DAWN Review: Just back...this is very long!

[yuckylucky]

Feel free to ask questions...I'm sorry this is so long!!!

 

Background Information: Husband (43) and I (33) have cruised five times prior to the NCL Dawn cruise (four with Carnival and one with Celebrity). This is the second time we’ve taken our daughter (3) and my mom (56). We are a middle-class family with the residing in suburban New Jersey (Wyckoff, NJ) and both are educators (husband teaches high school English, I teach college Communication). Hubby and I had one room and my mom and daughter had the cabin next door (8076).

 

I APOLOGIZE IF I’M VERBOSE HERE…THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG REVIEW SO SET SOME TIME ASIDE…LOL!!!

 

Embarkation: We arrived at Pier 88 after 12pm for our 5pm sailing. The ship was supposed to leave at 4pm but courtesy of Cruise Critic, we knew it would be leaving an hour later. Check-in was a breeze. Waited on line for no more than five minutes and set up our room accounts. The real wait occurred after checking in. We found out the Dawn didn’t arrive at 10am as it was supposed to but actually arrived at 11:45am. So, when we pulled up and I saw passengers on the ship, I was excited to climb aboard but found out at check-in that those were the passengers hanging out from the cruise coming in.

 

There were hundreds of people waiting to embark and we took our seats with all of them. We had Zone #11 to give you and idea of how many people got there before us (they call zones to embark passengers in an orderly fashion when there is a wait). NCL provided sandwiches, cookies, and drinks (non-alcoholic) at the pier while we waited for embarkation. The wait was easily three hours for us. We got on the ship at approximately 3pm without a hitch and proceeded to the Venetian Dining Room for a sit-down lunch rather than the Garden Café buffet (more on food later).

 

Cabin: We had 8076 & 8078 (category G, obstructed oceanview). We never spend a lot of time in our room so we didn’t care about the view…for the price we paid, it was a steal. If you get an obstructed oceanview on Deck 8, rest assured you can see outside your window without a problem except that you can see some of the lifeboat hanging as well. Also, please note: there is a ledge along those rooms and crewmembers walked on it daily to perform maintenance on the ship so you might want to consider drawing the curtains when changing! LOL…

 

The room was just fine. Slightly smaller than Carnival or Celebrity oceanviews but fine nonetheless. I would say three adults would be okay as long as they aren’t all in the room at the same time except for sleeping. There is ample storage: six drawers, large closet with shoe rack/shelving, exterior shelving above the drawers, two chairs, mini-fridge, full-length mirror and another mirror at the dresser, coffee pot, strong hair dryer (don’t pack one) and the hair dryer is located at the dresser, not in the bathroom. There is one standard 110V outlet (the kind we use in the US) and the others are 220V (the kind we find in Europe) so if you need to charge electronics, bring a surge protector/power strip with you. Also, even if you intend on only charging one item, if the adaptor is a big box, you might not be able to plug it in because of the direction of the outlet (meaning the box part might not clear the dresser below). There is a TV with limited channels, many being NCL channels but you can stay in touch with “the real world” by watching CNN. There is ample lighting including overhead lighting on the wall above each bed that does not distract your cabin mate if you choose to read your Freestyle Daily for the next day before turning in.

 

 

The bathroom is lovely…larger than Carnival or Celebrity (keep in mind the category). It is broken up into three sections: the toilet with a sliding door, the vanity area, and the shower with a sliding door. The vanity area is flanked by the toilet & shower areas. I have to say that a very large person might find the toilet area uncomfortable because of the sliding door barrier. I loved the idea that a kitchen faucet is used at the sink basin because you can easily get glasses under it or any vessel you’d want to fill with water. Standard toiletries are provided: shower cap, body lotion, and shoe mitt in a basket and they are replenished if you use one. Liquid soap dispenser at the sink and the shower has a shower gel and shampoo dispenser. LADIES: no conditioner! Bring your own! My hair took a beating that week.

 

Ship: The ship is beautiful. Very clean, very colorful. Lots of turquoises, magentas, golds, greens, etc. There are 14 decks (although you only see up to the 13th unless you are lucky enough to visit/stay in the Garden Villa on Deck 14. I will not go into the location of various public rooms since you’ll see that on your Information Card but will highlight some of the rooms. Easy to get around on the ship though…lots of elevators and never waited long for one. The Grand Atrium is on Deck 7 and houses the Java Café, the Reception and Onboard Credit Desks, Latitudes Info, and Shore Excursion Info. The Java Café is home for a delightful trio that plays wonderful music to sit back and enjoy…I wish I could remember the name of the band! But we loved them.

 

I didn’t use the Spa so I cannot comment but the El Dorado Gym on Deck 12 Aft is very nice. Other cruise lines use the air-compressor types of resistance machines for strength training and the Dawn has actual Cybex machines so this was nice. They also have free weights; a plus for my husband. There are about 16 treadmills, 5 ellipticals and 8 or so recumbent cycling machines. There is a sizable stretching area a ballet bar and stabilizer balls for floor workouts. The gym also offers daily exercise classes (some with a fee, some without).

