Dream Not Such A Dream

[PA Dutchman]

If you never waited more then 10 to 15 min in a line on a cruise "you must be a rookie cruiser".

We are booking the Dream for our 25th cruise for Christmas 2010. That looks like the best time to use that 25% OBC for the price of the cruise.

Reviews just don't bother us because its just a opinion. Every cruise will not have the same situation that person ran into. Alot of people make there on problems. The ship is in the eye of the beholder. Everybody likes different food and the way its made. Not everybody likes the same things to do. Smoke has never bothered us in almost 30 cruises. You just will always have some people bitch about anything and everything and make sure they our in front of the line. Its always the cruise lines fault, they must never read their cruise contract. They would rather go on CC and bitch to make themselves feel better and have other people pat them on the back. This is just all my opinion. But its good entertainment for the day. Have a nice cruise.:D

[Sargent_Schultz]

The Dream is great. There were, and probably are some minor issues, but I know several have been addressed and many passsengers might not notice anything.

 

You may have noticed that so,me Dream reports are from posters who simply collated the worst of what they could find and report, ignoring what has been fixed.

 

Don't bother lining up before the venue opens and wait with the angry people who should know better. Take your time - you're on vacation.

 

If Host Mach can't go, I'm next in line. It's a good line.

[Heirloom]

We're newbies, headed for only our 6th Carnival cruise in March (Dream).....but are still willing to bet serious $$ that......anybody who complains about waiting too long for FOOD on Carnival (huh?).......has to be pathetically obese !

 

Not many cruisers we've chatted with avoid gaining serious weight on each Carnival cruise...OK, here's our complaint....they should make the lines even SLOWER moving if they have the health of passengers in mind.

 

TIRED of gaining 6-8 pounds per week with Carnival.....slow it down, knock it off ! Jeez !

[LemurCat]

See, the problem is all of those rude New Yorkers who simply do not want to wait in line ...

[apmets]

See, the problem is all of those rude New Yorkers who simply do not want to wait in line ...

 

I am born and bred in NYC so it was not me:) LOL

[trock]

With that kind of attitude, you most likely won't enjoy! We also are sailing on the Dream in Feb.. I'm glad for all the reviews. For example, I know we should eat breakfast / lunch either early or late to possibly avoid the lines mentioned in the reviews. Again, I appreciate all the post...both positive and negative.

With all the above being said and as we have on all our Carnival, RCI and NCR cruises...me and mine will have a blast on our Feb cruise on the Dream! :D:D:D

,

 

He has a legitimate concern.. .there have been quite a few reviews like this..

Hopefully both your cruises will prove otherwise;)

[kelz66]

After all the very bad reviews being posted, and they all can't be Carnival haters. They all addresss the same things, bad food and very slow service on (Lido.) Not enough staff to serve or clean up on (Lido.) Not enough lines open for number of people (Lido.) See a pattern here. Second the smell of sewage on ship mentioned in 12 reviews, even if it is just one whif you wont forget it unless you have already stuck your head in a sewer pipe. Lines at all the shows of up to 30 min to even try and get in 10 reviews. Now I'll give you my bad news we are booked for Feb. and honestly we are ardent Carnival cruisers this will be are 10 and we are wondering is this really where we want to be on are first Platinum cruise.

 

:confused::confused:

Is this a review?

 

I'm confused by the thread title and the content of your post.

 

Did you sail already and are booked again in Feb.?

 

:confused::confused:

[oakleys]

Platinum, is nothing special. Just enjoy the cruise.

[PROCRUISE]

After all the very bad reviews being posted, and they all can't be Carnival haters. They all addresss the same things, bad food and very slow service on (Lido.) Not enough staff to serve or clean up on (Lido.) Not enough lines open for number of people (Lido.) See a pattern here. Second the smell of sewage on ship mentioned in 12 reviews, even if it is just one whif you wont forget it unless you have already stuck your head in a sewer pipe. Lines at all the shows of up to 30 min to even try and get in 10 reviews. Now I'll give you my bad news we are booked for Feb. and honestly we are ardent Carnival cruisers this will be are 10 and we are wondering is this really where we want to be on are first Platinum cruise.

