Dawn Review 7/17 - Owners Suite!!!

This maybe very long but I really have to say OMG that was one of the best vacations ever. This was our first cruise and first vacation with our baby.

My DH and our baby son (7 mos) and I had the Owners Suite 9506. :D

We had originally booked a mini-suite were offered an upgrade to penthouse and then owners suite. With a baby we figured the separate rooms would be important so we could relax as he slept. This was key as well as bringing my neice who would babysit. It was worth every little penny and then some.

Upon entering terminal late (our van was over an hour late) we realized we missed VIP embarkation and proceeded to the long line. We happened to see a guy holding a sign that said owners suite - garden villas, so we approached him. He wanted us to follow him and I asked if the rest of our group can come (there were 12 total with kids) and he said yes. We went right thru checkin and were on the ship quickly. He escorted us to the room and we were shocked -

The room is gorgeous! I never realized there were two bathrooms. A bathroom as you walk in and a master bath off the bedroom.

Highlights of Owners Suite:

- 2 Bathrooms

- A cordless room phone that worked anywhere on the ship! This was awesome, at the pool we could book dinner or check on the baby at nite. People were constantly asking how our cell phone worked....:rolleyes:

- 3 bottles of Liquor (we did Absolute, Bacardi and Cuervo) he brought margarita mix in a pitcher and orange juice They were the large bottles. We did not finish them when we left even with all of us.

- Soda and water every day (diet coke,coke ,water)

- The room service menu is expanded from regular rooms. We could order eggs,french toast,hashbrowns etc

- Treats delivered twice a day - Apps at 5ish, Desserts later on (we had sushi,shrimp sandwiches, creme puffs,chocolates etc)

- 2 Balconys (one off living area, one off bedroom - this one is huge)

- DVD Library, CD Library

- Expanded channels on TV (according to my sister in an oceanview)

- DVD Player in living room and Bedroom, TV over bath

- The shower OMG this is an experience in itself!!!

- Preferred seating at the shows in Stardust! (We never had a problem seeing a show) The row is in the balcony front it is reserved for Owners and GV on both sides.

- We never had a problem for dinner no matter when we booked. We used the conceirge for all shows and dinners.

- VIP Tender tickets at GSC

- VIP Disembarkation

- Menus for all restaurants were in room including the Main dining menus for each nite.

- Sailaway out of Ny is gorgeous on that front deck

Our Butler was Denny he was fabulous. Very personable my son loved him. Please say hi for us if you have him (Erin,Mark and Baby Cole). Our conceirge was Alex, also great. He would call us if we didn't call to see if we wanted dinner or a show. He was awesome.

Our family was in three other rooms (inside or oceanview) but on the first day Alex took their cabin numbers and included them for the capatain's cocktail, the VIP Tender and VIP Disembarkation. This in itself was soo nice and made the trip for our group. They also sat with us at shows. I was very impressed, this was above and beyond IMO.

Our room stewards washed the baby's bottles in the dishwasher every day!!!

Excursions:

Port Can - stayed on the boat, the pool was not crowded that day!

Miami - We took the bus (18.00) round trip running every half hour to South Beach. Walked around and ate lunch at a really fabulous Cuban restaurant. The food was incredible.

GSC: Ended up on First Tender and got beach chairs and a raft. Went to straw market right on beach. We didn't stay long but the rest of our group stayed all day.

Nassau: Friday nite my brother and his wife took a cab to Atlantis to the casino. We stayed on. Next morning a bunch of us took a cab to Atlantis and just wandered. 4.00 per person one way.

Food:

Had breakfast in our room everyday.

Le Bistro - Loved it! Ate there twice. Had the Filet, Asparagus, Fondue and Cheesecake.

Cagneys - Also very good. Ended up talking to Maitre D for awhile. He was very nice Sunny. Showed us pics of his son. The Sinful Choc Dessert was amazing.

La Trattoria - Pretty good! Everyone was happy. Did not realize that this is one side of the Garden cafe by day.

Bamboo- Went there for Sushi (not at Sushi bar because we had the baby) The Sushi was good. You pay Ala carte at the table or 10.00 all u can eat at the sushi bar.

Blue Lagoon - Went for the Fish n Chips really yummy.

Venetian - 1st Nite - we all were not impressed, this was our only so-so meal.

Both Sunday and Monday had half price covers. Most other nites the covers were half price between 5:30 and 6. This was ok for us because we had kids so early dinners were good.

Teppanyaki - Only seats 18 so book early if you want to try. We tried very late on Saturday and could not get it.

