ksawyercruiser Posted May 1, 2014 Author #26 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Great reviews and your posts are so entertaining to read! Can't wait to hear your review of your upcoming Vision trip....we are going in June! Thank you soooo much! I can't believe we are going on another cruise in just three weeks. Makes getting off the Liberty a little easier. :) Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramblin' Ma'am Posted May 1, 2014 #27 Share Posted May 1, 2014 We really enjoyed meeting you, Laura! I hope you enjoyed your first cruise ever. And good luck on Jeopardy! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Loved meeting you guys too! And I still have to get past the 2nd audition! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 1, 2014 Author #28 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Okay, day 2. Yeah … yeah … I know. I should be unpacking. But somehow laundry and unpacking don’t sound too appealing right now. We started our morning out at the Dreamworks character breakfast. Meh. It was nice because it was early (8 a.m.), and it got our lazy butts out of bed. It was in a designated section of the MDR, and even though we made reservations online beforehand, they didn’t ask us for our names or anything. The breakfast starts out with a layered chocolate milkshake for the kids. Kinda fun. Then you can choose from the buffet or order off the menu. Marissa and Tom chose the buffet. I ordered fried eggs off the menu. They bring out three characters for photos. They do some silly songs and dances with the kids. I think this is a great event for young kids. But at 10, Marissa didn’t enjoy it all that much. We saw Fiona, Puss in Boots and Po from Kung Fu Panda. The photo ops felt a bit rushed … like the staff was trying to get it over with. But all in all, a nice breakfast. We won’t be doing it again but I’m glad we at least tried it. Tom and Marissa headed up to the pool for a little swim time trying to beat the crowds. I decided to head to the casino. I’m not much of a gambler but I like to spend $40 or so in the mornings while it’s quiet before the evening madness. I selected a machine, put in a $20 and quickly won a hundred bucks. Nice!! I then decided to get a mimosa at the casino bar which was empty. I got my mimosa and decided to head back to the same machine to play my remaining $18. We had the premium drink package, and we made a point to tip $1-$2 extra on each drink. I’m just not confident how much of our prepaid gratuity actually goes to the bartenders. And the servers/bartenders were EXTREMELY appreciative. They rewarded us with topnotch service and maybe a little extra booze. I put in my $18 and quickly won $200. WOW! I know when to hold ‘em, when to fold ‘em, when to walk away and when to run. So I walked away. Might be my imagination but it seemed the machines were much looser earlier in the cruise. And you get double casino points for playing from 9-11 a.m. Not that I have any idea what you get for those points. I met the fam in the room and showed Tom my casino winnings. We decided that the $300 would be our gambling fundage for the cruise so we wouldn’t lose any money. We ended up giving most of it back to the casino but we ended a little bit ahead. Not bad! We were all craving Johnny Rockets so we went there at 11:30 to beat the crowds. JR opens at 11:30. We had great service and a great meal for $5.95 each. Well worth it. It’s a cute venue with nice views of the ocean. You can sit inside or outside. We had a scheduled cabin crawl with our roll call group at 2 p.m. I had a little time so I decided to head back to the casino for a slot tournament to win a free cruise. I didn’t realize this was a multi-day tournament. The cost to enter was $25 but Crown & Anchor members get a $5 discount. I played in round 3 of the daily tournament and ended up in first place in my group. My score was pretty high, and the organizer told me I would almost definitely make the final round on the last day of the cruise. She told me to check back regularly to see if I was still on the leaderboard. They had three qualifying rounds throughout the cruise. After that, I met up with Tom and Marissa and we went to the Schooner bar to meet up with our roll call group. We were so fortunate to have an AMAZING group. Soooo friendly. And several of them offered up their cabins for the crawl. We saw and interior, a couple oceanview balconies (including ours), a balcony on the hump, a junior suite and an owner’s suite (GORGEOUS!). We also visited one of the most unique cabins I’ve ever seen: A family oceanview. It was in the front of the ship, right under the bridge. It had a separate living area, one bathroom, a bedroom with a queen bed and a second bedroom with bunk beds. It had three porthole windows. The room was a very odd shape but it had tons of space. Really interesting. Several of the cabins had wine, champagne and snacks to share. It was a great experience, and I highly recommend people to get involved with