Legend or Dream for Western Family Cruise

[cruzin4our10th]

Planning next years family cruise with DD's who will be 12 &9. We have done the Eastern itinerary twice with them and thought maybe we'd try the Western this time around (July 2012).

 

Thoughts on Dream vs Legend? I like the new big boat with the waterpark. However I'm not sure it's all that or worth the extra money. Also like Grand Caymen stop on Legend which is not offered on the Dream.

[bonnys]

We did the Dream (western route) last year. While we had a wonderful time (we were on a cruise, need I say more) we did not like that we could barely feel the ship move. One of my favorite things about cruising is being rocked to sleep by the waves and movement. Didn't happen on the Dream...not once. We have the Legend booked for April so I can't say how it is but if the itens' are similar I would go with the Legend. Or if GC is worth the price difference, then go for the Dream.

[bonnys]

One more thing. We had our then 10 yo DD with us. She used the slide some but the pool more. The waterpark was ok but certainly not a deal breaker. If I had very little children then it would have made more of a difference.

[Chris1013]

First off, I haven't been on the Dream, though I'd love to try it eventually.

 

I've been on the Legend, loved the intinerary and ship. Will be traveling on it again in October. Having been to Grand Cayman 4 times, at time point, I wouldn't mind skippng it. However, I will say that with your kids' ages being 12 and 9, they may really enjoy Stingray City. It's a lot of fun.

[PaulMedik]

Planning next years family cruise with DD's who will be 12 &9. We have done the Eastern itinerary twice with them and thought maybe we'd try the Western this time around (July 2012).

 

Thoughts on Dream vs Legend? I like the new big boat with the waterpark. However I'm not sure it's all that or worth the extra money. Also like Grand Caymen stop on Legend which is not offered on the Dream.

 

 

cruzin4our10th,

 

We've sailed both ships and both itineraries. If the ports were the same, I'd choose Dream, but since Legend visits Grand Cayman I'd go with Legend. Legend also has a nice new Serenity area that looks great. Dream has a Serenity area as well, but CHAIR HOGS dominated it throughout our cruise and there were less HOGS on Legend.

 

Dream does have features that your children may enjoy more; better water park slides and a big screen TV.

 

Given your familiarity with Conquest Class ships, I'd recommend that you study up on the deck plans for Legend. Legend looks familiar, but everything is rearranged and not where you expect to find it on a Conquest Class ship. CLICK HERE for Legend deck plans.

[PunkinsDad]

We have been on both Legend and Dream, with children. (Dream was the Eastern route)

 

We enjoyed both, but for our upcoming April cruise we are going back to the Legend. Draw your own conclusions.

 

For us at least, bigger does not always mean better.

 

I will say that Port Canaveral was hands-down the best run and set up that we have ever experienced. Two things we particularly liked, They have a VIP line for security not just for check-in, and the baggage claim area for debark is AFTER you clear customs. No dragging all your bags to the customs desk. We have also cruised out of Tampa twice, and they are not far behind. On our 2009 cruise from there checkin (VIP) probably took no more than 20 min. Debarkation was even faster.

[fonrouge82]

We just decided yesterday between those 2 ships. My DH and I will be bringing our 2 sons, ages 8 and 10, on their first cruise. After reading MANY reviews about the 2 ships we decided on the Legend because it seemed the reviews about the Dream were hit or miss-many mentioned overcrowding and long lines. Many of the reviews about the Legend were from cruisers returning for 2nd and 3rd cruises on the Legend. Those were just a few of things that helped us make our decision. Good luck deciding on yours and Happy Cruising!

[hokalier]

I have sailed the Dream western route with DS 8 and DDs 6,6. They absolutely loved it. In fact we are leaving Saturday for the eastern route on the Dream. My kids love the water works area with the various slides. We would spend hours there!!! We used the pools some, but the main pool was usually packed with people. We loved the ports - kids swam with the dolphins in Cozumel and had a blast at Roatan just swimming and playing on the beach right there near the pier. I will say the lines at the buffet were very long which was a pain with 3 kids who all wanted something different. We found eating breakfast in the MDR was much easier and had pretty much the same food. Overall we loved the Dream. Camp Carnival was awesome. My 3 loved every minute of it!!

 

Also our ride was very "rockin" so I think it just depends on the seas at the time.

 

Good luck with your decision!!