WYTinman

The ship was cleared fairly quickly and people started to "Hit the Beach" early.

Our plan for the day was to do the All-inclusive side of Mr. Sanchos Beach Club.

With 5 ships in port that day I had made reservations prior over the internet.

http://www.mrsanchos.com/

I will say that Cozumel seemed to be able to handle the crowd well.

The NCL Ships docked at Punta Lanosta , Carnival, at Puerta Maya, and RCI at the International pier. I may have these mixed up, but I think I have it right.

Anyway, it is a short walk down the pier through a port shopping area to the taxi stand.

The fares are posted at the stand and are reasonable. I believe it was $18.00 for 4 people to Mr. Sanchos.

I was about a 20 minute drive south of the pier to the club. A good thing to remember so you can plan your return to the ship.

Now the Beach.....

Mr. Sanchos, Cozumel Mexico by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Day 3 starts the Beaches portion of this review

It all began early in the morning

[YOUTUBE]CwzL-04t6MA[/YOUTUBE]

Cozumel Sunrise by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Norwegian Jade by Mark Davis, on Flickr

More please.

 

I am still waiting for pics to show up in my email......lol

 

I don't have your email address.

Did you give it to Lori?

Mark

A few last words about Day 2

Los Lobos is worth the money or SDP if you choose to use it.

Warning....You will fill up on the appetizers so plan accordingly.

The food is not typical TEX-MEX like the old NCL mexican place.

This menu is good.

The second night we ate there most of us ate just appetizers as our full meal.

Have the Elotes. If you like corn on the cob you will love it lightly spiced with lime and cheese.

If you drink, try the Spicy Margarita. This became my Day Drinking, Drink of Choice for the remainder of the cruise.

Trust me, with all the beach time we did from Day 2 on, there was a lot of Day Drinking.

I will be mentioning the Spicy Margarita again when I get to my review of Maya Chan.

Lastly, if you are into the shows. Band On The Run is Monday night. One of my favorites.

Next up Day 3...Cozumel...

See you all in the Morning.

Mark

This is a great review! Can you let me know which of the 2nd and 3rd bedrooms also have a couch that can be used as a bed? TIA!

Thank you.

None of the Suites have a couch.

If a seventh person is booked into the Villa they would have to sleep in the living room and share a bath with one of the Suites.

Mark

Suite #3

Norwegian Dawn Garden Villa 14500 by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Suite #2

Norwegian Dawn Garden Villa 14500 by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Norwegian Dawn Garden Villa 14500 by Mark Davis, on Flickr

1st Suite

Main Living Room

Hall from the living room toward the Main Villa door. The first Suite is to the right.

Norwegian Dawn Garden Villa 14500 by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Day 2 is a Sea Day and I Love Sea Days.

Nowhere to go and Nothing urgent planned.

Wake

Eat Breakfast

Nap

Eat Lunch

Nap

Nap Again or maybe some Day Drinking

Captains Reception

Dinner at Los Lobos

Night Drinking

Sleep

Enough said about Day 2 it's a vacation!

This is what I woke up to every morning

The View from Deck 13 down to the Atrium (Waiting for Breakfast at Modorno)

I'll take this time to show off our spectacular cabin.

Deck 14 Foyer

Villa 14500 Main Entrance

Norwegian Dawn Garden Villa 14500 by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Leaving Roatan Honduras

Mark,

Greetings from very chilly and gray day in the Pacific Northwest.

 

Did you get to meet one of my very favorite Captain's (Teo Grbic)? Very nice gentleman from Croatia. Very big gentleman- NFL Linebacker size.

 

Sounds like your world is going very well. Best Wishes

 

Mandy

Good to hear from you Mandy.

I did meet him at the Captains reception.

I was surprised. On this cruise the Operational Staff was rarely seen on a day to day basis.

The Hotel Senior Officers were everywhere.

Alain, (sp?) The Hotel Director greated us soon as we walked out of the VIP lounge at boarding. He made rounds at all of the restaurants every night, and he was on the gangway at every port.

I was really impressed by his customer service.

Mark

I'll only say a few words about dinner.

I've eaten at Cagneys on every cruise.

The Dawn was no different than any other Cagneys on any other ship.

The drinks on the other hand....Excellent

I like to have a "Dirty Grey Goose Martini" before dinner.

Garret, the Bartender at the Mojito Bar, made the best I've had on any NCL ship.

