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Refurbished OLD Ship

mrsgilomonster

By mrsgilomonster,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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Tapi Great Review Rare

Tapi

Posted
Posted

I'm not saying I won't, but I will definitely wait until we start getting the first reviews.

 

The Sunshine is an experiment (Carnival has come up with ways to make better use of public spaces, but at the same time they are increasing ship capacity). Looking at the artistic renderings, it does look like it will be a very nice ship, but the increased capacity and the whole "multi-purpose venue" concept has me a bit concerned. We'll find out soon. Let's just say I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

About sailing on Royal, their product these days is truly wonderful (no matter what the haters say). It doest cost more than sailing on Carnival, but it's worth every extra penny. The experience, specially on the newest ships, is absolutely amazing.

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Tapi Great Review Rare

Tapi

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Local travel agent is advising against any Carnival Cruise.

 

Our local travel agent will NOT sell Carnival, period. When I asked her why, she said that "it's not the product that her clientele is interested in". In reality, it's NOT because Carnival is bad, but because of what's happening "behind the scenes". Carnival has tightened rules on travel agents, making it harder to sell their product while making less commission. It's more profitable for travel agents to sell other products.

 

A little overwelmed by those MEGA ships.

 

We were feeling a bit overwhelmed before we sailed on the 73,000 ton Monarch of the Seas back in 1993. She was SO big (we ended loving it!). We were then feeling a bit overwhelmed before sailing on the 100,000 ton Carnival Destiny back in 2000. She was SO big (we ended loving it!). We were then feeling a bit overwhelmed before sailing on the 225,000 ton Allure of the Seas back in 2011. Se was SO big (we ended loving it, and to this day it's been one of the most amazing cruise experiences of my life!)

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bmckim

bmckim

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Local travel agent is advising against any Carnival Cruise.

 

Carnival has changed their commission tiers and structure in what incentives TAs can offer. This has caused some to stop carrying Carnival all together. I wouldn't be surprised if your TA is doing this because the commissions are better with the other lines.

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tropicaledrink

tropicaledrink

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I've sailed on the Elation (she was 12 when I sailed her), the Legend (who was 5 when I sailed her), and the Dream (who was 2 when I sailed her). The decorations obviously varied during the time periods, but we never once questioned our safety on ANY of the ships. And we had a great time each time (although we did discover that we are not 4 day cruise people ;) ).

 

Each brand has their pros and cons. From what I can tell, the lines are more alike than different. We've booked Carnival because it's been a better value overall for the time of year we were looking to book. However, if I ever find a comparable price on another line with a ship I'm interested in, I would book it.

 

I guess my point is - book what you are interested in. Go to have fun, and you will have a great experience no matter the ship!

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Houst

Houst

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Does it really matter what cruiseline is? As long as it fits your budget and it's going where your going who cares. It's like the whole if you drive a Ford your dumb or if you drive Chevy your an idiot. There are Disney fans who won't step in to a Universal park. Why are they afraid Disney will find out. The whole loyalest thing that goes on here is terrible.

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skittl1321 Great Review Rare

skittl1321

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I am reluctant to book on Sunshine not because it is refurbished but because they are adding cabins to what seemed to be reviewed as an already crowded ship.

 

Too many people!

 

However, if everyone comes back and says it has great traffic flow and plenty of space, I might change my mind.

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Waterloomarc

Waterloomarc

Posted
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I wouldn't travel on this ship not because of its age but because of how many more people they're cramming into the same ship. I fear it will be too crowded. As others have said ill wait until the reviews are in.

 

Regarding age the oldest ship I've been on is the Fascination as recently as last summer. We enjoyed the SHIP the most of any we've been on. We liked the fact that it was smaller and it just seemed to have a different feel than the bigger carnival ships we'd been on. Unfortunately (IMO) Carnival has relegated these smaller ships to shorter 3,4,5 day itineraries. If I had a choice between a Fantasy class ship or Conquest/Spirit for a 7 or 8 day cruise I wouldn't think twice.

 

But anyway I say all that to say - the age if a ship doesn't matter to me as long as she's been kept up nearly as much as the size and crowd factor.

 

For reference we're early to mid thirties and up until now kid free... My opinions my change after May :)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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golfadj

golfadj

Posted
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I am reluctant to book on Sunshine not because it is refurbished but because they are adding cabins to what seemed to be reviewed as an already crowded ship.

 

Too many people!

 

However, if everyone comes back and says it has great traffic flow and plenty of space, I might change my mind.

 

Exactly, my thoughts completely.

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wwbill4

wwbill4

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We are doing the Sunshine because of the the itinery and because it will be like a new ship,with the mega dollars Carnival is spending to upgrade it.

 

In so far as MEGA ships-nothing we ever sailed on can compare to the Oasis of the Seas that aheld over 6200 people when we were on board. Never seemed crowded, greatest shows, ship was just awsome!

Wish they did different itineryies-but we did this cruise not for the itinery but for the experience. We were not disappointed!

It is hard sailing on other ships after this great experience on the Oasis-its tough going back to a smaller ship!!!

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John Reid

John Reid

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One previous poster suggested waiting for some reviews on Sunshine come in before making a decision. I agree. When RCI cut and expanded Enchantment, the additions were great. But the additional cabins tax the theater and dining room beyond their original design capacity. Reviews after RCI Grandeur's refurb seem to mention a marked increase in plumbing and sewage ventilation problems being reported. After HAL refurbed Veendam, far more A/C, plumbing, and sewage smell reports appeared. The Sunshine result may be fine, but it will not be an infrastructure designed and constructed for the end product; it will be a refit.

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MrPete

MrPete

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A little overwelmed by those MEGA ships.

 

I too thought mega was going to be overwhelming.

 

But I found quite the opposite in RCCL. There were so many less passengers per foot space that it actually seemed and was less crowded.

 

Returning to a semi mega on CCL (on a Destiny sister), we found it stifling. Carnival doesn't do crowd control well on their big ships.

 

So we have settled on the dwindling Spirit class ships.

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beachbum53

beachbum53

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As curious as I am to see the Sunshine, whether or not I sail on it will depend a lot on the itineraries that are offered. One problem with the mega-ships, regardless of the cruise line, is that they cannot dock at certain ports simply because of their sheer size, and so you have to take a tender to get from the ship to the port. Unfortunately, as Waterloomarc pointed out, the smaller ships have been relegated to the shorter itineraries. Like others have stated, I'm going to take a "wait and see" approach.

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