Just back from the Spirit - an NCL first timer's comments

[Beth Y]

Our group of six (two Moms in their 50's, four kids in their late 20's and early 30's) were on the Spirit from 12/25/11 through 1/1/12. We had a good time, but we probably wouldn't choose NCL again.

 

The good:

 

A friendly staff and crew. They worked very hard through a second week of Code Red conditions on the Spirit due to Norovirus. They kept the ship very clean. The Hotel Director told our Cruise Critic group on Monday that the incidence of the bug was 3.8% (wonder if that percentage meant crew and passengers?). Code Red was finally lifted in time for dinner on our last night, when it was nice to see a fully set table rather than just the bare tablecloth we had in the dining rooms all week long.

 

We enjoyed our meals at Teppanyaki (outstanding filet mignon) and Le Bistro (excellent beef tenderloin) and thought that both restaurants were worth the cover charges.

 

Enjoyed most of the entertainment, especially the acrobats.

 

We liked sailing from New Orleans and our NCL excursions at the ports of Roatan, Belize and Cozumel.

 

The bad:

 

We did not like Freestyle dining at all. We had long waits for a table (25 to 40 minutes) around 7:00 PM on the four nights that we ate in the main dining rooms. We were repeatedly told that we couldn't make dinner reservations for the MDRs for our group. Finally one of the kids read NCL's written policy word for word to the Reservations Desk, and we did get a reservation for dinner in Gardens for the last night. All of us have enjoyed traditional dining on previous cruise lines and prefer having an assigned table with the same servers with no waiting in line.

 

I thought that the MDR and buffet food on the Spirit was below average, and the desserts were really disappointing. The breads and pastries were good though. The room service menu was very limited.

 

We had three balcony cabins on Deck 10 and they were extremely small. Not enough desk and storage space and very tight bathrooms. Two chairs and a tiny table on the balcony.

 

 

At this point I would rate my preference in cruise lines with Holland America at the top, followed by Princess, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity all about the same level, then NCL, and then Carnival at the bottom of the list.

 

I have most of the dailies from our cruise and will post them later this week.

[sdmike]

Were you surprised by freestyle, or just found it wasn't for you?

[thistimeplease]

Thanks for the review:)

[Stickman81]

Thanks for the review.

 

I am sorry you did not enjoy the dining aspect.

 

We were very recently on the Star and had VERY little wait time for anything, even with a full ship. I guess we hit everything just right.

[margaretevanescence]

I am sorry you didn't have a good time on the Spirit. I was on the Spirit 12/18 - 12/25 and had a totally different experience than you. There were no wait times only on the last day but maybe because it was just me and my aunt which is easier to sit. That's weird you weren't allowed to make reservations for the MDR because we saw a guy make a reservation for his group for the same time every night at Windows.

 

I hope you don't totally give up on NCL and try again but every cruise isn't for everyone. Every review can't be positive and at least when people read your review they will get both sides and come to a conclusion on their own whether they like freestyle dining or not.

 

If you want you can check out my review. The link is on my signature below.

[gelo7]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[luddite]

Freestyle isn't for everyone. I'm not at all interested going back to assigned mates and times for dinner.

Say 'la vee'.

[Don Haynes]

Another poster complaining about Freestyle dining, yet they show up at the worst possible time at 7 PM during the rush. On the ships that do traditional dining, you show up at 5:30-6 PM or 8 PM, not 7 PM. Another review preferring a different time to dine than the traditional dining times of other ships.

 

There is no line if one showed up at the main dining rooms at 6 PM, or 9 PM.

[flashdog_1]

Thanks for reporting. Let us know what you did at your port stops, please.

[NYcruzzer]

Thank you for taking a few moments to write a fair and balanced review. You traveled during the Christmas and New Years Eve holiday. I'm pretty sure the ship was full and that may have played a part in your wait in the MDR.

[DMH15]

OP, did you know the Spirit was built for the Asian market hence the small spaces.

 

Sorry you didn't like freestyle. I love it. If I showed up at a crowded MDR I would go find a fun place to hang out and return later. I guess I have learned with enough Saturday nights out here in Dallas when peak times are so I avoid them, or know what I am in for. But I must admit my preference is dining in my pjs in my cabin.

[Beth Y]

I usually do lots of research prior to choosing a cruise, but not this time. We needed to go away for the holidays after a death in the family, and the kids picked this ship based on the itinerary. It was good to try freestyle dining, but it just isn't for us.

 

The kids did the SNUBA in Roatan and the Zip Lining in Belize and really liked both excursions. We did the Calypso Train Tour in Belize (in the pouring rain, and we got very wet) and the Best of Cozumel which was interesting and enjoyable. In Roatan we got our best bargains of the trip shopping in the stalls right outside the gates of the port.

