Our Lovely Liberty cruise (with pics) 8/9/14

[Jamman54]

The excursion boats are anchored off the beach…..

 

 

The Carnival Liberty begins to spin around to head out to sea…..

 

 

 

 

Goodbye until next year!!!

 

 

We were tired from the day, so we decided to take a nap until it was time to get ready for dinner. There was a knock on the door. Our laundry had been done and was back…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Our wait staff was happy to see us again, since we had eaten at the Steakhouse last night. Again, we had a wonderful dinner. We all started off with the fried shrimp…..

 

 

I also had the flatbread which was very good…..

 

 

For our mains, we all had the spaghetti carbonara…..

 

 

Ryan also had the grilled chicken, while I had the seafood newberg…..

 

 

For dessert, I tried the double roasted pineapples. I wasn’t impressed…..

 

 

After dinner we took in the 10pm adult comedy show featuring John Rathbone. He was pretty funny. Then I went to the EA Sports Bar for a couple of Thirsty Frog Reds, before calling it a night. Here is tonight’s towel animal…..

 

 

Coming up next: Our final sea day, debarkation, and final thoughts. Stay tuned!

[debee1015]

Thanks for your awesome review.

 

We'll be doing the same itinerary on the Liberty in 25 days. :D

 

I recently tried to book the trike tour of Aruba but they're booked, based on your review I booked the North Coast Jeep Safari instead.

[Jamman54]

Thanks for your awesome review.

 

We'll be doing the same itinerary on the Liberty in 25 days. :D

 

I recently tried to book the trike tour of Aruba but they're booked, based on your review I booked the North Coast Jeep Safari instead.

 

Good choice! I'm sure you will enjoy it. Have a GREAT cruise!

[Jamman54]

It is with a bit of sadness that I begin this last installment of our Carnival Liberty review…..

 

 

We awoke to yet another beautiful day. I made my way to the Blue Iguana Cantina for some breakfast burritos…..

 

 

This is the morning that Patti and Ryan were going to do the Behind the Fun tour. They were to meet in the library at 8:45am. They served coffee and danish…..

 

 

I had done this on the Fantasy earlier this year, so I didn’t feel the need to repeat this tour, but Patti and Ryan really enjoyed it. I’ll repost the tour info here……

 

 

The tour ran about 3 ½ hours. Here is a group shot while on the crew area of the bow…..

 

 

Here is a group shot of the tour on the bridge with Captain Giusa…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

While Patti and Ryan were on their tour, I made my way to The Web to check emails, and then went to the Versailles Pool Bar for a couple of bloody marys. Feeling refreshed, I decided to go do battle in the casino for one last time. In about three hours of playing blackjack, I managed to win back half of what I had lost during the cruise. Happy with that, I got out while the getting was good!

 

After their tour, Ryan went to Club O2, and Patti went to check out the Chocolate Extravaganza…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course there was a chocolate fountain, but only the servers could dip the skewers…..

 

 

To be continued……

[Jamman54]

Patti and I went to the casino for the last slot tournament of the cruise, but neither of us would qualify for the finals.

 

We were feeling hungry, so we made our way to Guy’s Burger Joint for lunch. I had my usual Pig Patty, and asked for and received extra fries. Yummy!!

We then went back to the cabin to begin packing. The Diamond / Platinum debarkation info was waiting for us…..

 

 

The VIFP party was scheduled for 5:15pm. Here is our invite…..

 

 

The party was in the Venetian Show Lounge, and we walked in to the sounds of a live band and a singer…..

 

 

 

Our bar waitress from our dining room was there as well. She took good care of us. The drinks and appetizers were flowing…..

 

 

The Assistant Cruise Director, Charlotte was the MC of the party. I like Charlotte, but was kind of disappointed that Cory the Cruise Director, or any of the Senior Staff members didn’t show up…..

 

 

To be continued…..

