My Dream cruise. An honest report.

[steveknj]

I am a little disappointed actually about the robes and chocolates. I won't let it ruin my trip but I love a chocolate right before bed. The robe I started to use several years ago because I always get up earlier than my dh and to go out on the balcony sometimes before the sun is up gets a little chilly. It is so easy to grab the robe in the dark and head outside. I will have to get a sweater for that now. Unless robes are maybe optional in your preferences like they are on Princess which by the way our last cruise on Princess had terrible thin and scratchy robes while Carnival's are thicker and luxurious! :D Hope they rethink them.

 

How much more per person would you pay to have chocolates and a robe in your cabin? Obviously they've done this a cost savings measure. I'd rather pay less and not have them then them jack up the price and keep them. But that's just me. There are luxury cruises where I'm sure they have amenities like that, but you are paying for the privilege. As it's never really been part of my cruising experience (well except years ago on Premier Cruise line, which is now defunct), I don't miss them at all.

[girlsjustwannacruise]

My goodness! The things people will pick out. The word "honest" is absolutely the word i meant to use. No apologies. Im sorry its not all rainbows and glitter, but those were my thoughts. Ive never been on a bad cruise but have never been on a perfect cruise either. I always appreciate when people give me a heads up and thats all i intended to do. I also used the words it and the and we. Any fault in those wirds? Im sure someine will have a theory.

[coevan]

from what I understand and an other thread on the CCL board says robes are still in the rooms.

[Skai]

Apparently some fail to grasp that the term "honest" when used as: "in my honest opinion" is akin to -- "in my humble opinion" or "in my sincere opinion". It's a figure of speech.

 

That stated, I've only ever sailed the Dream as my one and only Carnival sailing to-date. If there's one detracting issue that stood out most to me about the experience...In my honest opinion...It was the 'LINES' (for everything). Did it cause me to have a horrible cruise overall? No, but I can state for certainty that the cruise could've been nicer w/out the lines -- As I've experienced on other previous sailings on other ships/lines.

 

One example was our port stop @Cozumel. There seemed to be an especially long line to disembark. The ship had already beeen cleared, but it took 20-25 minutes to finally get to the security checkout station and down the gangplank.

 

It was then that I viewed what the needless hold-up was. The photo crew was actually stopping every passenger while STILL ON THE GANGPLANK for a photo-op, holding up everyone else trying to get off the ship. Needless to say, it was a *** moment

Edited July 9, 2015 by Skai

[perditax]

My goodness! The things people will pick out. The word "honest" is absolutely the word i meant to use. No apologies. Im sorry its not all rainbows and glitter, but those were my thoughts. Ive never been on a bad cruise but have never been on a perfect cruise either. I always appreciate when people give me a heads up and thats all i intended to do. I also used the words it and the and we. Any fault in those wirds? Im sure someine will have a theory.

 

 

I for one appreciate that you took the time to write this. Please don't let the other people get you down. I VERY much want to be aware of 20-30 minute lines and multi hour dinners.

 

(And folks, here's what "honest" means in a review title: "things went wrong and I'm going to be honest enough to acknowledge them even though people will jump down my throat for it." You guys are kidding yourselves if you think this aspect of CC doesn't force a lot of people to be LESS than honest about the negatives. This OP had some reasonable complaints that you couldn't easily undercut, so you jumped on a SINGLE WORD in her thread title. Not cool.)

Edited July 9, 2015 by perditax

[SadieN]

About the chicken tenders.....

Ships with Guys Burgers do not have chicken tenders. Only found them on the kids MDR dinner menu.

[cruiser1202]

We did not have them on our June 14 cruise....and no chicken strips or chocolates.

 

we had them on our june 16th cruise on Legend.

[lowbass]

For some, using "honest" in the title of a review has the connotation that folks can disregard everything that's been said about a particular trip because others weren't being honest. It implies that they are the only one being truthful. It's the same as telling a story, and then having someone else say, "Here's REALLY happened."

 

I would hope that everyone who writes a review is being honest (though I understand that that's wishful thinking on my part). Some people simply have an axe to grind, while others are trying to get a reaction. And then there are people who no doubt take things that happen out of context, and let the small stuff ruin their trip.

 

Sometimes, as has happened with this thread, the OP actually had a good time, but didn't make it sound that way.

 

 

When I saw the word "honest" in the review I figured that the OP was going to give their impressions of their cruise, good and bad. A lot of times in these cruise reviews the posters make every part of their cruise seem perfect. I have personally never been on a perfect cruise or vacation. On the other hand I've never been on one that has been ruined either. Every time I've eaten in the MDR or buffet there has been good dishes and bad dishes. There are good parts about each ship and bad parts. There are good ports and bad ports. I think the OP was just giving use both sides(good and bad) of their cruise. I also thought I saw in their review where they said that they enjoyed the cruise over all. At least that's the impression I got.

[lowbass]

My goodness! The things people will pick out. The word "honest" is absolutely the word i meant to use. No apologies. Im sorry its not all rainbows and glitter, but those were my thoughts. Ive never been on a bad cruise but have never been on a perfect cruise either. I always appreciate when people give me a heads up and thats all i intended to do. I also used the words it and the and we. Any fault in those wirds? Im sure someine will have a theory.

 

 

No fault in my book. I always like to hear the good and bad before I take a trip. The trip reports that are all smiling faces and happy times are nice to read, but I also like to know hows the ports, the ship the dining etc, etc. That's what I'm paying my money for. So thanks for an "honest" review, loved to read it.