your roll call group. I’m so glad we did. Such a fun group! After the roll call group, we went back to our cabin to relax. We ended up watching a movie on the ship’s Dreamworks channel. (Loved this! We had it on anytime we were in the cabin and saw Shrek, Puss in Boots, How to Train Your Dragon, Monsters vs. Aliens, etc.) I fell asleep during the movie. I ended up napping through our reservations for the 5 p.m. Ice Show. Oh well. We went to Portofino’s for a 6:30 p.m. dinner. We had a beautiful table by the windows. The food and service were very good. Tom especially loved his filet. And the minestrone soup was superb and very unique (clear broth base with white beans). The only weird moment happened when we ordered our glasses of wine ($12). The waiter looked at our seapasses and said, “The premium package only covers wine up to $9 so you’ll have to pay the difference.” I told him I thought he was mistaken. We had ordered $11 glasses of wine the night before and didn’t get charged. (I was fairly positive I understood our drink package.) He said no … we would be charged the difference. So I asked him how much the deluxe package covered. He said all drinks $15 and under. Wrong. At this point, I didn’t want to argue so I told him to charge our seapass cards and see what was covered. Turns out, we were fine and didn’t have to pay any overage. Our package covered all drinks $12 and under. I just thought it was strange he wasn’t more familiar with the different packages. We ended up having a nice dinner. I’m not sure it was worth the $75 cover charge we paid. Plus the extra gratuity we always pay. But again, I’m glad we tried it. I thought the selections were a little limiting. Only two pastas on the menu and maybe 4-5 additional meat options. But our table was beautiful, and the food was good. The three of us went to the 9 p.m. showing of Up in the Air in the Platinum Theatre. The show is very cirque du soleil, and we really enjoyed it. It has a fire, ice, wind and water theme. And a lot of it happens in the air (hence the title). If you can, sit in the middle toward the front for the best views. Maybe 20 rows back would be perfect. I highly recommend this show. We all loved it, and I would happily see it again. After the show, Tom and I headed back to the Hoof and Claw for a nightcap and a few tunes. We ended the evening with a slice of pizza from Sorrento’s. We loved Sorrento’s for a late-night snack. Pizza was decent. Especially after a few cocktails. Tiramisu from night #1. Pretty good. Loved Johnny Rockets. 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ksawyercruiser Posted May 1, 2014 Author #29 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Very nice start to your review. Looking forward to more. You mentioned the casual attire during dining. I might point out that it has been our experiance the on the first day/evening on board the dress code is relaxed. When I asked about this I was told by crew that alot of folks don't have their baggage yet so they don't push it. We saw shorts in the MDR for dinner throughout the cruise. I understand shorts are acceptable on night #1 but I was surprised how many passengers wore shorts on the following nights. Attire in the MDR seems to be much more casual than I've seen in the past. No judgment. Just an observation. :) Thank you for checking out the review. I really appreciate it!!! :D Subscribed! Sorry I didn't find it sooner. Can't wait to read the rest Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Thank you soooo much for checking out the review!! :):) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 1, 2014 Author #30 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Hey its Josh and Yianna here. Im starting to think that we really are stalking you guys. It was great meeting you guys and a great cruise. Cant wait to here what you thought about the rest of the cruise Sent from my SCH-I545 using Forums mobile app Hahaha!!!! We really enjoyed meeting you both! Interestingly, Marissa commented that you look like Paul Rudd. I said, "Really? You think so?" And she said, "In the eyes. He has the same eyes as Paul Rudd." Have you heard that before? And you guys can stalk us anytime. Hope you had a safe and smooth trip home! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerseygirlinsi Posted May 1, 2014 #31 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Great info on the Liberty thus far. Sounds like you all had a great time, once you got on! (wow, what a mess) Liberty will be coming to our local port (Bayonne, NJ), so I'm totally interested in this review. My boys are 6 and 10, and are a little picky when it comes to the kids clubs. On the Explorer they didn't really participate, but you couldn't get them out of the Disney Fantasy club! Did your daughter not enjoy what was offered? