Dream DETAILED Western Review, 5/29/10: Auditory, Olfactory, and Common Senses

[Lady_Jag]

Love your pictures & Review. Thanks for taking the time to post them. I'll be sailing on the Dream in Sept.

 

Can't wait to hear more about your review and see more pics!!! Welcome back!!!

 

Great review, Jag........keep it coming..thanks

 

Thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the review and pics. :)

[chickie_mite]

Thanks for answering my lingering what-the-heck-are-the-nets-for question!

 

My husband speculated that's what the nets were for---but I still think a glass ball could slip thru the nets! :eek:

 

Did you have any troubles with one of the elevators (not the glass elevators)? We had an oh-dear-Lord-we're-gonna-die moment on elevator "T." It was about 2:00 in the morning and the elevator did this very scary shaking thing as we approached Deck 11. It didn't make it to the floor and the door wouldn't open. Hubby pushed the button for a different floor, and the elevator kind of shook again and the door did open--we were several inches from 11. We looked at each other and started laughing...it was funny once we knew we were ok! LOL

 

I am loving your review! Thanks!

[Lady_Jag]

Great review, keep it coming please!:D

Thank you. Stay tuned for Day 3, Cozumel, tomorrow.

 

Thanks for the review!!!

 

Do you happen to have anymore pics of the interior spa cabin? We are booked in 1 for our upcoming Dream and this is our first interior cabin.

 

Thanks and I look forward to the rest of your review.:D

Sorry, but the only other photo of the IS spa cabin I have is this one, taken from the other side of the cabin and looking towards the entry door:

There were 3 closets like ours, a mini-bar/fridge like ours, and the bathroom was the same size as on most Carnival ships. The desk area behind Joann was a little smaller than what you'll find in an OV cabin because the room is a bit smaller, but my mom and Joann didn't feel crowded at all.

 

Thanks for taking the time to post the review and pictures. Your daughter is adorable! Can't wait till December to sail on the Dream!

 

Thank you! I hope you have as much fun as we did! :D

[Lady_Jag]

Its a shame there isnt a "manners Pre-Requisite" for going on a cruise...My last two cruises the only REAL complaint I had was the arrogance and complete lack of respect for others by other passengers. But what do you do?!

 

You do the only thing you CAN do - just shrug it off and be glad you're not them! :rolleyes:

 

More review please :D

 

It"s keeping me busy while I'm waiting on the "Magic Announcement"...thanks :)

 

More to come. I'm eagerly awaiting the announcement, too! ;)

 

This is wonderful, thank you so much for taking time to do this!

 

I'm really enjoying your review! :)

 

Thank you! I'm glad you like it!

[Lady_Jag]

Loving your review. Hope you can post more before I sail on Saturday:). Can't wait!!

I'll do my best, but my darn boss has the audacity to expect me to actually [gasp!] work now that I'm back! LOL!

Seriously, though, my goal is to post at least one day's recap each day while it's still fresh in my head. ;)

 

Great review, thanks.

 

Still loving the review..:) thanks

 

Thanks much! :D

[Lady_Jag]

Thanks for answering my lingering what-the-heck-are-the-nets-for question!

 

My husband speculated that's what the nets were for---but I still think a glass ball could slip thru the nets! :eek:

 

Did you have any troubles with one of the elevators (not the glass elevators)? We had an oh-dear-Lord-we're-gonna-die moment on elevator "T." It was about 2:00 in the morning and the elevator did this very scary shaking thing as we approached Deck 11. It didn't make it to the floor and the door wouldn't open. Hubby pushed the button for a different floor, and the elevator kind of shook again and the door did open--we were several inches from 11. We looked at each other and started laughing...it was funny once we knew we were ok! LOL

 

I am loving your review! Thanks!

 

I think any falling balls would probably just roll across the net, because the holes in the net look slightly smaller than the diameter of the ball. Of course, I'm assuming Carnival tested this when they hung the nets, but we all know what happens when people assume things. ;)

 

Yikes on the elevator thing! We didn't get stuck, but one of my mom's biggest complaints was that ALL the elevators were incredibly slow. Since she's not "supposed" to be climbing stairs, we took the elevators whenever she was with us, even if it was just one floor up or one floor down. This meant a lot of time waiting in the elevator bays, and a few times of riding the elevator down to go up and vice-versa, but we were lucky that none of them got stuck while we were in them!

