Dawn of a speedy new vessel

This cruise has a pace a New Yorker would love: four Florida and Caribbean ports in seven days, round trip from the Big Apple.

At least that’s what Norwegian Cruise Line hopes as it rolls out the unusual itinerary for its newest ship, the Norwegian Dawn, scheduled to begin sailing Saturday from Miami after inaugural festivities Monday in New York.

The 2,224-passenger Dawn, a sister ship to the line’s Norwegian Star, can reach speeds up to 25 knots, allowing it to make the whirlwind round trip in seven days. It will begin with traditional seven-day Caribbean cruises out of Miami in winter, then switch to the New York round trips for the summer and fall season, starting in May.

From New York there will be four ports of call: Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, the cruise line’s private island, in the Bahamas; and Miami and Port Canaveral, Fla. One downside, at least for those who don’t love on-board life, is that cruisers spend nearly two days at sea at the start of the outbound leg from New York to the Caribbean.

Of course, if you’re staying in one of the ship’s two Garden Villa suites, for $26,000 a week, you might not mind. Billed by Norwegian as the largest afloat, each has more than 5,300 square feet of space, with three bedrooms, floor-to-ceiling windows, terraces, a Jacuzzi and a private dining room with butler service. The Dawn has 10 restaurants, an array of sports, from basketball to soccer, a Mandara spa, a movie theater and children’s programs. Original paintings by Van Gogh, Matisse, Monet and Renoir adorn one restaurant.

Fares begin at $599 per person, double occupancy, for the seven-day Caribbean itinerary and $799 for the New York-Bahamas round trip. (800) 327-7030, www.ncl.com.

In another debut, Holland America Line on Saturday was to christen the Zuiderdam, the first of five sister ships it calls Vista-class vessels, the largest ever built for the line. The 1,848-passenger ship will sail weekly Caribbean itineraries from Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Fares begin at $859 per person, double occupancy. (877) 724-5425, www.hollandamerica.com.