Dawn or Sun?

[Karysa]

BOTH ships are going to the same places (Cozumel, Roatan, Belize, Costa Maya).

 

The only difference is Sun out of Tampa and Dawn out of NOLA. We have been to NOLA several times, never to Tampa.

 

It's the same amount of days and pretty much the same price (with only a $3.58 difference :eek:)

 

I have been on the Star and loved the atrium and also the munchkin loved the space ship pool on the back. So I KNOW I would love the atrium and the dinosaur kids pool on the back as well.

 

However, we have been considering the Sun for awhile now (since we were pulled up beside it on a previous cruise).

 

I just wanted to hear thoughts about either of them and especially the Sun since I know it's a smaller ship. I love ships with that "wow" factor (grand atrium stories tall and beautifully decorated around the ship). I am just afraid that the Sun might be too "blah" for us with not a lot to do?? I do love the great outdoors and I absolutely loved the Spirit (it's my second favorite ship in the fleet that I have went on). I'm just so undecided and thought maybe the fine people off cc could give me their thoughts and the reasons why to help sway my decision. :)

 

I am not a wow factor girl when it comes to ships. My favorite is the beautiful understated Jewel of the Seas with its dark wood and Thai themed solarium and my 2nd faviorite is the SUN because of its wonderful use of its public space. The Observation Lounge and Great Outdoor cafe are where we spent much of our time. If you are looking for glitz and wow then the SUN is not th ship for you. Many NCL staff have told me that their favorite ships of the fleet are the Spirit and the SUN with the wow factor going to the EPIC.

[mitsugirly]

I have to add this...and it's probably a big contributing factor for us...

 

If any of you have read my reviews, we are on the go all the time. You will never find me sitting around reading a book or just relaxing on the deck staring out into the ocean (maybe for a half hour on my own balcony but that's it).

 

I like to stay busy, whether it's just wondering around the ship, at the casino, swimming, going to the shows, shopping or whatever (oh, can't forget eating). :D I just don't like to sit still (even when in port). :o

 

I guess this is why I enjoy the bigger and newer glitzy ships (like the Epic and now the Getaway soon-there's just so much to do and see).

 

But, since this is going to just be a nice little cheap getaway cruise for us, I figured I would focus more on what we will be doing in port instead of the ship itself (not saying I want to go on a boring ship with nothing to do...but ya know?).

[NJLVW]

I have read almost all your reviews of places you have gone and the things you do. They are great. I actually found more to do when on the Sun then when we have gone on the Dawn. I am not one to sit still. I am usually always on the go. The itinerary is the same for both ships. You will find many things to do in each port. I vote for you to try the Sun. You won't be disappointed. There always seemed to have something of interest going on while on the ship.

[mitsugirly]

I have read almost all your reviews of places you have gone and the things you do. They are great. I actually found more to do when on the Sun then when we have gone on the Dawn. I am not one to sit still. I am usually always on the go. The itinerary is the same for both ships. You will find many things to do in each port. I vote for you to try the Sun. You won't be disappointed. There always seemed to have something of interest going on while on the ship.

 

Thanks I really appreciate this. It's a little reassuring to know if I pick the Sun that I'll still be happy.

 

I'm sitting here trying to figure out the rooms on the Sun. :o

 

 

If I book the cheapest category (IX) it's states that they are ONLY located on the 4th floor AND it only shows 4 of these rooms total? Does this sound right? So I would be booking a gauranteed room, which means I would have the opportunity to move up a room category if filled?

 

 

Is there any reason that 4101 & 4102 appears to be bigger than 4103 or 4303?

[mitsugirly]

I just noticed my TA quoted me for a price for an ID category and they didn't mention it was a guaranted room. So I was also looking at those rooms and found these rooms to look HUGE. (4313 & 4314)

 

 

 

Then I found a post from a long time ago on here with pics of the room and it is a totally different set up than I have ever seen on an interior (which I really like how the closet is).

 

This picture belongs to djmess on here:

 

 

 

 

 

I have also managed to find 2 of these rooms (just looking at the blueprints on NCL) on deck 8: 8111 & 8313. Directly above it on deck 9 (in the same location): 9109 & 9312. :D

 

 

If for some reason my TA gets back to me and tells me I am able to pick my own stateroom on the Sun under this category, I'm booking. :p

[DMH15]

I have cruised Dawn once ans Sun 2x with 3rd later this year. My fave. It just suits me. I Like smaller ships, Great Outdoors, forward lounge, Il Adagio are some of the reasons.