[bama8527]

I see you have been on the Glory and now the Dream. We have been on the Glory twice and it was great. We are thinking of going on the Dream but I have seen some bad reviews. Can you compare them and tell me what you think, If you could send me an email to Bama8527@aol.com that would be great. Thanks again, Michelle

[reeree313]

THank you so much for taking the time to review your trip. We sail on the 3rd of July in a spa inside 11207 and up until now haven't seen a picture of an inside spa cabin. Can't wait to read the rest!

[Lady_Jag]

I see you have been on the Glory and now the Dream. We have been on the Glory twice and it was great. We are thinking of going on the Dream but I have seen some bad reviews. Can you compare them and tell me what you think, If you could send me an email to Bama8527@aol.com that would be great. Thanks again, Michelle

 

Done. Check your inbox for my thoughts on both. :)

[med9114u]

Quick question for OP...we have 3 cabins booked on deck 11 for same cruise in November. Is there access to the outside at the end of the deck by rooms 11278 and 11277? It is hard to tell by the online deck plan photos. Did you notice any increased traffic in the hallways? I wasn't worried about it too much due to limited number of rooms on that deck.

 

Great review so far....we need more!

[Lady_Jag]

Quick question for OP...we have 3 cabins booked on deck 11 for same cruise in November. Is there access to the outside at the end of the deck by rooms 11278 and 11277? It is hard to tell by the online deck plan photos. Did you notice any increased traffic in the hallways? I wasn't worried about it too much due to limited number of rooms on that deck.

 

Great review so far....we need more!

 

Hi! You shouldn't have to worry about the traffic in that area. Basically, there are 2 hallways to consider by 11278 and 11277 - the corridor that you use to get to cabins 11278 and 11277, and the main hallway that leads to the open air part of deck 11.

 

The narrow corridor is closed off from the main hallway with a door, so the people just walking through that area use the main hallway (I think that rectangle between 11274 and 11275 on the deck plan represents the main hallway.) The doors I spoke of are opposite 11278 and 11277 on the deck plan, making the cabin corridors "L" shaped. (Imagine a line on the deck plan going straight down from the back of cabins 11274 and 11275 and that's the doors.)

 

You can walk from one end of the ship to the other without leaving deck 11, but part of your journey will be outside (albeit mostly covered). There are 2 hot tubs on this deck, Camp Carnival, and the pasta bar - all accessible from the main stateroom area without having to cross over on another deck.

 

At the front of the ship, there is a "secret door" on the port side, that leads out to a public deck. The door on the starboard side has a different mechanism to keep it closed, and I noticed that the outside of the door was secured shut with one end of a rope tied to the door handle, and the other end tied to a rail attached to the ship's hull.

 

Wish I had pictures to make my description easier to understand, but I hope this helps anyway!

[med9114u]

Hi! You shouldn't have to worry about the traffic in that area. Basically, there are 2 hallways to consider by 11278 and 11277 - the corridor that you use to get to cabins 11278 and 11277, and the main hallway that leads to the open air part of deck 11.

 

The narrow corridor is closed off from the main hallway with a door, so the people just walking through that area use the main hallway (I think that rectangle between 11274 and 11275 on the deck plan represents the main hallway.) The doors I spoke of are opposite 11278 and 11277 on the deck plan, making the cabin corridors "L" shaped. (Imagine a line on the deck plan going straight down from the back of cabins 11274 and 11275 and that's the doors.)

 

You can walk from one end of the ship to the other without leaving deck 11, but part of your journey will be outside (albeit mostly covered). There are 2 hot tubs on this deck, Camp Carnival, and the pasta bar - all accessible from the main stateroom area without having to cross over on another deck.

 

At the front of the ship, there is a "secret door" on the port side, that leads out to a public deck. The door on the starboard side has a different mechanism to keep it closed, and I noticed that the outside of the door was secured shut with one end of a rope tied to the door handle, and the other end tied to a rail attached to the ship's hull.

 

Wish I had pictures to make my description easier to understand, but I hope this helps anyway!

 

No, I think I got what you were trying to say...makes sense when looking at deck plan. Thanks...

[RedRam99V8]

Frank, was it a chainmail dress? :eek: Just kidding! I bet she looked beautiful!

 

I'm glad Brandon's chin is getting better. Alyssa was fascinated with his stitches and probably would have followed him all over the ship if she had her way! LOL!

