Dawn 12/1/05

[Moonhead15]

Just returned today from the Dawn and was very disappointed. Friends that had been on previously said the ship has gone down hill drastically. I had an incident at the Galleria shop (closed down during our voyage). My husband was on line to pay for his purchases for a long period of time and never said a word, when he was next in line to pay, a person cut in front of him and the cashier took that person (husband remained quiet figuring it was just another minute), 2nd person pushed their way in and the cashier took her, my husband spoke up and told the girl it was the second time she took someone out of turn and he has been standing there, no response from her but then went ahead and took another person and my husband raised his voice in complaint..the ass't. manager came over (never inquired what the problem was or suggested they step aside to talk about it) and told my husband to leave the store. I can't tell you how embarassed he was. So much for public relations. No more NCL for me after 6 cruises with them.

[Cruisinbunnies]

Sorry about your bad experience at the Galleria.

 

Anything else you can tell us about your trip besides this?

Was the sailing relatively smooth leaving NYC?

How were the ports of call?

Thanks

[Polish Falcon]

Did you go to Tortola on thes cruise?

[Polish Falcon]

Did you go to Tortola on thes cruise?

[EileenN]

I was under the impression that the Galleria Shop was going under "new management". Perhaps the old management did not care, because they didn't have to. Is that a reflection on NCL? Is it a vendor's fault or NCL?

Does anyone know?

[TrinaLC]

Just returned today from the Dawn and was very disappointed. Friends that had been on previously said the ship has gone down hill drastically. I had an incident at the Galleria shop (closed down during our voyage). My husband was on line to pay for his purchases for a long period of time and never said a word, when he was next in line to pay, a person cut in front of him and the cashier took that person (husband remained quiet figuring it was just another minute), 2nd person pushed their way in and the cashier took her, my husband spoke up and told the girl it was the second time she took someone out of turn and he has been standing there, no response from her but then went ahead and took another person and my husband raised his voice in complaint..the ass't. manager came over (never inquired what the problem was or suggested they step aside to talk about it) and told my husband to leave the store. I can't tell you how embarassed he was. So much for public relations. No more NCL for me after 6 cruises with them.

 

 

That is awful. It may be occasioned by the fact that this was probably the last trip under the vendor that has been managing that; they are being replaced and perhaps that explains -not excuses- the incident. I would be pretty sure it wasn't an NCL employee.

 

I would definitely complain to NCL about this in a politely written letter however. There is no excuse for that but I would hope the one incident doesn't put you off NCL forever.

[khia213]

I was just on that cruise and found it overall to be a pleasant experience. As for the Galleria, I suspect that any inconvenience the previous poster expereinced probably had more to do with the fact that there were quite a few rude people on that sailing for some reason. They pushed and cut in line in any number of places, including the Galleria.

 

The cruise iself was good. The food varied from just ok to excellent, depending on the venue. Our mini-suite was a good size. The staff was different. The women at the reception desk were cold, but I' be inclined to believe if I had to put up with the nonsense that they had to, I'd be indifferent too. The bar staff were nice and most of the entertainers were pleasant.

 

The only beef I have with the crusie is the 24/7 commercial. That line sells everything, all the time. Bingo, instant lottery tickets, Coke. It's really annoying. I know that they are trying to maximize their profit centers, but good grief! Let it go! We finally bought Coke on one of our shore excursions and took it back to our room. Beat the hell out of $55 for 10 days worth of cola.

 

Other than that, it was a good cruise.

