Comments on Dawn 10/28-11/18

[Murphey]

Murphey, I asked this on the Mexican Riviera boards, but so far I haven't received an answer, so I thought maybe you would know. We have a whale watching tour booked in Cabo with Eduardo on the Rissalena. He e-mailed me to tell me that there are now 2 landing places for the tenders and he wanted to know which place we would land so he could give us directions to his place. Do you know where the tenders land in Cabo?

 

Thanks,

Ann

 

Ann....We have been to Cabo many times and the tenders all come into the same place, at the near end(to the bay-west side) of the Marina. Perhaps if you find out where he is, I can direct you.

[buckle]

HI Murphy, thanks for your comments - very helpful. I am cruising on the Dawn from January 13th -20th with a group of friends. This is our first time with Princess (last year it was NCL, the Dream). We all have interior staterooms on the Caribe deck, midship.

 

I heard the pacific is a rough area, was wondering how you felt as far as the ship moving etc? Also, do you know of any all-inclusive resorts that offer day passes in any of those port stops? We did that last year in Cozumel and it was awesome!

 

Also, can you tip in $$ directly to your steward, waiter etc.. and not have them deduct the $10 per day from your onboard account? I would prefer to do this, if it's possible.

 

Last question (I promise!)... do they search your bags on embarkation, or can you throw in a few bottles of wine? Thanks so much in advance, eagerly awaiting your reponse.

[rdsqrl]

Also, can you tip in $$ directly to your steward, waiter etc.. and not have them deduct the $10 per day from your onboard account? I would prefer to do this, if it's possible.

 

Last question (I promise!)... do they search your bags on embarkation, or can you throw in a few bottles of wine? Thanks so much in advance, eagerly awaiting your reponse.

 

Unlike NCL, Princess is actually civilized and permits you to bring aboard wine -- some have said that they enforce a one-bottle-per-person limit; others have carried on more than that. Whatever you stow away in your checked bags will get through just fine, they don't generally search those.

Re the autotipping (an always-contentious topic here!), you can certainly have it removed and tip in person BUT be aware that if you do so, the steward/waiter must turn in that tip to the same pool at the autotips go to; the money is then distributed. If what you've given them amounts to MORE than whatever their "scheduled" share is, they do get to keep the excess. Also, they get quizzed about why the autotips were removed, as the presumption of their superiors is that it was done because they gave poor service. All in all, putting aside the merits of the system, in my opinion, it's just plain easier all around to leave the autotip in place and then give extra to those who you feel delivered superior service.

[GTVCRUISER]

Water Taxi Stone Island

[MC-AZ-07]

I agree with Murphey that the 'balconies' are actually fine, if you like shelter and privacy and are not going to be super disappointed with a window-like rather than wall-like view.

 

I think Sterling was the worst $90 (for six) we spent. My steak-loving father did like his 24 oz. Porterhouse, though and did not like his filet medallions in the DR. I got filet both spots and found them identical.

 

The Princess employee checking liquor in on the gangway told us we were welcome to bring unlimited wine aboard from ports, for consumption on the ship. This may not be the case always.