First timers short review of the Dawn

[pampaul]

Morning all.

 

Just got off the Dawn yesterday. This was a first cruise for all of us (me, DH and 2 boys 9 & 11)

 

First off, the ship is beautiful. And huge. I'm not sure how it compares with any other ship but this one is pretty big (I got lost a few times trying to figure out which elevator took me to which part of the ship) By the end of the week though, I had it figured out.

 

Kings Wharf was really nice. Not too much too do there so we had already decided to take the bus over to Horseshoe Bay Beach. Beautiful beach to say the least. I am SO not a beach person but was in the water for most of the time we were there. After we were done we paid the taxi driver a couple bucks to bring us back up that ridiculously steep hill. Probably the best $$ we spent all week. :D We then just back to the ship and took a shower and got dressed for dinner.

 

Great Stirrup Cay is by far the most gorgeous place I've been (I don't get out much) :rolleyes: But anyhow, we were on the first tender out there and got four beach chairs right in front of the water. Really nice. But truthfully we didn't spend too much time on the chairs. In the water the entire time. Make sure you go over towards the rocks (that's we saw most of the neat looking fish) We did see a couple sting rays right over by where we were swimming. Pretty cool. BBQ was okay and the music was great. Lovely day.

 

Nassau was not much of a big deal to us. We ended up taking the city bus tour with it ending at the pirate museum. While it was nice to take an air conditioned bus tour of the city (which isn't the cleanest city) the kids enjoyed the pirate museum. We thought it was pretty much of a rip off for $120 but hey we're on vacation right? Luckily we weren't asked to buy any drugs but if I heard, "Hey lady, you wanna braids today?" one more time, I think I was gonna scream. :)

 

Trond Kildal was our captain

Jimmy Koval was our cruise director

Ray Ray Wright was our asst cruise directore (reminded me a bit of PeeWee Herman)

 

We really enjoyed sitting by the pool listening to the band. They were really good. I didn't see any chair hogs whatsoever though. I was up pretty early most mornings and when I was up towards the pool, I noticed that the workers had laid out towels on all the chairs for the people to use. I don't know if this is what people mean by people saving chairs all day, but I'm thinking that these people think just because there was a towel on the chair that it was saved, but in reality the crew put them out and people must assume they were someone else's. Anyhow, the pool is very small for the amount of people onboard. Didn't bother me none since I'm not a pool person either. But DH and the boys enjoyed it.

 

The food was okay for the most part. Only a few things were really good. We did eat breakfast in the Venetian on 2 days and the rest of the days at the buffet. Usual fare at the buffet though. Never really changed much. We didn't eat at any of the specialty restaurants (DH's philosophy is I paid enough for the cruise and I"m only eating what is included) I have heard that the best food though is in these specialty restaurants, so you might want to take a peek in there. I did hit the chocolate buffet and boy what a madhouse that was. You would think that people had never seen chocolate before. Some people had multiple plates CHOCK FULL of chocolate tidbits and were running around like crazy people. I went through the line and grabbed a couple little cakes and one of those fruit kabobs that they drench in the fondue and sat and ate my goodies. I also took a bunch of pics. Once that was done, DH and the boys requested that I bring something back for them since they fell fast asleep before it even started. I went back through the line and grabbed a few more pieces for them and another fruit kabob for me. Delish!!! (Is this the same choc fondue that people rave about in Le Bistro?) If so, it is wonderful.

 

We are not big spenders by any means and the only things that were bought in the gift shop were some candy bars throughout the week and the boys each bought a little gadget of some sort. Our total bill at the end of the week was just over $500. This included $210 in tips, $120 excursion (city tour/pirate museum) $130 in pictures (my little shopping spree) $15 for some postcards/stamps, $10 for one drink by the pool and the gift some snacks.

 

Since this was our first cruise I definately wanted some pictures. I did buy both sets of our embarkation photos. It was the same picture but different backgrounds. One was of us with the Dawn behind us and the other was with a sunset backdrop. Each background consisted of a 5x7, a 3x5 and two wallets. Each pack was $19.95 or both for $29.95, so I picked both. Then for the optional formal night I had pics taken again and bought some of those. These are the 8x10's and they were $24.95 each. I ended up buying 4 of them. One of them was with the four of us and the captain and then the other three were taken on the staircase. There was one with the four of us, one with me and my DH and one of just the boys. I was really happy with the pics.

