DAWN 3/09 brief review

[Will in sunny FL]

Hi ALL

My wife & I were on the 3/09 sailing of the Dawn & wanted to report our findings for your info.

We have sailed probably 30 times in the last 15 years & have enjoyed most of them immensely. This is our ninth time on NCL.

Our comments will deal mostly with the negatives.

Our meals were all eaten in the Garden Cafe as Free Style is the claim to fame for NCL. The breakfast was great, the lunch was average & the dinner selections were far below our expectations. On Carnival we got shrimp two nights, steak at least one night & good beef about two other nights. On the Dawn there was no shrimp, no steaks, & no good beef at all ! Lots of Talapia which is a really cheap fish. But, the deserts were fairly good for dinner. NCL has changed the meaning of Free Style to mean that, in order to get a good dinner, you are free to eat in any of their "pay for" restaurants.

If you stop in Samana, take an NCL tour as walking to town is as bad as everyone before has said. We just wanted to see for ourselves & they were right ! Lots of kids begging for money & saying "but I am hungry". That was a wasted stop !

Our balcony was as expected & near the elevator. The room steward was a great guy but darn near "sirred" me to death.

We have decided that this was our last NCL cruise & that we are going back to Carnival.

Bill in FL

[JWestShuh]

What did you like about your cruise?

[snow to sea]

I was also on this sailing. It was my first NCL cruise and I thought it was fantastic :D. I enjoyed the Freestyle.

It's too bad that you didn't eat dinner in the Venetian..they had prime rib one night and other "good beef" meals several other nights. Lobster one night and other seafood dishes. Didn't have the lobster or seafood as I'm allergicto it, but those at my table that had it said it was very good. All of our dinners were wonderful and we didn't eat in any of the "pay for" restaurants.

[DAGVBSB]

Why would you eat all of your meals in the Garden Cafe and then complain about the food?

 

I have always found that buffets are the lower level of food quality simply because of the nature of keeping so much food warm and fresh. A very hard task.

 

I can understand why you would not want to eat in the cover charge restaurants, many have felt that way and that is fine.

 

But what about Venetian, Aqua, Impressions of Italy and Salsa? (even Blue Lagoon is a notch above the Garden Cafe.) Those are all free restaurants, and Venetian and Aqua do not require reservations.

 

Before you can write off all the food on a cruise ship, shouldn't you at least sample something BESIDES a buffet??

[bluefintuna]

We were on the Dawn in January and thoroughly enjoyed freestyle. The Venetian is beautiful, the food was good and the service the best. We also had great meals at Salsa, Bamboo and LeBistro. You only have eight days and you don't dine every night in the Garden Cafe!

[BeachBumMama]

We have decided that this was our last NCL cruise & that we are going back to Carnival.

I'm just curious, do you only eat in the buffet on Carnival? Which I have to also ask... why? It sounds like your major complaint was the food, if it's that important to you, why would you eat only in the buffet?:confused:

 

Regardless, there are many cruise choices and some that meet our needs more than others. I personally love the Dawn and freestyle, however, I'm sure you feel Carnival better suits you. Enjoy!:)

[Sparkylok6]

Our comments will deal mostly with the negatives.Bill in FL

 

Why is this? Would it take too much energy to post ANY positives? I just don't get it.

 

And also, I can't believe the NERVE of your room steward to properly address you - Are you offended to being called "sir", should he have been calling you "madam" for some strange reason? These people are trained to address all cruisers properly, I hope it didn't keep you up at night for fear that you would have yet another negative to write about.

[zqvol]

Hi ALL

NCL has changed the meaning of Free Style to mean that, in order to get a good dinner, you are free to eat in any of their "pay for" restaurants.

 

If you stop in Samana, take an NCL tour as walking to town is as bad as everyone before has said. We just wanted to see for ourselves & they were right ! Lots of kids begging for money & saying "but I am hungry". That was a wasted stop !

 

Bill in FL

 

I was on the Dawn the week prior to your cruise and I must disagree with both of the above statements.

 

The food in Aqua the week before was equivalent to, if not superior than any food on Carnival or RCCL. You simply choose to avail yourself of the buffet and then complained. The food in both of the "free" dining rooms is exceptional.

 

Samana was a great stop. the town is lovely and typical of almost every Caribbean town (Note that Charlotte Amalie, and Phillipsburg are not towns, but cities) that you visit. They are all poor and there are typically children everywhere.

 

Samana is a must see place. It shows the true character of the Caribbean.

