Fascination VS Dream Please help me decide

[Gallivanting Souls]

Looking at cruising June 2017 Caribbean. Presently we are booked on the Fascination (inside room). My delema is that I am starting to wonder if sailing out of San Juan is going to cost lots more and be way too much hastle. We are coming from the NW (Spokane) Similar rooms on both ships are within dollars. I really like the itinary of the Fascination. I also would like the Dream itinary. Is there anyone that would like to chime in who might have been on both? Maybe you aren't coming all the way from GEG, but some other small out of the way airport? Tell me about hotel costs and if in the end you thought it was worth it to go all the way to PR to sail out of.

 

I appreciate your knowledge and sharing it with me.

[KPfromCT]

I would actually love to cruise out of San Juan. But not on the fascination. The ship is so old and so small I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Wish they left Liberty there. [emoji17]

 

 

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[Dirkgun]

I would tell you to sail out of San Juan.... it is the best itinerary in the fleet right now. While I have not been on the Fascination, I have been on an older ship that is similar (the Paradise) and I think it is fine. However the southern route out of San Juan is the star of the show not the ship. I have 3 reviews of that cruise in my signature (2 on the Victory and one on the Valor) Puerto Rico is a great place and sailing out of there is a fantastic experience. We come there from Utah so while not quite as far as you still not close to the port. Wherever you decide have a great cruise.

[Tapi]

Going to the Southern Caribbean out of San Juan is like going to Alaska. The cruise is all about the ports that you'll visit. The ship is secondary. This is one of those itineraries where your memories will consist mostly of what you'll do ashore and not what you'll do on the ship. Well worth the extra flying time to get there.

 

The itineraries on the Dream out of New Orleans, while nice, won't be anything like the Southern Caribbean. Many ports in the Western itineraries are overly crowded and commercialized (several with "fake Caribbean" welcome centers built by the own cruise lines and chain restaurants and shops that you can find in any port). On the Southern Caribbean out of San Juan, you will most likely be the only ship in port and you'll be visiting unspoiled destinations where you'll truly get a sense of what the Caribbean is about.

 

If the ship is what's holding you back, look at other cruise lines with nicer ships out of San Juan. Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Celebrity, Disney and other more upscale cruise lines have ships homeported in San Juan, some seasonally and some year round. And surprisingly for many, they may be cheaper than Carnival.

[nwo4life]

We have sailed Dream 3 times and Fascination once, we love the Dream but would absolutely choose the Fascination cruise if all other things were equal. Fascination is fun and easy to get around, and as others have said you will be spending most of your time on shore.

[arkiesgirl]

Looking at cruising June 2017 Caribbean. Presently we are booked on the Fascination (inside room). My delema is that I am starting to wonder if sailing out of San Juan is going to cost lots more and be way too much hastle. We are coming from the NW (Spokane) Similar rooms on both ships are within dollars. I really like the itinary of the Fascination. I also would like the Dream itinary. Is there anyone that would like to chime in who might have been on both? Maybe you aren't coming all the way from GEG, but some other small out of the way airport? Tell me about hotel costs and if in the end you thought it was worth it to go all the way to PR to sail out of.

 

I appreciate your knowledge and sharing it with me.

We've sailed on the Fascination out of Jacksonville, and loved it. It's an older, smaller ship than others but that's what we prefer. The service was great, and as others have pointed out, the ports are what you should consider first.

Edited June 19, 2016 by arkiesgirl

[53flygirl]

We are taking this cruise in March of 2017 and I must admit I was a bit worried at first about the ship age. However, after searching these boards for the past 4 months I feel so much easier about the ship. People seem to LOVE her and the lets face it the southern Caribbean is the bomb:))))))

Totally excited now and counting down!

[Gallivanting Souls]

Thank you to all that chimed in. I am no concerned about the ship. I haven't really been on big new ships in the past. I would be more concerned about it being huge and having 5K of my closest friends with me. I think that's why I haven't tried a RC ship yet. I was thinking for generally about the added expenses about going all the way to Puerto Rico.Air fare could be a crap shoot, after all it is supply and demand. I haven't seen anyone post much on hotels, but the ones they have posted about sound pretty pricey. For hotel, we just require clean and quiet, not fancy.

 

Can anyone please tell me about their hotel experiences in PR? Where did you stay? What time of year/cost? Was it close to anything? Would you stay there again?

[kelib]

I was on the Fascination last month. I admit that I stayed at a pretty pricey hotel , the Sheraton OSJ, but I treated it like another port day. Plus I could walk right to the ship.

With the ship leaving so late at night, there may be some flexibility in coming in that day and not doing a hotel stay if you are willing to take the chance.

