Sun Review 1/29 - 2/6/05 Part One

[zeerumcakes]

We've been back less than a week and just have to share about our trip. By the way, our log in name "zee rum cakes" is courtesy of a song we could not get out of our heads from our first port in Cayman.

 

This was our third cruise on NCL. We did the Sky, the Dawn and now the Sun. We may not be typical cruisers in the fact that what we didn't like about the Dawn was that there was just too much food everywhere. You'd go to a bar to watch the sunset, and they'd be grilling burgers and frying fries! We liked the Sun much more.

 

We were in a balcony cabin on the 10th floor. Of course, I overpacked, even after my pledge for just bathing suits and tank tops, and of course a nightly outfit! We live in South Florida and thought it was a bit cool, so the day before the trip, threw in extra clothes. Even with the overpacking, we still had plenty of room for the 2 of us. One tip--bring post its and pen. They don't have any paper in the room, and if you want to leave your spouse a note, or the room attendants, the post its are handy.

 

Embarkation: We were coded as VIPs, so were whisked through the line. We got there at 11:40am and were in our room by about 12:15pm, I'd say. Even if you're not VIPs, the lines weren't that bad, and seemed to move orderly.

 

Sailaway: Went immediately to the deck. We had 2 complaints on this cruise, and both pertain to the pool. First, the bar staff definitely is pushy. We are drinkers and throughout the cruise, we'd have buckets of beer. If you still had 2 beers left, they'd ask you to buy more. Again, we're drinkers and my husband's in the hotel business, so we understand the "game" of it. But it did seem more pushy than other cruises. And please know, when you board and they offer you that first tropical drink--it's not for free. We saw more people pick it up and then put it back down again after hearing the price.

 

Our second complaint and it almost became comical throughout the cruise is the house band, Roots, didn't play very much. Sure, they're on the daily for several times a day, but if you watch your clock, they typically started 10 minutes late and would finish early. We were amazed management lets them get away with this. It made the sailaways not as good. Roots, when they're playing are good. They just don't play much.

 

Oh, one more complaint, and again around the pool. We're really big on having cocktails during sailaway. Why doesn't NCL open the bar on deck 12 for Sailaways? Champs is closed, but you can still get drinks on 11. Just seems like they're soo pushy around the pool, yet close a bar that's ideal for sailing out of the ports.

 

We went to Seven Seas the first night. I knew I wanted to go to Le Bistro the day at sea night, so just seemed logical to try the main restaurant. It was fine. Typical cruise dining, good service, but just adequate food. That was the only night we ate in the main restaurants. The other nights we did specialty restaurants, pizza or Las Ramblas. I'll describe the restauratns later.

 

First Day at Sea: Windy. We were on the pool level, not the top deck, and it was still pretty windy. Of course, the pool chairs were taken by 9:30am, but I wandered up to 12 forward, and there were still several chairs available. After we had been sitting there for 2 hours - no lie - 2 hours, a lady came by and said to her husband, "oh, someone took my chairs!" She was saying this about the 2 chairs next to us, but it really is amazing how long people hold chairs and don't come by. Suffice it to say, there are plenty of chairs, you just may have to go up to 12 which is a bit more quiet. And don't be shy about asking people when was the last time the chairs you want have had people at them. I'm not saying my husband and I didn't leave our books on the chairs while we grabbed lunch, but if chairs are left unused for 2 hours, (or whatever time you deem) then go for it. NCL doesn't monitor this at all, but every cruise has this issue. Also, if you're a family of 4 and you know your kids are going to be coming and going, be fair, and don't take 4 chairs. Just my thoughts on this always hot topic.

 

For lunch we did Pizza in Pacific Heights, again we're not huge eaters, and the thought of hot meatloaf for lunch just doesn't appeal to us. We're not saints, however, Sprinkles was frequented a time or two for ice cream.

 

Dinner at Le Bistro, I remembered it from other NCL ships and do enjoy this. I had the caesar salad (which to our surprise, they didn't toss tablside) lobster (didn't realize it cost $25 extra) and chocolate fondue. Caesar wasn't as good as I remembered from before, but the lobster was excellent. It was Lobster night on the cruise - and for whatever reason, I just assumed it was included. My mistake. To pay the $30 cover charge ($15 each) and then another $25 - it was really, really good, but I wouldn't pay that much again. Chocolate fondue was good, and my husband liked his filet.

