REVIEW Spirit Week 2/26

[mommybunny21]

We had a great week on the Spirit . I'm thrilled I had a stateroom with a balcony it made the whole trip!!I know there is a big debate on whether to chose a balcony or inside-I would go with the balcony. The ocean is yours alone 24 hours a day.... Breakfast at Windows every morning was lovely a great start to the day. We ate every night at the Specialty restaurants and it was well worth it for the small additional cost. definitely book Teppanyaki one night- a great time. I preferred Le Bistro to Cagneys. The food at Shogun was the best Japanese I've ever had (I'm a NYC girl so thats sayingsomething) The wine lists were more than reasonable which really surprised us. You could certainly find a nice bottle for under $40. Should you order lobster I would stay away from the half lobster but go for the tails. Lots of people seemed to like Raffles but I'll be honest with you we never ate there as that's not MY idea of a vacation, but it always seemed to be crowded when we walked through. Room service was rather pathetic although speedy. and no charge. It was great for my son's nightly cookie and milk routine on vacation. The drinks were watered down unless you drink martini's etc. The tropical drinks were tasty but could only have had a drop of alcohol in them . ..I'm usually down after one good margarita and four of these (at $9 a pop) had NO effect on me!! The Childrens program was great- buy the backpack which contains the soda card. Don't buy both the backpack and the soda card. NCL will not tell you that.

If you have any questions I'd be happy to answer. This board was so helpful to me before I left. I'll post more later.

[Brandon6]

i agree about the lobster. i got it at the french resturant and there was a nice sized tail. then i went to cagneys the next night and it was a half lobster and seemed like there wasnt much meat on it at all. i ate at raffles for a second dinner one night (i eat a lot) and the buffet sucked. i only had a few tropical drinks and they didnt have any alcohol in them, luckily i usually drink beer so it didnt really matter. the staff was horrible for serving drinks at first probably because im young, but once i tipped extra a few times not only did they give me awesome service but they all remembered what i was drinking whenever i would show up.

[ccastano]

I agree on the drinks! I did manage to finally feel it a little, but only after a guiness (can't reduce the alcohol in that) and THREE Pina Coladas. And I think it was the guiness not the other drinks! It also depends on where you got them..and who made them, and how busy they were. My husband complained about the number of servers at the bars, it seemed often that the bar tenders were overwhelmed and hurriedly made drinks, which occasionally made them pretty bad.

 

Kids Crew was wonderful! Can't say enough about that.

 

Cagneys...well, I hate to say it but while the filet I had was quite perfect, the rest of the meal was bland, and slight. For the $60 we paid, I have eaten at a restaurant near my home which is much better for the same type of fare.

 

Buffet...well hey, it's a buffet. The food was about what I expected, I think really they do very well for a large cafeteria on a ship. Now, the people eating there..that's another story and I could go on and on about that.

 

Windows, was terrific.

 

Cigar Room - What Cigar room??? There was a tiny room for 'smokers' off Galaxy of the Stars which was called in the info 'Cigar Bar' and on other things I saw it just called 'Smoking Room'. They put a tiny humidor in the corner. Sadly..this was the one place on the ship we actually mingled with other passengers and got to know people. I do wish they had invested in an actual "cigar bar' type area, I bet it would have been popular. Rather than the little room everyone ran to to smoke since smoking areas were limited on the ship. (I'm an occasional cigar smoking / non cigarette smoking female DH is a regular cigar fan).

 

 

I need to say this was our first cruise, so I have nothing to compare it to. I enjoyed the trip. I don't have much on the negative side, but also not any raves. I think it was 'fine'. I have decided based on this experience I"m probably not a 'cruiser'. Time in ports too short, going to places like Nassau where you are hyped up on the shopping but then basically you have to defend yourself at all costs against the locals trying to get all the dollars out of you they can is not my idea of fun at all. Beach time too short due to schedule change, snorkel gear really shabby but I didn't care, I loved the beach day. Overall..kind of budget feel to the whole thing, even though it certainly wasn't a big bargain at the end of the day when we paid for all the extras.

