Carnival Dream Review - June 5-12, 2016 - just returned

[rangerdog]

Before I start the review, let me say that after 18 cruises, this was BY FAR the absolute BEST cruise we've had....the CD/staff/entertainment/casino/customer service, etc on the Dream was TOP NOTCH!! It was the most organized embarkation and debarkation of ANY port! Now, having said that, I'm going to make some reflections on some things that Carnival has changed and are in the process of changing to inform all of you. However, I wanted to make sure everyone knew that I was NOT complaining...merely observations. Here's my review....

 

Sunday - June 5 - Embarkation from New Orleans

Parked in the Eraso parking garage for $140 for a 7 day cruise. EASY access to terminal...all covered and no worry about rain/inclement weather. The only thing about the New Orleans embarkation process is that Platinum did not have a separate room to sit down at a table with a registration clerk. We were sent to the regular check in line, and then "peeled off" into the VIP line. In Galveston, where we typically cruise from, the Platinum/VIP have a separate security line and registration is in a separate room away from the mass mobs of people :) We arrived at the port at 10:30 and was in our rooms at 11:30am.

 

We stayed in cabin 8261. Upon entering the cabin, we definitely noticed it was WARM. I immediately called the VIP line and they said to give it a couple of hours since all the doors had been open. I totally understood this, so we waited. After going to eat lunch and explore the ship, we came back to our cabin and it was still warm. I called again and they sent a guy from maintenance. His thermometer said it was 76 degrees in our cabin. He said Carnivals regulations temps were between 70-74. I told them this was the hottest our cabins have ever been and most of the time, we have to turn the thermostat warmer because it's cold in the rooms. Luckily, we brought a desk fan for me what I blow dry my hair, and this was the only air moving in the cabin. I called again. I was very nice, not pushy or rude. I let them know that I was highly disappointed in the room temperature and something needed to be done. They sent someone during our dinner that night and left a card on the bed stating that the room was now between 70-74 ,which is Carnivals regulations. However, I'll tell you again, we've NEVER had this issue with a cabin and "Carnivals regulations" were always comfortable temps if not cold temps. So, the next morning I call again. They said the maintenance crew was working on it again as we spoke. After several hours, the manager called me and asked about the temp. I told them it had not changed and was very warm and humid in the room. They proceeded to say there was nothing more they could do with the temp. Now, I was GLAD we thought about bringing the desk fan because we slept with the fan on ALL 7 nights! I felt that Carnival compensated me adequately because they refunded us 20% of our cruise cost as onboard credit AND a 15% discount on another cruise. I was satisfied with this, but the room was still hot :) Therefore, I felt the purser's desk/management did what they could to remedy the situation and did all they could, so I was satisfied.

 

As for the cabin steward, Imade was our steward and he was GREAT. Something new from Carnival, but the room steward will ask you if you want your room "serviced" in the mornings or evenings. I said BOTH since my tips are paying for that. I'm "old school" and I want my bed made when I come back after lunch for my afternoon nap :) Not sure why Carnival is changing this, but I requested morning and evening and the room steward was very cordial.

 

We had dinner in the MDR every night and the new American Table menu was about the same, with a few additions and deletions. But the MDR food quality on this cruise was EXCELLENT!

 

After dinner, we attended the welcome aboard show which is the same show we've seen for the past 5 years or so. This was the ONLY show that we've seen before....all the other shows were brand new to us and we thoroughly enjoyed them! The show band was superb as well, with 7 live instrumentalists. We've heard rumors that the Dream is one of the last ships to still have a live show band and they are taking the Dream's band in January. All ships are going to a karaoke type music which I DON'T LIKE....I'm a musician myself and this highly disappoints me because the LIVE MUSIC is important to me and sets my "cruise mood"!

