Just off the Dawn (itinerary changed from Bermuda to Canada)

[Sand and Seas]

We were also on the Dawn the week before you. So happy to hear you enjoyed your week!

 

We are seriously thinking about booking for the same time next year and like you would be happy to visit Bermuda but wouldn't mind a change to Canada.

 

Thanks for sharing with us:cool:

[jkneern]

For dinners:

Venetian

Cagney's (room service)

Bamboo

Venetian/Teppanyaki *

Cagney's

O'Sheehans/Teppanyaki *

Bamboo

 

No, we didn't eat dinner twice some nights, lol. We had the dining package and wanted to do Teppanyaki, but didn't know how our daughter would like it. Plus, my understanding was that they would still charge her the $30 cover charge as she was technically taking up a seat (even if she ate little to nothing there). So we opted to alternate - one evening I had dinner with her while my husband went to Teppenyaki, and the other time he dined with her and I went to Teppanyaki. Some people probably find it strange but honestly it was nice to get some "alone" time in the evenings. And being that it was just the 3 of us, it was our only option for some things. So we made it work.

 

I remember on previous cruises, Bamboo seemed like such a wasted space. I never knew if it was included, or a la carte, or what - but there was never anyone there. Now it is an included option (with a couple of a la carte entrees) and we were glad we made reservations both times, as it was packed.

 

 

 

 

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We always take the children to Teppanyaki 4 kids/ 4 adults plenty of food, no charge for them either. We shared our dinners with them and still more food than we can eat!!. Never an issue they were very accommodating . It's always a favorite and we love the family picture they take as well.

[welove2cruise2014]

We always take the children to Teppanyaki 4 kids/ 4 adults plenty of food, no charge for them either. We shared our dinners with them and still more food than we can eat!!. Never an issue they were very accommodating . It's always a favorite and we love the family picture they take as well.

Interesting, thanks for your perspective! We'll give it a try next time! And yes, way too much food!

 

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[roger001]

were you an SF cabin? Which?

[welove2cruise2014]

were you an SF cabin? Which?

10728. We loved it!

 

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[BirdTravels]

Thank you so much for your review and observations.

 

We were diverted north last year (from Bermuda) due to multiple hurricanes in the Atlantic, and enjoyed every minute. And yes, there were those on board who continually griped about being in Canada instead of on a beach :(

[Barb Nahoumi]

Thank you for your wonderful review.

 

I wonder if this week's cruise will also be diverted to Canada. Florence is raging over North Carolina as we speak.

[hdviolist]

OMG, yes! We were at the senior officers' Q&A in Bliss, and there was one obnoxiously entitled guy there who thought it was Festivus—the Airing of Grievances! Made me very grateful to be with my optimistic, happy husband!

 

Right you are! We saw that complainer getting kicked out of Le Bistro for wearing shorts, one of the things that he was complaining about, and he said that he had cruised with Norwegian many times. Has he still not learned the dress code? He thought that he was entitled because "he had stayed in the Garden Villa in the past."

[KateQ22003]

As someone who was on that cruise, and chose to make the most of it, I don't think it's right to complain about people who were disappointed in the switch from Bermuda to Canada. Was it necessary? Obviously. But it is expected that people like myself, who live in Maine and spent a small fortune on a suite, would be upset about cruising to where they live. We vacationed in Canada every year growing up. Bar Harbor is awesome, but I live 50 miles away from there. I used to work there in the summers through college. I never would have spent multiple thousands of dollars to cruise there. Did I have a great time? Absolutely. Was I disappointed? Absolutely. That's the other side of this story.

[newmexicoNita]

I'll start with the elephant in the room. We found out "unofficially" about the itinerary change late Thursday night through these forums. Got the "robo-call" Friday morning before we left for the ship. We were fortunate to be able to switch some swimsuits out for long sleeves and pants, didn't change too much out though because we figured we'd be on the ship much of the time anyway.

 

We had already been to Bermuda 3x, and while we were looking forward to seeing it again and taking our 2 year old to Snorkel Beach, we were honestly fine with seeing places we've never been. Again, understanding not everyone shared that sentiment. I won't get into "when they made the decision", or why, or whether we should have/could have been notified sooner or given the choice to cancel because I don't know what goes on at the corporate level.