[2Cruise4Ever]

Hi ALL

My wife & I were on the 3/09 sailing of the Dawn & wanted to report our findings for your info.

We have sailed probably 30 times in the last 15 years & have enjoyed most of them immensely. This is our ninth time on NCL.

Our comments will deal mostly with the negatives.

Our meals were all eaten in the Garden Cafe as Free Style is the claim to fame for NCL. The breakfast was great, the lunch was average & the dinner selections were far below our expectations. On Carnival we got shrimp two nights, steak at least one night & good beef about two other nights. On the Dawn there was no shrimp, no steaks, & no good beef at all ! Lots of Talapia which is a really cheap fish. But, the deserts were fairly good for dinner. NCL has changed the meaning of Free Style to mean that, in order to get a good dinner, you are free to eat in any of their "pay for" restaurants.

If you stop in Samana, take an NCL tour as walking to town is as bad as everyone before has said. We just wanted to see for ourselves & they were right ! Lots of kids begging for money & saying "but I am hungry". That was a wasted stop !

Our balcony was as expected & near the elevator. The room steward was a great guy but darn near "sirred" me to death.

We have decided that this was our last NCL cruise & that we are going back to Carnival.

Bill in FL

 

Um... you obviously didn't read much in your cruise documents, nor listen to anyone on board the ship. As others have posted, there are many no-fee restaurants on board (Venetian, Aqua, Impressions of Italy, and Blue Lagoon). Why did you choose to eat in the Garden Cafe every day? I have found the food everywhere on the Dawn to be superb! And, I just get a kick out of people calling me , "Ma'am." THAT never happens around my house! :D

 

Thanks for the tip about Samana, though. I'll be sure to stay on board the ship if I ever go there.

[karen5959]

I was on the same cruise as the original poster, and had a wonderful trip. I found the food to be in range of fair to good to excellent depending upon the menu and restaurant. Paying for a specialty restaurant did not necessarily guarantee the best meal either. Cagny's, my DH and I found, was very average, whereas we enjoyed very nice meals at the Venetian and Aqua. Salsa was great and our hands-down favorite was Bamboo. I found all of the service to be quite efficient and formal, reflecting the international character of the staff. We found the buffet to be better for breakfast and lunch, and although we did not eat there for dinner, thought it looked OK, but certainly not a destination dining spot.

 

We thouroughly enjoyed our ports- taking NCL excursions at each port - at Samana we went to Cayo Levantano, a lovely beach with easy access by boat. In Tortola, we went on the Beach Day- and spent a few hours at Cane Garden Bay-again a lovely beach. (The roads getting to the beach however are mountainous and treacherous - I had to remind myself that the driver must do this 10 times a day.) We also loved the Coki Beach snorkel- the fish were plentiful and the water was sparkling clear and mild.

 

Now that I am back in the grey, cold Northeast- I cannot beleive my life was colored so beautufully in greens and blues only last week.

 

We enjoyed freestyle and the Dawn very much!

[jollycruise]

Um... you obviously didn't read much in your cruise documents, nor listen to anyone on board the ship. As others have posted, there are many no-fee restaurants on board (Venetian, Aqua, Impressions of Italy, and Blue Lagoon). Why did you choose to eat in the Garden Cafe every day? I have found the food everywhere on the Dawn to be superb! And, I just get a kick out of people calling me , "Ma'am." THAT never happens around my house! :D

 

Thanks for the tip about Samana, though. I'll be sure to stay on board the ship if I ever go there.

 

No don't stay on the ship! Book an excursion through ncl. We did this in January and had a wonderful time. It's a beautiful place with wonderful people. Yes the kids in town do pester but on the excursion we had a wonderful time. I would go back and do our excursion again in a heart beat. Please don't stay on the ship because the OP told you to do so. I mean come on, the OP ate in every meal in the garden cafe, how much sense does that make?

[CruiseNurseBabe82]

I've eaten in the Garden Cafe and to be honest it isn't that great that is why we avoid it and only use it for a quick snack. You sound as if you are looking for something to complain about. Maybe you should have tried Venetian or Aqua the food is MUCH better.

[Paul507]

Perhaps you should try cruising on a ship that only has one restaurant. I'll bet it's a lot cheaper.

 

Yeah...being spoken to politely stinks, huh?

[CC Help Michell]

Okay.... I think between this original post and the one in THIS thread -- http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=736881 -- to which I didn't bother to reply.... we have a trend, and it's not even April 1!