 

I would think she would look good in that. She does have a nice um....Anyway yea it is getting better and I am allready planning and making changes to next years cruise stuff. Allready bought some things too. Yes I know I am suffering post cruise depression. ALEX in wonderland that is great.... The waterworks were fun we enjoyed it and plan of doing it again next year. I wasnt real happy with the water in your face going down the twister. Didnt try the drainpipe though. Oh and I did love the racer slides. Although I think the bigest high light was me checking out the high number of college girls on this cruise in there bikinis :rolleyes: (my wife rolls here eyes here). I found that going to eat early like 7:30ish there was never a major line for food. I am use to getting up at 7:00 for work so it was second nature that I was waking up. YOu should come with us next year on the dream in March

[RedRam99V8]

So I went downstairs to retrieve my S&S card, and then walked over to the Waterworks area to check on Alex and Alyssa. Talk about crowded! Man, the place was crawling with people! I spotted Alex on one of the benches near the base of the racing slides. Alyssa was playing in the kiddie area and having a blast on the mini-slides.

 

I told Alex I’d watch Alyssa while he tried the Drainpipe, so without a second thought he jumped in the very long line for the slide. Alyssa continued to play with another little girl in the kiddie area. Each time I looked up at the line for the Drainpipe, Alex had moved a few feet closer to the top. His wait really wasn’t that bad - probably 10 minutes or so. When he came back to our spot, he said, “I think I need to take some asprin now.”

“Why?” I asked.

“Because I didn’t have my hands behind my head, and that slide is rough! When I came out into the bowl, the G-forces slammed my head back. Now the back of my head hurts!”

Headache aside, Alex thought it was a great ride and I think he might have tried again later on in the cruise.

 

By now, Alyssa spotted Alex and wanted to slide with him. So he talked her into going down the tall racing slides with him. Now the minimum height for the slides is 42”, which is exactly how tall Alyssa is. When she got to the slide, the crew member made her stand next to the measurement sign, then placed his hands on either side of Alyssa’s head, and all but picked her up by her ears to make sure she reached the “must be this tall” mark. LOL!

 

Alyssa LOVED the racing slides and wanted to do them again and again. Then, she pulled Alex over to the kiddie park, and made him go down the mini racing slides with her. I left them playing in the water and went back to the cabin to change into some dry clothes.

 

It was around 1:15, so I called my mom to see if she wanted to accompany me to the BBQ on the Lanai, and she told me she had just ordered room service not to long ago. I told her to bring it with her, and we’d eat in the Ocean Plaza or something. “Nah,” she said, “they told me it would take 45-60 minutes.” Wha?!?!? 45-60 minutes for room service? Yikes!

 

So I told her I’d go to the Lanai and then bring my stuff back and we could have lunch in the cabin. She seemed happy about that. There was a line for the BBQ, but it wasn’t as long as I expected, and it moved really quickly. I grabbed 2 plates, put 2 sets of rolled silverware in my pockets, and then made my own sampler platter to share with my mom - a chicken quesadilla, a couple of sliders, and some chips. A bar was set up at the end of the food area, but I skipped it.

(Photo from the end of the line to the Lanai BBQ)

 

Getting back to the room was a difficult enough since I was balancing 2 plates and trying to open the door against the wind, but I made it to deck 11. I had to walk across the open air deck above the pool to reach our room, and just as I was ½ way across, a gust of wind swept through and blew several of the chips back over my shoulder to…well, I’m not really sure WHERE those chips went, but I hope they didn’t hit anyone in the eye!

 

I called my mom to ask if her order arrived yet. Since it hadn’t I told her to call room service and see if they would send it to my cabin and since I didn’t have enough hands to carry a drink, to ask if they would tack on a milk. They told her that they weren’t sure if her order had gone out already, but if it had, they would send the milk to my cabin. I went to my mom’s cabin to wait, and within 5 minutes, her order arrived. I carried her tray to my cabin and set us up on the table by the couch/Alyssa’s bed. The milk arrived at my cabin not long after, along with a card from the Maitre D’ indicating our request had been granted, and our new table # was #456. (Wouldn’t it be funny, I asked my mom, if the Stick-In-Mud family also requested a table change and got the same table? LOL!)

 

My mom had ordered some sort of chicken wrap that was supposed to come with a side of guacamole, and a side of veggies that was supposed to come with a side of ranch. She was disappointed that they forgot both the guac and the ranch. Bummer. The sliders and quesadilla were cold by the time we ate them, but I thought they were ok. Not “wow,” but not bad either.

 

My mom went back to her cabin to rest, so I decided it was a good time to shower and clean up, while I had the cabin all to myself. I no sooner started the water when Alex and Alyssa walked in. So I showered, brought Alyssa into the bathroom, then cleaned her up and tucked her in for a little nap. I kissed her goodnight and walked over to my mom’s cabin to escort her to tea time in the Crimson dining room mid ship.

