Carnival Liberty Review

4.5 / 5.0
1,582 reviews

2008 Family Cruise on the Liberty

Review for the Western Caribbean Cruise on Carnival Liberty
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mr0315
First Time Cruiser • Age 50s

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Sail Date: Feb 2008
Traveled with children

We just got in from our 2008 family cruise aboard the Carnival Liberty. Prior to embarkation, we spent a night at the Westin/Ft Lauderdale Courtyard in a suite my husband's company gave us. We are Carnival Vacation Club members, and received vip embarkation. It took less than 15 minutes from checkin to the Lido deck for lunch. Personally, I didn't like the ship's layout at all (we've spent a lot of time on the spirit-class ships). Only a few decks/elevators go all the way through. So we'd have to walk all the way to the front or aft of the ship to get to certain areas. I found the decor of the Liberty to be toned down a bit from other Carnival ships I've sailed on. The lobby area is beautiful and the clubs are very unique. It was the usual array of activities - game shows, art auctions, shopping talks, hairy chest contests etc. We participated in several activities, but found that many conflicted with the first dinner seating. I loved Steve, the cruise director! His live show was great and his sense of humor delightfully wacky! We booked two inside cabins for this trip (all three of our kids were sailing with us) on the upper deck. We didn't spend much time there other than to sleep, shower and change clothes. Our cabin steward was wonderful. If we popped out for just a few minutes, we'd come back to find the room had been done. My 10 year old overdid the ice cream one day and got sick in his cabin. Our steward cleaned up the mess with a smile and a joke. We tipped him verrrrrry well on the last night! I was a bit disappointed with the main dining room this trip. The food was mediocre and the service was not as friendly as we'd had in the past. The kids were disappointed that the nightly waiter shows had been moved to the staircase in the middle of the dining room instead of tableside. Our wait team was very helpful with our 19 month old. After the second night, we'd find her sippy cup and toddler utensils already in place at her highchair. They'd even help feed her to free us up to enjoy the meal. Bar service was horrible in the diningroom. Lido deck breakfasts were nothing to write about. Same old stuff. I did enjoy the fish and chips restaurant and the lido buffets for lunch very much. The homemade salsa is great! I think they've changed the pizza sauce, it wasn't as good as I remember. The midnight buffet and chocolate buffet were small and poorly attended. Camp Carnival...very large facility on this ship. My 10 year old son spent a lot of time with camp. He loved the PS2 time and played basketball with the counselors. He even won a dance contest at the welcome party. My 8 year old daughter is a bit shy and preferred to be with us. She did like the arts activities and the Build a bear (fee). Both of the older kids also like the late night parties for their age groups. The baby spent one evening at babysitting and loved it! She's never been to daycare before, so I was a bit nervous about leaving her while we went to a show. She had a great time and loves Funship Freddy now! The main comedian on board was hysterical - both for the family show and the R rated show. We've seen the hypnotist thing a million times. It's getting old. The juggler was also very funny. Production shows were ok. Our family really enjoyed the MUTS. After dinner we'd all meet outside for some popcorn and a movie. Excursions...In Key West, we did our own thing. We went to the butterfly conservatory (loved it), did some shopping on Duval, went to Southernmost point and had Key Lime Pie. In Grand Cayman, we booked the Pirate Encounter through Carnival. The kids loved watching their dad get tied up and doused with ice water. Dad loved making our 10 year old walk the plank! In Jamaica, we booked the Bamboo Beach Club/Dunn's River Falls excursion. I had done the falls before, so I handled the baby and photography while dad took the older kids up the falls. The beach club was right by the dock and perfect for a family. The price included food and all the beer/rum punch/lemonade you wanted. The staff was very attentive and very good about keeping the usual Jamaica merchants off the beach. Dunn's River Falls was teaming with people trying to sell you stuff, as was the area right outside the port. They would ask the kids their names and carve them into the items and then demand that you purchase them. Just keep walking and don't let them hand you anything and you'll be fine.

Disembarkment always makes me sad. It was done very efficiently with the new system Carnival has in place. We did have one bag get lost, but received a phone call within a few hours with the promise that it would be delivered to us at home. Overall, I see that Carnival is cutting some corners. Hopefully, things will improve before we book the next trip.

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Cabin 4
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