My Carnival Dream wedding review! 3/26/11

Now that my life is getting back to normal, I finally found time to sit and write my wedding review. I hope you find it useful in planning your own wedding and if you have any questions, please let me know.

Day Before:

Friday, 3/25/11 we arrived at “The Radisson at the Port” and checked in around 4:30pm. Lobby was very busy but the check in staff moved people through quickly. Within 15 minutes we were in our rooms getting ready for dinner. We were in the 800 building which was newly renovated. To avoid seeing my groom the next day, we had separate rooms. The hotel was very clean, nice decor, and had friendly staff however, my sleep number bed didn’t work. :(

Night Before, Dinner at Fishlips:

First a little background...I contacted Fishlips through email months in advance to inform them my group of 35 would like to meet for drinks and dinner there that night. We thought it would be a great way to spend more time with our non-sailing guests. At the time the manager confirmed through email and thats all I heard. So, a week before departure I called the restaurant to confirm again and the manager hadn’t put us in the books! Good thing I called.

We met our guests at 5:30 pm for drinks then ordered dinner around 6:30pm. They put us upstairs, which ended up being a covered porch (outside) overlooking the water. The view was nice but the noise was awful. They had several large groups dinning up there that night all next to each other and the voice volume was so loud you had to yell to be heard to the person next to you. They had a DJ. It became worse when the music started. They split my group into 6 long tables back to back so it was hard to socialize. We ended up moving from table to table to spend time with everyone. Well, in spite of that we were determined to have a good time. We ate, drank and were merry! The service was good and the food was great!

The Morning of the Wedding:

My hair and makeup artist, Tiffany from Professional Elegance, arrived at my room right on schedule (7 am) and began working on my hair and placed the veil. Then it was my Matron of Honors turn for hair and makeup. I asked her to do my makeup last since I tend to get oily as time goes on. Tiffany did a fantastic job on our hair and makeup!

Being I didn’t want my groom to see me, my MOH and I decided to call a cab instead of riding the Radisson shuttle with the other guests. I had 10 guests (including my groom) ride the 9:30 shuttle to the port. After handing off my wedding favors, sailing guest gift bags, and the guys boutonnieres to some of my non-sailing guests to bring aboard, I was ready to catch my cab. The non-sailing guests drove their vehicles and parked at the port in short term parking. The cab driver, Ken, from AAA cabs, was very nice and didn’t mind waiting 10 minutes for me to get to him in the parking lot. Although it was a cab van, it was a tight fit with all our luggage but we made it work. The cab ride was about 10 minutes.

Arrival at the Port:

Once we arrived at the port, the porters quickly took our previously tagged luggage and directed us to the entrance door. We went through the VIP line, showed our passports and boarding passes and plopped our bags on the scanner machine belt. To my surprise I kept setting off the walk through scanner. :eek: They pulled me out of line and used the wand to discover it wasn’t all the hair pins but the studs on my shirt! Who knew? Anyway, Thank goodness for my wonderful Matron of Honor who cruised before and knew the routine of boarding because at this point I started to tear up with the nerves, stress and the reality of finally getting married. She lead me to the counter to fill out the “Are you sick” forms. Then over to another counter where Carnival personal checked passports and boarding passes again as well as verified my credit card. This is where my coordinator, Carol, from The Wedding Experience, found us.

Carol introduced herself and told me that my groom and guests were all in another room already. Sheww...now I’m feeling a little better. Carol knew I didn’t want my groom to see me and she made sure he didn’t. She also kept me hidden from my guests! My MOH and I were lead to another room where we all sat together and went over the ceremony details, music and other details. I carried copies of all my paperwork with me in case we needed it. It came in handy because we edited the poem and she didn’t have the edited version. I gave the coordinator the burnt CD mix I created for our surprise first dance and I also gave her a list of songs I wanted played and when.

After about 15 minutes of sitting, we heard the announcement the ship was cleared for boarding. Carol left me and took my MOH to check on the other guests and to get them to start boarding. Then they both came back to lead me board.

