Norwegian Dawn Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Great cruise although its a bit of a money trap, they are always trying to get every dime from ya, and with the high cost of the trip to begin with its very unattractive.

The food was terrible. Tasted poorly and was cold most of the time. I even got just plain pasta and put butter on it because everything else was not good. At least they put the pre cooked  pasta in a warm bath before serving it.  The food was no better in the restaurants than in the Garden Cafe. They have a daily BBQ on the pool deck. THey had a pasta that would have been the best thing on the ship , it was cooked right and the sauce was very tasty but it was scooped from the top so that too was cold.On Many things they are almost there but they miss the final step to make things good.  Many little things that added up to putting it on the DO Not Do Again list. For instance. We got ice cream, 10 min after it opened. Held our  bowl with Ice Cream melting while 3 people tried to find spoons for us . Finally someone came with 6 spoons. That wasn't going to last long. We had to get fresh ice cream because our's was soup.

Our steward was good except he didn't put new beach towels in our room and we had an early excursion the next day. Had to find someone to get some. It seems you can't even leave a message for your steward if he's off.( unlike other ships we have been on. ) Other than that he was good.

In the halls and such we found  we had to step aside or get knocked over by staff several times. They just kept coming and we had to be the one's to move.  Not the politeness we see on other ships.  Waiting  to ask a question about special restaurant, when my husband asked, after waiting 8 min for staff to look up, if she worked there,  she rudely said you have to wait. Not, I'll be with you in a moment. The furniture was all scratched in the cafe and in our room the table was also, very dated.

The entertainment was excellant. Loved the dancers, comedian and all the shows.

 If I won a cruise on this ship  I would go but I would not pay to go. We have been on 13 cruises. I think if you are on your first you may say it's good but not if you have experienced the quality of food and service of other lines. We were quite disappointed.

Our family of four took the June 13-June 20 Boston to Bermuda cruise via the Norwegian Dawn and it was spectacular!  We had a mini suite with balcony that proved to be spacious and spotless.  Our cabin steward was at our beck and call and keep the towels clean, beds made and mini bar stocked.  (We found the gummy bears in the mini fridge were the kids' favorites!)

The restaurants were all five star quality and we felt special (and full) after every meal.

The shore excursions were wonderful.  We took the ferry and the the bus (extremely easy to navigate) over to the Crystal Caves ourselves and had a fantastic time.  On the last day in port, we took the Glass Bottom Boat and Snorkle Cruise and loved it.  We saw a sea turtle as well as a bountiful array of gorgeous fish.

The "Just Chill" Disembarkment was the SMOOTHEST I have ever seen.  When my husband and I had travelled Carnival Cruises 17 years ago and we were stuck on a staircase for well over one hour in the heat.  I was worried what this was going to be like with our two children.  Folks, Norwegian has this down to a science.  You pick what time you want to leave the boat 8:45- 10:00 AM.  When they call out the color/time that you wanted to leave, you just walked down the gangplank.  We were off the boat in less than ten minutes.

I did order the Internet Service for work purposes and I was frustrated that I could not access the internet in my suite.  I did not realize this.  So I had to go  over to the Internet Cafe to connect.  Because of this limitations, the Internet Cafe employee amended my package without hesitation and dropped the pricing cost for me.

For me personally, I did not think my children should be "tipping" the $12/day rate.  When I explained this to NCL.com, they had no concerns whatsoever and told me to go to the front desk and have my bill amended on the day before disembarkment.  Guess what!  It really was just that easy.  I walked up to the front desk and explained my beliefs and they could not have been more cordial about it.  The charges were reversed immediately.

Would I go again?  In a minute.  I have found myself already scanning the cruises for 2015!

I am a veteran cruiser, with many, many cruises under my belt. I have been on other NCL ships and I have to say the Dawn is by far the best.  My husband and I went to Bermuda 34 years ago for out honeymoon on June 14th,  so we decided to take a cruise there with family members. From the minute we arrived at the terminal in Boston to the minute we arrived home 7 days later, the quality of the service and food were outstanding. All of the service people were fantastic and friendly. Our butler Arkmed and our Concierge Karabi, (not sure o theses spellings) went above and beyond to make sure that our trip was perfect. The ship was extremely clean and attention was paid to sanitizing your hands every where you went. The dining package was definately worth doing. The shows were very good and the amount of activity available to do all day were plenty. The staff on this ship should be commended for all that they do for their passengers. I highly recommend this cruise.

