This was our 5th Cruise - the first with Carnival and the remaining with RC. We booked this vacation with another couple that had never cruised previously. We have learned some 'crusing tips' over the years, that will, hopefully, continue to help us plan a great vacation.

Because we planned this vacation the end of February, and weather here in Michigan is unpredictable, we left the Saturday before our Sunday departure. For a number of reasons this was a good choice, and one we'd make again. Even though we got to the airport 2 hours early, because of East Coast airport closures, we barely made our flight to Orlando (10 minutes before they closed the doors). Arriving at the hotel, we inquired about a shuttle the next morning to the port. Not even thinking pre-booking of a shuttle was necessary, we were not able to get one until 1:30, which was later than we wanted. We arranged for a cab to pick us up at 11:30 in the morning, for the 10-15 minute ride to the port, and that worked out fine. Arriving at the port early was an amazing experience compared to our previous cruise on the same ship two years earlier. We flew in the day of sailing, arrived at the port (Miami) around noon or 1:00 - and it took us HOURS to get on the ship. We were traveling with our kids and grandkids (15 of us). The ships computers went down and the lines were unbelievably long! This time we were practically the only ones going through the entire process! We were on the ship in about 20 minutes - start to finish! SO - get on the ship early!

The Freedom is an amazing ship - just beautiful. The first thing we did was check out our table in the dining room - and I have to say I didn't follow my intuition in having our table changed. I really didn't like the location being it was the first table to the left, sticking out as you entered the dining room. Not one to make issues of things, I let it go, and in the end our dining experience, compared to our other cruises, was the least enjoyable. To get that explanation out of the way, we were in a location, that was right next to the serving/collection area for dishes. In the past, our wait staff from the maitre'd, to the bartender, have been phenomenal - very fun, welcoming, extremely attentive. Not so this time. The wait-staff tried, but weren't very enthusiastic. The worst was the bartender whom was almost non-existent. Every night our waiter had to find him in order to take any and all of our drink orders (and even though we were a table of six, we enjoyed our coctails). When he did arrive he hardly acknowledged us and still left without taking all of our orders. I have to say, this was the first person on any of our cruises that we did not tip, and that I wrote up as having an unfavorable experience. To off-set that experience, however, was when we realized that the maitre'd, Adrian, from our previous cruise, was still on the ship! He was in charge of Portofino Restaurant, and offered us an exceptional dining experience that we will remember forever! In fact, our friends said that was the best dining experience they've ever had! The window table was spectacular as we could view St.Thomas at night as the ship was pulling out of port! The food was wonderful, the presentation unbelievable, and the service impeccable! Adrian is an amazing person, and has become a true friend! I hope we see him again! Read more