[hateswaterloves2cruise]

Just returned from the 12/1 Dawn and have to say I enjoyed it thoroughly. Yes there were rude people on the ship. But rude people are everywhere. The Galleria shop was a disgrace. I don't know why they had it open at all. Very little merchandise and indifferent sales people. However, I feel I saved some $$$ because of it. I agree about the constant sales pitch. It does get a little much at times. But - the weather was great, the cruise was smooth, except for the 1st full day and evening. I had to get out the sea bands, but the good news was they worked! The trip home was like sailing on glass, no movement at all. This was my first time on the Dawn, 3rd on Norwegian and I would go again next week (if I could afford it). We enjoyed Le Bistro and Cagney's (won 2 free dinners on the slot machine in the casino). I learned a lot from these boards that made the trip more fun. My only questions is - why did we need a bungee cord for the balcony door? Our door stayed open just fine without it. Thanks to everyone who offered suggestions and tips.:)

[sonogram]

:) I also was on the Dawn this past week and thought it was a great cruise. There was a large population from a country, I will not mention here. I believe 674 passengers made up this population and they were so arrogant I can't even believe it myself. Enough of that. This cruise was great. A big improvement in the food quality from my last cruise. The entertainment, service and even the weather was A+. This was our 3rd NCL cruise.

 

Hints: 1. Preprint address labels for your luggage tags with this info:1 line for each- Name, address, phone #,sailing date,stateroom and (FWD,AFT) This will save time at the curbside check-in- just peel and attach to their luggage tags.

 

 

2. make reservations for specialty restaurants asap (1/2 price 1st night only.) All 3 main restaurants DO NOT have the same menu on the same night ex. Venetian- Red Snapper Aqua - Grouper

Venetian- Duck Al'orange Impressions Duck with Cognac

Venetian- Filet Mignon Aqua- Chateaubriand

 

3. Get to the shows 1/2 hour early and either sit in the row where there is space for someone to walk through- (There is only 1 row like this). I preferred to enter on 7 and sit on the sofas in the second tier ( The 1st is reserved for the Villas) The seats were more comfortable and there was enough leg room. The regular theatre seats are slanted downward and very close to the row in front.

 

4. Ventriloquist Lynn Trefzger -Excellent

Magician - Gleason Magic Very Good

Comedian -John Knight Great hysterical

South Beach Rave very good

Bollywood Excellent

 

Lounge chairs are a big poblem- people leave their stuff for 2-3hrs, as soon as you try to, sit on one they come out of the wood work to let you know you're sitting on their chair. If the staff doesn't do something about this , soon they'll see towels on chairs in the Venetian to reserve "their" window seat for dinner.

 

I brought 2 other couple along, who were 1st timers and they too, loved it.

[sonogram]

Yes we went to Tortola. Took the Highlights of Tortola excursion, very pretty views of a hilly Island with beautiful water- did not swim. Shops are not as plentiful as St Thomas

[Baitman19]

Sonogram & hateswaterloves2cruise,

 

Yes "those" people were very crude. We sailed last year at this time and it was the same. It wasn't this group, it's the people.

 

We really had a great cruise too.

 

I can't blame the Galleria personnel for the service. It was their last cruise also. They had a really bad job trying to get rid of the stuff so they didn't have to pack it up for the new concession to move on.

 

We found some really great bargains. I have a really nice Dawn golf shirt which I bought 3 cruises ago for $30.00. My wife got 2 for $5.00 each. Plenty of little things for little money and some jewelry for 1/2 off.

 

The bungee cord for the door hint. The person who originally suggested that, didn't know you can turn the door handle & lock the door open.

Happy Sailing,

Monty

[hateswaterloves2cruise]

Thanks, that bungee cord had me stumped. I'm already researching our next cruise. I will definitely be back on the Dawn. Great ship. :)

[Mrmacman]

Hey Monty, any chance that "those people" had Russian accents? On my Dawn cruise a year ago, there was a large contingent and they were indeed rude and inappropriate. I wonder if they will be on the Jan 2 sailing as well.

[swoosh2005]

:)

Lounge chairs are a big poblem- people leave their stuff for 2-3hrs, as soon as you try to, sit on one they come out of the wood work to let you know you're sitting on their chair.

 

On your next cruise you can become a member of the 'chair banditos'.

 

I was with some folks 2 cruises ago and we watched some towel laden chairs for @ an hour. We deftly removed the towels and used the chairs only to watch the confused chair hogs return a half hour later to try to remember which chairs were "theirs"

This is why I always get a balcony-I usually can't deal with it-nor do I want to......

