Writer Rob Lovitt based this independent review on his 10-night Southern Caribbean cruise departing from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Dawn Princess is no showboat. Instead of grand expanses, her winding hallways lead to smaller spaces with comfortable chairs, live plants, impressive artwork, and understated elegance. By day, passengers meet and mingle over art auctions and line-dance lessons. By night, they do the same over multi-course dinners and music trivia sing-alongs. Add in two showrooms, four pools, and everything from wine seminars to ceramics classes, and there’s no way you can do it all. But you can have a lot of fun trying.

Why Dawn Princess?

• Subtle style: Contemporary décor; solicitous service; and a preponderance of smaller, quieter venues create a sophisticated setting, giving Dawn’s mega-vessel amenities a touch of small-ship class.
• Diverse dining: Two dining rooms (one traditional, one open-seating), several casual alternatives, and buffets that run around the clock mean you can eat when, where, and with whom you want.
• Entertaining evenings: It’s showtime “times two” as a pair of mid-sized showrooms host everything from Vegas revues and Broadway tributes to cabaret acts and comedy jugglers. (Every night is like opening night.)

Who should go
Dawn’s mostly middle-class passengers come from across the United States, although you’ll probably hear plenty of British and Canadian accents, too. Longer itineraries attract a predominantly 50-plus crowd, with just enough honeymooners, families, and groups of adult couples to ensure a lively atmosphere for pool games and dance parties. It’s not a late-night crowd by any means, but most passengers are up for just about anything.

Who shouldn’t go
Organized events aside, the ship gets quiet quickly as midnight approaches, which may leave singles and younger adults hungry for livelier late-night action. Also, families familiar with mega-ship climbing walls and mini-golf courses may find the children’s offerings less than impressive.

Hits and misses

• Don’t miss: Help pour cascades of golden bubbly over a 13-level tower of champagne glasses -- and sip your fair share -- during the Champagne Waterfall Party.
• Best part of the ship: The most popular part is the Riviera pool deck. The most stylish is the Wheelhouse Bar, where the nautical décor captures cruising’s rich history.
• Best experience: The dance floor during the Island Night Deck Party is a booty-shaking blur of leis, streamers, and conga lines (but beware the monkey-head piña coladas).
• Best shipboard activities: Join a line-dancing class (“heel, toe, heel, toe, grapevine to the left”), then kick up your heels in style at the Country and Western Hoedown.
• Needs improvement: Sterling Steak House, Dawn’s specialty restaurant, would be a lot more special if it wasn’t so obviously a cordoned-off section of the buffet restaurant.
• Activities to skip: The Marriage Game -- flubs and flat jokes can take the spark out of what should be a hilarious display of marital miscommunication.

How to meet the captain
If a glimpse is good enough, attend his welcome reception in the atrium on the first full sea day. Sip a free martini or Manhattan, nibble on canapés, but don’t blink: After a 30-second welcome speech, he’s usually gone. Returning cruisers are invited to a smaller reception, where he sticks around for handshakes and photo ops, and once in a great while, he’ll eat in the main dining room. Your best bet for meeting the captain? Get married or renew your vows, and he’ll conduct the ceremony.

Heard on the deck (from two men in the elevator, after one asked the other to push the button for his floor):
First man: “Thanks, you do good work.”
Second man’s response: “Yeah, and that’s about as hard as I intend to work this week.”

It’s all about choices. In the main dining rooms, passengers opt for traditional dining (set time, set table) or show up when they want for “anytime dining” (with others or on their own). Go casual and the options include poolside burgers, made-to-order pizzas, and a round-the-clock parade of buffets. Flavorful dishes span the globe -- New York steaks to duck a l’orange (in the buffet line, too) -- and repetition is minimal. On the downside, too many desserts taste more dietetic than decadent.

Florentine and Venetian
With their raised islands and etched-glass partitions, Dawn’s two main dining rooms resemble upscale urban restaurants more than aquatic banquet halls. The menus are identical (themed dinners with well-sauced seafoods, daily pastas, and prime beef and other meats); only the service differs. Go for traditional dining in Venetian and get to know your waiters and tablemates, or choose “anytime dining” in Florentine: Show up when you want, request to sit with other passengers (or not), and make new friends every day. If you prefer traditional dining, it’s best to request this option when you book as space is limited.

Heard on the deck: “I’m just planning on going home 20 pounds heavier. Anything less and I figure I’m ahead of the game.”

