The Carnival Dream Mexico Cruise Summer 2019 Disclaimer
In June 2019 Chris and I took a 5 day Mexican cruise aboard the Carnival Dreamsailing out of Galveston, TX. This was our 2nd time sailing on the Carnival Dream.This gorgeous floating hotel took us to the following destinations:
Cozumel, Mexico
Progreso, Mexico (OUR FIRST TIME TO VISIT)
The Carnival Dream... Our home away from home for the next 5 days!
I have been on 16 other cruises prior to this one and Chris has been on 15 (thanks to the Girls Cruise); 9 with Carnival, 4with Royal Caribbean, 2 with Norwegian and1 withPrincess. This blog will include an updated review of theCarnival Dream (and what we have noticed both good and bad since 2017), daily entries of our 5 days aboard, a "Foodies" blog highlighting all of the food options available on the Carnival Dream, a post linking all of the FunTimesas well as an extensive photo review of the ship. Thank you SO MUCH to all my followers... without you the blog would not be as popular as it is today! Be sure to stay tuned as the posts come through over the next few days and weeks.
It is hard to believe it is ALREADY JULY! Where has our summer gone? We both did not sleep very well and woke up many times. The Carnival Dream was scheduled to be in Cozumel from 9AM to 6PM and we ventured out of our cabin shortly before 8AM expecting to watch the approach into the island and were not only already in Cozumel, the Carnival Dream was getting inspected by the local authorities.
We ran upstairs to the Lido deck for breakfast and found all of the other 4, 570 passengers in line for breakfast as well. Once again, I had breakfast at Blue Iguana and the lines, while long, moved very fast!In fact, the taco line didn’t have anyone in it. I ventured to the very back of the Lido buffet area and found a table near the pizzeria. Chris waited about 15 minutes in the buffet line before getting his food. TIP- Remember that the MAJORITY of the passengers will be getting off the ship (especially at the 1st port) and will be at breakfast about 1 hour before the ship is supposed to arrive. This is typical for ANY ship or Cruise Line. If this is not your cup of tea, wait until an hour AFTER the ship arrives to go to breakfast OR just order room service and be done with it.
The Carnival Dream had passed the local inspection and began letting off passengers about 8:45AM. Since we were already prepared to exit the ship, we went ahead and went down to deck 0 when the 1st announcement was made. This was not what we typically do and will not be doing it again in the near future. Once again, all of the other 4.5K passengers heard the announcement and made their way to the gangway as well. It was SO CROWDED and hot! TIP- In our experience, it is just so much easier to get off the ship about 30 minutes to an hour after the initial wave of people. Keep this in mind, especially if you are doing excursion via a 3rd party.
Once off the ship we made our way to the taxi stand area at the Puerta Maya pier and literally walked right into a taxi to Mr. Sanchos. TIP- The taxis are all lined up ready to go and the lines are usually fairly short. There is a SET amount to get to MANY tourist places on the island and they “should not” fluctuate.
Taxi Prices from Puerta Maya (Carnival and Princess) and International (Royal Caribbean) terminals.
After a 15 minute taxi rider... We are HERE!
Once at Mr. Sanchos, we paid the remaining amount on our reservation and then made our way to our spot for the day. This was not at all like I remember it. There was only about 2 rows of chairs ON the actual beach and there was NO PROTECTION from the Sun. Like… AT ALL. If you wanted shade, you had to sit at the tables where they served food or rent an umbrella for $12. We were fairly early to arrive at Mr. Sanchos but passengers from the Enchantment of the Seas had already been there and had already reserved the palapye (natural) shaded areas so we just sat at a table with an umbrella over it. This was super aggravating to me since I was remembering the chairs ON the beach with shade and coverage. I sulked for a little while before ordering a drink and forgetting all of my troubles. TIP- Remember, your're on vacation and do not let little things bother you. We ordered some drinks and then lathered up a LOT in sunscreen. We then spent the rest of the day enjoying the beach, food and drinks. And even after applying sunscreen pretty much every time we ordered a drink, I still managed to get sunburnt a little!
The 2 rows of chairs ON THE BEACH! With no shade...
A Panoramic of Sanchos!
The waters were calm and featured a lot of "Beach" and water area that was shallow. Very family friendly!
