A new design schematic has emerged that appears to show the layout and configuration of the 10-story slide coming to Royal Caribbean's Harmony of the Seas.

Photo posted by Bente Borvik

No word from Royal Caribbean yet as to if this slide design is the real deal.

The slide, known as The Abyss, will be located on the aft of Harmony of the Seas and based on this design, descend from the FlowRider deck to the Boardwalk.

In addition to the design, we are hearing The Abyss may not be a water slide, but instead a "dry slide", similar to a slide you would find at a playground.

Royal Caribbean announced the 10-story water slide in July 2015 but has not officially released any other details other than the name.

Harmony of the Seas is the third Oasis class cruise ship that is currently under construction and will debut in Spring 2016.

Tip of the hat to Lloyd Marchand for alerting us to this new design.

4:44pm UPDATE: Blog reader Ola found the Royal Caribbean Sweden web site has this rendering posted. Thanks Ola!

Aug 5 UPDATE: The original image and Royal Caribbean Sweden web site have pulled down their posts.

Guests onboard Allure of the Seas will now be able to enjoy the Broadway hit musical Mamma Mia! Find out what it takes to move a Broadway show from Quantum of the Seas to Allure of the Seas.

One of Royal Caribbean's most popular cruise ships is Freedom of the Seas. 

We have searched all over this ship for the best hidden secrets that you might miss on this impressive ship. Here are our top 10 hidden secrets on Freedom of the Seas.

10. Best spot for sailaway

If you want the best spot on Freedom of the Seas to watch as she pulls out of port, then it has to be the helicopter pad at the front of the ship.

Located on the bow, guests can walk to the helicopter pad and enjoy the unobstructed views that you can only get from the helicopter pad. The perspective from this spot is hard to beat and many guests do not know it is possible to go here.

To access the helicopter pad, go outside on deck 4 and then walk forward, climb up a set of stairs, and continue walking forward until you reach the helicopter pad.

9. Hidden door to the helipad

Speaking of the helipad, if you want to avoid the stairs that lead up to the front of the ship, there is a secret door that will get you right there.

Walk all the way forward on Deck 5 and enter the Star Lounge. In the daytime, it is usually empty. Enter the lounge and take an immediate right, just past the DJ booth.

There's a set of unmarked doors that you can simply open up and you will be let out right next to the helipad.  

This is especially helpful if you have a stroller or are in a wheelchair and stairs are a problem.

8. Second best spot for sailaway

A good alternative spot for sailaway that is less windy than the helipad (and has no stairs) is the little observation areas on deck 11 near the Solarium.

Go up to deck 11 and walk all the way forward. Once in the Solarium, adjacent to the doors that lead to the elevator lobby are glass doors you must open manually.  

Inside is a small "room" with windows that look outwards and even some chairs to sit in. This can be a great, uncrowded spot to enjoy sailaway.

7. Enjoy the view from Olive or Twist

It is really hard to beat the views of Freedom of the Seas' upper decks from the Olive or Twist Lounge.

Located on deck 14 at the aft of the ship the Olive or Twist lounge offers guests sweeping views of the upper decks and the ocean.  

To get to Olive or Twist, you must use the aft elevators and go up to deck 14.

6. Get a taste of it all at FreedomFest

An event unique to Freedom of the Seas is something called FreedomFest, where the Royal Promenade offers guests a little of everything unique on Freedom of the Seas.

There will be food and drink stations available, as well as towel and napkin folding demonstrations, watermelon carving, photos with the ship's officers, and more.

It is basically like a "best of" from the week's events held in one spot. 

FreedomFest is held on the Royal Promenade and is usually done on one of the last sea days of your cruise. Check the Cruise Compass for more information.

5. Sun yourself on the St. Tropez deck

If you want to get that perfect tan or just enjoy being outside without all the noise of the pool deck (or the crowds), head up the St. Tropez deck.

Walk up to deck 12 and then walk all the way forward. You will see a large open area with some deck chairs that you can use to enjoy a mostly uncrowded sunbathing spot.

