Pretty good cruise. Would have liked more late night eats and a better selection of music.

Item: Freedom of the Seas
Rating: 4.2
Author: gvickers855

Freedom of the Seas Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

gvickers855

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 7

Overall rating:

4.2 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Eastern Caribbean & Perfect Day (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: September 29, 2024

Ship: Freedom of the Seas

Cabin number: 1270

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 1 month ago

Review summary

This was my first Royal cruise. I do not see much difference between NCL and Royal. NCL gets a leg up since they include the drink package in the cruise fare and they have more late night eateries available.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Main dining room service was slow. Did not like that traditional dining times had two floors available and any time dining had one floor with a recommendation for a reservation. That's not anytime dining. Food was good. Plenty of bars although some of the crew did not seem like the were happy to be there.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Pools - Good. Entertainment - good. Music - could use more selection.

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Children's Programs

Just me and my wife.

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Overall, service was fine. Some of the wait and bar staff could have been friendlier. Our room steward was excellent (Arvin).

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Some rust hear and there but the ship was clean.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Good size. The balcony flooring had holes where the chairs and table sunk into it. Great water pressure in the shower. Comfortable bed but would have preferred the sofa and bed positions to be swapped. Bad place for the TV. Could not see it comfortably from the bed.

Ship tip

Make your main dining room reservations as soon as you board the ship. They do not provide irons and you have to pay to have your clothes pressed.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Perfect Day At Coco Cay, Bahamas

4 out of 5

Not much to do except the beach and pool unless you want to pay for things. Food choices were good. Glad that the drink package worked on the Island.

Thumbs Up 0

San Juan, Puerto Rico

5 out of 5

Rented a car and visited the island on our own.

Thumbs Up 1

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

5 out of 5

Rented a car and visited the island on our own.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Quick and easy.

10 Comments

Cruisers4Lyfe 1 month ago

Thanks for sharing

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javawoody 1 month ago

Appreciate the review

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Gwbigdog 1 month ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise

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RC2cruises 1 month ago

We prefer Ncl too. I do like the Oasis class ships on Royal but the $600 drink package is a killer. I don’t want to have to worry about how many drinks I’m getting and deal with signing receipts for each drink without one. You still have to pay gratuities for it on Ncl but it’s a fraction of the cost on royal. Ncl also has more included food especially on the Prima class ships.

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TiffyTaffy 1 month ago

Thanks for the feedback!

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AuntPinkie 1 month ago

Appreciate your feedback. Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

Thumbs Up 1

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bubbles60 1 month ago

We prefer NCL to Royal as well. Glad you had a good trip.

Thumbs Up 1

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HeavySeas 1 month ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise experience

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cruising2004 1 month ago

Thank you for your review.

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enjoyurdaysmile 1 month ago

RC has any time dining and you have to put in when you sign up for the cruise

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