Carnival Cruise Ship Returns to Service With New Venue

Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Sunrise is fresh out of her dry dock at a Spanish shipyard and sailing her first cruise with a new public space onboard, the Heroes Tribute Bar & Lounge, a venue that honors members of the military.

The ship has returned to her homeport in Miami, now with a special place where active-duty troops and veterans will be warmly welcomed.

Military Decor Salutes Active Duty Troops, Veterans

Carnival Cruise Line’s 2,984-guest Carnival Sunrise re-entered service on March 5, 2024 following a dry dock from February 1 to March 3, 2024 at the Navantia shipyard in Cadiz, Spain, and one of the ship’s upgrades is the addition of the Heroes Tribute Bar & Lounge, a venue the line introduced back in 2019. The lounge replaces the SkyBox Sports Bar.

The venue, which has been added to most of the line’s ships since then and welcomes all guests, honors those currently serving in the military as well as veterans, and features American decor representing the branches of the US military. 

Military memorabilia on the walls features messages and photos covering the three themes of “Welcome Home,” “Thank You for Your Service,” and “America’s Heroes.” For each guest who purchases an exclusive souvenir glass from the venue, the cruise line donates $1 to Operation Homefront, an organization that supports military families.

The addition of the special military lounge matches the ship’s patriotic red, white, and blue livery and hull design, which was added during a 2022 dry dock.

The latest dry dock improvements to Carnival Sunrise were completed just in time for spring break, and the ship offers multiple itineraries from PortMiami, including 4- and 5-day Western Caribbean sailings, 5-day Eastern Caribbean cruises, and 4-day Bahamas getaways.

Four-day Western Caribbean cruises call at Key West, Florida, and Cozumel, Mexico, while 5-day sailings visit Ocho Rios, Jamaica, and Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. Five-day Eastern Caribbean voyages call at Nassau, Bahamas, Princess Cays, the cruise line’s private island, and Grand Turk, Turks and Caicos. Bahamas cruise visit Half Moon Cay, also a private island, and Nassau.

Along with adding the Heroes Tribute Bar & Lounge, other work completed during the dry dock included routine hotel maintenance and cosmetic upgrades across public areas, plus improvements to make public areas and certain staterooms ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act) compliant.

Earlier Dry Dock Added Fun Ship 2.0 Venues

The just-completed dry dock was scheduled back in 2022, when the line announced the plan and cancelled several cruises to accommodate the needed timeframe. Carnival Sunrise originally entered service in 1999 as Carnival Triumph, but underwent a $200 million, bow-to-stern renovation in 2019. She emerged from that refit with a new livery as the renamed Carnival Sunrise.

The renovation of the 101,509-gross ton ship brought the vessel a slew of Carnival Cruise Line’s Fun Ship 2.0 venues that had debuted on other ships several years earlier. The additions were substantial, and kept the ship dry docked for two months. The renovation was done by the same Navantia shipyard that completed her most recent upgrade.

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The Fun Ship 2.0 venues added to the ship included Cucina del Capitano, the Italian restaurant; the Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse; Bonsai Express; Guy’s Pig & Anchor Bar-B-Que Smokehouse; the Lido Marketplace; and Pizzeria del Capitano, among others. Bars that were added included RedFrog Rum Bar and Piano 88.

Other public spaces added were SportSquare, with its ropes course and recreation complex, WaterWorks, featuring the AquaTunnel and Twister slides, and the Serenity adults-only retreat. The refit also added a Cloud 9 Spa, and a series of new facilities for children and teens.