Dawn - NYC Emabarkation Observation

[sjmoss]

Just as and FYI, I am not going on the Dawn until next August:mad: , but I was in the city today and passed by the Cruise terminal at 12:30 pm and it was so jammed with cars that it created traffic on the West Side highway. At the time, the Dawn, NCL Crown and a large Carnival ship (not sure which one) were docked at the terminal, but it was packed. When we passed by again at 2:30 pm it was empty outside. This tells me it is better to arrive a little later and you can probably walk right on the ship. Just an observation, for whatever it is worth. I can't wait for next year and my 5 year old son was so excited to see the ship he will be going on.

[DawnCruise05]

FYI - A friend of mine came off the Dawn today and was delayed due to the traffic back-up, etc. While she was waiting for her taxi (up at the parking lot - disembarking passengers were asked to go there instead of the usual taxi pickup) she was informed that there was a bomb scare and that caused much of the commotion and traffic problems.

[lasifguvui5uh]

sjmoss

 

I believe your observation & conclusions are right on. In July, we were aiming to arrive at the pier at 11:00 am for our Dawn embarkation. As usual, we arrived around 1pm. There was barely any traffic out front. Upon debarkation back in NY, the early arriving passengers created a huge traffic jam with the passengers trying to get their cars out of the parking lot or getting to their taxi. There were only 2 ships in port at the time, I don't even want to imagine adding another.

[sunshine 229]

I think the best advice for embarkation on the Dawn is to go prepared for a certain amount of hassle and prepared not to let it ruin your vacation.

 

Going later may be a good idea since the earlier you go the more overlap there will be between the debarking and the embarking passengers but even if you arrive later you can run into traffic, long waits etc. The NYC port wasn't IMO designed to handle those big ships with so many passengers and also, if there is some event in the city on the weekend you are departing, it can play havoc with the traffic.

 

I would just look at the embarkation as being something unpleasant you must get through before your vacation begins. Then if it goes well you will be pleasantly surprised.

 

The good news is once you get on the ship the fun begins and you will probably have great service and a wonderful time.