Just sailed on our 8th cruise....2 previous RC smaller ships. The Freedom was a big, beautiful ship. Our room was nice (not the cleanest I've seen), we got the basic soda package and liked having the soda machines (need them in more areas), saw the ice show and it was great. HOWEVER, it seemed like they were constantly wanting you to spend more money to get things. Premium coffee, ice cream, cupcakes, and there was a big push to eat in the specialty restaurants. After paying for the cruise, we expected the main dining room and buffet food to be of high quality and have good choices. That, unfortunately was not the case. Breakfast was usually good in the Windjammer, lunch was lacking, and dinner in the MDR was not up to par at all. One night there was nothing that interested me, so I ordered sliders. I was given two tiny plain hamburgers and 6 steak fries. Not what I expect on a cruise. The last night we paid extra for the filet mignon, and of course it was great!! I feel like if they want you to pay an extra fee to get quality food, the price of the cruise should be cheaper. Also, on sea days there were no deck chairs to be found after 7 am. I realize there can't be enough chairs for everyone, but I spent half a day just looking for an empty chair, and never found one.

I believe that our next cruise experience will be back with Carnival. I enjoyed having a vacation, but wasn't really impressed with RC!!