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The REAL Dream review I promised.....

sheilb4

By sheilb4,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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sheilb4

sheilb4

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I promised I would write a review so here it is, as real as I can make it from a very seasoned cruiser....Overall impression of cruise, ship, entertainment and service = 4/10.

 

Embarkation/debarkation - very efficient and speedy. well done CCL for that!

The ship is nice looking, decor is average but tasteful.

 

Cabin - nothing different, reasonable storage for 2 passengers, usual small shower, flat screen tv that only had approx 10 stations, 4 or 5 of which were ship related...small balcony and no privacy at all. I had an aft cabin and the balcony space was much smaller than an aft on Legend/Miracle.....

Yes, the ship sure rocks and shudders when pulling into/out of port, one night it started at 4am for over an hour.....I usually have an aft on many other cruises and this was extreme room shaking, shuddering!

I was lax in checking below me when I booked as room choice was minimal for New Years, so found I was directly over the Burgundy lounge...lots of loud music many nights until very late...my fault there.

 

Smells - Never once noticed the infamous sewage smell I heard about before I cruised.

 

Lines - depended when you ate. If you waited an hour after the areas opened for lunch you were fine most of the time, a 5 min wait if that.

 

Food - actually majority of meals in Dining room were pretty good, an improvement on RCCL, which claims superior food, NOT. Carnival did well and had a good selection of choices.

Lido food was average, nothing special...BUT they really need to change the layout of the salad/main bar areas. If you only wanted the main meal, you still have to join the line and wait for everyone to go thru the salad bar to get to the main meal area...def need to make the salad bar area seperate...very crowded and disorganized. Desserts nothing special there either, pretty tasteless and bland. The Tandoori/Indian bar was ok, Naan bread good, but same items every day. No hot curries....Deli, good, same as every other ship, and very long lines too!

 

Entertainment - The shows were fairly good and enjoyable, tho the lead female singer had such a powerful voice, it was so loud as if she were shouting....needs to tone it down a bit, but still pretty good. Never had a problem getting a good seat at any time.

The CD - Todd, was cute, and easy on the eyes but I did not observe much of a personality, tho I enjoyed watching him, he had a good speaking voice. His assistants were uninspiring and dull, very amateurish.

They have a new concept with the aft lounge, Burgundy lounge, to make this a comedy club instead of the usual great filipino bands you get there on other ships or in a location on the promenade deck....not my thing.

Missed having a filipino band as they would always play such a great variety of music and usually very talented. They had a Caliente (latin music) club and another area on the promenade deck with a female singer and 2 country looking guys....very average. No refined ballroom dancing music for the older folks to enjoy and dance to...my Mother was very disappointed.

The Piano bar looked like a lot of fun but the smoke hit you almost 200yds away, so being a non-smoker and allergic,l I could never go there, looked like folks were having so much fun there too. The nightclub was also very smoky! ugh!

So evening entertainment was limited for us unfortunately.

 

Sunloungers - oh my, such chair hogging...amazing. At 7.30a you would find rows and rows of loungers already with towels and personal belongings on them to reserve,they would stay empty for 2-3 hrs I witnessed on 2 occasions and no deck patrol/security to monitor this.

Pools - a much larger ship, more passengers but the pools were tiny!ridiculous, and no seperate pool for adults, so forget a little swim...3 strokes and you did a length! but then you would also have to avoid kids doing cannon balls....wonderful!

 

It was very obvious to see that CCL are economizing and cutting back on things, drink prices had increased, no more punch cards for the daily drinks and coffee,staff were stressed and didn't appear too happy, tho service was good. Room service very prompt.

 

Perks....being a Platinum/VIP guest really was of no benefit, unlike RCCL, Carnival really do not recognize this well. a plate of icky appetizers twice and a repetitive photo frame...that was it. forget the priority tendering ...doesn't happen.Not even a free bottle of water in the cabin!

 

Overall it was a fairly relaxing cruise, but not one I would do again...The Dream was built to increase capacity with extra passengers/cabins, but public areas were small and some deficits with planning in the dining areas...

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sheilb4

sheilb4

Posted
Posted

I promised I would write a review so here it is, as real as I can make it from a very seasoned cruiser....Overall impression of cruise, ship, entertainment and service = 4/10.

 

Embarkation/debarkation - very efficient and speedy. well done CCL for that!

The ship is nice looking, decor is average but tasteful.

