Carnival Freedom Review
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Priority embarkation in Galveston was a breeze. We zipped through security and up the escalator to the VIP check in lounge. We were greeted by our favorite check in person Miche, quickly given our cards and headed straight to the ship. We were so glad we had Priority check in since the lines for regular security and check in were very long. We did see someone try to sneak into the priority security line, and she was quickly turned back and dressed down quite loudly by the staff on the pier. We were in our cabin by 11:30, emptied the carry on bags, filled the safe and headed up to Lido to eat.
We were surprised that there was absolutely no line at either Guys Burgers or the Blue Iguana Cantina. My husband had the first of his daily Guys burgers and I had the first of my daily naked burritos from the Blue Iguana. They were excellent as usual.
This was our second time on the Freedom. We sailed her in May 2013 on an 8 night to the Eastern Caribbean. She is even better now with the 2.0 upgrades. The only disappointment was that the Red Frog Pub on Deck 5 does not serve Pub Grub like the Breeze and Magic. As a result, the vibe in there is very different. Most of the time the place was empty unless they were playing beer pong. They did have a great bar waiter from St. Lucia in there named Annesha. She was very fast getting the drinks and stayed to talk since the place was not busy at all.
Cabin Review
Ocean Suite
The cabin was just perfect for the two of us. If traveling with 3 we book a Grand Suite. There is plenty of closet space and lots of drawers and cabinets for storage. The drapes and carpeting looked like they were brand new. The bed was comfortable. Best of all was the great service twice daily from Antajaya from Indonesia!
Port Reviews
Galveston
Galveston is only 60 miles from our home and we go there often. We find embarkation and debarkation there super easy.
Cozumel
We got to Cozumel several times year and this year was no exception. For the second time this year we went to Mr. Sanchos for the day. We always reserve the all inclusive day in advance. We had great service from Teo and Damian and also Ramon. We were so glad we got to see our friend Francisco. The food and drinks were great as usual. We added up the value of the all inclusive and if we had gone a la carte we would have spent $140 vs the $99 it cost for the all inclusive day. I highly recommend it and we will go back at the end of January when on another cruise.
Progreso
We have been to Progreso many, many times and have been to Merida, Uxmal, Dzibchaltun, Chichen Itza, the salt flats, the Reef Resort and to the local beach on past cruises. This time we decided to just shop on the pier and go back to enjoy the ship while it was quiet. We do enjoy the town when we get out and about and recommend that if you have not been there before you should definitely take a tour.