Looking for recent Sky and Dawn passengers for advice

[party-of-5-ny]

I'm looking to book a 4 or 5 night cruise, taking a couple with us that have never cruised before.

 

I'm leaning toward the Sky, as it has recently be renovated.

 

How is the entertainment on NCL? My husband and I really enjoy going to the shows nightly, and we love to see a comedian.

 

And then there's the food question, is the food in the dining room and buffet area "good enough"? Or do you really need to pay extra. I wouldn't say we are "ultra picky", but I do like my food to be hot, and semi-well prepared.

 

One last question, our friends are smokers, we are not. For all the smokers out there, are there enough area's available for them? And also, on the flip side, for us non-smokers, did you find that most people adhered to the designated smoking areas?

 

Thanks!

[flowerchild]

I would opt for the Sky since it has not adopted the new "static menus". Same menu in the MDRs every day, with some specials that change daily. If you are tired of the same menu and none of the specials appeal, you are stuck. I am not a fan of the new menus.

 

The Dawn has some mechanical problems, but I do not know when you are planning on cruising and if the planned drydock is before or after your cruise.

 

I do enjoy trying a specialty restaurant or two while cruising, if you can, budget it in and choose one that appeals to you.

[sparks1093]

I would opt for the Sky since it has not adopted the new "static menus". Same menu in the MDRs every day, with some specials that change daily. If you are tired of the same menu and none of the specials appeal, you are stuck. I am not a fan of the new menus.

 

The Dawn has some mechanical problems, but I do not know when you are planning on cruising and if the planned drydock is before or after your cruise.

 

I do enjoy trying a specialty restaurant or two while cruising, if you can, budget it in and choose one that appeals to you.

 

flowerchild, you just described the menus that were on the Sky for both our sailings.

 

OP, there are plenty of places for smokers, including in their cabin. I personally never saw anyone smoking where they shouldn't. We enjoyed the food on the Sky, not every meal was super good but they were all at least in the good category (I'm thinking good banquet food). The shows were entertaining and we loved the comdedian (his act didn't substantially change from one year to the next but we still laughed). I would choose the Dawn for the extra day but you a 4 day on the Sky is a good choice too.

[2Cruise4Ever]

Been on both and loved both. But, if I had to choose, it would be the Dawn. We've sailed on her 5 times. We have never had a bad meal on NCL. If nothing on the menu appeals to you, you can always order steak, chicken, or pasta. The chefs are very good at accommodating special requests. And, we always go to a specialty restaurant at least once. Teppanyaki on the Dawn is superb! And, Cagney's on both ships is fantastic.

 

And, we did not see any obtrusive smokers. The most popular place is, of course, the casino. But, plenty of areas that are smoke free as well.

[david_sobe]

I LOVED the Sky and you can read my review. The Sky is the best deal on the seas. The only part of the Sky I was not thrilled about was the entertainment and theater. It is the old fashioned cruise line shows.

The Dawn is a newer and bigger ship with a much better modern theater. The Dawn would also be one more night at sea.

It would be a tough choice. I know the Dawn is having engine trouble and heading towards dry dock early next year.

So I would lean Dawn but it is a tough choice. So my choice would depend on room or suite on each ship. Also, the deciding factor would be where I wanted to go. The Bahamas are nice but is the Dawn sailing Cozumel and Grand Cayman?

I prefer the Bahamas.

Long story short, book me in another suite on the Sky and I will be happy :)

 

Another decision is how active you are. The Sky has an extremely busy scheudle with waking up in a differnt port 4 days in a row. There are NO sea days. Some like this and some dont.

 

Tough choice but since I was just on the Sky, I may lean Dawn.

[flowerchild]

flowerchild, you just described the menus that were on the Sky for both our sailings.

 

OP, there are plenty of places for smokers, including in their cabin. I personally never saw anyone smoking where they shouldn't. We enjoyed the food on the Sky, not every meal was super good but they were all at least in the good category (I'm thinking good banquet food). The shows were entertaining and we loved the comdedian (his act didn't substantially change from one year to the next but we still laughed). I would choose the Dawn for the extra day but you a 4 day on the Sky is a good choice too.

 

I had not heard that the Sky had adopted the "static" menus, like the Dawn and the Pearl...:confused:

[alwalaska]

I have only been on the Sky, so I will answer your questions below based on our experience on the Sky this past March.

 

I'm looking to book a 4 or 5 night cruise, taking a couple with us that have never cruised before.

 

I'm leaning toward the Sky, as it has recently be renovated. Some people have reported wear and tear on the Sky, but we thought everything as fine.

 

How is the entertainment on NCL? My husband and I really enjoy going to the shows nightly, and we love to see a comedian. The entertainment on the Sky was fine. We enjoyed the 2 musical shows. Rich, the comedian, was OK. Not the best I've seen, but nowhere near the worst either. We really enjoyed sitting and listening to Leo and his guitar.

 

And then there's the food question, is the food in the dining room and buffet area "good enough"? Or do you really need to pay extra. I wouldn't say we are "ultra picky", but I do like my food to be hot, and semi-well prepared. Food is so subjective. We thought the food was just OK. There were a few amazing items and a few things that did not quite make it to the OK level, but we never went hungry and we did not pay extra. The buffet had the smallest selection of any cruise we have been on and the lines did not flow well. The outdoor area of the buffet usually had shorter lines.

 

One last question, our friends are smokers, we are not. For all the smokers out there, are there enough area's available for them? And also, on the flip side, for us non-smokers, did you find that most people adhered to the designated smoking areas?

 

We are non-smokers. There seemed to be plenty of places for people to smoke, including in the cabins. As for people adhering to the "designated areas", that is hard since the ship really didn't designate the areas clearly. Just about any area out on deck seemed to be fair game.

Thanks!