 

All in all this was a great week, we had fun and would do it all again (I think next time though will be with NO kids) :D

 

If you have any questions, just ask away.

[4merlurker]

Welcome Home!! I've read alot of your pre-cruise posts and couldn't wait for your review! Glad you had such a great time! What cabin were you guys in? Did your kids use the club at all? Was it hard getting into the dining rooms? How were the seas?

 

Thanks,

~Connie

[judyf]

Sounds like you had a great cruise. The Dawn is a beautiful ship.

[LauraNYC]

Glad you had a good time! I was on the Dawn 7/29/06-8/5/06

We thought the towels on the chairs were saved by other cruisers, Now we know!! LOL

 

Also, the specialty restaurants (Salsas,etc...) are mostly specialty because you have to make reservations, there are no extra fees for most of them. Some have fees, but only 2 I believe. The rest are free, they just required reservations.

[pampaul]

Welcome Home!! I've read alot of your pre-cruise posts and couldn't wait for your review! Glad you had such a great time! What cabin were you guys in? Did your kids use the club at all? Was it hard getting into the dining rooms? How were the seas?

 

 

Hi there---

We were in cabin 4585. It's the bottom deck in the middle. We figured we weren't going to splurge on a balcony or anything if we're just going to sleep in it. It was cramped but we managed. I think the next time we go (it'll only be my husband and myself and maybe another adult couple) I think we'll get a balcony. Anyhow, my youngest son wanted to sign up for the kids club and went there about 3 times. He had a blast. He's a really outgoing kid too. But my oldest (who turned 11 on the cruise) only went on the last day and he said he liked it when the played basketball and table soccer but sat there the rest of the time (he doesn't interact very well with other kids---not that he's bad or anything, he's extremely shy and I'm very surprised he went even that one day) But from my youngest's point of view and other kids that I overheard, it seems like a great club. The dining rooms weren't hard to get into at all. We went into them between 5:30/6:00. We were the first ones there a couple of times and the other times there was no longer than a 5 minute wait. As for the seas, I would have to say that they weren't too bad. Keep in mind I get motion sickness VERY easily. I kept taking the Bonine and the first day I was fine, then on Sunday I guess there were some white caps and I didn't feel good at all. I ended up spending all day sleeping on and off. Medicine didn't help. But I kept on taking it and the rest of the week got better as it went along. Friday the seas were really calm. I ended up seeing the tops of 5 whales. They kept blowing water up through their blowholes. Pretty cool.

 

Another thing I didn't touch on before was embarkation and disembarkation.

 

Getting on the ship was a breeze. I don't have anything to compare it with but it was pretty easy. We got into the terminal around 10:30 and checked in (no wait in line at all) we had to sit around for a while (maybe an hour and a half) We sat in the front row in the terminal and our row was called first to get on the ship. But once we went through security we had our embarkation photos taken and stood in line again (maybe 10 mins) then they opened the door and off we went. Went really smooth.

 

We decided not to use the express disembarkation. But we ended up getting off the ship around 10:30/10:45 and was on the road at 11:10.

 

Hope this helps.

[green eyed lady]

Pampaul,

Can you give me some specifics about the cabin? What did you do with the trundle bed during the day? Did you put it back under the other bed or leave it out all the tme? How bad was it really? We are considering the Dawn Nov 5 but I am hesitant to go for the inside cabin for 2 adults and 2 teenage boys. I love my kids but don't want to be tripping over them at every turn...LOL! Do you have any pics of the cabin? Any info would be great...thanks

Jen

[newmexicoNita]

It's always fun to hear from first time cruisers when they return. Doing your homework proably helped make your cruise more enjoyable. As for cruising with kids, they can be a joy and most love cruising, but there are times when mom and dad need and deserve a week or so away...NMNita

[Dario M]

 

Trond Kildal was our captain

Jimmy Koval was our cruise director

Ray Ray Wright was our asst cruise directore (reminded me a bit of PeeWee Herman)

 

 

Your cruise staff was brand new i just got off 8/5 with a diffrent staff....no wonder they were so rowdy they were about to get off that ship!

