Mini Dream review May 29 - June 5

[BigB0882]

Just got back from the Carnival Dream visiting Montego Bay, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. I am not doing an in-depth review as there are plenty on those ports and the ship but wanted to hit on some low and high points from our cruise.

 

This is our 3rd cruise on the Dream so I feel I have a very good reference point to know when something is being done well or not. So, with that in mind:

 

Casino - we are big gamblers and our sign and sail balance proved that. :eek: I know people win in the casino but between the 3 of us none of us could hit a darn thing all week. We felt the slots only paid small bonuses so they were not much fun and you couldn't even win enough to play on for a while. Two people won $20,000 on this sailing so it can happen, just not to us. lol However, the casino hostess (I believe her name was Alaina) was very nice and comped our party of 4 a Steakhouse dinner one night and we all got bounce-back offers. The bar staff was MUCH improved compared to our previous sailings when you were lucky to even get offered a drink while playing. They had plenty of people on the floor and they constantly asked if you needed anything and did not take 30 minutes to come back with your drink. I think they upped the amount of people on the floor and it made all the difference.

 

Steakhouse - This was our very first time in the steakhouse. We went on the first night and again later thanks to the casino. Both meals were great. Steaks were huge and delicious. The sides were really underwhelming though, both in selection and quality. The mashed potatoes were like glue and the first night did not have the wasabi or horseradish it said was on the menu. We thought we just couldn't taste it but on returning we realized it was left off the first time because the 2nd visit it was clearly visible and you could taste it. Why leave it off the first time without telling those ordering it? Service was fine. A magician came to our table the 2nd visit and performed the most amazing up close magic I have ever seen. I don't know how he did it. I saw a coin vanish right before my eyes and it wasn't in his hand. Mind. Blown.

 

MDR - horrible. I don't blame the American Table change because the menu was just fine but the service was HORRIBLE. We didn't eat in there until night 2 because the first night we had the Steakhouse. Night 2 was formal night and as expected it was busy with a wait but not a very long wait. We had a server who was clearly not interested in being there and every one of us had stuff missing from what we ordered. He never came back so we couldn't even tell him we were missing something. Bar service, as most people know, was absolutely awful. Drinks were ordered mid meal and never received, we finally just left. We complained to Guest Services and this was our first time ever complaining about anything. The lady at GS was awful and kept blaming us but in the end she did pass on our comments and the Maitre'D came to speak to us when we were back in the MDR the next time and we also got a call from the Bar Manager. We didn't ask for or receive anything for free as that was not the point, we were just happy they acknowledged the mistakes and they seemed genuinely happy that we let them know about it. The food itself was just fine, nothing fancy but always something good to choose from. I will never set food in the MDR on formal night again and we actually ate at the buffet a couple of nights, which is something we never do.

 

Atrium singers - I have to mention these two. There is a duo in who perform mostly in the Atrium at night. The womans name is Richel and I think the man is Rey. They are FANTASTIC. Richel in particular. The woman can sing as well as any current legend and can sing circles around 99% of current pop stars. Her covers of Whitney Houston, Adele and Mariah Carey were just insanely good. We went and watched her almost every night and she came down to talk to us. So friendly.

 

Cruise Director - Jase was our CD and I loved that he didn't do his tagline of "bye...I said bye" over and over. I think he only said it 2-3 times the entire cruise. I wonder if people complained or he just is over it? Either way I found him to be a great CD and much less annoying without the tag line.

 

Security - Unfortunately my friend was pushed out of an elevator as he was getting off and fell but was not hurt. The man who did it was drunk coming back from Cozumel is our guess and his wife had been making comments in the elevator but we honestly didn't even pay attention to who she was talking to. Security was great about taking down his statements and going through camera footage to find these people all the while keeping my friend up to date. Last we heard they had not found them but they had been ID'd. Supposedly when they got off the ship and their S&S card is swiped it will alert to have them pulled aside and they will never allowed to sail with Carnival again. My friend opted not to press charges but if this event had happened with another port stop the man would have been put off at that port. :eek:

 

The piano bar singer was horrible, I couldn't stand to listen to him for more than one song but plenty of people seemed to be in there having a blast so maybe it was just me being spoiled by the vocal talents of Richel. lol BlackJack Band was amazing, as always.

