Dawn Princess?

[ltprn]

I am thinking about booking an Alaskan cruise on the DAWN PRICESS in May of 2006 in a mini-suite.

Can anyone who has sailed her before tell me about your experience?

Thanks!:)

[LHT28]

We are going on the DAWN in Oct will report back!

This is our first Princess cruise !

[GrannyMouse]

We were on the Dawn for Alaska on 8/8/05. Thought everything was wonderful but the food was not quite what we expected. Also felt like we were nickeled and dimed to death.

[bdjam]

We were on the Dawn for Alaska on 8/8/05. Thought everything was wonderful but the food was not quite what we expected. Also felt like we were nickeled and dimed to death.

“Nickel and diming” is a symptom of low cruise fares and increasing costs. As long as people are only willing to pay low cruise fares, the cruise lines have to make up for it somehow.

[calikak]

We were on the Dawn on a repositioning cruise this year. It's a lovely ship. We absolutely adored our minisuite and would highly recommend booking one. If you can, book one of the ones on the back of the ship, as they have much bigger balconies than on the side of the ship. But even if you're on the side of the ship, the minis are still very nice cabins and WAY bigger than the regular balcony cabins.

 

I found the service onboard to be good. I especially enjoyed sitting in the atrium bar people-watching before dinner (or really anytime of day). Be sure to eat in the pizzeria, there's no fee and it's very good.

[GrannyMouse]

“Nickel and diming” is a symptom of low cruise fares and increasing costs. As long as people are only willing to pay low cruise fares, the cruise lines have to make up for it somehow.

 

 

I'm not quite sure what you mean by "people only willing to pay low cruise fares." I paid what Princess charged. I didn't bargain with them for a lower fare. If they need to charge more to cover their costs, then that's what they should do and stop trying to sell cook books, bottled water, etc.

[Toto2Kansas]

We love the Sun Class ships, I know you will enjoy the Dawn Princess.

Not sure which category mini suite you booked as the AC and AB's are so different. The AC's are more like the Vista Suites on the Grand Class ships (minus the perks associated with them on the larger ships).

The jacuzzi tub will be very welcomed at the end of a long day ashore.

[Toto2Kansas]

I'm not quite sure what you mean by "people only willing to pay low cruise fares." I paid what Princess charged. I didn't bargain with them for a lower fare. If they need to charge more to cover their costs, then that's what they should do and stop trying to sell cook books, bottled water, etc.

 

Just to jump in a bit here. Cruise pricing is now about the same as it was 10-15 years ago. They have taken away some of the freebies to keep the pricing low and must make up for it somewhere. When you compare the price of a cruise to everything else that has gone up in price over the years, it is still one of the great bargains out there. IMHO of coarse!

But many are looking for bargain prices and then complain when they are asked to pay extra for things that used to be free. Personally, I would rather keep the lower prices and avoid things that I didn't need anyway that they are now charging extra for. That allows us to cruise more often and take several vacations a year and head for a ship.

[bdjam]

Just to jump in a bit here. Cruise pricing is now about the same as it was 10-15 years ago. They have taken away some of the freebies to keep the pricing low and must make up for it somewhere. When you compare the price of a cruise to everything else that has gone up in price over the years, it is still one of the great bargains out there. IMHO of coarse!

But many are looking for bargain prices and then complain when they are asked to pay extra for things that used to be free. Personally, I would rather keep the lower prices and avoid things that I didn't need anyway that they are now charging extra for. That allows us to cruise more often and take several vacations a year and head for a ship.

Thank you!

[donna5]

I am thinking about booking an Alaskan cruise on the DAWN PRICESS in May of 2006 in a mini-suite.

Can anyone who has sailed her before tell me about your experience?

Thanks!:)

 

 

The Dawn has the indoor pizza restaurant off the atrium, which we loved instead of pizza near the pool area. We like the wrap around promenade deck. The only draw back would be if you are expecting an indoor pool.

[Flainefan]

We were also on Dawn 8/8/05 in C749, a suite at the stern of the ship. It was really great. We also got to look in the mini-suite next door and I have to say it was very well-appointed too. There is plenty of room with a nice sitting area. The balcony is smaller and there is a tub but no separate shower. Nevertheless, we thought it represented good value. Now, I understand, the mini-suites get the same perks as the full suites. These are really enjoyable: canapes every evening, free laundry & dry cleaning, fresh flowers, etc (full details on these boards if you search).

 

I would say "Go for it!" before the minis are snapped up! We loved the Dawn & would happily sail on her again.

[GrannyMouse]

Just to jump in a bit here. Cruise pricing is now about the same as it was 10-15 years ago. They have taken away some of the freebies to keep the pricing low and must make up for it somewhere. When you compare the price of a cruise to everything else that has gone up in price over the years, it is still one of the great bargains out there. IMHO of coarse!

But many are looking for bargain prices and then complain when they are asked to pay extra for things that used to be free. Personally, I would rather keep the lower prices and avoid things that I didn't need anyway that they are now charging extra for. That allows us to cruise more often and take several vacations a year and head for a ship.

 

I'm not talking about paying extra for things that used to be free, I'm talking about the crew always trying to sell you something such as cookbooks, pushing after dinner drinks, having you sign up for wine tasting so they can meet their quotas and get time off, drink cups, etc.

[Coral]

The Dawn Princess is a great ship. I don't like the itinerary for it next summer doing Alaska. The one way trips are much better for Alaska - pick a cruise with Glacier Bay and College Fiords.

[Coral]

Now, I understand, the mini-suites get the same perks as the full suites. These are really enjoyable: canapes every evening, free laundry & dry cleaning, fresh flowers, etc (full details on these boards if you search).

.

 

The minisuites do not get the same perks as the suites. There are perks for the minisuites but they are not the same as the suites.

[bdjam]

having you sign up for wine tasting so they can meet their quotas and get time off

That’s a new one…never heard that one before. I would think if a crew member was heard telling a passenger that, they’d be admonished by their superiors. In any case, cruise lines come up with lots of on-board revenue generating items in order to offset the low basic fares that are charged – and this is not something exclusive to Princess. I find a polite “no thank you” when I don’t want something to be effective and an acceptable trade off for paying a higher cruise fare. No one is forcing anyone to buy anything additional. And besides, the cook book is nice.

[sunprincess]

The Dawn is among the Sun Class Ships. She is lovely. I have been on several cruises on the Dawn. A balcony is a must for Alaska cruising.