2-11 Review of the Sun

[alexis4014]

First of all, let me say that this was my first cruise ever so I have nothing to compare it to. I absolutely LOVED my cruise on the Sun--as did my boyfriend who had sailed twice before on RCCL.

 

EMBARKATION: Embarkation was a breeze. We arrived at the port around 12pm and were in our (lovely) stateroom less than 30 minutes later. We went to explore the ship and when we returned our luggage was already there.

 

CABIN: Our cabin was immaculate! Our stewardess (Myrene from Jamaica) went above and beyond what I expected. It was pure joy to see her in the hall everyday! We also got towel animals three or four days. I was truly impressed with the accomodations--cabin 9206.

 

SHIP: I cannot find one thing to complain about when it comes to this lovely ship. It was always sparkling clean! I also found it very easy to navigate.

 

ENTERTAINMENT: I will admit that I didn't really see any shows at the Stardust. My BF and I much preferred to hit the Observation Lounge to hear the Sun Show Band or Twice as Nice. We really enjoyed the music and low-key atmosphere we found there. We also enjoyed the Newlywed Game, the Liars Comedy Show, and the comedian Joe Yanetti.

 

ACTIVITIES: Yes, Bingo is expensive. But, it's worth it to play a couple of times just because there's always a chance you might win :) My BF and I were regulars at the afternoon trivia games and met two really nice guys (Hi Ken and Julio!) while actually doing quite well with the questions. We didn't hit the art auction, but there seemed to be a fair number of people there--and a quite lovely Erte piece! The deck parties were fun and really seemed to get people involved.

 

FOOD: I know, I know, food is subjective! Living in the DC metropolitan area, I am fortunate to be able to dine at some of the best restaurants in the country. Having said that, I was VERY impressed with the food on the Sun. We ate mainly in the Seven Seas, with one night at Le Bistro. I cannot think of a time when the food was not delicious. We ate in the buffet most mornings because of early shore excursions. The buffet was typical of any buffet I've ever been to--including ones at the Ritz Carlton, the Hilton, and other fine dining establishments in my area. We rarely ate lunch on board due to shore excursions, but we were not at all disappointed with the food served in the main dining rooms or the buffet when we did. Le Bistro was WONDERFUL and is worth the extra few dollars it costs to dine there.

 

SHORE EXCURSIONS: We enjoyed our trip to Kohunlich in Costa Maya although it was a long ride. Our guide Miguel was very knowlegable and seemed to really enjoy talking about the Mayans. Our trip to Quirigua in Guatamala was also fun. Karla, our guide, was so much fun! Again, the drive to the site was long and the views of the devestating poverty were sad. We did the Shark Ray snorkling in Belize and found that we had a wonderful time despite the weather. Contrary to what many have reported, we never felt anything but safe with the tour operators contracted through the ship.

 

HONEYMOON PACKAGE: For $79, it's worth every penny!!!!

 

STAFF: I can't even think of enough good things to say about the staff on the Sun. There were always smiles, kind words, well wishes, and exquisite service.

 

THE DOWNSIDE: I love to gamble and play blackjack whenever possible. I loved the fact that there were $5 tables, but I HATED the fact that they used automatic shufflers. I'm told this is now common, but in all my weekends in Atlantic City and Las Vegas, I haven't ever seen one. Needless to say, I was turned off of 21 pretty quickly and spent more time playing roulette.

 

Despite the crappy weather and the rough seas, I had one of the best vacations of my life!! I've told every person that I've talked to since my return that NCL and Freestyle cruising is the way to go. I am already looking forward to planning my next NCL cruise, hopefully on the lovely Sun :)

 

Any comments or questions, feel free to respond.

[Hikini]

Glad to hear you had a great time. I've been on the Sun's sister ship, the Sky. Which is now the Pride of Aloha. We've since been on 2 other NCL ships, and love the service and the freestyle cruising.

 

When are you booking your next cruise?:D

[Zeno]

Nice review - glad you had a good cruise. "Twice as Nice" are good aren't they? We saw their act twice when we were on the Sun.

[SV-650-Girl]

Thanks Alexis, it's great to read such a positive review. We're sailing on the Sun next month (our first cruise) and I couldn't be more excited.

 

Out of curiosity, did you book your Guatemala excursion through NCL or on your own?

 

Pamela

[cmdchiefthom]

Alexis4014

 

I'm glad to hear Twice as Nice are onboard again. They were on our previous cruises aboard the Sun and I do hope they're still aboard when we cruise in April. We really loved going down and listening to them in Dazzles. Glad you enjoyed the Sun as much as we have in the past and are looking forward to in four or five weeks.:D

[Stevie17]

I'm glad that you had a good time. Our trip on the Sun in May 2002 was the cruise that really "cemented" my love of both cruising and NCL. I really want to sail the Sun again soon...maybe in 2007!

[alexis4014]

Oops!! I should have mentioned that we booked all of our tours through NCL. As it was our first cruise, we were worried about missing the boat :eek:

[passaporta]

Thank you for your great review. We leave on Sat on the Sun & can't wait.

Suzanne :) :)

[SeeSharp]

I'd like to say thanks for the review. For a while there, Sun reviews were scarce. We are on the Sun in Nov. I'm jealous of folks saying they are leaving soon. November can't get here fast enough. :rolleyes: I also live in a city that is known for it's food and hotels. So far, every cruise I've been on has been comparable. I think some of these negative reviews are folks looking for something to complain about. Wow, not my idea of a vacation. Anyway, thanks for your review, gives me something to look forward to.

 

 

Ry

 

New Orleans

Proud to swim Home

[iluvpalmtrees]

We really loved Twice as Nice, also. They performed in the Observation Lounge on our cruise each night. They are really nice people, very personable.:)

[LTnLittleton]

Hi Alexis,

Thanks for a very nice review. My sister and I leave on April 1st on the Sun and we can't wait. We will definitely check out Twice as Nice.

Lynne