Tell me about the Dawn (pretty please)

[Rockwife]

DH and I have been invited to join some friends of ours (Hi Jack & Aaron!!!)next Spring on the Dawn Princess and I'm fishing for secrets, interesting tidbits, or anything else you can share about this ship.

 

(I used the search feature, but too much unrelated stuff came up and I'm hoping you all can help- Thanks!)

 

As you can see from my signature, we've sailed on many different lines and size of ship. We enjoyed the Caribbean Princess a great deal, as well as our last cruise on the Celebrity Century. It looks like the Dawn is similar in size to the Century, correct?

 

Are there Movies Under the Stars on Dawn? (I loved those!)

 

Is there an adult-only pool?

 

How is the fitness center?

 

Thanks so much and happy travels!

[crusdiva]

DH and I have been invited to join some friends of ours (Hi Jack & Aaron!!!)next Spring on the Dawn Princess and I'm fishing for secrets, interesting tidbits, or anything else you can share about this ship.

(I used the search feature, but too much unrelated stuff came up and I'm hoping you all can help- Thanks!)

As you can see from my signature, we've sailed on many different lines and size of ship. We enjoyed the Caribbean Princess a great deal, as well as our last cruise on the Celebrity Century. It looks like the Dawn is similar in size to the Century, correct?

Are there Movies Under the Stars on Dawn? (I loved those!)

Is there an adult-only pool?

How is the fitness center?

Thanks so much and happy travels!

 

I love the Dawn - DH and I sailed her 3 times and would do so again in a heartbeat. To us she is the perfect size.:)

 

Try La Scala Pizzeria on Dolphin (deck 8 midship) for a casual delicious meal of salad, calzones. pizza (many varieties - personal size).

 

The best spot to star gaze is all the way forward on Baja (deck 10). Push open the heavy doors (it may be very windy - so be careful) and go out to the open deck. It will be pitch black (the areas near the bow are dark for navigational purposes) and it's star gazing at it's best.

 

IMHO the Atrium Lounge on Promenade Deck 7 is the crossroads on the Dawn. DH and I have enjoyed our pre-dinner cocktails there on every cruise aboard her. Since it's on Promenade people traverse this area in all directions and it feels like the ship's hub.

There is a great bar usually staffed by the ship's best bartenders and if you're not a bar sitter, it has clusters of small couches and chairs to relax in while enjoying your cocktail.

 

No MUTS.

The aft "spa" pool is adults only.

Never been to fitness center on any ship - sorry. ;)

 

Follow the link to my pictures for our photos of the Dawn.

I hope you'll enjoy the Dawn as much as we do.

[Druke I]

I'm another who prefers the Sun class (Dawn is one of four in the class) to the Grand and modified Grand class, which I think are too large.

 

The mini-suites on the Sun class are great - as large as full suites on many ships.

 

Balconies are hull cut, which some don't like as much as the others.

[doven]

Rockwife, we got off Dawn Sunday. It holds 1950 which is the perfect size. There is no MUTS - but they have a movie on each day around 2PM in the theater. There is an adult pool. I visited the spa for a facial - an African woman named Anna did it - it was clean, enjoyable and I loved it -- booked prior to the cruise.

 

The spa had people waiting for procedures to be done. The exercise part had a treadmill which I used, a bike, the eliptical, TVs and weight equipment - that was good too. The weight room does crowd early in the AM - there are many bikes and about 8 treadmills. It is located on the back of the ship - Deck 12, and your view is of course, the beautiful ocean. We absolutely loved this ship!

 

You won't be disappointed!

[4275princess]

This is one of our favorite Princess ships. It is a smaller boat, however, the service and how the crew work together is so much more noticeable. You will not be sorry you booked this ship. We cruised her Nov 06 and Feb 07.

[liv2cruise4ever]

This is one of our favorite Princess ships. It is a smaller boat, however, the service and how the crew work together is so much more noticeable. You will not be sorry you booked this ship. We cruised her Nov 06 and Feb 07.

 

Ditto, this is my favorite ship of all. Been on many. Food was the best, as well as service, etc. You said it all......:D

[The Mommy]

We sailed on Dawn Princess and loved every minute

The rear pool deck is a great spot - there is lovely atmoshere on this ship and just the right size.

The food and service standards were excellent, cabins clean and well looked after

I haven't a bad word to say about her

We have just booked Sea Princess which looks very similar and although we have never sailed on her we are hoping that as Dawn's sister she won't disappoint.

You will have a lovely time

Enjoy

Gail

[dbdave]

Just off of the Dawn last Sunday and we loved it. The aft pool with three hot-tubs on deck 12 is small but nice. If you go in the doorway next to this pool, it goes directly to both men's and women's steam rooms and saunas. The showers here are larger than in your room and they have aromatic soap, shampoo and conditioner in dispensers on the shower wall. :D

[woodofpine]

Never been on Dawn but twice on her sister Ocean Princess (now P&O Oceana).

