Dawn 2/10 - 2/17

[ntune]

Well, I am sure I will take a lot of heat for this, but it is our honest opinion. We have sailed other cruise lines before and chose Norwegian for the first time due to the "freestyle" atmosphere. We are not "professional cruisers" by any means, mainly because we are just working people that live for our yearly cruise and became addicted at Cruise #1. Here is our take on the good and the bad:

 

Flew into Miami the day before and spent the night at Comfort Inn. (never want to chance a missed or cancelled flight and not make it on time)

 

Embarkation: Wow! I think we arrived at the terminal about 11:45 and by a little after 12:00pm, we were on the ship. Incredibly smooth and fast.

 

Cabin: We booked this in October 2007 and chose an inside cabin, as we spend very little time in our room and it is more economical. We chose to "upgrade" and ended up in 8007. Well, this is about as far to the front of the ship as you can get. I am not sure where we would have been had we not paid more. The bathroom was much bigger than we expected and the shower door was a great surprise. Water pressure was strong. Once the beds were together, it was impossible to get around on one side. The seas were rough the first couple of days and that room moved more than you could imagine. Also, there were loud clanging sounds all night, possibly from the chains from the anchor that we must have been right next to. And when we either dropped anchor (at 4:30 am a couple of times) or brought it up, it was impossible to hold a conversation because it was so loud. Even when we were in port and not moving, the room moved. The drawers never stopped opening and closing. We were really shocked that we paid extra for this cabin....

 

Stewards: I know one was named "Anna", but never got the gentleman's name. I don't know if they were just too busy or what, but we only got turn down service on one night. We are early risers and tend to be back in the cabin by about 7:30 - 8:00 pm. On prior cruises, the steward always figured out our schedule early on and there were times we swore he was hiding under the bed, because we could be gone for 15 minutes and he would have been in there doing something. Not this time. We would leave the cabin at about 5:30 - 6:00 am and come back in the late morning and the room would still not have been touched. There were times we had to seek someone out to switch beach towels. There were little dials on the door indicating "do not disburb", make up cabin", "turn down cabin", etc, and we always used it, but it didn't seem to make a difference. We would be gone from before dinner for a couple of hours at least and again, only once, was the room turned down. I will say that on other floors, we saw a flurry of activity with the stewards, but that was not the case on our floor.

 

Excursions: In Samana, we took the Cayo Levantado beach escape. It was INCREDIBLE! What a beautiful beach! Plenty of free beach chairs everywhere. And since we were there most of the day, it was nice because there were plenty of shaded areas next to the tiki hut bar and a place we could get burgers and hot dogs for a reasonable price. There was also a straw market area. We still believe that this is one of the most beautiful beaches we have ever spent time on.

 

In Tortola, we chose to just walk around the town. We did some shopping (very expensive compared to St Thomas). We met some really nice shopkeepers and had an ice cream cone at an Italian ice cream shop in town. A very nice day.

 

St Thomas - we had an early excursion to Magan's Bay, so we got to go thru immigration early. It was a very fast and organized process. We got off the ship and had a little time for shopping in the little mall area near the pier before our excursion. Great prices and great shopping. Our ride to Magan's Bay was memorable! Very fast and through the hills. The beach was beautiful, but very crowded. Chairs could be rented but then needed to be drug a long way to find a clear spot. We were at first disappointed that we were only going to be there for a couple of hours, but it was hot and sunny so it really was plenty. It is certainly a piece of paradise!

 

Great Stirrup Cay - NCL's private island. We were on one of the first tenders and the rain let loose on our way over. When we got to the beach, everyone ran for shelter. The crew was on a different tender with supplies for the bbq. They were very funny unloading in the rain. The weather finally cleared and it was a nice day. It is a very nice beach area with lots of chairs, etc.

 

Dining - Here is where we had problems. It seems "freestyle" means eat whatever you want, when you want, as long as it is within the time frames they set and if you want good food, pay extra. Again, we are earlly risers and on prior cruises, we always went up to the main outdoor deck (buffet area) and there was always good coffee available 24/7. That was not the case this time. We first went to deck 12 (around 5:00 am) and were told there was no coffee until the buffet opened at 6:30 and that we could try the Blue Lagoon on Deck 7 midship. Off we went. Again, no coffee. We ran into several people also in search of coffee. Finally, one of the staff made some. After that, we started getting our coffee via room service, which was fine, but in an inside cabin, there isn't much room for the tray (not to mention the constant motion of that cabin), but at least we had our coffee. There was some little coffee maker thing in the room, but it was really a hot water maker with instant coffee, which we are not fans of.

