Carnival Sunshine - June 30 Review

[UsedtoBeKati]

Considerations:

-We are a family of three in our 30’s with a 3 year old

-We didn’t eat in the MDR

-We didn’t go to any of the shows or comedy acts, so I can’t comment on the space or crowds

-We didn’t spend time by the pool with the exception of some time spent on the Serenity Deck (very nice!) and Dive in Movie nights (great!)

-We didn't tour St. John because when we arrived it was rainy, cold and our son had come down with a cough

 

Pros:

• Very welcoming staff - Carnival makes you feel at home right away when you step on the ship; we arrived at noon, it wasn’t crowded at all, and we took pictures with Lady Liberty

• Cabin service – our cabin steward on the 7th floor, Pedro, was outstanding! Very attentive, and cleaned our room twice a day (we actually told him evening service was fine with us, but he insisted on cleaning twice a day). Excellent service!

• A child friendly cruise line – staff must genuinely like kids or be trained in how to talk to kids. The wonderful staff in the lobby bar made our three year old kiddie drinks with umbrellas, cherries, etc. Seuss at Sea brunch was OUTSTANDING. Brunch host Melissa from Peru was terrific and engaging, as were the waiters. The food was delicious and all of the kids attending loved it.

• Specialty dining choices – Bonsai Sushi was excellent, as was Cucina Del Capitano for dinner. The food at both restaurants is comparable to NYC dining, and was the highlight of our cruise

• Quiet breakfast area on 5th floor (aft, I believe) – if you want to get away from the crowds on Lido, try the 5th floor area next to Java Blue/Shake Spot for breakfast. BTW, the shakes were amazing!!

• Dive In Movies – since we didn’t have dinner in the MDR, we were able to watch movies on the pool deck each night. Free popcorn and blankets.

• Room service – very tasty (we tried sandwiches, wings, quesadillas, plus my husband got Bonsai sushi delivered every night)

• Gym – my husband enjoyed the gym every morning

• No sewer smell – I had read reviews about sewage smells throughout the ship. We didn’t smell any of it.

 

Cons:

• Muster – too long, too hot and sweaty, and too many crowds. Our muster station was outside and lasted a very long half hour.

• Ship’s layout – made it almost unavoidable to walk through the casino each time to get to different areas on the 5th floor. Not great for parents, pregnant passengers and those allergic to cigarette smoke. Also…they had a Dr. Seuss photo opportunity set up in a corner of the CASINO. Bad, bad idea! Bad.

• Loudspeaker announcements late at night – this happened during two nights which was really frustrating. Twice I heard the announcements coming from the hall loudspeakers, and once through the speakers in our room. While I understand a lot of people are out and about at 10 pm, there are kids sleeping and Carnival is the only ship I’ve been on that makes announcements late at night.

• It looked like the Library Bar no longer had wine dispensers. We were looking forward to that.

 

Overall, it was one of our best vacations ever because we relaxed, didn’t go crazy trying to schedule stuff, and enjoyed the atmosphere (we loved the lobby bar and sitting on our balcony).

 

Feel free to ask me questions and I’ll respond!

[crusinpsychRN]

Thanks for your review. Muster is usually about 30 minutes. Just don't go right away, let others out the door so you aren't up against the wall with 5 rows in front of you.

[drvannostrund]

Thanks for the review. Did you use the chat function on the Carnival Hub app? If yes, how was it?

 

What kind of cabin did you have? Room #? Did it have a refrigerator?

[UsedtoBeKati]

Thanks for the review. Did you use the chat function on the Carnival Hub app? If yes, how was it?

 

What kind of cabin did you have? Room #? Did it have a refrigerator?

 

I had the Carnival Hub app but only used it to keep track of activities on the ship (which is funny, since I didn't participate in many aside from Seuss at Sea brunch, and Dive In Movies). We had an ocean suite, room 7214. Yes, it had a fridge stocked with soft drinks, juice, wine, beer, etc.

[drvannostrund]

I had the Carnival Hub app but only used it to keep track of activities on the ship (which is funny, since I didn't participate in many aside from Seuss at Sea brunch, and Dive In Movies). We had an ocean suite, room 7214. Yes, it had a fridge stocked with soft drinks, juice, wine, beer, etc.

 

Thanks.

[UsedtoBeKati]

Thanks.

 

One more thing...the fridge was more like a mini-bar. I was able to fit a small carton of milk in there, but don't think it was cold enough to store milk long term.

[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[Keith1010]

Nice review and am glad you enjoyed your cruise.

 

Keith

[Micahs Grandad]

One more thing...the fridge was more like a mini-bar. I was able to fit a small carton of milk in there, but don't think it was cold enough to store milk long term.

 

Fridg will work better if you keep the wooden door open.