This was a special cruise with a lot of extra events. It happened during the Super Bowl, Mardi Gras and Valentines day. So much fun and a bit different from the non-holiday cruises. We had a blast. 100% recommend.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
We arrived 50 minutes before our scheduled arrival time of 11:30 AM. They let us into the terminal at 11:05 AM and we waited in line for about 30 minutes. By 11:40 we stepping on board the ship. Overall it was a well executed check in process. We had a sold out ship, we expected a lot of people at the terminal. The staff on shore were excellent and seemed happy to see us. Once we were on board, the usual lines in the embarkation day buffet was long so we headed up to the pasta bar and got seated right away and ate a wonderful pasta lunch.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Main dining room- food was very good and the service was spectacular. We had anytime time dining and we requested the same wait staff team every night, we were treated very well. Major kudos to Carnival Dream dining room staff. We only ate in the Steakhouse once, the service was excellent there as well. Our steaks was delicious, maybe a little more done than I like it, but it was still a great steak. We ate breakfast every morning in the dining room. There were no long wait times, everything except the chicken sausage was very good and cooked to our preferences. Again the staff was excellent and very friendly. By second morning they knew what drinks we wanted and brought them to us without asking. Excellent all around. We didn't use the buffet as much. It was mostly a lunch place and food was overall good, some items like the meat dishes were hit or miss. But the salad bar was on point every day. Overall the food onboard was good, nothing much to complain about and the service was always great.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Shout out to the Spa. We had a great time in the Spa. Fitness center was good, not crowded and plenty of equipment to work out or get our cardio done. The Thalassotherapy pool and thermal spa areas were awesome. We purchased the Thermal Spa package and used it everyday. The Dream class ships have larger Spa facilities and I think the Dream is probably the best of them.
Thalasso Pool
5 out of 5
So relaxing. We met some great cruise friends here as well. The Dream class pools are the best in the fleet as far as size and features.
Thermal Suite Tepidarium
5 out of 5
So relaxing as well. The heated chairs all work and deliver comfortable heat, the music and ambiance are so nice. We enjoyed it very much.
Oriental Steam Bath
5 out of 5
The aromatherapy in this bath was perfect and the steam was so refreshing.
Cloud 9 Spa
5 out of 5
Spa staff are so friendly and professional. The space is well organized and very relaxing.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
The shows were fun and exciting. We are fans of the standard Carnival fare, Deal or No Deal and the Love and Marriage show. We've seen the other shows before, so we skipped a few to do other things. The rock band was great we did spend time enjoying the bands performances. The Piano bar was a stop for us most every night with a regular crowd of the same group of people belting out hits with the rest of us. Lots of fun. About the general music across the ship, in most places outside the spa, there's music of some kind playing constantly all over the ship. Sometimes, I'd like for it to turn down or just pause for a bit. The constant din of music was not always needed.
Children's Programs
No kids with us this time.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
All of them were great. I interacted with all of the groups, waiters, room stewards, guest services, spa staff, the cruise director, the cleaning crew, sales staff in the stores onboard, the bartenders and security team. Not a single bad encounter, actually all of them were positive, all good people. Treat them with respect and be kind, interact positively with the service staff, it makes a huge difference on how your cruise goes.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Everything was always clean and organized. I love the design of the Dream class ships. Especially the Spa areas. It's large enough to have space for lots of fun but small enough not to just be overwhelming in size and numbers of passengers.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Cabin size is good. It was inside, so ok not huge but certainly adequate. Cleanliness was not a problem at all. All good there. Comfort is a little complicated. The bed was just not comfortable to us. We had our wonderful cabin steward add a mattress cover to the bed but it didn't make much difference. Inside cabins are good for shorter cruises, but on this one we also missed a window or balcony just to see some daylight in our room. But overall I'd stay in this cabin again. It's a convenient location on this ship. Close to the elevators and not a lot of stairs to climb to get to popular areas.
Ship tip
Don't discount the ship due to the age or size. This is a great ship. Lots to do and fun itineraries out of Galveston too.
First time to Key West for me. So much fun and the Keys are just beautiful. Lots of people there though, but no problem. No one bothered us. We walked around Duval St. No excursions.
Well, ok Freeport is just ok. We didn't do any excursions here. It is a small shopping area near the ship. We spent a few minutes there and got back on board to enjoy a great spa day. Next time we go, we'll be going to the brand new Celebration Key that Carnival is building. We'll definitely spend a day there off the ship.
This is my kind of beach. Simple, easy to reach by walking and just plain beautiful. The tender boat experience was great for us. We just waited a while for the crowds to settle down and we went right downstairs and got directly on board. Returning back to the ship there was a long line to get onboard but it moved quickly and no issues there either.
We like the new port area. Lot of cute shops and restaurants or food spots. We visited the straw market and shopped for souvenirs, had some local food and generally walked around the island on our own. We were not hassled by anyone. We felt safe. We stayed away from the quiet, less touristy areas just to be safe. Overall it's a lot of fun to go to Nassau, don't stay on the ship, give it a try.
We wait till near the end to get off. Therefore we went down to deck 3 and walked right off, no wait. However inside the terminal, that was a different experience. The lines for security and picking up luggage was quite long and it took a good while to exit the terminal.
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