What is special about the St. Tropez deck is there tends to be not many guests here at all, leaving it rather tranquil.  

4. Best parade spot

 

A photo posted by Royal Caribbean Blog.com (@royalcaribbeanblog) on Aug 1, 2015 at 4:24pm PDT

If you want a good spot to enjoy the parade and ensure your kids have a good chance to be close to the dancers, try in front of the Bull and Bear pub.

The pub has tables outside the pub that you can sit at in the time leading up to the parade and since other families do not consider a pub the first spot to bring kids to for a parade, it can remain overlooked.

Once the parade is about to begin, stand up from your seats and you will be up front for all the action. In addition, the pub is located right in the middle of the parade route.

3. Find the coolest mixed drinks here

These days, Royal Caribbean offers its guests a lot of opportunities to buy alcoholic beverages but the best place to find the most interesting mixed drinks has to be up on the pool deck on the port side.

This one spot near the main pool consistently serves up more than just mixed drinks. You will find the neatest souvenir mugs as well as interesting choices for drinks that we could never find anywhere else onboard.

On one day, they were making mixed drinks that you could drink out of a hollowed-out pineapple, and other days they had different light-up or color-changing mugs.

Look for a stand on deck 11 at the main pool, close to the Solarium. The choices available change daily, so be sure to ask about what is coming up and when.

2. Ride the FlowRider on embarkation day

Guests cannot seem to get enough of the FlowRider surf simulator on Freedom of the Seas. It is really fun to try and learn to surf without having to wait for that perfect wave but there always seems to be a line.

To beat the lines, go to the FlowRider on embarkation day. Bring your swimsuit in your carry-on luggage (or wear it to the ship) and then head to the FlowRider in the afternoon.  

Most other guests onboard will not have their swimsuits or even be aware the FlowRider is open. It is the perfect time to get multiple rides in without little or no wait!

1. More hidden secrets in our video!

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Did we miss any Freedom of the Seas secrets? Share them in our comments!

We love to explore Royal Caribbean ships and when we find something that is new (or at least new to us), we want to share the latest and greatest things Royal Caribbean is offering.

Having a drink at the pool on a Royal Caribbean cruise is a time honored tradition, but on your next cruise you can do it in style with these new souvenir mugs.

We thought the color changing cups were pretty darn cool but these new cups will have you turning your head too.

First up are these clear cups with a spinning blue light at the base of the cup.   

The cups add a little pizzazz to your mixed drink of choice and are bright enough to use during the day or you can wait for the sun go to down and light up the room you are in.

For the kids onboard with you, try these new DreamWorks cups that feature popular characters from the films.

You will find characters like Po, the Penguins or Kitty to choose from.

What is neat about these cups is the fact they are the first souvenir cups we have found made primarily for children.

All these souvenir cups could be purchased with a drink or on their own.  If you purchase them on their own, they were being sold for $3.95 each.

In addition, these cups were spotted on Freedom of the Seas, so availability on other Royal Caribbean cruise ships may be limited.

Would you buy one of these souvenir cups? Let us know be leaving a comment!

Royal Caribbean has opened a brand new noodle shop aboard Quantum of the Seas that is themed to the hit DreamWorks Animation film "Kung Fu Panda".

The Kung Fu Panda Noodle Shop is a new family eatery on Quantum of the Seas and its introduction coincides with the ship's arrival in China.

The Kung Fu Panda Noodle Shop will offer guests four-piece dim sum, noodle bowls, such as Taiwanese spicy beef noodles, and desserts including sesame balls and custard tart. Guests also can strike a pose with Po and the Furious Five for a keepsake picture.

Menu items are priced a la carte, ranging from $2 to $5. 

