Carnival DREAM 2014 Cruise Review With Pictures!

[A2Mich]

I would love to visit St. Thomas and St. Marteen. Too bad I can't cruise from Galveston or New Orleans to these ports.

 

 

 

There is never anything wrong with trying a different cruise line! You may like some things more with Royal and some things more with Carnival.

 

It is always great to have options when it comes to cruising!

 

Very much so. Another issue that had steered us towards RCI was the fact that we have a family of 5, and booking 2 cabins is not feasible for us. At the time we booked our 4/15 cruise (booked in Jan 2014), Carnival only allowed 5 pax in their older ships or in suites on their newer ships. According to what I was able to find on their website, that seems to have changed, though I don't know the reasoning as to why. So it looks like Carnival could be back on our radar for the next one.

[thecruiserofships]

Very much so. Another issue that had steered us towards RCI was the fact that we have a family of 5, and booking 2 cabins is not feasible for us. At the time we booked our 4/15 cruise (booked in Jan 2014), Carnival only allowed 5 pax in their older ships or in suites on their newer ships. According to what I was able to find on their website, that seems to have changed, though I don't know the reasoning as to why. So it looks like Carnival could be back on our radar for the next one.

 

I hope everything works out!

[ciship]

We tried RCCL a few cruises ago and just didn't like it. We were actually bored which has never happened to us on a cruise. We had a really cool cabin at the back of the ship, but that's about the only positive I can say about it. We were anxious to get back to Carnival.

 

I did a lot of research on RCCL's Oasis of the Seas, and Allure of the Seas and really wanted to try one of them about a year ago, but WOW.....so expensive. They look like beautiful ships though.

[A2Mich]

I hope everything works out!

 

Well if it doesn't, we can always book Carnival again!

[thecruiserofships]

Getting Back Onboard The Ship From Key West:

There was a very short line to get back onboard the ship. In order to access the pier each guest was asked to show his or her Sail & Sign card to a security guard. Some guests were asked to show photo identification as well. The ship advised that all guests over 16 needed photo identification in order to get back onboard.

 

Lunch:

I had lunch in The Gathering (Lido Buffet). The Taste of the Nations buffet line was serving Caribbean food today. Most of the buffet lines opened around 12:00pm, except for the Pizzeria & Deli. The Pizzeria is 24 hrs. and the Deli is open from 11:00am - 11:00pm. I tried the grill and got a hamburger and fries. Both were very good, but the hamburger was not as good as the Guy's Burger I had on the Carnival Triumph last year. I also went to the Burrito Bar and only ordered chips & salsa.

 

I did not get back off in Key West. The ship sailed at 4:00pm and it was fun to see Key West as the ship departed.

 

Dinner we had the same dining team and the food was great.

 

Stateroom Nightly Turn-down:

During the evening today, I saw who my stateroom steward was. The steward said hello and called me by another person in my cabin's name. I corrected him, but he continued to call me the wrong name the rest of the cruise (the few times I saw him). This time would have been the perfect time for the steward to introduce himself, but he never did. This didn't upset me, but I have always had stateroom stewards that introduce who they are on the first day of the cruise.

Tonight the room was clean, a new towel animal was left, and a copy of the next day's activity newsletter.

[thecruiserofships]

We tried RCCL a few cruises ago and just didn't like it. We were actually bored which has never happened to us on a cruise. We had a really cool cabin at the back of the ship, but that's about the only positive I can say about it. We were anxious to get back to Carnival.

 

I did a lot of research on RCCL's Oasis of the Seas, and Allure of the Seas and really wanted to try one of them about a year ago, but WOW.....so expensive. They look like beautiful ships though.

 

I have also looked into RCCL because those ships sound like a different type of cruise experience. The price immediately helped make my decision. I could take multiple Carnival cruises for the price of 1 cruise on the Oasis or Allure.

[thecruiserofships]

I have some free time, so I will try to post some more writing here!

 

Day 4: Freeport, Bahamas

NOTE: When I posted Day 3 I accidentally called it Freeport on the title only. It should have been Key West, but I just typed the wrong title for the port. All of the day 3 info is for Key West.

Breakfast:

Today the continental breakfast buffet lines opened at 6:00am and the regular breakfast buffet lines opened at 7:00am. Breakfast was also being served in the Scarlet Restaurant from 7:00am until 9:00am.

