Magic Vs. Sunshine

[njrover0216]

We are tied up as to which cruise ship to book with. We have a few options the week we are looking at and Magic and Sunshine are in the pile.

 

Magic is going to:San Juan, St Thomas, Amber Cove and Grand Turk

Sunshine is going to: San Juan, Grand Turk, St Maarten and St Kitts

 

I have read some negative reviews about Sunshine: crowded ship, smells, ice cream machine breaking down often, old ship but been refurbished

 

Magic seems to have the same things as Sunshine but a newer ship. Can anyone give me some feedback and help me go one way or the other?!?!?! Possibly the better itenary or better ship? Will be sailing with children ages 7-11.Thank you!!!

[Domergirl]

I have currently not sailed on either ship...so take my comments with a grain of salt! But...keep in mind that the Magic is currently in Dry Dock getting some great updates (Guy's Burgers, Blue Iguana, etc, along with Alchemy Bar...). So, in comparing reviews on the two...just keep in mind that no one has yet seen the revamped Magic!!!

 

(I've been watching the Magic closely, since we sail on her in April!)

[A&Jfamily]

I have been on the Sunshine and she is our fav. We are set for Magic in December. They are going to be very similar after 2.0 for Magic. Subtle differences like Sunshine has Jiji's Magic has BBQ. You can do a ship by ship comparison on the website and see what I mean. I don't think you can go wrong with either and would chose based on which ports you prefer.

[kay1864]

I have been on the Sunshine and she is our fav. We are set for Magic in December. They are going to be very similar after 2.0 for Magic. Subtle differences like Sunshine has Jiji's Magic has BBQ. You can do a ship by ship comparison on the website and see what I mean. I don't think you can go wrong with either and would chose based on which ports you prefer.

Sunshine also has sushi bar ($); Magic will have Fat Jimmy's BBQ and Tandoor (free). Sunshine has Hasbro night.

[njrover0216]

Domergirl....

What did you think about St Kitts, St Maarten and St. Thomas?

 

Magic offers St. Thomas and Amber Cover, Sunshine has St. Kitts and St. Maarten.

 

I have heard Sunshine has a foul smell, the bathrooms are set up weird, no mini fridge and very crowded ship. Does Sunshine have the poolside grill where we can grab burgers from?

[k2excursion]

I would recommend Magic. Some people will say that Sunshine wasn't crowded, some say it's horrible. The ones who say it isn't might have just been good at avoiding the crowds, or they might have just hit it on a good week. Statistically speaking, Sunshine should be more crowded than Magic. Plus, Sunshine's comedy club & theater are very tiny. Magic's comedy club is also too small, but a lot larger than Sunshine's. Sunshine's theater shows aren't that great, but we'll have to wait & see if Magic gets those same shows put on in drydock. If not, then Magic will still have a great magic show.

 

Both ships will have Guys burgers, which means that you can only get a burger during the limited hours that it's open. It is near the main pool. Nowhere else around the whole lido deck (or the lanai BBQ) are allowed to serve burgers at any time, because of the branding of Guys.

 

In regards to ports, I totally love St Kitts, St Thomas, & St Maarten. 3 of my favorites! St Kitts (Jim & Rose tour), St Thomas (over to St John/Trunk Bay on our own or snorkeling at Coki Beach), St Maarten (Bernards tour or cabs on our own time to both Orient Beach & Maho Beach-where the planes land over your head). I have not been to Amber Cove, and I know nothing about it.

Edited February 25, 2016 by k2excursion

[A&Jfamily]

I would recommend Magic. Some people will say that Sunshine wasn't crowded, some say it's horrible. The ones who say it isn't might have just been good at avoiding the crowds, or they might have just hit it on a good week. Statistically speaking, Sunshine should be more crowded than Magic. Plus, Sunshine's comedy club & theater are very tiny. Magic's comedy club is also too small, but a lot larger than Sunshine's. Sunshine's theater shows aren't that great, but we'll have to wait & see if Magic gets those same shows put on in drydock. If not, then Magic will still have a great magic show.

 

Both ships will have Guys burgers, which means that you can only get a burger during the limited hours that it's open. It is near the main pool. Nowhere else around the whole lido deck (or the lanai BBQ) are allowed to serve burgers at any time, because of the branding of Guys.

 

In regards to ports, I totally love St Kitts, St Thomas, & St Maarten. 3 of my favorites! St Kitts (Jim & Rose tour), St Thomas (over to St John/Trunk Bay on our own or snorkeling at Coki Beach), St Maarten (Bernards tour or cabs on our own time to both Orient Beach & Maho Beach-where the planes land over your head). I have not been to Amber Cove, and I know nothing about it.

 

I sailed Sunshine first week of March so spring break season and because it has a ton of smaller venues scattered all over the place, it never felt crowded to us. Yes, you can get a line for the comedy club, but that has been true on every ship I have been on after the first year that it rolled out because people discovered it and loved it. Personally, I love the Havana bar - which is not on Magic - but Magic has cove balconies which everyone raves about. And I will take Sunshine over ANY Conquest class ship because I hate the fish bowl lido deck.

