Carnival Sunshine
---
Carnival Sunshine
The Carnival Sunshine is a Carnival Cruise Line cruise ship offering a resort-style onboard experience focused on leisure, entertainment and family-friendly activities at sea. It features pool areas with hot tubs and water-based recreation, along with a spa and an adults-only Serenity space designed for relaxation. The onboard experience also includes a gym, casino, live shows, a theatre and cinema-style entertainment, as well as sports and recreation options such as mini-golf and other casual activities depending on itinerary. Family and youth programs include Camp Ocean for children, Circle C for pre-teens and Club O2 for teenagers, complemented by themed bars and dining venues, with Wi-Fi available throughout the ship. This ship is suited to families and groups seeking a casual cruise experience combining entertainment, activities and relaxation in a resort-style environment at sea.
Itineraries of the Carnival Sunshine
Price and Availability Notice
Prices displayed are provided for informational purposes only. They reflect the rates in effect at the time of their most recent update and are shown in Canadian dollars, per person, based on double occupancy, unless otherwise specified.
Supplier rates, exchange rates, taxes and fees, room or cabin categories, and promotions are subject to change at any time. The applicable price is the one confirmed by a travel advisor at the time of booking, subject to availability. Only the confirmed price shall be considered valid.
It is the traveler's responsibility to confirm the price, inclusions, and applicable terms and conditions before making a reservation. While every effort is made to keep our content up to date, transmission, display, or pricing errors may occur. In such cases, the correct price will be communicated to the traveler before any booking is confirmed. Certain terms, restrictions, and exclusions may apply.
decks plans
Deck - 14
Serenity
Deck - 12
Cabins
Deck - 11
Serenity & Sports Square
Deck - 10
Spa & Waterworks
Deck - 9
Lido
Deck - 8
Cabins
Deck - 7
Cabins
Deck - 6
Cabins
Deck - 5
Promenade
Deck - 4
Mezzanine
Deck - 3
Lobby
Deck - 2
Cabins
Deck - 1
Cabins
Ship's attributes
Services And Amenities
- Casino
- Pool
- Beauty salon
- Spa & body care
Specific needs
- Wheelchair accessible staterooms
Technical specifications
- Classe: Sunshine Class
- Tonnage: 102853
- Speed: 21.0 knots
- Passengers: 3002
- Decks: 13
- Length: 272 m
- Width: 38 m
History
- 24 novembre 1996: Année de construction
- 2013: Année de rénovation
- 8 novembre 2021: Année de rénovation
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, and the date is fixed. Carnival Sunshine makes her final Norfolk departure on 15 May 2027, a fifteen-day transatlantic crossing to Dover. Carnival Freedom takes over the Norfolk homeport from May 2027. This is the most consequential homeport change among these four ships: anyone buying flights into Norfolk for summer 2027 is booking the wrong city.
In Europe for the warm season. After the 15 May 2027 crossing, Carnival Sunshine runs fifteen European sailings through October: one from Dover, four from Civitavecchia for Rome, and ten from Barcelona, covering the Mediterranean and North Africa. She then crosses back to Miami via Alicante, Malaga and Tangier before settling into her Texas season.
17 November 2027. Carnival Sunshine opens with four-day and ten-day itineraries and becomes the fourth Carnival ship based in Texas. Everything changes at once compared with Norfolk: the port, the trip lengths and the destinations. Do not assume a 2026 Norfolk itinerary tells you anything useful about a 2028 Galveston departure.
Nothing is on the calendar for 2026 or 2027. Her last one ran January to February 2025 in Marseille, covering new flooring, motion-sensor lighting and fitness centre upgrades. Given Carnival Sunshine's age and the 2027 European season ahead of her, a yard period could still be inserted, so re-verify before locking in flights around a sensitive date.
Carnival Sunshine carries 3,002 at double occupancy and up to roughly 3,765 with every berth filled, staffed by 1,150 crew across 1,501 cabins. That spread of more than 750 guests is among the widest in the Carnival fleet, which goes a long way toward explaining why reviews contradict each other so sharply on how crowded she feels.
She is. The hull was delivered in 1996 as Carnival Destiny from Fincantieri's Monfalcone yard, and she was the first passenger ship in history to pass 100,000 gross tons. The 2013 conversion, a 49-day project in Trieste, replaced lifts, air conditioning and electrical systems rather than just finishes. She was renamed Carnival Sunshine on 5 May 2013.
By connection in 2026, by transatlantic flight in 2027. Nothing flies non-stop from Montreal-Trudeau to Norfolk, so you route through Newark, Philadelphia, Washington or Charlotte. Norfolk International sits about sixteen kilometres from the Half Moone terminal, a twenty- to twenty-five-minute drive. From May 2027 onward, the question becomes a flight to Barcelona or Rome instead.
Yes, eight-day sailings out of Norfolk calling at Halifax, Saint John in New Brunswick, and Sydney in Nova Scotia. For a Quebec traveller who wants the Maritimes by sea without flying to Europe, this is the most relevant itinerary on the ship. The catch is timing: these departures end when Carnival Sunshine repositions in May 2027.
A sailing departing Barcelona on 25 July 2027, routed to put the ship in the path of the 2 August 2027 solar eclipse. Carnival Sunshine calls at Marseille, Genoa, Salerno, Catania, Valletta and La Goulette along the way. Sailings like this fill early, and cloud cover is nobody's to control, which is worth saying plainly before someone books for that reason alone.
Yes. Carnival Sunshine will make the first calls in Carnival's history on the African continent, at Tunis in Tunisia and Tangier in Morocco, during the 2027 European season. She also adds Bari in Italy, Bar in Montenegro and Ajaccio in Corsica. These are brand-new calls for the line, so expect a thinner, less polished shore excursion lineup in year one.
A European season and the original hull. Carnival Sunshine is the only ship in her class crossing the Atlantic in 2027 and the only Carnival vessel touching Africa. Her 2013 conversion also gave her a racing-themed waterpark with one of the longest slides in the fleet. And she carries the original Carnival Destiny hull, which neither Carnival Sunrise nor Carnival Radiance can claim.
Wear, mostly. Recent reviews describe a ship needing attention despite its refits, with some guests reporting sewage odours in aft areas and pronounced motion even in calm seas. The deck layout, a product of conversion rather than original design, also draws criticism for being awkward to navigate. Cabins and crew, meanwhile, tend to score well.
A few on the record. In May 2023 a storm caused substantial damage aboard, with crew evacuated from their quarters and the crew bar destroyed. In September 2025 a guest was medically evacuated shortly after a Norfolk departure. Carnival Sunshine has had no major propulsion failure since the 2013 conversion, which is the reassurance most people are actually looking for.
Enrolling and booking are separate things, but the deadline matters more than the booking does. Carnival Rewards replaces the VIFP Club on 1 September 2026 and your status does not move across by itself. You must accept the terms in your Carnival account before 31 August 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Earning under the old program stops then. Handle this first.
Yes, because nothing about the trip is direct. Every routing from Montreal to Norfolk goes through a US connection, and one cancellation strands you. Carnival Sunshine departs in the afternoon from the Half Moone Cruise Center on Waterside Drive, in downtown Norfolk. An extra night also buys you time to see the battleship Wisconsin, moored right beside the terminal.
Subscribe to our newsletter
