Just Back from Freedom Eastern Cruise

[EviesCruisin]

Just off the Freedom today (say it ain't so!). We are in our 30s and have two kids (ages 19 mos and 4 years old). We had a fabulous time. We had Inside Family Promenade Room 8307.

 

My daughter participated in lots of the Aquanauts and son in the nursery program. Our ports were CocoCay, St. Thomas (we went to St. John) and St. Maarten. We had extended family (parents and aunts) on the cruise as well. We saw the Freedom Ice Show and Marquee, enjoyed some time in the casino, etc.

 

I am a gluten free cruiser and for drinks, I had the royal replenish package (Starbucks, soda, fresh squeezed juice and bottled water). I kept all of the cruise compasses and kids programs for the week.

 

Any questions that anyone has? I will try to answer if I know the answer.

 

Oh, back to reality. Just awful. Snow on the ground and it's dinner time and no one is bringing it for me. I miss Dennis and Canni already, our wonderful dining room waiters. The week really does go by way too fast.

[mac_tlc]

We are sailing the FOS Eastern in August. Would be interested in the daily compasses. Also, we will be taking our grandson on his first voyage -- he will be 2 by then. Any/all info or tips on the nursery program would be helpful. Finally, our son-in-law has a dairy allergy and this will be our first cruise with that experience. How was your experience?

 

Sorry about the snow, but here in CT I spent most of the day shoveling the roof, the driveway, the deck, the steps, and clearing the cars. UGH.....

 

 

mac_tlc

Edited February 16, 2014 by mac_tlc
I have to learn how to type.......

[EviesCruisin]

Hi,

 

I will load the daily compasses and kids programs once we settle in. The nursery was really wonderful to my son. You can pre-book up to 16 hours of time (and one formal night) on the first day. Then after that you can call or drop in and see if they have time. We usually dropped my son off from 7-10 pm. They would change him into his PJs and try to get him asleep in his stroller.

 

They have toys they rotate out each day as well as a little TV. They will provide snacks like fruit and milk. They ask you to bring diapers, wipes, a change of clothes and any snacks/milk/cups. They are open from 9 am to midnight. But they close between 12 pm and 2 pm on the sea days.

 

With regards to the allergy, they were really very accommodating. If you are doing My Time Dining, I'd try to request the same servers each night. We made reservations in advance online (Traditional 5:30 dining was full and 8 pm was too late for our family). After the first night, we liked our waiters and requested the same table each week. It was easier for us because we didn't have to explain the allergies each time. It was easier for them as they learned our preferences (Drinks, etc.) and they got a nice tip at the end of the week.

 

Dairy is one of the allergens covered on the menu. It will show you an icon (milk jug I think) which dishes can be prepared dairy free. It doesn't mean it is dairy free by design, so you still have to say to make it dairy free.a

 

You are given a menu the night before for the following evening. This is where having the fixed dining or same table is helpful. Though it asks you your stateroom and dining time; you could vary it and still be fine. They will tell you if the item can be made. Usually it could or they'd recommend something else or try to get you something special. For example one night they made me the double strawberry cheesecake special with no crust, and it was awesome. Another night I was hoping they could make the chocolate souffle. They could not but they brought me flourless chocolate cake instead.

 

They are really great with kids. They brought out their favorite things to keep them happy. My son loves grapes. One day in the buffet our evening waiter saw us and sent one of the servers down to the dining room to bring up grapes. We did not ask at all, they just did this.

 

We did the Dreamworks Dining twice. The servers were kind of short/grumpy and the food was cold by the time we got it. Not the best place to get breakfast in the morning but the kids of course enjoyed the characters. My parents went the first day but bagged it after that.

 

Don't miss the Dreamworks Move It Move It Parade on the final day at 5:15 - it's maybe 15 minutes long, you see all the characters and the kids enjoy. Characters roam the ship at various times. You can get milk in the Cafe Promenade (open 24 hours), Wind Jammer (not open 24 hours) and dining rooms as well as room service. The mini bar can be emptied but it does not keep the milk and yogurts very cold. We asked our steward for an extra ice bucket and that would fit 2 milks on their sides when 1/2 full of ice. Since we found the places we could get milk there was no need to stockpile more than that at a time.