Our chair area... Haha, you can already see the sunburn coming (In hindsight)
Mr. Sanchos is WIDELY known for being a great all-inclusive resort in Cozumel. It is $55 per person for all you can eat and drink as well as the use of kayaks, stand up paddle board as well as a locker. We always leave a GENEROUS ($20-30) tip but even then it is still just $130 for BOTH of us! This is overall a GREAT value and the service was UNBELIEVABLE. However, after having been to Nachi Cocum, Paradise Beach and Ocean VIP (Also All-Inclusive), Mr. Sanchos will not be on the top of our list anymore. Despite having outstanding service, Mr. Sanchos lacked the small resort feeling we like and was VERY BUSY with PEOPLE. Here, there and EVERYWHERE. There were LOTS of kids (which doesn’t bother us) but not what we are looking for in a relaxing day at the beach. Plus, most of the adults were there to PARTY… Not us! We just wanted to eat, drink and “be merry” at the beach! I REALLY didn’t like the layout of the beach club as it felt more like a restaurant where we were sitting. And even then, we were packed in like cattle and so close to each other. Every 2 minutes someone who passed by and hit my chair or rub against me. The food was great but nothing to write home about. TIP- Get the CocoNut Shrimp… it was the BEST. The water was clear which made for “OK” snorkeling… But not great! However, you will have to get away from tourist places to get the best snorkeling! We still enjoyed Nachi Cocum and Ocean VIP both much better. This is just our opinion but we will going to these 2 in the future.
The Food and Drink Menu!
Coconut Shrimp and the Cozumel Breeze were our favorites!
The SPA services prices!
These are GOOD prices but we've see cheaper in Costa Maya and Progreso!
Chicken Quesadilla
Beef Fajitas
Coconut Shrimp... ORDER THEM! Trust Me!
Beef Tacos
Chips and Guacamole... This was excellent as well!
Afternoon
We stayed at Mr. Sanchos until about 3PM before getting a taxi back to the ship. TIP- Cozumel can be VERY busy with multiple ships in port and it takes 15-20 minutes to get back to the ship from Mr. Sanchos or any of the beaches listed above. Give yourself PLENTY of time as there is only 1 road to the ship and it can get VERY BACKED UP with traffic! The 20 minute ride has turned into 45 many times before. So just be mindful of this! Especially if you want to shop in the terminal area!
There she is... Our Home Away from Home! She is a BEAUTY!
I don't know why but I love this sign!
Evening
We got back on the ship, took showers and then took a brief nap before heading out to deck 5 forward to look for pier runners. We did see a man running down the pier before getting on a rickshaw to get back to the ship. Even with this “pier runner”, the Carnival Dream set sail for Progreso at 6:03PM which was only 3 minutes late.
The pier runner on the rickshaw... The WHOLE ship was waving and cheering (and some booing) for him as he came to the ship!
Not a TRUE pier runner but it was a spectacle to see!
We went to dinner in the MDR and our window table was taken but we still got our same great waiter, Putu! The food and service were both very good and we had a very fast dinner. We went and caught the sunset at the aft of Deck 5 and it was so pretty but of course, the haze made us miss the actual dipping of the sun into the horizon.
Even if we cannot see the entire sunset... This is just priceless!
It is my favorite thing to do on a cruise ship!
There was a very long break in the entertainment for this evening so Chris went and took a nap while I kept exploring the ship. I ended up in the Serenity Deck enjoying a clamshell chair and the beautiful cooler weather.
We met up at 10PM for the Love and Marriage Show with the CD, Gary. TIP- We absolutely LOVE this show and try to attend on any and every cruise it is offered. It is a funny show, but it is an ADULT ONLY show!
As the show was ending, I left early to ensure we had chairs at the “Adult Game Show” in the Burgundy Lounge. We assumed this was the QUEST but were unsure. It started out slow but it turned out to be the QUEST Adult Scavenger Hunt. TIP- This is a funny but sometimes vulgar adults only scavenger hunt AND NOT suitable for kids… like at all! This particular round of the QUEST was crazy and we have never seen anything like it. In fact, one of the Carnival workers, Mark E Mark, who played along in the game was whipped with a belt and picked up and hit his head on a chandelier. It is here we learned that he suffered a concussion and was in a LOT of pain! It was crazy! We were only spectators but this was the worst I have ever seen. It is a fun thing to watch but we haven't played along in quite a while! We called it a night shortly after 12:30AM.