 

We were on The Dream 12/3-12/09 on the "grand" inaugural cruise out of Port Canaveral. It was our 11th cruise with Carnival. My review on CC is "Less Than Merry Christmas On The Dream." The cruise/ship did not meet our expectations, and we are very easy to please.

I think you should go ahead with your planned cruise on The Dream because everyone has different expectations, and you might find the ship and the cruise to be the best you've ever taken.

[ladycaveat]

On one sailing (our Dec 3rd) there were 3,804 folks onboard.

 

The only time I waited a long period of time for food on Lido was on the last day when I decided (just before it closed) that I wanted to try the Mongolian Wok.

 

We always found a clean table.

 

In the Main Dining Room, we had the 6pm seating. I will tell you that dining is not an "experience" for us. I eat because I have to to live. We usually do not stay for dessert.

 

We were on time every night and were out by 6:45 to 7:00 on most nights...the latest we left was 7:15.

 

Never smelled any sewage odors.... but since we have cruised so much (on cruise ships and small yachts) .... I understand that a "whiff" now that then is not uncommon. 20 years ago, you would spend $500,000 on a 60' Cheoy Lee yacht and you will still get a "whiff" every now and then.....

 

Our Carnival Dream was as good or better than any other Carnival cruise we have been on.

 

If the 4 Buffets have lines that are to long, try the Pasta....if that line is to long, try the Indian (Starboard Aft outside by the Aft pool)...if that line is to long, try the pizza, if that is to long, try the burrito bar....if that line is to long, try the deli....if that line is to long, try the Monogolian Wok....if that line is to long....try the grill (hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken)... if it is a Sea Day....go the Main Dining Room for lunch..... if all that fails....order Room Service.

 

A cruise is what you make it and no cruise (on any cruise line) is going to be perfect.

 

But IMHO (for the dollar) Carnival has the best product for the value around..... I tell folks...it isn't 5 star...but you will get your money's worth!

 

Well said my friend . . . :)

[CorvetteLady]

We sailed on the 12/3 cruise, on our comment cards my husband checked exceeded expectations in most areas, I checked met my expectations. I think maybe my expectations were just too high. I still had a good cruise and I would tell people to sail on the Dream but I would also say pay attention to the reviews so you can avoid the problem areas.

 

We never had a "good" seat in the theater, even when we got there an hour ahead of time, when I commented on this someone said the late shows weren't crowded, I never even thought about going to the late shows but it's a good idea. John Heald said they might add a third show for the productions shows, that would help. The comedy club was also crowded but they do repeat the shows the next night.

 

Another poster gave good ideas for avoiding the lines on the Lido deck, we never had that problem because we did not go at the busy times. But long lines have been a problem and they are adding barbeque areas and a brunch menu in the dining room to help with the problem.

 

We had early seating, 6 pm, we had a very slow waiter, the 2nd night we did not get our entree until 7:15. We and others with the same wait staff talked to the maitre d' and we got a new waiter. He was better but not the best we have had, but there were tables around us that got faster service. I think it is the luck of the draw, we were really dreading 7 more nights, and we love eating in the dining room, but it did get better. I thought the food was as good or better than our other cruises.

 

I felt we had some problems on our cruise but I still had a good cruise. The ones that could be fixed got fixed, others still need some work. Doesn't mean I won't cruise Carnival again but the Dream is not at the top of my favorite cruise list either.

 

I just wish that some posters would realize that it is okay to talk about the problems, that is why we have these boards. Not everyone has the same experience on the same cruise. That does not make them "haters" or "whiners". I think the OP has the right idea, look at the reviews, see what problems are mentioned the most, then plan a way to avoid them. Just wearing rose colored glasses will not make your cruise perfect.

[Drew B]

I've always been of the mindset that if you go into something with an open mind, you will have a good time.

 

 

While I don't know if this is true, the reverse certainly is - if you go into something with a closed mine, you will most likely have a bad time. Good luck, and I hope you have a great time.

[KruznKel]

Go and have fun.. as mentioned.. reviews are just that.. and not everyone has the same perspective of anything.. ;)

[JTJ]

There are some of the complaints we put on our comments cards, (also had many compliments):

 

- hot tubs should open before 8am (7 maybe), and be turned on 1 hr before opening (so they are hot)

- the above goes for the Spa rooms too.

