ch27088

Our son and his wife celebrated his 43rd birthday on the Breeze last week. He did join Cruise Critic, but instead of writing a review, he asked me to share the review he wrote to me on Sunday when they returned. He and his wife live in Hollywood, FL.

 

The review is brief, no photos, but just a few of their adventures and his opinions of their Breeze experience. Enjoy.

 

 

Breeze recap

 

 

Breeze Review: Embarkation day: I won't make the obvious pun but it was a...relatively simple process. The Port of Miami people are pros so it was hassle free. Lunch on Lido, long lines at Guy's and at the bars. Double dipped on the fries at Guy's (a cruise long theme) and enjoyed the sail away party. The show that evening was better than I anticipated. I had heard that it wasn't as good but I rather enjoyed the upgrade, the better 'showmanship' incorporating technology and thank God they updated the musical selections. If I heard one more tribute to the Beach Boys or Neil Diamond I would toss a deck chair into the ocean.

 

 

Day at sea: Got a lay of the ship, enjoyed trivia gatherings, relaxed a good while, got more Guy's fries. Enjoyed the show again this evening and some time on Lido afterwards.

 

 

*Side note on Guy's, they are quite skimpy on the fries. They tend to distribute fries like there volume was directly connected to their 401k. I would ask for a double order which usually equated to two small handfuls. Other guests also remarked about this as well. That being said, they are crazy delicious.

 

 

Our cabin: 6206, which is the interior 'plus' (unsure of the correct title) but it's forward, directly below the captains deck. We had a porthole looking out over the front of the ship. We liked the cabin, the only thing was the noise. Since we are right above the front of the ship we felt and heard a lot of the ocean movement. The sways weren't bad at all, but the noise..whew. I've never lived below a bowling alley or above a bomb disposal facility but I'm guessing it would sound just like this. When the ocean swells hit the hull, "BOOM...rattle rattle rattle". It woke both of us up a couple of times a night.

 

 

*DISCLAIMER* We usually don't book our tours through Carnival/Excursion desk but for the activities we wanted in Grand Turks and Aruba, Carnival pulled a gangster move and bought out all of the tours so when we contacted the vendors directly they told us we had to go through the cruise line. Well played Carnival, you got us...this time.

 

 

1st Port of Call-Grand Turks: Realistically could be called Mini Turks; small island with fewer residents than the cruisers (3600 residents-4000+ on the ship). Perfect beach/water activity day (for those inclined) for others an island tour by horseback, jeep or ATV (our choice) were the best options to see something. ATV was fun, not hard or vigorous, most time was spent on the main roads, very little off roading but that was fine. Our preference would be more off road ATV adventure but there wasn't that much real estate to be able to pull that off. Had another round of Guy's fries as a mid afternoon snack. The juggler/comedian had his moments in the evening show but won't be a household name anytime soon. The late night comedians were pretty good but again nothing spectacular.

 

 

2nd Port of Call-La Romana: We kind of got some bad info from our cruise guy at Carnival who did this itinerary in June. He indicated to book a tour directly thru Carnival here as well because the port and all of the city/tour related activities were a ways off. He failed to mention there would be cab drivers and other tour options available at the port though. He will be receiving a text when we get back to the US. We did the Countryside 'Adventure' which was a bust. Hot, open air bus, boring locations (a nusery to see flowers we also have in the US, a sugar cane 'plantation' which could have just been pulling off on a side road and a souvenier shop with inflated prices) and not much activity other than riding. On a 4 hour tour about 3 hours was driving. Complete waste of money. Came back and did lunch and drinks on Lido (more Guy's fries and mocha chocolate getaway) and chilled thru the evening before enjoying the deck party at night.

 

 

3rd Port of Call-Curacao: Best day so far. Despite a late debarkment (2-11pm in Curacao) and a brief rain delay, we had a fun time. We walked across the mall and then the bridge into town, had lunch at a waterside cafe (Iguana Cafe) which also had free wi-fi so I could check some quick business e-mails. I had the chicken estoba (stewed chicken) and wifey had the whole red snapper. Both were delicious. Then we spent the afternoon wandering downtown until coming back onboard for appetizers and dessert in the dining room. A quick cruise break to watch Survivor and later the deck party.

