Is it worth an extra 500 to go on Carnival Dream

[mommyto2kids]

We were originally looking at the Western Caribbean Itinerary on Carnival Valor in October. Saw tonight that Carnvial Dream does the same exact Itinerary 1 day earlier.

 

Price difference is about 500 for ocean view rooms.

 

I have 2 kids who will be turning 3 and 5 1/2 and one big kid (DH). For those of you have have cruised carnival and done the Dream is it worth the extra $$. We sailed Carnival Destiny in 200 3 and that has been our only cruise.

 

Thoughts would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

[salty dingo]

Not to me... but you asked. :D

[MrCo9]

Only you can say if it is worth the extra $$ for you. $500 would have to get us a bigger cabin or much better food.

[mommyto2kids]

thanks, so far all I can see are better water slides and to me that's not worth 500.

[glrounds]

Not to me... but you asked. :D

 

Same here, and also only because you asked. :)

[PROCRUISE]

Not to me... but you asked. :D

 

Yes, agree, not to us either.

[DGP1111]

. . . No . . .

[gargoyle999]

I haven't been on either one but my answer would be NO. :)

 

I'm not aware of anything so special about the Dream that I would pay $500 more for the same itinerary and number of days.

[Essiesmom]

Your kids won't miss what they never knew...Save the money, go on Dream another time when she is not so new...Like fall of 2011 when Magic has stolen the spotlight...Prices may be lower then. EM

[joebat1]

we were originally looking at the western caribbean itinerary on carnival valor in october. Saw tonight that carnvial dream does the same exact itinerary 1 day earlier.

 

price difference is about 500 for ocean view rooms.

 

 

thanks

 

No Way ~~!!~~

[mferris77]

Yeah, I haven't been on the Dream yet, from but what I see it's only a little bigger and has slight improvements above the previous large class (Conquest class?). To sail on the Dream right now is to pay a premium to sail on the new flagship. And I say this as someone who booked a suite on the Dream in Sept.

 

For what some rooms on the Dream are going for right now, you could get an even nicer room on a "nicer" cruise line for a cheaper price. (Celebrity Solstice I'm looking at you.)

 

If Carnival's prices continue the way they are my next cruise very well be on another line altogether and not just another Carnival boat.

[MikeM]

No, but what the heck, we booked it. With 2 cabins the cost is $1000+ over the Miracle (8 days) we follow up with.

[poptart]

I guess we lucked up...we switched from an OV on Elation to an inside on the Dream for almost the same price. The drive to port is about 4 hours longer but we liked the ports of call better....Lord I hope we make it to Costa Maya this year...we missed it last year :(

[mrpayroll]

Your kids won't miss what they never knew...Save the money, go on Dream another time when she is not so new...Like fall of 2011 when Magic has stolen the spotlight...Prices may be lower then. EM

 

I would follow this advice.....:rolleyes:

[beachykeen018]

I would say no. The only reason that it's so expensive is because it's brand new. It may be a bit bigger, but the basics (like on all Carnival ships) are similar. The food, shows, staff, rooms, etc. won't differ much. Like you said, the main difference will be a bigger water slide, maybe a few extra water activities and bigger pools.

 

I also cruised the Destiny in October, wonder if it was the same one! Lol. :)

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Absolutely not!

 

Tom

[jessemon]

Absolutely not!

 

Tom

Agreed....

[pe4all]

I definitely do not think it is worth the extra $500 to sail Dream. I was in the exact same situation as you a few months ago - Valor or Dream. I was pressured into Dream by rest of family (we sail with 2 other families during holiday times). To me, a ship is a ship. My kids are waaay older than yours, and really would make little, if any use of the waterworks - though I enjoyed them on Fantasy!:D The other families "had to go on the new ship." So, against my better judgement, we are on Dream. I'd rather have had the $500 in my pocket!

[jerseyjjs]

For the extra $500, you could book an upgraded cabin on the Valor as opposed to what you'd have on the Dream. Or use it for more expensive excursions in the ports.

[balcony bound]

Well, I have cruised on the Dream, and for the same itinerary I don't think I would pay $500 extra, even though I love the Dream. We actually paid less to sail on the Dream over other sailings on the same date - by a lot.

[Dave85]

Not worth it to me. It's up to you -- you can do a lot of on board spending with $500!

[Texaslandshark]

I don't know if I would or wouldn't but it does point up that apparently Carnival, like their main competition, believe that newer, bigger ships can, and do, command higher prices.

[firefly333]

...except Ecstasy is more per day than Conquest, so what does this prove ...that people love older smaller ships? Im looking at the per day costs ..Ecstasy is loved by a lot of people.

[OBX-Cruisers]

We were originally looking at the Western Caribbean Itinerary on Carnival Valor in October. Saw tonight that Carnvial Dream does the same exact Itinerary 1 day earlier.

 

Price difference is about 500 for ocean view rooms.

 

I have 2 kids who will be turning 3 and 5 1/2 and one big kid (DH). For those of you have have cruised carnival and done the Dream is it worth the extra $$. We sailed Carnival Destiny in 200 3 and that has been our only cruise.

 

Thoughts would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

 

Your question is do I want to go on a very new ship or a comparable size older ship. The difference cost pp is around $100 or about $15/day pp. So the decision is yours. We were on the Dream in January and the entertainment alone was worth the difference to us.

[Tiffany1203]

No Way Jose :D