Which is better? Dawn or Spirit?

[nycruiser1975]

:( I just spoke with parents who live in GA, and told me that they will be in Jamaica next june to middle july with younger brother and sister. I planned on going on spirit 07/07/07 until the 15, but they said it would be better if we went later. I saw dawn leaving on the 28. THe spirit itinerary was st thomas, tortola, and kings wharf, dawn itinerary is nassau, gsc and kings wharf. I am a first timer, which would I enjoy more. PLEASE HELP, I am sooooo depressed now. I had a plan and now I don't. Which ship is better:(

[awatt]

I've sailed on the Dawn three times and the Spirit a few weeks ago. You can't go wrong with either! Perhaps picking based on price and itinerary would be teh way to go. Also, the Spirit cruise yo're referring to is one day longer.

 

They are more similar than different. Dawn is a little newer and a little larger, wih a few more restaurants and lounges. Dawn's decor is very contemporary and festive with bright colrors, Spirit is Asian with rich,elegant decor. Food,service were great on both. Activities very similar. Dawn's enertainment was great with the Jean Anne Ryan company, while Spirit had more varied entertainent other than production shows- loved the comedians. Spirit had a wonderful nighttime deck party. If yo're taking kids, Spirit kids pool and kids club are much larger.

 

Thee are two of my three favorite ships and I don't think one is better than the other. Hope to sail both again within the next year. Good luck with your decision and enjoy!

[nycruiser1975]

I thank you, but I am still confused. I am in my 30's and so is DH, and just want to have fun and visit ports that we would enjoy. Can anyone unconfuse me...:confused:

[awatt]

Tought you were asking which ship is btter. But maybe you want to know which tinerary is better?

 

You will find a mixed demographic on either ship. Plenty of people your own age. And entertainment/activities suiteable to your age goup. Can't see why you wouldn't have fun on either.

 

Spirit's itinerary is a little better. Love St Thomas, own 2 homes there. Good mix of shopping and/or beach or water activities. Tortola is lovely. And Bermuda pristine and delightful.

[judyf]

Both ships are great, you should enjoy either one.

 

For me I would pick the Spirit for her itinerary. Consider date, price and itinerary. I would stick with your first plan and then try the Dawn for your second cruise. LOL You will want another cruise after your first.

[johnql]

Flip a coin. You can't go wrong with either. If it's the ship, I would give the edge to the Dawn (but not by much). The Dawn has Salsa (Tex-Mex restaurant) and a movie theater, both of which the Spirit lacks. However, the Spirit's decor is beautiful. If it's the itinerary, I would vote for the Spirit.

[CruisinMK]

i think most people would prefer east carib over the bahamas

[nycruiser1975]

I too like the spirit iten, but I would like to go b4 aug, and the dawn fits the schedule.....:( . I am going to try to go on the spirit please pray for me family and thank you for all your help:o

[dongordon]

Flip a coin. You can't go wrong with either. If it's the ship, I would give the edge to the Dawn (but not by much). The Dawn has Salsa (Tex-Mex restaurant) and a movie theater, both of which the Spirit lacks. However, the Spirit's decor is beautiful. If it's the itinerary, I would vote for the Spirit.

 

I agree with John on this one. He hit it right on the head!!

 

Don

[bangzoom6877]

I was on the Dawn in April 2004 and the Spirit July 22, 2006. I went on the 8-night itinerary to the Carib. and Bermuda on the Spirit and I loved it! I liked the Spirit better than the Dawn. More elegant decor, and I thought the food was better, but then again I am going back 2 years when I went on the Dawn. It could be much better now than back then.

 

When I booked the Spirit, the only difference I noticed was the restaurants. Even though the Spirit has just 8 restaurants and the Dawn has 10, there is really only one difference: Salsas Tex-mex restaurant. I really liked that on the Dawn and thought it was the best dinner I had on the ship (didn't go to the pay restaurants, but went to Le Bistro on Norwegian Sea in 2002 and loved it). The 10th restaurant on the Dawn is actually a third dining room. Spirit has two main dining rooms. Honestly, the food was so good in the main dining room on the Spirit (and also the buffet IMO...and we are pretty picky with quality), that I didn't even miss Salsas at all on my cruise. In fact, we had lunch in the dining room on embarkation day and I had a delicious chicken enchilada with guacamole that I loved. They even made it for me with no peppers because I prefer it that way! And to top it off, it was a Cooking Light entree but was so delicious! And at dinner that night in the dining room, I had a delicious empanada for an appetizer which I also loved. So I still got my tex-mex fix, and enjoyed the main dining room food a lot on the Spirit.

 

For the itinerary I would also go with the Spirit. I prefer St. Thomas and Tortola over the Bahamas and so does my husband. And if the itinerary is the same next summer as it was for us a couple of weeks ago, you will be in St. Thomas until 1 AM so you could enjoy some of the nightlife (my cousin did and he is 36 and he liked it a lot). Nightlife is also great from what I understand on the Spirit, even though we had our son with us who is turning 19 months old on Monday. They have a nightclub, Maharini's, which is supposed to be very nice. A great late night spot, just go through the casino and you're there!

 

Enjoy your cruise, you will become addicted and be ready to book another one when you return!!

 

-Bonnie

[jentroubles]

Spirit!!!!!

 

I just got off the Dawn today and was actually a bit dissapointed. The Spirit did so many of the little things better. Bigger is NOT always better. The Spirit public rooms seemed much bigger! The Dawn really did not do the little things well....we expected the same type of service we got on the spirit but often it was lacking on the dawn. We were on the spirit in May...