7/5/2015 back from 8 day s. Caribbean on sunshine today

[AmberTeka]

DAY THREE. SEA DAY.

 

We ate in the MDR. Sunrise MDR. AFT of third Deck. Very nice. Food was hot and quickly served. A coffee pot was always at my elbow it seemed.

 

I read a lot, so I found a hidey hole and read until time for trivia. Husband donated to casino. Trivia. Only real gripe I had. and it is trivial. Young activities staffer had a trivia on Full House. Which has not been shown on TV for fourteen years. Few came. Many left. She cracked jokes that ware not funny. no one laughed. It was agonizing to watch her. I was embarrassed for her. ONE. she would probably star at the Shore Desk. Or at the Main Desk. there are jobs where she would shine......but not there

 

She also did the bingo where she did not tell the few people there to USE different sheets in different order from the way you buy them. In a three pack. Usually you do one, two three. NOPE. Not her

 

We were playing away when someone there working with the staff..came over and pointed out that we were marking the wrong color cards. I said I did not hear her say other colors. she said.......she didn't. We lost $40 bucks. A lot of other people must have too. ONE couple bingoed twice. APPARENTLY they knew the right colors. Just maddening. I ran into one woman later who refused to go to any more bingo games. DID NOT make an issue of it. BUT if you play BINGO. anyone shows up wearing a TUTU and acting like a Junior High School kid......PAY ATTENTION. ASK which color sheets are you playing. For real. $40 bucks would have bought another dinner at JiJi's. Or another photo. Or more Tee Shirts. or whatever.

 

It was the first time my husband had played Bingo in years. After that , he refused to go. Irritating. WATCH at Bingo. PAY Attention. GEMMA and DARNELL are great. Both worked with us. If they do the BINGO...fine. anyone shows up in a TUTU......be warned.

HATE TO TATTLE. But I said I WOULD BE HONEST.

 

I slept most of the day after being very sea sick the night before. the Sea sick pills worked magic. Who knew?

 

BIG EVENTS THAT DAY

 

GREAT SHOW. a MAGIC JUGGLING COMEDY SHOW. how can that be funny? So my husband, irked at Casino for raising limits at roulette to ten dollars a play.....came with me. It started a little slow. And got funnier and funnier. I am not a fan of comedy shows or magic shows. this Guy is magic. SEE THIS SHOW IF YOU CAN. PREPARE TO LAUGH UNTIL YOU CRY. He is magic. His "volunteers" who HAD to be plants are hysterical.

 

MARDI GRAS PARTY AFTER TEN IN THE LOBBY. very loud. very exuberant. very crowded. passed them on way to cabin. GREAT BAND.

 

shopped that afternoon. Cherries on Top for gifts for my grand daughter. Very nice. I bought some candy and ate it myself. I rate it as excellent. had to buy a watch after leaving mine at home. Snagged one for $10 bucks. still ticking. perfect time.

 

BIG disappointment. After dinner in the Main Dining Room.....where I had a hamburger. Shame. I ordered it from the Children's menu. I love hamburgers but don't eat them as I am on a diet. Doctor's orders. They are a special treat. it was not good. Stick to GUY's. Fruit dish. Salad. excellent. Dessert.......Ice cream. Butter Pecan. I could have working my way through a pint of it. Coffee than casino. lost some more.

 

WENT to cabin. Perfect as usual thanks to REY.....our wonderful Cabin attendant. and On our BED a Green slip of paper. OUR shore trip on ARUBA "National Wonders of Aruba" had been cancelled. that was ten at night. Aruba was the next day.

 

I did ask them the next day. They said not enough people signed up. I booked it online two months out. Paid for it two months out. Received confirmations two months out.. BUT received the notice it was cancelled.......the NIGHT before? Irked me. the money was refunded.

 

Again.......yes. Lido deck was crowded. Yes. Pool was packed like sardines. I still saw some deck chairs open.........when we went up for lunch. Again......HAVANA BAR....not crowded. people there, but nothing unlike other Carnival ships.

