This was our third cruise, after Disney Wonder and RCI Navigator of the Seas. I was extremely impressed with the Carnival Dream. It's a beautiful ship with a fantastic crew. This was a 7-day Eastern from Port Canaveral with stops at Nassau, St. Thomas, and St. Maarten.
Embarkation was a little messy due to the stormy weather over Florida. Once we got the luggage dropped off and made it past the security screening, we were on board quickly. The ship layout is a bit confusing at first, but you get the hang of it after a while. We found the lido deck for lunch and then down one deck to our balcony stateroom.
We learned that there were 4200 guests on board, which is almost completely full. Frankly, the ship didn't seem crowded. We never had trouble seeing any shows, comedy, getting space by the pool, etc. The lido area is huge, with plenty of seating. There were some lines, but never more than a few minutes, and it was easy to avoid lines by avoiding the peak times.
Great quiet location on port side high and forward. Cabins above and below. Ample storage space and bathroom space. Has a sofa single bed and a Pullman bed in the ceiling for total capacity of 4. Balcony is small but adequate with 2 chairs and a small table. Nearest elevators are atrium, but far enough away to avoid noise from atrium activities. Up one flight of stairs to lido deck for pool and buffet area.