Dawn 8/24-8/31

[ginaboy]

We just got off the Dawn today so I will attempt a review. It may come in bits and pieces but here goes.

Background: MY husband wanted to make this a special trip for my 40th birthday so he booked a Penthouse Suite. My 2 boys (8 and 3) and my MIL were in our cabin and my barents booked a balcony room down the hall. We were in Suite 11560.

 

Embarkation: Getting to the pier and parking were a breeze. We arrived at the pier around 10:30. Check in was a breeze. And we were sitting in a lounge with sandwiches, cookies, juice and coffee within 20 minutes. We were greeted about 15 minutes by our Concierge Anshuman. This man is an absolute gem. He had all our dinner reservations in place within 5 minutes. We were then greeted(about 11:30ish) by our Butler Carmen who escorted us on board. Upon entering the ship we received champagne and the boys received orange juice. My MIL had an electric scooter waiting in the cabin so Anshuman arranged for someone to escort her to the cabin to p/u her scooter by wheelchair. We then headed to the Garden Cafe for lunch. This was absolute chaos. It was EXTREMELY crowded. Being it was our first time on this ship we followed the crown and this is where we landed. We found a table for 4 (7 people) and had a quick lunch. My husband made his way out to the pool area and I joined him for a drink w/ the boys. We then mae our way back to the cabin......

 

Suite 11560: All I can say is WOW!!!! The main room had a table zand 4 chairs and a couch...a Lavazza(sp?) coffee machine and the door to the balcony. There was a smaller cabin with a couch that turned into a large bed...and then at night there was a bunk that would come down sideways at the foot of the bed. My MIL insisted that my boys sleep in there w/ her. Our master bedroom had double doors that led into it. To the left was the bathroom w/ jacuzzi tub, enclosed shower and then an enclosed toilet. The bath had a big window over it and a smaller window that looked out to the balcony. The shower had a floor to ceiling window. Then to the right of the double doors was a king size bed, I believe w/ separate curtains to close it off if you chose to. This suite was really beautiful.

 

That night we had dinner reservations at Cagneys. We all could not believe how good it was! We have eaten in some fine steak restaurants and Cagney's did not disappoint.

 

More to come............need to go food shopping!

[bahama2]

Happy Birthday. Glad you enjoyed your cruise.:)

[andychris]

glad you enjoyed your cruise. happy birthday!!

[ginaboy]

We just got off the Dawn today so I will attempt a review. It may come in bits and pieces but here goes.

Background: MY husband wanted to make this a special trip for my 40th birthday so he booked a Penthouse Suite. My 2 boys (8 and 3) and my MIL were in our cabin and my barents booked a balcony room down the hall. We were in Suite 11560.

 

Embarkation: Getting to the pier and parking were a breeze. We arrived at the pier around 10:30. Check in was a breeze. And we were sitting in a lounge with sandwiches, cookies, juice and coffee within 20 minutes. We were greeted about 15 minutes by our Concierge Anshuman. This man is an absolute gem. He had all our dinner reservations in place within 5 minutes. We were then greeted(about 11:30ish) by our Butler Carmen who escorted us on board. Upon entering the ship we received champagne and the boys received orange juice. My MIL had an electric scooter waiting in the cabin so Anshuman arranged for someone to escort her to the cabin to p/u her scooter by wheelchair. We then headed to the Garden Cafe for lunch. This was absolute chaos. It was EXTREMELY crowded. Being it was our first time on this ship we followed the crown and this is where we landed. We found a table for 4 (7 people) and had a quick lunch. My husband made his way out to the pool area and I joined him for a drink w/ the boys. We then mae our way back to the cabin......

 

Suite 11560: All I can say is WOW!!!! The main room had a table zand 4 chairs and a couch...a Lavazza(sp?) coffee machine and the door to the balcony. There was a smaller cabin with a couch that turned into a large bed...and then at night there was a bunk that would come down sideways at the foot of the bed. My MIL insisted that my boys sleep in there w/ her. Our master bedroom had double doors that led into it. To the left was the bathroom w/ jacuzzi tub, enclosed shower and then an enclosed toilet. The bath had a big window over it and a smaller window that looked out to the balcony. The shower had a floor to ceiling window. Then to the right of the double doors was a king size bed, I believe w/ separate curtains to close it off if you chose to. This suite was really beautiful.

 

That night we had dinner reservations at Cagneys. We all could not believe how good it was! We have eaten in some fine steak restaurants and Cagney's did not disappoint.

 

More to come............need to go food shopping!