 

SELDOM felt crowded inside the Sunshine. And that is the truth.

Edited July 8, 2015 by AmberTeka

[sjcruiser]

Thanks for this awesome review!!! We will be back on the Sunshine in a 22 days or so, and we can't wait!!! I loved hanging out on the Serenity, and could always find a lounger or hammock up there. I agree that the specialty restaurants are worth the price. The Cowboy steak with all the fixings in the Steakhouse, and the Chicken Parmesan in the Italian restaurant were my favorites. We're still talking about the chocolate sampler in the Steakhouse!! I didn't get to go to JiJi's, but other family members did, and rave about how good the food was. It's definitely on my list to go to this time around. I think we missed the Havana Bar also with the exception of eating breakfast there. You could always find a table, and the lines for the omelet station were short the first couple of days, due to most of the guest not knowing about the stations or seating back there. We did go to the Havana Bar late night when they moved the nightclub/music up there, but I guess we missed out on the food options(?).

 

Thanks again for the review, and can't wait to read the rest.

[trixiegal]

I'm going to do a more extensive review, as my family and I were on this sailing as well, but I had to commend you for all of the details you've given on the Sunshine. It brought back some fond memories of last week. I swear I'm going through withdrawal not being on that boat anymore!

 

I liked the Sunshine... a lot! All of the complaints seem to have been blown out of proportion. I thought they did an excellent job of utilizing the space they had to revitalize a mid size ship. This is NOT the Dream or the Breeze. We've been on both so I was scared a little about the Sunshine FKA as the Destiny. However, we had an absolute blast and felt quite at home after the first night. It helped to have an aft room on Deck 5... 5335. Amber is so right, Deck 5 is your friend on this ship!

[AmberTeka]

DAY FIVE CURACAO

 

We had looked forward to this day. we started with breakfast in the Lido Deck Marketplace. That was a CROWD. If I had to do it again on a Curacao day, I would have gone to MDR or Taste Bar, Everyone was getting off of the ship.

 

We got off. No crowds. No line. then discovered why. OUR tickets said we should be in the Liquid Lounge waiting to be escorted out. I found some Carnival people, and they said go sit on a bench and wait for our group. We did. Other passengers who had not read their tickets came and waited with us. FINALLY the group came out.

 

This was early. 9:30 AM. We went to the Liquor factory. An art museum. saw some of the OLD homes and some of the New homes. All lovely. All clean. All the places where I would want to own a home if I won the Lotto.

 

Our guide spoke perfect English and three other languages. he knew his history. He knew the odds and ends about a nation that makes a tour interesting. It was Ten Top things about Curacao. I recommend it.

 

We did shop in the very clean duty free shop before boarding the ship. I bought a picture frame. I do in most ports where we stop. When I look at them, I remember our cruises.

 

Back on the Ship.........went to lunch and then to sleep. GREAT DAY

 

Big things popping on ship.

 

1. Party like it is 1980 with Jamie. 10:30 pm. lobby deck. They sounded like they were party, party pretty good. Great band.

 

2. VIVA VARIETY show. Comedy. I MISSED IT. After the other comedy magic show had been so good, we missed it. After JiJi's, We were in the casino and then went to bed. early

 

lots of trivia and other activities planned for folks who did not go ashore. Liked that. Wished they had more trivia than they did,. Still enjoyed what they did do

[Jeafl]

I am really enjoying your review and all the details you are giving. 😀 I am just disappointed that we have to wait 8 months to do this same cruise. Seems like forever.

[bubbakirk43]

I'm going to do a more extensive review, as my family and I were on this sailing as well, but I had to commend you for all of the details you've given on the Sunshine. It brought back some fond memories of last week. I swear I'm going through withdrawal not being on that boat anymore!

 

I liked the Sunshine... a lot! All of the complaints seem to have been blown out of proportion. I thought they did an excellent job of utilizing the space they had to revitalize a mid size ship. This is NOT the Dream or the Breeze. We've been on both so I was scared a little about the Sunshine FKA as the Destiny. However, we had an absolute blast and felt quite at home after the first night. It helped to have an aft room on Deck 5... 5335. Amber is so right, Deck 5 is your friend on this ship!

