This was our third cruise on Norwegian - our previous two cruises were on the Pearl. We choose the Dawn because she left out of Tampa, a mere hour from our home. Also, we were told the spa on the Dawn was comparable to the spa on the Pearl (which we LOVED)- more on this later!

Embarkation:

We arrived at the Port of Tampa at 10:30 a.m., valet parked our car (well worth the money) and stood in a very short, quickly-moving line. Once we were checked in, we were escorted to the VIP area where coffee, tea, juice, water and light refreshments were waiting. About 30 minutes later, our concierge (Ryan) escorted us onto the Dawn where we were greeted with the usual sail-awayyy cocktail for purchase. It was delicious! Lunch at the buffet was followed by a tour of the ship. The Dawn is noticeablyyy smaller than the Pearl. Public areas are much smaller. There is no buffet area by the pool. The Bliss lounge has been converted to the Spinnaker lounge and deck 12 (where the Spinnaker used to be) is now suites. This means there is no place to look out over the front of the ship except from the sun deck (not a great option when it is windy or the weather is not cooperating). We signed up for the unlimited spa package for the week ($119/person) and then we were summoned to the mandatory muster drill at 3:30 pm. Those in charge of our muster location (area N-1) took roll call and waited for the "no shows" for about 20 minutes. The instructions were repeated at least 3 times for those passengers who arrived very late. What part of MANDATORY do these people not get? And why did those passengers who followed the rules have to sit for more than 20 minutes longer than necessary? I have a theory on this...more to come... Read more