[Baitman19]

Mrmacman,

 

Yes, indeed. Thank god they didn't have that 2 for 1 watch sale. They would have trampled hiundreds of passengers getting to the tables in the atrium. So far, two cruises and we have found them the crudest.:rolleyes:

 

Elevator story: Pushed the up button on the 6th deck to go to the 10th deck. The up light was lit, we got on the elevator and pushed 10. There were no lights on the panel of a deck they had picked. The elevator went up and opened at 10 and they said "thanks alot". Too bad:)

 

You can bet they will be on your cruise. It's the value season and Deck 4 will be full of them. We started to call them "steerage".

 

They were always at the Reception desk complaining about something.

 

Happy Sailing,

Monty

[Mrmacman]

They were indeed miserable people. I recall one night having dinner in Impressions. This man, who looked as if he had been sucking lemons all day, was not pleased with the menu. He continually asked the poor server (insert your best Russian accent here) "I vant cheeken....cheeken on bhone". Well, my partner and I nearly fell off the chair laughing.

 

Later in the cruise, they were tossed out of the spa for smoking and drinking in the steam room. Unbelievable. So we will have them to look forward to again? I guess I will be doing lots of in-room dining.

[ceallaigh]

They were indeed miserable people. I recall one night having dinner in Impressions. This man, who looked as if he had been sucking lemons all day, was not pleased with the menu. He continually asked the poor server (insert your best Russian accent here) "I vant cheeken....cheeken on bhone". Well, my partner and I nearly fell off the chair laughing.

 

Later in the cruise, they were tossed out of the spa for smoking and drinking in the steam room. Unbelievable. So we will have them to look forward to again? I guess I will be doing lots of in-room dining.

 

I was also on this cruise. I found most of the Russian contingent to be lovely. Of course, there are exceptions to every rule but in general they were very friendly to me and my husband.

 

We had a wonderful cruise and I will write a review once I get over the bug I'm fighting. We would definitely take this cruise again. :)

 

Kelly

[AC Stew]

First and foremost: A hearty thank-you to Iceberg (Harry) for organizing the CC gathering. While it would have been nice to spend more time actually "meeting and greeting," it was still thrilling to view the Garden Suite. I also thoroughly enjoyed getting to know some of my fellow posters; what a terrific bunch of folks! To CruisingBob and your lovely bride: that was a delightful evening at Salsa!

 

As far as I'm concerned, the cruise exceeded my expectations. Our fantail (aft) BA cabin 9238 was small, true, but the spectacular views more than compensated for minor stowage space challenges. I am now officially hooked on that location. It was perfect for the Dawn ... two flights up for the gym, and another two up for the trough (a.k.a. Garden Cafe). Very convenient.

 

Was everything one hundred percent perfect? Of course not, but no one issue was enough to detract from an overall positive experience. I would rate the Garden Cafe as adequate, with some offerings clearly superior to others. But hey, bottom line, it's a cafeteria ... I don't expect fine dining here! Looking at the massive quantities consumed by a frightening number of passengers, and I can certainly understand that NCL's priority would have to be "quantity over quality."

 

The main restaurants varied a bit, but the service was by and large first rate. No matter how you slice it, dinner was always a quantum leap from staring in the fridge and wondering how to be creative with yet another leftover chicken! We especially enjoyed the ambience of Impressions; I found it to be less frenetic than the busier Venetian.

 

If you really want the 5 star dining experience, the options are readily available with the premium restaurants. I have to say that we loved Le Bistro. Although as an aside, if you purchase the honeymoon package (an amazing bang for your buck), be prepared to be serenaded by the wait staff with a chorus of "Let me call you sweetheart!" I was so embarassed I didn't know whether to laugh or cry!

 

And finally, as to the passengers. Oi! I'm not even going to attempt to be politically correct. The large (literally and figuratively) contingent of Russians aboard were a force to be reckoned with. At their worst ... loud, pushy, rude, disrespectful. Forget about the jacuzzi, you couldn't get near it! And no way was I going to go in the water with all those greased up whales! But they were entertaining. And in a way, I envied the women who were so completely comfortable with their body image. Sprawled on every available beach chair, they weren't phased in the least to bare their ample derrieres to change in and out of swimming gear! People watching at a new and unexpected level.