 

we are looking at booking a cabin in that area trixiegal .It looks very convienent to just pop your head out to the promenade at dinner time to see if there is much of a line for the your time dining .Was there any noise at all back there ?

[Jeafl]

DAY FIVE CURACAO

 

We had looked forward to this day. we started with breakfast in the Lido Deck Marketplace. That was a CROWD. If I had to do it again on a Curacao day, I would have gone to MDR or Taste Bar, Everyone was getting off of the ship.

 

We got off. No crowds. No line. then discovered why. OUR tickets said we should be in the Liquid Lounge waiting to be escorted out. I found some Carnival people, and they said go sit on a bench and wait for our group. We did. Other passengers who had not read their tickets came and waited with us. FINALLY the group came out.

 

This was early. 9:30 AM. We went to the Liquor factory. An art museum. saw some of the OLD homes and some of the New homes. All lovely. All clean. All the places where I would want to own a home if I won the Lotto.

 

Our guide spoke perfect English and three other languages. he knew his history. He knew the odds and ends about a nation that makes a tour interesting. It was Ten Top things about Curacao. I recommend it.

 

We did shop in the very clean duty free shop before boarding the ship. I bought a picture frame. I do in most ports where we stop. When I look at them, I remember our cruises.

 

Back on the Ship.........went to lunch and then to sleep. GREAT DAY

 

Big things popping on ship.

 

1. Party like it is 1980 with Jamie. 10:30 pm. lobby deck. They sounded like they were party, party pretty good. Great band.

 

2. VIVA VARIETY show. Comedy. I MISSED IT. After the other comedy magic show had been so good, we missed it. After JiJi's, We were in the casino and then went to bed. early

 

lots of trivia and other activities planned for folks who did not go ashore. Liked that. Wished they had more trivia than they did,. Still enjoyed what they did do

 

Quick question for you--do you remember the name of the Curaçao tour? This sounds like something we would be interested in doing since my parents will be with us.

 

Edited to add that I just noticed that you said it was called Top Ten Things about Curaçao. Oops!

Edited July 11, 2015 by Jeafl

[AmberTeka]

Quick question for you--do you remember the name of the Curaçao tour? This sounds like something we would be interested in doing since my parents will be with us.

 

Edited to add that I just noticed that you said it was called Top Ten Things about Curaçao. Oops!

 

My husband who grumbles a bit ( only to me) when a tour is not good ( and we are lucky. few have been) said that he had enjoyed that tour more than any he remember EXCEPT the train tour in Panama. HIGH praise coming from him.

 

Our Guide made the tour. as the good ones do. he was very proficient in English. Interesting. Enjoyed getting questions.

Curacao is so clean. that always impresses me. It was Ten Top Things of Curacao.

[trixiegal]

we are looking at booking a cabin in that area trixiegal .It looks very convienent to just pop your head out to the promenade at dinner time to see if there is much of a line for the your time dining .Was there any noise at all back there ?

 

 

Not really any noise except for the normal noises with people leaving their cabins in the morning and evening. It was fairly quiet back there. I just loved being so close to the Ocean Plaza and the aft elevators that took us up to the Lido deck. My son loved that is was so easy to get to Club O2.

 

As a side note, we had an awesome steward team. I can never get names right and it becomes a inside joke with my family. My kids had to correct me every time I tried to say their names. Anyway, the lead steward kept our cabin so clean and stocked with extra towels all week. He was in the cabin 3-4 times a day!

[riclop]

Thanks for your review.

[AmberTeka]

Thursday was a sea day with the usual activities. The Production Show was STUDIO VIP. I think it was music from the Seventies. Disco. They had BRILLIANT costumes . they shined as they were loaded with sequins and glass baubles. The Liguid Lounge has FOUR stands where performers can entertain. They used every one. I loved it. I really did.

