Cruise was good - ship not so much

Norwegian Sun Cruise Review to South America

milomorai

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 42

Overall rating:

3 out of 5

15 Night South America (Buenos Aires To Santiago)

Sail date: April 10, 2017

Ship: Norwegian Sun

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 8202

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

We couldn't have asked for better service or a nicer cabin. Our cabin steward was the best one we have had in our seven cruise experience and the service that we got from our butler and concierge was outstanding. All of the wait staff in the dining venues were excellent also. Our issues were with the food in the main dining rooms - this was the only ship I have been on where the buffet line had food that tasted better than the dining rooms. We did enjoy the specialty restaurants that we ate in ( I would have enjoyed a couple of them more if I hadn't had bronchitis) especially the Teppanaky. This particular ship had a layout that was NOT cruiser friendly with the specialty restaurants put in random corners of the ship and requiring circuitous routes to access even having to go through other bars or restaurants to get to them.

We enjoyed our suite but our bed could have been better - it had a distinct hump in the middle forcing both my wife and myself towards the edges of the bed and, after the first night, the AC was marginal at best. We had a very limited selection of television shows - the same movies played on a loop for the entire trip and half of them were in Spanish only.

The excursions redeemed the shortcomings of the ship except for the lack of shopping time of most of them. They were interesting and informative if overpriced - I would recommend getting private tours for you if going on Norwegian cruises - just make sure they know when you have to be back on board.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

Main dining rooms would get a 6 out of 10 - specialty restaurants were better - 8-9 out of 10

Entertainment

1 out of 5

Minimal but what they had was enjoyable.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Our room steward Patrick was a shining beacon every morning brightening our day and our two Carlos's (concierge and butler) offered excellent service.

Ship Quality

1 out of 5

The sad face is for the design - cleanliness was very good. The design, on the other hand, left a lot to be desired. I have been on many different ships and this was the only one that I had to go through other bars or restaurants to get to specialty restaurants and also the first one that I heeded a GPS to find everything. Very poor layout and as dor public restrooms - poor placement, not enough of them and you had to be right in front of them to know where one was.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

The suite was very nice, had a great view out over the bow and a bathroom larger than either of ours at home. Unfortunately the AC didn't work well after the first night and, being in the bow, gave us quite the ride when the seas kicked up. I don't recommend cabins up front unless you enjoy the sound of anchor chains dropping and being pulled up and the roller coaster motion with an occasional corkscrew thrown for good measure.

Ship tip

I would suggest eating at either the specialty restaurants or the buffet - don't bother with the main dining rooms except for breakfast. Don't expect great entertainment or a huger choice of TV shows - you will be disappointed.

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