Royal Caribbean Vice President, Food and Beverage, John Suley commented, "We’re very excited to continue building on our relationship with DreamWorks Animation and offer our guests new dining experiences onboard Quantum of the Seas as she debuts in her new home in China. A creative collaboration amongst our team of chefs to create the menu for our Kung Fu Panda Noodle Shop is another example of how we continue to ensure that our on board options reflect what today’s food-conscious traveler and our Chinese guests expect from their vacation."

It's our last day onboard Freedom of the Seas and the last day is always bittersweet.  

Yes, it's another day on a cruise and one less day at home but the end of this cruise is looming over us like a dark cloud approaching shore.

Today we mostly ran around and got things done, like paying down our SeaPass account and making some last purchases onboard.

Here are some photos from around the ship...

Jimmy Buffett tribute at Schooner Bar

A look down deck 4 

We hit the Guest Services desk early to avoid the lines later

Starbucks menu at Cafe Promenade

Trivia in Schooner Bar

Souvenir cups for sale

Looking up at the decks in the Atrium

Cake in Windjammer

Parade preperations in Royal Promenade

Typical last day lines at Guest Relations.  Get it done early or before the last day!

Me with the ship's officers

Photos from FreedomFest

Tutti Salad on the menu at Main Dining Room for lunch

Slot tournament in Casino Royale

Rather than describe my various stops around the ship, I wrote up some conclusions and observations from this cruise to share.  I think it will provide more insight into the Freedom of the Seas experience.

• To begin with, I really enjoyed this cruise.  Freedom of the Seas is a wonderful ship and our family had a great time onboard.  Even with this being our third time on her, it's still a pleasure to take a cruise on her.
• The refurbishment earlier this year added some nice touches.  We loved Sabor and R-Bar.  Other guests we spoke to and overheard also echoed their love of these newly added venues.
• Our fears of last week's fire affecting the cruise experience were greatly exaggerated.  I have gotten A LOT of questions about the fire and its effects but it may as well never have happened.  If you have an upcoming sailing, do not worry one bit about it.  I've often said, if you had no idea there was a fire last week, you would not have known it based on the condition of the ship.
• Maybe it is just me, but I do not recall feeling so much motion with so little waves or wind.  The motion is NOT anywhere near the level of getting sea sick but I just felt the motion the entire cruise.  Based on my experience on other ships, it seems rather odd.  Again, maybe I am just sensitive.
• Kids programs were great.  Our kids did really well with Adventure Ocean and the Nursery.  If you ask me, the key to a positive experience in either is setting the right expectations with your kids.  Letting them know about it, telling them about the activities and even hyping the experience a bit all contribute to having fun.  Granted, with my 6 month old there was much more luck but the entire experience is a testament to the staff.
• Cruising in July, there were a lot of kids.  The Nursery staff told us over 1000 kids on this sailing.  It did not bother me at all but compared to sailing in September and February, it is a noticeable difference.  
• Speaking of July, it is really, really hot in the Caribbean. CocoCay and St Maarten were exceptionally warm and being outside for more than a few minutes lead to lots of sweating.  Be prepared for plenty of wardrobe changes.
• I'm really impressed by the crew.  They go out of their way to help and make a better experience.  Does Royal Caribbean get everything right off the bat? No, but if you ask or inquire, they are very accommodating.  The worst thing you can do is not say anything and "suck it up" and let it sour your cruise.  Ask in a nice way and you will be amazed by the results.
• I am always disappointed in how little I do onboard in terms of activities but we did have a great time.  I always wish we did more events onboard but at the end of the day, I had a great time.  Royal Caribbean cruises are what you make of them and if you go 6am to 3am doing all the events or just sit by the pool, ultimately it is your choice and Royal Caribbean does provide a lot for folks to see and do.
• I like second seating dinner for its time but I have to admit it makes seeing the shows more difficult.  It seems like we were always getting ready for dinner around those times.  I think that means we have to get ready earlier but then it seems like there is no benefit of second seating dining.  Having said all this, I do not think we will change our dining preference.
• Best onboard entertainment: Once Upon A Time, Karaoke at On-Air Club, Live music
• The internet onboard was mostly acceptable. It's slow and I cannot wait for Voom to arrive but it was tolerable.  I think speeds get worse as the week goes on and more and more people buy packages.
• The main dining room was what I expected and we had a good time there.  Food is very subjective but I found the food to be somewhere between okay and excellent.  Most were between good and very good.  Service was outstanding.
• Best dining experience: Sabor
• Best bar: R-Bar for drinks. Schooner Bar or Pub for experience.  Honorable mention to On-Air Club
• Places I never went: Ice skating rink, mini-golf (or anything in that vicinity not counting the FlowRider), Solarium (unless you count walking through it), Johnny Rockets
• Stateroom we had was great and splurging for 2 rooms was the best idea ever.  Having 2 bathrooms and the extra space was important.  It was not as much space as I thought but I cannot imagine what would have happened if we had just one room.
• It is really easy to meet the Dreamworks characters onboard.  There is rarely a line and if there is a line, it is just one or two people usually.  That being said, each character's set is usually quite short (about 20 minutes max).
• There is no question I saved money by not getting an unlimited alcohol package.  Speaking with folks who did get it, by about day 4 or 5, many were telling me they were simply ordering drinks for the sake of ordering drinks.  
• Things I miss from not being on a cruise ship: high speed internet, full use of my phone, access to more of my wardrobe.  Otherwise, let's keep sailing!