 

We ate at Cagney's and Bamboo. Cagney's was okay. Probably the friendliest server we had was there. The steak and lobster were okay, but for $30 per person, I think it lacked a little. However, we were satisfied. Bamboo was fantastic. Some of the best Asian food we have ever had. The price of $10 per person seemed very reasonable. However, here was the glitch. We liked the little spring rolls (3 small ones each) for the appetizer. We chose not to have dessert, but asked for the appetizer again. You would have thought we were asking for something huge! And we got charged an additional $5.00 each for these three little spring rolls in lieu of dessert. We were a little shocked at that (half the price of the meal). We also ate at Impressions. It was also very good. Making reservations wasn't too bad. We ate early so we didn't have much problem. It was a challenge getting the reservations people to answer the phone at times and it was hit and miss finding staff at the main reservations desk on 7 during the day. The rest of the time, we ate in the dining room. Here is where we were disappointed. The food was not great, really not even good. It was never hot, most times barely lukewarm. There were nights that it was hard to find something we liked on the menu. We ate at the buffet on 12 one night and found it was substandard, to our taste. Again, the food was never hot. Even breakfast was cold. There is someone wrong about eating cold french toast... This was something we were not used to. On other cruises, the buffet food was edible. We did not find this even remotely appetizing. The Blue Lagoon had great won ton soup and burgers, but if you want lunch, don't go until at least !2:30 as they did not serve any lunch until that time. (there were times we were ready for lunch at around 11:45, but that was not an option there)

 

It was our feeling that NCL makes the "free" food less appetizing in order to steer you to the pay restaurants. That kind of defeats the purpose of an "all inclusive" vacation. We don't mind paying for a specialty restaurant once or twice on a cruise, but do not feel the need to pay for a decent meal every night. As far as "freestyle", we always wore resort casual (capri's, khaki's, etc) to the dining room on other cruises (put your clubs away - we never did that on "formal nights") so we didn't understand the difference. The freestyle thing just wasn't what we expected. Having to decide the day before where you might want to eat the next day and then go make reservations, etc, just wasn't our cup of tea. It is a personal preference and we realize others like this and respect everyone's own desires. This is just OUR feeling.

 

Activities - Bingo, bingo, bingo. And expensive bingo, at that. Our first day at sea was a little rainy, so we went. Way too expensive. But, if you are a bingo fan, it is available all day, every day, it seemed. We saw some of the evening activities on the TV channel. The crew talent show was painful to watch. We wondered how the people that were there in person reacted....

 

We did meet several prior NCL cruisers who all said that this cruise seemed different - that it seemed NCL had cut back a lot and that most of the crew seemed very standoffish at best. It was a relief to realize it was not just us.

 

Oh, and the laundry. We were never offered the "fill the bag" laundry service. On our last day at sea, we took our clothes to the laundry facility (one deck up). It seems they had big problems with their laundry on this cruise. Our clothes were stuck in a machine full of soapy water. After two calls and 25 minutes, a crew member came and pryed the door open, giving us our soaking wet, soapy clothes and telling us to try another facility a deck up. (It was HEAVY carrying this). We ened up having to go up two floors, but finally finished. We saw mass chaos in the laundry facilities, as we were not the only people this happened to. It was not a fun experience.

 

Debarkation - we were told we had to do the express, as we had an 11:30 flight out of Miami and nothing else would be available to us. It was pretty fast, but make sure you get plenty of rest before, as you have to haul your luggage a LONG way, up and down the escalators several times during the journey. I needed a second shower when that was finished.

 

All in all, we still had a wonderful vacation and the ports were fantastic! We just feel that NCL is not for us, based on this experience. We never felt that "special" and "welcome" feeling we have had before. The majority of the crew did not seem to acknowledge the presence of passengers most of the. Pedro and Candy, the cruise directors were always visible and friendly, though, and always at Bingo...

 

We love cruising and will definitely be going again, but not on NCL. It just wasn't for us.

 

I am sure that there are those that will bash us and tell us we don't know how to have fun, etc, but that is truly not the case. Perhaps if we had been in a suite, it might have been different, but we are just your average working people that can afford one cruise per year and want it to be a special experience. We are just sharing our observations of this cruise, which is so different than our prior experiences.

[hypercafe]

My experence with freestyle is people love it or hate it.We live in NYC so we have taken NCL a lot because they are here all year. The first time we went I felt sort of lost but guess I got use to it as the last time we went we took X out of Bayone and I found the fixed dinner time a pain. Some of the lines now have both types of dinning, we would like to try that. Samana sounds great. We are going there in May.

[scopewest]

Since you say the food was "not great, really not even good," how much weight did you lose?

 

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.

[smeyer418]

Interesting review.

 

We were on the Gem and past you in Tortola we were leaving when you finished tendering.

 

I do think NCL needs to better explain to newbees how to use freestyle dining.

Yes I do think the reservation restuarant food is better than the main dining rooms. One reason is they have the same menu everyday and are more adept at it. At the main restaurants it changes every night but I find the food adequate. I still think one of the best meals on any cruise ship anywhere was at the Dawn's main dining room a couple of years ago(the President's dinner) The Buffet on the Gem is better than the Dawn. Coffee is always available through room service 24/7. I never have had a cup of coffee at the Blue Lagoon on the Dawn. I do agree with you that they should have coffee available early for you easily accessible. Did you ask the front desk about it? I find they would appreciate the comment.

