This was our 3rd Princess cruise. The last we took was in 2007 and a few things have changed but generally you still have a wonderful experience with Princess.

We joined the cruise at Sydney cruise terminal (The Rocks) and luckily for my husband and me, we are Platinum members with Princess Circle Club so we had priority boarding. Some people waited in line for up to a few hours but the cruise was at full capacity.

The Dawn Princess is a nice ship with great facilities but it is getting a little tired. For some reason still, Australia seems to get cruise ships which are getting on the tired side which I feel is not fair. The market is growing here at a huge rate. Anyway, the set out of the Dawn Princess is different to any other cruise ship we have been on. The main restaurants are in the centre of the ship, theatre at front (which is normal), but another theatre/lounge at the back. It took us a while to get used to it. It has a lovely central atrium where all the shops and some bars and cafes are located. Many options for pools, theatres, show, food venues etc. Read more