Norwegian Dawn Review - returned may 23,2004

[cruisenews]

I would rate the trip as OK.

2 adults and a child 1 year old

embarkation: we drove to the port no problems.

disembark: A MESS. elevator broke so they had to bring our bags up by hand . we got off 2hours late. there was the carnival legend in port also. They do no t let you take your bags to the car so you have to walk to the car then go down to loading and unloading and pick up your bags. I could barely find my husband and when i did a rude NY police man tells me it is too busy drive back around. me driving back around would have done nothing. It was an absolute mess of cars and no one was directing traffic. Finally after persuading him he let me pick up my husband and we loaded our whole total of 2 bags into the car in a minute and go the hell out of that mess. Don't think i would use this port again. Not organized at all.

 

Ship:was pretty our room was a balcony room 9660

we could hear the music from deck 7 atrium in our room at night. Our room was always clean and well kept.

 

Food: Yuck. Well wehn i went on coarnival they had juice and lemonade whenever you wanted . not on Norwegian after breakfast you can get Ice Tea only. my son is 1 and does not like unsweetened tea. No one would even offer to get me juice. the buffet for lunch was the worst i have ever had and I have only been on 3 cruises including this one. the selection was poor and most people were just eating the BBQ out by the pool.

the main dining rooms had average to below average food. turkey scallopini . nothing great. we ate at cagney's and that was vey good. i think they want you to eat at the specialty restaurants so they make the food poor in the main dining rooms.

 

If you want ice cream you are sh** out of luck they have an ice cream machine that never worked . towards the end of the cruise they started dipping hard ice cream.

 

Pool: 1 pool for 2100 people . it was a mad house I didn't even bother. we went to the kiddie pool and even that was jammed. the jacuzzi in the kiddie pool was 100Deg. it thought i burned by foot. so be careful with your kids.

 

Port Canaveral: Norwegian let disembarkation be a free for all. we had a tour to sea world. well it took us 1 hour to get off the ship. they did not organize by excursion they just let anyone and everyone get off th ship. i was angry. we paid $178 for sea world and got jipped 1 hour that we paid for. Norwegian needs to seriously think out this in the future

 

Miami: nothing to do at all. we went to south beach. what a waste with a 1 year old . we walked the beach and got back on the bus. then tehy took us to a shopping place. that was a waste too.

 

Great Stirrup Cay: nice we got tender tickets 460 and we found seats quite well. So if you want to be off first get your tender ticket early because they tell you need a ticket in small print on your newsletter.

 

Nassau: shopped and then went back tot the ship

 

overall the ports were boring if you did not have a shore excursion . and with a 1 year old you can't go snorkeling.

 

Positives:

Nice Kiddie Pool

Freestyle Dinning

 

I would not recommend Norwegian nor will I sail with them again.

[rainy54]

Sorry you had a bad time. I know its tough traveling on vacation with a 1 year old. I was on the dawn end of April, loved the ship and the food. NYC was a piece of cake, we were the only ship in port. The ports were ok. Would I do it again. Yes, in a heartbeat. My prev cruise were all Carnival. I love Carnival but I think the Dawn blew them out of the water. Who no's maybe we had a good week and you might have had a bad week.

 

Hope you enjoy your next vacation.

 

Till NCL Dawn cruise

 

[DivaG]

So sorry you didn't have a good time. It's hectic in NY on a regular basis - never mind when ships are in port (multiple ships - YIKES).

We'll be on the Dawn in September and are looking forward to it.

Sometimes things beyond our control upset us the most, hopefully it won't stop you from enjoying any future cruises.

 

Gloria

[Denise58]

I was also on the ship in April with our 10 year old and had a great time. No problems disemarking at the ports, etc.

 

Sorry you didn't have a nicer trip.

 

Monarch of the Seas 6/94

Majesty of the Seas 6/96

Galaxy 8/02

Norwegian Dawn 4/04

[FierceAXBoi]

Some people are just born bitter............In the two years that the Dawn has been sailing I have never had a single complain.

