Carnival Dream 1/7/12-1/14/12

[PrettyHazardous]

Okay I am writing this review really late, but better late than never I guess:rolleyes:. A bit of background I'm Ashley and DH is Brian we are avid Carnival Cruisers and I am a part time home based travel agent. We are 28 and 33. We traveled with my grandparents (my parents as they raised me, you'll find that I use the term interchangeably in this review) both in the mid 60s. They are also well traveled! Sorry as I am a bit long winded but I will try to get this thing completed tonight. But if I have problems loading pics it may take a little longer. Please note that I am no photographer!

 

 

 

 

[PrettyHazardous]

Okay lets go…. After searching for an inexpensive winter getaway DH and I were very excited about cruising on the Dream as it was one of the newest and biggest ships in the Carnival fleet. My parents do not really like Carnival as NCL is more of their style of cruise. However it was my hubby and gma’s birthday so my parents (at the last minute) decided to join us on the cruise. We were also excited about the Western Caribbean itinerary as we visited numerous new ports. My gma had been to Roatan but everything else was new to her. Everything was new to dh, gdad and I.

Okay so we flew Southwest from BWI to MCO the morning before the cruise 1/6/12. I will honestly say I hate Southwest. Their seating system is terrible however the trip was uneventful. We had pre order transportation from Cocoa Beach Shuttle. They were not there when we arrived at MCO and they took about 20 minutes to get there when we called. Then the driver acted like we had not pre arranged transport. It was annoying. But we were finally on our way after a few minutes. We stayed the night at Country Inn & Suites. I loved the hotel. Nothing spectacular but the staff were very friendly. It wasn’t warm enough for the pool so we went to lunch at Zachary’s Family Restaurant. We had the best clam chowder on earth. The rest of our meal wasn’t too appetizing but the soup made up for that. We ended up ordering some to go and eating that for dinner in the hotel. Once back to the hotel we all took naps. The Brian and I got up and played in the arcade, went online and went to the store to get sodas and snacks for the cruise. The next morning we weren’t too happy about the long wait for bfast but hey it was free so no biggie. After that they started transporting ppl to the cruise ships Yay. I think we were on the 2nd bus to go out and our driver was very entertaining. I can’t remember his name but here’s his pic. He’s won awards for being so personable.

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When we arrived at the port we were excited. Embarkation moved smoothly and rather fast. I can’t remember what time we got there maybe 11ish but they announced boarding all number right after we finished getting our accounts set up so we jumped up and got in line. Thank goodness because a few seconds later they started calling numbers again. After taking a few pictures we were on board. We walked around the ship for a few minutes then went to the Lido deck for lunch. After that we toured this ship….

The Ship

All I can say is we loved, loved, loved it. It was the biggest we’ve been on. Deck 5 was the best IMO. We spent a lot of time just walking around outside on that deck. It was so peaceful and quiet there. We also enjoyed sailaway on that deck. There were about 4 or 5 ships at Port Canaveral so it was fun riding past all the ships and honking on the way out. Some of the other things we enjoyed on beard were the mini golf and the big movie screen (DH and I would go up and get popcorn and skip the movie most nights though). We went to the wine tasting, awesome experience. We had a chef (cruiser) at our table who actually knew a bit more about the wines than the sommelier so that made the tasting extra informative. The spa was amazing. DH and I went on the tour in the beginning of the cruise and really considered getting the week long pass. But the trip was port intensive so we didn’t think it was worth it. But we plan to have a spa cabin on our next cruise on the Breeze!

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Food

Our feelings were pretty neutral about the food on this ship. Overall it was okay. We ate dinner in the MDR all but two nights (all but 3 for my parents) which is much more often than usual for us. This was our first time trying the new menu and really it wasn’t that big of deal. We liked it just as much as the old one. DH and Gdad each had the fried chicken 1x and thought it was just okay. My gdad who really enjoys exotic food was really disappointed with the shark and the frog legs. I actually liked the frog legs a lot. I also ordered the chilled fruit soups each time they had them and both my gma and I really loved them, the men not so much. One night DH and I ate dinner on Lido and actually enjoyed it more than dinner in MDR. It was the same menu but we could pick and choose and we were happy with it. We also ate there for the choco buffet. I am not a big choco person but it was delish. We ate most bfasts and lunches on Lido. But we also tend to get addicted to the Cesar salad at the pizza place so that was my regular midnight snack. I loved the Mongolian wok and had omletes there for bfast as well. We only has the Indian food 1x which I was very upset about bc we lovvved it. We never made it to the pasta place but heard really good things from other CC members. We ate at the Steakhouse and weren’t really impressed. We usually eat there 2-3x but on 1x on this ship. Service there was subpar and the food wasn’t as good as usual. We also loved the Sushi bar. Also I enjoyed the new drinks in the punchliner’s comedy club. I met a bar tender at the Casino bar who works in Punchliners also so he was able to make me the drink I loved but I can’t remember the name of it.

