Dawn Garden Villa cruise review from a Carnival point of view.

[PCLMassachusetts]

:) There it is.

 

Thanks. I read it so fast I skipped right over it.

[BritChickBN1]

I really enjoyed this review. Thank you for sharing. :)

[bguppies]

Overall experience, the suite experience and random thoughts.

Have to say that we had a really great cruise.

 

The general cruise experience was very much on par with what we had experienced previously on Carnival.

 

A few things I liked better about the Carnival product and a few things I liked better about the NCL product.

I'd say 75% of the cruise experience was almost exactly the same.

 

I would say we preferred the entertainment staff on our various Carnival cruises, versus the staff on the Dawn. (very subjective thing though)

Pretty important as much as we enjoy trivia, games and stuff like the Wii. (like some find the live bands important, some the piano bar pianist, some the karaoke host, some the Bingo caller, etc..)

Have to give NCL kudos for that touch with the Wii.

Had games on a couple of Carnival cruises, but on smaller TVs behind the bar than the large TV in the open at Pearly Kings.

 

I definitely preferred the food on Carnival over the Dawn. (again very subjective)

And honestly, the main dining room and buffet experiences were pretty equal.

It was the two specialty experiences for me that brought NCL down.

(sorry but 2 bad steaks are NOT subjective)

 

The service on the Dawn was equal if not superior to most of our Carnival cruises.

 

Definitely preferred the buffet setup on the Dawn over most of the Carnival ships. (except maybe the Legend)

Little touches and improvements I already mentioned, went a long way here.

 

Liked the pool layout better than Carnival. (but the pool is not a very important part of our cruise experience)

 

Hated how tiny the chairs and legroom were in the main theater on the Dawn. (6'1" isn't that big, my 6' 5" brother looked like a lady in the stirrups at the gyno, so his legs would fit.)

Big plus here for Carnival with bench seating and tables in front of the chairs for a lot of legroom.

 

I thought the atrium area of the Dawn was extremely nice and more open than on most Carnival ships....

But..........

I felt like I was walking through a flea market, much of the day, the way they set up the tables of gold chains and just crap for sale, in the center of the atrium.

I understand that some of the shops are right there.

Carnival sets up the tables also, but the shops usually are off at one end of the ship and if you aren't shopping you don't have to encounter the tables of liquor, gold chains and general crap, while you try to walk to a venue.

 

Having the tables strewn throughout the atrium left a kind of flea market vibe every day as I passed through there.

Definitely a missed opportunity for NCL on sales over quality of the cruise experience.

 

Felt bad that I missed out on trying the gym.

Walked through there while touring one morning and saw the facilities, but I always like hitting the gym and trying it out.

 

Really missed out on ordering a pizza to the cabin...

Meant to do it all week and kept forgetting.

Wanted to see how NCL's Pizza measured up to Carnival's mediocre at best pizza.

 

The one slice of Pizza I tried the first day in the buffet was the most horrible slice of pizza I have ever tried.

Could not tell what type of cheese they used. (looked like they mixed a lot of cheddar with Mozzarella?!?!?!)

Worse than elementary school cafeteria pizza.

Figured the whole pie you would order to your room would HAVE to be better.

 

Now definitely not at all important to us, but I know a TON of people on the Carnival boards always whine about the loss of their live bands, poolside.

 

The Dawn had a 4 piece that played for an hour to 1 1/2 each day, once or twice on a sea day.

They were pretty good, but the song selection was really strange for poolside.

The day we were down there was 90 minutes of 70's Disco songs??!!?

Other times were 70's-80's pop tunes, etc...

I would think that relaxing beach tunes or Caribbean music would be more appropriate, but hey... (again VERY subjective thing, musical taste)

 

Now at least the band was good, playing bad music. (hopefully NOT their choice)

 

But the DJ or whoever programmed the piped in music poolside was horrible.

Thumping club music in spanish?!?!?!!?

 

Now we only hung out by the pool the one day and walked through occasionally to get to the suites at the front of deck 12. (or back?)

But every time we were there or walking through seemed to be thumping dance tunes.

 

Can't really compare the regular cabin experience or regular embarkation and debarkation on the Dawn to Carnival...

 

Now to the suite portion of the afterthoughts.

 

If you can ever afford a suite, and think one would be interesting to you, sooooooo worth it.

 

Never thought I'd care for the extra space, as we don't spend that much time in the room, usually.

But having that space, in the privacy of your cabin, makes you really think, "Do I REALLY feel like going to trivia?" , "Do I REALLY want to attend that show?"...

LOL

 

Did not enjoy it enough to sway us from multiple cruises in the cheapest cabins, per year, versus splurging for a suite.

But would definitely think hard about another suite for a special cruise.

 

I also think, a cruise to say Alaska or Hawaii, with that incredible view, with the floor to ceiling windows, from your bed, the chair or the table, would definitely raise the value of the suite. (or that crazy big rooftop area, with the plush loungers, cruising by volcanoes or glaciers.)

 

I don't think we utilized the outside space NEARLY enough for how much there was.

(sunburn kind of killed that)

 

The concierge and butler services of NCL are definitely what takes their suite products to another level.

 

Needless to say, the suites our group had on deck 12 were extremely nice.

But the Garden Villa is just so over the top.

 

But if you break down the cost of the Garden Villa, divided by 3 couples or 6 or 7 individuals, it isn't that far off the price of a couple in another suite, but you gain a LOT of shared indoor and outdoor space. (besides the 3 individual suite cabins, inside the shared space.)

 

In the end, if we can find an NCL cruise, from a departure port that has the same price as Carnival, I would definitely think about it.

(our Carnival Platinum benefits, would figure in, if early debark was neccesary in a port.)

 

Would definitely like a 2nd taste of the NCL product for sure.

Especially from a regular inside or balcony cabin.

 

But there were no items on NCL that would sway us into paying more, for the same itinerary with Carnival.

 

But if we EVER decide to sail in a suite again, it would DEFINITELY be on NCL. (I can see how they have gotten my parents so hooked.)

 

Hope everybody enjoyed this review..

 

Getting ready for a 9 hour drive, back to my hometown of Baltimore for a weekend Music Festival and O's game on Sunday...

 

Feel free to ask any questions you may have and I will get caught up first thing Monday morning...

 

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

:D

 

Bill

[PCLMassachusetts]

Great review. Thanks for sharing!

[Zimomiller]

Bravo~!

An excellent, well thought out and insightful review.

Thank you for sharing

[Cubechick]

Loved your review. And do agree about the flea market atmosphere in the atrium. Newer ships have a dedicated space for this, thank goodness!

 

Hope to have the GV experience myself someday!

[Cruise Envy]

Thanks for the review, and thanks to those of you who found the float prices!!

[Love my butler]

For me personally, cruising NCL in a suite with concierge and butler service and a private dining room makes NCL better than anything Carnival can offer. Sounds like you didn't have much use for these perks so I can see why you would rate the lines about equal.

[Twelvevman]

Thanks for a great review. I am getting on the Dawn Sunday for the 12 night repositioning cruise and it will be my first NCL suite experiance. I found your review to be very objective and interresting.