Somewhat belated, but here's our review of our 06/07-06/14 Dawn Cruise to Bermuda

[hophead]

In the beginning:

In February I began to need warm, sunny weather. Since that wouldn’t happen in PA for a long time, I tried the next best thing, planning a vacation. We were to Bermuda a few years ago on the Crown and loved the island.

 

So my first thought was to plan a short trip in May/June via air.

Checking prices for airfare/hotels quickly changed my mind. Came to Cruise Critic to check out information on the Dawn, Majesty, and Spirit since each left from a port close to home.

 

Saw that there was a CC group going in June, checked the prices and was sold! Coupling the nice discount through CC with our Compass Reward certificates, we decided to try our first suite.

Embarkation:

Cruise day finally came. Thanks to the roll call, the days waiting went much quicker. After a relatively fast and easy drive from PA, we parked in the lot, dropped our bags with the porter and made our way to check-in. The special check-in for suite guests had us checked-in under 10 minutes.

 

From there, we were escorted over to meet Anshuman. He introduced himself, gave us our key cards, and within a few minutes we were escorted on board. Not sure why, but we seemed to bypass the ‘picture opportunity’ usually awaiting embarkation. Neither of us was upset though!

 

In less than 10 minutes from parking the car, we were on board drinking sparkling wine, and thinking about lunch. Since DW didn’t know about the suite beforehand, she didn’t know about Cagney’s for lunch (and breakfast). We made our way to Cagney’s for a nice, relaxing lunch. We both love their fries!

The cabin:

After lunch we strolled around the ship a bit to see what she had to offer. After the announcement that cabins were ready, we made our way to 9736, an aft AE cabin. DW’s luggage was already there, and mine arrived in about 15 minutes.

 

The cabin itself was quite large. The closet easily held our ‘hang-up’ clothes. We both liked the opposing doors so that we could both get clothes at the same time. DW liked the separate vanity/make-up area. The bathroom was good sized with a tub. We didn’t use the tub other than to shower. The only drawback I can see is if someone had limited mobility then stepping into the tub might be an issue since it was higher than most tubs in houses.

 

The bed was very comfortable. It was both soft and firm, if that’s possible. There was a small, comfortable sofa, a chair, and a small dining table that was put to use holding all of our bric-a-brac.

 

The balcony was a bit small (wide but not deep), but there were 2 loungers. We used the balcony every day. Overall, the cabin felt much larger than our usual choice of balcony cabins. The perception was that it was more than twice the size.

 

We both loved the cabin, especially the balcony. We spent a lot of sea-day time on the balcony reading and enjoying the view.

Sea Days:

As previously mentioned, we spent a lot of time on the balcony on sea days. Apart from that, we also did a lot of walking around the ship. We also spent time in the Spinnaker lounge reading and knitting (DW). They had a nice 2-person lounger that we used frequently.

Excursions:

We booked 2 excursions through NCL, the 5-hour island tour and the aquarium/zoo tour. The driver for the bus tour was very friendly. He did a great job showing us around the island while providing a great running commentary about the different areas of the island.

 

We stopped at a lighthouse, a small chapel, a beach, and in St. George. The tour went from one end to the other. I was a bit worried about being on a bus for 5 hours, but the time flew by quickly. It was a great tour.

 

The aquarium/zoo tour was also fun. It started with a 35-minute boat ride from the dockyard to the Zoo. The captain gave an interesting commentary of things Bermuda. The aquarium itself was very nice. It’s smaller than most US aquariums, but there was a nice variety of displays and fish. We took a ton of pictures and went through 2 times because the displays were so nice.

 

We also strolled through the small zoo area. They had different displays with birds, animals, and reptiles from different parts of the world. My favorite part was the aviary where there were many bright colored birds wandering around. Another enjoyable boat ride brought us back to the Dawn.

Food:

Most breakfasts and lunches were in Cagney’s. The food was very good; one of our favorites was the fries! The best part of Cagney’s was the fantastic service from Robert. He truly is an asset to NCL and they really need to try their best to keep him onboard!

 

My favorite breakfast was a chorizo/mushroom omelet. We had fresh fruit each day. The coffee was also great, even de-caf.

 

We had dinner in Cagney’s, Impressions (2X), Salsa, Bamboo, and Aqua, and the buffet. Our favorite meal was Cagney’s. My strip steak was perfect! DW’s food was also great. Impressions was good, but not great. We had less than good service the first time, but decided to try again. The food was consistent both times. DW had the tortellini with pesto both times. Because the portion was so large the first time, it was her main meal the second visit.

