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Just back from Sunshine 11/22/14 Thanksgiving

ShannonSto

By ShannonSto,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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ShannonSto

ShannonSto

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More detailed review to follow, but wanted to post the Fun Times and Camp Carnival schedules for now.

 

I don't have a scanner, so I apologize in advance for the quality (or lack thereof) of the images.

 

We missed Belize due to inclement weather, so I included both the original and revised Fun Times for that day...

 

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ShannonSto

ShannonSto

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First I'll start by saying we had a great time. I have a few criticisms, but no small petty detail is going to keep me from having a great cruise. I'll address the complaints I've seen in other reviews:

 

Sewage smell: None. Not at any point or place on board.

 

Buckets: Never saw one, and we had some bad weather.

 

Too crowded: Unfortunately, yes. The decrease in public spaces was noticeable. One small pool is not enough for all those kids. I realize there is another one on the Serenity deck, but it's not for the young 'uns. The lido buffet was also crowded unless you got there at just the right time.

 

Food: Very good, especially in the MDR. The selection at the buffet was limited, but yummy. Only dining complaint was that the coffee was awful.

 

Waterworks: Awesome, a huge hit with my kids! We were there twice, and though there were a lot of people there, it did not feel crowded. Unfortunately, it closed an hour early for no apparent reason when we got there after our tour in Roatan and weather prevented it from opening again the last three days of the cruise. Kind of a bummer, but hey, we can't control the weather.

 

FTTF: A mixed bag. We arrived at port at 10:45 and were told there was a 45 minute wait to drop off luggage curbside. Luckily, the man who told us that was wrong and I was able to get it to a porter in about ten minutes. We were checked in very quickly, but boarding did not begin on time, so we didn't get on board until 12:30. Our cabin was ready, but the final piece of luggage did not arrive until around 2:30. I didn't mind waiting for the bags as long as I had access to the cabin, so I will definitely purchase it again if available.

 

Camp Carnival: Satisfactory. I say this not because there was anything wrong, but because my girls are only a week away from turning six, and thus pretty much the oldest ones in the 2-5 age group and didn't quite fit with the 6-8s either. They went several times, and had fun, but they weren't as excited about it as they have been in the past. Again, I think this was a product of their age rather than any issue with Camp Carnival itself. It was well-organized and friendly.

 

Dive-In Movies/Seaside Theater: We very much enjoyed this. They did a good job of balancing the types of films so that there was something for everyone. We watched Godzilla, Guardians of the Galaxy and How to Train Your Dragon 2. The weather the last few nights was cold and very windy, but blankets were available at the towel hut and there was delicious hot chocolate in addition to the popcorn.

 

Service: Fantastic! Our cabin steward and wait staff went above and beyond. My video of my daughter dancing with Francisco will be treasured.

 

Casino: Good-sized. Despite all those people, it was difficult to get a poker game going, but the other table games were hopping. My mom and I almost never play slots (we prefer the tables), but did a little this trip and we both won $1000 on the machines! She won at 3 Card Poker and Let It Ride also, and I won at bingo, so we were very happy. The best? My mom received a free cruise offer from the casino host, so we are already booked again on the Breeze over spring break!

 

Edited 'cause I forgot to mention Suess at Sea: Fun, fun, fun! We did the storytime and the breakfast. Both were very entertaining. Definitely a must-do if you have young kids--and maybe even if you don't.

 

Cozumel: Been there a few times before, so we just made it a beach day. Went to Chankanaab, beautiful as always.

 

Roatan: We did the Pirates, Birds and Monkeys of the Caribbean tour. Easily my second best excursion ever (first was Stingray City in Grand Cayman years ago). Rudolph was out tour guide, and he is wonderful at his job. Very funny and informative. The 40 minute bus ride went by quickly and by the time it was over, I could write a report on the island of Roatan. This 44 year old kid was as tickled as the 5 year old ones at being able to hold and pet the monkeys.

