New to NCL ...

[cruisinkat311]

Just booked my 5th cruise, but first on NCL. Been a Disney cruiser since first setting sail but the cost is just too much these days.

 

We are booked on the Sun in August ... heading to Grand Bahama Island and Great Stirrup Cay.

 

Any tips/tricks/things to know about NCL vs. Disney?

 

Is there a formal night?

 

I know there is open bar on this ship but no formal dining rotation? It's just eat wherever, whenever you want?

 

Thanks!!

Kat

[BirdTravels]

You eat when you want wherever you want. The two MDR Four Seasons and Seven Seas serve identical menus. You can wear shorts to all restaurants except Seven Seas and Le Bistro where any long pants is required.

 

NCL embraces “dress up or not” and there are never any formal nights. If you want to dress up (a little) you can. If you are on a Caribbean weeken, stay in shots and eat at Four seasons.

 

No assigned seating. Always get a table to yourself.

 

With the open bar, start at the top of the bar menu and work your way down. Order the drinks you always wanted to try, but would never pay money for.

[rmurray847]

Just booked my 5th cruise, but first on NCL. Been a Disney cruiser since first setting sail but the cost is just too much these days.

 

We are booked on the Sun in August ... heading to Grand Bahama Island and Great Stirrup Cay.

 

Any tips/tricks/things to know about NCL vs. Disney?

 

Is there a formal night?

 

I know there is open bar on this ship but no formal dining rotation? It's just eat wherever, whenever you want?

 

Thanks!!

Kat

 

I've never done Disney, but I read a lot on Cruise Critic. Folks who have done both may jump on me about my generalizations, but I would say to expect a less glamorous, less organized experience. Especially with the "open bar." NCL has a very much "do what you want, when you want" vibe...but that doesn't mean you might not run into lines at the dining rooms, because a lot of people "want" to eat at the same time. But don't be dismayed...the lines almost always move pretty darn fast.

 

The line will feel less "high end", but we've always had great service on NCL, and the vibe is great. Enjoy!!

[Sauer-kraut]

The SUN is a nice ship, make sure you eat once in the Italian upcharge restaurant (used to be called Il Adagio) it is the prettiest dining room with huge window views while dining.

Other than that the SUN has nothing like climbing walls, it does have 2 deep pools on the pool deck and the kiddie pool is tiny.

 

Make sure to go up to deck 12 forward for the bow viewing area, and the lounge up there is pretty nice too.

 

Have fun, just know that the SUN is very low key and won't have the dazzle of any of the Disney ships.

[cruisinkat311]

THANK YOU GUYS!!!!!!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[newmexicoNita]

Just booked my 5th cruise, but first on NCL. Been a Disney cruiser since first setting sail but the cost is just too much these days.

 

We are booked on the Sun in August ... heading to Grand Bahama Island and Great Stirrup Cay.

 

Any tips/tricks/things to know about NCL vs. Disney?

 

Is there a formal night?

 

I know there is open bar on this ship but no formal dining rotation? It's just eat wherever, whenever you want?

 

Thanks!!

Kat

The 2 lines are very different, but cruising is still cruising.

No formal nights: a couple of formal or dress up optional. If you want to carry all that extra stuff for one night, enjoy. Many do, but more do not. Either way you will not be out of place.

 

Obviously Disney is geared to kids and families with all the Disney theme and characters. You will see nothing like that on NCL or other cruise lines for that matter.

 

Cabins are smaller on NCL.

 

The entertainment is more geared to adults. Unless you crave Disney you should enjoy the entertainment more on the Sun.

 

No assigned seating is one of our favorite features. You can choose to sit with others or choose to do your own and you have no one telling you what time to eat.

 

If you have the beverage package which it sounds like you do, be sure and try a variety of drinks; it is fun to experiment.

 

Let me say just one more thing, even though it isn't a busy as some other ships or as glamorous the Sun is still one of my very favorite ships. Enjoy your new experience. :D

[LrgPizza]

You need to realize that comparing DCL with the NCL Sun is like comparing apples to oranges. It is going to be two completely different cruising experiences. There would be less differences if you were on one of the bigger, newer ships, because they have way more bells and whistles and varieties of things to do. I went from 3 cruises on DCL to my first cruise on NCL on an old, small ship. It made me think NCL sucks. Thankfully I gave them another chance on bigger, better ships, and now I like them more than DCL.

[havanadaydreaming]

NCL has a muuuuch better price point than DCL.