 

I loved that the afternoon tea was in a large space like the main dining room, but really missed the live piano music that other ships have when they host tea in one of the aft lounges. The music in the dining room included a piped in easy-listening/adult contemporary sound track. (I distinctly heard Willie Nelson at one point.) Still, tea time was better attended today than any I had ever seen! Guess the secret is out! I was also pleasantly surprised to see so many kids in attendance. In fact, there were 3 kids around 11 years old having tea by themselves at the table next to ours. It was entertaining to watch.

(A previous reviewer mentioned the net across the ceiling of the atrium, in case any of the glass bubbles fell. Here's what it looked like up close.)

 

(Can you tell the atrium was one of my favorite photo spots?)

 

After a relaxing tea, we wandered the shops, where I bought a ship pin and ornament for me, and a couple of T-shirts for Alyssa. It was almost 4:00, so I thought it would be a good time to get ready for our first elegant evening, and maybe get a couple of pictures. (We planned to skip the captain’s party this time.) I was very surprised to walk back into the cabin and see that Alyssa had not napped, but was watching TV with Alex!

 

Since I was back, Alex decided to try out the spa for a little bit before dinner. So I turned off the loud war movie on the TV, read Alyssa a story, and cuddled up next to her on her bed. We both fell asleep! I awoke at 4:30 and got dressed while Alyssa continued to sleep. Alex came back a little after 5:00, and she was STILL asleep! Boy, was it tough getting her up!

 

We all made it to the dining room, though, and located our new table – a partial booth set for 5 on the opposite side of the dining room, a few tables away from the windows. Perfect! Our wait team were Savio and Dindo, and they were much more attentive and efficient than our wait team the night before. I asked if they could retrieve the leftover champagne we had brought to our previous table the prior night, and we all made a toast to do-overs.

(Tonight the waiters sang "That's Amore," and Alyssa dragged Alex out into the aisle to dance.)

 

Since we didn’t get a chance to get photos done before dinner, we tried the various venues around the ship, as well as a few pictures in the library. (By the way – the library, though it had only slim pickings, was open 24 hours and the bookcases were never locked.) Alex and I wanted to go to the adult comedy show in the Burgundy lounge tonight (deck 5, aft), so my mom offered to watch Alyssa for us. Cool! We changed into some comfy clothes, got Alyssa ready for bed, and made our way to the back of the ship.

(I thought these masks were a bit creepy)

 

We had no problem finding a couple of good seats about 20 minutes before the show. Tony Esposito was very funny, and had us laughing through most of his routine. When it was over, Katie announced that there was already a line for the next show with Kim Harrison, so only platinum guests could stay. The rest of us would have to clear the lounge and get in the line to come back in. No problem. We decided to go grab a late night munchie instead. (Yes, we pretty much ate our way around the ship! LOL!)

 

We walked Upper Dream Street on deck 5, where there was a ship’s photographer in front of the casino who had no backdrop and no props, save one of the bar stools from the casino bar. Weird. Still, we stopped for a few poses, then moved on to the Pizzeria. I ordered a calzone, which would take about 10-20 minutes to make fresh (it was quite tasty), and Alex walked over to the deli just a few minutes before it closed. (He didn’t recognize Todd, our cruise director, who was also ordering a sandwich at the deli.)

 

After filling our bellies yet again, we slipped back into our cabin. My mom was dozing, but when we came in, she woke up and turned on the cabin lights. A minute later the phone rang.

 

“Hello?” Alex answered, “Um…no, I think it was an accident. Sorry.” Then he hung up.

 

Remember the emergency call cord above the bed next to the light switch? Yep! My mom accidently pulled it when she was reaching for the light!

 

Tomorrow will be our first port of call - Cozumel!

 

They Kicked people out??? Did they check? They didnt when we went in to see AL ernst

[vanislandcruisers]

Great review Lady Jag...brings back some great memories

[RedRam99V8]

I think any falling balls would probably just roll across the net, because the holes in the net look slightly smaller than the diameter of the ball. Of course, I'm assuming Carnival tested this when they hung the nets, but we all know what happens when people assume things. ;)

 

Yikes on the elevator thing! We didn't get stuck, but one of my mom's biggest complaints was that ALL the elevators were incredibly slow. Since she's not "supposed" to be climbing stairs, we took the elevators whenever she was with us, even if it was just one floor up or one floor down. This meant a lot of time waiting in the elevator bays, and a few times of riding the elevator down to go up and vice-versa, but we were lucky that none of them got stuck while we were in them!