Edited September 30, 2014 by Jamman54

[Jamman54]

DJ Flo-Rin was in the house…..

 

 

The party ran pretty much to form. They ran the video where everyone cheers for the ships they have been on, and then Charlotte acknowledged the Gold, Platinum, and Diamond members. Then she called all the Diamond members in the house on stage, where she interviewed each one….

 

 

Charlotte giving me the third degree…..

 

 

The ship’s photographer takes our picture…..

 

 

The party ended with some dancing onstage…..

 

 

Including some line dancing…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

I made my way back to the cabin to finish packing, while Patti and Ryan took one last stroll around. Here is the deck 3 promenade…..

 

 

Here are a couple of shots of the Gold Olympian Dining Room. This is the Dining Room for Any Time Dining (ATD)…..

 

 

 

This is a small portion of the Pixels Gallery…..

 

 

I just love those wrought iron light fixtures…..

 

 

Not a great sunset tonight, but the sun is going down on our last day on the Liberty…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Dinner tonight was wonderful as usual. I had two starters tonight, starting with the mussels…..

 

 

I also had the pot stickers…..

 

 

Patti and I both had the tomatoes and mozzarella…..

 

 

We both had the ricotta ravioli….

 

 

And I also had the shrimp creole….

 

 

Ryan had a double order of the bacon mac and cheese, along with his usual grilled chicken.

 

Ryan and Ieva…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The wait staff performed for only the third time this cruise, singing “Leaving on a Fun Ship”….

 

 

 

Followed by dancing “Gangham Style”…..

 

 

Soon it was time to say our goodbyes. Maribel didn’t want to let us go!! Here is Ryan with Maribel and Laurean…..

 

 

Afterwards, we all just decided to call it a cruise, head back to the cabin, put out our luggage, and then go to bed. Here is our last towel animal of the cruise…..

 

 

I was up at 6am to watch us sail back into Port Canaveral…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

Passing the Victory Casino ship…..

 

 

A new cruise terminal is being built…..

 

 

Grill’s Restaurant and boat ramp…..

 

 

The Exploration Tower….

 

 

Fishlip’s…..

 

 

We’re almost home…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

There are three other ships in port with us today. The Freedom of the Seas…..

 

 

The Carnival Sensation…..

 

 

And the Disney Dream…..

 

 

Here’s another view of the Freedom of the Seas…..

 

 

Our destination…..

 

 

The stern on the Carnival Sensation…..

 

 

To be continued…..

[Jamman54]

The sun is rising in the east…..

 

 

Patti has joined me on the not so “secret” deck…..

 

 

Officers on the bridge, watching us back in to our berth….

 

 

Another sunrise view….

 

 

The Carnival Sensation docked at Port Canaveral…..

 

 

I am sad that the cruise is now over. It is 7:15am…..

 

 

We are to meet in the Gold Olympian Dining Room at 7:45 for priority debarkation, so we had some time to go up and have a quick breakfast. They started the self debarkation just minutes after docking.

 

After we ate, we stopped back at the cabin to pick up our carryon bags, and make our way down to the Gold Olympian. When we got there, we found that they were already letting Diamonds and Platinums off the ship. It was 7:50am when we dinged out.

 

Once in the terminal, we had to wait a few minutes before they opened up the luggage area, but once they did, Ryan quickly spotted our luggage.

 

We grabbed a porter, and within minutes we were through customs, out the door, and on the shuttle back to the Radisson.

 

Once back, we packed up the van, made a stop at a local Dunkin Donuts, and then headed towards Orlando to continue our vacation! The End.

 

 

A couple of final thoughts. I thought that this cruise ranked in the top 5 of my cruise history, for a couple of reasons. First was the itinerary. Being able to visit a couple of islands in the Southern Caribbean, without having to leave from San Juan, and not being on a port intensive cruise, was a definite plus for me. I need my sea days!!!

 

I loved the ship! Yes, all the Conquest Class ships are laid out the same, but the décor caught my eye, especially the wrought iron, rails, light fixtures, and accents.

