At long last, cruise ships are sailing again from the United States, and I'll be onboard!
Freedom of the Seas is ready to resume Royal Caribbean's cruises from the United States out of PortMiami on a short 3-night cruise. Not only is this a celebration of cruising's return to America, it is also a celebration of the Fourth of July!
I will board Freedom of the Seas on July 2, 2021, and this will be the perfect opportunity to compare and contrast the cruise experience sailing from the United States, which has different rules than Adventure of the Seas sailing from The Bahamas.
Most notably, there are different health protocols in place for fully vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers, and it appears as though the onboard experience will be different than on Adventure.
Why we chose this cruise
Ever since Royal Caribbean shutdown cruises in March 2020, I knew I wanted to be back onboard as soon as I could.
I achieved that goal when I sailed on Adventure of the Seas, but the return of cruising from the United States was another goal I wanted to attain. Therefore, when Royal Caribbean announced Freedom of the Seas would be the first ship to sail from the states, I immediately told my travel agent to book a room.
At the time of booking, I struggled with if I should keep my reservation on Freedom, or book the inaugural sailing of Odyssey of the Seas for July 3rd. As it turned out, Odyssey had her debut pushed back until July 31st, and that conundrum solved itself.
Luckily for me, this first sailing is going out of Florida, and that means I can easily drive to the port instead of flying.
Another good reason I booked Freedom of the Seas is I never got a chance to see all the changes and upgrades she received as part of her Royal Amplification. Freedom was the last cruise ship to be Amplified, and that means there are new venues and activities onboard to check out.
My plans onboard
Being on Freedom of the Seas is really about being on the first Royal Caribbean International ship to sail from the United States after 15 months.
While Celebrity Edge was the first cruise ship to sail from the United States since the shutdown, Freedom will be the first for Royal Caribbean International brand ship to go, and the protocols are different than what Celebrity announced.
The question everyone wants to know is what will it be like to go on a cruise ship in a world still dealing with Covid-19? And what are these health protocols like compared to Adventure of the Seas?
On Freedom, there will be certain venues only available to fully vaccinated guests, and there will be a need to wear masks onboard in certain situations. These protocols did not exist on Adventure of the Seas.
My goal is to gauge what the experience is like, and also see all the changes Royal Caribbean made to the ship as part of her Amplification.
On this sailing, I will be traveling solo primarily because our aging cat needs a break after two weeks at the kennel.
My plans on shore
We will visit two ports of call on this short 3-night cruise, Nassau, Bahamas; and Perfect Day at CocoCay.
I may briefly get off the ship in Nassau, but the focus here is visiting Perfect Day at CocoCay again.
I have not booked anything at CocoCay yet (i.e. cabanas, water park admission, et al), because I am cruising solo and also because with the limited capacity on Freedom of the Seas, there will be plenty of space on the island to do whatever I feel.
I do not need an excuses to visit Perfect Day at CocoCay. Even after 4 days there earlier this month, I would love another full day relaxing by the Oasis Lagoon pool because the entire island is so darn impressive.
It has also been hinted at by Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley that there may be a Fourth of July fireworks show, which would be a must-see for me.
What's next
My Freedom of the Seas cruise begins on Friday, July 2nd, and I will be sharing the details on the blog, as well as across my social media channels. Be sure to follow me on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter for live updates throughout the day.
I invite you to share in this experience with me, by posting in the comments for any blog post questions and comments you may have. I try to make these live blogs as interactive as I can, so I want everyone to feel welcome to share their thoughts.
Thanks for reading all of this and welcome aboard our next fun live blog experience!
