NCL Norwegian Dawn Cruise Review - Page 3
< Continued from page 2
When the Norwegian Dawn arrived in St. Thomas, we took the Magen's Bay excursion, which was gorgeous, but crowded. On Tortola, we went to the dolphin encounter (awesome!) and were then dropped off in town to do some shopping. It was a mistake, because there were no touristy-type stores to shop at, plus we were harassed by a couple of local kids. If you're visiting this island, I would suggest sticking to your excursion group and then heading back to the ship.
In San Juan, we opted for the Bacardi excursion, which was a disappointment We were urged by a few friends to go and see the Bacardi factory because they give you a free mini-bottle and a tour through the facility where you can actually see the rum being made. Well, things have changed. Now you are given two small drink samples and the "tour" consists of a large room containing a replica of the old factory. Had I known better, I would've bought a bottle at the local store and gone back on the ship to work on my tan in a drunken haze. At St. Maarten, we tried the Divi Little Bay Beach Experience. The weather was phenomenal, the beach was gorgeous, and the package included chaise lounges, lunch, and two drinks. We never actually made it to Great Stirrup Cay, due to a storm washing away the beach, so we were re-routed to Nassau, Bahamas. We only got a few hours to wander around, but the shopping was excellent.
The pool was somewhat small for a ship that can hold three thousand people. I was surprised to find out that it was actually filled with seawater from the Atlantic.
It's a magnet for kids, even though there's a separate kids' pool on another deck. There are four hot tubs, with a hidden fifth on the forward side. Take the elevator to Deck 13 and climb the stairs. There you'll find a huge hot tub filled with all of the other people who read my review.
Some words about the entertainment. The ship's theatre is beautiful and unbelievably big. We enjoyed the large-scale production shows, but the first night's 'Welcome Aboard' show was a waste of time. After listening to the cruise director drone on for more than 20 minutes, I decided it would be more amusing to hang myself, but my friend insisted that we stay. If you happen to miss a show, don't worry. They'll be broadcasted on your stateroom TV later on that night. There are a few bands on board which were tolerable, plus the cruise ship's requisite lounge act, but?three Asian guys singing the Beatles? No thanks.
Debarkation was simple and easy. If you provided a credit card to be charged on your account, and there are no issues, there's no need to line up at the purser's office to settle up or sign anything. You're provided with color coded luggage tags, which are called out over the P.A. system. When your group is called, off you go.
Gripes aside, we had a fantastic time. The food was great, the islands were beautiful, and we got to meet some interesting people on board. Oh yeah, and we played shuffle-board.
When the Norwegian Dawn arrived in St. Thomas, we took the Magen's Bay excursion, which was gorgeous, but crowded. On Tortola, we went to the dolphin encounter (awesome!) and were then dropped off in town to do some shopping. It was a mistake, because there were no touristy-type stores to shop at, plus we were harassed by a couple of local kids. If you're visiting this island, I would suggest sticking to your excursion group and then heading back to the ship.
In San Juan, we opted for the Bacardi excursion, which was a disappointment We were urged by a few friends to go and see the Bacardi factory because they give you a free mini-bottle and a tour through the facility where you can actually see the rum being made. Well, things have changed. Now you are given two small drink samples and the "tour" consists of a large room containing a replica of the old factory. Had I known better, I would've bought a bottle at the local store and gone back on the ship to work on my tan in a drunken haze. At St. Maarten, we tried the Divi Little Bay Beach Experience. The weather was phenomenal, the beach was gorgeous, and the package included chaise lounges, lunch, and two drinks. We never actually made it to Great Stirrup Cay, due to a storm washing away the beach, so we were re-routed to Nassau, Bahamas. We only got a few hours to wander around, but the shopping was excellent.
The pool was somewhat small for a ship that can hold three thousand people. I was surprised to find out that it was actually filled with seawater from the Atlantic.
It's a magnet for kids, even though there's a separate kids' pool on another deck. There are four hot tubs, with a hidden fifth on the forward side. Take the elevator to Deck 13 and climb the stairs. There you'll find a huge hot tub filled with all of the other people who read my review.
Some words about the entertainment. The ship's theatre is beautiful and unbelievably big. We enjoyed the large-scale production shows, but the first night's 'Welcome Aboard' show was a waste of time. After listening to the cruise director drone on for more than 20 minutes, I decided it would be more amusing to hang myself, but my friend insisted that we stay. If you happen to miss a show, don't worry. They'll be broadcasted on your stateroom TV later on that night. There are a few bands on board which were tolerable, plus the cruise ship's requisite lounge act, but?three Asian guys singing the Beatles? No thanks.
Debarkation was simple and easy. If you provided a credit card to be charged on your account, and there are no issues, there's no need to line up at the purser's office to settle up or sign anything. You're provided with color coded luggage tags, which are called out over the P.A. system. When your group is called, off you go.
Gripes aside, we had a fantastic time. The food was great, the islands were beautiful, and we got to meet some interesting people on board. Oh yeah, and we played shuffle-board.
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