 

We could seriously not have asked for better weather. Every day felt warm and sunny, if it rained at all it was overnight. The seas were very smooth; I felt a bit of bumpiness a couple of the evenings but I'm pretty sensitive to that anyway. Lots of people out on the pool deck each day. Honestly, it did NOT feel like we were in Canada. I didn't imagine I would be spending multiple afternoons lounging in the sun but that's what I did!

 

As far as the itinerary, we were quite pleased. In order, I enjoyed Bar Harbor the best, then Halifax, then Sydney, then St. John.

 

We didn't do any excursions. I find the ship excursions to be a bit pricey, even with the $50 excursion credit per port. Plus we hadn't had the opportunity to do a lot of research beforehand. For us it was just as well, we enjoyed going ashore on our own and walking around.

 

Bar Harbor was a tender port. First time we had ever done that. One thing I found interesting was that since we were anchored, not docked, the ship shifted throughout the day so the view was always slightly different! The scenery was spectacular - lots of little islands, lots of sailboats, there was a Celebrity ship anchored nearby... just breathtaking. The port area itself seemed to be the quintessential New England summer town... beautiful architecture, a spacious park up on a hill, lots of little shops and a couple of waterfront seafood restaurants.

 

Halifax port area seemed fairly modern, with some shops and a microbrewery nearby.

 

Sydney's shopping seemed pretty contained to the port area itself, with a few small shops, a restaurant or 2, and a large exhibit hall where local artisans and craftspeople were selling their wares. Just outside of the port area was a beautiful park area, nice for walking around and taking pictures.

 

I did a quick walk ashore at St John (New Brunswick), I was told there was shopping under a large tent just on the other side of the port area, but I didn't check it out myself. NCL Gem was also docked there with us that day.

I would have loved your itinerary. It is one of, if not our favorite..Too bad you didn't get to do any tours, but still you got to see the ports. As for Sydney, I think one of the problems is, in the relm of things, it is still a fairly new port, maybe about 6 years old and there isn't a lot to do. We did do a private excursion we picked up as we got off the ship. We also found things very expensive.

As for people bitching about the change of itinerary. for heavens sake people, would you rather have a change or take a chance of having a miserable time or worse by heading into hurricane territory?. We missed a port one time, due to bad weather and yes, there were those who carried on as if the entire cruise had been ruined. We were all disappointed because it was the port so many of us were looking forward to, but certainly it had no real impact on the success of the cruise. People need to grow up!!!

Edited September 15, 2018 by newmexicoNita

[welove2cruise2014]

As someone who was on that cruise, and chose to make the most of it, I don't think it's right to complain about people who were disappointed in the switch from Bermuda to Canada. Was it necessary? Obviously. But it is expected that people like myself, who live in Maine and spent a small fortune on a suite, would be upset about cruising to where they live. We vacationed in Canada every year growing up. Bar Harbor is awesome, but I live 50 miles away from there. I used to work there in the summers through college. I never would have spent multiple thousands of dollars to cruise there. Did I have a great time? Absolutely. Was I disappointed? Absolutely. That's the other side of this story.

Understandable. And I admit to slight disappointment myself at first. But it was the people who used it as an excuse to complain about EVERYTHING, up until and including the last day, that I was referring to. I mean no offense to anyone and realize that everyone has their own views, this is simply my personal take on things.

 

I heard a story of a couple that literally got off the boat in one of the Canadian ports, went home, did laundry, and got back on board. Yep, that would have been a bit surreal and not what I signed up for either!

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

A few words about cruising with a 2 year old! (More to follow)

 

It wasn't nearly as stressful as I thought it would be. Dare I say, we even had moments of relaxation!

 

We had vacationed on Cape Cod last month for a few days and she was just starting to have tantrums. In fact, she had maybe 2 every day we were there. So I was concerned that we'd be in for the same on the cruise.* I am happy to say that she didn't even have one!!!

 

We brought the Kindle well stocked with games, puzzles, and a couple of favorite shows downloaded. That definitely helped when we needed a familiar distraction or for some downtime in the cabin! We also packed a "goodie bag" with:

 

Coloring/sticker book and crayons

Stickers and paper

Sesame Street characters (Little People size)

Bubbles

Water Wow and magic ink books

 

There were a couple of "claw" games in the arcade designed for smaller kids, they were filled with rubber duckies and small turtles... cost $1.10 each play - but what I loved was it let you keep playing until you got a prize! We ended up with 7 new little rubber duckies... cost $7.70... and provided some entertainment for the little one!

