Picture Review of SUNSHINE and Western Caribbean Ports of Call

[mpcaruth]

Loving the review. We are aboard the Sunshine on 4/11.

 

So far I have booked cave tubing at Belize. We might go to paradise beach in Cozumel.

 

Still looking for inspiration in Roatan and Costa Maya.

 

Could you tell me how "elegant" people dress on the elegant nights? Our last couple of cruises hardly anyone dressed up. The women mostly had sundresses on. We have never been on the Sunshine.

 

Looking forward to the rest of your review.

 

Did you check out my other cruise reviews linked below for ideas? We had the same itinerary on the Norwegian Jewel cruise last year and I give detailed picture reviews for each port: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2169332

Belize - cave tubing

 

 

Roatan - Maya Key Resort (if you like to snorkel, then this is a must!)

 

Cozumel - Mr. Sanchos

 

Costa Maya - private fishing and snorkeling tour & Pez Quadro beach club.

 

My Carnival Freedom Review includes details of Paradise Beach: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1347741

 

 

You asked how people dressed for Elegant Night. It was your typical Carnival cruise. I would guess 20% wore suits and cocktail/formal dresses. Most wore "dressy" dresses with the guys wearing ties. And then about 20% were probably under dressed. Since we had Your Time dining, we less structured folks may also be the less formal. I suspect the assigned dining room may have been a little more formal. My family used to really get dressed up with suits and cocktail dresses. Packing for this was a pain. Here is our semi-elegant photo (notice that I even let my son wear his tennis shoes - shame)

 

[oneboysmom]

Thank you for the review!! We are on the Glory in 3 short weeks with the same itinerary. We are wanting to just rent a jeep and tour cozumel on our own. Did you run into anyone that was doing that by chance? I want to see the whole island instead of just a beach resort. In Belize we're doing the ruins and Roatan we're doing a victor bodden tour.

Can't wait to read the rest of your review!!

[mpcaruth]

FOOD:

 

This ship has more lunch options than any ship we have ever been on! The Lido Marketplace has numerous specialized food areas.

 

 

 

 

I won’t go into detail with each one but here are my highlights:

 

Guy’s Burgers: I don’t eat burgers (yes, I am American). My husband said the actual burgers were average, but the toppings were awesome. The toppings were located on a do-it-yourself bar. All the bacon, mushrooms, and cheese you can fit on the burger!

 

Pizza: In the past, I have found the pizza to be merely okay. BUT… Apparently they have changed the recipe. The pizzas are now made to order only (takes 5 minutes), and they prepare it in front of you. The crust is yummy thin (my favorite), and they use real fresh mozzarella; not the fake creamy cheese stuff. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize they had changed the recipe and did not try a slice until the next to last day. Pizza is subjective, but I rate the old recipe 4 out of 10, and the new recipe 8.5 out of 10.

 

Mongolian Wok (Ji Ji): very good, but as usual, the wait is never less than 20 minutes. I went here on embarkation day, and never returned.

 

Pasta Bar (Cucina): nice change of pace.

 

Deli: They have a menu, but you can also get made to order sandwiches. I personally like turkey, tomato, arugula, and fresh mozzarella toasted on a white roll. Love that cheese!

 

Blue Iguana: The tortillas are made on spot and they place the dough in a machine to flatten and bake them. One time I really liked the fish taco, the next time I didn’t (the spices were off). My son probably had 5 burritos throughout the week. There is one line for Tacos and another line for burritos. Tip: shrimp is only offered in the burrito line, but you can ask to have shrimp taco.

 

Sea Day Brunch in main dining room: We went each sea day. The first day we had excellent service. The second time was a disaster! The wait staff really were clueless about what to do. It was obvious they were all “training” level, yet I never saw a supervisor. It took 20 minutes to get our menus. Finally after 40 minutes and still not having received our orange juice, we got up and left. Here’s the menu: http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/explore/dining/menus/seaday-brunch-menu.ashx

 

Room Service: Never, ever, used it in all my cruises, but here's a copy of the menu.

 

[mpcaruth]

FOOD CONTINUED:

 

Breakfast. I already discussed are brunch experiences. We ate breakfast on the lido maybe twice. Each time, the guys would get the made to order omelettes from the after area of the Marketplace. We tried the Cuban selections once, but I cannot remember the names of the food. On early morning port days, we ate at the "Taste Bar" on deck 5 for breakfast. The bar is small, but contained probably 75% of the selection as the Lido area. There was never a line, no crowds, peaceful, and lots of available seating. I could even get my oatmeal with walnuts and honey.

