Just back Sun to Alaska-a couple observations

[mbisson]

We got home a couple hours ago from the NCL Sun sailing of Sept 9-16 to Alaska. We (myself, wife, twin 18 yr old boys) had a good time on this sailing but I though I'd list a couple things we observed that caught our attention. Our most recent prior cruise was on the Jewel in Dec '06 and the Sun a year earlier. Both of those cruises were in the Caribbean.

 

FOOD: Yes, everyone has their own tastes, but IMO selection has dropped somewhat in the main dining rooms since our cruise in Dec, not a lot, but a bit (whatever that means ;) ). Normally we do not eat in ship buffets for dinner but during our day in Tracy Arm, we did. Again, it's my opinion only, but the buffet on this ship had as good a selection and better taste than any of our previous cruises!! It really wasn't bad at all and-surprise/surprise-I wouldn't hesitate to eat there again. Friday night (last night) we even went there for a late night snack and saw the Captain walking through the buffet, perhaps he is paying attention to the food there and it's having an impact (I can't be certain this is the reason for improvement but it does seem to be a possibility).

 

I am not a fan of the way they have the waffle and omelet stations in different rooms on the ship than the main buffet (breakfast). I could never figure out how to get anything from one two areas without having half of it cold. Other than that, no food problems. I didn't notice Mac & Cheese on the menu and (on the plus side) sirloin strip steak IS listed as an always available option for dinner.

 

We did eat in Le Bistro and in the Tappanyaki rooms and as usual, they were great.

 

I knew going into this cruise that we were sailing what I consider the weakest itinerary of the 3 that NCL sails to Alaska. The port times are shorter than those of the Star, the Sun goes to Tracy Arm rather than Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier, and it sails to Prince Rupert. This is the first season NCL has gone to Prince Rupert and there really aren't a whole lot of to do there, but on the other hand, the people that complained about a lack of things to do in Rupert are also the same ones that said the other ports are over developed and not "natural enough" so it's hard to figure what some people really want. I though the "friendship ambassadors" that the city had around town to answer questions from the cruisers were great and in time, this will be a good port.

 

BTW-I selected the Sun over the Star due to the sleeping arrangements on that ship in the standard cabins. The Sun std cabins (for 4-at least ours) have 2 lowers, sofa and an upper. The Star cabins have 2 lowers, a bed that slides out and fills the gap between the lowers (sort of a big bed for 3) and an upper. I was fully aware the Star had a better itinerary prior to the cruise so I'm not complaining about the itinerary of the Sun, only pointing out it's weakness.

 

Entertainment was good. I've seen some mention that the CD on the Sun isn't some peoples favorite. She is OK and the CD isn't a major factor for me on a cruise. All the normal NCL activities were on this ship and that's what I expect from the CD. Their personality isn't important to me, in fact, some that do seem to be favorites sometimes strike me as too "perky". One thing that really surprised me was that the sail away show was held in Dazzles lounge rather than the main showroom. Crowded doesn't begin to explain the seating for this show!

 

On our first morning on the ship, we were walking around and when we got to the Great Outdoor Café area, there was a large (15 or so) pod of orca that was within about 50 yards to maybe a half mile of the ship. We watched them for probably 20 minutes and had some great viewing. We also saw many more humpback whales than I think I've ever seen on an Alaska cruise. Normally, with these it's just a quick sighting in the distance, but this time several of the viewings lasted for longer than normal as they came to the surface several times and they were relatively close to the ship.

 

Overall, another good cruise from NCL, no it wasn't perfect, but I think if I ever go on a perfect cruise I'll have to find a new hobby as any after that would be a let down.

 

Oh yes, not art auctions on this sailing and I for one, REALLY enjoyed that ;)

 

Also, to anyone who might've been on this sailing, if you went to the final night Variety Show, one of my sons was the one who assisted Thien Fu and juggled a bit and ate an apple ;) .

 

-Monte

[ute_fan]

Just curious -- were you able to get to the Sawyer Glaciers at the end of Tracy Arm?

[mbisson]

If you're familiar with the area I think you'll understand. . .

 

We got to Sawyer Island where there is a fork that goes to Sawyer Glacier and to South Sawyer Glacier. From where we turned around we could see S. Sawyer, but not Sawyer Glacier itself. With the number of icebergs/growlers/bergy bits in the water (some of them pretty big) I was surprised we made it as far as we did.