 

I loved the crew!! Nothing but positive, pleasant, interactions

 

The 2.0 upgrades. I didn’t use them all, but I was glad they were there. I wouldn’t pick a ship because of them, but they do enhance the experience.

 

I don’t know what the fuss is all about concerning the new menus. I am not a foodie by any means, but I had no trouble at all finding something that I liked to eat, and a lot of my old favorites were still there. I liked the fact that you can order Steakhouse entrée’s for twenty dollars. I didn’t do that because I did eat in the Steakhouse one night, but if I was on a ship without a Steakhouse, I probably would try it one night. It's great to have choices. The more the better! Oh, and for those who care, there were tablecloths every night.

 

The Cheers Program. This was the first time I had purchased the program, and I saved a little over a hundred dollars. That’s not bad, considering I didn’t have ANY drinks on board the day we were in Aruba, and just a few the days we were in Curacao and Grand Turk. Embarkation day, and the four sea days, were another story. I was in double digits every one of those days, maxing out three times! At $37.50 a day it worked out for me, but if it was still $49.95, I would have been about even.

 

I think the only thing that disappointed Patti and Ryan, was that most of the bingo sessions, especially the ones with the higher payouts, were scheduled while we were eating dinner, so they missed them all.

 

I think that’s about it. If you have any questions, ask away, and I’ll do my best to answer.

 

So after 38 days, 220 pages, and over 1,300 pictures later, I have finally completed my almost back to back Fascination and Liberty reviews. Not to mention the countless hours writing text, selecting, cropping, resizing, and uploading pictures, then posting them here, and another site. Copy and paste, copy and paste, a click click here, a click click there, here a click, there a click, everywhere a click click. I enjoyed every minute of it!! I hope the reviews were helpful in some way and entertaining as well. I have a great respect for those that did picture reviews before me, and for those that will follow. My hats off to all of you!!

 

Thanks to my lovely wife Patti, who is my lead photographer. We took over 3,000 photos during the two cruises, and most of those were hers!

 

Thanks to everyone for their kind thoughts, words, and prayers, over the last few months. They meant more to us than you will ever know.

 

Next up for me, will be the Carnival Splendor repo from New York to San Juan on October 24th. I will be doing this solo, since Patti is a teacher, and she can’t take the time off. Can’t wait until she can retire and join me on these off peak, inexpensive cruises!!

 

Of course I’ll have my camera in hand documenting the journey to share with all of you. So until then, may you have clear skies and calm seas. Happy Sails!!

Edited September 30, 2014 by Jamman54

[dafoester]

Jamman, I have been following since you started, thank you very much for a thorough review. I look forward to your next one!

[Tutontow]

Jamman thanks so much for this great trip report. I have to agree the staff on The Liberty deserves a solid A. Having said that it is obvious you like to gamble like I do. The casino staff I encountered was great, probably some of the best ever. The dealers were friendly. The pit critters were actually congenial and the host (Kris) really took care of us. One of the dealers actually recognized us from a Legend cruise we took three months ago.

 

Unfortunately no free cruise this time but two in a row isn't bad.

 

Wow, 3000 photos to sort through. Holy Cow!!!

 

I hope some day down the road I can join you at a blackjack table and we can throw back a cold one.

 

Thanks again and your review helped my trip be that much better.

[BeachLoverstoo]

Jamman, I loved your review. DH is a photographer and I know the effort it takes to get everything organized after the trip! Kudos to you and Patti for all those wonderful shots.

We are on the Liberty in just under two months and this is helping me survive not being there yet. Now the food porn is killing me!

We are bereaved parents and understand your loss, but at the same time none of us can every really know what you are going through. I'm glad you went ahead with your cruises. Getting on with life is difficult, but necessary. It just takes time.

[DHnDWplus2]

Thanks so much for the review and pictures. We are doing the same cruise during Halloween! Can't wait...