 

 

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[NJLVW]

Not sure of your dates but when looking on the deck plans if your TA quoted you an ID category you should be able to pick your room. It looks like only the IX would be guarantee. Hoping to be upgraded would drive me crazy. I prefer higher up then deck 4 but that is just me.. Sometime the way the room is set up has the appearance that it is bigger. I think but really don't know if there really is any difference in size.

[ksimpso3]

It is a toss-up for me. The Dawn was our first NCL ship, and we fell in love with her! We also loved the Sun. We had rooms 1001 and 1002 (connecting mini suite and balcony on front of ship). The rooms were huge!! The balcony room was actually bigger than the mini suite, but mini suite had big bathroom with walk-in closet/vanity area. If the Dawn still had Spinnakers up front, I would most likely pick her, but the whole vibe of the ship has changed (IMO) since Spinnakers was moved to the back of the ship. There is no area to sit indoors and watch the ocean anymore. I also like the Great Outdoors on the Sun. I don't think you will go wrong with either one. Good luck choosing ;).

[don't-use-real-name]

Note my comments in red above. There could be other errors on items I haven't bothered to check.

This is an example of why it's best not to rely on third party websites for information.

 

Adding 22 crew members wouldn't bother me - small trivial details !

 

NOW about the Laundry that poses an unique problem - planning on it being

there and suddenly NOT !

I copied and pasted the info from the CruiseDeckPlans site and viola within 24

hours a correction was made - it got someone's attention to make the change !

 

So if you were planning on doing laundry on the DWAN or any other NCL ship

well plan NO further - you are either doing it in the sink piece by piece or having

the Ships expensive laundry service do it for a price. So you can put those

quarters away for the pay laundry service and use them in the casino betting

that your winnings will pay for freshly laundered digs - you wish !

 

Oh and sorry for the confusion - but all is well now - so clean up your act !

[njhorseman]

Adding 22 crew members wouldn't bother me - small trivial details !

 

NOW about the Laundry that poses an unique problem - planning on it being

there and suddenly NOT !

I copied and pasted the info from the CruiseDeckPlans site and viola within 24

hours a correction was made - it got someone's attention to make the change !

 

So if you were planning on doing laundry on the DWAN or any other NCL ship

well plan NO further - you are either doing it in the sink piece by piece or having

the Ships expensive laundry service do it for a price. So you can put those

quarters away for the pay laundry service and use them in the casino betting

that your winnings will pay for freshly laundered digs - you wish !

 

Oh and sorry for the confusion - but all is well now - so clean up your act !

 

I agree the number of crew is trivial. I included it just to make the point that third party sites don't have official information and shouldn't be relied upon.

 

I also agree that the laundry information is important. We were on the first Gem cruise after their laundromats were closed without advance warning a couple of years ago and we hadn't brought enough clothing for the entire cruise because we expected to be able to use the laundromat just as we had done in the past on NCL. As a result we had to pay to have laundry done in order to make it through the cruise.

[herdingdogmom]

So if you were planning on doing laundry on the DAWN or any other NCL ship well plan NO further - you are either doing it in the sink piece by piece or having the ships expensive laundry service do it for a price.

Norwegian offers a bag of laundry special - $27.99 for all you can fit into a bag. On cruises of more than 1 week, the special is offered several times during the cruise. We have gotten quite good at stuffing the bag and bring along packing tape to seal it up.

Edited March 27, 2014 by herdingdogmom

[Laszlo]

BOTH ships are going to the same places (Cozumel, Roatan, Belize, Costa Maya).

 

The only difference is Sun out of Tampa and Dawn out of NOLA. We have been to NOLA several times, never to Tampa.

 

It's the same amount of days and pretty much the same price (with only a $3.58 difference :eek:)

 

I have been on the Star and loved the atrium and also the munchkin loved the space ship pool on the back. So I KNOW I would love the atrium and the dinosaur kids pool on the back as well.

 

However, we have been considering the Sun for awhile now (since we were pulled up beside it on a previous cruise).