 

-Monte

[ute_fan]

We did this one on the Sun a couple of years ago, when she sailed from Vancouver. I was thinking that this late in the year, the chances weren't real good...

 

Beautiful scenery, in any case.

[KeystoneCruiser]

This is the first season NCL has gone to Prince Rupert and there really aren't a whole lot of to do there, but on the other hand, the people that complained about a lack of things to do in Rupert are also the same ones that said the other ports are over developed and not "natural enough" so it's hard to figure what some people really want.

 

Oh yes, not art auctions on this sailing and I for one, REALLY enjoyed that -Monte

 

 

NCL has gone to Prince Ruppert for the last several years. I think it was the Spirit that went to that port last year.

 

Funny, people sign up for these short 7 day trips to Alaska and think they are going to see the real interior, "rough" and "natural" part of Alaska. (and not just on NCL, I heard Princess is having the same complaints.) Its like the Princess rep said at the meeting I attended last week, if you really want to see the real Alaska, you have to get north of Ankorage and 7 day cruises just can't do that.

 

Interesting that there were no art auctions. I would think the new company would be anxious to get started selling art. Perhaps they are waiting until the Alaska ships reposition in a couple of weeks.

[2inTul]

Thanks for the review Monte. It sound like you had a great trip. The Dream stopped at Prince Rupert last summer also. I thought it was a nice port with a lot of potential, though it wouldn’t bother me to never see a Diamonds Int’l there.

 

I’m sad you didn’t get to take picture of the mac & cheese though.

[Droopy_Sails]

Excellent, balanced review, Monte. Have been thinking about doing Alaska (just got the NCL mailing), and this helps us with decisions.

[hunnypie]

Hi Monte,

 

I have to disagree with you on the food. I thought it was terrible. I am not into eating an assortment of food, on that note, I thought the pork (which seemed to be on every menu) was over cooked and fatty. One night in the four season, the waiter had to bring a steak knife to see if I could cut the pork. I did not think the buffets had nearly the variety of foods Royal Caribbean has. My whole week consisted of eating bread (which was delicious) and baked potato.

 

The staff on the other hand was great. Very Friendly!

 

The entertainment was good as well. Including your son, Monte.

 

I didn't think the ship was very pretty. It seemed like it was a lot older than it actually was. Very plain!

 

I had a great time in the ports. It was my husband and I first time to AK so it was all new to us and BEAUTIFUL. We are going back to AK in 2008 but will be going back on Royal Caribbean.

[mbisson]

Hi Monte,

 

I have to disagree with you on the food. I thought it was terrible. I am not into eating an assortment of food, on that note, I thought the pork (which seemed to be on every menu) was over cooked and fatty. One night in the four season, the waiter had to bring a steak knife to see if I could cut the pork. .

 

Well, I can understand at least part of the disagreement. I never ate pork on the ship ;) . And we did eat a large assortment of foods. We've sailed RCCL more than NCL and the only ship we enjoyed the buffet on was the Radiance, but as I say, we all have different tastes in food.

 

Also you might note that I didn't really comment about the main dining rooms other than to say the selection has decreased. But we did feel the quality (taste) may have slipped in there also. But still not to where I'd call it "terrible"

 

And about that kid of mine, he knew in advance that he would be on stage,and I still couldn't get him to dress any better!

 

-Monte

[Zeno]

Great review Monte!

When I was on the Sun in Jan-Feb of this year) I thought there was a small

food "choice" deterioration from our first Sun cruise in late 2004 but it was not enough to significantly bother me. We did not try the buffet much - so next time I am on an NCL ship, I will have to check it out.

[mbisson]

NCL has gone to Prince Ruppert for the last several years. I think it was the Spirit that went to that port last year.

 

.

 

 

I stand corrected. Thanks

-Monte

[mbisson]

Great review Monte!

When I was on the Sun in Jan-Feb of this year) I thought there was a small

food "choice" deterioration from our first Sun cruise in late 2004 but it was not enough to significantly bother me. We did not try the buffet much - so next time I am on an NCL ship, I will have to check it out.

 

Hey Zeno, let us know what you plan on doing in the future. We're thinking about it already but it might be '08 before we can sail again with NCL.

 

I think I should give a few specifics to what I said above about the food:

 

 

 

On board embarkation lunch - what happened to the filet mignon like we had on the Jewel in Dec? I missed that

 

Sail away dinner-Prime rib was about the same quality as my previous couple NCL sailings.

 

Lobster on the next night wasn't as good as on the Jewel, but we still enjoyed it.