 

Return 2 the Dawn

[smeyer418]

I love the Dawn but the complaints seem justified to me. Also there have been other compliants that were also valid... remember when the ship left early? Traveling with a small one is difficult especially when they are not allowed in the kids program and no babysitting. We never heard the music but we were out until late( midnight or later every time) While I agree some people are born bitter, in my opinion this is not one and remember to comment on the issues and not the person...(I have been on the Dawn twice)

 

 

BTW I saw ice cream almost everyday in the pm at the buffet.

 

Proud charter member of the PPS-Passport Pusher Society

Oceania Insignia(Athens to Venice)-something new!

smeyer418@yahoo.com

Celebrity, NCL, Overnight Ferry, hydrofoil between countries, car ferries and river cruise and of course the Staten Island Ferry

 

[This message was edited by smeyer418 on 05-27-04 at 05:53 PM.]

[Host CMLA]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by cruisenews:

i think they want you to eat at the specialty restaurants so they make the food poor in the main dining rooms. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>You may think this but there's no factual basis for it. I'm sorry you didn't enjoy your cruise. I hope the next one is better.

 

Cecilia

*****@aol.com

 

My Wedding!

 

[uneamie]

Hmmm....

 

While I appreciate the time you took to give us a list of all the things that annoyed or bothered you, it's hard to believe that "the kiddie pool and freestyle dining" were the only positives on your Dawn cruise.

 

 

<p align="center">

Countdown - Dawn 11 day cruise

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Home Lines - 5/1988

Disney Wonder - 10/1998

Carnival Triumph - 7/2002

Carnival Legend - 10/2003

NCL - Dawn - 1/2005

</P>

[dorothyl]

My husband and I are cruising for the first time on Sept 19th,our honeymoon(been married 12 years) in a mini-suite and my only fear is that the ship will be inundated with small kids.

 

I have 4 from 6- 20 all whom I love more than life itself but this trip is for us.We have taken them to Disney twice in 3 years and will take 2 family vacations before our cruise and this one is for us.I know not everyone can find a sitter but you can't be surprised when you take very small children on a vacation like this and find it trying and alot of work.

[Joel*NCL]

I'm sorry your cruise was so awful, however I would bet that just trying to watch a 1 year old is hard enough, let alone doing it on a ship with 2000+ people. Doing your homework prior to cruising (this line) may have mitigated this anger.

 

Cruising, no matter how large the ship, is a cramped experience. It's always fun, and always relaxing (well usually), but always cramped. It's actually part of the fun sharing the excitement with that many people all having a good time. But with a 1 year old I can see where it would be aggravating.

 

In the defense of NCL though, they don't know that your child doesn't like Iced Tea... They don't just offer juice because you have a child with you... ask for it. You'd be surprised how many of these people that work on the ship remember your likes and dislikes.

 

Although you won't sail with NCL again, I am going to recommend that you don't sail at all until your child is older. It's obvious, with your child only being 1, your past cruises were most likely just you and your husband. If you do choose to cruise again, maybe you should try Disney. Even they won't sit for a 1 year old though.

 

Good luck, and try to cheer up!

 

J

 

 

Oh.. PS.. I think I speak for everyone when I ask you to layoff the NYC cops. They are there to keep an eye on, what is now, an unstable world. The last thing they need to worry about is how upset you are that you can’t park. I’m sure, based on your cruise story that you were not in a very pleasant mood when you approached him.

 

NYC Cops have been through some hell over the last few years… give them a break.

 

RC Monarch of the Seas 06/98

NCL Majesty 07/2000

NCL Majesty 08/2002

NCL Dawn 05/2004

[YacFamily]

Sorry to hear the cruise was not great. I am just curious why you did not use room service which is N/C except for a small tip for the wait-staff.

We found you could ask for anything, even things not on the posted menu and they were happy to deliver. Perhaps in the future ASK staff in the restos ( not buffet areas ) for a glass of juice, etc. We did on several occasions, presto 1 min. later a drink, juice, bottled water was there, N/C, with a smile.

We are back on the Dawn June 27th and can't wait.

We prefer to forgo the buffets and have beautiful meals in the Venetian, Aqua, Impressions, Salsa, etc. Sit down, relax , be served, if you are a little rushed for movie or whatever, servers come to the task fast, they will help if they know, just tell 'em.

Happier future cruising.

