A few notes from my 06/28/11 Spirit Alaska cruise

[ejeffo]

Just a few observations I noticed while on the June 28th - July 5th sailing. We were in aft extended balcony cabin 4232 and friends were in 4230.

 

GETTING THERE – We took a cab from the Travelodge Space Needle. The fare was $10.00… We got to the pier about 11:00, got our luggage checked, checked in, and boarded by noon. I clocked my first DOD at 12:15. Cabin was ready before 1:30.

 

EMBARKATION - Very smooth and quick. I made a mistake entering one of the passport numbers and we got a trainee checking us in which held us up for about 20 minutes but other than that it was very easy.

 

THE SHIP – The Spirit is beautiful. She is very clean and I did not see a lot of wear and tear. I think she is very tastefully decorated. I did have a difficult time navigating around though. It is a little bit confusing. I guess I got spoiled with the layout of the RCCL Radiance OTS. (Flame suit on).

 

CONTRABAND – No booze this time but my power strip made it to my cabin with no problem. I put it in the front pocket of one of my checked bags. I ordered a bottle of Bombay Sapphire through Bon Voyage and it was waiting patiently for me when I arrived in the cabin.

 

CABIN – We were in Aft extended balcony 4232. It was fine. Plenty of room for the three of us to move around (2 adults and 1 child). The balcony was great, but even having the extended overhand on deck 4 the rain still infringed on half of it. It was nice to be able to sit there and relax when it rained though. I asked Conrado (our steward) for an extra chair… no go. You get what you got… 2 chairs and a small table, but no problem bringing the desk “chair” out. They were not able to open the partition between 4230 and 4232… This is not because they don’t allow it any more (like so many people keep saying). It is because it opens into a window and they don’t want it banging around and breaking the window. Conrado opened it for us whenever we were in port though, and while we were cruising Tracy Fjord. The bed was VERY comfortable.

 

DINING – The food was fantastic. We ate in the MDR, the buffet, room service, and the steakhouse and everything was great. I really liked the MDR BBQ ribs which we had on the first and last nights. The steakhouse Porterhouse was phenomenal and cooked to perfection. Room service was always fast (the BLT was delicious). Breakfast was delivered every morning right on time (cold cereal, coffee, OJ, danishes, etc.) Oh, and dress is very casual… sorry to those who are offended but that is the way things are going. I wore jeans and button up shirts on cruise casual nights, slacks a button up and tie on elegant nights… fit in just fine. Did not see many suits, tuxes, or dresses at all.

 

ENTERTAINMENT – We saw one of the comedians for the late adult show (cant remember his name)… he was very funny though. The hypnotism show was just like every other hypnotism show (if you have ever seen one you know, lame). The New Orleans show that Stu touted as the best show on any cruise ship… was…. Fantastic! I really enjoyed it and would love to see it again. The music was great; it was about an hour long and was a great way to spend an evening. WOW!

 

CAMP CARNIVAL – Sorry guys, RCCL was better by far in this category. Even the kids agree. Ask me for details if you want my insight.

 

TRACY FJORD – AMAZING! Well worth the trip. We saw whales, waterfalls, icebergs, glaciers, and some of the most awesome scenery I have ever seen in my life. We did not do the excursion but hear from others that it is nowhere near worth the price. I cannot speak for that though as we just sat on our aft balcony and enjoyed the sights with a bucket of Coronas.

 

SKAGWAY – A lot of fun. We rented a car with our friends we cruised with and drove to Emerald Lake. We stopped when we wanted to and took a lot of pictures. Went to Carcross (blech), played with the husky puppies, saw a lot of awesome sights, and had a great time over all. Spent the afternoon exploring Skagway… went to the Red Onion but could not get a place to sit down , so we went down the street to Bonanza Bar and Grill for a beer. Skagway is a fun little town with a lot to do.

 

JUNEAU – Very similar to Skagway in my opinion. We just shopping and sight-seeing, had drinks in the Red Dog Saloon (?), and clam/halibut chowder at the end of the pier (the blue building where the float planes are). I cannot remember the name. The chowder was some of the best I have ever had. It really was delicious.

 

KETCHIKAN – We had a lot of rain in Ketchikan and from what I hear it really does rain there all the time. We just shopped, took pictures, ate, enjoyed some mimosas and went back to the ship. Didn’t spend much time there… it was cold, windy, and wet.

 

VICTORIA B.C. – Lame. The cheapest mode of travel to town was $35 per person. There were 8 of us… uhhhh… NO! We got there late anyway because of a medical emergency in Ketchikan, so… we did a little shopping at the pier and then… back on the ship to pack for debarkation. :(

 

DEBARKATION – The smoothest I have ever seen. We did self debark, were off the ship by 8:30, took a bus to the airport (8 of us for $108). I was a little worried before we left because of my 11:30 flight but we were at the airport, waiting with plenty of time to spare.