We had a wonderful time on the Norwewgian Dawn. All the activities, the great food and the service was exceptional. We are hoping to go again next year if all is well. We love Bermuda and this is the best way of going there. We have cruised on other lines and we feel that Norwegian is the best. It was great to go out of Boston because we live in Massachusetts.

It was nice to go to Boston to board the Dawn....no planes to deal with.  The staff and crew were very friendly and helpful, especially our room steward, Moh.  He always called us by our names and our room was always clean.  The food was very good.  We enjoyed having choices and tried many of the restaurants.  We enjoyed the creative talents of the chefs...the carvings of the watermelons, etc.  Breakfast in the Garden Cafe was always fun, and we appreciated the attention to the washing of hands as we entered a restaurant.  The entertainment was very good...loved comedian Tim Kaminski.  Bermuda was beautiful.  It was nice having three days to explore.

This was my 15th cruise.  The Dawn is a smaller ship so it was very easy to get around. The staff is great! The storage space in the outside cabin that we had was very good. In fact it was probably the most space I have had on any cruise. The cabin itself was very small but adequate for our needs and very clean. Our cabin steward did an excellent job. The entertainment was very good. The magician was unbelevable!!!!! The production shows and the comedian were great. The food was only so-so. It lacked flavor and was sometimes undercooked for our taste. The best item on the menus was the prime rib. The salad bar selections in the Garden Cafe were good also. We enjoyed the Brazilian Restaurant very much. We only did one shore excursion because I have been to Bermuda 11 times previously and know the island well. The glass bottom boat was a nice trip and the captain did a great job entertaining us. I don't think we would sail on the Dawn again. We did have a nice time but we found that we prefer a bigger, newer ship than the Dawn. The food was really the biggest disappointment on the cruise. Everything else was good.

This is the second time I've taken this cruise, over a decade apart, and I can say both times it was an amazing experience.  The staff is extremely friendly and the food is incredible.  The first time I went with over 25 members of my family, and the second time with just my significant other.  Both experiences were great!  Its a great trip for families and couples (and singles too!).  You won't regret this decision :)

Left Boston with wooden crates and gang boxes on pool deck. Norwegian decided to refurbish the teak in the pool area as we cruised, closing 1/2 of the pool deck area at a time.With only one small pool onboard it wasn't a pleasant experience. Ship is very dated, short staffed, dirty, and overpriced. Our BA balcony was worn and dirty, the cabin bath was very small and cramped. We only had 4.5 to 7foot seas on the whole trip,which should not even had been felt,not on this tub,it rocked and pitched to the point of trouble walking. Only good things were the staff and the entertainment,the food was usually served lukewarm, but was good when hot. We are experienced cruisers, 10 plus cruises, from Italy to Hawaii and everywhere in between,and never had such a bad experience anywhere!

This is the third time that I have sailed with the Dawn from Boston to Bermuda.  I love the ease of this vacation because we are close to Boston.  When I come back from this vacation I feel pampered and relaxed.   This time was no different.

The crew was wonderful to us.  Everyone was polite and friendly.  The food was much better than I would cook at home.  I love Bermuda.  We had a terrific lunch at the Swizzle Inn.  I loved sitting on the porch drinking Rum Swizzles.  I love the beaches.  We snorkled and then one day we were the only 4 people on Clearwater beach.  It was heaven!  The weather was beautiful.  We took the Fun Bus from St. George, and I recommend that as a great way to get to Clearwater.Beach.

I have read unfavorable reviews about this cruise ship before.  I think that it is all what you expect from your vacation.  If you want luxury and fine dining - you may be disappointed.  If you want a great way to spend 3 days in Bermuda with good food and great ship and friendly crew - I think you will like this cruise.  I do have two recommendations for Norweigian though. 

1. you need to have a place for people to sit that isn't a restaurant and isn't a library.  We went with another couple and wanted to play cards and there really isn't a great place to do that at night.

2.  The service in the Blue Lagoon borders on unfriendly.  It is the only place in the ship that I felt that the staff wasn't up to par.  They were not attentive and almost rude.

First thing they fogot about my girlfriend's Birthday the next thing was a hot water pipe broke and our room got pretty wet but the good thing was they took care of us at the end.

we had great time on the cruise, the food was good, shows were good, staff was excellent, getting on and off the ship was easy, would recommend this cruise

Great cruise with lots of activites! Very convient taking  it out of Boston. Staff was very friendly and accomadating. Highly recommend to anyone of any age! Will go again very soon!