 

Both your cruises go to San Juan and Grand Turk. So what you really need to look at is St. Kitts and St. Martin or St. Thomas and Amber Cove. While I can't comment about St. Kitts, personally, I am not a fan of St. Martin. I ran into a lot of rude people, and I just don't think the island is that pretty. It is certainly not as lush as St. Thomas, which probably has as much variety to offer as any other port. I like St. Thomas, and if you have been, I would suggest trying something different like going to St. John for the day. I have not been to Amber Cove, but again, that was a reason we chose the Magic - a new port. It looks similar in concept to Roatan where you have a cruise made port, but then exciting and new activities, like waterfall jumping, when you start looking at excursion options if you don't want to stay in the port and have a beach day.

 

So again, I wouldn't really worry about smells, crowds etc because that can vary from week to week from ship to ship. The Sunshine had so much to do, and the Magic appears the same. Pick the ports that most interest you! In my case, I would go to St. Kitts because it will be the one place I haven't gone on your list!

[NIATPAC29]

Magic---nicer ship. Better ports of call

[DisneyDreamn]

We were very disappointed in the Sunshine. Very crowded and small cabins. I would definitely pick the Magic!

[Heather1972]

I have not sailed either Sunshine or Magic, but they are on my short list for spring break 2017. The positives I'd give are to Magic for being bigger and a more recent refurbishment. So, like others have said it comes down to itinerary. I've been to all those place except Amber Cove. I have to give the nod to the Magic's list of ports. I'm not a fan of St. Maarteen either.

[kay1864]

We were very disappointed in the Sunshine. Very crowded and small cabins.

We've stayed only in OV cabins, but they are the same size on both ships--220 sq ft.

[DisneyDreamn]

For us it was the layout of the room on the Sunshine that made it feel much smaller. Overall it was the same for the ship too. We have not been on the Magic but have sailed the Dream and the difference was very noticeable. I know some people love the Sunshine but we will not sail on it again. Just my opinion, to each his own.

[13cheermom]

I say do both! :D Actually we are going on the Sunshine in April for the 3rd time, we had no problems with the ship. When comparing features after drydock, Magic will have most of the same venues that the Sunshine has which make them comparable. As far as room sizes, I disagree about Sunshine's layout appearing to feel smaller. We booked interior room on deck 7 and the side bed layout reminds me of a balcony cabin with no balcony, compared to the typical walk straight in layout on most interior cabins. Have also stayed in regular balconies on both type ships as well as the extended balconies and again no difference between the two ships. The Magic has more deck space available, however their passenger ratio is also higher, so you do the math on that one. Pools are probably one of the drawbacks as well as comedy club space which are smaller on the Sunshine. But like I stated earlier it has never been a major problem for us and we have enjoyed the Sunshine each trip so far. We are actually going on the Magic this November but have sailed that class of ship on the Dream and Breeze so realize the difference in deck space and passenger capacity. Good Luck on your choice!

[kay1864]

For us it was the layout of the room on the Sunshine that made it feel much smaller.

You might have gotten the odd corner room or room next to a stairwell. Nearly all the 220 ft cabins on Carnival (regardless of ship) have the standard layout of sofa and bed on one wall, desk on the other.

 

[nol4am]

I have sailed on both three times and they both rank high in my list of ships. Sunshine is no more crowded that other carnival ships in my opinion except for the comedy club. That was just bad planning on that. It's has its positive side while magic has hers. I love the lanai deck on Magic which goes all the way around the ship which sunshine doesn't have but sunshine has a great serenity deck. Food options will be the same after dry dock. So what would make me decide .... Iteniary would be only decider for me. You can't go wrong with either choice but looking at your two choices I'd choose magic. Which I will be on her w same iteniary in June.

[ATL_Miami_Cruiser]

Haven't sailed Magic yet, but Sunshine is really nice and is my favorite Carnival ship

[njrover0216]

Thank you everyone! We decided to go with Magic for a few reasons. It has better ratings, even before the 2.0 upgrade and the itenary. I am reading wonderful things about Amber Cove and can not wait to see St. Thomas!

[ExFed drvr]

Magic is the best..Sailed the Sunshine one time and will not sail it again..Dennis

[cruiser fanatic]

I can't speak for the ports, but I can speak for both ships. I like both, but I prefer the Magic for a few reasons.

 

1: There is only 1 pool (and 1 on Serenity) and 2 hot tubs on the Sunshine. The Magic has 6 hot tubs. 4 on the Lanai and 2 in the aft pool area. Magic has 2 pools.

 

2: The Magic has bigger public lounges. The lounges on the Sunshine are small. Therefore, you have to get to the Theater and Comedy Club early to get a seat.

 

3: The Magic has the outdoor Lanai. The Lanai has plenty of seating and on sea days they have a BBQ.

[Swampbaby]

I have been on the Sunshine and will not be sailing her again. Sit on toilet and feet are in the shower, it's OLD and even with the updates I felt it was OLD. While I enjoyed the cruise, I did not enjoy the actual ship. The Lido was crowded most of the time I went through. We were in a 4J on deck 7 and yes, the room is smaller than other Carnival ships. No refrig as it was not one of the added rooms. YES, we did have the sewer smell in various places on the ship, thankfully not in our cabin. I'd take the Magic over Sunshine any day. That's my opinion.

[Newbea11]

We loved sunshine. Never felt crowded. We never had to wait for anything. The kids had a blast.