Hard core princess lover..pleasant surprise on carnival dream

[AmberTeka]

I have read at least 10 Carnival versus Princess on this site. When we had a free week, we booked a last minute cruise (five days before sailing) on The Dream out of Port Canaveral. It is 4 hours from our home, the price( military rate..excellent), and we wanted to get away from a depressing situation for a week. GREAT CURE!

We booked the entry level 4A inside. It was the second inside we have ever booked,but we were upgraded to the Verandah Deck..Mid Ship..a few cabins from the Midship Elevators. Deck was very quiet. We OVER Slept. Beds were like clouds. After we had the bed seperated, it was like 2 sofa beds. I was surprised at the room we had..and I know..we are talking cruise cabins..none of them huge,but..we did have plenty of storage space..the bathroom was good..shower bigger than those on aPrincess Balcony and Mini.suites.

Service was good. Just not as many staff, or so it seemed to me. The Dining Staff seemed very rushed to me. Our cabin was not cleaned until after noon at first. Then I called housekeeping, told them we left the cabin early and did not return until lunch usually...then it was always cleaned when we left. Cannot ask for more than that. We tipped the lady who did our cabin extra...great job.Sweet smile. So Cabin was "A+"

Activites Staff "A". Trivia..trivia..trivia..scattergories, win lose or draw, pictionary, charades,line dancing, Mardi Gra mask making, ..and on and on. Events were well attended.

Theater Productions.."A+++". Saw them of them...One a pop music Show..one a dancing show with gynastics...another a patriotic country music show..that had the crowd on theirfeet and yelling. GREAT SHOWS. PRINCESS...COULD TAKE NOTES FROM CARNIVAL HERE....I did go early...always sat on the Third Row or so.

DECOR...CLEAN FACTOR."A+"...I like the bright colors..I am on vacation. The Ship..clean,clean to the bone. No signs of wear and tear. Plaza...Nice space. Coffee Bar there ..nice.NOT AN INTERNATIONAL COURT..but nice.

FOOD...not as good as Princess. EXcept for the Pizza. Really good.

Passengers...Better than they used to be. That sounds snooty..but I am tired of young women going through the buffet line with their ta-tas hanging out..and their hinny showing. Only saw two young women..in barely there bikinis dining ..in the Lido Buffet..no towel..no cover up...More skin that you see in R Rated movies.Loving the stares that came from their exhibitionism. Carnival puts out too nice a prodcut to put with that trashy behavior IMHO. Only saw one tatooded,shirtless Jerk in he Lido dining room. Most passengers....99%..well dressed, appropriate to the occasion..SAW NO DRUNKS. NOT ONE.

Our next cruise in on the Princess Crown. I am a devoted Princess Cruiser. But then next time,when My DH just is not up to the long drive to Ft.Lauderdale...I would sail Carnival again..if it was a bigger ship...during school terms..newer ship..

I was surprised. For the money..Carnival puts out an excellent cruise.

Oh..........the Casino? You play slots? Just go give them the money you intended to use in the Casino...get it over with..get on with your cruise..and STAY out of there. Those slot machines went beyond being tight. They should be investigated in my opinion. NO ONE I saw..or heard of..won on slots. Even SMALL wins.

[stoneharborlady]

Interesting review. Thank you for posting it. All the neon on Carnival is kind of a turn off for me, but I have not looked at this ship. Do they have a dress code in the Lido, and just dont enforce it, or is it come as you are? If you dont mind me asking, did you have a large savings over Princess?

[ssbeagle]

I know someone who swears by Carnival and she's sailed on other lines as well. I think she likes it for the perks she gets for having so many cruises. She did have one cruise booked until she found out there would be an extreme amount of transvestites and gays on board. But she's never said anything about the wild parties you always hear about. I almost tried Carnival once but our TA talked us out of it. One of these days I may just try it anyway for something different.

