As you know, my wife and I just finished a 18-day cruise on the Norwegian Sun, sailing from Canada all the way to Japan. This was our first repositioning cruise. It was quite an adventure — and in this post I will share some honest thoughts about the ship, the food, and whether we would recommend this type of trip for other senior travelers like us.
A quick bit of background on the ship itself. The Norwegian Sun launched in 2001, making it one of the older vessels in the Norwegian Cruise Line fleet. It’s part of the ‘Sun Class’ — smaller than NCL’s newer mega-ships — carrying about 1,900 passengers with a crew of around 900. The ship measures roughly 78,000 gross tons, which means it’s mid-sized by today’s standards. [See my comments made earlier this year on the benefits of sailing on smaller vessels.]
For our trans-Pacific cruise the ship was fully booked. About 800 of the passengers were Canadian (all rooting for the Blue Jays against out hometown Dodgers), about 400 were Japanese citizens, and the balance were from the USA. NCL has a valuable Solo Traveler Program. Norwegian has been a leader in welcoming solo cruisers — on their newer ships they offer studio cabins designed just for one person, along with exclusive lounges and meet-ups for solo guests. On the Sun there was special pricing for solo travelers which cut out the single sailor surcharge added by most cruise lines.
For this sailing, that program was so popular that the Norwegian Sun was completely full — many of those cabins were booked by solo travelers making the trans-Pacific crossing. It created a really interesting mix of passengers: lots of independent travelers, retirees, and seasoned cruisers who loved the long itinerary.
It’s a fantastic option if you’re traveling solo, but it also means these cruises can fill up early, so it’s worth booking well in advance.
The Benefits and Risks of a Repositioning Cruise
Now, for those who may not know — this was a repositioning cruise, which means the ship was moving from one region to another — in our case, from North America to Asia — as part of its seasonal schedule. These cruises are a bit different, and they come with their own set of benefits and risks.
The big benefit is value. You can often get more days at sea for less money than a traditional cruise. They’re also great if you enjoy long stretches of calm ocean time — reading, relaxing, or just unwinding without rushing from port to port.
But there are also risks to be aware of. Because there are so many sea days, you’ll spend a lot of time onboard — so if the ship is older or the entertainment limited, you might start to feel restless. Weather can also be unpredictable on long ocean crossings. On our sailing we ran into rain, hail, and cold every day at sea. The crew lashed down the dining tables and chairs and empted the pool for the entire trans-Pacific crossing. The practical result was a loss of almost all of the outdoor venues. Less space but the same number of travelers means squeezing people into the Buffet Halls and dining rooms. We actually missed our first port of call in Japan because of the rough seas encountered crossing the Pacific.
An additional cost item to consider in booking a repositioning cruise is that you have to budget to get to the ports of departure and debarkation, both of which could be far from home. Flight arrangements at the start or end of the cruise can be more complicated — especially if you’re flying home from another continent.
For senior travelers, I’d say repositioning cruises are wonderful if you love quiet days, ocean views, and good books — but be sure you’re on a ship that fits your comfort level for a long journey. If you are looking for partying until 2:00 in the morning, the Sun may not be the ship for you.
Let’s start with the ship itself.
The Norwegian Sun is one of the older vessels in NCL’s fleet, and honestly — you can tell. While it’s clean and the crew keeps everything well maintained, it does feel dated when viewed from the lens of the commercials NCL puts out in prime time and on the net. The ship’s décor, the entertainment and eating venues, even some of the amenities — they just don’t have that fresh, modern feel you’ll find on the newer ships.
Now, let’s talk about the food. The first few days, we were really impressed — good variety, nice presentation, and friendly service. But after about a week, it started to feel a little repetitive. We saw the same dishes pop up again and again. Specialty dining helped break things up, but those restaurants fill up quickly and come with an extra cost.
The entertainment was another mixed bag. The performers were talented and gave it their all, but the lineup didn’t really change much. After 18 days, it just felt stale — same shows, same music sets, not much variety. There were two comedians and two magic shows on the cruise. Honestly both comedians failed to impress while the two magic shows were impressive.
Now, what really stood out — in the best way — was the service team. The crew on the Norwegian Sun was exceptional. They were friendly, attentive, and genuinely made us feel special every single day. That level of warmth and care really reflects well on Norwegian Cruise Line as a company. For example, Michelle had a birthday in the middle of the cruise (I did let the ship guest services know when we boarded which day – but not which birthday it was). Our room attendant decorated our cabin and built a birthday cake out of towels for Michelle.
And of course — the destinations made everything worthwhile. We started in Vancouver where we booked a hotel for ad additional day of exploring. Having never been to Vancouver, I arranged for a tour of the city’s Chinatown lead by a local chef. This tour was arranged through Viator and not NCL (more on this choice in a later posting). The title of the tour was “A Wok Around Chinatown: Culinary and Cultural Walking Tour Led by a Chef.”
The tour was a total of five people. We began our walk at the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden in downtown Vancouver. Over the next four hours we visited a Chinese BBQ restaurant, learned about Chinese culture and the migration from Southern China to Vancouver to build the Canadian railroads, we visited a centered which was established to collect old photos of Vancouver’s Chinese population, experienced a tea ceremony, and had lunch in a small neighborhood restaurant.
Arriving in Japan after crossing the Pacific was just incredible. The two ports we visited both had fair weather which allowed us to get our sea legs re-balanced. While this was our second trip to Japan, I booked three extra days in Tokyo to taste the culture and the food of Japan. Here we booked tours on two separate days through Tours by Locals.
Tour one was a private 7-hour tour of local Tokyo city favorites. Our tour guide was friendly and knowledgeable. We traveled by train and subway throughout Tokyo. We left the train and subway stations feeling like locals. Walking with our guide was far better than a bus tour of Tokyo. We would highly recommend Tours by Locals over commercial tour companies.
Tour two was a private 4-hour tour of local restaurants. We received a mini-cooking class on the differences between Udon and Ramen and we walked several out-of-the-way neighborhoods. Everything exceeded our expectations. That part of the trip was absolutely unforgettable.
So, would we recommend this cruise to other senior travelers?
If you’re looking for a quiet, relaxing voyage with lots of sea days and a great destination at the end, you’ll probably enjoy it. But if you’re expecting a ship with modern features, varied entertainment, and diverse dining, you might want to look at a newer NCL ship or even a different line.
Simply put we will definitely sail with NCL again, but probably not on the Norwegian Sun. The service was wonderful, and Japan was incredible — but next time, we’ll look for something a bit newer for those long days at sea.
Have you cruised trans-Pacific or on the Norwegian Sun? Let us know in the comments!
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