Sunshine return (and return) to Bermuda 10-26-19

[NCTribeFan]

Some of you may be aware that instead of returning to Charleston yesterday morning at whatever the scheduled time was (probably 7 am), we did not arrive until about 4 pm.

 

More later, but I would like to say that I'm perfectly fine with returning to Bermuda due to a medical emergency.

 

What annoyed me was that although it was nice to get all those extra hours on the ship, it certainly would've been nice if they'd given us, I don't know, maybe ONE HOUR of free internet time so we could alter our travel plans.  I went to the service desk on Friday and asked if that might be possible and was told "you can make calls from your cabin at no charge."  Well, that's nice, but I have a 5-1/2 to 6 hour drive home and have very poor night vision.  I'd like to retrieve my car and at least get away from Charleston and on the road before it's dark but have no idea where to book a room.  "You can purchase a 24-hour internet package."  Yes, I know but I thought it might be a nice gesture if Carnival would provide this to the guests.  "No, that's not going to happen."  Trust me, I was being very reasonable and not screaming at the man.  I thought it was a very reasonable request.

 

Carnival does not seem to be at all consistent with the way they handle the unusual happenings.  I sailed during Hurricane Sandy.  Was on a B2B on Fantasy.  We missed one port on the first leg and one on the 2nd.  Nothing except refunded port charges.  That's all I've ever received when a port was missed and that's all I ever expect.  So, when you return home and come to CC and find out that people on other ships that also missed one port due to the storm received OBCs and/or % off their next cruise!  What's the reasoning for giving compensation to those on one ship but not another?  And I'm pretty sure I've read trip reports where something like this happened and people were given internet time to change their plans.  So, why will they do that on one sailing but not another?

 

Anyway, I didn't get back to the hotel to get my car until 6, so I just spent the night there, which meant I got home almost 24 hours later than expected.  I know many were scrambling to re-book flights (most for this morning) and find a hotel room for the night.  I'll see if my travel insurance will reimburse me but I suspect they won't since, technically, it was my decision to not drive.  We'll see what happens.

 

Anyway, I'm tired so I'll try to post more tomorrow.  Not going to write a blow-by-blow review, but will post some thoughts.  Overall, it was a pretty good cruise.

 

[summersigh]

thanks for posting 😎

[NCTribeFan]

Not sure how much I'll get posted as I'm back at work (although I have nothing to do).  I have to do some laundry when I get home, too!

 

It happened that this was an Ultra casino sailing.  I've taken a few Premier sailings in the past, but this was for the "higher" rollers.  The casino was absolutely packed at all times, even the traditional dining times when it typically clears out at least a little bit.  And, of course, the smoke was awful.  The smokers completely and totally ignore the "rules" on these sailings.  I will say that at least the non-smoking Roulette wheel remained that way, but it's pretty pointless when everyone around you is smoking anyway.  People were even smoking in the adjacent sports bar.  Sigh.

 

I didn't have much luck at the wheel except for one afternoon and absolutely no luck at the couple of slots I was able to play.  Someone won a $20k jackpot on one of the slots, though!

 

My internal clock is totally messed up!  We lost an hour (I think that was Monday night after we left Princess Cays), then got it back on Halloween night (when we made out middle-of-the-night return to Bermuda), and then another hour last night.  It's tough enough to get my stomach back to NOT thinking it should be fed every 2-3 hours! 😄

[NCTribeFan]

I know a lot of people don't like Sunshine.  I sailed her shortly after she was re-launched, on a 1-way Journeys sailing from Port Canaveral to San Juan and liked her more than I expected given the negative reviews when she first came out.  I have no problems with the ship.  The layout of the theater doesn't bother me except for not having anywhere to put my drink.  I like the huge Serenity area except most of the loungers up on the top level had no cushions.  And, of course, just about every other seat was either "reserved" or occupied every time I tried to find somewhere to sit.

 

I did find that they had a few old loungers out on the exterior promenade on Deck 3 and spent some quiet time out there reading on sea days.

 

I don't eat from the regular buffets since I typically have either an omelet or burrito/huevos rancheros for breakfast and deli, burrito, burger or pasta for lunch.  I don't recall seeing any really long lines anywhere either during breakfast or lunch hours.