 

 

4th and final Port of Call-Aruba: Hands down best excursion of the trip. We did the Jeep Safari Natural Pool. It was a rugged, off road, through the hills and crevices of the Aruban countryside and we LOVED IT! We were in a Land Rover with 3 other couples among a caravan of 4 jeeps. Lots of fun as the driver bounced us around ping ponging off of the rocks and terrain. We visited a cave (eh) and then arrived at the natural pool. It was about a 80 step walk down to the pool, which was an area where the ocean and rocks formed a calm area to swim and snorkel. Being inexperienced in both, I just went far enough to where I could kick back to the rocks but I did see some fish through the snorkel apparatus. We got rained on pretty hard on the way back but still really enjoyed our day. This night we did the steakhouse which was pretty great. Excellent service, nice atmosphere, really good food.

 

 

Sea days 2&3: We basically just relaxed and did little things (trivia, future cruise destinations, Love & Marriage show, etc.) around the ship and enjoyed our days. More Guy's fries and Mocha Chocolate Getaways. Friday was pretty much a weather washout due to rain with the exception of late afternoon & evening. Tried Fat Jimmy's C Side BBQ on Saturday, eh-pass on it. Relaxed a little more, went to see Hasbro Game Show, a good way to spend an hour but wouldn't schedule my day around it. Packed and got ready to depart in the morning.

 

 

General notes: I can't say enough how much more we like the shows in the theatre compared to before. The songs are much more current, the digital graphics really make a difference and the performances were high quality. I hope all of their entertainment on the various ships follows suit.

 

-The Punchline Comedy Club-The logistics are terrible in the show scheduling and execution. For a small club space, too many people trying to get in and out around the shows and having to clear the lounge fully between shows is just mass chaos. They need to either make tickets available on a first come first serve basis during the day or adjust the schedules to make it more viable to clear traffic.

 

- Overall it was a great trip, we had some cool perks (our dinner table was a table for two right at the window overlooking the water) and really enjoyed the ship itself. Liked being on a relatively new ship. In a few months, may be ready for another sailaway!

 

*** Mom, here again. I asked if they did the Brunch; yes, twice, very delicious.

 

Italian restaurant twice for lunch. Food was ok, service terrible. "Glad we didn't pay for it."

 

Loved the 'cruisey decor" of the ship.

 

The comedian whose name I don't remember, got better as the week went on.

 

I'll field questions if you have them, but he has a project with a Friday deadline that he is working on this week, so answers may be delayed.

Thank you so much for sharing your review with us, and glad you and your wife enjoyed the cruise. I'm waiting for your parents to take another trip so we can read their reviews as well! :D

Going on cruise at the end of the month where we will have a cruise critic get-together, a cabin crawl and a group slot pull.

 

Just wondeing if anyone has done a slot pull where they hit some sort of jack pot??????

Not a slot pull, but won $300 on a machine just playing.

 

Best Dressed 2013! :D

How precious is he, don't you just love a sleeping baby?

Lol! Yep. My Step Dad wore his Bama Shirt...funny thing is, we are a group divided...haha! Hubby and a few others are Bama fans too, but to that I must say War Eagle ;):p:D

 

 

Hubs keeps trying to convert me. In the past 9 years he has tried everything. Even bought me Alabama clothes as a "gift" :D

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you! Someone commented on here and said you could request a certain person if you do ATD. Maybe you could request Adrian, Nino, or one of the others mentioned if you do. I hope you have a wonderful time!! Come back and let us know how your trip was. The Dream is a beautiful ship!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, I am ashamed to admit it but I have actually fell victim to the "Carve your name" trick too a couple years ago on an RCCL trip to Labadee. I must have "Sucker" written on my head. It was a pretty wooden box and I did like it. He said, " So what are your names?" And as soon as the words left my mouth he began carving...The ironic thing is now, it has such a funny story behind it that it is my favorite souvenir so I guess it all worked out. :D

At Junkanoo, we didn't notice the "rocky" part, but maybe it varies based on where you are along the beach? I had actually thought it would be rocky because of some pictures I had seen in another review, but in the review they were right beside Fat Tuesdays, and we were right beside the pier across from the lighthouse. There were bits of rocks and coral mixed in with the sand in the water though if that is what he meant. Water shoes are a big plus in my book! We always bring a pair because you never know.

And thank you! We love our little guy! He brightens our day and is such a blessing to us!