Once aboard:

I was awestruck walking onto the Dream. The lobby is so beautiful! It was full of colors and flashing lights from the triple set of glass elevators going up and down. It was busy with other passengers coming aboard and those already on board scattering around. There is a round bar directly in front of you as you board. I guess Carol noticed how nervous I was and asked us if we would like a drink before heading to the cabin. It was only 11:45 am and much earlier in the day than I would ordinarily have a drink, but I thought, “what the heck” and took her up on it. I really needed something to calm my nerves. :o Just then, the Carnival wedding coordinator, Ivania (hope I spelled it right) came over to introduce herself to all of us. Then she left to check on the ceremony room and reception room. Taking our drinks along, the TWE Coordinator, my MOH and I headed up to my cabin. My wedding was scheduled to start at 1:30 pm. I took a few minutes to explore my balcony cabin while my MOH went up to the lido deck to bring us back something to eat. It was really nice to have a little time to relax before getting into my gown.

The Ceremony:

About 12:45 pm I received a call on the cabin phone from my Carnival photographer, Jay. He was heading up to my room to take some photos. After about 10 minutes of taking pictures in the cabin the phone rings again. It’s Alex, our Carnival videographer who was headed to the room to do my pre-wedding interview. The questions during the interview were basic such as “where did you first meet” and “when did you know it was true love”.

At 1:15 pm Carol shows back up at the cabin to escort us down to the Song Club where my ceremony was being held. The videographer hurried back down to the ceremony room. Jay, our photographer, followed us all the way down, running ahead and snapping pictures as we walked down the hallway. My two boys (10yr old and 16yr old) were my escorts down the isle. They met me just outside the Song Club doorway with Carol and my MOH. We stopped just outside the doors, while the photographer is still snapping pictures, I was introduced to the efficient that the The Wedding Experience provided. I had requested early in my planning, to have a male efficient but could sense some doubt from the customer service rep back then. Well, to my surprise they made it happen! And the efficient wasn’t just a notary, he was a reverend too! Even better! Rev Parker briefly explained the details of the ceremony and quickly left to get into place. Then after a few more minutes I hear the music...”Hear comes the bride”. Then Carol cued my boys and I to walk in.

The room was dimly lit. It felt warm and inviting with its earthy orange, red and brown tones. The Carnival provided pedestals flanking the front of the isle were holding white baskets of flowers. I know some brides on here think they look tacky in photos they have seen, but I think they were sufficient enough for background decor. I’m glad I didn’t waste money replacing those. The provided carpet runner was shorter in length than I imagined, however the distance of the isle was just right. The ceremony included a double ring exchange and unity candle ceremony. It all lasted about 20 minutes.

The Reception:

After the photographer took a few couple photos then some of wedding party and family we were off to the Caliente Disco for our reception. The DJ played my requested song “Another One Bites the Dust” as we walked into the room. As we entered the room, a long table was to our left. It was covered in white linens sprinkled with the teal flower petals (I provided), my guest favors and the signature guest photo frame. My groom and I were taken directly to the back of the dance floor where a table was set with our cake, my silk bouquet, the Carnival provided bouquet, toasting glasses and the champaign bottle on ice. We cut the cake and fed each other then it was time for our first dance. Once the dance was over, my husband and I split up and greeted our guests who were clustered in groups around the room. Beautifully set up buffet tables were on the side of the room and guests were eating. I managed to make myself a plate and sat for a couple of minutes. Food was great! My guests really enjoyed the food, especially the cake. We had chosen the combo cake with strawberry filling. Carol made sure I always had a drink. And I saw several bar servers walking around with ready made drinks too.

My groom and I were called to the dance floor once again to do the garter and bouquet toss. The DJ played my selected song for the tosses. By the way, the DJ did a great job. He played all of my special requested songs which made me very happy. Time went by so quickly. We danced with our guests, laughed a lot and enjoyed every second. Before we knew it, our reception was over and it was time to say goodbye to our non-sailing guests. Our reception actually went over an hour by 15 minutes. This was a surprise since I have always heard Carnival is very strict with their time.