I ate breakfast in The Gathering again. The buffet was crowded with people trying to eat before the ship docks. I had an omelet, bacon, hash browns, and pastries. All of the breakfast food pictures that you see on today's review are of my food. I learned that the omelet station where the Mongolian Wok is located almost always has a shorter line. I was able to get my omelet in less than 5 minutes because I only had two people in front of me. The other omelet station line had at least 7 or 8 people that would have been in front of me.

 

Arrival in Freeport, Bahamas:

While I was eating breakfast the ship was arriving in Freeport. When I finished my breakfast I went outside to try to get some pictures and take a look at the island. There were many seagulls and birds around the ship. The ship turned around before docking and was docked earlier than the scheduled time (8:00am).

 

Getting Off The Ship & Going Ashore To Freeport:

Getting off the ship was a quick and easy process. There was a line to get off today, but it moved quickly. The front and middle of the ship had gangways set up so passengers could choose which of the two they wanted to use to get off. I got off at the front gangway. Security scanned each person's Sail & Sign card before he or she could get off and the ship's crew handed out shopping maps to passengers.

My shore excursion was not until 9:30am. I had about an hour before the excursion would start. I decided to walk around and take a look at the shops & buildings around the area where the ship was docked.

[thecruiserofships]

Shore Excursion - "Freeport Island Tour":

Unlike Key West, we decided to do a shore excursion in Freeport and Nassau. Today's shore excursion was "Freeport Island Tour" and we choose the 8:45am time. The shore excursion guide for this cruise advertised this shore excursion as:

"Take this opportunity to explore the island of Freeport in the heart of the Bahamas. Travel through both residential and industrial streets of Freeport at your leisure. Transportation is provided, however if you choose to stay downtown longer, your return transportation will be at your own expense. Note: A shuttle will bring guests back to the pier every 30 minutes. Exact departure of the last shuttle may vary depending on ship's itinerary, please check with the Shore Excursions Desk for your ship's time."

Around 8:45am a lady with a sign for our tour started checking tickets and we were directed to a tour bus. The driver was given clearance to pull out shortly after 8:45am to start the tour. The tour guide was very friendly and gave very good information about the sights & island. There was a little bit of rain outside, but it was not bad at all.

 

PLEASE READ! There were some things that I got to see on this tour that were not a part of the published excursion itinerary. My tour guide went above and beyond to let us see more of the island than we paid for. We stopped at the beach which was not advertised as a part of this excursion. If you plan on doing this tour please be advised that you might not get to see some of the same things that I am highlighting here.

The tour was going great until...

The tour bus driver received a call from the shore excursions management on the pier to turn around. About 8 people were late for the excursion and we had to turn around to get them. The driver remained upbeat even though we were about 10 minutes into the tour and away from the pier.

 

We Went Back To Get The People And Then...

The tour bus driver got another call to turn around for one guest that was late. By this time that person was close to 30 minutes late. The driver mumbled something and apologized to everyone on the bus. The driver cut off his phone and then went back to the pier to pick the person up.

 

Excursion Stop #1 At A Straw Market (Was Not on the Excursion's Itinerary):

Our first stop on the excursion was at a straw market. There were many different small shops that had high priced goods that seemed cheaply made. This was not on the tour itinerary, but it was nice to walk around. The people were very pushy to try to get you to buy their stuff. We stopped here for about 20 minutes.

[thecruiserofships]

Stop At A Beach (Was Not On the Excursion's Itinerary):

The tour bus driver promised a stop at the beach at the start of the tour if we made good time, but to make up for the turning around he told us he would definitely take us to the beach. He told us that this was not supposed to be a part of the excursion, but he tries to take people here as part of the tour. The weather was great during our beach stop and were given about 20 minutes here also.

Stop At Port Lucaya:

Port Lucaya was a destination that was on the published description of the tour. Port Lucaya has a bunch of shops and you can find inexpensive soft drinks in some of the stores. Most of the canned soft drinks in the Bahamas are made with real sugar, unlike many of the US sodas. We were given between 30 - 40 minutes here and the driver told us that he would have to leave us if we were late.

 

Back To The Ship & End of the Shore Excursion:

The shore excursion ended about 3 hrs. after it started. We got to see everything we were promised & then some. This shore excursion was enjoyable and worth the price. There were a few sprinkles coming down from the sky, but the weather was not bad. We got back on-board the ship for lunch and had plans to get back off to walk around the pier by the ship.