I also wanted to make sure I thank all of you that have been reading and commenting here, on Facebook, Instragram and Twitter.  Having your feedback and questions has been wonderful and it made my cruise much more interesting.  THANK YOU for letting me take you on a virtual cruise with me and I cannot wait to do this again!

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - CocoCay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas
• Day 5 - Philipsburg, St. Maarten
• Day 6 - Sea Day
• Day 7 - Sea Day

You know what they say about the best laid plans? That's what happened this morning.

Yesterday evening my wife and I stopped by the Vitality Spa to schedule a massage for her.  It is a cruising tradition for my wife to forget many months of woes by indulging in a massage.

With just two sea days left, there were not many spots available but they did have an early morning spot at 8am.  We thought she should book that because it will be early enough for the kids to sleep through it and even I could get some extra shut eye.

What ended up happening was the spa called with a wake up call (that we did not schedule) and that woke up the baby and there went my sleep and her sleep.

Nonetheless, my wife went to get her massage while me and the baby sat in bed with the baby toys for a while.

Eventually my 4 year old daughter woke up and we got dressed up and went up the Windjammer for breakfast.

My wife met us up there and we dropped my 4 year old off at Adventure Ocean while the rest of us went back to our stateroom for the baby to sleep and my wife and I to take a nap too.

We got back up around 11:30am and went to get my daughter for lunch.  We decided to try Giovanni's Table for lunch today based on some positive reviews from others onboard.

My ever picky daughter wanted to eat at the Windjammer so we got her a plate of food to eat there and then went to Giovanni's Table.

We showed up a few minutes after 12pm and were seated (no prior reservations).   Giovanni's Table replaced Portofino's and there were probably three other tables of guests inside.

The menu at Giovanni's Table was similar to other Giovanni Table restaurants I have been to and we placed our orders.

What seemed odd is it took a good 20-30 minutes for our appetizers to show up.  Luckily, the entrees did not take as long for them to arrive.

My favorite dishes at Giovanni's Table were the lasagna and Caprese salad.  My wife seemed to like her food more than I did but for $15 per person at lunch, it's a good deal.

Following lunch, my wife and 4 year old daughter went to the theater to watch the Dreamworks film, "Home" while I took the baby around the ship for some photos and then back to the stateroom for her to play.

Interestingly, we received this certificate delivered to our stateroom today.  I'm happy to get it but it was completely unexpected.  Anyone else get these? 

We all got dressed for dinner early as it was formal night and we wanted to get some family photos taken onboard.  Royal Caribbean cruises are our defacto place to get good family photos.

Before it was time for photos or dinner, we were invited to the Top Tier Crown and Anchor Society welcome back party.  

