Carnival Sunshine Cruise: 4-day Bahama Cruise from Charleston, South Carolina

November - December 2019 Spa cabin 11001

Next to Alchemy Bar in Ocean Plaza on Carnival Sunshine

Pre-cruise

We previously sailed on Carnival Sunshine from New Orleans shortly after it had been refurbished in 2014. We had a balcony cabin near the back of the ship for that cruise. We had some water problems in our cabin then, as did others. I was not very interested in another cruise after some of the things that happened on that cruise; however, my feelings have changed since then. Our initial travel plans this trip were to visit Charleston, and we decided to extend our trip a few more days on the cruise ship, because the price was good. 

You can find more details about the Carnival Sunshine in my previous blog post. I am providing information here that is new or different since then.

View of bridge between Charleston and Mount Pleasant from Carnival Sunshine

Arrival and VIP check-in ~ Charleston cruise port

This was our first experience cruising from Charleston. I had read that check-in begins sometime around 10:00 or 11:00 AM, so we submitted a request for an Uber ride from our airport hotel shortly after 10:00 AM. The information online says that the drop-off address is 32 Washington Street, which is the address I used. Our Uber driver arrived right away, and we arrived at the port just after 10:30 AM. We were told it would be about five minutes before we could enter. I inquired whether we could walk in so our driver would not have to wait. There was one other vehicle waiting, and our driver said he would wait with us. About five minutes later, our driver drove us into the cruise port area, and dropped us and our luggage off.

Directions to VIP check-in were clear, and security was a breeze. We arrived at the check-in desk right away. We then stood at the desk for over five minutes, because there was some kind of issue with our check-in. I do not know what the problem was, and the agent was apparently unable to correct it. She finally just checked us in again, and then had to take a photo of my husband. My passport photo showed up on the screen, and his did not. We had a similar experience last time we cruised, and I do not understand what the problem is. We renewed our passports together, we always check-in together with the same credit card on the account, and we always have the correct documents when we arrive.

After we checked in, there is a VIP waiting area near the shuttle boarding area. There is only one restroom at this end of the building, and the line was quite long. I walked back to the other end of the building to use the restroom. There was also a line there; however, it was not as long as the VIP line. Soon after, we boarded a shuttle bus for a short ride over to the ship and boarded. We were on board before noon. We were the first ones to arrive at Red Frog Pub; however, the bartender did not know anything about the first beverage being free for the first guests. I do not know if Carnival did away with this, or if the bartender was just uninformed.

Interior spa cabin 11001 on Carnival Sunshine

Spa interior cabin 11001 4S

Our cabin was ready when we boarded. This was our 19th cruise, and our first time in a spa cabin. We chose this cabin because it looked like it was located in a quiet hallway, and because it is located near Serenity deck. The rate when we booked was not much more than a basic interior room.

Interior spa cabin 11001 on Carnival Sunshine

This cabin is spacious and comfortable. Robes and slippers were in the stateroom when we arrived, so we did not need to request them. There is plenty of room in this cabin for a sofa, and we were disappointed that the only seating was one chair and the makeup stool.

Carnival Sunshine Spa info from website; click photo to enlarge

We did not receive all of the amenities listed for a spa cabin. I did not look at the spa information sheet I had printed from the Carnival Sunshine website until the last day, so I did not inquire about it then. I received the complimentary scrub kit only because we observed other guests asking for this when we were at the spa (we were not given 8 choices to choose from). Our stateroom had only Elemis shampoo/conditioner combination and shower gel. We did not receive lotion or a soap disk.

View from thermal loungers on Carnival Sunshine

Spa

The spa on Carnival Sunshine does not have a thalassotherapy pool, which is probably why the spa cabins on this ship are such a good value. We knew that when we booked, so we were not disappointed. For no additional charge, we were able to use the thermal loungers, and the steam and sauna rooms. The weather was cool during our cruise, and the thermal loungers were a nice relaxing place to spend a few hours in the afternoon.

Red Frog Pub drink menu

Food and beverages

Red Frog Pub had Happy Hour just about every day for a couple of hours starting at noon or 2:00 PM. Caribbean Cocktails and Beers of the Caribbean were half off during Happy Hour. My favorite cocktail from the specials list was Red's Painkiller.

Havana Bar had a specialty cocktail each day. We did not get to try the one we thought sounded best--Cuban Iced Tea! Alchemy Bar also had a special each evening with something at a discount--Ladies Night, Martini Night, different tastings... Daily specials were posted in the Fun Times for the pool bars (BlueIguana Tequila Bar and Red Frog Rum Bar). The only discount we saw in the Atrium Bar was during the Captain's Celebration ($1 off mimosas), and we did not see any promotions for the Serenity Deck or Casino Bar.

