Dawn Review

[yummysbakery]

This review is for the Jan 6 2019 sailing. This was my 8 th cruise with ncl but the first on the dawn. I travelled with my best friend and we are in our late 50’s but we think we act much younger.

 

Coming from different states I had coordinated our flights into sju by connecting in clt on American. I had booked these flights as soon as the dates were available and was able to book round trip FIRST class seats for only $50 more than the average coach fare. Bags were included so it was a no brainer. We were served a full lunch and of course cocktails, free movies via their free WiFi and fresh baked cookies. We arrived in sju approximately 4:30 pm the day before the cruise. Picked up a taxi and headed to holiday inn express in isle verde. The hotel was packed. The rooms are small but the location was excellent and the staff was friendly. We walked around ate dinner at pannos and called it a night. Boarding wasn’t until noon so after the included breakfast we walked two minutes away to the beach area. Took a few pictures and then checked out of the hotel around 11am. Called an Uber and was to the port in about 5 minutes. Yay vacation time.

 

sju port is unlike any I have experienced. We waited in a fairly long but quickly moving que with our luggage. There were no porters until you reached the doors of the terminal and security. Two porters were throwing the luggage onto the carts right beside them, as soon as the luggage went on the cart we immediately went thru security. I looked for the haven/ suite sign which was on the opposite side of the terminal. The agent who was on the very end of the check in counter. Pictures taken boarding cards given we were taken three feet to where a roped off area with folding chairs were lined up. The usual beverages and snacks set up. Several butlers were milling about but no one acknowledged us. Now here is where it gets a bit confusing. Outside the roped off area was the que to get on the ship. We watched probably 100  non suite guests walk right around us and boarded. After 15 min or so I finally asked one of the butlers when we could board and he seemed surprised. He said oh I didn’t know you were ready. This was not our butler from the cruise.

 

we were escorted to our room and he left saying enjoy your cruise....he didn’t show us the features of the room nor ackowledge us by name.

 

more to come

[bonvoyagie]

sounds a bit like when we boarded in Boston - they were changing out butlers and suite room stewards so things were a bit mixed up  - our butler and room steward came by later in the day to introduce themselves and go over the room.

[don't-use-real-name]

2 hours ago, bonvoyagie said:

sounds a bit like when we boarded in Boston - they were changing out butlers and suite room stewards so things were a bit mixed up  - our butler and room steward came by later in the day to introduce themselves and go over the room.

 

I don't know the operation on other ships - but the butlers on the DAWN are rotated so they are familiar with all the suites

penthouse OS DOS and the biggie the Garden Villa.

All the 2BR suites (10) on deck 11 are handled by the same butler.

The Garden Villa both staterooms are taken care of by one butler *** this is a prime ultimate assignment !

Generally a butler has 6 to 12 staterooms depending on deck/location.

Each of the butlers is on a rotating assignment to the night watch wee hours to handle all the suites

this in addition to his regular assignment.

So if your butler seems a bit sluggish and not with it - no doubt he pulled the night shift.

Having time to chat with your butler reveals a lot about the behind the scenes staffing.

There is only one Concierge on the DAWN and he relies heavily on the butlers to be there at the moment he is not.

All the SX escorts were done by my butler and to bypass lines the short cuts through crew areas are interesting and

the use of an elevator pass key are efficient tools used to service more than one guest.

 

About the cabin stewards and their assignment - interesting will have to inquire about that on the next cruise.

 

It is a shame when the service is lessen - the butler escort to your cabin - opening the door - turning on the lights -

showing the temperature thermostat - seeing that the service components are in place - and whom to contact for

any further questions. Normally the suites are an exception to the early boarding rule of awaiting your cabin being

available for occupancy.

The five times I have been on the DAWN everything was perfect and without a hitch - sort of really spoiled now !

Surprised to read of bonvoyagie's comment ! Boston is pretty laid out forward - as for the OPs SJU experience

haven't been to SJU boarding on NCL - Carnival yes - different cruise terminals/location.

 

 

Edited January 19, 2019 by don't-use-real-name

[newmexicoNita]

anxious to read the rest of the story. We are sailing the Dawn in just about 2 weeks, plus a few days. BTW we also are going through clt. This will be our 22nd NCL cruise and yes, we have started from SJN. I don't remember the check in process being much different than other embarkation ports but it has been awhile. I don't like the idea of not having the porters available at curb side, but guess we will live with it. It is hard to handle our luggage as hubby uses a walker when we are on vacation 

[dexddd]

So this sounds like Pan Am pier.  Definitely different and you have to carry luggage to the end.

