Recent Dawn guests

[seemoreroyals]

Just off the Dawn also.

1. Staff at embarkation still learning their jobs....slow.

2. Staff in the regular dining rooms.......super slow in getting served.

3. No lobster other than a lobster dish.

4. Casino packed most nights as it was a Harrah's Total Rewards sailing.

5. Entertainment staff was Dingo Dave (CD), Tom (ACD), Alvin, Shirley, a lady from Saint Lucia and one from New York. All full of energy.

6. Thanks to Captain Martin for staying until the winds died down in Belize. The two Carnival ships didnt wait while us and the NCL Sun was able to tender 1.5 hrs later.

7. Shows in Star Dust was a) Welcome aboard; b) Band on the Run; c) Une Vie D'Amour; d) Showdown; e) 2nd City; f) Elements; g) Thrillusionist

 

8. Alain is the Hotel Director, very approachable.

9. Moderno and Cuciana were very good. Bamboo was slow. Blue Lagoon the fish was overcooked.

10. Ship has wear and stains on a lot of the carpets.

11. Disembarkation was a bit confusing as the announcement to not use the front elevators was not made early enough. They will not let you off on Deck 7.

12. Roatan is at Coxen Hole as this is NCL pier as Carnival owns Mahogany Bay. We were lucky to dock as the winds and waves were very strong. We had a private van so we still got to go to the places we wanted to. Even though we got soaked, it still was fun.

Thanks for the review. Did you happen to keep any of the dailies? And which one of the shows at the Stardust did you like the most? And I am glad you had good things to say about Moderno. I have heard that it is really good. I am disappointed to hear about Blue Lagoon. Did you or anyone in your group get anything good there that you would recommend?

[jetskier]

Thanks for the review. Did you happen to keep any of the dailies? And which one of the shows at the Stardust did you like the most? And I am glad you had good things to say about Moderno. I have heard that it is really good. I am disappointed to hear about Blue Lagoon. Did you or anyone in your group get anything good there that you would recommend?

 

I dont have a way to scan them but I have all 7 days worth. They were not accurate at times such as the free welcome aboard punch at the casino at 3:30pm. (in Boston it was at 4:30pm). It showed a blackjack tourny on Friday that didnt exist. The casino was more geared up to welcome aboard the Total Rewards folks (Harrahs). I still was able to snag a drink or two. :)

 

Element and the Thrillusionist are great. What surprised me was the steak in Cucina was the best I have ever had. The flavor was very good.

 

Blue Lagoon used to have Shepard's Pie but it is no longer on the menu. Not as many items as it used to have on the menu. My wife said she ate there later in the cruise and the fish was properly cooked. I guess a bad night when I was there. The dining room on embarkation day used to have great spare ribs for lunch, no longer on the menu.

 

I also forgot about the elevators missing buttons, not lighting up for some floors, one of the elevators outside indications at the top were pushed into the wall.

 

We still had a good time because we are easy going folks. I had a great time chatting with some of the photo staff. We had some 12 foot seas and high winds between Belize and Roatan. Luckily we are not affected by the motion.

Edited December 2, 2014 by jetskier

[jetskier]

Thanks matj, bosnatis, and jetskier for the useful information. You brought up something that I did not think about and that is bad weather. We only have prepaid for one shore excursion and that is maya chan at Costa Maya. Penciled in we have cave tubing in Belize, Little French Key at Roatan, and Cozumel at this point is still up in the air. I am hoping for some warm weather and plenty of sunshine. I guess we will make the best of whatever weather we are faced with.

 

We lucked up as we were suppose to have rain at each of our ports. Cozumel we got 30 minutes in the evening; Belize was just a drizzle; Roatan was 100% with almost gale winds; Costa Maya was great even though the surf was still up.

 

One thing I learned years ago was to bring a poncho and an extra pair of walking shoes. Not pleasant in soggy shoes the next day without an extra pair.

Dave

[seemoreroyals]

Thank you for the additional information jetskier. I will have to check with my wife but I do not think we have any ponchos packed. Just been looking at the forecast and it looks like it is going to be raining while we are down there as well. And I absolutely hate walking in wet shoes so have not figured out to deal with that yet.

