Carnival Sunshine Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Overcrowded both on the ship and the excursions. Too many people wandering around the deck looking for someplace to sit on sea days. Food quality in main dining room was very poor. We ended up paying extra to eat in specialty restaurants every night. Spa staff was just plain rude. Room while pretty cheesy was spotlessly clean and the maids were terrific. For some reason the ship decided to change carpeting while we were on the ship. Big inconvenience. 

I would NOT recommend this Cruise. 

     My favorite part of the cruise was the early dining at the Sunrise restaurant... our server Roxana from Romania was extraordinary. I also enjoyed the personal attention our cabin steward Melincio gave us.

     This ship needs to improve on the courtesy of their staff, I felt disconnected. They were not very friendly or personable. The entertainment needs improving too, most of it was unprofessional and cheesy.

    I would not recommend this cruise to baby boomers. The younger people on this cruise were rude and way to aggressive. The ship traveling at night was very choppy, I was rocking and rolling in my bed...

Best part of cruise was destinations. Turks and CAICOS was beautiful and Puerto plata had a lot of culture. The food on board needs major improvement . Food lacks flavor, spices, and quality.. it was like school lunch that we all dread each day. Best food was breakfast brunch and specialty restaurants that you have to pay 15 to 35 bucks per person for... overall the quality of food and poor quality of alcohol served has me torn if I would ceuise again...the beds hurt our backs and hinestly just very hard. The service of staff was superior and our Butler Teniyson was superior. 

The best part of the cruise?  Everything!!!! One thing that really sticks out is the cruise director - Chris the flying scotsman - he was absolutely awesome!!!  He is crazy, full of energy, and totally into making your cruise experience the best.  We had dancers performing as well, that were incredible.  The beds were extremely comfy, the food was awesome every day - and so much to choose from.  We went on an excursion in Turks and Caicos - snorkeling- it was so incredible.  The water was gorgeous and the snorkel people really took care of you.  Amber cove we went to sea world which was great.  The weather was gorgeous.   I will always remember this cruise.  Only one thing I would like to have seen more of, the fun shops on ship.  There were great shops, but would have liked more.   Otherwise, best cruise ever!!!!

We enjoyed sailing on the Carnival Sunshine, all the crew were happy and helpful.

Would recommend to anyone who enjoys cruising. Did the behind the scene tour of the ship which was very interesting.  If you ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes, take this tour.

Enjoyed the following:

- Comedy shows were entertaining

- state rooms had a good layout and were clean and decent sizes 

- Room service crew was nice and helpful

- Dominican republic was amazing

Areas of Improvement

-Some of the staff in the dining areas (particularly the cafe) were rude

- Cruise included a number of hidden charges and additional fees (e.g. $25/per day/per device for wifi on the boat that was barely fast enough to surf the web)

- Felt like they were constantly trying to sell things to passengers (large part of entertainment and shows were really sales pitches to get passengers to buy services at the spa or promote the sub-par shopping on the boat)

Cleanliness, ports of call and amenities all top notch.  Great staff and service.  Ship is showing its age a bit.  Overall, great cruise for the money. 

We had a great time on this cruise. The staff was great and the ship was very clean. My room was beautiful. My only complaint would be the food. It was equal to what you would get in a cheap buffet. We enjoyed the the stops, both islands were beautiful and fun. The cruise director, Chris was top notch. He was alot of fun to be with, all his shows and staff were great. 

The dinners were very very nice except they have cut back no more lobster tail night or free drink at captains dinner, our room was very big and clean.  The entertainment did not entertain me.  This ship was clean and the staterooms big but it was very wavy out.  December isn't really a good time to cruise. 

The staff and service were excellent. Cabin quality and cleanliness were excellent. Food quality and variety could be improved. The quality of onboard entertainment weren't all that exciting either. 

My favorite part of the cruise was being with my family and we were able to visit 4 countries together. We love to cruise,  but never did a Christmas cruise.  We are looking forward to next year Christmas cruise. Yes next year! :)

the dinner service was superior as well as the breakfast in the dining room and lunch at the Italian kitchen was great. 

The only complaint I have was the evening entertainment was less than excellent. 

I have been on several cruises, most of them in the holiday season.  I was some what disappointed how little the ship was decorated to commemorate Christmas.  On past cruises, the ship had more events to celebrate the Christmas holiday.

We booked a family Christmas cruise on the Sunshine and were not disappointed.  There were lots of things to do and see.  The ports of call offered some beautiful areas with some spectacular views. 