This day proved to be another great day in Cozumel and even though Mr. Sanchos is not our favorite, we made a day of it and had a GREAT time! The next port is Progreso, Mexico and we had never been! We were anxious to see what it is all about!
The Carnival Dream beds were nicer than other ships we have sailed and our steward had already put a bed topper on top of the mattress, which allowed for a comfortable sleep. The room was nice and cool but the bear sawing logs next to me meant I did not get much sleep. I eventually decided to get up and explore on my own around 7AM and let Chris get some more much needed sleep.
I ate breakfast at Blue Iguana around 8AM and there was no line and hardly anyone on Lido at all. TIP- Blue Iguana is a GREAT location for breakfast and offers breakfast burritos, tacos, eggs made to order and other traditional Mexican fare for breakfast. It can have long lines but the crewmembers work hard to get the line moving. It is open for Breakfast and Lunch ONLY!
After I ate, I went to the aft to stare into the wake and thank Jesus for all He has done for me. Since my last cruise in March, my life has completely changed… Literally. I got a new job in somewhat of a new field and have been blessed beyond measure as I am not deserving of this blessing but I cannot wait! God is so good! I sat there and just Praised Him for over an hour before heading to the shade.
Thank You Jesus! God is SO GOOD!
A view of the AFT POOL around 9AM.
TIP- Get there EARLY!
Good Morning!
I laid out until about 10:30AM before Chris found me and we went to the CrewMember Question and Answer session the Burgundy Lounge. We thoroughly enjoy Q&A sessions but this one was more informational than usual. The Hotel Director, Staff Captain, Entertainment Director and Guest Services Director answered any and all questions. Here are some of our favorites:
Each stateroom steward is in charge of 34-37 staterooms and 75-100 passengers. (This is the very 1st time an officer has given us an actual figure). BE KIND TO THEM… Can you EVEN IMAGINE?
The Dream sailed out of NOLA for 3 years but since moving to Galveston, Guy’s Burgers output has DOUBLED. I guess us Texans love our Guy’s Burgers!
The Crew Members have their own kitchen and head chef. This chef prepares 39 different menus on a 39 day rotation meeting the needs of all internationalities of crewmembers onboard. The Crew Chef has 9 other workers and they work 24 hours a day to meet the needs of the crew members and their “off” times.
When a guest is late and is in jeopardy of getting left in port, the Carnival Guest Service Managers go to the guest stateroom and not only get Passports (Most Cruise Lines do this) but they also get other essentials like phone chargers and any other items they feel the guest may need. Carnival also works with port officials to help get the guest to the NEXT port destination. The Manager said Spring Break cruises will leave anywhere from 20-30 passengers in Mexico typically!
Most crew members are allowed 30 days of “Family Cruises” per contract. Depending on your level and seniority the family members can sail at a discounted rate or for free. They can stay in regular guest cabins or in the officer's cabin if they have a single cabin. (We actually met the Chief Engineer’s wife and family in the Galveston Cruise Terminal).
Carnival is working with LOCAL colleges and universities to get Hotel and Hospitality college age kids to do summer internships on Cruise Ships. Far too often US citizens will not work on cruise ships because of the long contracts and etc. This internship allows these youngsters to see exactly what life on board a cruise ship is like before they sign on for a 7-8 month contract. (They are a little late for me… Where was this in 2005? I would have done this in a heartbeat. Y’all know in my next life I want to be a CRUISE DIRECTOR).
This is SUCH A NEAT Event! Check it out if you can!
We also talked to the Entertainment Director, Roberto, for quite a while discussing Cruise Directors and how Carnival is setting the industry standard for that title. Carnival has 2 people doing the main jobs of the Cruise Director. They have the CD, who is literally the FACE and BRAND of that ship, and the Entertainment Director, who does more of the managerial and logistical side of the job. Other cruise lines (NCL and RCCL) have 1 person doing all these jobs which is why you rarely see the CD.