 

A FEW POINTS OF INTEREST – We heard balcony doors slamming, smelled smoke from the balconies, heard deck chairs scraping above us, witnessed people wearing shorts and jeans in the dining room, met people who had smuggled hooch onto the ship, and (insert cruising pet peeve here). Amazingly… NONE of it affected our vacation or bothered us in the least bit. :eek: We were there to relax, and relax we did.

 

Also,

- The water slide was closed for the entire trip, even in port in Seattle

- The spa “Jacuzzi” was great very hot and never anyone in it.

- The other “Jacuzzi’s” were luke warm and sometimes crowded.

- Conrado is a great room Steward

- Drinks on the ship were cheaper than in any of the ports.

- The steward’s “wedge” is all you need to prop the balcony door open. Leave the bungees at home.

- The drink servers were sometimes a bit pushy, especially in the casino. I would have 2 sips out of a beer and they would already come by and say “another one?” Come on guys, slow down.

- The security guys care more about people taking pictures of them than someone setting off the metal detector.... Really.

 

Any questions? Ask away!

[ejeffo]

I just remembered a couple of other things... There is definitely a noticeable vibration in these aft cabins. It did not disturb me at all, but it might some people. It is pretty constant the whole time.

 

Also, the second night of this cruise got pretty rocky. I really liked it but I did hear of some people getting sea sick. It was mostly the middle of the night while we were sleeping but it woke me up and I had to go out to check it out. We were rocking really good.

[tulsacruiser]

Hi Jeff!

 

Great re-cap of a wonderful cruise!

David and had a great time, thanks for letting us tag along in Skagway.

On the drive back from Emerald Lake we lucked out and saw a bear.

We were very excited.:D

It was great meeting you all.

 

 

~Pam

[k2excursion]

THE SHIP – The Spirit is beautiful. She is very clean and I did not see a lot of wear and tear. I think she is very tastefully decorated. I did have a difficult time navigating around though. It is a little bit confusing. I guess I got spoiled with the layout of the RCCL Radiance OTS. (Flame suit on).

 

Agreed! I'll go get my flame suit and stand with you.

 

Thanks for the review. I really like your attitude, especially in the "Few Points of Interest" paragraph. I don't let those things get to me. We're all different, and we can coexist.

[ejeffo]

Hi Jeff!

 

Great re-cap of a wonderful cruise!

David and had a great time, thanks for letting us tag along in Skagway.

On the drive back from Emerald Lake we lucked out and saw a bear.

We were very excited.:D

It was great meeting you all.

 

 

~Pam

 

It was a great time. We had a blast. Lucky you to see a bear, we were all looking out all the way back to the ship and never saw any.

 

It was nice meeting you guys too! Hope we can cruise together again some time.

[zanydoc]

Thank you for your review! We are going on our first Carnival cruise on the Spirit to the Mexican Riviera in October. We have mostly sailed on RCCL, so it will probably get compared a lot... Looking very forward to trying something new, though! I'm glad that you had a good time!

[BSUGrad]

THE SHIP – The Spirit is beautiful. She is very clean and I did not see a lot of wear and tear. I think she is very tastefully decorated. I did have a difficult time navigating around though. It is a little bit confusing. I guess I got spoiled with the layout of the RCCL Radiance OTS. (Flame suit on).

 

I was on this same cruise, and I agree with most of what you said. I don't understand, however, what could be confusing about the Spirit. You can go from front to back on every deck, so I honestly don't get the confusing part.

[gusandgidgetsmom]

I too am confused with the difficult time navigating. This ship doesn't have any twists turns or up one down 1/2 floor as say the Valor for the dining room. I love the spirit class especially for the layout as my hubby is directionally challenged and doesn't have to think when navigating it.

[ejeffo]

I was on this same cruise, and I agree with most of what you said. I don't understand, however, what could be confusing about the Spirit. You can go from front to back on every deck, so I honestly don't get the confusing part.

 

It was really nothing major, like I said I think I was just spoiled on my last cruise on the Radiance. I may just be being picky, but on the Radiance I had the layout down on day 2. On the Spirit, I still had to really think about where things were and how to get there on the last day.

 

Also, have you ever tried to get to the Camp Carnival "Fun House" from deck 4?

