Sun Review 4/9 & Cruising with a 3 Yr Old

[jackson1234]

We’re just getting back from our week on the Sun, and we had such a wonderful time! We wanted to give our review of the ship, shore excursions, and hopefully help other families traveling with little ones. We were on board with our 3 year old daughter, and my parents.

 

 

Embarkation – From the airport, we used the Super Shuttle van to get to the pier. We were amazed at how well organized the embarkation process was. We arrived at the Pier about 11am. After a very quick check-in, we were brought to a huge, air conditioned room with rows of chairs. You were told to sit in a row, and they came over and offered you ice water or OJ, and gave you a copy of the “Freestyle Daily” list of activities to review. About 11:30am, they started boarding the ship, by row, so it was very controlled and quick.

 

The room – We were in Room 9272, and we loved being at the back of the ship because it was closest to the buffet (I’m pregnant, so I was a frequent guest at the buffet!). My parents were in Room 8022, and they liked being off the Atrium and therefore closer to the shops, casino, etc. Both rooms had balconies. I was originally concerned having a little one with a balcony, but it’s no different than a hotel balcony, which has a high railing and posts close together, so there is no safety concern. The rooms had a king size bed (which is actually just two twin beds made up together), and a daybed for our daughter. There was plenty of closet and drawer space for the three of us. It was very quiet also, no hall noise, etc.

 

 

Food – We thought the food was wonderful! We had a number of meals at the buffets, both the indoor and outdoor ones. The variety of foods was great, and we felt the quality was good as well. We also had a few dinners at the Seven Seas and Four Seasons Restaurants, and they were excellent. Both restaurants have Children’s Menus with a large selection of options (hamburger, pasta, chicken fingers, PB&J, etc). One evening, we ate at the East Meets West Steakhouse, and it was superb! When we had boarded, there was a sign at the Restaurant Reservation Desk advertising 50% off the specialty restaurants for Sunday only, so we took advantage of that deal. At any of the restaurants, you can order as many appetizers and desserts as you want, and if you don’t like your particular entrée, you can always get another one. At all restaurants and buffets, available drinks include iced tea, water, milk, coffee, and teas (including herbal teas). We highly recommend attending the Chocoholic Buffet (ours was Friday at 2pm), even if you’re not a chocolate fan. It was amazing to see the ice carvings and all the chocolate sculptures, not to mention all the desserts!! Staff was super attentive to help you carry your tray, clear your used dishes, etc. The “bucket of beer” is a good deal as you get 6 beers for the price of 5 with a refundable deposit on the bucket.

 

 

Kid’s Korner – The Kid’s Korner is divided into a few different rooms – Ages 2-5, 6-9, 10-12, and Teens. Our daughter was in the age 2-5 group, and we were thrilled with the program. The counselors were wonderful – very nurturing, creative, and full of energy. The program runs while the ship is at sea, and the hours are 9-12, 2-5, and 7-10. Each session has a particular theme (Prince/Princess Ball, Teddy Bear Picnic, Blue’s Clues, Pajama Party, Magic Show, etc). We used it a lot in the evenings – we would hit the buffet for a quick dinner for her, drop her off at 7pm, and then we could enjoy a nice, quiet dinner at one of the restaurants. Since our daughter is not yet potty trained, they gave us a pager and paged us when she needed a change. One of the things we liked most about Kid’s Korner was that all the rooms have small windows, so you can check on your child without them seeing you, and you can see what they are doing. On the last day, they gave all the kids a stuffed bunny and the kids decorated tee shirts to bring home. It should not be considered a babysitting service – they are definitely keeping the kids engaged and providing lots of activities, instead of just “free play” for the kids.

 

 

On-board Activities/Entertainment – The kid’s pool was on a separate deck from the regular pool, which was good because the regular pool area was very loud. The kid’s pool had a little slide, and its own hot tub. There were plenty of activities to choose from (I especially liked the cooking demos). The evening entertainment was decent. We were not too impressed with the Cruise Director Patti, but the dance troop (Jean-Ann Ryan Dance Company) was great. Our daughter especially enjoyed the Cirque Pan show and the comedian juggler. My mother and I had spa treatments, and this was the only area where we encountered pushy staff members, trying to talk you into buying their expensive lotions and other products.

