Dawn - 8pm departure

[suey]

Took a friend into Portside for lunch today to show her The Dawn. We were disappointed to find out she wasn't sailing until 8pm. Anyone know why so late??:confused:

[bazzaw]

We have just arrived home from the Dawn relocation cruise. My wife said that she heard an announcement that it would be delayed - I didn't though.

 

I would be interested to know the reason too. I am not aware of any problem.

 

Barry

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

We have just returned home from the Dawn relocation cruise. The delay was because P & O overbooked and sold the same cabins twice ($99 sale the last few days). There was many, many people affected.

 

The checkin staff were all new and didn't know what they were doing either.

 

There was also some very rude staff directing the passengers which made quite a few people hot under the collar after standing out in the stinking hot sun for over 4 hours with nowhere to sit and nothing to drink.

 

The most poorly performed embarkation - according to everyone we spoke to - anyone has ever had.

 

I certainly hope P & O Sydney picks up their act, because it was totally appalling on all fronts.

[bazzaw]

I have to agree that the embarkation was not good - and the delay in sailing from Sydney had something to do with "late" bookings ( although I know somebody who was affected , but had booked many weeks before) - wasn't allowed to Board initially when they turned up at the ship but finally boarded around 8 PM

 

The cruise from Sydney was delayed by an hour - I thought that put a smallish damper on the sailaway party.

 

BUT - the subject of this original posting ( I think) is why is the ship delayed from sailing from Brisbane by about 7 hours tonight???

 

Barry

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

I have to agree that the embarkation was not good - and the delay in sailing from Sydney had something to do with "late" bookings ( although I know somebody who was affected , but had booked many weeks before) - wasn't allowed to Board initially when they turned up at the ship but finally boarded around 8 PM

 

The cruise from Sydney was delayed by an hour - I thought that put a smallish damper on the sailaway party.

 

BUT - the subject of this original posting ( I think) is why is the ship delayed from sailing from Brisbane by about 7 hours tonight???

 

Barry

 

Oh, ok, apparently they have engine trouble. It was shuddering throughout the night.

[scottym89]

Might head down and see her off tonight, I think The World might be departing at 7-7.30 - will be cool to see them both off!

 

Tell me guys - this "hotel charge" that is being brought up on the Pacific Jewel threads, is it on the dawn also, or is it still called tipping, and can it still be dropped off?

 

Scotty

[bazzaw]

I am looking at my final "bill" for my cruise on Pac Dawn that finished today -- It has $7.50 per day per person listed for "hotel charge". This what people commonly call the "auto tipping" .

 

P & O have announced that they will be removing this late next year.

 

Too many people here going off half cocked - with wet ammunition!! :)

 

Barry

[Gold Coast Cruisers]

Does Pacific Dawn have to sail at certain tide levels in Brisbane?

 

 

Jillybean:)

[bazzaw]

Jillybean - very good question --- but it was fairly low when we came in this morning

 

 

Barry

[scottym89]

Jillybean - very good question --- but it was fairly low when we came in this morning

 

I wonder if having to turn her round will mean high tide but?? How well does she clear the Gateway? Will she need low tide for that, or it's all sweet?

 

Thanks for your info guys - Brisbane cruising is about to start getting amazing!

[Skyrules]

My guess would be that they've had problems with the first turnaround of the ship. I've heard from people who disembarked this morning and others who embarked this afternoon that the mobile gangway was out of action - which would have meant boarding onto Deck 3 rather than onto Deck 5 - which would have slowed things down I imagine.

 

And I guess they would have been faced with different arrangements for provisioning the ship and loading luggage.

 

Tides haven't affected any of the arrivals/departurs of Sun Princess or Dawn Princess, which are about the same size as Pacific Dawn, so that shouldn't have been an issue.

 

I'll see if the people I know onboard know anything.

[Kinkacruiser]

I saw the TV segment on her arrival into Brisbane. That atrium looks beautiful. For those who have sailed on her, is she a lot like the Dawn and Sun Princess on the inside?

Cheers,

Anna

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

I saw the TV segment on her arrival into Brisbane. That atrium looks beautiful. For those who have sailed on her, is she a lot like the Dawn and Sun Princess on the inside?

Cheers,

Anna

 

Hi Anna,

 

We were on her yesterday on the relocation cruise.

 

Comparing her to the Sun and Dawn Princess is like comparing chalk and cheese. She is a totally different ship. Difficult to get around. Not as open as the sun and the Atrium area is quite ordinary, none of the pizzaz associated with the Sun. There are no special touches like cold wet towels when standing out in the sun for 4 hours waiting to get checked in, no chocolates on the pillows at night, no turndown service, no shampoo and conditioner in the bathrooms, no piano players in the atrium, just little touches that princess does that were absent. The choices in the MDR were quite limited compared to princess as well.

 

We found the service on board to be poor in the dining room and in fact most areas of the ship. Now, whether that has to do with the fact it was only a 2 nighter I don't know, but there was no smiles or happy faces on the crew and every request, whether it was for another cup of coffee in the dining room or a drink at one of the bars, it was met with a sour look and a reaction like it was too much trouble.

