Review: Carnival Sunshine to Canada/NE Sept 2017

[grandmarnnurse]

I've started a couple of long rambling reviews that I haven't finished for other cruises we've done, so this is going to be fairly short and to the point - as to the point as I can get. I do tend to ramble. But I have lots of pics and I will put a link at the bottom if you want to see them all.

 

 

 

I meant to do this earlier, but I went to CA for a wedding right after the cruise. I ended up with a cold (which I think I caught from my husband - so here it is better late than never!

 

 

 

While the Sunshine didn't make it to my favorites list, it was a lot better than I had read, so a lot better than I expected. Sailing after the kids went back to school may have had something to do with that. The ship was sold out, but not to capacity. A lot of those 3 & 4 person rooms must have had only 2 people in them. It never really felt crowded as I had heard except sometimes in the atrium.

 

 

 

We love sailing out of NYC and since we've been sailing on the Pride the last 2 cruises, it's been awhile. We had FTTF - which actually really helped this time. We got an email and a phone call the day before telling us to come 2 hours later than our time slot. They said it was due to hazardous conditions in the river, so the ship would be late coming in. I did some checking and there was a full moon and higher than normal tides. The Hudson river can be treacherous and when they dock the ships, sometimes it's all they can do to keep from hitting the pier. The tugs usually have their work cut out.

 

 

 

When we arrived at the port, there was a full house - all the berths were filled. We had the Norwegian Gem one pier down and we had an AIDA ship sharing our slot but at the opposite pier. Had to be tricky getting the Sunshine in with a ship already there,

 

 

 

Since we had FTTF we just showed up 2 hours later than the earliest time available. They were already boarding. In my experience sailing from NY many times, boarding in NY is kind of chaotic because they keep you moving very quickly. There was only one line and it started at the door. I thought we'd be there forever, but we were at the security scanners in about 5 minutes. They split those of us with priority boarding off a little before that. We zipped through security, and were pointed in the direction of the FTTF check in. No one ahead of us so we walked right up.

 

 

 

The Sunshine is NOT doing the S&S cards in the mailboxes yet, so we got our cards. They are doing the scanners instead of the ding machine :eek: That does make the line move faster, but they could add a nice ding sound effect for us!

 

 

 

We pack fairly light in smallish suitcases, so we always carry everything on. With FTTF we just skimmed through the atrium and headed aft to our cabin. I love going through the closed doors like I'm important! I know some people don't like FTTF but I'm getting every time.

 

 

 

We had a great cabin! It was an aft wrap on deck 6 (6346) - very convenient to the MDR and the lido. It was nice size with a good layout and a bigger than average shower. We had a fridge and a flat screen TV. I know some cabins on the Sunshine don't have the fridge.

 

 

 

Here's some pics of the room ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I thought I uploaded pics of the balcony, but it doesn't look like I did. I'll have to do that and post them later. I was an awesome balcony. One of the negatives. This ship needs some serious TLC in some areas. The glass on the balcony looked dirty - really dirty - but I think it was etched from sea water and salt. I don't think it's cleanable. I needs to be replaced.

 

 

 

I'm putting in this photo so you can get an idea of how big it is

 

 

 

 

This is another reason to get a balcony - you can see the other end of it in this pic

 

 

 

 

I love these 9C cabins, You have to search for them under premium balconies and book early, because they go fast. They are usually priced a little above a regular balcony, but IMO better than a suite - unless you really want that bathtub!

 

 

 

I was all excited for this trip because we had a lovely sunny day for sail away. The weather on some of our last sailing days has been rather dismal. We knew we were having a late start because of the delay, but they didn't do the muster drill that late, so we thought we would sail soon. We didn't get to sail until 8pm! In the dark! During our late seating dinner! Bummer!

 

 

 

But we finished in time to sail past the Freedom Tower, the Statue of Liberty and under the bridge. With all the lights it was really super and kind of made up for the late departure.

 

 

 

Our table in the dining room was in a great location, overlooking the lower level and with an fabulous wait staff. We had requested a table for 3 and we were right on the upper railing.

