Norwegian Dawn Review
4.0 / 5.0
Yatsailor
6-10 Cruises • Age 70s
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Additional details
Sail Date: Jan 2017
Cabin: Family Suite
We chose this cruise because of the departure location and date. We were taking our two oldest grandchildren to celebrate their high school graduation, one in 2016 and one in 2017, and had to coordinate their location in Texas with ours in Tennessee with their college schedules. We met in New Orleans 3 days before departure, but the winter of 2017 decided to arrive for those 3 days. We limited our experience to "windshield tours" of the city, and indoor activities at the Aquarium, Mardi Gras World, and the Cabildo and Cathedral. Cafe au lait and beignets at Cafe du Monde were mandatory. We parked with Machu Pichu tours on Jackson Ave. the morning of the cruise, parked our car in the covered parking area, (for less cost than parking in the open "Whale lot at the port) and were quickly shuttled to the port. Our luggage was quickly offloaded directly to the luggage carts at curbside, and we entered the terminal. Because of the "guests sail free" promotion, it was economical for all of us to stay in one family suite instead of booking 2 cabins. Being in the suite made embarkation a breeze. After checking in at a special line, we were escorted to the VIP lounge to await clearance to board. It was a short wait, and we went directly to our cabin to drop off our carry-ons and go eat.
Being in a suite makes the cruise a real treat. Breakfast and lunch in the quiet Moderno restaurant instead of the bustling Garden Cafe, our butler, Made (Mah-Day), bringing chocolate covered strawberries, cookies and fresh fruit, the Concierge, Roel, taking care of dining reservations and making sure we had priority departures, especially when using tenders in Roatan, and having reserved balcony seating for all the shows in the theater were exceptional.
The down side of the ship was the cigarette smoke from the casino pouring back through Gatsby's lounge and up to the 7th deck, making it difficult to avoid when going fwd to aft without going through the cabin hallways on decks 8-11, since there was significant wind (30-50 knots) topside the whole cruise.
Cabin Review
Family Suite
Cabin SJ
The suite was an excellent size, with a king bed, a queen sized murphy bed, and a sofa that opened to a queen bed. There was a wooden partition wall on the side of the bed, and a blackout curtain across the foot of the bed. There was no balcony, but that was not an issue because of the high winds on the cruise. The downside was that the windows were fogged between the panes of glass, partially obscuring the view. The ship recently completed a long drydock/overhaul, but the replacement windows were not available then. Apparently the 87 large windows are now available, but are awaiting crane services to replace them. With the bed and sofa folded, there was ample room to sit around the table, or on the sofa & armchairs in the cabin (1 room "suite"). The bathroom has a separate tub and shower, with 2 sinks. It is located through a passage with 2 lockers on either side with shelves, drawers and hangar bars. One is almost filled with the safe and life jackets.
Port Reviews
Harvest Caye
Very windy, with significant surf and overcast. Had we known that the zip-line cost was reduced to a more reasonable $29, we might have tried it. As it was, we swam in the limited swim area, fighting the surf, and caught some diffused sun on the plentiful beach lounges, walked through the small wildlife display, and bought some local chocolate. (Mayans used cocoa beans for currency, so they know chocolate!)
New Orleans
We had hoped to show our grandchildren a lot of their heritage, as we grew up in New Orleans, and they had never lived there. The weather was cold and wet the whole time, so we were limited to inside activities and "windshield tours" of the city.
4 Helpful Votes
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