I’m sure most of you now are absolutely desperate to just. leave. this. island.
It’s not that we don’t love Singapore – we truly do – but being confined here since December 2019 (in my personal case) makes one slightly, shall we say, irritable. Which is why Dream Cruises, as soon as covid restrictions allowed, opened up their Cruise to Nowhere. This is pretty much where you sail around waters near Singapore, never actually getting off the ship, but makes you feel like you’re actually far away and on some cruise vacation. I signed up for 3 nights because #YOLO and because… #covid sucks. I have never ever done a cruise before so had no idea what to expect on any level.
So, what is it really like? Is it worth doing? Allow me to tell you…
ABOUT A 100000% YES IT IS!
But, and that is a big but, it depends on which cruise company you’re going with. We went with Dream Cruise, but I know many who went with Royal Caribbean and did not have a very good experience. I cannot comment of course as I haven’t personally done it, but I can tell you all about my cruise and why I would do it again as soon as I could.
Payment & Packages
We did 3 days & 3 nights and it cost us $189pp. YES. JUST $189! This was a promotional price though and I am aware it is higher now. The price online includes breakfast, lunch and dinner every day and accommodation. We also pre-booked (I heavily advise to also do this) their drinks packages. For 3 nights, the premium free-flow package was $212, which as we all know, we could spend in just 2 hours in one bubbly brunch here in Singapore. The classic package cost $125 and excludes cocktails & mocktails. I opted for the premium to get my Espresso Martini, G&T and Negroni – natch.
There are also drinks packages for your room – separate to the free-flow one – that you can also buy so that once 10:30pm curfew hits, you can carry on drinking back in the room too. Beers & Bottles of Wines are available for your room and are not expensive either!
So for my 3 days, 3 nights, food the entire time and endless flow of alcohol of my choice until 10:30pm at night, it cost me just over $400. I consider that a win.
Covid Test & Boarding
Once you check-in online, you receive your covid test time. You arrive at the Marina Bay Sail Centre and queue up in allotted section waiting to register, receive your test, and then wait some more for the results to come back before you board. This is the worst part of the experience. It’s hot, outside, only large fans to keep you cool. I recommend bringing drinks and something to occupy you. You do get given a Dream Cruise itinerary as you wait, which is fab to check out what is on and plan your vacation. I think my total test and wait time was around 2 / 2.5 hours before I was then allowed to check-in and board. But the check-in process and boarding was so QUICK. Zero queues. I literally walked right through and was on the boat within 10 minutes. CRUISE TIME!
On Board
Once you are on board I suggest you head straight to reception and BOOK EVERYTHING IMMEDIATELY. All the shows, the restaurants you fancy beyond the ones included – there are many options but of course, you’ll be paying extra. The reason I say you should book everything immediately, is because somehow, it all gets booked up fast. There are magic shows, acrobats, dancing shows, kid’s shows and – ahem – Dream Boys. Of course, I was first in line for the Dream Boys show, which was not a regret. I repeat, not a regret.
Room
I had the basic – Balcony Stateroom – and it was perfect. Spacious, comfy AF bed, I slept so well (save the grinding of the boat engine at 5am or whatever that noise is) and my balcony was huge. You can smoke on your balcony too, just not in the room, as standard. I was barely in my room to be honest – too busy having too much fun outside.
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Food
Okay, it’s not amazing, but it’s not bad either. There is a Western restaurant and Chinese restaurant included in your package, so you have a choice. There is also a 24 hour snack bar that you can go to at any time you are peckish beyond meals. Yes, 24/7!
For the main restaurants, it is 3 courses every lunch and dinner and offers delights like Tenderloin, Pasta, Chicken Skewers, Roasted Salmon, Beef Tortillas… lots of choice AND you can ask for as much as you like! Want to try 2 mains? Just ask! They are very accommodating. I found the food just great, considering the price we paid. Included lots of vegetables, soups, salads and I often asked for two main courses so, that is a testament to the level of quality.
What you do need to know though, is your package-included meal times DO get booked out too. If it says lunch from 11:30am-2pm and you turn up at 1:30pm, chances are you’ll get told there is no more space. That bit sucks, as it is not communicated beforehand. So my advice is always head down at the start of service for both lunch and dinner, and pre-book your table for your desired time. We saw people being turned away, which isn’t nice.
Activities
There is SO MUCH to do! I had such a blast! We did High Ropes and Zip Wire across the open ocean (wow), table tennis, mini golf, 5 different water park slides (yes, I screamed) and Virtual Reality Games Room which was just SO much fun we did that two days in a row. There was also a Rock Climbing Wall, Basketball & Tennis Court, Gym, Spa, Casino, Shopping Area and of course all the shows. There was also an outdoor cinema at Zouk Beach Club (I recommend going to Zouk Beach Club during the day, it’s super chill and pretty empty when we went), fun water games here too, AND there is live music nightly too. Honestly, we didn’t even get to experience everything and some shows were already sold out when we tried to book, but I felt like we were always doing something fun.
We also left enough time in the day to chill with out books on the sun loungers, enjoy food service AND of course, prop ourselves up by the bar for our free-flow beverages and playing games on the table.
I had so many people message me on Instagram saying how much fun my cruise looked, and comparing it to others. I don’t know whether people just were not aware of what was on offer, or other company cruises do not offer such things…but honestly, I had a blast from start to finish. I DID NOT want to leave. We all agreed we could easily have done with another day and night at the very least.
Disembark
This was insanely easy and swift. We thought we had to do another covid test – not the case. They give each floor of the boat an allotted time to disembark, and staff come to knock on your door to let you know when you can start leaving. My leaving time was 10:30am, but just after 10am I was told I could go. I was in the car park awaiting my cab home by 10:26am. It was THAT quick. Which is a dream, pardon the pun, for when you just want to get home, unpack, say hi to the fur-kids and hit the pool some more.
Verdict?
Let’s put it this way – I wanted to go back on as soon as I got off, and once home, was checking out the next decent deals for 3 nights. My friends are the same. It does seem like that $189 price was an exceptional bargain that we got at the right time, but this cruise is still A LOT cheaper than others out there and seems to be the most value for money, and the most fun too.
What’s more, this is the first time I felt like I was actually on a HOLIDAY since Christmas 2019. I have been in Singapore since 2019 and whilst I did the odd (extremely expensive) staycation in Singapore during 2020, I never felt rested, relaxed or recharged. This cruise delivered that much-needed vacation vibes and I returned back feeling absolutely recharged and full of life.
I’d go back in a heartbeat.
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