 

 

 

We really liked the food on the Pride. It was some of the best food we've had on Carnival, but the Sunshine knocked her out of first place. I'm one of those who have complained that Carnival's food has gone downhill of late - not what it used to be - but the Sunshine food was really good. I even tried the beef one night - Yankee Pot Roast (port specific) and it was delish! Very tender, flavorful gravy. I never remember food pics, so sorry. I don't have any. I usually steer clear of beef on Carnival except for Guy's burgers or the steak house. My DH loves beef and he said every beef dish was great.

 

 

 

We did eat in the Steakhouse one night and it was fantastic. Probably one of the best steakhouse meals we've had on a cruise. This was before the new menu, so we haven't tried that. I had Ahi Tuna Tartare, Surf & Turf with the mushrooms as a side (love them) and cheesecake for dessert. DH had the onion soup and the filet, no dessert - he's so good!

 

 

 

The Sunshine has a lot of different food venues, but we didn't get to try them all. Bonsai Sushi was fun - good food. I did the Mongolian Wok at JiJi for lunch on embarkation day - it didn't disappoint. Wish the cruise was longer so we could have tried more things.

 

 

 

I was on a mission to get a lobster roll in every port!! I completed my mission successfully! But I did not have a Guys burger and I didn't get my Reuben in the deli or my shrimp burrito in the Blue Iguana - guess we'll just have to book another cruise.

 

 

 

I highly recommend checking out the cooking demo in the steakhouse - usually the first sea day on most ships with a steakhouse. It fills up fast and you have to go early. They do a whole meal - soup, salad, entree (chicken, but really good chicken) and dessert. And it's FREE! That's why I didn't get any of my favorites for lunch - we were full!

 

 

 

We ate breakfast - either Sea Day brunch or regular port day breakfast in the MDR each day and food was fantastic. I think we ate at the buffet once.

 

 

 

We had fantastic weather except for the last day. It was mixed sun and clouds with some fog thrown in, but I think it's a law of nature that you MUST have fog on a Canada cruise.

 

 

 

We had one sea day going up and one coming back. Ports were great! Boston, Portland, Saint John, NB & Halifax, NS. I can now add Maine to the list of states I've been to.

 

 

 

In Boston we saw the Constitution, the Old North Church, Paul Revere's House, Faneuil Hall and the Quincy Market (so many food choices!). We went to an Irish Pub called the Black Rose for a few beers and my lobster roll.

 

 

 

Portland was a Carnival Excursion called Portland by Land and Sea. We did a brief bus tour, got to stop at the iconic Portland Head Lighthouse, then we went for a sail on an old schooner. It was a great day!

 

 

 

We also did a Carnival Excursion in Saint John called Coastal Photography. We went around in a small group on a van to some off the beaten paths places with a professional photographer. It was wonderful. She gave great tips - wish I'd taken notes, we saw some interesting sights and got some very nice photos!

 

 

 

Since Halifax is one of the ports, we'd been to before, we opted just to do some things on our own. We took a cab to the Citadel, a fortress on a steep hill. We weren't walking that one! We arrived in time to watch them fire the noon cannon. It was loud! We missed the changing of the guard, but we did see the bagpipers. After that we went to the Maritime Museum for the Titanic Exhibit and the exhibit on the Halifax Explosion in 1917. We walked back to the ship via the Harbor Walk with a stop for a lobster roll, and a few beers at Garrison's.

 

 

 

And then we sailed for home! Debarkation couldn't have been easier.

 

 

 

I'll put some more port info in the next post along with some more pics if you want to take a look at them all

 

 

 

This is link to the photos http://cyberkatkreations.zenfolio.com/p688433126

 

 

 

Lol! About the fog---that is one beautiful memory I have of sailing away from Halifax one September in 2004 while on the Victory. There was this one lone bagpipe player in a kilt standing on the pier playing as we sailed out to sea in a thick fog, with only the occassional flash of light from the lighthouse.

 

 

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[nybumpkin]

Was a bit of a hike, but we made it to the Constitution. Very nice little museum and gift shop there, but as I said we were on bit of a schedule and this was the furthest point on our route. We didn't spend too much time. The guides are service men and women. I think in the Navy, but they were young, so maybe cadets of some sort.

 

/quote] Thanks for the tour of the Constitution! She is the oldest commissioned ship in the Navy and her crew is mostly active duty Navy. Enjoying your review. I miss the Canada cruises, but the timing just hasn't worked the past few years.:(