Just off the Dream! 4-10-11

[maciemouse]

We just sailed for the first time on the Disney Dream. I wanted to give a short review of what we experienced while we were sailing. My husband and I sailed with our two kids 6 & 7. We also had a large group from home meet us. I think total it was about 35 of us.

First off check-in: I had read all the nightmares about checking in. We did not leave home until 9 am and had a 3&1/2 hour drive to get to the port. We decided to stop and have brunch since we were not going to rush to get there. We finally arrived about 1:15. The check in line was huge. It did move quickly. They gave us a boarding call of 37. We went over and checked the kids in for "kids club" bands. That line was pretty short. We probably boarded the ship by 2:30 or so. The call number was based on what time you checked in. (first come, first serve). Our friends from home got to the port around 10:45 am. They had spent the night in Orlando and did not have a long drive. However, they did not get to board the ship until around 1:15. I am cannot remember the exact boarding number they got but I think it was 17. So it does seem like we had a shorter wait getting to the port later. All the people working in the port were wonderful. Lots of smiles. Next up: Leaving the port.

 

[johnsonet]

Can't wait to read more

 

[maciemouse]

When we entered the boat I was amazed. It is just beautiful. All the cms were very helpful. We went to our room as soon as we got there to change into our bathing suits. Our luggage had already been delivered. We stayed in a family stateroom with a ocean view veranda. The room was immaculate. We changed and went straight to eat lunch at Cabanas. Great food! And we were off. I have to say that I was disappointed in the show for the sail away party. We go to Disney alot and have seen great shows and this just did not compare IMO. We were on a sold out boat too. You could tell. We were always in the family areas because of kids. It was just waaaaay to crowded. We saw soo many kids falling and getting hurt. In fact, one of the kids that we were with slipped on the stairs and had to see the doctor. She had to get a butterfly bandage on her upper lip and her front teeth were already turning grey. The nightly shows were great. We really liked the Golden Mickeys and Believe. We did not care for Villans. Next up dinner reviews.

 

[maciemouse]

I have to say we had a wonderful server. His name was Andre. He was so entertaining and did alot to entertain the kids. They had a large group split up, but on the first night the head server moved us so we could all be together. We had two adult tables and one table for the kids. I thought that was very nice of them to try to keep us together. The first night we ate at Enchanted Garden. This was my favorite meal of the trip. We went to the Royal Palace the next. This was just okay to me. I ordered some kind of ravioli that I wasn't crazy about. The princess were supposed to come by this night but we never saw them. The last night was Animated Palate. My kids loved this! I thought this was the worst meal of the trip. I am a picky eater. But I have to say all the presentation of the food was beautiful. Like I said, our server was AWESOME. So it gave us something to look forward to each night. We had Cabanas each day for breakfast and lunch. There was alot of variety and we were very pleased. One more thing: Cove Cafe was great. I read about this on the disboards. I would go in the morning and get coffee. I would also go late afternoon and get a frozen latte and snacks. If you are a coffee drinker, you will enjoy. The snacks are free but you are charged for the coffee.

 

[maciemouse]

Our first stop was the Bahamas. We have been before so we decided not to get off the boat. We were going to try and get some rides on the Aqua Duck and relax. It seemed like most families did not leave the boat this day. We would always get chairs upstairs on the 12th floor overlooking the pools. That way we could keep better track of the kids. The weather was great! I did sign up for a massage this day. The spa itself is very nice. I had a stone massage and it was just okay. The lady doing the massage used very light pressure and I kept laughing. So to say the least, the massage was tickilish. If I were to do it again, I would probably do the massage that offers three areas for $99.00. I paid $140.00 for the hot stone. I did use the rainforest as well. I thought it was worth the $16.00 a day to use it. The next day we went to Castaway Cay. The water was freezing. We went snorkeling that morning. We did not see much but we did see a few fish and a stingray. Most of the day we just layed out in the sun while the kids went down the waterslide and played in the water. We did have two kids out of our party get stung by jellyfish. The food was plenty for the lunch they offer. We also went kayaking. The kids enjoyed this. We went back to the boat around 3pm. We did the aquaduck a few times and just enjoyed sailing away from Castaway Cay.

 

[maciemouse]

Some highlights of the trip:

We enjoyed the Pirate Party. Our kids danced all night. I kinda wish they did this the first night as the "sail away" party. It was good but crowded.

Kids club: My 6 year old loved it. She went twice for about 2 hours each time. My 7 year old did not like it. He went once and would not go back. It is nice that they have this to offer. They did do neat things with the kids.

We also enjoyed the ship around 10:30 at night. We would go to the pool and let the kids swim and watch the movie that they were playing.

The shows were good. We really enjoyed "Believe" the most. I think if we do the cruise again we would skip the shows and pick one to go to. This took up alot of our time in the late afternoon. Our show time was 6:15. We would have to go showered up by 5:15, see the show, and then go to dinner. This was the time for the kids to actually see the ship sailing in daylight.

The staff was top notch. They were always smiling, cleaning, and stopping to talk to the kids. The level of service was more than I was ever expecting.

Beauty! The ship and the details were just beautiful. What an awesome job Disney did with this ship.

Things that I was not crazy about: The crowds. That was in my control but I just picked the wrong time to go. Next time I will try to pick a time that is less crowded. It was just so hard to get around and really relax. People were every where. I also wish that they would have the gift shops open in morning and afternoon. They were only open at night and they were always crowded as well. The only thing that I would change about the rooms were the location of the beds. I wish the double bed was beside the balcony. Instead the kids beds were there. At night when they went to sleep we would try to go and enjoy the balcony but it would wake the kids up and they would be too cold to leave the doors open. I think we would of enjoyed the balcony more if our bed was beside the doors. I wish they also had a dessert bar open at night. I would get a sweet tooth and all they offered was pizza. Lastly, I wish we would of had a day completely at sea. I really felt rushed and did not feel that relaxed on the trip.

Will we return? yes! We had a great time. I was very impressed with the ship itself, the staff, and all the little details.

If you have any questions, please ask. I am going to download my pictures when my camera is charged.

 

[Skimat]

Thanks for the information. I leave Sunday on the Dream for 4 days. Will let you know how the day at sea turns out. The common theme through all the TRs are crowds, crowds, crowds. Don't know how you get around that on Disney cruises given most people take kids and go during school breaks. Glad you had a good time.

 

[iambrink]

thank-you for the review. I am trying to take in all the tips people are posting. We will be enjoying the Dream on May 1st. I try not to get too concerned about any cons, although you didn't have a lot. I can't wait to experience it for myself...kind of like going to a movie.

Sounds like a good trip. Disney cruises seem to sell out frequently. I think the only way to possibly have fewer people is off season when you have a "somewhat" better chance of there being less children, but all cabins still full. I will enjoy it whatever way i can get it! Each day gets me closer...

 

[MomsOf2boys]

We haven't cruised in a couple years now, do people still dress up for Pirate Night? That was my children's favorite thing to do, seeing that they are boys, and do not care to do princess dresses to dinner.