May 26th 3 Night Dream Cruise Trip Report

[poohj80]

I have never written a formal trip report before, so please bear with me and I hope you can find something to enjoy in my ramblings.

Main characters included me (the birthday girl), DH, and DD (5). We have cruised previously on the Wonder but this was our first Dream experience. First off, 3 nights is not NEARLY enough time to explore everything this beautiful ship has to offer. We did not have the chance to explore any of the adult areas other than walking by when trying to find a restroom or the DVC Member presentation in Evolution. So, if you are looking for reviews of adult experiences you may want to stop reading now. Otherwise, on with the show…

We were staying at Bay Lake Tower prior to the cruise so planned to pack up the vehicle and drive to the port shooting to arrive around 10. Of course, that meant we arrived closer to 11 as my family are not early risers. We had not told DD we were going on a cruise after our WDW visit so we were waiting to see when she figured it out (she has been talking about the Aqua Duck quite a bit). As we were driving East on 528, we saw quite a few DCL buses headed the other way and DD kept commenting at all the Mickey boat buses she was seeing. We thought that would be a dead giveaway, but she wasn’t connecting the dots. Finally, as we were getting closer to the first bridge, DH decided to nudge her a bit. He told her he was really proud of how good she had been at WDW (we invited some friends who also have a 5 yr old to join us for their 1st WDW trip and our DD played Disney Guide all week) and asked if she could be a good girl for a few more days. Of course she said YES! DH then told her if she promised to be good, we had a surprise for her. “What is it?” she asked just as we were reaching the peak of the first bridge on 528. We asked what she saw out her window. Her first response was NASA (that’s my girl!). We asked what else she saw and she responded “Mickey’s boat!” We asked if she’d like to go on Mickey’s boat and she said YES! Then, she asked if it was the new one with the Aqua Duck. When we said yes, she got ALL excited and started singing “We’re going on the Aqua Duck!” It was too cute, but I really thought she would have figured out her surprise a bit sooner.

We unloaded our bags at the curb and headed to the parking garage. From a tip I read on the DIS boards, I knew to head to level 3 and use the new walk across bridge in hopes of getting a shorter line at security. DH had a beautiful flower arrangement delivered to our BLT room for my birthday and I was not going to leave it in a hot car for 3 days, so I grabbed it up and brought it with me.

I received a lot of comments about how beautiful they were especially from the Cast Member who directed us to the Castaway Club check-in line. The family behind us had commented that they had not received a boarding group number and we realized neither had we. The lady gave them a card for group 14. We were a bit disappointed in 14, but we were an hour later than we had wanted to be. We mentioned to her that we needed a card too and she said she’d be right back. She came back with a boarding group #1 card and wished me a happy birthday. WOW! I was stunned! I thanked her profusely and she just wished us a wonderful cruise. Disney Magic is alive and well folks!

Having cruised on the Wonder, we knew the drill about getting our KTTW cards then hopefully getting DDs bracelet for the kids club and a few character photos in the terminal, but I’ll tell you the terminal was SO crowded already that we didn’t do anything besides take a few pix outside (where another lady walked right over my bare feet and didn’t even apologize) and then found a seat on the floor. There was a huge line for character pix before the first one had even come out (wrapped down by the restrooms) and the Kid’s club check-in was even worse. We were so happy when they called boarding group #1 and our adventure began. We had to stop for photos since it was our first Dream cruise but then straight up to deck 11 for the Aqua Duck!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8rq9M53tpQ

We rode twice before the line started getting long and we stopped to eat some lunch. We had left the flowers as a centerpiece on one of the tables outside Cabanas so we had a nice lunch where people kept asking to take pix of our flowers. I thought it was a bit strange, but ok.

It was 130 so we decided to take the flowers to our cabin where I found even more birthday surprises. Decorations, a Hidden Mickey bouquet, champagne, cake, dessert tray…DH went ALL out! We enjoyed some cake, took some pix, and unpacked a bit as some of our luggage had arrived. We were in a Category 4 cabin on Deck 10. The space and the round shower was awesome, but being on Deck 10 was very noisy from above all night long.

I went down to Royal Palace to see if our request for dining server had been granted, but turns out our favorite server, Josipa, was now in Palo. Good for her but sad for us. I also asked about changing our reserved show time because when we made the reservation we were given the 5 PM show and that was just too early. We didn’t know the Dream has stopped offering the 5 PM show and everyone can now attend whichever show they like just like on the classic ships. Perfect for us!