[vantec]

I also prefer Princess, but we have taken a few Carnival Cruises - just returned from a cruise on the Magic and totally agree with your opinion of the casino, we didn't get any play from the slots, put our money in the machine and it was over quickly, we were not even tempted to go back to the casino. We took this cruise because it was so much less expensive than Princess, that was the deciding factor for us.

[iancal]

I have to agree with you. We booked on Carnival Spirit a few years ago. DW was no so sure. It was an eight day Feb cruise, leaving on a weekday. We were very pleasantly surprised-great balcony cabin. Beds, food, entertainment were all good-comparable to Princess with the exception of the buffet.

 

We keep hearing people knock Carnival with the usual...party animals, no dress codes, loads of children, etc. This was not our experience. We have sailed with them since but would have no issue selecting them again.

[kdooley]

I think it has to do with the time of year, and length of cruise, that you travel on Carnival. I took a 5 day out of Tampa this past March (think Spring Break) and had a wild ride - kids, drunks, tatoos, even a hairy chest contest! I think if we went on a 7 day cruise in October, it would have been a different experience.

[DrivesLikeMario]

Thanks for your review. It was interesting to read a comparison. We really enjoyed our Carnival Spirit cruise about 5 yrs. ago. The ship isn't our style, but the cruise itself was really good. Enjoy your Crown Princess cruise (not Princess Crown). ;)

[Mrs. Wilburforce]

I'm glad you posted this review. It's difficult to get an unbiased opinion from people who love Carnival or from people who, like me, prefer the upscale cruise lines.

Our granddaughter lives in San Diego and when we drive to her house from the airport she always looks at the cruise ships in port. I'd love to (with parents blessing) surprise her with a 4 or 5 day cruise on a ship with lots of kiddos for her to play with. Disney is just too pricey (more expensive than Cunard) so this seems like a nice alternative.

It would be really nice to just drive to port for a change instead of all the hand wringing we do flying out of the Midwest :confused:

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

We love that ship....

[Fairport]

We had a great cruise on the Carnival Spirit in Alaska. We are on the Crown in April, but would consider Carnival again in the future.

[shepp]

She did have one cruise booked until she found out there would be an extreme amount of transvestites and gays on board.

 

Did she mention what, numerically, an "extreme amount" might be? I've cruised on ships with what I'd regard as an extreme amount of straight people onboard, but somehow always survived...

[wyocruiser]

We have only taken one cruise on Carnival (summer, Legend out of Tampa), but it was a good experience. The cruise director (a woman) was excellent. The beds and robes are superior to Princess. However, the couch in the room was a weird size (the seat portion was too wide to sit with your knees bent and your back against the back of the couch --- even for my 6'2" DH) and covered in vinyl. The food in the dining room was very good, but the buffet was just so-so. We did not experience the fabled party atmosphere, but someone told us that was mainly on the less-than-a-week cruises. At the time, we didn't like the fact that the MDR was closed for lunch on port days on Carnival --- now, that is irrelevant.

[pppiglet]

Our Carnival Pride cruise was one of our favorites. The food was excellent and we had no drunks or loud partyers. I was really worried when we booked it. But it was a 7 day to Mexico in February when most people are still in school.

 

We just booked our first Princess cruise so we are excited to see what they are all about.

 

Disney was our first cruise and we've done them 3 times (we don't even have small kids). Loved it, but yes...more expensive than others.

 

Royal Caribbean we did once and it was our least favorite. The food was just bland. The cruise itself was fine. I don't think you could ever have a bad cruise!

[deise17311]

Did she mention what, numerically, an "extreme amount" might be? I've cruised on ships with what I'd regard as an extreme amount of straight people onboard, but somehow always survived...

 

How did she find out about the "Transvestites" on board that would certainly seek her out to ruin her cruise...those that enjoyed this cruise were lucky this (word deleted) woman stayed off...

[bighairtexan]

Celebrity is my line of choice followed closely by Princess.

However I've cruised many times on Carnival and USUALLY it's been an excellent vacation. I prefer the Spirit class ships as they seem less NEON, but I also find that the newer the Carnival ship (this is a sweeping generality) the less gaudy they are. As if they're toning down the glitz a bit.

