Carnival Sunrise and Spring Break Help Needed

[3smithboys]

DH and I have a cruise held on the Sunrise for Spring Break, April 3. It’s a 5 day out of Miami going to Ocho Rios and Grand Cayman. We just went on the Mardi Gras this summer and had the best time. We are booked on the Celebration for July! 
 

For people who have been on the Sunrise before, how is the ship? Will the weather be pretty warm in the beginning of April? (We picked these ports vs the Bahamas because we thought the weather would be better?!) 

 

We are both teachers and are limited to a 1 week window, so we did not have much choice; however, there were a few other cruises we could do. The other ships were the Liberty, Freedom, or the Sunshine. If you think any of these ships might be a better choice, the ports aren’t as important… we are really looking just to get away. Thanks for any help! 

[jsglow]

Sounds like a good cruise to me.  I like Sunrise a great deal but don't expect her to be Mardi Gras.  By April, winter chill isn't a problem.  Of the ships on your list and given the fact that you sail out of Mia, I think you made the right choice.

[3smithboys]

1 hour ago, jsglow said:

Sounds like a good cruise to me.  I like Sunrise a great deal but don't expect her to be Mardi Gras.  By April, winter chill isn't a problem.  Of the ships on your list and given the fact that you sail out of Mia, I think you made the right choice.

Thanks for your response. Yes, I agree that we will have to keep our expectations in check. I’m hoping any cruise is a good cruise, and I’m sure we will be happy to get away. It is very rare that DH and I have the same spring break so we want to take advantage of it. 

[80sGal]

March and April are great times to cruise.  We did a B2B on Sunrise last year, going on her next month and next March.   She's a great ship -- smaller than many of Carnivals fleet, but the recent refurbish made all the difference.   We also went to OR several years ago in March on Dream.  It was perfect weather.   Try Konoko Falls!  It's smaller than Dunn's, but still a very fun excursion.   

[3smithboys]

6 hours ago, 80sGal said:

March and April are great times to cruise.  We did a B2B on Sunrise last year, going on her next month and next March.   She's a great ship -- smaller than many of Carnivals fleet, but the recent refurbish made all the difference.   We also went to OR several years ago in March on Dream.  It was perfect weather.   Try Konoko Falls!  It's smaller than Dunn's, but still a very fun excursion.   

Great! Thanks so much for you help. I really appreciate it.

[jsglow]

11 hours ago, 3smithboys said:

Thanks for your response. Yes, I agree that we will have to keep our expectations in check. I’m hoping any cruise is a good cruise, and I’m sure we will be happy to get away. It is very rare that DH and I have the same spring break so we want to take advantage of it. 

As 80sGal said, the refurb job was very well done. I really like the class.  She's got all the modern amenities but in a somewhat smaller package. 

[UPNYGuy]

the refurb looks great on her. I was on her when she was doing a few sailings out of NYC. 

 

[3smithboys]

8 hours ago, UPNYGuy said:

the refurb looks great on her. I was on her when she was doing a few sailings out of NYC. 

 

That’s great to hear! I have been reading reviews and to be honest, so many of them are horrible. It’s getting me worried because we’ve already booked the cruise and our flight. I’m certainly not expecting the Mardi Gras; however, reading about sewage smells, horrible lines everywhere, and then the FB post I saw today with the brawl on the Lido… good lord🤣 

 

Also, does anyone know why the Sunshine got a nice Serenity area with a pool but the Sunrise didn’t? 

[UPNYGuy]

34 minutes ago, 3smithboys said:

That’s great to hear! I have been reading reviews and to be honest, so many of them are horrible. It’s getting me worried because we’ve already booked the cruise and our flight. I’m certainly not expecting the Mardi Gras; however, reading about sewage smells, horrible lines everywhere, and then the FB post I saw today with the brawl on the Lido… good lord🤣 

 

Also, does anyone know why the Sunshine got a nice Serenity area with a pool but the Sunrise didn’t? 

 

I WILL say that sunrise did feel a bit crowded (the lido buffet is awful, the top deck restaurant seating is gone,  repurposed for an Italian restaurant)

Edited September 11, 2022 by UPNYGuy

[3smithboys]

1 minute ago, UPNYGuy said:

 

I WILL say that sunrise did feel a bit crowded (the lido buffet is awful, the top deck seating is gone)

Thanks for that info. I think we will try to avoid the buffet! That seems to be where so many complaints are happening. DH said we need to go into this with 0 expectations and just be happy we found a cruise that fit our tight spring break timeline. Since we hardly ever have SB at the same time, going anywhere will be nice. However, I’m the planner…. So I want it the trip to be the best it can be!

[UPNYGuy]

5 minutes ago, 3smithboys said:

Thanks for that info. I think we will try to avoid the buffet! That seems to be where so many complaints are happening. DH said we need to go into this with 0 expectations and just be happy we found a cruise that fit our tight spring break timeline. Since we hardly ever have SB at the same time, going anywhere will be nice. However, I’m the planner…. So I want it the trip to be the best it can be!

 

before the refit, Triumph had a 2 level lido buffet. The top level was great, it encircled the rear of the buffet and looked over it. It was a great place to sit, and was rarely full. Now, they put Cucina Del Capitano (I think) up there, and made it a surcharge venue. Along with the extra cabins, it made the lido extremely crowded. 

[UPNYGuy]

IMO I would personally take the liberty or freedom over the Sunrise. We did like it, but liberty and freedom carry the same passenger load, and are larger (more space to spread out). We would sail on Sunrise again, but if a conquest class (or better yet spirit class) were in the same timeframe and going where I wanted, I would take those instead. 

