Refurbished OLD Ship

[sailincajunns]

HI, All,

Thought I'd throw in my 2-cents. We are cruise fans, period. We've been on really REALLY old boats (oldest was built in 1956 and is long since retired). We've been on new ships, big ships, small ships. NCL, Premier, CCL, Celebrity, couple others..........

We are booked on Sunshine for March, 2014.

Not concerned about either her 'age' nor her 'mechanicals'.

Not concerned, even, about her 'over-crowding.

She was the first of her 'class' for Carnival, and if you look at the later 'versions' of that class, I think their stated capacity is a bit higher than Destiny was.

All that being said, I won't know for certain until after we sail on her.

In the meantime, we have a summer sail set up on Elation to replace the Feb 11 Triumph (we know how that one turned out) So, with Elation we get both 'old' and 'small', and happy to do her again.

 

:D

[poison7fl]

Local travel agent is advising against any Carnival Cruise.

 

The travel agents #1 goal is to make money on you. They are salesman... Remember that. Carnival doesn't allow them to inflate prices.

 

Oh, and who uses a travel agent anymore? Last time I used one was 20 years ago.

[Cruizinman]

HI, All,

Thought I'd throw in my 2-cents. We are cruise fans, period. We've been on really REALLY old boats (oldest was built in 1956 and is long since retired). We've been on new ships, big ships, small ships. NCL, Premier, CCL, Celebrity, couple others..........

We are booked on Sunshine for March, 2014.

Not concerned about either her 'age' nor her 'mechanicals'.

Not concerned, even, about her 'over-crowding.

She was the first of her 'class' for Carnival, and if you look at the later 'versions' of that class, I think their stated capacity is a bit higher than Destiny was.

All that being said, I won't know for certain until after we sail on her.

In the meantime, we have a summer sail set up on Elation to replace the Feb 11 Triumph (we know how that one turned out) So, with Elation we get both 'old' and 'small', and happy to do her again.

 

:D

 

That's 10 cents , enjoy your cruise ;)

[sailincajunns]

That's 10 cents , enjoy your cruise ;)

 

I am old, that used to be 2 cents LOL :p

[RRLLAL]

Commodore 64??? I hope you are joking :eek:

 

 

Sorry it took so long to respond. This computer is a bit slow for some reason.

 

Sent using my Commodore 64

[PaulMedik]

Is anyone reluctant to book a cruise on Carnival Sunshine because of its age regardless of the refurbishment? Everyone I speak with refers me to a RCI cruise. Any opinions in this matter?

 

 

mysgilomonster,

 

We sailed her B2B just over three years ago and she was in fine shape as Destiny; this was smack in the middle of the 'propulsion problems' too. I wouldn't think twice about her age; I have clothing older than her that I still wear. :p

 

My guess is that your friends have not sailed Carnival? I have friends that have also suggested that I sail RCI. Been there done that and have no near term plans to do so again. :rolleyes: Granted Royal has some nice ships and price wise they're right in line with what we pay at Carnival, but I'm satisfied, my family is satisfied, and the repeat experience along with a few new bells and whistles from time to time still appeals to us.

[k2excursion]

Is anyone reluctant to book a cruise on Carnival Sunshine because of its age regardless of the refurbishment? Everyone I speak with refers me to a RCI cruise. Any opinions in this matter?

 

I'm not reluctant because of the age. I'm reluctant because of the big cuts in entertainment. Sure, things were added, such as extra-pay restaurants & a fountain, but I don't care at all about those things. (However, I would love those waterslides!) There will be very little live music on the ship, shorter shows that barely qualify as shows, too much relying on passengers to do the entertaining, and dead nights. I know that Carnival is moving this direction with all their ships, but Sunshine is diving head-first into it.

