3D2N Genting Dream Cruise From Port Klang to Singapore
By Elin Chow - Wednesday, May 31, 2023
Photo By: Elin Chow
We chanced upon a cruise deal for Genting Dream Cruise on Travel Log website a few months ago. As we have never been on a cruise before, we decided to booked a 3D2N cruise from Port Klang to Singapore, and then back to Port Klang to experience a cruise vacation.
The two-nights round-trip cruise from Port Klang to Singapore departs on Thursdays and Saturdays only. We paid approximately RM 760 per pax (excluding gratuity) for a 3D2N Interior Stateroom via Travel Log website. After making the payment, I received a WhatsApp message from the travel agency within one working day. I was asked to provide copy of the travelers' passport and details of the emergency contact person. It took the travel agency a few days to complete the booking and send me the boarding pass for the cruise.
PRE BOARDING
All guests are required to visit Resorts World Cruises website and complete a mandatory online check in before the departure date. The online check in for the cruise will open 72 hours prior the departure date and close 24 hours before the departure date. Please ensure all the details that you have provided are correct.
After you have done the online check in, you will receive your assigned check-in timing in your email about 48 hours prior to your cruise. I would recommend arriving earlier than the assigned check in time just in case you are allow to board early.
CURRENCY
All prices onboard the ship are in Singapore Dollars (SGD). The cruise only accepts payment in cash and credit card. There is also a money exchange service onboard.
CHECK IN
Check in for Genting Dream Cruise is at Port Klang Cruise Terminal. For those who drive here, there is a large parking in front of the terminal. The parking fee is RM 20 per entry.
Our assigned check-in time was 3.30 pm, but we arrived at 12 pm. The check in process was quite simple and straightforward. Once you arrived at the terminal, head to the check-in counter on the second floor. Then present your passport at the check-in counter to get your ID/Access Card. The Access Card will serves as your onboard identify card, room key card, inclusive dining privileges verification and charge card for all your onboard shopping, chargeable activities and dining at the specialty restaurants. So make sure you keep this card with you all the time while you are on the cruise.
After collecting our Access Card, we were asked to wait inside the departure hall as the cruise was not ready for boarding yet. We were only allowed to board at 2.00 pm. Prepare your passport for immigration clearance. The staff will keep your passport after you passed through the immigration checkpoint. Don't worry. You will get it back before your disembark from the ship.
OUR ROOM
The Genting Dream boasts 19 decks in total and spans over a length of 335. With the capacity to accommodate more than 3,500 passengers, the ship offers four types of accommodations to suit different needs and budgets - Interior Stateroom, Oceanview Stateroom, Balcony Stateroom, and the exclusive suites, collectively known as The Palace. All rooms have en-suite bathrooms with basic toiletries.
Unlike regular cabins, our room is equipped with a wide automatic door. It also comes with a large closet, which provide plenty of space to store a wheelchair, as well as electrical outlets by the bed for charging motorized equipment.
Other in-room amenities include a LED TV, a mini fridge, a hair dryer, a telephone and an accessible writing desk. The room comes with two single-size beds pushed together to make a double bed and 4 pillows. We love the beds and pillows as they were really clean and comfortable to sleep on.
The bathroom is also larger in order to support a roll in shower. It is equipped with a fold down bench, hand-held shower head, lowered sink, raised toilet seat and grab bar. Only basic toiletries like 2-in-1 shower gel and shampoo, disposable toothbrush and toothpaste and towels are provided. There is an emergency call button in the bathroom as well.
The room also comes with basic coffee and tea making facilities including mugs, a kettle, instant coffee and tea bags. Two complimentary bottles of water are provided and will be replenished daily during housekeeping. However, the housekeeping didn't come to make up our room or replenished the water during our stay.
WIFI
The Genting Dream Cruise comes with free 'DREAM WiFi" that will allow you to view the ship information, cruise directory, daily onboard schedule and review your onboard account statement. I find this really redundant because you can easily access to these information onboard, via a daily newsletter called with Dream Daily. You can find it on the many screens around the ship or even on the TV in your room.
If you need to connect with your family and friends or access to your social media, the Genting Dream also offers various internet packages that you can purchase. We subscribed to the 3D2N standard 2 devices WiFi package for SGD 42. Do note that the package is sold according to your cruise length, not according to the length of your usage. That means even if you buy the the package on the last day of your cruise, you will still be charged for the number of nights your cruise is. Therefore, if you intend to subscribe to their internet package, it is best that you buy it as soon as you get onboard.
With 35 restaurants and bars, serving a wide range of cuisines, you will never go hungry on Genting Dream. The offerings comprise of inclusive and specialty restaurants, as well as bars. However, only three of them are inclusive restaurants where you can eat without paying additional money.