 

Cabin - nothing different, reasonable storage for 2 passengers, usual small shower, flat screen tv that only had approx 10 stations, 4 or 5 of which were ship related...small balcony and no privacy at all. I had an aft cabin and the balcony space was much smaller than an aft on Legend/Miracle.....

Yes, the ship sure rocks and shudders when pulling into/out of port, one night it started at 4am for over an hour.....I usually have an aft on many other cruises and this was extreme room shaking, shuddering!

I was lax in checking below me when I booked as room choice was minimal for New Years, so found I was directly over the Burgundy lounge...lots of loud music many nights until very late...my fault there.

 

Smells - Never once noticed the infamous sewage smell I heard about before I cruised.

 

Lines - depended when you ate. If you waited an hour after the areas opened for lunch you were fine most of the time, a 5 min wait if that.

 

Food - actually majority of meals in Dining room were pretty good, an improvement on RCCL, which claims superior food, NOT. Carnival did well and had a good selection of choices.

Lido food was average, nothing special...BUT they really need to change the layout of the salad/main bar areas. If you only wanted the main meal, you still have to join the line and wait for everyone to go thru the salad bar to get to the main meal area...def need to make the salad bar area seperate...very crowded and disorganized. Desserts nothing special there either, pretty tasteless and bland. The Tandoori/Indian bar was ok, Naan bread good, but same items every day. No hot curries....Deli, good, same as every other ship, and very long lines too!

 

Entertainment - The shows were fairly good and enjoyable, tho the lead female singer had such a powerful voice, it was so loud as if she were shouting....needs to tone it down a bit, but still pretty good. Never had a problem getting a good seat at any time.

The CD - Todd, was cute, and easy on the eyes but I did not observe much of a personality, tho I enjoyed watching him, he had a good speaking voice. His assistants were uninspiring and dull, very amateurish.

They have a new concept with the aft lounge, Burgundy lounge, to make this a comedy club instead of the usual great filipino bands you get there on other ships or in a location on the promenade deck....not my thing.

Missed having a filipino band as they would always play such a great variety of music and usually very talented. They had a Caliente (latin music) club and another area on the promenade deck with a female singer and 2 country looking guys....very average. No refined ballroom dancing music for the older folks to enjoy and dance to...my Mother was very disappointed.

The Piano bar looked like a lot of fun but the smoke hit you almost 200yds away, so being a non-smoker and allergic,l I could never go there, looked like folks were having so much fun there too. The nightclub was also very smoky! ugh!

So evening entertainment was limited for us unfortunately.

 

Sunloungers - oh my, such chair hogging...amazing. At 7.30a you would find rows and rows of loungers already with towels and personal belongings on them to reserve,they would stay empty for 2-3 hrs I witnessed on 2 occasions and no deck patrol/security to monitor this.

Pools - a much larger ship, more passengers but the pools were tiny!ridiculous, and no seperate pool for adults, so forget a little swim...3 strokes and you did a length! but then you would also have to avoid kids doing cannon balls....wonderful!

 

It was very obvious to see that CCL are economizing and cutting back on things, drink prices had increased, no more punch cards for the daily drinks and coffee,staff were stressed and didn't appear too happy, tho service was good. Room service very prompt.

 

Perks....being a Platinum/VIP guest really was of no benefit, unlike RCCL, Carnival really do not recognize this well. a plate of icky appetizers twice and a repetitive photo frame...that was it. forget the priority tendering ...doesn't happen.Not even a free bottle of water in the cabin!

 

Overall it was a fairly relaxing cruise, but not one I would do again...The Dream was built to increase capacity with extra passengers/cabins, but public areas were small and some deficits with planning in the dining areas...

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teach21566

teach21566

Posted
Posted

I have a few questions, how was the adult only section??

How was the movies by the pool?

Did you try the slides?

Did you try the lunch in the dining room on sea days?

Did you try afternoon tea??

How was the mini golf or basketball?

How was the Lazer show?

Did you go to any bingo?

How was the Lania area and the entertainment there?

Which dining room did you have..did you do traditional or anytime?

Is the pool at the end of the ship just for adults?? I thought it was?

Did you go to the health club?

How about those hot tubs, the ones that overhang the ocean??

 

Thanks

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teach21566

teach21566

Posted
Posted

I have a few questions, how was the adult only section??

How was the movies by the pool?

Did you try the slides?

Did you try the lunch in the dining room on sea days?

Did you try afternoon tea??

How was the mini golf or basketball?

How was the Lazer show?

