Reroute to Bahamas due to weather - overall great cruise

Norwegian Dawn Cruise Review to Bermuda

Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 35

Overall rating:

4 out of 5
Verified Review
Norwegian Dawn

Sail date: October 17, 2014

Ship: Norwegian Dawn

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 9 years ago

Review summary

This was supposed to be my first trip to Bermuda but with Hurricane Gonzalo expected to hit land just days before the cruise arrival, just before boarding we were notified our ship was going to be rerouted to the Bahamas instead. We had 2 days in the Bahamas (one at Nassau and one at Great Stirrup Cay) instead of 3 days in Bermuda, we were refunded one day each guest. The cruise was a really enjoyable experience. I've sailed with Norwegian before on Pride of America and the Norwegian Sky (to the Bahamas) and this cruise matched up mostly with the Sky. My boyfriend and I opted for the Ultimate Beverage Package, which if you drink, is definitely worth it. Very few drinks weren't covered, and they were easy enough to avoid. We also ate at the specialty steak and hibachi restaurants. The steak restaurant was very good, the staff was attentive and knowledgeable and the food was delicious. The atmosphere was exactly as I pictured it would be, dimmer lighting, quiet conversations at each table, just a lovely dining experience. The hibachi staff was also good however my biggest complaint, and really only complaint, came from our dining experience here. We were on the trip with another couple, none of us have any children so we chose a later seating time to enjoy ourselves. There were 5 children at our hibachi table, all under age 8 and only 1 would be considered "well-behaved," as he played on his Nintendo DS throughout dinner but at least he was quiet. 2 were, in the nicest terms, little monsters. Hitting each other at the table, yelling to their parents, singing "wheels on the bus," and their parents did nothing to stop them. With the other 2, the older one sang the "A,B;C's" throughout the instructions on how to order, again the parents did nothing to even ask him to be quiet, and the other was very young and crying occasionally throughout dinner. I understand that there would be children on the cruise, but for restaurants where I am paying extra, I was hoping for a more relaxing and adult experience than what I endured here. If you are going to choose a specialty restaurant, I would steer clear of the hibachi unless you want to deal with obnoxious children. Apparently some parents think that since its a "show" with dinner, its obviously something children should attend. I wish Norwegian would set aside times in the restaurants where children were not permitted so the adults could have a pleasant dining experience without the unnecessary noise. 

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5
My hibachi experience with the ill behaved children is what kept this from being great

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5
Things like the bar crawl are fun but with the drink package, I wish they offered it for like $5 to just participate in the games, I didn't want to pay to do a drinking event when I was already getting the drink package

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
We overheard a waitress singing to herself, complimented her and she offered to sing us a song while we ate dinner, it was really amazing. One waiter we had was very attentive (we had the drink package so this was free) he saw my wine running low and got me a second glass before I even asked for it.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
Everything seemed to be in working order and up kept properly

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Always very clean and the towel animals were great. We had Victor and he was great.

Ports of call

Boston, Massachusetts

3 out of 5
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