Carnival Sunshine - Loved The Captain's Suite - Won't Be Back!

[Kfoot]

Im a little to this thread, but now I understand your title. Never again, becuz it was a one time splurge. LOL :D

Loving the pice. Can't wait for it to get to Port Canaveral

[Oak Hill Cruisers]

Super pictures and writing. Captain's Suite a little rich for us interior (trogledite) cabin dwellers. ;-)

[MsMot]

One last picture, before I wrap this thing up! Here's Jeff & Kellyn celebrating Jeff's 28th birthday in New Orleans...

 

 

I always enjoy sharing my photos, videos, and cruise stories with the folks on Cruise Critic. I've learned a lot from Cruise Critic over the years, and this is how I give something back. I hope you've enjoyed the story. I apologize for the rant... it's not normally my style. I'm a "gets a bad steak, doesn't say a word to the waiter" kind of guy. But I think it's important to shine a light on the fact that the Carnival Sunshine is a little different from the other ships in the fleet. I'll be sticking with the Carnival Breeze and the Conquest-class ships in the future, as well as testing the waters with Princess in 2014.

 

 

 

Thank you for taking the time to do a balanced review. Your pictures and videos are awesome!

[russianmom]

Did the haven have a resturant for dinner on the jewell class? Or is it Cagny's for breakfast and lunch only?

 

We did a suite on the Dawn with no haven so wondering the difference in eating.

 

The Haven on Epic, Breakaway and Getaway has it's own separate restaurant. On the Jewel class ships it's Cagney's for breakfast and lunch.

 

Here's a review with pictures and info from Epic

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1711317&highlight=epic+haven+restaurant

 

here's pictures from Breakaway

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1871807&highlight=breakaway+haven

[Raven Days]

OP: Your's is the most fanstastic, well written and balanced review I have ever read! Thank you so much for sharing. I loved all of your photos - you're a great photog!

[Goldwolf]

I'm definitely thinking about it! I've pretty well got my 2014 cruise schedule lined up... but a NCL Haven cruise is a definite possibility in late 2014 or beyond. I really like the idea of NCL's Haven, and I could definitely see myself there... as it does appear to be the quiet, non-crowded outdoor space of my fantasies.

 

I have to see what happens with the two upcoming Princess cruises, though. A particularly fantastic (or horrible!) experience with Princess could influence my future cruise planning, for sure.

 

Since Carnival's next new ship won't be here until 2016, I can do some experimentation in 2014 and 2015 to see if I'm still really a Carnival-only guy deep inside or not. I can tell you for sure that when the Carnival Vista comes to the USA, I will be truly looking forward to experiencing the latest Carnival innovations. I have very much enjoyed seeing the innovations on each new ship in the fleet.

 

We had an aft Ocean Suite on the Sunshine in the Med last year and we've booked a Haven Suite on the NCL Epic again in the Med this coming May, before going back to our Sunshine suite out of Florida in August. We really enjoyed the suite but the Carnival suite perks are pretty minimal so looking forward to trying out Haven too and the numerous perks you get.

 

We didn't find the Sunshine to be so noisy in the Med last year but maybe there is a different group of people in the Caribbean? Mostly it was British families and older US couples/groups, there did not seem to be so many 18-30 groups. We also thought the food was pretty good too, but didn't try any of the Specialty restaurants. I'm not a natural complainer (English reserve ;) ) but I think I would have sent that steak back too.

[smyemar]

Great Review! Will be sailing on the Sunshine on January 12th and found your review very informative! We love the comedy club so I have a feeling we are going to be a little disapointed if we show up a half hour early and still dont get in:(Thanks for the amazing photos as well!

[legion3]

The Haven on Epic, Breakaway and Getaway has it's own separate restaurant. On the Jewel class ships it's Cagney's for breakfast and lunch.

 

Here's a review with pictures and info from Epic

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1711317&highlight=epic+haven+restaurant

 

here's pictures from Breakaway

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1871807&highlight=breakaway+haven

 

Ok thanks

[crusnbee]

Thanks so much for this great review. I am in the process of planning a summer family trip and was torn between an 8 day on the Sunshine vs an 8 day on Liberty. My mind has been made up now. Need that aft pool!!!!!!

 

CJ

[tomsuelaw]

Thanks for taking the time to write such a great review! Enjoyed your pics and video. Good balance, I can understand your concerns about no quiet pool area. We are not fans of the party pool scene either.

 

Thinking about the Sunshine for next winter!