 

we were on Sky in Feb and it exceeded our expectations. Grand Bahama (Freeport) did not. we loved the open bar

 

Sent from my SM-G955U using Forums mobile app

[pete_coach]

Never done Disney and normally cruise Celebrity but our NCL Pearl out of New Orleans was great.

Lots of entertainment, food was very good and the ship was very nice.

One big complaint was the amount of smokers and areas dedicated to smokers, including the casino.

[Pens fan]

After 5 Disney cruises, we sailed on the Sun last summer in Alaska and loved it. So much so that we have 2 more NCL cruises booked. NCL seemed more relaxed and laid back than Disney. Probably because there weren't hundreds of little kids running around! :p We loved not having a set dining time and rotation, no formal nights and especially loved not being stuck with other families at dinner. Food is always subjective, but we found NCL to be far better than Disney in quality and variety. But then, we were never really fans of Disney's food. While we never made reservations for the MDR's (and never waited more than a few minutes), we did book the specialty restaurants ahead of time. I was glad that we did as most of the time they seemed pretty full. Cagney's and Teppanyaki were our favorite.

 

Disney fans love to rave about the service they receive (and I agree that it's terrific), but we were pleasantly surprised that the service on the Sun was just as good. The crew was fantastic - warm and friendly without being cloying which I find can be an issue on Disney. (I didn't hear the "excellent" speech a single time! :')) I was really surprised at the bar service. With the UBP, I full expected spotty service but it didn't happen. Especially at dinner, they just kept refilling our wine glasses often without even asking.

 

Shows on the Sun are definitely more typical cruise ship style entertainment, not the big productions you see on Disney. That didn't bother us, as we'd kind of gotten bored with Disney's kid-focused entertainment. We enjoyed the shows on the Sun quite a bit. One thing we did miss, however, was the dedicated movie theater on Disney. We usually take in at least a couple of movies each cruise and really enjoy having an actual movie theater to view them in. We also missed the enrichment lectures that Disney often offers. Other than the National Park ranger narration (which we couldn't hear as we were on our aft balcony) while we were in Glacier Bay, they didn't really offer anything like that on the Sun.

 

While the Sun doesn't have all the cool toys that the larger ships do, we certainly were never bored. But then, give me a balcony, a book and the sea and I'm one happy girl!

[davesgirl51]

The Sun is awesome and cannot be compared to Disney.

[OceanBlueWaters]

DCL was amazing with their themed MDRs. The way they transformed the Dining Room during dining was truly spectacular.

I have only one cruise with NCL (Sky 11/17), but am going on another 10/18 (Escape). Disney was GREAT and the room was awesome (OV). Plenty of room and perfect bathroom setup with kids (Shower area separate from toilet area).

Yes, Disney is bit different, hence the $. The dedicated theater for 1st run movies was also a hit. But again the $ plays into equation.

Rooms are smaller on NCL, but heck, if you can endure the room and get to your destinations/enjoy island(s), then all is good. :)

[MandyMommyof2]

We cruised Disney so many times when our girls were younger. Since they are older, NCL is our preference now. You are going to get all kinds of responses about comparing the two, some will be nice, others will not. No set schedules for dining, you can go when you are hungry. Wear what you want. The dress code is very relaxed. Those are the biggest differences, along with the prices of the cruises. Hopefully you will have your best cruise yet! Enjoy!!

[Pattyblueii]

I have one word....casino!!!

[kregs910]

I haven't sailed Disney but from what I know, I agree it's like apples and oranges.

My DH and I are in our 30s with no kids. We enjoy the adult vibe of NCL. We sailed the Sun for our honeymoon and had an amazing time. Do keep in mind that they tailor the entertainment towards the demographic of that particular ship and route. Your experience is also going to vary wildly depending what sailing you're on. For example, our 11 night honeymoon on the Sun was an older crowd, very few children since it was in November. I'm expecting our upcoming 3 night Sky sailing out of Miami to be very different because of the short length and open bar.

Overall though, we're pleased with NCL. We really liked the any time dining because we always had time to shower after port excursions (we like to snorkel), get ready (I like dressing up for dinner), and grab a pre-dinner drink or two before heading to dinner when we felt like it. No rush to make a particular seating time.

We had the beverage package on our honeymoon and it was great. If you find one of the smaller bars and visit it regularly, the bartenders will likely remember your orders and do things like make a margarita from scratch, rather than one of the pre-filled containers.

I see people dressed up for the "dress up or not" night, it's totally up to you.