Carnival Dream May 15-22 review

[Dizzneefan]

I thought I would submit some thoughts on our just recompleted cruise on the Dream last week, May 15-22. It will not be a day by day, minute by minute detailed report, but just some things we did, enjoyed, and maybe some things that might have been better

Parking:

We parked at the Erato Garage, just for the convenience and so the vehicle would not be outside all week in the event of storms, etc. Arriving at 10:00 we had no problems finding a spot and it was very convenient to the ship.

 

FTTF:

I know that there are many thoughts on the value of FTTF but we enjoy the perks we get it. Getting to our cabin and getting off on debarkation day are nice features. With it, we were in Zone 3 to debark. Without it, we would be zone 30. As much fun as a cruising is, when the ship docks, I’m ready to get off .I do NOT like sitting there waiting and doing nothing. Getting to the cabin when we board is fun also. We did not need to use the early tender as our excursion in Belize was early so we would have been assigned an early tender anyway.

 

Cabin:

We had a balcony cabin, 9372 and it was your typical room. It was a little crowded as staying in there were myself, DW, DS and his GF, but we were not in there THAT much so no real problems. For privacy, I did purchase four metallic hooks from Home Depot and placed them in an “L” shape. I had a black curtain with metal O rings, so I could stretch the curtain across the opening when it was needed, then place the curtain in the other hook next to the wall when it was not needed. It made for a much larger dressing area then the bathroom alone.

Our room steward did an OK job, but not really an outstanding job. The room was straightened twice a day, but he did not really clean the bathroom as well as I would have liked. DW uses hairspray which always finds its way on the counter top, and you could feel the residue from it, so on most days I cleaned it myself. (I’m a neat freak at home too)

 

Shows:

We saw most of the shows and enjoyed all the ones we saw, especially “Dancing In the Streets” One thing I and DW did not like was having two dancers , one on each aisle, dancing alone before the shows started. It just looked dumb, and they not professional dancers by any means.

 

Gym:

I went to the gym four mornings and found it very nice and at the time of day (6:00 am) it was not very crowded. A little more so by the time I would leave around 7:00 but even then not too crowded.

 

Food:

With the exception of one evening, we had dinner in the MDR every night. The food was very good and the wait staff very attentive and friendly. None of us had any bad experiences with any of the dishes we tried.

Now on the Lido deck, we found breakfast VERY disappointing. On several morning, the eggs were luke-warm at best and sometimes even cold, even when taken from a serving dish that had just been placed. Other ships seemed to have much more enjoyable breakfasts than we had last week. And then there was the bacon police. When I want eggs and bacon, I want eggs and BACON, not just three slices. But I’m not a complainer so did not stand there and beg for more.

The pasta bar was quite good. We did not try the Mongolian wok area though as there was always s long line for it.

 

Odds and ends:[/

I had ready many complaints of long lines, on the Dream but we did not find that to be an issue at all, even though the ship was full.

Our shore excursions (12 Meter America’s Cup in Cozumel, Xuantunich Mayan Ruins with lunch in Belize, and Tabyana Beach Break in Roatan) were all good but the sailboats and Tabyana were our favorites. The Mayan tour was a long day and hot as everything. That was our second Mayan tour and probably will not do another as the other was just as hot. And we’re from Alabama so somewhat accustomed to heat and humidity.

We watched just one Dive In movie and it was fun. Looking at their schedule, I would have thought we might have done more, but that did not prove to be the case.

Overall it was a fun cruise. I don’t think any of us would say it was the best we have ever had, but we had great weather, great food, great scenery and we weren’t at work. So not a bad week at all.

Edited May 24, 2016 by Dizzneefan

[apugeau]

Thanks for your review!

[Librarian365]

Yes thank you! We are off in just a few weeks so it is nice to see recent reviews!

[funat55]

Thank you for your review. I'm a year off from sailing on the Dream but really looking forward to the experience.

[almitra]

we sail her in a few weeks--can't wait!

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[duncmelsmom]

Thanks for the review. We leave in 31 days! I haven't seen many reviews lately, so thanks for taking the time!!

[Clarea]

Excellent report!

[Keith1010]

Enjoyed reading your review.

 

Keith

[ledelstein]

Thanks for the review. We leave on the Dream in 92 days [emoji126]🏻 (not that I'm counting down or anything[emoji23][emoji23])

 

How was your cruise director? Was there live music at night?

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[Dizzneefan]

Thanks for the review. We leave on the Dream in 92 days [emoji126] (not that I'm counting down or anything[emoji23][emoji23])

 

How was your cruise director? Was there live music at night?

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Our cruise director was JASE and he did a great job. Frankly, I'm not one of those who let the DC make or break our trips. As long as they are entertaining and informative, I'm OK. I know there are those who get disappointed if certain CD's are not on their ship, but not us. JASE did a good job and if he is there when you are on the ship, I think you will find the same.

 

I can't give you any first hand info on the live music in the bars as we did not go to those, but there was live music in the public areas i.e. Casino, atrium. I'll check with my DS to see what he thought of the live music in the bar areas.

[Micahs Grandad]

Thanks for the review. We leave on the Dream in 92 days [emoji126]🏻 (not that I'm counting down or anything[emoji23][emoji23])

 

How was your cruise director? Was there live music at night?

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Just off three weeks ago. Live music in several places in the evening.

[ledelstein]

Just off three weeks ago. Live music in several places in the evening.

 

 

Thanks for the reply.

I love the live music! Can't wait!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[ledelstein]

Our cruise director was JASE and he did a great job. Frankly, I'm not one of those who let the DC make or break our trips. As long as they are entertaining and informative, I'm OK. I know there are those who get disappointed if certain CD's are not on their ship, but not us. JASE did a good job and if he is there when you are on the ship, I think you will find the same.

 

 

 

I can't give you any first hand info on the live music in the bars as we did not go to those, but there was live music in the public areas i.e. Casino, atrium. I'll check with my DS to see what he thought of the live music in the bar areas.

 

 

Thanks for the reply.

I'm like you...the CD won't make or break the cruise for me, I was just curious.

Glad to hear there was live music! I'm looking forward to that.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[missorahbaby]

Our cruise director was JASE and he did a great job. Frankly, I'm not one of those who let the DC make or break our trips. As long as they are entertaining and informative, I'm OK. I know there are those who get disappointed if certain CD's are not on their ship, but not us. JASE did a good job and if he is there when you are on the ship, I think you will find the same.

 

I can't give you any first hand info on the live music in the bars as we did not go to those, but there was live music in the public areas i.e. Casino, atrium. I'll check with my DS to see what he thought of the live music in the bar areas.

We were on the Dream in January. It was JASE's first week on the Dream. He is the first CD whose name I want to remember! I thoroughly enjoyed him!