Next, we attended the DVC Members meeting where the mimosas and Shirley Temples were over flowing! I won a desk clock which was nice. We did not add-on (waiting for GF to officially be announced ) but did not find the offers much different than what was offered during the recent online webcast. The only addition was that at certain add-on levels, you could get a shipboard credit and fast passes for your next visit to WDW.

After the DVC meeting it was time for the drill and then Sail Away party. Again, the crowds for the sail away party were much bigger than we had previously experienced and we were a bit disappointed in how the adults were cutting in front of little kids to see better instead of letting the kids have a viewing spot when the adults could easily see when standing behind them. Maybe I’m just more considerate than the average guest.

It was now time to get DD dressed for the Golden Mickeys. Thanks to help from the DIS boards, I had a few tips to help DD be selected as one of Snow White’s dwarfs (but I hadn’t mentioned it to DD in case it wasn’t meant to be so there would be no hard feelings). We made sure we were there when the doors to the theater opened and as soon as we walked in, our DD was approached by a Crew Member and asked if she would like to participate. Of course she said YES! After taking our seats, I took DD back outside the theater to be interviewed by Rona Rivers. Everyone inside the theater got a good laugh when Rona asked our daughter (wearing her Snow White dress) who her favorite Princess is and DD responded Ariel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ao8vFoG6LHw&feature=share

We took our seats for the show and watched the opening before the kids were lead backstage. We got our cameras ready for DD’s Disney Stage debut and she did great! After the kids came off the stage, they returned their hats and beards and returned to sit with their families. We were sitting in the front row to make it easy on DD. She was SO excited to have been a dwarf! Later in the show Cruella de Vil came out for her song and dance number. At one point, she got down near the edge of the stage and motioned to ur daughter to come here as she was singing the line “I love children.” When our DD got up to her she continued, “For breakfast!” Our daughter walked back to her seat and said “That wasn’t nice!” but it’s also the part of the show she now talks about more than being a dwarf. (Thanks to LadyRob for capturing the moment!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RiYmGa_b-I

Dinner our first night was at the Royal Palace. Both DH and I ordered the steak – he medium rare and me medium well. On previous cruises, I could never get a steak done enough for my taste (I like some pink but not bleeding all over the plate) so I ordered a bit more done than usual in hopes it would be edible. On the Dream, my steak was actually over done. Our servers were pleasant, but not overly quick. We had late dining so had DD finish dinner then go to the Oceaneer’s Club so we could finish. Our server did correct our dessert order to the soufflé and we were glad he did. It was the best dessert of any meal we had. After dinner it was time for sleep after a long, busy day.

Next...Nassau Day and Pirate Night!

 

[dawne98]

your DD is too cute look forward to hearing more about you trip!

 

[poohj80]

Thanks so much! Working on more now...

 

[Toria]

Looking forward to reading the rest. Thanks for posting!

 

[poohj80]

Sorry it took so long to get back to you...

Day 2 – NASSAU

We had planned to stay on the ship as the Dream was the main attraction for us so we didn’t set the alarm. It seemed like a majority of passengers had the same idea as the pools were already busy. This has typically been our schedule on Nassau day, but on the classic ships we usually only found a few families in the pool this early. The Aqua Duck opened at 9 AM, but by the time I got everyone up and dressed for the pool it was 9:30 and the Aqua Duck already had a 30 minute wait so DD chose to swim in the Mickey pool instead of waiting. We tried the family pool since it was less crowded, but the water was quite a bit cooler than the Mickey pool. We got used to it pretty quickly, but DD couldn’t give it enough time so she was back in the Mickey pool. I went to Cabanas to get breakfast and then brought it back by the pool. I must say I do like the arrangement of Cabanas better, but it was missing a few key essentials like trays so that a mom like me could carry several plates out to one of the Cabanas tables out by the pool. Also, there was no cutlery easily available for those not eating inside as the napkin rolls with cutlery were on each of the tables. I had to swipe some from a table after confiscating a tray one of the servers had used to deliver stacks of clean plates. Another disappointment was no Mickey waffles on the buffet. There were chocolate and regular pancakes, but no Mickey waffles (DD’s favorite). Breakfast was good with just a few struggles.

