If the Carnival Dream had been my first cruise I would never go again on Carnival after the treatment I received. My husband was already on the fence about cruising and this experience did not help him at all.
Embarkation
4 out of 5
It was different since I traveled in 2022, updated and a bit chaotic
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Your Time DINING was AWFUL. The app only worked when you were directly in front of the restaurant then it told you you had under 10 minutes when your wait would actually exceed 30-40. And then you were told to find you own table and for whatever reason, we ALWAYS had a table in the worsts spot and were never waited on until last. At one point, my husband got up and retrieved his own drink because everyone else around us was being tended to but us despite us arriving before them. The Specialty restaurant was a nice touch but the app did not work on the first night so we were forced to miss lobster night in order to be accommodated the next night. Buffet food was sub-par. I appreciated Mongolian Wok, Guy's and the Deli more.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
For whatever reason this particular ship was lackluster in activities. They did not even have a white night as they normally do.
Photo Gallery
2 out of 5
The photographers act as if they are bored and do not like their jobs. Every one of them do the exact same pose. Every cruise I have been on I notice that my husband and I have the exact same poses for every single picture no matter the photographer. No originality whatsoever. And this particular time Deimer and Daime both told us TWO different stories concerning packages causing both my husband and I to spend two different amounts. I paid for a package prior to arrival and received it, Deimer informed my husband on Elegant night that he could purchase the same packet for our next elegant night if I purchased all 5 of my photos on that night. But on the second elegant night Daime informed my husband that he could not have that same deal and we ended up paying more when I could have just combined all 5 pictures from two nights since the poses were all the same anyway. It was an unnecessary lie to make more money. I'm beginning to agree with my husband that it is pointless to dress up anymore and we may as well take out own pictures.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
I was disappointed in the club scenes as Carnival is supposed to be the Party Ship. I did however enjoy Motown night.
Children's Programs
No children.
Service and Staff
1 out of 5
From the onset our room steward Wi, showed us what we were in for. We asked him FOUR TIMES to separate our beds, which we requested on our initial request, and we did not receive our separated beds until late that night after calling Housekeeping. For 4 days, we only received services when we called Housekeeping. We would constantly see him in the halls and ask for towels, room cleaning, soap refill, etc only to return to our room hours later and it not be cleaned or have any requests filled. We even had to get toilet paper from another steward in the hallway because it hadn't been completed by ours. And we still had the grace to leave him a $30 tip PLUS the gratuities. We were ignored in the dining room by stewards but left them tips nonetheless. Two nights in a row Muhammed failed to bring our drinks while brining the drinks to the "others" around us. On Sea Day I was brought one portion of my breakfast but not eh meat, French toast, cheese grits or juice while others seated after us received their entire meals.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Cabin / Stateroom
2 out of 5
The size was okay, we always get either a balcony or a suite. Unfortunately, we were not aware that it was directly across from a staff kitchen and all night long the sound of cleaning, clanging pots could be heard as staff cleaned dishes.
Ship tip
Pick another ship, especially if you are a minority as they cater to other demographics and ignore you
No one listens and it affects those that do. People were told to stay off the 3rd floor and no one listened and staff did not make them. Therefore people were exiting directly behind the Platinum and Suite people
If you’re that worried about spending money maybe you should wise-up and do a bit of research. You hate Key West but went on the cruise anyways? You’re ridiculous!
Could you elaborate a little on just who a minority may be on a cruise ship being that there may be as many as forty countries represented by crew and upwards of twenty five countries for cruisers. Which country was not pleasant to which country? Was on one cruise where there were seventy two countries represented.
I was on the Dream this past March doing Spring break and experience some of the same things. I figured it was because of staffing shortage, but when I called 3 times for my room to be clean. I told them I will have my gratuity removed and used them for the reason. Our room was cleaned twice a day, I was bluffing about the gratuity and would never remove it, but it worked. Plus I left him a personal tip, the Dream is an old ship. Didn't have these problems the first time I sailed on her.
Sorry you had a bad time! Maybe research rooms before picking??? Also, remember we’re coming out of a pandemic! Things are different still, but still not excuse for staff not listening.
Do your homework when booking a cabin. You should have known it was by the kitchen. The food menu is on the tv on your cabin long before go to eat it. Go remove your tips at customer service desk if they did not earn it. Did you check separate beds on the on line check it? And for the love of god, stop whining about everything.
Sorry about your experience. We were recently on Carnival Pride, and the app (for Your Time dining) was easy to use and always accurate. We liked it. Different ships, maybe different vibes?
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