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Island Explorer or Dream?


Calomax
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Looking for a cruise next May and we have a choice of the IE and the Dream. We really want to go to Rome, both are calling there, and Pompeii/Vesuvius. IE calls at Naples and the Dream calls at Sorrento so we could get there from both. The rest of the itineries are similar. My question is, all things being equal, is it worth paying around £150 each extra to go on the Dream.

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Looking for a cruise next May and we have a choice of the IE and the Dream. We really want to go to Rome, both are calling there, and Pompeii/Vesuvius. IE calls at Naples and the Dream calls at Sorrento so we could get there from both. The rest of the itineries are similar. My question is, all things being equal, is it worth paying around £150 each extra to go on the Dream.

 

I think you mean the Island Escape. It depends on what you want from a cruise. The Dream is a more modern looking ship with better facilities and a waiter served MDR, also bigger and more up to date cabins. On the other hand the IE has AI included in the price so if you like to have a drink then that would be a more economic option. They both have similar quality of show teams and both ships end up in almost the same ports of call so if you like to get off the ship then go for the IE and spend what you save on trips. If you prefer to stay on board most of the cruise, which some people actually do, then maybe the Dream would suit better as it has slightly better facilities. At the end of the day the choice is yours and you will have a great holiday whichever you choose.:):)

 

Jan

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As ekco said Dream cabins are larger with tea making facility (tiny kettle) & main dining has waiter service. But although I haven't been on the IE for nearly two years I found it a better experience than on the Dream last year. The IE had much more variety in the food served in each of the self service restaurants... Oddly the Dream has a huge buffet serving area that has little choice available, & the speciality nights had no alternative, so if it's Indian night & you don't like Indian tough cos' that's all there is in both waiter service restaurant & buffet. At least the IE has a veriety of cold meats & salad & a carvery with a choice of spud to go with it & pudding with custard for afters in addition to the speciality food nights, even if there is no one to serve you without paying extra.... I also prefer the casino on the IE, although tiny it was palatial compared to the corner of the Dream devoted to a few half working slots & a couple of overcrowded tables... Had the choice of dream or IE next month & will hopefully be on the IE in 12 days time. :) :) :)

Edited by Stevio
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Sorry echo, I don't know why I wrote explorer, I think I started with misspelling and I didn't notice that the predictive text had corrected it wrongly. Shame I can't edit my post.

 

Thanks everyone, i think IE is the one for us as we want to get off to see as much as we can

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Hi,

Have sailed on IE once, last year, and Dream once, last March.

The Dream has a formal captains night once a week on the sea day, IE does not, which suits us as we don't bother with this anyway, but it may be something which you would want to do, if so then Dream.

 

We too preferred the meals and entertainment on IE. Would recommend a cabin in or near the middle of both ships. Have a lovely cruise whichever one you choose :)

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Hi,

Have sailed on IE once, last year, and Dream once, last March.

The Dream has a formal captains night once a week on the sea day, IE does not, which suits us as we don't bother with this anyway, but it may be something which you would want to do, if so then Dream.

 

We too preferred the meals and entertainment on IE. Would recommend a cabin in or near the middle of both ships. Have a lovely cruise whichever one you choose :)

 

Thanks Barnowl, we have decided on IE:D. We certainly don't want a formal night:eek:. We've been on the Spirit and Celebration and skipped it both times. IE sounds much better except,possibly, the cabins, but they don't seem to be any worse than the other two that we've been on. We're thinking about deck 9 forward of the lifeboats or midships on deck 8. Is there any particular reason for recommending the middle please?

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Hi, just thinking the middle of the ship is a good choice if you suffer from motion sickness like me as it's more stable, but that's just me of course. When we sailed on IE last year we had a cabin (only a standard one) in the middle of deck 6, hardly any movement, and more quiet than near the front :)

Edited by barnowl1950
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I would agree with barnowl that lower decks midships are better on this ship!! We had deck six outside 6062 this year and it was ideal....IE does move about a bit when it's choppy so be warned from those who have experience of her!!!!!

Edited by jenny wren
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We had a cabin next door 6060 deck 6... this area is by the Island Restaurant (very nice).... The Pub:D and entertainment is one deck above, and stairs/lifts nearby. Sometimes we used the lifts, other times the stairs for the higher decks. We had a brilliant time on this ship... so much fun, lovely food, lovely staff, and great days out.

