Pacific Dawn or Pacific Jewel

[zekemal]

Just wondering what would be a better ship for first time cruisers...I have been on pacific dawn and is planning on taking a group of people on a cruise.... there are kids coming as well...which ship would be better.

[Skyrules]

Just wondering what would be a better ship for first time cruisers...I have been on pacific dawn and is planning on taking a group of people on a cruise.... there are kids coming as well...which ship would be better.

 

They are basically the same ship, so it really comes down to your prefered departure port (Sydney or Brisbane) or the itinerary you want to do.

[zekemal]

i've heard some negative comments about the pacific jewel though...where as i really loved the pacific dawn...

[The_Big_M]

I don't think there's a lot of negativity now against the Jewel. There are some small differences in layout though, but I wouldn't say it's a big difference given you've been on Dawn.

[Aus Traveller]

We have cruised on both ships. The main advantage of the Dawn is the Dome, which on the Jewel is the gym and spa with only a small nightclub on one side. There were a few problems on the inaugural cruise on the Jewel, mainly (in my opinion) because of new staff. It didn't take long for all this to be sorted out. We were on the inaugural cruise, and I felt that some of the negative comments made about this trip were unfounded and exaggerated.

 

As Skyrules said, with the ships so similar, the main factors are the itinerary and the port of departure. If I was choosing a cruise and (hypothetically) both the Dawn and Jewel were sailing on the same itinerary, I would choose the Pacific Jewel.

[Sandielle]

Apparently, (but I've only seen photos) the Jewel has a more striking decor.

 

However, the Dawn is going into Dry Dock for maintenance and a refurb from 15th to 29th May, so I am looking forward to seeing what they have done since our Feb cruise - when we cruise in June! :D

[Brossy]

I have been on both ships. You have mentioned kids coming along. What ages are they? The Pacific Dawn has an extra pool which is great for the kids behind the larger pool whereas the Pacifc Jewel doesn't. My kids (especially the 3 & 6 year old) used the smaller pool a lot as they couldn't get out of the large pool - especially on seadays. There are only 2 spas on the Jewel - something else the kids used a lot.

 

The kids club on the Jewel is located deck 14 aft. You can only access it from outside. If you have sleeping kids it's a long way back to the cabin especially if it's cold and windy whereas on the Pac Dawn it's on deck 6 inside.

 

The restaurant is a lot nicer on the Jewel but the Dawn's might get a makeover during it's drydock.

 

I love both ships but my preference only because I have younger kids is the Pacific Dawn (but now that it lives in Qld we have to travel to get there).

 

The Dawn has Sundae's - which my kids loved because of the extras you could have crushed into your ice cream. The

[Neil R.]

I did the Dawn in December and the Jewel weekend cruise in January. The Dawn was looking very tired, so I would wait to see what happens during the dry-dock. The Dawn is due to get a “Salt Grill” (this was advised during the Food and Wine Jewel Cruise in Jan), so I suspect it will really come down to do you want to sail from Brisbane or Sydney, as both ships will be almost identical.

[seriola]

I personally just love the dome, day and night, so for me this is easy.

This is a very personal choice though and its just mine.

Jo

 

We've chosen the dawn for our last 3 cruises because we love it - but Im always open to persuasion ..

[Skyrules]

i've heard some negative comments about the pacific jewel though...where as i really loved the pacific dawn...

 

Pacific Jewel had some problems early on as the former Ocean Village crew got used to the P&O way of doing things - but by the time we went on her in March, most of these problems had been sorted out.

[cruisin-m]

Depending on the extent to which the Pacific Dawn gets refurbished... I would probably go with it.

It will most likely end up been identical to Pacific Jewel just with the dome instead of a waste of space spa.

 

The dome really makes the difference for me... maybe you should consider Pacific Pearl... it has the acrobatics and all the features that the Jewel introduced as well as the dome... you get the best of both worlds :)