 

But hey... it was 80 degrees...and I've discovered I love Miami!

[SueSun]

ccastano

 

What exactly made you decide you love Miami? What did you do there? We did Duck Tour last cruise and have not determined what we are doing this time.

 

Can anyone report on the basketball court on Spirit? Is it regulation size? Are basketballs available (useable?). My boys loved the court on Dawn and are hoping this one is just as fun.

[ccastano]

The basketball court is not regulation, it's a small-ish court enclosed by a large net on the top deck of the ship. More than enough room to play, especially in the wind and motion you feel up there! My kids were there during the cruise and had a good time, but I can't imagine a full on game in there.

 

I loved Miami for several reasons, very laid back atmosphere, no pressure to do anything or see anything. The attitude of the place is culture, and do your own thing, which I like. No hustling around in a hurry, lots of latin flavor, lots of every type of people around. I loved the food, I loved the beach. We basically just paid for the shuttle tickets so we could do what we wanted and not have a supervised tour, which I'm glad we did. We spent time on the beach, spent time eating, spent time gawking and sight seeing.

 

Weirdest moment: In front of the Versace mansion realizing people were taking pictures of themselves where he died, right on the steps. It was all at once oddly morbid, but completely human in that anyone would actually think of having it be a photo op.

[SueSun]

My boys will be thrilled with the basketball update. Thankx.

 

I guess the shuttle is the way to go in Miami, we saw plenty on the Duck Tour but could not get off/stop to gawk at the places we wanted to. I'll be watching for the mansion...not sure if I will be snappin pics though;) !!!

[LuckyDawgz]

Make South Beach part of your Miami visit, it is clean and beautiful with views of all the great local architecture.

We used NCL's beach and Bay-Side hopper as it was convenient and reasonable.

 

*TIP* When you first walk onto the beach behind the visitor's center, you can rent lounges $20 and up, umbrellas $13, etc. The best bargain are the little blue sun cabanas at $15 for the whole day. Sign out a pile of towels from the ship and enjoy the day... without frying in the sun!

 

Miami was the port that I looked forward to the least, now I'd say it was our favorite stop on the trip.

 

Jim

[SueSun]

Can I assume the Visitor's Center (South Beach) has bathrooms/changing area/showers? Is it a public building or does it cost to use it?

[nhvacation]

We were also on the Spirit this week. I am, admittedly, an over planner. I avidly read this and other boards. I planned and planned. What I learned

(no surprise!) is that so much is personal preference!

 

Food - DH, DS and I never made it to a specialty restaurant (not counting free Italian) because we enjoyed the food at Windows and Garden. Twice, we cancelled reservations for the French restaurant. Was the food great? No, but it was very good for the most part. Include us as some of "the people eating" at Raffles (insult not taken). We ate breakfast there most mornings. I loved the stir fry and made a point of having it twice as a mid day snack. DS and DH loved the cookies.

 

Cabin - We were in 9587. DS and DH are tall. An inside was absolutely fine in terms of space. We pack light. We did not bring formal attire. It was a 7 day cruise. We had no problem! The room was very quiet except on our last sea day during the time when the waves were 10-13 feet. Perhaps the space surrounding the cabin surrounds a crew stairwell as we could hear loud booms now and then which seemed to correspond to rocking and probably wave hitting something and noise echoing up the stairwell. When the sea calmed, the sound stopped. We had a night light but found leaving the bathroom door open a smidgeon was fine. We did not find the beds too hard. I thought the location of deck 9 midship to be very convenient. Would I have loved a balcony? You bet. Did I love being on the cruise in an inside? You bet! There are good reasons for choosing either.