[k2excursion]

I totally get what the OP was saying about the Spirit class ships being confusing. Looking at Radiance (RCCL) deck plans, it looks like a very simple deck plan; very easy to find things and remember where they are. The Spirit has public venues scattered throughout, some in very strange and unusual places, some that have hidden hallways and crazy twists and turns to get to. I was making mistakes and having to backtrack or go up or down stairs, because I picked the wrong floor or part of the ship to get to where I wanted to get to. This was still happening to me on Day 8.

 

The other classes of Carnival ships have none of this confusion. Those other ships are very simple. By the end of Day 2 on those other classes of ships, I knew where everything was, and I never went to the wrong floor or wrong part of the ship or made a wrong turn again. I never had to backtrack. I never had to go up a floor and back down to get somewhere. Do they have a floor where you can't go from the front to the back? Yes, but I don't see how that can be a big deal at all. That's never been an issue to me. If I'm going to the aft dining room, I don't go to the floor first, then go down the deck. I always go down the deck first, then go down or up to the dining room. That issue on other Carnival classes brings no more confusion to navigating the ship. It's just a personal preference. Other Carnival ships are very simple in their layout, and much easier to navigate. But I definitely understand that many people prefer Spirit class. We're all different and have different things that we like better. It's all good.

[sharecruises]

Thanks for your great recap. Alaska cruises are really amazing, I love reading about them :)

 

Two things however stood out to me :

 

1) MOST/Many people say that the Spirit class ships are easier to get around on , I don't know as I have yet to sail on one. I don't have a problem with the dreaded "kitchen" in the middle layout of Conquest class ships but lots of folks do and say Spirit class is "easy" to get around. But you thought it was more confusing??? :confused:

 

2) Most of the people who have done the Tracy Arm excursion rave about it....yet you said lots were unhappy?? Any particular reason?? Was it the day/weather/ or ??? Could you please be more specific??

 

Thanks in advance

[ejeffo]

Looking at Radiance (RCCL) deck plans, it looks like a very simple deck plan; very easy to find things and remember where they are. The Spirit has public venues scattered throughout, some in very strange and unusual places, some that have hidden hallways and crazy twists and turns to get to.

 

I think that sums it up. I loved the ship, don't get me wrong, but there were places that I never really went to because they were not obvious, kind of tucked away.

[ejeffo]

1) MOST/Many people say that the Spirit class ships are easier to get around on , I don't know as I have yet to sail on one. I don't have a problem with the dreaded "kitchen" in the middle layout of Conquest class ships but lots of folks do and say Spirit class is "easy" to get around. But you thought it was more confusing??? :confused:

 

K2 summed this up perfectly in the post above...

 

2) Most of the people who have done the Tracy Arm excursion rave about it....yet you said lots were unhappy?? Any particular reason?? Was it the day/weather/ or ??? Could you please be more specific??

 

I don't think I said anyone was unhappy, and definitely never used the words "lots of people." I just heard that some people said it was not worth the money. I know it would have cost me $400 for the 3 of us to do it... for 3 hours. Families of 4 would be upwards or over $500.00. It looks really cool, but just not worth that much $$$ to me and I heard the same from others. We had a great day on our aft balcony, saw the same things (just not up close and personal) and it only cost us a couple of buckets of beer.

 

Oh, and as for the weather... not sure it could have been better that day.

[kaykay51]

Enjoyed your review. Thanks for posting. We were in Alaska last month on the Diamond PRincess and LOVED every minute of it. We also went to the Bonanza Bar and Grill and had a great time there.

I agree about the layout of the Spirit. WE sailed on her a few years ago and I also never got comfortable with the layout and where everything was. We'll be sailing her again in April for 15 days so hopefully I'll find my way around easier this time.

[JaniceB]

Jeff,

 

Thanks for sharing some of your trip with us. I have a couple of questions.

 

What dining time did you have and would you choose differently?

 

How did you like the Travelodge SpaceNeedle? The price, quality and closeness to attractions.

 

Thanks!

[ejeffo]

What dining time did you have and would you choose differently?

 

We had early dining and loved it. We mainly got that because of the kids but it worked out nicely around the shows and other stuff going on.

 

How did you like the Travelodge SpaceNeedle? The price, quality and closeness to attractions.

 

The Travelodge is very old but it was clean and worked for us just fine. The bed was comfy and the hotel was in a perfect place to see the sights. Only problem was the pool was closed for painting but they let us go to the Comfort Inn next door and use their inside pool. We had a very short walk to the Space Needle and lots of restaurants, etc. It was a $10.00 taxi fare to the pier. The hotel price was high for what it was (about $200/night), but fair for what they charge in the area... Seattle is very expensive.

