NCL Newbies Cruise the Dawn to Bermuda 10/20-27

[Beachiekeen]

We then came upon a beautiful stretch of beach completely deserted. I knew it wasn't Warwick but it was too beautiful not to stop at. Hubby and I ended up having this gorgeous spot completely to ourselves for the rest of the day. This is something we may not ever get the chance to experience again. Our own private paradise!

 

IMG_8766 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

648 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

650 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8778 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

I had only taken my old point and shoot camera to the beach. Hubby was like, let's take a selfie! I laughed knowing it would never work but actually the picture came out perfect!

 

653 by Steph G, on Flickr

Edited November 1, 2017 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Eventually we made the walk all the way to Warwick Long Bay. But when we got there, it was underwhelming and -gasp!- there were other people there!

 

670 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

So we immediately turned around and went back to "our beach."

 

664 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

658 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

652 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8772 by Steph G, on Flickr

[biker@sea]

We then came upon a beautiful stretch of beach completely deserted. I knew it wasn't Warwick but it was too beautiful not to stop at. Hubby and I ended up having this gorgeous spot completely to ourselves for the rest of the day. This is something we may not ever get the chance to experience again. Our own private paradise!

 

IMG_8766 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

648 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

650 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

655 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

I had only taken my old point and shoot camera to the beach. Hubby was like, let's take a selfie! I laughed knowing it would never work but actually the picture came out perfect!

 

653 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

 

:) Nice pic's of Stonehole Bay.

[Beachiekeen]

:) Nice pic's of Stonehole Bay.

 

Shhhhh...🙂

[fridaythe13th]

Great review! Definitely go back, there's so much to do. NCL has a "free" water ferry and I'd recommend you take it to St. Georges. Quaint little town that I think you would enjoy. They usually have a show at noon which involves ducking of a wench. Crowd participation makes it fun! There are also horse and carriage rides but I'm not sure how you book them. Someone will chime in I'm sure. The bus system is great too and the locals are so friendly and will help if you have questions on which bus to take where.

[Beachiekeen]

After awhile, a pop up shower came along and chased us off our beach. *sigh* Otherwise, I think I would still be there. So we reluctantly made the walk back to Horseshoe which had pretty much cleared out. Several shuttles were there to take us back to the ship. This driver was strictly a driver, he waited until the bus was full and even chased down a couple that tried to get off without paying.

 

Once at the ship, since we were wet, chilly and sandy, we were ready to get up to the room and clean up. This meant that I totally forgot to get the souvenirs I wanted at he Dockyard--a rum cake for my dad and fudge for my daughter. I thought later that I could get them after our tour on the last day but that didn't happen. So I was disappointed about that.

 

Since we had our suits on, we decided to head to the thermal suite and warm up in the hot tub. I had really wanted to clean up and then take the ferry to Hamilton for dinner at the Hamilton Princess. But by the time we got back up to the room to change, we figured it would be easier to just have dinner on the ship since it would have been hard to make the 5:30 ferry. So we decided to eat at the MDR since we had not been there yet.

 

First we went up to deck 7 to catch sunset, but it was hard to see since buildings from the dockyard were blocking it.

 

22815389_10210750042411569_1529754889767772005_n by Steph G, on Flickr

 

We had dinner at Venetian. I got spaghetti and salad.

 

IMG_8454 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8456 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

We got dessert for the first time on the cruise. Hubby had a coconut souffle and I got the warm chocolate cake. It was ok but fell way short of the chocolate cake on Royal Caribbean.

 

IMG_8459 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8460 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

After dinner, we went to the wine bar, Cellars, which we had not been to yet. I got ice wine and hubby got a glass of port.

 

IMG_8461 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

We ended up back at Gasby's for music. We pretty much ended every night there. I loved that we could always go somewhere for music even late into the night.

[Beachiekeen]

We were up early for our last day in Bermuda. I knew that we would be up early enough to catch the sunrise so I made some tea and went out on the balcony. (There was a coffee maker in the room in case anyone was wondering. I don't think I've ever had one in a room before.)

211 by Steph G, on Flickr

We went to the buffet for breakfast and then went out at 8:30 am to meet our tour bus. Today we were taking the Hidden Gems tour which would take us to Tom Moore's Jungle where we would swim in a cave, cliff jump and snorkel. We would also have lunch and ice cream in town. I was really excited for this tour!

 

A couple came late to the tour as their snorkeling tour had been cancelled so that delayed us just a bit. Not their fault at all but we did have a few things that made us run late which was a factor later in the tour.