Personally I thought the extra stay was worth it and I really enjoyed the cruise so much that I am thinking of doing it again.

[LMHC]

We just finished a cruise on the Fascination. We had not been on a Fantasy class ship in 13 years so were a little worried about the smaller size, but it was not a problem for us. The ship was well maintained, there was enough to do, and staff were great. We loved the itinerary and the cruise was just as good as other Carnival cruises. The hotels in San Juan can be pricey, but it is a nice place to spend a day or two pre-cruise. We has not been on the Dream, but have done a 7 day out of New Orleans and we enjoyed the Southern Caribbean ports more in comparison.

[Tapi]

I was thinking for generally about the added expenses about going all the way to Puerto Rico.Air fare could be a crap shoot, after all it is supply and demand.

 

 

 

Can anyone please tell me about their hotel experiences in PR? Where did you stay? What time of year/cost? Was it close to anything? Would you stay there again?

 

 

One great thing about San Juan is that they are heavily served by low cost carriers, including Southwest, JetBlue, Spirit and Sun Country. That helps keep airfare in and out of San Juan very competitively priced. In addition, all major airlines, like Delta, American and United fly there as well so you'll have plenty of choices.

 

About hotels: The closest area to the port will be Old San Juan. The absolute closest hotel will be the Sheraton Old San Juan. My parents stayed there a few weeks ago when our ship stopped in San Juan and they met us there. The price for the room was around $150 after taxes. It's a well kept hotel with a nice rooftop pool and hot tub (we were there until 11:00pm, overlooking our cruise ship!) I was surprised to see that the casino is gone and that the lobby area was shrunk (a wall was erected and Walgreens is being built on the other side). You can't beat the location though, not only to embark (the hotel is literally across the street from the cruise terminals) but it's also an excellent place to stay if you will be exploring the old city. There's a free trolley stop across the street that takes you all over Old San Juan, and the AquaExpresso (ferry) terminal is right across the street as well if you choose to visit the Bacardi Rum Distillery, located right across the San Juan Bay.

 

There are other hotels in Old San Juan, like Milano and Cervantes, both which are smaller boutique hotels but centrally located and more affordable than the bigger, chain hotels. There's also a convent-turned luxury hotel called El Convento a few blocks north.

 

You can always stay in other tourist areas in San Juan (Like Condado and Isla Verde), but hotels will still be a bit pricier than what you may expect. Still, the price difference is worth it. San Juan is an EXCELLENT port of embarkation, and a wonderful place to visit (think of it as yet another port of call). You can literally go to Puerto Rico for 10 days and not have enough time to see and do it all!

 

Do yourself a favor and avoid non-touristy areas or cheaply priced hotels. The price difference is NOT worth it.

[Gallivanting Souls]

Sound like the perfect location. I am not finding a rate anywhere as low as what you mentioned. Maybe it's because my dates are a year away? How did your parents get such a good price if you don't mind me asking?

 

 

About hotels: The closest area to the port will be Old San Juan. The absolute closest hotel will be the Sheraton Old San Juan. My parents stayed there a few weeks ago when our ship stopped in San Juan and they met us there. The price for the room was around $150 after taxes. It's a well kept hotel with a nice rooftop pool and hot tub (we were there until 11:00pm, overlooking our cruise ship!)

 

Do yourself a favor and avoid non-touristy areas or cheaply priced hotels. The price difference is NOT worth it.

[Tapi]

Sound like the perfect location. I am not finding a rate anywhere as low as what you mentioned. Maybe it's because my dates are a year away? How did your parents get such a good price if you don't mind me asking?

 

 

We were there in late May, right at the beginning of summer vacation, so time of year as well as day of the week (Wednesday) may have been part of the reason why we got that rate.

 

But I know that when I first looked at rates for my parents, they were higher than what they finally paid. I think that initially the cheapest room was over $200 before taxes but we made a refundable reservation anyway because that's where they wanted to stay regardless of price. I kept looking and right before leaving for Miami to start our cruise, I found a rate of $119 plus taxes in a last minute travel website. Obviously I can't share the website name per cruise critic guidelines, but it was one of those "use it or loose it / no changes / no refunds" kind of rates. We went ahead and canceled the more expensive, refundable reservation and made a new one for the $119 rate, keeping our fingers crossed that our stop in San Juan wouldn't get canceled and they'd loose that money. But it all worked out perfectly. The Sheraton must've been experiencing low occupancy on that day because, not only did we get that low rate last minute, but my parents were allowed to check in and go to their room at 10:00am. [emoji3]

 

You can try a similar approach (making a refundable reservation and then keep checking as you get closer to your sailing date). But even if you're unable to stay at the Sheraton, keep in mind other hotels in Old San Juan, Condado or Isla Verde. Condado is only 10 minutes from Old San Juan and Isla Verde is no more than 20.

