It was ok.

Item: Carnival Dream
Rating: 4.2
Author: ozzy4eva

Carnival Dream Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western

ozzy4eva

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 64

Overall rating:

4.2 out of 5

Verified Review

5 Night Western Caribbean (Galveston Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 28, 2019

Ship: Carnival Dream

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 11235

Traveled as: Family (young children)

Reviewed: 4 years ago

Review summary

Not sure if I will go on another cruise. It was expensive. They also don't advertise that they are going to dump a $70 per person gratuity on your bill, so that was a surprise. Checkout bill was almost $600, not counting a couple massages and drink packages. I am not sure if the value is there. I have spent the same or less on all inclusive hotels in Cancun and Cabo, and have none of the complaints that I made here (and walked out with a $40 checkout bill). Will try a different budget cruise line next time, and if it is a similar experience, will throw in the towel on budget cruises and save my money for the big boys.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Good. They dealt with chaos and late departure due to fog generally effectively.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Good food and bars. Pig and Anchor was gross. I took one bite from each item, then tossed it in the trash and went to another restaurant.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Pools were okay but jacuzzis were small for a cruise with 3500 people on it. Always packed with kids. Waterslides were great.

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Shows, music, and comedians were awesome.

Children's Programs

5 out of 5

Camp Ocean is awesome. 9 yr old loved it.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Staff was great and very attentive.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Everything on the ship was clean and well maintained. Beautiful ship.

Cabin / Stateroom

2 out of 5

$4000 for a room that looked like it could be in a Travelodge in a college town. I get that the rooms are small, but the carpet was nasty and everything was beat up and worn down. Very disappointing. At least the balcony had a nice view.

Ship tip

Learn how to walk single file with your family. People on this cruise were very rude and would walk 4 or 5 wide like they were walking down the freeway, and just walk in to you. We started walking single file, me in the lead, and I lead with my shoulder.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Galveston, Texas

5 out of 5

Efficient, although parking is a bit of a mess.

Thumbs Up 0

Cozumel, Mexico

4 out of 5

Didn't leave the port area, but it was nice. A lot of pushy shop people. Just learn to walk by and ignore them.

Thumbs Up 0

Progreso (Merida), Mexico

3 out of 5

Progreso is third world chaos. Just be prepared for it. Reminded me of driving through Baghdad, but in Spanish.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Very efficient. We opted for late disembarkation. Had breakfast, chilled out for 30 min, and before we new it, they call our number and we were in the car and heading home in 30 minutes.

11 Comments

Fiesta83 4 years ago

Glad you enjoyed your cruise

Thumbs Up 0

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donteenac 4 years ago

Gratuities was a surprise? Did you not do any research before your cruise?

Thumbs Up 3

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Kristina80 4 years ago

Love that ship

Thumbs Up 0

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jimbo502 4 years ago

Zero cruises taken. TROLL.

Thumbs Up 0

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cruisereckoning 4 years ago

Cruising isn’t for everyone! Always do research before hand and you won’t be surprised.

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almtsbb 4 years ago

Prepay gratuities with cruise fare. Then you don't have a bill for it on the cruise.

Thumbs Up 2

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MaelstromTroll 4 years ago

I dont feel like the gratuities are such a hardship to be honest. I’ve only sailed on DCL but we’ve never had a service team that we didnt tip over the recommended amount. A little research would have been beneficial I think. As for your closing bill, you did drink packages and massages. Both of which arent necessities. If you were on such a tight budget that tipping is too much, maybe you should have skipped the extras.

Thumbs Up 4

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GoldenRivet 4 years ago

Best you don’t bother cruising again.

Thumbs Up 1

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GospelCruiser 4 years ago

O cruises listed... Most likely just a troll.

Thumbs Up 1

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maryred 4 years ago

Until you move up to the luxury or river lines (or sail booking from England or Australia), automatic gratuities or hotel fees will always be a separate line item. All of the major market lines like, Carnival, Royal, NCL, HAL, Princess, Disney, Celebrity. Most cruise lines charge $15-$25/passenger/day.

Thumbs Up 2

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CruzeFan 4 years ago

The gratuity charges are plainly listed when you book the cruise and in the documents when you check in, so I’m not sure why that was a surprise. It’s always a good idea to read everything you are agreeing to and also to keep up with how much you are spending on board. We rarely spend more than the basic cruise fare and gratuity charges and have a great time

Thumbs Up 7

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