After the Reception:

Our photographer, Jay, took us around the ship to take a few more photos. After a few minutes it was 3:00 PM, time to do the muster drill. Jay lead us to our muster station in one of the dinning rooms and we sat at a table as all the other sailing guests did the same. The staff had reserved a table just for us! Our DJ happened to be the staff member demonstrating how to use the life vest and where to go in case of an emergency. None of the guests were required to actually put on the vests. Once muster drill was over we met back up with Jay and we were off to take some more photos. We finished taking photo’s around 4:45 and went back to our room to get ready for our dinner at 6 PM. My groom was ready to get out of his tux but I asked him to stay dressed so we can go to dinner in our wedding attire. After some grimacing...lol he agreed but took off the jacket and tie. What a great husband! :D

I have to say, if your undecided about getting the video, get it! We hesitated at first because we thought $595 was a lot for a video. Being on a tight budget, it was something we didn’t think we could afford. But we changed our mind only a couple weeks before the wedding. We are so happy we did! The video turned out great! We love it! It is the best piece of memorabilia from our entire wedding. :)

Here is a link to my photos. http://chubbmertzwedding.shutterfly.com/pictures

WOW! BEAUTIFUL!!

I love your dress! And your flowers are gorgeous too! It looks like you had a wonderful time!

You are VERY photogenic, all of the pics of you are really good! I love the pics of you and your groom dancing with the sunglasses!

Thanks so much for writing this review! :) Some of us are going CRAZY here waiting for our turn!!

First off CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! I love reading all of your posts because you have the answers to questions I haven't even thought of yet about getting married on the Dream.

Your review was excellent and answered even more questions I hadn't thought of. Do you know what would have happened if it was your hair pins setting off the detector? I would have been having a nervous breakdown at that point.

It sounds like you had the perfect wedding and I am so happy for you. You pictures are absolutely beautiful and Tiffany did a great job with hair and make up.

Congrats again to you and your beautiful family!

Congrats! Great photos! You look stunning!!!!

Thanks for the review, it's always great hearing from other embarkation day brides and the details really helped me envision everything :D Your cake is awesome btw, I love the butterflies. And what a great MOH! Sounds like she was really helpful.

You looked absolutely beautiful! It looks like you and your husband had a wonderful day. Your dress was so pretty and your make up was so nice (I loved the eyes). Your sons did a nice job escorting you, they looked very handsome. Congratulations!

WOW! BEAUTIFUL!!

 

I love your dress! And your flowers are gorgeous too! It looks like you had a wonderful time!

 

You are VERY photogenic, all of the pics of you are really good! I love the pics of you and your groom dancing with the sunglasses!

 

Thanks so much for writing this review! :) Some of us are going CRAZY here waiting for our turn!!

Thank you! Funny story about the dance. My groom and I have a big height difference so dancing has always been a bit awkward for us. And it didn't really suit our joking around happy go lucky personalities. So I thought it would be fun and funny to do a "surprise dance" which included some hip hop moves. Now none of our guests have never seen us dance hip hop before so it was really going to shock people. I created a blended mix of songs we loved and burnt them to a disc.

We started out our first dance with Shania Twains - "From this moment"....after a minute the music switched to a hip hop song "Dynamite" by Taio Cruz "I throw my hands up in the air sometimes..." progressed to some BEP's and ended with "G6 by Far East Movement". It was during the last song we turned around and put on the glasses and spun around to doing the "drive the car" move you see in the photo.

Well, it was a huge success! It totally took everyone by surprise. Everyone was clapping and rolling in laughter which is what we wanted. It was great!

The DJ later told us he got very scared that he did something wrong because the slow song disappeared....lol He actually turned down the volume until he noticed we were still dancing...LOL OH, and later in the cruise I had a conversation with another couple in the Mongolian Wok line and told them I had gotten married on the ship. They said they happened to peek in the disco just at the moment we were doing our dance and thought it was great! The ship is big, but its still a small world. :)

It was a very memorable moment.

Great review and very detailed one of the best ones I've read thusfar! I have too many "likes" LOL. Your boys are handsome and great picture! Hair and makeup was flawless and I especially like the pose with you lying down and leg extended in the air(may have to steal this pose). Thank you for sharing your review and pictures with us.

