Carnival Cruise Lines Carnival Liberty by Michele Eastern
Caribbean June 28, 2008
We just got back one week ago from our fabulous cruise. This was
our third cruise; we previously sailed on RCCL's Mariner of the
Seas and the Carnival Miracle. I sailed with my husband and our 9
year old son. We did not bring our one year old daughter with us
this time; she spent a fun filled week with grandma.
We left out of NYC-JFK on June 28th. We flew into Ft. Lauderdale
and took Carnival's shuttle to the port of Miami. The cost is about
$48.00 each roundtrip. We had a good flight, although I hate flying
now post 9/11. However, once we arrived and proceeded down to
baggage claim, we immediately saw several Carnival representatives,
one of whom accompanied us to retrieve our luggage and then
directed us to the next person who led us to the buses to take us
to the port. Our driver was great and hilarious; however he
cordially announced "please don't forget the driver." We were told
the ride would be about 45 minutes; however we arrived within 30
minutes -- smooth.
When we arrived at the port, with trying to retrieve all of our
luggage and giving them to the porters, and seeing the horde of
people, I thought Oh boy!! However, the line was long but moved
very quickly. I do not think we were in that first line 15 minutes.
Afterwards, we immediately went through the metal detectors, then
on to the room where you line up to receive your sign and sail
cards, etc. There were only 3 or 4 people ahead of us and then it
was our turn. We showed our passports and credit cards, registered
and then off we went to board. We were given a boarding number, and
I thing we were in "group 14", and at this point they had just
called group 12, so in less than 10 minutes we were going up the
escalator to the where our embarkation photos were taken. Next was
a small line up to actually get onto the ship, during which we had
our cards dipped into the machine with our photos taken to
validate. All in all, embarkation took about an hour, give or take.
Definitely not bad, especially considering what I previously heard
about leaving from Miami. I was expecting it to take much longer.
Upon entering the Liberty on deck 3 we were so excited to see the
main atrium and happy that we were finally onboard.
The Liberty is absolutely beautiful. Just a little side bar of
information about me. I have a preference for the bigger, newer
ships. Yes, it's true -- the first couple of days we had to get
used to not being able to go all the way through from front to back
on decks 3 and 4. However, the Liberty is not a hard ship to learn
your way around after the second day.
I will now break thr rest of this review up into sections of
interest.
Ship Decor and Public Areas Again beautiful and big. Deck 5 goes
all the way through from front to back and also has the casino
which can be quite smoky. However, what I liked is that to walk
through you did not have to go through the casino as there is the
walkway on the side with windows and big comfortable seats for
people watching or whatever you fancy. We had the Main (early) 2nd
seating in the Golden Olympic Dining room (see Food section). The
dining room is beautiful and our wait staff was Marcin (pronounced
Mar-cini)?? and his assistant Yohanes. We were at table (booth)
137. If anyone has them on an upcoming cruise please tell them that
"Miss Michele" and Sly said hello and we miss them. They were
absolutely the best!! They were the best wait staff we've had on
any cruise. They were very efficient and had great personalities.
Plus, it may not mean much to most, but I was really happy that
they were personable and remembered our names. Fernando was the
Maitre 'D, and I have to say of all the cruises we've been on, he
was the most personable and vocal. Normally, when it comes to the
gratuities I do tip the Maitre 'D just because of the protocol, but
afterwards I would kinda scratch my head and think we just tipped
someone who we only saw from a distance maybe once. However, this
time on several occasions Fernando made his rounds and stopped at
each table to introduce himself and asked how things were going and
telling us to let him know if there was anything that he could do.
He was also in the dining room making announcements each evening.
This time I absolutely had no regrets with tipping him and we
actually went to find him on the last night to extend our well
wishes and gratuities. However, he wasn't too hard to find as he
was right near the entrance/exit. (hahaha).
Cabins We were in cabin 1362 which is on the Riviera deck (deck
1) and it was perfect. The beds and the bedding were to die for,
absolutely plush and very comfortable. There were plenty of drawers
and closets for storage. Our suitcases fit with no problem under
the beds. There were actually 3 closets. The bathroom was small (of
course) but nice with body wash and shampoo dispensers in the
shower. There were also trial size samples of toothpaste, his and
her razors, Pepcid, and some other stuff. Our cabin steward was
great. I am so sorry that I never did catch his name though.
However, he did a great job with cleaning the rooms twice a day and
filling the ice buckets twice a day. My son loved coming back to
the cabin at night and seeing the different towel animals along
with chocolates on the pillow. I love the turn down service. The
television worked fine, however I was curious as to why all "local"
stations and news were for Denver, Colorado? Oh well, we definitely
were not on a cruise to stay in our cabins to watch tv.