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloGaleRNTX Posted May 1, 2014 #32 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Oh, yeah!! You are back!!! I thought maybe you had decided not to complete the review!! Love the pictures as well as your writing style. Barb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 2, 2014 Author #33 Share Posted May 2, 2014 First of all, I just saw on the boards that the Liberty returned to Port Everglades because of a medical emergency. My thoughts and prayers go out to the passenger and family. Thank goodness they were still close enough to return to port. On a much lighter note, here are a few more pics before I continue our tale. The character breakfast is perfect for young kids. Unfortunately, I think my tween is getting a little old for this stuff. SIGH. Just yesterday, she was my three-year-old princess wearing a tutu and crown. But this is a pretty cute shot! Love me some Po! The rock climbing wall. Didn't try it this cruise. Maybe next time. Then again, maybe not. heehee Miniature golf. We almost did this but decided to go back at less busy time. We did a lot on this cruise but there's still a lot we didn't do. Reason to go back!!! Height limits for the Flowrider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 2, 2014 Author #34 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Great info on the Liberty thus far. Sounds like you all had a great time, once you got on! (wow, what a mess) Liberty will be coming to our local port (Bayonne, NJ), so I'm totally interested in this review. My boys are 6 and 10, and are a little picky when it comes to the kids clubs. On the Explorer they didn't really participate, but you couldn't get them out of the Disney Fantasy club! Did your daughter not enjoy what was offered? Marissa likes the Disney clubs the best because she says they have lots of activity options. She likes the AO well enough ... never really complained about going. But she is a bit of an introvert around new people. And it takes her longer to warm up. But the AO club looked very nice. My DD is in a weird phase. She starts middle school next year and has very specific likes and dislikes. She doesn't like being in the same area with 6 and 7-year olds. It's "beneath" her. heehee Thank you SOOOOO much for reading my review! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 2, 2014 Author #35 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Oh, yeah!! You are back!!! I thought maybe you had decided not to complete the review!! Love the pictures as well as your writing style. Barb I'm baaaack! Didn't have a chance to post much from the ship. But I will fill in all the blanks. Thanks for sticking with me!! :) Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zaneyduck Posted May 2, 2014 #36 Share Posted May 2, 2014 I saw more people wearing shorts in the MDR than ever before. No one was asked to leave, as far as I could tell." May have been my husband and I on the first night. :rolleyes: Our luggage never arrived before our dinner time, we were the only room on our hallway to not have it. After many phone calls, our room steward on the case, her supervisor, and security, it magically appeared around 9pm. No idea where it was or what happened.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 2, 2014 Author #37 Share Posted May 2, 2014 May have been my husband and I on the first night. :rolleyes: Our luggage never arrived before our dinner time, we were the only room on our hallway to not have it. After many phone calls, our room steward on the case, her supervisor, and security, it magically appeared around 9pm. No idea where it was or what happened.... No worries. Could have happened to anyone. I'm just glad you got your luggage!! :) I really don't care what people wear to the MDR. I was just commenting on what I saw. I was surprised by the number of folks wearing shorts in the MDR throughout the sailing. Hope you had a fantastic voyage! Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramblin' Ma'am Posted May 2, 2014 #38 Share Posted May 2, 2014 I really don't care what people wear to the MDR. I was just commenting on what I saw. I was surprised by the number of folks wearing shorts in the MDR throughout the sailing Did you happen to see the guy in the MDR last night wearing gym shorts patterned like an American flag, a white undershirt-type tee, and a hat?? I did a double take! I'm a pretty casual dresser but come on! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norwane Posted May 2, 2014 #39 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Thanks for the great review so far! Looking forward to reading more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhoenixCruiser Posted May 2, 2014 #40 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Thanks for the great review so far! Looking forward to reading more! Ditto! ### Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rocket3D Posted May 2, 2014 #41 Share Posted May 2, 2014 WOW....awesome review. Thanks again for the great wine! Pleasure to meet you. Fun cruise on my favorite ship. Bob :D:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 3, 2014 Author #42 Share Posted May 3, 2014 So the next day, we