 

Bamboo was also very good. The service was good, and the food was very good. It was not very crowded which surprised us.

 

Salsa was a big disappointment. The food was bland, with not much ‘spice’ for Tex-Mex. The burrito was not even served with any type of sauce. Service was good, however, and the Sangria was very good. The ‘free’ margarita was basically a slurpee type ‘frozen’ version in a shooter glass.

 

Aqua was also a pleasant surprise. The ambiance was very nice, the service was fantastic, and the food was very good. We both enjoyed the meal and the restaurant and had planned to go back again. Everyone around us seemed to be enjoying themselves also. There were plenty of options on the menu. It might become boring over the course of a week, or if you’re not big on fish, but there were many options available.

 

We had a breakfast, a lunch, and a dinner in the buffet. Breakfast was probably the best of all three. Many different options available and what we had was hot and tasty. Lunch was also very good. There were many different options, and everything was hot that was supposed to be hot. Dinner was also good. Again, there were many different options available, and what we had was tasty. In each visit, there was never a problem finding a table by the window.

Bars:

I did the pub-crawl. We visited 6 different bars sampling drinks at each. We started with a beer in Pearly Kings (which everyone had to drink in 2 minutes). At the rest of the bars, there were different mixed drinks with a different one at each bar.

 

There were games at each stop, and part of the visit was to quickly drink the drink. Coupling fast drinking with running from bar to bar, especially with the stairs, made some crawlers feel the drinks pretty quick. It was a fun time and would recommend it.

 

For an evening drink, I generally visited Pearly King’s. Noel the bartender seemed to always be there. He was friendly, efficient, and made a good drink. He made Pearly King’s a fun place to visit each day.

Onboard Activities:

We only went to one show, Bollywood. It was a bit of a disappointment. Neither of us could really put our fingers on what wasn’t ‘great’ but we weren’t ‘wowed’. If we hadn’t been sitting in the middle of the row, we probably would not have stayed for the whole show.

 

We didn’t do bingo, or the art auction. We were in Spinnakers (reading and knitting) during one bingo session and there was a very large crowd.

The gym was very well equipped. I visited each morning to get a workout in before breakfast. It appeared that all the equipment was working and all machines I used were clean with towels waiting there for use. I only used the jogging track once, the morning we arrived in Bermuda.

 

There was a light rain that morning so no one else was there. Most times it was in use by both runners and walkers. That combination could be a problem for runners, though because there are many tights spots along the path.

Disembarkation:

Fantastic! We chose early disembarkation carrying our own luggage. With the suite perk for earlier departure, we were the first ones off the ship (sadly, of course), in our car, and home within 90 minutes! That was the easiest we’ve ever left a ship!

The ship:

The ship was relatively clean. There were some large stains in the carpet in some of the cabin areas (especially deck 9). The ship is also showing signs of age. There was flaking paint and rust spots along the support framework for the railing on our balcony. Some of the furniture in common areas was a bit worn. The carpeting in the main areas was clean and well maintained.

 

There was one area on the promenade deck where water would accumulate across the deck. That made the daily morning walks after breakfast a bit of a challenge ‘jumping’ over the puddle.

The NCL team:

Aside from the poor service our first night in Impressions, we were very impressed by all we met. The cabin stewards were very friendly and kept the cabin spotless. They seemed to know when we were out and quickly came in and did their thing.

 

The waiters/waitresses and other restaurant team members were also very good. Never had to ask to have our water (or drinks refilled). The time between courses was not very long; we did not have any 2 hours meals. The ‘clean teams’ in the buffet kept everything neat and tidy.

 

Anshuman was fantastic. We only asked his assistance with dinner reservations, but we saw him many times on the ship. Each time he’s stop us and check in to make sure everything was going well and we both felt that he was deeply interested to make sure we had a fantastic experience. While the suite perks such as Cagney’s were nice, it was the personal attention from Anshuman that probably sealed the deal for us to continue to enjoy the suite life on NCL.

Final Thoughts:

This was probably one of the best vacations we’ve had for a long time. The ship was good, the food very good, the NCL team on board was excellent. Adding this to being in one of our favorite destinations for 3 days made it memorable. The icing on the cake was the friends we made along the way on CC. We enjoyed the Meet and Mingle arranged by Luv2Cruise (thanks Barry and Carol!).

 

It was nice to put faces to CC screen names, and to meet many of the people we corresponded with on CC on the Roll Call. We enjoyed seeing the different gifts at the exchange and learning a bit more about our CC friends.

