Picture Review of SUNSHINE and Western Caribbean Ports of Call

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

 

 

 

I thought this was so sweet... this young couple held hands the whole time they were snorkeling:

 

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

Beautiful fans!

 

Hello little fella!

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

My first experience with a barracuda!

 

As always, I tend to lag behind the group and venture off a little on my own. I like to find special critters hiding in the coral. It paid off, as I spotted what appeared to be a nearly 4-foot long barracuda. I swear his teeth looked about 2 inches long, but that could have just been my fear exaggerating. (The photos are not great, as he was probably 15-20 feet away)

 

 

 

 

 

I took some photos and came up to ask the tour guide. He confirmed it was a barracuda and stated they were extremely aggressive and would go after shiny things." "Holy cow, I have my wedding band on" - I thought. Then my son races off towards it to get a better look. I may have been an over-reacting parent, but I yanked him back by the foot.

 

 

We eventually pestered the barracuda away, and my son kept complaining that I would not let him get closer.

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUE:

 

My husband and daughter had decided not to snorkel here and stay on the boat. These two are not big fans of deep water in the middle of no where! They pulled the canopy out to provide shade. They also had tortillas, salsa, and fresh cut pineapple.

 

 

 

Next stop... Shark/Ray Alley!

 

My daughter and husband decide to snorkel here, as the water was shallow, 4-5 feet deep. At first my daughter was very timid, but soon fell at ease with the stingrays swimming around.

 

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

More Shark/Ray Alley

 

 

This is one of my favorite pictures from the cruise:

 

 

After swimming with the rays for a while, most folks got back on the boat. A few of us stayed out and one of the guides told us there would probably be a shark or two beyond the boat about 50 feet. My husband came and told me he had seen one earlier. What??? How had I missed this. So, off my son and I go to find the sharks.

 

Yep! There is one behind the sea urchin and coral.

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

More Shark/Ray Alley

 

My boy loves water!

 

 

We spotted a couple of stingrays burying themselves in the sand near where we saw the shark. Whoa, the eyes were beyond creepy - surprised I have not had nightmares with these eyes.

 

 

[mpcaruth]

It is really hard writing this review of our Caribbean vacation and look out the window and see snow. Lots of snow coming down. We are in Virginia and have over 18 inches in our yard right now. Ugggghhhhh!!!!

 

Up next is Caye Caulker - a little slice of Heaven.

[pghsteelerfan]

It is really hard writing this review of our Caribbean vacation and look out the window and see snow. Lots of snow coming down. We are in Virginia and have over 18 inches in our yard right now. Ugggghhhhh!!!!

 

Up next is Caye Caulker - a little slice of Heaven.

 

I've been following your review and just got caught up and came to your last post. Wow, 18 inches?!?! We're in VA too, near Manassas, and have about 5 1/2 so I guess we can't complain. We had sleet for a while and now it appears that it is just rain but at least it's warmer.

 

I am really enjoying your review and love the beautiful pictures. We were on a Western Caribbean cruise last April on Carnival Liberty and had done one on Miracle in 2006. I love reading reading reviews of itineraries we have done to relive our cruises but also to get new ideas for things we might like to do when we get our next opportunity. I'm sold on your Caye Caulker Shark/Ray Alley excursion in Belize. Our first time we did the Beach Break (2006) which was on Bannister Island (now "Starfish Island", I believe) and last year we also did the Altun Ha/River Wallace. We really enjoyed both.

 

I'm looking forward to the rest of your review and hope you don't get any more snow tonight....18 inches, ugh. Again, I will not complain about what we have. Thank you for taking the time. I noticed you have links to your other reviews in your signature and I'll have to go back and read them. Reading reviews is a great way to "escape" winter. :)

[mpcaruth]

I've been following your review and just got caught up and came to your last post. Wow, 18 inches?!?! We're in VA too, near Manassas, and have about 5 1/2 so I guess we can't complain. We had sleet for a while and now it appears that it is just rain but at least it's warmer.

 

I am really enjoying your review and love the beautiful pictures. We were on a Western Caribbean cruise last April on Carnival Liberty and had done one on Miracle in 2006. I love reading reading reviews of itineraries we have done to relive our cruises but also to get new ideas for things we might like to do when we get our next opportunity. I'm sold on your Caye Caulker Shark/Ray Alley excursion in Belize. Our first time we did the Beach Break (2006) which was on Bannister Island (now "Starfish Island", I believe) and last year we also did the Altun Ha/River Wallace. We really enjoyed both.