 

I think there MUST be a secret contest going to see who can post the most completely illogical claptrap review about their cruise and still find someone who hates NCL enough to agree with them!!

 

"I stiffed the crew their tips because my (admittedly against the rules) booze was confiscated" versus "Since this cruise was 'freestyle' I only ate in the buffet, and my steward actually called me 'sir!'"

 

:rolleyes:

 

In the remote chance that either of these two suspiciously-timed threads was posted as a legitimate review, I hope both OPs have a great time on Carnival. And to the OP on this thread... if you actually, seriously thought "Freestyle" meant "you must eat in the buffet every night" I HIGHLY suggest you read your cruise documents, cruise brochure, and visit the cruiseline website prior to your next cruise. From your review, you never ate in the main dining room -- yet that is NOT a "pay for" restaurant, so how would you have any basis to say where NCL is offering "the good dinners?"

[DAGVBSB]

Once again, I have to agree with Michelle. I checked out the OP's previous posts and they usually post once and then disapear for a few month. They usually stay on the port of call boards, but don't return to answer questions.

 

Yes, they have sailed Carnival before.

 

 

I think this is a one hit wonder who is just trying to stir the pot.

 

To the newbies..... we don't put much credit on one hit wonder review posts. If you don't have the courtesy to respond to questions posted to you, then your post is meaningless babble.

[DAGVBSB]

Okay.... I think between this original post and the one in THIS thread -- http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=736881 -- to which I didn't bother to reply.... we have a trend, and it's not even April 1!

 

I think there MUST be a secret contest going to see who can post the most completely illogical claptrap review about their cruise and still find someone who hates NCL enough to agree with them!!

 

"I stiffed the crew their tips because my (admittedly against the rules) booze was confiscated" versus "Since this cruise was 'freestyle' I only ate in the buffet, and my steward actually called me 'sir!'"

 

:rolleyes:

 

In the remote chance that either of these two suspiciously-timed threads was posted as a legitimate review, I hope both OPs have a great time on Carnival. And to the OP on this thread... if you actually, seriously thought "Freestyle" meant "you must eat in the buffet every night" I HIGHLY suggest you read your cruise documents, cruise brochure, and visit the cruiseline website prior to your next cruise. From your review, you never ate in the main dining room -- yet that is NOT a "pay for" restaurant, so how would you have any basis to say where NCL is offering "the good dinners?"

 

Michelle: If you look at Ides of March's history, he is exclusively a Holland America cruiser. No wonder he didn't like his treatment.... he wasn't bowed down to like he expects to be. Ides is just more proof of what my parents say about HAL cruisers and why they won't cruise that line anymore. (that and the fact that they feel that the HAL crowd is to old for them.... my parents are 78...)

[CC Help Michell]

Michelle: If you look at Ides of March's history, he is exclusively a Holland America cruiser. No wonder he didn't like his treatment.... he wasn't bowed down to like he expects to be. Ides is just more proof of what my parents say about HAL cruisers and why they won't cruise that line anymore. (that and the fact that they feel that the HAL crowd is to old for them.... my parents are 78...)

 

But... but... *I*'m about to be a HAL cruiser! ;) (referencing my reply to you on the other thread -- http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=736881&page=3) :D

[lovn2liv]

But... but... *I*'m about to be a HAL cruiser! ;) (referencing my reply to you on the other thread -- http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=736881&page=3) :D

 

We cruised on a few of the cruiselines now.

 

MY DH and I cruised HAL when we were in our early forties. Yes, wheel chairs, 70', 60's, 50's, 40 year-olds were on the ship. I definitely noticed motorized scooters moreso on this cruise than any other, and we had a great time. The casino was a hoot. We like playing the nickel slots, and my DH was the resident expert when any of the fellow passengers didn't know what they were doing. We had a great time. Not to mention the aft corner suite...YAHTZEE. Nice cruise, great service, the food was the same in my opinion as any other cruise I had been on....although NCL has it on the bread and the after dinner cheese plate. I'm not a cheese plate kind a gal...but our waiter insisted on it one night, and we were sold after that. WOW.

 

I make the best of every cruise, and I wouldn't worry too much about other people's opinions....when it comes to having a good time or not...I have been nervous on some, and it turned out that I was concerned about things that never happened, and shocked with things that did happen that I very seldom heard of.

 

I've walked away from cruises thinking, I'll probably not sail on that ship again for certain reasons, and happy to sail on others again.

 

Happy Cruising