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Ship comparison

National Geographic Sea Lion vs Sun Goddess

The verdict

Which should you choose?

National Geographic Sea Lion is an intimate Lindblad Expeditions ship carrying 62 passengers, in service since 1982. Sun Goddess is an intimate Lindblad Expeditions ship carrying 60 passengers. Sun Goddess has no specs yet, so the verdict rests on the figures we do hold.

Choose National Geographic Sea Lion if you want a better-rated spa and gym, more adventure and nature or a more family-friendly ship: it outscores Sun Goddess for spa & fitness (8.0 vs 5.0), adventure & nature (10.0 vs 7.0) and family friendly (6.0 vs 5.0) in Cruiseable’s Bliss scores.

Choose Sun Goddess if you want more of a party, more culture or a more romantic trip: it outscores National Geographic Sea Lion for party (5.0 vs 0.0), cultural (10.0 vs 7.0) and romantic (8.0 vs 6.0) in Cruiseable’s Bliss scores.

Side by side

Specifications

marks the better figure where more, or less, is plainly better.

National Geographic Sea LionSun Goddess
Cruise line Lindblad Expeditions Lindblad Expeditions
Ship size Intimate Intimate
Maiden voyagenewer highlighted 1982 —
Last refurbishedmore recent highlighted 2014 —
Gross tonnage 630 —
Passengers 62 60
Crew 24 32
Passengers per crew memberfewer is better 2.6 1.9 (better)
Space per passengergross tons per passenger; more is roomier 10.2 —
Decks 3 —
Length 152 ft —
Beam 33 ft —
Cruiseable ratingout of 10 7 / 10 —

Bliss scores

How they rate, out of 10

Cruiseable rates ships out of 10 on ten parts of a cruise holiday. National Geographic Sea Lion leads on 3 of the ten, Sun Goddess on 6, with 1 level.

  • Active National Geographic Sea Lion: 10.0 Sun Goddess: 10.0
  • Adventure & nature National Geographic Sea Lion: 10.0 Sun Goddess: 7.0
  • Cultural National Geographic Sea Lion: 7.0 Sun Goddess: 10.0
  • Dining National Geographic Sea Lion: 5.0 Sun Goddess: 6.0
  • Entertainment National Geographic Sea Lion: 4.3 Sun Goddess: 5.0
  • Family friendly National Geographic Sea Lion: 6.0 Sun Goddess: 5.0
  • Party National Geographic Sea Lion: 0.0 Sun Goddess: 5.0
  • Romantic National Geographic Sea Lion: 6.0 Sun Goddess: 8.0
  • Spa & fitness National Geographic Sea Lion: 8.0 Sun Goddess: 5.0
  • Staterooms National Geographic Sea Lion: 6.0 Sun Goddess: 7.0

Lindblad Expeditions

Sun Goddess

The elegant expedition ship Sun Goddess carries a maximum of 60 guests in 30 spacious suites, providing an intimate, comfortable experience on the Nile River. Featuring a separate sitting area and a balcony, each suite offers a relaxing, sophisticated home base to observe 5,000 years of history unfolding along the Nile’s banks.

Questions

National Geographic Sea Lion or Sun Goddess?

Which has more crew per passenger?

Sun Goddess, with one crew member for every 1.9 passengers against one for every 2.6 on National Geographic Sea Lion.

Which is better for families?

National Geographic Sea Lion scores higher for family friendliness in Cruiseable’s Bliss scores: 6.0 out of 10, against 5.0 for Sun Goddess.

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