 

Hopefully you'll find an awesome deal, but I recommend that you pre plan to spend more on a hotel than you'd spend somewhere else. Bump up your hotel budget by another $100 a night. In San Juan, that can mean the difference between a decent hotel in a tourist area or a dumpy one far from where you need to be. When you'll be spending a couple thousand dollars for your cruise and you'll be traveling that far, what's another $100? [emoji6]

Edited June 21, 2016 by Tapi

[Micahs Grandad]

If we were cruising for ports guess we would pick Fascination but for the ship Dream and if you havent been to any of the ports would vote Dream

[Gallivanting Souls]

I booked a flexible reservation at the Sheraton Old San Juan. Now just have to keep looking and hopefully will find a better deal.

Thanks again!

[dltvermont]

Seems you got all the answers you were looking for but....

 

We were afraid to book the Fascination after seeing all the people commenting how old and small it was but we wanted that particular itinerary so went ahead and did it. We LOVED it. We actually prefer smaller ships I guess. We liked the Breeze (Dream sister ship) but felt like cattle being moved around there were so many people. Pools were like sardines packed in, you could basically stand there in the warm cloudy water.

 

In San Juan we stayed at the Hyatt Place City Center. Cab to the ship was $10 I believe. We went for a walk Sunday morning and could see the ship in the distance. The place was very nice. Free breakfast. Very accomodating as well since we arrived well before checkin time and they were able to still get us into a room. Upon our return, we were even earlier and they stored our luggage and held it while we went to Old San Juan and explored for the day.

[Gallivanting Souls]

If you don't mind sharing how much you paid for the Hyatt and how did you book?

Thanks!

 

Seems you got all the answers you were looking for but....

 

 

 

In San Juan we stayed at the Hyatt Place City Center. Cab to the ship was $10 I believe. We went for a walk Sunday morning and could see the ship in the distance. The place was very nice. Free breakfast. Very accomodating as well since we arrived well before checkin time and they were able to still get us into a room. Upon our return, we were even earlier and they stored our luggage and held it while we went to Old San Juan and explored for the day.

[dltvermont]

I used Expedia

 

The first night before the cruise was 248.76 and the night after was 173.76.

 

There were 6 of us in the room, one being a toddler.

[dltvermont]

Just another thing to keep in mind with PR taxis, the fare is set to certain zones but they charge extra per piece of luggage.

 

One negative about the Hyatt Place was that there was nothing near it, meaning for stores or eating. We ate at the Sizzler steak house one night which is close but that was it. We went for a short walk one day thinking we'd find a convenience store or something but didnt have any luck.

[Tapi]

One negative about the Hyatt Place was that there was nothing near it, meaning for stores or eating. We ate at the Sizzler steak house one night which is close but that was it. We went for a short walk one day thinking we'd find a convenience store or something but didnt have any luck.

 

 

The Hyatt Place "City Center" is in a residential area (MIRAMAR). It's "in the city" but not where tourists would care to be.

[Chief Cruiser]

I have sailed both. Given the itinerary is not of great importance and the price is not much different ---TAKE THE DREAM!!!!

 

Although the Fantasy Class ships are my favorite, I absolutely loved the DREAM and would sailed her again over the Fascination in a heartbeat given the same circumstances as yours. If the Dream was still ported at PC, I'd be on her a lot more.

[dltvermont]

The Hyatt Place "City Center" is in a residential area (MIRAMAR). It's "in the city" but not where tourists would care to be.

 

Yeah when I booked it, that wasnt an issue. Was looking for the best price for the number of people we had. Our intention was just to "sleep" there and either sit by the pool or go to the beach. We did the pool as there was food and a bar right there. Coming from VT cold spring, thats all that mattered. On our return we took at taxi to Old San Juan for the day.

[Cocochanel26]

Pick the Dream! I wasn't happy with the fascination. I don't feel like there is really enough to do on that ship for a 7 day cruise.

[dltvermont]

Seriously?

 

Other than the ONE sea day, we were off the ship by 8 and not back on until after 4, then it was a short swim in the pool and dinner, after that shows or casino or........This itinerary is so port intensive that there isnt a ton of time on the ship.

[kelib]

Pick the Dream! I wasn't happy with the fascination. I don't feel like there is really enough to do on that ship for a 7 day cruise.

 

 

Were you on this ship for this Itinerary or when it was out of Jacksonville? I don't think you could compare the 2 and would agree that there may not be enough to keep some people entertained if on the Bahama run.