To Sun or not to Sun...

[cruizinaddiction]

:rolleyes: I've only been on 1 cruise, which was Royal Carribean's Rhapsody of the Seas in Jan. of this year (06). It was my first, and I was totally impressed with the ship, food, and service. We were disappointed (very much so) when we could not get off at our scheduled Grand Cayman port (due to rough seas which limited the tender), but understand that all ships that day were turned away, so it's no reflection on RC.

I have finally talked my husband into cruising with me (my first time was with my mother and aunt). We are located just outside of New Orleans and would like to depart from there. Cruise Lines are returning in October (thank God), after our closure due to Katrina.

For the money....Norwegian Sun has the best destinations and price. However, my mother (who has cruised several times, but never on Norwegian) says she's heard too many bad things about the line to ever cruise with them. However, I'm not as picky. I'm willing to give them a try if I can find out more about the ship and the line from experienced cruisers.

Would anyone here recommend Sun. In comparison to RC's Rhapsody???? I want my husband to be as impressed as I was with his first time. Do you guys think it's worth the trip? Or should I stick with what I know I like? I want to try different lines, but dont want to be disappointed or have his first time be ruined.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

[Big Al B.]

As you can see from my signature, we have returned to NCL for several cruises. We did the Sun from Miami to Los Angeles and spent 17 days aboard, enjoying every minute. I can't help you with comparisons to the other lines.

 

I honestly think you have to look at what your personal preferences are, the places you want to visit, your budget, etc to make a decision. If you like eating at the same time with the same people and waitstaff, being on a ship where on formal night just about everyone dresses up, NCL may not necessarily be for you. The Freestyle concept allows you to eat at any of several restaurants when you want and sit where you want. Formal nights are optional and the dress code is resort casual all the time.

We never had a problem with the quality of service or with the food (there always seemed to be enough choices), but we are not demanding people. We don't eat in the pay restaurants so I can't comment on them. Also remember that the reviews you read online (including this one :) ) represent only about 1% of the cruising public. Personally, I would choose NCL again.

[cassie225]

I will also be on the Sun in December with a bunch of 20+ year olds for graduation. I will be a chaperone. I also have read bad things about the Sun,but also more good. Will go with the frame of mind to have a good time and if NCL is not for me, I won't cruise with them again. We are also right outside of New Orleans and don't have many ships to choose from.

[monicajay]

I see this your first post so I would like to welcome you the the cc boards.

 

I cannot help you in comparing these two ships but I'm sure others quickly will. What I can tell you is that I was booked to sail on the Sun out of New Orleans on the 26th of Feb. We had planned it years in advance because Mardi Gras big weekend fit with my school calendar (Yes, I'm a teacher). We were given the choice to cancel the Sun after Katrina but decided to change our air and went out of Miami. We had selected the Sun only because of the departure port and date.

 

We were impressed with the ship on all fronts. I have cruised before as you can see from my signature so I do have something to compare it to. Our cabin was a sup ll inside and was very roomy, I just wish they had these large insides on more ships.

 

I'm sure your husband will be impressed with this ship as it will be his first cruise and it is a beautiful. You will have to be careful not to be constantly pointing out the differences to him. There will be things you liked better about your first cruise and things you will like better on the Sun.

 

A first cruise is a bit like a first true love. It will always have a special place in your heart. Keep the fond memories but move forward and don't get overly caught up in the comparison game.

 

A last word, remember the apples and oranges analogy. My cruise on the Sun cost almost half of the one on Disney. This must be taken into account when reading reviews.

 

I'm sure you and your husband will have a great cruise, which ever one you choose.

[Don Haynes]

I have sailed on two different lines. They cruise for a week, visit a number of ports of call, sell shore excursions, and charge too much for liquor. Both cruise lines offer the same product, they just do things a bit differently. The main difference was with the main dining rooms, with Carnival there are those formal nights where everyone dresses up, with Norwegian the formal nights are optional and less than half dresses up, resort casual will do every night. Carnival had set dining times and tables, whereas Norwegian didn't.

