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On Sept. 3, 2011 our 2nd Annual SBPHC Cruise was aboard the Carnival Dream. There were 20 of us this year, which included family as well as friends. We arrived early at Port Canaveral after parking at the Park-n-Cruise and taking their shuttle to the port. Boarding was very easy and fast with no long lines or luggage searches. The ship itself is very impressive with plenty of places to congregate for large and small groups.
Most of our group members had Cove Balcony rooms. We usually get balcony rooms but had never had a Cove Balcony. I have to say, that I really loved it there! They are closer to the water and are sheltered by the lifeboats which are a level above. We felt like we were in our own little world. And they are 10sq. feet larger than the regular balcony rooms. We were able to open up the dividers between cabins and have a very large balcony! And of course, our stateroom was very comfortable. It seems the cabins on the Dream have a lot more storage areas than just the closets which was nice.
Service and friendliness of staff was very good on the Dream and our cabin steward always kept our ice buckets and small cooler full of ice for us!
The biggest kudos I have is for the dining/kitchen staff. I follow a gluten free diet and was concerned about how this would be handled. I contacted our Carnival travel agent Jose Arreaza and let him know of the dietary restrictions and he in turn contacted the appropriate people on the Dream. Each night at dinner my "dinner planner" would come to the table and go over the menu with me for the next evening's meal, pointing out what they could make gluten-free, from appetizers to desert! I even got to enjoy Chocolate Melting Cake! I just can't say enough good things about this feature!! And on the Lido Deck, you can even order gluten-free pizza (takes about 10 min) which was great!! I had no worries the whole week!
The entertainment is always good both in the theater and the lounges! The best entertainment was the laser light/music show Thursday night on the Lido Deck. And of course, the giant movie screen is a great addition for watching movies at night and all the on-board activities during the day!
We always do self-debarkation as it is so easy and we were off the ship and back to our car at the Park-n-Cruise by 8:00a.m.! We walked right off the ship and sped through customs without a hitch.
We loved sailing on the Dream and can't wait to get back aboard!!
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