Horizon Court Buffet
Breakfast, lunch, afternoon snacks, dinner, and late-night treats… you can dine here 24 hours a day. Lunches provide the best variety -- venison medallions one day, good (not great) sushi the next -- while dinners echo the nightly menus in the main dining rooms. “Action stations” with daily pastas, specialty salads, and carved meats lead to heaping plates and multiple trips (trays would be good), but save room for the bananas Foster, cherries jubilee, and made-to-order sundaes.

Sterling Steak House
A specialty restaurant should provide an exclusive setting, first-class service, and the best desserts onboard. Alas, not here. Candles and tablecloths aside, this is still just a roped-off section of the buffet restaurant, and both the service and the menus in the main dining rooms exhibit more flair. The tableside Caesars are nice, and the steaks -- from eight-ounce filets to 22-ounce porterhouses -- are done perfectly, but really, a specialty restaurant should leave you feeling, well, special. (Cover charge: $15.)

Other dining options

• La Scala Trattoria: Wrought-iron furnishings and painted tilework provide a winter-garden backdrop for made-to-order pizzas, pasta dishes, and dolci (sweets).
• Balcony grill: The smoky aroma of grilled burgers, bratwursts, and chicken breasts draws a steady crowd to this take-out counter overlooking the main pool deck.
• Sundaes: There’s no free soft-serve onboard, so many passengers head here for ice cream drinks, fruit smoothies, and Häagen-Dazs bars and sundaes (fees apply).
• Afternoon tea: Purists will scoff at the lack of white gloves and silver service, but the pastries and finger sandwiches fill the bill nicely between lunch and dinner.
• Room service: Continental breakfast items are available each morning, with light sandwiches and a few desserts obtainable around the clock. It’s all free, but a tip is customary.

Best dining

• Dish: Most folks go for the twin lobster tails during the Captain’s Gala Dinner, but the beef Wellington, done to order with a black truffle sauce, gets the biggest “wow.”
• Dessert: The papaya and banana soufflé -- this cruise ship standard gets a tropical twist with sweet fruit flavoring and a warm sauce of orange liqueur.
• Restaurant: The main dining rooms feature Dawn’s most innovative dishes (lobster tails, beef Wellington, superlative soufflés), best service, and liveliest ambience.
• Food seminar: Conducted jointly by the maître d’ and executive chef, the ship’s one cooking demo is part culinary showcase, part comedy routine, and always standing-room–only.

How to…

• Get a table for two: Opt for anytime dining in the Florentine Dining Room and you can request (and even reserve) one of several dozen. (Venetian has only a handful.)
• Celebrate a birthday/anniversary: Opt for cake, a candle, and singing waiters in the main dining room or add some romance with in-room balloons or a bouquet (fees may apply).
• Change seating: If you’ve selected traditional dining and want to change tables, see the maître d’ after 2:30 PM on the first day. Guests can also change from traditional to anytime dining with 24 hours notice.
• Dress for formal night: Long dresses predominate over pantsuits, and black suits outnumber the tuxedos -- but not by much (and you can always rent a tux onboard).
• Dress for casual night: Expect plenty of capris and casual pantsuits on the women, slacks and polo shirts on the men. Shorts (and hats) are frowned on.

Tips:

• When opting for “anytime dining,” small groups (of four people or fewer) are usually seated immediately. Larger parties may want to make reservations ahead of time.
• In the main dining rooms, some tables for two are actually tables for four with smoked-glass partitions, which can feel claustrophobic. If you want a true table for two, let the hostess know.
• Smoked salmon is not displayed during breakfast buffets, but it’s always available. Just ask one of the line cooks. (They’ll also make hardboiled eggs on request.)
• Pizza from La Scala is not on the room service menu, but if they’re open and not too busy, they’ll often fill in-room requests.
• Magnums, the ship’s small martini bar, offers pre-dinner canapés most evenings, but you have to ask for them.

At 135 to 155 square feet, standard cabins are tight, but they’re well designed, with hair dryers, safes, mini-fridges, and small chairs (no couches). Balcony cabins are slightly larger (173 square feet), but that includes the 4' x 10' balcony. Mini-suites and full suites underscore their extra space (370-536 and 538-695 square feet, respectively) with added style, including blond-wood trim, art deco fixtures, and marble bathrooms with tubs and glass-walled shower enclosures.