P.S. Try asking at the kids' program area for counsellors that are available to baby-sit on their off time, they ARE available for reasonable $$ and are fun one on one with the little ones.

[jonsmom]

DorthyL

 

I wouldnt think that your Sept 19th cruise will be inundated with children. Most schools start after Labor Day and parents are not as likely to take children out in the beginning of the year.

Happy Anniversary - Have a great time!

 

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by dorothyl:

My husband and I are cruising for the first time on Sept 19th,our honeymoon(been married 12 years) in a mini-suite and my only fear is that the ship will be inundated with small kids.

 

I have 4 from 6- 20 all whom I love more than life itself but this trip is for us.We have taken them to Disney twice in 3 years and will take 2 family vacations before our cruise and this one is for us.I know not everyone can find a sitter but you can't be surprised when you take very small children on a vacation like this and find it trying and alot of work.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

Norwegian Dawn

 

Explorer of the Seas

 

[mmceachn]

Yikes Cruise News

I cannot believe that you were on the same ship that I was on.

On our Dawn sailing the buffets offered several hot and cold dishes,a sandwich bar, beautiful smoked salmon, salads, fresh fruit carving stations and on embarkation night, prime rib. We enjoyed roast duckling, lobster tails, steak diane and several other yummy dished in the dining rooms. The only dish that we didn't think was up to par was the Pizza, but hey, nothing is perfect.

I'm curious about what you were disappointed with South Beach. Did you expect something different than a beach for beachcombing and swimming?

I agree 100% with you about the conditions at the pier in NY..BAD BAD BAD...I had to do some fast talking to get hubby to agree to sail out of NY again

 

SammyM

[sclauss]

I was on this same cruise and found everything to be top notch. Not a single staff member was rude or rushed. Food was out of this world.. entertainment was amazing (Eric Reed).. Cruise director and staff was the best, casino was great, cabin staff couldn't have been more attentive... Embarkation - got to the pier at about 12 and couldn't move through fast enough.. I was on my balcony by 12:20! Disembarkation was a breeze - home unpacking on Long Island by noon!

[Groupichik66]

I also was on this cruise with my 8 month old.... and I also was not impressed

I was disappointed in alot of the things. Well for starters I was booked in Cabin 11116- which is sold as a AF Mini-suite( and paid a AF price) but is infact a Handicapped BA...while it is quite large you DO NOT get a bathtub or concierge service. After a Customer Service nightmare that had me in tears I resigned to make do with my room. Well wouldn't you know the next day after we were unpacked and settled in that they miracously have another cabin available but by that point I was already too upset and decided I liked the extra floor space instead of a BATHTUB. What annoyed me most though was if they were honest(NCL) up front I would have just brought my infant tub with me instead of them saying there was a tub in the room and I did ask and verify that there was one prior to boarding they outright lied to me. That was what upset me most.

The food was good for the most part....I like freestyle as I had previously cruised NCL 2x prior. Warning I got sick from the Shrimp in the buffet.....be careful. The dining room food was fine though...but no shrimp for me on Fri or Sat(as I had gotten sick on Thursday.)

We only went to South Beach which was a nice day if you like to just walk around. At Port Caneveral we took the Staff bus to the mall..it was good. Unfortunetly we did not get a tender ticket early enough so when we went to the private island we just set up a blow up kiddie pool under the trees and I filled it with a few cups of sea water for the expierence. I found the island way to crowded and headed back to the ship quickly.

The pool area was always too crowded so I did not get to spend much time there.

The staff on the ship were pleasant- some being much more accomodating than others. Everyone liked fawning over the baby and she was an absolute angel for the trip. The one or two times she got fussy I left the shows. Even though the comedian told me to stay....one time.

 

Would I cruise NCL Dawn again no....but that is just my experience. Even when my daughter is older I do not think I will cruise again.

 

On observation though....NCL should have a meeting group for families traveling with small children so they can mingle amongst themselves. As I noticed there were quite a few babies on board.