 

Since she's only 2, she wasn't old enough for the Kids Club. But I was pleased that they offered open play in a room next to the Kids Club, called the Guppies room. My expectations weren't great... but we were pleasantly surprised! There was a play kitchen with tons of accessories to play with, the floor was covered with mats, and each day the staff would brings out different toys for the kids to play with. They also offered a "class" each day, one day was sensory play, and they did chalk drawings on another day. We typically went there once or twice a day so she could burn off some energy.* We also got to know other parents and kids on the cruise. *it is NOT a drop off area, children in the Guppies room needed to be accompanied by a parent.

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

We had requested a pack n play to be set up in the cabin, and since we had a suite with a dining table, they also provided a high chair which proved to be invaluable for those times we dined in our suite!

 

Our daughter sleeps in a crib in her own room with blackout curtains and a sound machine on (white noise) so I was curious how she'd sleep on the ship. She did GREAT.* Bedtime was between 7:30-8pm each night... we read bedtime books as we do at home, then I put her in the pack n play and closed the balcony curtains as well as the curtains around our bed area. So it was nice and dark for her. The curtains around the bed area were super dark as well, so we could easily keep lights on in other parts of the suite while her "area" stayed dark. She was typically awake between 5 and 6am... ugh but that's pretty typical for her lol.

 

We also brought and used our white noise machine (we packed a multi outlet plug/extension cord since there is only the ONE outlet in the vanity/dressing area). So that helped. A few times we went out and enjoyed the balcony in the evenings as well.

 

Naps - typically right after lunch we came back to the cabin, darkened the room, and she went right down for an hour to 90 minutes. One day* she was falling asleep while at lunch so I put her in the stroller and reclined it, and she napped in the stroller. Another day, she had been up particularly early, and while on our way up to Deck 13 to play giant outside checkers on the deck, she fell asleep in the stroller again!

 

In hindsight I am so glad we didn't bring our umbrella stroller. We brought our Graco Literider LX. No problem getting around the ship, hallways were a breeze even with housekeeping carts, we never felt like we were in the way, etc.

 

We also used the T-Rex kids pool area. What an awesome place for kids, she LOVED it. There were a few small slides.* The "main" pool in that area is 2.5 feet deep - perfect for the littles!! They also had kid sized chairs and loungers, as well as a hot tub.

 

I liked the aft location for ease of access to the kids amenities (playroom, arcade, kids pool area).

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

Now for the ship...

 

We definitely noticed that it had been "refreshed" since our last cruise in 2015. Can't point to a ton of specifics just that I felt it looked classier. One notable change to me was the removal of the giant neon palm trees out by the pool deck.

 

I also think it was smart to get rid of the small pool behind the stage area in order to have high top tables set up there by the Topsiders Grill.

 

We always enjoyed the Star Bar so were sorry to see it converted into Moderno... but realize it was a smart decision since the Star Bar was always fairly empty, and also removing Moderno from Deck 8 made sense, in order to expand (former) Blue Lagoon into (current) O'Sheehans. I thought the large bar across the back of O'Sheehans was a nice feature as well.

 

While I liked the updated decor in our suite, I was a bit surprised to find that the tub was peeling in several spots.

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

Activities:

 

We spent a fair amount of time in the cabin so were glad we had the balcony suite for that reason. We spent time out and about together but occasionally "traded off" where one of us would stay with our daughter while the other was out on the ship or ashore. We knew when planning the trip that this would be the reality... no "nights out" just the 2 of us on this cruise!

 

I got the Thermal Spa pass and enjoyed it in the evenings while my husband stayed in with our daughter. I loved the new heated tile loungers. I liked that the seating area between the pool and loungers was set up like a conversation area.* The way I remember it before it was like rows of chairs lined up all facing one way... just seemed awkward. There were never more than half a dozen or so people in there at any given time, it seemed.

 

In hindsight, had I known how nice the weather was going to be, I may not have gotten the pass. I got it as kind of a "just in case", for cooler weather. It was great though, nice to escape for a while :)

 

I spent some time by the pool in the afternoons. Mostly in the area of the risers up to Deck 13. Busy but I never had trouble finding a seat. I didn't get to take advantage of the new "sunbeds" or the wicker seats set up along the ledges of the pool... although they did look quite comfortable.* I never had a problem getting drink service at my seat. But not everyone shared that experience, apparently.* I heard someone complaining that the bar line was too long and "they should have more staff walking around taking drink orders; they should be bending over backwards to make it up to us".

