I really tried to make the best of it!

Norwegian Dawn Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western

vvonderwoman

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 32

Overall rating:

2 out of 5

7 Night Western Caribbean (New Orleans Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 04, 2015

Ship: Norwegian Dawn

Cabin type: Balcony

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 9 years ago

Review summary

Hi, If your going to read this I appreciate you taking the time and hope my experience helps you in some way, more so in your decision to use a different cruise line for your needed service needs! Our boarding hours were 12 to 2 but you have to go the long way around to understand that and they got it so there's not a lot of congestion all at one time to get on the ship but there is anyway, They are not at all forthcoming with information and what you see, hear, or read may be different than what actually occurs and they bank on that!

Now with that being said, We were traveling with 2 senior citizens and 2 people with disabilities and they didn't offer or were not forthcoming with the information to take good care of them for boarding, while on the ship, ports, getting off ship, our group total was 13, all being adult but 1 teen and 2 children. Felt herded like cattle, like it does but uncomfortable and not like they say they have it set up. Now I won't be bias by using other company names but I have cruised before and can tell the difference, as well as worked for a cruise line in the embarkation/debarkation department so I am basing what I tell you on nothing more than my experiences! Going into the second day not even on the ship 24 hours yet and get accused of smoking in our room, now we are smokers, but the best time of our cruise was getting out of the room to go smoke areas where (we met the most interesting people on the whole cruise every time), eat, take on activities, so I didn't appreciate our steward one bit trying to scam us out of the 250$ charge you can pay if you want to (which is really all that is), she was a very miserable person who was way over worked to give the care that position is suppose to entail, 1 steward for 15 rooms and 2 of them "penthouses". It took till the 5th day of the cruise to get ice, or a towel animal, and I had to fuss to even get that, they moved our stuff around a lot for what looked like no reason. When one of the pool towels was used they didn't keep up with replacing it, so I had to say something every day or risk losing 25$ for taking a towel I didn't take or would even want! Our cabin was easy to deal with, only us 2 adults who picked up after ourselves, living right out of the suitcases, and were out of the room pretty much the whole time, except to sleep! This was my husbands first cruise so I really hoped he could have seen that good care a steward does, but alas, I was disappointed! You have to turn a pie chart rolling thing on the wall "welcome", "make up cabin" "turn down bed" "Do not disturb" I kept forgetting to do this, we were excited to be on our cruise, why isn't this by the door knob? and with my husbands first cruise, would have been nice, if when our horrible steward came up to introduce herself why didn't she show how that thing worked? Now I have an accent and it is possible some may have had a hard time understanding what I was saying, I took that into account until I watched it happen to a better english speaking person than me, then I knew, They just did not listen to what we told them to do, or what we wanted! Felt like I was dealing with a trained monkey who only knew how to do one only way to do something. Example and I have many, but here's an example at the buffet they had the omelet station I asked for 1 fried egg, guy gave me 2, it was little things, someone told me if you have any more trouble contact me, but oddly when you go to talk to them, they are to busy to talk to you at that time, nor make an arrangement to get back to you, and this was when I was actually going to thank a person that helped me! My biggest complaint was the misleading information, and that they really just did what they wanted to, not what they said they would do, my first drink I got came in the souvenir cup, I didn't ask for it or get asked which one (color, style) I would have liked so when I went to go change it out I had to just first chase down a bar that was actually open to do that and they gave me a hard time even doing that! For pretty much everything there were specific opened and closed times, due to the fact that we did visit 4 ports, things around the ship finished up/closed quite early everywhere in the ship, so this was not very good at all for night time people! In all I just went through so much and was not treated fairly, I did get the daily service charges removed BUT I tipped way more in cash at the time than what they were charging simply because it brings out great service in a way of saying "thank you" letting them know I appreciated from their choice them wanting to do that for ME! This was the first time I ever had to do that, usually I over tip, but I can afford to, and have once in my life worked for making tips so I know how it feels! Now I wouldn't say I am big on cruises, My vacationing ideas are much different, this last one I went on someone else paid for it, and I was doing it for them, "it's were conformity is taught, and learned by the impressionable minded" in a fun,"safe" way and for some it is needed, but I felt it my civil duty to review it and share with others in the hopes that it doesn't happen to you or help you handle it better if it does. They sent a survey to do in an email asking about my experience but right after a choice I made negative in one of the questions towards Norwegian my survey ended, they didn't even really want to hear about it, speaks volumes about their business practices. Bon Voyage Norwegian, people won't be back when you don't care what they want or give them what you say you will And they paid good money to get!