 

Once on-board the ship all passengers had to get their Sail & Sign cards scanned and go through metal detectors. There was a short line that moved very quickly.

 

Lunch in The Gathering:

The buffet had very few people because most people were off the ship enjoying Freeport. Most of today's lunch buffet lines opened around 12:00pm, except for the deli and pizzeria. Today's Taste of the Nations buffet line was serving French. My philosophy is get back onboard and eat the already paid for lunch, but everyone can do what they want with their own money.

[thecruiserofships]

Day 5 - Nassau, Bahamas

 

Breakfast in The Gathering:

Breakfast was served in The Gathering starting at 6:30am. Continental breakfast opened at 6:00am. Breakfast was also being served in the Scarlet Dining Room from 7:00am - 9:00am. The buffet was crowded because many people were trying to eat before getting off the ship. Once again, I went to the omelet station to get an omelet. I also visited the regular breakfast buffet lines to get some bacon & sausage.

 

Arrival Into Nassau, Bahamas:

Today the ship was scheduled to arrive in Nassau, Bahamas at 7:00am. While I was eating breakfast the ship was in the process of docking. After eating breakfast I went outside to take some pictures and see what I could see. We docked next to the Carnival Fantasy, the oldest Carnival ship in the fleet. I missed most of the ship's arrival in Nassau because I was eating breakfast.

 

Getting Off The Ship in Nassau, Bahamas:

The line to get off the ship in Nassau was long, but it moved quickly. At the gangway, security scanned each person's sail and sign card. Crew members were handing out flyers and shopping maps for Nassau. The line would have been quicker if the photographers would not use the gangway as a photo prop. The ship's photographers try to stop people on the gangway to get their picture to sell in the photo gallery. There is no way to get around these people that are taking pictures, but once it is your turn you can decline getting your picture taken.

 

Shore Excursion "Charm & Beauty of Nassau & Paradise Island":

Like Freeport, we decided to do a shore excursion in Nassau. This shore excursion let us see a lot of the island and was an informational tour, but our driver had the most annoying accent. I will be sharing some of the sights and attractions that we got to see as a part of this excursion. The official description of this excursion is too long to post on here, but here is a link to Carnival's website's excursion description. Click Here For The Description.

Our shore excursion time was 9:00am. Our excursion tickets instructed us to meet on the pier by the ship. Before 9:00am a lady held up a sign for our excursion and took our tickets. In return, she gave us a wristband that would allow us to get on the excursion tour bus. At 9:00am we were taken to our tour bus. This tour bus was set up with seats of two on one side of the bus, one seat on the other side of the bus, and four seats across the back. The driver's seat was on the right side of the bus. In the Bahamas vehicles drive on the left side of the road.

The first part of our shore excursion drove us through the streets of downtown Nassau.

[thecruiserofships]

Shore Excursion Stop #1 At Fort Charlotte:

Our tour bus stopped for about 10 minutes at Fort Charlotte. The entrance fees to enter the fort were not included, but everyone was allowed to walk around the perimeter of the fort. According to the tour guide, this fort has never been used in combat.

 

After leaving Fort Charlotte, our tour guide drove us around the island.

 

Stop At The John Watlings Distillery:

Our tour bus stopped at the John Watlings Disillery for a short stop. Everyone was given a chance to walk around the distillery and buy alcoholic beverages. The official shore excursion guide from the ship says, "Your next stop is the historic 1789 Buena Vista Estate, home of the John Watlings Distillery for a self guided tour and rum tasting. View Bahamian hand crafted rums and spirits being produced." Our tour guide gave us time to look around and told us to be back to the bus in 30 minutes.

 

We ended up not getting to leave on-time because of a group of stragglers that were buying mixed drinks. We ended up leaving close to 15 minutes later than expected because we had to wait on the late people.

We were then driven through downtown Nassau to the Paradise Island Bridge. Paradise Island is the home to the Atlantis Resort.

 

Our tour guide drove us through Atlantis and showed us the various hotel buildings.

 

We never got to get off the bus in Atlantis, but we were able to see a lot from the bus. After we left Atlantis we were taken on the Paradise Island bridge to go back to downtown Nassau.

The shore excursion was very informational, but the back of the bus was very bumpy. Bumpiness from the bus and the tour guide's annoying accent made this excursion less enjoyable compared to the Freeport excursion.

 

Getting Back Onboard The Ship:

Before we were allowed on the pier we had to get our photo ids checked. The line for this check moved slow because some of the workers spent time examining each person's Sail & Sign Card and photo id. After getting our id's checked we walked back to the ship.