 

After the show, we went to hear the BLACKJACK BAND in the Ocean Plaza 5 midship. We went to hear them EVERY NIGHT (except for their off day on Wednesday). They are BY FAR the BEST band we've ever heard on any other cruise!! However, they also informed us that their contract is up in January and they will not be back because Carnival is doing away with live music. I'M SO SAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Monday - June 6 - Sea day

We ordered room service for breakfast, ate the Seaday brunch in the MDR for lunch and then the MDR for dinner. This was the first formal night. I've noticed that most people dress business for formal nights now, with not many dressing in tuxedos/long ball gowns. I even saw jeans and shorts in the dining rooms for all nights, even formal nights. I really think Carnival needs to go back to not allowing jeans/shorts in the dining rooms....my opinion.

 

We spent the day playing games, going to trivia, casino slot tournament, exploring the ship, etc. Evening was Blackjack band, Dive-in movie at 10pm (Pitch Perfect 2) and casino :)

 

Tuesday - June 7 - Sea day

We had an early Seaday brunch/breakfast then pizza/deli for lunch and MDR for dinner.

 

Today was spent with trivia, ice carving, taking a nap, relaxing on the balcony, Blackjack band in the evening and casino :)

 

Wednesday - June 8 - Honduras

This was our first day to eat breakfast on the Lido deck and I went to the omelette station...yum, yum.

We got off the ship about 11am and walked straight off....no lines. We did some shopping at the port shops and then was back on about 1pm. After we got back on the ship, we went to the pasta bar for lunch and NO ONE was up there. The pasta and caesar was great! Dinner was in the MDR again. After dinner, we went to the "Dancin in the Streets" show which was AWESOME! I'm not quite sure how they will do the big shows without live music anymore...it saddens me :/

 

I also earned my DOU card in the casino today, so I had FREE DRINKS in the casino the last 3 days of the cruise.

 

Thursday - June 9 - Belize City, Belize

This was a tender only port and the tender ride was about 30 minutes, an hour round trip. We did not get off in this port. Enjoyed a relaxing EMPTY ship all day :) We did Lido breakfast again, pizza for lunch and MDR for dinner. The evening show was the "Love and Marriage" show with Jase (the CD). He did a GREAT job and even asked different questions we've never heard. After seeing about 18 of these shows, we knew all the questions, lol.

 

The sewer smell was getting pretty obvious in the rear of the ship on decks 3, 4 and 5. There are definite signs of wear and tear on carpets, furniture, windows...it's time for the Dream to have a makeover, which is scheduled for dry dock in late January and early February.

 

Friday - June 10 - Cozumel

We ordered room service again for breakfast and it was delivered 15 minutes after we ordered. We got off the ship about 10am, did some shopping and back on about 11:30am. We ate Lido buffet for lunch (and I was NOT impressed with most of the Lido buffet food). The show was the Carnival Legends (guest performers) and this show was GREAT!!! I've never seen a ship that put this show together and was more entertaining than the Dream! Jase and the dancers did an awesome job of "backing" the fellow guest performers and the show was really entertaining! Then we were back at listening to Blackjack band and the casino.

 

Saturday - June 11 - Sea day

We ate in the MDR for the seaday brunch (this is the 3rd day to eat the brunch...excellent food). I had the filet mignon and eggs! AWESOME! For lunch, we had just a caesar salad and a little pasta from the pasta bar. We were really tired of eating and just didn't eat much for lunch. We entered the slot tournament again today and I WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For dinner, we had our last meal in the MDR and our waiter, Edwin, knew that mom and I LOVED the creme brulee from Monday's formal night and so he specifically had the galley make creme brulee for us on the last night! THAT WAS COOL!!!! The show tonight was "8 more seconds" Country show.....WOW, WOW, WOW!!!!!!!! Incredible show with incredible dancing/music and Jimmy (from Blackjack band) was the fiddle player and he's AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Sunday - June 12 - Debarkation

Platinum/Diamond met in the front dining room and they had coffee, juices, danishes for us. Galveston does NOT do this for the Platinum guests on debarkation day. Very nice gesture from the Dream team! They came and got the 119 Platinum and 6 Diamond guests (I know these exact numbers because I always ask the purser's desk for that interesting info) and escorted us right off the ship at 7:45am. We were through customs, with our luggage and pulling out of the parking garage at 7:59am. The organization of the Dream team for debarkation was second to none....the BEST EVER!!