 

We met up with quite a few newbies and they were disappointed in the experience. Such a shame. We advised them to try a longer cruise and not to base cruising on a short 2 nighter.

 

This was the first time I had travelled on P & O and only for the fact that we were travelling with a great bunch of people the cruise would have been a bomb.

 

As I said in a previous post on this thread, the ground personnel were rude and the ship crew were indifferent, but a cruise is what you make of it. We had fun because of who we cruised with so for us it was a good cruise. Other people have not got the same opinion. P & O want people to cruise out of Australia, well they had better get their act together and provide a better package.

[NSWP]

Oh dear, what have they done to ye olde beautiful Regal Princess as I remember her.

These stories about Pacific Dawn are getting worse. One reason why I would not travel with P&O Australia and no, I am not a cruise snob.

 

Billy and Charlies Mum has hit the nail right on the head.

[Skyrules]

Hi Anna' date='

 

We were on her yesterday on the relocation cruise.

 

Comparing her to the Sun and Dawn Princess is like comparing chalk and cheese. She is a totally different ship. Difficult to get around. Not as open as the sun and the Atrium area is quite ordinary, none of the pizzaz associated with the Sun. There are no special touches like cold wet towels when standing out in the sun for 4 hours waiting to get checked in, no chocolates on the pillows at night, no turndown service, no shampoo and conditioner in the bathrooms, no piano players in the atrium, just little touches that princess does that were absent. The choices in the MDR were quite limited compared to princess as well.

 

We found the service on board to be poor in the dining room and in fact most areas of the ship. Now, whether that has to do with the fact it was only a 2 nighter I don't know, but there was no smiles or happy faces on the crew and every request, whether it was for another cup of coffee in the dining room or a drink at one of the bars, it was met with a sour look and a reaction like it was too much trouble.

 

We met up with quite a few newbies and they were disappointed in the experience. Such a shame. We advised them to try a longer cruise and not to base cruising on a short 2 nighter.

 

This was the first time I had travelled on P & O and only for the fact that we were travelling with a great bunch of people the cruise would have been a bomb.

 

As I said in a previous post on this thread, the ground personnel were rude and the ship crew were indifferent, but a cruise is what you make of it. We had fun because of who we cruised with so for us it was a good cruise. Other people have not got the same opinion. P & O want people to cruise out of Australia, well they had better get their act together and provide a better package.[/quote']

 

It's funny but reading this you could be describing our exeperince on the 2 night relocation cruise that we did on Dawn Princess back in June. I could pretty much replace Pacific Dawn with Dawn Princess and P&O with Princess and you'd have a review of our 2 nighter.

 

We spent 16 nights on Pacific Dawn in 2008 and had wonderful service the whole time.

 

One thing I learnt from our cruise on Dawn Princess was not to base your decision about a ship solely on one of those 2 night sampler/relocation cruises. We travelled with people who'd done a 14 night cruise on Dawn Princess and they said that the service we got on the 2nighter was in no way reflective of the service they had on the longer cruise.

 

It's also important when comparing the ships to distinguish the ship (layout look etc) from the service. Princess and P&O are two completely different products aimed at different markets.

 

In terms of the ship (not the service) - I think Pacific Dawn is a lot nicer than Dawn (and presumably Sun) Princess. I found the atrium (and other public areas) on Dawn Princess very busy and cluttered, whereas Pacific Dawn was much more open.

[karmac]

........ no shampoo and conditioner in the bathrooms' date='...........We found the service on board to be poor in the dining room and in fact most areas of the ship. Now, whether that has to do with the fact it was only a 2 nighter I don't know, [/quote']

 

We have cruised on PD 3 times now and always had shampoo & conditioner in the bathroom.

 

Also, as Kym said, (although I didn't go on the 2 nighter DP cruise in June) I have spoken to quite a few people who did and they said the service was very poor. The service we had on our PD cruises were always of a very high standard.

[MTBrown]

Hi there. I have also been on two cruises on Pacific Dawn and no probs with the service.

 

 

cheers Mick

[bazzaw]

I had no problems with anything on the PD relocation cruise. ( except for the embarkation and disembarkation procedures)

 

I thought that the ship was great ( lot larger and more comfortable than Pac Sun) - and everywhere I went I was greeted enthusiastically by staff. Service in the restaurant was top class. Food was good.

 

I often wonder about people's expectations. I have noted that first timers are commonly satisfied with their experience - whereas the more that somebody cruises, the more "picky" they seem to get.

 

There are definite classes of ship. eg I have heard Pac Sun referred to as a 3 Star ship and Pac Dawn as a 3.5 Star ship. Others are referred to with a higher rating. It is difficult to correlate this so-called class rating with prices for tickets - as prices are VERY variable for many reasons.

