Advice About Pools on the Dream?

[mjaclyn]

My family of 4 will be experiencing our first Disney cruise in May. We have two young children, 4 and 2. I've read all over these boards the the pools on the Dream are small and always crowded. We'll be using the Nemo splash area for my 2 year old since he is not potty trained, but DD 4 LOVES to go in the water so I'm sure either DH or I will be in there with her a few times. Can someone tell me when the best time would be to bring her to the little kids pool? Also, what is the age/height restriction for the Mickey slide? She's too short for the Aquaduck and might be interested in going on the other one. She's 38 inches.

I've read a lot of conflicting reports. I really hope that we have a good cruise because this is kind of a 'make or break' situation for us. DH and I have only cruised one other time on Princess years ago without children. We didn't have a good time at ALL. It was incredibly boring on the ship, we never went swimming because of how crowded it was and I was seasick. We decided to try cruising one more time because we LOVE Disney and have heard rave reviews about DCL. I'm going prepared this time with lots of medication for the seasickness and I'm mentally gearing myself up for delays with getting on and off the ship. I just hope it's not insanely crowded.. I think the sailing is sold out, but it will be interesting to see how the crowd flow is with a ship this large and with as many activities there are.

 

[FJS961]

My family of 4 will be experiencing our first Disney cruise in May. We have two young children, 4 and 2. I've read all over these boards the the pools on the Dream are small and always crowded. We'll be using the Nemo splash area for my 2 year old since he is not potty trained, but DD 4 LOVES to go in the water so I'm sure either DH or I will be in there with her a few times. Can someone tell me when the best time would be to bring her to the little kids pool? Also, what is the age/height restriction for the Mickey slide? She's too short for the Aquaduck and might be interested in going on the other one. She's 38 inches.

I've read a lot of conflicting reports. I really hope that we have a good cruise because this is kind of a 'make or break' situation for us. DH and I have only cruised one other time on Princess years ago without children. We didn't have a good time at ALL. It was incredibly boring on the ship, we never went swimming because of how crowded it was and I was seasick. We decided to try cruising one more time because we LOVE Disney and have heard rave reviews about DCL. I'm going prepared this time with lots of medication for the seasickness and I'm mentally gearing myself up for delays with getting on and off the ship. I just hope it's not insanely crowded.. I think the sailing is sold out, but it will be interesting to see how the crowd flow is with a ship this large and with as many activities there are.

The pools on the ship are not a selling point IMHO. We felt they were too small and crowded, my smaller ones felt trampled. We enjoyed the water at castaway cay and went to Atlantis for the sprawling pools which they liked a lot and were less crowded. We also like to stay a few days at WDW before or after a Bahamas cruise to round out the week and they get their pool fill at the resort, MUCH better than on the ship.

 

[PoohJen]

Frankly, the children's pools were often very crowded on the Magic and Wonder too (which baffles me why they didn't improve on this on the Dream design).

I think your best bet is to try to scope out times when the pools are less utilized (I realize that's the point of your question! ).

Early on embarkation day used to be great for us, but I think the crowds have caught on! (Have your children in their suits when you board, then hit the pools right after lunch).

Port Days used to also be a less crowded time - for Dream, that would be only Nassau Day, and a lot of folks seem to use that as a ship day (as I do), so pools may not be "empty" but hopefully less crowded. Also, Castaway Cay Days should be empty - I realize you want to be on CC though! When you get back on the ship after CC, the pools are usually empty - kids are napping or getting ready for dinner.

If you are early risers, definitely go early! Then spend the peak hours enjoying the Club!

I'm sure if you are flexible with your times, you will find a less crowded time that suits your family's needs - Good luck and have a wonderful cruise!

 

[dsneygirl]

We went first thing in the morning. DS (4) was an early riser so we had breakfast at the Cabanas buffet about 7:30-8 and went right to the pool. Then by the time 11 rolled around and it got crazy DS was waterlogged. Then he went to the kids club, played mini putt, did the detective game etc.

We did this Nassau Day and at Sea Day and the pool never really got crowded until later on. So crowded pools were not a problem for us.

Also as you know with a little one it's not like you can sit and read your book so we usually just grabbed one chair for all of us. And we never saw the Splash Pad really croweded either.

 

[pixarmom]

We went first thing in the morning. DS (4) was an early riser so we had breakfast at the Cabanas buffet about 7:30-8 and went right to the pool. Then by the time 11 rolled around and it got crazy DS was waterlogged. Then he went to the kids club, played mini putt, did the detective game etc.

We did this Nassau Day and at Sea Day and the pool never really got crowded until later on. So crowded pools were not a problem for us.

Also as you know with a little one it's not like you can sit and read your book so we usually just grabbed one chair for all of us. And we never saw the Splash Pad really croweded either.

Great to hear - we're first-time cruisers (3-night Dream in August) and this is our plan!

 

[IWannaBeAMousketeer]

I've also heard that the pools clear out a bit around 4:30-5pm when all the main dining folks leave to get ready for dinner. If you have late dining or maybe skipped the dining room one night, this might be a great time for the pool. DH and I are actually thinking about changing to late dining for this reason so that we have a second chance to hit the pools in the afternoon with DDs 8 & 5. We too are big water/pool lovers. Normally, I would say that late dining is way too late for us, but our cruise schedule always surprises me. We all usually nap or rest in the afternoon and then we keep going much later in into the night than we ever do at home! (10:45 karaoke, anyone?).