On my way, I met up with a fellow that enjoys eating on cruises as much as me!

This was the first of these parties on the cruise that I saw or was invited to. Usually there is one large event for everyone and then the top tier event later.  Unless there is one for tomorrow, guess only one.

The reason to go to these events is for the free alcohol and recognition for being Loyal to Royal.  I really enjoy them and on this one, the hotel director divulged that all the new build ships coming out will have water slides, including Ovation of the Seas.

There was also more food than I remember having at the event.  

It was held in the Star Lounge and the loyalty ambassador, hotel director and Captain all spoke. 

After the party we headed to take photos.  We timed it well because we went on the tail end of first dining so the lines were quite small.  We will go tomorrow to see how they all came out.  I think we will order a few.

For dinner, half the Windjammer was closed for some odd reason so we brought my 4 year old daughter to Sorrento's for dinner.  She has likely consumed 94% pizza on this cruise.

My wife went to our stateroom to grab something around this time and we were pleasantly surprised to have a voicemail indicating that there was an opening at the nursery for our 6 month old. Huzzah!

As you may recall, guests can only reserve time for one formal night and we picked the first formal night.  Luckily there was availability tonight and we could enjoy our dinner kid free!

After consuming mass quantities of pizza, we brought the kids upstairs to be dropped off and the wife and I headed back to the Royal Promenade.

We picked to go to R-Bar for drinks and it was a great choice. 

We sat at the bar and tried a few new drinks out.  Between the great bar service and the people watching, we had a good time in our pre-dinner entertainment.

Dinner tonight in the main dining room was formal night and we had another good meal.  Our waiters are quite nice and they have been very attentive.  

Following dinner, we played a little bit at the casino and then took in some drinks at the pub.  As per usual, 10pm hit and we started feeling tired so we got the kids back and headed to bed.

Stray Observations

• The second most depressing thing to see on your cruise (tomorrow night is the worst):
  

• The chapel and one of the card rooms are closed for the air scrubber upgrades 
  
  

• I do not recall this piece of art having lights and/or lighting up
  

Tomorrow is our last day and a sea day.  It may be the last day but it is still better than not being on a cruise!

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - CocoCay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas
• Day 5 - Philipsburg, St. Maarten
• Day 6 - Sea Day
• Day 7 - Sea Day

Toay we are visiting one of my favorite spots in the Caribbean, St Martin.

We set our alarm for 7:30am to get ready but getting ready seemed to take longer than we anticipated so we decided to skip breakfast on the ship and have it on the island.

For our tour of the island, we hired a local driver that we have used 3 or 4 times now, Leo Brown.  Leo is a taxi driver we found by chance one cruise to St Martin and he has proven to be extremely nice, reliable and knowledgeable.

We met up with him right at 9am and he was waiting for us where we had planned.  We told him about our breakfast "problem" and he asked if we wanted local cuisine or American food.  Knowing my daughter and wife, I said American food and off we went.

After a 5 minute car ride, Leo brought us to the Devis Resort, which is a time share resort on the Dutch side right on the ocean.  Leo brought us to the restaurant and we had a fabulous breakfast buffet.

There was fruit, omelette station, hot foods, yogurts, juice, cereal and some bread to choose from.  I was impressed by the variety and the quality of the buffet.  

The price was $18 per person and I thought it was a great choice.

We packed into his van and off we went to our next stop, Le Galion beach on the French side.

Le Galion beach is an ideal beach for kids because it is a small bay that has rocks that not only protect the bay from waves but it is extremely shallow too.  

My 4 year old spent the entire time in the ocean and my 6 month old fared better today than yesterday (thanks to a long nap on mommy).

The beach has no fee but it is $5 per chair or umbrella.  You can also rent things like kayaks or wind surf for an additional fee.

New since our last visit is a large floating platform that allows swimmers a spot to jump.  The locals tell us it was built for kids to learn to swim but it's there if you want to use as well.