 

Regarding the snow - we got about 15" but my husband was so excited it had all melted by the time we got home & he didn't have to shovel. Woohoo!!

Edited February 16, 2014 by EviesCruisin

[EviesCruisin]

A few more things on the nursery - they have a toy lending program. There are 9 toy sets to pick from (a binder shows you pictures of each set). You can keep for the whole cruise or trade them for a different one if it's not lent out.

 

Also, they give you a DECT phone that works throughout the ship. If we dropped my son off and he was upset, we said to call us if he doesn't settle down in a few minutes. That was never needed; they never called the phone at all. But it's nice to know they can reach you.

 

There is a baby splash pool which is about 2" deep for the babies to splash in. Our son really liked it.

 

You may have more babies on the ship in August. On our cruise there were 20 babies and they can accommodate 8 babies at a time. Usually there were only 2-3 in there. Valentine's night there were maybe 6. Once the last baby is signed out after 10, they close (but can stay open til midnight if you reserve).

 

They have a separate room for sleeping with small cribs and strollers. At the end of your session you get a slip on what they did, ate, time/type of any diaper changes and any sleeping.

 

$6/hr before 5 and $8/hr after 5. We tipped each night vs. at the end. When you prebook your hours, they give you an appt. card with your times. You can call a few hours before and cancel for no penalty if you change your plans.

[audome78]

Did you have any thruster issues after leaving Port Canaveral? Did a new Captain come on board today?

 

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[poolex3]

We will be on FOS in June, also doing Eastern route. We have already purchased the royal replenishment package. Did you think it was worth the money and easy to use?

 

 

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[mompells]

We are booked for the April 13th FOS sailing! Needless to say, we are counting the days! Here where we are in MY, we have had over 32 inches of snow in the last week! NONE of it has melted! Our temps have been FREEZING all winter so far! I've never looked forward to a cruise more than this one! Glad you enjoyed the FOS! Thanks for the information! would love to see the Cruise compasses. I'm just wondering if they would be different since we are sailing the Western route?

[AandBmom]

I'm so excited to read your post as we are doing this ship/itinerary starting next Sunday. We also have in laws and little ones. A couple of quick questions if you don't mind.

 

What toiletries were provided in your cabin if any?

 

Did you find the dining rooms or other areas chilly? Just wondering how much I'll need a sweater around the ship.

 

Did you find the weather warm all day long in each port? I know it varies week to week and I've looked ahead at weather forecasts but I'm just curious if it is cool in the am/pm?

 

Can you borrow toys for kids age 3/4? If so, what kinds of things?

 

Do you have to have a baby to get a ship phone?

 

Thanks

[Retired LEO]

Did you have any thruster issues after leaving Port Canaveral? Did a new Captain come on board today?

 

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Captain Tor Olsen started his rotaion on the previous cruise on 02/02

[EviesCruisin]

Delayed leaving port as they were fixing the thrusters. No issues with the ship after leaving port. I think the same captain - Tor was his name.

 

Did you have any thruster issues after leaving Port Canaveral? Did a new Captain come on board today?

 

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[EviesCruisin]

For me, it was worth the money. Initially we booked the soda card (with tip, it's about $7.50/day). So you have to spend $12.50/day more in beverages. This is roughly 3 "other" types of beverages to break even.

 

Juice: This was the one thing that was harder to find. You'd be hard pressed to get your money's worth on juice alone, as it's only really available in the AM. Freshly squeezed OJ in the Windjammer and main dining rooms in the morning and that was it. Regular OJ, apple juice was available at breakfast. If you are trying to make the package on juice, I think you'll fall short. I think at bar prices this is $3-4. The OJ was good. No other juices, really.

 

Bottled Water: Crystal Geyser 500 ml - available at any bar. You show them your card, they swipe it and either give you a 0.00 receipt or no receipt. I think they only used this water for the package; otherwise it is Evian. Not sure the price on it's own, probably $3.

