We chose this cruise for the ship and the embarkation port. Freedom is an elegant ship, the largest in the world for a while. The ship has a standard layout - Theater and lounges forward, Casino in the middle and a 3 story dining room that has to be seen to be believed aft. We did a back to back (our first) and that is the way to go if you can swing it. We had a flawless embarkation (less than 10 minutes from curb to on board. Our debarkation was the best ever - not a single hitch. We got the internet package for the first time and it worked well. Not as fast as at home but certainly acceptable. We confirmed some excursions and added folks to one so it was quite handy. We bought the Replenish Package as well. Our excursions were all booked privately. We loved the Freedom and highly recommend it.