 

The new Seaday Brunch menu was interesting.  The first day, I was there early and had Pancetta scramble, which was OK.  A bit rich for my tastes.  The 2nd time, I waited and went at about 11:30 and opted for the Brunch Spaghetti, which I quite enjoyed.

 

I had Anytime Dining.  I still prefer set dining times because I like having the same servers.  The first night, I had dinner with a couple that I met in the Pub during Happy Hour after we boarded and liked the wait staff we had.  The next night, I opted to be seated with others, and was at a large table.  Next night, I asked to be seated in the section I'd been the 1st night but it was full and others were waiting, so I took what was available.  I'd purchased a wine package on the first night and had a partial bottle left from the night before.  They couldn't find it.  They came back to the table multiple times to ask my cabin number and even checked under the folio number instead.  Waiter finally said if they couldn't find it, they'd give me a glass of whatever.  But, I had a half bottle left!  I thought maybe the Maitre D could come over and apologize, but he never showed.  They finally found the bottle with those for the set dining folks.  Who knows why it would've been put there when I left the table during Anytime!  So, next night, I again requested a seat in Jovan's section and was put in a booth.  There were no 2-tops in that area at all.  After that, I would request a table using the app and head up the flight of stairs before it showed a table was ready for me (I was in cabin 2317, just under the MDR).  Lovely Dyan, who was checking people in, immediately called me by name and said she'd find a table for me in Jovan's section.  I seriously don't know how they not only recognize people but remember their names and preferences after one interaction!  I can't even remember my cabin number until about Day 5!!

[NCTribeFan]

I'd sailed from Charleston several times but this was the first since Sunshine moved in and they changed the embarkation procedure a bit due to having more pax to process in their very-limited facilities.  I stayed at the Sleep Inn on West Ashley where I'd stayed last year.  All the Charleston hotels are expensive and I think that with a larger pax load there's even more demand for park-and-cruise packages, so it wasn't cheap.  Not a bad hotel but far from luxurious.  Anyway, I drove down on Friday, checked in a little early, hung out until I figured Friday traffic had died down a bit and headed into downtown.  Couldn't find anywhere to park along the Waterfront Park area so decided to cough up the money for a parking garage.

 

I used to always eat at Fleet Landing (need my Shrimp & Grits) but last time there (2 years ago), it wasn't nearly as good and the service was poor so I decided to try something else.  Thanks to a pic in Jamman54's not-Bermuda Sunrise review, I decided I'd find Mason's Famous Lobster Roll place.  It's just across from the Market, pretty much behind the Customs House.  The Lobster Roll was delicious!  It was so good I was tempted to buy a 2nd and take it back to the hotel.  Had a draft beer to wash it down.  It wasn't huge but there was so much lobster meat that it was filling.  I saved my little bag-o-chips to have later while I watched TV.

 

I requested the 10:30 shuttle from the hotel.  Van showed up about 10:40 (was a much nicer van (a Mercedes) than last year), and we were at the port by around 11.  You get dropped off with your luggage, hand it off to a port, then walk across the parking/street and into one of the warehouse buildings which now acts as the check-in terminal.  I went right up to a counter and then got in line to be shuttled over to the "real" terminal, which is now just the security area.  Through the scanner, up the stairs, wind my way up the gangway, onto the ship, down to my cabin (2317), drop my carry-on bags, then up to the pasta bar for lunch.  Half order for lunch is plenty, then down to the Red Frog Pub for Happy Hour.  I totally forgot until later in the cruise that they had a Pumpkin Ale on draft in the Pub!  Had a couple of beers, chatted with the couple next to me (they invited me to dine with them that night). I bought 4 unopened bottles of Presidente, which they put in a bucket and hauled that down to the cabin.  Off to the Library to find something to read (very, very few books).

[NCTribeFan]

Princess Cays - had been there twice before.  It's an OK beach day.  I'm not much of a beach person but I went to the MDR for the Priority tender fairly early.  I refuse to call it a Water Shuttle.  People can find Facebook but they can't Google "tender port" to find out what it means.  What to dumb down everything you possibly can, Carnival! 😣

 

This time, I went back behind the tender port down to where it's a little less congested, but there's still a bar with bad, blaring music.  I sat and read for a bit, walked down and got a beer, and when I'd finished, I just went back to the ship for lunch (they were not serving lunch at the pavilion at that end of the beach).