First off CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!! I love reading all of your posts because you have the answers to questions I haven't even thought of yet about getting married on the Dream.

 

Your review was excellent and answered even more questions I hadn't thought of. Do you know what would have happened if it was your hair pins setting off the detector? I would have been having a nervous breakdown at that point.

 

It sounds like you had the perfect wedding and I am so happy for you. You pictures are absolutely beautiful and Tiffany did a great job with hair and make up.

 

Congrats again to you and your beautiful family!

Awe, thanks Stacy! I think they would have let me though even if they couldn't figure out what set off the detector. If you have any other questions let me know!

Thanks for the review, it's always great hearing from other embarkation day brides and the details really helped me envision everything :D Your cake is awesome btw, I love the butterflies. And what a great MOH! Sounds like she was really helpful.

Thanks! My theme was butterflies. I didn't want to use a traditional cake topper so I contacted a sugar artist off of Etsy and told them what I was looking for. I sent her photos of the butterflies from my invitations and others I found online and they made them and shipped them to me. They are completely edible.

I should mention too that we had lots of left over cake. The second night in the dinning room our head waiter asked us if we would like to have it for desert one day that week. I wanted to have the melting cake that night so we ate it on the third night. We had more than our group could handle so I told the waiter to also share it with anyone else in the dinning who wanted it.

Great review and very detailed one of the best ones I've read thusfar! I have too many "likes" LOL. Your boys are handsome and great picture! Hair and makeup was flawless and I especially like the pose with you lying down and leg extended in the air(may have to steal this pose). Thank you for sharing your review and pictures with us.

Thanks! So glad you like my review. I was afraid I was getting too long winded so I cut some text out.

Funny about that pose. It was taken in the Disco. They have these big round "couches" up against the wall. When the photographer told me to lay on my back and put my leg on the wall, I said "you want me to do what?" My groom was apprehensive too. He says he looks like he's about to bite my neck...LOL I love the picture too!

Thanks! My theme was butterflies. I didn't want to use a traditional cake topper so I contacted a sugar artist off of Etsy and told them what I was looking for. I sent her photos of the butterflies from my invitations and others I found online and they made them and shipped them to me. They are completely edible.

 

I should mention too that we had lots of left over cake. The second night in the dinning room our head waiter asked us if we would like to have it for desert one day that week. I wanted to have the melting cake that night so we ate it on the third night. We had more than our group could handle so I told the waiter to also share it with anyone else in the dinning who wanted it.

I know that will happen to us too and I don't want the same dessert twice on the cruise :P I want to sample!

You guys looked like you were having a ball. There was a TV comedy show with a big guy and good looking gal, you reminded me of them. I bet he's a handful, lol. That picture on the deck is AWESOME!!! Carnival should be hitting you up for advertisement, that depicts cruisin to the "Nines". Great pictures, and good post, made it easy to read. :)

Sounds great and you guys look so happy in your pictures. I've read a ton of reviews on the Dream and they all mention the smell on the boat. How bad was it? Many talk about how it really ruins there vacation and how embarased they were for the guests that spent money to go with them. We are looking to use that ship as well, but the smell thing is making us worry, last post that had the smell still on the ship was the begining of March.

So glad everything went perfect,,,,,congrats

Sounds great and you guys look so happy in your pictures. I've read a ton of reviews on the Dream and they all mention the smell on the boat. How bad was it? Many talk about how it really ruins there vacation and how embarased they were for the guests that spent money to go with them. We are looking to use that ship as well, but the smell thing is making us worry, last post that had the smell still on the ship was the begining of March.

 

So glad everything went perfect,,,,,congrats

We did notice a foul, sewage smell from time to time later in the cruise. It smelt like you were walking by a restroom. We discovered it on the 3rd day. It was only in one area of the ship which was around one of the staircases lower decks (below deck 6). It wasn't something that would ruin my vacation because I only noticed it a couple times going up and down the stairs. No big deal. The dream is a beautiful fun ship and I wouldn't hesitate to cruise on her again.

