Carnival Dream Review
Rating by category
Additional details
We (husband and two teenage daughters) have sailed many times on Carnival (10) and only once on another cruise line. We like the relaxed atmosphere on Carnival so we just keep going when we can. We sailed out of New Orleans so we drove from Dallas on Saturday and spend the night in NO. I was so excited about going over Christmas but I will say that I might not do that again. It was just a little strange because it really didn't feel like Christmas but we made the best of it. They did have Christmas decorations everywhere (and we brought some for our room) as well as caroling, Christmas dinner, Christmas show and the Grinch on board. All of our staff from the waiters in the dining room to our room steward were exceptional! We barely saw our 16 year old daughters because they spent all their time in Club O2.
The only problems we had were 1) I did not realize you couldn't take small plastic bottles on the ship (my fault for not checking I guess) so they took our sodas at embarkation! 2) Large full ship and there was a lack of places to get something to eat from like 3:30 to 5:00 in the afternoon. The buffet would close, no dining room yet, Italian closed so the only things to eat were pizza or a burger (and no Guy's Burgers on this ship) so there were really long lines for those.
We had an inside cabin on level 2 for this one so that was something new for us. It was great for sleeping but it was in the front of the ship and the water was really rough so it made for a nauseating journey.
Cabin Review
Interior
It was small bur manageable for the four of us. Probably would work better for small children instead of grown teenagers but we hardly spend any time in the room anyway. As long as the drop down beds were up, you could move around freely. Really needs more drawer space.
Due to the cabin being in the lower part of the ship and in the front, it was a pretty rough sailing. The ship was rocking everywhere you went but more so in our room. Not sure I will ever book that low or that close to the front again.
On a positive note, it was very quite and it was great sleeping in complete darkness!
Port Reviews
New Orleans
Spent the night prior at The Blake Hotel off St Charles Place. It was a very small boutique hotel and we did not make it there until 8:00 Saturday night (partially due to a major traffic jam because they had closed 610!) Used the Fulton Parking garage which I had pre-paid. Did not know that if you pull up on the 3rd floor of the Fulton, they will take your luggage for you. We had already dropped our off at the check-in line.
Roatan
We just got off the ship and walked through the shopping area. It was right there so made it really convenient. After shopping, we walked down to the beach and paid $26 to have a cabana and the waiters come right to you. We ordered some food and drinks and it was good and reasonable.
Belize City
Again no excursion We have been to these ports before so we just shopped, had lunch, got henna tattoos and some drinks. Love Belize!