 

Had beef wellington one night (don't remember which) it was fine.

 

Ate in Ginza and La Bistro on one night each-both were excellent

 

Did the buffet one night, better than I expected. Still a buffet, but I was satisfied.

 

I'm missing a night-I think I was in a food coma. ;)

 

-Monte

[newmexicoNita]

We got home a couple hours ago from the NCL Sun sailing of Sept 9-16 to Alaska. We (myself, wife, twin 18 yr old boys) had a good time on this sailing but I though I'd list a couple things we observed that caught our attention. Our most recent prior cruise was on the Jewel in Dec '06 and the Sun a year earlier. Both of those cruises were in the Caribbean.

 

FOOD: Yes, everyone has their own tastes, but IMO selection has dropped somewhat in the main dining rooms since our cruise in Dec, not a lot, but a bit (whatever that means ;) ). Normally we do not eat in ship buffets for dinner but during our day in Tracy Arm, we did. Again, it's my opinion only, but the buffet on this ship had as good a selection and better taste than any of our previous cruises!! It really wasn't bad at all and-surprise/surprise-I wouldn't hesitate to eat there again. Friday night (last night) we even went there for a late night snack and saw the Captain walking through the buffet, perhaps he is paying attention to the food there and it's having an impact (I can't be certain this is the reason for improvement but it does seem to be a possibility).

 

I am not a fan of the way they have the waffle and omelet stations in different rooms on the ship than the main buffet (breakfast). I could never figure out how to get anything from one two areas without having half of it cold. Other than that, no food problems. I didn't notice Mac & Cheese on the menu and (on the plus side) sirloin strip steak IS listed as an always available option for dinner.

 

We did eat in Le Bistro and in the Tappanyaki rooms and as usual, they were great.

 

I knew going into this cruise that we were sailing what I consider the weakest itinerary of the 3 that NCL sails to Alaska. The port times are shorter than those of the Star, the Sun goes to Tracy Arm rather than Glacier Bay or Hubbard Glacier, and it sails to Prince Rupert. This is the first season NCL has gone to Prince Rupert and there really aren't a whole lot of to do there, but on the other hand, the people that complained about a lack of things to do in Rupert are also the same ones that said the other ports are over developed and not "natural enough" so it's hard to figure what some people really want. I though the "friendship ambassadors" that the city had around town to answer questions from the cruisers were great and in time, this will be a good port.

 

BTW-I selected the Sun over the Star due to the sleeping arrangements on that ship in the standard cabins. The Sun std cabins (for 4-at least ours) have 2 lowers, sofa and an upper. The Star cabins have 2 lowers, a bed that slides out and fills the gap between the lowers (sort of a big bed for 3) and an upper. I was fully aware the Star had a better itinerary prior to the cruise so I'm not complaining about the itinerary of the Sun, only pointing out it's weakness.

 

Entertainment was good. I've seen some mention that the CD on the Sun isn't some peoples favorite. She is OK and the CD isn't a major factor for me on a cruise. All the normal NCL activities were on this ship and that's what I expect from the CD. Their personality isn't important to me, in fact, some that do seem to be favorites sometimes strike me as too "perky". One thing that really surprised me was that the sail away show was held in Dazzles lounge rather than the main showroom. Crowded doesn't begin to explain the seating for this show!

 

On our first morning on the ship, we were walking around and when we got to the Great Outdoor Café area, there was a large (15 or so) pod of orca that was within about 50 yards to maybe a half mile of the ship. We watched them for probably 20 minutes and had some great viewing. We also saw many more humpback whales than I think I've ever seen on an Alaska cruise. Normally, with these it's just a quick sighting in the distance, but this time several of the viewings lasted for longer than normal as they came to the surface several times and they were relatively close to the ship.

 

Overall, another good cruise from NCL, no it wasn't perfect, but I think if I ever go on a perfect cruise I'll have to find a new hobby as any after that would be a let down.

 

Oh yes, not art auctions on this sailing and I for one, REALLY enjoyed that ;)

 

Also, to anyone who might've been on this sailing, if you went to the final night Variety Show, one of my sons was the one who assisted Thien Fu and juggled a bit and ate an apple ;) .

