Norwegian Dawn – review of 8/14/15 trip

[sallybrown2012]

We just returned from our Boston to Bermuda cruise and I wanted to share my thoughts while they are still fresh in my mind.

 

Overall, we had a great time. Any concerns about the Dawn being worn were for naught – the ship looks perfectly nice, with the exception of the seats in the theater which did seem to need reupholstering. The entertainment was excellent – much, much better than Princess (which is my main comparator – we have also sailed Disney, but that’s a different ball of wax). Having the Second City troupe on board was wonderful – we saw their mainstage show, a Murder Mystery lunch, a workshop, and their adult improv show. The food was pretty good, similar to Princess. Embarkation was a breeze, as was disembarkation.

 

The down sides: First, the ship itself didn’t have some of the features I love on the Princess ships, but that’s something I knew going into it (for example: no adult pool, no movies under the stars, no movie theater, really poor selection of movies/tv on the cabin televisions). Honestly the lack of movies at night was less of a problem than I anticipated because the evening entertainment in the theater was so good. The personal service was very variable – although we didn’t have problems getting seated in the dining rooms, some nights we had really bad service from our waiters, and most didn’t introduce themselves or ask us what we wanted to drink, or offer any advice, chat, etc. We also weren’t thrilled with our room steward – he seemed offended whenever we asked for something (and our requests were not unusual).

 

As for Bermuda, it was beautiful. We had arranged a private tour for the six of us with Ralph Richardson of Winsome Tours, and he was beyond fantastic – let me know if you want more info on him. The second day we took a cab to Horseshoe Bay. Taking a cab was easy, and the price is pre-set. The beach is really lovely. It has amenities (chairs to rent, changing rooms, showers, food for sale), lifeguards, and a fantastic view. The third day we went parasailing in the morning. We had planned to go to another beach, but there was a significant rainstorm so that didn’t happen.

 

I’m happy to answer any questions.

[pokerpro5]

Thanks for the review. I will be on the Dawn next month. I am not too concerned about it being "worn" because I just took the Sun last year, and it was fine -- and I assume those two are very similar.

 

I am also a former Princess cruiser. I agree with you that the lack of evening entertainment on NCL is frustrating, when compared to Princess.

 

Will the Second City Troupe be on the Dawn all year, or just for the Bermuda cruises?

 

I also once had a steward who seemed constantly annoyed with me. Fortunately the last one I had (on the Sun) was very softspoken and gracious. I didn't complain about the guy because my then-2-year-old son was making a huge mess over and over, so he had a tough job. That's not an excuse for him, but I decided that his attitude simply earned him no extra tip, rather than reporting him. I would have otherwise given him an extra tip because of my son's messes.

[sallybrown2012]

I believe Second City will be on the Dawn next month, although I'm not positive. They really were a lot of fun, and added a lot of interest to the (many) sea days on the Bermuda cruise.

 

Yeah, if we hadn't already paid the mandatory tip, our room steward may have been our first one ever to receive a less than suggested tip. But of course these guys know they are getting the required amount (at least, I hope they actually get it).

[JENNIEB]

Hi! Thanks for sharing with us.

 

We are sailing on the 9/4/15 to Bermuda soon. We are interested in the a Murder Mystery lunch. I am curious what you thought of it? How long is it and when was it? How many people did it? Do you have to participate in it? Did they offer it more then once ? Was it an older crowd? How was the food?

 

Thanks in advance.

[suesrn3]

We just returned from our Boston to Bermuda cruise and I wanted to share my thoughts while they are still fresh in my mind.

 

Overall, we had a great time. Any concerns about the Dawn being worn were for naught – the ship looks perfectly nice, with the exception of the seats in the theater which did seem to need reupholstering. The entertainment was excellent – much, much better than Princess (which is my main comparator – we have also sailed Disney, but that’s a different ball of wax). Having the Second City troupe on board was wonderful – we saw their mainstage show, a Murder Mystery lunch, a workshop, and their adult improv show. The food was pretty good, similar to Princess. Embarkation was a breeze, as was disembarkation.

 

The down sides: First, the ship itself didn’t have some of the features I love on the Princess ships, but that’s something I knew going into it (for example: no adult pool, no movies under the stars, no movie theater, really poor selection of movies/tv on the cabin televisions). Honestly the lack of movies at night was less of a problem than I anticipated because the evening entertainment in the theater was so good. The personal service was very variable – although we didn’t have problems getting seated in the dining rooms, some nights we had really bad service from our waiters, and most didn’t introduce themselves or ask us what we wanted to drink, or offer any advice, chat, etc. We also weren’t thrilled with our room steward – he seemed offended whenever we asked for something (and our requests were not unusual).

 

As for Bermuda, it was beautiful. We had arranged a private tour for the six of us with Ralph Richardson of Winsome Tours, and he was beyond fantastic – let me know if you want more info on him. The second day we took a cab to Horseshoe Bay. Taking a cab was easy, and the price is pre-set. The beach is really lovely. It has amenities (chairs to rent, changing rooms, showers, food for sale), lifeguards, and a fantastic view. The third day we went parasailing in the morning. We had planned to go to another beach, but there was a significant rainstorm so that didn’t happen.

 

I’m happy to answer any questions.

 

Thanks for the review, we leave on Dawn Friday and i am so excited! I would love info on Ralph we were thinking about doing a private tour.

Thanks

Sue

[sallybrown2012]

Hi!

 

First, the Murder Mystery lunch. It was really fun. First - get there early. We started to line up at La Cucina (the restaurant where it was held on the ship) at about 11:40, because we are a bit crazy with the early bird thing, but it got us seats right up front even though we are a party of six (they could just barely fit us at one table, it is really set up for groups of four or five). They start seating at about noon, and sit you at the tables.

 

I would guess there were maybe 80-100 people there. You are asked to participate by writing a catch phrase on a post-it, and then occasionally asked to shout things out (a location, an item, etc.), which is is improvisational component of the show. No one had to get up and actually participate personally.

 

It was offered once, on the last sea day, and cost $20 each. They started announcing it on the first sea day (first full day of the cruise) so you could sign up at guest services. The food was pretty much the same quality as the main dining rooms, but just one appetizer (dull salad), chicken or fish, and dessert. Don't go expecting special food! It lasted until about 2:00. We got a little antsy towards the end, since there were other things we wanted to do, and they took an "intermission" first for serving the entree, and then for serving dessert - I think they should have just kept going through it. I didn't notice a particular age group being there, just a sampling of the regular passengers; my teens had a few friends there, there was a couple with a baby, and older folks.

 

I hope I answered your questions - it really was a lot of fun, and I do recommend it. Just get there early so you aren't seated at the back!

[sallybrown2012]

Definitely contact Ralph - you can tell him that Sandy from his 8/16 tour recommended him. His website is Winsometransport.com. His wife also does tours and I'm guessing she is equally awesome!

[LEtue]

Although we didn’t have problems getting seated in the dining rooms, some nights we had really bad service from our waiters, and most didn’t introduce themselves or ask us what we wanted to drink, or offer any advice, chat, etc. We also weren’t thrilled with our room steward – he seemed offended whenever we asked for something

 

This was my experience on the Dawn as well. So disappointing and it has kept me from booking another NCL cruise - even though I try to never base anything on a sample of one.