My picture laden, long review of the Carnival Dream 2/20/2010

[denisey]

Thanks for the awesome review. We will be sailing the Dream in May and we are reading everything we can get our hands on. I loved your sunrise picture...that was incredible! Sounds like you had a great time too.

 

Do you happen to have a website link you can send for the beach you visited in Costa Maya? We are going to Nachi in Cozumel and I was looking for another all inclusive beach. Thank you in advance.

 

Absolutely, I can't recommend them highly enough!

 

http://www.costamayabeachresort.com/

[dprg644]

Wow very nice detailed review.....and I love all the pic's. Thanks so much for posting.

[cruzkitty]

Denisey-loved your Review & pics-thanks for taking the time to post them! I'll be sailing on her in Dec-have an Aft-Wrap Cabin. :D

[denisey]

Enjoyed your review...We did same ports in January but we missed Costa Maya due to high winds. Sounds like it was a nice port...:rolleyes:

 

Hey Mr payroll, sorry you missed Costa Maya, it was a nice port. But out off all of them, if I had to miss a port....I guess I would choose Costa Maya.

 

BTW, I'm Ms Payroll out here, a CPP and everything!

[martinchem]

Very nice review, I can see you put a lot of thought into it.

[T2C]

Here is "all" of our luggage!

 

Hi, which Rick Steves bag is that and it really is allowed as a carry on for planes? Thanks

[denisey]

Hi, which Rick Steves bag is that and it really is allowed as a carry on for planes? Thanks

 

It is the Convertable Carry on, and we really took it as a carry on. It is 9 X 21 X 14. Just for fun, I put it in the carry on tester cage thingee at the airport and it fit fine. I know that I can certainly pack it to the point of pushing the limit it gets a little poochy if you stuff the front pockets full.

 

It also has an expandable zipper that makes it too big for carry on. We had to expand one bag and check it coming home to accommodate all the stuff I bought. Fully loaded it only weighed 34 pounds.

 

The funny thing is, even packing that light, we thought of things we could have left behind!

[Tiffany1203]

Thursday was Costa Maya. We were with a group of about 25 people on the ship, so we arranged to have a private beach to ourselves. We went to Maya Chan, and I highly recommend them. We paid $45 a person (the two little ones, 1 and 3, were free). That included transportation to and from, open bar with loads of yummy drinks and a fabulous lunch. It also included snorkel equipment, bikes, kayaks, fresh water showers and the greatest staff imaginable. Massages were available for a small fee.

 

 

 

 

 

We decided to all meet on the ship and get off together. We strolled to the pickup place. It took about ½ hour in a cab on a bumpy road to get there. The beach had seaweed on the shore, but a Mexican gentleman spent the day raking it up. We had a ball drinking, relaxing and enjoying each other’s company. The cabs to take us back to the pier came much too soon (okay, they were right on time, but we didn’t want to leave!). We had a little time for shopping on the pier and them back to our ship.

 

 

 

We decided it was time to try one of the slides when we got back to the ship. The big twister slide was closed, so we went on the drainpipe. Let’s just say it wasn’t my cup of tea. It goes really fast and you get too much water in the eyes to enjoy the ride.

 

 

 

I LOVE this picture of the sky!

[jimbo5544]

Very nice review and pics so far.

[sailingawaysoon]

Thanks for the link for the all inclusive beach. I'm going to waste some more time at work and check that out! My husband wants to go to the ruins on this cruise, I'm just not sure which excursion to take for this. I've heard so many different horror stories on the ride to and from. I'm almost thinking we should definitely try booking something thru the ship. I can't remember, did you book thru the ship? Thanks again.

[donaldsc]

Pictures of your luggage and of the outside of your cabin door. Wonderful!

 

DON

[sunlover5]

Great review! Sure agree with you on Cozumel. My DH and I love to go into town to shop. Especially the little shops on the side streets. They seem to get so excited to see a customer. It is so much fun and much better than shopping at the ship.

[denisey]

Thanks for the link for the all inclusive beach. I'm going to waste some more time at work and check that out! My husband wants to go to the ruins on this cruise, I'm just not sure which excursion to take for this. I've heard so many different horror stories on the ride to and from. I'm almost thinking we should definitely try booking something thru the ship. I can't remember, did you book thru the ship? Thanks again.

 

Yes, we booked the Xunantunich ruins tour through the ship. I debated long and hard about doing the Lamanai tour on my own, because they sounded like better ruins (is there such as thing as good ruins? LOL!) but the fear of missing the ship won out. While we did have bus issues, it was still a great day and I recommend the tour, as long as you are aware that it is a lengthy bus ride and a pretty long day (we took extra water and granola bars with us!) There wasn't a whole lot of spare time for shopping at the tender pier, but then again, there weren't a lot of shops there either. The other ruins Altun ha are closer to the ship and usually have another activity packaged with it on the ship tours. There were some good review of these itinerarys on the Port of Call boards.