Once we got back onboard the ship security asked for each guest's Sail & Sign card and each guest had to go through a metal detector. The line to get back onboard moved very quickly and took less than 5 minutes.

[thecruiserofships]

Lunch in The Gathering:

Today the Gathering was not crowded for lunch. Most people were ashore in Nassau and there were no lines at most of the food service stations. Most of the lunch buffet lines opened at 12:00pm, except for the Pizzeria and Deli. Today's Taste of the Nations was Caribbean food.

 

We had plans to get back off the ship to look around Nassau. Our excursion took us to parts of the island that we would not otherwise have seen, but we did not get to have a good look at the area around the cruise pier.

 

Getting Off The Ship For The 2nd Time:

There was no line to get off the ship at this time, but the mid-ship gangway was closed and the front gangway had nobody scanning Sail & Sign Cards for guests to leave. A security guard at the front gangway let us walk the wrong way through the metal detector to get our cards scanned to go ashore. I was surprised that nobody else was getting off at this time. It was only 1:00pm and guests had until 4:30pm ashore in Nassau before having to return to the ship.

 

There are many shops around the cruise pier in Nassau. You can find many different shops, bars, places to eat, and flea markets. The streets were very crowded in the afternoon with tourists and locals.

Getting Back On-board The Ship:

Before we could access the cruise pier we had to show our Sail & Sign Cards and photo ids. This line was very long because all of the Carnival Fantasy and Carnival Dream passengers were told to get in the same lines. The Carnival Fantasy was about to sail and most of the ship's passengers were returning from their day in Nassau. Once we got our ids checked we walked down the pier to our ship.

 

Once we got to the gangway there was a line. Crew members were handing out cups of water. The ship's DJ was also outside playing music for those that were waiting in line.

The line was long, but it moved quickly. Onboard the ship security had to scan everyone's Sail & Sign cards and each person had to go through a metal detector. I was carrying two cans of soda in a bag and got questioned by security about the contents of the soda cans. They first asked me what was in the can and I told them Coke and Dr. Pepper. Then I was asked if there was any alcohol in the cans. I said no and they let me keep the soda cans. I was worried that my soda cans were going to get confiscated.

After getting back onboard the ship it was time to walk around the outside decks and take a look at Nassau.

[thecruiserofships]

Carnival Dream's Departure From Nassau, Bahamas:

Shortly after the Fantasy left, it was our turn to leave Nassau. The ship left almost exactly at 5:00pm. First the ship had to back up and away from the pier. Then the ship turned around in order to leave Nassau. The sail-a-way was quick and by 5:15pm we were away from Nassau.

 

Dinner:

Today we ate dinner in the Crimson Dining Room. We had the same wait staff and table as the previous nights. The line for dinner started around 5:15pm and got long soon after. The dining room opened its doors at 5:45pm.

 

Day 6 - Sea Day

 

I woke up around 5:45am to get up early in order to walk around the ship. I learned on the first sea day that it is hard to get pictures of the ship's public areas in the afternoon and evening because some of the public areas are crowded. After getting dressed, I left my room and went to Deck 12 to take a look at the WaterWorks and Adults Only Serenity Deck.

 

The mini golf course's location helps block some of the wind that blows onto the ship. At this time in the morning the mini golf course had nobody playing and I was able to get some good pictures. Between the back of the Seaside Theatre and the mini golf course there is a stairwell to go up to a small deck that you can look down on the golf course.

Edited July 19, 2014 by thecruiserofships

[thecruiserofships]

I walked from the top open decks down to Deck 5.

 

The Lanai was getting cleaned by crew members. They were scrubbing the decks with these brushes that looked like oversized toothbrushes. There was a crew member bossing them around and watching them. I guess power can get to some high up crew member's head.

 

According to the tracker, we were close to the Florida Keys. We were able to see many oil rigs, cargo ships, and some small boats from the ship. In the distance we were able to see land.

 

On the Promenade Deck (5) in the atrium you will find many of the Carnival Dream's shops. On the port side of the ship is the logo shops and on the starboard side of the ship you can find the jewelry shops. In the middle of this area is a place called Cherry on Top. Cherry on Top is a candy store that sells a variety of different treats.

