Dream 6/19-26 Cove Balcony - review lite.

[Librarian365]

Well, I am just home from the Dream out of NOLA and thought I would throw some thoughts down. BlueJay555 gave an excellent pictorial of the Dream the week before our trip, so I won't duplicate that. I'll probably have to post a couple of different times but will get to any questions after that I promise!

 

We are a family of 4 with two teens. One is 18 (daughter) and one 16 (son)- qualifying him for the O2 club. We drove from southern Ohio and stayed one night in Slidell, LA, and two nights at the Maison Dupuy hotel in the French Quarter. Thanks to some tips, we parked at Fulton's and booked ahead online. In fact, we booked a lot ahead online. We did not do Cheers or the Bubbles packages. I ordered a bottle of wine delivered for the first day, two beach bags for the kids (with all of the fun gear inside), and a 12 pack of water - we were very pleased with all of those. We also brought 2 bottles of wine with us.

 

OK - here we go.

Embarkation Day - Fulton's parking was awesome. We handed our confirmation letter over and parked on the 6th floor right by the elevator. We were on the second shuttle as one was pulling out when we got down to the street. Not a terrible wait - as they know what they are doing. We got to check in on time (11:30ish) but heard an announcement that the ship got in late and we would have to wait. No worries. Some people around us got irritated with the heat or wait or whatever but we stayed chill. We waited less than an hour outside for the FTTF people and then we were let on right behind them. The check in was a breeze and we were to the food quickly. We just ate at the aft buffet and everything was tasty. We are really no buffet people at all but the food was really good - something for everyone. It was crowded however with all of the bags.

 

Sail away - with the Dream getting in late, we sailed about an hour late. We sat aft, ordered cocktails, and just relaxed. In fact, we kind of lived the cruise 'aft' after that! We liked it back there.

 

Cabin - I forgot to mention we had two cabins. 2325 (Cove) and 2327 (interior). This was perfect for us. The cove was really spacious! We easily unpacked all of our stuff with much room to spare. We didn't bring a shoe holder as suggested and didn't need it. I brought my own hairdryer and flat iron because I have lots of hair. We dressed nicely (dresses, ties) for formal night but not elegantly - the rest of the time we lived in bathing suits by day and nice capri's and blouses or pants and polos for dining. That is just to suggest how much we brought with us. Anyway, We booked our cabins online and could not put our kids together because my daughter is not 21...but once on ship we stopped at Guest Services and swapped S&S cards (which came hole punched already). Guest Services acted like it was the 500th time that day he swapped rooms...he was pleasant until he flung our S&S cards into the trash. That was the first and last unpleasant crew member we met. We didn't complain, just moved on to our cruise.

 

Dining in the MDR - we had late dining. It is American Table now. Our waiter, Ignatius, was simply amazing. He laughed and smiled and was so personable every evening. We never missed a night and looked forward to seeing him. I have to say that there was only one night where I thought the food was just blah but I just chalked it up to a bad pick (the fish was overcooked I think) - overall everyone was really quite happy. We tried all around - different apps, different entrees, and even the rare finds. Some nights I got two apps because I just needed a salad, but other apps looked so good. On lobster night, my kids got two tails each with Ignatius' suggestion. The bread was wonderful and desserts were great. Two minor things. We didn't order wine or cocktails the first night and had to ask for the beverage waitress after that. I think she would have had more sales if she stopped by more often. No matter, we brought our own from the room after that. And I never got to try the raved-about Bitter and Blanc. I was dying to try it but it never showed up on the menu! Bummer. The creme brulee was the best dessert of the trip.

 

Club O2 - We hardly saw our son. He loved his time from day one. This is our third cruise so he is well versed on the kids clubs. He carried around his schedule and really only met us for dinner (we saw him around in the day). A couple dinners he skipped to go to the club because of some event. The last night he exchanged info with a bunch of new friends. I can answer more questions about that if you have them.

 

Now that I am through the basics, I will do the day by day from here. That way I can hopefully remember all I want to tell you. :cool:

[bluejay555]

Nice review! Sounds like a great trip. What excursions did you do?

[Librarian365]

BlueJay - your review was great. I might have missed it but did you have problems on the last day because your cruise got in late, according to our embarkation staff.

[bluejay555]

BlueJay - your review was great. I might have missed it but did you have problems on the last day because your cruise got in late, according to our embarkation staff.

 

Thanks! If we had problems, we were not told about them. I've read on here that we might have had propulsion issues? But no one on the ship said a thing. And we were off the ship by like 7:30am, so I never realized we were off schedule.