 

[momtoejanda]

i really didnt find a problem with the pools on the dream. We were on a sold out sailing..... I have an 8 yo (48inches) and two 5 yo (40 inches). the little ones loved nemos reef. there was rarely more than two other children in there with them. The shallow pool had kids in it but not to the point that is was too crowded. One of the little ones kept going on the mickey slide over and over again never waiting for more than 5 kids on each turn. The aquaduck was a different story. very long waits all the time my 8 yo loved it but the little ones, who could ride with an adult, didnt want to.

the only real problem was the lack of deck chairs. It was impossible to find a chair next to the pool to watch the kids. In fact not only was there not front row but we couldnt get chair anywhere on deck 10. We managed to get chairs once (just once) and my husband walked over to the pool for 1-2 minutes and when he went back to sit down, his stuff was gone. there was a woman sitting there and he asked her where his shirt/towel/shoes were. She motioned over on the side. within a minute she had taken all of his dry items and put them in a puddle next to the pool. There is no more room for chairs so I dont thing disney can do anything about this but...seriously?????

 

[BevS97]

My family of 4 will be experiencing our first Disney cruise in May. We have two young children, 4 and 2. I've read all over these boards the the pools on the Dream are small and always crowded. We'll be using the Nemo splash area for my 2 year old since he is not potty trained, but DD 4 LOVES to go in the water so I'm sure either DH or I will be in there with her a few times. Can someone tell me when the best time would be to bring her to the little kids pool? Also, what is the age/height restriction for the Mickey slide? She's too short for the Aquaduck and might be interested in going on the other one. She's 38 inches.

I've read a lot of conflicting reports. I really hope that we have a good cruise because this is kind of a 'make or break' situation for us. DH and I have only cruised one other time on Princess years ago without children. We didn't have a good time at ALL. It was incredibly boring on the ship, we never went swimming because of how crowded it was and I was seasick. We decided to try cruising one more time because we LOVE Disney and have heard rave reviews about DCL. I'm going prepared this time with lots of medication for the seasickness and I'm mentally gearing myself up for delays with getting on and off the ship. I just hope it's not insanely crowded.. I think the sailing is sold out, but it will be interesting to see how the crowd flow is with a ship this large and with as many activities there are.

We did the 3 day a few years ago, the pool was quiet on the Nassay day but my kids were too busy in the kids clubs and weren't interested in the pool. We are going to try and swim as soon as we board on our next trip.

As for boarding and disembarking, we didn't find it too bad at all. We heard horror stories about getting off the ship but we just walked straight off (we were early sitting, so we had breakfast and then just left the ship), no problems at all and we were at WDW by about 9am.

 

[nonniemaria]

So in reading this it appears the pools are open while everyone is boarding? Do they stay open while the ship is heading out?

 

[tvguy]

You're correct, pool size certainly does seem to be an issue with some on these boards. We were so busy on our Eastern on the Magic, that despite 3 sea days, we never found time to even try to use the pools.
Certainly seems like Disney mistepped not making the pools bigger on the Dream. However, I think there probably is a limit to just how big a pool can be on a ship. The bigger the pool, the deeper the climb down into it has to be to contain water that sloshes back and forth in rough seas. So the solution likely will be more pools, not bigger ones.

 

[Dizzyworld]

You're correct, pool size certainly does seem to be an issue with some on these boards. We were so busy on our Eastern on the Magic, that despite 3 sea days, we never found time to even try to use the pools.
Certainly seems like Disney mistepped not making the pools bigger on the Dream. However, I think there probably is a limit to just how big a pool can be on a ship. The bigger the pool, the deeper the climb down into it has to be to contain water that sloshes back and forth in rough seas. So the solution likely will be more pools, not bigger ones.

I think more pools like other cruise ships have to address the increase in passenger capacity would have been a good idea. Seems like Disney missed on pools or their size and the size of their terminal.

 

[ppiew]

If the teens would use the hot tubs and misters in VIBE a little more that would relieve congestion! We were on the DREAM and there were NEVER kids in them.

 

[dawne98]

We went first thing in the morning. DS (4) was an early riser so we had breakfast at the Cabanas buffet about 7:30-8 and went right to the pool. Then by the time 11 rolled around and it got crazy DS was waterlogged. Then he went to the kids club, played mini putt, did the detective game etc.

We did this Nassau Day and at Sea Day and the pool never really got crowded until later on. So crowded pools were not a problem for us.

Also as you know with a little one it's not like you can sit and read your book so we usually just grabbed one chair for all of us. And we never saw the Splash Pad really croweded either.

when we go on our 1st DCL my DD's are going to be 14 years old and 4 years old and we do get up about 6:30 or 7am. I was hopping to hear from someone that has been on the DCL to let me know how the pool was in the AM.
DID you have the mian dinning and how did that work out for your family?
we have the main one and I just keep on thinking that maybe we need to move it to the 2nd dining.....I have a year to work on this LOL

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

I read a trip report not too long ago and the poster boasted how they put their stuff in chairs then went to the gym and breakfast. I don't think I'd have the nerve to post that....what was funny was everybody complimented on her trip report, and nobody called on her for her inconsideration.

 

[dsneygirl]

If the teens would use the hot tubs and misters in VIBE a little more that would relieve congestion! We were on the DREAM and there were NEVER kids in them.

Yes! I am guessing the imagineers though the crowd would get more spread out with the teen area, people in line for Aquaduck and the Splash Pad.

I went by the teen area about 11am on Nassau day and there was not one kid in the area. What a shame for such a cool space.

 

[DVC_Corrys]

Here is a quick question. Does anyone know if this will be addressed on the Fantasy?

I assume Disney is hearing from passengers that the pools are too small.

I imagine this could be fixed since the ship is still being built.