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NCL Dawn

GStonelake

By GStonelake,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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biker@sea

biker@sea

Posted
Posted
Has anyone sailed the Dawn lately? Considering booking [normally do Celebrity/Princess so NCL will be new to us], but have seen some pretty awful reviews.

 

Sorry to say Dawn is the bottom of the barrel in the NCL fleet at this time.

 

She IS due for refurbishment soon. ;)

 

.

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zqvol

zqvol

Posted
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Nothing at all wrong with the Dawn. It is not a mega ship and doesn't have those amenities (thank goodness) but she is a wonderful vessel and provides and excellent vacation.

 

OP you need to be aware that for every bad report that you find there will be 20 good ones that never got written. most satisfied people don't bother to write, whereas whiners always raise their voice.

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bbryan5

bbryan5

Posted
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I've been on the Breakaway, Jewel, Gem, and Dawn. Our Dawn trip was last October, and we loved the ship. People make it seem like it's falling apart.. it's an older ship, but that's part of it's charm. It seemed like it was in fine shape, again, just an older ship. We loved it, and would go back on the Dawn anytime.

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haply

haply

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We just got back from cruising on the Dawn Thanksgiving week and had a wonderful time! I found the food to be very good (better than Royal Caribbean or Carnival). The ship was very clean, including our cabin. We did travel with children, and there were a lot of children during the holiday week, so I would take that into consideration. We really loved all of the kid's activities and amenities. We are not huge fans of the "mega ships" so the Dawn was perfect for us. There are many lounges/bars with live music. We do prefer a more lively environment as compared to quiet and serene (=dull, sometimes snobby, and boring for us). It is probably not as "up-scale" as Celebrity (also with more of a mixed age group as compared to Celebrity). The staff were friendly however, not "white glove", but nice and helpful. We are no longer 5-star resorts type of travelers, and prefer the more relaxed and easy-going atmosphere of 4-star resorts. It will really depend on your travel personality. We liked the Dawn it so much that we plan on going again next Thanksgiving.

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linbobky

linbobky

Posted
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we got off of the Dawn last Sunday and had a great time!:) we thought the ship was very pretty.

the only negative I have is the wait staff in the blue lagoon was very unfriendly! they never smiled and very short with you.

also, I am a carnival junkie, 16 cruises and I thought the dawn had a lot better entertainment than the last 5 carnival cruises!:) carnival has really fell behind on the entertainment!

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haply

haply

Posted
Posted

We also loved Dawn's itinerary. Having four port days was really nice. Costa Maya was a nice surprise. We took the trolley into town and had a lovely beach day. The town's beach walkway is very rustic. We ended up at Pez Quadro beach club at the last stop. Beach chairs and shaded palpa with beach service and food all day long. Pez Quadro was pretty quiet however. We walked along the Melancon and really liked the Krazy Lobster with a much larger beach area. Norwegian had a great welcome-back party going on at the pier when we returned. The kids danced away with the staff!! Plan on trying them out next year when we return.

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partigus

partigus

Posted
Posted
We also loved Dawn's itinerary. Having four port days was really nice. Costa Maya was a nice surprise. We took the trolley into town and had a lovely beach day. The town's beach walkway is very rustic. We ended up at Pez Quadro beach club at the last stop. Beach chairs and shaded palpa with beach service and food all day long. Pez Quadro was pretty quiet however. We walked along the Melancon and really liked the Krazy Lobster with a much larger beach area. Norwegian had a great welcome-back party going on at the pier when we returned. The kids danced away with the staff!! Plan on trying them out next year when we return.

 

We rented a golf cart and went into town as well...didn't know there was a trolley.- that'd have been great

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Isla's Mom

Isla's Mom

Posted
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We were also on the Dawn for the Thanksgiving cruise in a family suite & had a great time! The food was great ( We ate mostly in the Specialty restaurants, however)! The service was exceptional. The entertainment was top notch. I loved the fact that we visited four ports in the week. The only downside was the long wait to park the car in NOLA. ( not NCL's fault) We also have booked again next year. No it's not Celebrity, but the price was very reasonable & we really enjoyed our cruise!

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pathubia

pathubia

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We were on the Dawn November 15. That was our 5th cruise on her and we have two more coming up (May 8, 10 night our of NOLA and Oct 21 out of Boston). We have been in a suite 4 of the 5 and a mini suite once. We have never had a bad cruise. The staff is great, the shows are great, the food is good to great. Last cruise we had the UDP and we ate in the specialty restaurants and the buffet two nights. We never ate in the Blue Lagoon or the MDRs. We had breakfast in Cagneys or the Buffet, again always delicious.

 

The only time we waited for drinks (we had the UBP) was in the Casino.

 

We had 12 people on our cruise in November, they did have a toilet overflowing problem on the first night, it was taken care of right away, they spent that night in a different cabin, the crew steam cleaned the cabin and they didn't let that experience ruin their vacation. I did meet a couple that must have had the laziest room steward in the world, when they began to unpack their luggage, they found that the guest before them had left clothing in the drawers. They contacted guest services who sent someone right away to take care of it.

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NLH Arizona

NLH Arizona

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I just got off the Dawn today. Had a great time. The staff was fantastic. Food was great in Cagneys and the Teppankyi restaurant and good in La Cucina. I thought the buffet wasn't as good as the buffets on the Pearl and Jewel. I don't look for cosmetic issues, but a couple I met said the pool needed work and so did the railings in the theater.

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golfjunkey

golfjunkey

Posted
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Anyone know if the Dawn has a lobster night? We were on the POA in May and Cagney's & Le Bistro had whole lobster on Weds. night, for a $10 fee of course. We are sailing on the Dawn in April next year just before she goes to dry dock. Good to hear she is in great shape.

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