Freedom of the Seas: Sanitation Record & Health Report

When Freedom of the Seas launched in 2006, she was the largest cruise ship in the world — a title Royal Caribbean was very, very excited for you to know about. Nearly two decades later, she's been thoroughly lapped by her own fleet (Icon of the Seas makes her look like a tugboat), but Freedom still holds her own as the original Freedom-class flagship. She's not the newest, not the flashiest, and at 11.7 knots she's not exactly rushing anywhere, but the 154,000-ton girl has something newer ships could stand to aspire to: a spotless health record. One CDC inspection. Score of 98. No drama, no dips, no lowest-ever to quietly sweep under the gangplank. Just clean. Consistently, boringly, beautifully clean.

The caveat — and there's always a caveat — is that one inspection is a thin resume. A 98 with a sample size of one is more of a promising audition than a proven track record. We can't call it a "trend" when it's a single data point wearing a trend's outfit. That said, a 98 is two points above the fleet average, and Freedom earned it on her most recent inspection in September 2025, which means she's not coasting on old glory. She's keeping the kitchens clean and the food-safety inspectors nodding approvingly, even at 19 years old. For a ship her age, that deserves genuine respect — and maybe a small round of applause.

Who it's for: Families and first-time cruisers sailing out of Miami who want a proven Royal Caribbean product without the overwhelming scale of the newer Oasis or Icon-class ships. You get the waterslides, the flow rider, the specialty dining circus — just in a size that doesn't require a map and a spirit animal to navigate. Who should skip it: Trend-chasers and luxury seekers who need the newest everything — Freedom's amenities were cutting-edge when the iPhone was still a year away from existing. If you've already sailed her sister ships or want the full spectacle of modern Royal Caribbean mega-ship excess, you'll probably feel like you're watching reruns.