Log In | Customer Support   
Home Book Travel Destinations Hotels Cruises Air Travel Community Search:  
Search

Search CruisePage

Book a Cruise
 - CruiseServer
 - Search Caribbean
 - Search Alaska
 - Search Europe
 - 888.700.TRIP

Book Online
Cruise
Air
Hotel
Car
Cruising Area:

Departure Date:
Cruise Length:

Price Range:

Cruise Line:

Forums
 >  Cruise Talk
 >  Rail Talk
 >  Air Talk
 >  Destination Talk
 >  Hotel Talk

Buy Stuff

Reviews
 - Ship Reviews
 - Dream Cruise
 - Ship of the Month
 - Reader Reviews
 - Submit a Review
 - Millennium Cruise

Community
 - Photo Gallery
 - Join Cruise Club
 - Cruise News
 - Cruise News Archive
 - Cruise Views
 - Cruise Jobs
 - Special Needs
 - Maritime Q & A
 - Sea Stories

Industry
 - New Ship Guide
 - Former Ships
 - Port Information
 - Inspection Scores
 - Shipyards
 - Ship Cams
 - Freighter Travel
 - Man Overboard List
 - Potpourri

Shopping
 - Shirts & Hats
 - Books
 - Videos
 - Reservations
 - Vacation Specials
 - Web Deals

Contact Us
 - Reservations
 - Mail
 - Feedback
 - Suggest-a-Site
 - About Us


   Cruise Travel - Reader Reviews

Welcome to Your Favorites, where you have the opportunity to share your travel experiences with fellow Internet Travelers around the world.


Royal Caribbean International

MV Freedom of the Seas

Your Rating:Four Stars
Reviewed by: Dwight Hudson
# previous cruises: 9
Date of Trip: May 27, 2007
Itinerary: Caribbean

Overview
Overall the cruise was enjoyable. Lots of things to do and see.

Royal Caribbean has been our favorite cruise line. However, we felt the quality and service were not up to the standards we remember from previous cruises.

Public Areas
The promenade was the place to see and be seen. The pool areas, especially H2O and Flowrider were excellent. Casino was typical.

Lounges were plentiful, from the cozy Champagne Bar to the unique Crypt.

Arcadia Theater was comfortable with no bad seats.

Food and Service
Here's where we felt quality and service suffered. The 3-level dining room was attractive but confining. Food and service were less than stellar. Windjammer buffet was usually a better choice. Chops was the exception, outstanding food and service from Albert and Gina. Well worth the surcharge. Promenade food offerings, pizza, ice cream, pastries were ok.

Cabins
We opted for an inside promenade family cabin (sleeps 6 but only 3 of us on board). Layout and size were very good. Lots of closet/storage space. Full tub in bathroom. Granddaughter loved bunk beds. View of promenade (over Ben&Jerrys) was the highlight. We were able to watch the parades and other entertainment from the comfort of our cabin. Expected it to be noisy, but it was fine. Did miss the view and sound of the ocean from a balcony.

Entertainment
Attended most of the shows. "Once Upon A Time", the ice skating show and the magician were excellent. Any shows we missed we were able to see on in cabin tv within minutes of their completion. Cruise Director, Richard Spacey, was outstanding. The entertainers were very good.

Activities
On board; if athletically inclined try the Flowrider, rock climbing wall, excellent exercise equipment and gym area. Pool areas are varied from adults only in the Solarium to kid friendly H2O. Promenade is a great place for a snack, beverage, shopping or just a leisurely stroll. Do attend as many of the shows and promenade parades as you can, lots of fun. Adults, DO NOT miss the Love & Marriage or The Quest shows, extremely entertaining. Also available, the usual pool parties, dance contests, sports competitions, etc.

Ports of Call: LABADEE; the Aquapark was fun, the rest for us was a case of "been there done that". GRAND CAYMAN; considerable change from our last visit. Lots of construction, a new terminal, new shopping areas. I only did some shopping. However, having been here before, I know the Stingray City visit is great as is any diving/snorkeling tour. OCHO RIOS: Least favorite stop.

Attempted to take the Canopy Zip Line tour. Weather was horrible, rain & lightning. Out of 34 people on the tour, 24 of us opted out once we were at the sight. Took tour operators/ship staff 4 hours to send a bus to rescue us. Jamaica has never been, in my opinion, a friendly tourist spot. I was hoping that had changed but my experience proved otherwise. COZUMEL: We chose the Dolphin Swim Adventure tour. It was without a doubt the highlight of our cruise. Next time I would like to visit some of the Mayan ruins but didn't have time on this go round.

Who Goes
Our fellow passengers covered all the age ranges from babies to 65 plus. As with any cruise you have rude people, pleasant people and fun people. We felt a lot of the passengers weren't aware of some of the common cruising courtesies; don't stop to chat in the middle of the walkways, wait your turn, keep talking to a minimum at the shows, etc. Overall the passengers were fun, enthusiastic and enjoyable to interact with.

VACATION & CRUISE SPECIALS
Check out these great deals from CruisePage.com

Royal Caribbean - Bahamas Getaway from $129 per person
Description: Experience the beautiful ports of Nassau and Royal Caribbean's private island - CocoCay on a 3-night Weekend Getaway to the Bahamas. Absorb everything island life has to offer as you snorkel with the stingrays, parasail above the serene blue waters and walk the endless white sand beaches. From Miami.
Carnival - 4-Day Bahamas  from $229 per person
Description: Enjoy a wonderful 3 Day cruise to the fun-loving playground of Nassau, Bahamas. Discover Nassau, the capital city as well as the cultural, commercial and financial heart of the Bahamas. Meet the Atlantic Southern Stingrays, the guardians of Blackbeard's treasure.
NCL - Bermuda - 7 Day from $499 per person
Description: What a charming little chain of islands. Walk on pink sand beaches. Swim and snorkel in turquoise seas. Take in the historical sights. They're stoically British and very quaint. Or explore the coral reefs. You can get to them by boat or propelled by fins. You pick. Freestyle Cruising doesn't tell you where to go or what to do. Sure, you can plan ahead, or decide once onboard. After all, it's your vacation. There are no deadlines or must do's.
Holland America - Eastern Caribbean from From $599 per person
Description: White sand, black sand, talcum soft or shell strewn, the beaches of the Eastern Caribbean invite you to swim, snorkel or simply relax. For shoppers, there's duty-free St. Thomas, the Straw Market in Nassau, French perfume and Dutch chocolates on St. Maarten. For history buffs, the fascinating fusion of Caribbean, Latin and European cultures. For everyone, a day spent on HAL's award winning private island Half Moon Cay.
Celebrity - 7-Night Western Mediterranean  from $549 per person
Description: For centuries people have traveled to Europe to see magnificent ruins, art treasures and natural wonders. And the best way to do so is by cruise ship. Think of it - you pack and unpack only once. No wasted time searching for hotels and negotiating train stations. Instead, you arrive at romantic ports of call relaxed, refreshed and ready to take on the world.
Holland America - Alaska from From $499 per person
Description: Sail between Vancouver and Seward, departing Sundays on the ms Statendam or ms Volendam and enjoy towering mountains, actively calving glaciers and pristine wildlife habitat. Glacier Bay and College Fjord offer two completely different glacier-viewing experiences.