 

-Monte

Monte, sometimes you and I see things very much alike: I wasn't crazy over the CD either; she wasn't the worst, but certainly didn't do much for me: My biggest complaint period on the Sun is the omelet and waffle situation, especially the omelet. We ended up just eating in Las Rambles most mornings: DD is a true omelet lover. And, I to liked the buffet better than on other NCL ships or on most ships for that matter. Lunch was quite good. One day we ate in the dining room and wished we had stuck with the buffet. I didn't really see much difference in the food otherwise. Of course we all know food quality on all lines has gone down a bit plus food is so subjective. Some seem to love RCI, we have always found their food the worst of any line we have cruised (most lines). The best food was on Celebrity, but again, our first Celebrity cruise offered better food than the Zentihg. It does sound like you had a good time, that's the most important and you have given a very objective view of the cruise and the ship. NMNita

[Zeno]

Hey Zeno, let us know what you plan on doing in the future. We're thinking about it already but it might be '08 before we can sail again with NCL.

 

I think I should give a few specifics to what I said above about the food:

 

 

 

On board embarkation lunch - what happened to the filet mignon like we had on the Jewel in Dec? I missed that

 

Sail away dinner-Prime rib was about the same quality as my previous couple NCL sailings.

 

Lobster on the next night wasn't as good as on the Jewel, but we still enjoyed it.

 

Had beef wellington one night (don't remember which) it was fine.

 

Ate in Ginza and La Bistro on one night each-both were excellent

 

Did the buffet one night, better than I expected. Still a buffet, but I was satisfied.

 

I'm missing a night-I think I was in a food coma. ;)

 

-Monte

 

Thx for details. I generally avoid the buffet except for the occasional breakfast and lunch. We eat a pretty light breakfast and lunch so DH can retain his boyish figure (I gave up on my girlish one LONG AGO!). DH had the prime rib on our last Sun cruise in Jan and thought it was fine. Never had the Beef Wellington - so I will remember to try it, if it is still on the menu when we cruise next.

We probably won't be cruising before 2008 - no decision yet about where but our friend who will probably be cruising with us has never been to Hawaii - so that has come up as a possibility (which is why I keep reading all the NCLA reviews).

[tlm]

As we were on the same sailing, I thought I'd add my two cents worth.

 

The good:

 

We were fortunate to be in an AC penthouse and it was fantastic. The balcony was to die for.

 

Our Concierge, Anca, provided top notch service. Constantly checking with us to see if we needed anything.

 

Our Cabin Steward, Mariano was exceptional. He anticipated our every need.

 

Our two Butlers, Harry and Roel were great but could have easily done without them. Other than breakfast every morning (all they did was put the tray down...no serving) we didn't use them.

 

We only saw one show; Mr. Producer and I thought it was excellent.

 

Teppenyaki was a dining experience that everyone should try. Food was delicious.

 

The ports were great although more time in Juneau would have been nice (not sure how that would have been done though). I loved Prince Rupert. It was nice to visit a place where you're not tripping over cruise ship jewelry stores.

 

The scenary was spectacular...I took over 500 pictures.

 

The weather....we lucked out. Other than a bit of rain in Ketchikan, we had sunny skies.

 

The not so good:

 

The lay out of the buffet was poor. We found it to always be crowded and I couldn't figure out which way to go! (That could be me though! :D)

 

We ate in the Steakhouse twice and both times the service was terrible. The first time our dirty plates sat on the table far too long and we weren't even offered coffee. We tried it again (DH is a steak lover) and found the service very slow. It's almost like the serving staff are new at their jobs.

 

The nights we ate in the main dining room the food wasn't too bad.

 

Didn't care for the layout of the ship. On deck six you have to go through the the disco to get from one end to the other. If there was something going on, like a movie, it was dark and hard to navigate. Also, I ride a scooter and they close the big doors at both ends so if I was by myself, I would have to wait for someone to come along to hold them open for me.

 

The spa. I was over charged for something and didn't realize until later. When I called them I was asked to return to correct it. When I did, I was offered no apology and it was like they were offended that I asked for a refund. Not impressed at all!

 

I got tired of drink servers pushing the drinks. If I ordered a glass of wine they tried to sell me a bottle. It got a bit much at times.

 

Most of the people we met were wonderful but there's always that few that ruin it. Like the folks that practically pushed me off my scooter to get on the elevators first, or the man who sat in the handicap seating on the whale watching excursion and hid the sign.

 

Would we cruise on the Sun again? I think so. We both liked the freestyle concept a lot.

 

Now to the worst part of a lovely cruise....unpacking!