I would definitely recommend this cruise to others (and already have). Everything from the conditon of the ship, to the friendly crew, awesome food (and plenty of it) and fantastic entertainment was top notch (the comedian - Tim K. was fantastic, say hi and buy him a drink when you see him). If we could have gone right back out the following week we would have. Being from Massachusetts, and leaving from Boston was very convenient. We were also very luck to have fantastic weather throughout the cruise, and spending 3 days on Bermuda was great, we didn't feel rushed to do things. Our last cruise we island hopped (different cruise line) and we only got to see the beaches. We would definitely consider another  cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line.

This was our first cruise...we chose it because there was 1 destination and would have 3 days in Port to enjoy with no rushing ! The Dawn Staff were Amazing...our cabin guys name was Chris...He is extremely friendly and helpful...He remembered our names on day one and would greet us by name when ever we saw him ! Cabins are a bit small but not to bad there was me my husband and 15 year old daughter ! I never imagined the ship to be as spotless as it was kept the entire trip ! Food was great and plentiful....lots of entertainment...My one complaint is the Bingo price...extremely pricey...I played a strip of 6 cards for $49 that was not the most expensive...and you only play 3 games...!!! Bermuda was Amazing loved the people...thoroughly enjoyed them all...Fantastic Beaches, Plenty to do ! I highly recommend Snorkel Beach Park for a fun inexpensive day! They have rental umbrellas, lounge chairs ,day beds, snorkel gear and more! Wait staff will bring you drinks or food on the beach...Loved it ! Crystal caves was very nice , enjoyed the grounds as well ! Glass bottom boat tour was OK we did the twilight cruise...Snorkeling was much more enjoyable on the beach !!! All in all was a fantastic vacation !

The week cruise was nice.  Loved the entertainment and activities and Bermuda of course.  The food could have been better and the service was uneven.  I expected it to be warmer in May/June but was only in the 70's.

This was my first cruise on NCL and I am sad to say I am very disappointed.  The Dawn and NCL in general came highly recommended to me by frequent cruisers in my family, so my negative experience came as a big and unwelcome surprise.  There were indeed some great things about our trip and the Dawn, but unfortunately so much went wrong that I came home feeling stressed instead of relaxed.

I'm going to start with the good.  The Dawn is smaller than a previous Carnival cruise ship I went on - but there was so much to explore.  To my surprise, I enjoyed the rather confusing layout because I always wound up stumbling on some new spot I'd never seen before and this boat kept me constantly moving and walking (while scratching my head going, "where is that bar again??").  Decor is very tasteful and pretty - this is a classy ship for sure.  I also found that the boat was very clean in all the public areas.  The "washy-washy" girls at the buffet work very hard to ensure everybody coming into this communal dining space has clean hands, which I thought was great.  My sister and I also had absolutely wonderful drinks on this cruise thanks to a bartender named Anna Rojas who works at Bimini and Gatsby's.  By the end of the cruise, we sought her out for all our drinks and just let her make whatever she wanted because her drinks were just that good.  Finally, food at Le Bistro, Bamboo, Teppanyaki, and La Cucina was delicious.  Very fresh and delicious fruit at every meal at the buffet was a welcome respite from all the heavier options.  The entertainment was excellent in the evenings and the pool deck quite beautiful, with many hot tubs.

Now, for the absolute best part of this cruise, I must say that Bermuda is stunning.  What a wonderful place.  I loved that we were in port for 3 days.  I suggest getting a bus/ferry pass when you visit Bermuda - we had great fun on the roller-coaster like buses zipping around the island.  At $35 for three days, the bus and ferry will get you everywhere for cheap.  I found the public transportation to be very consistent and even felt safe taking the bus to the beach halfway down the island on our last day in port because I knew we'd make it back in time.  The port itself is great, with tons of options for shopping.  If you visit St. George, do yourself a favor and eat at the "White Horse Native Islander Bar" right near the ferry dock.  Can't really tell if this is really a native islander spot - but the food is delicious!

The beaches in Bermuda were a main draw for us - and they did not disappoint as a first time visitor.  My favorite was the lovely Elbow Beach, but Horseshoe Bay was also awesome.

