What is the Carnival Sunrise like after $200 million renovation? — featuring Cruises It

In this video: Carnival Sunrise | Cruise Ship Tour & Review| $200 Million Renovation - Review

Cruises It · 6 years ago

Is the Carnival Sunrise good for families with young children?

Yes. The ship has a dedicated WaterWorks area with children's slides, splash sprayers, and a massive dumping bucket. There are also family-friendly pools, entertainment shows in the atrium, and casual dining venues. The Serenity area offers a separate adults-only retreat if parents need a break.

What this video answers

  • Is the Carnival Sunrise good for families with young children?
  • What's included in the cruise fare and what costs extra?
  • Are there quiet areas on the ship?
  • What entertainment options are available?
  • How do I get the best rate on a Carnival Sunrise booking?

At a glance

Length
9 min
Channel
Cruises It
Video from
Aug 2020
Rating
⭐⭐ Great video · 2/2
Best for
Families, couples, and casual cruisers deciding whether Carnival Sunrise fits their vacation style.
Reads the guide aloud in your browser — free, no account.

What to Expect on the Carnival Sunrise After Its $200 Million Renovation

The Carnival Sunrise is a mid-sized cruise ship that recently underwent a substantial $200 million refurbishment, making it a solid choice for families, couples, and solo travelers seeking a fun, activity-packed ocean getaway. The video takes you through nearly every major deck and venue on board, showing the renovated pools, dining options, entertainment spaces, and leisure areas that define the modern Carnival cruise experience.

This ship appeals to cruisers who want variety without feeling overwhelmed—there's something to do whether you're seeking relaxation in the adults-only Serenity area, action-packed water slides for kids, live entertainment, specialty restaurants, or casual poolside dining. The Sunrise balances family-friendly energy with quiet spaces, making it flexible for different vacation styles.

Key Moments

Key Highlights of the Carnival Sunrise Tour

  • Carnival WaterWorks area with tube slides, open slides, children's splash features, and a massive bucket that dumps thousands of gallons of water
  • Main pool deck with two beachside bars (Red Frog Rum Bar and Blue Iguana Cantina), hot tubs facing a giant screen for movies and concerts, plus Guy's Burger Joint for custom-built burgers
  • Serenity area—an adults-only zone at the front of the ship with loungers, cabanas, a hot tub, and a quiet bar
  • Sports and recreation: full basketball court, ropes course with a plank walk, mini-golf with lido deck views, and a separate workout area
  • Entertainment venues including a theater spanning multiple decks, the Limelight Lounge comedy club and dance hall, atrium live performances, and the Red Frog Rum Pub with karaoke events
  • Multiple dining venues: complementary options (Radiance, Sunshine, Marketplace restaurants), specialty dining (Fahrenheit Steakhouse, Bonsai Sushi), and casual spots (Pizza del Capitano, Seafood Shag, Pig and Anchor barbecue)
Featured image for the guide to Carnival Sunrise | Cruise Ship Tour & Review| $200 Million Renovation - Review by Cruises It

What to Know Before Booking the Carnival Sunrise

  • Dining Mix: Most dining is complimentary, but specialty restaurants like the steakhouse and sushi bar charge extra; ask for a full venue pricing list when booking
  • Early vs. Late Seating: The main restaurants offer early dining (around 6 p.m.) or late dining (around 8:30 p.m.); choose your preferred time slot when you book
  • Game Areas: The Warehouse game room requires your key card to play; no cash or coins accepted
  • Booking Discount: The tour provider offers unpublished rates not posted online; call 800-414-1531 for the best rate available
  • Spa and Fitness: Cloud Nine Spa offers massages and facials; thermal suites include steam rooms, infrared saunas, and heated relaxation chairs with ocean views
  • Shore Excursions: Book activities through the Carnival Adventures desk located in the atrium

Frequently Asked Questions About Carnival Sunrise Cruises

Is the Carnival Sunrise good for families with young children?

Yes. The ship has a dedicated WaterWorks area with children's slides, splash sprayers, and a massive dumping bucket. There are also family-friendly pools, entertainment shows in the atrium, and casual dining venues. The Serenity area offers a separate adults-only retreat if parents need a break.

What's included in the cruise fare and what costs extra?

Most dining venues are complimentary, including the Radiance, Sunshine, and Marketplace restaurants, plus casual spots like Guy's Burger Joint and Pizza del Capitano. Specialty restaurants—Fahrenheit Steakhouse, Bonsai Sushi, and certain bars—charge additional fees. The video provider recommends requesting a detailed pricing list before you book.

