Just got back from the Carnival Freedom Cruise Sept 5, 2010. This was our first cruise and had nothing to judge it by. We don't think that we'll be going on any cruises in the near future...
We had VIP boarding, which went smoothly. Our Stateroom Suite was 7-274. Very nice room. The ship was nice and clean...and remained nice and clean throughout the cruise. I commend the crew on cleanliness.
Have to say that the crew seemed extremely unhappy most of the time. There were a "FEW" crew members who were smiling and nice, helpful..but..most...were not too friendly and definately NOT helpful.
Empress Deck 7-274. Good size. Very nice. Alittle noisy, near Stewart's work room. Could hear alittle noise from the Milluminum room on deck 3..which is open all the way up past our floor. Was midship, mostly smooth. Did hear noise each night, my husband said it was some type of pipes making noise..Nice balcony. Overall, nice stateroom.