 

Along the way, I tried to take some pictures through the bus windows. Since we had been part of the way already on the way to the beach, I knew what to look for and tried to be ready. One of the shots I really wanted was this green church.

IMG_8779 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

IMG_8785 by Steph G, on Flickr

This is a picture of a house of a very rich man in Bermuda that no one ever sees. Our guide said the gate is rarely open when he goes by.

 

IMG_8786 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

There are lots of bus stops in Bermuda and many of them are brightly colored. I tried and tried to get a shot of one but it's hard to do on a moving bus. So when I finally got it, I was very proud of this picture!

 

694 by Steph G, on Flickr

[Beachiekeen]

Once we got to the jungle, we were given a backpack with water and a helmet. We wore our swimsuits so we would be ready to swim once we got to the caves. (I had brought water shoes as well for this and I highly recommend them.) On the way to the caves, we saw lots of plants and our guide would point them out along the way and show us what remedies the plants were used for.

708 - Copy by Steph G, on Flickr

711 - Copy by Steph G, on Flickr

 

726 - Copy by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Our path through the jungle.

716 by Steph G, on Flickr

Hubby walked ahead of me and I would watch his footing in places where walking was more challenging. Our guide was a big help too.

 

710 by Steph G, on Flickr

[Beachiekeen]

The first place we stopped was at a lagoon. The guide had us clap our hands so that the parrot fish that lives there would come over. It did and it was beautiful. I didn't try to get a picture of it though. It was so pretty and I was happy to get to see one.

 

721 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

724 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Then it was on to our first cave, which was a dry cave.

 

729 by Steph G, on Flickr

Our guide took everyone's picture but the flash didn't go off on ours. I was able to lighten it some but it was still too dark to be post-worthy. When others got theirs taken, I would shine the light of my hat towards them but no one did that for us. Hubby took a picture of me in my hat.

 

731 by Steph G, on Flickr

732 by Steph G, on Flickr

[pcvtmom]

You're doing such a great job on this review! We are going to Bermuda, for the first time, in April. I'm enjoying your details and pictures!

[Beachiekeen]

Next was the wet cave where went swimming. The water was cool but not ice cold or anything. One thing I did not realize was that the water was 30 ft deep here--I guess I assumed it would be shallow. You are buoyant because of the salt, however, since I am not a strong swimmer, I was nervous to go in. Luckily there are rocks you can kind of stay close to to get to experience it without being in the deeper water. You would want water shoes in that case though as well as just making it easier to climb into the pool itself. Without water shoes, you have to go barefoot.

 

742 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Again, one of our pictures did not come out but we finally got this one.

 

IMG_8774 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Then it was on to Blue Hole where hubby cliff jumped but I just took pictures. There was a 10 ft cliff and a 15 ft cliff which is the one everyone did. I did ask hubby to pause at the 10 ft one so I could take his picture so you can kind of get an idea. The water was deep here also and it's a long swim to climb out (although again, it is salt water). So you need to be able to swim for sure to do this.

 

753 by Steph G, on Flickr

759 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

I barely caught hubby going in!

 

756 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Hubby after his triumphant jump!

 

757 by Steph G, on Flickr

[Beachiekeen]

You're doing such a great job on this review! We are going to Bermuda, for the first time, in April. I'm enjoying your details and pictures!

 

Oh thank you! I wondered if anyone was even reading it. I didn't find alot of information on this cruise or the tour we did so I really wanted to provide it for others.

 

I will try and wrap it up tonight. I'll also have a short review and pictures of our two days in Boston.

Edited November 1, 2017 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

Some pictures on our walk back to the bus.

 

748 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

750 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Next up was lunch and ice cream. I looked up the restaurant, Eliana's, on a map, so that meant we drove from the east side of Bermuda where the jungle is to St. David. I do remember taking the causeway and seeing the airport. Then we were supposed to go to Cooper Island and snorkel. And then I guess go back to the east side for ice cream before heading back to the ship.

 

However, after Blue Hole, our guide said the snorkeling at what I assume would have been Clearwater Beach next to the Cooper Island reserve would not be good conditions. So he suggested having lunch, getting our ice cream to go, and then going back to Long Bay Beach by the ship to snorkel there instead. He sweetened the deal by saying we would be assured of seeing turtles there. So everyone was excited about this.

 

I, however, was disappointed because I was really looking forward to Cooper Island and seeing that area. I guess I'll never know if it would have been better but I'm pretty sure it would have. My feeling is that the real reason for the change was that we were pressed for time due to delays and of course, it is within the tour guide's discretion to make such a change. But I was still disappointed.

