Nervous about sailing on the Sunshine now!

[sanmarcosman]

Several family members sailed Sunshine and each said "never again." The proof is in the pudding.

[mlamont80]

We loved the sunshine. If you know that you have to get to the comedy club early, it is not that hard to get a seat. Would love to sail the sunshine again, and I am even sending my parents on the sunshine.

 

 

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[gregg204]

Several family members sailed Sunshine and each said "never again." The proof is in the pudding.

Several friends of mine loved the Sunshine so much I gave it a shot and loved it. The only thing missing was the mysterious smell. Great service and a beautiful ship. So yes, the proof was indeed in the pudding.

[brokenbusted]

I have sailed on sunshine 2 times already... first time was really bad the 2nd time was really good. I think they are working to change things for the better but it does take time. For those that say don't put much into reviews I say hog wash... if you spend 6 grand on a vacation you are a fool if you don't read up on what you buy. js

[jsantos68]

We sailed the Sunshine in August and enjoyed our cruise tremendously! The ship is beautiful and your trip is what you make of it. This was our 7th cruise second on Carnival. Sunshine was by far the best ship we have been on! Enjoy it!

 

 

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[hckyfan68]

My family (myself, DW, DS, Twin DD and MIL) sailed on her in January.

 

The only problem we had was that the slides were closed for half of the cruise. Well, that and the temperature was a touch cooler than expected. We loved the 2.0 features on her and we will definitely sail on her again.

 

We still had a great time, and the kids keep asking when they can go back on the big ship again!

[mikem1977]

My family (myself, DW, DS, Twin DD and MIL) sailed on her in January.

 

The only problem we had was that the slides were closed for half of the cruise. Well, that and the temperature was a touch cooler than expected. We loved the 2.0 features on her and we will definitely sail on her again.

 

We still had a great time, and the kids keep asking when they can go back on the big ship again!

 

 

Did they say why the slides were closed for that long? Just wondering because our kids are looking very forward to that part of the ship.

[Kristi Williamson]

We LOVED the Sunshine!! It's layout isn't our favorite, but there's so much more to love. The waterworks area is fabulous, as is the Serenity area. Actually, the Serenity on Sunshine may be the best ever! The big screen is set up perfectly for movies with almost no seats that make it impossible to see and we really enjoy the lunch option on Deck 5 that almost no one seemed to realize was there with plaza seating directly beside it!

 

The SeaDay Brunch was exceptional and we had fabulous service all around. Don't listen to the hype. We smelled a smell on Deck 3 near GS ONCE and I've smelled that on almost every ship, including the Breeze when we were on her last October. Go believing you'll have fun and you will. Go believing that every little thing will suck and you'll be looking for something to gripe about.

[Derbie]

Are we talking about the user reviews here on cruisecritic? When I checked Sunshine reviews, I did not see 9 of 10 were "extremely negative". 4 of the 5 most recent reviews are 5 or 5+ stars. The only 1-star review complained ship layout and no free drink.

 

There is another review that some young people in their party missed the ship. Carnivall was nice enough letting them board on a different ship instead of letting them fly back US by themselves. But they still gave Carnival a 1-star.[/quote

 

Sorry-I didn't count the bad reviews. I was just making point. Also, I have been reading the reviews for several months. I am not going to let my fear of the reviews keep me of having a good time.

[sanmarcosman]

Several friends of mine loved the Sunshine so much I gave it a shot and loved it. The only thing missing was the mysterious smell. Great service and a beautiful ship. So yes, the proof was indeed in the pudding.

 

I'll have to go with what my family tell me. I know them, I don't know you but thanks for cheering on what you enjoyed.

[Vitamin_Sea]

CCL has spent $150 Million on renovations for this ship. I certainly would not be upset by some negative reviews. I am also reading many postive reviews as well. We would love to sail the Sunshine.

 

remember, there are always the negative nellies.

[Out to sea!]

We are heading out on 10/4 on the Sunshine. I have read the reviews, and now I am very nervous about the cruise. It seems like 9 out of 10 reviews are extremely negative. Did I make a mistake? This is my third cruise on Carnival. I prefer making my own opinion on something; however, the cruise reviews are pretty troubling.

 

No, you didn't make a mistake. Most of those negative posts are just being made by whiny people who probably didn't get something they wanted but weren't entitled to. I had two friends on the Sunshine last week and they had a blast. The only negative (in their eyes) they could come up with was that some of the bathrooms around the ship were small and some were huge. I really wonder what made them notice that. Otherwise, they said it was fantastic.

[cacroozr]

We sailed on the Sunshine in July. The ship was full and they said there were about 1000 kids on board. We had the best time. To me, it never felt like that many kids were on board. The ship never felt crowded to me except one morning at breakfast when the entire ship was trying to get off for an early stop at port. The slides were awesome! My kids had a great time on them. It was the most amazing vacation I've been on!! I'd sail on her again in a minute!

[skyeman27]

spelling

Don't think twice about not sailing Sunshine, there are others willing to take your spot. hope you read other posts others who went with mixed feelings but had a great cruise. No guarantees Fascination or Breeze will be "perfect".

 

As very experienced cruiser I know that no ship is perfect and never even insinuated that any were perfect. Hope you have read the posts of others that have stated they should have heeded the negative posts, or do you ignore those posts as they don't support your liking of the Sunshine. I have read all (including the mixed feelings) Sunshine posts and for me, the Sunshine still gets the same consistent complaints and is the lowest rated Carnival ship on Cruise Critic, even the old Destiny had much better ratings. I also know some people bash Cruise Critic ship ratings but to me they are helpful...