 

Starbucks: Woop woop, here is where it was awesome. You can get any of the Starbucks drinks with this package. Mostly I got a venti White Mocha or Caramel Macchiato. These I think would have been $4.85 + 15% tip. They also have a few flavors of frappuccinos and various flavored syrups like raspberry.

 

Frozen Non-alcoholic Cocktails (or any non-alcoholic cocktails): A few times I got a frozen non-alcoholic pina colada at Squeeze by the pool. They were good.

 

One nice thing is that they'd let me get both a coffee and bottle of water at the same time at Cafe Promenade. I'd take the water for my room or for ports for later. The guy there, Maurius, was awesome. He knew my name even though I only went there 1-2 times a day.

 

It was very easy to use. I didn't expect them to swipe my card each time, thought they'd just look at the sticker. But it makes sense because in case you ask for a refund halfway through, they need to know what to charge you "by the drink."

 

One thing I found out, you can't take a Starbucks off the ship. They make you finish it or throw it out. So if you have visions of getting a coffee to go for port, abandon them. Bottled water can go off the ship, though. And sodas.

 

On our sailing, one of the Freestyle machines at Sorrento's was out of service for all but the first day. The other one was always out of ice. You could go to bull & pear pub across the way for ice. They also had two machines in the Windjammer. You can get a soda at any bar, but I thought it tasted better out of the Freestyle machines. More like canned/bottled soda taste vs. "bar soda"

 

We will be on FOS in June, also doing Eastern route. We have already purchased the royal replenishment package. Did you think it was worth the money and easy to use?

 

 

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[EviesCruisin]

In regular cabins, you are provided shampoo in a dispenser in the cabin plus a bar of soap. No lotion, conditioner, etc. I'd bring most of your own toiletries unless you are not picky at all. The hand soap was fine for washing your hands.

 

Yes, the dining rooms were chilly particularly on the first night or two. A cardigan or lightweight sweatshirt for the little ones was sufficient if my daughter was wearing a sleeveless dress. My son was fine in shorts/t-shirt. Once or twice I wanted a cardigan but it warmed up after the first night or two. Only noticed it being chilly in the dining room. In port, the air isn't as strong so you set it colder in your room. Once you get moving it gets colder, but you can adjust it. If you have a younger baby, a lightweight blanket came in handy to block the sun (we use the Aden and Anais type). It packs up easy.

 

We found the weather warm all day long. The only exception was in St. Thomas when we took a ferry to St. John. The return trip on the ferry in the evening, it was chilly due to the sun having set and the speed the boat was going. In those instances if you had a dry enough towel you can use that in lieu of more layers or a blanket.

 

The first sea day it was very warm, the second day it was more windy - I think they were booking it back to Florida. Not too cold to go in the pool but I was glad to have a long sleeve rash guard packed for the little guy.

 

The toy lending program was really more for babies (up to age 3). The music set I described was probably the more "advanced" of the toys. However, really don't overpack toys. We brought so many coloring books, etc. for my daughter. And honestly she got so exhausted doing the activities on the ship, she racked out and didn't really need a ton of toys. A few favorites should be fine. They sell a few toys in the shops but not much. Basic sand toys, some mermaids and stuffed animals, Royal Caribbean Barbies, etc. The kids program was excellent and my daughter begged to go after she tried it the first time. Maybe bring some things to occupy them during dinner if you plan on main dining room. Meal are 1.5 hrs if you ask them to speed it up and can be 2 hours otherwise. My four year old did fine but the 19 month old got restless a few nights. Note: Kids club closes from 12-2 and 5-7 on sea days.

 

I believe they will lend you the phone for the Aquanauts if you ask. However you turn it back in when you pick your child back up. It's good to bring some post-it notes to stick on your relatives doors to tell them where you may be, if you want to try to meet up with them. You can also call their phone from a certain area from the ship and leave a message.

 

The sun was very strong. Reapply sunscreen often. We had my son in the shade in CocoCay in a stroller and he got burned behind his ears badly, even though he had sunscreen on (50 SPF) and didn't go in the water. After that we reapplied every 2-3 hrs and no issues.

 

I'm so excited to read your post as we are doing this ship/itinerary starting next Sunday. We also have in laws and little ones. A couple of quick questions if you don't mind.

