Cruise out of NY in Feb...any comments???

[want2seaitall]

I'm looking at the NCL Dawn out of NY for next Feb.

How do you pack? I'm sure it is still cold in NY...but then the weather in the bahamas is warm???

Can you enjoy the ship on the first days...it being really cold and all???

Any comments on the Dawn??? I've only cruised RCCL and Carnival so far...but want to try the Dawn...mainly because the port and limited choice...but also I'd like to try the freestyle cruising.

Thanks for any and all replies!

RCCL Majesty of the Seas - April 2004
Carnival Inspiration - June 2003
RCCL Monarch of the Seas - July 2002

[This message was edited by dentalchic on 04-30-04 at 08:32 AM.]

[bratsuzy]

you risk snow storms!
Cold at sea till you get to Bahamas
& then Im not sure how warm it is there.
I would not not that time of year.
New york girl<<<<<<<<<<<

Suzanne & Michael
& my little doggie (Tyler)

[want2seaitall]

suzanne...is your father in law's name Ron??? I don't want to ask directly for you to reveal your last name...but I have a nephew living in your neck of the woods...Michael...who is married to a Suzanne. I could be your Aunty...in-law...lol.

I'm now looking at the Dawn's 10 night to So. Carribean instead. I know it'll be real cold in NY...but I'm sure it will be nice once down in So. Carrib. Packing is going to be a nightmare I'm sure. But atleast we don't have ot fly.

RCCL Majesty of the Seas - April 2004
Carnival Inspiration - June 2003
RCCL Monarch of the Seas - July 2002

[uneamie]

We are booked for the 1/30/05 11 day on Dawn out of NYC. From what I have read so far the first and last day are ususally pretty cold...to be expected. However, it starts to warm up the second day and gets warmer from that point on. We choose the 11 day to get the most of the the warm days that we crise. I expect that we will get at least 8 or 9 good days hopefully.

As for snow getting in the way. Travel insurance is good for that issue. We have an "all wheel drive vehicle" so we don't worry about that unless it's a blizzard that shuts everything down. How likely is that?

Traffic at the ports in the winter is much better than the summer. The Dawn is the only ship in port in January and Feburary. We boarded Carnival in October when there were 4 ships in port and boy was that ever a nightmare. 2 hours to go 3 city blocks.

One last thing. The sea is rough in the winter on the first and last day, so if there are touchy tummies take some "Bonnie" or "Dramamine".


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Countdown - Dawn 11 day cruise

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Home Lines - 5/1988
Disney Wonder - 10/1998
Carnival Triumph - 7/2002
Carnival Legend - 10/2003
NCL - Dawn - 1/2005
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[uneamie]

Deleting these post...something silly happened

[uneamie]

deleting

[trish1c]

There's some sort of weather guarentee included w/ the winter voyages out of NYC. Sometimes the Hudson River does freeze & nothing can move. It is a risk, but NCL has you covered on that one. I think. Don't take my word for it; read your contract.

I've shied away from the Dawn b/c I didn't want to "waste" 2 cruise days in the cold. For me, especially coming home, it would be sad not to be able to lay out by the pool. I think I would enjoy the trip in the Spring, so at least I'm not returning to deep freeze. I also think I'd be very sad indeed if it was snowing on my cruise ship. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_frown.gif[/img]

Trish

[JH]

I was on the 2/29-3/07 sailing out of NY on the Dawn and by Monday afternoon it was warm enough to sit outside on the deck, some people were swimming. On the way home on Saturday the weather was still very nice and warm, up until about 3:00 or so, it started getting a little cooler. The weather in Florida and the Bahamas was beautiful, sunny and low 80's every day. Seas were very calm everyday, a little rougher for a few hours on Saturday on the way back, but I have seen worse. I have cruised on RCCL once and Celebrity twice, I found the food to be better on Celebrity, but we liked the fact that we did not have to eat at a certain time. The Dawn is a beautiful ship and VERY big. We were very lucky with the weather that we had.

[johnql]

I was on the 2/22/04 sailing of the Dawn out of NY. Luckily for me, sunbathing and swimming are not important to me on a cruise. So I would consider another winter sailing on the Dawn without hesitation. However, our Monday was still a bit chilly to be out on deck in beachwear. Tuesday thru Friday were fine. Saturday was chilly again with a brisk wind. That didn't stop quite a few stalwarts from bundling themselves in blankets and towels and stretching out on the deck chairs. If the warmth is a major factor for you, a mid-winter sailing might not be the best bet. If it's just a minor issue, then go for it. The Dawn is a beautiful ship with wonderful food, service, entertainment and amenities. There is more than enough to do inside the ship to keep you occupied.