 

Suite area nothing special.  When we did go on Gem though, Patrick the concierge was there and managed things well and had suite guests boarding first.

[yummysbakery]

Yes this was the pan American pier. Ok so we made it to our stateroom. An sd suite forward with balcony. I had requested the pre concierge to have the beds split. This was the only suite that beds could be split. There is also a double Murphy bed and a pull out couch. I have never had good luck with pre concierge requests but was hopeful since the ship didn’t depart until 9 pm but nope it wasn’t done. We did not see our concierge butler or room Steward at all. At 6 pm we went to Carney’s for dinner. Thought maybe the concierge was hanging out there or moderno. Nope still m i a lol. Had a wonderful hostess there who we asked where we might find the concierge and she was gracious enough to see if she could locate him. By the time we got our entrees the concierge was at our table apologizing and stating because of the late departure he remains busy in the terminal. It was at that point I realized I had left my cell phone at the check in counter! I asked him if he could call down to see if it was there. Emphatically he told me no. I had to get off and check myself. So I left my unfinished dinner and raced down off the ship and into the terminal. Long story short it was located and after I signed in to show them it was mine I proceeded back up to Carney’s. My dinner was obviously cold and my friend had let the waiter know what happened but there was no offer to heat my meal or replace it.  It was my fault so I didn’t make it an issue but was disappointed. 

 

We we went back to our room as we hadn’t seen our luggage yet (vip) and wanted to unpack. The room Steward was there and our luggage yay! But alas our room steward told us that the bed couldn’t be split because there was only one mattress on top! What.! He then told us none of the suites could split the beds. Ok so this is where I politely but firmly said that was unacceptable. I specifically chose that suite because the room description stated the beds could be split and if I had known that  I would have selected a different suite for less money knowing the beds didn’t split. While we were unpacking he must have called the concierge who appeared to tell me that they could change the bed out but it would take two nights until the first port stop and would I mind sleeping on the Murphy bed....umm ok I guess I had no choice. Not a good start for me. I have had really good butlers and concierge on other ncl ships so I do know what it can be like. Not enough to “ruin” my experienc. Life goes on!

[yummysbakery]

We headed to the casino to play a bit and have a few drinks. Won a bit and headed back to the suite. This was about 10 pm. We entered the room to our butler putting out the afternoon canapés.....umm no just remove them....still the fridge wasn’t emptied as requested and no sign of the peanut m&m I had requested. Oh well into the Murphy bed I got and it was actually quite comfortable! In the morning we went to modernos for breakfast. As usual it was very good. Service was a bit slow but we weren’t in a hurry. This was our only sea day. We had decided we wanted to change one of our pre booked excursions so I called the concierge to see if he could handle this for us. He started to tell me I could just take the ticket down to the shore excursion desk and did I know it had to be cancelled 48 hours in advance which would have been 8 am and it was now 9 am.  I just laughed at that point and informed I had called guest services who stated since the excursion desk didn’t open until later it was perfectly ok to cancel it after they opened. Hmmm Shouldn’t the concierge have known that....so he reluctantly agreed to take care of it for me.

[don't-use-real-name]

6 minutes ago, yummysbakery said:

We headed to the casino to play a bit and have a few drinks. Won a bit and headed back to the suite. This was about 10 pm. We entered the room to our butler putting out the afternoon canapés.....umm no just remove them....still the fridge wasn’t emptied as requested and no sign of the peanut m&m I had requested. Oh well into the Murphy bed I got and it was actually quite comfortable! In the morning we went to modernos for breakfast. As usual it was very good. Service was a bit slow but we weren’t in a hurry. This was our only sea day. We had decided we wanted to change one of our pre booked excursions so I called the concierge to see if he could handle this for us. He started to tell me I could just take the ticket down to the shore excursion desk and did I know it had to be cancelled 48 hours in advance which would have been 8 am and it was now 9 am.  I just laughed at that point and informed I had called guest services who stated since the excursion desk didn’t open until later it was perfectly ok to cancel it after they opened. Hmmm Shouldn’t the concierge have known that....so he reluctantly agreed to take care of it for me.

Who was the Concierge ?

Was it Roel Gonzales ?

[yummysbakery]

Note here ; this was the last interaction we had with the concierge until the disembarkation meeting for suites.

