Fun but dated and Pricey

Item: Freedom of the Seas
Rating: 3.9
Author: SassyJules

Freedom of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern

SassyJules

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 96

Overall rating:

3.9 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Southern Caribbean (San Juan Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 29, 2019

Ship: Freedom of the Seas

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 8558

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 4 years ago

Review summary

All was fine..we had a good time just wished the boat was newer and drinks and drink packages were not so expensive. You must not make all people in cabin pay.. some people DONT drink..

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Drinks were WAY TO Expensive. $8 for a beer ??. The dinners were kind of simple. Nothing great nothing bad.

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5

Trivia... it lasted all of 15 minutes ? they went so fast and didn't make it very fun.

Entertainment

4 out of 5

ICE Show was great ! and the Adult game show was fun !

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Room Steward went above and beyond as bed was hard. he provided extra padding. the main dining room wait staff was great !

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Its very dated and the rooms are dated. Most were clean. the balconies were NOT clean and the banister was extremely sticky/tacky where you didn't want to touch it.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

Clean=YES, size was fine but comfort was just ok. Couch was dirty/stained, bed was hard as a rock.. décor was very dated, no new data ports for newer technology.

Ship tip

Wait for it to be updated. Its coming soon

Thumbs up

Ports of call

San Juan, Puerto Rico

5 out of 5

We love Old San Juan!

Thumbs Up 0

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

5 out of 5

Port was fine. no excursion.

Thumbs Up 0

Willemstad, Curacao

5 out of 5

Port was fine..

Thumbs Up 0

Oranjestad, Aruba

3 out of 5

Port seemed LONG way to get anywhere and downtown was not very clean city and seemed junky.. Snorkeling was great !!

Thumbs Up 0

Kralendijk, Bonaire

5 out of 5

Great Port.. Great food choices for authentic!! Great little area !! Snorkeling was amazing..!! Best day of trip !!

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

7 Comments

wgammon1 4 years ago

Glad you had a good cruise. Thanks for the great review.

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KarenChris2006 4 years ago

thanks for the review.

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captainchrispbacon 4 years ago

JUST AN FYI....From March 15 through May 10, 2020,Royal Caribbean will make Freedom of the Seas the fourth in its string of Royal Amplified renovations, budgeting $116 million to upgrade the 13-year-old ship. As in previous Royal Amplified redos, the Freedom will get the Perfect Storm duo of racing waterslides, a Splashaway Bay toddler aqua park and a three-level Lime & Coconut poolside bar. The renovation will also introduce more dining venues. A Giovanni's Italian Kitchen will provide "Sunday supper" Royal Caribbean-style. Izumi Hibachi & Sushi, El Loco Fresh and Playmakers Sports Bar & Arcade are also part of the amped-up package. So is laser tag, in the form of the glow-in-the-dark Clash for the Crystal City. Freedom's dedicated teen space and Adventure Ocean area will be redone. Adventure Ocean takes on a whole new look, from exploration at Play Place to art, science and tech activities at Workshop and friendly challenges at Arena. There will be gaming consoles and places to chill at Hangout. Babies and 3- to 5-year-olds will each have personalized areas with AO Babies and AO Junior. The teen space features the latest in movies, gaming and music, plus a new outdoor deck. Starting March 2020, the renovated Freedom will sail from San Juan on seven-night Southern Caribbean cruises. The 3,782-passenger Freedom will replace the 2,050-passenger Vision of the Seas. Previously, Royal Amplified redos have refreshed the Independence, Navigator and Mariner of the Seas. Plans call for spending more than $1 billion across 10 ships in four years.

Thumbs Up 2

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Sebringmom68 4 years ago

I called and was able to purchase the soda package while my husband got the drink package. I don’t drink and they were very accommodating.

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livlifenoregret 4 years ago

I drink but my partner does not. You can call Royal Caribbean and speak to a rep and explain to them that someone doesn’t drink and they will allow you to only purchase packages for the drinkers in your cabin.

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DerekMire 4 years ago

That is correct

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CruzeFan 4 years ago

Looks like you sailed during one of the 2 most expensive weeks of the year. Try sailing during the off season for 30-50% less. As far as the drink packages, most Cruise Lines now require all adults in the room purchase the package. This was not the case when they first started several years ago, some people would try to beat the system by buying one package but getting drinks for two or three people. So as usual, everyone now has to pay the price for those that wouldn’t follow the rules.

Thumbs Up 4

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