This was our 6th DCL cruise but first time on the Dream. We usually cruise with large extended family but this time it was a special trip with just my DD age 15. I will highlight the things I wanted to know before this cruise.
Overnight stay before Crusie
I used Priceline (big fan) and got the Country Inn and Suites for $35. Their shuttle was fast and efficient both ways. The hotel was nice , nothing fancy, with standard breakfast fair included. For the price it can't be beat and would stay there again.
Disney Transfer
This was our first time using Disney transfers (we have always rented a car/van in the past) and we loved it!! We took the 8:00 shuttle back to the airport from the hotel and around 8:15 we were at the DCL checkin. the cast member said they were not quite ready to open and told us to have a seat. about 10 minutes later she came back over and invited us to be the first to checkin. It took just a few minutes. They told us the first bus would begin to load at about 9:20. We went upstairs intot he airport to get a drink then back down to the waiting area. The bus strarted to load at 9:30 and we were handed our #2 boarding pass
. The ride went very quickly and they dropped us off right at the entrance to the terminal. We strolled in and waited for our # to be called.
In the future if we have a large goup with us we will likely go back to renting a car/van to get to the port to save money but if you have a small group or are not overly concerned with cost i would HIGHLY reccommend this service!! It was soooo much more relaxing then doing the whole car rental thing and very efficient. I loved that we were all checked in at the airport and got the #2 boarding pass.
Embarkation
With our #2 boarding card we were on the ship by 11:30. We were told that Enchanted Garden wasn't open yet but we could eat at Cabana's. Instead we headed upstairs, changed into out suits and sat in the Mickey pool enjoying the sunshine while we waited for the Aquaduck to open. It opened at about 11:50. We rode it a few times, swam a little bit more in the other pool then sat in the sun to dry off.
We put on our coverups and headed down to Enchanter Garden for lunch. I have always preferred the sit down restaurant for lunch the first day as i like being seated at a table with my family as compared to looking for a table and also like having the waiter bring drinks. The buffet was good but did not seem to have as many choices as I recall there being at Parrot Cay in the past.
It was now a little after 1:30 and our cabin was ready so we headed there to drop off our carryons and then headed back to enjoy the sun.
Cabin Location
We were in cabin #9011 which is located in the far aft of the ship. It is an inside room. I was unsure about this location but ended up loving it!!
We were quick two floors up to the pool deck and also easily able to go directly down to Vibe, Theaters, Shopping, and exit to Deck 5walking track and shuffle board. It never felt busy in the halls, on the steps or elevators.
This is the end of the ship where the Spa and adult pool is located so it is particularly convienent for anyone doing an adult only cruise.
I did walk all the way to the other end of the ship on deck 9 and used the steps up to Cabanas for breakfast one morning. While this was convienent for breakfast I do not think I would want a stateroom far forward so that I would be using those steps/elevators all the time. It was really odd to go up and find myself in the restaurant. I had read about this on other posts and everyone is right, poor design.
The virtual porthole was great and yet another reason I would be unlikely to pay the extra for an oceanview or balcony. We were really only in the room to eat and sleep. Again, if money is not a concern go for the more expensive cabin but for those of you who are choosing inside for the price you will be very happy and not be missing out!! Either way I again highly reccommend a an aft cabin.
Dining Time
We have done both early and late seating on both short and long cruises and I have come to the conclusion that for the short crusies late seating is the way to go but for a long crusie early is much better. For this 3 nighter it was great to have all the time we wanted to enjoy the day, the pools etc. without hurrying to dinner. It was fine to eat late for just a few nights. We did late seating for one our 7 night trips and it was hard to eat so late night after night and with the longer timeframe of the trip we didn't feel the the need for the extra time everyday before dinner.
The Restaurants
Were all good, servers were great. We enjoyed all the meals. As before the desserts are still not that great but we are usually pretty full anyways by the time dessert comes.
Room Service
We tried on 2 different nights to call room service. We put the phone on speaker and were on hold for over 30 minutes. The first night we gave up and hung up. The second night they finally answered but I had fallen asleep and I hit the wrong button when i went to respond and hung up on them, my daughter was quite annoyed with me.
We weren't really super hungry just ordering because my daughter thought free room service shouldn't be wasted, so it wasn't a big deal overall.
Pool Deck
Aquaduck is a lot fun and not to be missed. I like the idea of having both pools together so everyone can enjoy the big screen and families don't have to split up. The spalsh area for toddlers looks great.
We did not like the self service food area set up as it go very crowded and hard to maneuver to the line you wanted but we managed. Lots more ice cream stations and drink stations so that was good.
Debarkation
We had breakfast at 8:00. Were in line to get off of ship ar 8:30. By 9:00 we were on the bus to resort. We sat for about 30 minutes wating for the bus to fill up and then headed to POFQ. We again used Disney transfer to get to Disney Resort. Again I LOVED using the bus!!
So much more convient than renting a car. It was nice to walk off of ship, onto a bus and be delivered right to the resort. (same would have been true if we had gone to the airport) By 11:00 we were sitting by the pool at the resort.
We had a great time even though the weather was lousy.
Just a side note...My daughter did say though that all in all she likes the classic ships better except for the new Vibe which she didn't use this trip but we toured it and it looked amazing!