 

We're not big show people, so strolled around, watched Bobby in Windjammer doing Frank Sinatra songs and called it a night. Ok, I'll admit it right now. We were in bed by 10 or 10:30pm every night. So if you want a review of the shows, the clubs or the casino - save your time and go elsewhere. If you want a review of the restaurants and the ports, keep on reading.

 

I'll do part 2 in a few minutes. Want to get this off and running in the system. Hope you enjoy.

[zeerumcakes]

Cayman Islands:

This was the one day we had booked through the ship for their excursion. I had wanted to just snorkel at Cheeseburger reef on our own, but 3 days before we left, my husband said we should book something. I was so busy researching Belize, I just booked through the ship. What do you know, it was cancelled. Not because of the current weather, but because of the hurricanes. Us being from Florida knew all about the hurricanes, so we didn't get to go on the sailboat.

 

We've been to Cayman before and I'm just not a fan of Sting Ray City. Been there once, and I don't like how the stingrays all swim up against you, so I knew I didn't want to do that again. It's hard to find a snorkel trip in Cayman that doesn't include this. That said, if you've never seen it, go see it. the kids love it, as do many adults, and it is pretty amazing to think these creatures are that docile in the ocean.

 

So we just hung around the shopping area looking for a watch we never did find (I'm still looking on Ebay!) We had lunch at Abanks right along the water to the right of the piers. Great spot for lunch. Food was good, and it had a great atmosphere. You could watch the snorkelers from the deck. I was going to go in, but after talking to a few girls coming out, decided to wait for Roatan.

 

My last trip to Cayman I booked through Capt. Bryan's. He doesn't get as much attention on these posts as Capt Marvin's or Nativeway, but I really enjoyed Capt. Bryan's. I don't have much else to say about Cayman, to me, it's much like St. Thomas for the shopping aspect and beautiful beaches. I really need to spend more time there and explore more of the beaches than just the port area.

 

Evening:

We had the Latitudes party to attend, followed by the Captain's reception. Boy, we have more parties tonight than we do back at home. Good rum punch at both parties, and it was at the Captains parties that we by chance met our new friends who we ended up spending the next few days with. More on that in a minute.

 

Since we had many hors d'ouevres and drinks at both parties, we skipped dinner and just got ice cream at Sprinkles. And, you guessed it, went back to our room!

 

Roatan:

 

Please check out Cradawg's post of his Sun Review, for more details on all the shore excursions, but all in all, he and I did the research of these new ports, while our spouses just sat there and looked pretty! Hey, good for us, we ended up on great excursions in Belize and Roatan. And our spouses thought we did a great job.

 

I didn't know what to expect in Roatan, and used the Ports of Call threads on these boards for ideas. One thread led me to another, and I somehow ended up at Salty Dog with Capt. Dusty. I showed this and another one to my husband, and he took one look at Salty Dog and said we must do that one. The 37 foot sailboat holds only 8 people. Capt. Dusty told us he had one other couple from the Sun, who turned out to be Cradawg and his new bride, so while they were probably disappointed that they didn't have the boat to themselves, we were thrilled that we liked the two of them. Word to the wise, confirm the ship's arrival time and double confirm it with Capt. Dusty. We ended up waiting around for 2 hours for him, when we could have taken a cab to the West End and just hung out there.

 

He also ended up booking a group of 5 women. They kept to themselves, and the 4 of us kept an eye on the coolers of beers on the boat. After the initial confusion, what a wonderful way to spend the day. His boat was the newest of any we took that week, and he really did a good job of making the day enjoyable. It's true sailing with keeling and waves crashing over the boat, so I would say it's probably not as suitable for small children.