Did you go to any bingo?

How was the Lania area and the entertainment there?

Which dining room did you have..did you do traditional or anytime?

Is the pool at the end of the ship just for adults?? I thought it was?

Did you go to the health club?

How about those hot tubs, the ones that overhang the ocean??

 

Thanks

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sheilb4

sheilb4

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To Teach21566

I have a few questions, how was the adult only section?? very nice area but almost impossible to get a chair..

How was the movies by the pool? They showed 2, but most of time was football..

Did you try the slides? Yes, fun, but scarey climbing steps, so high!

Did you try the lunch in the dining room on sea days? Once, brunch, this was good along with free Mimosas...It wasn't open for lunch every day

Did you try afternoon tea?? Didn't find it anywhere

How was the mini golf or basketball? Mini golf fun, but very small.

How was the Lazer show? Good, enjoyed it, crowded tho

Did you go to any bingo? Once, $20 for 3 cards. (0ne game)

How was the Lania area and the entertainment there? If you smoke you will like it.... singer/band very average. very small dance floor.

Which dining room did you have..did you do traditional or anytime? Scarlet/Aft, Trad. 8.15p..very cold every night!

Is the pool at the end of the ship just for adults?? I thought it was? I thought it was too, but No it was full of kids, and noone to oust them out, no security

Did you go to the health club? Yes, very nice but busy, the spa is nice but claustrophobic, small thalassotherapy pool

How about those hot tubs, the ones that overhang the ocean?? Never went in as always crowded with kids!

 

Thanks

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sheilb4

sheilb4

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To Teach21566

I have a few questions, how was the adult only section?? very nice area but almost impossible to get a chair..

How was the movies by the pool? They showed 2, but most of time was football..

Did you try the slides? Yes, fun, but scarey climbing steps, so high!

Did you try the lunch in the dining room on sea days? Once, brunch, this was good along with free Mimosas...It wasn't open for lunch every day

Did you try afternoon tea?? Didn't find it anywhere

How was the mini golf or basketball? Mini golf fun, but very small.

How was the Lazer show? Good, enjoyed it, crowded tho

Did you go to any bingo? Once, $20 for 3 cards. (0ne game)

How was the Lania area and the entertainment there? If you smoke you will like it.... singer/band very average. very small dance floor.

Which dining room did you have..did you do traditional or anytime? Scarlet/Aft, Trad. 8.15p..very cold every night!

Is the pool at the end of the ship just for adults?? I thought it was? I thought it was too, but No it was full of kids, and noone to oust them out, no security

Did you go to the health club? Yes, very nice but busy, the spa is nice but claustrophobic, small thalassotherapy pool

How about those hot tubs, the ones that overhang the ocean?? Never went in as always crowded with kids!

 

Thanks

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PaulMedik

PaulMedik

Posted
Posted
Yes, tendering only for Belize....

 

 

Sheilb4,

 

Thank you for sharing your experiences with us.

 

I hope they get people off quicker in Belize when we sail Dream in April so we can have the ship to ourselves longer! We may do the private island excursion if it's offered through Carnival to avoid the Belizean tender crap; as of now it is not offered. I have never minded tendering anywhere except Belize.

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PaulMedik

PaulMedik

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Yes, tendering only for Belize....

 

 

Sheilb4,

 

Thank you for sharing your experiences with us.

 

I hope they get people off quicker in Belize when we sail Dream in April so we can have the ship to ourselves longer! We may do the private island excursion if it's offered through Carnival to avoid the Belizean tender crap; as of now it is not offered. I have never minded tendering anywhere except Belize.

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ChrissyBTX

ChrissyBTX

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I remember the band with the lady & two male singers. They played inside, next to the bar. I wasn't impressed with them either.

 

But, there is no smoking in that area at all. You could walk outside on the promenade deck on either side. There was smoking outside on the port side, but no smoking on the starboard side. No smoking at all inside near the band.

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ChrissyBTX

ChrissyBTX

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I remember the band with the lady & two male singers. They played inside, next to the bar. I wasn't impressed with them either.

 

But, there is no smoking in that area at all. You could walk outside on the promenade deck on either side. There was smoking outside on the port side, but no smoking on the starboard side. No smoking at all inside near the band.

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sheilb4

sheilb4

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You are right, there was no smoking inside, but the outside area was so nice yet they allowed smoking on both sides of the ship as I saw one night, maybe it was a one off? Still a nice area except the music was not the best huh! LOL

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