Review of Dawn out of NOLA 12/28/14

[PCLMassachusetts]

My wife and I are mid 40ish with three kids. The oldest 14 and the other two 11. We sailed in a family suite with a balcony, cabin 12520. No, you do not need to be wealthy to sail in a suite. We certainly are not. On our last cruise on the Gem we had two balcony cabins. On this cruise it was cheaper to get the one suite, so we did. We did miss having two bathrooms, however the suite perks are great. Breakfast and lunch in Cagneys is a nice benefit. I do wish that the lunch menu in Cagneys had more of a selection. On the first day my wife had a dirty water glass and told the waitress. They gave us a free bottle of wine because of it. We have never had that happen in a land based restaurant and have had plenty of dirty glasses over the years. My kids did not enjoy the lunch selection so a couple of days they ate lunch in the buffet. My wife and I joined them there one day for lunch. That was ok, just not my thing.

 

Our Concierge was Karabi, Butler Madel, and Room Steward BJ. All fantastic. Karabi went out of her way to assist us with reservations and was at the breakfast service each morning to see if we needed anything. Madel was great and always smiling.

 

Our shower door leaked and there was a tile peeling up in the shower. I mentioned this and the tile was fixed. The shower door still leaked so we just would put an extra towel on the floor when showering. While we were in Roatan it rained in the afternoon. Because of the way the ship was tied up, it was leaning a little. This caused the rain water to pool up on our balcony. When we returned we found that there was leak somewhere in the balcony door as well. There was about a two foot section of wet carpet in the cabin near the balcony door. I called about this and they sent someone right away to get rid of the water and dry the carpet. Karabi heard of our issues and told us that our dinner that night in Cagneys and a bottle of wine would be comped. Nice touch that was not asked for, just provided.

 

The entertainment was great. My favorite was the areal acrobatic team of Aurelie and Dmitri. I cannot even being to describe how amazing they were, just go see them! The food was good. We ate in both free dinning rooms as well as Cagneys, La Cucina (twice), Le Bistro, and Tappanyaki. The free dinning rooms were fine and there is no need to pay extra if you do not want to. However, I found the cover charge places to be worth the extra money.

 

While in Cozumel we went to Nachi Cocum. Great place until I decided to go into the ocean. We were all enjoying the clear warm water until I realized that I had left my cell phone in my bathing suite pocket. Despite removing the battery and letting it dry out for the next two days it was fried! In Belize we did the Altun Ha Belize City tour via NCL. The tour was great until the end when the tour guides brought us to a "rum factory" which was not part of the tour description. This was nothing more than a liquor store that was apparently giving the guides a kick back for any purchases made. We had to wait on the bus for 40 minutes before returning to the ship. I went to the excursion desk to let them know what the people they had contracted with were doing. We were refunded 15% of the cost. Another nice touch since I was not looking for a refund, I just wanted them to know what was happening. In Roatan we did a private tour with Steve Bush of Roatan Trips and Tours. Great tour and I highly recommend using him if you are going to Roatan.

 

Bottom line is that this was a great vacation with a few bumps in the road. None of them ruined our trip. The Dawn is a nice ship that is still in overall good shape. I would sail on her again, even before her scheduled dry dock. We are all looking forward to sailing on her again, next time out of Boston.

[pathubia]

Thanks for posting!! We are in a family suite opposite where yours was, 12020 on January 25, we have been in the 2 bedroom 2 bathroom suite and loved the suite life. There are only two of us this time, so we should have plenty of room in the family suite. We are driving down from Weymouth, Ma (with a pit stop in Memphis):eek:. We had originally booked a MX, but the prices came down so much, it was well worth the upgrade.

 

We are also spending our Cozumel day at Nachi Cocum. Looks like a fun day. The only day we havent made ressies for is Belize, I hate bus rides, so we may just hang out on the ship and maybe do a little shopping.....

 

Thanks again for posting. We were on the Dawn in October and have seen so many posts about the shape of the ship, I was wondering what happened!!

[PCLMassachusetts]

We were on the Dawn in October and have seen so many posts about the shape of the ship, I was wondering what happened!!

 

I did not see any public areas that were in disrepair. The ship maybe ready for drydock but I would go on it again tomorrow if I could. Have a safe drive down. The flights for the 5 of us actually cost more than the cruise. Enjoy your cruise!

[pathubia]

I did not see any public areas that were in disrepair. The ship maybe ready for drydock but I would go on it again tomorrow if I could. Have a safe drive down. The flights for the 5 of us actually cost more than the cruise. Enjoy your cruise!

 

Wow, didnt realize the flights were that expensive. My boyfriend has never flown and we figured a roadtrip would be fun, stopping at Graceland!! I keep saying this is my last cruise for a while, then I book another....Thanks again!!

