Our Final Look at Freedom Pre-Drydock:Dec 7th (Including Western Compass)

[APDMOM]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading your review. Thanks for taking the time to post.

 

Craig

 

Glad you enjoyed it :)

 

Thank you so much for this review!! Loved all of the photos, definitely made me excited to sail in May!

 

Enjoy your countdown! That is one of the reasons I write a review most of the time after I cruise. I know how much it helps me with the countdown. Freedom is still our favorite ship. We will see if Oasis claims that spot in June :D

[APDMOM]

Your review was so down to earth and really easy to follow. I am taking our daughter on her first cruise for her 50th birthday so I am reading everything I can to help make her cruise the best of the best. I have gotten so many interesting items to put on my list and I thank you for taking the time to do this review. Hugs to you and Merry Christmas. You have definitely helped me.

Kay

 

Thank you for your kind words, Kay! I hope your daughter enjoys cruising as much as we do. :) Merry Christmas to you too.

[theatrebabe]

Thank you for your review! We are sailing on Freedom on January 4-6, before she goes into dry dock. It'll be our first trip on her (after 2 cruises on Grandeur and 1 on Explorer many years ago) and we are really looking forward to being on a different ship! 2 nights will definitely not be long enough, but your review has me so excited to cram in everything we can during those 48 hours!!!!

[queenschick9b]

I am so excited for my 2/8 trip and reading this review has made me even more excited! Thanks for all of your hard work.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[cruiseraps]

Thank you for your review. We were on the same sailing as you and got the same great rate as you. We were also on the Oct. 26 sailing because of the promenade "mistake". I feel like we got two cruises for the price of one. Can't wait to try Freedom after dry dock. Despite the problems it was a very nice cruise. Hope the little girl is doing well.

 

Greg

[APDMOM]

Well, this was more of a report on our daily activities than a "review", but I hope it was helpful for most. I will post some other documents next week, like daily specials, the room service menu, etc. Enjoy planning your next cruise vacation :D

 

 

Here they are... the room service menus. If anyone is interested in other documents, just ask.

 

 

 

[d4nigirl]

Room service breakfast and some more exploration of the ship

 

We decided to order breakfast room service, since DS and I both love this treat at least once per cruise. I forgot to scan the room service breakfast menu, but will do so next week, when we are back home. Watch this space for more documents to come :D

 

We had put the card for room service out the previous night, to be delivered between 8 and 8:30 a.m. We got a call around 8:10 that room service was on the way, and it was delivered around 8:25. After some fun family breakfast and coffee time in our PR window seats, we headed to the Promenade Cafe to meet the captain and his staff again. This was more of an informal visit, where the staff walked around to chat with passengers - not the formal, entertaining Q&A session that we had earlier this week. The Promenade Cafe got too loud and crowded, so we went for another stroll to see some other areas of the ship.

 

We discovered this conference center (I think it was deck 2):

 

We also found some "hands-on" art. You turn the lever to activate the moving pieces.

 

 

Another nice spot for a family picture - The stairs outside Arcadia Theatre:

 

 

This art was right outside our room when DH and I sailed on Freedom. We LOVED these!

[Teacherloves2Cruise]

Thank you for your review! We are sailing on Freedom on January 4-6, before she goes into dry dock. It'll be our first trip on her (after 2 cruises on Grandeur and 1 on Explorer many years ago) and we are really looking forward to being on a different ship! 2 nights will definitely not be long enough, but your review has me so excited to cram in everything we can during those 48 hours!!!!

 

I'll be on the 2 night just after dry dock Jan 30th. Will love to read your review to get a "before" and I will happily write the "after!"

[Wine Luvuh]

THANK YOU!!! Great review and great pictures! We just booked Freedom for 2/1 and this was just what I needed! :D

[BillOh]

I'll be on the 2 night just after dry dock Jan 30th. Will love to read your review to get a "before" and I will happily write the "after!"

 

Those of us sailing in the coming months will be grateful.

[BillOh]

THANK YOU!!! Great review and great pictures! We just booked Freedom for 2/1 and this was just what I needed! :D

 

Tara,

 

Let us know if you get any contact from Royal about your itinerary. We are all assuming that the drydock will fix the recent propulsion problems, but I am hoping you would be the first to hear anything. have a great cruise.

[breezy_carol]

Thanks for the great trip report.

 

We sailed on FOS in October and this was a walk down memory lane.

[APDMOM]

THANK YOU!!! Great review and great pictures! We just booked Freedom for 2/1 and this was just what I needed! :D

 

Glad you enjoyed it! I wish we could join you in February... I work to cruise :rolleyes:

 

Thanks for the great trip report.

 

We sailed on FOS in October and this was a walk down memory lane.

 

Here's to many more cruise memories! :D

[ttnc4me]

Thank you so much for posting such an in depth report with such great pictures! We look forward to being on FOS in just a couple of months!

[Lessofjess]

Thanks for such a detailed review! The photos were awesome. I've sailed RCI 3 times, but never on a ship as large as Freedom.

 

We're doing the Thanksgiving 2015 cruise this year and bringing my sister and parents along. They are first-time cruisers...I know they'll love it!

