Carnival Freedom Christmas Cruise 2007 and New Year's 2008
These back to back cruises were our sixth and seventh cruises, and our second and third time on Carnival. Since our 2004 sail on Carnival Valor we can say decidedly that Carnival has cheapened the entire experience except for the food on the Lido deck. The worst addition is a giant screen TV blasting CNN most of the day on the Lido deck. Who wants to go on vacation to watch CNN while trying to relax on the Caribbean? Not us. The food in the main dining room has gotten much cheaper in quality. Our first waiter has been with Carnival for over 15 years, and he admitted that the food is at an all time low. Our second waiter was incompetent, and didn't know anything about food. The new stir fry station and Indian food station on lido are both really good. Breakfast in the lido buffet and in the main dining room is exactly the same everyday, and is very boring. Breakfast for us was just a chore to get some nutrition, and was never once enjoyable whether on lido or in the main dining room. We tried room service three times for breakfast but they never showed up because they never picked the order form off our door!
Overall ranking of cruise: 5 stars maximum Main Dining room - 2.5 stars Lido Specialty (Indian, deli sandwiches and Stir Fry) - 5 stars Lido Breakfast - 1 star Main Dining Room Breakfast and Lunch - 1 star Gym - 2 stars Room 7453 - 4 stars Room 8208 - 3 stars Entertainment in Theater - 0 stars Jazz, Classical Trio and Piano Bar - 5 stars Pay for dinner club - 5 stars