[denisey]

Pictures of your luggage and of the outside of your cabin door. Wonderful!

 

DON

 

LOL! Thanks! The picture of the door is because I have a rotten memory, the pix of the suitcase is just plain old showing off!

[Name Of The Game]

Great review!

 

Did the puppy and kitten belong to the owners at Maya Chan?

[ellenw]

We were on the same cruise and loved it. For those of you who don't go to the shows, you may want to make an exception for Dancin' in the Streets. It was pretty terrific.

 

We toured Atlu Ha in Belize. Took the Carnival tour - just worried about getting that far from the ship with a private tour. We chose that one since none of the us (4 people) has seen any Mayan ruins before, and it was the shortest tour offered. About 4 1/2 or 5 hours. It included a tour of Belize City, which I could have lived without. But the ruins were very good. And the guide was great - very knowledgeable. i don't know how we would have handled the issues with the bus on the longer tour!

 

I actually considered the photographers along the way on Deck 5 to be great entertainment. We would usually get sushi before our late seating dinner, and sit in that area. It was a lot of fun watching people pose. The kids are just amazing. There are 2 years olds that act like professional models!

 

I found tendering at Belize to be a bit annoying. I've never been to a tender port before. Unless I had a tour booked, I wouldn't bother going into the port. But, I think I have realized that it is more about that ship than the ports for me. As long as I have warm weather, good food and a few drinks, I'm happy on board.

 

Regarding the tables begin close in the Steakhouse - I really liked it. I found it much more comfortable than Nick and Nora's on Miracle. But, there were a lot of empty tables at Chefs Art the night we were there. Maybe I would have felt different if it was very crowded. The people at the next table were getting their dessert as we were seated for dinner. And, no one else was seated there that evening.

[denisey]

Great review!

 

Did the puppy and kitten belong to the owners at Maya Chan?

 

They did! The puppy was really full of Puppy Uppers and would jump and lick all over you, if you let him. The cat's name is Bosch, like the spark plug and was quite sweet (especially at lunch time!)

[denisey]

We were on the same cruise and loved it. For those of you who don't go to the shows, you may want to make an exception for Dancin' in the Streets. It was pretty terrific.

 

We toured Atlu Ha in Belize. Took the Carnival tour - just worried about getting that far from the ship with a private tour. We chose that one since none of the us (4 people) has seen any Mayan ruins before, and it was the shortest tour offered. About 4 1/2 or 5 hours. It included a tour of Belize City, which I could have lived without. But the ruins were very good. And the guide was great - very knowledgeable. i don't know how we would have handled the issues with the bus on the longer tour!

 

I actually considered the photographers along the way on Deck 5 to be great entertainment. We would usually get sushi before our late seating dinner, and sit in that area. It was a lot of fun watching people pose. The kids are just amazing. There are 2 years olds that act like professional models!

 

I found tendering at Belize to be a bit annoying. I've never been to a tender port before. Unless I had a tour booked, I wouldn't bother going into the port. But, I think I have realized that it is more about that ship than the ports for me. As long as I have warm weather, good food and a few drinks, I'm happy on board.

 

Regarding the tables begin close in the Steakhouse - I really liked it. I found it much more comfortable than Nick and Nora's on Miracle. But, there were a lot of empty tables at Chefs Art the night we were there. Maybe I would have felt different if it was very crowded. The people at the next table were getting their dessert as we were seated for dinner. And, no one else was seated there that evening.

 

Hey Ellen!

 

I did hear good things about Dancin in the Streets.

 

I can see the photographers being entertaining as you were sitting there, but it got a little annoying when we were trying to get somewhere. There was one in particular that was right at a choke point, and the ship location map was right there, and he liked to stand waaaaaaay back to take his pictures.....

 

We didn't eat at the Steakhouse, but that is a good point, they only seat each table once a night, so chances are you won't have someone right next to you. We walked through during the Behind the Fun tour and it felt crowded, but I can see if you are seated at a table, it might not be the same. It was also kinda funny that they had a dance floor in there, but since they've eliminated the entertainment in the Supper Club, they put tables on the dance floor!

[manmtnmike]

Just a quick Q..........

Who were the dance bands on board and in what lounges did they perform?

 

Thanks,

Mike

[denisey]

Just a quick Q..........

Who were the dance bands on board and in what lounges did they perform?

 

Thanks,

Mike

 

Sorry, didn't pay any attention!! I'll check my Capers when I get home tonight...Anybody else know?

[TakeMeAway1001]

Nice review, thanks for taking the time to share your cruise :)

[duck512]

What a nice review Denise. Thanks.

[denisey]

What a nice review Denise. Thanks.

 

The cruise was made better by good friends! :)

[teach21566]

How much was Victor for just the beach and a visit to see his Monkees

[mariloum]

Great review Denise - always so informative. Loved the pictures.

 

Marilou