[Spaniel Lover]

I realized today that I forgot to tell one other story from the cruise...

 

As you can tell, I am kind of a photography nut. I take a big backpack with me on cruises, and it is full of photography gear and my laptop computer. One of the items I bring along in my camera backpack is a very high-end Canon "prime" zoom lens. For those of you who know Canon gear, it's the "L" series 100-400mm zoom... which is about a $1500 lens. It's the most expensive thing I bring with me on a cruise.

 

So, there I was... hanging out in the Captain's Suite... and I had gotten in to my camera backpack to get something for shooting a photo. I decided to move the camera backpack over to the bed for a minute. I lifted the backback with one hand, but didn't have a very good grip on it... and to MY TOTAL HORROR the $1500 lens slid out of the backpack and fell approximately two feet to the floor. There was instantly a horrible sound of breaking glass, and as I looked down at the carpet I saw little bits of broken glass everywhere around where the lens had landed.

 

At that moment, I had visions of $1500 going down the drain. That is a feeling you do not want to have!

 

Well, it turns out that when I purchased the lens I made a very smart move... I bought a neutral-density filter for it. That's basically a clear piece of glass that you attach to the front of the lens to protect it from damage. When I dropped the lens to the floor, it was the neutral-density filter that hit the floor first... and that's what shattered. A $50 protective filter! Boy, was that a great lesson on why you protect a $1500 lens with a $50 filter. No damage at all to the lens... just shattered the filter.

 

Whew!

Edited December 31, 2013 by Spaniel Lover

[stooth]

If you don't mind me asking...what was the price for the excursion you spoke about in Cozumel? We have been there many times and this sounds like it was fantastic.

Thanks!

[cruse2loose]

Does the Sunshine have a nice outside deck area on the Promenade deck like they do on the Magic? Are the hot tubs only on Lido deck? Can you eat lunch for free at the Italian place. What were the movies they were showing on the outdoor movie screen? TIA :)

[Spaniel Lover]

If you don't mind me asking...what was the price for the excursion you spoke about in Cozumel? We have been there many times and this sounds like it was fantastic.

Thanks!

 

"La Casa En La Playa" was $130 for adults and $110 for children. It was totally worth the money, as far as I'm concerned. It was one of my all-time favorite shore excursions.

[Topo Gigio]

Who is the captain?

[Spaniel Lover]

Does the Sunshine have a nice outside deck area on the Promenade deck like they do on the Magic? Are the hot tubs only on Lido deck? Can you eat lunch for free at the Italian place. What were the movies they were showing on the outdoor movie screen? TIA :)

 

A few of the movies were:

 

Pitch Perfect, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3, The Lucky One, Playing For Keeps, The Help, Lincoln, and The Bourne Legacy.

 

Also... they didn't show it on the Seaside Theatre screen... but on the TVs in the cabins they showed National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation... which was quite timely the week before Christmas. There was one night when I was feeling horrible from the cold I had picked up, and I just crashed in the cabin and watched "Christmas Vacation". It totally put a smile on my face!

 

The Sunshine does not have a big walkway all the way around Promenade deck like the Dream-class ships have.

 

There aren't very many Jacuzzi's on the ship. There's one at the top of the waterfall, and two on Lido deck. That's it. They removed two (and the aft pool) to make room for the area that is now the Havana Bar, Jiji's Asian Kitchen, Cucina Del Captitano, etc.

 

Yes, lunch is always free at Cucina Del Capitano... on all Carnival ships that have it.

Edited January 3, 2014 by Spaniel Lover

[Spaniel Lover]

Who is the captain?

 

The Captain was Carmelo Marino.

[Love my butler]

I'm definitely thinking about it! I've pretty well got my 2014 cruise schedule lined up... but a NCL Haven cruise is a definite possibility in late 2014 or beyond. I really like the idea of NCL's Haven, and I could definitely see myself there... as it does appear to be the quiet, non-crowded outdoor space of my fantasies.

 

I have to see what happens with the two upcoming Princess cruises, though. A particularly fantastic (or horrible!) experience with Princess could influence my future cruise planning, for sure.

 

Since Carnival's next new ship won't be here until 2016, I can do some experimentation in 2014 and 2015 to see if I'm still really a Carnival-only guy deep inside or not. I can tell you for sure that when the Carnival Vista comes to the USA, I will be truly looking forward to experiencing the latest Carnival innovations. I have very much enjoyed seeing the innovations on each new ship in the fleet.