Edited September 12, 2014 by gklow
left something out/spelling

[bassmaster150]

For the most part I have given up on reading reviews. Sadly for some a review becomes a way to get back at a company..... not all people do this but a lot do. Have you ever went to see a movie that you heard was terrible and come to find out after seeing it for yourself it was actually good. (it can go both ways)

Read reviews of the Inspiration.... a ton of negatives, I happen to think we have had one of our best cruises on that ship.

 

I have pretty much given up on reading reviews on Cruise Critic because they are getting absolutelyridiculous. Look at this thread. Several people have said for one reason or another that they would never book the Sunshine....AND THEY HAVE NEVER EVEN SAILED THE SHIP!!!!! My wife and I sailed the Sunshine in Europe, and if given the opportunity again, I WOULD BOOK IT AGAIN IN A HEARTBEAT!!!! We were on the Destiny twice and the Sunshine once.....the Sunshine is NOT the Destiny no matter what anyone tries to tell you....they refurbished the Destiny, but when you board, it is a different ship inside. So take the reviews with a grain of salt. If we would have believed them, we would have never had the wonderful experience that we had on the Sunshine...you will enjoy JiJi's, Cucina del Capitan, and Farenheit 555 if you chose to go to those onboard specialty restaurants (and you should), you will not regret it.

[Tutontow]

Sailed her two months ago and would do it again in a heartbeat. I don't do the clubs and shows but the food venues were great. The Red Frog Pub was great. The casino staff was nice. The lobby bar and karaoke was a blast. The young lady playing guitar and singing in the lobby was fantastic. My cabin steward was the best.

 

Sure there were hic cups but I most likely will sail her again in the near future. Oh BTW the Sea Day brunch was very good, Try the steak and eggs.

[bassmaster150]

By the way...if you read the reviews on the Royal Princess, you will also see a ton of complaints / bad reviews, as well as comments from people who say that they will never sail on that ship....who haven't even been on the ship....had we listened, we would have never sailed on the Royal Princess which was an unbelievable cruise and an amazing ship.

[michaelandjoanne]

Not sure if this comes into play but the crew accommodations on the older ships are at a lower standard than newer ships. I remember reading an ebook written by a staff member on that ship and he mentioned about how bad the vibrations were on the crew decks. Itineraries where the ship is constantly travelling at a higher speed means constantly getting poor nights sleep compared to itineraries that allow for slower speeds. It could be why some reviews are good, while others are bad

 

 

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[bballcruise]

I was filled with doubt and apprehension after reading the reviews as well. I then decided that the opinions of others are not what I am going to base my vacation on. The price and the itinerary were right, so we booked. I'm writing this from the plane headed to Orlando.

 

We leaved or the Western Caribbean tomorrow on the Sunshine, and it's going to be a fantastic vacation.

 

If the slide is broken, I'll realize that things break.

 

If the staff isn't ovef the top friendly and energetic, I'll understand that they're probably tired and miss their family.

 

If the food is good and the libations flowing, I'll be happy.

 

I'll consider myself a fortunate individual for being able to spend a week in the Caribbean.

[mousey]

Here is something to consider about the nature of people.

 

Most people in the world only write a review to complain. If there are 9 things great and 1 thing bad, they will only write about the one bad thing. Everything is subjective. I may like the food, you may not. You may think you room is the perfect temp, I may say its hot. It'll all subjective.

 

What would ruin a cruise for me? I can't think of much that wouldn't be tolerable.

 

 

I have never cruised on sunshine, but go with an open mind and enjoy yourself.

 

 

Excellent! Very well said and I totally agree!:D

 

If I had listened to all the negative reviews I once read about a then upcoming cruise on a Costa ship, I would have been crying all night and day. Instead I took it all with a "grain of salt" and ended up experiencing one of the best cruises I've ever been on! We had zero complaints! You make your own good times, so if you go with a positive mindset...you'll be fine. If you're looking for perfection...you will always be disappointed.

 

By-the-way...on our most recent cruise in July some of the reviews mentioned, "foul odors", "stink hole", etc. There were 5 people in our happy, little group and nary one of us smelled anything bad...so go figure...to each his own.

 

I wish you and yours an awesome cruise!

Edited September 12, 2014 by mousey

[RuthlessBoss]

Did they say why the slides were closed for that long? Just wondering because our kids are looking very forward to that part of the ship.

 

That was last JANUARY, likely cold.

[ALWAYZCRUISEN]

Here is something to consider about the nature of people.

 

Most people in the world only write a review to complain. If there are 9 things great and 1 thing bad, they will only write about the one bad thing. Everything is subjective. I may like the food, you may not. You may think you room is the perfect temp, I may say its hot. It'll all subjective.

 

What would ruin a cruise for me? I can't think of much that wouldn't be tolerable.

 

 

I have never cruised on sunshine, but go with an open mind and enjoy yourself.

 

Well said!!

[floridabum]

I was filled with doubt and apprehension after reading the reviews as well. I then decided that the opinions of others are not what I am going to base my vacation on. The price and the itinerary were right, so we booked. I'm writing this from the plane headed to Orlando.

 

We leaved or the Western Caribbean tomorrow on the Sunshine, and it's going to be a fantastic vacation.

 

If the slide is broken, I'll realize that things break.

 

If the staff isn't ovef the top friendly and energetic, I'll understand that they're probably tired and miss their family.

 

If the food is good and the libations flowing, I'll be happy.

 

I'll consider myself a fortunate individual for being able to spend a week in the Caribbean.

 

AMEN!!!!! Love your attitude.

[skyeman27]

That was last JANUARY, likely cold.

Right on, probably canceled HMC because it was cold, also the pools...

[Derbie]

Thanks one-and-all for your feedback. I am going to cruise and have a great time!