Are there quiet areas on the ship?

Yes. The Serenity area at the front of the ship is exclusively for adults and features relaxing loungers, cabanas, a dedicated bar, and a hot tub. It's designed as a peaceful escape from the livelier pool decks.

What entertainment options are available?

The ship offers a theater with Broadway-style shows, the Limelight Lounge for comedians and late-night dancing, the Red Frog Rum Pub with karaoke, live atrium performances with musicians and violin players, and games in the Warehouse arcade. There's also a casino with poker and blackjack.

How do I get the best rate on a Carnival Sunrise booking?

Contact Cruises It directly at 800-414-1531. The company is a Carnival partner and offers unpublished rates that are not listed on their website. They also provide expert knowledge from having toured all ships in the Carnival fleet.

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Key Terms

Complementary dining
Restaurant venues included in your cruise fare where you pay no additional charge to eat.
Specialty dining
Upscale or themed restaurants on the ship that charge an extra fee beyond the base cruise price.
Thermal suites
A spa facility featuring steam rooms, saunas, and heated relaxation chairs for wellness and recovery.
Lido deck
The upper outdoor deck of a ship, typically home to pools, bars, and casual dining venues.
Serenity area
A designated adults-only zone on the ship designed for quiet relaxation, away from family activities.

Sources: Complementary dining · Specialty dining · Thermal suites · Lido deck · Serenity area — definitions cross-referenced with Wikipedia

Justin’s Take

This video delivers exactly what a potential cruiser needs to decide if the Carnival Sunrise suits their style. The tour is comprehensive, showing every major venue in logical order and explaining what's included versus what costs extra—a detail that matters for budgeting.

What impressed me most was the breadth of dining and entertainment options shown without feeling cluttered; the ship genuinely balances family energy with adult relaxation spaces. If you're considering a cruise on this ship, this tour gives you real visibility into your days at sea. I'd wholeheartedly recommend it.

⭐⭐ Great video · 2 out of 2

Justin
Justin

Years on the front lines of helicopter tour coordination — not as a travel blogger, but as the person responsible for making every guest experience go right. Managed 2,000+ cruise guests weekly as Shore Excursions staff aboard the Pride of America in Hawaii Personally coordinated with helicopter tour operators to confirm age, weight, and safety requirements.

Video by Cruises It on YouTube. If you enjoyed it, please subscribe to their channel and show your support for the great video.

Description

To Book Call: 800-414-1531
Website: www.cruisesit.com
This is a full tour of the Carnival Sunrise. Carnival spent 200 million recently to renovation the ship. Take a look at the dining, entertainment, pools and activities.
Sailings
https://mnewquist.cruiseone.com/results.do?clp=1&places=ALL&c=1&v=1093&days=ALL&p=ALL&singleLine=N&shoppingZipCode=32748&Month=ALL&dd=ALL&fd=2&sort=7
Dining
https://mnewquist.cruiseone.com/sc.do?i=926729&c=1&v=1093&Month=ALL#foodanddining

Video transcript for “Carnival Sunrise | Cruise Ship Tour & Review| $200 Million Renovation - Review” Accessibility

A full written transcript of this video, provided for accessibility. Select any timestamp to jump the video to that moment.

[Music] i'm on the carnival sunrise i'm gonna do a full tour this is jason here i hope you enjoyed the tour cardinal just put 200 million dollars into refurbishing the ship let's go ahead and get started let's take a look at the carnival water works area you'll see some loungers over to the

left and there's also loungers over to the right there are a couple of slides that go into the waterworks area there's a tubed closed in slide and an open slide down in the waterworks area there are a couple of children's slides along with a bunch of splash sprayers and a huge bucket that

dumps thousands of gallons of water on everybody let's take a look at the main pool right when you walk into the main pool there are a couple of hot tubs that face the huge screen that plays events movies under the stars concerts you'll also find a couple of bars down here so if you'd like a drink you

can head on over to the red frog rum bar and grab yourself one of their signature beers or one of their rum punches or you can head on over to the blue iguana cantina bar the cool thing is is that both bars are on either side of the pool so you can take your pick for some reason the red frog run bar

is a little bit more popular today probably one of the best places you can stop in for lunch is here at guy's burger joint take your time and order the right burger tailored perfectly for your taste and then head on over to the toppings bar and pile fresh toppings and also choose from many different sauces