arrived in Belize around 9 a.m. This was a tender port and we had plans for an excursion that we booked on our own. Room service delivered breakfast around 8:30, and we enjoyed a quick breakfast before heading down around 9:15 or so. When we got to the disembarkation deck, we were greeted with a massive line. We asked a crew member for an estimate of how long it would take to get off the ship. He replied, “My best guess is 1 ½ to 2 hours. And then it’s about a 35-40 minute ride to the island.” That’s when we realized we would miss our excursion. We had booked it for 10 a.m. (I know … I know … I should have known they couldn’t get 4,000 passengers off that quickly. But I’ve only tendered once in Coco Cay on the Enchantment. And this was very different.) The tour operator told me I would have no problem getting to the island at 10 a.m. We were both wrong. People were going nuts in the line. Everyone was complaining. Some people told us later that they had arrived at 8:30 a.m. to be sure to be one of the first to get off and waited over two hours because RCI was only tendering passengers who had booked with them. One guy was yelling at a crew member, demanding to speak to the captain. His request wasn’t granted. We went back to our cabin and paid for the $30 internet package. We then contacted the tour operator and cancelled our excursion. We were a little bummed but we weren’t going to let it affect our vacation. We briefly contemplated getting coffees and grabbing a seat near the disembarkation area to watch people freaking out. It was pretty entertaining. Even though I could totally understand their frustration. Some of the passengers were really pissed. So my advice is this … if you are at a tender port, book your excursion through RCI if you’re on a larger ship. You will probably get priority. Or book something for much later in the day. Noon would have been perfect for us. So what to do now that we have the day ahead of us and a half-empty ship to explore? First stop: The Windjammer for breakfast #2. We had fruit and pastries from room service. This was the only time we ate in the Windjammer this cruise. It wasn’t overly crowded because so many people were trying to get off the ship. So we chose a table by the window and enjoyed some heartier breakfast fare. They were playing what I can best call “party music” in the Windjammer. At one point, I started laughing because an extremely inappropriate song came on. “Picture this we were both buck naked banging on the bathroom floor.” Yeah, that one. Fortunately, Marissa didn’t pick up on the lyrics. After stuffing our faces, we went back to the cabin to change into swimsuits and take advantage of the less crowded pools. Tom left first to find a good spot in the shade while Marissa and I finished getting ready. Tom got on the elevator on our Deck 6. He was almost to Deck 11 when the elevator suddenly changed directions and started going down. 10 … 9 … 8 … 7 … 6 … 5 … 4 … 3 … 2 … 1 Tom was like, “What the heck is going on?” When Tom got to Deck 1, the doors opened and a nurse(?) was standing there. Evidently medical staff has special key cards that can summon elevators immediately. Tom didn’t know whether he was supposed to get off or what. He said the nurse actually looked surprised that someone was on the elevator. Tom said the nurse asked, “Are you getting off here?” Tom replied, “Do I need to?” She said no and got on the elevator with him. Weird. Not sure what that was about but after that, Tom REALLY wanted one of those special key cards for instant elevator access. Marissa and I met Tom at the pool shortly thereafter. I headed to the pool bar for a drink o’ the day. Hey, I’m on vacation, and it’s like 11 a.m. already. Don’t you judge me. ;) The drink of the day was a Bahama Mama. I ordered one from the bartender and I watched him make it from a pre-made mix. It was pretty good. But later, I had another and the bartender made it from scratch. It was MUCH better. Delicious. While I was there, a gentleman walked up and ordered a Silver Patron frozen margarita. The bartender stepped to the back of the bar (where the ice was for the frozen drink) to prepare it. When the barkeep brought him his drink, the man said, “So are you out of Patron? I watched you make the drink.” Apparently, the bartender switched out another brand and got called on it. The bartender reacted very well and said, “Oh, Patron? Yes, we have a Patron.” He went and got a brand new bottle, opened it and poured an extra shot in the man’s drink. Good save. I sat at the bar for a while chatting with my fellow cruisers before joining Tom in the Jacuzzi. Marissa had made a friend and was happily swimming in the pool with her new buddy. We went to Johnny Rocket’s again for lunch. The outdoor tables there are just such a nice place to eat. I got a chili dog this time. Yummy. We ended up staying at the pool until after 5 p.m. relaxing and listening to the reggae band. It was a delicious day … even if it wasn’t what we had originally planned. We relaxed in the room until 7 p.m. when we took Marissa to the AO club. She was meeting her new friend there for the 7-10 p.m. session. The kids club hours are broken down into sessions: 9 a.m.