After watching the Aqua Duck line continue to get longer, DD decided she was willing to wait as she really wanted to ride it again. By this time it was a 45 minute wait. After more water time, we cleaned up and got dressed. DD loved the character dance party in the atrium, but parents quickly ruined it by not listening to the instructions from the crew members who asked parents to make a ring around the atrium so the kids could enjoy. Parents crowded it so they could try to take photos of their kids with the characters (this was not a meet-n-greet, it was a dance party) literally pushing kids out of their way. DD got tired of being run over and asked us if we could leave.

[THIS WAS BEFORE PARENTS STARTED CROWDING]

We happened to see Captain Hook wandering around deck 5 above the atrium so we headed up there and had him all to ourselves for awhile.

Next is was down to deck 4 to get our DVC surprises and take advantage of the OBC and book our spring break cruise for next year. Now, it was time to see Pirates On Stranger Times in 3D in the Buena Vista Theater. Very cool movie and perfectly timed to avoid the one afternoon rain shower we experienced during our cruise.

It was pirate night so after the movie, we all changed into our pirate gear and the headed to the Pirate show on deck. The show was fun for the kids, but I prefer the show from the classic ships with the ziplining Mickey to the rescue. From here, we went to some of the character meets for photos (had to see Captain Jack!). Chip and Dale were hilarious! Chip stole my Duffy (in his pirate gear too!) and was willing to trade Dale for him, but Dale would have no part of that!

Now it was time to head to Villains Tonight. Again, we sat front row as it helps keep DDs attention. It was cute, but a show we wouldn’t mind missing in the future. Hades as a stand-up comedian just seemed odd. Yes, some of the jokes were funny to us, but right over DDs head. It will be easy to update this show by just updating the jokes to be topical, but some were a bit harsh and un-Disney-like. We did notice that even though DCL has deleted the 5 PM show, the theater was still not even close to full.

Dinner was in Animator’s Palate. DH chose the salmon and I the shrimp pasta. Our server just shook his head and said I could get pasta anywhere and I should go with the steak. I didn’t want to say I was afraid to since it was overdone the previous night so I just asked if I could try both but to please cook the steak medium this time. No problem! Unfortunately, the steak was still a hockey puck. The restaurant itself was fun. We missed the show from the Classic ships, but we liked the layout and decorations in the new AP. It is true what I had read that if you are not seated at a table near one of the screens, you don’t get any interaction with Crush, but there are things to watch and play along with even when Crush is not in your area. DD enjoyed guessing the fish pictures before us. The participation at the end was a bit lame so hope they come up with something better.

After dinner it was time for the fireworks. Our head server had told us the show started at 10:15 with fireworks at 10:30. We also noticed the Aqua Duck re-opened at 10:45 so we went back to our cabin, changed into our bathing suits, and watched the fireworks from the Aqua Duck line. There really was no party at 10:15 other than trivia on the big screen. We counted down to the beginning of the fireworks and really enjoyed them, and then the Club Pirate dance party begun below.

We were about 5th in line for the Aqua Duck when it opened which was great, but while the Crew Member was giving the kids wristbands, older kids and their parents were cutting in line behind the crew member’s back. The crew member caught them and asked them to come down but they totally ignored her. She said something like “What else can I do?” when looking at everyone in line who had been waiting where we were supposed to be. We rode pretty quick and wanted to circle back around to get in line. This was when we experienced the worst crowd control of the entire cruise. There were lots of folks standing/sitting along the rail in front of the entrance to watch Club Pirate and a lot fo foot traffic of people just trying to walk around the deck between the line and the spectators that there was a HUGE traffic jam. We could walk around back to circle around to the end of the lien since it was still closed off from the fireworks. People were getting walked on, pushed, some folks were yelling that others were going the wrong way…it was really a zoo. We commented about it on the review card at the end of the cruise in hopes someone will give the area a bit more thought during Pirate night. We did finally get back in line and it was already a 20 minute wait, but we did it one more time. DD actually fell asleep on DHs shoulder while in line but she woke up when it was our turn to ride. After that, it was time to turn in and rest up for Castaway Cay!

 

[jerseygal]

Glad you enjoyed The Dream!

I'm enjoying reading the TR!

What are the DVC "surprises" on Deck 4?
Thanks for the tip on the steak! I will ask for medium...I have read some great reviews on the steak...The steak comes with a more "fancy" potato, right? What could be other options as a side? Do they have mashed potato by any chance for a plainer eater?

I have read many great reviews about the souffle for the dessert....
Any pics by any chance????? I must say that I've never had souffle...