I will NOT cruise on the older ships which tend to be the shorter cruises, and I avoid Spring Break and other school holidays. I've found the old ships on the short cruises do have more of a Party Hearty mood, and the crew seems less polished. I wouldn't go on an Ecstasy cruise for FREE but I'd consider Spirit and Dream class (maybe Conquest class) if the price were good. But I have to say, out of Galveston when the Magic gets here... according to the prices... Carnival is VERY proud of that ship.

Though

[lovevacadays]

Thanks for the review. I've only cruised Carnival twice many years ago. They were on older ships so the experience wasn't that great. I may have to give Carnival a try again someday.

[A1A]

I had a less than wonderful cruise on a Carnival ship out of the same port years ago, a very old and very neon ship just recently refurbished last year. After your review, we may want to reconsider a Carnival!

Thanks for your review!

Ken

[JWJs]

Thanks for your review! So far I have only looked at a Carnival cruise one time. Didn't book...just looked.

[AmberTeka]

We booked it because it is an easy drive from our home. To sail on Princess in Dec will mean a much longer drive for us. We considered RCI..Freedom of the Seas. Too Darn big. Prices were way higher than the Dream. Considered the NCL Sun. Reviews were good or bad..not much in the middle. (BUT when we saw the ship in Port..looked spotless. It was docked right beside the Dream in St.Martin..and looked to be tiptop shape. Hmm.) CLOSEST PRINCESS cruise..was in S.Florida. We have sailed on Canrival Before. We knew it was Oct..Kids were in school...No spring breakers...it was a longer cruise for Carnvial..the Dream was fairly new...The last minute military price for an inside entry level cabin...was posted on a big on line Travel Agency site. I called the TA we use there...he booked us one category up for not much more..a Guar..and then we got the upgrades to a higher deck.HUGE bargin. It was a military discount.My DH missed the balcony. I liked the inside. I slept like a log. And I don't sleep that well. The motion of the ship..no light coming in a wndow..don't know..but I did sleep very well. Every night.

The children on board seemed to belong to people who watched them pretty well. We played a lot of Trivia and the demographic there..was similar to Princess. MOST of the people we met..and the couple we dined with..had cruised on Princess. Some ..quite a bit.

The younger crowd...seemed to sleep late..party late..but never anything out of the ordinary..dancing..piano bar..deck parties..etc...DID not see a single druck. NO one heckled the entertainers.

Two young things in nothing there bikinis..with their witless escorts...dined in the Lido Deck...and Carnival did not toss them out. They should have. Carnival puts out a great product for the price. That is the sort of thing that makes Canival get a rep for Trashy. over4,000 FOLKS ON THE SHIP..three...those exhibitionists..and the tattoed jerk..who got in line with no shirt on..Carnival SHOULD Enforce the rules..and toss them out. It is uncomfortable to dine when nearly naked people sit down close to your table. You don't know whether to be offended...or amused..and it is sort of shocking. It shocked me. I am old..does it show?

Other than that..The dining rooms were lovely. We were on early dining and on elegant night..I saw no one without long pants...no shorts. The ladies seemed nicely dressed.

Someone has reined in those photographers that used to block every entrance. Liked that much better.

It was not my beloved Princess. But it was a very nice cruise..and it was an exceptional value for the money.

[AmberTeka]

I also prefer Princess, but we have taken a few Carnival Cruises - just returned from a cruise on the Magic and totally agree with your opinion of the casino, we didn't get any play from the slots, put our money in the machine and it was over quickly, we were not even tempted to go back to the casino. We took this cruise because it was so much less expensive than Princess, that was the deciding factor for us. "

 

IF the CASINO on the Magic...was as tight as the ones on The Dream..someone should check into that. It is not good business for Carnvial for folks to never win.

AND I don't expect to win. But usually you win enough to keep playing for a while. This time..it was like you said...put your money in...get a few spins...and money was gone. I did not hear of anyone winning. They may have...but I did not hear it..and usually you do.