 

Lunch was yummy. (My swizzle wasn't included, we paid for it extra.)

 

761 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

762 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

The ice cream was delicious. A cup of ice cream is included but hubby and I upgraded ours to a cone and hubby even got an extra scoop! I love having local ice cream at places, it is always so much better than Blue Bell--everyone here in Texas loves Blue Bell but the reality is it's nothing like having ice cream at a local place! There were a ton of flavors to choose from. I got Oreo and Cream and hubby got Rum Raisin and I think Bailey's Irish Cream. His was better!

 

772 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

773 by Steph G, on Flickr

[KatEnz]

Enjoying your review. Thanks for sharing.

[Beachiekeen]

After my ice cream, I got a picture of the famous Swizzle Inn.

 

769 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Here are some pictures I took on the way to the beach.

 

764 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8780 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

777 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

774 by Steph G, on Flickr

[Beachiekeen]

We got to the beach and the water was shallow and calm enough that I felt confident to go in once hubby said it was ok. But first I took some pictures. The beach was nice. I believe the official name is Somerset Long Bay but if you look at Google Maps, it just says Long Bay Beach.

 

784 by Steph G, on Flickr

785 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

I am a beginner snorkeler and only feel comfortable in calm water that is fairly shallow. We were given a noodle and this was the first time I had ever used one and it was helpful. Hubby insisted I come out since he saw a sea turtle almost immediately. The snorkeling equipment provided was good and I was able to use it comfortably. The water was pretty calm and flat.

 

793 by Steph G, on Flickr

783 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Hubby took me out and we saw a few fish and then a turtle. There was no reef or coral, just sea grass which the turtles like to eat I guess. After we watched for awhile, we realized we had gotten out to deeper water. So I told hubby I had to make my way back to shore. Once I was in shallow water, I decided to go ahead and snorkel more, just for practice. I then saw another turtle! But he swam away pretty quick so I didn't follow him too far. By then hubby had joined me and then our guide blew the whistle to come back.

So all in all, it was ok snorkeling with the turtles being the highlight.

Overall, we enjoyed this tour alot. Our guide was good and he had a tough job wrangling our group at times. I was disappointed with the schedule change but understand there was nothing he could do since our ship was leaving and he had no choice but to get us back on time. I highly recommend Hidden Gems if you want a little adventure during your visit to Bermuda. I also felt like doing this through NCL on the last day was a great idea since it gave us a chance to make the most of our last day without worrying about getting back to the ship on our own.

Edited November 1, 2017 by Beachiekeen

[Beachiekeen]

We got to the ship around 4:15 and all aboard was 4:30 so that meant no souvenir shopping. :( We had agreed to meet our friends from Canada on the pool deck for sailaway and then have dinner at the MDR. So we quickly washed up and met them on the pool deck. I had two more Painkillers, which ended up being my favorite drink. I was sad to leave Bermuda, but hubby and I had practically a whole vacation still to go so that helped alot.

 

We went to dinner at Venetian and I had pasta with short rib ragu and hubby had shrimp with linguine. We then all went to see the "hypnotist." This is not a show I would recommend. It was really cheesy and contrived and after all that pasta, hubby almost fell asleep. (I told him maybe he had really been hypnotized! He didn't think so.)

 

Now normally after a day like today, hubby and I would have maybe had a glass of wine and gone to bed early. Real exciting stuff. However, we had gone out almost every night and since this was the night of the "White Hot Party," we weren't about to stop now.

 

So we got dressed in our white hot attire and went down to Gatsby's. There was a drink I had been eyeing called a Rum Cake so I got that and it was delicious.

 

IMG_8485 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8486 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

If you had told me that I would be dancing and fist pumping on the pool deck until midnight, I would have told you you were crazy. But that is just what I did. I'm sure the two Painkillers and Rum Cake helped a little, but it was an absolute blast! Everyone was having a great time!

 

IMG_8488 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_3046 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8487 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

By the end of the night, the ship really started rocking since we were now headed into some rocky weather heading out over the Atlantic and back to Boston. I put my sea bands on and didn't take them off again until we were almost to Boston!

[L1211]

Wonderful review! Looks like a fabulous time. Thank you for sharing.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[riclop]

Thanks for sharing.

