rlp122 Posted March 19, 2015 #1 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Cruise newbie here asking for advice on cabin selection. My wife and I are planning our 25th wedding anniversary this year and have decided on a Western Carribean cruise on the Carnival Dream. Our budget is going to allow us to select from any of the balcony rooms. Any suggestions on deck and room numbers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
americanmama Posted March 19, 2015 #2 Share Posted March 19, 2015 DH and I always choose a deck that has cabins above and below so that we are not situated under or over a noisy area. Some cabins over deck 6 might be over a night club...some cabins up higher may be under the pool area or basketball court, etc...for our May cruise we have chosen the Verandah, deck 8, got the bowling lane large balcony :) love us some balconies...Congrats on 25 years, and have a wonderful cruise! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trvlgirlmq Posted March 19, 2015 #3 Share Posted March 19, 2015 My personal favorite is Lido. The balcony cabins are between 2 other passenger decks and you are close to pools, buffet, bars and lots of fun. There is absolutely no noise issue from all the activity on Lido. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merchant43 Posted March 19, 2015 #4 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I sailed on the Dream last Oct. had a Cove balcony. It was wonderful if you want to be close to water. Check out the deck plans and see what is over and under each deck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wwva Posted March 19, 2015 #5 Share Posted March 19, 2015 My first choice would be an AFT balcony followed by a cove balcony. Deck doesn't matter if you get either of these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wbc12345 Posted March 19, 2015 #6 Share Posted March 19, 2015 We sailed last August on the Carnival Dream and booked our first balcony on the Lido deck. We absolutely loved it! We are going again in May and have booked another balcony on Lido. We found it to be the perfect location. One thing that I haven't seen anyone mention is that the Carnival Dream has a lanai that wraps around the entire 5th floor of the ship. I absolutely love this space on the ship, but it does affect which decks I would book a balcony cabin on. Walking along the lanai you are very, very close to the balcony cabins on the Upper deck (6th floor) and the Empress deck (7th floor). So, for me, those balcony cabins are not ideal. The further forward and higher you go on the ship, the better your view is from your balcony. However, for motion sickness this is not ideal. So, if you're concerned with motion sickness be careful about selecting cabins. They say middle of the boat and lower decks are better. We've never had any issue with motion sickness, so we can book anywhere. In May, we are booked midship in a cabin very close to the lido deck. We would rather give up the view straight down and be closer to the lido for our convenience. I don't have any recommendation about the Cove balconies, as we've never stayed in one. It is on my list of cabins to try! I do know that I have seen several threads about noises in cove balcony cabins. Be sure to be very selective and check what is located directly above and below you if you go with a Cove Balcony. I hope this helps! You're going on a great ship! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astropilot Posted March 19, 2015 #7 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Deck 2, I believe, any cove balcony. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccartman2 Posted March 19, 2015 #8 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I loved my aft balcony when I had it on the Glory, but there are those that don't like them as well. Last Balcony was on the Lido, I that has spoiled me for life. It is a perfect location. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Dutch Girl Posted March 19, 2015 #9 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Deck 7 mid ship next to the suites and as far inboard from the elevators as we can get. Quietest area on ship, quiet balconies, quiet corridors with considerably less traffic than other floors. Sitting down on balcony no one can see up from promenade deck...just be aware of hot tub locations. Deck 7 means it is an easy stair climb up or down to the Lido or the Promenade decks, means time spent waiting for elevators is negligible. Stewards have less rooms to attend to so they can service you better. Mid ship means most stable cabin...even in bad seas you don't feel a thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merchant43 Posted March 19, 2015 #10 Share Posted March 19, 2015 My first choice would be an AFT balcony followed by a cove balcony. Deck doesn't matter if you get either of these. Location of room would matter for Cove Balcony. Dining rooms and galley above Cove balconies. I'm hearing impaired so noise isn't a problem for me but I've read other post about some complaints Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mary80 Posted March 19, 2015 #11 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Cove balcony! No complaints with room 2342. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Podna's Posted March 19, 2015 #12 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Another vote for a lido balcony. The convenience is well worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_k58 Posted March 20, 2015 #13 Share Posted March 20, 2015 DH and I always choose a deck that has cabins above and below so that we are not situated under or over a noisy area. Some cabins over deck 6 might be over a night club...some cabins up higher may be under the pool area or basketball court, etc...for our May cruise we have chosen the Verandah, deck 8, got the bowling lane large balcony :) love us some balconies...Congrats on 25 years, and have a wonderful cruise! which cabin has the " bowling lane" balcony? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scuabacruiser Posted March 20, 2015 #14 Share Posted March 20, 2015 DH and I always choose a deck that has cabins above and below so that we are not situated under or over a noisy area. Some cabins over deck 6 might be over a night club...some cabins up higher may be under the pool area or basketball court, etc...for our May cruise we have chosen the Verandah, deck 8, got the bowling lane large balcony :) love us some balconies...Congrats on 25 years, and have a wonderful cruise! We also like the Verandah deck for the same reasons. I have to admit that's the 1st time I heard a balcony called the bowling lane. It must be one of those long balconies on the end with one of the L shaped cabins. We loved that one. I used this same logic on all of our cruises, a cabin with cabins above and below. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRed93 Posted March 21, 2015 #15 Share Posted March 21, 2015 I would choose a spa balcony on deck 11. Plus you would have access to the thalassotherapy pool and the thermal suites. Very relaxing! Nice to get away from the crowds, and also to sit in the cooling room watching the sunset through the big windows. Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave_k58 Posted March 21, 2015 #16 Share Posted March 21, 2015 We got an upgrade once to the the Spa Deck on 11 on the Conquest. Since it was an upgrade - we got NO spa perks. BUt - the door to the balcony was a sliding glass door rather than the regular balcony door, which was a huge plus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruiser fanatic Posted March 21, 2015 #17 Share Posted March 21, 2015 Definitely a Cove Balcony on the Dream. They are close to the water, enclosed and are private. The Regular Balconies are not private as people from the lanai can look up at you. It also blocks your view looking down to the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
panamatiger Posted March 21, 2015 #18 Share Posted March 21, 2015 The Regular Balconies are not private as people from the lanai can look up at you. It also blocks your view looking down to the water. Thank You so much for posting this. We were able to make the switch to an Aft balcony on Deck 7 for $50 per person Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRed93 Posted March 21, 2015 #19 Share Posted March 21, 2015 We got an upgrade once to the the Spa Deck on 11 on the Conquest. Since it was an upgrade - we got NO spa perks. BUt - the door to the balcony was a sliding glass door rather than the regular balcony door, which was a huge plus Conquest doesn't have the cloud 9 spa like Dream does. It's fabulous. IMO Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
americanmama Posted March 21, 2015 #20 Share Posted March 21, 2015 the 'bowling lane balconies' are the large balconies right next to the aft wraps..next to last balcony on the deck...you can look at deck plans..check out Dream 8462 as an example Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katiel53 Posted March 22, 2015 #21 Share Posted March 22, 2015 We have sailed on Dream a few times and have always had a balcony on deck 8, Verandah deck. We also sailed mid ship close to the elevators. My family and I are going on Dream again but unfortunately we weren't able to book the cabin I wanted as we needed two cabins next to each other and the next one to us on both sides was already booked. We are still on that deck, but more forward. I, personally, wouldn't book a cabin on any other deck as below us there is no privacy on the balconies, and there aren't midship cabins above us. I don't like either being forward because of the motion of the ship and I don't like being in the aft as the things I like to do are more forward. I also couldn't book a cove although I know many people love them. I have noticed when on deck 8 the water doesn't seem to be rushing by as we sail, but looking out on deck 5, it seems the water is moving faster so, to me, being on deck 2, I would probably feel nauseous looking out at the water as it would seem to be rushing by as we sailed. I know this sounds crazy and I probably am, but I know that's how I would feel. To me being midship is the perfect location to go forward to the ATD restaurant, straight down to the casino or to the rear to the other dining room for brunch. (I think that's where it is.) Also getting the elevator near our cabin to Lido lets us off right near the omelet station in the morning or the wok area for lunch. Perfection in my book! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stargate fan Posted March 22, 2015 #22 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Cruise newbie here asking for advice on cabin selection. My wife and I are planning our 25th wedding anniversary this year and have decided on a Western Carribean cruise on the Carnival Dream. Our budget is going to allow us to select from any of the balcony rooms. Any suggestions on deck and room numbers? Happy almost-25th anniversary! We LOVE being on the Lido Deck. We are close to the pools, so it's a quick walk back to the cabin for forgotten items or to use our own restroom, and to the buffet, making it convenient to bring breakfast to our balcony in the morning and snacks to enjoy outside in the afternoon. We sailed 10274 on Dream and 10277 on both Breeze and Magic. These are connecting cabins, which means there is an interior door that connects to the next cabin. On all three cruises, we never heard a peep from next door. Added bonus-the handle was a great place to hang my damp bathing suits. :D We will absolutely book 10277 next time we're on any of the three ships. Note: On the Dream class ships, smoking is allowed on the Lanai, deck 5, on the port side. (That's opposite than all other classes of ships.) The Red Frog Pub has an outdoor smoking area on the port side, forward. If you are sensitive to smoke, choose starboard side. If not, go port side. ***This is for information only and NOT to start a discussion for/against smoking.*** Note, part deux: The Lanai wraps all the way around the ship. When we walked the Lanai at night, we could easily see into cabins on decks 6 and 7, if the lights were on inside. That's another reason we choose to be high up. Privacy. Have fun planning your cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rlp122 Posted March 22, 2015 Author #23 Share Posted March 22, 2015 Thank you all so much for the information! I think we will be booking this week so this has been extremely helpful to a couple of cruise newbies! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormy_weatherman Posted March 23, 2015 #24 Share Posted March 23, 2015 We just got off the Dream this morning. We had a "large balcony", 8469, an L-shaped cabin on the Verandah deck. I would highly recommend one of these balconies. There are only 6 or so on the ship, so you have to be quick to grab one, but they are some of the largest balconies on the ship. It was nice to have our own personal lounger! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruser3 Posted March 24, 2015 #25 Share Posted March 24, 2015 My wife and I have sailed three times on the Dream. Cove Balcony each time. Close to the water, some protection from the weather in case it rains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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