 

We spent a relaxing day on board eating drinking and meeting new friends. Back to the room at 5 to get ready for dinner. Tonight was la cucina. It was a wonderful meal better than I have ever had in there and I was very pleased.  After dinner drinks at gatsbys listening to a guitar player. Now here you will find a running theme throughout our cruise. From gatsbys the closest way to get to the elevators was through the casino!  So of course I sat to play and within literally two minutes I won a major jackpot. YAY!  I am one of those gamblers who sets an amount to play and if I double my money or win a jackpot I walk away for the night. This jackpot was way more than I had allotted myself for the entire cruise! So off the the Murphy bed I went lol

 

 

[yummysbakery]

2 minutes ago, don't-use-real-name said:

Who was the Concierge ?

Was it Roel Gonzales ?

Yes it was.

[yummysbakery]

Curaçao was our first port. I have been here several times and we did not have an excursion booked. Walked across the bridge to town to shop and take photos. Returned to the ship around 2. Too late for lunch at moderno so we grabbed burgers at Bimini on deck 14 and enjoyed cocktails and conversation until it was time for dinner. No specialty tonight we did go to the aqua main dining room. No wait. Service was prompt food was hot and tasty. Exited the dining room and headed to gatsbys which would turn into our nightly routine to listen to music and chat. So funny thing happened on the way to go back to our suite....we walked through the casino right by the machine I had one on the night before....put money in....got free spins on the first pull.....hit another major jackpot! You could have picked my mouth off the floor! What are the odds... I danced my way back to the suite where we enjoyed sitting on the balcony with cheese crackers and wine. I was way too excited to sleep!

[don't-use-real-name]

From the reports I have seen R. Gonzales is becoming less of the Concierge than I experienced.

He is showing a knack for dispensing his duties to the butlers and disappearing into the crew areas.

Sadly he was one fine Concierge but something must be happening at NCL to change all that.

 

Your cabin with the Murphy bed must be one of the suites on Deck 12 near the Library.

I have slept well on the murphy - while my sister and husband slept in the king.

Yes NCL is correct the King bed can not be split - so two twin beds must be brought in to replace it.

This is a major undertaking moving oversized mattresses and bed frames in confined areas.

NCL does not make this easy for folks requesting separate bedding on any of its ships.

The murphy bed is the only suitable option - forget the convertible couch - I would just as soon pull

up the floor and sleep on it.

 

Good that you are having a good time otherwise and winning at the casino !

[bonvoyagie]

Roel was the concierge on our New England cruise in 2016 - saw him every morning at breakfast - was always there and interested in doing whatever we needed - he also handled the priority tendering and C&I inspection in Bar Harbor.

 

As for my comment on the suite check-in in Boston - I was comparing it to Seattle where you are meet outside the terminal and escorted through security and to a special lounge for check-in and then onto the ship. In Boston, there was no special reception on the outside of the terminal and there was no special treatment until you got through check-in - then they had a curtained off area with snacks while you waited for the next butler to escort you to your suite.

 

We will see next year what SFO offers.

[yummysbakery]

 

21 minutes ago, don't-use-real-name said:

From the reports I have seen R. Gonzales is becoming less of the Concierge than I experienced.

He is showing a knack for dispensing his duties to the butlers and disappearing into the crew areas.

Sadly he was one fine Concierge but something must be happening at NCL to change all that.

 

Your cabin with the Murphy bed must be one of the suites on Deck 12 near the Library.

I have slept well on the murphy - while my sister and husband slept in the king.

Yes NCL is correct the King bed can not be split - so two twin beds must be brought in to replace it.

This is a major undertaking moving oversized mattresses and bed frames in confined areas.

NCL does not make this easy for folks requesting separate bedding on any of its ships.

The murphy bed is the only suitable option - forget the convertible couch - I would just as soon pull

up the floor and sleep on it.

 

Good that you are having a good time otherwise and winning at the casino !

Yes I was by the library. And I knew king beds couldn’t be split but the suite description when I booked and what is still listed is a queen bed which can be split which is why I booked this suite. I usually get either a 2 bdrm or an aft penthouse when I don’t care about the configuration.