Here's an example of why we love having Leo as our guide.  At the beach my wife realized as the baby was screaming her head off that she had forgotten the bottles back on the ship.  Instantly Leo shot up from his chair and without accepting any money from me, drove to a nearby pharmacy and got us a bottle.  

We spent a few hours here and as lunch approached, we decided that we would get my 4 year old daughter a burger at the beach and then venture further into the French side for something else to eat for us.

Once the burger was eaten, we drove to the town of Grand Case and Leo brought us to a place that offered fresh Caribbean food.

I had the Mahi Mahi and my wife opted for chicken.  Both tasted great and it was right on the beach too!

I wish we had a little more time but we had to get back to the ship, so Leo brought us to the port with a small tour of the French side along the way.

We said goodbye to Leo, hoping to see him again soon, and got back on Freedom of the Seas.

My wife took the baby back to the room for a nap while I took my 4 year old daughter to the H2O Zone for a quick swim.

Afterwards, it was back to the room for showers and getting dressed for dinner.

Tonight we have our "big night out", or at least we hope for a big night out.  We reserved time for both kids to stay until midnight at their respective clubs while my wife and I enjoy dinner at Sabor and some time  around the ship.

Quick tip, we had a reservation at Sabor at 8 but wanted to eat earlier.  If you are in a similar situation, feel free to go to the restaurant and ask if you can be seated now.  It never fails to work, especially since there seems to be open tables.   Granted, this tip probably works best with smaller tables.

Sabor tonight was quite impressive and I really enjoyed my meal there. Tonight's experience re-affirmed my love of this specialty restaurant.

As may you recall, we had Sabor for lunch earlier this cruise while it was really good, it was not quite what I remembered on Navigator.  Clearly, I did not order the right food.

This time around I asked for extra guac with extra lime juice (let's call this the Matt special) and opted for the ahi tuna tacos and red snapper.  The good was amazing and I wish I had just ordered the tacos a few times.

We asked for our same waiter, Juan, and when he saw us he commented, "Are you the guy that posted a photo of me on Instagram?".  Busted!

I also tried the horizontal tequila flight, which was phenomenal.   Add some hand crafted margaritas and you have a really, really good experience.

Essentially the food at Sabor is really good and if you try their drinks, I think you will find one of the better Mexican meals out there.   My wife and I really enjoyed our time there.

Following Sabor, we did a bit of bar hopping between Schooner Bar, R-Bar, Pub and Viking Crown Lounge.  

Proving we are older than we think, we got to about 10:30pm and decided to call it a night early.  The drinking caught up with us and we wanted to be rested for a full day tomorrow.

I am hoping to get a lot done tomorrow on our second to last day, so hoping for a great day!

Stray Observations

• Someone asked about the new staterooms on deck 12. I stopped by and took some photos.  There is a door that lets out directly on deck 12 and there is access to the elevator lobby.
  
  

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - CocoCay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas
• Day 5 - Philipsburg, St. Maarten
• Day 6 - Sea Day
• Day 7 - Sea Day

We began today much like our other days, with a wake up around 8am and then subsequently getting the kids ready to get going.

We ate breakfast at the Windjammer, which was packed today.  I think everyone had the plan to sleep in given our noon arrival in St Thomas.

We dropped off our 4 year old daughter in Adventure Ocean and then went to the helicopter pad to watch Freedom of the Seas pull into St Thomas.  

As it turned out, we got in early and were cleared to go ashore by 10:30am.  That's an hour and a half early!  Thanks Captain Ron!

Our early arrival presented a small problem because we had just left our daughter in Adventure Ocean 30 minutes or so ago and if we went to pick her up now, she would have a mini-heart attack.

We decided to give her the choice of coming with us or staying and sure enough, she did not bat an eye about wanting to stay in Adventure Ocean.  She absolutely loves it in there and everytime we pick her up, we are the bad guys. 

With one less child, we headed back to the stateroom to get ready and then went ashore.  