[Librarian365]

Excursions!

 

Our first was in Jamaica. We booked ahead through the cruiseline and went on the Zipline/Tubing/Hidden Waterfall with Lunch excursion. I wonder if this was new for the cruiseline since there were no reviews for it on the website and it was shown last. We could not recommend it more!! It was longer than it said (supposed to be 3 hours but it was more like 5 and 1/2), but because it was booked through the line, we were not concerned about being late. We got back to ship with 20 minutes to spare.

Our guides Shonna (spelling) and Romario were amazing. They kept us laughing and safe! We had a ball on the 6 lines. The groups were small (10-12 people). It was really hot hiking in the jungle and we had to constantly reapply bug spray - the mosquitos were BAD and we were sweating hard! But that was the only negative. After the zipping, we got into tubes and headed down river. Shrek was our guide and we were talking story and drinking rum and laughing the whole way. At the end there was the opportunity to do a rope swing. Then we bussed it back to the beginning for a jerk chicken lunch and shopping. The shop was well equipped and we bought lots of stuff. Such a great day, and we would recommend it (and do it ourselves) over and over. We played hard this day!

 

Day two was in Cayman - again we booked through the line and went on an eco tour. This was the Kayaking through the mangroves and Stingray City. Our guides were Mike and Derek. No one in our group of 25 or so had Kayaked, but it was like old hat fast. I loved it so much I want to do some Kayaking here at home! We learned about the mangroves and the conservation efforts. That was I would say an hours time. Then we took the boat to Stingray City. The stingrays were everywhere! Derek found his favorite girl Rosie and brought her to our group. We all had the opportunity to learn about her, feed her, kiss her, take pictures with her etc. The other groups did not look like they had any help like we did. We had a good half hour - 40 minutes with Rosie (and others passing through) before getting back on board and returning to the ship. We then had plenty of time to shop and get lunch. We ate at Hard Rock (mistake) but it was crowded and very expensive for the privilege. But as I always say, you can count on Hard Rock for a consistently great hamburger anywhere in the world. And I have been to a lot of them. It was just really expensive and really not local foods.

 

Day 3 was Cozumel! I booked online through Shoreexcursioneer for Mr Sancho's. No worries! We got a taxi right off the ship for $17 for our family. We took a van there and a private taxi back for the same price. Edwin was our server and he stayed with us all day for every little need. The drinks were great, the food kept coming, the water was warm, and it was not crowded. Totally worth the money to be on the all inclusive side because of the light crowd. We did not get any of the extras - but after the two active days, all I wanted to do was sit in the water. They also have a shopping area and we picked up a few things - but remember to haggle. I really do not like haggling but it was easy to do there. It is off-season so they just want to make sales. We spent a LOT of money in Cozumel on vanilla, cigars, bags, etc....as there is more shopping in port. Everyone wants a piece of you in Cozumel.

 

OH I should tell you for the cameras (our cell phones), we bought Kona waterproof phone bags for the excursions and they were AWESOME. They cost about $5 and did not leak a drop. We could take pix under water at the stingrays and they did not fog up in the rainforest. I did not want to take our expensive camera on vacation - so our iPhone 6's did the trick really well with the help of the bags. They come on a lanyard too so they just hung around our necks safely.

 

Next up will be the sea days.

[Librarian365]

Thanks! If we had problems, we were not told about them. I've read on here that we might have had propulsion issues? But no one on the ship said a thing. And we were off the ship by like 7:30am, so I never realized we were off schedule.

 

I read about the propulsion issues too but they must have been resolved. Like I said, we departed a little late, but none of our port times were shortened as the others mentioned. Jamaica we were an hour and 1/2 late but we stayed that much later to compensate. We completely stopped on sea day two due to smoke which I will talk about later. We definitely heard about that! LOL

[JaniceB]

Thanks for doing a review.

[Clarea]

Thanks for the review/report.

[Keith1010]

Nice review.

Keith

[asalligo]

Cabin - I forgot to mention we had two cabins. 2325 (Cove) and 2327 (interior). This was perfect for us. The cove was really spacious! :

 

I have the exact same room (2325) booked for a cruise on the Dream in March. Would you happen to have any pics or advice?

[Singer4Him]

I have the exact same room (2325) booked for a cruise on the Dream in March. Would you happen to have any pics or advice?

 

We were just down the hall from you guys in 2337 this past November and we've booked it again for our upcoming Breeze cruise. Our friends who cruised with us were in 2341 and have booked it again for the Breeze cruise, as well. We love the Cove balconies.