Unfortunately, it's time to talk about the bad on this cruise.  First off, we had serious issues with the cleanliness of our room - our bathroom contained used items in odd places (yuck!), that we found over the first couple days (a used bar of soap and a razor) and our linens were stained.  These problems, plus the presence of cobwebs and grime in all the corners and nooks made us suspect strongly that our bathroom was only given a very fast once over, and not actually cleaned.  Our complaints were not taken seriously by guest services and took time to be resolved - we did eventually get a thorough bathroom scrubdown, but unfortunately it came too late - I am fairly certain that the unclean state of our room is the cause of the extrememly nasty cold that I caught, which I am still recovering from a week and a half later and which put a major damper on our cruise.  Also, overall the service at guest services was extremely poor - and often downright rude.  Any time we raised an issue, we were not met with an apology or assurances of a quick resolution as I expect from a customer service rep, but rather with incredulity and annoyance.  As an example, guest services made dinner reservations at a different time than they offered and we selected one evening, and then acted as if it was our mistake when we asked about it.  Additionally, service at the dining rooms was acceptable for the most part, but rushed - our glasses were never empty, but we never felt as if we could settle into a meal or chat with our waitstaff, who seemed very stressed.

Also, concerning the dining rooms, one of our main complaints about NCL was the bland and/or extremely salty food in both Aqua and Venetian.  There are very poor and very few vegetarian options and cream-based desserts tasted like they were made with gelatin instead of cream (gross texture).  Do NOT get the creme brulee.  Yuck.   Overall, the dining rooms provided very boring and mediocre American food at equal or worse quality to the buffet, just in a fancier setting.  This was very disappointing.  On the bright side, once we realized we simply could not continue eating in the dining rooms, we tried many of the cover charge restaurants and found them to be a good value ($15 per person for a very nice Italian dinner with wonderful bread at La Cucina, for example and a very reasonable a la carte price for yummy sushi at Bamboo that is less expensive than what we pay at home in Upstate New York).  It was unfortunate that we had to pay for food though - it was an unexpected cost that meant we couldn't do any shore excursions.

Finally, a last disappointment we have had is that although I reported my concerns to the hotel manager on the ship via a note on the last day and to the cruise line via their online feedback system, I have received absolutely no response from NCL about my poor cruise experience.  We were given a few freebies by various managers (wine and chocolate covered strawberries) as a result of our complaints on board, but these simply do not make up for the disgraceful state of our bathroom, the illness I caught aboard, and the very poor food and service.  If these issues are not resolved soon then I will resolve not to cruise NCL ever again.  Too bad, as so many people I know glow about their NCL experience and I would definitely prefer to do the same!

It took me years to convince my husband to go on a cruise ,as we were waiting in line to register and get our room key we were told to go to this gentleman who had no one in front of him. The man was very pleasant and he started to do my paperwork, and then this other employee came up to us with another couple and said to the gentleman what are you doing these people are my VIPs your suppose to take care of them first. So my husband and I were very embarrassed and offered to go back in line the couple was very nice and were very appoligenic as were we,  this was a horrible experience my husband would not pay that much money to be treated like that again. I do hope this letter will stop any else to go threw that .    Thank you for letting me vent.   Celeste riordan

Went on this cruise with 7 total in party spread across 3 cabins.  We had a great time, some bad weather heading to Bermuda but not too bad.  Bermuda was great, all three days temp in high 70's.  We did speciality dining in LeBistro, Bamboo, Teppanyi, La Cacina.  All those were great, LeBistro the best.  Did 2 dinners in Venetian, 1 in Aqua that were good but not to quality of speciality dining.  If I had to do again I would get the speciality dining expereince package for whole week.  Everything else on ship was as advertised, plenty to do for every interest.  Would definitely do this cruise again!

Eight of us traveled to Bermuda on the Norweigian Dawn.  All employees on the ship were extremely friendly and helpful.  We saw a different show every night, and all the shows knocked our socks off!  The free style dining and dining rooms were tasteful;the food excellent.  Docking in Bermuda for three days really gave us a chance to see the Island.  We purchased a three day bus/feery pass for $35.00 each.  The pass paid for itself.  We spent a day and a half at Horseshoe Bay Beach, maybe one of the beautiful beaches I have ever been to.  The beach looks like it came out of a travel brochure.  While at sea, always  something to do, or do nothing but relax.  Our stateroom was very comfortable, with  a sliding door to a small deck.  Always slept with the door open to hear the ocean!  The ship and Bermuda were top of the line!!!!