We went to the July 18th sailing of the Freedom of the Seas. Overall, the food was good, the service was great, and this was my best Royal Caribbean cruise thus far and the first cruise where I thought Royal Caribbean was better than Carnival. My previous cruises were on the Rhapsody and the Enchantment.

STATEROOM: I chose the Promenade Stateroom, and the size and location (mid-ship, deck 8) were good. We also had one connecting stateroom which opened up nicely. I did a price check, and having 2 connecting staterooms for 4 people (since each promenade stateroom had a max of 2 people) was only a couple hundred dollars total more expensive than doing 4 to a room. The noise level is pretty good. You had to listen very closely to hear faint music, and most of the time you didn't hear anything other than when there was a parade going on. You did hear a little noise here and there in the connecting room, but it wasn't bad. I only wish the staterooms were a little bigger. That's the one thing Carnival is better at, bigger staterooms and bigger bathrooms.

PORTS: Our first stop was at Cococay. The island was mediocre. I thought the Carnival private island (forgot the name) was much better. It was too rocky. There were too many rocks, even in the sand. However, the bbq lunch was pretty tasty. Read more