[bbryan5]

Patty, bet you won't have as much fun as you did on the Dawn in October :D:D:D:D:D

[pathubia]

Patty, bet you won't have as much fun as you did on the Dawn in October :D:D:D:D:D

 

Bryan you two should come with us!! :cool:

 

Imagine all the trouble, I mean fun we could have in NOLA????!!!! We can pick you up on our way!!

[Guindalf]

Thanks for the review. We have a courtesy hold on a suite until 3pm today, but just noticed it doesn't have a balcony! As it's the only thing available, we're trying to decide whether to go for it or not. Haven't not had a balcony for so long, I wonder how much it would affect our trip.

 

We'd be in cabin 12010, so my questions are how far is it from the outside (or at least a smoking area)? How close to coffee? Is it worth it without the privacy of a balcony?

[pathubia]

Thanks for the review. We have a courtesy hold on a suite until 3pm today, but just noticed it doesn't have a balcony! As it's the only thing available, we're trying to decide whether to go for it or not. Haven't not had a balcony for so long, I wonder how much it would affect our trip.

 

We'd be in cabin 12010, so my questions are how far is it from the outside (or at least a smoking area)? How close to coffee? Is it worth it without the privacy of a balcony?

 

I am not sure where the new smoking areas are on the Dawn, but I there must be one somewhere around the pool. My boyfriend just quit smoking (but i bet he starts up again while driving from Boston to New Orleans). Suite 12010 is pretty close to the pool, so you wont have to go too far.

[dexddd]

Thanks for the review. We have a courtesy hold on a suite until 3pm today, but just noticed it doesn't have a balcony! As it's the only thing available, we're trying to decide whether to go for it or not. Haven't not had a balcony for so long, I wonder how much it would affect our trip.

 

We'd be in cabin 12010, so my questions are how far is it from the outside (or at least a smoking area)? How close to coffee? Is it worth it without the privacy of a balcony?

 

If you are on deck 12 of the Dawn (or Star) it is not far. Just go aft down the hallway through the sliding doors and the smoking section was on the port side by the pool (at least it was last time I was on the Dawn).

 

Coffee is also just farther aft in the buffet.

 

You'll have a wall of windows - basically floor to ceiling.

[amallison]

Thank you for posting a review of the Dawn! We're sailing on her in 11 days & I cannot wait! Our first time on NCL and we're very excited!

[caribou9]

PCLMA

 

We are also a family of 5 and have considered the family suite with balcony, category SD. Are the auxiliary beds really accommodating for two persons?

[PCLMassachusetts]

PCLMA

 

We are also a family of 5 and have considered the family suite with balcony, category SD. Are the auxiliary beds really accommodating for two persons?

 

They are both wide enough for 2 people. And even when both beds are pulled out there is still room to walk between them to get to the balcony. Our steward asked how we wanted the beds put away each morning. We chose to have the sofa bed put back to a sofa but keep the wall bed pulled out. Plenty of space in these rooms.

[PCLMassachusetts]

I keep saying this is my last cruise for a while, then I book another.

 

I just did the same. Flew home late Monday night and I just now booked the Dawn out of Boston to Bermuda for July 2016. For booking a suite we got $300 OBC, UDP, and UBP. Pretty good deal if you ask me.

[PCLMassachusetts]

Thanks for the review. We have a courtesy hold on a suite until 3pm today, but just noticed it doesn't have a balcony! As it's the only thing available, we're trying to decide whether to go for it or not. Haven't not had a balcony for so long, I wonder how much it would affect our trip.

 

We'd be in cabin 12010, so my questions are how far is it from the outside (or at least a smoking area)? How close to coffee? Is it worth it without the privacy of a balcony?

 

Very close to the outside and coffee is available in your suite via a Lavazza machine. I would book one of the suites without a balcony if that was all that was left. We were next to one and the floor to ceiling windows are huge.

[pathubia]

I just did the same. Flew home late Monday night and I just now booked the Dawn out of Boston to Bermuda for July 2016. For booking a suite we got $300 OBC, UDP, and UBP. Pretty good deal if you ask me.

 

That is an awesome deal!! I was already past final payment for my January cruise so I wasnt able to take advantage of that one!! I keep checking the Boston to Bermuda prices for this summer...I think I am a cruise addict!! :eek:

[Robert Peel]

Enjoyed reading your review, glad that you had a good time, sailing on the Dawn at months end and looking very forward to warm weather from the break in the cold that we are experiencing here

[rkeate0804]

we were on the same cruise and loved it...we were in a 2br family suite with a balcony.....the concierge, butler and room steward were wonderful.....we had 3 of our girls with us (age 26 to 37) and they also loved this cruise.....we have been on many.....we spoiled ourselves since it was our xmas and did the dining package and the chefs table.....don't eat all day if you do the chefs table....lol

 

We had no problem with our room....I would suggest extra eggcrates for the second b r and couch in l r......they really helped.....

