This was a special 39th anniversary gift from my husband. Choosing Dawn Princess was easy as it was mainly for the convenience of leaving from Melbourne, not far from our home town. We arrived at the ship mid morning on the 14th of December & spent a while gazing at the enormity of the beautiful Dawn Princess sitting there at the pier.
Embarkation was a breeze, we were on the ship by 11.30am. Due to being early we were able to walk around taking photos of all parts of the ship with very few people around. Sail-away was on time but nondescript. The trip was 13 days around New Zealand & back to Melbourne on the 27th December, being a Christmas cruise.
Our cabin was inside, no window but because it was between 2 corridors it was a bit larger than some of the others. The bed was very comfy & the little extras from our cabin lady each night were a lovely touch. Our cabin lady was lovely & very cheery & helpful. The other staff were always there with a big smile & quick chat. There was a laundry on most decks so very convenient although we did only use it twice during the cruise.
Our cabin was in a hallway joining the 2 corridors. Top location as there were only 3 cabins in this row, therefore no through traffic. Opposite was only staff doors so we had no disturbance or noise outside our cabin the whole cruise. The cabin itself was a slightly different shape to the ones down the corridors so it seemed to be slightly larger. There was plenty of storage, including under bed for suitcases, the bathroom was small but definitely sufficient for our needs.