 

Almost forgot, we had robes on the Liberty on our 6/21-6/28 cruise, never used them.

Edited July 9, 2015 by lowbass

[boopsahoy]

I am a little disappointed actually about the robes and chocolates. I won't let it ruin my trip but I love a chocolate right before bed. The robe I started to use several years ago because I always get up earlier than my dh and to go out on the balcony sometimes before the sun is up gets a little chilly. It is so easy to grab the robe in the dark and head outside. I will have to get a sweater for that now. Unless robes are maybe optional in your preferences like they are on Princess which by the way our last cruise on Princess had terrible thin and scratchy robes while Carnival's are thicker and luxurious! :D Hope they rethink them.

 

Just returned from Splendor 7/7 and we had robes

[3ofuscruising]

I sailed the dream on my daughter spring break. While there was some lines nothing like you had. We eat in mdr every night and had anytime dinning. Got there 20 min before it open we're always first ones in line. We loved the dream.

 

We also love the Dream......we went in 2010 when she was in Port Canerval and I can say that we came close to cancelling due to reviews. But even though she is huge, the lines, and everything else was worth it. She's beautiful and we look forward to our Feb 7,2016 cruise on her.

[Wheels87]

I was on the Dream twice last summer during the peak season. Yes, there were lines, however, with a little planning, you could avoid many of them. For example, I have seen many people complain about the buffet line on embarkation day...then, come to find out that they went to eat at 1:30, the peak time on embarkation day. I always arrive early so as to skip the line at the buffet because I know how much I hate lines! I'm not sure what people expect when sailing on a vessel with thousands of other people. I am not in any way criticizing the original poster...this is more geared towards those who expect a Cunard cruise at Carnival prices. I always make my family get to the shows at least 30 minutes early so we can get in as soon as the doors open. That way we can sit in the area that we want. It is a bit of an annoyance, however, that's how I cope with my distaste for lines. As for the buffet lines...I find that the biggest problem is when fellow passengers take an hour to fill their plate. They grab like two french fries at a time and act like they are the only ones on the ship; it is ridiculous. If people were to do the math, they would realize that if they take 4 minutes to make their plate, and if the other several thousand passengers did the same thing, then no one would get to eat!

 

Regarding the robes...if they aren't in your room when you arrive, simply ask your stateroom steward and they will get one for you. It's no big deal.

 

Again, I am not faulting the original poster for posting their observations, just pointing out what I think should be the obvious.

 

The Dream is a beautiful ship and most people should have a great vacation on her, as long as they remember that it is a Carnival cruise that only costs a fraction of other cruise lines.

 

Good day!

 

Brad

Edited July 15, 2015 by Wheels87

[Carol1560]

I have been on the Dream once and am planning to make the second jump on that beauty!!

 

We had robes, on this ship and all the rest of the ships in the fleet. If it was overlooked in your cabin, just a phone call away.

 

Lines, yeah the first day when everyone is getting on the ship and in total awe, they wander around and conjugate and form lines everywhere. But that is short lived. The ship is so big that you learn to maneuver your way around the ship and avoid the lines.

 

As far as kids being unruly, not their fault, its their parents for turning them loose. YUCCKKY kids in the pools with diapers, makes me throw up in my mouth.

 

I love the Dream and know that like anything in life, you have to take the good with the bad and the crew on the Dream STRIVES to minimize the bad and make your vacation enjoyable.

[girlsjustwannacruise]

I understand that some people like to try and plan around crowds which works...unless...everyone has same idea at same time every day which is pretty much what kept happening to us. For some it might be worth the hassle but not for me. I wanna lay back and not have to plan every meal to a T. I prefer to go with the wind and relax more. Thats why dream didnt work for me. But she really is beautiful and worth a try if you are good with the crowds.

[jusfunne1]

I was on the Dream the week before you and because it was the first vacation week of summer it was packed! but things were fine. we did regular time dining. i have heard that people who have faster to the fun take priority over others during ATD behind platinum and dining so maybe thats why you had a hard time. the lines were never really long for us. There were a bunch of kids but i had a spa room and there are barely ever any kids on that deck. Also, your cruise had a couple of weddings on it. the crew was telling me on our last night so maybe that impacted things too. I really dont think the fact that is was a bigger ship is the problem. I had some service issues on the dream but to me it seemed the crew was either inexperienced or tired. Also, before I boarded I had heard bad reviews about the CD, Henny, which proved to be true and I think when the cruise director is dry that impacts the mood of the ship. I have experienced long lines on all classes of ships. its just about the season, the crew or that nagging guest holding up the line with a dumb request lol.

[Jenn1200XL]

My husband and I were on the Dream this past October and we were very disappointed.

Like the OP mentioned, the lines for the MDR were always long, and the food was not very good.

The entertainment staff was pretty much non-existent, when you did see them, they were usually in their own group and not interacting with the passengers.

On sea days, we were never able to find an open lounge chair. The one day we spent outside, we were only able to find a spot on one of the big round wooden benches near the bottom of the water slide. We were so uncomfortable that we gave up and just went back to the room.

The lines to get off the ship in ports were ridiculous, we spent over an hour waiting in line trying to get off the ship in Belize.

 

There were a couple good things:

The food in the steak house was very good, wish we could have afforded to eat there every night.

The comedians were great.

The one show we saw was very good.

 

My parents were on the Dream in January, and pretty much had the same feeling.