 

Well Laura went we went on back in february the nets were not there!. About two weeks later while John was still on board he mentioned the nets were going up do to an incident. That special crew called high scalers were being brought in.

[jdbmga]

Done. Check your inbox for my thoughts on both. :)

 

I'd love to hear your thoughts on both since we sailed on the Glory last July and are sailing on the Valor this July and are thinking of doing the Dream for our next cruise. I'm sure others would be interested as well but if you'd rather email me directly, my email address is jdbmga@comcast.net

 

Great review! I am really enjoying reading it. :)

[Lady_Jag]

I was awake early again this morning, thanks to our “room service alarm.” I was tempted to take my hot tea out to our semi-private balcony, but thought better of it when I saw the hazy gray sky ahead of us. Instead, I tip-toed around the room, pulling things together for our day in port.

 

We arrived in Cozumel 30 minutes earlier than expected. As the ship pulled in close to the pier, I noticed that the gray hazy was gone, replaced by a bright, sunny, beautiful day. (Little did I know that by the afternoon, I would be wishing for some overcast cloud coverage, and even some rain to free us from the heat!)

(One of my favorite shots, taken just after we left the ship.)

 

Per our usual, we went to the buffet on the Lido deck for breakfast. This time, we waited in the short line for the omelet station by the pool. My mom and Joann led the way, followed by Alex, then Alyssa and me. Two women got in line behind me. When Alex reached the place where he could place his order for eggs cooked over medium, he spotted a tray of muffins in front of him, and there was one chocolate muffin left. So he grabbed it for Alyssa.

At the same time, the 30-something woman behind me reached in front of me, took the tongs from the tray of Danishes next to the muffin tray, and after Alex placed the muffin on his plate, she started moving the remaining muffins around. Then she loudly announced her disappointment to her friend behind her, “I wanted a chocolate muffin, but there aren’t any more! I really wanted a chocolate muffin! I wish I had a chocolate muffin,” and she continued to grumble as Alex and Alyssa walked away, oblivious to the grief they caused this woman. I thought, “Seriously?!? A stupid muffin is really that important?” but as the mom of a preschooler, I knew that the best way to deal with such temper tantrums is to walk away and not condone the behavior by paying any attention.

After breakfast, we made a quick stop at our cabins to pick up all the stuff we planned to bring with us for our Cozumel shopping trip – my mom’s wheelchair, Alyssa’s booster seat, my camera and shopping bag, Alyssa’s water bottle filled with ice water, and my mom’s shopping bag. Yikes!

There were several people on the gangways of deck 0, but everyone filed off in an orderly fashion so that there was no real wait to leave the ship. The minute I stepped onto the pier, I thought I might burst into flames! It was HOT and humid! Being a Florida resident, you would think I’d be used to hot, humid temperatures, but this actually caught me by surprise! No matter. I would get used to it eventually…maybe.

 

Alex pushed my mom in her wheelchair while Joann walked beside them. Alyssa and I lagged behind, taking pictures of the ship. We caught up with them at the end of the pier, and Alyssa wanted me to take her picture with the 3 Amigos backdrop. Alex picked her up and walked behind the backdrop, and a well-meaning man offered to take the picture for me. I declined, because I was already hot and sweaty and didn’t really feel like being photographed. He offered again, and I think I might have offended him when I refused to hand over my camera a second time. Ooops.

We got a cab at the taxi stand…a van, actually, piled everyone in, and asked the driver to take us to la plaza al centro. On our way, Alyssa talked about her Dolphin Encounter with Simba the dolphin back in April when we were in Cozumel. Alex brought up swimming with sharks, and I mentioned that dolphins keep sharks away. The taxi driver laughed and said “we don’t have sharks here.” So we asked about jellyfish. “No sharks, no jellyfish. Only sea urchins.” Joann asked about barracuda, and our driver said, “Barracuda are not dangerous. You don’t need to worry about them either.” OK then.

(No sharks, huh?)

Our ride cost $10 for the five of us, and I gave the driver a couple of dollars extra, for loading and unloading the wheelchair. Time to shop! We walked through the plaza, where everything was “almost free,” according to the vendors. I snapped some pictures, pushed my mom in her wheelchair, and melted in the sun.

“Boy, it’s hot!” Joann announced, then turning to the first person she saw she asked, “what’s the temperature?” The woman she asked just shook her head. So she moved onto the next person and the next, “What’s the temperature today? What’s the temperature? Do you know what the temperature is?” until she finally found someone who spoke English and could answer her. When she finally got a response of “95,” I laughed and asked Joann, “so does knowing the temperature make you feel any cooler?”

