We wanted to visit Eastern Canada and New England in the fall. We chose this cruise to avoid a lot of driving between the Maritime Provinces and for the fact that it cruised from Boston which eliminated the need to fly. From the Midwest, we could drive to Boston through Canada. Driving worked out very well. We spent a night at the Holiday Inn Express Boston Cruise port which qualified us to park our car there at no charge for 14 days. This Holiday Inn provides a shuttle which took us to our cruise and picked us up on our return, again at no charge.

We found the Norwegian Dawn to be a modern, comfortable ship with a pleasant, friendly crew. Our mini-suite balcony cabin was roomy and featured a full-size bathroom with vanity and full tub! We never ate in the Garden Buffet, not being fans of steam table food, but enjoyed breakfasts in the dining room most mornings and many dinners. Whenever we could we sampled the local food in the ports and just had a drink and snack in O'Shanahan's, the cruise ship pub. Shipboard activities and shows were the usual and we didn't attend many. We enjoyed wine tastings in the cruise ship wine bar and musicians who performed in the various bars, especially the martini bar. Embarkation, disembarkation and tenders all operated smoothly. We had no problem with Canadian or U.S. customs. This is a relaxing, low key cruise, with a generally older crowd. We did notice the crowd was older on the Boston to Quebec leg than on the return, Quebec to Boston.

We had gorgeous weather everyday which was a big plus -- so nice to see these places in the sunshine. Not all ports were exciting. Quebec city was the highlight. NCL Walking tour was good, NCL bus to Falls was not worth it. Falls are right off a freeway and there was not time to ride the funicular to the top. Would have been better to spend more time in Quebec City. Halifax Titanic private tour with Paul McNeil was excellent and included a lobster village that was not overrun like Peggy's Cove. Enjoyed pleasant drive along Bay of Fundy with Dave'sTaxi private tour but Peggy's Cove was not worth it. Peggy's Cove was overrun with tourists and very little town there or shopping. Wonderful shopping in the Halifax port building, no need to look further. Charlottetown was charming, lots of shopping, no need for excursion. Excellent lunch at the Pilot House. Booked no other excursions in Canada except St. John. Not much in Gaspe but a few fun antique and craft stores and excellent lunch at Restaurant Cafe Des Artistes, charming old place full of strange art. Not much in Baie Saguenay but enjoyed a beer at Bistro Cafe Summum. Not much in Sydney but enjoyed excellent lunch at Governors Pub & Eatery. St John port consisted of a tent with a few sad vendors. There's a market square within walking distance but not much there either. Enjoyed pleasant drive along Bay of Fundy with Dave'sTaxi private tour but Peggy's Cove was not worth it. Peggy's Cove was overrun with tourists and very little town there or shopping. Main Peggys Cove restaurant was packed but Sou-Wester around the corner was empty so we enjoyed lunch there, no waiting. Tender and Customs went smoothly when we returned to U.S. via Bar Harbor. No need for excursion there. Town is wall to wall restaurants and shopping. No time to see them all! Very enjoyable cruise for those not looking for too much excitement or jazzy ports.