Norwegian Sun vs Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas

The Norwegian Sun was built in 2001. It was renovated in 2018. The Norwegian Sun will leave the fleet in 2027. It's 5 years newer than the Grandeur of the Seas, which was built in 1996 and renovated in 2021.

Comparison Overview

• Ship Size
• Number of Passengers
• Food and Restaurants
• Bars and Drinks
• Pools and Hot Tubs
• Ship Features and Activities
• Cruise Costs
• Onboard Costs

Ship Size

The Sun is considered a small size ship. Coming in at 848 feet long and 123 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 2.4 football fields, as wide as 2.3 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 8-story building. Compared to the Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas, the Sun is 6% larger in terms of overall tons.

Number of Passengers

Norwegian Sun holds about the same number of passengers as the Grandeur of the Seas based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you compare the total tonnage of the ship to the number of passengers, or what we call the "Space Ratio," the Sun has more space per person compared to the Grandeur of the Seas. This means that you might have a bit more space to yourself on the ship, although there still could be some crowded areas like buffets, pools, etc.

	Norwegian Sun	Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas
Class	Sun	Vision
Gross Tonnage	78,309	73,817
Length	848	916
Beam/Width	123	106
Passenger Decks	8	11
Passengers (double occupancy)	1,936	1,992
Crew	906	760
Passenger to Crew Ratio	2.1	2.6
Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger)	40	37

Food and Restaurants

Food is a big part of any cruise, and the ship you choose can make a huge difference in your food experience.

The Sun has thirteen different dining options like La Cucina Italian, Teppanyaki, and The Great Outdoors. Of those options, nine are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other nine options have an additional fee.

The Grandeur of the Seas has four fewer dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Chops Grille, Izumi Sushi & Hot Rocks, and Windjammer. eight of these restaurants are complementary and the other six have an additional fee.

If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Sun might be a better choice. It has 44% more dining options than the Grandeur of the Seas.

Both ships have a similar number of paid versus included dining options.

	Norwegian Sun	Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas
Total Dining Options	13	9
Complimentary Dining Options:	9	8
Additional Fee Dining Options:	9	6
% of Included Options	31%	33%
	See the options	See the options

Bars and Drinks

The Norwegian Sun has 2 more bars than the Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas. The Sun has 10 bars like Atrium Bar, Bliss Ultra Lounge and Windjammer Bar. On Sun, you can grab a drink at 8 different bars such as Island Bar, R Bar and South Pacific Lounge.

Norwegian Sun	Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas
•Atrium Bar • Bliss Ultra Lounge • Casino Bar • Champs Bar • Great Outdoors Cafe • Spinnaker Lounge • Sports Bar • The Champagne Bar • Topside Bar • Windjammer Bar	•Casino Bar • Island Bar • Pool bar • R Bar • Schooner Bar • Solarium Bar • South Pacific Lounge • Viking Crown Lounge

In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. Both ships serve the Coca-cola family of products. That means Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barqs Root Beer, although the selection can vary by ship. Most Royal Caribbean ships also have Coke Freestyle machines where you can make 100 different flavor combinations.

You can check out recent the bar menus for the Sun and the Grandeur of the Seas below.

Pools and Hot Tubs

Nothing beats relaxing by a pool with a nice drink in hand as you feel the fresh sea breeze pass by you. The Norwegian Sun has a total of 2 pools and 5 hot tubs.

The Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas has the same number of pools as the Sun and more hot tubs.

	Norwegian Sun	Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas
Total Pools	2	2
Pools - General Access	2	1
Pools - Adults Only		1
Pools - Exclusive		0
Total Hot Tubs	5	6
Hot Tubs - General Access	5	4
Hot Tubs - Adults Only		2
Hot Tubs - Exclusive		0

Ship Features and Activities

Both ships have lots of activities to keep you busy throughout your cruise. Below you'll see a list of some of the major features on these ships. You might up paying more while on board the Sun. Only 50% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Grandeur of the Seas, 62% of the activities are included at no additional cost.

	Norwegian Sun	Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas
Adult Only Relaxation Area	✗	✓
Arcade	✓	✓
Basketball	✓	✗
Casino	✓	✓
Climbing Wall	✗	✓
Fitness Center	✓	✓
Pool-side Movies	✗	✓
Shows - musical review	✓	✓
Spa	✓	✓
	Learn more	Learn more

Cruise Costs

Norwegian and Royal Caribbean are both considered "Mainstream" cruise lines. Mainstream cruise lines cater to a variety of guests, hoping to provide something for everyone. These typically cost about $100 - $350 per person per day.

Cruise pricing is dynamic and varies for each specific sailing based on factors such as departure point, ports of call, and time of year. Typically newer ships cost more, so a cruise on Norwegian Sun will likely be more expensive than on Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas.

Onboard Costs

Another way to gauge the cost of a cruise is to consider how much you'll spend on board. Even though a lot is included in the base cruise fare, you may still spend money on things like spa treatments, specialty dining, drinks, and excursions. In addition, guests can also have to pay for things like gratuities and tips.

Typically guests can expect to spend about 25 - 40% of the cost of the cruise on onboard expenses. In other words, if the cruise fare is $1,000 per person, you might spend between $250 and $400 on extra expenses.

The table below will help you compare onboard prices to see if you might spend more on a specific ship.

	Norwegian Sun	Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas
Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day)	$20.00	$18.50
Tip added to drinks & services	20%	18%
Soda Price	$3.50	$3.50
Domestic Beer Price	$7.50 See drink menus	$8.25 See drink menus
Drink Package Price	106 Learn more	$77 - $118 Learn more
Internet Plan	$29.99 - $39.99 per cabin per day, with $5 for each extra device	$19 to $30 per device per day
*Daily gratuities for a standard cabin. Suites or specialty rooms may have higher rates.

Norwegian Cruise Line offers a More at Sea fare. Through this program, guests receive open bar, a discount on excursions, some free internet, and some meals at specialty restaurants. If you book using this promotion, you'll be responsible for the gratuities on the dining and drink package. If you won't be using these options, booking a "sail away" rate that doesn't include the More at Sea benefits is considerably cheaper. Also, most of these benefits are the base packages; you can spend more to upgrade to better alcoholic drinks or faster/more wifi.

Royal Caribbean uses dynamic pricing, which means the pricing for many things will vary per sailing. The daily gratuities and tip are consistent across the fleet, but the pricing for the drink package, internet, and excursions will change. The only way to know your price is to consult the Royal Caribbean cruise planner once you're booked.

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