- the putt putt golf area drains across the jogging track after a rain, not good when it rained at night and everyone was out that morning. On this one CCL responded by having a guy out there with a squeegee helping the water across and putting watch your step cones in the middle of the track and and officer walking around, looking worried.

- the seaside theather needs to have football games on it instead of the concert series when football is playing. (ie Monday night football was in the casino but not outside). CCL reacted by putting Thursday games on.

- there needs to be an area outside the breakfast line for pax. who just want grits, oatmeal, and hot milk.

 

 

That's it, Most of these don't apply to many pax.

[jetwet1]

We're newbies, headed for only our 6th Carnival cruise in March (Dream).....but are still willing to bet serious $$ that......anybody who complains about waiting too long for FOOD on Carnival (huh?).......has to be pathetically obese !

 

 

Excuse me, I really think that comment is way out of line, I also know for a fact that there have been issues with long lines in the lido, as I posted in another thread regarding the problems on board the Dream the issue is with how they have it set up and the staffing levels, this would actually be the same problem we ran into on a HAL ship in October.

 

As it is, we have a cruise booked on the Dream in September next year, I am keeping an open mind about the whole thing, there is plenty of time to get things sorted, if it turns out that there are still problems then, then I won't cruise on the Dream again, but that won't stop me from cruising again on Carnival.

[Jsme]

We went on an AI vacation and all we read was negative reviews for several months. It was a new resort. When we went the resort was awesome. We had an amazing time.

 

I think it is all in the eye of the beholder. I have gone in my cabin for the first time and found poop in the toilet but I did not allow that to ruin my vacation. It grossed me out and I took a picture of it to show the room steward.

[ChrissyBTX]

I read this board WAYY more than I post but some of these people are nuts! Go and have a good time... You are already having a bad time and you are still 50 days or so away! We are on the Dream Superbowl sailing in February (obviously) and I CANNOT WAIT! We even have a balcony on deck 6 directly above the Lanai overhang and I still cannot wait to sit out there... Can't see the ocean looking straight down? Look straight ahead! There is enough of it to go around...

quote]

 

OMG, you will have a great time watching the Superbowl on the Lido deck on the big screen (I assume they'll broadcast it). We sat on the Lido and watched one of the playoff games. It was semi-crowded, but I can't imagine what it will be like for Superbowl. You'd better grab a lounge chair early in the morning and stay put. It'll be a party!!! Have a great time!

[JUGGER]

I have very low expectations for our Dream cruise in Jan after reading the reviews. I was really super exicited about the cruise when I booked it as this is a special cruise for us. ( I was fired 2 hours before our last vacation, also the day before my birthday. But thanks to a hidden recording device and much support, I got my job back after 3 weeks and got to keep my severence which I used for this cruise.) I know there will be a lot of people on the ship (hopefully not to many kids which I hate.) I don't like the idea of standing in line for 20 mins for food, or 30-40 mins to see a show, or fighting through a crowd to get to a table. so I am going with low expectations ( Belive it or not if this cruise is really bad, we will not cruise again until we can afford a nice cruise line), deep inside I hope that the cruise will be great (I know a cruise is what you make it and I do know how to have fun.), guess I will find out in a month.

ISLAHOPPER------TOO BAD--YOU ARE ALREADY GOING WITH A DEFEATED ATTITUDE.-----THE SHIP,IS AWESOME---THE FOOD GREAT---AND A BIG VARIETY--CREW--FRIENDLY, NO WAITING FOR A TABLE--YOU ARE ASSIGNED ONE IN THE DINING ROOM---THE LIDO HAS THE LINE--WHICH Moves RIGHT ALONG---AS WELL AS THE THEATER--GET THERE EARLY FOR THE BEST SEATING. WE HAVE DAILED--40TIMES ON CARNIVAL AND TWICE ON THE DREAM---INCL. THE MED. IN OCT. AND DEC. FROM FLORIDA.--THE ENJOYMENT OF THE TRIP---CRUISE OR OTHERWISE IS----ATTITUDE--HAPPY SAILING---

[Laurab23]

We loved the Dream and would book again in a new york minute if she came back to ny.