 

Now a note about Roatan. Get off the boat. It is a third world country, you know that, but it's beautiful. That said, I would strongly suggest booking a shore excursion. There's not a lot about Roatan on the posts, and don't think you can walk into town and shop for that Michelle watch that became elusive. As soon as you leave the government area, a child or someone, will walk with you and act as your "tour guide" until you give them money. We had a small boy of about 8 and adorable as he was, it was sad to see him have to do this. My new friend and I each boat a beaded necklace for $5, but beyond that and a few stores, you can be done walking around this small area within 30 minutes. Don't waste this port day going back to the ship. I'm not saying to book with one of the many people hawking along the fence when you arrive at the port, but do some research, or book through the ship and go explore. If you like beaches, check out West End. Salt 'n Pepper is another outfit I researched, and he was there waiting for his guests. I certainly recommend Capt Dusty, but if that's not your thing, find something, because chances are you won't be back. The West End is much more charming than I ever would have thought. Also, many people say to bring bug spray. Cradawg and I - being the super planners that we were - we packed it, but out in the water all day, we didn't need it at all. Can't comment about the beaches.

 

Evening:

Well, we're all set for our sailaway cocktail, and what do you know? The bar closed. Cradawg and his bride invited us back to their suite. If you get a chance to see a suite- if you're like us and too cheap to book one! Go see it. Boy does NCL do them up nice. We spent 3 nights with Mr. and Mrs. Cradawg and a bucket of beers on their back balcony. Mrs. Cradawg, was ever the hostess ordering from her butler some snacks, and then we left the newleweds so we all could change for dinner. As much as we enjoyed our new friends- we never dined with them. They were strictly 8:30pm and we were the early birds 7:30pm!

 

We went to il Adagio and I loved it. The veal chop was wonderful. I also had the mushroom ravioli for an appetizer and because I wanted one of the 3 risottos, the waiter brought us a whole plate of the trio of pastas to share. No dessert for us! I must say, I liked il Adagio the best. I really thought it was better than Le Bistro. Their cover charges are so close - $15 for Le Bistro and $12.50 for il Adagio, go to whichever you like best, but do try them both.

 

You guessed it, off to bed! By the way, even though I mentioned we're from Florida and do the Early Bird - this was my 40th birthday. We're just much more morning people than night people! Where was Cradawg at 6am???

 

Part 3 to follow later.

[coka]

It is great to read the reviews from both perspectives! I look forward to more!

 

Coka

[zeerumcakes]

Belize:

this was the whole reason we booked this cruise, I had really wanted to go to Belize. But because I was researching so much, I just kept getting more and more confused. I think I'll do a post on the Belize ports of call, because it seems much more clear to me now.

 

Luckily we had met up with Cradawg and they, too, had the same dilemna. We knew a lot about Belize, just hadn't decided on how to plan the "perfect day." Boy, did we end up with the perfect day! The four of us decided to go to Caye Caulker, Crawdawg led the way on this venture. We booked the water taxi, and I was the worry wart of the group worried would we make it back in time. It's a 45 minute water taxi to a pristine little Caye. We absolutely loved it. We knew we had selected the right beack to go to. The ship booked Rendevous Caye, and I had wanted to do Goff's Caye, but I would go back to Caye Caulker in a heart beat. It had tiny colorful cottages mostly offering snorkeling stops. Several little cute restaurants offering very cheap lobster, too! Sandy road, and just a quaint little island.

 

Cradawg ran across Reggaemuffin Tours and before we knew it we had an authentic Belizian sail boat for just the four of us. They apologized that they had to charge us for 6 people, oh, darn, it came out to be $70 for each couple! Now, it didn't include rum punch and beers like Roatan, but think about it. Here we are off a cruise ship with a few thousand people and a number of other cruise ships in port that day, and we end up on a 35 foot sail boat--just the 4 of us. Wow, it just was amazing.

 

We sailed some, and then the captain took us to Shark Ray Alley. If you read the first part of my review, I'm not a fan of stingrays. Well, let me tell you...it was awesome. Of course I was the last one in the water, and the nurse sharks had me a little on edge, but when I realized that they don't bother you like they do in Cayman, it was pretty neat. I got pretty brave at the end, swimming above a family of 3 spotted eagle rays, too.

 

The captain snorkeled with us, and knew the names of so many fish. We snorkeled 2 sites. Shark Ray Alley, and then further up to the reef. The reef had a drop of about 25 feet, and crystal clear waters. Definitely recommend this.

