NCL Spirit Med Cruise Q&A

[budgetfairytale]

It is my understanding that all cabins have a fridge / minibar.

[MafG]

There's no fridge in the inside cabins.

 

 

Send from device_name using Cruise Critic your_app_name App

[altovintner]

Our inside cabin #9089 had a small fridge.

 

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2

[itravelalot]

Just a quick note for those of you sailing in July or August (we are July out of Venice). This is a HOT itinerary in those months. Be prepared with hats, water and think of those you are traveling with, small children or elderly. We have done similar trips before and Greece, Turkey, Italy when it is hot and crowded, it is easy to get over heated. Bring lots of water and plan for some tours with a air conditioned bus, or at least a place to get cooled down. I speak from experience.. Just a heads up...:)

 

Happy Travels to you all.. Looking forward to Venice as it has been 2 years since we have been....:D

[ShrinkinTexas]

There's no fridge in the inside cabins.

 

 

Send from device_name using Cruise Critic your_app_name App

 

 

Got off the Spirit last week. Had a small inside cabin and it had a fridge.

[MafG]

Got off the Spirit last week. Had a small inside cabin and it had a fridge.

 

Nice new info! Before you had to make a request to get a fridge in an inside cabin. Anybody know if cabin 9551 as one then? That's where i'll be in july. Would love to get that info...

 

 

Send from device_name using Cruise Critic your_app_name App

[altovintner]

I am so excited to see a thread about the Spirit. I just booked the May 6th cruise but starting in Venice and ending in Barcelona. I read somewhere that it's a good idea because of the overnight in Venice and the sea day ..all of which help with jet lag from flying in from the States.

 

My question is does the ship do a money exchange or do we need to get euros at home before we go?

 

I am really looking forward to seeing the Blessed Mother's house. I love stuff like that.

 

Hi NYGirl1002. FYI:

1. We tacked on two nights in Venice so as to deal with jet lag, see more of Venice, guard against the remote possibility of missing the boarding due to late flights, etc. I would do that again.

2. Moreover, we had two extra nights in Barcelona. I absolutely would do that again. Barcelona was my favorite city.

3. You can do a money exchange on the boat, but you will pay dearly for it. They have a set fee per transaction and the exchange rate is nothing to be proud of. In our case, we ordered Euros from our bank (Wells Fargo) before the trip so we would have some. When all was said and done, I paid about $1.40 per Euro when the published exchange rates on the internet were about $1.34 per. Not all that bad, all things considered. Hence, I suggest looking at what your bank can do so you can have some on hand. Now having said that, you can find ATMs all over the place, so it should not be a problem getting Euros. I just wanted us to have some Euros on hand at the beginning. I chose to get 300 Euros that my wife and I split.

4. We used a private van for four of us in Izmir booked through NCL. For our itinerary, we chose the House of the Virgin Mary and a tour of Ephesus. We had a very good driver and a fabulous guide. FYI, I read somewhere on these forums that if the Spirit had been tendered that day (it was not) those who booked tours through NCL would get priority for tender boats. Since there is a relatively short time in Izmir, if you want an excursion to Ephesus, I recommend using NCL. If you were tendered, and you used a non-NCL tour or decided to go on your own, there would be a strong possibility that you would wait a couple of hours to be tendered. Those lost valuable hours in a must-see site like Ephesus would be a disaster. Not saying this would happen, but it could and is something to be aware of.

 

I predict that you will have a fabulous dream-come-true-trip!

 

Regards,

 

Steve

[sweetpea222]

Just a quick note for those of you sailing in July or August (we are July out of Venice). This is a HOT itinerary in those months. Be prepared with hats, water and think of those you are traveling with, small children or elderly. We have done similar trips before and Greece, Turkey, Italy when it is hot and crowded, it is easy to get over heated. Bring lots of water and plan for some tours with a air conditioned bus, or at least a place to get cooled down. I speak from experience.. Just a heads up...:)

 

Happy Travels to you all.. Looking forward to Venice as it has been 2 years since we have been....:D

 

 

Thanks. Did you bring water bottles from home and fill them every day on the ship? I drink a lot of water, and I know with four of us, trying to lug enough water around will be a challenge.

 

Has anyone tried those bottles that lie flat when empty? Do they leak?

[Joannel1958]

We took sports bottles and filled them in the buffet everyday. You can also buy bottled water before you get on and carry it. Much cheaper than buying on the ship.

[budgetfairytale]

Thanks. Did you bring water bottles from home and fill them every day on the ship? I drink a lot of water, and I know with four of us, trying to lug enough water around will be a challenge.

 

Has anyone tried those bottles that lie flat when empty? Do they leak?

 

We bought a case of water at the port in Barcelona and we also bought water bottles in the ports and had no problem bringing them back on the ship.

[crucer]

Got off the Spirit last week. Had a small inside cabin and it had a fridge.

 

 

witch deck did you stay? and where: forward, mid or aft?

Thanks.

[monygrl]

I was on the May 11th cruise and in room 6035 and my in laws were in 5035 and they both had small fridges. I took out all the beer and wine and put in all my water bottles.

 

Great great cruise. I couldn't ask for a better vacation.

