The Freedom of the Seas lived up to our expectations in nearly every way. This was our third cruise, the first was on the Wind Spirit, the second on the Carnival Conquest (we had kids). This cruise was a family reunion cruise and there were 18 of us occupying 8 cabins. Our parents were in a balcony cabin on deck 10 and all the kids and grandkids were in the same vicinity on deck 2. The whole trip was a surprise for our dad's 70th birthday. He thought that just he and our mom were going on the cruise...

Embarkation�We traveled from Texas and were in Ft. Lauderdale for three days prior to the cruise. All others arrived Miami at different times from California. Our parents arrived to the ship at 11am and got right on. The other 16 of us arrived about 1pm and boarded the ship with relative ease. After boarding, we dropped some stuff off in our cabins and headed to the Windjammer where we had arranged with our mom to surprise our dad. It was indeed a total surprise and a year of planning and hiding the secret was a done deal�mission accomplished!

The Ship�The first impression and one that carried on throughout the trip was that the ship is absolutely amazing. It is impeccably maintained and tastefully appointed. Although the ship is two years old, it seems brand new. The public spaces are extraordinary and, although the ship seemed at full capacity, never felt packed. Since the ship sailed from Miami, about half the passengers were foreign. The majority was Brazilian. The announcements were lengthy as they were always in five or six languages. Read more