 

Taste Bar at breakfast time:

 

 

 

 

Your Time Dining:

 

A little quirky process, but it flows. Your Time dining is assigned to the aft dining room on Deck 3. However, you had to check in on deck 5 near the Taste Bar. If your table is ready, you can directly proceed to the dining room. If not, you are given a buzzer. It is my understanding that the longest wait times for Your Time dining occur between 6:30 and 7:30. We went to the dining room 6 nights. We never had to wait in line more than 5 minutes to check-in, and our table was always available immediately after checking in. Why no wait? We always went to dinner before 6:20. We did this not only to avoid having to wait, but to also make sure we could make it 7:30 family comedy show. Only once did we cut it close and only arrived at the comedy club with 5 minutes til start. We had excellent prompt service in the dining room very night!

 

I won't review the food and I have no food pictures. Sorry. Honestly, it's the same menu on every ship for years. The food was fair to great, depending on the dish. My son LOVES the dining room food. His favorite dishes are what I call critter dishes: escargot, frog legs, alligator fritters, etc. He is all about the Did'ja Ever item of the day.

[cruizinisthebest]

Thanks for posting the room service menu. Definitely a few more items on there since our cruise last year. I don't know if that's unique to the Sunshine or what. We order room service almost every day.

[mpcaruth]

FOOD CONTINUED:

 

Specialty Dining - never tried it. Can you say, "too tight"? With so many free options, I just don't see the need for it.

 

The hall on Deck 4 abuts the Steakhouse and the Sushi Bar. The hallway stood out as overly plain/boring, and not the typical Carnival eclectic decor.

 

 

Sushi Bar: Never saw more than a dozen people in here.

 

 

 

Cooking Demonstration: This is the 3rd time my daughter and I have done this. I like the concept, and enjoyed the first time I did it. BUT CARNIVAL, the exact same dishes are prepared each time, no matter what ship! Switch it up please. The Demo is held in the Steakhouse on the first sea day. It reality, it is more of a come and see, then book the Steakhouse, sales pitch. Regardless, the food is good (all guests are served each of the dishes) and it is a nice break over the crazy lido action and the ho hum trivia games.

 

 

 

Chicken and Mac and Cheese (my daughter devoured this!):

 

tiramisu:

[mpcaruth]

Thanks for posting the room service menu. Definitely a few more items on there since our cruise last year. I don't know if that's unique to the Sunshine or what. We order room service almost every day.

 

You're welcome. Now that I am looking at the menu, I vaguely recall ordering pineapple juice and milk at night for the kids from room service years ago.

 

If I ever had a balcony, I might be more incline to order from room service and eat out on the balcony.

Edited February 20, 2015 by mpcaruth

[mpcaruth]

FOOD CONTINUED:

 

Ice cream: Corny, but I really look forward to all the ice cream I can eat on a cruise. I think it's my inner child. There are two soft serve locations on the Lido deck. Each has an "ice cream" machine and a "yogurt" machine. And if this is not enough ice cream for you, hand scooped is available every evening in the dining room. Butter Pecan, baby! My daughter likes the sherbet. Tip: anyone can order a banana split off the kids menu at dinner.

 

Tea Time: This is the first time I have gone. You guessed it, it was just my daughter and myself, as the guys bailed out. Tea Time is offered on Sea Days in the late afternoon. We really enjoyed it and the strawberries and fresh cream were AMAZING!!!

 

 

You can choose anything off this cart!

 

 

Okay, I have offered up all the info I have on the food on the ship. My next post will get back to what excites me the most: port days!

 

Coming up: Roatan, where we took a private tour through Ronys Tours to an orphange, West End Village, and then beach time at West Bay with snorkeling.

[mpcaruth]

Thank you for the review!! We are on the Glory in 3 short weeks with the same itinerary. We are wanting to just rent a jeep and tour cozumel on our own. Did you run into anyone that was doing that by chance? I want to see the whole island instead of just a beach resort. In Belize we're doing the ruins and Roatan we're doing a victor bodden tour.

Can't wait to read the rest of your review!!

