Dawn- has anybody had a good cruise on her?

[hmorrow]

We're booked in October from Southampton to Lisbon, with great ports. However, 99.9% of the reviews I've read for this ship are terrible. Especially in the food category.  It's been years since we've cruised NCL. Did we make a mistake?

[BostonGal35]

we loved Dawn!  although we sailed her pre-covid.  lots of changes to all cruise lines since covid.  my full review should be on here somewhere.

[redlock]

Was on the Dawn over Christmas and New Year,  really enjoyed it, no complaints. 

Best meal we had was Los Lobos.

[majmaj4]

I enjoyed the Dawn last summer in the Baltics.  Royal’s food was a little better but service was better on the Dawn.

[MeHeartCruising]

Sailed the Dawn in September for 10 days.  Enjoyed it very much.

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, hmorrow said:

We're booked in October from Southampton to Lisbon, with great ports. However, 99.9% of the reviews I've read for this ship are terrible. Especially in the food category.  It's been years since we've cruised NCL. Did we make a mistake?

 

No mistake. People like to complain about nothing. Don't believe everything you read on the internet. 

 

We have sailed on the Dawn it is is a lovely ship. And we would sail on her again if the itinerary was right. 

[complawyer]

If it will   put your mind at ease, we've been on over 20 ncl cruises in the past 13 years. on  the dawn about 7-8 years back. we've been on almost every ship in the ncl fleet except, breakaway, encore, prima, sky, joy, and a few others whose names i cant recall at the moment. in any event, while i'm not trying to appear as an ncl cheerleader, i can say without a doubt, in all that time, i've never had a bad cruise on any of their ships. cruising is what you make it, sure, some things can go wrong with being on a vessel with 2-3 thousand of your closest friends, the kitchens are preparing 1000's of assorted dishes, multiple times a day, to try and please an assortment  of tastes. sometimes, you may choose a shore excursion that isnt as exciting as described. you may miss a port (or more) due to weather or mechanical conditions.

 

look at it this way, you're on a floating hotel, going to exotic ports of call, you have an unlimited amount  of foods to choose from/eat. a variety of specialty restaurants, unlimited drinks, and no one will chastise you if you have one to many. By and large, the entire staff is there to make sure you have the most pleasurable experience possible, especially if youre booked into a haven or a suite. so my best advice to you, is ignore t he naysayers, and doomsday followers, get on the ship, relax, do what's offered, or do nothing at all.  Just enjoy the experience. We've been on cruises where i didnt bother to see any of the shows, didnt use any of the extra offerings (except the specialty restaurants) and was very happy and contented to sit on my balcony, with a cold beer, or glass of champagne, reading my kindle, and watching the ocean go by. my criteria for booking a cruise is (1) price (2) itinerary. I find that ncl offers best bang for your buck, on both counts

 

as a final note (and ive posted this before) the only thing that annoys me on any of the cruises we have taken, is that the hamburger buns always fall apart before im done with the burger. that being said, however, if thats the only thing i have to complain about, im batting 100%

[www3traveler]

I agree with Bird-- The Dawn is a wonderful ship.

 

Enjoy

[latebloomer56]

We sailed on the Dawn many times and loved each cruise. Our family members also loved the Dawn when we took them out of Boston.

Each cruise is different even on the same ship. Enjoy your cruise and judge for yourself, only you know what makes for a positive memory.

[julig22]

Keep in mind that people complain more often than they will praise.

Was on the Dawn last summer, Baltic cruise.  No complaints other than the casino lost my points and credits.

Food is so subjective.  And the staff changes.  And the suppliers change.  And supply chain issues happen.  So this week's cruise will be different than next weeks cruise - food might be to your liking, maybe not. 

 

But then I cruise because of the ports, not the ship, not the food. 

[cruiserbear55]

 

   We wish she were back in Boston. Our favorite NCL ship. Not too big, not too small.Just the right size.Not a lot of bells and whistles, but we're past that. Had most of our memorable meals at sea on the Dawn. So don't listen to the naysayers. Approach the cruise with an open mind, and hopefully you'll have a great time!

[Kierste]

We were on the Dawn last summer in the Baltics… had a lovely cruise!  Now, our ship was nearly empty (38% capacity), and there was zero nightlife because of it, but we had such a port intensive cruise, we didn’t miss it.  Early to bed and early to rise… We had great food (Los Lobos is a hidden gem), great drinks and wonderful service.

