We did the 5 Night Eastern Caribbean Cruise to the Dominican Republic and Grand Turks. It was my partner's first cruise and he loved it. He said it was the best vacation he's ever been on. It does rank up there for me as well, so we will be scheduling another trip with Carnival soon.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Priority is the only way to go!!! We got an Ocean Suite and saved about two hours waiting in line. We walked right in and our suite was ready once we got onboard.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Plenty of options around the ship. The dining experience was good; however there were a couple nights it seemed the menu wasn't as well as others. We did the Chef's Table one night, which for the price, was great!
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
We enjoyed the comedy shows, putt-putt, Serenity Bar for Adults only, the LGBTQ+ mixers at Alchemy, and the Casino. Overall was a very enjoyable experience.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Most of the service and staff were great. There were a couple shops that you didn't get the warm and fuzzies at, but overall everyone was pleasant. Our dining crew in the Posh Restaurant at night were friendly overall. One of the waiters did not bother to interact with us, aside from taking our orders and serving food, until the final night when he wanted us to leave a good review on here.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
The Freedom is good overall. It could use some updating, but nothing that we thought impacted our overall experience.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Absolutely loved the Ocean Suite. We won't be sailing with anything less in the future.
Ship tip
Familiarize yourself with the various theaters for entertainment and food halls, to avoid confusion on which decks to go to. Take shoes that are comfortable and you can walk up and down stairs with easily.
Really enjoyed Grand Turk. We did the Dunebuggie experience, which was really fun, a little scary at times, but overall well worth it. If you want a little adrenaline rush, GO FOR IT! Just wear long sleeves and don't take anything you don't want getting a bit dusty!
We were given the opportunity to take our luggage down ourselves and disembark at 7AM. We took full advantage of that. We were off the boat and on the road home in 30 minutes.
Appreciate your detailed feedback. The waiter wanted a good review on your Carnival feedback. It is wise you explained that he was efficient but not interacting. Glad your partner is now a cruise addict like the rest of us. Happy it was a good cruise.
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