This old Doris Day song kept on bouncing back-and-forth inside my head as our mega-ship slowly drifted away from the Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong. We were on our way to another voyage to the high seas.
This was actually my nth cruise, having taken several to different parts of the world, but every cruise I take always gives me that giddy feeling of a “newbie.” There is something about a cruise ship, especially if it’s a mega-ship like this one I was on, that stirs a hornet’s nest of excitement in me, akin to that of a little boy going to a carnival for the first time.
Genting Dream, built by Meyer Werft of Germany, is Asia’s first-ever luxury cruise ship, and is so new, it has been in operation for only five months. It is a 20-storey mega cruise liner with 1674 staterooms (cabins) most of which have balconies, can carry 3352 passengers, and is serviced by a staff of 2016. These numbers immediately give you an idea of the size of the ship.
It has 23 restaurants and bars, nine entertainment venues, but I have to admit that I didn’t have enough time to try all of them as I found favorites among the few that I tried, and decided to spend longer hours there. Naturally, I also spent time in The Market, a commercial retail area, to buy some presents for friends, and browsed around the attractive masterpieces in the Art Gallery. I also enjoyed The Dream Boutiques where the world’s leading signature brands are sold at very reasonable prices, tempting enough for me to dish out my plastic money for some prized items.
The ship also has eight sports and recreation facilities, and seven beauty and wellness centers. On Deck 19 is where the business center and library are, and meeting rooms are found on Deck 7. I enjoyed the boardwalk, a 610-meter wraparound outdoor promenade, where I burned out unwanted calories from the lavish meals heaped on us. Of course, for those into extreme sports, the ship’s exciting zip line and very challenging rock climbing wall will take care of your adventurous soul.
Being a sister company of Resorts World, the ship has a casino, and it spans three decks, which made it impossible for me to ignore it, much as I wanted to, because I would pass by those “sparkling, shimmering, splendid” machines whichever direction I would go to inside the ship. The melodious sound emitting from the machines every time they hit a jackpot succeeded in disarming my defenses, and the next thing I knew, I was already seated in front of one. Well, let’s just say, the temptation was well worth it, as it paid me back the cost of one signature branded item I bought earlier.
Real live, Las Vegas-style nightly entertainment is available at the Zodiac Theater on Deck 7. The shows make you enjoy watching sleight-of-hand tricks and the same leggy, attractive, Moulin Rouge-type girls in elaborately designed costumes, making you think to yourself, how can one enjoy so much entertainment, being in the middle of the ocean?
And, my stateroom (cabin) was the best part of the ship. The first time I entered it, I knew right away it was going to be a very relaxing voyage. The king-sized bed was very comfortable and it was right next to the balcony, so all I had to do was open the drapes and I had a panoramic, calming view of the deep blue sea. My stateroom could accommodate 4 persons comfortably and, since I was all by myself, I had so much space to move about.
Comfortable as it was, my cabin also posed a challenge to me every day—I had this mental tug-of-war, deciding whether to laze around inside it, or enjoy the fresh air at the promenade deck, or pig out in any of the restaurants where a sumptuous, abundant meal is always free-of-charge. Agonizing decisions, right?
The gala night was quite memorable for me. The instruction was for all of us passengers to wear Chinese attire, and prizes would be given to those looking their very best. I didn’t have any other Chinese get-up except for the one I bought in Vietnam many decades ago, when I was still with the airline. It is a blue silk tunic similar to what Chinese emperors in those period films wear. It came with a matching hat. Well, what do you know, they liked it and I won a very expensive Bally leather briefcase for being the Best-Dressed Gentleman of the evening. I find this very significant because the ship’s passengers were 80-90% Chinese, yet I “beat them at their own game.”
Genting Dream’s fine Asian and international dining, exceptional service and enthralling entertainment will certainly make anybody’s dreams set sail. I never thought this cruise would be as enjoyable as the many other cruises in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean I took the past years. Now, I can proudly say that the Asia-Pacific region has leveled up, and is now at par with the other regions’ cruise industry.
Thank goodness for Dream Cruises, the mother company of Genting Dream, and sister company of Star Cruises, it now meets the needs of the emerging generation of confident, independently minded and affluent Asian travelers. And the best part is that Genting Dream’s sister ship, the brand-new World Dream, a mirror image of the former, will be in operation starting December this year, and will homeport in Manila.
With this piece of good news, are your dreams ready to set sail?
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