 

If you walk directly through the gym, you enter the T-Rex Pool area for children. It’s a great area. There are several small children’s pools with small water slides and there is a Jacuzzi for you to relax in while the kiddies swim around and shoot each other with a water gun shaped like a bone. Please note: there was a lifeguard on duty and he was diligent about checking for toddler in diapers. So if you are cruising with a child who is not toilet-trained, s/he will not be allowed in the pools at all. Also, there are signs everywhere stating this. There was a couple in front of us about to put their little boy in the water and the lifeguard came over immediately telling them he couldn’t go in. They complained stating that they called NCL in advance to find out and that NCL told them it would be okay but the lifeguard said NO WAY. I commend him for that.

 

Speaking of pools, the Oasis Pool is located Deck 12 midship. I love that the pool has a tiled area on either side of it with about six inches of water so you can just sit in that and keep cool without committing to the deep plunge. There are also four Jacuzzis, two are covered (note: there is a single Jacuzzi on Deck 13 forward). People complain about the size of it but I think they complain because there is only one pool. I swam laps in it one morning on the Great Stirrup Cay day and yes, it’s long enough to swim laps. Now, on sea days when everyone is out there, it becomes Human Soup so yes, it’s crowded and no, you can’t “swim” really. However, it is big enough to get wet chill out on the surrounding lip, and go back to your chair.

 

Which brings me to everyone’s pet peeve: chair hogs. On sea days, good luck. If you aren’t out there at the crack of dawn (no pun intended), you are either lying out far, far way or not at all. Why is this? Well, when I strolled around at 7am one morning on our first day at sea, there were people already laying towels down on chairs and disappearing. The second sea day at about 11am, my husband and I went to Deck 13 forward by the hot tub and found a couple who saved 12 chairs up there. We put our things on the deck and hopped in the Jacuzzi. Thirty minutes later, none of the 12 chairs were occupied yet. There are signs in every deck area that state a chair left unattended for 30 minutes becomes up for grabs so yes, we could’ve made a stink or asked a crew member to intervene but then I wouldn’t want to spend my deck time in close proximity to two people who blatantly disregard ship policies so we moved along. On the last sea day, my husband saw three people reserve an entire row of chairs (18 to be exact) in the stadium deck area by the Oasis Pool. Kudos to NCL because a crewmember did a clean sweep of personal items left on chairs after an hour or so. We even saw one of the people come back to find his stuff gone and people in “his” chairs. He went ballistic…he told every person who was in one of “his” chairs to F-off as he pointed to each of them…classy guy.

 

Stardust Lounge (Decks 6 & 7 forward): Nice space! We saw some of the shows here (more on that later) and every seat was good. We always opt to sit in the mezzanine area since we have our 3yr. old with us and want the opportunity to make a beeline for the door without disrupting viewers. Mezzanine has sofa-seating with a ledge for drinks so we found it very comfy and never crowded. HINT: If you choose to sit up there, opt for the port side since most people have a tendency to enter the theatre on the starboard side just because of what’s located on that side outside of the theatre (that side is frequented more due to the casino, bars, etc.). It’s decorated nicely and I liked walking through the long hallway with all the pictures and fabric on the walls before actually entering the theatre…a nice touch.

 

Bars: Lots of ‘em. Topsiders at the Oasis Pool is an outdoor one as is the Bimini Bar & Grill on Deck 13 (yes, there is a grill and will cook to order). Free smoothie tasting one day for 30 minutes at Bimini…yummy! Spinnaker Lounge on Deck 12 forward is awesome. Amphitheater seating with a small stage. Chairs and sofas are super-comfy and you can look out at the ocean from the floor-to-ceiling windows. This is where we sat when we waited to disembark (more on that later). Dazzles Lounge is on Deck 7 and also comfy and has a funky feel to it…vibrant purples/blues/reds. The Pearly Kings Pub is tucked away on the port side of the Reception Desk. English tavern style with lots of wood and sports stuff…they aired the World Cup games in here and also held Progressive Trivia and Sing-alongs here (more on activities later). Gatsby’s Lounge is Deck 6 midship right outside of Impressions Dining Room and Le Bistro. Throwback to the roaring 20’s era is the décor…love it. Live piano music at night, nice touch for the ambience.

 

Restaurants: What you’ve been waiting to hear about, right? The Freestyle option allows you to eat whenever you want, wherever you want. No set time and table but you can request that if you like cruising that way. Reservations for specialty restaurants can be made at the makeshift desk located in the Grand Atrium or by calling restaurants directly from your room or visiting them in person. I reserved tables using all three methods. Reserving in person is nice because you are given a slip of paper confirming the date and time of your reservation; a luxury not afforded for phoning in. The one time I phoned in a reservation I asked for 5:30pm and got 7:30pm and didn’t know that until I showed up at 5:30pm and was told there was no room for us (Teppenyaki, more on that later). Getting a reservation was not hard at all. The earlier you do it, the more availability you will have from which to choose. Keep in mind if you need to cancel a reservation and don’t do it 24hrs. in advance or something like that, you will be charged $5.00.