Food Everyone's favorite subject (it is mine). Well how do I
begin? Overall it was good with plenty of room for improvement. If
you want a sit-down breakfast it was in the Silver dining room,
which is even more gorgeous than the Golden. The service was hit or
miss. Most mornings the service was great. Just the last 2 days did
I notice a decline, starting with the host who does the seating
arrangements. The two areas Carnival must improve upon for
breakfast is the orange juice (way too watered down) and the
coffee. I hate to say it, but except the day we were in San Juan,
when we ate breakfast off the ship, I did not have a good cup of
coffee the entire time. I should say I did not have a good cup of
coffee that was included and free. On deck 5 there is a stand that
sells better coffee and lattes, cappuccinos and things like that,
along with some other cakes and cookies. I tried those the last
time I was on the Miracle and didn't really care for them, so this
time I did not buy anything. However, I should have at least bought
a real cup of coffee from there, but good coffee should be served
throughout the ship and be a part of the "all inclusive" cost.
Only one morning did we have breakfast on the Lido deck.
Needless to say after that experience I did not have breakfast up
there again. The food was good; however there is a long wait for
the omelet station, then when things ran out, there was a wait for
them to be replenished. Also, it was too chaotic with the other
guests, some of whom were rude line jumpers. For lunch we only ate
up at the Lido deck. One of the best kept secrets is the fish and
chips station. Oh my goodness, those fried fish filets with fries
were the absolute best, but due to my shellfish allergy that was
all I could eat. However, my husband on the other hand, had a field
day. He loved the bouibaisse (sp?), the fried oysters, octopus
salad, etc.
There are 2 grill sections with the best cheeseburgers, along
with hot crispy french fries, and hot dogs, onion rings, chicken
tenders (were good) and nachos with melted cheese sauce. Each day I
was great with the items at the grill for lunch, along with the
fish and ice cream that's available 24 hours a day.
For dinner, we ate every night in the main dining room. We
originally had reservations for Harry's (the supper club at an
additional $30 charge) for my birthday. However, we made great
friends at the booth next to us (Hi Annmarie and Mike and Mike Jr.)
and we enjoyed talking to them each night, as well as enjoying our
wait staff. The 2nd formal night was the night of my birthday also,
and therefore we just didn't see a reason to go to Harry's after
all. I will tell you some of the dishes that I liked, as well as
the ones I did not. I loved the warm-chocolate melting cake with
vanilla ice cream on the side. YUMMMYYY!!! I also liked the prime
rib, the BBQ ribs, jerk pork, filet mignon, the grilled pork chops
and some of the cold desserts. I did not like the salmon the one
time I ordered it. I was disappointed with the desserts. Thank God
for the warm-chocolate melting cake. For the most part the food was
good, but it could definitely be improved upon. We only did a few
late night buffets, such as on the night of the Mardi Gras deck
party when we went to the Mexican buffet set up on the Lido deck
afterwards. It was okay. We attempted to go to the Grand Gala
Midnight buffet, however the line was just too long and I was so
tired from the "colors hop" party, and the deck party. One thing
that was delicious was the chocolate buffet on the last sea day. I
think I gained 20 pounds from that one -- (hahaha). There were
about 7 different kinds of chocolate cake, and a chocolate fondue
machine for dipping fruits, and other things -- even freshly made
donuts. That was the best. They had different flavored ice creams
and milkshakes, chocolate cheesecake, different truffles, homemade
fudge, candies, and some chocolate raisin pudding that I did not
try. There were so many things that I cannot remember them all at
the moment. However, I do remember enjoying myself and trying lots
of things.
Ports of Call We went to the Eastern Caribbean, so our ports
were San Juan, Puerto Rico; Turks and Caicos (Grand Turk); Half
Moon Cay; and St. Thomas.
In Puerto Rico I wanted to eat breakfast at a local joint called
"La Bombonera" that I had heard a lot about. After getting off of
the ship we walked to the next corner and caught a free trolley
that went to El Morro and the shopping area. We saw the fort and it
was an amazing view. We then got off near Calle San Francisco (a
street) and went to La Bombonera. We had the famous mallorca
pastries and they were GOOD!!! I wish I could get them fresh here
in New York. Next we walked to Calle Cristo, which is a main block
for shopping. I went to the Coach outlet and purchased several
birthday gifts for me (smile). Later we tried some pina coladas at
the famous Barrachina's and they were very good. We bought a few
souvenirs, took some pictures and then went back to the ship.
Half Moon Cay was actually our first stop which was a beach day.
We took the tender over, not too bad. The beach is beautiful with
pretty sea-blue/green water that was the perfect temperature.