Cabins for guests with disabilities
Dawn’s 19 wheelchair-accessible cabins offer good turnaround space, lip-free bathrooms, and lots of low cabinets. Twelve are inside cabins, six are oceanview (some obstructed), and one is a mini-suite with a balcony and portable ramp. Wheelchair-accessible public bathrooms are situated near all major facilities, a hydraulic pool lift is attached to the main pool, and infra-red headsets are provided in the Princess Theater for hearing-impaired passengers. Windjammers Bar and the forward splash pool (both on Deck 15), alas, are inaccessible to wheelchair users.

Tips:

• Bathrobes and baskets of fresh fruit are not automatically provided, but cabin stewards are happy to deliver them upon request.
• To hear the time in your cabin (there are no clocks), pick up the phone and dial 133.
• Cabins D601-D604 are just outside the casino, so they may be noisy. (They also have obstructed views.)
• Available on all cabin decks, laundry rooms (75¢ wash, 75¢ dry, $1 for soap) get steadily busier on longer cruises. If you need to wash clothes, do it earlier rather than later.
• Oceanview wheelchair-accessible cabins are all conveniently close to the elevators. Inside ones, however, are fairly far forward -- a challenge when housekeeping carts are out.

Click to view a virtual tour

With her white-marble atrium and long hallways of burnished wood, Dawn’s décor is easy on the eyes. Instead of a few grand expanses, she features a host of intimate bars and quiet sitting areas, along with a small library (with adjacent Internet café), a modest casino, and two mid-sized showrooms. A larger selection of smaller venues means more activity choices: From art auctions and crafts classes to music trivia contests and line-dance lessons, there’s always something (and usually several things) going on.

Bars, lounges, and casino
Think relaxed, not rowdy. Many nights, the Atrium Bar fills up for music trivia contests that inevitably turn into pop-standard sing-alongs. Other times, karaoke draws a crowd to Jammers, where the good, the bad, and the truly tone-deaf provide alternative entertainment. Nightcaps in Magnums; slow-dancing in the Wheelhouse Bar; maybe a swing through the eight-table, 130-slot machine casino -- wherever you go, the mood is sophisticated, but not sedate, though most passengers are in bed by midnight.

Heard on the deck (from a septuagenarian couple leaving the main dining room):
Her: “Do you want to catch the show?”
Him: Heck, no. I want to go dancing!”

Swimming pools
Built around two freshwater pools, the Riviera pool deck is also home to a stage, two hot tubs, and three bars. Many guests stake out lounge chairs early in the day (most are gone by 10 AM), rousing now and then for a dip or a frosty drink. Others take a more active approach, volunteering for water volleyball and goofy pool games. The rest head for the small, circular pool far aft (with two additional hot tubs); the shallow splash pool far forward; or the wading pool outside the kids’ center.

Shows
Talk about choices. In the course of a 10-night cruise, passengers can select from four stage shows and 10 or more variety acts, most of which are offered twice a night. Generally speaking, the stage shows are not visually compelling -- they often use one minimalist set -- but the songs from Broadway, the Beatles, and Billy Joel are fun and familiar. The cabaret acts are often quite good, especially when two or more performers join forces.

Shore excursions
Depending on the itinerary, passengers can choose from 80 to 100 excursions, so it’s a good thing the desk staff know their stuff. City tour or snorkel trip, eco-hike or 4WD safari -- they can discuss logistics, skill levels, and even the best bets for beaches, scenery, and wildlife. The ship has no interactive booking system, but the desk is open several hours a day, keeping lines short to non-existent. Other nice touches include waitlists for popular tours and 100 percent refunds when canceling within 24 hours of the excursion’s departure time.

Weddings and vow renewals
What could be more romantic than an onboard wedding or vow renewal -- especially when it’s conducted at sea by the captain himself? Vow renewals are usually group events, while weddings are private ceremonies for up to 20 guests. Both can be personalized with everything from flowers and photos to receptions and spa treatments. True, the “chapel” is really just a small conference room festooned with flowers, but nobody seems to mind. (All services should be arranged prior to sailing.)

Looking for…

• Quietest spot: Sink into one of the 12 leather chairs in the library, watch the waves through the bay windows, and you can almost hear any stress fading away.
• Liveliest spot: The Riviera pool deck kicks into high gear daily with kids splashing in the pools, adults crowding the hot tubs, and bartenders churning out the coladas and daiquiris. On Alaska itineraries, it’s still a popular area, but more for glacier and whale watching than for swimming and sunning.
• Most popular activity: Bingo and karaoke aside, the most consistent draws are the music trivia games/sing-alongs in the Atrium Bar (“Moon River, wider than a mile…”).
• Best view: Two decks above the Riviera pool, the open-air Windjammers bar is a prime perch for catching the action poolside (or wildlife in Alaska), and high-seas sunsets.
• Best show: Curtain Up, a tribute to classic Broadway musicals, is a showcase of dancing, but the singers and slapstick in the crew show get the loudest applause.
• Best drink: Order the drink of the day (daiquiri, piña colada, margarita, etc.), and you can get it small (12 ounces), medium (20 ounces), or “mega” size (32 ounces).

