. We are planning on booking this ship and the Breeze as a "back to back," so I am definitely gonna follow this thread!

[DJ56]

 

Good evening! We recently returned from our cruise on the Carnival Liberty and thought I’d get a review started. This will be a long and detailed review with tons of pictures (I took around 1000). For those that enjoy it, I also have plenty of food porn to share. Santa brought me a new camera for Christmas, so the majority of the shots were taken with my Canon Rebel T3. I carried my 18-55mm kit lens, a 55-250mm telephoto lens, and a 50mm f1/8 prime lens (this is normally my favorite lens, but I didn’t use it at all on the trip). Some shots were also taken with my husband’s Sony Cybershot and our Kodak Playsport underwater camera/camcorder. A few of the pre-cruise pictures were also taken with my iPhone.

 

I have most of the Fun Times, so I will scan and post them at the beginning of each day.

 

Please be patient with me as these reviews can take a while to finish. I will try not to keep you hanging for too long though. Feel free to ask any questions you have and I will answer them to the best of my ability. I hope you enjoy the review!

 

 

So neat to see these two ships side by side. Was on the Liberty in 2011 with one daughter and then on the Victory in 2012 with my other daughter. Then will be on the Liberty in less than two months with them both!! So thanks for sharing this pix!! ;)

[MisterMom]

I'm excited to read your review! Keep it coming!

[navybaby1113]

After lunch, we went exploring/photographing the ship. Our last cruise was on the Carnival Freedom, which is a sister ship of the Liberty, so it was nice to already be familiar with the layout and know where everything was. I really love the layout of the Conquest class and how easy it is to find things.

 

I’ll go ahead and do an entire ship tour now, even though some of the pictures were taken later in the cruise.

 

Starting on Deck 3 in the Lobby, since it's the first thing you see when you board the ship. The lights and chandelier in the lobby actually change color, which is really interesting to watch.

 

 

 

 

[navybaby1113]

Walk forward on deck 3 from the Lobby, and you're in the Venetian Palace, which spans decks 3, 4, and 5. This is where all the main shows are located and also where you are going to be asked to go to get a tender sticker.

 

 

 

 

Now, go back into the Lobby and towards the aft of the ship and you'll reach the Golden Olympian Dining Room (the entrance is located behind the stairs). This is where Anytime Dining is held.

 

 

 

The Silver Olympian is located all the way aft on deck 3. You can not access it from deck 3 because the galley is in between the two dining rooms. Sorry the picture I have is horrible, but it looks just like the Golden Olympian, just silver.