 

We did a great bar hop tour in cozumel....our second time doing this and takes you to great areas around the island......ck it out on the internetlll......we stayed on the boat in Belize......We did the snorkle tour with lunch from NCL and what fun it was.....Costa Maya we went into the town and bought f day pass from Koox hotel for 20 dollars.....food, drinks and beach......beautiful lounge chairs and palapas......it is such a nice little town....

 

The port of new orleans is awesome.....we stayed at a Courtyard 2 blocks away and walked right up to checkin.....sooooo easy and they have someone right outside before the tracks to take your luggage...

 

hope you all that are getting ready to cruise have as much fun as we did:cool:

[bbryan5]

Bryan you two should come with us!!

 

Imagine all the trouble, I mean fun we could have in NOLA????!!!! We can pick you up on our way!!

__________________

 

We would absolutely love to!! What a party in NOLA we'd have! We just booked the breakaway in May.. next year we HAVE to book one together!

[Freespir8]

My wife and I are mid 40ish with three kids. The oldest 14 and the other two 11. We sailed in a family suite with a balcony, cabin 12520. No, you do not need to be wealthy to sail in a suite. We certainly are not. On our last cruise on the Gem we had two balcony cabins. On this cruise it was cheaper to get the one suite, so we did. We did miss having two bathrooms, however the suite perks are great. Breakfast and lunch in Cagneys is a nice benefit. I do wish that the lunch menu in Cagneys had more of a selection. On the first day my wife had a dirty water glass and told the waitress. They gave us a free bottle of wine because of it. We have never had that happen in a land based restaurant and have had plenty of dirty glasses over the years. My kids did not enjoy the lunch selection so a couple of days they ate lunch in the buffet. My wife and I joined them there one day for lunch. That was ok, just not my thing.

 

Our Concierge was Karabi, Butler Madel, and Room Steward BJ. All fantastic. Karabi went out of her way to assist us with reservations and was at the breakfast service each morning to see if we needed anything. Madel was great and always smiling.

 

Our shower door leaked and there was a tile peeling up in the shower. I mentioned this and the tile was fixed. The shower door still leaked so we just would put an extra towel on the floor when showering. While we were in Roatan it rained in the afternoon. Because of the way the ship was tied up, it was leaning a little. This caused the rain water to pool up on our balcony. When we returned we found that there was leak somewhere in the balcony door as well. There was about a two foot section of wet carpet in the cabin near the balcony door. I called about this and they sent someone right away to get rid of the water and dry the carpet. Karabi heard of our issues and told us that our dinner that night in Cagneys and a bottle of wine would be comped. Nice touch that was not asked for, just provided.

 

The entertainment was great. My favorite was the areal acrobatic team of Aurelie and Dmitri. I cannot even being to describe how amazing they were, just go see them! The food was good. We ate in both free dinning rooms as well as Cagneys, La Cucina (twice), Le Bistro, and Tappanyaki. The free dinning rooms were fine and there is no need to pay extra if you do not want to. However, I found the cover charge places to be worth the extra money.

 

While in Cozumel we went to Nachi Cocum. Great place until I decided to go into the ocean. We were all enjoying the clear warm water until I realized that I had left my cell phone in my bathing suite pocket. Despite removing the battery and letting it dry out for the next two days it was fried! In Belize we did the Altun Ha Belize City tour via NCL. The tour was great until the end when the tour guides brought us to a "rum factory" which was not part of the tour description. This was nothing more than a liquor store that was apparently giving the guides a kick back for any purchases made. We had to wait on the bus for 40 minutes before returning to the ship. I went to the excursion desk to let them know what the people they had contracted with were doing. We were refunded 15% of the cost. Another nice touch since I was not looking for a refund, I just wanted them to know what was happening. In Roatan we did a private tour with Steve Bush of Roatan Trips and Tours. Great tour and I highly recommend using him if you are going to Roatan.

 

Bottom line is that this was a great vacation with a few bumps in the road. None of them ruined our trip. The Dawn is a nice ship that is still in overall good shape. I would sail on her again, even before her scheduled dry dock. We are all looking forward to sailing on her again, next time out of Boston.

 

Thank you so much for your review. We will be on the Dawn in November. Do you know when her next scheduled dry dock is?

[PCLMassachusetts]

Thank you so much for your review. We will be on the Dawn in November. Do you know when her next scheduled dry dock is?

I am not sure but I think I read on here that is within the next couple months. Maybe after the NOLA cruises and before Boston? If I can find it I will post the link.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for your report, glad you had a good time.

[rkeate0804]

refurbish in may 2016 is what i heard on the boat

[pathubia]

We would absolutely love to!! What a party in NOLA we'd have! We just booked the breakaway in May.. next year we HAVE to book one together!

 

Hmmm, breakaway in may sounds good!!