 

I didn't notice that much difference in the cabins, lounges, shows, food, and/or activities. One ship may have been slightly larger than the others, but not that much. Frankly, I enjoyed both cruise lines. But I will admit I liked NCL's optional formal nights, when I'm on vacation I don't want to wear a suit and tie for dinner.

[Casshew]

Well, I have not sailed on the Rhapsody, but I can tell you the Sun is a beautiful ship, spotless and well taken care of, the crew, servers, stewards are very friendly and helpful and the food was very good.

 

I wouldn't hesitate to recommed the Sun, you should give it a try.

[jtryan]

cruizinaddiction

 

You had almost the same question as me. Our only other cruise was the Grandeur out of New Orleans a couple of years ago. If I understand it correctly, the Rhapsody is very similiar to the Grandeur. We had a fantastic time and wanted to try another cruise out of N.O. We originally booked the Sun for this past Mardi Gras but since the ship moved to Miami, we cancelled. I picked the Sun because of the convenience of sailing from a close port, the 4 ports as opposed to 3, and the fact that the Sun has more dining options. The only 2 things I didn't care for on the Grandeur were the lack of dining options and that horrible smell occasionally found on the ship. Try the Sun - we have just re-booked for Mardi Gras 2007 in the same cabin we chose before.

 

Good luck!

[newmexicoNita]

I haven't cruised the Rhapsody, but my daughter has: I will give you my view from her experience: Her favorite ship was the Rhapsody, her favorite line NCL and second favorite ship the Sun. She and I have cruised the Sun twice. The cabins are quite similar as I have been told. It is hard to say as she had a suite on the Rhapsody and a balcony cabin on the Sun. Why, does she prefer the Sun? She likes the options and freedom to eat where and when she wants; likes the choices of specialty restaurants at a price that is affordable compared to other lines that charge $25 to $40 for the alternative dining and she thinks the crew on NCL is much friendlier and relaxed. I have sailed RCI twice, but not the Rhadsody. Tell your mom not to listen to so much negativism. Most of the problems people have with NCL relates to the older ships that were not built for Star cruise lines, but purchased from other companies. The newer ships, starting with the Sun and Star are beautiful, have every feature you could expect to find and offer value for the money. Another feature NCL offers, for those who like to see a lot in a short period of time: the line is very port intinsive so you will most likely get one more port than on most other lines.

[cruizinaddiction]

i cannot thank ya'll enough. my mind is made up and i'm ready to book and go!!!!! you all gave me the answer that i wanted!!! I'll let ya'll know how it goes and i'll take plenty o' pictures for ya's!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!:D i'll tell you for the price...you get more ports, more exciting ports and all for less????? no question here...i'm headed for the Western Caribbean on the Sun!!!! I'm so happy, I'm doing the happy cruisers dance!!

[madams]

It nice to see positive responses to your question.

We have sailed the Sun twice. To Alaska in 2004 and the Panama Canal this year. She is a nice clean ship with a great crew.

I dont know where all the negative comments come from regarding the food.

I'm sure all of the people who complain about it dont eat in 5 star retaurants every night.

On our last cruise we spent 20 days on the Sun and have no complaints. We love Freestyle. It is the only way to go for us.

 

Enjoy you cruise.

[Mekamax]

We have sailed both ships. We tried NCL and the Sun after a 6 year absence from sailing NCL and have to tell you we had a great time! The Sun is a beautiful ship. Both ships (Rhapsody and Sun) are similar in size of cabins and hallways and bathrooms. The freestyle dining is worth a try - we loved it! Sun is a toned down elegance where the Rhapsody was more brassy elegant. You'll have a wonderful time - so glad you booked! Debbie

[monicajay]

Hey Hey Cruizinaddition,

 

I have visions of the happy cruising dance:D

I'm sure many of us have done this.