Afternoon
After the Q&A we went to get lunch on Lido Deck. Most of the lunch venues opened at Noon and we arrived at 11:55AM expecting short lines. Man were we wrong! We had not felt the other 4,270 passengers… UNTIL NOW. The line for Guy’s Burgers was wrapped around Blue Iguana, which had a long line of its own. Chris got in line for Mongolian Wok, a made to order Stir Fry venue in the mid ship buffet area. I got in the long ling for Guys. TIP-It took me 20 minutes to get through the Guys Burger line and it took Chris over 30 minutes to get to the table with his Stir Fry. This didn’t bother us, but keep it in mind. There will be lines… ALWAYS! Go with the flow!
1 of 2 lines for Guy's Burgers! But we did just learn that us Texans LOVE Guy's!
It was WORTH THE WAIT!
Mongolian Wok... It is so good!
It was HOT as the rain had hit and now the HUMIDITY was setting in. Lido was PACKED and it was just too much for us so we ventured down to the Ocean Plaza (Deck 5 midship) for some afternoon trivia. We didn’t do well on One Hit Wonders Music Trivia (23/40) but made it to the tie-breaker on the Movie Quotes Trivia. We lost the tie-breaker question of how many stories are in the Empire State Building (102).
We then decided to go to the Lanai hot tubs and see if they were hotter than yesterday. THEY WERE NOT! They were still LukeWarm at best. But we enjoyed ourselves and met some nice people.
Evening
We stayed in the LukeWarm hot tubs for nearly 2 hours before a HARD rain storm sent huge raindrops down with force so we got out and got ready for dinner. It was formal night on board and we made our way to the MDR. TIP- We noticed that the “Formal” definition has changed quite a bit since our last voyage on the Breeze in 2017. We saw people in sundresses, jeans and even shorts. The dress code listed by Carnival was not enforced from what I can tell. This didn’t bother me AT ALL but it is very relaxed compared to Royal Caribbean or Princess, for example.
Happy Formal Night!
The Table cloths... The come out on Formal Night!
Once again, the MDR service was good and fast. We were in and out of the MDR on Formal Night within 90 minutes. We then went to the Atrium to meet all of the officers and the Cruise Director, Gary. This was really neat and we were even able to take a picture WITH the Captain and use our OWN PHONE. You mean to tell me I can take a picture and relive a memory years later without paying an arm and a leg? Wow… Well done Carnival! TIP- Do this if you can! It is really neat and no other Cruise Line, in our experience, has done this event so well. It is on the 1st formal night from 7-8PM in the Lobby.
Our traditional picture with the Cruise Director. Gary... You did not disappoint!
This is so cool! We met the captain and all of the officers!
The rest of our evening was spent enjoying entertainment on board. We watched the show FLICK in the Main Theater. TIP- This show is incredible and one of our favorites of Carnival. It features music from Movies and is very kid-friendly. We enjoy the “Pre-Show” as well (Begins 15-30 minutes prior to showtime).
We also enjoyed 2 adult comedy shows in the Punchliner Comedy Club. TIP- The Punchliner offers a PITCHER of cocktails for only $26.95 which offers 4+ regular size drinks. This was a great option for us when we were there for multiple shows. Even with the 18% gratuity, it was still only $30. This is a great way to save money if you do not have the Drink Package.
A Great Value... $30 with the gratuity!
TIP- Between the 2 comedy shows we tried to order the PIZZA via the HUB ap to be delivered to us. This is a $5 fee (for delivery basically) and it is labeled as a 30 minute or less delivery time. I waited at the designated meeting spot for nearly an hour before giving up. I am not sure what happened and why we never got our pizza but we were never charged for it. This seems like a great service but it just didn’t work out for us.
It was a very entertaining night full of drinks and laughs but we called it a night after 12:30AM. Our room steward had made a LOVELY towel Animal! PLUS, Chris received his BIRTHDAY GIFTS from Carnival. TIP- If you enter a birthday or anniversary you are celebrating on the cruise, you will usually get some type of gift-card or cake at dinner as a gift from Carnival. It is 100% and so fun!
Chris got a $50 Spa gift card and a $5 Cherry on Top (The Candy Store) gift card!
Thanks Carnival!
The next day was our home away from home… Cozumel. Mexico. This would have been our 14th trip to Cozumel but we LOVE this port! Stay tuned for our day at Mr. Sanchos Beach Club!