 

Overall this was our least favorite cruise on Dream. It just felt like a lot of things were off with the staff, mostly in the MDR. Don't get me wrong, we still had a blast and will be sailing with Carnival again but now that we have done all the stops out of New Orleans we may switch to another city to try a different ship. We are looking forward to trying Triumph though, she is new to New Orleans since we began sailing so that is something to look forward to.

 

Any questions? Please ask! I will probably remember more things and come back to post them. I hope the review didn't focus on the negatives, those just tend to come to mind first.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[BigB0882]

Another addition:

 

Staggered check-in.

 

I felt it worked great. The line to get through security was so quick and easy and the line for actual check-in moved quite quickly. We had 10:30-11:00 check in, by the way. They didn't start boarding until almost 11:30 or 12 though which seemed a little later than normal but once they started boarding it went very fast. We were zone 8 and we were on the ship by 12:30 easily. I would say we pulled in the parking garage at 10:45 or so and probably walked in the terminal around 11 by the time we dropped off luggage and parked. It may seem a bit of a wait to get on the ship but each step of the process takes a little time so we only had to sit and actually wait for about 30 minutes. If you really hate waiting I suggest doing a later check in so you can just walk right on the ship.

 

Disembarkation was a breeze. Left our room right at 8 and we were in the car by 8:30 or so. The line seemed daunting but it moved quickly. Jase was really good about constantly reminding people that they had to wait until their zone was called or what not. We did self assist so were off quickly.

Edited June 6, 2016 by BigB0882

[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[Kellyekookoo]

Just off the same cruise, and I couldn't agree more about the MDR. Between some courses it would be a 20 minute wait or better. Also, everyone we encountered at guest services were rude and would blatently lie to us, even though we knew the difference. This was my 6th cruise...maybe my last. I did enjoy all my ports of call, just not the ship so much. We chose once a day room service and that seemed subpar as well, even with a tip on day one.

[BigB0882]

Our room service was sub-par as well. We did not end up tipping extra at the end as we have always done. We asked for evening service and one night we had to call him on our way to dinner and ask him to clean our room. Mainly we needed towels so I could take a shower. We had twice been out of our room for extended times with the door hanger on that said "Cruisin" and yet he never came. After calling he did come but that shouldn't have been required. I also don't get the point of asking for evening service if he was just going to clean our room every time we left for breakfast. It isn't the worst thing but we like to take an afternoon nap and it meant our bed and room was messed up again when we finally got in for the night. That is specifically why I ask for evening service and not morning.

[funat55]

Thank you for your honest and informative review. I'm going on the Dream next year and I hope we get friendly staff and good service. I read every review that I see and appreciate everyone's opinion.

[aqua blue me]

We were in the Crimson Dinning room late seating. Which one were you in? I wasn't fond of the new menus and thought the service started off horrible but seemed to kinda get better and a little rough start with our cabin attendant and the new mark off form for service. Finally my husband slipped him a tip and told him I wanted a robe and my daughter was upset there wasn't any towel animals. No issues after that.

[BigB0882]

We were in Crimson but had the option of eating whenever we wanted. I never remember what each line refers to it as.

[bakersdozen12]

Cruise Director - Jase was our CD and I loved that he didn't do his tagline of "bye...I said bye" over and over. I think he only said it 2-3 times the entire cruise. I wonder if people complained or he just is over it? Either way I found him to be a great CD and much less annoying without the tag line.

 

 

I think you have your CD's mixed up. Hennie van Heerden is the guy that always says that. He was the CD of the Dream before Jase.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[WhoDatNation]

Just got back from the Carnival Dream visiting Montego Bay, Grand Cayman and Cozumel. I am not doing an in-depth review as there are plenty on those ports and the ship but wanted to hit on some low and high points from our cruise.