We walked for miles. Really, we did! Alyssa didn’t want to walk much, so she climbed onto my mom’s lap and I pushed both of them in the wheelchair. The more my mom bought, the more the bag on the back of her wheelchair weighed. The sidewalks were rough, and at one point, I almost lost control of the wheelchair on one particular slope and nearly sent my mom into the street! Eep! When we stopped at a shop, my mom would use her cane to help her walk around the store, and I volunteered to stay outside and watch the wheelchair so that I could sit down and rest a while.

Eventually, we reached the Punta Langosta mall, which Alex and I hadn’t visited since 2004, when we came to Cozumel on the Miracle. It seemed like a really happening place then. Today, it was almost empty. My mom wanted to sit and rest a bit, so while she struck up a conversation with another passenger from the Dream, I wandered through the covered mall, taking a few pictures. Not far away was Mega mart, “the Mexican Wal-Mart,” we were told. Alright, we can make it.

(Hmmm...I'll have the marijuana on wheat, hold the mayo, and a coke, please.)

 

Before we could leave the mall, however, a man approached us and tried to get us to sign up for a 90-minute timeshare…sorry…vacation package…speech. “You’ll get a free taxi ride back to your ship, some refreshments, and a tote bag with all sorts of stuff, like tequilla!” he promised, “All we need you to do is check out our new resort…” I thanked him, but told him 90 minutes was way too long for a hot and tired 4-year-old to sit quietly and still. Onward to Mega mart!

Mega mart was unusual. You entered on the bottom floor, where it looked like there was office space available for other vendors or businesses. The store itself was upstairs, and you reached it via a steep moving ramp, kind of like an escalator with just a belt instead of steps.

Joann stepped onto the belt first and started the ascent. Alex pushed my mom over to the ramp, and I stood behind him holding Alyssa’s hand. After the first 3 feet or so, I saw Alex leaning his body into the wheelchair and the wheelchair slowly rolling backward. I leaned into Alex, and between the two of us, we made it to the top…barely! (I think I saw the security guard who was watching us laugh.)

The store was very much like a Super Wal-Mart. They sold groceries, meats, clothes, office supplies, and washers and dryers, along with liquor, produce, and baked goods. Alex raised an eyebrow, though, when he saw that nothing was in a case or behind glass. Tres Leches cake was sitting out in the open, unrefrigerated and unpackaged, as were cookies, cupcakes, and other items from the bakery. (He had to hold Alyssa’s hand tightly so that she wouldn’t just help herself.) The meat and seafood counter was similar, except that everyone working behind the counter wore masks.

I looked for real vanilla, but the shelves were bare of everything except the artificial flavored don’t-trust-it stuff. Bleh. My mom was on a search for blueberry vodka (a request from my cousin), but never did find it. Oh well. At least we can say we were there.

This time when we left the store, my mom stood on the moving belt and held the handrail while I held onto the wheelchair. We got a taxi just outside the store and rode back to Puerta Maya in air conditioned comfort! Ah! At Puerta Maya, we browsed a few of the stores, I took some more pictures, and then we dragged our hot and tired carcasses back to the ship around 3:00pm. Ah! It was nice to be out of the heat!

(A view of the Dream from Fat Tuesdays)

[Lady_Jag]

I ordered a grilled cheese for Alyssa from room service, which took a very long time to arrive. While we waited, Alex got Alyssa cleaned up, and I went to the Lido deck to check out my food options. I reached the buffet a minute or two before it closed, and a crew member followed in my wake, creating a barricade of trays along the buffet. Nothing seemed very appetizing, though, so I went back to the cabin to clean up for dinner and then I talked Alyssa into going to the Lanai with me while Alex went for a dip in the hot tub.

We passed the sushi bar, which had just opened up by this time. Mmmm…nice cool sushi was just what I needed! (I forgot what all the selections were, but one of the three pieces I tried was a spicy tuna roll.) I snagged 2 pairs of chopsticks and Alyssa and I walked outside to one of the quiet tables set up not far from one of the whirlpools. There, I enjoyed my sushi and Alyssa played with her little squirt toys and chopsticks. I was tempted to go to the front of the ship to watch for “runners,” but I was feeling too tired and lazy to even lean on the railing.