 

Well, it's now past 2pm and the captain is still out there with us snorkeling. Worry wart, me, says we need to get back. We had to be on the 3pm water taxi to get us to Belize City by 3:45pm for a 4:30pm ship departure. After getting back to land, I ran ahead to secure a spot in line. I wasn't the only one there! Others were concerned, too, about making the 3pm water taxi. Well, who would have thought! They actually have 2 water taxis at 3pm because they understand the ships' schedules. So everyone made it back safely. Did a bit of shopping, guys did the Wet Lizard Bar, which they loved, and then we were just about the last ones back on board the ship. The four of us all were just in awe of what a perfect day we had in Belize. It really was that wonderful.

 

Evening:

Back to Cradawg's suite with buckets of beers and butler's snacks. Life just does not get any better! We were really enjoying our new friends and just loving that in the midst of thousands of people that the 4 of us had a day to remember.

 

My husband and I chose the Teppanyaki table that evening. It's priced a la carte, and well worth it. It's been ages since we've gone to Benehana (sp?) because it's just too much food, but after our day of snorkeling, it was perfect. We met another nice couple and it didn't even bother us to hear they booked their entire cruise 3 days in advance for $400/person --which included flight from Minnesota! Can you believe it? We were happy for them, and it just shows you, travel consolidators are out there, and not many people can be that flexible, but if you are--wow, what a deal!

 

Cozumel:

Since we determined the night before that Cradawg was crowned "Shore Excursion Extraordinare" I was second-guessing my own planning skills for Cozumel. Cradawg and I were both set on the separate boating/snorkeling adventures we had booked and I was beginning to wonder if we should just cancel ours and change to theirs! We decided to keep ours, they kept theirs, and we promised to meet at Pancho's Backyard or on the boat for Sailway and to compare notes.

 

We know Cradawg loved their trip, but I must say, I'm really glad we kept ours. I had learned from the posts here, about Eagle Ray Divers. Chellie and her husband run a first-rate operation. I promised to post on the Cozumel site, too, but let me tell you some about it here. We were promised a 6 hour trip including lunch at a beach, 3 snorkeling stops and a cooler of cervezas and sodas.

 

We weren't leaving until 10am, so we shopped first for that watch once again. The stores don't open too early in Cozumel, so if shoppping's on your agenda, I'd encourage you to enjoy breakfast on the ship and go at your leisure off for shopping. Some stores don't open until 9:30am. By the way, we counted 6 ships in port that day!

 

So we then take a cab to the marina. I was slightly disappointed at first that it was a snorkel boat vs. a sail boat like we had the last few days, but my husband loved the character of the boat. He thought it was great. Well, they said we were waiting for 4 more people. Again, I was getting disappointed. I saw one little cooler, and I thought if the 4 were like Cradawg and my husband, we'd surely run out of cervezas! Chellie assured me we'd be fine and she hadn't finished loading the coolers! (oops!)

 

Good news, the 4 people turned out to be a family of 4. Mom, dad, and a 7 year old and 9 year old. The beers were safe!! Not only that, they only stayed on the boat for about 1 1/2 hours. They were cold and wanted to get in some shopping. So Arturo, our captain, pulled over to a beach resort(there are several along the shore) and out they hopped. So there we were--my husband and I with the captain and first mate. There are 6 cruise ships in port and we were on a shore excursion by ourselves!

 

(Roatan we had 9 people, Belize was 4 people, and now Cozumel the 2 of us. We really had awesome experiences!)

 

Now let me tell you about the snorkeling. Our first stop was down a bit from the cruise ships but you could still see them. I had been snorkeling here before and it's fine. I was hoping Eagle Ray would venture somewhere unique, but it was fine. The water was colder than we had anticipated and I got stung a few times by pesky little jelly fish. Not the big ones like you read about. These were just annoying.