 

Roel I never saw at breakfast or anywhere for that matter. Last year I had a wonderful experience with Omar on the Jade who truly was the best concierge I ever had. I usually don’t take advantage of priority disembarkation at ports that don’t require tendering and I usually don’t use the concierge for much of anything so it’s not that I was asking for much. I still tipped him a minimal amount but not anywhere near what I usually would tip. However normally you would see a concierge at breakfast or maybe dinner on the ships without the haven didn’t happen this time.

[yummysbakery]

Aruba! We were there 12 hours first time I experienced Aruba at night. We took the public transport for $5 each to eagle beach. As breathtaking as ever.we stayed out until 7 pm walking around. Really beat by the time we boarded.  We decided to try los lobos for tableside quac and margaritas. It was excellent and two officers were eating the same so I knew it would be great!  No gambling or gatsbys tonight early to bed.

 

Bonaire we did an ncl sponsored beach escape.  Beach was a recurrent theme also and as I am currently getting hit with the blizzard of the century, I’m glad we did. I’m sorry I don’t remember the name. It was actually a new resort on the north side of the island about 20 minute drive from the port. It was gorgeous. There was also a pool, bar, several restaurants but the best part were those comply clam shell day beads on the beach! Free WiFi welcomes drink rain showers dive shop and much more. They also had these cool walk out piers in the ocean with thatched roof table at the end of it. Definitely a place I Want to go back to. I love Bonaire with its artsy vibe in town and a lot of friendly ex pats. Dinner tonight was le bistro. 

 

None of the specialty restaurants seemed busy the entire cruise. Le bistro was the same. But the food was excellent and the service outstanding! Went to see a comedian he was pretty good. The show was packed. I think because there was so much availability on this sailing right up to a few days before there were masses who booked without perks...there was a large portion of Puerto Rican’s on board so I got to use my Spanish....or rather Spanglish....I hav forgotten how to speak well but could understand much better. It made us laugh and them too lol

 

so back to the casino. Played for an hour and broke even.

 

in no particular order since I’m too lazy to dig out the itinerary and going for memory

 

Barbados...another beach escape....another beautiful beach.  We had fantastic weather the entire cruise. Did some snorkeling off shore saw some baby stingrays and colorful fish. The water was crystal clear. Dinner on board was teppinyaki. Always fun and always good. Hint if you don’t see a combo of proteins to choose or want something added like scallops with the fillet and shrimp just ask they are happy to do it!  Ok so casino again ....another break even night. I’m not complaining. At this point I haven’t spent a dime of my own money. I had $500 non ref obc and 100 refundable  Obc. Remember this point as it will become useful at the end of the cruise review! 

 

Grenada. We had breakfast delivered to the room. In no hurry as we had no excursion planned. I think around 11 we decided to go ashore. There was a beautiful indoor terminal with about 50 duty free shops. We chose to walk out on the streets of Grenada and I honestly would not advise this. Now I’m used to the poverty of the Caribbean away from the port area but always felt save. Not here. 15 min later we were back on the ship. We did get to enjoy moderno for lunch which we usually missed since this was such a port intensive cruise and they were only opened for lunch from noon to 130 every day. In all fairness to Grenada we did talk to people who went on excursions and said it was lovely. Truly I only wanted to purchase spices so you want to be chefs out there this is a must! Spices for pennies on the dollar.  We ate at the Venetian main dining room. Again it was tasty and service was excellent. We went to the magician show which was out of the ordinary magic trick and was quite good.  By now you know the routine lol gatsbys and the casino. I sat down at a different machine and 4 spins in another huge jackpot. I was speechless. This was the only time I broke my personal rule of walking away and decided to continue playing on it. A few spins later a smaller jackpot. I didn’t want to push m luck but I had a pretty good crowd behind me egging me on so I continued to play and it paid me one more jackpot before I decided to not press my luck anymore!  The casino staff said they never saw anything like it. I was floating on cloud 9 !

 

 

[newmexicoNita]

10 hours ago, yummysbakery said:

Aruba! We were there 12 hours first time I experienced Aruba at night. We took the public transport for $5 each to eagle beach. As breathtaking as ever.we stayed out until 7 pm walking around. Really beat by the time we boarded.  We decided to try los lobos for tableside quac and margaritas. It was excellent and two officers were eating the same so I knew it would be great!  No gambling or gatsbys tonight early to bed.

