My $1,600 stateroom on Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas was cheap, but it had constant noise
In:Last week, I sailed on Freedom of the Seas for a 7-day Perfect Day and Eastern Caribbean cruise.
Originally launched in 2006, Freedom of the Seas ushered in the Freedom Class.
Although she was once one of the fleet’s largest ships, Freedom is now dwarfed by the Icon and Oasis Classes.
However, she still boasts plenty of amenities and activities, with 15 total decks and a capacity for 4,635 guests.
In 2020, Freedom underwent a $116 million Royal Amplification, receiving upgrades to the pool deck, water slides, and new dining venues.
The ship itself holds 1,963 staterooms, and my home for the cruise was located on the 2nd deck.
This was my second time sailing on Freedom of the Seas, so I decided to switch it up for this cruise.
On my first sailings, I’d booked a guarantee balcony stateroom. For this sailing, I selected a guarantee oceanview cabin.
Selecting the guarantee (GTY) cabin option gave me a cheaper price for both categories because it allowed Royal Caribbean to assign me a leftover room, instead of choosing my own location.
The total cost was $1678.14 (with gratuities) for a 7-day cruise, which comes out to just $239 per night.
I knew I’d be traveling by myself, but to avoid the solo supplemental fees, I booked with two people in the room, then came alone!
The 7-night sailing departed from Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida, and called upon Perfect Day at CocoCay, San Juan, Puerto Rico, and St. Thomas.
My room for the cruise was located on Deck 2, the lowest stateroom I’ve ever stayed in. I was eager to see if the cabin’s position would change my experience at all.
The front door opened on a clean, cheery stateroom, spanning 159 square feet. The porthole window on the back wall filled the room with natural sunlight.
The decorations and color scheme gave a thoughtful, elegant effect to the cabin. Green and gold patterns covered the walls and curtains while painting and furniture brought out blue accents.
To the left of the front door, I opened the closet.
Inside sat six white-wire shelves. The shelves were wide and helpful for stacking clothes on, but I didn’t like the spaced-out metal—anything small would fall straight through to the floor.
One shelf held the stateroom safe, while the two bottom shelves were filled with bright orange life jackets. While I was grateful for the clear reminder of Royal Caribbean's commitment to safety, the life jackets took up more space than I would have liked.
However, the closet still had a wide expanse of space and hangers to hang clothes. It was at least two feet deep, and four feet wide, stretching taller than my head.
There was more than enough space for two people to hang their clothing and store shoes and luggage.
Next, I walked towards the cabin’s desk and vanity. The long counter had lots of space to leave documents or spread out makeup. The vanity portion had a ring light mirror, perfect for sitting down and getting ready.
Read more: 10 things you should know before cruising onboard Freedom of the Seas
There was one comfortable, blue-patterned chair sitting at the desk. On either side of the vanity, I found three wide drawers.
The desk portion held plenty of space for all the items I might need over a 7-day cruise. I could store makeup, jewelry, books, snacks, and more without a problem.
Just past the desk sat the mini-fridge—a large but lukewarm cooler—and, above it, the stateroom’s TV. While the TV didn’t have any ultra-modern amenities like Smart TV or AirPlay, it did show 20 free channels, along with a selection of movies at an extra cost.
Opposite the desk area sat the stateroom couch. This sofa was comfortable and useful, but it wasn’t long enough for everyone to sleep on, and it was not a sofa bed.
While it was comfortable to sit on, I also found it a useful place to store clothes or bags.
Between the couch and the beds, a long curtain was pulled back. When opened, it could divide the entire room in half, allowing some travelers to sleep while their buddies turn on lights in the other area.
I left the bed as a large Royal King, and it quickly became one of the most comfortable areas I’ve ever slept in. The sheets were heavy yet cooling, and the four pillows were long and extremely soft.
The bed also sat right under the porthole window, which could be covered by two sets of curtains, or uncovered for gorgeous ocean views.
I loved being able to wake up and immediately pull back the curtains, bathing the room in bright sunlight and a view of the sea stretching out behind the ship.
Since my stateroom was also located so low on the ship, I felt very close to the water. It was a great reminder of why sea lovers enjoy cruising!
To either side of the bed sat a bedside table.
Each table had its own adjustable lamp with two light levels, and below that, a drawer and a larger shelf space for more storage.
The table to the right of the bed held the stateroom’s phone, which could be used to call venues on the ship for free or make international calls at an extra charge.
The bathroom is where Freedom of the Seas starts to show her age in comparison to other ships.
Read more: All about Freedom Class cruise ships
The shower was a classic, thin cruise stateroom locker.
Granted, the area had modern fixtures and great water pressure and temperature.
But I found myself missing the wider showers, smooth sliding doors, and footstands of newer Royal Caribbean ships.
In any case, the sink was long, with shelving under the counter and shelves above it, which were built into the long mirror.
The lighting was a warm golden tone, setting off the blues and greens of the stateroom decor.
A disadvantage of staying lower on the ship was the constant noise—I could hear the anchor banging, the waves crashing, and footsteps running ahead.
It didn't seem to stop, no matter the time of day, but thankfully I am a sound sleeper.
The noise also was exacerbated by the fact that our sailing was experiencing high winds, so not every cruise would experience the same.