[JaniceB]

Thanks for answering my questions. I have heard that the prrice of hotels is high and that is why I thought I would ask about yours. I won't mind spending the money if it is convenient and I have a good bed to sleep in.

[mali06]

Just three comments from me:

 

In Victoria there is a shuttle bus that will take you to town and back for 7.50 round trip. Or you can walk both ways Or you can walk one way and take the shuttle back for 3.75. It is definitely walkable. Been there, done that.

 

There are some very nice hotels for less than you paid available in Seattle downtown. We are staying at the Inn at Virginia Mason (11 blocks from Pikes Market and 8 blocks from the waterfront) in the Penthouse for 199.00 a nite. Their single queen goes for 109.00. And all different rooms available in between. (This is the Senior rate . . . all prices are normally 10.00 more for non-seniors). This hotel has a very highly rated restaurant open for all meals and has room service and the customer service so far has been over the top but no pool. Also free bus zone within 1 block of this hotel. One of the keys to finding a good price in Seattle is to start watching the hotel sites early and book when you see a bargain (don't wait and hope for the prices to go down).

 

We have a town car service set up for hotel to the pier for 9.00 per person. And this hotel is further from the pier than that Travelodge is. So it pays to do some serious hunting around for prices. This service was recommended by the hotel and he is doing all of our pick ups and drop offs for our group of 10, but the price would be the same for any number of people (except for the airport which is a minimum of 40.00 for 1 to 4 people and then just 10.00 pp after that). And the airport is quite a ways out.

 

Spend some serious time on the internet researching . . . it will pay great dividends.

[Missileer]

Thge Spirit is our favorite ship and we will take her to Alaska in August as we did last year. You said something about entering your passsport #. Have they gone to a Kiosk checkin system? We didn't do that last year.

 

Thanks in advance.

Roger T

[ejeffo]

In Victoria there is a shuttle bus that will take you to town and back for 7.50 round trip. Or you can walk both ways Or you can walk one way and take the shuttle back for 3.75. It is definitely walkable. Been there, done that.

 

You are correct. I found that out today actually. But we got there late any way so there wasn't much time to spend in the town anyhow.

 

There are some very nice hotels for less than you paid available in Seattle downtown.

 

Yes, I was mistaken. I just looked at my credit card statement. The Travelodge was $140.00. Still high for the class of hotel.

 

We have a town car service set up for hotel to the pier for 9.00 per person. And this hotel is further from the pier than that Travelodge is. So it pays to do some serious hunting around for prices.

 

We looked at this service too, but there were 8 of us total, so i was cheaper to take 2 cabs than it was to take the shuttle. I believe the shuttle from the Travelodge was $10 per person. The cab ride was $10 each cab total. Also, one of our requirements was to stay by the Space Needle.

 

Spend some serious time on the internet researching . . . it will pay great dividends.

 

Must be nice to have serious time to spend on the internet. I don't.

[ejeffo]

Thge Spirit is our favorite ship and we will take her to Alaska in August as we did last year. You said something about entering your passsport #. Have they gone to a Kiosk checkin system? We didn't do that last year.

 

Thanks in advance.

Roger T

 

No, I entered it incorrectly on the fun pass. They had to re-enter all of the passports into the system, plus I had a trainee doing the entering. She had to have a supervisor show her how to do everything and approve it. She was very nice though... it was no big deal. Just make sure you enter everything correctly on the Fun Pass. :D

 

Also, the Spirit is one of my favorites too... it is definitely in the top three!

[Quilting_Cruiser]

Jeff, I just saw your review tonight--thanks for writing one! Really nice to hear your experience on the same sailing. :D I glad all of you had such a good time!

 

We did the Tracy Arm excursion and it was amazing! We're going again next year and that excursion will be a repeat for us--well worth the money. The highlight for me was that the glacier calved four times while we were there. Amazing.

 

We went fishing in Ketchikan and from what I've read, there was a lot more rain in town--we hardly had any while we were out on the charter. Who'd have thought?!

 

If you go again, you might try Hotwire or Priceline for a hotel. We paid about what you did and stayed at Hotel Monaco (four-star) in downtown Seattle. We were within easy walking distance of Pike Place Market and the monorail (which was a short ride to the Space Needle for only $4 round trip).

 

Again, I'm glad to hear you had such a good time. Sorry your DS didn't enjoy Camp Carnival though. :(

 

Jayne

[suezyq50]

CAMP CARNIVAL – Sorry guys, RCCL was better by far in this category. Even the kids agree. Ask me for details if you want my insight.

Any questions? Ask away!

We are looking at a three generation trip. Grandkids will be 5 and 8 at sailing. Can you comment on Camp Carnival for those ages? Thanks