 

Main dining rooms: there are three: Venetian (Deck 7 aft), Impressions (Deck 6 forward), & Aqua (Deck 6 mid). Venetian is the only open for sit-down breakfast, lunch, and dinner…the other two are only open for dinner. The nightly dinner menus are the same for every restaurant so essentially you are choosing which one to dine in based on atmosphere, not dinner offerings. The Venetian is the largest and grandest…very ornate and if you get a table at the back, you’re lucky because you will have a seat next to one of the huge windows overlooking the wake of the ship…it’s beautiful (we sat there for three breakfasts). Impressions was our favorite. Much more intimate and warm and we loved simply because it’s the only dining room with booths and so each time we ate there, we sat in a booth…it can hold six comfortably so be sure to request one if traveling with four or more people. Aqua has a very contemporary feel, low ceilings with twinkling lights resembling stars…turquoise and underwater feel to it (hence, the name). Very modern looking…much different from the other two. We liked the space but it does get noisy.

 

Keep in that food is incredibly subjective. Background on our exposure to all types of dining: we’ve experienced it all…we’re foodies…but we’re also not snobs about it. We can run into a Wendy’s for burger and fries and we’ve also had the same items at the 21 Club in Manhattan. Okay, that being said. Here we go!

 

The food in the main dining rooms was completely edible. Haute cuisine? No. Fast-food? No. Somewhere in-between? Yes. I won’t go into the details of the meals I had but will tell you that I enjoyed some more than others. Again, being such a highly subjective area, my opinions here will not help you. Each night was a different theme: Bon Voyage, Italian, French, Caribbean, Captain’s Gala, Freestyle menu, etc. Each night, there were always four appetizers, three salads, a pasta dish, three meat dishes, one fish dish, and one vegetarian dish as well as four desserts and ice cream (flavors changed nightly). The Cooking Light magazine offered their recipes to be used by NCL so you have the option of dining healthier for each category of dinner (Appetizer, Entrée, Dessert) and they list the nutritional value of each dish. Cappuccino is available free of charge after dinner but you have to ask for it…it’s not listed on the menu.

 

Specialty Restaurants (freebies first): Salsas (Deck 8 mid). Uneventful. We ate there our first night on the ship, no reservation. Showed up at 8:05pm for a table and was told to come back at 8:30pm so we had a drink in the interim. The restaurant is laid out on either side of the Grand Atrium so you either have a window table or table looking down at the Atrium (we had the latter). Ambience was nice but the food was unremarkable. It’s not real guacamole…it’s more of a spread…I believe it’s thinned out with sour cream. We had a reservation for Monday night and cancelled it after our dinner because we just weren’t interested in it at all.

 

La Trattoria (Deck 12 aft): Did not eat here since we are from North Jersey and are spoiled by my home-cooking and the zillion Italian restaurants we’ve grown up with and have no interest in eating Italian food on a ship. I will tell you that the La Trattoria menu is very limited and very basic in its offerings such as Chicken Parm and Fettucine Alfredo. No big shakes for us, palate-wise.

 

Specialty Restaurants (surcharge applies): Le Bistro (Deck 6 forward). $15.00 cover unless you order Fire Star which is $18.00. Small restaurant with views of original artwork from Monet, Van Gogh, Matisse, and Renoir. NOTE: THESE PAINTINGS ARE LEAVING THE DAWN TO GO TO ANOTHER NCL SHIP SHORTLY.

 

Appetizer choices are: Escargot in Garlic Butter (very good), Warm Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce (good, but not a big deal), and a Seafood Timbale which is smoked salmon with a seafood filling rolled inside with sliced avocado on the side (weird combo).

 

Soup choices: French Onion, Forest Mushroom in a bread bowl, and Beef Consommé with a puff pastry shell. French Onion was good and authentic so if you’re used to being served a crock of soup with a ton of mozzarella or provolone cheese covering it and using your fingers to peel it off the sides of the bowl, forget it. They use Gruyere cheese (as they should) and there isn’t a ton of it (as there shouldn’t be).

 

Salad choices: Seared Tuna on a lettuce bed with egg and olive…looked good. Caesar salad (same salad you’d get in the main dining rooms), and a spinach salad with sun-dried tomato, pine nuts, and toast points smeared with goat cheese. I had this and it was fine…although it seems more Italian than French.