Tips:

• If evening entertainment is a high priority, consider opting for traditional dining, which is timed in coordination with show times.
• When it’s breezy, the upper decks can feel like a wind tunnel. Head instead to either of the small, sheltered decks below the aft pool.
• There are art auctions on all sea days, but on 10-night sailings, only the first and last auctions include free champagne.
• Internet access -- 35¢ per minute, with no activation fee -- is among the cheapest at sea, but expect to pay $1 for every page you print.
• It’s not well-marked, but there’s a small card/game room hidden among the cabins on Deck 12.
• A handful of shore excursions sell out before sailing. Upon boarding, head to the shore excursion desk, where a board shows what is and isn’t available.
• The ship offers a variety of computer classes for $25 each. They’re lightly attended, allowing for plenty of personal attention and instruction.
• Once each cruise, passengers who have been married 50 years or more are invited to a free champagne toast in the Wheelhouse Bar.

Heard on the deck: “Yeah, we’re going to the line-dancing class. I don’t know how she talked me into that one.”

Spa and salon
Located far aft on Deck 12, the Lotus Spa is compact, yet nicely laid out with 10 treatment rooms, free saunas and steam rooms, and a salon across the hall. (Alas, there’s no relaxation room.) Spa treatments range from frangipani scalp rituals to couples massages to mix and match “tasters” of three or more treatments, all of which are provided with a gentle touch and thorough attention to detail. Even a soothing mini-facial involves six or seven steps -- and no follow-up product pitch.

Fitness areas
Hit the gym or stroll the promenade? Many passengers go for both, opting for an intense morning workout and a brisk walk in the afternoon (three laps around Promenade Deck equal one mile). Fitness classes -- some free, others for a fee -- and personal-training sessions get a few takers, but it’s the treadmills that warrant a daily sign-up sheet. (Tip: They’re more readily available in the afternoon.) The indoor golf simulator ($20 per half-hour) is also popular; the half-size basketball court behind the main stack, not so much.

Tips:

• Stop by the spa on the first day and you can enjoy a free three-minute chair massage.
• If business is slow, the spa sometimes offer discounts on select treatments during extended evening hours. Watch the daily planner and you can save up to 40 percent.
• The ship has no dedicated running track, but jogging on the Promenade Deck is common. (Go early before the strollers come out in force.)

Dawn has two onboard boutiques -- Regatta for clothing, liquor, and souvenirs; Illuminations for jewelry, perfume, and crystal -- but you’ll find the best deals (up to 75 percent off souvenirs and select jewelry) during the “pre-inventory sale” on the last sea day. Longer cruises also offer two port-shopping talks, one or more gem seminars, and port consultants who are more like personal shoppers: They occasionally schedule in-store hours in port to help passengers negotiate the best prices.

Tip: There are no liquor sales two days before disembarking. All orders will be delivered on the last full day of the cruise.

There’s no climbing wall or miniature-golf course, but a well-organized children’s center offers a full schedule of games, movies, and activities for kids aged 3-7, 8-12, and 13-17. It’s open until 10 PM daily, but note: The center closes for dinner on port days and for lunch and dinner on sea days. There’s also a teens-only room, a splash pool (unsupervised), and group babysitting from 10 PM to 1 AM ($5 per child, per hour). Kids on Caribbean cruises also have access to a dedicated play area on Princess Cays.

Heard on the deck (from a man using his keycard to disembark in port): “I’m going to install one of these in the garage, so I’ll know if I’m home or not.”

Dawn Princess sails 10-night cruises from Ft. Lauderdale through April 2005, alternating between Western and Southern Caribbean itineraries. She then offers 7-night cruises between Vancouver and Anchorage through mid-September, followed by 10-night Mexican Riviera cruises from San Francisco through April 2006.

• Cruise line - Princess
• Ship name - Dawn Princess
• Type of cruise - Elegant Resort
• Total cabins - 975
• Private balcony cabins - 410
• Decks - 14
• Total crew - 900
• Passenger capacity - 1950
• Ship size - Large
• Officers nationality - British/Italian
• Year entered service - 1997
• Registry - Great Britain
• Tonnage - 77,000
• Ship length - 856