sun 1/23/07 long and probably boring....

[cradawg]

just back from new orleans. we had a great trip, but not as good as the first time we were on the sun. the new hull art looks really good. didn't notice too many other things that had been changed in dry dock(but it had been 2 years since we were on the sun). we were in an aft mini suite on deck 9 and really enjoyed the room and balcony. our room steward didn't do as good of a job as i thought she would. she was very nice and smiled and spoke to us every time we saw her, but there were some things left laying around(used glasses and dirty coffe pot)that i thought she would get. it was not a big deal at all, just something we noticed.

the weather was not perfect, but not bad enough to be a bother either.

 

 

ports of call-

 

ports of call were costa maya and cozumel. in costa maya we hooked up with some guys that used to work for us here in the states. we hung out with them all day and ate ceviche and drank sol on the beach. the wives got massages and drank margaritas. we had a great day hanging out with old friends, and we were happy to find them doing well off the tourist industry.

 

in cozumel we chartered a boat with albatross charters and snorkeled and got to fish a little. we pulled a few lines as we were heading to the snorkel spot. my buddy, his wife and my wife all got to catch a bonito. so that was pretty neat. the snorkeling was so so, and i thought it was getting a little too rough for the girls(one was a newbie)so we had them take us north to playa azul were we hung out and ate lunch. i would have liked to gone a little further north up to passion island, but after we ate we decided we'd head back and let the girls do some shopping. by the way, make sure you take small bills into ports. we had nothing but 100's and making change is a pain in the tail. we ended up giving the cabbie a $92 tip because after 45 minutes of trying to make change we said forget about it. we even went into at least a dozen stores and tried to by stuff so we could get change, but they wouldn't take our bennies. oh well, we only lost $92 there which was a lot better than what we faired in the casino.

 

 

food-

 

we ate at the sushi place the first night, and we really enjoyed it. my buddy was scared to eat the sushi so he ordered dinner from east meets west. the second night we ate at le bistro. this was our favorite place on our last cruise, but it was very dissapointing this time. the service was lacking(took forever), and the food was just ok. it was not terrible, but did not meet our expectations. the third night we ate at il adagio. the last time we cruised the sun this was just so so for us. this time around it was great. great service, great food and as always a great atmosphere. it was funny how our opinions changed on those two places. the fourth night we ate in the 7 seas. it was ok. nothing great nothing terrible. this was the first time we had eaten in one of the main dining rooms, and i have to say that i like the cozier restaurants better(just opinion). the last night was back at the sushi bar, and even my buddy ordered the sushi and enjoyed it.

 

the buffet for breakfast and lunch was fine. kind of like upgraded school food, but is fine for a quick filler. the omlet station was very good as was the sandwich bar.

 

the ship was a little late getting into new orleans. i had stayed up waiting for us to enter the river(have fished that area many times and think it's neat entering or leaving the river from any of the passes), but i went to bed before we did. the map on the screen was showing us right outside southwest pass, but we weren't entering. instead the captain was swinging the back of the ship back and forth. i figured we were waiting for another vessel to come out of the pass. evidently, there were several entering and leaving the river and he was just holding the ship waiting for clearance to enter the pass, and this was the reason for the delay. while he was holding, i'm not sure if we hit bottom a few times or if there was a malfunction in the thrusters or something else, but there were several hard bounces and loud noises(i'm sure it was magnified because of our cabin location)during the approach to the pass. my buddy asked me what it was, and i told him there was a huge cargo area under our cabin and it was probably a fork lift dropping a pallet or something. he said ok. the next morning he said he had thought about that and was calling me out. at least i had him going for a little while.

 

one thing i noticed on this cruise that i didn't notice on our other sun trip was that there were some strange folks on this one. i don't want to be mean, but if any of you saw the guy with the big pink hat you know what i'm talking about. impromptu singing out loud in public places is just kind of wacky. it made for great people watching, and it did look to me like the guy with the big hat was enjoying himself albeit making johnny cash roll over in his grave with his singing.

 

anyway, we had a great time, and i hope all of you traveling on the sun in the future do as well.

 

btw, before we cruised i had posted a question on here about kalik and carib, and did not get any helpful information on the subject. so for you kalik and carib drinkers out there go to the sports bar and you will be rewarded. just don't freak when you order a bucket and see the price tag!

[BeachBumMama]

Nice review, sounds like you had a great time. I'm laughing at the man in the pink hat! Couldn't imagine a singing outburst, I would have chalked it up to being part of the 'entertainment'! Did he have a tin can for tips? LOL

[alliem]

Thanks for the review cradawg. I have one question:

 

Were they selling the buckets of beer - (helmets) buy 5 get 1 free? Before dry dock they were - and we sail in March - wondering if I should get a bar setup with Beer or not. Thanks!

[cruisequeen10]

could you tell me and anyone else interested, which of the restaurants were the "no pay" ones. I was on the Sun 3 years ago and did not realize that some of the restaurants were "no pay", just had to make a reservation.

[hawaiibound24]

We were on this cruise as well. It was nice, however the weather could have been better. It rained the first day at sea, and we didn't see a lot of the sun, lots of clouds. We still had a great time. A couple of things, many posts were made on this group about East meets West being converted during drydock. It was not. Also, the scrambled eggs on the buffet where runny and terrible...... I Know this sounds picky but they were.

[Cruiser from MN]

Thanks for the review cradawg. I have one question:

 

Were they selling the buckets of beer - (helmets) buy 5 get 1 free? Before dry dock they were - and we sail in March - wondering if I should get a bar setup with Beer or not. Thanks!

 

 

I was on the Sun this past October and they were selling beer by the helmet as you indicated above.