 

Bonaire we did an ncl sponsored beach escape.  Beach was a recurrent theme also and as I am currently getting hit with the blizzard of the century, I’m glad we did. I’m sorry I don’t remember the name. It was actually a new resort on the north side of the island about 20 minute drive from the port. It was gorgeous. There was also a pool, bar, several restaurants but the best part were those comply clam shell day beads on the beach! Free WiFi welcomes drink rain showers dive shop and much more. They also had these cool walk out piers in the ocean with thatched roof table at the end of it. Definitely a place I Want to go back to. I love Bonaire with its artsy vibe in town and a lot of friendly ex pats. Dinner tonight was le bistro. 

 

None of the specialty restaurants seemed busy the entire cruise. Le bistro was the same. But the food was excellent and the service outstanding! Went to see a comedian he was pretty good. The show was packed. I think because there was so much availability on this sailing right up to a few days before there were masses who booked without perks...there was a large portion of Puerto Rican’s on board so I got to use my Spanish....or rather Spanglish....I hav forgotten how to speak well but could understand much better. It made us laugh and them too lol

 

so back to the casino. Played for an hour and broke even.

 

in no particular order since I’m too lazy to dig out the itinerary and going for memory

 

Barbados...another beach escape....another beautiful beach.  We had fantastic weather the entire cruise. Did some snorkeling off shore saw some baby stingrays and colorful fish. The water was crystal clear. Dinner on board was teppinyaki. Always fun and always good. Hint if you don’t see a combo of proteins to choose or want something added like scallops with the fillet and shrimp just ask they are happy to do it!  Ok so casino again ....another break even night. I’m not complaining. At this point I haven’t spent a dime of my own money. I had $500 non ref obc and 100 refundable  Obc. Remember this point as it will become useful at the end of the cruise review! 

 

Grenada. We had breakfast delivered to the room. In no hurry as we had no excursion planned. I think around 11 we decided to go ashore. There was a beautiful indoor terminal with about 50 duty free shops. We chose to walk out on the streets of Grenada and I honestly would not advise this. Now I’m used to the poverty of the Caribbean away from the port area but always felt save. Not here. 15 min later we were back on the ship. We did get to enjoy moderno for lunch which we usually missed since this was such a port intensive cruise and they were only opened for lunch from noon to 130 every day. In all fairness to Grenada we did talk to people who went on excursions and said it was lovely. Truly I only wanted to purchase spices so you want to be chefs out there this is a must! Spices for pennies on the dollar.  We ate at the Venetian main dining room. Again it was tasty and service was excellent. We went to the magician show which was out of the ordinary magic trick and was quite good.  By now you know the routine lol gatsbys and the casino. I sat down at a different machine and 4 spins in another huge jackpot. I was speechless. This was the only time I broke my personal rule of walking away and decided to continue playing on it. A few spins later a smaller jackpot. I didn’t want to push m luck but I had a pretty good crowd behind me egging me on so I continued to play and it paid me one more jackpot before I decided to not press my luck anymore!  The casino staff said they never saw anything like it. I was floating on cloud 9 !

 

 

so, your review is very interesting and sounds like overall you came out with a few bucks in your pocket. We are never that lucky but still enjoy a few hours a day playing. Were you playing $s, Quarters, or what? 

[BirdTravels]

15 hours ago, don't-use-real-name said:

Who was the Concierge ?

Was it Roel Gonzales ?

 

15 hours ago, yummysbakery said:

Yes it was.

 

We have sailed with Roel on the Dawn before. We found him pretty useless and clueless (consistently giving out incorrect information to suites guests). 

 

Our “Roel Experience” started in the embarkation terminal where he kept inviting people to enjoy some pre-boarding refreshments as he pointed to an empty table. 

[brookie848]

1 hour ago, BirdTravels said:

 

 

We have sailed with Roel on the Dawn before. We found him pretty useless and clueless (consistently giving out incorrect information to suites guests). 

 

Our “Roel Experience” started in the embarkation terminal where he kept inviting people to enjoy some pre-boarding refreshments as he pointed to an empty table. 

Ugh. We're on the Dawn at the end of February. Although we rarely have the concierge do much for us, we do like them to be competent.

 

At this point, we're just hoping for a decent butler and steward. On our Dawn sailing last season both were the worst we've had. It wasn't enough to really complain about, but things just weren't up to our expectations (not getting snacks, things not quite clean, notes ignored). 

 

I'm enjoying your review!

