The Sun didn't come out

[rannoch]

We were on the Norwegian Sun last week for the Baltic cruise, and as a kind of therapy have added this review. Remember it's a personal view, and others will have had different experiences.

 

The Ship

As many have intimated, the Sun is in need of major cosmetic surgery. We have been on three previous cruises (NCL Spirit, Celebrity Millennium, and Royal Caribbean’s Independence), and in all cases went round each ship in a “wow” state taking loads of pictures showing the glamour and beauty of the ship’s decor. The Sun has none of that, and I didn’t take a single shot of the ship.

 

Given that this is a Baltic cruise, and subject to some average British summer weather, the ship can be cold due to the air-con. I would strongly advise that you take a warm jumper or cardigan.

 

The cabin size was fine, but as many have said the bathroom is very small, and the shower "challenging".

The stewards do a good job, but unfortunately due to the NCL cut-backs the cabins take longer to complete. In our case that meant, on non-excursion days the cabin not being made-up until after 12.00noon.

 

The on-board activities could have been catering for the residents of a care home – e.g. 10 minute mystery with your cruise staff, napkin folding with your cruse director, informal bridge play with your fellow guests, golf putting with your nurse (sorry cruise staff), Wii resort – archery with your cruise staff (yes, Wii games just with a bigger screen) , informal ping-pong with your fellow guests, etc. Some others had a cover charge (fitness classes, alcohol tasting).

Very poor.

 

Some of the lounge acts have, let’s say limited singing talents. The theatre shows were OK – passed an hour. Definitely not as slick as either Celebrity or Royal Caribbean. The exception was Tracey Shield a Celine Dion tribute act head and shoulders above any of the headline acts – wonderful singer.

 

The breakfast scramble is like all the other ships we have been on (apart from Independence where some inside “avoid the crowds” info provided by this forum really helped) so no comments on seating, but we felt the choice at the Garden Cafe at breakfast/lunch is not good.

 

We dined at the Four Seasons for dinner on most evenings, and a couple of times at the Seven Seas.

On one occasion in the Four Seasons, we complained that the main course was a very cheap cut of meat (gristle and fat). The head waiter listened, but no more. So I asked to see someone higher. He took a note of the problem, and our cabin number. The next night a completely different waiter commented on the problem we had had the previous evening, and since we complained the temperature in the dining room went down a couple of degrees.

For example, two nights after the complaint we asked for, and were allocated a window seat, and thanked the girl only to hear as we walked away “let’s jump for joy” . Friendly, no. Professional, they go through the motions.

The menu is very poor. If you take the individual ingredients it’s acceptable, but the combinations were awful – OK everyone’s an expert after watching Masterchef, but if I can see it surely an experienced executive chef should know.

On several occasions I took the “backup” steak and french fries. BTW if you are fed up with french fries, look at the menu, and if there are any vegetables with other dishes you would prefer they might change it.

 

One of my concerns was that allowing cigarettes to be smoked in the casino would be a problem. It was not as bad as I feared, although when you come out of the lift opposite the entrance to the casino there is a definite smell. I needn’t have worried as the relatively harmless gambling $1 a time at roulette (as on Royal Caribbean) didn’t last 10 minutes as the minimum bet on roulette is $5. No more time spent in the casino so no smoke problem.

 

Internet access is only available in certain areas – not cabins. Three time I could not send out e-mails, and obviously lost time as I tried to correct what was an NCL comms issue, and not my laptop. If you want to print e-tickets, or on-line check-in documents leave at least 30 minutes on your internet minutes tab as the system is woefully slow. Also NCL charge 50 cents per page to print.

 

Finally dress code. In some other cruises, mainly due to airline luggage restrictions I have always taken a lounge suit to be worn at both formal and semi-formal dress nights. I did the same again. They had one "Dress Up or Don't" night (I suspect to get the cash from the "have your photo taken with the captain"), but the suit and my wife's dresses remained in the wardrobe. It wasn't that type of cruise. Smart casual, or casual would suffice.

 

The Excursions

I know a lot of people say the cruise line excursions are expensive, and don’t give value, but after last year’s DIY efforts which failed miserably we decided to go on some ship excursions. The biggest requirement for any excursion to be successful is having a good guide.

Copenhagen. The Charming Copenhagen Walk and Cruise. This was a reasonably paced walk through Copenhagen followed by a canal cruise. The guide was good, and very informative. It was cloudy and a bit windy, but very enjoyable.

3.5/5

Warnemunde Didn’t do any excursions as the prices are very high, and the Berlin trips are a very long day (2 ½ hours on a train to get there and 2 ½ hours back). Walked into Warnemunde morning and afternoon, and had a pleasant day in the sunshine.

Tallinn We chose “Gothic Treasures – A Walking Journey” which was very good with an excellent guide. Only downside was that although you get two refreshment breaks, the second is too short to get even a snack as you will be watching the clock to ensure you get back to the meeting place in time.

4/5

St Petersburg The highlight of the cruise. The first day was “The Hermitage and Catherine’s Palace”. The guide was excellent, and the tour was very worthwhile – no queuing at all.

5/5

We had originally booked the evening Folk Singing show, but cancelled a couple of weeks before the cruise as we felt it might be too much especially with an early rise the next day.

