Owlhelm

Well we're back, and at Captain-John's request, here are my musings on the state of the Spirit. Bear in mind it was the first time we'd sailed with NCL, so I can't make any pre/post refit comments. Furthermore, I'll refrain from commenting in detail on food (generally excellent) and service (generally good, but let down on occasion) and the ship's facilities (adequate for a ship this size).

1. Public areas

We were happy with the state and cleanliness of the ship, and there was definitely a far eastern vibe going on in parts of the ship, complete with 'terracotta' warriors with which I saw some people having their photo taken. The carpets seemed to be in good repair, with the exception near one elevator, where the edge of the carpet had come away from the fixing. The decor in the dining rooms was fine, although the ceilings were a bit low we thought - obviously not something refit-related. Some tablecloths in Shogun wouldn't have gone amiss, as we had to save our water and wine glasses a couple of times from sliding off the table in rough conditions - I was too slow to save the chopsticks once. As an aside, I disliked the atrium elevator workings being visible from the atrium, and the whole black wall thing that was going on.

2. Stateroom

My fears were realised. We had an inside, and it was pokey and badly designed. In the 'double bed' configuration, there was little space either side of the bed, with the beside cabinet having to be turned on its side (making it a table) on one side of the bed. I had to keep my water and phone on the floor by the bed. The decor was dated and the space poorly used. A good sized wardrobe and some drawers, but no useful ledges or shelves. The bathroom was good, with a strong shower and a large (actually larger than necessary) shower cubicle. The room had a mini fridge and a flat screen tv. The fridge was serviceable, but seemed positioned as an afterthought, so I don't know whether this was a recent addition, and the tv was too big for its shelf, so was at an awkward angle. Almost as awkward as my arm position trying to use the remote while in bed. There was no channel guide, nor a channel that gave any useful daily information. We usually had it on the standard 'map/webcam/heading' type channel. At least if there was an announcement we could hear it on this channel. Also, no weather forecast info, which would have been so helpful. It looked as though there had been some damage to the room as a large section of one wall by the bed had a panel screwed to it. There was also damage to the wall behind the bed (which clearly hadn't been updated since NCL acquired the ship in 2004, as it referred to the SuperStar Leo, its previous name.

Overall.

We did speak to someone who had been told that she (the ship) was going for a further refit where the staterooms were to be updated. This might resolve some of issues, but having the door in the centre of the cabin wall (with the bathroom one side and the wardrobe the other) gives little room (pun intended) for changing the layout.

Conclusion.

Would I sail NCL again? Yes. Would I sail on the Spirit? Possibly, post alleged secondary refit (though I prefer larger ships).

I hope this gives a balanced view of how we saw the ship. As I said, I could go into a lot more detail on other aspects of the ship, but given my preference for larger ships with more facilities, it may have come across as a little harsh.

Hope this helps.

Cheers, and Happy Sailings!

Martin.

This thread (or at least the spreadsheet) should, without a doubt, be pinned. Flying to Barcelona tomorrow morning to pick up the Spirit on the 4th.

So pleased to have spotted this thread (and saved the spreadsheet to my phone and printed off).

Thank you for the hard work in compiling the list. I can't wait.

Cheers. Literally.

M.

I thought it might have been something to hold onto in rough conditions (outside, but maybe inside too ;p ).

M.

Yes, MSC still status matching.

Insides might have a pop-up bed so you could possibly have a double that way or just move the two on the floor together. Bunks off wall aren't too bad unless you are really tall and pop-up in bed if one of them is down otherwise when stowed they are only like 4" wide.

Actually, it's with the 'wall beds' in their upright position I was thinking of. We've experienced them a couple of times before and it wasn't great. With there only appearing to be room for one bedside cabinet, I was concerned about the width of the stateroom. Obviously not a deal breaker, and we'll live with it if it's a pain (unlike some in the 'OMG I can't live without Coke products' thread. ;p).

Good that MSC still status-match. Happy days! :D

M.

We always make ours up, laminate them, punch a hole and attach with a cable tie. Not that I'm paranoid about them coming off or anything...

Thanks for the replies!

Yes, Shogun looked interesting as a complimentary dining venue, and we'll certainly give it a try.

We're aware that she is an older and hence smaller vessel, and I'm hoping that the refit has given her a new lease of life. I must admit to being slightly worried about cabinspace. We're in an inside, and prefer a 'double bed' configuration, and looking at some pictures there appears to be only room for one bedside cabinet. In addition, I am concerned that the drop-down beds will make getting around the bed a little difficult. Oh well, beggars can't be choosers as the say.

I'll do my best to remember to reply on our return Cap'n, to give our impressions. On another note, do MSC still honour the status of other lines? I know when we were considering an MSC cruise they bumped us straight to Gold, as we are Platinum on Princess (I don't think we were even that at the time).

M.

Not sure any of that is relevant to someone from England... just sayin'

It's not relevant to anyone from anywhere. Western Europe is heated by the Gulf Stream, so just comparing latitudes is misleading. Anyway, regarding typical (or even forecast) weather, Google is your friend.

M.

Hi all,

We're off in a couple of weeks on the Spirit. Our first cruise with NCL, having previously been with Princess, Carnival, P&O and Costa. Loved them all - they all have the plus and minus points.

So guys, what do we have in store for us? Any NCL peculiarities that you wish to share, or Spirit-specific highlights and lowlights?

Thanks in advance.

Martin.

Fencing classes

Fencing classes? Oh yes!

Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die!

Ok, you've all convinced me. Time to give the boss the go-ahead.

Cheers.

M.