 

Plus, they are adding more passengers onto an already crowded ship, and reducing public space. Some venues will become more multi-purpose, which may help out with some crowding, but not much. Main dining rooms, comedy club, serenity area, deck chairs, etc COULD be crazy crowded, much more than any other Carnival ship. We will find out when the ship starts sailing from the U.S. I would not book this ship until the reports start coming in then, and only if people are not reporting crazy overcrowding and being completely bored.

[eng4]

I had no idea the new Sunshine is actually the old Destiny. I love cruise critic, I learn so much :)

 

I was impressed at how clean the Miracle was (being an older ship). I clean houses so I'm picky. Carnival works hard at keeping things looking nice even if the decor is out dated.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

Is anyone reluctant to book a cruise on Carnival Sunshine because of its age regardless of the refurbishment? Everyone I speak with refers me to a RCI cruise. Any opinions in this matter?

 

Not reluctant because of age, just reluctant because the ship sounds like it'll be packed like sardines with all the extra cabins they are adding.

 

I'd book RCI too if those were my choices.

 

Bill

[Waterloomarc]

I had no idea the new Sunshine is actually the old Destiny. I love cruise critic, I learn so much :)

 

This is precisely why I think it's a dirty move on Carnival's part.

 

 

 

 

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[kcdancerkc]

We went on the Carnival Sensation - very shortly after it served to house victims of Katrina -- the whole refurbish was great!

 

Following Hurricane Katrina, Carnival Sensation was loaned to

the United States government to serve as emergency housing for

six months. The ship was then given an extensive refit in 2007,

that refurbished all of the cabins including giving them all flat

screen televisions and updating the bathrooms. The public rooms

were also extensively renovated adding new features to the

theater, a new photo gallery, a new art gallery, and redoing

several of the lounges. A mini-golf course and a jogging track

were also added.

[mzloolue]

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.

I am going to wait and see.

That and it looks, to me, like the rates for Sunshine are jacked up a bit.

I think it will come down after the looky loos get their ride.

[stevenr597]

Carnival has decided that they want to be the most inexpensive (cheapest) of the major cruise lines. They will offer a fairly nice package at really inexpensive rates. However, to achieve this, Carnival has had to increase passenger capacity on all of its ships, reduce space, reduce crew, reduce shows, as well as both quantity and quality of food and service.

 

The "new" Carnival Sunshine is the latest example of this.

 

If you are looking for a really cheap cruise- Go Carnival, you will not be disappointed.

 

If you are looking for a somewhat better product, I would suggest paying a bit more and going on one of the other cruise lines.

[Sargent_Schultz]

Carnival is the best value and they have not reduced crew. They never run out of food and there is nothing wrong with the quality - it is still superior to some cruise lines.

 

The armchair admirals can issue their opinions from land. Me, I'm going to be cruising on the new Carnival Sunshine in a few weeks. :D

[bar1068]

This is precisely why I think it's a dirty move on Carnival's part.

 

 

 

 

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Hmmm....Any chance you could explain what makes this a "dirty move" on Carnivals part? Carnival has had this conversion on it's website for months. It's been written about in other cruise related publications including Cruise Critic...the main page with general cruise news/articles, not just this silly forum. What would make this appear "less dirty"?

[flynnsport]

Carnival is the best value and they have not reduced crew. They never run out of food and there is nothing wrong with the quality - it is still superior to some cruise lines.

 

The armchair admirals can issue their opinions from land. Me, I'm going to be cruising on the new Carnival Sunshine in a few weeks. :D

 

Amen sarge

[Waterloomarc]

Hmmm....Any chance you could explain what makes this a "dirty move" on Carnivals part? Carnival has had this conversion on it's website for months. It's been written about in other cruise related publications including Cruise Critic...the main page with general cruise news/articles, not just this silly forum. What would make this appear "less dirty"?

 

Simple (IMO) call it the upgraded Destiny.

 

Edit: forgot the first part of your question. I think it's a dirty move because its not a new ship as they are billing it. Being that new ships typically command higher prices than existing/refueled/dry docked ships calling it new and charging accompanying prices is questionable IMO.

