allgr8

I've been on several cruises with Royal Caribbean, but will be sailing on the Norwegian Dawn for the first time in April 2016. I'm going on the 7 night Western Caribbean cruise out of New Orleans. What tips do you all have for NCL that are different from RC? What are some of the cool features on the Dawn?

Which date in April?

This is a great itinerary. I have not sailed on the Dawn, but enjoyed the Hawaii cruise with the mostly American crew. NCL is the little guy in the industry so tries harder and comes up with many innovations that later get adopted by RCCL and CCL. On the other hand technology is not used to the extent that it is on the Oasis and Quantum class ships. We had to spend some time making meal and show reservations, but hopefully that will be automated by April, or those things can be handled before boarding.

I agree about November cruising. We have done 5 Thanksgiving cruises. The weather was never great, but on the last 2 it was especially bad. Plus, then we have to deal with Thanksgiving traffic or ridiculously high airfares. I may cancel the cruise I have booked for Thanksgiving, 2015.

EA Sports bar is where Perfect Game sports bar used to be. Casino bar is still the same. Red Frog Pub replaced the Starry Nights jazz bar.

I'm not sure what happened to the rest of the review, but Connie was sick after that so probably did not see much besides the inside of her cabin after Thanksgiving, unfortunately. I used to see her and Julio everywhere, then just Julio, and then neither one, as he too succumbed.

Great review, Connie. You got some great photos of things that I missed.

So we will be going to Cozumel and Progreso February 1st on the Triumph!

 

I really need some help with some cheap or free things to do in these ports.

 

First off Progreso. We have no excursion booked and just kind of wanted to do our own thing. We would love to grab cheap drinks (like margaritas and whatnot) and spend some time on the beach and possibly grab lunch someone that isn't overpriced. Oh and I've heard about some cheap beach massages? What is that about? Anything we can do close to port that wouldn't require spending more than $30 that day?

 

In Cozumel we booked a morning snorkeling excursion that will probably last about 2-3 hours. We will still have about another 2 hours after that to relax. We wanted to grab lunch afterwards and do a little shopping, and maybe an hour or half hour just walking along the beach. Suggestions? Someone mentioned $2 margaritas right near the port...is this true?

 

We want to have a lot of fun without spending a ridiculous amount of money and we have never been to either of these ports. Any great suggestions for one or both?

In Cozumel, since your excursion will bring you back the ship anyway, I would suggest getting a quick free lunch on the ship and going back out. I have never found the food or drinks to be very cheap near the pier. What we have done every time I have gone with kids (who would not get much out of one of the crazy margarita places) is to walk toward town past the Royal Caribbean pier and past a few more ships, hotels, and restaurants to the last building on the water side of the road, just before a long stretch where the road is right on the water. The place is laid back, has $3 premium Mexican bottled beers and pretty reasonably-priced, good food (made in the restaurant across the street) in case the kids need a snack. Also, sometimes a food vendor will come in off the street, and have something delicious for very little money. The place has a few steps down to the water, and you can bring your gear and snorkel for free, or rent equipment or take lessons from a guide. They take credit cards and will present your bill in either currency you prefer. The beach is rocky, but the bar itself has a nice, sandy area at the top of the few steps. It is just past the submarine and the overhead walkway across the street, maybe 0.3-0.4 miles north of the Carnival pier entrance. If you get to where there are no buildings between the road and the water, you have gone a little too far.