Thanks Hattie :)

Hi all,

I'm coming under increasing pressure to do a TA, which I'm not entirely unhappy about. If I'm going to do I want to do it in style, hence me posting on this forum.

My (first?) question relates to the days at sea. We have always booked cruises based on their itinerary, and if there are more than a couple of consecutive days at sea between stops I go a little stir crazy. I'm happy sitting by the pool or in a comfy lounge reading, but I'm concerned that on a TA there wont be enough to occupy us. We're not into the usual trivia, bingo, art 'auctions' that can go on on sea days, and I'm wondering what Cunard put on, and how people occupy themselves for a week being confined to the ship. I understand that set activities can last an hour or so at a time, but even doing, say, a ballroom dance class every day we're going to be struggling to find things to fill our days with.

Any information would be gratefully received.

Thanks

Martin,

Yeah, and I've got the car!

Haha. I hope the seals on it are better than his - a fish got into his as I recall!

Just channel your inner Bond....James Bond...

You'll be getting on a few weeks after we get off. I'm taking mine! :D

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences and opinions.

Cheers,

Martin

No...the bone-in rib steak is not a porterhouse. It's listed as the Sterling Silver Beef Chop on the menu.

Thanks for the correction Lew. :)

M.

Andrew, you've succeeded in making my mouth water. My pre-cruise diet won't last until the wekend at this rate! ;p

M.

In light of the fact that you're not big meat eaters, why not dine at Sabatini's instead? You'll find a much more diverse selection there.

I agree with the above poster, that Sabatini's would have more choices for you

I love the bone in Rib chop as well

Hi both, thanks for replying. The Crown Grill is billed as a Premium Seafood and Chop House, and a comparison of the menus shows that the Crown Grill has more choice seafood-wise than Sabatini's. Indeed, Sabatini's only offer two fish/seafood and 1 vegetarian entree, with a considerably smaller choice overall taking into account the meat dishes. The starters and appetisers in the Crown Grill are also a lot more pescetarian-friendly.

I assume the rib chop is the Porterhouse? I am considering this, but am a little daunted by 22oz.

Thanks

Martin.

Hi all,

Off in a few days. :D There have been a few opinions posted remarking on rubbery lobster and less than great steaks served in the Crown Grill.

We are definitely eating there (part of Anniversary package), and I wondered if I could get a more general opinion of what's great, what's good and what is to be avoided. We eat a lot of fish and aren't big meat eaters (my wife doesn't eat it at all).

So, in the absence of being able to create a poll, what would diners recommend and/or otherwise, based upon actual and recent experiences of the Crown Grill (and preferably, but not limited to the Crown Princess).

Thanks

Martin.

Hi all,

We're getting a couple of bottles of wine though Princess Cellars. I assume these will be delivered to our room. We'd like to have them on our visit to the Crown Grill. Is it ok to just take them along? Will we be charged corkage if we do? :wine-glass:

Thanks

Martin.

Yes as a "preferred check-in" you can check in at anytime between 12-30 and 3.

Thanks everyone. Shame we're getting kicked out of our hotel at 11, and it's only a 15-20 minute taxi drive to the port!

M.

On our e-tickets for our cruise on Crown Princess later this month we are Elite and it doesn't state an embarkation slot it just says at the top of the e-ticket "preferred boarding" and lower down says boarding is between 12-30 and 3.

Ours do too, but we have received a Booking Notification that states:

To help facilitate a smooth start to your voyage we have implemented a progressive cruise check-in schedule. Please arrive at the check-in time listed below. If you have purchased a Princess Cruise Plus Package/Transfer, your check-in time will be provided at your hotel or the airport. Guests travelling on shared transport or arriving as a group will be checked in together. Priority check-in will be available to guests with a Preferred Boarding Passwithin the allocated check-in times. Boarding will commence shortly after check-in. Please do not arrive prior to the start of cruise check-in as your cabin will not be ready. All guests must be on board one hour prior to sailing.

12:30 PM - Dolphin and Riviera Decks: Cabins on these decks begin with D & R

1:15 PM - Caribe and Aloha Decks: Cabins on these decks begin with C & A

2:00 PM - Emerald and Lido Decks: Cabins on these decks begin with E & L

2:30 PM - Baja and Plaza Decks: Cabins on these decks begin with B & P

Does "within the allocated check-in times" mean from 12:30 onwards?

Martin

Boarding was much the same as we had Elite status. It was a little earlier but not by much. We were on the ship by 12.15.

A question Dai, as you have recent experience of Southampton & Princess.

We are Platinum and hence get 'Preferred' boading. Did they adhere to the staggered boarding times that are defined on the booking notification? I've seen posts where people state that this is a 'suggested' embarkation time, but I can't see the word suggested anywhere.

Do you remember what your embarkation slot was?

Thanks

Martin

Sorry Martin but PS is not on you cruise. A friend asked me to check and the CD said there had been a change.

:mad:

Did the CD say who (if anyone) had replaced him? The likes of Eggwina Curry are also doing the rounds...

Martin

However we were able to now get a seat in the International Café... I did like this venue as you could get a good cup of tea for free if you had a coffee card. You could also get a range of toasted sandwiches and salads and cakes all free.

Also of note is that you need not get a drink to enjoy the IC food - unlike P&O's offerings.

THE Harry Redknapp???? Football manager for Spurs, England and other assorted clubs??? That would have been worth the price of admission for me.

We have Peter Shilton on our upcoming cruise. John Virgo is on the cruise after ours. REALLY wish we'd had JV. (Non-Brits now googling this pair).

Martin.