Freedom of the Seas Review

4.0 / 5.0
2,405 reviews

First time cruisers on Freedom of the Seas

Review for the Eastern Caribbean Cruise on Freedom of the Seas
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Ascrim13
First Time Cruiser • Age 30s

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Sail Date: Jan 2013
Cabin: Oceanview Stateroom

First of all, I'm sorry if I write a book. There's just so much to say, and I'll never say everything I want to say. This was our first cruise, we were very excited. My husband & I are in our late 20s. After watching numerous videos on youtube and reading lots of reviews, we were ready. We flew into Florida a couple of days early, to make sure we wouldn't have any delays. The night before the cruise, we stayed at Best Western in Cocoa Beach. It was right off the beach, which was very convenient, and only a couple of miles from Budget. We returned our rental around 10AM and they told us they were waiting for the port to allow them to bring new passengers, as they were still trying to get everyone off the ships that had just come in. Within a half an hour, they were ready to shuttle us there. The shuttle dropped us off right at our terminal. A very nice couple from the UK gave us a quick run down of what to expect. When we got to the terminal we handed a porter our luggage and a few dollars (it says you don't have to tip, but their hands are out for $ before asking for your luggage). Being some of the first 100 or so passengers there, we cleared through security very quickly, and waited in the terminal for them to say we could now check in & get our Sea Pass card. Within minutes of having our SeaPass we were boarding the ship. Everyone was very friendly. We boarded through the front of the ship which brought us right in by the Arcadia theatre. The ship was impressing from the moment we walked in. We thought it would be overwhelming & too big, but we easily found our way around. After a quick stroll around the ship we headed to Windjammer Buffet, of course it was busy because that's where everyone went when they first boarded. Our stateroom was ready at 1PM as suggested. We immediately met our statement attendant Livingston & we knew we would like him.

We decided we would try the main dining room (Isaac) for supper, which I'm glad we did because we ended up eating there every night. We had 6 great table mates, all with different stories, and all different ages. We really enjoyed their company every night. Our waiter was Bronson (from India) & Assistant Waiter Sharett (from St. Vincent). They were very very nice, and great at their jobs. We thought it was really well organized, incredible. We really enjoyed our meals. The only meal I did not enjoy (and I think the others at our table would agree) was the steak. I found it too thick and tough. Everything else was great. You can order whatever you want, and how ever many dishes you would like. Some people at our table ordered 2 different starters, 2 main dishes and 2 deserts per in order to really get their monies worth.

We were able to attend all of the main shows, and really enjoyed them. (Opening show, farewall show, magic show, Once Upon a Time, Marquee & Freedom Ice). My husband works in production so I was worried he would be disappointed but because each show is only 45 minutes, it's a perfect amount of time. The production was really well done. It could have sounded better for the room but other than that no complaints. We did a backstage tour on the last sea day with the sound tech, lighting, rigging, stage manager, and one dancer which was really informative. All of the dancers participate in all of the shows, and are only on the ship for 6-8 month contracts. So new dancers and singers are constantly learning the shows at RCL's studio, and due to the cost of producing these shows, this is why they run for 3-7 years on the same ship. The backstage tour was very informative, and it's incredible how small the backstage actually is considering the productions they put on. I would recommend attending all of the shows, and if you don't care for them, you can either leave or it's only 45 minutes. The only complaint I heard was from people who had been on FOS before, as the shows were the same so it was nothing new for them.

Cabin Review

Oceanview Stateroom

Cabin G

We had an Oceanview Stateroom on Deck 2. We were surprised to realize even though our room was close to the front of the ship, you could only access it from the back stairway & elevators. This was fine, as it meant more burning off all the food we were eating. It said in the description that the 2 single beds would make a queen however it was much better than a queen, probably as big as a king or close. It was nice to have the BIG ocean view window. The room was no bigger and no smaller than we expected. There was a closet on the left when we walked in with some shelves and many hanger. Enough to handle our clothing. It also had 4 life jackets and our safe. Our safe worked great. Just put in a pin and press lock, and re-enter the same pin to unlock. There was a desk/dresser area with 6 - 8 small drawers, (with hair dryer), and a mini fridge.

The bathroom was small but useable for people our size. I can not imagine being a big person, however for us it was fine.

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