indie Posted January 4, 2018 #1 Share Posted January 4, 2018 I am currently booked on a 5 day Sunshine cruise for my first cruise on Carnival since my first ever cruise in 2007. It was supposed to be a family cruise for my wifes family who has never been before that I organized but no one booked yet, so I'm thinking about cancelling and just booking a longer cruise for my wife and I since no one seems willing to commit. If I cancel, I am considering the following two cruises: Sunshine is 8 night going to Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao from Port Canaveral Breeze is 7 days going to Amber Cove, St. Thomas, San Juan and Grand Turk I have never been to Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao or the Dominican Republic (Amber Cove) I have been to San Juan once (post Irma in December) I have been to St. Thomas Twice. Any opinions to help me choose on the ships and itineraries? Thans! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmichael1279 Posted January 4, 2018 #2 Share Posted January 4, 2018 Breeze is a great ship and I did that same itinerary last January on the Magic - the ports were all great. Looking at doing that same itinerary again this year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khewston Posted January 4, 2018 #3 Share Posted January 4, 2018 I would do the Sunshine going to Aruba and Curacao! Those are awesome ports! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyluver Posted January 4, 2018 #4 Share Posted January 4, 2018 I would pick an 8 day over 7 :P We are booked on the Sunshine for next month, cant wait to go to Aruba and Curacao again we've only been there once before and we've been to Grand Turk many times. I love the 4 sea days !!! pure relaxation !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skrufy Posted January 4, 2018 #5 Share Posted January 4, 2018 My choice would be the 8 day Sunshine. 8 is better than 7 and the ports are really nice. If I could swap Amber Cove for St. Thomas it would be even better a cruise. While Amber Cove was alright we enjoy visiting St. Thomas and a day on the beach atTrunk Bay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruising Sparty Posted January 4, 2018 #6 Share Posted January 4, 2018 Definitely do the 8 days on the Sunshine. We sailed on the Sunshine last May and had an amazing cruise. The southern itinerary is awesome, and we definitely loved the Serenity area with its own pool. Many people complain about the layout of the Sunshine and it feeling crowded, but we didn't find it to be any worse than other Carnival ships we have sailed. And 8 days of cruising is better than 7 days, no matter what ship you are on. Have a great time on whichever ship you choose!! :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaxsMama Posted January 4, 2018 #7 Share Posted January 4, 2018 I've never been on Sunshine but Aruba and Curacao are beautiful. Southern Caribbean is my fav by far! Sent from my SM-G928V using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tyme2Cruise Posted January 4, 2018 #8 Share Posted January 4, 2018 It is always difficult to tell someone else what cruise to choose. You have to determine what your priority is, destination, ship, departure port, etc etc. Once you have all that figured out, the choice will be a little easier. We did the Breeze itinerary last year on the Magic, and had a great time. Never been on the Sunshine, but we love the Dream class ships, so the Breeze would be our choice. Regardless of which one you choose, your cruising, so you really can't go wrong. :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoeDeckedOut Posted January 5, 2018 #9 Share Posted January 5, 2018 We've been on both ships...setting aside ports, we LOVED the Breeze and would always recommend her to anyone over any other ship. Granted there are personal preferences that go into why people like different ships, and some people love the Sunshine, but for us we would take the one less day to go on the Breeze. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarea Posted January 5, 2018 #10 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I'd go for the Curacao 8-day itinerary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Keith1010 Posted January 5, 2018 #11 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I can't comment on the ship but I do like the ports better on the eight day versus seven day cruise. Good luck on this. Keith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FamilyOfSix Posted January 5, 2018 #12 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I think either one is great. As my father used to tell me, this is a good problem to have. Personally, I'd do the Sunshine. The destinations look great and you get an extra day of cruising. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momonthego17 Posted January 5, 2018 #13 Share Posted January 5, 2018 We have cruised both itineraries and cruised on both ships. Had a wonderful time on both ships (Breeze was unique because we had a cove balcony) and I loved the Serenity on Sunshine. Itinerary-wise, we had a great time snorkeling with the turtles in St. Thomas and spent a memorable evening walking across the “floating bridge” in Curaçao to have a drink at a waterside table. I would probably choose the Aruba itinerary but you’ll have a great cruise with either choice. Happy cruising! Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skiingj Posted January 5, 2018 #14 Share Posted January 5, 2018 We avoid the Sunshine as it gets so many negative reviews mostly on congestion and theater layout. Everyone I know who has sailed both Destiny & Sunshine didn't like it either time. We've been on the Breeze 3X and she is our favorite ship. ABC's are overrated IMHO and not worth the extra sea days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdmundXXIII Posted January 5, 2018 #15 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I've been on both ships, and each is great! They have mostly the same venues on board as far as dining and entertainment, but the Breeze is much larger. Basically, it feels more spacious. The Sunshine gets a lot of hate on these boards, but I really loved it. Some of the places were great: Best Serenity area in the fleet; the aft Havana Bar area has a great, laid back vibe and isn't usually too crowded or noisy during the day so it's a great place to take your lunch. The Spa Thermal Suites are slightly better on the Breeze if you like that. The Sunshine CAN feel a little more crowded, but if you learn the flow and layout of the ship well, it's not a problem. Grand Turk is one of my favorite ports. BEAUTIFUL beaches right off the ship; Margaritaville is right there and has a huge swimming area. Further down the beach there's local places like Jack's. Snorkeling is great in GT. Amber Cove is similar to Grand Turk off the ship as far as amenities, but no beach you can easily walk to. When I was there, we did the Damajagua Falls excursion. (Not booked through Carnival). If you're adventurous, it's AMAZING. Basically you hike up a mountain and then slip, slide, and jump your way back down through the river and waterfalls. Here's a video from that excursion: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grandmarnnurse Posted January 5, 2018 #16 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I am currently booked on a 5 day Sunshine cruise for my first cruise on Carnival since my first ever cruise in 2007. It was supposed to be a family cruise for my wifes family who has never been before that I organized but no one booked yet, so I'm thinking about cancelling and just booking a longer cruise for my wife and I since no one seems willing to commit. If I cancel, I am considering the following two cruises: Sunshine is 8 night going to Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao from Port Canaveral Breeze is 7 days going to Amber Cove, St. Thomas, San Juan and Grand Turk I have never been to Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao or the Dominican Republic (Amber Cove) I have been to San Juan once (post Irma in December) I have been to St. Thomas Twice. Any opinions to help me choose on the ships and itineraries? Thans! I like the Sunshine itinerary better than the Breeze, but I hear many great things about the Breeze. It depends what is more important to you—itinerary or ship. Although many people love the Sunshine (my oldest daughter included) but I can’t forget it was once the Destiny, that had major issues. Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jsglow Posted January 5, 2018 #17 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Sunshine and the Southern Itinerary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h_blond2 Posted January 5, 2018 #18 Share Posted January 5, 2018 I would pick the Sunshine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
indie Posted January 6, 2018 Author #19 Share Posted January 6, 2018 Wow, thank you all for the great feedback so far. I don't know if this made the decision easier because I was leaning towards the breeze. My last 4 cruises were very large ships. I was leaning towards the larger/ newer higher rated ship and trying a cove balcony, but Aruba and Curacao itineraries and the extra day does sound very appealing also. But 4 ports vs 3 ports. I really enjoy excursions! Still torn! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keys2Heaven Posted January 6, 2018 #20 Share Posted January 6, 2018 I don't have a dog in the fight, but an awful lot of people like the Breeze on these forums. If the ship is important, then go for her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riclop Posted January 6, 2018 #21 Share Posted January 6, 2018 Breeze is a newer and nicer ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momonthego17 Posted January 6, 2018 #22 Share Posted January 6, 2018 We loved the cove balcony! If that floats your boat (sorry[emoji16]) go for it! Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lcpagejr Posted January 6, 2018 #23 Share Posted January 6, 2018 Breeze is my favorite ship....However out of 12 Carnival cruises...we enjoyed the Southern itinerary the best. Curacao and Aruba were 2 of our most favorite port of calls. I have a similar problem....Its between the Magic and Sunshine over Easter week. As the Magic is same class of ship as Breeze I know what she has. I cruised on Sunshine 2x when she was the Destiny. Bit concerned over the additional modifications which ate up some of the public space and added passenger count when Sunshine was modified however the extra day and doing the southern itinerary again....is pushing me towards the Sunshine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmBear Posted January 8, 2018 #24 Share Posted January 8, 2018 I am currently booked on a 5 day Sunshine cruise for my first cruise on Carnival since my first ever cruise in 2007. It was supposed to be a family cruise for my wifes family who has never been before that I organized but no one booked yet, so I'm thinking about cancelling and just booking a longer cruise for my wife and I since no one seems willing to commit. If I cancel, I am considering the following two cruises: Sunshine is 8 night going to Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao from Port Canaveral Breeze is 7 days going to Amber Cove, St. Thomas, San Juan and Grand Turk I have never been to Grand Turk, Aruba, Curacao or the Dominican Republic (Amber Cove) I have been to San Juan once (post Irma in December) I have been to St. Thomas Twice. Any opinions to help me choose on the ships and itineraries? Thans! 8 is better then 7!:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmdiver Posted January 8, 2018 #25 Share Posted January 8, 2018 Looked at these same itineraries and almost booked Sunshine until I saw that they don't have fridges in all the cabins and of course, the cabins we wanted had none. While many people are fine with just an ice bucket or taking their own personal cooler, I would never hear the end of it from my hubby. He likes to take some protein drinks for workout days and of course, they need to be chilled. I do love that itinerary, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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