[cradawg]

beach bum mama- he didn't have a tin can for tips, but i heard in costa maya he lost his camcorder, wallet, social security card and all of his money. so my tip would have been to not lose so much stuff.

 

 

alliem- yes, buckets of beer were buy 5 get one free except for the two beers that i mentioned above. they were buy 6 and feel like you paid for a case.

 

cruisequeen- no pay restaurants are seven seas, four seasons, pacific heights, las ramblas and the garden cafe. you don't have to make a res at seven seas or four seasons. you have plenty of dining options where you don't have to pay a service charge.

 

hawaiibound- yes the eggs were very, very runny on the buffet(and i don't think that sounds picky, it's just the truth). i would skip over the eggs on the buffet and run upstairs and get an omlet.

[jkloni]

Can you tell me about the fishing charter in Cozumel? What's included? Where do you meet them? The time with them start and end? Were 'refreshments' (beer, soft drinks, water, any food?) on the charter boat? There are 4 of us (my Dad and Mom and my DH and me).

 

Thanks, Kathy

[cruisinmama0]

I was on same cruise and didn't get to enjoy the Pink hat guy's singing....where was I? Was he one of the group that got their named call out over the intercom when we were about to leave Costa Maya. It sounded like 7 people were being left behind. Does anyone know about that?

 

I thought the Steakhouse was fantastic and ate there twice. The service and food was outstanding. Also tried the Teppanaki and it was very good.

 

I think the "runny" eggs were made with the liquid eggs they spoke about. Kind of like egg beaters and probably have something in it to preserve that makes them cook softer than fresh eggs.

 

I wasn't that impressed with the standard dining fare after my first great meal at the Steakhouse, but it was passable. I tried Seven Seas 2 times and Four Seasons 3 times. The service seemed better at Four Seasons.

 

I didn't try Pacific Heights as I heard it was lame. I wanted to enjoy the guitarist at Las Ramblas and heard he was sick. I kept wanting to go eat in there because everything looked so good. I guess I needed two more cruising days to do everything. I never found the Observation Lounge.

 

Guess I have to go back!

[hawaiibound24]

We ate in the Pacific Heights twice and thought it was very good. The calzone and the pork chops were good. One night we ate in the buffett and the other two we ate in main resturants (prime rib one night and New York Stip the other one).

[cradawg]

jkloni-

 

if you google albatross charters cozumel you will find their website. i'm not sure if i'm supposed to put links to websites on this forum. our charter was a snorkel trip that they let us drag some baits for a bit. we were in a 30' intrepid with twins, so they are set up for fishing. we met them at the dock at jeanies waffle shop which is just south of punta langosta. it will be a little farther south if you tender as we did. they keep their boats at the marina just north of town, but they picked us up because are first stop was going to be to the south. since it is a charter you can name your time. they were very good about letting us set the schedule. cokes, water, beer, margaritas, and snacks(crackers, sweet bread, and fruit) were provided in the cost of the boat.

[troyphoto]

Thanks for the review. I've got one quick question?

 

Was the "Great Outdoors" cafe (aft of the buffet and sports bar) open for casual sitting, or did it run as a restaurant?

 

I was just on the Dream, and missed sitting outside in the shade - after I learned to love doing so on the Jewel a year ago.

 

Thanks

[SUN TURNIP]

Troyphoto-the Great Outdoors Was Casual Seating

 

Cradawg-i Know Who You Are Talking About With The Pink Hat His Name Was Cash And He Was From Texas. He Seemed To Be Having A Good Time:d . He Was At The Same Bar As Us In Costa Maya I Think The Name Was Banditos?

[SUN TURNIP]

I Agree This Was Not My Favorite Cruise But It Could Have Been Worse. I Will Prob Give Ncl Another Shot If The Fare Is Really Cheap! I Only Paid $607 For This Cruise Anyway So I Cant Complain Too Much. I Try Not Too Let Little Things Bother Me When Im On Vacation The Only Major Thing I Would Change Is There Were Not Very Many Activites To Choose From.

My Husband Keeps Making Fun Of "8am Wake Up And Stretch" Was Listed As An Activity.....come On People!!!

It May Not Help I Am 24 He Is 25--it Was Very Very Slow Paced And For Older People This Would Be Ideal. But For Us Not So Much.. We Were Bored

Oh Well Such Is Life:d

[cradawg]

sun turnip-

 

ya, cash that was him. glad someone else on here saw him. he was a trip to watch until he sat next to me at the hold em tourney and started singing out loud. things got kind of wierd then. was banditos the bar by the pool at the pier? i saw him standing at the bar there and was hoping to see him get on that trampoline/swing deal they had on the other side of the pool. thought it would be pretty funny to see him singing from 30 feet up in the air with his big hat.

 

sorry to hear yall were bored. i didn't pay too much attention to the freestyle dailies, but how could someone in their mid 20's be bored with all the lecture's they offered on so many interesting topics?:D

[samtig]

DH wants to play Texas hold-em on the Sun. Did they still have the poker room? Do you know what the betting limits are?

[cradawg]

samtig-

 

they still have the poker room for a cash game. you sign up on the board right outside the room as you enter from the atrium. i did not sign up, and i don't think they ever had enough people sign up to ever have a game. i think the house rake on that is 20%. i don't know what the betting limits are.

 

they had 2 hold em tourney's on our 5 day so they may have more on the 7 day.

[samtig]

Thanks for the info!! Can't wait to go back on the Sun. DS and DIL and another couple are going with us this time so going to be a lot of fun. The Sun is our favorite ship so far! Great food, entertainment, service and the friendliest crew.

[SUN TURNIP]

Cradawg- Yes Banditos Was Next To The Pool It Was Pretty Fun We Had Drinks And Played Name That Tune.. That Would Have Been Soooo Funny To See That Guy On The Trampoline Thingy!!!:d