 

I'm looking forward to the rest of your review and hope you don't get any more snow tonight....18 inches, ugh. Again, I will not complain about what we have. Thank you for taking the time. I noticed you have links to your other reviews in your signature and I'll have to go back and read them. Reading reviews is a great way to "escape" winter. :)

 

Thanks! Wait to you see the picture of Caye Caulker, that should cinch the deal.

 

The snow finally stopped and the temperatures are warming up. We live in the western mountains of Virginia, and this last snow dumped about 12 inches over the 6 or so inches that remained on the ground from last week.

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

 

Caye Caulker

 

We rode the boat back for the 10 minute trip back to Caye Caulker. We immediately went to the restaurant for lunch. Lunch was an added option upon reserving the tour. I wanted to include it, thinking it wold be the quickest way to eat to allow us more time to explore the Island. Wrong! We only had less than 90 minutes on the island, and it took almost 30 minutes to get our food. It was good: we all ordered the traditional Belizean meal of chicken, rice & beans, and slaw.

 

 

If you did not pre-order your meal, you could order of the menu here (or venture out to another restaurant).

 

 

Finally we were off to explore the Island of Caye Caulker!

 

It looks like my family is trying to do a ho down:

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

 

Caye Caulker

 

This was the restaurant that we ate at:

 

 

You can see the red "you are here" spot on the map. This is near the boat dock and restaurant. Our exploration journey headed north along the main road and the eastern side of the island. The famous Split is at the far north.

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

 

Caye Caulker

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

 

Caye Caulker

 

 

 

 

 

Starbucks, for all you American coffee lovers:

 

 

It's time to get back on our tour boat. We are the last ones to arrive, with 2 minutes to spare. I so wish I had had more time on the island. But we were not quite done with Caye Caulker yet! We toured around the island via boat and went through the Split. (A past hurricane actually divided the island slightly). The Split is a partying, sunbathing, happy place for lot of gorgeous young people. I swear, one guy in the photo (3rd one down) is checking out his own biceps!

 

 

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

Caye Caulker

 

 

 

The actual Split:

 

 

 

 

The western side of Caye Caulker.

 

 

 

[mpcaruth]

BELIZE CONTINUED:

 

 

Caye Caulker

 

Lastly, we made a stop to feed the tarpons. These fish are huge! 3-4 feet, I'd say. The tour guide had some fresh chum for the tarpons, but there was competition from the pelicans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was about a 45 minute ride back to the Belize City. We made it back with plenty of time to catch the tender boats back to the ship. Again, we had another great and amazing day in Belize!!! This country is so full of adventure, and I cannot ever imagine staying on the ship here.

[cmitch9999]

thank you for the journey back to Caye Caulker! we have been there 3x with Coral Breeze. Our first time we did the snorkel and island, the other 2 times we were dropped off before the snorkel stop and explored the island. Love that place!!! Renting a golf cart and touring the island, visiting and swimming at the Split are treasured memories for us. Especially today looking out at a 6+ inch snowfall I am reminded of that special island retreat......ahhhhhh to be there if only in my dreams!

[mpcaruth]

ENTERTAINMENT:

 

This ship was chalked full of good entertainment options. Each night after dinner we had 3 main options as a family: Comedy club, main theater, or Movies Under the Stars. We have been on numerous other ships (especially our Norwegian Jewel cruise) where there was only 1-2 options for a family.

 

 

 

 

 

 

All four of us love the Punchliners Comedy club, and at least 1 family show is presented each night the lounge is open. I think we attended all but one night. I will warn you, the family shows fill up quickly and the seat saving is the worst for these shows! We typically arrived about 20 minutes early and had great seats all together. Only once did we arrive later than we wanted: 5 minutes before showtime. We had to stand, but we had good standing spots. The show lasts less than 30 minutes, so standing is not terribly bad.

 

My husband and I attended the adults only shows later in the evening, and they were all very funny. There were 4 different comedians throughout the week, and they each had multiple different shows. The Comedy Club MC, Nunan, would announce which shows were to be repeats and which were to be new. If you wanted to do a show back to back, you had to exit the lounge from the rear, go up to deck 5, head forward to Lobby, go down to 4, and then go aft to the Lounge. Whew - got that? Once you got to the Lounge, you would have to wait in line until they opened the doors. It sounds terrible, but it really wasn't so bad. It gave everyone the opportunity to see the shows. The shows were held in the Limelight Lounge.

 

 

 

 

 

Main Theater Entertainment (The Liquid Lounge)

 

I will tel you, after many years of cruising, these shows tend to get old. We go to NYC every year and hit a couple of Broadway shows each time. We also enjoy going to our regional live theaters. So, we typically skip the cruise shows or only attend 1 or 2.

 

Welcome Aboard Show: It is always a good way to start off the cruise attending this. You get to see the Cruise Director, Jaime, and she really pumps you up for fun. The show also includes a pre-view to the comedy club.