[UPNYGuy]

Edit due to error in post

Edited September 11, 2022 by UPNYGuy
Error

[3smithboys]

2 hours ago, UPNYGuy said:

IMO I would personally take the liberty or freedom over the Sunrise. We did like it, but liberty and freedom carry the same passenger load, and are larger (more space to spread out). We would sail on Sunrise again, but if a conquest class (or better yet spirit class) were in the same timeframe and going where I wanted, I would take those instead. 

Thanks for your response. I kind of wish I had done a bit more research ( so not like me.) Oh well, I guess there isn’t anything I can do at this point and hopefully it will be better than sitting at home! 

[Crismess669]

We were on Sunrise when the ship was at half capacity. We never made it to Alchemy because it was always overflowing and we couldn’t always find seats at Red Frog. The MDR food was lousy. We had fun, we just wouldn’t sail her again. 

[3smithboys]

We just changed our cruise to the Freedom! I was able through our casino offer to change it without penalty. Hopefully, we made the right decision to switch! 

[ninjacat123]

17 minutes ago, 3smithboys said:

We just changed our cruise to the Freedom! I was able through our casino offer to change it without penalty. Hopefully, we made the right decision to switch! 

What ports are you going to?

[3smithboys]

5 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

What ports are you going to?

That was the one thing that we were not too sure about. The Sunrise went to Ocho Rios and grand cayman. The Freedom is going to  Nassau and Princess Cays. We’ve never been to Princess Cays before… Nassau, we might just stay on the ship.

[ninjacat123]

8 minutes ago, 3smithboys said:

That was the one thing that we were not too sure about. The Sunrise went to Ocho Rios and grand cayman. The Freedom is going to  Nassau and Princess Cays. We’ve never been to Princess Cays before… Nassau, we might just stay on the ship.

If you have never been to John Watling's distillery in Nassau, go for the best Pina Colada ever! Big old property that gives free tours (just go to the bar for the drink) and you can walk to there in about 15-20 minutes from port.  Then, walk out of the property, turn right, then left at the pink museum building.  Darling street with colorful umbrellas suspended across and chocolates, cigars, wine.  Junkanoo Beach is down the hill on your way back from the port.

Princess Cay is very pretty but doesn't have the calm water vibe.  Think HMC with more surf.

Have a wonderful cruise!

Edited September 11, 2022 by ninjacat123

[3smithboys]

3 minutes ago, ninjacat123 said:

If you have never been to John Watling's distillery in Nassau, go for the best Pina Colada ever! Big old property that gives free tours (just go to the bar for the drink) and you can walk to there in about 15-20 minutes from port.  Then, walk out of the property, turn right, then left at the pink museum building.  Darling street with colorful umbrellas suspended across and chocolates, cigars, wine.  Junkanoo Beach is down the hill on your way back from the port.

Princess Cay is very pretty but doesn't have the calm water vibe.  Think HMC with more surf.

Have a wonderful cruise!

Thanks for all of this great info! 😍

[3smithboys]

4 hours ago, ninjacat123 said:

If you have never been to John Watling's distillery in Nassau, go for the best Pina Colada ever! Big old property that gives free tours (just go to the bar for the drink) and you can walk to there in about 15-20 minutes from port.  Then, walk out of the property, turn right, then left at the pink museum building.  Darling street with colorful umbrellas suspended across and chocolates, cigars, wine.  Junkanoo Beach is down the hill on your way back from the port.

Princess Cay is very pretty but doesn't have the calm water vibe.  Think HMC with more surf.

Have a wonderful cruise!

Omg, I feel like a moron… we are going to Amber Cove and Grand Turk! I’ve looked at waaaay to many cruises today! 

[ninjacat123]

2 hours ago, 3smithboys said:

Omg, I feel like a moron… we are going to Amber Cove and Grand Turk! I’ve looked at waaaay to many cruises today! 

Ok, in Grand Turk go to Jack's Shack!  Walk down the pier, turn left and walk about 15 minutes.  Tasty jerk chicken and drinks, plus you can watch volleyball.  Amber Cove has a great pool area but we have enjoyed twice the two stop catamaran snorkeling cruise through Carnival.  Lots of fish.  Rum punch. Fun crew.  Hope that helps😎

 

[UPNYGuy]

20 hours ago, 3smithboys said:

We just changed our cruise to the Freedom! I was able through our casino offer to change it without penalty. Hopefully, we made the right decision to switch! 

 

IMO you made the correct decision. You can treat nassau as a sea day, where half the ship empties out. 

[UPNYGuy]

I just checked the deck plan, and freedom still has the 2 level lido seating, which should be that way until your cruise. IMO it should be the better option for passenger flow, onboard options, and all-around spaciousness. 

 

Like I said, I do NOT dislike the sunrise, I just feel the repurposing of the top portion of the Lido was a *huge* misstep. If they had not done that, the ship would be able to handle the extra load much easier. 

[3smithboys]

2 hours ago, UPNYGuy said:

I just checked the deck plan, and freedom still has the 2 level lido seating, which should be that way until your cruise. IMO it should be the better option for passenger flow, onboard options, and all-around spaciousness. 

 

Like I said, I do NOT dislike the sunrise, I just feel the repurposing of the top portion of the Lido was a *huge* misstep. If they had not done that, the ship would be able to handle the extra load much easier. 

Thanks! I think we are planning on staying onboard in Nassau. Jacks shack is the plan for grand Turk. Do you know if the aft pool is adults only? I’ve read so many different things, I don’t know what to believe!