Rooms

Okay DH and I were in balcony cabin on the Vista deck, Worst decision ever. We were underneath the outdoor pool deck area on Lido and we could hear every single thing. It was soo bad that we complained on day 2. We received 30% of our cruise cost back on our S&S and 20% off our next cruise. Carnival staff handled the problem so well. However the $$$$ didn’t alleviate the noise which really made the trip less relaxing than planned. We had a great room steward. Very personable and we joked with him constantly. His personality made us not notice that he wasn’t that good at cleaning the room. Of course we tipped him extra!! He was awesome, kept trying to steal me from my hubby so we could go party together. My parent’s room was on Lido and they had no problems but for some reason their room felt smaller than ours.

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Staff

The staff on this ship were exceptional. We dealt with a couple ppl bc of the issue with our room and they were very professional and accommodating. The supervisor checked in on us over the course of the cruise and gave us her direct line in case we had any issues. I was in charge of the CC party so I worked with a staff member for that as well. She was great. Also our dining room team was awesome. Our lead server was so serious and focused. He had been on cruise ships for over 20 years and he was exhausted. He only had 1 cruise after ours and then he was retiring. Also this was the 1st time that we ever saw the Maitre D actually interact with ppl in the dining room, good stuff. I don’t even remember the CD and fun staff…. That says it all. We also had a problem with the internet café guy never being around. We had a discrepancy with internet usage that the purser’s desk couldn’t address. They kept giving us the internet guy’s schedule but he never showed up for work. There were times that there were groups of ppl waiting for him to no avail. Also we met the neatest guy from India working in the dining room. He was a triplet and one of his brothers worked on the Dream as well and the other worked on another ship. Both brothers had triplets and his wife was pregnant with her second set of triplets. Well at least that’s what he told us.

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Ports

Okay we were excited about these ports, however DH and I were disappointed that we only really spent time with my parents at 1 port. They were more focused on quick shopping in port and hanging out/relaxing on board while everyone was off the ship. So this is pretty much just what DH and I did. Also we never schedule excursions with the cruise line, too pricey.

Cozumel

This was supposed to be our relaxed port. After doing a bit of windowless shopping at the port we took a cab ride to the ruins. Honestly it was an expensive snooze. Then we came back ate lunch at the Café Café (that can’t really be the name can it??? See the pics below) across from the port. The food was good. Next DH bought he and his bf _____ cigars as a gift. Prior to getting back on board we went to Fat Tuesdays to just relax and have a drink. We watched the water as the bar was really empty. This was a cool day.

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Belize

This was one of our favorite experiences at a port. DH and I went cave tubing with some other ppl from our CC group. We were worried that bc this was a tender island we would not make it to the port in time for our trip. However Carnival’s staff was awesome. They had all the persons who booked excursions outside of Carnival meet in the lounge where the comedy show is. We all received tender tickets and were actually able to get off on the first tender boat. Once we arrived in port we found our guide Nacho and his team of NCQ Belize Adventure Tours. We took an air conditioned bus to the caves. We had a great island tour en route. Next we had three guides take us cave tubing (after a rather long walk that was soo worth it in the end). One guide took 8-10 ppl and we were tubing. It was soo much fun. We went through 2 caves (Carnival only takes you through one). It was beautiful especially the waterfall inside the caves. Also our guides made it so much fun bc they kept telling us spooky stories, making loud scary noises and wetting us up. We also had the best tubes on the water (the ones where the inner holes was covered so you couldn’t fall thru). After tubing we went to lunch at a butterfly farm. We didn’t have time to explore bc we were running a little late but lunch was delish (the limeade was amazing). DH and I ate with Nacho and Cynthia and got to learn a lot about life on the island and their experiences as a couple running a business in Belize. Next Nacho led the tour and which meant jokes and brain teaser all the way back to the port (we also stopped for Cashew Wine and Belizean Coca Cola, there was also coke, rum punch and beer on the bus for us to drink). After that awesome day dh and I went to a little restaurant for drinks and food to take back on board then tendered back to the ship (Sorry no pics tubing but 1 pic tendering :().

Roatan

Also an awesome day. I scheduled for my gdad, myself and another cc family to go horseback riding with El Rancho Barrio Dorcas. My gdad horseback rides on every vacay. However this was the most unique bc we rode through a community not just the beach. It was so neat to ride right outside of ppl’s homes and talk to children and families while riding. Then we went to the beach where we were able to ride really fast with the horses. This trip turned into an adventure when one man in our group fell off his horse. Then his horse ran down to the end of the beach and was off into the community. About 10 minutes later one of the guides on horseback came back with the runaway horse and saved the day, fun/scary/shocking/embarrassing stuff. While we were riding my gma and dh went to the beach. They had a glass bottom boat tour and then we joined them for lunch and drinks. After a bit of shopping on the beach we watched a show then went back to the port and had drinks at Fat Tuesdays. My parents who aren’t big drinkers or partiers really enjoyed watching the young ppl partying at the bar.