 

Yes, we saw lots of people who had rented vehicles. You can see in a previous photo all the vehicles in front of the restaurant hut. I think it would be easy to do. I agree with you, the whole island is much more preferrable than staying at a beach resort for the day. In the past we have gone to these, as we always have one "cheap" day in port. And it has been Cozumel. This time, I splurged in Cozumel and our cheap day was in Costa Maya.

[getupgo]

Where is the taste bar on Deck 5? Looking at the Deck Plan, I see the coffee bar and Sports bar, but no Taste Bar. We always do Anytime Dining but have never had to check in at a different spot. Sounds very inconvenient for an 8 day cruise.

[islandatsea]

Where is the taste bar on Deck 5? Looking at the Deck Plan, I see the coffee bar and Sports bar, but no Taste Bar. We always do Anytime Dining but have never had to check in at a different spot. Sounds very inconvenient for an 8 day cruise.

 

We did not know the Taste Bar had breakfast until we saw this. Nice choice instead of going to the Lido Deck.

 

Your Time Dining is what we do to but seems strange you have to check-in at a different place in order to have dinner.

[bajangoddess82]

http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/Ships/SH/DeckPlans/Sunshine-Deck-Plan-PDFpdf

 

^^^ getupgo this link has everything labeled... The Taste Bar is located on Deck 5 Aft in the Ocean Plaza area... sandwiched btw the JavaBlue Cafe and the Alchemy Bar...

 

 

This review is AMAZING btw... detailed and filled with so much info. THANK YOU for doing this! I'm taking this same itinerary in May and looking forward to it! My group and I are planning just 2 excursions and 2 beach days... trying not to book through the cruise line... I've seen some good suggestions :)

Edited February 20, 2015 by bajangoddess82

[sjn911]

Thanks again for one of your wonderful reviews...you are superb at them with so many helpful details .

 

Room Service does look like it has added a few things and the tea which I enjoyed once before..looked even nicer in food and choices.

 

Great idea on having them change up that cooking demo..have not done but that would be nice for yearly plus Carnival repeat folks and not hard..I look forward to it.

 

Those cabins look like baby bear's porridge for money savings but a view and nice out side avbx trick...I love how each kid has their own little bed space and mom and dad a seperate unencumbered bed and that 220 sq feet..looking forward to a cabin with that space for a even a solo...

 

Thanks so...Sarah

Edited February 20, 2015 by sjn911

[FuturzMinion]

At the deli, did they have the Smoked Salmon sandwich? I got it on my last cruise and it was amazing! And where can I find a deli menu?

[mpcaruth]

I know I had indicated that Roatan was up next, but I think it may be appropriate to slip in a discussion about our Cruise Critic Roll Call first, as these folks assisted us with our Roatan excursion success…

 

Cruise Critic Roll Call: There was not too much chatter on the Roll Call. In fact, there were barely 200 posts total. Why? Because the sequential, post-style, Forum Boards are not conducive for numerous people communicating back and forth on multiple topics trying to organize activities, provide advice, and to just chatter about random cruise related topics. So naturally, the posts dwindled and a social media group was sparked up. I think a few posts on the Roll Call were deleted whenever the social media site was referenced. Now, I can understand why Cruise Critic wants to keep everything on their site and not promote others… but they need to make the posting/communication platform conducive to the Roll Callers’ needs. I checked in with the Roll Call, but admit I jumped ship and hit the social media site full speed.

 

I organized a Slot Pull for our CC/FB group. I had never done this, so I immediately realized the challenges. I set up a time for the morning of the first sea day, and had nearly 50 people sign up for the slot pull. I then contacted Jaime Dee, the Cruise Director, to see if we could get some assistance and prizes. She was AMAZING, and messaged me back numerous times. Unfortunately, she informed me that the Casino would be holding a “CPC Premier Cruise” event. Uh oh! You mean the reason the ship sold out completely was because of a casino promo??? So, we had to switch the slot pull time to 4:00. This was really the only option, and numerous folks had to back out because the football playoffs were airing during that time and it was also the first elegant night, and folks were afraid they would miss photos and dinner.

 

We ended up with 31 people in the slot pull. Jaime provided 5 bottles of Champagne, 5 ships on a stick, and 5 casino shirts. A suggestion was made to ask her for more prizes so that everyone could have one. Jaime smiled and said, “be right back!” She brought us Carnival Sunshine medallions. Did I say Jaime was amazing? She always called me by my name and said hello to me often throughout the cruise. That woman is full of smiling, healthy, contagious energy!