[shoreguy]

I cruised the Dawn last Feb 5 for 10 days with 80 or so other CC members. It it was one the best trips ever. We had calm seas except on night heading to Barbados (go figure)

There are two threads on the NCL Rollcall focused on the 10 day Feb. Dawn. One from Feb 5 of this year with only 4000 posts to plow through and one for the Feb 10 2005 with many of the CC mebers from the first one.

[url="http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=frm&s=927093444&f=5023051067"]NCL Rollcall[/url]

Seaward 1/89,Southward II 1/91,Windward 10/93,
Norway 3/94,4/96
Dreamward 4/97
Dream 12/99
QE2 4/02
Carnival Spirit 7/02
NCL Sun 10/03
NCL Dawn 2/03,7/03,2/04

No Clock = No Next Cruise

[swoosh2005]

we sailed out on 1/4/04 and it was one of those balmy 50 degree days leaving nyc. It was chilly on deck departing but by the next day folks were out on deck enjoying the trip. Coming back was another story-it was one of those -10 degree days in nyc-school cancelled by snow 30mph winds-people watched the entrance into the harbor in the spinnaker lounge-it was freezing!
The day prior was also too cold to stay out on deck.
The thing is-if you don't like to fly-it's still a good vacation even if you're inside the ship-there's so much to do + just relax-the way I look at it, you waste 1 day up and back if you do fly.....
We're going again in december. The one thing I will not do is to park at the pier again. My car was so cold from the below freezing weather it almost would not start.

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=FFA000&cdt=2004;12;30;16;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]
Dawn New Years Cruise

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=191970&cdt=2004;5;10;8;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]
until St. Thomas

Mariposa-crew
SS Independence
NCL Dreamward-NFL cruise
NCL Dreamward-MLB cruise
NCL Wind
NCL Crown
NCL Dawn x 2

[Chrisobrn]

I would wait!! I went in March and both sea days were freezing!! Also, Florida not always hot in the winter months!! Many days were in the 50's this past winter!! It's ALOT of effort to have only a few days of warm weather. Fly out of Miami or wait until at least April!! I was disappointed weather-wise even in March but the ship itself is beautiful!

[bratsuzy]

dentalchic ;

hi ! No My father in law name was David, He died before we were ever married.

But i would not mind a new aunt LOL

I live in port jefferson & i dont know anyone named ron!???
but hello anyway !

Suzanne & Michael
& my little doggie (Tyler)

[want2seaitall]

Just a funny coincidence...Oh well...happy cruising anyway!!!

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=191970&cdt=2005;4;16;22;00;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]
My first balcony on the Serenade - 4/16/05!!!

RCCL Majesty of the Seas - April 2004
Carnival Inspiration - June 2003
RCCL Monarch of the Seas - July 2002

[Dolphins]

I would not hesitiate to take the longer Southern Caribbean cruise in February. We did Jan. 25, 2004 and enjoyed it so much we booked the Feb. 10, 2005. How can you complain about boarding with winter clothing? It's far easier to hang it in your cabin closet than trying to stuff it in the overhead bin of a crowded plane. We had great weather this year. You can have rough weather sailing out of Florida also. Come next February, I would rather be boarding the Dawn than a plane.

[swoosh2005]

I personally would not rely on a midwinter vacation out of NYC to only go as far south as FL and Nassau.
The southern loop (10 & 11 day) really makes a difference with the warm weather. We've vacationed in the Keys in Feb. and its been too cold to go in the water.

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=FFA000&cdt=2004;12;30;16;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]
Dawn New Years Cruise

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=191970&cdt=2004;5;10;8;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]
until St. Thomas

Mariposa-crew
SS Independence
NCL Dreamward-NFL cruise
NCL Dreamward-MLB cruise
NCL Wind
NCL Crown
NCL Dawn x 2

[bragstarr]

I don't know about sailing down the Atlantic, but I will note that on our sailing on Majesty of the Seas last February, it was not exactly warm. Nice enough in Miami, rainy and gloomy in Nassau, and we never even made it to the RCI private island, as we couldn't tender in. We almost blew off the deck that day, it was so cold. Key West was a nice sunny day but certainly far from hot.

Given that, however, we are giving it another shot and taking the Dawn from NYC NEXT February. It may be cool, and I certainly anticipate it being so sailing away from and nearing NYC, but a cruise is a cruise, there's lots else to entertain you (not to mention EATING [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]), and the convenience of not having to fly--just taking a train for 45 minutes to Manhattan and then a short cab ride--is enough to win US over!

Explorer of the Seas (Western Caribbean) 12/7/02
Serenade of the Seas (Canada) 9/25/03
Majesty of the Seas (Bahamas) 2/16/04
Norwegian Dawn (Bahamas) 2/20/05

Until we sail the Dawn!
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