and even hot sauces throw some a1 on there if you like on the other side is the blue iguana cantina here you can enjoy all you can eat tacos burrito bowls taco salads then you can hit the salsa bar and grab the type of salsa and hot sauce you like most cruisers say they enjoy this area

this is the serenity area this is for adults it's all the way at the front of the ship it has relaxing loungers chairs and cabanas there is a bar all the way toward the front a place to get a fresh towel and a nice hot tub on sea days you do not want to miss out on getting delicious barbecue from

pig and anchor the barbecue came right off the bone but it's what you'll enjoy are their signature barbecue sauces let's head to the back of the ship and take a look at the sports court so there is a full basketball court foosball tables there is a ropes course and the ropes course

comes equipped with a plank over to the side of the full basketball court is a little workout area and a bing bag toss right down there is an isolated area for smokers over here is the putt-putt golf course the putt-putt golf course has an excellent view of the lido deck it's a perfect spot to hang out in

when you're sailing away all the way at the back of the ship is another pool in the pool area there are a couple of hot tubs there's also a bar the tides bar there are some stools there so if you want to grab a drink and have a view of the pool it's perfect there's a couple dining venues over here

too there is pizza del capitano which has all you can eat pizza across from pizza del capitano is the seafood shag which has delicious fresh lobster shrimp scallops fried snapper check it out this is the marketplace it's open for breakfast lunch and dinner also keep in mind that if you're looking to book on the

sunrise make sure you give me a call i'm going to put my 1-800 number there on the screen we work directly with carnival we're considered one of their partners and one of the best things about booking with us is that not only do we offer you our expertise and knowledge of having been on

all the ships but we also give you a discounted rate so it's a win-win for all of us so make sure you give me a call this is the cloud nine spa if you'd like to get a massage or a facial this lady will be more than glad to help you in the spa you'll find the thermal suites where you can spend time in the steam

room or the infrared sauna they also have a regular sauna when you get out of the steam room or the sauna you can relax in one of the heated chairs with a beautiful view if you'd like to work out while you're on board you can head on over to the gym they have a wide selection of free weights and machines you can jump

on one of the bikes or the stairmasters while you enjoy a beautiful view of the ocean let's head on down to deck 5 we'll take a look at the skybox sports bar this is where you can check out all your sporting events you can take a seat at the bar at one of the comfy stools or if you have a party

you can grab one of the comfortable tables and chairs it goes right into the casino so this is the sunrise casino you can come in and play digital poker they have all the card games you can play blackjack there's a pretty cool bar right here in the middle if you go out of the casino

you're going to walk right into bonsai sushi bonsai sushi is a la carte pricing a lot of the dining on board is complementary but there is some specialty so i'm gonna place a link down below the description of the video where you can see which venues are specialty and which ones are complementary and the pricing

right around the corner from alchemy bar is the red frog rum pub the red frog rum bar is up on the lido deck this is the pub the pub offers a lot of fun events while we were on board we came in and sing karaoke there's also a couple of games here in the back down there is the atrium in this area

we'll find a couple of pretty cool venues the warehouse is right around the corner it's where all of the fun games are you'll need your key card to play one of these games they do not accept money or change all the way to the front of the ship is the theater it spans down a couple of

decks if you go all the way down to the bottom you'll find a bar so you can grab a drink while you watch one of the shows if you'd like a specialty coffee you'll also find java blue over here you can also grab a croissant if you like down here in the atrium there's a lot of action that takes place

there were a lot of fun shows you can enjoy music violin players also the cruise director came in and he would host really cool shows which involved dancing and singing down here in the atrium you can also find the shore excursions desk carnival adventures and right around the corner from

carnival adventures is guest services the radiance restaurant is also accessible from the atrium it's also part of the complementary dining so you do not pay to dine here you can pick between either an early or a late dining the early dining is usually six o'clock and the late dining is usually around 8

30. also accessible from the atrium and right around the corner from the radiance restaurant is the fahrenheit steakhouse this is part of the specialty dining more toward the back of the ship on deck 4 is the limelight lounge here you'll watch all the funny comedians do their acts and then later

on at night it turns into the dance club all the way at the back of the ship is the sunshine restaurant this is also part of the complimentary dining so you could either be dining here or in the radius hey i'm jason nuquist with cruisesit.com i hope you enjoyed the tour remember to

get the best rate guaranteed give me a call my number is down below and keep in mind to get that good rate you must give us a call our rates are unpublished they are not posted on our website have a blessed day [Music]

you

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