 

I'm sure I've left off LOTS of information because my fingers are tired of typing, lol. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. Hope this information is helpful to many of you, as you've always been helpful to answer my questions in the past.

Edited June 14, 2016 by rangerdog

[Rocky Top]

Rangerdog, thanks for posting an honest review including the "homeruns" as well as the few "warts". Really enjoyed reading your daily account. Great job.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[cincicruisers]

Great review, thanks for sharing.

[WPTNGirl]

We would be VERY disappointed if Carnival does away with ALL live music. We really enjoy the bands, duets and guitar players in various areas of the ship. We know the show bands are gone and hopefully that is what was meant when they told you they were doing away with live music.

[JaniceB]

Sounds like you had a great relaxing cruise on the Dream. I am sorry to hear the Blackjack band is not going to be playing after January. I hope Carnival changes their mind about live music.

[Cushing985]

Great review warts and all! Just a quick question...how were the crowds? When we were on the Dream in April we thought the crowds were horrendous. Just wondering if that was a one time good deal or is the standard. Other than that we loved the Dream.

[rangerdog]

Great review warts and all! Just a quick question...how were the crowds? When we were on the Dream in April we thought the crowds were horrendous. Just wondering if that was a one time good deal or is the standard. Other than that we loved the Dream.

 

The only times we noticed huge crowds was on the Lido deck between 11am-1pm...lunch lines were all long! Other than that, it was a "normal" line at places.

[duncmelsmom]

Fabulous review!! We leave in 12 days (but who's counting?) and your review makes it so exciting!

 

No questions, but I'm glad to know that things get done with a bit of persistence. Congrats on winning the slot tourney! I can't wait to play. I came in 2nd place once.

[balcony bound]

I smiled when you mentioned Imade was your cabin steward:) He's awesome, and took wonderful care of us on one of our Dream cruises.

The Dream is our favorite ship, glad to read that you had a good experience.

We miss having the Dream in Port Canaveral.

[psikic]

I smiled when you mentioned Imade was your cabin steward:) He's awesome, and took wonderful care of us on one of our Dream cruises.

The Dream is our favorite ship, glad to read that you had a good experience.

We miss having the Dream in Port Canaveral.

 

By the way, it is very possible it wasn't the same "I Made" that the OP had. It is a very popular name, as it is the name always given to the second born in a family in Bali. The I at the beginning means he was a male. It would have been "Ni Made" if she was a female.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balinese_name

[robinlbe]

Hey, you weren't the only cabin to be warm.....there were some at our table who also had very warm cabins, were told that the room was 76, and ended up with some kind of credit.

 

Our cabin (7224) was ok - a bit on the warmer side, and certainly not as cool as what I would have expected by being turned clear to the end of the cool side.

 

I, too, was surprised that the room steward asked about when we wanted our room serviced. Even though we told him to do what worked best for him, he definitely came in twice. I noticed that the stewards were working alone - they no longer have their helper. Apparently, there is one helper that is shared by two or three stewards. So, basically, the room steward is working along. That's quite the chore.

 

Another thing was that you now have to ask for the robes. I was disappointed when there were no robes hanging in the closet, but when we talked to our steward, we had them the next day. Same thing for ice - asked for it the first day, had it 2x a day after that :)

 

No chocolates....

granted it's been two years since our last cruise (and this is only my 7th cruise total since 2008), but I missed those chocolate pieces each night.

 

I DID like the idea that each passenger was given a large water bottle. Since you can no longer take your own water bottles on, this was nice (just wish it fit in the refrigerator better...ha!)

 

The food in the MDR seemed to be much better than the last couple of cruises we were on (June, 2014-Glory and October, 2013-Breeze). The newer selections were noticeable and good.

 

I, too, love the live musicians!!! I had heard that they all were becoming a thing of the past a couple of years ago, so this was a nice surprise to hear the band. Live music is ALWAYS better!!!

