Dawn Princess? What are your feelings about this boat?

[Samcorl]

I guess timing is everything . . . not to mention staff. My husband and I cruised on the Dawn to the Southern Caribbean several years ago. We had an aft suite on the Baja deck, and absolutely loved it. The food was fantastic, and considering we were living in San Francisco at the time, that is really saying something. What I liked best was the feeling of intimacy on a ship this size. Sam

[PescadoAmarillo]

I've not been on the Dawn, but have spent over 70 nights on Sun class ships, so I'll make a few observations:

 

The people who seem happiest on the Sun class ships (and there are a LOT of people for whom they are their favorite ships) are the ones who get minisuites (which are wonderful) or other large suites. There is no comparison between the minis on the Sun class ships and those on the Grand class ships. BUT...the balcony cabins are ridiculously small. We once had the oceanview cabin just in front of the first balcony cabin on Caribe deck, and I thought the cabin felt smaller with less storage than an inside. When we looked next door and saw that the balcony cabin was even smaller...they are TINY!

 

The only outdoor seating for the Horizon Court buffet on the Sun class ships is just aft of the buffet, in front of the pool area. It is very tight, very congested and when smoking was allowed on the port side, really stifling. Also, the clearing stations in the Horizon Court are located all throughout the dining area, meaning that you may be eating your meal and a foot away is a pile of food waste and dirty dishes. We really hate that. On the Grand class ships the clearing stations are located in cubbies, and unless you sit right next to one, you probably won't even be aware of where they are.

 

I miss a covered pool area whatever the itinerary. The aft pool on the Sun class ships is okay...just. I dislike the aft hot tub on the Sun class ships...it's tough to climb up and down that ladder to get into the hot tub.

 

I think the fitness centers are small on the Sun class ships.

 

We always choose itinerary first, ship second, so I would travel on a Sun class ship again, but not unless the itinerary warranted it.

[4275princess]

We did the Dawn in 11/06 and 2/07 to the Mexican Riveria. We loved that the crew staff seemed to work closer/better together. This was also acknowledged from ship personel. The embarkation and disembark was well planned and fairly easy.

[adeline]

The food was just okay, service just okay, and entertainment less than just okay. Two nights out of the week nothing was scheduled in the Princess theater except for a movie. The piano in the atrium was never touched except occasionally a talented passenger would play a song or two. Several daily activities were canceled as no one was available to run them. Sounds like temporary crew and scheduling issues, but I hesitate to book on the Dawn again. We were very disappointed as I prefer the size of this ship over the megas.

 

We just got off the Dawn and had a fine time. While my parents have cruised a lot in the past and made a number of unfavorable comparisons, the rest of us enjoyed it. The food might not have been 5star class, but it was pretty good (except for one soup -- I think I mis-read the description!), and the service was quite good.

 

I think there was live entertainment available each evening (often, if not always, a choice of two venues). The comedian was terrible (my parents' take), ok (my take), or hilarious (the couples next to us couldn't stop laughing), depending on one's taste. The magician/hypnotist was quite entertaining. My sister enjoyed the shows. There was atrium music every day -- a string quartet or a pianist. There was also a flute/guitar duo. One evening the quartet had a concert -- the crowd was small, but those there really enjoyed it.

 

Some activities were canceled early in the trip, but it was due to rough seas. A passenger requested a scheduled Scrabble gathering, and it was added to the schedule. The staff person who came to 'run' the session was clueless when it came to Scrabble, but that's ok -- their job is organize/facilitate, not to play!

 

I spoke to one seasoned cruiser who described a cruise like your experience. If she had been in charge of planning an extended family trip, she would not have returned to Princess. However she was pleasantly surprised with the service/food/activities on this trip.

[CrusinAgain]

I was looking at the ship also for the Mexican Riviera in April since the Golden has taken over the Diamond's itinerary and only goes to Cabo from 7-2 and that is way too short for Cabo.

 

We are not pool lovers so as long as they have activities and movies we are happy.

 

We had a blast on the Diamond in March but I think alot of that was due to the college kids making it fun with the ship activities.

 

Does this ship offer anytime dining? And how late is the buffet opened?