not the best carnival cruise

We were on deck 1 inside cabin which was a decent size.  There weren't enough drawers compared to other Carnival ships and not enough hangers in the closets or selves.( fortunately I also bring my own extra hangers)   This would be a definite problem if more than 2 people were in the cabin. There was no mini fridge but our steward was great in getting us an Ice bucket and filling it with ice each day. We also missed the samples that they used to leave in the bathrooms.

This particular cruise had 1000 kids on board ( it was the last cruise before school started.)  Many were very rowdy and had no respect especially at night running around and banging on the walls.  We were very fortunate to be in a quiet area but heard many complaints from other passengers.  We normally travel to the caribbean in Sept but couldn't find a cruise leaving from NY at that time.

The food wasn't that great in the Lido deck  it was much better in the dining room.  We had your time dining and had to go to deck 5 to get a ticket when we were ready to eat each night and had to be in the dining room within 20 minutes.  We were able to have the same waiter each day ( Wilfredo was great) the restaurant was on deck 3.  They had to do it this way since it would avoid crowds at the entrance.

There wasn't enough entertainment during the day.  If we had poor weather we would have been very bored staying in the ship. I also heard other passengers saying the same thing.

We are non smokers and we couldn't spend time in the casino. It was horrible with the smoke.  You had to walk thru it many times to get to other parts of the ship.  Carnival should have alternate days smoking and non smoking in the casino so everyone can enjoy it.  I feel this is doable since the rest of the ship is non smoking.

The shows were ok. I have seen much better.  Every day it was a music theme from different decades.  After a while it seemed like the same thing.  They performed well but many times the singing was painfully off key.

The comedy shows were ok the PG ones were much funnier than the R shows .  We are in our 50's and enjoy comedy but the R shows weren't that great. The had 4 different comedians in the 9 days.  There were several times for the same shows so everyone would have a chance to see them.

The ports of calls were great, although getting off and on took time.

Embarkation on the first day was very smooth and quick. disembarking was crazy when we got back to NY  They told everyone to get off by their deck as it was announced but it was obvious many people got off when they felt like it and it took alot longer.

   The gift shops were ok; I didn't think there was enough variety of merchandise.

The photos seem to keep getting expensive 5x7 11.99  6x9 14.99 and 8x11 I think was about 22.00. 

As a gold member we did like that Carnival gave us some perks such as a complimentary cocktail, free liter of water we were also celebrating our anniversary and the gave us a voucher for a free dinner at either the chinese or italian restaurant  also a 25.00 gift card for a bottle of wine and a 50.00 gift card towards the Spa.

The ship itself was very nice and refurbished around 2012.  It wasn't the typical red wood theme but brass and marble.  Pool area was small and crowded.  We did love the serenity area for adults 21 and over.

We also thought the sports area was great; there was large water slides ping pong and pool tables  shuffle board   bean bag toss   twister   foos ball tables   mini golf and arial tight walking  there was also a separate play area for young kids.

There is also a self laundry service and ironing board/iron if you need it

Overall we had a decent time but  I don't think we would sail the Sunshine again.  Their other ships are bigger