[MafG]

Thanks. Did you bring water bottles from home and fill them every day on the ship? I drink a lot of water, and I know with four of us, trying to lug enough water around will be a challenge.

 

Has anyone tried those bottles that lie flat when empty? Do they leak?

 

All the members of my family have one of those bottles. We love them and never had problems with leaks when closed properly.

 

 

Send from device_name using Cruise Critic your_app_name App

[sweetpea222]

All the members of my family have one of those bottles. We love them and never had problems with leaks when closed properly.

 

That's good to know. I hate using disposable bottled water, and prefer to reuse bottles where possible. BUT we're travelling light and the sport bottles are just too big and bulky to take along while travelling.

 

We're in an inside on deck 11. I am hoping there is a fridge in there so we could fill our bottles the night before and then chill them overnight.

[jdvmd]

That's good to know. I hate using disposable bottled water, and prefer to reuse bottles where possible. BUT we're travelling light and the sport bottles are just too big and bulky to take along while travelling.

 

We're in an inside on deck 11. I am hoping there is a fridge in there so we could fill our bottles the night before and then chill them overnight.

 

Don't believe cabins have fridges in the Spirit except the suites.

[ttnc4me]

Did you spend extra time in Barcelona and if you did - what was your favorite site there?

We arrived the morning of the cruise, so we went to Sagrada Familia (just the outside), Parc Guell, and walked Las Ramblas before heading to port. We made great use of the metro system which is very easy to navigate. We bought one T10 ticket which is 10 trips for 10 euros and shared it - it was perfect.

I like the metro idea. We get in the night before, and are trying to make a point to visit just those two sites as well. Where exactly did you pick the metro up (plaza cataluna?) and can you share details on that routing? Also, can you share details on what you did actually getting to the ship?

[ShrinkinTexas]

witch deck did you stay? and where: forward, mid or aft?

Thanks.

 

Deck 9, I think..........midship. Very, very small inside cabin. But, it had a fridge. And I got a coffee pot.

[steph7021]

Since so many Spirit cruisers are reading this I am wondering about cabin 10686. We took this longer balcony room but its very close to the kids area. Wondering what the summer Europe kid crowd is like....and if we will have lots of noise? Any other feedback on this cabin would be great!

[budgetfairytale]

I like the metro idea. We get in the night before, and are trying to make a point to visit just those two sites as well. Where exactly did you pick the metro up (plaza cataluna?) and can you share details on that routing? Also, can you share details on what you did actually getting to the ship?

 

We took the bus from our hotel near the airport to Plaza Espanya (in hindsight I wish we had paid for a cab). Then picked up the Metro at Plaza Espanya to whatever stop was closest to Sagrada Familia. My husband did a little metro research before our trip but trust me when I say that the metro system is extremely easy to navigate and all the stops/landmarks are clearly labeled. Parc Guell is a little out of the way so be sure to check for the closest stop on a map before you get there (I don't remember the name of that stop, sorry).

 

We took a taxi from our hotel near the airport to the ship. We told him which ship and the driver took us right to it. There was no thought involved on our part at all.

[budgetfairytale]

Since so many Spirit cruisers are reading this I am wondering about cabin 10686. We took this longer balcony room but its very close to the kids area. Wondering what the summer Europe kid crowd is like....and if we will have lots of noise? Any other feedback on this cabin would be great!

 

We were Deck 10 aft and had no problems with noise. Your cabin is a lot closer than our was, but I feel like there are not a lot of children on NCL Med sailings in general. The kids pool in the back was generally empty except on sea days.

[budgetfairytale]

Don't believe cabins have fridges in the Spirit except the suites.

 

This information is incorrect, which you would see if you read back through the most recent posts.

[mypleasure]

Don't believe cabins have fridges in the Spirit except the suites.

 

 

Fridges, mini-bars actually, are now installed in ALL cabins not only suites

[mypleasure]

Since so many Spirit cruisers are reading this I am wondering about cabin 10686. We took this longer balcony room but its very close to the kids area. Wondering what the summer Europe kid crowd is like....and if we will have lots of noise? Any other feedback on this cabin would be great!

 

I sailed in this cabin back in February. The room is very spacious BUT the configuration means that the bed(s) are very close to the bathroom door. We had the beds configured as 2 singles which meant the path between the bed s and the bathroom was narrow. That said I am a large person so it may not be a problem for someone smaller.On the plus side the space in front of the closet is huge and the balcony is a double balcony.

 

It is on the opposite side to the kids club which helps minimize the traffic and noise. We did find that as the cruise went on more and more people found the door from outside. There were few if any kids on our sailing.

[CruisingGiants]

Does anyone happen to have any meeting place recommendations for my group to get together before our tours? We have booked through private companies and I figure it would be easier to meet on the boat than off (but maybe I'm wrong on that??). I was thinking somewhere central like on deck 7 or 8 would probably be best for everyone.

 

Thanks for any suggestions. This has been an extremely helpful thread :D

[mypleasure]

We were Deck 10 aft and had no problems with noise. Your cabin is a lot closer than our was, but I feel like there are not a lot of children on NCL Med sailings in general. The kids pool in the back was generally empty except on sea days.

 

 

There were few kids on our recent sailing but European schools are not yet out. Expect the kid count to rocket for July and August sailings.