Disney Dream Cruise Review
January 3-8, 2012
by
JHM
From January 3 through January 8, 2012 my extended family of
nineteen kids and grandkids cruised to the Bahamas on the Disney
Dream in five adjoining cabins to celebrate our 50th Wedding
Anniversary. We love to cruise and have sailed: Royal Caribbean,
Carnival, Princess, and the Disney Magic about ten years ago with
our family that was about half the current size. In just about every
aspect I’d rate the Dream to be the bottom of the performance list.
Bigger is not always better.
The boarding process was a little confusing. Since some of the
grandkids were not in their parents staterooms, we got conflicting
directions form the agents who were checking us in. One said the
group had to be checked in as a family unit another agent argued
that we must be checked in according to each stateroom. We felt like
we were in a penalty box while they argued to figure our who was
right
We had to wait until 4:00 PM to enter our stateroom. Everything was
going well and the staterooms looked great, but we did notice an
odor in the bathroom. Maintenance people arrived the next day to
treat the problem without us notifying anyone, but the odor (a faint
sewer gas smell) never went away. I guess this is a common problem
on the Dream and learned from other posted comments that closing the
stopper on the bathroom sink helped.
Our real problems started on the way to late seating dinner on the
second day. As we got off the elevator we had to walk around a vomit
mess in the hall. Then my six year old grand son suddenly also
became ill and vomited.
By the end of the cruise nine of us contracted a painful stomach
virus while on the ship due in part I believe to the negligent
service we received aboard the ship. Approximately 36 hours after
boarding the ship; my five year old granddaughter woke from her
sleep with severe stomach pains. She vomited several times and was
unable to make it to the bathroom from her top bunk in time and
vomited in the cabin. Maintenance was called to clean and deodorize
their stateroom. A short time later, a gentleman came with a towel
and a squirt bottle of deodorizer. The carpet was not properly
cleaned and the vomit on the curtain separating the bed from the
children’s quarters was never cleaned or deodorized. The rest of the
trip they slept with the balcony door open (a security hazard)
because the room smelled terrible. The next morning, we notified the
room hostess that the stateroom needed cleaning and that our granddaughter was sick. A crew member advised us that we should not
report the sickness to the medical facility because my granddaughter
would be quarantined and that would ‘ruin’ our vacation. However, we
disregarded the advice and took her to the medical facility. She was
quarantined and sent back to our cabin where we were assured that
guest services would take care of all of her needs.
They were very helpful during her quarantined period, although the
room was never fully cleaned or deodorized. On Friday, my son and
his ten year old daughter came down with the same symptoms. Again,
the room was soiled and left unclean. We made requests that the
carpet be steam cleaned and deodorized; this never happened. We
requested vomit bags or containers for the children; we were told
none were available.
On Saturday, my daughter-in law took her two sons to Castaway Cay.
On the way back to the Tram, the youngest one became sick and
vomited in the bushes next to the Tram. The Tram operator observed
the obvious illness and ignored us. We had no choice but to get onto
the Tram and expose other passengers to the illness. Then, we had to
stand in line to re-enter the ship while both boys were barely able
to stand and were vomiting. At no time, did any Disney Dream
employee offer to help. We were never separated from other
passengers or escorted to the medical facility; which would have
demonstrated prudence, compassion, and responsibility on behalf of
the Dream and its crew.
Upon returning to the stateroom we found that my sick son and
granddaughter had spent the day in very unsanitary conditions: vomit
was left on the bathroom floor preventing use of the lavatory, vomit
soiled towels were left on the floor of the cabin for the duration
of the day, bedding was soiled and unchanged, and the odor was
nearly unbearable. The room was not cleaned until guest services
were called again. The room hostess rushed to get the room cleaned
up at 5:30 that evening.
We called the medical facility and explained that my son, two
granddaughters, and two grandsons were extremely ill. They were
experiencing violent episodes of vomiting and were very weak. We
requested that medical help be sent to our stateroom, but our
request was denied and we were instructed that the only way we could
receive medical care was if we walked to the medical facility. We
were in staterooms located on the 10th deck aft. The medical
facility is first deck forward. This meant that we had no choice but
to once again expose other passengers as we traveled down the
elevators and through the ship at a time when many passengers were
heading out for dinner.
At the medical facility, all four were given medical care and placed
on quarantine. They returned to their cabins just before dinner. At
dinner we asked the server to please send their meals and beverages
to the stateroom. An hour and a half later the grandkids had fallen
asleep without dinner, as the meals had never been delivered. No one
from guest services called to check-in on my family as they had done
when the youngest granddaughter was sick and no fluids or other
necessary items were brought to our stateroom.
The following morning as we were preparing to disembark, my
daughter-in-law became very ill. She attempted to leave the ship,
but only made it as far as the lobby where she nearly passed out. I
dialed 911 on the phone by the elevator and a medic arrived and
escorted her via a wheel chair to the medical facility. She was
repeatedly told that the ship could not be cleared until she left.
She was given medications to prevent vomiting and transported in a
wheel chair to the Disney shuttle that took us to the airport. The
medic that treated her urged that seek an Urgent Care facility where
they could administer IV fluids. I am doubtful that the Disney
shuttle driver would have obliged such a request. Another
daughter-in-law and grandson became ill as they got off the ship and
spent the trip to the airport in the shuttle bathroom.
I was completely and repeatedly shocked at the negligence we
witnessed on the ship. We were not given and did not have access to
proper cleaning supplies, bags or containers for vomit. We were not
separated and/or escorted for medical help when it was obvious that
we were in need. We were advised to not report the illness by a
Disney Crew member. We were not only forced off the ship during a
period of time when we were all 'under quarantine', but we were also
placed on a Disney shuttle where many more people were exposed to
the illness and then dropped off at the airport! It has also become
apparent that proper medical records were not kept. In a response to
my on-line complaint to Disney Customer Service detailing this
experience, they responded that they only have record of five family
members treated at the Dream’s medical facility. I have receipts for
the six who actually received medical care.
It is understandable that no illness is completely preventable.
However, it was through the lack of proper sanitation and the
negligence of service that we received aboard the ship that the
spread of the illness affected 9 out of the 19 family members on
this cruise.
What are most disturbing were the Disney Customer Service responses
to my letters. They refused to acknowledge or agree to follow-up
with any investigation or corrective action to any of the issues I
raised.
I contacted the CDC and found that through the CDC Vessel Sanitation
Program an Inspection Report of the Disney Dream was issued two
weeks before our cruise on 12/18/2011. I reviewed the 26 reported
issues that the CDC noted in their audit report and 22 of these seem
to relate to the problems we experienced. There are 4 deficiencies
in reporting (one is in Medical), there are 6 sanitation issues, 8
food preparation issues, 3 deficiencies dealing with water purity
and 1 issue on Outbreak Prevention. Many, if not all of these
deficiencies, could have contributed to the Medical-Acute
Gastroenteritis (AGE) that nine of my family experienced on this
cruise.
I am sorry to say we will not be sailing on the Dream again any time
soon.
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