DAWN review 12/16-23

[chaps612]

We just came back from the DAWN. We are first time cruisers. We chose this cruise for the intinerary and the great price.

 

Embarkation: It went smooth and fairly quick. We arrived around 11am and were on the boat and eating lunch by 1pm. Be sure to have $140 cash for parking if driving.

 

Room: We chose a BB balcony and really enjoyed having the extra space. We had our 3 year old with us and we had plenty of room. There was plenty of stroage space for all of our belongings.

 

Food: I went on this cruise prepared for the worst as there seemed to be a lot of blogs crticial of NCL's food. I did not find this to be the case. The Venetian was awesome! We had lobster there twice. We also ate at Salsas and Impressions which were average. The only pay restaurant we ate at was Lebristro. Eat after 8:30PM and as it was half price. I never had problems getting reservations. Get in line day one and it is real easy. The buffet food was surprisingly good. The 24 hour Blue Lagoon was decent best left for the late night crowd. The hamburgers on the pool deck barbecue were terrific.

 

Kids Program: We were happy with this as it gave my wife and I some much needed time to ourselves and our daughter enjoyed the activities. The kids had their own pool near the fitness center which was great for SMALL kids.

 

The DAWN: This ship is beautiful and just the right size. It seemed clean and functional. We had room 9652 just near the elevators and internet cafe. It is was a great location. Our fellow passengers were mostly American but there was a decent international showing which was nice. I noticed very few issues with our fellow passengers.

 

Debarkation: We chose express and it went very smooth. It started at 7:30 and we were on the highway by 8am.

 

Overall: We had a great time. For the life of me I couldn't understand all of the complaints that others had. Maybe all of the planets aligned our 7 days as we had very little to complain about. Our cabin stewards (Natalio and Richardo) were awesome. The rest of the crew was good with very few exceptions. We would definitely go on NCL again.

[HNP]

Thanks for the review. It sounds like you & your family had a great time. My DH & I sail the Dawn 1/20, we are looking forward to rest,relaxation & sun without the kids. I think you get out of a vaction what you want.;)

[mafig]

Thanks for the review.

 

RE: reservations

 

You say "get in line day one," does this mean you were able to make all your reservations for the whole week at once?

[WinnieinWA]

Thank you for the review. I just posted mine from the same cruise. I'm a bit long winded though. I'm happy you and family had a great time. I went with DD and we had more fun than we had ever dreamed of having and enjoyed the meals very, very much! :)

 

I love freestyle cruising and have plans for cruising NCL with my other adult children and spouses to Alaska in August. I like NCL cruising so much that I'm thinking of going alone to Mexico in March. :D

[NorthernNeighbour]

Thanks for the positive review. Methinks you'll have to change your public profile -- since you are no longer 'first time cruisers'.

 

Hope you have many more in future.

[chaps612]

I should clarify. You can make reservations for the first night and the following ONLY. This is true for the whole cruise. It is easier to make reservations at off-peak times ie. 8-9:30pm in my experience. Have a great time!!

[ddakrt]

Thanks for the review. We saw the Dawn being prepped for your cruise as the Jewel was docking in Miami on the 16th. Glad you had a good time!

 

[Crazyshopper]

Thanks for your review.

 

We love freestyle especially when you have children.

 

Did your daughter enjoy the kids program?

 

Also, did you take any excursions with your daughter? If so, which ones and how was your experience with your daughter. I have a son (3 years) and a daughter (6 months). I have been looking at the excursions and have been thinking how we are able to do them with children. Any advice would be great.

[boeckli]

Thanks for the review. We saw the Dawn being prepped for your cruise as the Jewel was docking in Miami on the 16th. Glad you had a good time!

 

 

Thanks for the terrific photo - :D brings back fond memories of just a few weeks ago (in Nov) We did B2B, thus were in Miami twice, once with the Pearl and second time with the Jewel.

[chaps612]

Our daughter did enjoy the program. As far as excursions go, we only went on one in St Thomas. It was the island excursion which was driving to all of the nice spots. This turned out to be a good one for us. We didn't see a lot of excursions that fit our lifestyle as kids that age can't do all of them. But, the shopping in St Thomas is awsome if that is what you enjoy. I wish I could be more help. Just remember the kids pool in the aft as it is nice for small children.

[chaps612]

Our daughter did enjoy the program. As far as excursions go, we only went on one in St Thomas. It was the island excursion which was driving to all of the nice spots. This turned out to be a good one for us. We didn't see a lot of excursions that fit our lifestyle as kids that age can't do all of them. But, the shopping in St Thomas is awsome if that is what you enjoy. I wish I could be more help. Just remember the kids pool in the aft as it is nice for small children.

[PattyW]

Thanks for the review. You have said more than once that the kids pool is good for small children. What do you think is the upper age limit for a child to enjoy the kids pool? 5? 8?

[chaps612]

I think 5 or 6 is plenty big. There were kids jumping and diving into this little pool around my 3 year old which made me a little nervous. So, I think around 5 to 6 is appropriate. It is quite a small pool.

[juried]

Hi,

Thanks for the great review. We love the Dawn and will be sailing her again on 1/13/08.

Question: Do you know if they still have a 70's disco night theme party in the Spinnaker? In the past we have brought clothes just for this party.

Thanks,

Juried

[WinnieinWA]

Hi,

Thanks for the great review. We love the Dawn and will be sailing her again on 1/13/08.

Question: Do you know if they still have a 70's disco night theme party in the Spinnaker? In the past we have brought clothes just for this party.

Thanks,

Juried

 

I just checked my dailies from last week and here's what I found:

 

Monday 10:30 PM : "Spinnaker Party: 70's & 80's Dance Party"

 

Wednesday 9:30 PM : "Spinnaker Party: 50's & 60's Rock n' Roll Sock Hop!"

 

Wednesday 11:00 PM - midnight : "The Best Dance music of the 70's & 80's with DJ Franco" in Dazzles Lounge

 

Hope this helps. I bet you are awsome with your special attire. :D

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

Winnie <--------> wishing she were goiong with you :)

[rxtimbo]

winnie...do you have your freestyle dailies scanned that you could email out?? we are going in march and would like to see what all we should pack extra for the special nights (i.e. 70 and 80's)...

 

appreciate it!

 

rx tim