 

If you like the Love and Marriage Game, it was on that day.

 

FRIDAY was GRAND TURK.

 

It is a long white beach with houses and shops and big swimming pools. Beautiful. With pitiful mangy dogs that broke my heart. UGH.

 

FRIDAY NIGHT...........in the Red Frog.. FROGFEST.............the ship musicians played until ??? We went up after dinner. Ordered a drink for him and one for me for him to drink. and enjoyed. They played Southern Rock. then changed lead singers and an African American woman did pop music. Then another guy who did just rock. A guitar genius. LOVED IT. We stayed for a couple of hours, and when they took a break we left. If you like music...........DON"T MISS THIS. You will be humming those songs for the next week.

 

Saturday

 

Final Day of Super Trivia. men won. lost in the charades after. For people I had never dreamed could be funny........they were hysterical. Women won. naturally. Great Time. I laughed so much my tummy hurt. really.

 

CHOCOLATE BUFFET lunch on the Lido. A HUGE let down. A few cupcakes. some cookies. NOT like the lovely, fattening cakes and candy and candied nuts usually. I was ready to be a glutton on chocolate and wound up with fruitcake chocolate cake. it was good.

 

Captain's party.........which I have already described. Enjoyed it.

 

Packing.

Dinner at the buffet. Our first and only dinner there. I found fried chicken tenders on the buffet. they were good. salad was good. We went to Frog Fest soon after and stayed there until we went to bed.

Good Day.

 

GETTING OFF THE BOAT..................we are priority. We had a letter to be in the limelight lounge at 8:15, We ate breakfast in an almost empty Lido restaurant, then I went there with a book, and Husband checked the cabin and tipped our wonderful cabin steward REY some more. He came in..........it was 8:15. Tick Tock.

Carry on passengers were to be in the Sunset MDR. They called them.

then at 8:35, they called us. We walked off. Our luggage was there

 

We were on the road to Jacksonville by nine or a little after. VERY well organized. Very easy. Very well done.

[AmberTeka]

I have all of the Fun Times.

I don't know how to post them, scan them or whatever.

 

If someone will promise to put them on this site for everyone to enjoy, I will give you my e-mail, you can send me your mailing address and I will send them.

 

Would Zyodecoder be interested or does he just post his own? I am a great admirer of him.

 

Last tune I saved Fun times and mailed them to someone, they did not post them.

 

And I know. Emergencies happen. people get sick. But this is the first time I have tried to do that in five years.

 

people wrote such good reviews of the Sunshine and everyone who read them seemed to want those Fun times.

 

I LONGED for them before sailing. they would have been a HUGE help in planning our cruise.

Edited July 12, 2015 by AmberTeka

[movingimages]

Thanks for taking the time to do a review! Sailing on Sunshine in early September ....

[momin05]

Amberteka, we talked about this before you sailed and I am curious to know...are there access doors to the outside promenade to the fore of the cabins ? Or did you have to go through the lobby to get to the outside walkway? Also curious how well people could see in your window from the walkway. When you tapped on the window to get your husband's attention, could he look in and see you?

 

Thanks so much for the review. Looking forward to Sunshine next May.

[AmberTeka]

Amberteka, we talked about this before you sailed and I am curious to know...are there access doors to the outside promenade to the fore of the cabins ? Or did you have to go through the lobby to get to the outside walkway? Also curious how well people could see in your window from the walkway. When you tapped on the window to get your husband's attention, could he look in and see you?

 

Thanks so much for the review. Looking forward to Sunshine next May.

 

You did have to go to the lobby to get out on the Promenade deck. But we are talking perhaps a hundred yards. We were in 3120. So a few cabins......to the Shore Desk which was right there...and out that door.

 

I THINK there is a door where the rest rooms are RIGHT before the Cabins that goes out. If so that is less than fifty yards.

 

My husband would come stick his face in the window and pretend to leer at me.....but he said he could not see anything in the Day time. At night he could. Pull your curtains then. get your Husband or wife to test it out. I saw few people out there. CREW cleaning more than any. when the ship came in to port there might be half a dozen or so folks. Also Sail Away. other than that......almost never anyone. They have benches right in front of the window.