You're going to get a "Debbie Downer" every now and then as they want to sound important and be noticed , but I am DEFINITELY on the other end of the spectrum. This was my 8th Carnival Cruise and by far the best. I was group administrator for "The Carnival Sunshine Gang" a group of cruisers, some first timers and some very well seasoned Diamond and Platinum members of the VIFP program. The majority of us had never met before. Our Pre-cruise party at Fish Lips at Port Canaveral was attended by a few but consider going there for happy hour if you arrive a day early. You'll most likely get to see a few ships leaving port as it's right on the canal leading out to the Atlantic.  Found a great inexpensive Motel only about 2 miles away from our off site parking but its up to you as many choose to stay at a hotel that offers parking and shuttles. Got to the port at about 11 and was able to zip thru check-in as I had Faster to the Fun. Being able to drop off our carry-ons right away is also a plus. The new prices are higher but if you have to use guest services onboard you get the express line which is Always shorter. Well worth the additional cost. IMHO.  The Dining service was excellent but the jury is still out on the American Table Menu. I could care less if we had tablecloths or not but the entre's leave a bit . Their Appetizers are top notch and many of us just ordered 2 or 3 and some even skipped or ordered the Flat Iron Steak or upgraded for the $20 for the steakhouse entre's. We had 2 elegant nights on this cruise as it was an 8 day do we got some great entre's those nights and if you like Lobster order 2 as they're small or order 1 and the prime rib. They do a great job on deserts and one couple ordered the Banana Splits off the kids menu!  Their Specialty restaurants are off the chart excellent. When you see the Cruise Director and hotel director having dinner at them you know its good. Steakhouse,Sushi Bar, Ji Ji's Asian Kitchen and Cucina del Capitano well worth the prices. The Cucina has some great pictures of all the various Carnival Captains, Godmothers and CCL Presidents and ships thru the years. Fun to look at. Oh That's where they hid the Omlette Station and the in the morning and the Mongolian Wok at lunch.  What Can't I say about Our Cruise Director Chris "The Flying Scotsman" Williams. More energy and talent than I've seen in ALL of my cruises so far. His events in the Atrium bar and on TOP of the bar were FUN. Of course we had Christmas Caroiling and the "Ugly Christmas Sweater" Contest ( one of our sunshine gang came in 2nd) Chris was Very Approachable and made himself available all the time. Trent our Entertainment director has taken over some of the CD's responsibilities and that has been a big help.  Tijana Cavic our Guest Services manager and Our Event Planning Co-ordinator were IMMENSELY Helpful in setting up our "Sunshine Gang" Meet & Greet immediately after our Cruise Critic's meet & Greet. We had the Hotel director, the Cruise Director and the entertainment director there for both. had a 50-50 drawing for "Cruisin for St Jude" and raised $155.00. John Heald and the Hotel Director gave us plenty of "S.W.A.G." to give away as well. The Piano bar was a small but great venue for the 50 of us who showed up.  Shore excursions in Aruba and Bonaire I got from Trip advisor and saved a bunch of $$. Having been to Grand Turk our group opted to head to Jacks Shack up the beach from Margaritaville about a mile. Great Conch Fritters and Jerk Chicken! Watching Topher their dog dig in the sand was a hoot and he loved being held.  Debarcation as always is tough and crowded but if you get Faster to the fun you get off BEFORE Self debarcation and it's less crowded. Port Canaveral is a tough port for shuttles and busses in and out but have patience.  All in all a great time was had by our whole group, so ignore the naysayers and "Debbie Downers" 

Being my first cruise I have nothing to compare my experience with. But overall I was very pleased. I had the ability to try different foods-probably way too many :-). the staff were all friendly with me. There were times where certain events and decks had to be closed and that through a little hitch into things, but that was because of a weather issue and for safety so it was understandable.

Entertainment was the best.  High octane Epic 80s and Chris's one man rock show.  The food in the main dining room was average at best.  But you have to try the specially restaurants.

Our room setup was not as promised, they did not want to fix it then their offer to fix the situation was to give us dinner for free they called the day before and said they were not going to do it. One of the bartenders called one of the guests in my party fat and the bar managers response to us was "just look past this and enjoy the rest of your cruise" Stay far away from Carnival and stick with ANY other cruise line

Great food, great servers.  Henry was our server for every dinner and he was excellent.  Our room steward was superior.  The hostess that gave us our seat assignment for dinner was fab.

This is a beautiful ship as are the people that work there.

Thanks for the memories

Unfortunately, we were located directly above some machine that was used to recycle glass -making a horrible grinding noise.  We could not rest in our cabin because it was terribly loud.  Your Guest Services Manager, Tiana, did a great job, though, investigating the problem and making sure it didn't happen again - while we were in our cabin.

Also - painting on the Lido deck while in port made for a horrible smell.  It was too hard to sit out in the sun and even enjoy your pool area.  Is this REALLY when that type of maintenance needs to be done???