Excellent Vacation!
Norwegian Dawn Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western
7 Night Western Caribbean (New Orleans Roundtrip)
Sail date: December 04, 2016
Ship: Norwegian Dawn
Cabin type: Inside
Cabin number: 8503
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 7 years ago
Review summary
We weren't sure what to expect when sailing with Norwegian. Our only previous cruise was with Carnival on the Imagination (very small ship). Our boarding time was set for 12:30-1pm. We arrived at the terminal around 11:30. The porter was very helpful in taking our luggage and pointing us in the right direction. Once inside, the line was very short. We quickly checked in and were able to board earlier than our specified time.
As with everyone, we grabbed lunch and walked around. Our room was at the VERY front on the ship on deck 8 (interior room). After an hour of walking around, we checked our room and it was ready. The room was as expected. Plenty of room for the two of us. I did like the shower compared to Carnival. It had a sliding door, where as the Carnival bathroom had a plastic curtain.
We met our steward Bart. He was amazing. Our room was always tidy and he was always around to answer questions.
Our Freestyle choice was the Unlimited Beverage Package. This was a great choice. The bartenders were "mostly" friendly. I do have to say, they all worked their butt's off though! My only complaint about the UBP is the coffee. While disembarking at one of the ports, I stopped at the Atrium bar for a cub of coffee. The bartender said it would be $3.50 for a cup of coffee. I asked her to put a little Bailey's in it...instantly free. Now, I'm not an accountant or economist, but adding booze, to me, seems like Norwegian would be losing money vs a plain cup of coffee. However, I didn't complain, and continued to get coffee + Bailey's for the remainder of the cruise. I do think coffee drinks should be included in UBP, but, just my opinion.
The ship was full of things to do. My favorite was drinking Mimosa's from the 13th deck bar overlooking the pool. Even in the sun, on the 13th deck, there was plenty of breeze!
Food was delicious; even in the buffet's. i don't think we had any bad experiences with food. The busers and servers in the buffet area and dining rooms were awesome as well. They were very talkative. I want to specifically call out Sasha and Vanja. They have to be the best two staff members we met on the ship!!
The ports were all good and easy to get off and on. Snorkeling in Routan was a sight of a lifetime. First time snorkeling and wow, I've been missing a lot!. Costa Maya...ehh, I could have skipped this port. We did go see the Mayan Ruins, but other than that, ehh, not worth getting off. Harvest Caye was a nice "beach and pool" day. Was kind of nice to not get asked to buy stuff and just be able to chill by the pool. Ocean water at Harvest Caye was very dirty (probably sandy from the ship...maybe?)
In the end, we had a great vacation! We will definitely sail with Norwegian again (well, we have to, put 2 deposits down for next couple of cruises!)
Hope this helps others trying to decide on Norwegian.
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Jason
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Onboard Activities
Entertainment
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Ship Quality
Cabin / Stateroom
Ports of call
Coxen Hole, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras
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