Thanks very much! Great TR so far!

 

[L500768]

I'm enjoying your trip report and reliving the same cruise that our family was on too! I also agree with you about the lack of crowd control along the railing right near the entrance to the Aquaduck and this was the only negative thing about the cruise and we also made a note in the comment card about this. There has to be a better way.

 

[poohj80]

Glad you enjoyed The Dream!

I'm enjoying reading the TR!

What are the DVC "surprises" on Deck 4?
Thanks for the tip on the steak! I will ask for medium...I have read some great reviews on the steak...The steak comes with a more "fancy" potato, right? What could be other options as a side? Do they have mashed potato by any chance for a plainer eater?

I have read many great reviews about the souffle for the dessert....
Any pics by any chance????? I must say that I've never had souffle...

Thanks very much! Great TR so far!

Thanks so much! We didn't take pix of any of the food so sorry I can't help there.

One thing I forgot to mention is the ice cream on Deck 11. They have soft serve chocolate and vanilla but also strawberry and banana which can be swirled together. This was the favorite of all, but still miss the cookie dough soft serve on Castaway!

 

[mickeysgirl77]

Love it....

 

[Desi]

Great report. thanks for doing it.

 

[PBader]

Enjoyed your report so far PJ and looking forward to meeting you in August I didn't realize you all surprised Aspen with the cruise, how cool!!!!

 

[poohj80]

I have remembered some other random thoughts about our cabin on Deck 10 that I decided to post here instead of adding them back into the trip reports where they should have gone.

We had a Deck 10 family verandah stateroom on the Dream located about mid-ship. First, it was really difficult to get used to saying 5 numbers when asked for our cabin number everywhere instead of 4. 5 numbers just don't roll off your tongue easily.

The cabin itself was AWESOME! More room than we needed for the 3 of us, but since we booked this holiday weekend cruise late in the game, we took what was available. The round shower was WONDERFUL! The showerhead was just like those in the 1BRs at BLT and the tub was plenty big for DD. I had read some reports that others found the shower controls tricky and chose not to post instructions as they wanted others to suffer as they did, but we really didn't find the controls that hard to figure out.

Our main problem with the cabin was the location. We had constant noise from Deck 11 all night long. We have stayed on Deck 8 of the classic ships and never experienced this much noise. I don't know if it was due to more people on board or the fact that Deck 11 extends farther out on the sides right above Deck 10 which offers more walking (or should I say running?) room above our heads. There was also a smoker a couple of cabins down and the overhang seemed to keep the smoke from going up and away and instead it hung around and wafted down our way much more. In the future, I think we'd be happier moving down to Deck 9.

Even though we completely understood the process of using our room cards for the lights and such in the cabin, we were constantly having brain farts. We'd be headed off the ship and panicking because we could only find 2 room keys. DUH! The third one is in the wall socket! Or, coming into the cabin on a sunny day so not needing the lights but couldn't figure out why the TV wouldn't come on (we honestly didn't realize that all power in the cabin was tied to the card socket, not just the lights).

So, just a few nuances from the Dream to keep an eye out for the first time.

 

[jerseygal]

Thanks, I will never book Deck 8 because of the noise!

Also, read a great tip on the lights! Use an expired gift card instead of a key card! Works well!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for an insiders view on Deck 8! I'm very sensitive to noise, especially at night!

 

[poohj80]

Thanks, I will never book Deck 8 because of the noise!

Also, read a great tip on the lights! Use an expired gift card instead of a key card! Works well!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for an insiders view on Deck 8! I'm very sensitive to noise, especially at night!

It's actually deck 10 on the Dream, but you get the idea.

Thanks for the tip on the lights! I head read something similar before our cruise but then forgot to take some other card with us to use.

 

[LaLaDisney]

Thanks for posting. I'm doing a 3 day cruise and the TRs seem hard to find. We would have liked to do a 4 day, but it didn't work out with our schedule. Looking forward to hearing more!

 

[poohj80]

Thanks for the reminder that I still haven't written our Castaway Cay day (I was on travel for work last week so should have found time to do it with all the airport delays ).

 

[Nikki'sMommy]

Great TR! So jealous that your 5 yr. old was able to ride the Aqua Duck- mine is a "peanut" and I doubt she will grow 2 inches by Oct...(hoping she isn't too disappointed but is used to not being tall enough for many rides anyway)...
We are a family of 3 and love the family staterooms- that extra sq. footage is great..