 

The travel agency used by CC for its member cruises was top notch. It was probably the easiest vacation I’ve ever booked. All questions were quickly and accurately responded to. While I like making my own arrangements (yeah I’m a airfare checking junkie), but for cruising, they will be our first stop for reservations.

 

We’re negotiating the next cruise. It’s a toss-up between Alaska and the Caribbean. Whichever way we go, it will be on NCL based on our experience on the Dawn.

[bermudashorts]

Nice review

Question on the pub crawl.

Is there a charge for that as a package? or do you pay for your drinks as you go?

[egurbi]

25 for the pub crawl. 5 drinks included.

[*Luv2Cruz*]

Luved your review and it sounds like you had a great time. It was great meeting the both of you and I'm glad you enjoyed the M&G and thanks for being part of our CC Group Cruise!:D We too also enjoyed meeting all the "King's Wharf Rats" and the entire roll call and will definately do the Dawn again!:cool: "Kings Wharf Rats II anybody!;)

[Wheeler63]

Nice to re-live good memories of fun, friends and food! Thanks for taking me back :)

[bermudashorts]

Anyone remember the drinks they served during the pub crawl..sounds very interesting..lol

[Travlin'Brown]

It's funny, I was just thinking this morning, "3 weeks ago, we were on the ship!" Time sure flies after vacation!

 

Great review! I agree with you on Bollywood. That was my thought in my review also.

 

Have fun picking your next cruise!

[hophead]

Anyone remember the drinks they served during the pub crawl..sounds very interesting..lol

 

I'm generally a beer drinker so mixed drinks are not my forte. There was beer (Dos XX) at the first bar, a margarita next, something that looked (to me anyway) like a tequila sunrise, a cosmo, and a couple of others who's name/ingredients I don't remember.

 

All drinks were good and did have ample alcohol. Serving sizes were smaller than normal bar drinks, but seeing what some folks looked like after only a couple of bars, that was probably a good thing!

 

It was a fun time. I'd recommend to anyone who likes to have fun. (and I'm older than I care to admit!)

[hophead]

Luved your review and it sounds like you had a great time. It was great meeting the both of you and I'm glad you enjoyed the M&G and thanks for being part of our CC Group Cruise!:D We too also enjoyed meeting all the "King's Wharf Rats" and the entire roll call and will definately do the Dawn again!:cool: "Kings Wharf Rats II anybody!;)

 

We both love Bermuda, so KWR, the sequel (part deux?) is right up our alley. Another NCL trip would be great! If not the Dawn, then maybe which ever ship sails out of Philly or Baltimore??

[14ersco]

Great review hophead. Always enjoy reading about our cruises from a different perspective. As you said it would have been great to chat with you and the DW. As I will mention in my Monday post I prefer Dazzles for a M&G; everyone sits together instead of being strung along a bar.

 

Also did not get to tell you we had picked up a summer selection case of Smuttynose and the remaining bottles were waiting for me after the cruise in my in-laws refrigerator. :cool:

[Philly Steve]

Thanks for a well organized review. :)

[dolphinlover2]

Great review hophead! I'm on the Dawn next week and was getting a little concerned because some people are telling me that they heard bad things about the food and the staff. I'm so happy that your experience with both are positive! What confused me was that you mentioned the special perk you got for booking a suite, but later on mentioned the balcony room. The reason I ask is that you thought the space was ample compared to other ships--I have a balcony room booked.

[Wheeler63]

Great review hophead! I'm on the Dawn next week and was getting a little concerned because some people are telling me that they heard bad things about the food and the staff. I'm so happy that your experience with both are positive! What confused me was that you mentioned the special perk you got for booking a suite, but later on mentioned the balcony room. The reason I ask is that you thought the space was ample compared to other ships--I have a balcony room booked.

 

Food was very good - some of us didn't care for the same menu every nite, but the quality and taste was never bad! Entire crew I met were extremely efficient, courteous, helpful and pleasant! If I could, I'd go right back with you next week!:D

[hophead]

Great review hophead! I'm on the Dawn next week and was getting a little concerned because some people are telling me that they heard bad things about the food and the staff. I'm so happy that your experience with both are positive! What confused me was that you mentioned the special perk you got for booking a suite, but later on mentioned the balcony room. The reason I ask is that you thought the space was ample compared to other ships--I have a balcony room booked.

 

Hope this helps clear it up and not make the waters muddier!

 

Our cabin was an AE. It was listed at around 290 sq ft (inside). It seemed much larger than the difference in size between a balcony (usually 180-200 sq ft).

 

The balcony did seem a bit smaller than a balcony cabin, but that could be perception because of the loungers vs. chairs.