 

The gym isn't much and I don't think they've got MUTS, but...

 

Excellent cozy lounges, as another poster stated a more impressive atrium that serves as a hub for many lounge spaces.

 

A REAL - really nice cozy library - with deep leather chairs looking out on the teak promenade. A nice wide 360 degree promenade that in the early AM makes a great approx 1/4 mile jogging or power walking lap for the phys ed oriented.

 

I bet you'll like her... a lot.

[woodofpine]

Never been on Dawn but twice on her sister Ocean Princess (now P&O Oceana).

 

The gym isn't much and I don't think they've got MUTS, but...

 

Excellent cozy lounges, as another poster stated a more impressive atrium that serves as a hub for many lounge spaces.

 

A REAL - really nice cozy library - with deep leather chairs looking out on the teak promenade. A nice wide 360 degree promenade that in the early AM makes a great approx 1/4 mile jogging or power walking lap for the phys ed oriented.

 

I bet you'll like her... a lot.

[Rockwife]

Wow, I never expected to read such glowing reviews- thanks so much, everyone!

 

Sharon- great photos, thanks for sharing. I love the star gazing tip, too.

 

Doven- I'm a bit apprehensive about trying the spa because I booked something on the Caribbean Princess and got left waiting, and waiting, and waiting. . . The spa manager said the gal was at a safety drill, but I wonder why they booked me at that time! I did receive some nice flowers for my trouble, but I wouldn't say it was worth the wasted time and aggravation.

 

dbdave-The showers and spa pool sound excellent!

 

woodofpine- As a librarian I appreciate a good library, so this is nice to hear. Also love a promenade deck that goes all the way around. :) Sharon's pics show loungers there, as well.

 

Can I go now? (insert dancing banana here)

 

Thanks again for all the great info and well wishes. I love this board.

[jsiegel]

Wow, I never expected to read such glowing reviews- thanks so much, everyone!

 

woodofpine- As a librarian I appreciate a good library, so this is nice to hear. Also love a promenade deck that goes all the way around. :) Sharon's pics show loungers there, as well.

 

Thanks again for all the great info and well wishes. I love this board.

 

Also as a librarian, I recommend you bring along your own books if you like to read. I had been on the sister ship Sea Princess a number of years ago and was overwhelmed with the number of books on my to-read list. I expected a similarly good, current selection on the Dawn when we cruised this past July. Couldn't find a single book I wanted to read. But I had enough of my own along to keep me happy. The library as a location is great and the leather chairs are very comfortable.

 

Other than that, it was a great ship. I had no trouble getting on a treadmill or using the weight machines when I went to the gym. My only problem is I'm an early riser and it turns out the gym doesn't open until 6 a.m. So, instead I power-walked the Promenade deck and watched the sun rise.

 

They had an issue on our sailing where they had no in-cabin movie schedules so we had no idea what was playing when on the TV. Hopefully they have fixed that problem by now. Though it was fun to turn on the tv and try to guess the movie within a couple of seconds and then try to figure out if it was near the beginning or the end.

 

Jackie

[CaliforniaMama]

Rockwife, we got off Dawn Sunday. It holds 1950 which is the perfect size. There is no MUTS - but they have a movie on each day around 2PM in the theater.

 

I'll be going on the Dawn in a week!! What sort of movies were they showing in the theater? First run types? I am looking forward to hopefully catching a recent, grown-up movie since we'll be sans kiddos. :p

 

Thanks!

[NavySis]

The Dawn is a great ship in my opinion also. It is really easy to get around this ship. I knew my way around after only a day onboard. I loved the pizza at La Scala. I also like the small ship feel to the Dawn.

[whale-watcher]

We sailed on the dawn right after we were on the coral...and were expecting to be a little disappointed, but really loved the ship! Highlights for us:

 

We were amazed to find that our minisuite on the dawn was as large as a full suite on the coral, with a wonderful and large bathroom.

 

The Pizzaria was great...we ate dinner there more than once, and it was really relaxing.

 

Overall, felt the food was good on both ships, but for some reason, the desserts were MUCH better on the Dawn.

 

The Dawn does not have the blue wind shields on the front of the ship, making it an excellent choice if you are interested in photography or whale watching.

 

My kids really liked the children and teen centers on the dawn. The staff was outstanding, and the facility itself seemed brighter and more open than on the coral.

 

Overall, the coral felt a little more spacious and open, and has a nicer pool layout, and much more extensive library and game room...but we would sail on the dawn again without hesitation.

[Lady Librarian]

As a librarian I appreciate a good library, so this is nice to hear.

 

Also as a librarian, I recommend you bring along your own books if you like to read.