 

I just wanted to hear thoughts about either of them and especially the Sun since I know it's a smaller ship. I love ships with that "wow" factor (grand atrium stories tall and beautifully decorated around the ship). I am just afraid that the Sun might be too "blah" for us with not a lot to do?? I do love the great outdoors and I absolutely loved the Spirit (it's my second favorite ship in the fleet that I have went on). I'm just so undecided and thought maybe the fine people off cc could give me their thoughts and the reasons why to help sway my decision. :)

 

Go with the Sun, my wife and I just booked for February 2015. We went on the Dawn in November out of there. Fly in Saturday morning if you can. The river walk is pretty nice. Tampa has a great aquarium. We plan to stay at the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel & Marina again. It was a $25 cab ride from the airport. The pier is a short $5 cab ride away

[mitsugirly]

Laundry is not even a consideration of mine. :o I wouldn't have someone else do my laundry even if it was free. Idk, that's just me. I'm odd. (Just like I don't do the massages on the beach. The thought of a strangers hands on me...uh no, I'll pass).

 

So far, it looks like the Sun is winning. 24-20. I think I may be booking for sure today. :D Just waiting on my TA to get back to me.

[Laszlo]

Laundry is not even a consideration of mine. :o I wouldn't have someone else do my laundry even if it was free. Idk, that's just me. I'm odd. (Just like I don't do the massages on the beach. The thought of a strangers hands on me...uh no, I'll pass).

 

So far, it looks like the Sun is winning. 24-20. I think I may be booking for sure today. :D Just waiting on my TA to get back to me.

 

When are you going?

[mitsugirly]

When are you going?

 

 

November. :D

[time2cruise1]

November. :D

 

 

We will try and keep the sun in good shape for you as we cruise to Tampa from LA in October.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk - Jim

[ohiotek]

We have been on both ships. There is a very big plus for the Sun the rooms are much, much, much larger. I organized a cabin crawl and saw all catagories other than ocean view. The inside rooms were enormous. The balcony rooms had lots of room and lots of space. Try for an aft balcony the balconies are large. I was in an aft suite and it had a separate bedroom and living room, 2 sliding doors onto the balcony and the balcony was enormous. To put it mildly you can't get a bad room on the Sun. The Great Outdoors is a big plus and the observation lounge was an awesome quiet place.

[mitsugirly]

We have been on both ships. There is a very big plus for the Sun the rooms are much, much, much larger. I organized a cabin crawl and saw all catagories other than ocean view. The inside rooms were enormous. The balcony rooms had lots of room and lots of space. Try for an aft balcony the balconies are large. I was in an aft suite and it had a separate bedroom and living room, 2 sliding doors onto the balcony and the balcony was enormous. To put it mildly you can't get a bad room on the Sun. The Great Outdoors is a big plus and the observation lounge was an awesome quiet place.

 

 

Well hello fellow Ohioan. :D We are just going with the cheapest interior. Can't afford anything else right now with trying to squeeze in another cruise with everything else that's going on this year. Maybe some day.

[DMH15]

Well hello fellow Ohioan. :D We are just going with the cheapest interior. Can't afford anything else right now with trying to squeeze in another cruise with everything else that's going on this year. Maybe some day.

 

Try and see if you can get a sideways i side room. They are nice.

 

 

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[mitsugirly]

Try and see if you can get a sideways i side room. They are nice.

 

 

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Yea, I like the sideways rooms. We have been in one before and it seemed a lot bigger with that set up. However, the sideways rooms in the category I'm looking at don't look as big as the room we picked.

[DMH15]

Yea, I like the sideways rooms. We have been in one before and it seemed a lot bigger with that set up. However, the sideways rooms in the category I'm looking at don't look as big as the room we picked.

 

Ok. Sounds like you have it covered. Hope you like the Sun as much as I do.

 

 

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[luddite]

I prefer the classy old school Sun . :D

 

This.

[mitsugirly]

Ok, it looks like you guys chose for me. The SUN it is. It looks like you all will be getting a review of the Sun from me 2 cruises from now. If only I could have you all pick where to go "new" in each port, that would be awesome. LOL :D

 

 

[djmess]

Ok, it looks like you guys chose for me. The SUN it is. It looks like you all will be getting a review of the Sun from me 2 cruises from now. If only I could have you all pick where to go "new" in each port, that would be awesome. LOL :D

 

 

 

Have you booked the Sun yet??

 

My son and I stayed in the ID cabin you saw pictured. That is actually my son in the pic. It was on Deck 4 back by what I called a hidden staircase and elevator. It was actually a fantastic location and the cabin was the largest inside I've ever experienced.

 

I know there are some threads on the Sun where some of us discussed the layout of that inside cabin we had and that the same layout is also on a few other decks. The cabin was in the 170 sq ft. range. The layout was incredible. If you want, I can try to find the links to the threads that had the other decks and cabin numbers for those large insides!