 

 

Day 2/3 : SEA Days: Hung around the pool area...kids went to kids center in AM and then we went over to TRex Pool. Unfortunately, my almost 3 year old did not love the kids center and my 8 year old wasn't crazy about it either. Day 2 was pretty much it for them.

 

Monday dinner: Venitian...it was ok. Service was great but I was not crazy about my meal. It was just ok.

 

Tuesday Dinner: Bamboo.....I thought it was excellent as did our whole party. The service was also very good.

 

Wednesday: We took the ferry over to St. George. Did some shopping had a drink at a pub outdoors while waiting for the ferry. Took ferry back to Dockyards (which I liked being docked at) and walked around dockyard. We found a little park outside of Snorkel Park and the kids loved running around there.

 

Dinner: We had reservations at Le Bistro but decided against it for our group. Instead we had a wonderful meal at Aqua.

 

Thursday: My husband, my children and I took a taxi to Horseshoe Bay......all I can say is what an incredible beach. Like Cruise Bermuda said in her review the sand sculptures were beautiful. We hung out on the cove side and we loved it! My children were in the water for hours! From there we headed over to Hamilton for some shopping and then we took the ferry back to the ship.

 

My parents took a trolley tour from Hamilton...they loved it and found it very informative!

 

Before we went to Horseshoe Bay...my husband and 8 year old did the Dolphin Experience...they said it was incredible. It was them and another father and daughter. They had one on one with the dolphins and were in the water with them for about 1 hour. My son said this was the best thing ever!

 

Dinner: My Husband, almost 3 year old and myself went to Salsa while my older son went to Kids Club. Salsa was amazing. It cost $10 each. We had Il Papo where grilled meat is hung on this skewer thing....yummo!!!!

My parents and MIL went to Aqua...they said it was not as good as the night before.

 

Friday:

We took the kids over to Snorkel Park,,,we did not stay long b/c a sign said they were closing at noon for a private party. We then walked around the Dockyard and went back to the ship. We kind of laid low for the rest of the day...took naps and lounged in our room.

 

Dinner: Impressions. Again we loved it. We had a horrible waitress but the food was really good.

 

Saturday: Sea Day: We had a late start. Took the kids for tatoos and then we took our 8 year old for sushi. It was awesome but we were a little disappointed b/c the conveyor belt with the sushi was not going around. Instead we ordered all we wanted off of the menu. But regardless...the food was very good and very fresh.

 

Dinner: Cagneys again and as good as the first night. We had a wonderful waiter named Oliver!

 

Debarkation: A Breeze...8:00 we were in our suite 8:25 we were in our car!

 

Side notes: We went to Cagney's 2 times (My Husband and son went another morning as well)...unbelievable!!!! It was so good!

*Anshuman our concierge....... he was incredible. I am convinced the man does not sleep... there was nothing he could not pull off for us! He would also check on us each night at dinner.... nice touch!

*Carmen our butler was so sweet. She would bring us things each afternoon and knew my children loved chocolate covered strawberries and brownies so she would bring these daily as well. We had breakfast in the room 3 days and she went out of her way to make it special (warm chocolate milk just the way my boys like it).

*Room stewards were very nice but the cleaning was average...there was a water bottle under the couch for 3 days...I purposefully left it there after she did not take it the first day to see how long it would be there...I finally could not take it anymore and picked it up. We had towel animals every night and chocolate on our pillows every night but the last in which we had chocolate chip cookies. I have to say...she knew my children's names and always interacted with them.

*We did not go to many shows but my parents did and loved them.

 

 

I am sure I will think of other things but that is my review for now!

[cruiser12]

Glad you like your penthouse. We were on the week before. We had a great time. Love Dawn. Everything was just wonderful. We have been going to one of the main dinning rooms, that is open for lunch. It opens up at 12:30. I think this helps set the tone for our trip everytime. Yes Yes Yes ! ! ! Cagneys is not to be missed.

[Cosmopolitan]

*Carmen our butler was so sweet. She would bring us things each afternoon and knew my children loved chocolate covered strawberries and brownies so she would bring these daily as well. We had breakfast in the room 3 days and she went out of her way to make it special (warm chocolate milk just the way my boys like it).

/quote]

 

Carmen...there are NO words....she was our fill-in butler...what a wonder- ful person. I'm so glad to hear that she is back:)

[cljd]

We were in 11060 on the same sailing, so I guess we had the same room but opposite sides of the ship. Loved the room too. Perfect set-up with kids. Carmen was a doll.... brought us breakfast most mornings in our room, which was a real treat. But we rarely saw Anshuman... We didn't do any excursions and I set up our dining reservations on the phone with him in 2 calls. He never came to see us at dinner or called to see if we were settled, etc. Oh well. Carmen more than made up for it. I was a little sad yesterday when no one knocked on my door with a plate of chocolate covered strawberries.:(

[*Luv2Cruz*]

Thanks for your review and glad to hear you enjoyed the cruise and the Dawn. Can't wait for my turn!;)

[Mammaof2girls]

Hey girl! Glad I got to read your review! Your room sounded maaaaa-velous!! LOL I'm about to put my review up (do I dare? LOL)!