 

By Weds...I was not going back. I mean..there was NO fun in it. I had carried books with me..enjoyed them..played some Bingo ( nope. didn't win there either..but folks all around me Bingoed left and right)...took a nap. Worked out well. Saved some money.

[Elizabeth K.]

Did she mention what, numerically, an "extreme amount" might be? I've cruised on ships with what I'd regard as an extreme amount of straight people onboard, but somehow always survived...

:):):)

[serene56]

We also love Princess but the dollars dictate we cruise with Carnival.

 

Booked the RUby for February 2013 and it is costing almost 700. more then a carnival cruise

[AmberTeka]

We also love Princess but the dollars dictate we cruise with Carnival.

 

Booked the RUby for February 2013 and it is costing almost 700. more then a carnival cruise

 

Carnival's rates on their big ships are pretty high. The Breeze...running high rates. I do agree with you ..but I consider RCI prices way higher than Princess. I think the Past Guest rates on Princess...especially when combined with a sale...are excellent. We sail on Princess this DEC. and we booked on Past Guest...while a three day sale was going on..and the rate was higher than Carnival Dream..but we are in a balcony. The same cabin..would have been the equivalent on The Dream..or higher. It seems to me..that Inside and O.V..can be real bargins on Carnival..but Balconies..Pricey. Princess...to me..has smaller increases...the balcony.. is that not much more than an O.V.often.Carnival often has gaps on their big new ships that are $800 or more PP. But the price on Princess from an OV obstructed to an OV..sometimes..almost as much as too an entry balcony. Don't get that. I don't understand pricing.

 

RCI...I don't know what they do on their ships..but it must be stupendous...judging from the rates they charge.

We do hunt bargins. We live in Florida. Can drive to the ports. We are retired.Get military on many lines. We are very fortunate...and we appreciate it.

ANY cruise....that we have every been on...has been a total pleasure. AND the fellow guests...99%...super people.

We just love Princess. The laid back atmosphere. the lots of Trivia. We just fit in there like peas and carrots.

Still...we will sail on Carnival. They are our second best love. HAL..pretty close. HAL...we are not party animals. Sometimes on HAL..we think we are the only people on the ship after 8pm. Eriee. But nice. Love the fresh flowers. The classy atmosphere. Food is good too.

 

SERENE...I have read many of your reviews. They have always been such a source for good information. You have posted menus..cabin descriptions. I am happy to get a chance to thank you!!

[Musky Ike]

"Only saw two young women..in barely there bikinis"

 

Better than some of the older gals (and guys) that try it:rolleyes:

[JimmyVWine]

Two young things in nothing there bikinis..with their witless escorts...dined in the Lido Deck...and Carnival did not toss them out... That is the sort of thing that makes Canival get a rep for Trashy.

Wow. You know that these women were "Trashy" and their escorts were witless how?? A bikini makes one "trashy"? And the men who accompany them are witless simply because they were on vacation with lovely ladies with nice bodies? And guys with tatoos are jerks? Could you be any more judgmental?

 

 

It is uncomfortable to dine when nearly naked people sit down close to your table. You don't know whether to be offended...or amused..and it is sort of shocking. It shocked me. I am old..does it show?

No, I don't think it is your age. It is your attitude that is showing. You are on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. If people in bathing suits make you uncomfortable, then maybe this isn't the place for you. Suppose you are sitting in a lounge chair by the pool, and you order some food, and the woman in the next lounger is wearing a bikini. Does that make you uncomfortable? Or is it only uncomfortable to eat next to a person wearing a bikini if you are seated at a table 50 feet further astern? And if so, why does the locale change your comfort level? While I can appreciate your comments about enforcing a dress code in certain parts of the ship, the comment that it is uncomfortable to dine near "nearly naked people" calls into question all the places on the ship where it is perfectly appropriate to order food while wearing swim wear or otherwise showing one's tatoos.