I will be mentioning him again in this review. He is that Good,

Now I'll take a small break..

Thanks to everyone following.

Mark

Day 1 Dinner was reserved for 7:00 PM at Cagneys

Before we headed down to the restaurant I captured a few shots as the Sun started to set over the ship and New Orleans.

New Orleans at Sunset by Mark Davis, on Flickr

After my wanderings around the upper decks. I was ready to check out my own private sundeck

NCL Dawn Garden Villa Sundeck by Mark Davis, on Flickr

I had set up my GoPro to capture departure and the trip down the Mississippi.

Best laid plans again!!!!!

With the fueling delays we didn't depart until well after dark. We were almost done with dinner when we finally started moving.

TheDougOut here is my camera set-up for the Timelapses.

Here is the Timelapse that I did capture. River Traffic and the Dream departing.

[YOUTUBE]lBt0OMD2t4I[/YOUTUBE]

Carnival Dream by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Your boarding video... Henry is a STAR!! :)

Henry was Great!

With only the two of us in that Suite. I'm afraid he may have gotten bored. I think the GV butler only has those two Suites.

Until I hear back, I will continue with the picture size I started with.

Forward Sun & Observation Deck by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Could you pretty please make the photos a bit smaller so they fit all in the screen without having to slide the bar over to read your text?

Do you need them smaller than the post prior to this?

Or do I need this size?

Mississippi River by Mark Davis, on Flickr

Mark

I know!!

That last video was too long. I hope the content outweighs its length.

I promise, The next few will be Time-Lapses that will be around 3 minutes each.

Back to the pictures.

When we got to the cabin the sundeck was roped off while the deck dried.

Or should I say THAWED.

It was still very cold.

So cold, our departure was delayed due to issues caused by gelling fuel while it was being transferred.

After lunch in Modero, I took a quick tour around the upper decks and snapped a few shots.

Mississippi River by Mark Davis, on Flickr

If you have ever heard someone say that once you try a Suite on NCL you will never go back.

For me it proved to be true and I will book a Suite whenever I can.

The Suite Life begins at the terminal. A separate check-in line, private lounge, and escorted boarding either straight to your cabin or to Moderno / Cagneys for lunch.

I've taken full advantage of the Upsell fairy / department on previous cruises.

My advice is to book a cabin that you'll be happy in. Try to upsell and if, what is offered is in your budget, take it.

If not, be happy with what you have booked.

We had originally booked a Family Suite w/balcony on deck 12. In fact ours would have been 2 cabin aft of the cabin TheDougOut reviewed.

We booked almost 2 years ahead of sailing. Before the "Free at Sea" for everyone and changes to Suite pricing.

With the Suite we booked our perks were the "Real" UDP, UBP, Service Charge, and $250.00 OBC.

All for a price of what NCL is now asking for Mini-suites or Aft balconies.

Three weeks prior to our sailing one of the Garden Villas was still available. I thought "what does it hurt to call and ask?"

It worked.....I'll just say that my wife and I shared a three bedroom Villa.....for what was within my established budget.

This just turned into a "Once in a Lifetime" cruise.

I don't think I'll be able to work the deal we got again. I know I could never afford this cabin again at full price.

SO MAY I PRESENT. PART 1 OF THE "VILLAS" PORTION OF THE TITLE

Boarding from the VIP lounge at the Julia St. Terminal.

Ever wanted to know what it's like to be the first passenger on the ship?

Watch this video and look for my wife pushing past the camera to be the first "dinged aboard".

Once in a lifetime!!!!

[YOUTUBE]XUpx3Okck-g[/YOUTUBE]

Mark

Back at last.

After enjoying the made to order Free Breakfast at the hotel. We repacked our bags from airplane mode to ship mode.

The Embassy Suites is only a short 2 block walk from the Hotel. I had over packed with all of my camera gear so this trip we opted to grab a cab down to the port.

It probably would of been faster to walk.

New Orleans from Embassy Suites by Mark Davis, on Flickr

With all the one-way streets, traffic from the departing passengers, and round about entrance to the terminal. It took about 20 minutes to go the two blocks.

We were at the terminal security checkpoint at about 10:30 AM. Two screening lines and barely a wait this early.

After security we walked into the boarding lounge just as they started to open the check in lines and give out boarding numbers.

Here is a short walk around of the boarding lounge.

[YOUTUBE]nL_TbGqptSs[/YOUTUBE]

Mark