 

I went to the comedy show (Jim Colliton), funny but kind of rolling my eyes at the ship/cruise/itinerary jokes.

 

My husband enjoyed the magic show and we all liked Jose and Patti's shows in the Atrium. My daughter loved dancing to the music :)

 

 

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[roger001]

10728. We loved it!

 

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We were 10228 getting off as you were getting on. Yes. Love those SFs. Like them on the Jewel class also. Our tub had a minor plumbing leak from beneath our last day. Sweet little Annalyn was working fast at trying to get the plumbing department to fix it before the next guest arrived. Just wanted to make sure we didn't leave you our small plumbing leak.:):)

[momofmab]

What a great attitude you have! If only everyone would follow suit, it would make cruising more enjoyable for everyone!

 

I've done a shorter version of this itinerary (on purpose, not diverted) and would love to leave from Boston and add Bar Harbor!

 

I never understand complaining or anger toward the cruise line about itinerary changes during hurricane season. There are 9 other months during which one can travel, where itinerary changes are extremely rare. The cruise lines don't control the weather and shouldn't have to bend over backwards to make it up to anyone. If a traveler absolutely had their heart set on Bermuda, pick a different time or fly there, and take your chances with the hurricane.

[welove2cruise2014]

I am not a gambler by any stretch of the imagination (except when it comes to booking cruises during hurricane season, lol). Neither is my husband. He had gone to the casino and told me the process to play slots seemed quite convoluted. I thought, "how bad could it be?" So I decided to try it for myself.

 

I am a pretty staunch non smoker and can't really stand to be around smoking but I figured I'd be fine for the few minutes I was planning on being in the casino. The smell was as expected with basically everyone around me lighting up. But I walked into the casino knowing beforehand what it would be like.

 

So I found a penny slot machine, sat down, and inserted my card. And was surprised when nothing happened, lol. I really had no clue about needing to "put money on the card" for the casino. I went to the cashier and was pretty embarrassed to be like "um, I have absolutely no idea what I am doing here"!! But he was kind enough to give me a little cheat sheet with instructions. I managed to lose the $20 I had allotted myself, pretty quickly, lol. I figured I would play a 25 cent slot machine and that would last me a while, right? Until I realized that I was betting 9x ($2.25) each time. Whoops.

 

I know that some people gamble a lot and win (the woman in front of me was cashing in a $700 winning slip) but it is beyond the scope of my comprehension how people can spend that amount of time and money to try and win! Not passing judgment, I just don't understand the appeal.

 

I chalked it up to spending $20 for a few minutes of entertainment and called it a night. Well, $19.75 actually... I proudly walked out of that casino with my head held high and my $0.25 slip in my hand!!

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

What a great attitude you have! If only everyone would follow suit, it would make cruising more enjoyable for everyone!

 

I've done a shorter version of this itinerary (on purpose, not diverted) and would love to leave from Boston and add Bar Harbor!

 

I never understand complaining or anger toward the cruise line about itinerary changes during hurricane season. There are 9 other months during which one can travel, where itinerary changes are extremely rare. The cruise lines don't control the weather and shouldn't have to bend over backwards to make it up to anyone. If a traveler absolutely had their heart set on Bermuda, pick a different time or fly there, and take your chances with the hurricane.

My husband and I were talking about this last night. At least with a cruise, you are likely TO be diverted if weather poses a potential problem for the designated route or destination. If you booked a flight and hotel somewhere, and weather forces a cancellation... sure, you're probably going to get your money back but that entire trip is scrapped.

 

This actually happened to us in March. Had a pretty flight-intensive trip planned to a Caribbean island (3 flights each way, with not many flight options to reschedule)... and our first flight from BOS to JFK was cancelled because of a snowstorm. We cancelled the whole trip; due to time constraints we couldn't reschedule even until the next day.

 

With this cruise, at least we were still able to sail smooth seas on a beautiful ship to some "new to us" destinations. Although we would have been happy never getting off the ship the whole time!

 

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[SMSACE6]

Very nice review! You certainly made the best of the situation. I am glad that the weather was at least still pretty good. Thanks for your review.:)

[thistimeplease]

What a great attitude you have! If only everyone would follow suit, it would make cruising more enjoyable for everyone!