[DaytonGirl]

I am sure that there are those that will bash us and tell us we don't know how to have fun, etc, but that is truly not the case. Perhaps if we had been in a suite, it might have been different, but we are just your average working people that can afford one cruise per year and want it to be a special experience. We are just sharing our observations of this cruise, which is so different than our prior experiences.

 

You won't get any bashing from me since I agree with you 100%. You shouldn't have to be in a suite or pay extra to be treated well.

 

Even though I had a great time on the Dawn it's the only ship I've ever been on that I wouldn't return to.

[musicgirl63]

No bashing here. It was an honest review. I think most people get upset when people blow small problems out of proportions and they say it ruined their entire vacations. For instance, I had to ask twice to have the beds in the room put together. I'll never cruise on that ship again.

[chrisbd1]

No bashing here! It was weird, I had an "off" feeling on the Dawn, since I'd previously sailed on the NCL Jewel. It took me a few days to get over the feeling. The other half and myself decieded that we preferred the Jewel class ships...and that lasted until we saw a great deal for the Dawns Repo cruise in November :D .

 

I'm glad you had a nice trip. Sorry you didn't enjoy all of it but you did like some stuff, so it wasn't all bad. Happy cruising!

[ntune]

Definitely no ruined vacation. We escaped midwest snow and ice and spent a week on beautiful beaches!

[beachbum4ever]

DH and I cruised the Dawn a couple of weeks before you and felt many of the same things. Wonder what is going on with them?????

[Sailaway Girl]

Had he same thing in December on the Dawn. The ports were great, the ship clean, the crew friendly, plenty of chairs at the pool just the food............cheaply done, sort of like the cafeteria on my campus.

Shrimp cocktail with 2 regular sized shrimp then a bunch of the tiniest shrimp I have ever seen. Chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts. Jello or a 2 inch square of thawed sheet cake as dessert in the buffet - just cheap food.

However I love freestyle so I paid to eat better, enjoyed the room service, enjoyed the cabin attention and did not have to cook or clean for a week. YEAH!!!

My suggestion - try Princess. They have both traditional seating and a freestyle type arrangement. Food is much better BUT coffee is the worst. So you spend a little money for a coffee card to get great coffee but won't have to pay more to eat decently.

My opinion only. Have already booked another NCL (and a Princess) but have adjusted my expectations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[flarad]

I think you're review was very good. It seems I'm seeing a trend in the posts of the last few Dawn cruisers. I have to say I'm a bit concerned. 29 days until my cruise! We cruised Princess last year and the Jewel the year before. I must say that Princess had much better food. I agree with the previous poster however, their coffee is terrible! We do like the freestyle experience though so I'm interested in seeing how the Dawn compares. We'll be in a balcony and interior so we'll have two perspectives. However it goes, it's a vacation in the Caribbean and I'm not cooking.:o

[ntune]

I think you're review was very good. It seems I'm seeing a trend in the posts of the last few Dawn cruisers. I have to say I'm a bit concerned. 29 days until my cruise! We cruised Princess last year and the Jewel the year before. I must say that Princess had much better food. I agree with the previous poster however, their coffee is terrible! We do like the freestyle experience though so I'm interested in seeing how the Dawn compares. We'll be in a balcony and interior so we'll have two perspectives. However it goes, it's a vacation in the Caribbean and I'm not cooking.:o

 

If you like Asian food, be sure to get a reservation at Bamboo one night. And like the previous poster said, go spend the money on the pay coffee at the Java Bar is you are a coffee lover.

 

I hope your cruise is a good one. Enjoy!

[Cosmopolitan]

Enjoyed your review...no heat...but not like our experiences on the Dawn, which we have always enjoyed...but now I'm worried.

 

We have cruised the Dawn both in OS's and AC's on deck 9 and 10 - can't get more forward than that.

 

Yes, we heard the anchors (on deck 9) and went back to sleep.

Yes, we had "squeaky shoes" above us (on deck 10, on the bridge) and went back to sleep;)

 

Never had drawers opening and closing unless rough seas (hence, the tip to bring duct tape).

 

I believe the cabin stewards hours are now...

8 AM - 12 PM and, in the evening 6PM - 10PM, their hours were posted on the card in our room which was different from previous cruises. If you are "early risers and back in your cabin by 8AM", that could explain why your cabin was not made up.

Not defending them...just stating a fact;)

 

Coffee at 5AM...think I would have tried room service.

 

My experience at Bamboo (which I do not particularly care for)..I told the waitress that I only came for the Shrimp Tempura, which was an appetizer...she brought me 3 orders of them:) and...insisted that I order an entree!

Thanks for the "heads-up" on that....I always tell DH that if we don't like dessert, we can always order an appetizer for dessert:eek:

 

Thank goodness we have never had a problem with food not being hot...DH would never tolerate that.

Bingo..we do not do...never will! Never do the laundry on a cruise...I'm on vacation;)

 

Appreciate your honest review and I hope that things will change on the Dawn!

 

Enjoy your future cruises and thanks for posting:)