[bigsweeps]

The Dawn is a prime example of a new mega-sized mass market ship. A bit too many people for my liking. I don't like lines or crowded areas - and unfortunately both can be common on the Dawn. But if you like people, excitement, and lots of activity, then the Dawn can be very fun. I think many people don't think about what they really want before they book a ship. Some people see the glitz and glamour of the new ships, but once they're on board don't like the crowds, while others don't like the outdated decor of the older smaller ships but also don't realize that you don't run into crowded pool areas, long waits at popular dining venues, etc. If you do your homework before, I think you can easily find enough reviews on this board to have a reasonable idea of what to expect.

[Joel*NCL]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>On observation though....NCL should have a meeting group for families traveling with small children so they can mingle amongst themselves. As I noticed there were quite a few babies on board.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

 

That's what this board is for.... Works well too...

 

RC Monarch of the Seas 06/98

NCL Majesty 07/2000

NCL Majesty 08/2002

NCL Dawn 05/2004

[gardencat]

Quote from Groupichik66

"What annoyed me most though was if they were honest(NCL) up front I would have just brought my infant tub with me instead of them saying there was a tub in the room and I did ask and verify that there was one prior to boarding they outright lied to me. That was what upset me most."

 

A lie from NCL customer service what a surprise!

 

Do you think the 'mis-information' about the tub was the fault of NCL or of your travel agent?

[Tomct]

Couldn't help not responding to the original post. I'm sorry it was not a pleasant experience, but not sure what the expectations were. We just booked our 3rd cruise on the Dawn, a 10 day in December. Our only other cruise was on the NCL Star, the Dawn's sister ship, so you can tell how much we like the Dawn.

 

I may not respond to all the complaints, though I find most of them unfounded in our experience. For instance, hard ice cream was available for much of the afternoon hours in the Garden Cafe, through lunch, then again mid afternoon. In general, the food ranged from very good to excellent. Food quality was high all around, only the atmosphere and presentation were upgraded in the specialty restaurants. As for lemonade, our grandkids had it at most of their meals, including some where they served it "cocktail style" - I think it had Sprite in it. There's plenty to do in each port, only the short day in Nassau makes you work hard to effectively plan your day. As for departing in Cape Canaveral, we had no problems. We exited the ship, took the shuttle to Hertz, and were at Disney about 75 minutes after leaving the gangway. Last year we took the NCL bus excursion, just missed the first bus, my fault as I was busy taking pictures of the dolphins in the harbor, and had to wait about 10 minutes for bus #2 to fill up.

 

If anyone is concerned with the problems noted, just take some extra time and look around this board, and you should be relieved. You just have to realize that everyone has different expectations, and this cruise may not be all things for all people!!

 

There are also some folks out there with hidden agendas.

 

Tom/Connecticut

 

 

[MR5SUNS]

Hey gang

we have been on many cruise's and all different line's, We always go as a family with our kids which we have 5 son's. My one son was 6 week's old when we took him on his first cruise. We took his porter crib and his formula and whatever else he needed along with items and what ever was needed for his brother's. We did not need someone from the cruise line to tell us what to take with us. As parent's we knew what was needed for our kid's so i do not know why anyone would do different? As far as tour's go nothing is easy travling with a kid but if you want to do things as a family than you make the best out of it and do something that a little guy would enjoy doing. Maybe some people are better off staying home in the back yard untill the kids are older and less trouble. Just gets the best of me when a cruise line and ship are blamed for nothing

 

SAL Norwegian Dawn

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S OVER ALREADY"

1981 CARNIVALE

1987 NORDIC PRINCE

1989 AMERIKANIS

1991 MERIDAN

1994 MERIDAN

1996 ISLAND BREEZE

2000 BIG RED BOAT

2002 TRIUMPH

[wonderwoman451]

I am shocked at your review!! I was on the same cruise as you, May 16th to May 23rd, and as a matter of fact, I was on the same deck as you, cabin #9196.

But after reading your review, I am wondering if I was on the same ship. I didn't have a problem at all, the entire week, getting into the pool. It was never overly crowded. I must admit though, I did find the hot tubs a little too hot at times. I thought the food was pretty good, the BBQ's by the pool were fun, and the food was great! Salsa was my favorite. (Reservations, but no cover) As far as all the kids go, we didn't realise until the last day of the cruise that there were approx 1,200 children on board. We would have never guessed. As far as disembarking in the ports, you must have been the obnoxious woman next to me who got up late, didn't read the freestyle daily, and complained about everything. First come first served is my motto. If you want to get off the boat early, get out of bed early. If you wanted a tender ticked lower than number 460, (i had 18 & 19) then set your alarm a bit earlier, oh and once again, read the free style daily. It very clearly tells you about the tickets.