Edited July 17, 2015 by AmberTeka

[AmberTeka]

END OF REVIEW

 

How well did I like the Sunshine?

 

I have booked a cruise for December..........going to BONAIRE and a CHRISTMAS Cruise.....my first ever on the SUNSHINE. AND we are booked in one of the outside-inside cabins on Deck 3 but on the OTHER side of the ship. Very Close to the Ship Office. Feeling very lucky and looking forward to it very much.

Honestly

We will skip the Steakhouse

We will eat again in JiJi's and in the Italian Restaurant. I will see all of the shows again. If the Red Frog has another band marathon......We will be there too. And we will play Trivia. And we will sit in the OCEAN PLAZA and listen to more band playing. sit there and hold my honey's hand more often. Go to the casino less if they are that tight again. Remind myself every morning of how lucky we are to be able to go on that cruise.

 

SO my final grade on the Sunshine.......................I guess it gets an A +

 

ENJOY YOUR CRUISES....................and come back and write reviews for us.....

 

thanks

Edited July 17, 2015 by AmberTeka

[trixiegal]

Great review! You brought it all back for me again although it was only 2 weeks ago!

 

Very jealous of your upcoming cruise on the Sunshine. Please do another review when you get back.

[islandatsea]

Thank you for your review of the Sunshine. Great to hear you really enjoyed your time on the ship.

[MACUQUI58]

Thanks for a great review I will be sailing the Sunshine on Sept 6th......

[cruisetodayteachtomorrow]

END OF REVIEW

 

 

 

How well did I like the Sunshine?

 

 

 

I have booked a cruise for December..........going to BONAIRE and a CHRISTMAS Cruise.....my first ever on the SUNSHINE. AND we are booked in one of the outside-inside cabins on Deck 3 but on the OTHER side of the ship. Very Close to the Ship Office. Feeling very lucky and looking forward to it very much.

 

Honestly

 

We will skip the Steakhouse

 

We will eat again in JiJi's and in the Italian Restaurant. I will see all of the shows again. If the Red Frog has another band marathon......We will be there too. And we will play Trivia. And we will sit in the OCEAN PLAZA and listen to more band playing. sit there and hold my honey's hand more often. Go to the casino less if they are that tight again. Remind myself every morning of how lucky we are to be able to go on that cruise.

 

 

 

SO my final grade on the Sunshine.......................I guess it gets an A +

 

 

 

ENJOY YOUR CRUISES....................and come back and write reviews for us.....

 

 

 

thanks

 

 

Seriously made me tear up... "Hold my honey's hand more often" and "remind myself EVERY MORNING of how lucky we are to be to go on that cruise"

 

I am personally thankful for the Sunshine too. Hubby won a "free" (not so free) cruise at the casino late one night so if I can get the time off we get to experience the Breeze.

 

Great review and thanks for moving me with the end of your review.

[mississauga]

Great review! I love reading all reviews but gravitated to yours because it was about the Sunshine. We sailed on her for the TA in 2013 and loved it. Wanted to see how others saw it and you did not disappoint.

 

I wanted to add/expand on the info you gave about JiJi. You were 2 so got to each choose one choice of each dish. Others we knew went as a group and they got every dish on the menu and shared and got to try everything. Hope I can do that next time. We were also just 2 on the TA.

 

For lunch in that area, it was similar to Mongolian Wok. You pick up what you want in a bowl and they add your choice of meat and cook it for you.

 

For someone who asked. Bonsai ( sushi ) is not free, even at lunch. You order a la cart and charged accordingly.

 

Looking forward to going back in Nov/Dec for the b2b Journey cruises.

 

Trixiegal, thanks for you info about deck 5 cabins. We have one for the 2nd leg. Looking forward to be close to everything or ease to getting everywhere and especially to have a mini fridge and night stands as they are the new added cabins.:D

 

.