 

 

Grand Cayman – We didn’t have any pre-planned excursions, but we were able to “wing it” and have a great day. My husband walked to the Eden Rock Dive Shop, and was able to arrange for a shore scuba dive that morning. The rest of us hopped on a tour van, which was advertised at every street corner, and we went to the Turtle Farm (which our daughter loved!), Rum Cake Factory, Town of Hell, and drove by Seven Mile Beach.

 

 

Roatan – We had booked a private tour with Bodden Tours (www.boddentours.com or email victorbodden@yahoo.com). It was perfect for our family. Victor, the owner, met us at the dock and introduced us to his brother, George, who was our guide for the day. Since we didn’t know much about the island or available activities, we asked George to show us his island. He stopped at scenic spots for us to take pictures, took us to little roadside stands to shop, and showed us some amazing things. We went to Fantasy Island, which is a Beach Resort which has a Nature Park attached to it. We saw deer, peacocks, lizards, and wild monkeys. Then we went to the Iguana Farm, and in addition to the hundreds of iguanas, we also saw turtles, lobsters, eels, monkeys, and parrots. When our daughter got tired, George stopped by the pier to drop off my husband, father, and daughter, and he joined my mother and I for a little shopping, bringing us to the “good” tourist shops. He was a great tour guide, and we highly recommend this tour because it is extremely flexible to your schedule and interests.

 

 

Belize – We booked another private tour, this time with M&D’s Tours Travel (www.***** or email mdstourstravel1@yahoo.com). Again, we were thrilled with our choice. Margaret was our tour guide, and she was amazing. She is just a wealth of information about her country. We started with a city tour, and then went to the Altun Ha ruins, followed by the Baboon Sanctuary (she has different tours available to choose from). The ruins were awesome to see, and we also learned a lot about the Mayan culture and jungles of Belize. The Baboon Sanctuary was a little disappointing, as we expected to see hundreds of monkeys all around. We saw a “troop” of 6 monkeys, but one came close enough to touch, which was very neat. At the sanctuary, it also included a guided nature walk, so we learned about different plants and trees, which was interesting. If you do the ruins/sanctuary tours, be sure to wear sneakers, as there is a decent amount of walking. Whatever your interests for Belize, Margaret likely has a tour for your needs, and she was just wonderful.

 

 

Cozumel – After three days of activities, we decided not to book anything for Cozumel and instead just walked around the shops downtown. We were glad we brought the stroller because it was a long walk from the boat to the shops. The shopkeepers were very pushy trying to get you into their store, which was a little bit of a turn-off.

 

 

Disembarkation – Again, we were amazed at how well organized this process was. You went to get color coded luggage tags, depending on what time your flight departed and how you were departing the pier (NCL shuttle or taxi), and starting at 8am, a different color was called every 5-10 minutes, to try to keep things orderly. The latest you can stay on board was 10am, which was perfect for us with a flight at 4pm. We ended up taking the NCL shuttle back to the airport, and renting a car for a few hours to kill some time. We found a wonderful park in Miami (Amelia Earhart Park), which had a huge playground and very small petting zoo.

 

 

Overall, we had a great time, and would definitely recommend NCL, especially to those with children.

 

 

If anyone has any questions or would like further info, please feel free to email us at staceyljackson@yahoo.com.

[IScubaSlo]

Thanks for the great review. My DH and myself are scheduled for the Sun next Feb 26th leaving out of New Orleans. I havent been on NCL for 10 years and I am looking forward to going back, especially because of the Freestyle cruising. No more packing for formal nights which we dont enjoy.

 

We are booked in 8020 next to where your parents were so I was glad to heare that they liked where they were located.

 

Thanks again,

Cheryl

[jtryan]

Thanks so much for the great review It was great to read first hand accounts of shore excursions.

 

Roxanne