 

I think when we eat at La Cucina I think I am going to get the Ribeye and my wife is going to get the Lobster pasta dish and we are going to split them. Glad to hear the rave review about the Ribeye. We are getting excited. Our sailaway is just a few days away and I definitely thank you for the useful information you are sharing.

[jetskier]

Thank you for the additional information jetskier. I will have to check with my wife but I do not think we have any ponchos packed. Just been looking at the forecast and it looks like it is going to be raining while we are down there as well. And I absolutely hate walking in wet shoes so have not figured out to deal with that yet.

 

I think when we eat at La Cucina I think I am going to get the Ribeye and my wife is going to get the Lobster pasta dish and we are going to split them. Glad to hear the rave review about the Ribeye. We are getting excited. Our sailaway is just a few days away and I definitely thank you for the useful information you are sharing.

 

Since NCL uses the open lot at Julia St at $16 a day, an option is Fulton Garage at $8 per day for rooftop or $10 per day for inside. You have to book online to take advantage of the rates at http://www.neworleansparking.com There is a free shuttle to and from the port. The garage is about a block from the terminal.

 

Dave

[seemoreroyals]

Since NCL uses the open lot at Julia St at $16 a day, an option is Fulton Garage at $8 per day for rooftop or $10 per day for inside. You have to book online to take advantage of the rates at http://www.neworleansparking.com There is a free shuttle to and from the port. The garage is about a block from the terminal.

 

Dave

 

Thank you for posting the information about the parking. The last thing anyone needs when they are going on a cruise is to be ripped off to the tune of $16 per day for parking. Fortunately for us we are part of the Harrah's group and one of the free perks we are getting is free parking at Harrah's parking garage as well as being shuttled back and forth to the cruise ship.

[beyer4]

Thanks matj, bosnatis, and jetskier for the useful information. You brought up something that I did not think about and that is bad weather. We only have prepaid for one shore excursion and that is maya chan at Costa Maya. Penciled in we have cave tubing in Belize, Little French Key at Roatan, and Cozumel at this point is still up in the air. I am hoping for some warm weather and plenty of sunshine. I guess we will make the best of whatever weather we are faced with.

 

Have you visited Maya Chan in Costa Maya before, Seemoreroyals? We went there on one of our cruises, it was a wonderful place. We have it scheduled for this next cruise, it is the first time for 9 of our group of 15. We are looking forward to it.

[pathubia]

We booked Maya Chan, too!! Cant wait!!

:cool:

[seemoreroyals]

Have you visited Maya Chan in Costa Maya before, Seemoreroyals? We went there on one of our cruises, it was a wonderful place. We have it scheduled for this next cruise, it is the first time for 9 of our group of 15. We are looking forward to it.

 

No this will be our 1st visit to Maya Chan. Our ship is scheduled to be at Costa Maya next Fri. 12/12. The good news is that our ship will be the only boat in port so it probably won't be too crowded. The bad news is that our ship will only be at Costa Maya from 8AM until 4PM so they may have to drag us kicking and screaming back to the ship. I understand that it is a very relaxing and beautiful place and that the food is great and the drinks will be flowing. I hope we have some nice weather to enjoy it while we are there.

[jetskier]

No this will be our 1st visit to Maya Chan. Our ship is scheduled to be at Costa Maya next Fri. 12/12. The good news is that our ship will be the only boat in port so it probably won't be too crowded. The bad news is that our ship will only be at Costa Maya from 8AM until 4PM so they may have to drag us kicking and screaming back to the ship. I understand that it is a very relaxing and beautiful place and that the food is great and the drinks will be flowing. I hope we have some nice weather to enjoy it while we are there.

 

That is the one thing I am thankful to NCL for....they are willing to burn the extra fuel.

 

NCL leaves Costa Maya at 4pm on Friday.

CCL Dream leaves Cozumel at 4pm on Friday.

There is about a 128 mile (207km) difference between the two.

They will both arrive at New Orleans at about the same time on Sunday.

 

Carnival only does three ports of call while NCL does four from New Orleans.

 

Dave

Edited December 3, 2014 by jetskier

[matj2000]

That is the one thing I am thankful to NCL for....they are willing to burn the extra fuel.

 

NCL leaves Costa Maya at 4pm on Friday.

CCL Dream leaves Cozumel at 4pm on Friday.

There is about a 128 mile (207km) difference between the two.

