Make sure you ask him after you have a series of movie nights. I recommend:
- The Poseidon Adventure (and/or the remake, “Poseidon”)
- Titanic
- The Perfect Storm
- And for bonus points: Message in a Bottle
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This is a real thing. We once did a cruise with DBIL and his wife. She now won’t do any that are not within sight of land. Meanwhile, it doesn’t bother the rest of us.
Yeah that’s what I am afraid of or him getting on it and not coming out of the room! He’s ASD (high functioning), SPD, ADHD and has social anxiety so I am not sure I am going to get him on one anytime soon. But DD really wants to go and I would hate to take her and then not take him. I think she’d love the tween/teen clubs.
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But sometimes he’s perfectly normal and is fine with things that I think he’d hate. He’s very complex so maybe I won’t push it.
If you’re looking for a short cruise the Freedom out of Miami is perfect! We’ve done the 3 night Friday-Monday twice in the past few months.
The ship has a lot to do, but isn’t huge! The Solarium adult pool area is perfect. Reminds me of the Magic & Winder adult areas, but better! Amazing hot tubs overlooking the ocean on both sides.
They have the promenade area where they host a really fun 70s party. The ship has slides, ice skating, rock climbing, surfing, lots to do!
The food is good. On the last one we did all specialty dining which was great, but the one before that we did buffet & main dining & that was good too.
The private island is amazing! I think better than Castaway. Our first time we went to the Beach Club which was really nice! This time we rented a beach bed. They have tons of chairs & umbrellas so if you don’t want anything extra you will be fine.
We are platinum on DCL, but I have a blast on Freedom of the Seas!!
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Good info!
Thanks Kim! I do remember you posting about that now. I started looking at the Freedom last night! Can’t remember if it was a 3 day or 4 day. I worry that 3 days isn’t going to be long enough but I don’t want to be away from my kids for a long time either. Is it relatively easy to get a hotel room near the port? I seem to remember yes.
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I think four is a good number. The first 24 hours is kind of chaotic and not super relaxing. Three nights is only two full days and the first partial day. The morning of disembarkation is essentially get up, eat, get off.
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I agree with @QwertySC that 3 nights is really short. My only issue with the 4 night on Freedom is that it’s Monday-Friday. If I were going to take an entire week of from work, I would just book a 7 night. For me, the 3 night is the perfect getaway using minimal vacation time. I also only live an hour from the port, so it’s truly just a long weekend.
I have stayed at Intercontinental right near the port (when I didn’t live close) and it was great. Depending on your room view you can see the ships come into port. There are several hotels near the port. There is a shopping restaurant area called Bayside & that’s fun to walk around the night before a cruise.
The RCL terminal in Miami is new & it’s so efficient! No waiting around, boarding is so smooth. As long as you have a US Passport getting off the ship is soooooo easy!! The only line is to scan off the ship. You no longer have to speak to a Customs agent. They have these Ipad type devices & they use facial recognition. They don’t even look at your passport. It’s amazing & I hope the airports get this technology soon!
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Is this the Miami port? Just stayed at Intercontinental and LOVED it, the hotel itself as well as the location for a pre-cruise stay.
Yes! I was so glad to see your review of it & see that’s it’s still a great place to stay. I remember we had booked a standard view & then upgraded when we checked in. Totally worth the upgrade to sit in the window & watch the ships arrive early morning.
The location is great too. Bayside is really perfect for pre-cruise. Plenty of dinner options & just fun to walk around.
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Yes, it was clean and roomy and felt upscale in all areas. The pool is a little skimpy, but we were there just the one afternoon. Would have liked to partake of the rooftop bar but it wasn’t open while we were up there. They had a small bar serving drinks but I am referring to the glassed-in one.
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Sounds great!