Some people are obnoxious and find fault in EVERYTHING. I see you are one of them.

It was a vacation....you should have relaxed, like the rest of us.

I would have not even bothered responding to your post, but I don't want other people reading your review to get the wrong idea. NCL was excellent. The people were friendly, the food was excellent, WE had an excellent time!

[Joel*NCL]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by wonderwoman451:

I am shocked at your review!! I was on the same cruise as you, May 16th to May 23rd, and as a matter of fact, I was on the same deck as you, cabin #9196.

But after reading your review, I am wondering if I was on the same ship. I didn't have a problem at all, the entire week, getting into the pool. It was never overly crowded. I must admit though, I did find the hot tubs a little too hot at times. I thought the food was pretty good, the BBQ's by the pool were fun, and the food was great! Salsa was my favorite. (Reservations, but no cover) As far as all the kids go, we didn't realise until the last day of the cruise that there were approx 1,200 children on board. We would have never guessed. As far as disembarking in the ports, you must have been the obnoxious woman next to me who got up late, didn't read the freestyle daily, and complained about everything. First come first served is my motto. If you want to get off the boat early, get out of bed early. If you wanted a tender ticked lower than number 460, (i had 18 & 19) then set your alarm a bit earlier, oh and once again, read the free style daily. It very clearly tells you about the tickets.

Some people are obnoxious and find fault in EVERYTHING. I see you are one of them.

It was a vacation....you should have relaxed, like the rest of us.

I would have not even bothered responding to your post, but I don't want other people reading your review to get the wrong idea. NCL was excellent. The people were friendly, the food was excellent, WE had an excellent time!<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

 

 

HERE HERE!! well said...

 

NCL Dawn (tomorrow 05/30/04) I'll send my review in a week..

 

Cheers,

 

j

 

 

 

oh ya.. that rude police officer thing still ticks me off.. RESPECT...

 

That is all....

 

 

RC Monarch of the Seas 06/98

NCL Majesty 07/2000

NCL Majesty 08/2002

NCL Dawn 05/2004

[Joedog]

Wow! What an amazing different view of the same cruise.

 

We sailed on the Dawn and have nothing to add except that we had a great time on our cruise and did not note any of the problems noted in the first review that started this thread.

 

I do feel obliged to comment on the comments about the "rude police officer". As a person living in NYC I would like to say that a person could run into a rude police officer here although I never have but if you did, you did, and you should be able to comment on it without receiving negative comments from people. Police Officers are people too and can have bad days but just because they are police officers and have a tough job does not mean they are above reproach. That said....I would think that, based upon the general theme of the original post, whatever attitude the police officer had was probably a mirror reflection of what he or she was getting. Just my thought, and after all he/she did let the car stay.....which is unusual base upon my experience.

 

Keep Smilin....

 

Ruth and Joe

 

 

__ /7__X__/7________

\::::::::::::::::::::::::/ Holland America - Zuiderdam 7/24/04

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

NCL Dawn - 7/27/03 (Honeymoon)

[MR5SUNS]

Hi All,

sounds like cruisenews had a rough time on her trip from the start, i guess when you start off with a problem nothing can go right. To bad her cruise was not to her liking. But since she is the only one that had those types of problems i feel it wasn't the ship or cruise line that caused them. Some people are better off staying home or renting a single family summer home.

 

SAL Norwegian Dawn

"I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S OVER ALREADY"

1981 CARNIVALE

1987 NORDIC PRINCE

1989 AMERIKANIS

1991 MERIDAN

1994 MERIDAN

1996 ISLAND BREEZE

2000 BIG RED BOAT

2002 TRIUMPH

[jondriver]

We were on the same cruise and had a fantastic time. The food was great and we didn't realise there were so many children onboard. Our favourite place was the star bar. Bobby Reynolds is brilliant.

 

NCL Dawn 16th May 2004