 

go and have fun!

[KeithJenner]

We are another who were on the Dawn last year (September) and had a great time.

[PammyMouse]

I also did Dawn last year for 7 days.  I agree with others that Los Lobos was the best food, but we also did Teppanyaki, La Cucina, and Le Bistro and had good meals.  The Cellars was a great spot to relax with a glass of wine and a book. 

PM

[SeaShark]

5 hours ago, hmorrow said:

However, 99.9% of the reviews I've read for this ship are terrible.

 

Could the problem be in the reviews that you've chosen to read?

 

Cruise Critic's review section for the Dawn (https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=ship&ShipID=265) has 2,930 reviews. Using the available filter, you can see that 1,841 of those reviews are either 4 or 5 star reviews...that is about 63%. Given that, I don't know how you calculated that only 0.1% of the reviews were not terrible.

 

I'm guessing that the 99.9% claim was over-exaggeration or drama to make a point, but I don't understand why people feel the need to do that instead of just being honest and upfront.

[hmorrow]

thanks, all...

[Andoria]

I wish the Dawn was still in Boston:) 

[SharkieQueen]

We had 3 excellent cruises on the Dawn in 2022 - the staff are fantastic, and the food was consistently tasty both at the specialty restaurants and main dining. Noel, the restaurant manager tours the dining rooms relentlessly making sure that guests are taken care of. Plenty of deck space so the ship doesn’t feel overcrowded. Unless you need a racetrack, water slide or laser tag you’ll have a blast

[njkate]

Just did a western Caribbean on her last month. We had a great time but that said she’s not my favorite ship, price would need to be really good with a good itinerary to match for me to book her again.

Food, service was absolutely fine as was the entertainment on a smaller ship,

I prefer the smaller ships so I will stick to Jewel, Jade, Gem etc as they have the Spinaker lounge and the great outdoors eating area at back of buffet where you eat outside. I missed those on Dawn as she does not have 

Edited April 18, 2023 by njkate

[bedfordmom]

Totally agree about those hamburger buns, need to start a petition for better buns. Seriously I love the Dawn, been on it 3x, probably the most of the ten plus cruises and would have done it again  except for a covid cancellation.  in 2020. 

[The Traveling Man]

We have sailed four times on the Dawn and loved every minute of our time on board.  Our first was a Western Caribbean from New Orleans in 2016.  The others were to Canada and New England from New York.  If you're lucky you'll get Alain Magnier as General Manager and Richard Matic as Cruise Director.

[Biffire]

We have enjoyed two cruises on the Dawn. It is my belief that the NCL ships all  utilize the same menu, with the same recipes. The crew all rotate on and off the ship every few months, with constant turn over. Some meals will be better than others, But I don't think anyone could draw a conclusion that food on one ship is better than the food on another ship. Will there be better food production crews sometimes? probably, but due to the constant crew rotation, I think that any differences are only temporary.

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

We've sailed on the Dawn a few times and I would not hesitate to sail her again!  I actually like the smaller ships and I think Dawn is in the best size range for us.  Not soooo many people, but big enough to have lots of amenities.  Never had a bad experience on her.

[Norway97]

Absolutely among our favorite ships and #1 in that size. Have not been on post Covid but I can’t imagine anything different than what has been seen fleet wide. A special shout out to the spa which includes an indoor pool. Enjoy every minute! 

[mking8288]

Our first big NCL ship then was the brand new Dawn in 2003 with the 23/6+ Blue Lagoon ... great cruise then and we're invited to see the (then, original) 3 BR garden villa.  Then on her twice since, most recently just before Covid shutdown - all great cruises, aside from normal wear-n-tear & minor maintenance issues, love the design, layout, ease of access and 3 banks of elevators plus stairs.  

 

There isn't a nearly perfectly designed ship, not on NCL and not elsewhere ... folks used to say things about the Epic, and now it's the Prima/Viva class & design.  Opinions and impressions about food is always personal, subjective and biased.   Balcony size is reasonable on average.

 

Go easy and blend in with the flow, bring a little bit of humor along, patience and hands on a iced cold beverage (chilled French-Vietnamese coffee on ice with condensed milk ... perfecto since we hardly touch alcohol).  Missed the Jean Ann Ryan production company shows, it was the best then and specialty dining only had a modest $10 upcharge p/p without 20%.  We kept on cruising then during the SARS days ... back again post-Covid, bags are packed for the weekend ... and going.  No mistakes.