 

Bermuda - I really wish the itinerary had just been to Bermuda.  Being there from 10 am until noon the next day is simply not enough time.  The morning we docked in Bermuda, I decided to stay on the ship until after lunch and not fight the crowd.  Last time there (Splendor from Norfolk) we were there 2-1/2 days so I had seen it all (and that was my 2nd visit there).  I had thought about taking a ferry to either St George or Hamilton but I was being lazy.  Woman across from me said she was so upset that she had bothered to book that cruise because there was NOTHING TO DO there.  I imagine I just looked at her like she had 3 heads.  Nothing to do?  I was upset that I'd booked it because we weren't given nearly enough time to do all the things there were to do and told her so.  She wanted to go to the beach but it was cool and cloudy and there was NOTHING AT THE PORT.  Uh, OK.  That night, I had a discussion at the Roulette wheel with some folks who were also disappointed.  They thought everyone was trying to rip them off because they wouldn't negotiate to take them places.   I explained that the taxi fares were government controlled and there's no negotiating for the cost, just the places to see and that they could've taken buses or the ferry.

 

I find it mind-boggling that people will book a cruise without knowing anything about the place they're visiting.  It's Bermuda.  It's not in the Caribbean, folks (yes, there are people that sail there and have no idea that it's not just another island in the Caribbean).  It isn't a poor, struggling island that relies totally on tourist dollars to survive.  It's a wealthy island that is a banking and insurance tax haven!  So, don't whine when you can't be bothered to Google the place you're paying to visit then find it isn't what you were expecting. 

[NCTribeFan]

I didn't go to any Comedy shows.  I didn't play trivia (I just kept missing it despite flagging it on the Hub).  I try to avoid Karaoke.  I did step into the Piano Bar one night (it was full); listened to one song and left.  I admit, I'm a music snob.  Just don't enjoy the sing-along stuff mostly due to the song choices.  I enjoy karaoke when the singers don't take themselves too seriously.

 

I did go to a couple of the shows (the Motown and Disco ones; skipped Epic Rock & Latin Nights).  The Motown wasn't really a show.  Since this was a rare 7-night sailing, the performers just did the songs w/o any dancing since they only learned it for this sailing (at least that's what we were told and I have no reason to think otherwise; production shows are, uh, a big production to put on).   They were pretty good.  Not spectacular but at least the singing wasn't off-key!

[NCTribeFan]

The Diamond Brunch (I admit I didn't realize there was such a thing; I thought we had a separate VIFP party) was good.  There were 97 Diamonds on the sailing.  Carnival's "rare" itineraries always draw a lot of Plat/Diamond.  Got a photo with the Captain and was seated at a large table.  Had trays of drinks going around.  Menu was much more like a dinner meal than a brunch (three-course meal)!  I don't even remember what I had but I know I was stuffed when I left!  They came around with the photos before the meal ended!

 

I suspect they split the usual VIFP party into two groups.  Don't even remember which day that was (I didn't bring home the dailies or the party invitations).  Bottom of the theatre was full but not many people on the 2nd level.  Lots of drinks (had a couple of margaritas) but same hors d'oevres that we've had for the past few years.

 

I actually got up and played the "guess the ship" and "name the CD" games.  Amazingly, I wont the Guess the Ship with 6 out of 10.  Honestly, they all looked familiar (they're photos of various deck areas) so I don't really know which ones I got right and which I missed!  Won a plaque.  Almost left it behind but decided it belongs with my Ships on Sticks.

 

Plat/Diamond gift still the lanyard, which I was OK with as the Premier Casino ones I'd used in the past had all broken, so I needed one anyway.

[audcc77]

Thanks for your quick review . I agree that carnival should have given everyone at least an hour of free Wi-Fi .

 

 We are going on the sunshine next week .   Just curious, What was so great about your waiter? I always like a very quick dinner. Since we all sit down to dinner together every single night, I don't like spending hours inthe MDR.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[NCTribeFan]

I just liked him.  He was efficient and friendly without getting the feeling he was just being nice to try to get extra tips.  His assistant, Victorio, wasn't that great but he was wearing a wrist brace and said he had messed up some ligaments.

