Sailed on the 5/10/09 Dawn trip to Bermuda.  Everyone in the terminal was very nice & helpful.  It was a breeze checking in. About 5 minutes after we checked in we met an adorable couple from our Roll Call.  After a short period of time were were allowed on ship & given champagne or orange juice.  I made myself a nice little mimosa.Knowing that the Buffet was going to be crazy we went right to the Blue Lagoon for a quick lunch.  Shortly thereafter we were able to go to our cabins.  Our luggage arrived by 4:00.  Our muster drill was quick & easy.The ship:  The Dawn is a beautiful ship & Very clean.  The ship was easily navigated-and this is from someone who can get lost anywheres.  Cabin:  my daughter, 2 kids & I shared an inside cabin-a little tight but we did it.  There was a nifty cot that pulled out between the 2 beds.  It was small but we had enough room for storage & plently of hangers in the closet.It was a very pretty cabin.  Our traveling companions have been on 5 cruises on RCL which they totally love.  They did comment that the bathrooms on the Dawn were large & very nice.  Our cabin stewards Rommel & Eduord were wonderful.  They came to introduce  themselves immediately.  Everything was kept spotless & the towel animals were enjoyed.  Immediately they new our names & fussed over the kids.  About the 3rd day I asked Rommel if anything could be done with my bed as I had a backache.  He removed something & said that if it didn't work he would find something else to help.  He asked me the next day if it worked.  It did!   They worked like crazy but always had a smile.  They are part of the tip sharing, but we tipped them extra.Entertainment:  I am not a "show" person, or at least I wasn't one until now.  The Dave Heenan comedy show was funny.The Jean Ann Ryan Group was FANTASTIC.  I saw every show-Band On The Run, South Beach Rave & Bollywood. I can't even explain how good they were-you just have to see them yourself.  The cruise crew show on the last day was fair but it was a nice effort.   However, the finale Fountains was a riot.  It was worth sitting thru the crew show to see the finale.  Fire & Ice was a teriffic duo-they played everything.  One night they did a Tina Turner review.  There was plenty of entertainment & activities all day. The new Cruise Director Shona is amazing.Meet & Greet-Held on Monday @ 10:30am-so early that some people forgot or just didn't get moving early enough.  Still we appreciate NCL efforts.  They must have had about 8 officers & dept. heads there.  They are all friendly.  One thing I noticed is that they all have a sense of humor & don't take themselves seriously. We met the famous Concerige Anshuman-he is wonderful as is everyone else.  Food:  Was fine considering how many people were fed.  I might have liked the food a tiny bit better on Carnival, but that wouldn't be reason for me to leave NCL's friendly staff & Freestyle Dining.  There is always plently of food choices everywheres.  My grandchildren loved the kids buffet. The buffet had a good variety including alot of ethenic foods.  Not bad, but it is what it is.  We ate many meals there.Kids program:  My 3 year old grandaughter attended for an hour.  Liked it, but wanted to hang out with "Mommy".  We all went to a "make your own pizza" with the kids program-cute.  We spent alot of time in the kids  pool area-definately a highlight-large area.  Things that weren't my favorite:  chair hogs-but we usually managed to find a couple of chairs-not NCLs fault.  Service in the Venetian & Aqua Dining Rooms-a little uneven -but for goodness sakes, those kids worked like crazy.  We didn't go to the dining rooms to make friends with the wait staff, so we have to commend them on their efforts.  Desserts-need a little work, although we did have a couple of excellent ones.Highlights-wonderful staff-very friendly, never had a problem.  The kids were treated like treasures.  Just remember, you'll never get 100 % perfect with anything, anywheres. One day I was walking in the buffet with 2 beverages.  A waiter wisked them on to the dray and asked where"madam" was sitting so he could help me.Our dinner at Salsas.  We didn't make a reservation but we got in with no problem @ 7:00pm.  Kids ordered off the regular menu-no charge-otherwise it came to $40 for the 4 of us.  Waitstaff well deserved the generous tip that we left.  The dinner started with some very good chips, salsa, fresh guacamole, some sort of cheese dip that might have had crab in it, & a corn relish.  The 2 year old ate everything & they cheerfully brought round 2.  The adults were treated to a small frozen margarita each.  We had great appetizers.  Our dinners were:  Lobster Tacos, swordfish skewers & Ribs..  We all shared & enjoyed.  The dessert that we picked still haunts me-I want the recipe-Carmelized Margarita Tartlet.  It was huge & made from Pineapple-I can't even describe how good it was.  We went back to the bar at Salsas several nights later for another Margarita.  I remember that they had a complimentary Tapas menu.  We ordered what we all deemed a "the best calamari ever".  The risotto in the dining room ws A+.  The rack of lamb was the absolute best that I have ever had.Compliments of the Meet & Greet we had dinner with the Hotel Director Hugo. I was very nervous having dinner with an officer but he was friendly, interesting & funny. He told us that the Dawn was rolling out a new menu soon.  There would be an extensive "everyday Menu"  with daily specials.  This will give customers more choices.Bermuda-great & very safe.  It was a little on the chilly side-but what do you expect mid May? Went to Horseshoe bay beach-so beautiful. I believe that we were at the part called Baby Beach-unbelievable.  It's a good thing that we brought pre-packaged snack because the snackbar was way expensive.  We also went to Snorkle Park-ok but a bit of a let down after the first beach. The zoo & aquarium was very nice-I very much enjoyed it-$10 for the adults-little kids are free.My daughter, DH & Kids will be going back on the Dawn to Bermuda next June-I might go, but I might go on an NCL European Cruise with some old friends. I'll miss the Dawn,Another highlight, Meeting all of my Cruise Critic friends.For the people that complain about the Dawn, ease up.  You are not paying Oceania or Seaborn rates, so don't expect what you would get on this cruise.  Some posters complain about having to pay for everything-the speciality rest. are very reasonable compared to other lines.  We weren't hounded to buy drinks, we were politel;y asked-if we said "no", we were treated cordially.  The announcements weren't accessive.  For  the people that complain about "everything"  try to ease up or find another way to vacation (just my opinion). I hate spending extra money, but if I were to individually tip for all of the service, I would have spent much, much more-so in my opinion, the $12/day/pp was a bargin.  THe staff deserves it.Loved the trip.  I look forward to sometime going again on the beautiful Dawn.