 

 

Toni ;)

[ENGINEER]

Very nice review Monte. We were on the sun three weeks earlier and we had a wonderful time. My wife is allergic to wheat so the matr'de made sure her food was properly selected every night. He went out of his way to make sure she was taken care of. He even had special deserts made for her most nights. We thought the ship was beautiful and the staff was always Fabulous. We took the catamaran to the South Sawyer Glacier. We were within a mile of it. It was the highlight of our trip. All the ports were great, but I do agree with several posters. I could care less if I see another jewelry store as long as I live. We had a good time in Prince Rupert starting off in the Cow Bay Pub and doing a Pub Crawl through town. What fun. We're looking at the Eastern Carribean on the Jewel for February. I'm sure it will be just as much fun.........Keep cruisin.

 

engineer

[DWJW]

We had family members on the 08/26 and I would have to agree with the majority of the comments. We dined at the East meets West steak house twice (sat. & Fri.)and both times the service was not good, the first evening onboard it was as if the staff were new to the restaurant.

One of our best meals was at IL Adagio, without a doubt the best views while dining are from this restaurant and the worst East meets West with it's shuttered windows. We enjoyed the Ginza for lunch sushi twice, and Teppanyaki for dinner once. We do not typically eat the buffets, but the prime rib and suckling pig did look good on our way through. It is not very well layed out and quite crowded especially if the weather is not cooperating and you cannot eat outside at the Great Outdoor cafe. We found Las Romblas empty most of the time during lunch and dinner. After sailing the Star, the Sun was dissapointing somewhat, but she is noticably smaller.

[newmexicoNita]

We had family members on the 08/26 and I would have to agree with the majority of the comments. We dined at the East meets West steak house twice (sat. & Fri.)and both times the service was not good, the first evening onboard it was as if the staff were new to the restaurant.

One of our best meals was at IL Adagio, without a doubt the best views while dining are from this restaurant and the worst East meets West with it's shuttered windows. We enjoyed the Ginza for lunch sushi twice, and Teppanyaki for dinner once. We do not typically eat the buffets, but the prime rib and suckling pig did look good on our way through. It is not very well layed out and quite crowded especially if the weather is not cooperating and you cannot eat outside at the Great Outdoor cafe. We found Las Romblas empty most of the time during lunch and dinner. After sailing the Star, the Sun was dissapointing somewhat, but she is noticably smaller.

Interesting about East meets West, DD and I were not impressed either. certainly I never have been disappointed in the Sun, she is one of our favorite ships, but East meets West does not impress me. NMnita

[newlywedcruisers]

Monte- how crowded was Ginza?

 

Oh btw, just something that makes me laugh, I found out you're old enough to be my dad, your twins are nearly my age.

 

And another btw-- Glad you had fun.

[DWJW]

I am not sure about the week Monte was aboard, but during the 08/26 Ginza was basically empty for the lunches at sea and while walking through to get to East meets West for dinner, it was never crowded. Both day's for lunch there were no more than 10 people in the restaurant and only two other people at the bar on the one day and we had the bar to ourselves the other.

Now the Teppanyaki was booked early (only two seatings per evening), we had Anca the concierge make them for us as the week filled up fast. We are used to only making reservations two day's in advance, so the opening of reservations for the whole week was a bit of a change for us.

It kinda takes away from the Freestyle feel for us since it requires some planning ahead if you want to experience the speciality restaurants.

 

Don

[newlywedcruisers]

I am not sure about the week Monte was aboard, but during the 08/26 Ginza was basically empty for the lunches at sea and while walking through to get to East meets West for dinner, it was never crowded. Both day's for lunch there were no more than 10 people in the restaurant and only two other people at the bar on the one day and we had the bar to ourselves the other.

Now the Teppanyaki was booked early (only two seatings per evening), we had Anca the concierge make them for us as the week filled up fast. We are used to only making reservations two day's in advance, so the opening of reservations for the whole week was a bit of a change for us.

It kinda takes away from the Freestyle feel for us since it requires some planning ahead if you want to experience the speciality restaurants.

 

Don

 

I meant teppanyaki, sorry! but thanks for the info.

[DWJW]

No worries, part of our problem was we had six people for teppanyaki and I think it seats 12 total, the night we ate there it was the six of us and one other couple. This was our first time not eating there twice in one seven day cruise, we love it.

 

Don

[zimmerjulie]

Hey Monte,

Welcome back! Glad you had a good trip. It sounds like even the weather cooperated!

