A Great Start to Cruising!
Norwegian Sun Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western
7 Night Western Caribbean (New Orleans Roundtrip)
Sail date: March 11, 2007
Ship: Norwegian Sun
Cabin type: Balcony
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 14 years ago
Review summary
I had heard many things about cruising and other cruise lines from my family, but this was my husband and my first experience. Let me tell you, I will probably never look at a ground-based vacation again!! NCL, famous for its freestyle cruising, definitely did not disappoint. They exceeded my expectations in cleanliness and customer service, and the room stewards we had were definitely one of the highlights! Two to three times a day they would take care of our room - cleaning it up, changing the towels, entertaining with various positioning of "towel animals" - to the point where I was almost embarassed to leave anything around for fear of making more work for them! They also went above-and-beyond IMO, helping us with our various needs for my husband's medical disability (something that I was told would have been handled by Room Service, not Housekeeping). Main dining on the NCL Sun was wonderful. With rare exception our meals were served hot and efficiently, and the presentation was beautiful. We dealt with multiple wait staff due to the ability to eat whenever we wanted, and all of them were attentive and friendly. Some of them also had great senses of humor - during one meal we overheard a woman at another table saying she wanted "Nothing" for dessert, and that's what she got - a plate with "Nothing" written in chocolate syrup! There were only a couple minor disappointments during our weeklong cruise. First had to do mostly with timing - we were traveling with my brother and sister-in-law who could only cruise during Spring Break. Because of this, the ship was inundated with late-teen and 20-ish students that were oblivious to anyone else around them. Although this in itself would not be NCLs responsibility, I felt they could have "policed" a little better in public areas like the pool/sports deck and lounges. We were not able to enjoy these areas at all; the one time we went to the lounge to see the comedy show we could not hear him at all, and even HE was trying to get them to hush. The second disappointment was the one specialty restaurant we went to. We opted for the Teppanyaki one night and, although good, I didn't feel it was worth the $20/person cover charge. I personally would have been happier going to main dining for free instead. Overall this was one of the best experiences I've ever had, and I am 99% sure I'll be back!Ports of call
Santo Tomas De Castilla, Guatemala
Santo Tomas De Castilla, Guatemala
Pros: Room stewards, cleanliness, dining freedom, food quality, ship layout
Cons: Lack of "policing" of spring break students, variety of room service choices/drinks, speciality restaurant pricing vs. food