However, because I do not know how to swim, I did not go too far
in. Calf-length high water is about my limit. Here is where
Carnival sets up the beach BBQ at the dining pavilions. The food
consisted of chicken, burgers, hot dogs, salads, fruit, brownies,
etc. The menu was limited, but the amount was plenty. However, what
I ate did not agree with my stomach, and that -- along with the
heat -- and I was ready to head back to the ship.
In St. Thomas (our second port) we took a shuttle into downtown
Charlotte Amalie for $4.00 each. After that we walked around and
looked in the shops, bought a few souvenirs and then went on a tour
with one of the cab drivers. His name was Henry and he was great. I
have his contact info if anyone needs it. He took us through
different parts of the island and there were many sights to be
seen. We stopped at the famous "Mountain Top" and had one of their
famous banana daiquiris. It definitely lives up to its hype. It was
great being so far up and the views were magnificent. The drive up
to the top was a bit scary for me, but Mr. Henry was very efficient
and very nice. We stopped to buy souvenirs and we went to Drake's
Seat/Castle (??). All in all, it was a good day and it was nice.
However, in the beginning it is a bit overwhelming in the shopping
areas -- just way too many stores and way too many people, along
with a lot of sun.
Our final stop was Grand Turk. We were docked so close to the
new cruise terminal that after disembarking it was just a walk
along the pier. We did not do any tours here. We just had lunch at
Margaretville's. We went to the beach that's right there. I must
add that the beach here looks beautiful, but once you're on the
beach, you quickly realize that it is too rocky and there is too
much seaweed. Also there were not many seats, if any, left and
nothing in the shade. Therefore, hubby wanted to get sun and stay
on the beach and I was hot and tired. So I left hubby to relax on
the beach while I went souvenir shopping at the different stores at
the terminal. Besides it was Thursday (my birthday) and I wanted to
get back and get ready and dressed up for formal night. There are
much prettier beaches in Turks and Caicos.
About my birthday, I will keep it short. My dear husband and son
had our cabin decorated for me by Carnival (it was really nice) and
he ordered a dozen long stemmed red roses. Also at dinner he
surprised me and had the waiters bring out a delicious birthday
cake and everyone sang happy birthday. It was so nice, and I did
get a little teary-eyed. Cool points for hubby!
Cruise Director and Activities On Cruise Critic it said that
Steve K was the cruise director. However, it was Karl with a K. And
we were very pleased. Karl is the absolute best. I hope he is the
CD on our next cruise. Carnival is definitely the fun ship. We love
the different activities, especially on the sea days. We really
loved most of the night shows: the tribute to Motown, the juggling
act -- yes, it was very good and hilarious, and the comedians,
especially Percy Crews. His family show act was funny, but the
midnight adult show was on a whole other level. We laughed so hard
the whole night.
With the teams, we were the blue team. I believe one day it was
mentioned that we were in the lead, but I don't know what was to be
the end result and what was at stake. I don't even believe they
ever announced who "won"?
Camp Carnival What can I say? If it gives any indication of how
much fun our son had, he only had dinner with us two out of the
seven nights. The first night he ate with us because it was
orientation night, and he ate with us on Thursday since it was my
birthday. The counselors do a great job, and keep the kids very
entertained and very busy. They did everything from swimming, to
scavenger hunts, ice sundae making, candy making, pizza making,
cake decorating, Nintendo WII and other video games, tee shirt
coloring, and some chocolate game. Thursday night was the "Ultimate
Pajama Party" with at least 15 different things lined up for the
night. It lasted until 3:00 AM!!! And on that night the counselors
walk each child back to their cabins. Normally the parents pick
them up unless you sign a form permitting a child from age 9+ to
sign themselves out. Every night they have dinner for the kids to
eat with the counselors and their new friends and to go to a show
and then back to the many other scheduled activities. Also, each
child receives little gifts like a Carnival CD holder, tee shirts,
and other little things. It was great, and provided my husband and
I with a lot of alone time to enjoy the adult activities.
Disembarkation We had initially booked a 12:00 noon flight, but
a month before the cruise the airline changed the departing time to
11:30. Therefore, the purser's desk gave us #2 luggage tags. We
were called to disembark around 8:00 am, found our transfer bus and
were back to Ft Lauderdale's airport by 9:40 with almost 2 hours
before our flight. We had lunch at Chili's and just killed time. We
also reflected on the great time we had and are planning our return
cruise to the Western Caribbean next summer on the new Carnival
Freedom.
This is all I can remember for now. I know this review is long,
but I hope it was helpful. Please excuse any typos because I was
typing a lot of info in a rush. Please feel free to contact me with
any further questions. BON VOYAGE!!!