 

Honestly, this was a wonderful holiday. I felt that the Dawn offered an abundance of choices, both for dining and onboard activities. We loved most of the entertainment, always managing to acquire great seats. The hard working staff were all attentive and I really cannot say anything bad about NCL. In fact, I'm seriously considering another 10 day sailing on the Dawn next November 26.

 

Bye for now,

Air Canada Stew

[Moonhead15]

I too had a wonderful trip and enjoyed the excellent entertainment but there is no excuse for the embarassment they caused us in the Galleria. The service in the main restaurants -excellent, the buffet was terrible. I think that they owed my husband more than a "i'm sorry". We aren't looking for a free cruise but even a call from the Purser would have been proper.

[AC Stew]

I am so sorry that you had to endure such an unfortunate experience in the Galleria. I would urge you to send a detailed letter to NCL customer

relations. They take forever to respond, but I am sure that they will.

 

Actually, I was surprised to see the Galleria packing up 2 days before the cruise was over. I just assumed that this was what NCL did on a 10 day sailing. Clearly though, something was amiss. Sorry that you and your hubbie got caught in the middle of it.

 

Here's to a better cruise experience for you both,

Regards,

Air Canada Stew

[Mrmacman]

Thanks Moonhead and Stew.

We sail on Jan 2 for our 2nd Dawn outing. I agree that the buffet is horrible. Was often amazed at the number of people eating dinner there when the ship had so many more options. To each his own. I do hope that they have the new vendor functional in the Galleria by Jan 2.

 

Yup, there is nothing else to say about the Russians than they were a nightmare. The best was when I walked into the steam room and a contingent was in there smoking and had drinks in glasses and beer bottles....in a tile sauna...with bare feet....

 

We really enjoyed LeBistro, except the tables were crammed together. Felt just like my favorite NYC eateries (cramped). Best view goes to Salsa, make sure you get a window table at sunset. Stunning.

[IrinaY]

Not that I want to begin an argument, but I am Russian, wear size 0, don't drink and don't smoke. Never have been called rude or pushy. At first it was funny, all your comments about Russian, because I am sure they probably true. But it is said they you are generalize everyone. Not all of us laud and rude, we all different

[capncarp]

Not that I want to begin an argument, but I am Russian, wear size 0, don't drink and don't smoke. Never have been called rude or pushy. At first it was funny, all your comments about Russian, because I am sure they probably true. But it is said they you are generalize everyone. Not all of us laud and rude, we all different

 

My DW and I went on the Dawn Western Caribbean 11/20 cruise, and while there were some "colorful" Russians were in attendance, our troubles came from a trio of unsupervised blue-eyed blond-haired Bart-Simpson-coiffed American children who made rude comments and noises in the elevators, made a grand parade unaccompanied by an adult around the Venetian room in shorts on formal night, rattled the hell out of my cabin doorknob in the hurried and mistaken impression that it was the access to the Internet cafe (next door down the hall), and were generally pains in the rear. My DW finally called ship security about them after the doorknob incident. (They were lucky she did--*I* wanted to find out if sharks would play with their food before eating it.:rolleyes: ) So "those people" can be taken to mean quite a lot of different things to different people. The term "ugly American" has not lost its meaning totally.

 

capncarp,

Looking at the snow/ice and asking myself, "And I came back from the Caribbean WHYYYYY???????"

[PRNole47]

I was going to say the "rude" behavior is the type I commonly find during trips to NYC, usually when I'm standing at some cash register counter waiting my turn to pay (dept store, deli, hotel, newsstand, whatever) and some individual starts to slowly elbow him/herself thru the group, coming from behind, pushing everyone aside until they are first at the counter, regardless of how far back in the line or group they started out. No patience. No manners. No waiting in line for them.

 

Then I checked the Dawn's itinerary and find that it originates in NYC, so...who knows if these rude people were simply NYC "locals" of European birth (and accents) or some who were flown in from another country just for the cruise.