 

By the way, we came out ahead in the slot pull: each person won 4 dollars!!! I was so busy during the slot pull calling out names, counting pulls, and collecting slot money, that I did not get any photos of our group. If some of you are reading this review, and have pictures, please share.

 

 

 

During the slot pull event, my daughter also collected donations, friendship bracelets, and necklaces at for an orphanage in Roatan. My daughter had organized her Girl Scouts to make friendship bracelets and collected money for the orphanage; and I posted this to CC/FB group asking if any of the cruisers wanted to help out too. The cruisers donated 3 bags of bracelets and necklaces and $99. Awesome and thank you for helping out the children! I will provide lots of photos of our visit to the orphanage in my Roatan review.

[mpcaruth]

At the deli, did they have the Smoked Salmon sandwich? I got it on my last cruise and it was amazing! And where can I find a deli menu?

 

Yes, they had salmon.

 

Here is the Deli menu posted on Carnival's website:

http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/explore/dining/menus/deli-menu.ashx

Edited February 20, 2015 by mpcaruth

[FuturzMinion]

Yes, they had salmon.

 

Here is the Deli menu posted on Carnival's website:

http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/explore/dining/menus/deli-menu.ashx

SWEET! Thank you so much for the menu, and especially the review! Looking forward to more!

[mpcaruth]

http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/Ships/SH/DeckPlans/Sunshine-Deck-Plan-PDFpdf

 

^^^ getupgo this link has everything labeled... The Taste Bar is located on Deck 5 Aft in the Ocean Plaza area... sandwiched btw the JavaBlue Cafe and the Alchemy Bar...

 

 

This review is AMAZING btw... detailed and filled with so much info. THANK YOU for doing this! I'm taking this same itinerary in May and looking forward to it! My group and I are planning just 2 excursions and 2 beach days... trying not to book through the cruise line... I've seen some good suggestions :)

 

Thanks for posting the link, and thanks for the compliment! I wish I were planning for a May cruise.

[Cruise, J.D.]

Thank you for the review! Your pics make the Sunshine look like a nice option. I really liked how the waterworks, sports, and serenity areas looked.

 

I'm assuming the sushi place had a per person fee?

[mpcaruth]

Thank you for the review! Your pics make the Sunshine look like a nice option. I really liked how the waterworks, sports, and serenity areas looked.

 

I'm assuming the sushi place had a per person fee?

 

Thanks. The upper decks on the Sunshine truly are awesome.

 

Yes, the food is a la cart.

 

Sushi Bar Menu & prices: http://www.carnival.com/~/media/Images/explore/dining/menus/bonsai-sushi-menu.ashx

[HDC80]

Did you check out my other cruise reviews linked below for ideas? We had the same itinerary on the Norwegian Jewel cruise last year and I give detailed picture reviews for each port: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2169332

Belize - cave tubing

 

 

Roatan - Maya Key Resort (if you like to snorkel, then this is a must!)

 

Cozumel - Mr. Sanchos

 

Costa Maya - private fishing and snorkeling tour & Pez Quadro beach club.

 

My Carnival Freedom Review includes details of Paradise Beach: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1347741

 

 

You asked how people dressed for Elegant Night. It was your typical Carnival cruise. I would guess 20% wore suits and cocktail/formal dresses. Most wore "dressy" dresses with the guys wearing ties. And then about 20% were probably under dressed. Since we had Your Time dining, we less structured folks may also be the less formal. I suspect the assigned dining room may have been a little more formal. My family used to really get dressed up with suits and cocktail dresses. Packing for this was a pain. Here is our semi-elegant photo (notice that I even let my son wear his tennis shoes - shame)

 

 

 

Reading your reviews now! Thanks for the info!!!

[babys mom]

Could you tell me how you got from airport to Hotel?

[mpcaruth]

Could you tell me how you got from airport to Hotel?

We drove are own vehicle from Virginia.

[Julia’s Journey’s]

Enjoying your review and makes me want to try Sunshine ;)

[trucruz]

Thank you so much for the review. I am having fun reliving our cruise.

We participated in your slot pull and you did a great job executing this.

It was a great week on a fun ship.