 

 

 

This is our 3rd cruise on the Dream so I feel I have a very good reference point to know when something is being done well or not. So, with that in mind:

 

 

 

Casino - we are big gamblers and our sign and sail balance proved that. :eek: I know people win in the casino but between the 3 of us none of us could hit a darn thing all week. We felt the slots only paid small bonuses so they were not much fun and you couldn't even win enough to play on for a while. Two people won $20,000 on this sailing so it can happen, just not to us. lol However, the casino hostess (I believe her name was Alaina) was very nice and comped our party of 4 a Steakhouse dinner one night and we all got bounce-back offers. The bar staff was MUCH improved compared to our previous sailings when you were lucky to even get offered a drink while playing. They had plenty of people on the floor and they constantly asked if you needed anything and did not take 30 minutes to come back with your drink. I think they upped the amount of people on the floor and it made all the difference.

 

 

 

Steakhouse - This was our very first time in the steakhouse. We went on the first night and again later thanks to the casino. Both meals were great. Steaks were huge and delicious. The sides were really underwhelming though, both in selection and quality. The mashed potatoes were like glue and the first night did not have the wasabi or horseradish it said was on the menu. We thought we just couldn't taste it but on returning we realized it was left off the first time because the 2nd visit it was clearly visible and you could taste it. Why leave it off the first time without telling those ordering it? Service was fine. A magician came to our table the 2nd visit and performed the most amazing up close magic I have ever seen. I don't know how he did it. I saw a coin vanish right before my eyes and it wasn't in his hand. Mind. Blown.

 

 

 

MDR - horrible. I don't blame the American Table change because the menu was just fine but the service was HORRIBLE. We didn't eat in there until night 2 because the first night we had the Steakhouse. Night 2 was formal night and as expected it was busy with a wait but not a very long wait. We had a server who was clearly not interested in being there and every one of us had stuff missing from what we ordered. He never came back so we couldn't even tell him we were missing something. Bar service, as most people know, was absolutely awful. Drinks were ordered mid meal and never received, we finally just left. We complained to Guest Services and this was our first time ever complaining about anything. The lady at GS was awful and kept blaming us but in the end she did pass on our comments and the Maitre'D came to speak to us when we were back in the MDR the next time and we also got a call from the Bar Manager. We didn't ask for or receive anything for free as that was not the point, we were just happy they acknowledged the mistakes and they seemed genuinely happy that we let them know about it. The food itself was just fine, nothing fancy but always something good to choose from. I will never set food in the MDR on formal night again and we actually ate at the buffet a couple of nights, which is something we never do.

 

 

 

Atrium singers - I have to mention these two. There is a duo in who perform mostly in the Atrium at night. The womans name is Richel and I think the man is Rey. They are FANTASTIC. Richel in particular. The woman can sing as well as any current legend and can sing circles around 99% of current pop stars. Her covers of Whitney Houston, Adele and Mariah Carey were just insanely good. We went and watched her almost every night and she came down to talk to us. So friendly.

 

 

 

Cruise Director - Jase was our CD and I loved that he didn't do his tagline of "bye...I said bye" over and over. I think he only said it 2-3 times the entire cruise. I wonder if people complained or he just is over it? Either way I found him to be a great CD and much less annoying without the tag line.

 

 

 

Security - Unfortunately my friend was pushed out of an elevator as he was getting off and fell but was not hurt. The man who did it was drunk coming back from Cozumel is our guess and his wife had been making comments in the elevator but we honestly didn't even pay attention to who she was talking to. Security was great about taking down his statements and going through camera footage to find these people all the while keeping my friend up to date. Last we heard they had not found them but they had been ID'd. Supposedly when they got off the ship and their S&S card is swiped it will alert to have them pulled aside and they will never allowed to sail with Carnival again. My friend opted not to press charges but if this event had happened with another port stop the man would have been put off at that port. :eek:

 

 

 

The piano bar singer was horrible, I couldn't stand to listen to him for more than one song but plenty of people seemed to be in there having a blast so maybe it was just me being spoiled by the vocal talents of Richel. lol BlackJack Band was amazing, as always.

 

 

 

Overall this was our least favorite cruise on Dream. It just felt like a lot of things were off with the staff, mostly in the MDR. Don't get me wrong, we still had a blast and will be sailing with Carnival again but now that we have done all the stops out of New Orleans we may switch to another city to try a different ship. We are looking forward to trying Triumph though, she is new to New Orleans since we began sailing so that is something to look forward to.