 

I've done a shorter version of this itinerary (on purpose, not diverted) and would love to leave from Boston and add Bar Harbor!

 

I never understand complaining or anger toward the cruise line about itinerary changes during hurricane season. There are 9 other months during which one can travel, where itinerary changes are extremely rare. The cruise lines don't control the weather and shouldn't have to bend over backwards to make it up to anyone. If a traveler absolutely had their heart set on Bermuda, pick a different time or fly there, and take your chances with the hurricane.

 

I understand both sides but as to your comment about going at a different time not everyone can travel when they want. I can only travel July and August so I have to pick what is available and while this itinerary was alright if I had been rerouted to the Bahamas I wouldn't be happy at all.

[anonmom]

As someone who was on that cruise, and chose to make the most of it, I don't think it's right to complain about people who were disappointed in the switch from Bermuda to Canada. Was it necessary? Obviously. But it is expected that people like myself, who live in Maine and spent a small fortune on a suite, would be upset about cruising to where they live. We vacationed in Canada every year growing up. Bar Harbor is awesome, but I live 50 miles away from there. I used to work there in the summers through college. I never would have spent multiple thousands of dollars to cruise there. Did I have a great time? Absolutely. Was I disappointed? Absolutely. That's the other side of this story.

I think this absolutely counts as "the right attitude". Of course someone would be disappointed to cruise right back to where they had flown away from! I think that is very natural and I don't think anyone complains about people feeling disappointed and expressing that in an appropriate manner. What makes me roll my eyes is the people who blame the cruise line. There really is no way it would be fiscally or morally responsible to navigate a huge expensive ship full of people into the path of a hurricane.

 

Great review, OP!

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

I want to say a couple of things about the photo gallery and photos on the ship in general.

 

I am glad to see that the Dawn finally went the way of the digital galleries. The photo gallery has a nice clean look to it now. Each stateroom also has its own binder of photos (binder number/location is noted on the keycards, which was quite handy).

 

On one hand, it seems redundant to have the photos available to view on the computer screen as wells as in the binders. But on the other hand, I can see how having the actual photo in your hand may entice people more easily to purchase the photos.

 

I always seemed to want to look at photos when the gallery was closed/binders were locked up (while the ship was in port). During those times, if I scanned my keycard at one of the computer kiosks, thumbprints of the photos would appear on the screen but there weren't any editing or ordering features available.

 

I always thought the photos were very expensive ($24.95 each, regardless of whether you chose 8x10 or 6x8). But they had a nice package which was any 10* for $150, which included a thumb drive (shaped like a ship!) of all 10 images plus a digital image of the ship.

 

I thought the package was a good deal - made even better once I realized that since we're Gold, we get 25% off! So for $112 we got the 10 photos as well as the thumb drive. Considering you'd pay a LOT more than that to have professional photos done and printed back home, it was a no-brainer for us. Especially since we hadn't had professional photos done of our daughter before! Sure, they were "ship photographers" and maybe not the best in the world but they got some beautiful shots. In hindsight, I wish that we had done more sittings in the evenings but our little one wasn't always amenable to that, lol. Overall, photos were a GREAT value.

 

* Specialty dining photos are not included in the packages, and are purchased separately. We each had a Teppanyaki photo taken (which we purchased).

 

The one problem I had: we had our picture taken at Cagneys the night the 3 of us ate there. I noticed towards the end of our meal, the photographer was walking around presenting the pictures to some of the tables. I didn't think anything of it, and figured I would see it when we were at the photo gallery later on. However, I inquired at least 3 different times and they never were able to find the bundle of photos from Cagneys the night we were there. Nor did they seem to really care. So that was a bit disappointing.

 

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[welove2cruise2014]

Thank you for your review! We are scheduled for Bermuda in a couple weeks if it gets rerouted, I am taking your attitude!

 

 

 

 

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Are you going out of NY? Have fun wherever you end up!!

 

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[gardeningnrs]

This year is the first that we decided not to play Hurricane season what is that. We had a boston to Bermuda cruise a couple of years ago that I knew was not going to Bermuda but did not know where to until got on the ship. We went to Bahamas. A June 1st trip to Florida with tropical storms, and trip to WDW just missed hurricane by days. Planning a Boston to Bermuda next April on Easter week