[Starry Eyes]

I am sorry you had long waits for a table. I wonder if the code red situation contributed...often the waiters have to do extra work, like passing out salt and pepper packets, sugar and sweetener, creamers can't passed, ect. extra work for waiters equals slower service and longer waits, especially at peak times. OTOH, reading between the lines, it sounds as if everybody stayed healthy:).

 

freestyle is not for everybody. some people like traditional assigned dining, especially with a group...advancedlanning to get everybody in the same place eliminated the eat whenever draw of freestyle.

[luddite]

I am sorry you had long waits for a table. I wonder if the code red situation contributed...often the waiters have to do extra work, like passing out salt and pepper packets, sugar and sweetener, creamers can't passed, ect. extra work for waiters equals slower service and longer waits, especially at peak times. OTOH, reading between the lines, it sounds as if everybody stayed healthy:).

 

freestyle is not for everybody. some people like traditional assigned dining, especially with a group...advancedlanning to get everybody in the same place eliminated the eat whenever draw of freestyle.

 

Code red does slow things down.

[margaretevanescence]

Even with the code red situation for me it wasn't that bad but I think maybe because we always ate dinner around 5:30pm. We wanted to eat before going to the shows

[dalgirl]

Thank you for your pro and con review of Freestyle and the Spirit. So many people will have one aspect of a cruise that they don't like, such as no assigned seating, personal taste in food, etc. and will claim that the whole cruise was terrible. It sounds like you had a good time overall, but honestly like the other lines better - at least you tried freestyle and know what you like and don't like - bravo for you.

 

If you ever sail with NCL again (perhaps due to itinerary, departure city, or price considerations) and wish to have assigned seating, you can certainly get that on NCL, you only have to let them know on the first night and have your proof in your hand:) that it can be done. It may not be your ideal dinner time, but it may be a solution that will work for you. And again, they can assign you a seat, we know of others who did this.

 

I will say that sometimes freestyle can work out better for groups: Our first cruise was RCCL and some of our table mates were sailing with a larger party and could not get seated with them - they were very unhappy sitting away from the others in their group and they kept moving back and forth between the tables to check on their friends - very rude in my opinion. In that instance freestyle would have been a much better choice for them and we would not have been dining with a couple of jacks-in-the-box:)

[Cubechick]

Code red does slow things down.

 

Extremely true. On the Star Panama Canal cruise on our last night they were in full code red. We ate in the MDR (at 8:00 pm) and had the worst service by far. As I recall it took us 45 minutes just to have them bring bread. It took us nearly double the time to get through that meal service as the 5 or 6 other times we ate in the MDR.

 

I can definitely see that if you weren't eating shortly after the restaurant opened, the waits to get in would be longer and longer...

[luddite]

Extremely true. On the Star Panama Canal cruise on our last night they were in full code red. We ate in the MDR (at 8:00 pm) and had the worst service by far. As I recall it took us 45 minutes just to have them bring bread. It took us nearly double the time to get through that meal service as the 5 or 6 other times we ate in the MDR.

 

I can definitely see that if you weren't eating shortly after the restaurant opened, the waits to get in would be longer and longer...

 

With a code red a lot more staff is at the buffet whicf leaves the dining a bit short. The dining room has extra work with sanitizing. Some of the staff might be sick. It's a collossal PIA for them. All because some jackstand didn't wash his/her hands after taking a,...well, after using a porcelain facility.

[newmexicoNita]

Our group of six (two Moms in their 50's, four kids in their late 20's and early 30's) were on the Spirit from 12/25/11 through 1/1/12. We had a good time, but we probably wouldn't choose NCL again.

 

The good:

 

A friendly staff and crew. They worked very hard through a second week of Code Red conditions on the Spirit due to Norovirus. They kept the ship very clean. The Hotel Director told our Cruise Critic group on Monday that the incidence of the bug was 3.8% (wonder if that percentage meant crew and passengers?). Code Red was finally lifted in time for dinner on our last night, when it was nice to see a fully set table rather than just the bare tablecloth we had in the dining rooms all week long.

 

We enjoyed our meals at Teppanyaki (outstanding filet mignon) and Le Bistro (excellent beef tenderloin) and thought that both restaurants were worth the cover charges.

 

Enjoyed most of the entertainment, especially the acrobats.

 

We liked sailing from New Orleans and our NCL excursions at the ports of Roatan, Belize and Cozumel.

