It was wonderful. We had more rain than the usual but the food (6 pm main diningroom),hot water, water pressure, activities and entertainment were excellent. We loved the lobster tail and filet minon on captains formal night .

Freedom of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 2
Helpful Votes: 96

Overall rating:

4.8 out of 5
Freedom of the Seas

7 Night Southern Caribbean (San Juan Roundtrip)

Sail date: November 04, 2018

Ship: Freedom of the Seas

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

Checking in at the port went very well. The food and entertainment were excellent during the week. The drill you have to attend on the first day was horrible. Our station was outside and they stand you in lines and push you back and take their good ole time doing their instructions in about 4 languages and the sweat just runs down you back. I was surprised no one collapsed. I’m in very good shape and it was overwhelming for me, coughing, sneezing and sweating. Some people got to sit in lounges and wait out the drill in air conditioning but many of us had to stand outside, dressed for dinner and sweat for a good 1/2 hour before we were able to leave. I was very close to just walking away. Terrible way to start a vacation on the ship. Getting on and off the ship at the 5 different ports was very efficient and pleasant. We loved the itinerary. Getting off the ship at the end of the week was awful. We waited until the end and still waited in a stand-still line until we got off the ship and then our luggage was very easy to find but the customs line was terrible. Long, long and longer and very slow. What’s with the porter line? They even wanted you to pay more money to get off faster by using a porter. They are making you pay for everything instead of including normal services in your cruise fare. Constantly charging extra for services that were included in your cruise fare in previous cruises. Next thing they will be charging you to use the bathroom facilities outside your cabin and the shows after dinner. You can’t even get a bottle of water for nothing. We love cruising but its not like the good ole days.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Children's Programs

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Ship tip

Try to eat your meals in the main diningroom. The ice cream is a must have up on the pool deck, its was so good. Try to limit your visits to the Windjammer, very crowded and your food is usually cold by the time you find a seat. Tables are not cleared off fast enough to accommodate the amount of people.

Ports of call

San Juan, Puerto Rico

5 out of 5

Basseterre, St. Kitts

5 out of 5

St. John's, Antigua

5 out of 5

Bridgetown, Barbados

5 out of 5

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

5 out of 5

Disembarkation

3 out of 5

Traveler Photos

Freedom of the Seas
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3 Comments

thankyoupaige    6 years ago

Porter issue is not related to Royal....that is a port issue. I will never not do a porter. We used one for the first time after Freedom in August and it was great. You pay what you want. Muster station.....please just walk away next time and see what happens to you. That is like a toddler move. Every cruise line has everyone do this. How do you expect to group everyone on an entire ship so that everyone is comfortable? It is impossible. You suck it up and get it done. May I suggest you look up the porter stations before you go? I can tell you deck 12 is in star lounge.

TXatsea    6 years ago

Paying a porter at disembarkation has nothing to do with the cruise lines. I have never (in 20 years) seen bottled water included in cruise fare. You would have really hated muster drill back in “the day” when you had to put on your life jacket in your room, wear it to muster, and leave it on the entire time (again, NOT a cruise line issue this process is governed by international law)

lrgd    6 years ago

wow, how horrible

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