 

Howdy fellow librarians! Thanks for the info on Dawn. Hubby and I will be on her next Sunday! Can't wait!!:D

[S F Natives]

Rockwife,

We were on a 10 day roundtrip S.F. to Mexico in April.:)

No Movies under the stars. Movies are shown in the Princess Theater. We never went to any of the movies. I pulled our my Princess Patters so I could let you know what they had when we cruised. Charlotte's Web, You Me and Dupree, A Good Year, Dreamgirls, The Prestige, Stranger than Fiction, Bobby, RV, Rocky Balboa, Fun in Acapulco (our port day in Acapulco). All of the movies were matinees (in the afternoon, with the exception of Little Miss Sunshine (which was shown twice-8:30 pm and 10:30 pm).

The gym was very small - tread mills, elypticals (about 8 each) and if I recall, limited weights. Hot and stuffy. Small towels were available; remember to bring your own water! I enjoyed the view of the water out the back of the ship while on the tread mill.

If you like to read, bring your own books as the library is very limited as to hours of operation and reading material.

Pizzeria serves excellent food, including individual lasagna, soup, salad, and antipasta. A nice switch from the dinning room and buffet. Never seemed to be busy.

They do use the adult pool for 'games' so be prepared to evacuate (check the Princess Patter for scheduled game times so you can plan accordingly).

Enjoy! :D

[cruiselifers]

We too have to give a big thumbs up for the Dawn. It was our favorite ship. Even though the Sun is her sister ship, we liked the Dawn better. We were on the Dawn twice and the Sun twice. I am not sure what cabin you booked but the aft mini suites are outstanding, they have huge balconies and are incredibly relaxing. For us we usually liked to go to La Scala (the pizzeria) which is inside, and they serve you, the first night. It is nice because even though we come in a couple of days pre-cruise to what ever city we are leaving from, we are still a little tired and it is really nice to go casual and still be waited on, and the pizza is just delish! I really think it is much better than the bigger ships pizza. Plus they have a really good anti pasta salad. It is super relaxing. I love the small ship and you never feel crowded. It is defiantly older ship, but I think they keep it in great shape. If you talk to the staff you will find a lot of them really love working on her. When we were on the Coral, we even found staff there who said their favorite ship to work on was the Dawn. Another great thing is you can figure out the ships layout quickly so within the first day or two you won't be getting lost anymore, lol. The casino still is a nice size too. The Vista Lounge is a nice size to see the shows as is the Princess Theater. I just can not say enough about it. We are actually going on the Emerald Princess in January, and while everyone says what a beautiful ship it is I still worry about missing the intimacy of the Dawn....

[Nancyquilts]

Beautiful library, not many books. (but better this September than last spring). And there is a cabinet near the door that holds books that others have finished reading - good place to head when you get on the ship. Nancy

[Rockwife]

Again, thanks for the tips and comments. (Shhhhhh! to all my fellow librarians- ha ha!)

 

Good to know the library collection is small- we have three sea days and I'll definitely need a decent memoir or two.

 

The pizzeria sounds great! Do they have thin crust pizza and/or garlic rolls?

 

How is the live music entertainment on board? Dh is a musician and we love all types of music, particularly traditional jazz and big band. A string quartet will do in a pinch!

 

MUTS is great, but I understand the Dawn not having them since it's smaller. I also enjoy movies in the theater, especially the time we were in St. Martin and I had to return from port early due to heat exhaustion! Watching Starsky & Hutch in the cool theater made me feel 100% better.

[whale-watcher]

The pizzeria sounds great! Do they have thin crust pizza and/or garlic rolls?

 

Thin crust pizza, as well as other Italian dishes (including really good tiramisu).

[willysgrandma]

Thanks for posting this question - we will be on the Dawn March 30, 2008 and I was a bit apprehensive, because we like bigger ships (the Crown Princess was wonderful).

 

But the responses here have made me feel like I'll have a relaxing cruise.

 

One more question for those who have sailed her - how is the beddding, has it been upgraded?

[NavySis]

Thanks for posting this question - we will be on the Dawn March 30, 2008 and I was a bit apprehensive, because we like bigger ships (the Crown Princess was wonderful).

 

But the responses here have made me feel like I'll have a relaxing cruise.

 

One more question for those who have sailed her - how is the beddding, has it been upgraded?

 

Yes the bedding has been upgraded on the Dawn

[academicdeluge]

If you all don't stop talking about the pizza place (lasagne, pizza, calzones, tiramisu) I may never see the inside of the dining room! :D

[S F Natives]

The only regret by Husband and I had, was not discovering the Pizzeria until the end of our cruise; otherwise, I know we would have eaten there on numerous occassions.

 

As for the bed, I slept better than ever, without any upgrades. Maybe it was from all that fresh-salt-water air!

 

The Buffet had Tiramisu too (unfortunately, not every night)

 

 

ENJOY!! :p