Inclusive Restaurants
Dream Dining Upper: Chinese set meals
Dream Dining Lower: Semi-buffet western meals
The Lido: International buffet
The Lido Outdoor: Snack Corner
Specialty Restaurants
You can also choose to dine at the specialty restaurants at your own costs. But we didn't see the point in spending additional money we had access to so much 'free' food.
Bistro: Western - premium cuts from around the world
Blue Lagoon: Quick and casual food from Asia and international favorites
Gelateria: Home-made gelato
Hot Pot: Outdoor hot pot with scenic ocean views
Lobby Cafe: Informal cafe with an European-style bakery
Prime Steakhouse by Mark Best: Steaks. lambchops and seafood grills
Silk Road Chinese Restaurant: Chinese fine dining
Umi Uma: Premium Japanese Cuisine, Teppanyaki, Korean BBQ & Shabu Shabu
Do note that all the inclusive restaurants have specified meal times. The meal hours were short and none of them was opened long hours or till late night. If you miss the specified meal time, you can either pay to eat at one of the specialty restaurants, or wait for the snack corner at The Lido to open.
Also, you can only eat at one of the complimentary restaurant per meal period (breakfast, lunch and dinner). If you eat at more than one complimentary restaurants at the same meal period, a nominal fee will apply. If you get hungry in between the main meals, the snack corner at the Lido restaurant will be your best choice. You will usually find snacks like fried bee hoon /noodles, lasagna, plain congee, curry puffs, an assortment of sandwiches and cakes at the snack corner. There are also a free flow of tea, coffee and juices that you enjoy all day.
Dream Dining Lower
Dream Dining Lower is a Western restaurant which operates in a semi-buffet style. We have eaten here twice (breakfast and dinner) during our 3D2N stay on the ship. You will find the menu on a screen outside each inclusive restaurant before meal time. This will help you to decide where you would like to eat.
For dinner, the restaurant serves a Western set meal with a main course of your choice and sides. In addition to that, you are also free to eat whatever you want from the buffet spread.
There were three choices of main course: Baked Salmon, Honey Glazed Gammon Ham or Chicken Florentine. I had baked Norwegian salmon fillet, potato and leek ragout, steam vegetable and crustacean Sauce. This was my favorite dish of all the food I have eaten while on the cruise. The salmon was moderately firm and buttery. So delicious!
The potato and leek ragout was equally good as well. So creamy and savory.
My husband, on the other hand, ordered honey glazed gammon ham, hash potato, apple compote and sautéed Vegetables. The staff who took our order informed us that the ham will be a bit too salty and asked us whether we were okay with it. But it was not really an issue for us.
The ham was delicious. Rich and salty, it goes well with simple salad. I love the hash potato as well. It was light but slightly crispy, with an inviting potaoey scent.
The Dream Dining Lower serves buffet style breakfast. However, the menu was pretty limited. The menu will typically include pancakes, an assortment of bread, sausages, baked beans, crispy pork bacon and cereals. There were also local favorites like nasi lemak and congee, as well as healthy options from salad bar, cold cuts and fruits.
The Lido
The Lido is the main buffet restaurant and the only inclusive restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner on the cruise ship. It is also the only restaurant on Genting Dream that has an internationally Halal certified kitchen. The restaurant serves international buffet with plenty of cuisines to choose from - from Western, Chinese, Malay to Indian. Apart from that, it has a vegetarian section for plant eaters as well.
We were assigned a window seat where we can look at the sea while we enjoy our meal. However, it gets a bit hot when the sun is high in the sky.
As we were feeling a bit bloated from all the continuous eating, we didn't eat too much for lunch. Most of the food we tried were fairly good. There was an extensive selection of food for every diners.
My favorite will be the soft serve ice cream station. In fact, a lot of kids and adults love it too. There was always a long queue at the machine. I guess it was because this is the only place on the cruise ship that you can eat ice cream for free.
Dream Dining Upper
We also ate at Dream Dining Upper restaurant twice (dinner and breakfast) during our stay. The restaurant serves Chinese set meals for breakfast and dinner. This means that you cannot choose what you want and don't want to eat since the menu is fixed on that day. I personally feel that this will cause a lot of food wastage.
For dinner, the restaurant serves a Chinese set meal comprising of an appetizer, 4 mains, rice, soup and dessert. We had poached live tiger prawns in Chinese wine, Assam fish curry, poached vegetables with braised fish maw, sea cucumber and mushroom, sweet & sour chicken and winter melon soup. Dessert was glutinous black rice, which I absolutely love.
I love the roast pork appetizer. The skin was crackling crisp while he meat was tender and juicy. The tiger prawns were fresh, but a bit bland. My husband have to finish most of it because I didn't like it.
The breakfast was a little too heavy for us. We could not finish all the items they served us. In fact, we only took a mouthful of the stir-fried vermicelli. What a waste.