 

Entrée choices include: Filet Mignon offered two different ways: Rossini-style or Béarnaise-style. Rossini is served with a veal base sauce and has a small slice of overcooked foie gras on top along with a sliver of black truffle. Béarnaise-style is served with béarnaise sauce on an au jus base. I had both (we ate there twice) and the cuts of the filet were perfect and cooked just right (ordered rare, got rare). You can also choose from steamed chicken breast stuffed with some sort of mousse (it does not look appetizing at all but probably tastes fine), I think there was a salmon dish (can’t remember).

 

Dessert choices include: Crème Brulee, Lemon Torte (my favorite), and Chocolate Fondue. Everyone raves about the Fondue so my husband ordered it. It comes with a pineapple carved out into a bowl with sliced mixed fruit for dipping. The disappointment: it’s not real chocolate. Fondue is supposed to be melted chocolate and this was chocolate sauce (think Smucker’s heated up). It was overly sweet and a bit runny for fondue. But hey, I told you this isn’t haute cuisine, right? Edible, yes.

 

Cagney’s Steakhouse (Deck 13 aft): didn’t eat there. $20.00 cover unless you over the surf & turf or certain cuts of beef, then it’s $25.00. HINT: The filet mignon at Cagney’s is from the same cut as the filet mignon from Le Bistro so why pay more for the same beef? Again, it’s the atmosphere. But the Cagney’s menu differs in that it is definitely more steakhouse-ish with its’ side dishes and variety of beef cuts like the filet, strip loin, porterhouse, etc.

 

Bamboo/Tempennyaki (Deck 6 mid): $12.50 cover for Bamboo and Teppenyaki is a la carte (almost all items are $12.00). Bamboo offers mixed Asian cuisine and Teppenyaki is hibachi. We opted for Tempennyaki and enjoyed it. Ordered the filet mignon rare and it was cooked rare. The salad was good and the miso soup was fine (not a big miso soup fan). The veggies were good and the fried rice was okay (needed a bit more flavor). The hibachi show was entertaining…more smokescreen stuff but entertaining nonetheless. They offer Green Tea ice cream which I’ve had before and I like it but you get so much food that I couldn’t eat another morsel!

 

Garden Café Buffet (Deck 12 aft): Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We ate breakfast there a few times and ate lunch there twice (never dinner). They have a Kids’ Café in the front when you walk in with a small buffet (both in offerings and size) along with kid-size tables and chairs. Our 3yr. old enjoyed sitting there. We never encountered any lines really at any of the stations. NOTE: There are hand sanitizers at the start of each station line and they encourage you to clean your hands before entering the buffet which is very nice. It’s the waterless, toweless hand-gel. Anyway, there is the standard buffet, a vegetarian buffet, and all the way in the back is the NY Deli. Standard buffet food was completely edible. The vegetarian buffet always offers a pasta station and you choose between marinara & alfredo sauce & garlic/oil with a small variety of veggies to mix in. The Indian food at the vegetarian buffet was very disappointing. I didn’t think it was possible to make bland Indian food which by nature, is full of spices, aromas and flavors. It was also very watery. The NY Deli is that: a deli. Variety of sliced cheeses, cold-cuts, and breads and they also will make you hot reuben sandwiches. This is where you will also find the burgers, hot dogs, fries, beans, salads, etc.

 

Blue Lagoon (Deck 7 aft): This is a mini-diner set up. Table service from a limited menu that includes Buffalo Wings (of Swanson frozen meal quality), Fish & Chips (hubby liked this), Pork Stir-Fry, Minced Beef Burgers, Potato Skins (not what you are picturing in your head…they are potato wedges in a bowl with melted cheese and bacon on them), etc. In other words, there is no rhyme or reason to the offerings on this menu but everyone should be able to find something to eat. You can also order here and have it wrapped on a tray to bring back to your room or outside.

 

Sprinkles (Oasis Pool): This is the ice cream area. Unfortunately, the soft-serve machine was broken the whole cruise so there were three hard ice cream flavors offered daily with sugar cones and limited toppings such as sprinkles (duh), mini-marshmallows, chocolate or caramel sauces, maraschino cherries.

 

 

Activities: The Freestyle Daily is delivered to your room by 9pm each night so I strongly encourage you to read it that night so you have an idea of what you want to do the next day. While we did not participate in everything, I can say there is a lot from which to choose. Obviously there is Bingo all of the time (which we do not play…do the math…it’s a rip-off…go to your local church instead), but they also had craft sessions like making beading bandanas (it was cheesy but my mom and daughter and I had fun), making roses from ribbons was another. There is Progressive Trivia offered on sea days. There are lots of seminars on body de-toxing, skincare, fitness, etc…all with the hopes of getting your to commit to a session of some sort (I didn’t do this but my mom did and all I have to say is I hope she got something out of her session for a $342.50 charge). At the pool, they have volleyball on sea days from 2-3pm which makes no sense to me since that is the time people want to dunk themselves, not be relegated to the sidelines for volleyball players. I think it’s a nice idea but they should offer it during a less-busy time. There was the oldie but goodie Hairy Chest contest as well as a Mr. Sexy Legs contest (no Ms. Sexy Legs…LOL). There was a sleight-of-hand magic show and also meteorologist sessions (yes, seminars on weather). There are a number of game rooms for playing cards or board games (which you can get at the Library: Deck 12 forward).

