All Aboard Sunshine

At the beginning of this week I was lucky enough to have been invited to spend 2 nights onboard Carnival Sunshine with 5 of my colleagues. On Sunday I travelled to London (via the Champagne Bar at St Pancras) with colleague Camilla and had a stay at the Hilton at Gatwick ready for our early start on Monday morning.

Quick stop at the Champagne bar at St Pancras

We flew from London to Pisa and arrived at the ship at about 1pm and first , well I really wasnt sure. From the outside you could tell this was an old ship that had had a lick or two of paint but once we were aboard it was a different story.

Our Balcony Cabin

Camilla and I had a Balcony cabin on deck 6 which was spacious enough for 2 people but as this was a 4 berth cabin, with the pullman berths stowed away, I’m not sure how “comfortable” it would have been with 4 people sharing. The cabins were decorated to a good standard but when you stepped out onto the balcony you were reminded that this wasn’t a new ship.

The public areas, including the bars and restaurants, were tastefully decorated and this is when you could see how much had been put into the refurbishment. We were lucky enough to be able to experience 2 of the alternative dining options, and had our evening meal in the Italian restaurant, “La Cucina del Capitano” on the first evening and then in “Farenheit” the Steak House on the second evening. Both nights we had a 4 course meal and this definately didnt disappoint. The menu’s were extensive and the service and attention to detail was excellent. As a little added touch, in the Italian restaurant, the waiters all sang “Thats Amore” while we were eating,which was lovley, but also quite amusing as there wasnt an Italian amongst them and our waiter was called Boris and was from Serbia!

Lobster Bisque was Delicious in Farenheit followed by Shrimp Ravioli

The self service buffet had a good selection at breakfast and lunchtime and a quirky touch I thought was the 2 self service draught beer pump’s where you just swipe your cruise card ( there is a charge) and you can pour your own pint. There were 2 brands to choose from, Budweiser and Reg Frog Beer which is Carnivals very own brand.

There were various entertainment venues, incuding the Piano Bar,which was probabaly my favorite’s, as you could throw any request at the singer and he would give it a go with everyone joining in  after a few cocktails and singing along. In another of the bars there was a rock band who were brilliant and definately went up in my estimation when the played ACDC’s Back in Black…classic!

We set sail for Rome on Monday evening and I decided to stay onboard on Tuesday as I have been to Rome many times. This was a perfect time to be able to catch some sun and relax in the new adult only area “Serenity” which was one of the new additions to the ship. This area had its own pool and a lovely waterfall and was definately one of my favorire areas. Another, of course, had to be the water park which had 3 waterslides, one called the twister, for obvious reasons, with all its twist and turns and the 2 racing slides which I must admit I wasnt brave enough to try but I did have a good time on the twister!

Cooling off at the Serenity Pool with a cocktail

Tuesday evening we set sail for Naples where we had to disembark Wednesday morning for our flight back to London. It was a flying visit, but a most enjoyable one, and It was great to experience a Carnival ship first hand. Would I recomend it……yes definately, they definately cater for all age groups and there is plenty for everyone.

Hers a few more pictures.

Dinner in Farenheit with “Lady Camilla”

Main Dining Room

Funky Bar in the Atruim

Show Lounge

Red Frog Pub

Cocktails in the Red Frog Pub

Sports Bar

Havanna Bar