[Librarian365]

I'm going to lump the sea days and disembarking together.

 

I learned on these pages that people like to take the cheese plates offered in the MDR back to their room to nosh. We discovered that the lido buffet also has cheese, italian hams and fruit - so we would stop by the lido buffet and enjoy that as an appetizer in our Cove. Remember we had late dining, so this was perfect with the wine we brought along.

 

We also discovered the Taste Bar - which opened around 5:30 - for a quick appetizer if cheese wasn't fitting the bill. I wish the Taste Bar was open every day but it is only open non-port days.

 

We found the tiring thing about Carnival was the incessant selling. Some days, Jase the CD would announce shopping, and casino, and bars, and future cruises and and and....but hardly 'hey just come listen to this band'. Even the Military Appreciation event they had was punctuated with 'here, buy this.' I know they are cutting corners but vacations lose something to me when I am being sold to.

 

The entertainment had lots of trivia....LOTS of trivia. The music was OK but the Dream Band (no name band still) was great! They were totally under utilized. Black Jack band was good too - live music (real instruments) really matter.

 

For food we hopped around - sea day brunch, lido, Tandoor (I had twice), burrito bar, seaside grill - whichever tickled our fancy that day. We had no trouble getting deck chairs but we are morning folks....we sat out only until 12-1 and then found something else to do.

 

We had smoke coming from the engine room on sea day two. They stopped the ship for an hour to figure it out but then we were under way. There were constant announcements so no one panicked. The Captain got us to Jamaica an hour and 1/2 late, but we stayed an hour and 1/2 longer to compensate. Again we were well informed the whole way about the situation. We had no further delays or problems with the rest of our itinerary.

 

Disembarkation was a breeze! We ate in the dining room a nice, slow, filling breakfast, then moved to the Encore Lounge to wait for our turn. We were number 17 which is about 1/2 way. Since we had nowhere to be, we let folks who were in a rush get off and make their connections. This was a great idea because by the time we were getting off, the folks remaining were in no hurry either. From the time our number was called until we got off, our bags, through customs (which was delayed by about 5 minutes), to Fulton's shuttles and loading, to Fultons, up to our car and driving away was about an hour total. It was slow through customs but otherwise completely seemless. We would use Fulton's again.

 

Please ask questions if I have forgotten anything. We have been home a few days now and my brain is starting to change to back-to-work and I know I am forgetting details.

 

I will post a photo of our room this afternoon. I do have one or two on another device. Our room really was the best room we have had on any cruise. Maybe it was because there were just two of us?

[Librarian365]

I have the exact same room (2325) booked for a cruise on the Dream in March. Would you happen to have any pics or advice?

 

 

I do on a different device. I have one of the room and several of the cove/view. I'm running out now but will post it later.

 

BTW, only one morning did we have full sun out there - like so hot you couldn't sit out there. The rest of the time is was so beautifully cool and enjoyable. Also one of the chairs reclines to flat so you can make yourself a chaise lounge and nap out there!! With the ocean waves, it was the perfect spot for me.

:D

[asalligo]

I do on a different device. I have one of the room and several of the cove/view. I'm running out now but will post it later.

 

BTW, only one morning did we have full sun out there - like so hot you couldn't sit out there. The rest of the time is was so beautifully cool and enjoyable. Also one of the chairs reclines to flat so you can make yourself a chaise lounge and nap out there!! With the ocean waves, it was the perfect spot for me.

:D

 

Thanks, yes this is one of the reasons we enjoy cove balconies. People think I am exaggerating, but literally 10 minutes in the direct Caribbean sun and I am burned, so I always avoid direct exposure to the sun whenever possible. I found that an aft cabin is almost a waste for me as much of the day it affords little shade.

[Librarian365]

I am trying to attach the photo. Perhaps I can get guidance on putting it in the body of this text?

[Librarian365]

So the above photo is stateroom 2325. On the lower left out of the frame is a full length couch which becomes a bed if needed. On the right there were two cubby holes, a cabinet with safe, a cabinet with the fridge, desk, and then three closets (one had shelves). Oh and drawers. SO much storage. We've done cruises where our children stayed in our room. I think this is probably the largest stateroom we have had with or without our kids in it. No complaints at all about the room - with the exception of how cold it was. Jase, the CD, joked the first day that the thermostats don't do anything. After that, I dont think he was joking! HA

[asalligo]

Thanks so much for the pic, I am counting the days! 242.

[asalligo]

Did you happen to look at the photo packages and do you know if the Dream is selling the buy all photos option?