Our first stop was the Sky ride to Paradise Point.  It is a gondola-style cable car ride up a mountain to the top of a mountain that overlooks the port area.

We booked the excursion through Royal Caribbean (About $20 per adult and $10 per kid. 6 month old was free).  It is really close to the port and is about a 5-10 minute walk.

We got to the base of the sky ride and got our wristband (your admission allows you to go back as many times as you want during the day).

I will have a more in-depth review of the sky ride in another blog post but we really enjoyed it.  It was a fun ride up the mountain and the view is quite lovely.  The whole thing took about 30 minutes, unless you spend time at the top at the bar or shopping more than we did.

Next up we took a taxi to downtown Charotte Amalie to do some shopping and have lunch.  

We walked by a few shops and found a nice pearl necklace for my wife.  I have been promising my wife jewelry for a few cruises but we never find anything we like.  This time, we found a nice piece at a good price and we bought it.

By now it was 12:30pm and we were getting hungry.   Since we had cell service in St Thomas (it is part of the United States), I took my cell phone out and pulled up the Yelp app to find a restaurant.

The #1 restaurant in our area was Cuzzin's Caribbean and we went there.  As the name implies, it serves up Caribbean food but there were also burgers and sandwiches. And it has air conditioning!

I ordered the curried chicken while my wife ordered the cheeseburger.  Her burger was good and freshly made but my curried chicken was really, really good.  The meat was falling off the bone and I really like it.

On top of that, a blog reader Michael from Tampa, recommended the lambada boomer drink and let's just say my day got a lot better very quickly!

Next up we took a cab to the beach.  I wanted to go to to Lindquist Beach on the east end of the island but the taxi driver we found convinced us to go to Emerald Beach instead.  He had a good point: Both beaches are quite lovely but this one is closer and cheaper.  He offered to let us scope it out first so I obliged and off we went.

Emerald Beach is about a 5 minute drive from downtown and there is a Best Western Plus hotel.  Once you get there, you can walk straight to the beach and there is no fee for the beach, chairs or anything.  Granted, there is no service either in terms of waiters.

The beach and water were beautiful and it was a quiet piece of beach to enjoy.  

This would have been perfect if not for my 6 month old losing her mind because she was over tired and refused to nap.  We fought it for a while but ultimately we had to leave and go back because if the baby was screaming, no one is having fun.

Overall, it was a fun day and we got a lot done in my opinion.  We spent far less money than I thought we would and it was good seeing a few different spots on the island.  I just wish the baby would have cooperated a little bit more.  C'est la vie!

You can see the piece of the top of Freedom of the Seas missing due to the fire

Back onboard, we rested up and got ready for dinner.  The kids went to Adventure Ocean and the nursery and we headed to the dining room.

Dinner was good, unfortunately not as good as last night but we enjoyed our time there and it was a pleasant evening.

After dinner we got out early enough that we got into the Once Upon A Time show in the Royal Theater.

This was the first evening show we managed to see and it's a mashup of classic fairytales to contemporary music.  

I really enjoyed it and thought the songs they chose were spot on and overall it was a really good performance.

Tomorrow, we are going to St Martin with all the kids and hoping they both can work in some naps!

Live Blog Index

• Live blog introduction
• Day 1 - Embarkation Day
• Day 2 - CocoCay
• Day 3 - Sea Day
• Day 4 - Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas
• Day 5 - Philipsburg, St. Maarten
• Day 6 - Sea Day
• Day 7 - Sea Day

Our newest podcast episode is out to help give you a quick "audio escape" to a Royal Caribbean cruise!

Episode 104 is available for downloading, where Matt discusses everything you need to know between when you arrive at the port to when you actually board your ship.

Matt and Michael talk about what guests can expect when they arrive at the pier for embarkation day and share tips for parking, porters, check in and more.

Here’s the podcast page for Episode 104. And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Stitcher or on iTunes!

Take a listen and as always, let us know what you think! Please rate and review the podcast on iTunes and leave your comments below!