 

On Deck 13, there is a basketball court and on Deck 12, there is a shuffleboard court and two more on the starboard side of Deck 7. There are two golf ranges for practicing your swing and clubs and balls are there for you (on either side of Deck 12). There is a ping-pong table (often too windy to use though) on the port side of Deck 12 and there are two chessboards with oversized pieces (about the size of toddlers) on either side of Deck 12. There is a jogging track on Deck 13 aft and five laps equal a mile (I think). I loved jogging out there…when you’re jogging towards the back, it looks as though you’re going to jog right off of the ship…LOL! I can see how some might find that disturbing though.

 

I guess all I can say that you decide what you want to do and when you want to do it. Obviously during peak times, many of the things I just mentioned will be occupied so if you want to try them, go early in the morning…even early evening they’re being used.

 

Shows: We regrettably did not make it to many of the shows but did see Bollywood and the Guest Talent Show (P.S. there is a talent show for kids too). Bollywood was a really nice show. Very acrobatic and lots of dancing and costumes (I won’t give it all away but it’s worth catching). Let’s see, to put it in perspective, I would say if I paid $40.00 to see the show, it would be worth it. The Guest Talent Show yielded six contestants and they tape the show to send to NCL Headquarters where they look to select a guest to offer a guest spot on a cruise in the future as an entertainer…cute idea!

 

There are comedy shows but we’re always too pooped to party so we missed them (although heard from other cruisers that we didn’t miss anything…the guy with the ladder was not entertaining). However, you can see the show on TV in your room along with the Newlywed-Not so Newlywed game (if you’ve cruised before, you can skip this…it’s the same on all the ships).

 

Speaking of too pooped to party, there is a Chocoholic Buffet at 11:15pm one night and there was a Caribbean Deck party at the Oasis Pool one night and a 50s/60s Sock Hop at Spinnaker another night. Regrettably, we missed them because we were exhausted.

 

Children’s Activities: Kid’s Crew was great. Your child must be at least 2yrs. old to participate: no ifs, ands, or buts. If your child is under two, they offer the Kuala Lumpur Room for you which is full of toys and you can bring your child there to play, not to drop off…you must supervise your child. Our 3yr. old was in the Junior Sailor category which is for 2-5yr olds. All of the Kid’s Crew staff have fun names like Tigger, Koala, Jello, T-Bone, for example…the names tend to be alliterative with their given names or rhyme so it’s cute. The staff made our daughter feel so welcome which was great because we were able to drop her off for small clips at a time (an hour here, two there, for example). You can take a pager if you want in case you want to be paged if s/he is upset. If your toddler is still in diapers, you must take a pager because they will page you to come and change him/her (we fortunately passed that stage months ago).

 

I cannot comment on the other age groups and their activities but can tell you to go to the orientation the first night to learn about Kid’s Crew. They will give you a quasi-Freestyle Daily for the week so you can see what they plan on doing with the kids in each group. The Junior Sailors had a Princess Parade one night where the kids made crowns and wands and the staff marched them down Deck 7 for all to see. It was so sweet! They offer Family Pizza-Making Party, a PJ Party, they have a ball pit, T-shirt coloring, building blocks…they even offer to take your child as part of the group to go see the shows in the Stardust Lounge. We highly recommend this service if you have children. We left a cash gratuity at the end (they pool these tips) because we were so pleased with the service.

 

Shore Excursions: Didn’t do any…we winged it. They do offer a number of excursions and a session to attend to learn all about them which you can also watch on TV in your room.

 

Service: Saving the best for last. Not one complaint about the service. Our cabin stewards were fantastic and we never wanted for anything. Example: our daughter turned 3 on the trip and so I packed her gift and batteries for it. Silly me though forgot that all battery-operated toys for little ones require a small screwdriver to install & remove batteries. DUH! So, Devon, one of our cabin stewards, took the walkie-talkies and the batteries and went to Carpentry and had them installed for us. How nice was that? We tipped him for that assistance alone because what good would giving a 3yr. old a toy she couldn’t immediately play with be?

 

Every waiter/waitress we had was excellent. Never in a bad mood. Service with a smile. Many of them remembered us from only one encounter so even if we didn’t have them again another night, they went out of their way to greet us and make small talk. Reception Desk attendants were swift and courteous as well. One downside we encountered: you cannot check your room charges on your TV (as you could on Carnival) and therefore, if you want to monitor how much money you’re spending, you need to go to the Reception Desk for a printout and they are happy to do it. At the pool, we never felt hounded to buy drinks and yet when we wanted one, we easily flagged someone down and got them in a jiffy. They also picked up empties as they made their rounds which was nice.