[yummysbakery]

So for those of you who are wondering, I played penny slots and only played three different machines. I usually bet $1.50 a pull. My maximum bet allowance I set for myself was $100 total per day. The machines were lock it, after burner and a quick pick which had blazing 7 built in as the bonus. I won enough that i never touched my own money for the entire cruise including souvenirs, extra tips for the staff, taxis, dining off shore, extra specialty dining nights (5) and I came home with enough to pay for my next cruise! As I previously stated I had $500 non refundable obc and $100 refundable obc. There were three days I charged 100 each day in the casino to my onboard account. It was easier than carrying a purse for me. So I believed that my cc would be charged for that since you aren’t supposed to be able to use non refundable obc in the casino. But on the last night I still had a credit on my portfolio. I went to guest services to inquire about it since I didn’t want to lose any of the non refundable obc and was planning on purchasing some things in the gift shop to use it up. To my surprise she asked me if I wanted to cash out my account. I said yes! So I was actually paid for the non refundable obc.  That had to be a mistake right? I had $100.00 per port credit for shore excursions which is why I chose ncl excursions instead of private. 500 min of WiFi, 120 min ship to shore calling, and the credits for airfare and hotel which I didn’t use.

 

I 

 

 

[dexddd]

19 hours ago, bonvoyagie said:

Roel was the concierge on our New England cruise in 2016 - saw him every morning at breakfast - was always there and interested in doing whatever we needed - he also handled the priority tendering and C&I inspection in Bar Harbor.

 

As for my comment on the suite check-in in Boston - I was comparing it to Seattle where you are meet outside the terminal and escorted through security and to a special lounge for check-in and then onto the ship. In Boston, there was no special reception on the outside of the terminal and there was no special treatment until you got through check-in - then they had a curtained off area with snacks while you waited for the next butler to escort you to your suite.

 

We will see next year what SFO offers.

We've only done one SFO but it was like Boston, nothing until past security scan.

[yummysbakery]

Next up beautiful Antigua. We had another beach excursion planned for early in the morning so we enjoyed breakfast in our suite. One small comment on ncl beach excursions in general. They usually never state what beach they are taking you to. At any rate we ended up on mystic beach. This included lunch and two welcome drinks. Beach chair included but extra for an umbrella. The description of this excursion was detailed in the lunch we were to receive but that was not what was served.  Everyone also had to eat together at a designated time. The weather was beautiful. The restaurant bar and restrooms were just basic nothing special. I think we had around 4 hours then were dropped back to the port for shopping. We were scheduled to see Elements this evening so we had an early dinner planned at osheehans. We were getting overwhelmed with the amount of food we were consuming so salad and soup was just perfect. The show was excellent as always and there are always little changes to the show among the different ships.

 

Back to the casino and my special machines. No jackpot but came out a couple hundred ahead which is always good,

[yummysbakery]

St. Lucia one of my favorite places. First breakfast at modernos. I will say service was very inconsistent for breakfast. Some days they were right there with water and coffee other times you sat for 10min or more waiting for someone to come. Same with filling the buffet items. Smoked salmon and prosciutto were almost always out when we got there and hit or miss if it was refilled by the time we left. The food is always good though. We had a rum tasting and island tour scheduled. Very interesting and the cheapest prices I have ever seen on rum. They stopped at a wood carving complex and museum and numerous stops for quick pictures. They are famous for their banana ketchup and various banana sauces and there were ample opportunities to purchase. It was a lovely day. Arriving back on ship we went to Bimini’s for cocktails. No lunch today because we were scheduled at moderno at 5pm. Modernos was very good and I think they have finally gotten rid of all the salt they used to place on it. However you do notice cutbacks on the salad bar and service was not good. It wasn’t done at a good pace rather all the meats came out within about 10 minutes and then nothing. We had to ask for them to bring the pineapple out and after about 15 min it was brought on a plate not sliced table side. 

[yummysbakery]

St. Martin. This morning around 5 am I woke up to hear the sound of water running. I went to the bathroom and it was completely flooded with water gushing from a valve on the bottom of the toilet. I called housekeeping who said they would get someone right on it. It took about 20 min and in the meantime the water was now spilling out of the bathroom on to the carpet. They did fix the problem and sanitized the bathroom and put fans inside and outside in the hallway. Not a great way to start the day however. We grabbed a muffin and coffee from the garden buffet. This would be the only time we ate there. Our excursion was maho beach . It is apparent they lost a substantial amount of beach to the hurricane. The beach was packed and we spent the entire time in the bar area at the Oceanside tables. Note you are only allowed to sit there if you are ordering food. It also cost a buck to use the restroom...however the music and entertainment were fantastic we got some awesome shots and video of the planes. We had a great tie despite not being able to put our toes in the sand.