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As we were getting on the Tender at GSC back to boat we were standing near a guy in uniform and my DH asked him if he was the Captain. I looked at his name tag and it was Hugo, the hotel director, I recognize the name because our App Treats were compliments of him every nite. I told him thank you for our nightly treats and how much we loved the cruise, the owners suite and the staff. He was soo nice and we had the baby and we talked about his son etc. That nite Alex asked us how GSC was and I told him we had met Hugo and how nice he was. We went ot Cagney's for dinner and as we sat down the waiter told us Hugo wanted to send us a bottle of wine. We were soo impressed. At the end of the meal we asked for a check and the maitre d said No check, Hugo had taken care of it all. WOW! How nice and how unexpected!!! great Conceirge and great hotel director Very Classy.

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My brother had an oceanview with him,his wife, their 11yr old and 1year old. They were ready to kill each other by day two. The rooms are small for that many and all the baby gear. He scrambled to get a bigger room but the ship was maxed. He originally thought he would not spend much time in the room but with a baby and naps and bedtimes it was crazy. My sister had the same room with her two teenage girls and it was fine.

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Colin is one of the funniest guys ever and we saw him everywhere. Not sure when this man sleeps.

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We did bingo alot, pool, kiddie pool, Ladies Nite revenge, family karaoke, Late nites at Spinnaker, and the casino. There seemed to be always something to do.

Shows - South Beach Rave - pretty good. Edge - Very Good, Second City - Very funny. I missed the Bollywood but Dh said it was good.

I won jackpot twice on the slot machine someone had tipped off on this board. (250.00 each time). Thank YOU!!!

There is a cozy lounge up by Cagney's called the Star Bar, never really crowded.

That's all I can remember right now but ask away. We can not wait to book another cruise and definitely will be Norwegian!!! Thank you for all the information you have shared!!

Erin

I forgot something:

Friday nite the boat was very rocky. they had barf bags hanging by the elevators. My brother was sick and stayed in. I was ok but you def felt it walking around. A few of us used the bands and they helped alot.

My neice had the drink of the day every day, it was her thing. I recommend a Miami Vice, very yummy.

I have all the dailys if you have any ?s.

Great review. Thanks. In September we're in the room right next to your's. 9502. If still available, we're hoping to be offered the upgrade or pay for an upsell. It sounds owesome. :D

Great review! So glad you had such a wonderful experience. We will be in an AB Penthouse on 8/21 and can hardly wait! Just one question..........How big were the tenders to GSC and was it a choppy ride? I get a little nervous on small boats. Sorry, just one more question........who are the people invited to the Captain's cocktail party and what night is it held? Thanks!

Happy Sailing!!!!!

Helane

I hope you left it in good shape, we'll be in the same AA on Sunday!!!

Great to hear such a neat review - we can't wait!

One question, what was the name of the cuban restaurant you went to (or location)?

Another - when you said you couldn't get into Teppnaki (sp), did you mean trying at last minute or even trying at the beginning of the cruise?

Sorry, another question

Where did you meet up with the fellow holding the Garden Villa/Owner Suite sign on embarkation?

Was it before security, or after security? If before, did you get escort through security, or have to wait in that line?

This I won jackpot twice on the slot machine someone had tipped off on this board. (250.00 each time). Thank YOU!!!

 

Erin

Nice review...but I don't recall reading anything about the slots...what was the tip?

I think I misphrased, we got an upsell not an upgrade, never thought about the difference.

Lasting - I peeked in 9502 and it is very nice. Their balcony was next to ours in the front and is large. Great place to watch sailaway.

Helane - The tenders are large and have two floors. They squish you in on the way over. The ride was not choppy at all. The captains cocktail was Monday at 6-7. It was in the Spinnaker and very nice. Drinks and Apps. I believe it was for suites and above but can't be sure. Maybe someone else can verify.

Trina - You will love that room, please tell Denny hello!!! He is wonderful. The Cuban restaurant was Larios on Ocean Drive and 8th. Across from Wet Willys (fun frozen drinks). The Fried Plantains were awesome. Ropa Vieja was great! It was pretty empty that day and we had no problem seating a party of 12. Walking around miami however was very very hot!

We tried at the last minute. I am sure if we tried earlier we could have got in. Something we noticed, my sister tried to get reservations for Salsa same day. They told her it was booked. We called Alex later on and got right in. The place was pretty empty. I guess the dirty little secret is that the conceirge has more pull. We could call at 4 and get dinner at 6 or 7 same day.

I am not sure but we did not wait in any line so I would say before security. I think he walked us thru security and waited while we all checked in, we also bypassed the photo.

Slots Tip was on some thread about Dawn Secrets -

Slot machine is Jackpot party on back wall or right wall depending which way you come in. Quarter Machine. Not the last in row but is next to the stampede machine. I hit jackpot twice, I saw another guy hit it, it seems to hit once a day at least. The payout playing max bet is 250.00.