[MemaSue]

I am new here and you can attack me and call me a troll if you like, but I am not. Thanks for your post RICKO. I will be on the Dream this February 13th and have been reading some of these posts and have been freaking out!! I found this site about a month or so ago and one of the first post I read was about noise above someone's room, moving chairs around and a pizza place if I remember correctly (on the Dream). Guess what? I am on level 10 so I was getting sick to my stomach reading it. I looked up my room and thank God I have rooms above me on level 11, which everyone said is what you want.

 

I have cruised 3 times, but never on a Carnival. But for $2,600 and change out the door (inside room), I couldn't pass it up, especially on a new ship. You guys can get on the OP for his post and say to send you his tickets and all that (even in jest), but I for one am glad he posted and it prompted me to register and chime in.

 

A lot of you know the ropes and kindly share it with everyone else....thank you! But please realize that a lot of us don't know as much and get bummed out when we read a negative post (or several) on a ship that we are sailing on. Sorry, but that is normal. I have never had a bad time on any of the 3 cruise ships that I've been on and intend to have nothing but fun on this one, but please don't blame us newbies for being a little bummed out when there is more than one thread talking about the smell of raw sewage drifting around. Unless it is the same poster, which it doesn't appear to be, there has to be "some" truth to it, right?

 

Cheers, all the best, and have a great day & a Merry Christmas!!!

 

Liz

 

I could go on and on about getting lousy service,food not just perfect in the dining room. Kids running the halls, the wrong room. Being sent someone else excursion tickets and we even gave up a ocean view to a crying woman because she got a inside by mistake. But it is up to you, I loved each cruise and take away lots of memories that I wouldn't trade. I have learned just to go with the flow and keep smiling, after all we are on vacation and nothing is going to ruin it. After all nothing is perfect and life like cruising is what you make it. So get your flip flops on and go have a ball!

[BeeBeeCee]

We loved the Dream :).....maybe some other people just.... "woke up on the wrong side of the bed".....I mean cabin :D

[fig414]

The whole "lines" thing sounds about right to me. Our last 2 cruise were on Destiny (3000 + pax) and Miracle (2100+ pax). Guess which ship had longer lines. We'll get to Dream eventually because I like the idea of a non cookie cutter Carnival typical layout. That and the "lines" make us love Spirit Class.

[DarthGrady]

I have to admit, I have some of the same concerns as the OP. Not for me and my wife (we're happy on any cruise!), but for our friends that will be with us in September. Both couples are new to cruising, and may not be so willing to take things in stride like we are since they cruise so rarely. I think we may end up switching ships for our September cruise, and do Dream later when its just me and the wife.

[Biffer1997]

I appreciated everyone's honest opinions about the Dream. I have spent the last week deciding between Dream and Legend. I chose Legend (booked it today :) because the reviews that were posted (both on the review section and on the message board), the "bad" outweighed the "good". It is a new ship that needs time to grow into itself. I would not hesitate to book the Dream later or one of its sister ships, because by then CCL will have "gotten the bugs worked out". Just my two cents.

[Casino Player]

After all the very bad reviews being posted, and they all can't be Carnival haters. They all addresss the same things, bad food and very slow service on (Lido.) Not enough staff to serve or clean up on (Lido.) Not enough lines open for number of people (Lido.) See a pattern here. Second the smell of sewage on ship mentioned in 12 reviews, even if it is just one whif you wont forget it unless you have already stuck your head in a sewer pipe. Lines at all the shows of up to 30 min to even try and get in 10 reviews. Now I'll give you my bad news we are booked for Feb. and honestly we are ardent Carnival cruisers this will be are 10 and we are wondering is this really where we want to be on are first Platinum cruise.

 

HHHHHEEEEELLLLLLLLLLOOOOO RICKO: I went on the Dream last month. First two cruises in the USA fr the ship out of NYC.

The only time I smelled something bad was after I used the toilet, not before. I did not smell sewage over the ship. I did not experience lines at shows. You go be the first one there. Chances are you won't get in the theater until after the prior show lets out.

The food tasted pretty good. Don't go during prime eating times. Go a little after. Try some of the eating places not too crowded such as the pasta bar. On my cruise people didn't discover it so there was always a spot. Service was pretty good, just don't let them take your table number off until after you are served the food.

The one thing I will say was the worst was my experience in the casino. Dealers only months out of dealers school think they could teach someone who has played craps for 20+ years how to play. They were certainly the worst bunch of dealers and that was the worst casino I ever played in.