 

Folks on the shuttle back to the hotel also sat in Jovan's section every night but they said he'd told them he and his wife (she works on the ship somewhere) were due to leave soon and that they were going home to "make babies" and probably wouldn't be back!

 

I was solo every night except the first two and I always get my meals quickly when I dine alone.  Sometimes too quickly.  I like to work on my wine and don't mind a little time between dishes.  Don't want to spend 2 hours at dinner but I don't like to rush either.

 

I didn't have any problem with the wait teams the other two nights.  When I do Anytime dining, I just miss that familiarity you get when you have the same wait team every night.

[NCTribeFan]

FTR, I submitted a claim to Allianz this afternoon for "travel delay" and hope that I'll be reimbursed for the hotel.  I purchase an annual travel policy since I'm cruising more often these days and the Travel Delay should cover any delay over 6 hours.  Since we were due back in port at 8 am and arrived sometime after 3, I should be covered.  It will take 7-10 biz days and if it's approved, they'll do a direct deposit of the reimbursement.  Will let everyone know.

 

Thought of something else on the way home that I wanted to mention and have already forgotten what I wanted to post.  The 3 different time changes in the past week plus the stressful end of the cruise, then the drive yesterday has me rather discombobulated!

[NCTribeFan]

Halloween - the ship was decorated and we had a Halloween deck party on Thursday night.  I wore a giraffe costume (it was very warm, which was OK out on the open deck where it was so windy but rather uncomfortable in the crowded casino!), but I didn't stay very long.  The place was absolutely packed.

 

I had forgotten that the Pub had a seasonal pumpkin ale so didn't have one until later in the week.  It was quite good.  My favorite (that I can't find any more (from Cottonwood Brewery)) tastes like liquid pumpkin pie.  Yum.  This tasted more like pumpkin bread.  Had that pumpkin spice thing going on (aroma more than actual flavor) and was easy to drink. 

 

Feeling slightly more like back-to-normal this morning.  Forced myself to stay up to 9:30 but still woke at 5:30 this morning.  I'm sure I'll think of a few more things as my brain reawakens.

[jimbo5544]

Thanks for the brief review, any info in the medical turn?

[NCTribeFan]

Jimbo - No idea.  Lots of people speculating what had happened the evening after our U-turn.  Me, I don't need to know.  It's none of my business.  CD Mikey repeatedly stated that the return to Bermuda to offload the passenger had been accomplished successfully and the person was receiving the needed medical attention.  Pretty sure they aren't allowed to discuss a passenger's condition anyway due to privacy issues.

 

Our Meet & Greet - the first evening, I returned to the cabin to find an invitation to our M&G for the next day (first sea day) at 12:45 in the Pub.  I also received an invitation to the Diamond brunch, which was at noon.  Hmmm.  I really hate to sign up for something and not attend (especially when I know that someone has made an effort to organize it and provide goodies), so I thought about it for approximately 90 seconds and decided, yeah, I'm going to the brunch. 😋 My first cruise as a Diamond, get a photo with the Master of the vessel, meet the other senior officers, free drinks, good food?  Yep.  That's where I'm going!  I did scamper once I got my photo (and I really couldn't manage the dessert anyway), and ran up to the Pub at nearly 1 pm.  There were still a handful of people there, so I ran in, introduced myself, and explained why I was late.  I'm afraid I have no idea who I met, so if any of you are out there reading, I apologize!

 

Dive-in Movies - I did something I've only done twice in all my cruises - went to watch a movie on deck one night - Avengers: End Game.  OK, I confess I really just wanted to see Thor!  Just so happens that the other movie I watched on board was Thor: Ragnarok on the Horizon TA.  Can't blame a girl for wanting to look at Chris Hemsworth on the big screen, can you?  Sure, he looks like Lebowski in this film but he's still a fine specimen! 😍

[jimbo5544]

5 minutes ago, NCTribeFan said:

Jimbo - No idea.  Lots of people speculating what had happened the evening after our U-turn.  Me, I don't need to know.  It's none of my business.  CD Mikey repeatedly stated that the return to Bermuda to offload the passenger had been accomplished successfully and the person was receiving the needed medical attention.  Pretty sure they aren't allowed to discuss a passenger's condition anyway due to privacy issues.