 

You guys take care! :)

[CruisePrincess575]

Day 2/3 : SEA Days: Hung around the pool area...kids went to kids center in AM and then we went over to TRex Pool. Unfortunately, my almost 3 year old did not love the kids center and my 8 year old wasn't crazy about it either. Day 2 was pretty much it for them.

 

Monday dinner: Venitian...it was ok. Service was great but I was not crazy about my meal. It was just ok.

 

Tuesday Dinner: Bamboo.....I thought it was excellent as did our whole party. The service was also very good.

 

Wednesday: We took the ferry over to St. George. Did some shopping had a drink at a pub outdoors while waiting for the ferry. Took ferry back to Dockyards (which I liked being docked at) and walked around dockyard. We found a little park outside of Snorkel Park and the kids loved running around there.

 

Dinner: We had reservations at Le Bistro but decided against it for our group. Instead we had a wonderful meal at Aqua.

 

Thursday: My husband, my children and I took a taxi to Horseshoe Bay......all I can say is what an incredible beach. Like Cruise Bermuda said in her review the sand sculptures were beautiful. We hung out on the cove side and we loved it! My children were in the water for hours! From there we headed over to Hamilton for some shopping and then we took the ferry back to the ship.

 

My parents took a trolley tour from Hamilton...they loved it and found it very informative!

 

Before we went to Horseshoe Bay...my husband and 8 year old did the Dolphin Experience...they said it was incredible. It was them and another father and daughter. They had one on one with the dolphins and were in the water with them for about 1 hour. My son said this was the best thing ever!

 

Dinner: My Husband, almost 3 year old and myself went to Salsa while my older son went to Kids Club. Salsa was amazing. It cost $10 each. We had Il Papo where grilled meat is hung on this skewer thing....yummo!!!!

My parents and MIL went to Aqua...they said it was not as good as the night before.

 

Friday:

We took the kids over to Snorkel Park,,,we did not stay long b/c a sign said they were closing at noon for a private party. We then walked around the Dockyard and went back to the ship. We kind of laid low for the rest of the day...took naps and lounged in our room.

 

Dinner: Impressions. Again we loved it. We had a horrible waitress but the food was really good.

 

Saturday: Sea Day: We had a late start. Took the kids for tatoos and then we took our 8 year old for sushi. It was awesome but we were a little disappointed b/c the conveyor belt with the sushi was not going around. Instead we ordered all we wanted off of the menu. But regardless...the food was very good and very fresh.

 

Dinner: Cagneys again and as good as the first night. We had a wonderful waiter named Oliver!

 

Debarkation: A Breeze...8:00 we were in our suite 8:25 we were in our car!

 

Side notes: We went to Cagney's 2 times (My Husband and son went another morning as well)...unbelievable!!!! It was so good!

*Anshuman our concierge....... he was incredible. I am convinced the man does not sleep... there was nothing he could not pull off for us! He would also check on us each night at dinner.... nice touch!

*Carmen our butler was so sweet. She would bring us things each afternoon and knew my children loved chocolate covered strawberries and brownies so she would bring these daily as well. We had breakfast in the room 3 days and she went out of her way to make it special (warm chocolate milk just the way my boys like it).

*Room stewards were very nice but the cleaning was average...there was a water bottle under the couch for 3 days...I purposefully left it there after she did not take it the first day to see how long it would be there...I finally could not take it anymore and picked it up. We had towel animals every night and chocolate on our pillows every night but the last in which we had chocolate chip cookies. I have to say...she knew my children's names and always interacted with them.

*We did not go to many shows but my parents did and loved them.

 

 

I am sure I will think of other things but that is my review for now!

 

 

Do you have any pics of the Penthouse you can share with us? Specifically the "kids" room and closet area.

[ashea]

Did you bring a car seat for your 3 yo to use in the taxi? We'll be on the same cruise later this month w/ a 3 yo and are trying to decide of we should bring a car seat for the taxis or stick with the bus.

[ginaboy]

Did you bring a car seat for your 3 yo to use in the taxi? We'll be on the same cruise later this month w/ a 3 yo and are trying to decide of we should bring a car seat for the taxis or stick with the bus.

 

We did not bring a car seat. The Taxi's are vans so you can put a car seat in it no problem. We just buckled him between us.