 

Disembarkation: I guess it was fine. You have the option as a U.S. Citizen for early disembarkation and you do this if you can carry all of your luggage off by yourself. Otherwise, you are assigned colored luggage tags and then are called by color to disembark. We docked at about 10:15am and we naturally had the last color called so we were off the ship two hours later. Now, some might say, “Two hours? That’s ridiculous!” Well, I have to say we waited in Spinnaker Lounge which was practically empty (you are supposed to wait in a public area anywhere except on Deck 7) as opposed to other disembarkation procedures where we were crammed into a hallway or stairwell moving inch by inch.

 

Summary: This itinerary is good if you like to cruise for the ship and not the itinerary. There are three at-sea days. You are in Bermuda for one day from 8am-5pm and since you dock at the Dockyards, you must travel additionally to get to either Hamilton or St. George so chalk up at least two of those hours to additional bus/ferry travel. Therefore, you can’t really see all Bermuda has to offer. Great Stirrup Cay is a tender site (we didn’t get off the ship and it was the best day…1pm and there were still empty chairs right next to the pool) and from what I understand, it gets crowded there. You are in Nassau from 8pm until noon the following day so shopping is limited (if that’s your thing) or you can take a taxi to the Atlantis (we had been to Nassau twice before and so we stayed on the ship). Would we take this cruise again? Absolutely. Unfortunately, the Dawn is re-positioning and will no longer be a NY port ship after next year. The good news is we’re getting the new Gem (I think)…an all-balcony ship….rock on!!!

 

Yes, I’m finally done…happy cruising to all and to all a good cruise!

[pampaul]

Really enjoyed reading your post.. We're cruising on the Dawn next month and now I cannot wait. Thanks a bunch.

[cdaystravel]

Great Review. I especially like the tip regarding the mezzanine couches & tables. Missed that last year.

[powersl]

Thanks for your review . Its our turn to be on the Dawn in 79 days. Can't wait.

[yuckylucky]

If you can believe it, I left a couple of things out...

 

1. There is a self-serve laundry facility on Deck 10. I loved it. You only need to pay for the detergent ($1.00 per box). The washer & dryer are free and there are two ironing boards and irons which came in handy since I'm a terrible packer. You can pay to have your stuff laundered and around mid-cruise, they'll offer you a $20 all-you-can-fit-in-your-laundry-bag deal....the problem is you won't get it back for 48hrs. so if all you can fit is everything you brought, then you'll be going commando style for two days...

 

2. If you have been calling the 800 number for NCL to ask questions, unfortunately you cannot rely on what they say. Three examples: I called about the Dine Ashore progarm since we stopped in Bermuda. I was told we'd have the luncheon voucher offer and to go to the Reception Desk for it. I did just that on Sunday and they said Dine Ashore was not available for our cruise. Another example is the couple with the baby who wanted to go in the water. They told the lifeguard the 800# rep. said it was okay but he said it's not. Last example: we bought the $79 Anniversary package and was told that since dinner was included for Le Bistro, we didn't have to worry about reserving a table in a jiffy. Mistake. When I went to the restaurant desk to make a reservation and said I had the anniversary package, she said she didn't have anything available. I explained to her what I was told and she was able to accommodate us. Soooooooo, heads up on info you get from the 800 number...not reliable.

 

3. Be sure to go to the glass factory and rumcake store at the Dockyards in Bermuda...free samples of all kinds of rumcake (traditional was still my favorite vs. flavors) and watching the blown glass process was nice...the pieces are quite pricey though but absolutely beautiful.

 

4.Deck 8 is the oddest desk on the ship! It twists and turns every which way. All of the other decks have straight-a-ways for halls...not Deck 8! :)

 

5. If you take the second to last bank of elevators to Deck 13 in hopes of getting to the video gameroom or Kid's Crew, you can't. You have to go all the way to the aft and take that elevator (and only the 3rd one in that bank goes all the way to 13...otherwise take one of the others to 12 and walk up).

 

6. The deck chairs on Decks 12 & 13 forward are really cool...you lay out and look at nothing but water...very breezy too.

 

7. They really truly mean do not flush anything but toilet paper down the toilets...on one of the Dawn TV channels, they make a point of stating to not even flush tissues.

 

8. We never once waited for a table in any of the main dining rooms at 6:30pm. Beware though: it really backs up after 6:30pm.

[yuckylucky]

Okay, don't kill me...one more thing...

 

They will have several "Future Cruise Presentations" during the week. If you are an avid NCL cruiser, this is a good (not great) deal that we were told was only being offered on the Dawn:

 

If you put down a $250 deposit now for a future cruise, you will receive a $100 shipboard credit for your current cruise. The deposit you leave is charged to your room so when you subtract the shipboard credit, you're being charged $150 off the bat. Now, the cool thing is that you do not have to book your cruise with NCL directly. You can use ANY means of booking a future cruise (local TA, internet-based agency, or NCL directly) and apply the deposit to it and you have 18 months to book a cruise that you might take up to another year from then. So, you can shop around for the cheapest fare since you are not locked in to booking directly with NCL and use the credit towards it.

