Pacific Dawn Cruise W233 Review 15/09 – 22/09/2012

[possum52]

As this was our first cruise my husband and I were very excited but also a little anxious as we had read different views of P&O and in particular the Pacific Dawn. We flew to Brisbane from Melbourne the day before to ease our stress levels. As we stayed at a motel across from Portside, we walked over on Saturday morning. Our luggage was easily pulled behind us and our carryon bags were back packs.

 

We found that the check in procedure was very easy and we were in the first few groups to board. It was very hectic in the terminal but everything seemed to go very smoothly. We were able to go straight to our cabin (deck 6 midship) where we were pleasantly surprised with the size and amenities. We decided to have our lunch at the Waterfront Restaurant and enjoyed our first meal onboard. After the emergency exercise we made our way to Deck 14 and enjoyed the sailaway party (with cocktail in hand).

 

We again ate in the Waterfront for dinner. Even though we enjoyed the meal we thought we would try the Plantation buffet for breakfast which is where we decided to eat most of our meals because of the convenience of anytime dining. I had heard the Waterfront was also anytime dining but when we went to book, we were given a choice of 5.45pm, 6pm or 8.15pm not quite the times we had in mind. After reading some bad reviews of the Plantation we were happy with the variety and quality of the food. We booked the Salt Grill one evening and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. The service and food were amazing.

 

We found the entertainment fantastic and there was something for all tastes and ages. I was quite amazed at the diversity of the passengers onboard – people of all walks of life, many different ages and nationalities. We were happy to wander and do our own thing on sea days. We enjoyed a coffee sitting on deck after our breakfast and lunch and I was quite surprised at how many people said hello as they walked past.

We had booked tours for our three shore days and I must say they were well organised and informative.

 

Our first port of call was Noumea and we were disappointed to find that the Pacific Dawn was docking at the container port and not at the passenger terminal. We were unable to make our own way off the ship except by buses supplied by P&O. As we had booked a tour on the Tchou Tchou train we didn’t have time to take advantage of the buses as the last one into the town was before we returned from our tour. Unfortunately, it was very overcast and threatening rain, but other than a few drops it didn’t. We found the tour guide very informative and we managed to see quite a lot of Noumea in two hours.

 

Our next shore visit was Lifou Island. By the time our tour was called to the tenders it was starting to rain. Once again, the tour, Cliffs of Jokin was well organised. Because of the heavy rain, our visit to the vanilla plantation was cut short. Our tour guide Jenny was very informative and what an amazing view we had from the top of the cliffs. We had refreshments of coconut milk and orange juice. Some of us were lucky enough to be given some coconut flesh to eat. We were then able to spend some time exploring the village and taking many photos. On arrival back at Easo, we visited the market stalls near the jetty and bought a few souvenirs. It had stopped raining but there was quite a cook wind coming off the sea, so as we were wet from our tour, yes we did have waterproof jackets on, we decided to go back to the ship for a late lunch after a change of clothes. No snorkelling unfortunately.

 

Our final port was Port Vila. Once again it was a rainy day and by the time our tour to Ekasup Cultural Village was underway, the rain was very heavy. When we arrived at the village our driver handed out umbrellas to us all. Even though we had the umbrellas and our waterproof jackets we still managed to get very wet. Our host at the village was excellent in very trying conditions and once again we enjoyed the tour. On arrival back at the wharf we decided to change out of our wet clothes and have lunch before heading off to look at the market stalls along the road beside the wharf. The sun had come out and it was now hot and very sticky. One thing we discovered is that the prices at the stalls were much cheaper than Lifou. We met Chrissie, the Australian lady who collects donations for the women’s hospital in Port Vila outside the wharf gates.

 

Thursday, a sea day was quite rough and I suffered sea sickness and spent the afternoon in our cabin but recovered in time to dress up for dinner and have formal photos taken. I have heard many complaints about the photographers on board harassing passengers to have their photo taken but we did not find that at all. We were very happy with the photos we bought but probably wouldn’t bother again except perhaps for a formal photo.

Friday, our last day at sea was sunny and warm and many passengers were on deck taking advantage of the warmth. We had planned to see the final show in the Marque Lounge but didn’t arrive in time to get a seat. We wandered back to our deck and found seats above the atrium and listened to the show band and then all the singers and musicians came and jammed – fantastic evening to finish off our first cruise.

 

The next morning we were up to watch the sun come up over the Gateway Bridge as we docked at Portside. We were scheduled to meet at the Marque at 7.30am and were there before that, a few minutes before 7.30 our group was called to disembark, our luggage arrived as we came through and we were directed straight out. Such an easy disembarkment! We walked over to our motel where the receptionist very kindly allowed us to check in early – just after 8am! We had planned just to leave our luggage. We caught the river cat into Southbank and spent a few hours wandering around this beautiful area of Brisbane. We had a mid morning flight back to Melbourne the next morning.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our first cruise and will certainly cruise again. The Pacific Dawn is a lovely ship and her captain and crew were fantastic. We were so spoilt, it was hard to come back to reality when we arrived home.

Leigh

[Kiwi_cruiser]

What a great review possum52 :D, Thank you for sharing!

 

What a shame the weather gods did not play nice for you :(

[Sandielle]

Great review, thanks Leigh. Glad you enjoyed the Pacific Dawn. As KC says, what a shame you had rainy weather. We also found the crew fantastic and love the size of the cabins on PD. :)

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review!

[cjm66]

Thank you Leigh for your review. Refreshing to read a review that did not complain about the weather and let it ruin the cruise. I wish the Dawn sailed from Sydney.. A question, we are also docking at the container terminal in Noumea and have booked the Tchou Tchou train. How did you get from the container terminal to the train if you did not use the bus? Thanks. Colleen

[possum52]

Thank you everyone for the kind words about my review. There is no point complaining about the weather as there is nothing we can do about it! You just have to take the good with the bad.

 

Colleen, the Tchou Tchou trains were actually on the wharf with the buses waiting for us to disembark.

 

All in all, it was a wonderful experience for our first cruise.

 

Leigh

[Brossy]

Hi Leigh

 

Thank you for your wonderful review. Sorry to hear the weather wasn't so great, but glad to hear you still had a wonderful cruise.

 

What was the name of the hotel you stayed at? We are looking at cruising on the Dawn next year and would fly up the night before the cruise as well so looking for a place to book. Would you recommend the hotel? Thanks :).

[possum52]

Brossy,

 

The motel we stayed at was the Airport Ascot Motel at 550 Kingsford Smith Drive, Hamilton. Yes, I would recommend it. Not a cheap option, I think it was $175 per night but very clean, modern and comfortable. It's a short walk to the Racecourse Road restaurants and shops.

 

 

Leigh

[Brossy]

Brossy,

 

The motel we stayed at was the Airport Ascot Motel at 550 Kingsford Smith Drive, Hamilton. Yes, I would recommend it. Not a cheap option, I think it was $175 per night but very clean, modern and comfortable. It's a short walk to the Racecourse Road restaurants and shops.

 

 

Leigh

 

Hi Leigh

 

Thank you :)