 

The ONLY downside to the haven is the cost. The cabins can be quite spendy depending on the week and ship. Other than that is should be called the heaven.

[Cruzn4fun14]

Thank for the great review. We are doing the same itinerary in March and still deciding on our Jamaica excursion. It will be our first visit to New Orleans too even though we are only about an 8 hour drive. Hope Jaime is still the cruise director. We had her on the Dream last year and she was one of the most accessible ones. I think I will still like the Breeze best too after reading your review and just being on her in September.

[muffinbaby]

Great review. Glad you enjoyed your time in New Orleans. Those Gulf shrimp look heavenly!

[mzloolue]

I enjoyed this thread.

 

My question is, I have not been on Destiny or Sunshine, but on Triumph, Glory, and Conquest there were areas on the side under the lifeboats with deck chairs.

Does Destiny/Sunshine have the deck chairs on the side?

 

DH says that if Sunshine has the deckchairs on the side he will go, if not, then he is waiting for Dream or doing another Elation cruise.

Love Elation, but we have done her five times now and it would be nice to be on a ship we don't know like the back of our hands.

 

DH likes the comedy club too, so I guess maybe we should say good riddance to Sunshine.

 

Man, I miss Triumph...

Edited January 3, 2014 by mzloolue

[Spaniel Lover]

Tell your husband to start packing his bags... you're going on a cruise!!!

 

Here's a photo I found at the ZydecoCruiser web page. Bill shot this during his Carnival Sunshine cruise in November.

 

[MISSSNOOPYGIRL]

This was the most helpful and balanced review I've read on Sunshine! I cruise her the 19th and I fear I will feel like you afterwards. Maybe time to seek a new cruise line. Oh well it's still a CRUISE!!!! Thanks, wonderfully done!

[rob6465]

Cozumel, Mexico

 

Our final port of call was Cozumel, which is an island off the east coast of Mexico. Like Grand Cayman, Cozumel is a major destination for cruise ships. There were six other cruise ships in Cozumel the day we visited! In fact, there were so many cruise ships in Cozumel that day that I saw something that I've never seen before in all my previous visits... there were more cruise ships than there were piers to handle them! There were seven ships in port that day, and only six places to dock... so one of the ships had to tender her passengers in. I've never seen that before in Cozumel. The unlucky ship on this day was the Norwegian Jewel.

 

In Cozumel, we were docked at the Puerta Maya pier next to an old friend, the Carnival Magic. I call her that because we had a really nice cruise on her in 2012. You can read about it here. At the adjacent pier, it was a treat to see the largest cruise ship in the world... the Allure of the Seas. I'll probably sail on her, someday, just to see what all the fuss is about.

 

 

Our final shore excursion of this cruise was a real treat. It's a relatively new shore excursion known as "La Casa En La Playa". In English, that's "The House On The Beach". La Casa En La Playa is located at Playa Palancar... which is about a fifteen minute ride from where the cruise ships dock in Puerta Maya.

 

 

La Casa En La Playa is basically a little cottage at the beach. What's special about this shore excursion is that it's limited to just 16 people, and everyone is treated like a VIP. There's a private chef to cook for you, and a bar staff to bring you unlimited drinks. You can swim or kayak in the ocean... or enjoy snorkeling at a small reef just a few feet off shore. I wish I had brought my water proof camera on this shore excursion, as there were more fish at this reef than I saw anywhere else during the entire week. I didn't even realize they had a reef, so I left my waterproof camera back on the ship.

 

All around La Casa are little places for you to relax... pick whatever suits your mood. There are tables to eat lunch at... loungers at the beach for those who want sun... and under the palm trees are day beds, hammocks, and loungers for those who want to stay in the shade.

 

I know it doesn't look like much, but believe me... this was paradise!

 



It was warm that day, so we stayed under the shade of the palm trees when we weren't in the water

 

 

 

Read your review on cruising the magic. What week did u cruise her in August 2012? Our son got married on 8/19/12 on Magic and we had 30+ guests on that week. Wife and I were on her for my birthday 12/8-12/15/12 and this year on my 50th, we plan to celebrate it with a group of family/friends. You are invited...lol

[Spaniel Lover]

Read your review on cruising the magic. What week did u cruise her in August 2012? Our son got married on 8/19/12 on Magic and we had 30+ guests on that week.

 

 

We were right there with you. We boarded the Carnival Magic on 8/19/12, and stayed on for two weeks. (Back-to-back cruises.)

Edited January 4, 2014 by Spaniel Lover