 

Just remember - we could all be living now in some cave in Afghanistan - it is only an accident of birth that we are not!!! :mad:

 

 

Barry

[Kruzein]

I have cruised on the Pacific Dawn 6 times and have obviously enjoyed it or wouldnt of gone back and it all hasnt been smooth sailing, things do go wrong and have gone wrong both with the ship and mother nature and i can tell you i will be cruising on her again at the drop of a hat given the right opportunity.

 

I done my first cruise with Princess last month it was a 2 night cruise and i enjoyed the ship, however i thought the food was ordinary and the staff were missing in action found it impossible to get to the bar or find a waiter and that is maybe the practice on short cruisers, I know other people in the group felt the same way but as someone said try a longer cruise and i will do that and see what happens.

 

As for shampoo in the cabins that is the dispenser int he shower and the cake of soap is for washing maybe it could be labelled clearer as it probably isnt.

 

The only complaint i have is the embarkation/disembarkation at OPT and in Brisbane the OPT i have never liked i prefer Wharf 8 however the staff were very sour full of themselves especailly the female with the walkie talkie that took chairs off people and made them stand up in the heat whilst she stood in the a/c but other then that no probs

 

cant wait to cruise again :)

[maf101]

I did the 2 nighter on Dawn.

 

I don't think there was a problem with the staff. The problem is us. Most of us have sailed before and we are missing all of that stuff we enjoy so much like planning shore tours, talking about our daily adventures, writing post cards, admiring the size of the ship from ashore, etc

 

Being on the ship isn't enough. We didn't unpack. The pools where closed. There wasn't enough time to experience all the ship has to offer and we feel sad because we missed out on all those little things that make a cruise a cruise.

 

I got the feeling some staff didn't like that fact the ship was moving to Brisbane. Other than that I didn't have a problem with the staff.

 

I didn't mind the ship sailing late. It was great to watch the lightening over Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was fun because people cheered at the lightening and it gave us more time to take photos.

 

My cabin was set up as a Queen instead of Twin. My steward fixed that. I didn't have any shampoo or conditioner but seriously who cares about sample packs when we're paying $99pp twin share. I even got an outside cabin.

 

The ship seems less crowded than the Sun. We didn't have to wait long for anything. It's not a fancy ship but it seems nice. I liked the deck area where the pools are and the whirlpools. I love laying on deck.

 

I noticed a vibration in the buffet. We sat at one particular table that felt like we were on a bumpy roller coaster. We kept bouncing up and down. LOL!

[suey]

My guess would be that they've had problems with the first turnaround of the ship. I've heard from people who disembarked this morning and others who embarked this afternoon that the mobile gangway was out of action - which would have meant boarding onto Deck 3 rather than onto Deck 5 - which would have slowed things down I imagine.

 

This gangway has been out of action for a while at least since our last cruise in October. At least the gangway on Sat was not as steep as the Sun, better for all those in wheelchair transfer to walk up when they got to ship.

[Skyrules]

This gangway has been out of action for a while at least since our last cruise in October. At least the gangway on Sat was not as steep as the Sun, better for all those in wheelchair transfer to walk up when they got to ship.

 

Saw some photo's of Pacific Dawn in Brisbane on Saturday and saw that they gangway was going onto deck 5 not deck 3. Wheelchairs are a problem - we noticed that when we boarded Pacific Sun, but the guys on the gangway were doing a wonderful job.

[Sandielle]

Saw some photo's of Pacific Dawn in Brisbane on Saturday and saw that they gangway was going onto deck 5 not deck 3. Wheelchairs are a problem - we noticed that when we boarded Pacific Sun, but the guys on the gangway were doing a wonderful job.

 

There was a good article in this morning's Courier Mail. Mike O'Connor interviewed Ann Sherry. She claimed the gangway was the reason for late departure from Brisbane last Saturday.

 

http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26519696-5012446,00.html

[bundydi]

I went on the Pacific Dawn Christmas cruise that departed Brisbane on 19 December. I was advised by text message, phone call to my mobile and phone call to my home phone with a recorded message that departure would be delayed due to technical difficulty with a gangway and traffic in the river.

I really enjoyed my cruise and would not hesitate to go on Pacific Dawn again. I have cruised on Pacific Sky, Pacific Sun, Pacific Star, Sun Princess and Dawn Princess. I like the Princess Ships the best but would still go on any of the P&O ships any day.

On the second day I had breakfast at the back of the restaurant and there was a big vibration from the engines. That day when I booked my dinner for the rest of the cruise, I asked for a table at the front of the restaurant as I didn't feel the best while sitting in the back. This was no problem and they booked me a table at the front for the remainder of the cruise.

[Ashleigh]

On the second day I had breakfast at the back of the restaurant and there was a big vibration from the engines. That day when I booked my dinner for the rest of the cruise, I asked for a table at the front of the restaurant as I didn't feel the best while sitting in the back. This was no problem and they booked me a table at the front for the remainder of the cruise.

 

Thanks for this information. Now that I've been pre-warned, we'll be doing the same for our cruise - not long now! :D It all helps to make a great cruise, better. Cheers!