Congratulations! Your photos look awesome, and I love the idea you had for your dance! I hope my fiancee and I have the guts to do something so fun.

I am so happy with your review, I am booked for our wedding on the Carnival Dream next year. I'm having so much fun saying Our Carnival 'Dream Wedding'.

I have questions about the muster drill - were you and your wedding party taken to a 'special' muster drill kind of thing, or?? Because I want to wear my dress to dinner, and I don't want to wear it to muster drill.. vest or no vest, lol. Plus I figure there will be a couple of hours between reception and dinner anyway? So I might change out of the dress.. then back into it for dinner?

Any thoughts on this?

Congratulations! Your photos look awesome, and I love the idea you had for your dance! I hope my fiancee and I have the guts to do something so fun.

 

I am so happy with your review, I am booked for our wedding on the Carnival Dream next year. I'm having so much fun saying Our Carnival 'Dream Wedding'.

 

I have questions about the muster drill - were you and your wedding party taken to a 'special' muster drill kind of thing, or?? Because I want to wear my dress to dinner, and I don't want to wear it to muster drill.. vest or no vest, lol. Plus I figure there will be a couple of hours between reception and dinner anyway? So I might change out of the dress.. then back into it for dinner?

 

Any thoughts on this?

Hi DramaticCanandian!

We went to the same muster drill as all the other passengers. All your doing at muster drill is watching the staff member demonstrate how to use the vest it's only about 10-15 minutes. Just curious, why wouldn't you want to wear it then?

The photographer will want to take pictures of you after the reception. You will most likely be with him at least an 1hr or more. We were with ours 1 hr 45 min minutes. There was no time to change before muster because we were taking photos before and after.

You won't know when your reception time is until 2-3wks prior to the date. Without knowing what time your dinner is or your reception time, its hard to say if you will have time to change twice before dinner.

I had early dinner (6 pm) and only had 30 minutes to tidy up before having to leave for dinner.

Consider this...If you did change you would be making your photographer wait to take photos later. That will cut into your evening time for sure. Additionally, I would be concerned about my hair and makeup lasting through the clothes changing and extra time between photos and the reception. Also consider the ease of getting in and out of your dress. If it is difficult to take off and put on alone it may be more trouble than its worth.

I love FUN weddings and from your photos it looked like you were having a blast and at the same time enjoying a loveky wedding day.

Congratulations and thanks for your review!

You guys looked like you were having a ball. There was a TV comedy show with a big guy and good looking gal, you reminded me of them. I bet he's a handful, lol. That picture on the deck is AWESOME!!! Carnival should be hitting you up for advertisement, that depicts cruisin to the "Nines". Great pictures, and good post, made it easy to read. :)

Thanks! Actually, others have told us the same thing about that photo! :)

This review is wonderful! I was so excited to read about your wedding on the Dream as I will be getting married on the same ship January 2013.

This review is wonderful! I was so excited to read about your wedding on the Dream as I will be getting married on the same ship January 2013.

I'm glad you liked my review. :) And Congrats on your upcoming wedding! The time goes by fast and before you know it your big day will be here!

I'm getting married on the dream Feb 2013. I just booked Tiffany for my hair and makeup too yours looked amazing! :) Thanks for your wonderful review.

I really enjoyed reading your review... I am getting married on the Dream on March 24th 2012.

I'm getting married on the dream Feb 2013. I just booked Tiffany for my hair and makeup too yours looked amazing! :) Thanks for your wonderful review.

Thanks Albean! Your gonna love Tiffany! She is awesome....so sweet and personable too. I haven't had much time to come on the boards and read lately so I am still catching up on requests to see my photos.

Kmarie99,

Your getting married on the same cruise/same week I did! We were actually thinking of taking the cruise again for our 1 year anniversary. But, we want to visit other ports this time. If the Dream was sailing their other route that week we probably would have booked it. Congrats and have a great time!

Kmarie99,

Your getting married on the same cruise/same week I did! We were actually thinking of taking the cruise again for our 1 year anniversary. But, we want to visit other ports this time. If the Dream was sailing their other route that week we probably would have booked it. Congrats and have a great time!

Thank you :)