BamaLady#13

I also get the message that drop box says they are no longer there. I have a cruise booked for February after the Epic moves to Port Canaveral. Thanks so much for taking the time to post your review. Beautiful photography. Thanks for sharing.

Tips if allowed.

My kids sailed on her in October and in their words, "This ship stinks!" They were not impressed. I would think if she had been through upgrades, you would have heard about it.

 

On a totally different note: Roll Tide!!!

Thanks for the advice. That's about what I expected to hear. I'm going to push the budget a little and try for the Dream. I'd trust another Tide fan anytime before a TA.

Checked luggage. I have a small one that is battery or plug in. We cruised from Port Canaveral on the Sunshine in November. Never any problems.

I'm looking at booking a short spring cruise on the Elation. A TA for Carnival is assuring me that Elation just went thru a renovation, but I can't find any evidence to support that. I really hate to cruise on a ship where the carpet is nasty and the furniture is coming apart. Having just had a horrific experience on the Norwegian Pearl, I am really leary. Does anyone have any advice on the condition of the ship?

uh ... you realize how that makes you sound, right ? :rolleyes:

I hope it wasn't intended but if it was, just wow. :eek:

We were just on the Sunshine a month ago and I was really impressed. The cabin had been recently refurbished, had new furnishings including carpet. The food was excellent and there were more choices of "free" restaurants than I've ever had on any previous cruise. I can't compare it to the other ship but just thought I had to let you know that the Sunshine has some great features.

Is it possible to bring canned drinks on board in checked luggage?

Just a few days ago, we returned from a wonderful cruuse aboard the Sunshine. As usual, they put a copy of my sail and sign account under our cabin door during our last night aboard. Everything was as it should have been, no surprise charges, so I folded up the print-out and put it in my purse. Today, I went on line to check my credit card charges and discovered that I had been charged an additional $70. I called Carnival Customer Service and was told I had been charged for a robe and towels. I didn't even use the robe and beach towels, much less take them home. They quickly agreed to refund the $70. Just a heads-up.

I'm looking forward to my first cruise on the Sunshine, but have one concern. Since it was actually an older ship, how's the air conditioning? We are booked in a balcony room on the ninth deck. I'm warm natured and having a cool room to sleep in can make or destroy my cruise. I'm taking a small fan just in case, but still have concerns. Also, what are my chances of having it taken?

:D:D The Liberty. 8 day cruise out of Port Canaveral last fall. The best food ever, with the fried oysters from that little serving buffet above the main buffet area. They were only served at lunch.

It sounds like you were blessed with such a wonderful dad. My prayers and hugs go out to you.

We cruised to Alaska on the Norwegian Pearl the first week in June this year. It was a disaster. We chose the wrong week and the wrong ship. It was rainy and foggy all week. The day we sailed Glacier Bay, it was so foggy that we saw no glaciers, which was our primary reason for going. Because the weather was bad, all of the passengers were forced to remain inside which made for a very crowded ship. Also, Norwegian ran a promotion that allowed the third and fourth passenger in a stateroom to sail free. That also meant more people crowded into the ship. The Pearl is badly in need of a remodel because our balcony room carpet was terribly stained and thread bare, finish worn off of furniture and just generally worn out. Going early in the season won't prevent bad weather.

Been during both times, prefer the college kids cuz as someone else pointed out, all they want is the pool and deck chairs. Whereas the younger kids are left mostly unattended to run the ship. The parents kind of use the ship as a babysitter in a way and do not monitor their actions. You see a lot of rude things like food on plates left on stairs, ice cream dripping everywhere and running through the halls etc. Can easily stay away from the college crowd but the other ones are just plain annoying (and yes we have kids :rolleyes:).

 

We actually do not cruise at any spring break time truthfully just to avoid both situations.

Well said. I'll take a slightly intoxicated college kid any day over a spoiled 6-15 year old that likes to run in the halls and pushes every button on the elevator just because it's fun.

Spring break kids are all about the pool and lido deck. The rest of the ship is deserted. They don't eat in the MDR and rarely go to the shows. They don't gamble, so aren't in the casino. They usually come back on board a little drunk, go right to the pool area and continue the party. My husband and I are in our seventies and are highly entertained by them. I don't mind taking a cruise during spring break .. But don't go near the pool.

Approximately 20% of cabins still show as vacant across the board for my sailing 59 days out. Prices have gone down by a small margin since I booked about four months ago. I am hoping for a price reduction and some OBC since final payment has now gone past. I'm still be happy with my price even if it doesn't because the cruise is going where I wanted to go, when I wanted to go, and from my favorite port. It's all good.

What happens if you purchase these cards and then decide to cancel your cruise. Do you get your money back for the cards, or can you use them for something else?

How was the A/C? We will be sailing on the Sunshine on the lido deck in a few weeks. I've had warm rooms on Carnival ships before so am a little worried. We have a balcony room and I know they tend to be a little warm, but husband will not stay in inside rooms.

Thanks for your posting. We will be sailing in about nine weeks on the Sunshine for the first time. It's always nice to read a positive review. I was a little nervous about booking this ship because it was an older ship that had been revamped.

Not exactly a room tip but still a good forum to share this. Our luggage is all black or dark gray. I buy a roll of multicolored duck tape at the dollar store. Mash it flat so that it packs easily. At the end of each cruise, wrap a couple of strips around each suitcase which makes it so easy to find in the sea of luggage when disembarking. The more colorful and distinctive the tape, the better. This may be a little tacky, but it sure works.

I recently took advantage of an NCL promotion. The first week in June, we sailed to Alaska on the Pearl. Never again. I thought it was a very good price for a balcony room and included their promotional free gratuities. The ship was in deplorable condition. The carpet in our cabin was so stained and dirty that I would not walk on it barefooted. The finish was completely worn off the wooden coffee table and the sofa stained and torn. The cabin looked more like a shabby third rate motel than a first class cruise ship. The buffet consisted mostly of cold cuts, hot dogs and hamburgers, no variety. We tried the MDR and the food was worse. The toughest steak I ever tried to eat. Due to the fact that this sailing also offered a friends and family sailed free, the ship was crowded to the point that the common areas were practically impassable. All of the tables in the buffet were occupied by large family's playing board games or just chatting. I know, you think I am just the type of person that complains....I'm not. I've sailed twice on the NCL Sun, on the Oasis and six or eight Carnival ships. We always had a wonderful time. NCL can keep their promotions, I'm back to Carnival. They have very good prices and therefore have no need to fill their ships by offering "deals".

I've been on a few cruises where tendered ports were cancelled. The weather didn't look that bad, just too windy to safely board the tender boats. The captain can't risk someone falling while trying to cross from the ship to the small transport craft, or getting stranded on the island. But then, some days, being stranded on a tropical island doesn't sound bad. :D

Is any part of serenity deck on Sunshine covered? My skin won't take much sunshine and I was hoping for a shady spot to sit and enjoy the ocean and read a book.

I'm booked directly across on the other side of the ship in room 9197 and was worried about the noise from traffic going from the pool to the atrium elevator.

Since I've never been on the sunshine, I didn't know if these were the elevators everyone used to access the pool area.

Thinking about booking a cabin on deck 9 for an upcoming cruise. This will be our first cruise on Sunshine. Is there anything really good or bad about deck 9 balcony cabins? Are the balconys fully covered?