We cruised as a group of 12, ranging in age 29-80 on the November 30, 2014 sailing of Freedom of the Seas. This was our 4th Royal Caribbean cruise and we have been very happy with them until this sailing. Twenty-three hours before our ship was to set sail, we received notification that our itinerary was being changed due to some mechanical issues with the ship. Instead of traveling to St. Thomas and St. Maarten, we would be going to Nassau and Cozumel. The destination change was not appealing to us as we have been to Cozumel four times, and we have a trip booked to Nassau in March, 2015. But, we had no choice as there would be no refunds.
The ship was two hours late returning from its previous tour, so everything ran behind regarding embarkation. We left port some 45-60 minutes late. The cruise to Nassau was rough and we assume this was due to the mechanical issue. We docked in Nassau overnight so that the ship could have some repairs made. All passengers received compensation in the form of an on-board credit for the itinerary change, as well as gift certificate for a future sailing. That being the case, the Future Cruise Booking office on the ship was jamming. They were booked solid for the entire cruise, and walk-ins waited up to two hours to be serviced. One elderly gentleman complained and asked that they make arrangements to get people serviced quicker. Much to our surprise, the Future Cruise Booking agent threatened to go to lunch and not service him at all! When the elderly gentleman asked to see his supervisor, the agent refused and said that he had to deal with him or leave the office. We have never seen a crew member speak to a guest in such a disrespectful manner. In fact, overall, the service on the cruise was not what we usually experience. Crew members just seemed to be going through the motions. We later found out that this was the last week on the ship for many of them and a new crew would be coming on when we were disembarking.
The food on this cruise was not so good. The Windjammer Cafe offered little variety from day to day. In addition, the costs for Johnny Rockets and Chops have increased and the quality and portion size has decreased. Overall, we were very disappointed in our dining experience.
Cabin 8340 is located near an elevator and has a slightly larger balcony than most. All cabins need to be updated.