My wife and I had to take a 6 year break from cruising and returned to the Carnival Liberty in December. We choose the Liberty for a simple reason--price. We paid less than $50 pp/pn for an interior room and got to enjoy 4 Western Caribbean ports. This was our 7th cruise--4th with Carnival.

I'll start with embarkation. We shuttled in from the Miami airport. We were greeted by a joyful baggage handler who got our bags off bus, tagged, and us headed to the terminal in seconds. Getting through the first security stop went quickly--as did our check-in and boarding. No hiccups. We went by our cabin (which was already cleaned) and dropped off our carry-ons. We next headed to the Lido for lunch. The burger joint was part of the "fun 2.0" refit--and it was worth it! GREAT burger--great 'bar' to add choice of extras.

After lunch, we headed to the 'adults only' Serenity area. Became our favorite destination on deck. We were usually able to find some 'deluxe' chairs--occasionally a hammock. One disappointment was the Serenity hot tubs. Both were usually full--but rarely hot. (Throughout the trip, the starboard tub was only about 85-88 degrees!)We did early seating dining in the Silver Olympian. Our steward was competent and kept the glasses filled, etc. But this was where we started to see a major slide at Carnival. On past cruises, the stewards knew our names/tendencies by the 2nd night. "Who has water/tea? Who wants decaf with dessert? Who likes fish?" They never got it...maybe because they seemed to be stretched over a couple of extra tables. Additionally, the quality of food/options seemed to have been dropped a few notches. There were some 'regulars' alongside the daily specials. I tended toward the fish--generally cooked pretty well with tasty sauces/glazes. My wife had the steak/beef selection. Though she ordered them "rare," they almost always arrived "medium." In the past, I would say the evening dining room experience was akin to a fine restaurant--our experience on the Liberty was more like casual dining at O'Charley's or Applebee's. Read more