Any questions please let me know.
Overnight stay before Crusie
I used Priceline (big fan) and got the Country Inn and Suites for $35. Their shuttle was fast and efficient both ways. The hotel was nice , nothing fancy, with standard breakfast fair included. For the price it can't be beat and would stay there again.
Disney Transfer
This was our first time using Disney transfers (we have always rented a car/van in the past) and we loved it!! We took the 8:00 shuttle back to the airport from the hotel and around 8:15 we were at the DCL checkin. the cast member said they were not quite ready to open and told us to have a seat. about 10 minutes later she came back over and invited us to be the first to checkin. It took just a few minutes. They told us the first bus would begin to load at about 9:20. We went upstairs intot he airport to get a drink then back down to the waiting area. The bus strarted to load at 9:30 and we were handed our #2 boarding pass
. The ride went very quickly and they dropped us off right at the entrance to the terminal. We strolled in and waited for our # to be called.In the future if we have a large goup with us we will likely go back to renting a car/van to get to the port to save money but if you have a small group or are not overly concerned with cost i would HIGHLY reccommend this service!! It was soooo much more relaxing then doing the whole car rental thing and very efficient. I loved that we were all checked in at the airport and got the #2 boarding pass.
Embarkation
With our #2 boarding card we were on the ship by 11:30. We were told that Enchanted Garden wasn't open yet but we could eat at Cabana's. Instead we headed upstairs, changed into out suits and sat in the Mickey pool enjoying the sunshine while we waited for the Aquaduck to open. It opened at about 11:50. We rode it a few times, swam a little bit more in the other pool then sat in the sun to dry off.
We put on our coverups and headed down to Enchanter Garden for lunch. I have always preferred the sit down restaurant for lunch the first day as i like being seated at a table with my family as compared to looking for a table and also like having the waiter bring drinks. The buffet was good but did not seem to have as many choices as I recall there being at Parrot Cay in the past.
It was now a little after 1:30 and our cabin was ready so we headed there to drop off our carryons and then headed back to enjoy the sun.
Cabin Location
We were in cabin #9011 which is located in the far aft of the ship. It is an inside room. I was unsure about this location but ended up loving it!!
We were quick two floors up to the pool deck and also easily able to go directly down to Vibe, Theaters, Shopping, and exit to Deck 5walking track and shuffle board. It never felt busy in the halls, on the steps or elevators.This is the end of the ship where the Spa and adult pool is located so it is particularly convienent for anyone doing an adult only cruise.
I did walk all the way to the other end of the ship on deck 9 and used the steps up to Cabanas for breakfast one morning. While this was convienent for breakfast I do not think I would want a stateroom far forward so that I would be using those steps/elevators all the time. It was really odd to go up and find myself in the restaurant. I had read about this on other posts and everyone is right, poor design.
The virtual porthole was great and yet another reason I would be unlikely to pay the extra for an oceanview or balcony. We were really only in the room to eat and sleep. Again, if money is not a concern go for the more expensive cabin but for those of you who are choosing inside for the price you will be very happy and not be missing out!! Either way I again highly reccommend a an aft cabin.
Dining Time
We have done both early and late seating on both short and long cruises and I have come to the conclusion that for the short crusies late seating is the way to go but for a long crusie early is much better. For this 3 nighter it was great to have all the time we wanted to enjoy the day, the pools etc. without hurrying to dinner. It was fine to eat late for just a few nights. We did late seating for one our 7 night trips and it was hard to eat so late night after night and with the longer timeframe of the trip we didn't feel the the need for the extra time everyday before dinner.
The Restaurants
Were all good, servers were great. We enjoyed all the meals. As before the desserts are still not that great but we are usually pretty full anyways by the time dessert comes.
Room Service
We tried on 2 different nights to call room service. We put the phone on speaker and were on hold for over 30 minutes. The first night we gave up and hung up. The second night they finally answered but I had fallen asleep and I hit the wrong button when i went to respond and hung up on them, my daughter was quite annoyed with me.
We weren't really super hungry just ordering because my daughter thought free room service shouldn't be wasted, so it wasn't a big deal overall.
Pool Deck
Aquaduck is a lot fun and not to be missed. I like the idea of having both pools together so everyone can enjoy the big screen and families don't have to split up. The spalsh area for toddlers looks great.
We did not like the self service food area set up as it go very crowded and hard to maneuver to the line you wanted but we managed. Lots more ice cream stations and drink stations so that was good.
Debarkation
We had breakfast at 8:00. Were in line to get off of ship ar 8:30. By 9:00 we were on the bus to resort. We sat for about 30 minutes wating for the bus to fill up and then headed to POFQ. We again used Disney transfer to get to Disney Resort. Again I LOVED using the bus!!
So much more convient than renting a car. It was nice to walk off of ship, onto a bus and be delivered right to the resort. (same would have been true if we had gone to the airport) By 11:00 we were sitting by the pool at the resort.We had a great time even though the weather was lousy.
Just a side note...My daughter did say though that all in all she likes the classic ships better except for the new Vibe which she didn't use this trip but we toured it and it looked amazing!
Any questions please let me know.