 

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More Pics

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Costa Maya

Our last stop was Costa Maya Mexico. We had scheduled a table at Tropicante for our group of 4 however my parents weren’t up to leaving the port shopping area (did I mention my parents loooooove to shop, they bought soo much jewelry on this trip). We had a good time at Tropicante. Okay honestly we weren’t very happy with the service and were planning to leave until Steve (I think that’s his name) the owner joined the DH and I. We talked with him for at least 35 minutes about various topics like politics, his life on the island, getting medical treatment in Mexico (I am clearly going to Mexico for my next major surgery lol). After that we left. Tropicante was beautiful. Next we walked along the board walk area until it became rather uncomfy. The store owners were extremely aggressive (the worst I’ve seen) and were really rude. Once we started to feel unsafe we left. I was not shopping there feeling the way I did. So we went back to the ship.

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Overall this cruise was awesome. We planned to just relax but found ourselves being very active the entire cruise. This was our first time doing the past guest party which we enjoyed. We like the shows on this ship. Especially the one featuring the hip hop dancer. That was amazing. Dis embarkation was easy peasy no problems there. Cocoa Beach Shuttle was easier to deal with as they were there immediately after we called them. The flight back to BWI was terrible bc we weren’t able to check in early enough to get seats together so I was stuck between a couple who didn’t talk the entire trip. She read a book and the husband slept. I didn’t know they were together until we arrived at BWI and she told him “I’ll drive home bc you have the flu and I don’t want you getting me sick" !!! :mad::eek: Of course I instantly became ill and was sick for 2 weeks!!!! What a way to end a marvelous vacay!!!!

This was a lovely vacay and I would definitely cruise on the Dream again but would choose a different room. :) I’m excited about booking the Breeze for 2013! Feel free to ask me any questions you may have…. I will leave you with some final pics! I can’t believe I completed this review so fast!!!!

[PrettyHazardous]

[vivavegas]

Nice review! Thanks for sharing!:)

[tomsuelaw]

Thanks for posting! Enjoying your review. You and your family sounds like fun people to meet :) Oh, and I agree, better late then never.

 

One question: you mentioned that Carnival let the non-carnival excursion people also have priority tender boarding, how did you find out about this? Did they announce it or did you ask someone for this info? We too are doing an independent excursion and concerned about tender waits.

 

Thanks and keep up the great review, I am reading and enjoying!

[dixiediva761]

Excellent!! Thank you.

[PrettyHazardous]

Thanks Dixie and Viva!!!!:D

 

Susan I feel like it was announced, but they didn't specifically say non Carnival excursion ppl. They just told us the time that tendering started. Our guide (in advance via email) told us to get to the tender tickets as early as possible. So we were there around 7am I believe. I think it just happened to be the case that everyone there that early were on non Carnival excursions (who else would be crazy enough to tender that early for nothing right lol:eek:). Once we arrived in the lounge the staff then explained that they knew we had excursions and it was their goal to get us off the ship in a timely manner so that we could meet out guide. ;)I feared that they would hold us up since we didn't book with Carnival but it was actually the exact opposite.

 

The good thing about they way they handle the tenders is that people on Carnival excursions get picked up directly from the ship for their excursions so they aren't on the regular tender boats we're on. I hope that makes sense if not I will try to clarify.

[tomsuelaw]

Thanks Dixie and Viva!!!!:D

 

Susan I feel like it was announced, but they didn't specifically say non Carnival excursion ppl. They just told us the time that tendering started. Our guide (in advance via email) told us to get to the tender tickets as early as possible. So we were there around 7am I believe. I think it just happened to be the case that everyone there that early were on non Carnival excursions (who else would be crazy enough to tender that early for nothing right lol:eek:). Once we arrived in the lounge the staff then explained that they knew we had excursions and it was their goal to get us off the ship in a timely manner so that we could meet out guide. ;)I feared that they would hold us up since we didn't book with Carnival but it was actually the exact opposite.

 

The good thing about they way they handle the tenders is that people on Carnival excursions get picked up directly from the ship for their excursions so they aren't on the regular tender boats we're on. I hope that makes sense if not I will try to clarify.

 

Makes perfect sense, thanks! Also, I think your pic review was the fastest finish ever. You may have been a few months late writing it but you didn't waist any time posting. Great job ;)

[ondeegoh]

Good review!! Thanks for posting! Our Dream cruise is not until August and we'll be on the same itinerary - and I can't hardly wait. Until then I'm psyching myself up with all the Dream reviews that get posted. I'm glad you enjoyed your vacay! We're also flying down the day before the cruise - thought of driving but my mom (who's joining us from Cali) convinced me to do otherwise. Luckily I was able to find cheap fares for me and my daughters. I suppose it was meant to be!:D

[cruiserNC]

Nice Review!

[PrettyHazardous]

Susan I wrote the entire review in word then posted it. I had to figure out how to add pics so I used Shutterfly and it worked better than I had expected:).

Onedeegoh you will definitely love this cruise. I really enjoyed it. I really liked the itenerary as well. I most likely won't take it again bc I like to visit different ports each time if I can. But of all of those ports I'd like to revisit Belize and Roatan if I get a chance :cool:.

 

:DHappy Cruising!

[PrettyHazardous]

I'm going to try to add a few more pics from DH cam this evening!:)