[pampaul]

As for the trudle bed, when you leave the room for the day just flip the outside thingie to "make up room" and the staff will take care of it for you. Same as when you leave for dinner or something, just flip it to "turn down room" and they'll take it down and turn your beds down for the night. I think with 2 teenage boys you might want to check on a bigger room. This is only my opinion but when they take the trundle bed up there is no room on either side of the beds to get out of them. They are literally side by side. You have to scoot down to the foot of the bed and then get out. If that won't be a prob for them, then you should be ok. It'll still be tight quarters (very tight quarters) but we managed. Plus I don't know about storage in the bigger rooms but with ours we ended up having some of our stuff still in our suitcases (not sure if I just overpacked or what) but there is a closet, 3 small shelves on the inside of closet, 2 small shelves outside of the closet and 3 small drawers. And I was surprised with the size of the bathroom. Not that it's big or anything, but I was expecting something a lot small than it was. I'm a plus-sized gal and I had enough room to get dressed in the bathroom plus enough room in the shower. I was envisioning our bathroom in our camper which is near impossible to even stand in without the door open.

 

I would like to add some pictures but I'm not sure how to get them off of my desktop to here. If someone can help me, I'd appreciate it.

[pniffer]

With regard to the photos question, when you are in the reply to thread screen, click on the small attachments icon (the paperclip). You can then browse your files, make sure they small enough, and then upload them per the instructions on screen. If that doesn't work try uploading all your album onto webshots.com and then share your user name with us so we can view.

 

I enjoyed your review, thanks! I have cruised the Dawn before, and I am going again in October with a couple who have never cruised before. I am a little anxious about the sea sickness issue, I have never had rough seas before but I just KNOW I will be sick if its bad. Did the bonine make you sleepy?

[pniffer]

You didn't mention the entertainment on board. How was it?

[pampaul]

Oh sorry, I forgot about the entertainment. We only saw the 7:30 shows and after that we brought the boys back to the room. While sitting there we ended up just staying and going to bed a while later anyhow. But next time (without kids) we want to see the later shows (I'm sure those are the adult only ones)

 

Anyhow, this is what we saw for shows....

 

Sunday---South Beach Rave-- it was a good show. Wasn't my type of show to watch but was good nonetheless.

 

Monday---The Second City-- I came out of this show crying. I was laughing so hard at one point the tears were just flowing down my face. If you've seen it before....the part where the guy was trying to propose to his girfriend was just hilarious. Especially the part at the end with the pepper.

 

Tuesday---Gleason Magic Show-- we really enjoyed this show. Nothing really to explain here, typical magic show (disappearing, re-appearing people, card tricks, etc all really good.

 

Wednesday---no show here (was at private island all day and just came back took showers and went to dinner then relaxed the rest of the night.

 

Thursday---Bollywood. Amazing show. The strength these people have are truly incredible. Don't miss this one. We were in the second row and got a surprise at the very opening of the show. If you haven't seen this show yet, sit either in the second or third row and look up. Enough said.

 

Friday---There were guest talent shows. The first one was a kids talent show. Many kids did gymnastics, sang, played piano, saxophone, told jokes, etc. And then for the adults, out of 2700 people on board only 4 people signed up for this show. So it was very quick. There were 3 singers and one guy who did card tricks.

 

 

I'm hoping to see the other shows the next time (Quest, Newlywed Game, Comic Show, etc) I'm sure these are hilarious and I'll make a note to see these next time.

[pniffer]

I've made a mental note of all that!

 

Great review, very helpful :)

[Maryfrei]

Thanks for the review, so glad you had a great time. The Dawn is such a fun ship:)!

[Lobbylin]

Thanks for posting your review - we do the same itinerary next year on the Dawn. Would love to see you photos if you can email me the invite.:)

linda.backwith@yahoo.co.uk

 

What time did you get off the ship on disembarkation? Our cruise docks at 10am and we'd like to get off a.s.a.p