 

Slightly confusing, I know. Just go to the presentation...they give you a glass of sparkling wine for attending.

[BEARFACE]

Yuckylucky,

 

May I say what a wonderful review you posted. I don't think I've read a review yet as informative as yours and very well written. It was a long review but I did not tire in the least. Again, very well written. I am glad you enjoyed your cruise. I was on the Dawn last February, the famous blizzard cruise and we had a nice time as well. Now all you have to do is book another:)

 

Laura

[KeystoneCruiser]

 

They will have several "Future Cruise Presentations" during the week. If you are an avid NCL cruiser, this is a good (not great) deal that we were told was only being offered on the Dawn:

 

If you put down a $250 deposit now for a future cruise, you will receive a $100 shipboard credit for your current cruise. The deposit you leave is charged to your room so when you subtract the shipboard credit, you're being charged $150 off the bat. Now, the cool thing is that you do not have to book your cruise with NCL directly. You can use ANY means of booking a future cruise (local TA, internet-based agency, or NCL directly) and apply the deposit to it and you have 18 months to book a cruise that you might take up to another year from then. So, you can shop around for the cheapest fare since you are not locked in to booking directly with NCL and use the credit towards it.

 

Slightly confusing, I know. Just go to the presentation...they give you a glass of sparkling wine for attending.

 

 

This program is being offered on both the Jewel and the Dawn and will be expanded to the other ships by the fall. (according to the presenter on my Dawn cruise....we were the one on the ship waiting to get off when you got on. We were told on Friday that we would not be back until around noon on Saturday.)

 

I found that alot of the information in the future cruise presentation was error filled and a very poor presentation. You can get more accurate informaiton off Cruise Critic.

 

By the way, did you have any experience with the Photo Department??

[Maryfrei]

Okay, don't kill me...one more thing...

 

LOL, love it, can't you tell we can never get enough:)!

[GMoney]

Lisa - thank you and congrats on a very well written review.

 

I sailed the Dawn last Xmas. So you still can't make dinner reservations thru an interactive TV?

[yuckylucky]

Patrick, no, you cannot. And as I said in my review, you cannot check your room account charges via TV either. While I didn't find making reservations difficult or a lengthy process at all, it would be nice to do it via TV. Even close to that would be kiosks we could access and make reservations online...sort of like Open Table (a website that allows you to make reservations online for restaurants who participate).

 

But again, it wasn't bad and I do recommend making reservations early. However, I will say the night we ate at Teppenyaki, we had the 7:30pm seating (by accident) and the hibachi table wasn't full. There were 10 seats open for 7:30pm and a party of six was seated about 10 minutes after we began (the poor guys started from scratch with their routine anyway). FYI: this was on the Great Stirrup Cay day/ Nassau evening. I suspect that because people were tired from being on the beach or getting ready early to go out in Nassau at 8pm, the 7:30pm timeslot was up for grabs. If you like to eat at 7:30pm, a highly desirable time for dining, do it on that particular day of the itinerary.

 

Keystone Cruiser: not really. They take a ton of pictures but aren't offended if you dodge them politely (as we did a few times). They have set hours they are open for business but the pix are posted for viewing all day...the glass doors aren't unlocked though when they're closed so you cannot take them out for a closer look.

 

I will also say I think they are EXPENSIVE. One 8X10 picture is $24.95. I asked if I could order an 8X10 in a 5X7 size and was told only if I first buy the 8X10 would they make additional prints in various sizes. For those who don't know, the pix they post are 8X10 in size with the exception of the specialty dining pix which are smaller. Also, they take your picture and add cheesy borders to them. We had a really hard time locating our Le Bistro pictures because the border is mini-pics of all the restaurants on the ship! LOL...our centered pic was only like 3X5. Borders might be for some, but not for me. We didn't buy a single picture. I really wanted the one from the Princess Parade (when all the 2-5 year old girls dressed up and wore "crowns" and carried "wands" guided by the Kid's Crew staff), but again, it was an 8X10 picture for $25.00. I wanted it as something to add to my photo album...not frame and have on display (their heads were the size of dimes because it was a large group).

[smeyer418]

Thanks for the review. I am glad you liked it and that our paintings will stay in NY although I am sorry we are losing the Dawn...its been a great ship for NYC.

[Bagbklyn]

By the way, did you have any experience with the Photo Department??

 

The picture department was the biggest ripoff since the 15% auto-gratuity and putting an extra line for more gratuity. If it wasn't for this cruise critic I wouldn't have known about the auto-gratuity, but that is besides the point.