 

 

 

Any questions? Please ask! I will probably remember more things and come back to post them. I hope the review didn't focus on the negatives, those just tend to come to mind first.

 

 

What games payed out $20k?

[BigB0882]

Oh, maybe it was Hennie. I do remember that name and having him as a CD before on either the Dream or Elation. Maybe Jase said that as a joke a couple of times hinting that the crew was tired of hearing it from Hennie. :D

 

The games that paid out $20,000 were $1 slot machines. $5 a spin max betting. One was on a Wheel of Fortune game and the other was some 3 reel slot that had Triple Hot 7s and did include a bonus if you got 3 bonus symbols. Not sure of the name.

[1STTIMEATSEA]

Thanks for the review. Did you do any excursions? Was your time in Cozumel shortened due to propulsion issues? We will be on the same cruise in a month.

[Yvonne]

Thanks for your review. We will be on the Dream in January. You said you had terrible service in the dining room, did you have anytime dining? Did you have the same serving team each night? We signed up for anytime dining, we much prefer that over assigned seating. Our last cruise we had 3 different teams as we didn't always sit in the same section each night.

 

You mentioned you asked for evening service from your room steward, but he still came in to clean in the morning when you were at breakfast. I wouldn't like that. We will be choosing evening cleaning, as I don't like feeling I need to leave our stateroom in the morning so he/she can come in and clean. My favorite thing to do on the cruise is to have room service breakfast on the balcony, and spend time leisurely drinking my morning coffee. I remember a couple times on our last cruise I did put a sticky note outside the door letting the room steward know we did not need to have our room serviced. I don't mind making our own bed up in the morning, and it will be nice not feeling pressured to leave the room to give the steward time to clean.

[BigB0882]

Our time in Cozumel was extremely short originally and I didn't understand why. We were supposed to be in port from 11-4:30 which I found so odd as on all other cruises it was a longer day. However, we got there a bit early and were cleared to get off closer to 10 and then an announcement was made that we didn't have to come back on until 5:30 so it ended up being a good amount of time. No propulsion issues but maybe the original short day was in anticipation of having issues.

 

We had ATD and had a different wait team each night. The bar service issues are consistent no matter your wait team.

[duncmelsmom]

Thanks for your review. I'm sorry that the cruise wasn't as good as you've had in the past. We leave in 19 days, and I'm hoping for the best!!

[Viesczy]

Thank you for the review!

 

A comment, not directed at the OP, I've found over the past few years the MDR is just a bad option on any line due to the delivery.

 

We've recently sailed on HAL and Princess (we're on the Dream in a few months), each meal in the MDR on any night (we've always pick the any time option btw) has always been a good 90 - 120 min event. It isn't so much the staff's effort but the lack of staff.

 

On our Princess cruise, which was a great time, our server in the MDR easily was tending to half of New York City! ;) Okay, I'd say a good 20 tables.

 

With the fact that there was always something we wanted to do at night, we found it almost impossible to squeeze a 90 min block to eat into our plans, we ate more at the buffet/steak house/burger-pizza than the MDR.

[NWACruiser]

I am not sure what was going on with your cruise. We did a B2B in April (I am working on the review right now.) We ate in the Crimson DR. We had ZERO issues either week. In fact, the table crew, Maitre D', and assistant Maitre 'D went out of their way for us to get the same table on the second week. We were set for late on the second week, and they moved us to early (our original plan).

 

Summer Breeze (Richel and Rey) were fantastic. We also had Music Unlimited the first week, and Blackjack Band the second week to split time with. Also the Show Band was excellent. Therefore I spent a lot of time going up and down the Promenade.

 

I agree, the piano bar was a disappointment. I also have high standards for PBE's and Russell Blues was not to my standard.

 

The bar service knew me by name (as I called them by their name). But I also knew most of the staff by name, and vice-versa) by the end of the first week.

 

Maybe I have low expectations for vacationing, but, I literally had nothing to complain about (other than I could not stay for two more weeks)

[NWACruiser]

I was planning on doing Cozumel through the end of week one tonight, but photobucket.com seems to be having issues. :mad::mad::mad:

 

Will be back tomorrow.:D