 

I think I've read most all of your reviews. I know your daughter is quite active. The Sun does not have the glitz, but my son loved the big pool even without the slides. He put on goggles and had a snorkel and would play forever. He's an only child and is great at entertaining himself.

 

I don't know if you are going at off time or prime time. The Sun's kids club is quite small. We went at an off time, but my son had a buddy that also cruised with us. Sometimes they were the only kids in the club, but they bonded with the counselors and had a blast when they were there.

 

There is also this tiny kids pool area with mini baby slide that has a hot tub right next to it. Our 8 and 9 year olds enjoyed playing in the kids pool while us Mom's sat in the hot tub. It was funny as they were really a little big for the kid pool, but no one else was there and they just had a blast. If littles had wanted to play, our boys knew they had to get out and go to the regular pool!

[mitsugirly]

Have you booked the Sun yet??

 

My son and I stayed in the ID cabin you saw pictured. That is actually my son in the pic. It was on Deck 4 back by what I called a hidden staircase and elevator. It was actually a fantastic location and the cabin was the largest inside I've ever experienced.

 

I know there are some threads on the Sun where some of us discussed the layout of that inside cabin we had and that the same layout is also on a few other decks. The cabin was in the 170 sq ft. range. The layout was incredible. If you want, I can try to find the links to the threads that had the other decks and cabin numbers for those large insides!

 

I think I've read most all of your reviews. I know your daughter is quite active. The Sun does not have the glitz, but my son loved the big pool even without the slides. He put on goggles and had a snorkel and would play forever. He's an only child and is great at entertaining himself.

 

I don't know if you are going at off time or prime time. The Sun's kids club is quite small. We went at an off time, but my son had a buddy that also cruised with us. Sometimes they were the only kids in the club, but they bonded with the counselors and had a blast when they were there.

 

There is also this tiny kids pool area with mini baby slide that has a hot tub right next to it. Our 8 and 9 year olds enjoyed playing in the kids pool while us Mom's sat in the hot tub. It was funny as they were really a little big for the kid pool, but no one else was there and they just had a blast. If littles had wanted to play, our boys knew they had to get out and go to the regular pool!

 

 

Awesome. So glad you could chime in on this. Actually, you were the "icing on the cake". When I came across you picture with your son in it and seen the layout of the room, I knew it had to be special. It pretty much convinced me that I wanted to book this ship. I had originally considered booking that cabin, but my TA wouldn't offer me anything on that deck for some reason. So I found the "biggest" looking cabin I could (according to the blueprints) and booked one on deck 8. We ended up booking 8313, which in the pictures of the layout, it looks HUGE compared to some of the others that are on the other end of the ship in that category.

 

 

 

It says that the rooms are 145-172 sq ft, so I'm assuming since this rooms looks like one of the bigger rooms, it might be the 172 sq ft room. I just wonder if it will have the layout yours did. I like that layout. :)

 

 

Yes, if you know where the links to the rooms thread is, I would love that.

 

 

My daughter can entertain herself anytime, anywhere. Trust me. She has no problem doing that. So the ship will be fine for her. She's not too hip on the small slides (like you find on the Jewel or Pearl) after going on the Carnival Dream and experiencing their HUGE twisty water slide. But then again, she has fun on anything. She always plays in the kiddie pool on every ship we go on. So if they have a kiddie area on the ship, I'm sure she'll have a blast no matter what.

 

 

I would say we are going on an "off" time (mid November). We have cruised off season almost every time and there were always tons of kids for her to play with in the kids club. Now I'm kinda worried when you say there were just two. :eek: I don't think I have ever seen that. Hopefully they'll still have it open then. It's her favorite thing to do on the ship. She BEGS to go to the kids club and we pretty much have to drag her out of there when we want her with us. We have found the NCL staff at the kids club are so special.

 

I have seen some pictures of the kids club, but I can't confirm that it's really the Sun, but it comes up a lot when I'm searching. If it is, then it looks like a room I would like to spend time in. :D Is this really it?

 

 

 

It looks like it has windows on the wall that is slanted to look out of. No matter how hard I search, I can't find a bigger picture than this to view it.

 

But then again, when I search, I also come up with a different picture that looks like it's in a totally different area.

 

 

 

It doesn't even have the slanted walls. So I'm confused. Maybe they redid it after they updated the ship?

 

 

Thanks again.