[johnandlinda]

Thanks for the review! We are “on the fence” about purchasing the spa passes for our January cruise. I love to just soak in a pool and the indoor pool sounds nice and we also just love finding quiet...my wife would love the lounging area

[Beachiekeen]

Thanks for the review! We are “on the fence” about purchasing the spa passes for our January cruise. I love to just soak in a pool and the indoor pool sounds nice and we also just love finding quiet...my wife would love the lounging area

 

The pool is a lap pool. The lounging area is nice however, it is aft and I could not stay in there on days when the ship was rocking as it was just too much movement. The lap pool was closed that day too. So if she is any way prone to seasickness keep that in mind. Otherwise we really enjoyed it. We prefer a more relaxing area and the pool deck was just too much! Also we were on a cruise that I thought might be too cool on sea days and thus the open air hot tubs would be too cold for me.

 

On a Caribbean cruise with warm sea days, I am not sure if we would have gotten it or not. However there is no adult area on the Dawn so that was also a factor in our decision. We felt like it was worth it to essentially pay for and use the spa as our adult area.

[Beachiekeen]

The last two sea days were spent mostly in the thermal suite, relaxing in our room, visiting the shops, packing, watching movies, etc. The movement started to bother me which is weird because this is the first time I have ever experienced any queasiness of any kind. I didn't feel sick really, just dizzy and walking was difficult. Even in Alaska where I could barely walk, I didn't feel like I had to lie down like I did on this cruise. I could hardly even enjoy the thermal suite since the movement was worse there.

 

Some things we did on the ship included attending the talent show put on by the crew which was fun and going to the last round of Deal or No Deal which was also fun. I was sad we didn't actually play along. Thanks to a tip here, I also went and had tea and scones one day at the buffet. Also hubby discovered the oatmeal cookies which were yummy.

 

Our angry seas.

 

IMG_8505 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

On Wednesday night we had dinner at Los Lobos and then went and saw Elements. We got the tableside guacamole (delicious), margaritas (yummy), tortilla soup (really good) and for mains I got the fish tacos and hubby got the red snapper. The mains weren't as good as everything else but we may have been too full by then to appreciate them. As usual, we didn't get dessert.

 

IMG_8506 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8507 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8509 by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8511 by Steph G, on Flickr

[Beachiekeen]

I had heard Elements was a can't miss and I agree it was one of the shows I've enjoyed most on any cruise.

 

**SPOILER ALERT**: If you don't want to know what happens at the end after the show, then skip this post.

 

...

 

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Ok I'm posting it now, last chance!

 

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Don't say I didn't warn you!

 

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...

 

At the end of the show, the entire crew comes out along with all the officers. It was a really neat.

 

IMG_8523 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

On the last day, we hit the thermal suite, watched a movie, packed and then saw Deal or No Deal. Before dinner we went down to Gatsby's for the last time. Hubby got an old fashioned. I got a glass of wine.

 

IMG_8540 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8542 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

That night we had our last dinner in the Venetian dining room. This was the night they had prime rib and bananas foster for dessert. The prime rib looked delicious and a lot of people were getting it but I just didn't want something that heavy. I got beef tartare, and a fish which were both very good and then hubby and I shared the bananas foster and it was the best dessert I had.

 

IMG_8546 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8547 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8548 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

[Beachiekeen]

I had not taken any pictures of the dining room so I took some.

 

IMG_8552 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8551 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

Before dinner we saw the show Soul Duo. I don't know that they always have this show on board but I would say it's a can't miss also. It's a Cirque de Soleil type acrobatic show and was very good--I had the feeling I've seen that couple in an actual Cirque show before.

 

Photography wasn't allowed but the stage looked so pretty before the show that I took a picture.

 

IMG_8543 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

We would generally show up 15 minutes or so before a show and had no problem finding a seat, although we did arrive 30 minutes early for Elements.

 

After dinner, we went to Cellars and I splurged and got my favorite champagne. This was actually a mistake and I knew better. The bottle was open so of course it didn't taste like it should have. I had seriously considered getting a glass of Dom Perigon since it would be my only chance to ever get to try it. But I would have made sure to ask if they were going to open a new bottle because if not, it's not worth it.

 

IMG_8553 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8555 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8559 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

While in Cellars, we realized we had phone service so we checked email, posted pictures and called home. Then it was back to the room for the night. Usually we would be sad but we still had a weekend in Boston to look forward to.

[Beachiekeen]

In case anyone is interested, here are pictures of the NCL ferry schedule we got in our room.

 

IMG_8534 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

IMG_8535 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr

 

And I am pretty sure I caught a picture of the ferry one morning from the balcony. (Although I could be totally wrong about this also.)

 

IMG_8468 (002) by Steph G, on Flickr