NCL Dawn - questions - help please

[room with a view]

We have never sailed the Dawn . Hoping the very knowledgeable people on CC can help us with our choice ...

I like the position of deck 10 (in between cabin decks) probably mid ships. Any cabins to avoid  ?

We don't like connecting cabins.

We have a dining package - is there any "speciality " restaurant that stands out from the others.

Is the main dining rooms open from 6.00 to catch an early (7.30??) show.

Thanks for any advice/comments.

[Fayea]

We just came off the Dawn a few hours ago. First and last cruise we will ever take. We were in 10608, it was a good location, but had a connecting door. The Brazilian restaurant was very good, the rest were ok. Make reservations as soon as you can, limited seating. The shows were ok, but don't give up something you really want for a show. IF you use the SPA, check your bill daily. Many, many overcharges on ours. 

[room with a view]

 

Wow - now that's a review hot off the press !!!

I know shows change (we are looking at the Christmas/ New Year cruise ) - what shows were "OK" ??

thanks

[CurtandLeslie]

We've cruised on the Dawn 3 times, most recently in January 2019. First time, we were in a mid-ship balcony on deck 9. I liked the mid-ship location because the Dawn has central stairs/elevators and it's easy to get every where. Deck 10 would be similar.

 

The Dawn has 6 specialty restaurants (Moderno, La Cucina, Le Bistro, Cagney's, Teppanyaki and Los Lobos). Since you have the dining package perk, try the ones that appeal to you. We tried Moderno last year and confirmed that all-you-can-eat meat is not our cup of tea. Our preference is Le Bistro, but we like all kinds of food so never had a problem finding something we enjoyed.   

 

Dinner service starts at 5:30 or 6:00 each night, depending on the venue. If you want to see the 7:30 shows, you can make reservations for the earliest dining times. We didn't have reservations one of the nights and there was a 30 minute wait when we showed up at 6:30 at Aqua main dining room. So we just went to O'Sheehan's that night for pub food instead. 

 

As far as other general info, not sure if you've been on any other NCL ships, big or small. The Dawn is not one of the mega ships so there are not as many evening entertainment options but there are at least a couple choices every night (music in Bliss, Gatsby's or the Atrium, comedian/magician/juggler or dance shows in the big theater). The big Broadway shows that are on the larger ships aren't our thing anyway so we didn't miss them. One good thing about a smaller ship like the Dawn is that you don't need reservations or to stand in line early for shows.

[room with a view]

Thank you ever so much for such a detailed response .

 

We have been on the Spirit and like the idea of small ships .

No need for reservations for the shows and usually we have been able to just "turn up" at the MDRs. Other than Cagney's and Le Bistro (both very small on the Spirit pre- refit) we are not familiar with the other speciality restaurants so that's something to look forward to.

 

NCL have a "sale" on at the moment - but as this cruise is not till Christmas/ New Year we may just wait before booking and as it's Europe there's not much choice.

 

thanks

[Fayea]

I thought the shows were ok, the energy one is cirque like. The actors/actresses were fine. The props, stage etc was shabby looking to me. At one point the blue lights they used to back light the two trapeze artists just shined into the audience eyes and no one could see anything. My husband enjoyed the comedian, the singing and dancing show Killed an hour

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, room with a view said:

We have never sailed the Dawn . Hoping the very knowledgeable people on CC can help us with our choice ...

I like the position of deck 10 (in between cabin decks) probably mid ships. Any cabins to avoid  ?

We don't like connecting cabins.

We have a dining package - is there any "speciality " restaurant that stands out from the others.

Is the main dining rooms open from 6.00 to catch an early (7.30??) show.

Thanks for any advice/comments.

We always get a room near an elevator. That’s the priority for our poor, old knees. 
 

Dining rooms open at 5:30. But,,, half the ship has the same idea as you (eat early for the early show), so go before opening time. 
 

wrt specialty dining, you MUST book EXACTLY 120 days prior to departure when they open (suites start booking 130 days out). 
 

We love Los Lobos and are there twice the last time we were on the Dawn. NCL has started to replace other restaurants with Los Lobos on other ships. 
 

Le Bistro and Teppanyaki are our other picks. 
 

Most people will want to go to Cagney’s Steakhouse. We have not been happy with the food or service there on other ships, so it is not on our top list. 

[janroatan]

Can you elaborate on the overcharges you encountered?Were they difficult to resolve?

What was the problem with the connecting door?

[megansdad1]

15 hours ago, room with a view said:

We have never sailed the Dawn . Hoping the very knowledgeable people on CC can help us with our choice ...

I like the position of deck 10 (in between cabin decks) probably mid ships. Any cabins to avoid  ?

We don't like connecting cabins.

We have a dining package - is there any "speciality " restaurant that stands out from the others.

Is the main dining rooms open from 6.00 to catch an early (7.30??) show.

Thanks for any advice/comments.

You will get varied responses about the restaurants that stand out from the others. Peoples tastes are different.  My favorite meal of any cruise I have been on was in La Cucina.  The osso bucco was amazing.  The tableside Guac at Los Lobos was also great.  I don't see any issues with midship deck 10.  

[room with a view]

Thanks for your advice and comments.

 

We have a cruise booked Athens - Athens on the Spirit . I'm going to hang back for a while before booking the Dawn - we have plenty time .

 

The Dawn cruise we are looking at goes Rome - Rome.