 

2nd stop - Arturo had some chum to feed the fish. Holy cow! My husband and I, who are experienced snorkelers, and he dives, we have never seen this one type of fish. It's a giant Rainbow Parrotfish. No lie, 4 feet long. It dwarfed all the other fish we were seeing. It was truly amazing. As soon as the fish was gone, they were gone, and you couldn't even see them in the water. We're not sure where they hide, but they hide. He also took us to see starfish (big ones) and sand dollars.

 

3rd stop - The Wall. Primarily for divers, it's amazing coral, and then a straight drop 500 feet. Wow! I felt like Nemo in Finding Nemo. I'd go to the edge of the coral, swim out over the wall and then hurry back to the coral again. Once over the wall, all we'd see are the bubbles from the divers below. It was fun snorkeling through their bubbles!

 

Then off to the beach for lunch. Choice of club sandwich, burger, quesadillas or chicken tacos. We opted for quesadillas and invited Arturo to join us. On the beach, we did buy a few beers - too far to walk to the boat and get free ones- and it was nice sitting in the sun hearing how Arturo, our captain had a masters in marine biology. He was a very kind and interesting man.

 

He offered us to stay at the beach - but we wanted the boating experience. How often can you be in Cozumel on a boat with no one but your spouse and the crew?! It took about 45 minutes to boat back, and many cervezas later - we were drinking them between snorkel spots - it was time to say goodbye to Eagle Ray.

 

We knew we scored huge on our shore excursion and were anxious to hear about Cradawg's day. However, at this point, 3 snorkel spots, and 6 hours of drinking and boating, we were whipped. We had said we'd meet them at Pancho's Backyard, but just couldn't do it. Of course, being the planners that Cradawg and I were, we had a plan B. Meet on the boat.

 

We all met on the boat by the pool, and once again enjoyed sailaway from their suite. We were so tired, we just went to Las Ramblas for some tapas, and called it a night.

 

Las Ramblas seems so underutilized. It was always empty, unless they had entertainment. But if you want a light snack before dinner, or want to make tapas your dinner, it's a fine place to go. Decorated great, and we enjoyed the variety of the tapas.

 

Only bummer was we knew the next day was our last day. We were greatly looking forward to lounging by the pool. Vacations are supposed to be relaxing and we were just plain exhausted!

 

Sea Day

Up early, as usual. I didn't mention it but the first few days we were exercising in the fitness center. It does get crowded around 7:30am, but is free most of the day after that. Nice facilities, not as big as RCCL, but neither is the ship. However, on this last day, we said "no" to exercise and just made our way to the pool and breakfast.

 

Big bummer this day, it was cool, cloudy and eventually rained. Oh well, at least it was our last day and the whole cruise had been picture perfect weather. Low 80s and sunny. We still stayed by the pool a few hours reading and relaxing, and then basically went to the room to pack. After that, it was time to look at the pictures, do some shopping on board, and lunch! Ironically, we only talked to 2 couples our whole cruise--Cradawg and the couple from the Teppanaki tables. We all had lunch in Pacific Heights! I like NCL's pizza and really liked the atmosphere in here for lunch vs. Garden Buffet. Never even thought of formal lunch in Four Seasons.

 

Last night - we went to il Adagio again. I did the carpaccio app and the veal chop. My husband had the mushroom ravioli and the lamb shank. We shared the pasta again and didn't even venture to dessert! I really enjoy this restaurant and hope you do, too.

 

Debarkation:

We had VIP departure tags, and made our way to Four Seasons until we were cleared to leave. We offered to take Mr. and Mrs. Cradawg to the airport, and we said our goodbyes to Ray, the concierge. One note on Ray, very charming man, made for his job. He makes it seem easy. We only used him 2 times to make dinner reservations, but I'm sure if you have need to use him more, he will not disappoint. He truly enjoys his job.

 

Instead of going straight to the airport, we took our new friends, across the causeway, past the islands and down to South Beach. What the heck, let's show off a fun spot in Florida. If you have time to do Miami, pre or post cruise, we always love News Cafe. Food for everyone, and gives you the flavor of South Beach.

 

Said our good byes to our new friends all the while retelling stories from Belize. It was a wonderful trip, and will give us many smiles through the years remembering how in a sea of cruise ships, my husband and I and our friends had such wonderful shore excursions! Hope you enjoy your cruise, too.