 

Now that you have booked don't forget to check on your roll call. That is were you will find the other happy dancers (cruisers) who will be on your ship. You can share your plans for shore excursions, plan a get together (if you want to meet others) and share in the general cruise excitement. It is also where you will find some of the best tips and secrets to make your cruise successful.

 

There are also the Ports of Call boards that will help you plan fun excursions for much less than the cruise lines. In Feb. on the Sun we did:

Paradise Beach in Cozumel. Rented a golf cart and went exploring in Costa Maya, Went cave tubing in Belize (from the one that advertises on this site) and went with Gus in Guatamala. All of our days were wonderful and I would recommend any of these activities.

 

Happy Cruising!!!!

[cruizinaddiction]

where might i find the roll call you speak of?? is it here on cruise critic or on the Norwegian site?? i'm very interested in the excursion planning. cant wait to dive Belize. but i'm divided on the dive or the cave tubing. we also did Paradise Beach in Cozumel. we loved it!!! great food, convenient to dock, beautiful beach, lots of "beach fun supplies" (kayaks, snorkel gear, umbrellas, so on and so on). AND....who can beat the price...we paid $8 each person for all day...all the above thrown in!!! i recommend Paradise Beach to anyone! Although, as beautiful and magnificent as Cozumel is...I know there are so many incredible excursions/daytrips to take. I'm planning on trying the Mayan Sweat Lodge (for spiritual reasons) this time around.

thanks for the great replies. I love this cruise critic site!! its just what i needed!!

Smiles,

Holly

PS we are booked for Jan.28th departure!! YAY!!! more happy dance!

[monicajay]

Roll Calls are here on the CC message boards.

 

Go to the main page. Scroll down past the list of Cruise lines. You will find a section called roll calls. Click on NCL. You will find a list of ships. Click Sun. You scroll through the threads to find your sailing date. It is possible that there might not be one yet for Jan. 28th . You could be the first.

 

Ports of Call are also listed on the main page below the Roll Call.

 

Good Luck and have fun.

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Cruizinaddiction - hello from another Louisianian - we live in Pineville.

I've sailed both the Sun and the Rhapsody out of New Orleans. If you enjoyed the Rhapsody I think you will thoroughly enjoy the Sun. She is a beautiful ship, well maintained and has the friendliest staff I've encountered since the old days of Commodore. I did a fairly extensive review on the CM site if you want to check it out there.

No ship is perfect and perfection is defined differently by each person, so my advise is to enjoy your time aboard the Sun and don't worry about the grouches.

 

We enjoyed it so much we're taking a group with us in November to do it again!

[cruizinaddiction]

After reading all the wonderful replies, I sent a copy of this to my mother. Who now, along with my sister, are going with us. Yep!!! You guys changed MY MOTHER'S mind....I'm standing and applauding you all!!! In 40 yrs, I've never changed her mind about anything...at least not for the better!!;) So, we are going to have a fabulous time. My sister and hubby will handle the beer drinking, me and my mom are already mapping out our shopping plans. Me and Hubby have a couple days just for us to dive and enjoy water sports, while mom and sis do their thing. It's going to be perfect. And I got our cabins on seperate floors, so the family thing doesn't get tooooo close! hehehehe...not really..well, maybe!;)

I feel like a kid at Xmas I'm so excited!! Will I always feel this way, even after my 100th cruise?!?! hope so!!

Anyway, you guys and gals should really pat yourselves on the back, changing Weezy's (my mom) mind is a REAL accomplishment!!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Sailings,

Holly

 

PS. HAPPY CRUISE DANCE FOR ALL!!!!!!:D

[Mekamax]

So glad they booked! I even asked hubby last night if he thought someone would like the NCL Sun compared to the Rhapsody and he said deffinately. HE made a screen saver last night with all the pictures from our Sun cruise last December and made me so want to go on that ship again!!! Debbie