They will both arrive at New Orleans at about the same time on Sunday.

 

Carnival only does three ports of call while NCL does four from New Orleans.

 

Dave

 

4 ports is one of the big reasons for doing the Dawn.

I don't like 3 ports on 7 day voyages.

Last year on the Navigator, we missed GC due to weather, leaving us with only 2 stops.

I was very greatful when NCL waited for the winds to die down in Belize.

Especially after the 2 Carnival ships pulled out and left...

[ClarkBHM]

Thank you for posting the information about the parking. The last thing anyone needs when they are going on a cruise is to be ripped off to the tune of $16 per day for parking.

 

 

I'm amused. $16 per day for parking is cheap in some places... ;-)

[matj2000]

We booked Maya Chan, too!! Cant wait!!

:cool:

 

Be careful pre-booking beach clubs/activities ahead of time.

I did it one time and the weather was pretty crappy out.

We ended up losing the deposit because we never went.

Now I always wait until we get off the ship and check the weather before deciding what to do.

[seemoreroyals]

I'm amused. $16 per day for parking is cheap in some places... ;-)

 

The only person that should find humor in $16 a day parking in the person that owns the parking garage. They are probably laughing all the way to the bank. Paying $8 per day versus $16 per day is a lots of savings IMO.

[sebas030]

The only person that should find humor in $16 a day parking in the person that owns the parking garage. They are probably laughing all the way to the bank. Paying $8 per day versus $16 per day is a lots of savings IMO.

 

In New-York city I pay the 40$ per day to park at the pier.

 

In Boston I paid 16$ for pier parking and yes I found it cheap.

 

I will not park a few blocks away from the pier to save 50$ on a cruise that cost in the couple of thousands....

 

Since we always have a long drive back home right after the cruise, the time saved by parking at the pier is worth the "premium" of pier parking $$

[seemoreroyals]

In New-York city I pay the 40$ per day to park at the pier.

 

In Boston I paid 16$ for pier parking and yes I found it cheap.

 

I will not park a few blocks away from the pier to save 50$ on a cruise that cost in the couple of thousands....

 

Since we always have a long drive back home right after the cruise, the time saved by parking at the pier is worth the "premium" of pier parking $$

 

My condolences sebas030. That is a lot to pay for parking. I am glad it is you and not me that is paying $40 a day for a place to park your car. There has got to be some better options than that.

[matj2000]

In New-York city I pay the 40$ per day to park at the pier.

 

In Boston I paid 16$ for pier parking and yes I found it cheap.

 

I will not park a few blocks away from the pier to save 50$ on a cruise that cost in the couple of thousands....

 

Since we always have a long drive back home right after the cruise, the time saved by parking at the pier is worth the "premium" of pier parking $$

 

 

You can pay $65 for the week in Galveston.

And I think they even have a $10 off coupon.

[ClarkBHM]

In Honduras we did Maya Key through NCL and had a great time. In Cozumel we took a taxi to Paradise beach and the kids had a ball, very inexpensive.

 

We're thinking about Maya Key for our 8 and 6 year old kids. Is it worth it for kids that age?

[bosnatis]

We took our 7, 11 and 12 year old boys and they enjoyed it. I will post pictures on this thread later tonight.

 

Sent from my SM-N900T using Forums mobile app

[bosnatis]

I could not upload the pictures, it says error uploading. If you send me your email address I will email them to you. blazenickerson@gmail.com. You can go snorkeling, hold a macaw, a baby alligator and get to see lots of other animals. They also had good food which was included and a nice pool to cool off if your kids do not like the salt water. The snorkeling was nice but it does have a large drop off after about 30 feet. My 8 year old was a little scared.

[garycarla]

In New-York city I pay the 40$ per day to park at the pier.....

I will not park a few blocks away from the pier to save 50$ on a cruise that cost in the couple of thousands......

 

I have to chuckle at this logic. Since I spent so much on the cruise, I should spend extra on parking. On the flip side, I would guess somebody that spent less should then save on the parking.

 

I guess what I am trying to say is the choice in parking/price really has nothing to do with the cost of the cruise. If anything, logic would lean one towards the opposite.

 

Seriously though. People can make whatever choice they want for parking. I get the decision to have the car right there and not save the $50. Really, I get that.

 

As to the logic, I just chuckle.

 

LOL!