We have been on 14 cruises. This eight day cruise was our longest so far. We have cruised with RCCL, Holland America, Disney, Carnival, and Celebrity. Our adventure started with unexpected snow in Georgia which made our departure flight exciting. We arrived at the peir around eleven a.m. EMBARKATION- The building for checking in had a warehouse feel to it. Carnival had us moving from one point to the next point to process us. The environment was lacking in "Here we go on a cruise!" excitement. CABIN- We had an ocean view stateroom on the main deck. The room was nice. It was clean with lots of storage areas. It felt large compared to other cruise ship staterooms we have experienced. The room was in the aft section of the boat and you could hear engine noise early in the morning as the ship approached each port of call. FOOD- We booked late so we ended up with late dining. We do not like to eat late so we ate at the Lido deck. There was an option to dine at your own time in the Chic restaurant but we did not know about this option until we got on the ship and by then that option was full. The food at the Lido, the hamburger grill, and pizza stand was great! The food was very good, maybe not a lot of variety but very good. ENTERTAINMENT- The comedians were average. The dancers and singers put on exciting shows. We recommend the "Ticket to Ride" Beatles show. PORT OF CALLS- We did not do an excursion in Cozumel. We recommend that if you go shopping that you visit several stores before purchasing anything. The prices do vary from store to store. In Costa Rica, we booked an excursion with Brisas de la Jungla. We did this through their website. It was a Zip Line over and through the jungle. It was fun. Our teenage kids loved it. A tip is to have your kids bring some kind of school I.D. for a discount. You can pay by visa or mastercard but not american express. In Panama, we booked an excursion with Almiza Tours. I recommend them. They were very friendly. They offer several options. Out excursion visited the rain forest and the Panama Canal. In conclusion, we had a great cruise. Freedom is a very clean ship. There are a couple of negatives. Getting around the ship is slightly difficult. There was not a sail away party. On the days at sea, there is a lack of scheduled family activities. But all in all, a great cruise.