Edited January 20, 2019 by yummysbakery

[yummysbakery]

When we got back to the ship we went to shower and change. Discovered our toilet wouldn’t flush and the sink was running a small stream of water that wouldn’t shut off. Ugh more plumbing problems more phone calls to get it fixed. Over an hour before anyone comes. They fix it and we finished getting changed. Can’t believe that we only have one more day. Time flew by. We went up to the sushi bar which was fantastic and then on to gatsbys. I had decided I was not going to the casino but my friend wanted to play a bit. So what’s a girl to do but play with her lol. The very first pull the bells and whistles start going off....I didn’t even know what I won!  Let’s just say it was more than I have ever won and more than all the jackpots combined on this cruise. There was paperwork to fill out and I wired it to my bank as I didn’t feel comfortable with carrying that much cash around. I could have gotten a check but it was just easier to wire it.  How incredible the slots were to me. The funny thing is last year on the Jade I won an 8 k jackpot and I went on this cruise thinking there is no way no how that could happen again! I don’t gamble much on land. Maybe once a year if that. I don’t make large wagers and I never go in to it expecting or needing to win. So to win enough this cruise to pay for our haven suite next year is truly amazing! We had a few more cocktails as. Was pretty wound up then back to the room. 

 

Ok ok so now I’m getting upset. The toilet won’t flush again! Two hours later they had it fixed. Now time to sleep.

[yummysbakery]

St Thomas. Coffee and fresh fruit at modernos we were in and out in less than 30 minutes. No excursion. We wanted to take the cable car up to get some pictures and go down town. There were several other ships in port and the line for the cable cars was ridiculous so we passed and went downtown. It was extremely hot outside and we stopped often for liquid refreshments. I’m sad to go back to the ship knowing this vacation is over and because my phone had been issuing weather alerts for a blizzard of the century the day after I arrive home. Our dinner was apple pie alamode from osheehans. The first and only dessert we had on board. It was delicious!  No more casino for this girl. We went up to pack opened our champagne that came with the suite and sat on the balcony. Our flight in the mornings wasn’t  until 330pm so we wanted to wait until the last second to disembark.

DISEMBARKATION

Our last breakfast in modernos. It seemed their entire staff was there and service was the best of the entire cruise. This vip disembarkation consisted of us going to deck seven by the stardust theatre port side where Raol was outside the door. He pointed us which way to walk and that was it. Most people had already disembarked so when we got to the terminal we just wheeled our suitcases thru customs and immigration out to the sidewalk which was a bit congested. I called for an Uber who was literally there in two minutes. Off to the airport we go for a long wait. Lines were not long for security or dept of agriculture so we were in our gate area by 11am. So my one complaint for the airport is you have to pay for WiFi and worse there were only two plugs in the entire concourse to charge your phone which was in a hallway and no chairs to sit in.

 

ugh our flight is now delayed an hour which meant connections in clt would be very tight if not impossible to make. I was stressing a bit. We arrived in clt with 10 min to get to our connection which was in a different concourse. We ran as fast as we could my friend and I were leaving 4 minutes apart but she had 12 more gates further to run than me. I rushed to the gate and said I’m here I’m here . They had already shut the door but because there was no jet bridge you had to go on the tarmac and up the stairs to the plane. The plane hadn’t moved yet so I made it!

 

on approach for landing the pilot comes on and states we will be circling because they were plowing the runways. Ugh. In the back of my mind I thought it was pretty certain my bags hadn’t made the connection and sure enough I started receiving texts saying my bags were going to be delayed. They made it easy to set up delivery online so after an extremely hard landing which the pilot said he had to do to not skid off the runway I was home bagless and to the start of a blizzard. Yay me. Me last comment on my bags which were supposed to come the next day between 8-2  I received a call at 3:15AM telling me my bags were on my front porch. But hey they made it in one piece so all is good.

 

 

I haven’t figured out how to add photos here on my iPad off my phone but when I figure it out I will post them. If any one has questions I’ll be happy to try and answer them. All n all it was great trip. Would I do the dawn again? Maybe if the itinerary was right. I did decide on this length of cruise I would have enjoyed one or two more sea days. 10 ports in 11 days is a lot for me. Until next time HAPPY CRUISING!