Celebrity Mercury vs Norwegian Sun for Alaska

[jumponboard]

I am looking at 2 Alaska cruises from Vancouver to Vancouver on the above 2 ships. Both itineraries are virtually identical and Oceanview cabins are virtually the same price on both ships but a balcony cabin on the Sun is about $500 lower than on the Mercury. In fact the SUN balcony is only $50 more than an oceanview.

 

Looking for advice from those who have cruised on both ships as to which ship you would prefer for a 7 day Van to Van Alaska trip and why.

 

If you had to choose between a balcony on the Sun or an oceanview on the Mercury, which would you choose?

 

Thanks in advance for your feedback

[newbiefromvancouver]

I would say that it depends on when you're cruising.

 

In early May or September you may not use the balcony very much if its cold/rainy. We cruised to Alaska with NCL in late May in a balcony cabin and loved it.

 

Celebrity has a better reputation for food quality and has traditional early and late dinner seatings. NCL is a more casual cruiseline with Freestyle dining.

 

If you're expecting very good to excellent dining I would choose the Mercury. If good to very good would satisfy your expectations I would take the balcony on the Sun.

 

Hope this helps.

[Davey Interweb]

Don't get me wrong; I greatly enjoyed my cruise on NCL Spirit (my first), but found their food to be kinda vile even in the alternative restaurants. I don't really have much to say here other than NCL isn't Celebrity. Given the two choices I'd pick the oceanview on X versus the balcony on NCL, every time.

[Norcal Cruiser]

Mercury for sure!The crew is great,the food is great and the ship is great!We went in September and had better weather than California at the same time.Don't miss White Pass railway in Skagway and in Icy Strait the Orcas will put on a show for you for free.Juneau is fun.Take the Tram up the mountain.You won't regret the view!:) Kathy

[Norcal Cruiser]

Get a balcony just for the Hubbard Glacier day.It's really cold on deck and you can see almost as much from your balcony!

[Rev22:17]

jumponboard,

 

I am looking at 2 Alaska cruises from Vancouver to Vancouver on the above 2 ships. Both itineraries are virtually identical and Oceanview cabins are virtually the same price on both ships but a balcony cabin on the Sun is about $500 lower than on the Mercury. In fact the SUN balcony is only $50 more than an oceanview.

 

Looking for advice from those who have cruised on both ships as to which ship you would prefer for a 7 day Van to Van Alaska trip and why.

 

If you had to choose between a balcony on the Sun or an oceanview on the Mercury, which would you choose?

 

Thanks in advance for your feedback

 

The real differentiator here is your personal style. The cruise industry is far fom monolithic, and the difference beween Celebrity Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line is about as extreme as you can get.

 

>> Celebrity Cruises is a very traditional "premium" cruise line noted for very sophisticated cuisine and impeccable service. Passengers eat dinner at assigned tables in two seatings (first seating at 6:00 and second seating at 8:30 on most sailings), and traditional standards of dress apply. On a seven night cruise, you can expect two "formal" evenings when gents wear either "black tie" (that is, a tuxedo or a dinner jacket outfit) and ladies wear formal dresses, two "informal" evenings when gents wear shirts with collars, sport jackets or "blazers," and slacks and most ladies wear less formal cocktail dresses, and three "casual" evenings when gents wer shirts with collars and slacks and ladies wear either sun dresses or tops with skirts or slacks.

 

>> Norwegian Cruises is a very casual "mainstream" cruise line noted for its unstructured "freestyle cruising" program. Its ships have several restaurants with various themes and styles of cuisine, all of which seat passengers on a "walk in" basis like restaurants ashore. On a seven night cruise, Norwegian Cruise Line hold two "formal optional" evenings (you can dress up if you wish) and five "casual" evenings. The "down" side here is that Norwegian Cruise Line consistently draws the most mixed comments from passengers -- some think it's terrific and others have a rather different opinion. The line's cuisine and service apparently are adequate, but not exceptional.

 

But the bottom line here is a question of your personal style. If you like to don fancy duds for several classy evenings featuring sophisticated cuisine and don't mind dining on schedule, go with Celebrity Cruises. If you prefer casual dress and no set schedule, go with Norwegian Cruise Line. In either case, the line of choise is the line that you will enjoy the most.

 

Norm.

[caviargal]

I have cruised the Sun to Alaska 4 times and the Mercury once.

 

The Sun is a very pretty ship with a great crew. The cabins are very small compared to Mercury; my inside was tight with just me!

 

Sun has a much better gym, fitness area, sauna and their cigar bar is a jazz club at night, which I really enjoyed. Entertainment options were far better on the Sun. The crowd was younger with a lot of families. The library on the Sun is very large and a really wonderful spot.

 

IMO, the food was pretty bad. I "paid" for ala carte restaurants every night to get a good meal and decent service. A few times I went to the extra charge sushi bar for dinner, or over to the Tapas bar to have an appetizer and glass of wine for dinner while listening to live music.

 

I was sailing alone and really disliked Freestyle overall.

 

Passengers were very casual overall.

 

For the ship itself including entertainment and activities, I give the Sun the edge. But, if food and service are meaningful, I imagine you would be very disappointed. The quality in these two areas is simply not there.

[Tatka]

My husband sailed on both, and while he thinks X a bit more sophisticated he was more than satified with Sun, and will repeat on either ship.:)

[labmom]

I was on the Sun last Sept, had the balcony and loved it. My husband will not do any cruises without a balcony. We had the door open every day, and was on the balcony all the time, easier to see the whales and less breeze! I was a little taken back by the "freestyle" but that's the only way some women can get their husbands to go-no jackets. I thought that the food was good and the service great! Norm's reply was great and right on. I'll be taking my first Celebrity cruise this Oct and another Alaska trip on HOL this Sept, both with have the balcony. Good luck in your choice, either way Alaska is beautiful!!

Pam

[jumponboard]

After reviewing feedback on CC and looking at various offers we decided today on a balcony on the SUN.

 

Thanks everyone for your input

 

Happy sailing to whatever port you choose