 

What toiletries were provided in your cabin if any?

 

Did you find the dining rooms or other areas chilly? Just wondering how much I'll need a sweater around the ship.

 

Did you find the weather warm all day long in each port? I know it varies week to week and I've looked ahead at weather forecasts but I'm just curious if it is cool in the am/pm?

 

Can you borrow toys for kids age 3/4? If so, what kinds of things?

 

Do you have to have a baby to get a ship phone?

 

Thanks

Edited February 17, 2014 by EviesCruisin

[EviesCruisin]

I'd bet most of the stuff would be similar other than maybe the days rearranged slightly. You will have a great time. There is always something to do. You can relax or be as active as you want, or anything in between.

 

Don't miss the Freedom Ice Show. It's the first sea day at 2:30 or 4:30 and then another night at 7 & 9 pm. Reserve online before you go, then arrive 30 minutes early for good seats.

 

This was my first time on Royal Caribbean - previously I have done 3000 pax ships or smaller on Princess, NCL and HAL. I feel like we barely scratched the surface of all there was to do. Would sail on the ship again and again. You will have a great time.

 

We are booked for the April 13th FOS sailing! Needless to say, we are counting the days! Here where we are in MY, we have had over 32 inches of snow in the last week! NONE of it has melted! Our temps have been FREEZING all winter so far! I've never looked forward to a cruise more than this one! Glad you enjoyed the FOS! Thanks for the information! would love to see the Cruise compasses. I'm just wondering if they would be different since we are sailing the Western route?

[ltzol]

I notice that you went to St. John on your St. Thomas stop.

 

We are on the Freedom on March 23rd and would like to go to St. John.

 

Did you do an excursion from the ship, or did you take the ferry on your own. If you did the excursion, which one? Was it worth the $$?

 

Thanks so much!

[poolex3]

Thanks for the reply! We usually get the soda only package but when I saw that Starbucks was included we were hooked. I also like the idea of being able to grab a couple of bottles of water before we head off the ship and just to take back to our room.

 

 

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[AandBmom]

We usually bring our own reusable water bottles on Carnival cruises and fill them at breakfast before we go off the ship. Is that possible on Royal Caribbean?

[Clarea]

We usually bring our own reusable water bottles on Carnival cruises and fill them at breakfast before we go off the ship. Is that possible on Royal Caribbean?

Yes, you can take water bottles off the ship.

[AZDCruiser]

We are going on this cruise in May with our daughter, who will be 3.5 at sail time.

We plan on one evening out "late" - if we do the late night program with Adventure Ocean, do they sleep at all? I doubt my daughter would - but do they have mats or anything like that?

[pumpkinfish]

EviesCruisin, thank you so much for all that wonderful information! We are cruising with our 14 month old next month on FOS and you have answered a lot of my questions. How did I miss there is a Starbucks on board?! And it is part of the drink package too?! Please tell me this is accurate and I didn't misread your posts.

 

We are also traveling with family. Is it possible to have a family member drop off baby in nursery or does my DH or myself need to? Also, did you have another family member try taking child off ship? At San Juan my mother is watching kiddo but said she would meet us in town later on. Just wondering if she will have issues bringing him off ship.

 

Did you use pack n play for baby? How did that work as far as amount of space in room (we have balcony but nervous about pack n play taking a lot of space).

 

Thank you again for all this wonderful information. I look forward to reading the Nursery Cruise Compass Activity sheet when you get them uploaded. :D

[AandBmom]

We are going on this cruise in May with our daughter, who will be 3.5 at sail time.

We plan on one evening out "late" - if we do the late night program with Adventure Ocean, do they sleep at all? I doubt my daughter would - but do they have mats or anything like that?

 

AZDCruiser,

 

We're sailing next week with our 3.5 year old. I'll let you know what I find out if I can remember.....

 

To the OP, a quick question, did you feel the need to have water shoes? Did you go in the water at Cococay or anywhere else?