[ginaboy]

Do you have any pics of the Penthouse you can share with us? Specifically the "kids" room and closet area.

 

Did not take any pictures of the kids room...but I can tell you I was surprised with its size. Pretty big...plenty of closet space and a nice size bathroom. The bed made up I would say is a full/queen and there is a bunk that pulls down.

[ginaboy]

Hey girl! Glad I got to read your review! Your room sounded maaaaa-velous!! LOL I'm about to put my review up (do I dare? LOL)!

 

You guys take care! :)

 

I cannot wait!!!!!

How is Angelina's bruise?

[logcabin]

Nice review. We've been on the Dawn 3 times and love her. We have a large group going next August as well.

 

Having just returned from a Carnival Victory cruise, I can say that I CANNOT WAIT to get back on the Dawn..

[Mammaof2girls]

I cannot wait!!!!!

How is Angelina's bruise?

Thanks for taking the time to read my review. :)

 

Angelina's bruise has gotten much, much better - thanks for asking. Poor thing. It's almost like a rainbow now (a couple different colors in there).

I'm debating about maybe taking her to the dr. She's had this very faint cough sometimes (almost sounds like a fake cough, if that makes sense) since the middle of our cruise. Ugh, not sure if she's just developed a 'habit' of doing that or if I should be concerned. ?? Since she starts school tomorrow, I just may see if they can see her today. If not, I'll wait it out and keep an eye on it. Oh boy...always something, right? LOL Jack & AJ starts tomorrow too?

[ginaboy]

Thanks for taking the time to read my review. :)

 

Angelina's bruise has gotten much, much better - thanks for asking. Poor thing. It's almost like a rainbow now (a couple different colors in there).

I'm debating about maybe taking her to the dr. She's had this very faint cough sometimes (almost sounds like a fake cough, if that makes sense) since the middle of our cruise. Ugh, not sure if she's just developed a 'habit' of doing that or if I should be concerned. ?? Since she starts school tomorrow, I just may see if they can see her today. If not, I'll wait it out and keep an eye on it. Oh boy...always something, right? LOL Jack & AJ starts tomorrow too?

 

AJ started school today and Jack starts next Tuesday. Jack has sounded horse since getting off the ship....mind you he has also decided to potty train himself. Dry since yesterday. See his determination sometimes works in my favor!!!!! LOL!!!!!!

[NYHartChapp]

We just got off the Dawn today so I will attempt a review. It may come in bits and pieces but here goes.

Background: MY husband wanted to make this a special trip for my 40th birthday so he booked a Penthouse Suite. My 2 boys (8 and 3) and my MIL were in our cabin and my barents booked a balcony room down the hall. We were in Suite 11560.

 

Embarkation: Getting to the pier and parking were a breeze. We arrived at the pier around 10:30. Check in was a breeze. And we were sitting in a lounge with sandwiches, cookies, juice and coffee within 20 minutes. We were greeted about 15 minutes by our Concierge Anshuman. This man is an absolute gem. He had all our dinner reservations in place within 5 minutes. We were then greeted(about 11:30ish) by our Butler Carmen who escorted us on board. Upon entering the ship we received champagne and the boys received orange juice. My MIL had an electric scooter waiting in the cabin so Anshuman arranged for someone to escort her to the cabin to p/u her scooter by wheelchair. We then headed to the Garden Cafe for lunch. This was absolute chaos. It was EXTREMELY crowded. Being it was our first time on this ship we followed the crown and this is where we landed. We found a table for 4 (7 people) and had a quick lunch. My husband made his way out to the pool area and I joined him for a drink w/ the boys. We then mae our way back to the cabin......

 

Suite 11560: All I can say is WOW!!!! The main room had a table zand 4 chairs and a couch...a Lavazza(sp?) coffee machine and the door to the balcony. There was a smaller cabin with a couch that turned into a large bed...and then at night there was a bunk that would come down sideways at the foot of the bed. My MIL insisted that my boys sleep in there w/ her. Our master bedroom had double doors that led into it. To the left was the bathroom w/ jacuzzi tub, enclosed shower and then an enclosed toilet. The bath had a big window over it and a smaller window that looked out to the balcony. The shower had a floor to ceiling window. Then to the right of the double doors was a king size bed, I believe w/ separate curtains to close it off if you chose to. This suite was really beautiful.

 

That night we had dinner reservations at Cagneys. We all could not believe how good it was! We have eaten in some fine steak restaurants and Cagney's did not disappoint.

 

More to come............need to go food shopping!

 

Thanks for the review. We are booked in that cabin. Do you happen to have any pics?