 

We're off for our one night cruise aboard the Sun this Saturday (notice the change of term ;) ). So, where can we go to find the friendly people? Dazzles? Spinnaker? Windjammer? Seems like I remember a story where you encountered one of the "friendliest" sort of fellow passenger-- was it lap dancing that she was doing?

 

(Clearing throat) Anywho...

 

We're trying to decide where to spend our ONE big dinner. Since we won't have much time aboard, I want to spend as little of it as possible thinking :D . Any details about Le Bistro? It seems like it is a great location for ocean views. I didn't go inside the restaurant on our last Sun trip, but I did do some star/sea watching right outside the windows there, so I figure it's a pretty nice location for that sort of thing? How was the service?

 

In the same dining vein,

ENGINEER,

would you happen to remember the dining room or even the name of the maitre'd who was so helpful with your wife's wheat allergy? My friend needs a gluten free diet, and it might save us some valuable time if we had a "source" for cutting to the chase on this sort of thing. If not, I'm hopeful that they will all be as knowledgeable and helpful.

 

Monte,

Was it Linda Minnikin (sp?) that was your CD. I didn't think she was so bad. As long as she doesn't tell that "pot to hiss in" joke, I think I'll be okay.:D

 

Hey, I remember that one of my unachieved goals in '03 was to try the Sangria at the Tapas bar. Anyone try that lately?

 

Thinking back to Prince Rupert, which we visited last summer on our Spirit itinerary....I live in Western Washington, so Prince Rupert was slightly un-exotic;) for me. It was a lot like home, and when we were there, it was pouring down rain, which made it a lot more like home.

 

Sounds like you had some awesome whale viewing!!! It was a first for me to see whales on our last Alaska trip. The Spirit has an awesome terraced deck structure along the aft with a hot tub right at the end. It was the perfect spot for viewing whales during a rainstorm....what a memory! Very cool.

 

Did you do the walking tour with the park ranger in Skagway? We really enjoyed that. Lots of history, with flair. Brought things alive for us, as did the Liarsville trail camp experience of the year prior. Skagway is one of my favorites.

 

Again, glad you had a good trip! I see you're dealing with Post Cruise Depression in the usual way...keeping your eyes out for the next one. Me too. I've got some MBNA points burning a hole in my pocket.

[mbisson]

Monte- how crowded was Ginza?

 

Oh btw, just something that makes me laugh, I found out you're old enough to be my dad, your twins are nearly my age.

 

And another btw-- Glad you had fun.

 

Thanx for making me feel like a fossil newlywedcruisers ;) , but thats OK I suspected I was much older than you all along (50 is such a large number)! I love it when I hear someone refer to me as "Middle Aged"-sure I am, provided they know a lot of people over 100! How did you guys like the Sun?

 

Teppanyaki (seats 12) was full when we were there, the rest of Ginza was about empty.

 

Julie-yes, Linda was our CD. It's not that I didn't like her it's just that to me the CD isn't a big deal. Wrong ship for the lap dance, that was the Carnival Fantasy -too funny that you remembered that story. Didn't do the ranger tour in Skagway as we've done it several times before, it's great though. Instead we went down to the Eagles and saw the "Days of '98" show. It was really good and something I'd encourage anyone to attend if it fits their schedule. Then we walked out to the cemetery and up to Reid's Falls. Had intended to hike to Lower Dewey Lake but by then it was about time to leave (the Sun doesn't stay in any of the ports for long). Like you, Skagways is always one of my favorite stops. I was gonna buy Barb a few diamond bobbles there-BUT I COULDN'T FIND ANY JEWELRY STORES ;)

 

Yep, gotta love those MBNA points! We're at about 700 now and I would like to have 1500 for our next cruise, but we really are having trouble figuring out just where to go. Could be Hawaii, Mexico on the Star, out of Miami, maybe a relocation cruise or (as a long shot) the Mediterranean. Enjoy Sat. night-What cat of cabin does one book when they intend to stay up during the entire cruise

 

-Monte

[GoHuskies!]

Speaking of feeling like a fossil, our "kids" are nearly your age, Monte! Thanks for the updated review of the Sun--we'll be embarking on the 28th in L.A. for the Canal and N.O. Second cruise, second NCL cruise. It's amazing how much disparity there is in people's opinions and perceptions about food, especially. I've always liked buffets because if you can't find SOMETHING that you like there, you probably can't find it anywhere. Besides, I'm OK as long as it's not the old distress signal. :D

 

Where in WA? I lived in Olympia (or Seattle) for almost 50 years.