Using Carnival Credit Card Reward points, we booked this cruise for free. This was our second free cruise with Carnival using Reward Points. Although this was our fourteenth cruise with Carnival - 47 cruises total, we had not previously sailed on the Carnival Liberty. We chose this ship for its itinerary. It had also, repositioned this year, to our local Port Canaveral. On our seven-night cruise, we visited the ports of Nassau, the Bahamas, St. Thomas, the Virgin Islands, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Grand Turk and Port Canaveral, FL. Since we have visited all these ports many times, we did not take any organized shore excursions through Carnival or with any private company. The close to 3,000 passengers on this Conquest Class ship were mostly Americans of various ages - many family groups, singles, young married couples plus some seniors like us. The ship underwent extensive renovations in 2011.

A local shuttle van service picked us up from home on Saturday, May 24 at 10:15 for the short ride to the port. When we arrived at the terminal, Carnival informed us that boarding would be delayed because of a higher than normal outbreak of gastroenteritis on the previous sailing. (No one that I knew personally got sick on our sailing, by the way.) The check-in process went very smoothly. While we waited for the ship to be completely sanitized, Carnival provided snacks and drinks for us. Eventually, however, the terminal ran short on chairs and staffers had to scurry around to locate additional ones. Since we are on Platinum Level with Carnival, we were among the first to board when the ship was finally cleared just before 1 PM. We proceeded directly to Emile’s for a quick light lunch at the big buffet on the Lido, Deck 9. There were no lines since we were the first to board. After lunch, we sat by the pool until staterooms were ready for occupancy at 1:30 PM.

Our Ocean View cabin #1424 was toward the aft of the ship. It was bright, large by industry standards and quiet. Our king bed with its peach headboard was very comfortable. Small end tables with peach lamps on either side provided storage for sundries and additional lighting. A shelf inside would have been nice. The peach leather sofa with underneath storage turned into a bed, if needed. The oval coffee table was quite useful. There was plenty of storage in drawers and closets for all our belongings. The blond wood furniture and window provided an airy feeling to the cabin. Be aware that you need to use a card with a magnetic strip to access your room safe. That means that you cannot secure that card in your safe. Consider bringing an old room key card or some other card with a magnetic strip. In addition, if you wish ice, you need to tell your steward. Ice buckets are only supplied at your request. The cabin’s A/C unit worked well throughout the cruise. The flat screen TV was interactive. You can check your statements, book shore excursions, view meal menus, etc… right from your cabin. Clean wall-to-wall carpeting, gold drapes and two wall art pictures completed the décor. Read more