Instead, I took Alyssa to Sam’s piano bar (deck 5, aft) to enjoy the “Island Music With Tropic Sounds.” We were the only ones there! Alyssa was still full of energy (oh to be 4 again!) and danced around the room, much to the amusement of the musicians. Then she discovered the bar stools and placed one of her little squirt animals on each of 4 stools, then took turns spinning them individually, then placing them all on one stool for a group ride. Soon, it was time for dinner, so we headed to the Scarlet dining room and met up with the rest of our group. (Alex told me that the ship’s horn sounded while he was in the hot tub and made him jump out of his skin. LOL!)

(My tiny dancer)

Alyssa was asleep before dessert, and my mom was pretty beat too, so she offered to stay with Alyssa again tonight while Alex and I went out. We went to the main show, “Edge,” a comedy juggler who had us laughing. Even 30 minutes before show time, the Encore lounge was getting crowded, but Alex and I found almost an entire row of seats empty to the left of the center section on the bottom floor.

One of the tables in the row had a bottle of wine and glass sitting on it, so we made a move to sit at the table to the right of it. “These are all saved!” a woman at the end of the row called out, making a grand waving motion with her hand to encompass the row of seats. I gave her my best confused “I-don’t-understand-the-words-coming-out-of-your-mouth” look and sat down anyway. I guess it worked, because the woman didn’t say anything else, and everyone in her party (I think there were 10-12 people who finally showed up) were still able to sit comfortably in the row.

(Encore lounge)

 

I thought Edge was really entertaining, and a nice change from the usual “vegas-style” shows on Carnival ships. At the end of the show, he announced that he would be in the Ocean Plaza in clown makeup and attire (he used to be a circus clown) doing a talk entitled “the making of a clown.” Um, no thanks. I think clowns are even creepier than the masks in the Burgundy lounge!

We left the Encore theater and walked upstairs to the photo gallery to check out our portraits. The place was packed because the Fun Force was performing in the main atrium, and everyone was leaning on the railing to watch. We decided to move on to a less crowded area and found the main Fun Hub.

Now, the Fun Hub is not just an internet café where you can buy packages of minutes for a hefty price, but it also gives you access to the ship’s free intranet/social networking area called “Funville @ Sea.” The Hub is a great new concept with Carnival, but the execution left a lot to be desired. For one thing, the deck plans of the ship that were available were from last year and incorrect. Then there was the social site, which had a welcome aboard message from Todd from embarkation day, a poll that all of 13 people took, a handful of posts from other passengers, and a blank weather section. I tried, but couldn’t figure out how to reach the main Carnival web site from Funville @ Sea. I also looked for a link to John Heald’s blog, but didn’t find that either. Oh well.

(Fun Hub...a misnomer?)

We made our way to the pool and the Seaside Theater to watch a movie. There were plenty of lounge chairs available, as well as a nice pile of blankets. We chose two chairs centered with the big screen and watched Julie & Julia. At 11:30 (just ½ way into the movie), the grill opened for “late night snack,” so we helped ourselves to some hefty hot dogs and chili cheese fries, followed by some chocolate ice cream. I blame the movie for our binge – seeing all that food in the movie made me hungry! LOL!

The movie ended sometime after midnight. Tomorrow was going to be a big day in Roatan, and we needed some sleep.

(Our third towel animal...a crab.)

[Lady_Jag]

THank you so much for taking the time to review your trip. We sail on the 3rd of July in a spa inside 11207 and up until now haven't seen a picture of an inside spa cabin. Can't wait to read the rest!

 

I believe 11207 is a modified (handicap-accessible) cabin, so be careful of the red "clothesline"! :D

[Lady_Jag]

I would think she would look good in that. She does have a nice um....Anyway yea it is getting better and I am allready planning and making changes to next years cruise stuff. Allready bought some things too. Yes I know I am suffering post cruise depression. ALEX in wonderland that is great.... The waterworks were fun we enjoyed it and plan of doing it again next year. I wasnt real happy with the water in your face going down the twister. Didnt try the drainpipe though. Oh and I did love the racer slides. Although I think the bigest high light was me checking out the high number of college girls on this cruise in there bikinis :rolleyes: (my wife rolls here eyes here). I found that going to eat early like 7:30ish there was never a major line for food. I am use to getting up at 7:00 for work so it was second nature that I was waking up. YOu should come with us next year on the dream in March

 

Dang! I wish I could sail with you two in March, but I can't pull Alyssa from school without risking losing our VPK funding. And if I took a cruise without her, then whatever would I take pictures of? ;)

 

They Kicked people out??? Did they check? They didnt when we went in to see AL ernst

We saw Al, too, and they didn't kick people out then. I think that it depends on whether there are people lined up outside for the next comedy show and how long the line is.

