NCL Dawn Western Caribbean Cruise 03/05/2006-03/16/2006

Background Information: This was our very first cruise. There were 3 of us -- my husband, my 9-year old son, and myself. I have never been too fond of "boats", so I wasn't sure how I would handle 11 days on a ship. As it turned out, it was the best family vacation we have ever had. We went to Ocho Rios Jamaica, Roatan Honduras, Belize City Belize, Georgetown Grand Caymans, Cozumel Mexico, and Great Stirrup Cay Bahamas.

Travel to Port of Embarkation: Since we live in Rhode Island and my husband does not like to fly, we needed to choose a cruise that departed from a port within driving distance. We chose to depart from New York. We used a car service for transportation. The driver arrived at our home on Sunday, 03/05/2006 at approximately 7:30AM. We were at the port by 10:30AM. It was a little confusing as to where the driver was to drop us off. We followed a sign for "Limo" but it turned out that was for arrivals. A very nice gentleman gave the driver the proper instructions and we drove to the upper drop-off site. The signs at the port should be more informative. We were not the only ones that followed this route. Drop-off was a breeze. Porters all around and very informative. We had one large suitcase that we dropped off and 3 carry-ons. Since we had booked an AB Penthouse Suite, we were directed to the upper VIP section within the terminal. Once there, we were met by the concierge, Alex. He was very informative and assured us that he would lead us through the embarkation. By 12:30PM, Alex by-passed all the lines and got us set-up with all the necessary paperwork, pictures, and key cards. The people at the embarkation desks were thorough and fast. Within 15 minutes we were on-board the ship. The ship's personnel guided us to our suite. Very pleased with the way it was all handled. Read more