Background: We traveled as a family of 11 (ages 4 - 69) on the Freedom of the Seas on June 27th. This was my family of 4's 3rd cruise (second with RCCL), my FIL/MIL also traveled with us as did my SIL and family. This was their first cruise.

Helpful Items to have for the Cruise: - Lanyard for the kids to hold their sea pass card (customer service desk will punch a hole in it if they don't want one with a pouch). Lanyards are given to kids in Adventure Ocean or you can purchase them in the ship store. - Travel scale to weigh luggage at the end of the trip - A travel alarm clock is a must have as the only clock in the stateroom is on the phone and doesn't light up at night. - My SIL used an over-the-door shoe rack. Comes in handy if 4 or more in a stateroom to put trinkets, shoes, bathroom items, etc. - Additional Outlet for charging ipods, cameras, walkie-talkies, etc. (only outlet in the room is on the desk) - Walkie talkies to find out where everyone is if you want to meet up - Large black garbage bag for dirty clothes

Pre-Cruise Hotel Information: We flew in a few days earlier and went to Universal Studios Florida. While at Universal, we stayed at the Homewood Suites nearest Universal Studios on Hilton points. They have a shuttle service to Universal, but it only leaves for Universal twice in the morning and once for a return trip. We ended up using our rental car and paying $14 for parking each day at Universal. The day before the cruise, we met up with the rest of the family at Hyatt Place Orlando Airport. This is a very clean and beautiful hotel. We initially had a rate of $99 per night, but for some reason, the rate went down and we were able to get the hotel for $69 per night! A definite bargain! We also purchased Hyatt gift cards at Costco ($100 gift certificate for $80). Any money left over from the gift card was used to purchase beverages to go (juice and water) from their restaurant. They had a decent continental breakfast each morning. Read more