Sea Day Brunch menu;
blue boxes are the items I ordered

The Sea Day Brunch menu was different from our last cruise. The choices looked fabulous; however, I had a bit of difficulty receiving what I ordered in the dining room in the mornings (during brunch and breakfast). One morning, I ordered the Signature Tower, choosing my two items: Ahi Tuna Salad and Shrimp Salad. I received ONLY the two salads; I did not receive any of the other Tower items listed: tomatoes, cucumber, and bagels. Another morning, I ordered the Salmon Super Food Salad, and I received the Shrimp Salad from the Tower and a bagel. From the breakfast menu, I ordered the Breakfast Board one morning, and I received the Breakfast Bowl. I liked the foods I received; however, this was somewhat disappointing, as I thought both brunch menu items I ordered sounded fabulous. I also pointed to the items on the menu when I ordered, which apparently did not help.

Shrimp salad I received when I ordered Salmon Salad during brunch

The area where the Taste Bar used to be in Ocean Plaza had light foods: continental breakfast items in the morning, and sandwiches and salad during lunch time. There was no Taste Bar on this cruise. We did not have enough days to enjoy Bonsai Sushi or Ji Jis. We enjoyed Cucina del Capitano for lunch one day, and there was food (with no wait) available at the end of the Havana Bar during lunch: Cuban Sandwiches and more. The wait at Ji Jis during lunch was very long.

Cheese plate in dining room

Dinner in the dining room was similar to our other cruises, although lobster was not included on elegant evening. This was listed on the menu for a charge. Food portion sizes seemed smaller than past cruises, which was fine with us. We thought most everything was had was very good. The prime rib on elegant evening is the only dinner food item that was disappointing.

Carnival Sunshine 4-day cruise entertainment schedule

Entertainment, activities, shopping

We loved comedian Diane Ford! And, the Carnival MC who announced each show in the Limelight Lounge (I do not recall her name). Unfortunately, entering and exit rules for the showroom were not enforced, nor were doors kept closed when the room became full. This caused disruptions and blocked visibility. Many passengers used the showroom as a highway to cut through from the dining room to the front of the ship. One evening, the traffic was so heavy that the comedian made a joke about it as people were cutting through. The entertainment in Liquid Lounge was enjoyable and similar to past cruises. We also participated in some of the games in Ocean Plaza during the day, we attended the Marriage Show, watched Yesterday on Seaside Theater, and listened to several musicians.

The alcohol purchase offer the first evening was amazing: purchase 4 bottles of Absolut and/or Kahlua for $50 total! They actually ran out of Absolut on this cruise, and we got one of the last bottles. When we made our purchase the first evening, we signed for $50, and did not receive a receipt. The next day, I noticed that our purchase had gone through for only $30, so I stopped at the Fun Shops to check on this. Only 2 bottles of Kahlua had been set aside for us, and no Absolut. After this was corrected, there was only 1 bottle of Absolut left for purchase. There were many clothing and logo items for sale for $10 during this cruise: tops, hats, cups, etc.

Beach pool on Carnival Sunshine

Pool and outside areas

All of the outside activities and areas were unchanged from my last Carnival Sunshine blog post in 2014. This time, however, Serenity deck rules were not enforced. We saw pre-teens and teens under 18 on Serenity deck and in Serenity hot tub. Serenity deck age is 21+.

VIP gifts on left

Platinum perks

This was our first 4-day cruise, and I did not realize until after we had booked this cruise that past guest parties are only on 5+ day cruises. The rest of the VIP perks were the same. We received luggage tags as our VIP gift.

Leaving Nassau

Ports of Call

This cruise had only one port of call; Nassau. We enjoyed the quiet ship while in port, as we have been to Nassau several times before.

Debarkation 

Alcohol purchases were not delivered to our stateroom, and my husband had to go pick up our purchases after 6:00 AM debarkation morning. He waited in line for almost an hour in an area that did not have much room.

Once we were cleared for debarkation, things moved very quickly. We had breakfast first, and did not make it to the VIP meeting area before VIP guests disembarked. Therefore, we exited the ship in the middle of self-assist guests carrying off their luggage. Our luggage was ready, and it was very easy to walk out to the street from the cruise ship.

Misc. and overall

Here is a link to my Facebook album with copies of the Fun Times and more photos. Be sure to follow the link at the top of this post to read my previous post with more details for this ship.

Before this cruise, I had read several comments about this ship being rockier than other cruise ships, so I want to mention a few things: 1. The time of year can affect wave heights. Hurricane season is typically June 1 - November 30, which often means stronger winds and waves. 2. Where the ship is traveling also has a bearing on water conditions. The Atlantic and Pacific Oceans are usually rougher than the Caribbean Sea or Gulf of Mexico. 3. Location on the ship makes a difference. The center of the ship is usually calmer than the front or back, and lower decks are more stable.

Serenity deck, and our cabin on deck 11, are both located in areas more prone to movement. We love being on a boat of any kind, and this was not a problem for us. This was our third time on this ship (it was still called Destiny the first time we were on it), and I do not think the boat is any rockier than the other cruise ships we have been on.

Let me know if you have any questions!