 

Well Laura went we went on back in february the nets were not there!. About two weeks later while John was still on board he mentioned the nets were going up do to an incident. That special crew called high scalers were being brought in.

An "incident"?!? Dang! :eek: I'd hate to be anywhere near a falling glass bubble!

[Lady_Jag]

Great review Lady Jag...brings back some great memories

 

Thank you, "Meester Jeeem," and thanks for the great tips in your review! ;)

[Lady_Jag]

I'd love to hear your thoughts on both since we sailed on the Glory last July and are sailing on the Valor this July and are thinking of doing the Dream for our next cruise. I'm sure others would be interested as well but if you'd rather email me directly, my email address is ___

 

Great review! I am really enjoying reading it. :)

 

In the interest of time, I hope you don't mind if I copy and paste the email of my thoughts to Bama:

 

"Keep in mind that I sailed on the Glory last year, before the upgrades. Still, of all my Carnival cruises, I think the Glory is probably my favorite ship (the Celebration used to be my fave when it was still around), with the Dream a close second, followed by the Miracle, and then a toss-up between the Inspiration and Fantasy, which are both the same class ships.

 

The Glory seem less crowded in the public areas, and was the easiest for me to navigate, which is the primary reason why I rate it #1. The Dream has a somewhat similar layout, but with more decks and more of the public areas crossing multiple decks, we did a lot of walking!

 

I loved that the spa cabins on the Dream were non-smoking, but thought the Cloud 9 spa was a waste. I preferred the free spa pool and whirlpool on the Glory (even if the annoying waterfall kept pelting you in the face!) because it was more comfortable and seemed more tranquil and private. The big screen on the Dream was cool, but I think the Glory has that now too. Main dining rooms for both ships were on the level as far as food and aesthetics.

 

A plus for the Dream was the mega food choices! It has a burrito bar, pasta bar, Tandoor gril, Mongolian wok, and BBQ on the Lanai (during sea days). Speaking of the Lanai, the abundance of hot tubs on the Dream was a real plus in my hubby's opinion.

 

I liked that the Glory had afternoon tea in a lounge with live piano music, as opposed to the Dream's MDR tea time with piped in music. I also liked the main theater on the Glory better than that on the Dream, but wished the past guest party on the Glory was in the main lounge instead of one of the small aft lounges.

 

Service on the Glory, especially from our cabin steward and waiters, was the best I've ever had. Our cabin steward on the Dream was good, as were our wait team, but the service in the MDR on the Dream seemed a bit harried, as if each wait team had too many tables to wait on and were running at break-neck speed just to keep up.

 

I know the counselors change every few months, but I thought the Camp Carnival program on the Glory was much better than on the Dream. My daughter thought so too, because on the Glory she went to CC nearly every day, whereas on the Dream she went only twice. I know a lot can change for a kid's likes and dislikes in one year, but I think the counsellors on the Glory did a better job at keeping the kids entertained and making it feel more like a place to play than an onboard babysitting service.

 

Another big difference between my cruise on the Dream vs. my time on the Glory was that I hardly felt ANY movement on the Dream, while I frequently staggered on the Glory. Also, after I returned home this cruise, none of the ship's motion stayed with me. Last year on the Glory, I could feel the ship's movement as long as 3 days after the cruise was over!

 

So I'm not sure my comparison has helped you at all. As you can see, they're both wonderful ships, and I'm sure you'll have a great time on either, despite the bad reviews about the Dream. (And yes, there is a "smell" on the upper decks, but not constant, and not very strong.) If given a choice between the two ships and all other factors like price, cabin, itinerary, etc. being the same, I would probably choose the Glory over the Dream because of fewer crowds and a slightly better layout.

 

Let me know if you have any additional questions, and I'll do my best to answer them."

[RedRam99V8]

Dang! I wish I could sail with you two in March, but I can't pull Alyssa from school without risking losing our VPK funding. And if I took a cruise without her, then whatever would I take pictures of? ;)

 

 

We saw Al, too, and they didn't kick people out then. I think that it depends on whether there are people lined up outside for the next comedy show and how long the line is.

 

 

An "incident"?!? Dang! :eek: I'd hate to be anywhere near a falling glass bubble!

 

Hmm Have you ever noticed that you get sporadic emails when you are subscribed to a thread? I only found you had responded last night when I checked this morning manually. Arggghh this is frustrating.

 

We'll you just take pictures of each other! :) :D...Oh and of your emergency cords

[Perfect Stranger]

Your little girl is so cute!