You’ve met the person with whom you want to spend the rest of your life, and the wedding you dreamed of for months has finally happened. The two of you now get to run off to the romantic destination of your choice and spend time alone to jump-start your new life together. You make a trip to the airport, stand in line at the ticket counter, go through security, wait for a delayed flight, and finally get jammed into a cramped airplane seat with a bag of pretzels to sustain you while your luggage makes its way to a destination other than your own.
Now picture instead a quick trip by car service or ferry to a cruise terminal in Manhattan, Brooklyn, or Bayonne, a more civilized security process, and a greater likelihood that your honeymoon will begin on schedule and your luggage accompany you. Picture sailing past the Manhattan skyline as the sun starts to set, a glass of champagne in one hand (no pretzels in sight), and your new spouse’s hand in the other.
Depending on what time of year you sail, destinations range from the Caribbean and Canada to Bermuda and Europe. Different lines cater to different crowds. Carnival tends to attract a younger crowd, whereas Cunard’s passengers tend to be well-heeled and a bit older.
Unless you are prone to seasickness, or you want to go somewhere not accessible by ship, the honeymoon cruise is the way to go.
Bon Voyage
To test the theory, I went on a honeymoon cruise by myself. It’s not exactly romantic, but that’s OK, I’ve already had the romantic kind.
For months, while walking along the Hoboken waterfront, I’d been gazing across the Hudson to the cruise pier in the West 40s, reminiscing about the few times I’d had the opportunity to sail out of New York Harbor on a stately ship, one hand holding a glass of champagne, and the other waving to those tiny, land-bound figures on shore. Usually I was one of those tiny, land-bound figures, watching longingly in the late-afternoon light as another ship sailed off to some wonderful destination without me.
I booked a week-long cruise to Bermuda on Norwegian Cruise Line’s (NCL) Norwegian Dawn. The features and services offered on the Dawn provide a good porthole onto what makes a wonderful cruise. Its honeymoon packages include breakfast in bed, massages for two in the Mandara Spa, a formal portrait of the two of you, and dinner and wine in the romantic specialty restaurant, Le Bistro.
Food Fest
Dinner on some cruise ships is no longer a one-size-fits-all, regimented affair and, on your honeymoon, flexibility to do what you’re in the mood for on a whim is essential. The Dawn offers no fewer than 12 dining options, including a Cagney’s Steak House and specialty restaurants, like the Teppanyaki Room and the wonderful Salsa Tapas Bar. I was amazed to find that delicious non-alcoholic sangria was available at the tapas bar.
Honeymooners, like a lot of folks these days, prefer to forego the midnight buffets and chocolate extravaganzas offered on most cruises. Give me a good salad bar, a big, not-too-crowded fitness center, and access to an outdoor jogging track on deck for mind-clearing walks. The Dawn offers all three, as well as a selection of healthy dishes from Cooking Light on its regular menus.
It’s up to you when you want to eat, and whether you want to dress up or go casual. Room service is also available 24 hours if you just can’t bring yourselves to leave your comfy cabin.
One honeymoon-perfect option unique to the Dawn and some of her sister ships is staying in one of the 5,000-square-foot garden villa suites, which offer amenities like butler service, private terrace, hot tub, and access to a private courtyard and fitness center at the top of the ship. If you can swing it, what could be better on a honeymoon than feeling that you and your new spouse are the only people on the ship?
The Flexibility Feature
I’d sailed aboard the Dawn on one of her short inaugural cruises back in 2003, so I already knew that she’d be perfect for a honeymoon cruise. I remembered her as a gorgeous ship. It’s only about six years old and doesn’t show any serious signs of age, inside or out. The cabins are well-designed and bright, with comfortable beds and lots of storage space. The balconies are large, and my bathroom even had a bathtub, which seemed like a real luxury.
The public rooms are also very attractive with great artwork, including numerous Andy Warhols in the stairways between decks. Each restaurant has its own distinct atmosphere and décor. Most of them, particularly Salsa and Le Bistro, are perfect for romantic dinners.
NCL’s signature “freestyle” approach to cruising is clearly suited to honeymooners who generally aren’t keen on rigid schedules. I certainly wasn’t. Like honeymooners, I wanted to sleep as late as I wished, eat when I was hungry, wear what I felt like wearing, decide at the last minute whether or not I wanted to participate in activities, and feel no guilt whatsoever about spending an afternoon on my cabin balcony, reading or simply looking out at the ocean and sky.
Honeymooners who want to pamper themselves can enjoy the Mandara Spa. Though the lavender-verbena scent was hard to resist, the spa treatment was beyond my pay grade.
During the day, I worked out, ate semi-daintily, sat in the sun by the pool or in one of the hot tubs, took naps, and while in port in Bermuda did a little shopping and sightseeing around King’s Wharf.
During the day there were educational seminars, bingo, board games, various “game shows,” Wii, sports, wine and liquor tastings, and many enticements to shop in the ship’s various stores, which close when the ship is in port.
Some nights I checked out one of the many entertainment options, avoiding the Karaoke bars out of deference to my fellow passengers. Other nightly entertainment ranged from comedy and magic acts to full-scale music shows and quieter solo acts in the smaller bars and lounges.
At night I dressed up—though NCL has done away with the nightly dress codes that many lines still enforce in their restaurants—dined, and took a little vicarious pleasure in sitting in the ship’s Havana Club and breathing in the smoke from others’ expensive cigars before returning to my private balcony to commune with the sea.
Now, without feeling deprived, I can once again watch from the Hoboken shore as the ships leave port and the sun sets over New Jersey.