Good experiences on the Carnival Dream

Cruises: 4-6 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 47

Review summary

The ship was very large but it seemed to handle the number of passengers relatively well. We didn't experience unbearably long lines and there seemed to be room at most of the performances and events. It may have been our dinning times, but the lines actually seemed a little shorter than on some of our previous cruises. The decor is a little more muted and tasteful than other Carnival ships we have been on. I thought it was a nice improvement. We had adjoining ocean view cabins. With three small children we do not want a balcony. The major plus of these cabins is that in most of them you get an extra "bathroom" that contains a short tub and a sink. This means that in one cabin you get two sinks (in different rooms), a shower, a tub (with a second shower), and a single toilet. This is a very nice setup when you have a lot of people sharing the cabin. Otherwise the cabins were basically the standard on the newer Carnival ships. They are relatively large and comfortable, if somewhat plain. I don't know if it was our location, but ours was the quietest cabin I have experienced on a cruise ship. The food was similar to but seemed somewhat improved over our last cruise on the Carnival Liberty. Again it was the Carnival standard menu. The food is good but not overly fancy, not what I would call "fine dinning". There were a lot of options (Indian food for example) on the Lido deck buffets. Our dinning room waiter real made a big difference on our cruise. He was able to get "off menu" food for our somewhat picky children. He also entertained the children with magic tricks and animals made from folded napkins. It was a really great experience for everyone. The entertainment also seemed better than on some of our previous cruises. The ship seemed child friendly. Our children enjoyed Camp Carnival and the water slides were a big hit. The Dream has fewer pools than other ships (only 2) and they are small. The space has been given over to extra water slides (two large slides, two medium slides, and two "baby" slides). This seems like a reasonable trade if you like water slides. The only real negative we had on the cruise was a bit of a funky smell in the hallway near our cabin. It was also (lightly) in our cabin the first day. Once the ship got underway, the smell in the cabin disappeared but it recurred occasionally in the hallway. It was not a big deal and didn't really effect our cruise.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

Entertainment

Children's Programs

Service and Staff

Ship Quality

Cabin / Stateroom

Ports of call

Mahogany Bay, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico

Cozumel, Mexico

Pros: The extra sink and tub in the ocean view cabins, the friendliness and helpfulness of our waiter

Cons: A bit of a funky smell in the hallways

Recommends Carnival Dream? Yes!

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