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

It's really sad that people that do these things get away with it. When we go to the different ports, I don't say anything at all unless I'm looking for a taxi. I just keep walking and don't even look at them. At first I felt bad that I was acting like that, but I feel they are wrong for what they are doing by "trapping" unsuspected cruisers. Next you visit a port, I would just have your destination in mind and just go. Remember don't say hello, don't say anything unless you are looking for a cruise tour or taxi. They will finally get the hint and leave you alone.:rolleyes:

Not trying to be rude, but what religion is your mom...is she SDA (Seventh-day Adventist)? Just curious because you mentioned that she didn't drink. Glad she was able to get the fridge issue taken care of. After reading several reviews, I think the problem is just some of the stewards just don't care. I'm sure they're tired, worn out from the travelers, and although it's not an excuse, just think of some of the people they've had to deal with. However, no excuse for poor customer service. If you don't want to deal with customer, then get out of the customer service industry!

By the way, thanks for posting your review and sharing it with us. I look forward to reading more about your trip and seeing the pictures. Your baby is just too precious.

Looking forward to your review as DH and I will be on the Dream next October. Yes, it's a long ways off, but that's okay, I don't mind for the great price we got. Thanks for sharing your vacation with us and can't wait for more.

Can you PLEASE explain why the number of bags/suitcases keeps going up (lol). I was cracking up so hard each time I would see the number go up. I thought maybe you guys had done a side trip of shopping, but that was really cute.

Shyova - what a great review. I was actually upset that your review came to an end! Hope you have another cruise planned so that we can experience the cruise through you again. You are did a wonderful job and I just loved your writing style.

So glad you were able to share with us a wonderful picture of the "Mysterious G". However, he's missing his ears, nose, eyebrows...(hahaha).

Cloud 9 Spa area.

 

 

 

 

One of the steam rooms before the steam came.

 

 

 

Thalassotherapy pool.

 

Is it true there are day passes that can be purchased for the spa and pools? I don't want to have a weeks worth of spa treatment, but thought it would be nice to treat myself to one day of the spa and other little things that come with it (not the treatments, just the access to the spa and pools).

Thank you for sharing your review with us. Sorry you had a rocky start to your vacation, but glad it got better.

DH and I will be on the Dream October 2014 out of New Orleans. Just booked our hotels (as they are already pretty pricey), and now we will wait to book the Amtrak train in March of next year.

The snake on the rocks looks so real...I actually thought it was real.

Thank you Jenny. I thought it was Carnival Dream that was going to New Orleans next year?

Yes, the Dream is going to be out of New Orleans as me and DH are already booked for an October 2014 cruise.

Loving your review!

Shyhova - I actually watched the Kevin Hart (gym guy) video clip and almost fell outta my chair at work laughing. So I can now picture why you got upset when the guy you saw didn't do anything. Kevin Hart was too funny and I almost got myself in trouble for laughing so loud!!! BTW, great review...keep the pictures coming.

We went out to the Seaside Theater to relax under the stars and found the Giants Vs. Cowboys football game being broadcast on the large Outdoor Screen. I'm not the biggest pro football fan but it was fun to sit out and watch so many other guests react to the game. I'm glad to see that Carnival now gives out free popcorn (the charged for it last time we were on the Dream) for the movies under the stars which we go tonight. Alhough they were out of salt at the moment but thats ok as Kiera likes it without.

 

 

The Football game was in the final minutes and it was pretty close. Right at midnight though when it looked like the Giants could pull the lead back from the Cowboys the screen defaulted back to its default programing. It was pretty funny to see everyone watching immidiatly get upset that the game was turned off in a moment of suspense. Many went running to I assume there cabins to try and catch the game. After a few minutes though the game did get put back on only to see an Interception was made and returned for a touchdown securing the win for the Cowboys.

 

 

The Movie that was gonna play that night on the screen started right after the game finished but we weren't gonna stick around for it. Daniel was tired and it was getting late so we headed back down to our Cabin for the remainder of the night. As Kiera and I was getting ready for bed though we found him hiding near a corner snacking away on some treats that we thought we put out of his reach.

 

 

Soon enough though we got him settled into his bed for the night and he fell asleep and we weren't far behind him. Tomorrow would be our first full day of sleep so we hoped we would be able to sleep in for a little while. I guess we would have to see if Daniel wwould allow that or not.

 

 

 

 

And thats it for Day 5. Thanks again for checking out my review and pictures. As always comments are welcomed and I'll answer any questions you might have. I hope to start on the next update soon. Thanks again until then.

 

 

 

 

.

Loved the picture of Daniel sneaking the treats/snacks. Love to see little ones (especially the little boys) doing this, it's too cute. :D

I saw something on the news last night about a ride stuck at Universal, thought of you when I saw it.