 

The bad:

 

We did not like Freestyle dining at all. We had long waits for a table (25 to 40 minutes) around 7:00 PM on the four nights that we ate in the main dining rooms. We were repeatedly told that we couldn't make dinner reservations for the MDRs for our group. Finally one of the kids read NCL's written policy word for word to the Reservations Desk, and we did get a reservation for dinner in Gardens for the last night. All of us have enjoyed traditional dining on previous cruise lines and prefer having an assigned table with the same servers with no waiting in line.

 

I thought that the MDR and buffet food on the Spirit was below average, and the desserts were really disappointing. The breads and pastries were good though. The room service menu was very limited.

 

We had three balcony cabins on Deck 10 and they were extremely small. Not enough desk and storage space and very tight bathrooms. Two chairs and a tiny table on the balcony.

 

 

At this point I would rate my preference in cruise lines with Holland America at the top, followed by Princess, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity all about the same level, then NCL, and then Carnival at the bottom of the list.

 

I have most of the dailies from our cruise and will post them later this week.

 

As for the wait, I think much of this can be attributed to the holiday sailing and the time you choose to eat. 7 to 8pm is always the busiest. As for the quality of food in the MDR, food is always subjective but I am surprised at your account of the buffet. We have sailed all main lines and think NCL and the Spirit have the best buffets for breakfast and lunch with maybe the exception of HAL. We did love their buffet. PRincess has the worst.

 

Yes, the biggest drawback to the Spirit has to be the size of the cabins. The ship was originally desiged for Asian sailings. We have sailed the Spirit three times, love the ship but hate the cabins.

 

Nita

[flashdog_1]

I usually do lots of research prior to choosing a cruise, but not this time. We needed to go away for the holidays after a death in the family, and the kids picked this ship based on the itinerary. It was good to try freestyle dining, but it just isn't for us.

 

The kids did the SNUBA in Roatan and the Zip Lining in Belize and really liked both excursions. We did the Calypso Train Tour in Belize (in the pouring rain, and we got very wet) and the Best of Cozumel which was interesting and enjoyable. In Roatan we got our best bargains of the trip shopping in the stalls right outside the gates of the port.

 

 

Please describe the Calypso Train Tour in Belize a little more. We visited friends the last time we were there so didn't really investigate tours. Did you pre-book your tour, grab it at the port, or was it a ship's tour? Thanks.

[klingoncruiser]

Hi Beth Y. Enjoyed the CC meeting. I am the one who was on the B to B and it was a long hall starting the week before on the code red thingy.

 

We are early eaters so we never had a problem getting a seat. I do agree that even in the last year, the food has come down a bit. Sadly, all the cruise lines seem to be moving in that direction.

 

We are on the Mariner of the Seas at Spring Break this year. Should be interesting to get back to RCI after quite a break. They keep pricing us out of the market as well as a crappy run to Jamaica and Caymans seems to turn up on the dates we can go. This year, we booked early and got a good deal on a similar run to the Spirit.

 

We will probably be b to b on the Norwegian ship out of Tampa next Christmas. The Star coming in to NOLA has once again priced us out. We can go to Tampa and get the same run on nearly identical ship for a whopping $1200 difference. For $200 less, we can actually get a mini suite. I am hoping that those rooms on the new ship are larger than those cracker boxes on the Spirit. There is no way around just how small they are and that bathroom really is beyond tiny. :rolleyes:

 

We will miss all the wonderful people on the Spirit. What a wonderful crew. Most are bailing to other ships when we talked to them as they DON'T want to go to Europe. They have grown fond of the nice people sailing out of NOLA.

[Don Haynes]

As for the wait, I think much of this can be attributed to the holiday sailing and the time you choose to eat. 7 to 8pm is always the busiest. As for the quality of food in the MDR, food is always subjective but I am surprised at your account of the buffet. We have sailed all main lines and think NCL and the Spirit have the best buffets for breakfast and lunch with maybe the exception of HAL. We did love their buffet. PRincess has the worst.

 

Yes, the biggest drawback to the Spirit has to be the size of the cabins. The ship was originally desiged for Asian sailings. We have sailed the Spirit three times, love the ship but hate the cabins.

 

Nita

 

While the Spirit may have slightly smaller sized cabins, they are only a foot or so shorter from many of the other ships in length and width with a similar category. I have seen smaller cabins on cruise ships.

[Beth Y]

The Calypso Train Tour was a ship's excursion and was $34.00 per person. The tour guide told us a lot about life in Belize. The tram was covered, but we sat on an end bench and got soaked in the pouring rain. We saw both the worst areas of Belize City as well as the best. Residents were friendly and waved at us. We were given a bottle of water and a bag of plantain chips. The tour was fine, but I'd rather see more of the area outside the city.

[45014]

Alright, I am having a senior moment, what is a Code Red? I'm sure that I have heard about it, but for the life of me, I can't remember what it is.