The second day was the “Spilt Blood and Canal Trip” with a very early start – meet at 7.45am. Maybe a point to mention is that the times on the excursion order form is ½ an hour later than on the tickets. This is so you meet at the theatre lounge, are allocated a bus number, and then proceed through customs onto the bus to leave at the time on the order form.

Another point is that the clock goes forward THREE times. One hour before Copenhagen, one hour before Tallinn, and one hour before St Petersburg – makes the early starts even harder.

Back to the Spilt Blood. The canal cruise is interesting, but the guide was poor, disorganised (didn’t wait for anyone). The visit to the Spilt Blood was rushed as she quickly went through the history of the church, said we could go to the souvenirs shop, and then meet her outside – no indication of how of how long we had. No time to look around even though it’s very small – this is no St Paul’s or Westminster Abbey. We went outside, and she was 100 yards ahead of everyone. Not worth a tour.

1/5

Helsinki Didn’t go any tour, and stayed on the ship.

Stockholm. Went on the Swedish Experience. The tour was for 5 ½ hours, but when you take off the time to get to Stockholm (50 minutes each way) it’s not long. A quick city tour as we made our way to Vasa Museum. Spend time with guide as we went round the museum which consisted going round the ship. Given 25 minutes free time which is not enough time to see the exhibits about the ship, or if you wish to have a refreshment break. Next stop City Hall – sorry not impressed there must be better places to see. A little more sightseeing from the bus then to a panoramic photo stop. Then back to ship.

If you want to see the Vasa, and see the city from a bus this tour is adequate. Guide was not very good.

Rating 2/5

 

Summary

As you might guess, I'm no longer a fan of NCL, and the latitudes number will never be needed again. I know this sounds snobbish, but I feel it has reached the Butlins at sea stage. The first cruise we had was with NCL, and it was really good, with lots of little extras, and things going on, but NCL is no longer a purveyor of quality.

[Cruise_More_Often]

Rannoch, thanks for your review. The Sun is now one of the oldest (and smallest) in NCL's fleet. DH and I cruised a couple of times on RCI's Monarch of the Seas, and we had the same feeling about that ship -- absolutely no wow factor whatsoever, and the entertainment was awful compared to what we'd experienced on NCL. However, there's no way I would rule out a cruise on one of RCI's newer ships because I didn't like the Monarch of the Seas.

 

The Sun remains one of my favorites because of its size, and because of Il Adagio and Las Ramblas, which none of the others have.

[Cruise_More_Often]

rannoch, I just remembered something I should have mentioned in my first post. My husband and I loved the buffet on the Monarch of the Seas -- much, much better layout and food selection than we remembered from the Sun's buffet. The one thing I loved about the Sun's buffet, though, was the aft area called The Great Outdoors. Did you get out there? It's wonderful during warm weather cruising to be sitting under the huge "umbrella" and eating. The "umbrella" extends up to the area just outside Las Ramblas, so you can take your appetizers from there to the outside.

[rannoch]

 

To the OP - would you say that it appears the ship itself is not being taken care of, with the thought in mind that drydock is coming up? You may have mentioned this, but how was the food in the buffet or the other smaller eateries? Bear with me, I'm completely ignorant to what NCL ships offer and a lot of what I've read pertains to the newer ships in their fleet.

 

TIA

 

The ship is being taken care of both outside and in. I saw painting and maintenance outside, and the ship is very clean inside. After some of the Cruise Critic reviews I expected the ship to be actually more "run down" than it was. The Celebrity Millennium's decor a couple of years ago was much more worn in the cabin than the Sun.

 

The main buffet eatery is the Garden Cafe which serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We used it sometimes at breakfast, and lunch. Breakfast has the usual fare, but if you use the waiter service Seven Seas restaurant you will get more choice. Lunch at the Garden Cafe did not have much choice, and I only ate the sweets, and they are nice.

 

What you need to prepare yourself for is the total bedlam - find and keep a table (not easy), get food, etc. A better option is get your food, and walk through to the Pacific Heights which is exactly opposite the Garden Cafe, and quieter.

 

In the afternoon (I think its called) The Great Outdoor Cafe (aft desk 11) is open for burgers/pizzas, and if you are into things like scones with jam and clotted cream you will get them there along with some other sandwiches.

 

The big problem is that if you want free tea/coffee, and you want to sit anywhere other than deck 11 you need to go to the Garden Cafe/Great Outdoor/Pacific Heights to get your tea/coffee and food then take it to the deck you want to sit. BTW you don't get trays.

There are other bars where you can get tea/coffee, but you need to pay.

 

I think there is a cake/pastry eatery on deck 5 (opposite rerception), but you need to pay. Specialised coffee.

[rannoch]

rannoch, I just remembered something I should have mentioned in my first post. My husband and I loved the buffet on the Monarch of the Seas -- much, much better layout and food selection than we remembered from the Sun's buffet. The one thing I loved about the Sun's buffet, though, was the aft area called The Great Outdoors. Did you get out there? It's wonderful during warm weather cruising to be sitting under the huge "umbrella" and eating. The "umbrella" extends up to the area just outside Las Ramblas, so you can take your appetizers from there to the outside.

 

We used the Great Outdoors sometimes (weather permitting) - hot day - beer/wine nice.