[EviesCruisin]

We did the St. John Coastal Cruise of National Park Beaches through the ship. It was EXCELLENT! The crew was awesome. The boat pulled up right to the dock right by the ship. The boat had an inside area with wooden booths plus an outdoor area with benches and upper deck with seating. The boat had a restroom as well as a bar with drinks (sodas, waters, beer, snacks) for purchase.

 

The Captain (Jack) narrated the whole way there and pointed out various sites and made recommendations on things to do. From Cruz Bay private ferry dock it was easy to take a cab; we went to Trunk Bay. On the return trip home, we saw the sunset and had some delicious complimentary rum punch.

 

It was $52 for adults, $30 (or so) for kids and free for our infant. Really a great tour and not overly crowded or anything like that.

 

I notice that you went to St. John on your St. Thomas stop.

 

We are on the Freedom on March 23rd and would like to go to St. John.

 

Did you do an excursion from the ship, or did you take the ferry on your own. If you did the excursion, which one? Was it worth the $$?

 

Thanks so much!

[EviesCruisin]

Their water on the ship is clean and filtered so it should be no problem to fill your own water. I didn't look for water stations on the ship dining room but they have ice water dispensers in Sorrentos.

 

We usually bring our own reusable water bottles on Carnival cruises and fill them at breakfast before we go off the ship. Is that possible on Royal Caribbean?

[EviesCruisin]

One night at Adventure Ocean (about 9/9:30), my daughter just laid down on the floor and fell asleep. I can't remember if she was on a mat when I picked her up. For PJ movie night they had things to lay on (kind of like sheets). They have a long bench also. I think if they are tired enough they will crash out anywhere. If you think she may fall asleep you could leave a clean pool towel for her to lay on.

 

We are going on this cruise in May with our daughter, who will be 3.5 at sail time.

We plan on one evening out "late" - if we do the late night program with Adventure Ocean, do they sleep at all? I doubt my daughter would - but do they have mats or anything like that?

[EviesCruisin]

They DO serve Starbucks coffee at Cafe Promenade. There is a separate "line" for drink orders. They have Cafe Americano, White Chocolate Mocha, Caramel Macchiato, 3 flavors of frappuccino - mocha and various other flavored syrups for other lattes as well (vanilla, raspberry). It was good and part of the Royal Replenish ($20 day package) and I think the $65 package too. I had read it included a tall or grande only but I got ventis no issue all week.

 

You can add up to 6 people who can pick up your child. They ask you to use their legal name ( I would assume the name on their cruise card ). It is no issue to have another family member taking your child off the ship as long as they have their SeaPass to scan. My parents often carried my kids through the line and were not questioned. We were not far away but they have a different last name and were not stopped or anything.

 

Regarding the pack and play - our room was a bit larger (300 sq ft) and there was plenty of space. My parents had a balcony cabin and it would have fit as well. You could have the room steward take it down during the day (or you could do this). We had a balcony room on a prior cruise and did this each night. For naps we just laid our 15 month old (at the time - now 4) in the middle of our bed. I'd get the pack and play (reserve via e-mail access desk) and if you don't need it, they could remove it - but if you ask for it later, they may not have enough on board to accommodate.

 

The nursery doesn't have a daily compass, they just have general rules & open hours. The daily thing is for the older age groups (3-5, etc). Each time you drop your child off they will ask you about what they may need (nap, food, play, etc) and you get a sheet showing what they did, ate, drank, diaper changes, etc. The staff was really nice.

 

EviesCruisin, thank you so much for all that wonderful information! We are cruising with our 14 month old next month on FOS and you have answered a lot of my questions. How did I miss there is a Starbucks on board?! And it is part of the drink package too?! Please tell me this is accurate and I didn't misread your posts.

 

We are also traveling with family. Is it possible to have a family member drop off baby in nursery or does my DH or myself need to? Also, did you have another family member try taking child off ship? At San Juan my mother is watching kiddo but said she would meet us in town later on. Just wondering if she will have issues bringing him off ship.

 

Did you use pack n play for baby? How did that work as far as amount of space in room (we have balcony but nervous about pack n play taking a lot of space).

 

Thank you again for all this wonderful information. I look forward to reading the Nursery Cruise Compass Activity sheet when you get them uploaded. :D

[glituner32]

looks like you had a great time