 

[poohj80]

Sorry to have kept you waiting for so long, but I’ve finally had time to sit down and write about our final DREAM day. We were so excited because we had reserved one of the Family Beach Cabanas as a splurge for my birthday. We were not concierge guests and just booked the cabana when they became available to everyone online. The night before in our cabin, we received the cabana below with instructions and wristbands for the next day.

Wanting to make the most of our Cabana day, we ordered room service breakfast so we could feed DD while getting our stuff together for our beach day. According to the Navigator, all ashore was to be around 8:30 AM so we headed to Deck 3 aft around 8:25. On previous cruises, we had found people lined up down the stairs waiting to get off. We saw no one when we got off the elevator. We went down to Deck 1 and there was still not one person waiting to be the first person off the ship. In fact, even though the announcement that the ship had been cleared by customs had not been made, we were allowed to go ashore and begin our day. The ship’s photographers were still setting up along the dock, but we had to wait for those pix of the Dream. We had brought postcards to mail but it didn’t dawn on us that the post office wouldn’t be open yet.

We jumped on the first tram and rode it out to the second stop for Cabana check-in. There was no one there. Since we knew we were in Cabana #5, we just started walking toward it.

We were met along the path by our Concierge who took us inside and gave us the run-down of everything that was included. The Cabanas provide nicer towels than the typical beach towels so no need to carry them from the ship. The suntan lotion was wonderful even though we had brought our own. DD headed straight for the lounge chairs and made herself at home.

Next it was time to get wet! Pelican Plunge didn’t open until 9:30ish so we opted to float a bit first. The tubes and floats are in a corral (for lack of a better term) on the beach so you just grab what you want and go.

When we saw the water start to flow at Pelican Plunge, we headed over there and got 3 slides in each before the line started to get long. We walked back to the Cabana beach and played some more in the sand and water until DD decided it was time to go snorkeling.

DD loves to snorkel in the pool so we looked forward to showing her what it’s really about. She tried snorkeling on our last cruise, but she started itching almost immediately and got little red bumps all over her legs. We had to take her to first aid where they applied a cream to at least take the sting out. This time, we brought her shorty wet suit. Not only did it protect her from bites, it also helped her stay buoyant so she didn’t wear herself out quite so fast which was good because she REALLY wanted to find Mickey this time.
The snorkeling was pretty murky near the shore where everyone was kicking up the bottom, but once we swam out, it all got better.

DD was so excited to actually see fish and find all the hidden treasures Disney had waiting (much more exciting than an empty pool bottom!). We found Mickey, the sub, and a boat with a huge grouper swimming around.

We snorkeled for over an hour before DD said she was getting hungry so we headed back to shore.

DH and DD headed back to the Cabana to rinse off (having our own shower was WONDERFUL!) while I went by Cookie’s Too and brought a tray back for everyone. Since we had drinks in the fridge I didn’t have to worry about balancing them as well. The Cabana had real silverware too so we didn’t have to eat with plastic forks which was nice when trying to cut chicken and ribs.
After lunch, we built sand castles, played in the water a bit more, hit Pelican Plunge one more time and got some ice cream. The Cabana beach was SO nice! On our last cruise, DD was getting run over by the bigger kids and actually had some kids walk off with her sand toys (which I had to go retrieve). Even though at times we felt elitist being on the private beach, it may for a less stressful day. To give you an idea, here is a photo of the Family Beach:

And here is the Cabana Beach:

Any questions?

DD and I laid down in the hammock and DH on the lounge chairs back at the Cabana and we were all out.

Our Concierge came knocking around 4:15 to tell us we needed to pack up to get back to the ship and that a golf cart would be around to pick us up at 4:30. We were some of the first ones off the ship that morning and the last ones on so we had a very full day!

So, the big question everyone asks…is a cabana worth the cost? After staying in one I still have to say I don’t think so, but it was VERY nice to have and we enjoyed every minute of it! Would we get one again? You bet! Vacations are for relaxing and it definitely made for a relaxing family day together!

 

[PBader]

I enjoyed your TR PJ. We are hoping to do the Cabana rental June 2012, so far there are 5 couples so we are hoping for 2 next door to each other

 

[poohj80]

Thanks Paula! We tried to find another family who might like to share a cabana on our cruise, but no luck. It would definitely be more reasonable to split costs.