 

Since we cruised last, you now select your check in time (we selected 1-1:30). It went like clockwork...no standing around, no waiting....disembarking was fine, too....although one thing stood out to me.

 

The entire crew looked exhausted. No one was smiling toward the end of the cruise. Certainly, there were no smiles as we were leaving the ship. All the other times (all six others, yeah, I know...), everyone was smiling, chipper, etc....

 

I could tell that the crew member numbers seemed to be less, so I'm kind of wondering if they are all overworked.....like the rest of us, I'm sure....but it's hard to be all smiley-faced when you're run down.

 

I liked JASE, the CD - not the very best we have had, but one of the better ones, for sure.

 

All of that being said - it was a wonderful cruise....we loved it, enjoyed it.

We really loved getting to have a "river cruise" as part of this....going down the Mississippi River for at least six hours was really cool and an excellent bonus!!

 

(I'm thrilled to say I won a "Ship on a Stick" - normally my husband wins trivia and wins the Ship, but I won the Dr. Seuss trivia...and got the Ship! I was very excited for this....)

 

For those getting ready to go, enjoy!!! ;)

[robinlbe]

Pscik (oops, I know I didn't remember your name right...sorry) - you're right about the names...

 

we met two brothers who worked in the MDR - one was Putu and the other was Iputu...both worked there....Their sister was Neputu.

 

Iputu and Putu both came to our table (from the bar) and we had fun with them. They were great sports about their names and we all enjoyed their personalities.

[pink roses]

Do you by chance still have the Carnival Capers that you could photograph?

Edited June 14, 2016 by pink roses

[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[k2excursion]

Thank you for your great review! I agree that the live music makes such a difference for the shows. It is sad to hear that Blackjack Band will be leaving Carnival. I've had 6 cruises with them, and I always enjoy getting to talk to them & listen to their music. I love hearing Jimmy playing in the country show on the big stage. Dream's shows are so amazing! The ship just won't be the same once those get downgraded in drydock.

[Detroit97]

Thank you so much for the review! Just got one question, was Serenity always jammed? Thanks! 7 1/2 more weeks to go!

 

 

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[kc58ab]

Thanks for the review. I too experienced rather warm temps in the cabin in March. We had them check ours several times and got the same explanation as you that it was in their expectable range. It really put a damper on sleeping comfortably. I wasn't as lucky, I didn't receive a credit or future discount. I don't know if it is because I was too nice, or because I'm gold not plat. It will prevent me from cruising on the "Dream" again...

[robinlbe]

Our table mates were blue level....and they got a partial refund....so the level apparently doesn't matter....it was the squeaky wheel :)

[robinlbe]

I only went once, but it wasn't all that crowded. There was a big crowd of families and high school graduates on their senior trips - so maybe that accounted for the lower population up on top. ;)

[bamboozel]

I'm so saddened to hear about the Blackjack band. They are awesome!!!! The highlight of our first cruise on the Dream!!!!!

[rangerdog]

I'm so saddened to hear about the Blackjack band. They are awesome!!!! The highlight of our first cruise on the Dream!!!!!

 

I AGREE! The highlight of our cruise too! I made sure I put my disappointment on the Carnival feedback! Carnival getting rid of LIVE music/bands is so heartbreaking for me!!

[rangerdog]

Thank you so much for the review! Just got one question, was Serenity always jammed? Thanks! 7 1/2 more weeks to go!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

YES, except on Port days! We went up there on 2 of the Port days and NO ONE was up there at all!!

[kc58ab]

Our table mates were blue level....and they got a partial refund....so the level apparently doesn't matter....it was the squeaky wheel :)

 

Interesting, we did call and they did check our room 3 times I believe. The first time we found a card that they had been there and "fixed" it. Did you and your table mates ask for a refund directly? They didn't offer us anything other than a fan for use bc it was so hot, which did help some, without it sleeping would have have been unbearable. I haven't ever had any experiences prior to warrant even a call to guest services before this cruise.