-Noon 2-5 p.m. 7-10 p.m. 10 p.m.-2 a.m. ($7/hour extra charge) Yes, 2 a.m.!!! I was very surprised by this. Seemed way too late to me. So Tom and I ended up at the MDR having dinner by ourselves. We had gotten Marissa her honey-stung chicken from room service earlier. We collected our beautiful girl after dinner and wandered around the ship. Tom and I ended our evening with glasses of wine on our balcony while Marissa fell asleep watching yet another Dreamworks movie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 3, 2014 Author #43 Share Posted May 3, 2014 WOW....awesome review. Thanks again for the great wine! Pleasure to meet you. Fun cruise on my favorite ship. Bob :D:D Loved meeting you, too! And thank you for the wine. Fun cabin crawl! Do I understand congratulations are in order? Diamond + ?? :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 3, 2014 Author #44 Share Posted May 3, 2014 Thanks for the great review so far! Looking forward to reading more! Ditto! ### Thank you both so much for checking out the review! I'm glad you're enjoying it! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 3, 2014 Author #45 Share Posted May 3, 2014 The bedroom in the OS from our cabin crawl. Yeah, I know I'm all over the place with my pics. Sorry about that. The bunk bed room in the Family OV. Also from the crawl. Squeeze bar by the H2O Zone. Smoothie menu. Ping pong deck above the sport court. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 3, 2014 Author #46 Share Posted May 3, 2014 Did you happen to see the guy in the MDR last night wearing gym shorts patterned like an American flag' date=' a white undershirt-type tee, and a hat?? I did a double take! I'm a pretty casual dresser but come on! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk[/quote'] Oh I missed that gem, unfortunately! I'm a pretty casual dresser, too. Wore dark jeans and a top except formal night. But some people take casual dressing a wee bit too far. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ksawyercruiser Posted May 3, 2014 Author #47 Share Posted May 3, 2014 Hi Kim,I am really looking forward to the rest of your review. We also took advantage of the kids sail free offer and have booked our first cruise as parents on Liberty. Our son will be a few months shy of being old enough to attend the AO program. Any pictures or information you can share about the Royal Tots nursery and toy sharing program would be appreciated! Thanks! Have a great vacation! I didn't forget about you! We did check out the nursery on our explorations of the ship. It looked very nice. I apologize I didn't get any pics but I didn't have my phone with me at the time. Here's some info I found ... For families cruising on Royal Caribbean cruise ships with children age 6 months through 36 months, the Royal Babies & Tots Nursery is the place to have supervised care of your kids throughout the day. The nursery is staffed by trained professionals who are available day and night. There is an open house the first day of the cruise. This your first opportunity to make reservations for later in the cruise. The nursery has a limited staff and they are mandated to only be able to accommodate a certain amount of children per staff member (1:3 ratio for children 6-18 months; 1:4 ratio for 19-36 months). Reservations can be canceled if you change your mind, but it's best to reserve times you think you will need. The Royal Babies & Tots Nursery costs $8 per hour. The fee does include meals, although you can bring whatever food you want for your child with you. You also need to provide your own diapers. When you drop your child off, you fill out a quick form to tell the staff what he/she may need during their time there. In addition, the staff provides you with a wireless phone that they can use to call you in case something happens or for you to call them if you want to check up on things. Hope that helps!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinkroses Posted May 3, 2014 #48 Share Posted May 3, 2014 Thanks, Kim, for sharing! We are looking at a repo on Liberty from Bayonne, NJ to Galveston in 2015. I am wondering how similar she is to Freedom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoleGirl2014 Posted May 4, 2014 #49 Share Posted May 4, 2014 I didn't forget about you! We did check out the nursery on our explorations of the ship. It looked very nice. I apologize I didn't get any pics but I didn't have my phone with me at the time. Here's some info I found ... Hope that helps!! Thanks so much!!! Thoroughly enjoying your review and pics! :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kcjarvis Posted May 4, 2014 #50 Share Posted May 4, 2014 I'm loving the review. Keep it coming please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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