 

We recently sailed on Legend (Panama Canal) - a much smaller ship. We sailed the Voyager class once, but that was several years ago. Did you ever feel that the ship was too crowded? We have kids using Adventure Ocean, but all our previous cruises were at off times and there were rarely more than 75-100 kids on board. I heard there maybe 700-1000 kids on board during Thanksgiving!

 

I don't have real little ones (youngest will be nearly 7), so I think they'll be fine. I'm curious if anyone else has experience with Thanksgiving sailing on a ship as large as Freedom?

[counsdr]

I'll be on the 2 night just after dry dock Jan 30th. Will love to read your review to get a "before" and I will happily write the "after!"

 

I can't wait to read your post dry dock review! If anyone deserves that special cruise invite, it's a teacher!!!!

 

Another of the "ranks",

Cheryl

[APDMOM]

Thanks for such a detailed review! The photos were awesome. I've sailed RCI 3 times, but never on a ship as large as Freedom.

 

We're doing the Thanksgiving 2015 cruise this year and bringing my sister and parents along. They are first-time cruisers...I know they'll love it!

 

We recently sailed on Legend (Panama Canal) - a much smaller ship. We sailed the Voyager class once, but that was several years ago. Did you ever feel that the ship was too crowded? We have kids using Adventure Ocean, but all our previous cruises were at off times and there were rarely more than 75-100 kids on board. I heard there maybe 700-1000 kids on board during Thanksgiving!

 

I don't have real little ones (youngest will be nearly 7), so I think they'll be fine. I'm curious if anyone else has experience with Thanksgiving sailing on a ship as large as Freedom?

 

We are on the same cruise :) I see you are already on our roll call. I really look forward to our Thanksgiving experience.

 

We have sailed Freedom class ships 3 times. Two of these times were during peak season (spring break and summer). The only times we felt it to be crowded were during the parade, and during Freedom Fest on the promenade. However, we are quite the experts at avoiding crowds. For example, we eat in the Windjammer early in the morning to avoid the rush, we use the pool while in port (when the ship is mostly deserted), and we wait about an hour after the ship is cleared in port before making our way to the gangway. On sea days we often do a room service lunch, or we go tomthe Mdr for lunch.

 

Freedom has a lot of public space, and we have always been able to find a nice/quiet spot on the promenade or in deck 4 (Boleros). I pt will indeed be interesting to see how busy it gets over Thanksgiving with so many kids!

[nexus42]

Thanks for posting this, really enjoyed your trip report!

[TheGaDawgFan]

Thanks for another great cruise report! I can't wait for Thanksgiving.

[counsdr]

Thank you so much for all of this review! Although I've been on FOS twice before, I still have to say Explorer is my favorite ship. I'm hoping this upcoming cruise will be a very positive experience as I'm taking my 3&5 year old grandchildren on their first cruise! I especially enjoyed reading the daily Adventure Ocean programs.

Thank you again for your hard work!

Cheryl

[counsdr]

Thanks for taking the time to do this it was appreciated. It will hold me over until the reviews start coming in post Dry Dock and we will be in our final countdown. I'm also encouraged about the hotel we picked and getting in an our of PC for the first time.

 

Bill, I stayed at the Radisson last year in a pool side room. There wasn't that much noise from the pool except in the early morning, but the rooms are along outside corridors and there was constant noise from people walking back and forth and kids running/yelling. Those rooms were pretty old and seedy, however there were elevators to them! The shuttle was excellent, the breakfast was worth $10 if you like a big breakfast. There was an omelet station, but it was crowded and noisy. This year I'm doing the Residence Inn as I need a two bedroom suite and I've heard great things about it. Same park and drive deal as the Radisson.

Cheryl

[APDMOM]

Thank you so much for all of this review! Although I've been on FOS twice before, I still have to say Explorer is my favorite ship. I'm hoping this upcoming cruise will be a very positive experience as I'm taking my 3&5 year old grandchildren on their first cruise! I especially enjoyed reading the daily Adventure Ocean programs.

Thank you again for your hard work!

Cheryl

 

You are welcome! I must say, Explorer has been on my radar since our FOS cruise, where I first saw her new itineraries. Those Southern Caribbean itineraries are so tempting! If it weren't for my restricting work schedule, I would book for February in heartbeat :)

 

So many ships... so little time off from work...

 

Enjoy your cruise with your grandchildren!

[counsdr]

Thanks! I can't wait to see the awe in their little faces as they see the vastness of the ship! I hope they will be able to enjoy and remember it at their young ages!

I hope you do get to enjoy Explorer soon, she's a beauty!

[BillOh]

Bill, I stayed at the Radisson last year in a pool side room. There wasn't that much noise from the pool except in the early morning, but the rooms are along outside corridors and there was constant noise from people walking back and forth and kids running/yelling. Those rooms were pretty old and seedy, however there were elevators to them! The shuttle was excellent, the breakfast was worth $10 if you like a big breakfast. There was an omelet station, but it was crowded and noisy. This year I'm doing the Residence Inn as I need a two bedroom suite and I've heard great things about it. Same park and drive deal as the Radisson.

Cheryl

 

Thanks for the insight.

[pam111280]

Thanks for the fab review...........my daughter is 15 and she will be with us on freedom for the 1st time this summer ..........she is now really excited