 

The workers at the photo department there had no compromises and the packages were horrible. The embarkation 5x7 pictures are $19.99, while all the other 5x7's are $14.99. The embarkation pictures also aren't part of the buy 2 get the 3rd picture free. The workers were kind of cold and when we asked them for a picture that we took the first formal night they first said they would research it, and then the following night they said the entire film got corrupted. We knew this was a lie since we saw other passengers pictures on the steps. Im not a photographer but I have never heard of such a lame line. Corrupted????? I would like to find someone who has a digital camera with a digital memory card that has ever been corrupted.

 

I did however purchase (3) 8x10 because I played the number 25 and 19(The ridiculous price of the pictures) all night on roulette and it came out 3 times hence I was able to purchase the pictures and have some change for the slot machines.

 

On a final note I have been on over 10 cruises and I must say that this was the first cruise that I was turned off by the price of the pictures. It was also the first cruise where I saw so many pictures remain in the photo gallery unbrought. I believe NCL is one of the biggest losers when it comes to photos. They can learn a few things from Carnival and Royal Carribean about how to price and group picture packages.

[Welove2cruise2]

Lisa, thanks for a great review! We've sailed on the Dawn twice, and you still mentioned things I haven't found yet!!

[Zeno]

yuckylucky:

great detailed review!

[KeystoneCruiser]

Bagbklyn & YuckyLucky (I do love that name...):

 

It seems that nothing has changed yet in the photo department. On our June 17 cruise, the photo department was the rudest, most unhelpful, untruthful bunch on the ship. The fact that they made you purchase everything in "packages" is absolutely absurd. On no other NCL ship have we had to purchase pictures that way. We could purchase just one. Also, we could have more than ONE person in a port disembarkation photo. Just more unprofessional ways to sell more pictures.

 

Dawn Cruisers: Watch out for the photo racket. Take your own photos!!!

[Dario M]

YUCKY.....Hey im from wyckoff too and im also going on the dawn.........what part of wyckoff are you from and i know like 80% of wyckoff so odds are I KNOW you...sorry i no this isnt the sorta thing u should post but i got excited

[sailorsixx]

We're not going on the Dawn although I would love to while still docked in NY. We have booked another ship in a few weeks from now. However, I have to say your review was extremely informative & well written & I'm sure many people learned alot about the Dawn. It's very enjoyable to read all these reviews esp. when it's done so well. Glad your family had a nice time & thanks for taking the time to write about your experience.

[yuckylucky]

YUCKY.....Hey im from wyckoff too and im also going on the dawn.........what part of wyckoff are you from and i know like 80% of wyckoff so odds are I KNOW you...sorry i no this isnt the sorta thing u should post but i got excited

 

Hey Dario! We're over in the Meer section...James Way. We moved here in May 2005 (from Oakland). If you have any ??? about the Dawn, let me know!

 

Lisa

[yuckylucky]

Bagbklyn & YuckyLucky (I do love that name...)

 

 

LOL! You can thank my yellow lab, Lucky. And yes, you are better off taking your own photos. We posed for a handful of shots and I have to say, many were out of focus and some of the backgrounds weren't appealing at all. On the optional formal night, we stood where they had a red background and when we saw the photos, we all looked like a mortician did our make-up because the red drained us of any color.

 

All Dawn cruisers: Bring a camera and don't be shy to ask a fellow cruiser to stop and take pictures of you...we've all done it and know it's sort of "customary" to help a fellow vacationer! :)

[yuckylucky]

Sorry for three consecutive posts but I just wanted to give a catch-all thank you for your response to my review!

[JuneauMe]

QUOTE]Disembarkation: ...Well, I have to say we waited in Spinnaker Lounge which was practically empty (you are supposed to wait in a public area anywhere except on Deck 7) as opposed to other disembarkation procedures where we were crammed into a hallway or stairwell moving inch by inch. [/quote

What happened to being able to wait in your room untill your color tag is called? That is one of the best parts about freestyle

[yuckylucky]

What happened to being able to wait in your room untill your color tag is called? That is one of the best parts about freestyle

 

We could've waited in the room and actually, we left our bags in the room for a while (we asked if that was okay to do & got an emphatic yes from one of our cabin stewards). But as people who worked in the service industry (we both were bartenders/waiters many moons ago), we also respected our cabin stewards' need to get our room ready for the next lucky cruisers so we had no problem waiting in Spinnaker Lounge. I recall those late nights of giving last call only for people to ignore that and take their time sipping their drinks at 2:30am...LOL...thank goodness those days are over for me!!!

[cdaystravel]

My husband went to the picture desk the last evening of our cruise around 7:00 pm. The person at the desk was in the mood to deal. My husband bought all of our cruise pictures (5 8x10's, 7 5x7's and the embarkation photos) for $100. Hope it works again in August!

[Dario M]

Hey Dario! We're over in the Meer section...James Way. We moved here in May 2005 (from Oakland). If you have any ??? about the Dawn, let me know!

 

Lisa

 

Hey your right down the street from me