 

Belize: When I awoke Wednesday morning and went out on the balcony, it was pretty obvious that Belize wasn't happening. It is a tender port, and the tenders were bouncing all over the place out there. The waves were huge and the wind was howling. Even if Captain Leotta had decided it was safe, no way was I getting on a tender on that water. Three other ships were there (Carnival Pride, Norwegian Sun and Norwegian Dawn) as well. We drifted around the harbor for about an hour or so before the captain announced it was unsafe to tender and we were going to make it a sea day. It appeared to me that one of the NCL sips was tendering, but the captain said the other ships were going to follow us out of the harbor, so perhaps NCL wasn't actually tendering. I was fine with skipping, as I didn't have anything planned, but I felt sorry for the tour operators and the passengers with planned excursions, as well as the crew members (like casino staff) who suddenly got called to work when they were supposed to be off until much later. But as I said before, we can't control the weather.

 

Costa Maya: Cold and windy, rough waters...stop me if you've heard this before. Seems like a nice port, though. We got off for a bit and walked around the plaza t do a little shopping.

 

All in all, a great cruise. Sunshine didn't turn out to be my favorite ship, but we would sail her again in a heartbeat. Plenty to do for both the young and the not so young.

Edited by ShannonSto
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gatorchinsky

gatorchinsky

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We were on the same cruise. While we had a great time I don't think we would sail the Sunshine again.

 

I agree with the OP that we never smelled anything and never saw buckets. We were on deck 8 all the way forward and there was a few days that men were doing some sort of repair work on the ceiling in the hallways. I never did find out what it was.

 

Lido was crowded at certain times but never really effected us. The food was not as good as past cruises. The MDR food was good but YTD on the Sunshine was a disaster for us. We ended up only eating in the MDR 4 times. We were a party of 5 and each time they put us at a table for 4 and squeezed a chair in at the end which always stuck out and if anyone walked by that person they would bump into the chair. After the third time of this we requested a table for 6 which they reluctantly gave to us. Service was also very bad and 2 nights we were never asked if we wanted drinks or never got dessert menus.

 

We thought all the crew worked very hard and were very friendly.

 

Something new since our last Carnival cruise was the bottomless bubbles. You have to sign a receipt each time you get a soda and you have to wait five minutes before you can get another one. Also they wouldn't let me or my husband get sodas for both of us (even if we had each other's cards) unless he or I was standing in an area where they could see us. At first it was a pain but we did get use to it.

 

Again we did enjoy the cruise (because we always enjoy our cruises) but the Sunshine is just not the right ship for us.

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unionville3

unionville3

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We were also on the Thanksgiving sailing of the Sunshine. We were pleasantly surprised that the upgrades do make this feel like a new ship. A great week with family and friends, but not sure that it will be a repeat for us either. I agree no smells or buckets.

 

We had FTTF and would do it again. We too did not receive our luggage until later in the afternoon but it did not appear anyone had luggage very early. Loved being first in the debarkment and loved having our own line in guest services.

 

Best advice to avoid the crowds - use the Havana Bar area at the back of the ship to eat. Loved the atmosphere. We also had the Continental breakfast on Deck 5 at the Taste Bar location every morning and basically had the place to ourselves.

Edited by unionville3
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gatorchinsky

gatorchinsky

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We are sailing on the Sunshine at the last of the month. Enjoyed seeing the "FunTimes"! It's been a while since I've cruised on Carnival. Do they still offer the Unlimited Soda stamp and how much is it now?

 

We had the bottomless bubbles on the Thanksgiving sailing. It was $43.30 (including 15%) for adults for 7 nights. They now make you sign a receipt every time and you have to wait 5 minutes before getting another one. On the first day while still in port you are charged tax. Also each guest has to get their own. Say you have two cards you could not walk up with spouses card and get him a drink along with yours. The other person has to be present or very close by that you could wave to them. First couple of days it was annoying but then the bartenders get to know you and they are a little less strict.

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