Royal Caribbean International
Freedom of the Seas Cruise Review
Eastern Caribbean

Gary Ekin
Age: 49
Occupation: Senior Charge Nurse
Number of Cruises: 3
Sailing Date: August 12th, 2007

We traveled down to Miami from Kissimmee. The embarkation was so simple and trouble free due to the on-line pre-booking. Instead of the hours it took with Carnival, we were on the ship in 20 mins.

Our balcony room was was of normal size but the bed was a joy to sleep in. The shows were the best we have seen on any of our cruises. The ice show, yes Freedom has its own ice rink, was breath taking. The parades through the promenade were great. At no time did it feel over crowded despite the large number of passengers. The shops in the promenade were good and there were the usual photographs and cut price gifts. The food was excellent and the service the best we have had. We dined in Portofino one night and the Italian food was first class, well worth an additional $20.

There were 2  negative points. Of the three stops San Juan was by far the worst with very little to see in a short time. Royal Caribbean should think again about this one. St Thomas, and San Marten, the other stops, were far better. In St Thomas we took our own taxi around the Island and to Coral World, far better value and better experience. In San Marten we opted for the Lottery Farm Tree Top Adventure. We had done Zip Wire in Belize which was fantastic. However if you undertake The Lottery Farm Tree Top Adventure make sure you are really fit. You have initial instruction then its down to you, at various points there is help, but it is on the ground. We completed the course but my wife had really bad bruising to both arms and the heat saps most of your energy. For all that we were glad we completed it but others in our group did not.

Freedom of the Seas is a fantastic ship with loads of activities to do for old and young. The second slightly negative point was the cruise director. There is no getting away from her enthusiasm - the thing was there was no getting away from her. Her name was Becky and she was involved in everything. She was very loud and very over the top. If she could only limit her exposure she would be better.

On the whole the cruise was excellent and I would travel on Freedom anytime. The organization was top class and the staff first rate. 




 

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