THINGS TO DO
The Genting Dream offers a wide variety of programs, activities and entertainment to keep you occupied. However, a lot of the activities are not included in the all-inclusive package and require extra charges.
Pool & Waterslides
The Main Pool Deck on Deck 16 is the centre of outdoor fun on the cruise ship, which boasts two swimming pools and four Jacuzzis. There is a DJ booth in the centre that constantly pumps out music to liven the atmosphere. Feel free to join in and dance along with the crew.
Other than taking a dip in the pool, you can also try out the water slides. There a 6 water slides with different levels of difficulty on the cruise ship depending on how adventurous you are.
Rope Course & Zipline
There is also a low rope course at ground level designed for younger kids. Kids can challenge themselves on the low rope course under the supervision of adults.
Rock Climbing
Basketball
Mini Golf
The Sportsplex at Deck 17 and Deck 18 features the Ropes Course, Rock Climbing, Mini Golf, Table Tennis and Basketball Court.
Glow Bowling
The Genting Dream has a four lanes of bowling alley onboard. I think the lanes are shorter than what you will find in land-based bowling locations. Each game costs SGD 10. It is not super expensive but it was super crowded. Pool tables are also available beside the bowling alley, inside Zouk.
Arcade
There are two arcades onboard Genting Dream. The main one is located at Deck 16. It costs SGD 3 - 4 per game, which I feel is a bit too expensive. There is also a smaller arcade located at Deck 6 that is more suited for younger children
Captain's Bridge Viewing Room
While exploring, we found a small hidden room with a large window at Deck 15 that will give you a clear view of the Captain's Bridge, the main control center of the vessel. This is where you can watch the captain and his crew at work, as well as the captains' portfolios. I had a glance at the captains' portfolio and noticed that most of them are from Sweden.
Other than that, there is also a cool mini replica of the ship in the room for you to admire!
GAMBLING ACTIVITIES
The Genting Dream also offers gambling facilities that spans 3 decks, from Deck 6 to Deck 8.
Deck 6: Table Games, Premium Room, Slot Machines, International Room
Deck 7: Guest Service Counter, Electronic Table Games, Slot Machines
Deck 8: Slot Machines
However, the casino will be closed when the cruise ship is in port due to gambling laws and regulations. It will only open after the ship sets sail and hits international waters.
While the ship is in the port, you can test your luck at the Key Master Machine. Who knows you might be able to win some cash! Or you can also purchase some Bingo tickets from the staff and hope that you will be a lucky winner.
Shows
There will be exciting and engaging show scheduled in the 1,000 seats Zodiac Theater every night. Do note that the shows are on a first-come-first-serve basis, so I would really recommend going earlier to secure a good seat.
We thoroughly enjoyed the shows on both nights. The shows combined amazing acrobatics, dance and music to create a multi-sensory entertainment experience with light, sound and dazzling acrobatics performance. I would really highly recommend anyone to watch them.
Bar 360
Located at the heart of the ship, Bar 360 is a great place to grab a drink or two while enjoying the live band performance.
During our stay, we like to spent happy hour at Bar 360 sipping cocktails and listening to live music. There is no lack of places to grab a drink onboard Genting Dream, but our favorite bar to order a drink from was the Mixt Cocktail Bar at Deck 8. I love their wide range of innovative cocktails which costs SGD 13.50 per glass. If you are a heavy drinker, you might want to consider buying one of their bottomless beverage packages.
For those who planned to spent the night away at Bar 360, I would suggest that you come early to grab a seat by the bar before the scheduled performance. If you would like to enjoy live music in a more private setting, you might consider visiting Tributes. However, the music can get pretty loud inside the bar because it is a more enclosed space.
For party-goers, you can head to the Zouk Club and Zouk Beach Club to dance your night away. The Genting Dream also has a karaoke room where you can sing your heart out. A medium room costs SGD 10 per hour.
There will also be live band / DJ performances at the Pool Deck at night.
DISEMBARKATION
The day before disembarkation, you will receive a Disembarkation Notice outside your room explaining the check out procedures, disembarkation procedures, travel document collection and baggage collection. Please proceed to the reception counter at Deck 6 to pay your gratuity charges and other consumption that you have spent during your stay. A mandatory gratuity of SGD 21 is charged to every guest.
The disembarkation process began at 8.00 am. We were asked to vacate our room latest by 9.30 am. The entire process was fairly organized and quick. Before you disembark from the ship, remember to collect your passport from the reception counter at Deck 6.
CONCLUSION
To be honest, there was nothing much for us to do on the cruise ship. Although we enjoyed doing absolutely nothing during the trip, we got really bored at some point. We were not the kind of travelers who love to dip in the pool or even get ourselves wet. Even though there are activities that we would like to do, but we didn't really want to spend additional money on them.
I think cruising is just not my kind of vacation. But even so, I was still blown away by the wide variety of food, dazzling shows and fantastic crew members on board.
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