 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Forums mobile app

[SMSACE6]

Loved your review. The Liberty is my favorite ship for many of the same reasons that she is in your top 5. I also am not much affected by décor on a ship, but the Liberty is the only one I remember oohing and aahing, especially about the those colored lights in the atrium. I could spend hours there watching them change color.

 

Thank you for your awesome reviews. I know that it takes a great deal of effort in putting them together. I will look forward to your next one.:)

[teacher34]

Thank you so much for taking the time to do this review. My DH and I are doing this same itinerary on the Liberty in March and looking at all your wonderful pictures has made me even more excited ! I really appreciate all the time and trouble you went to to do this. It is a terrific review!

[Meg O Malley]

Thank you so much for doing such an awesome review. We are going on the Liberty in January. I really do appreciate you taking so much time adding all the fantastic pictures. It really has added to my excitement for our upcoming cruise.

Also please accept my deepest sympathies on the loss of your son

[Jamman54]

Jamman, I have been following since you started, thank you very much for a thorough review. I look forward to your next one!

 

Thanks for reading and glad you enjoyed it

 

Jamman thanks so much for this great trip report. I have to agree the staff on The Liberty deserves a solid A. Having said that it is obvious you like to gamble like I do. The casino staff I encountered was great, probably some of the best ever. The dealers were friendly. The pit critters were actually congenial and the host (Kris) really took care of us. One of the dealers actually recognized us from a Legend cruise we took three months ago.

 

Unfortunately no free cruise this time but two in a row isn't bad.

 

Wow, 3000 photos to sort through. Holy Cow!!!

 

I hope some day down the road I can join you at a blackjack table and we can throw back a cold one.

 

Thanks again and your review helped my trip be that much better.

 

I'm glad I was able to help. The casino staff was awesome!! I didn't have a drinks on us card, but every time I played, they would buy me a couple of drinks. Kris and Daisy sent stuff to my cabin and always made sure to come over and say hello. When they asked me if there was anything I needed, I told them to let me throw all the continuous shuffle machines overboard!! :D

 

See you at the blackjack tables!!

[poohnpals]

What a wonderful review! And just like every cruise, I didn't want it to end. You do such a wonderful job. We're cruising on the Liberty in March and it was so great to see her through your eyes.

 

Thank you and my thoughts go out to you and your family.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Jamman54]

Jamman, I loved your review. DH is a photographer and I know the effort it takes to get everything organized after the trip! Kudos to you and Patti for all those wonderful shots.

We are on the Liberty in just under two months and this is helping me survive not being there yet. Now the food porn is killing me!

We are bereaved parents and understand your loss, but at the same time none of us can every really know what you are going through. I'm glad you went ahead with your cruises. Getting on with life is difficult, but necessary. It just takes time.

 

Thanks for reading and your kind words. You will have a GREAT cruise!

 

So sorry for your loss. This is a club that no parent should have to join. :(

 

Thanks so much for the review and pictures. We are doing the same cruise during Halloween! Can't wait...

 

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Forums mobile app

 

Thanks for reading. I hope my review will help enhance your cruise in some way!

[Jamman54]

Loved your review. The Liberty is my favorite ship for many of the same reasons that she is in your top 5. I also am not much affected by décor on a ship, but the Liberty is the only one I remember oohing and aahing, especially about the those colored lights in the atrium. I could spend hours there watching them change color.

Thank you for your awesome reviews. I know that it takes a great deal of effort in putting them together. I will look forward to your next one.:)

 

Thanks for reading. Of all the ships that I've been on, The Garden Atrium on the Liberty is the prettiest atrium of them all

Thank you so much for taking the time to do this review. My DH and I are doing this same itinerary on the Liberty in March and looking at all your wonderful pictures has made me even more excited ! I really appreciate all the time and trouble you went to to do this. It is a terrific review!

 

Thanks for following along. hoping my review will help you with your planning.