Freedom of the Seas is the flagship of the Freedom class of ships and is owned by the Royal Caribbean International. Freedom's maiden voyage was in June 2006, and Freedom was built in the STX Europe - Aker shipyard in Turku, Finland. At 158,000 gross tons, this ship hosts 3634 guests and 1360 crew. The ship's Royal Promenade has shops and eateries on each side, and many interior staterooms have windows offering a view of the Royal Promenade. The Royal Promenade has, a coffee shop, Sorrento's Pizzeria, a Ben and Jerry's ice-cream shop, Vintage's winery, the Bull and Bear Irish pub, and several Duty-free stores. The ship has an interactive water park, a dedicated adult pool and a main pool. The 13th deck has a sports area with a rock climbing wall, a FlowRider surfing pool as well as a miniature golf course and a full size basketball court. Other items include an ice skating rink, a casino, a Johnny Rockets restaurant and there is Wi-Fi connectivity throughout the ship. more

Princess Cruise Line's writes in their Europe brochure, "Once the only way to travel between North America and the continent of Europe, a Trans-Atlantic voyage is now more a luxury than a necessity." Very well said. A Trans-Atlantic cruise conjures up images of classic cruising - packing up steamer trunks for a long voyage to the new world - reading a good book on a deck chair on the Promenade Deck, glancing up a times to see the endless horizon of the days at sea. High energy? No. Stress-free and relaxing? Absolutely. These cruises are typically 12 - 14 days long and are offered primarily in the Spring when the cruise lines reposition their ships to Europe for the Summer and again in the Fall when they bring them back to the Caribbean for the Winter. Cunard's QE2 does have series of 5 - 6 day Trans Atlantic cruises that sail between April and December. more