Wow makes me wish I took the AA instead of AC. Oh well. Did you scan the dailys? When Is the murder mystery night? Thanks Ben

Erin, I'm so glad you had an excellent time. I was in 9506 in May--it was indeed beautiful! What a way to cruise, eh? Cosmopolitan was in that same suite--then me, now you, next Trina. That's so cool! Good people in 9506.

:-)

We had Carlos as our concierge. I wonder if he was on vacation or maybe went to the Jewel ...? He was excellent.

Great review--thanks for giving us so many details!

And I agree about that shower. I took A LOT of showers that week. :D

I'm drooling, and counting the days. And while I'd like to try for an upsell from our AA to a GV, part of me wishes the GVs would just sell out so I wouldn't have another 5 months to wait and wonder. Obviously, we'll be in great shape in our AA (10006). We also have the AC to our left, the BB to our right, and the inside directly across the hall. We should probably put up CAUTION tape.

Glad you had a great time, and thanks for the review :) . I learn something new every time! Carla

Ben,

I think you will have a great time in an AC, we needed the extra space for the baby, but for us an AC would have been fine and get almost the same perks. I didn't scan the dailys but the murder mystery dinner signup is Monday between 4-6, the conceirge can prob do it for you. I don't see when the actual dinner is...i just checked every daily. maybe someone else can help???

pamperme - We also drool over the GV, apparently a large family had rented both on our cruise. We saw them around the ship and at the captains party. I was dying to approach them for a tour but my DH restrained me.

greenie - I am glad to be in the 9506 club. Thank you soo much for all of your posts they were soo helpful!!!!

thanks good advice thanks you

Thanks for the info.........I do feel better now about the tender. Our AB was also an upsell, there was nothing higher up available. It was a great deal and we jumped on it.

Helane

Great review! I'm glad you had such a wonderful cruise. I leave on 8/14 and can't wait! Thanks for the Casino tip, I plan to visit that machine! :D

Erin, I'm so glad you had an excellent time. I was in 9506 in May--it was indeed beautiful! What a way to cruise, eh? Cosmopolitan was in that same suite--then me, now you, next Trina. That's so cool! Good people in 9506.

I agree...and that shower...wow!

Welcome to the 9506 club, Erin!

Erin, I'm so glad you had an excellent time. I was in 9506 in May--it was indeed beautiful! What a way to cruise, eh? Cosmopolitan was in that same suite--then me, now you, next Trina. That's so cool! Good people in 9506.

And I agree about that shower. I took A LOT of showers that week. :D

TrinaLC ~ the pressure is on you now...keep that suite in tip-top shape or you are OUT of the club! Enjoy every moment:) Post all of the details!

Erinnj16 ~ glad you enjoyed it as much as we did! What a vacation!!

Greenie ~ no wonder you looked so "squeaky" clean....and here I thought you were soaking in the tub w/your margaritas!!

Benmom ~ you will LOVE the AC. We peeked in on them..they are beautiful!

Bon voyage!

I agree...and that shower...wow!

 

Welcome to the 9506 club, Erin!

Sorry, BarbCT ~ didn't mean to leave you out! Just read your post;)

We know you took good care of 9506 as Erinnj was in it after you!

I'm TRYING to get back in there for Feb., 06....don't any of you book it!!!

I'm drooling, and counting the days. And while I'd like to try for an upsell from our AA to a GV, part of me wishes the GVs would just sell out so I wouldn't have another 5 months to wait and wonder. Obviously, we'll be in great shape in our AA (10006). We also have the AC to our left, the BB to our right, and the inside directly across the hall. We should probably put up CAUTION tape.

 

Glad you had a great time, and thanks for the review :) . I learn something new every time! Carla

You will LOVE 10006, plenty of room to entertain all of you.

If the GV is not booked, I'm certain you have a good chance at it with your connecting cabins. Just be prepared with your price if you receive a call.

Guess this will be the start of the 10006 club! ;)

I hope some of you AA'ers check back in - another question

what is a reasonable tipping range for the concierge and the butler?

I'm drooling, and counting the days. And while I'd like to try for an upsell from our AA to a GV, part of me wishes the GVs would just sell out so I wouldn't have another 5 months to wait and wonder. Obviously, we'll be in great shape in our AA (10006). We also have the AC to our left, the BB to our right, and the inside directly across the hall. We should probably put up CAUTION tape.

 

Glad you had a great time, and thanks for the review :) . I learn something new every time! Carla

We had 10006 for the Christmas cruise on the Dawn - this was the BEST cabin we ever had and now we can't go back to anything else - even DH was impressed, and that's hard to do. Wanted to sail again this Christmas but, alas, we waited too long and all the suites are taken - will look for next year.

Erinnj16,

Hi. My DH and I just got an up sell to AA cabin 10506 today for September. I don't recall your review mentioning anything about the PC. Did you use the computer in the room and was there a charge for the internet? :)