Can't believe our 14 days are over!
Liberty is beautiful...chandeliers, etc. rival Voyager's.
RCCL is having a major problem with their new luggage tags...they are just flimsy paper and rip off very easily, so many bags had to be retagged by staff. One piece took 10 hours to get to us...no one had any idea where it was...they never did explain where it was all that time...
2 other bags had 3 of my own tags all torn off...yes, I had 3 of my own tags on each...must be a problem with equipment they are using. Never had such a problem with luggage! Such a leap of faith dropping it off on the pier with no way of proving that you even had the luggage...except your word for it. They even told us to check the hallways because pieces get delivered to the wrong cabins...and what happens when those people aren't so honest?
b2b is great...especially having the ship to ourselves...great pictures of just us on the ship...you know...like it is our own private GIANT yacht!
Diamond perks aren't what they used to be...no commemorative gift, booklet almost useless (specialty coffee...can always get that in the Diamond lounge); 15% off $100 bottle of wine; 2 for 1 milkshakes at Johnny Rockets (it now costs $4.95 cover charge at Johnny Rockets!); 20% discount on bottle of Dom...percentage discounts on very pricey items...do they think that all Diamonds & Diamond Plus are rich? I thought the idea was a reward/loyalty program to keep us coming back.
Dining in the regular dining room was definitely below what we have experienced...very limited menu and assistant waiters were spread very thin. Finished dessert and then coffee and tea showed up. There seems to be confusion for staff with the "My time dining" and the other 2 seatings. On more than one evening we got menu booklets with nothing in them, in a different language and covered with sticky, dried on food on the cover.
I usually had to clean off my seat before I sat for dinner (and we were the first seating) I really felt for the waiter...he said he had worked previously in Chops, so I am sure he was frustrated with the quality of service he could provide being spread so thin. We just felt, for the first time, like we were just being treated as a mass cruise experience.
Portofino and Chops Grille were amazing...truly worth the $20 and $25 extra.
Shows were spectacular, as well as the Cruise Director & his staff...although he did like to be in front of that camera (the roaving video)
Eventhough it was a b2b, we saw different shows because of the way they schedule them and a new show (lucky for us) came on the 2nd week.
My only criticism of the actual ship is the Solarium...small in comparison with ships such as Rhapsody or Jewel. RCCL may need to strike a balance between adult only areas and kids areas. 2nd week had very few kids and people were always roaming, looking for chairs in the Solarium area. There is also a buffer area that is closed in that was only used for storage of chairs...it could have used since we had alot of wind from the hurricane remnants. This is when ships that have the moving, crystal canopy are appreciated.
Labadee was perfect...new Straw Market area less intimidating...apparently they have been advised to be less aggressive...and it worked.
All in all, we had a great time...and really weren't ready to leave!
Looking forward to next year!
Sounds like overall, you had a good time. Sorry to hear about the problems in the dining room and with your luggage. It makes it so hard flying because you don't want to take more than one bag. The only time I experienced waiting for my luggage was when the airline decided to send it to Seattle instead of San Juan. Three days without clothes was not fun. They did give me a $500 credit in the shop, but you know how expensive everything is on board.
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