Norwegian Dawn Reviews

We are regular cruisers with Norwegian and Dawn is far from the best ship in their fleet. However, Norwegian hospitality was just as exceptional as it usually is. We would not sail on Dawn again but would not hesitate to book with Norwegian again

The Norwegian Dawn was a practical ship offering suitable cabins, a number of eateries and very friendly staff. However, it was a little dated and old fridge and not very nice toiletries The food was a little repetitive and the specialties restaurants was a little steep in price. The shows were acceptable and I love the acrobat's, however not to the standards of other cruises. There were a lot of sickness aboard and although we were instructed to wash our hands, there were no signs to advice the use of masks to prevent spread. We wore our masks and thankfully did not become infectious. We lost our stop at Reunion due to the cyclone sadly, however with previous changes to the itinerary, we ended up with additional sea days. Sheehan bar was our favorite, nice people, drinks and breakfast! The size of the ship was fine but not many seating in areas and a lot of waiting to be seated.

An Older ship but kept in excellent condition. Staff were always sweeping and mopping the buffet floors, clearing and cleaning the tables was done quickly and always with a smile. The buffet staff always spoke, were very polite. We were pleasantly surprised at the number of supervising chefs present at every meal overseeing the serving staff. The buffet food was so good we did not visit the sit down restaurants except for the extra charge Le Bistro. That food was ok but not worth the extra charge. Our inside cabin was in excellent condition and, surprise, the shower was large and had a sliding door, not a shower curtain (which no matter how careful you are, drips from the shower curtain would always seep onto the bathroom floor. ) The cabin steward had to work hard in order to complete his number of cabin beds and bathrooms within the allotted time. We have been on many cruises over the years with many cruise lines and the Norwegian Dawn defies its age when compared with some newer ships on other cruise lines. Unfortunately due to weather, our cruise from Mauritius was delayed by a day and missed out on Reunion completely. The other ports of call between there and Cape Town were not great with not a lot to do unless booking g a ship excursion, which we didn’t because of the cost. Around $100 or more each person for a half day trip. We would choose Norwegian Dawn again, if it was visiting more interesting stopovers than what we experienced between Mauritius and Cape Town. The theatre performances were not to our taste except for the last night with what amounted to a variety show with singers, dancers and a magician. The ship and it’s crew, officers, chefs buffet staff and bedroom staff along with the excellent attention to detail and cleanliness made this cruise very worthwhile. Overall 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for the ship, it’s crew and officers but only 3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for the quality of the shore visits.

It was much better than I was expecting after reading many negative reviews, would go again. Embarkation/disembarkation was a joke, ridiculous queues and also huge queue for various admin requests. Bands were really good around the ship but the theatre production was weak compared with other cruise companies. Buffet very busy and main restaurant repetitive menu but no real complaint. Speciality restaurants excellent. Really enjoyed the sun lounge areas, provided you could stand the heat. Drinks best I've experienced. Excursions were extortionate even if you had a cabin credit. Sounds a bit negative but we did enjoy and would book again with better knowledge of how to deal with various issues. P. s General staff were very helpful and I even managed to get a kettle for the cabin!!

Very nice ship and we enjoyed the overall holiday, but found it a bit chaotic at times. Entertainment was a bit hit and miss, most of the entertainment stopped at 11pm bit early for us, especially on sea days. Excursions were way overpriced compared to other cruise lines. The ship was tidy and staff were great

My husband and I have recently returned from a cruise with NCL Dawn. In general, we had a wonderful vacation. The ship looked very tired in places due to its age but did not deter us. The food in the selective dining was fabulous and as were the staff, they couldn’t do enough to make sure all our requests were met to a high standard. Our cabin was kept in exceptionally clean as is my home and a pleasure to come back to after out all day travelling. Some of the trips were a bit hit a miss and expensive for the package and some faults were due to other passengers mistakes and not NCL. A bit of confusion when leaving the vessel where everyone was trying to get off and not waiting for their announcements so policing would certainly help otherwise the ships crew made it all very special and memorable. Well done to all.

All the staff were amazing, so friendly, polite and always helpful with a smile on there faces. Food was very good , loved the steak restaurant, food was delicious both fine the main restaurant and buffet. Cleanliness was brilliant. Entertainment not so good , the juggler was good and the dance team but the others were not so.

Lovely trip on Norwegian dawn, not the newest of ships but kept nice. Food was very good especially the specialist dining. Entertainment just ok. Lucky to have free at sea package as everything extra was extortionately priced. Specialist dining supplements were silly price as were the ship’s excursions. Automatic tips of 40 dollars every day added to your account really over the top. Lucky in the last three days you can get the tips removed but not really something you like doing.

Food was excellent in speciality restaurants and very good in other restaurants. Service was excellent from every member of staff we encountered. Ship was scrupulously clean, (although there did seem quite a few people went down with coughs and colds). Bands and music were excellent. Some Theatre shows were excellent, others not to our taste. In general all the organisation was extremely efficient. Generally liked the ship and it was the right size for us (we hate the super large new ships and would not go on them). Balcony cabin was not the largest we had been in but good nonetheless, although the partition wall between the toilet and rest of the bathroom was unnecessary and it restricted movement and we were constantly banging our elbows and heads on partition. (We are not particularly big people and I would hate to think how larger people coped when using the toilet. Overall a very good enjoyable holiday with diverse and interesting ports of call.

Unfortunate that we spent 3 continuous days at sea owing to strife in Mozambique but where we were to spend an overnight at the end of the cruise, the cruise company changed the itinerary leaving us no chance to explore Mauritius at the end. Overall a reasonable cruise, food satisfactory and staff very friendly and helpful. The cruise ship is getting tired and had annoying problem with the toilet not flushing.