Carnival Freedom Cruise Ship Review
One of six Conquest sisters, the bright and playful 110,000-ton 2,974-passenger Carnival Freedom is themed on time travel, its public rooms decorated to resemble everything from ancient Babylon to the 19th-century Victorian era and 70s disco days.
Activities on Carnival Freedom
The glittery nine-deck-high atrium is anchored with a bar and is a great place to meet or people watch. In all, there are 22 bars and lounges, from a sports bar with 1950s memorabilia to the 1940s-style Habana Cigar Bar with barstools and tabletops that look like stogies.
There’s the Studio 70 dance club with black walls and disco balls hanging from the ceiling, plus a piano bar and a jazz club designed with a classic 1930s look. The casino packs in almost 300 slot machines and about two dozen gaming tables. The three-level theater is the venue for pull-out-the-stops Vegas-style song and dance productions accompanied by live orchestras.
Dining on Carnival Freedom
Dining options include a pair of two-story main restaurants as well as an intimate, extra-cost steakhouse serving USDA prime aged steaks and seafood for a mostly adult clientele looking for a more upscale experience. Meals are also served in the two-story lido buffet (featuring a replica of the Statue of Liberty) where you’ll find separate stations for Asian and American dishes, deli sandwiches, salads, pizza, burgers and more.
Family Friendly Carnival Freedom
The four swimming pools include the main pool flanked by a pair of huge hot tubs, a stage for live (and really loud) music, and a giant movie screen for videos and ship events. A 3-deck-high twisting water slide takes thrill-seekers on a 214-foot-long ride.
The 4,200 square-foot Children’s World playroom has an arts-and-crafts station, video wall, computer lab, PlayStation games, and lots of toys for younger children. Hard-to-please tweens have their own separate space and so do teens, theirs with a soda bar and dance floor flowing into a huge video game arcade with air-hockey tables which is open to all passengers. Kid of all ages can have a zap-fest in the inflatable laser tag arena.
The oceanview gym is stocked with the latest exercise machines, while the Cloud 9 Spa measures 21,000 square feet and boasts 17 treatment rooms, plus an elaborate thermal suite and thalassotherapy pool.
Staterooms on Carnival Freedom
As big on cabins as it is on fun, Freedom offers standard outsides that measure a roomy 185 to 220 square feet. The amenities include stocked, pay-as-you-go minifridges, robes to use, and super comfy mattresses and bedding.
Carnival Cruise Reviews
To read a review of a particular ship, click the link under "Read the Review." If applicable, our Live Voyage Reports offer a day-by-day overview of an actual cruise onboard. In some cases, there may be more than one report, to be sure to see if your favorite destination is represented.Avid Cruiser Posts, Photos & Videos Featuring Carnival Freedom:
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4 Comments
Does the thermal suite in the spa have the stone or tile warm beds or loungers? I can’t seem to find any info on this?
In May of 2014 I took a cruise on the Carnival Freedom. It was not only my first cruise, but my first time leaving the country as well. For months we saved so we could spend our Anniversary doing many new things. We did a lot of research before deciding on Carnival. We wanted to make sure that we knew about all the extra costs that comes with taking any cruise. So we read and studied; we anticipated fees, tips, tax, and add-ons. We were certain we were prepared for every curveball. Except, we hadn’t anticipated a well-known company to have such shoddy customer service. For the majority of the cruise most of the spas and some of the other water “features” were closed. There was a section of the ship completely closed for “remodeling”. The “theatrical productions” and guest “talent” were the saddest excuses for entertainment I’ve ever seen. I have seen low-budget high school productions with more value that what they showed at Carnival. Every time we asked questions at the front desk we were treated as a nuisance and patronized. What upset me most at the time, apart from the terrible service, was according to Carnival’s dry dock renovations schedules out ship was supposed to be completed with all additions and repairs. This clearly was not the case. I can’t imagine a company that promises luxury somehow feels it is acceptable and “luxurious” to have people travel on a vessel that is all but sea ready. Now, all of this alone merits a bad review, but as a non-confrontationalist I decided to leave well enough alone, but then I received a phone call today from Carnival that was possibly the most offensive and rude experience I may have ever had. I was called by a “Carnival Travel Agent” whom asked me if I enjoyed my cruise. He didn’t pause for answer before asking when I would book again. I was annoyed but politely told him that should I choose to do another cruise that it would not be with Carnival. Of course to which he inquired a reason. I was very upfront in telling him that I felt having a vessel in that state of renovation was inconvenient and that not alerting the passengers before hand was unprofessional. He seemed surprise that so much of this ship was closed and asked how I booked our trip because we should have been told. I told him we booked through Carnival’s website. He promptly replied, “oh, there’s your problem you booked through Carnival’s website and not through a Carnival Agent. If you had the Agent would have told you ahead of time, so it’s your fault.” WHAT? Not only did he tell me that their failure to tell their passengers about the abhorred state of disrepair that their ship was in was a result from booking through one specific facet of Carnival’s company, but it was my fault for not knowing any better and that I should have gone through a Carnival Travel Agent. This infuriates me for a number of reasons. I bought through Carnival, not a third party, Carnival. Buying through one of their “Agents” or their Website should make NO difference in how they treat their customers. They should also have the decency to tell their customers, if the ship will not be in complete working order. As a company that brings in as much money as they do, you would think that they would spend their earnings bettering their product instead of pocketing it all, leaving the customers with a lackluster experience. I honestly would like to know how much they make verses how much they put back into their company. And finally, not customer service representative (sorry I mean “Carnival Travel Agent”) should treat a customer so disrespectfully. I was offended, blamed, and humiliated by this employee and I find that, more than the poor condition of the ship, to be the most UNACCEPTABLE thing of all. To add insult to injury he kept trying to keep me on the phone only to keep telling me it was my fault. I wasn’t going to write a review, but you treat me inhumanely and you will get told what for. So here it is world, DON’T TRAVEL ON CARNIVAL. Don’t be dazzled by their low prices and hokey gimmicks. They are RUDE, DISRESPECTFUL, and TACTLESS company whom only seek selfish gains. ?#?CARNIVALISTHEWORST?
THANK YOU FOR SHARING! We are looking into taking a family vacation, and most definitely take all reviews into consideration.
They kicked and entire African American family they picked up in Florida off the ship in the Bahamas. It was a mixed group of people that ranged from maybe 80 to as young as 13. There was an altercation between one young man in their party and a white family. From what everyone saw the white family instigated and created the situation yet they were allowed to stay on the ship while this whole family was thrown off in The Bahamas in the middle of the night and the majority of them had no passports. Flying back wouldn’t have been an issue if they did. So with all the human trafficking going on there’s no way they should’ve been allowed to do that and still have a dock in the US ever. You don’t recommend this cruise for anyone especially if you’re African American.