 

 

Breakfast: Once again, I ate breakfast in The Gathering. The hot breakfast buffet lines opened at 7:30am. The continental breakfast buffet lines opened at 6:30am. The Sea Day Brunch was served in the Scarlet Dining Room from 8:30am until 1:00PM. The food and service in The Gathering was very good. I ate an omelet, bacon, and pastries.

[thecruiserofships]

Ladder Toss - Game: Today at 10:00am was a game called Ladder Toss. Before seeing this game I had never heard of Ladder Toss. Ladder Toss is a game where you have two golf balls tied on a string and you throw it at a mini-ladder and try to get the balls to wrap around a ladder rung. I was awful at this game and did not get very many points.

Who Wants To Be A Carnivalaire? - Trivia: At 11:00am, in the Ocean Plaza was a trivia that was dedicated to asking questions about Carnival. The questions choosen for this trivia were very picky Carnival history questions and then some easy questions about the Carnival Dream.

I won this trivia by getting 16 out of 20 possible points. The entertainment host was impressed and did a microphone interview with me. During my interview I advertised this website and my upcoming (at the time) Carnival Dream review.

 

Lunch in The Gathering: Most of the lunch buffet lines opened at 12:00pm, with the exception of the Pizzeria and Deli. The buffet was crowded because everyone was onboard the ship. Some people were still finishing breakfast and others were starting to eat lunch.

 

During the afternoon, I used my free drink coupon from the VIFP club. I got a Strawberry Smoothie from the atrium bar. Although the coupon says it is only valid during Brunch in the Scarlet Dining Room, the atrium bar accepted the coupon. The smoothie was cold, good, and very filling.

[thecruiserofships]

Formal Night #2 Dinner: Tonight was the second formal night of the cruise. Since it was formal night the line for dinner got even longer and people arrived to line up earlier. At 5:45pm the dining room opened and we were able to be seated. We had the same wait staff. The food was very good and the service was also good.

 

Stateroom Nightly Turndown: After dinner our stateroom was cleaned. We had a new towel animal and newsletter for the next day. I saw the stateroom steward more on this day, but he still couldn't get my name right.

Note: I don't know his name because he never introduced himself and his name badge was partly covered up.

 

Revue Show "Get Ready": Tonight was the final production show of the cruise. "Get Ready" is a show that tributes many different professions that often get overlooked and taken for granted. The show was good and included a variety of different songs. I saw this show twice because it was high energy and was a well written show.

[thecruiserofships]

Have any questions? Please feel free to ask!

 

I am going to keep posting more writing here throughout the next few days.

 

For Now I Want To Focus on the Ship's Pizzeria:

 

The Pizzeria had the new style menus and the pizza was really good. I miss the old style menu with pizzas such as the pan, however this menu was good.

 

I was introduced to the new style pizza last year on the Carnival Miracle and I thought is was awful. I gave it another try on the Triumph and I was impressed. The pizza on the Dream was even better than I thought it would be.

[thecruiserofships]

Day 7 - Last Full Day of the Cruise and Sea Day #3

 

Today I woke up around 5:30am in order to have time to walk around the ship before breakfast. There were very few people out around this time, but there were some crew members cleaning the ship. I went from my stateroom to Deck 12 to start my journey of walking around the ship. Deck 12 is where you can find the ship's WaterWorks, jogging track, and mini golf course. My camera lenses fogged up some and I was having to defog the lens before taking pictures.

 

The Ocean Plaza on Deck 5 is one of my favorite public areas on the ship. The Carnival Dream was the first ship that I have cruised on with the Ocean Plaza design concept. This area was commonly used for activities, trivia, and games.

 

I really enjoyed the Dream's atrium. The layout of the atrium was very similar to Carnival's Spirit Class ships (Spirit, Pride, Legend, & Miracle), with a few minor differences. On the starboard side of the atrium was Guest Services and the port side of the atrium was the Shore Excursions Desk.

[thecruiserofships]

I was surprised in the morning that there were not very many people out and about since this was a bigger ship.

 

On some of my Carnival Ecstasy cruises at 6:00am there were always a few people out and walking around the ship.

 

Maybe because the ship was bigger and there was more space for the early birds to spread apart?

[thecruiserofships]

I will continue posting more review as soon as possible. My week got busy and my weekend got busier.

 

I departed 6 weeks ago on the Dream and got home 5 weeks ago. I sure miss the ship!

[funcruiser1234]

Thanks for posting all of the pictures and for answering my questions!

 

It was great to also be on this cruise. I had fun and want to go back!!!!! :p