You know what, I saw the same News segment and thought about him and his family as well!

I am so sorry you had such a difficult time in DR. At least your day turned around so that you and the group got a chance to enjoy yourselves, but from reading your review I don't think I would get off the ship if DH and I were to ever go. Glad it worked out for you all.

After dinner, I headed to the Thrill Theater. I bought the unlimited pass for $14.95. This was sooooooo much fun! The Thrill Theater is a 4D interactive movie room. You’re shown short 15-20 minute movies where you get squirted with water, poked in the back, the room fogs up, your seat shakes, you’re basically right there in the movie. Tonight I saw Bamboo Express and Happy Feet. They both were so cute!

 

The waiting area and entrance to the theater.

 

 

Show times for the week.

 

 

My ticket.

 

 

I've got on my 3D glasses and ready.

 

 

 

I checked out the comedy shows of both John Wing and Scotty K. John was better than the night before, but both were still just ok. Then I was off to meet up with G in the Liquid Nightclub for the night.

 

 

Ok, I'm going cross-eyed from staring at my computer nonstop for 3 days working on this. I think I need to take tomorrow off. I'll be back Friday with so much more!

 

Up next: Why I nearly had a nervous breakdown (twice!) and was brought to tears in the Dominican Republic.

Okay - I'm interested in the Thrill Theater. Is this something that's on all the ships with the upgrades? I'm going on the Dream next year and hope they have it, sounds interesting.

Nervous breakdown and tears on vacation, GaPearl what in the world...

JayMo - great review and thanks for sharing. I love your writing style and almost died when you talked about your boyfriend following some guy in Cozumel. I'm like you, I don't follow anyone any where (too many stories about Mexico), and I follow the rules. DH and I are going on a cruise in 2014 (October), so we have quite a while to wait, but I know it will be here before we know it.

Okay - I am loving your review. I've subscribed, sitting back at work (shhhh!), and ready to read. Glad you had a good time on your first cruise, and for sharing your vacation with us.

You are brave holding a baby alligator and doing the tour. I am the biggest wimp when it comes to animals. Don't like them at all!!! Off to a great start on your review!

I'm enjoying your positive review. We are debating between the Dream, Freedom of the Seas, Allure and some others but those are the 3 favorites right now. We have done many cruises (13?) on just about every line. We like Celebrity best for just the 2 of us but are taking our 8 year old son this time and don't really think they are geared towards kids. We took him on Miracle last year (that was our third Carnival cruise) and had a great time but of course there has been a lot of negative Carnival press since then (and more cutbacks?) and we are also concerned with the time of year (early December) and very low prices attracting the type of clientele that sometimes earns Carnival their negative reputation.

 

For the OP and all others reading this, I'd like your feedback about the alleged long lines and overly busy public spaces which seem to plague this ship and your personal opinion on whether this ship is a good fit for an active, athletic 8 year old and his 40's parents who are professionals, like to have a good time but are by no means late night partiers. Everything I've read on these boards says to take Freedom or Allure over Dream every time so we are struggling with the decision. While the RCI options seem to have activities he will LOVE in a few years, at 8 the waterslides are a pretty big draw.....if the lines to go on them aren't ridiculous! We are also already booked with a group on Adventure of the Seas for March (childless on that one) so we are concerned that going on the bigger, nicer Allure or Freedom first might make Adventure seem like a poor older cousin and take something away from that vacation. While money isn't everything, we can also get a nice balcony on Dream for less $ than a basic inside on Allure or Freedom of the Seas.

I am in my mid-50's and DH is in his early 80's, and we love Carnival. Now don't get me wrong, we enjoy dancing at the clubs on board, plus a few shows. I like Carnival because of the different shows, programs, and other things going on while we are cruising. We tried RCC once and I was not too happy with their shows. I think you would enjoy yourselves, on Carnival as well as your son.

Thank you for your review and pictures of the Carnival Dream. DH and I are actually going on the Dream in October (same itinerary) next year out of New Orleans and I am booking our hotel reservations right now. Great start to your review and can't wait to read it all and see the photos. Hoping that you have some great pictures of the ports since we are doing the same. Thanks again for your sharing your vacation with us (your son is so cute).

FINALLY...I've been waiting all September for this review. I am so happy you had a wonderful time, and now I am excited that your back so I can read your review. It seems like it took so long for your cruise to get here. Well, I've subscribed and I'm ready to read, so let's go!!!!!