 

 

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[stevenr597]

Carnival is the best value and they have not reduced crew. They never run out of food and there is nothing wrong with the quality - it is still superior to some cruise lines.

 

The armchair admirals can issue their opinions from land. Me, I'm going to be cruising on the new Carnival Sunshine in a few weeks. :D

 

By having bigger ships with more people, they are in effect reducing crew. One has only to go into the MDR and how the quanitity of the service has declined. The waiters have to cover more tables in less time.

 

The ship has also cut back on the new of individuals in the bands as well as the dancers and singers.

 

Again, life is about choice. Some people like Denny's, some like Ruth Chris.

 

If one wants to go on the cheapest cruise possible, Carnival is a great choice. If one is looking for better good, serice and entertainment I would suggest Cunard, Celebrity, Holland American or Princess.

[hexdragon]

Sorry it took so long to respond. This computer is a bit slow for some reason.

300 Baud Modem, right? Or did you splurge and get one of those fancy dancy 1200 Baud ones? :p

[arby70]

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.

 

I totally agree with you. I will see what people have to say about it, but it looks like it will be a nice ship once it's done. I like the idea of refurbishing ships; it just makes sense to me to "recycle" in this day and age. And I also agree with you on RCI. Loved my experience on Royal eventhough is cost more. Totally worth it.

[bar1068]

By having bigger ships with more people, they are in effect reducing crew. One has only to go into the MDR and how the quanitity of the service has declined. The waiters have to cover more tables in less time.

 

The ship has also cut back on the new of individuals in the bands as well as the dancers and singers.

 

Again, life is about choice. Some people like Denny's, some like Ruth Chris.

 

If one wants to go on the cheapest cruise possible, Carnival is a great choice. If one is looking for better good, serice and entertainment I would suggest Cunard, Celebrity, Holland American or Princess.

 

Hmmm..So hows it work when they add more passengers and add more crew,is that still considered a cutback cause they added more options to the ship? This gets so confusing.

[Sargent_Schultz]

By having bigger ships with more people, they are in effect reducing crew. One has only to go into the MDR and how the quanitity of the service has declined. The waiters have to cover more tables in less time.

 

The ship has also cut back on the new of individuals in the bands as well as the dancers and singers.

 

Again, life is about choice. Some people like Denny's, some like Ruth Chris.

 

If one wants to go on the cheapest cruise possible, Carnival is a great choice. If one is looking for better good, serice and entertainment I would suggest Cunard, Celebrity, Holland American or Princess.

 

How many captains does a ship need, for any number of passengers?

 

Cruise on Carnival much? I didn't think so.

 

They also have not cut back on entertainment staff. Reallocation is not a cut back.

 

You are correct about choice - Carnival is all about offering people choice - others, not so much. For value AND choice, Carnival is where it is at. :D

 

Other cruise lines must be terribly boring.

[srlafleur]

We'll be sailing on Carnival Sunshine in October because it offers the best itinerary for the price. I've looked into others for similar itinerary (we're also fans and past guests on NCL, RCL, HAL, X & Princess) but they all skipped a few ports we wanted to hit and were WAY more expensive for our preferred cabin category.

I know crowding won't be an issue for us because we have an aft-facing balcony, for one thing, and for another, we aren't loyal to any one bar or dining venue. If a certain venue is too crowded, we'll find one that's not. We also don't give a rat's patootie about being close to the pool.

We're flexible about things like shows - we like them, generally, but don't make it to them most of the time, anyway, for whatever reason, and we don't get distressed by that at all.

[allenee]

Been on several RCI cruises including Oasis. I'll stick with Carnival, they never disappoint us. That TA only cares about their commission not getting the most value for their customers bucks.

[Wrinks22]

Local travel agent is advising against any Carnival Cruise.

 

ask why he/she is advising against it.

I have sailed CCL several times, all without any problems.