Edited by barnowl1950
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We have been on deck 9 twice, midships, and had no problems apart from a choppy crossing to Madeira which is notorious for being a bit rough. We also had a forward cabin on deck 8 and that was a big mistake. Not only did it pitch and roll the whole time when it was quite still midships on the lower decks but there was a terrible banging noise the whole night through. It sounded like someone was hitting the ship with a sledgehammer. No sleep, never again. You have to remember that the IE was a ferry at one time and can get a bit unbalanced, I like deck 9 as it is near the Beachcomber and is pretty quiet with not much through traffic, the downside is that we often had to climb the whole way up on return to the ship as the lifts were always busy. The cabins are quite small but I wouldn't say they were much different than the one we had on the Celebration.:):)

 

Jan

Edited by ekco
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We're thinking about deck 9 forward of the lifeboats or midships on deck 8. Is there any particular reason for recommending the middle please?

 

Midships on deck 8 are the premier cabins. Have been in one myself & they are slightly wider & much longer very comfortable & stable rooms. Only thing is that the outside windows look across the promenade decks. They have net curtains for privacy, but basically your view is obstructed by the smokers standing outside.... Also there is a bit of noise from chairs being dragged around outside & the decks being hosed down early mornings.

Edited by Stevio
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Thanks everyone, i think we'll avoid deck 8. We want an outside cabin but won't spend long enough in it to justify the extra cost of a premier so I think we'll try for deck 9 midships if we can get one between the lifeboats or deck 7.

 

Ecko, is there a similar problem to deck 8 on deck 9? Is it also a promenade deck or only for access to the lifeboats please?

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Thanks everyone, i think we'll avoid deck 8. We want an outside cabin but won't spend long enough in it to justify the extra cost of a premier so I think we'll try for deck 9 midships if we can get one between the lifeboats or deck 7.

 

Ecko, is there a similar problem to deck 8 on deck 9? Is it also a promenade deck or only for access to the lifeboats please?

 

Sorry for the delay. No problem on deck 9, passengers can't walk along where the lifeboats are. Avoid 9048 as we had that one first time and the large covered tender is outside, blocking the whole window. We had 9042 this time, the end cabin near the stairs and lifts, it was small though but we could see enough over the lifeboat. The only disturbance we had was when one of the crew came along the walkway outside to do some maintenance on the lifeboat.:):)

 

Jan

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Thank you ecko,,that sounds good to me. We're planning on Escape to the Med next May so we're watching the prices at the moment. But we want to book fairly early to be sure of reserving a good cabin.

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I found this Kindle freebie if anyone is going to Barcelona. It's only a small book but gives handy hints on scams in the city. You can put it on your Kindle or the Kindle app on your phone or tablets.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Barcelona-Scams-Visitors-Avoiding-Updated-ebook/dp/B00ABBHY48/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1401385179&sr=1-1&keywords=Barcelona+Scams

 

Jan

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I found this Kindle freebie if anyone is going to Barcelona. It's only a small book but gives handy hints on scams in the city. You can put it on your Kindle or the Kindle app on your phone or tablets.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Barcelona-Scams-Visitors-Avoiding-Updated-ebook/dp/B00ABBHY48/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1401385179&sr=1-1&keywords=Barcelona+Scams

 

Jan

 

Thank you ekco I've just downloaded this to my kindle direct from the Kindle Store and will have a good look at it.

 

Mollythedolly

Edited by Mollythedolly
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Thank you ekco I've just downloaded this to my kindle direct from the Kindle Store and will have a good look at it.

 

Mollythedolly

 

You're very welcome. We must try not to get too paranoid though, lol. I did notice when we were near the beach in Barcelona that there were a lot of cyclists around and one came very close when we were sat on a beach and had a good look. You can't be too careful anywhere you go, especially on a cruise as we do stick out like a sore thumb all getting off ship together.

 

Jan

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  • 3 months later...

Having sailed on both we do love them both for different reason, The Dream is an amazing ship bigger and more up to date. But is it worth paying more and then have to upgrade to AI for loadsa money. You can go to the same places on the Escape and it really is a lovely ship smaller but AI included and an excellent ship smaller yes but still has that personal feel and loads to do and plenty of bars and restaurants if money is going to be a main sway? go with the Escape if not go with the Dream. We did the Dream in the Caribbean and wow we enjoyed it. We did the Escape around the Med and fabulous time and we are doing it again next June.

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