Carnival Dream 2/9/13

[Montana Mama2]

Just a quick review of our Dream cruise on 2/9. We had a very large group (36 total) sailing on the Dream. My immediate family and most of their kids as well as my parents, my sister-in-laws family and some friends. We all stayed at the Radisson by the Port on Friday night. It was OK. My husband and I had rented a car from Budget so about 10 AM we loaded up the car and dropped our luggage off at port then returned the car to Budget. Fortunately, this was the worst part of the trip. They would not shuttle us to the port until they had picked up all of the passengers debarking the cruise ship. We waited for more than 40 minutes and finally shared a taxi with another passenger. The taxi driver was a little nuts to put it nicely and it took all of the patience in the world to not tell her such. However, if that's the worst part of our trip, that means we had a pretty good time!

 

We had signed up for FTTF and were on the ship within minutes. There weren't lines for regular boarding at that time, however being able to drop our bags off the minute we walked on the ship was worth at least $50 in my opinion. We have young ones and it was just nice not to lug anything around. Having your own customer service line and debarking early were added bonuses.

 

We weren't hungry yet so after we dropped our bags off we just found some loungers poolside and sat and relaxed. Members of our group soon joined us. Just nice having a drink in your hand and relaxing by a pool. Our luggage was at our cabin by 2. I'm not sure exactly when it came but with plenty of time to unpack before dinner.

 

We stayed on the Panorama deck, cabin 11252. Our cabin steward was Juan from Honduras. He was wonderful. Our cabin was always maintained well and he was very friendly. It was just one deck up from the Lido and straight across from Camp Carnival. Perfect for us.

 

Our head waiter was Mark from India. I believe Ketut was one assistant waiter and I can't remember the other. They were amazing. We had such a large group and we changed places and tables and they still knew our names and preferences. I ordered the cheese plate once for dessert and then had one every night after without ordering it. Soon, they started bringing it before dinner so I could enjoy it with my wine.

 

The comedy shows were all good. We only went to the 18+ shows so they got a little crude sometimes but still pretty good comedy. We went to the Welcome Aboard show (my dh was the Cruise Celebrity) and to Dancing in the Streets. Fun Force were really talented dancers and the acrobat they brought on for that show was incredible. We did some of the Mardi Gras party as well.

 

I'm not a fan of the buffet...for any meal, so I was impressed with the Punchliner comedy breakfast. We also ate breakfast in the dining room on the day we went to St. Thomas. We tried the pasta restaurant twice for lunch. My girls thought it was the greatest. It was easy to find a seat and the food was fresh and it tasted wonderful. Just a note, we asked for half portions and they were usually bigger than my husband's full portion. We also did the deli which was good.

 

We never had much time to play in the casino. We are not fans of smokey places so it's a deterrent for us, even though we like to gamble. We, I should say my dh, sang some Karaoke both with the band and without. That was an interesting twist, and I think he enjoyed singing with a live band. He wasn't interested in being in the Legends show as it hasn't changed in the last several years . Been there, done that. Gave us our Friday night to do what we wanted however, so that was nice.

 

The ship didn't seem any more crowded than the Glory or Liberty. Every once in a while I could smell "the smell" but it was nothing that was going to ruin my cruise. All in all, a great time. Let me know if you have any questions.

[mailgirl1978]

Thanks for the review :)

We will be on the Dream May 4th and I can't wait!

 

 

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[travlngrl1996]

Thanks for your report.

[copper6606]

Thanks so much for the Review so far...:D

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for posting a short review of your cruise. Glad you had a good time.

[Beth]

My favorite ship. Love the pasta bar, blackjack band & cruise director Jamie. Wierd combination.

[092306]

Thanks for the review. DH wants to go on the Dream after the Splendor in the worst way. Good to see positive reviews!

[battchief1]

Thanks for the review, we will be on her soon.

[psternklar]

Thanks for the review.

[rch3]

Thanks for the review. Will be sailing Dream in July. (Fellow Montanan-grew up in Bozeman. )

[sbnuggie]

I was wondering if you could be more specific about your budget Rent-A-Car experience. We are renting a car from budget at Orlando international and will be using it for three days before cruising then returning it to budget and taking their shuttle from budget to the ship. could you detail what problems you had I would be interested to hear fine points of what happened.....thanks

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk..... I apologize fer ne spellng miztakes as itz hard to type on dis little fone

[Montana Mama2]

I was wondering if you could be more specific about your budget Rent-A-Car experience. We are renting a car from budget at Orlando international and will be using it for three days before cruising then returning it to budget and taking their shuttle from budget to the ship. could you detail what problems you had I would be interested to hear fine points of what happened.....thanks

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk..... I apologize fer ne spellng miztakes as itz hard to type on dis little fone

 

The biggest issue with Budget was that they said they had a shuttle to take you to the port, but they would not take us until they had picked up all of the Budget renters from the port. So they were dropping off cruise passengers who were returning at the rental car location but they would not take any of us waiting to go to the port. Their shuttles were empty going back to the port and we had to sit and wait. I understand it must be their policy, but when you are ready to get to the port and there are empty shuttles going there but they won't let you get on, it's frustrating. Plus we have kids and it just makes waiting more difficult. The Orlando Airport Budget was a breeze. I'm not sure what time you are planning on getting to the port. If it's later in the day it probably won't be an issue. I hope it goes well.

[reerun25]

Thanks for the review!

[gelo7]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[cingroomer]

Was this your first time on the Dream? If no, did you notice any changes? We went a couple years ago and going back in September and I heard there were some additions and things changed and just wondered what they are. Thanks.

[Montana Mama2]

Was this your first time on the Dream? If no, did you notice any changes? We went a couple years ago and going back in September and I heard there were some additions and things changed and just wondered what they are. Thanks.

 

This was our first time. I have been on the Glory and Liberty previously but not the Dream. I liked it though. Have a great trip!