 

Motor City: I walked into the back of the Lounge and stood by the bar for a portion of the show. Jaime was standing/dancing beside me, and of course remembered my name and chatted briefly. I did not see all of the show, but the young singer bellowing out Michael Jackson's ABC in a perfect falsetto voice nailed it! I really smiled ear to ear listening to him.

 

I did not attend Latin Nights, Studio VIP, or Epic Rock.

 

We all went to see the Bobby Borgia magic show. It was probably the best magic show I have seen on a cruise. I highly recommend you attend this show. It is very audience involved and keeps you attention.

 

We did not attended the Hasbro Game Show, only because we had seen it last summer on the Fascination, and the show time conflicted with the Comedy Club. For those who have not seen this show, I recommend going at least once. It is a fun little game show up on stage with cruise passengers as the players. If you want to be selected to participate in the show, you must sit in the floor level seats, not the side stadium seats. Here's a picture of the show from our Fascination cruise to give you an idea of what to expect:

 

 

We also went to the Love and Marriage show. Sometimes these are really funny, and sometimes it seems like the contestants overly exaggerate to seem funny (this was the case on our cruise).

 

I had a fun time at the Mardi Gras, hosted by Jaime Dee in the Lobby. She really got the guests involved as she danced and lead from standing on the Lobby bar. Here's snip-it video Jaime posted on her FB page from the Mardi Gras:

[mpcaruth]

thank you for the journey back to Caye Caulker! we have been there 3x with Coral Breeze. Our first time we did the snorkel and island, the other 2 times we were dropped off before the snorkel stop and explored the island. Love that place!!! Renting a golf cart and touring the island, visiting and swimming at the Split are treasured memories for us. Especially today looking out at a 6+ inch snowfall I am reminded of that special island retreat......ahhhhhh to be there if only in my dreams!

 

Caye Caulker is a rare gem. I am surprised more cruisers don't visit. I guess the logistics of tendering to the port and then taking another boat to the island is a little overwhelming. And if the waters are chopping, it may not be a good idea. The day we went, the waters were extremely calm. I enjoyed the peaceful ride out to Cay Caulker.

[Weeziblu]

Your pictures are beautiful! Looking forward to the rest of your review, particularly any info you can provide on Circle C. My daughter and niece will be in that age group for the first time on our upcoming cruise.

[mpcaruth]

Your pictures are beautiful! Looking forward to the rest of your review, particularly any info you can provide on Circle C. My daughter and niece will be in that age group for the first time on our upcoming cruise.

 

Thank you! As requested, my next post will pertain to Circle C.

[mpcaruth]

CIRCLE C (Youth program for 12-14):

 

 

Carnival really does a great job with the youth programs. My daughter thought Camp Carnival was the greatest thing ever. As you can imagine, there are challenges in entertaining 12-14 year olds. I just now asked my daughter how she would rate Circle C, and she gave it an 7-8 out of 10. Not bad, but Camp Carnival was typically a 10. My daughter is 12 and my son just turned 14 during the cruise.

 

I was excited that both of them would be in the same group, to give my husband and me some time for ourselves. My daughter is more out-going and my son takes a long time to warm up. The first night of the cruise they went to the Meet & Greet and other planned activities. I peaked in on them once to see all the kids laughing while playing an interactive games. My daughter came back saying she had fun, and my son simply shrugged and said, "I don't like those kind of silly games". There you go! Every experience on the ship is subjective.

 

 

There were numerous activities throughout the week. Both of my kids enjoyed the scavenger hunt. Please understand, it is important that the kids attend the first night, as that is when all the kids meet each other and form friendship groups. It is truly a middle school social scene. A lot of the time, the kids meet up at Circle C only to head off with each other elsewhere on the ship. So, if you miss the first night...

 

Here is the Circle C schedule:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Granny1]

WOW what a fantastic review, I have only cruise 5 times and never on the Sunshine but the way you have written your review makes me feel as I am there. Even thou I have no cruises in the for-see-able future I have so enjoyed reading yours. plus it makes this winter almost bearable. I know you all got a lot of snow lately but we have had snow on the ground since Nov.. I wish it would melt long enough to see some grass. Can't wait for the rest of the review..Thank you:)

[DavyJoneses]

Thanks for the pictures. I had never seen a cabin with a bunk bed before.

[A&Jfamily]

We are doing the same excursion in Belize next week. Did you have any concerns walking Caye Caulkier that the tour might leave without you? Or any concerns about making it back to the ship in time with the need to tender?

 

 

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[Ken076]

mpcaruth - Really a great review and outstanding photos and useful "tidbits"! Thanks, Ken