 

Our Meet & Greet - the first evening, I returned to the cabin to find an invitation to our M&G for the next day (first sea day) at 12:45 in the Pub.  I also received an invitation to the Diamond brunch, which was at noon.  Hmmm.  I really hate to sign up for something and not attend (especially when I know that someone has made an effort to organize it and provide goodies), so I thought about it for approximately 90 seconds and decided, yeah, I'm going to the brunch. 😋 My first cruise as a Diamond, get a photo with the Master of the vessel, meet the other senior officers, free drinks, good food?  Yep.  That's where I'm going!  I did scamper once I got my photo (and I really couldn't manage the dessert anyway), and ran up to the Pub at nearly 1 pm.  There were still a handful of people there, so I ran in, introduced myself, and explained why I was late.  I'm afraid I have no idea who I met, so if any of you are out there reading, I apologize!

 

Dive-in Movies - I did something I've only done twice in all my cruises - went to watch a movie on deck one night - Avengers: End Game.  OK, I confess I really just wanted to see Thor!  Just so happens that the other movie I watched on board was Thor: Ragnarok on the Horizon TA.  Can't blame a girl for wanting to look at Chris Hemsworth on the big screen, can you?  Sure, he looks like Lebowski in this film but he's still a fine specimen! 😍

I was more interested in happy news than details, thanks for the reply.  

[NCTribeFan]

Yeah, I hope it turned out OK.  I'm not sure we would've been told otherwise.  I doubt Carnival wants to depress people by finding out the passenger hadn't made it!  But, like I noted, I don't think they legally can provide any detailed medical info to let us know one way or the other.  But they absolutely did the right thing by turning back since we were so far out from Charleston.

 

I commented earlier about people seemingly not realizing where Bermuda is located.  I do wish people would look at a map some time!  I heard multiple people wondering why they hadn't just sent a chopper from one of the other islands to evacuate the passenger. 😲 We were way out in the Atlantic Ocean, folks, with no other islands anywhere near us and about 36 hours away from Charleston even at 21-22 knots!

[NCTribeFan]

Buffet drink stations - I know this has been mentioned in other threads but I did want to point out that the sugar (white and raw) were in the old-style diner dispensers - the big, glass things with the little metal flap on top.  White sugar, no problem.  The brown (raw, chunky) that I use didn't really want to come out very easily, so you end up standing there tipping it back and forth to get a little output.  And I had a tendency to end up with more sugar in my tea than I wanted/needed which wasn't a problem when I used one packet.  There are no plastic or wooden stirs either.  They're using little metal sticks with a rounded tip.  After you stir, you just place the dirty one in a cup next to the clean ones.  I don't use straws for anything so can't comment on those.

 

I totally approve of their attempt to cut down on the paper/plastic waste. 

 

Oh, another thing that I just thought of.  At one point, I went to the cabin and there was a $50 voucher for the spa!  My birthday is in a couple of weeks but I found a few years ago that they only consider if you birthday is in the month of the day you sail.  When I sailed on Splendor a few years ago, we sailed on 10/30, I think.  Most of the days of the cruise were in November, not October.  I spoke to someone whose b'day was 10/1 and she received a spa card with Happy Birthday on it.  My b'day is 11/17, much closer to the days during the cruise, but I didn't receive anything.  When I went to the spa to book a facial last week, I saw a woman booking something and sure enough, her card said Happy Birthday on it.  I have no idea why I received the card but I'm pretty sure it wasn't because of my upcoming birthday.  The only appointment I could get was Halloween evening (voucher expired on 10/31 or I would've waited until the next day).  So, I arrived at 8 pm in my giraffe costume, had my facial, and then went to the deck party (sans makeup and with lots of goop on my skin so I kept the hood up, which partially covered my face! 😁 ).

[NCTribeFan]

And the good news is that I received an email yesterday afternoon (1 week after submitting my claim) letting me know that they would deposit my refund today for the hotel expense.

 

Sure, I've paid out a lot in premiums over the years for travel insurance (I purchase it mainly for the medical evac coverage) but it's nice to know that they do actually pay out.  Let's hope that when I go to renew it next year that they don't triple the premium like insurance companies tend to do for auto and homeowner's insurance if you dare to file a claim! 😋

[glrounds]

Great review. Loved your ability to "roll with the punches" and 90-second decision-making capabilities. 🙂