NCL Sun or Spirit

[gillac]

We are considering booking our first NCL cruise on either the Sun (Roatan, Belize, Costa Maya, and Great Stiffup Cay) or Spirit (Costa Maya, Santo Tomas, Belize, Cozumel). We have cruised Royal Caribbean and Carnival. On our Carnival cruise we swore we would never cruise anything but RCCL again.

But, here I go looking at something else. Many of the ports look interesting to me.

I am looking for advice about these ships and ports. Also, I would like some more information about the freestyle dining. Do you have to make reservations for all restaurants or just the specialty. On RCCL, we were happy with the dining room and Windjammer.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Don Clark]

I've sailed on both these ships recently. Both the Norwegian Sun and Norwegian Spirit will not disappoint you.
The Spirit has unique Asian decor which is fresh and new on cruise ships sailing from America. But the Sun is three years newer, and has better accommodations in the cabin, except for the bathroom. The Spirit has the largest bathrooms for standard cabins I've ever seen. Glass shower doors beat clinging curtains everytime. The Sun's cabins have refrigerators, although very small in size, it's better than the twice a day refilled ice buckets you get on the Spirit.
The Galaxy of the Stars and the Maharini's Lounge are the Spirit's prime bars-lounges, the Sun's prime nightclubs are Dazzles and the Observation Lounge. For old fashion British pub fun, try out the Henry's Pub on the Spirit, and the Windjamers Bar on the Sun.

As for your reservations questions, below is a listing of the restaurants for both ships. Briefy, you don't need reservations at the main restaurants, but you do at the finer specialty restaurants. At most, only three specialty restaurants require paying a surchage to dine at on either ship.

Norwegian Spirit
The Garden Room (Main Dining Room)
Cuisine: Continental
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Windows Restaurant (Main Dining Room)
Cuisine: Continental
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Shogun Restaurant
Cuisine: Japanese
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $12.50 per person
Reservations Required: Yes
Also contains Teppanyaki and Sushi Bar

Le Bistro Restaurant
Cuisine: French
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $15 per person
Reservations Required: Yes

La Trattoria
Cuisine: Italian
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: Yes

Cagney's Steakhouse
Cuisine: Steaks
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $20 per person
Reservations Required: Yes


Raffles Lido Cafe
Cuisine: Buffet
Dress Code: Casual
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Blue Lagoon
Cuisine: Food Court, Grill
Dress Code: Casual
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Beir Garten Grill
Cuisine: German
Dress Code: Casual
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Norwegian Sun
Four Seasons Main Restaurant (Main Dining Room)
Cuisine: Continental
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Seven Seas Main Restaurant (Main Dining Room)
Cuisine: Continental
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Pacific Heights
Cuisine: Light/Healthy Cuisine
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: Yes

East Meets West (Might be renamed Cagney's Steakhouse upon leaving dry dock)
Cuisine: Steaks
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $15 per person
Reservations Required: Yes

Ginza Restaurant
Cuisine: Asian (Sushi, Sashimi, Teppanyaki)
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $12.50 per person
Reservations Required: Yes

Le Bistro French Restaurant
Cuisine: French
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $15 per person
Reservations Required: Yes

Las Ramblas Tapas Bar & Restaurant
Cuisine: Mexican, Tex-Mex Tapas Bar
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No


Garden Café/Great Outdoor
Cuisine: Informal Outdoor Dining. Breakfast, Lunch, and Snacks
Dress Code: Casual
Surcharge: No
Reservations Required: No

Il Adagio
Cuisine: Italian
Dress Code: No shorts or jeans during dinner
Surcharge: Yes, $12.50 per person
Reservations Required: Yes

I hope this helps

 

[gillac]

Don

Thanks for the information. So, the Sun is newer than the Spirit?

Your information has been very helpful. I have not gotten very many responses about NCL on various message boards.

Thanks again.

 

[Don Clark]

The Sun entered service in 2001, the Spirit as the SuperStar Leo in 1998, so that makes the Sun three years newer.

 

[gillac]

Thanks for your help. We choose the Sun for November.

 

[Travelnut]

You won't be disapointed,,,We have sailed on both as well,,,and must say the Sun might just be my favorite ship of all time. We had a mini-suite. Outstanding.

 

[TravelwithAmber]

NOTHING FREE ABOUT FREESTYLING:
I appreciate Don Clarks discription and hard work of the decor and the extensive price lists which are on the NCL site for The Spirit but if your looking for quality food..Food that tastes..NCL may be not for you unless your willing to pay for specialty resturants.
The main dinning room was fine for the average cruiser with little experience of what good main dinning room menus have on other lines as they are all over the board on the menu selections. Mexican, Indian and French are all there in one evening and as for the deserts..if you like Cisco brand sponge cakes (like the cheap Chinese food buffet kind) and some "fancy" red syrup dribbled over it with a wedge of chocolate to make it look nifty, then NCL is fine.
As for the staff that worked the dinning room..well, even they say since switching to freestyle the quality is less then desirable even to them. (Employees who have been on the ship since it NCL took it over and sailed to Alaska).
Freestyle may be for you as the open seating main dinning room is from let's say 5;30 to 9:30 as well as the specialty resturants which is good but if they waste too much food by the freestyle then they have to cut corners somewhere and that's where they do..by quality.

 

[wendy12]

We sailed for the Spirit last February and really enjoyed ourselves. We have been on many cruise lines but really enjoyed the "freestyle" experience on NCL. I travel with two teenagers and we do not always want to eat at the same time or at the same restaurant. Since we traveled in February during President's week, the specialty restaurants booked up rather quickly and we were unable to get a reservation toward the end of the week. We are sailing on the Spirit again this april and I intend to make all my reservations for the 8 days during the first day. I found the food in the main dining room just average but the specialty restaurants worth the extra fees. I hope this is helpful.

 

[TravelwithAmber]

you can only book specialty resurants on day in advance. We tried your idea.

 

[wendy12]

I guess they changed the rules from last year. I will have to book in the morning for the next day (fortunately, I am an early riser). Thanks for the info.

Wendy