 

Thanks

[springs741]

Thanks for the review. Sailing sister ship Breeze in November. It has been a while since we had a cove and will be the first time for daughter + family. Enjoying sharing your review with her to up the excitement.

 

Love Jase Apps your cruise director.

 

For others reading, while you are correct you could not book your children in their own room on line you are able to do so when calling. I do understand that sometimes the right stateroom is available or the mood strikes and you just want to get it done. Just putting it out there for new cruisers.

[maldenmusic]

Enjoyed the review. We have 2325 booked on our 8 day December cruise with Costa Maya added as the 4th port.

[riclop]

Well, I am just home from the Dream out of NOLA and thought I would throw some thoughts down. BlueJay555 gave an excellent pictorial of the Dream the week before our trip, so I won't duplicate that. I'll probably have to post a couple of different times but will get to any questions after that I promise!

 

We are a family of 4 with two teens. One is 18 (daughter) and one 16 (son)- qualifying him for the O2 club. We drove from southern Ohio and stayed one night in Slidell, LA, and two nights at the Maison Dupuy hotel in the French Quarter. Thanks to some tips, we parked at Fulton's and booked ahead online. In fact, we booked a lot ahead online. We did not do Cheers or the Bubbles packages. I ordered a bottle of wine delivered for the first day, two beach bags for the kids (with all of the fun gear inside), and a 12 pack of water - we were very pleased with all of those. We also brought 2 bottles of wine with us.

 

OK - here we go.

Embarkation Day - Fulton's parking was awesome. We handed our confirmation letter over and parked on the 6th floor right by the elevator. We were on the second shuttle as one was pulling out when we got down to the street. Not a terrible wait - as they know what they are doing. We got to check in on time (11:30ish) but heard an announcement that the ship got in late and we would have to wait. No worries. Some people around us got irritated with the heat or wait or whatever but we stayed chill. We waited less than an hour outside for the FTTF people and then we were let on right behind them. The check in was a breeze and we were to the food quickly. We just ate at the aft buffet and everything was tasty. We are really no buffet people at all but the food was really good - something for everyone. It was crowded however with all of the bags.

 

Sail away - with the Dream getting in late, we sailed about an hour late. We sat aft, ordered cocktails, and just relaxed. In fact, we kind of lived the cruise 'aft' after that! We liked it back there.

 

Cabin - I forgot to mention we had two cabins. 2325 (Cove) and 2327 (interior). This was perfect for us. The cove was really spacious! We easily unpacked all of our stuff with much room to spare. We didn't bring a shoe holder as suggested and didn't need it. I brought my own hairdryer and flat iron because I have lots of hair. We dressed nicely (dresses, ties) for formal night but not elegantly - the rest of the time we lived in bathing suits by day and nice capri's and blouses or pants and polos for dining. That is just to suggest how much we brought with us. Anyway, We booked our cabins online and could not put our kids together because my daughter is not 21...but once on ship we stopped at Guest Services and swapped S&S cards (which came hole punched already). Guest Services acted like it was the 500th time that day he swapped rooms...he was pleasant until he flung our S&S cards into the trash. That was the first and last unpleasant crew member we met. We didn't complain, just moved on to our cruise.

 

Dining in the MDR - we had late dining. It is American Table now. Our waiter, Ignatius, was simply amazing. He laughed and smiled and was so personable every evening. We never missed a night and looked forward to seeing him. I have to say that there was only one night where I thought the food was just blah but I just chalked it up to a bad pick (the fish was overcooked I think) - overall everyone was really quite happy. We tried all around - different apps, different entrees, and even the rare finds. Some nights I got two apps because I just needed a salad, but other apps looked so good. On lobster night, my kids got two tails each with Ignatius' suggestion. The bread was wonderful and desserts were great. Two minor things. We didn't order wine or cocktails the first night and had to ask for the beverage waitress after that. I think she would have had more sales if she stopped by more often. No matter, we brought our own from the room after that. And I never got to try the raved-about Bitter and Blanc. I was dying to try it but it never showed up on the menu! Bummer. The creme brulee was the best dessert of the trip.

 

Club O2 - We hardly saw our son. He loved his time from day one. This is our third cruise so he is well versed on the kids clubs. He carried around his schedule and really only met us for dinner (we saw him around in the day). A couple dinners he skipped to go to the club because of some event. The last night he exchanged info with a bunch of new friends. I can answer more questions about that if you have them.

 

Now that I am through the basics, I will do the day by day from here. That way I can hopefully remember all I want to tell you. :cool:

 

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Hotdog 52]

Did you have any trouble getting your cabin cleaned twice a day?:)