The Sun vs. the Pearl??

[Luvbugz]

Hello all. I am having a hard time planning our up and coming cruise. We are looking to cruise for our first time in January as a treat for our anniversary. Right now we are booked on the Pearl for a Western Carribean out of Miami. I just noticed that the Sun has almost the same port stops but leaves from Tampa. Flying into Tampa would be easier (and slightly cheaper)for us than flying into Fort Lauderdale and then finding a way to get to the Port of Miami. How do these ships compare in onboard activities, dining, etc.?

[InTheCruisingYearsOfLife]

How do these ships compare in onboard activities, dining, etc.?

 

Very similar; I don't think you'll go wrong with either choice. Pearl has nicer high-end suites, if that's of interest to you.

[dexddd]

Hello all. I am having a hard time planning our up and coming cruise. We are looking to cruise for our first time in January as a treat for our anniversary. Right now we are booked on the Pearl for a Western Carribean out of Miami. I just noticed that the Sun has almost the same port stops but leaves from Tampa. Flying into Tampa would be easier (and slightly cheaper)for us than flying into Fort Lauderdale and then finding a way to get to the Port of Miami. How do these ships compare in onboard activities, dining, etc.?

 

Are you traveling with kids?

[mafig]

I remember reading that Sun has fabulous mini suites.;)

[polySeraph]

Hello all. I am having a hard time planning our up and coming cruise. We are looking to cruise for our first time in January as a treat for our anniversary. Right now we are booked on the Pearl for a Western Carribean out of Miami. I just noticed that the Sun has almost the same port stops but leaves from Tampa. Flying into Tampa would be easier (and slightly cheaper)for us than flying into Fort Lauderdale and then finding a way to get to the Port of Miami. How do these ships compare in onboard activities, dining, etc.?

 

Hello and Welcome to Cruise Critic! I have been on both the Sun and the Pearl and love them both. The Sun, however, is cruising from Port Canaveral next January. The Star will be cruising from the Port of Tampa.

 

DH and I live near Tampa and we are very excited about Star coming to our hometown. We are looking at the Star's Western Caribbean itinerary ourselves as a mid-winter pick-me-up.

[wibeachbum]

The Sun leaves from Port Canaveral. The Star leaves from Tampa and goes to different western caribbean ports than the Pearl and the Sun.

 

I personally prefer the Star's itinerary. I'm not crazy about Ocho Rios.

 

The Sun is older and smaller than the Pearl. We like both ships. The Sun doesn't have the water slides or the rock wall.

[roger001]

I really like both ships. The Sun is smaller than the Pearl, but the Sun standard balcony rooms are slightly bigger (the bathroom is smaller but very functional) and the balconies themselves are slightly bigger. Of course, the Pearl has the best buffet. You will like either, then after you are addicted, which you will be, you can next sail on the other.

[travelingfools]

We sailed on the Sun for our 2nd cruise. We loved her, so we sailed on her again on the next cruise. We then decided to change things up a bit and sailed on the Pearl for our 4th cruise. Loved it as well. I did feel that after sailing on the Pearl that it might not be the same going back to the Sun. I'm glad we experienced the Sun and then the Pearl. Has anyone sailed it in reverse? I always wondered if we would have gone Peal then Sun if we'd be disappointed. I wouldn't mind sailing the Sun if it had an itinerary that I liked, and it would be nice to see it since it upgrade. We're sailing the Pearl from Miami again in December. We sailed RCL from Tampa this past April and I enjoyed the few days before our cruise sightseeing in the area.

 

Either way you'll have a great time!!

[Luvbugz]

We will not have any kiddos with us. We took the kids to Disney this year, so this is a mommy and daddy only vacation! I think I am getting my ships mixed up. How far is Port Canaveral from Tampa? I would like to stay with the Eastern Carribean ports because we already have in the works for a Western Carribean cruise on the epic in 2013. (I know it sounds crazy, but we actually had the Epic in 2013 booked first. I didn't really want to wait that long for an adults only vacation, so I booked the Pearl)

[dexddd]

We will not have any kiddos with us. We took the kids to Disney this year, so this is a mommy and daddy only vacation! I think I am getting my ships mixed up. How far is Port Canaveral from Tampa? I would like to stay with the Eastern Carribean ports because we already have in the works for a Western Carribean cruise on the epic in 2013. (I know it sounds crazy, but we actually had the Epic in 2013 booked first. I didn't really want to wait that long for an adults only vacation, so I booked the Pearl)

 

The Sun was built in 2000 and Pearl in 2006. The Pearl is in the Jewel Class vs. the Sun is in the group prior to the Dawn Class (which the Star is also part of).

 

The Sun is a nice ship - it has more of a classic ship look inside. The Pearl has more bells and whistles like pools, etc. The buffet on the Sun is small and poorly organized. I have not been on the Pearl but I have been on the Gem which is in the same class as the Pearl.

 

I can say from looking at prices on the Sun out of PC during the past season, the prices have been very reasonable if that is a consideration for you. I asked about kids because if you were taking kids I would not take the Sun as the Pearl has more to offer for them.

[fergusonvt]

We have only cruised on the Sun and have the Star booked for our next cruise. The Pearl is probably somewhere in my future though. We loved the Sun. We had a forward mini-suite and it was very large and comfortable with a great bathroom, closet and dressing area and the bed was soooo comfortable. The Sun was the perfect size for us although I think our DS (18) would have preferred more activities for his age group. The buffet is poorly designed but the Sun also has the great outdoors buffet at the aft which makes up for it.

[Sauer-kraut]

How far is Port Canaveral from Tampa?

 

Port Canavaral is the port closest to Orlando (about an hour away). I think we drove a bit over an hour to get from Disney to Tampa, so I'm guessing its a couple hours away.