 

Drinks - I did not find the drinks to be exorbitantly priced. Cheaper would be good of course. DH and I particularly enjoyed the draught Bass at Henrys. When we watched our umbrella drinks being made, we never saw less than a shot being used. We also purchased wine by the bottle and glass. :)

 

Pictures - Unlike some cruises, I did not find the photographers overbearing. The prices were ok enough that we purchased several.

 

Excurisions - The Duck Tour in Miami ("logistics") and America's Cup (lack of wind) were cancelled. We took a cab to Miami beach and among other things, took the Duck Tour. In Nassau, we spent much of the day at the British Colonial. At Cape Canaveral, we rented a car and spent time at the beach and went kayaking with Bill of Adventure Kayak. This was probably our favorite day. My preference would have been a full day at GSC and half day at Nassau.

 

Essential items - Once again, the over-the-door shoe holder worked well for us. It fit over the bathroom door. I was so glad I brought an extension cord as my husband needed an outlet near the head of his bed and the only outlet is over the desk (at least in our stateroom configuration).

 

Overall impressions/opinion - The Spirit is a beautiful, clean ship. Sailing past the Statue of Liberty is a fantastic experience. Staying precruise in NYC is a blast. Driving to the pier is convenient. When seven days is all you have, seven days is the perfect length of cruise. NYC Customs is disorganized. We were not allowed express disemb. and they did not clear the ship for disemb. in a timely matter. Spirit crew is friendly and organized. Free Style cruising worked well for our family and I think would certainly work well for families with young children. (I wish it had been an option on previous cruises we have taken.) Cruising in the winter in the Atlantic is what it is. It was really too windy and cold to enjoy too many outdoor activities on our full sea days. That is certainly the advantage of cruising out of a port warm in February. I have done that before and will probably do that next time. My 6'3" DS and 6'2" DH did not have a problem (or probably even notice) with the shorter furniture. My DH and I did not attend many of the activities. We found plenty of spots to sit and read or sit and talk. My DS (17) enjoyed the teen activities. The kids in the children's pool area seemed to be having great fun.

 

Much of what you read on this board is opinion. It is great information, but still much of it is opinion. My opinion? While I might not cruise from NYC in February again, it was a fun time. Not only was it fun, but I thought it great value for the money.

[coloradowahine]

Nhvacation-

Thanks for your straightforward review of the cruise. We are sailing in the Spirit on 3/26 and are looking forward to it. Where did you rent your car in Port Canaveral? We are thinking of doing the same and driving to Kennedy Space Center. We are also on deck 9- an inside cabin so glad to hear yours was okay. I have my over the door shoe bag and will be sure to bring an extension cord.

 

I too am an overplanner and have been reading these boards and taking notes, but as you point out everyone has different tastes so I plan to keep an open mind and keep my fingers crossed for good weather.

 

I would love to hear other tips if you think of anything else!

[LuckyDawgz]

Can I assume the Visitor's Center (South Beach) has bathrooms/changing area/showers? Is it a public building or does it cost to use it?

 

Yes, this is where you will find the bathrooms and gift shop.

The Art Deco rest room facilities were showing their age, and as you would expect at the beach, were also very wet and sandy inside.

This is a public facility and open to everyone.

 

Jim

[abbyndrewmom]

Thanks for posting your reviews, would you mind answering a few question?

 

Did you arrive on time in Port Canaveral? I think there was a bit of a delay getting into port the week before.

 

What time did you get back into NYC and how long did it take you to disembark?

 

Allison

[mommybunny21]

We arrived on time at each port. Disembarking was amazingly easy. On return to NYC we arrived early but there was a problem with NYPA which really delayed us. But once they started disembarking (which is done by the top deck down) we were off, on deck 10, within half an hour. The bags were waiting as well as a number of porters. I was surprised by how easy it was. My only disappointment was the shabby terminal. What a disgrace in comparison to Floridas- the greatest city in the world (?) should be ashamed!!

[Travelingsisters]

Thanks for your review. We will be on the Spirit April 16. We were thinking of taking the Duck Tour in Miami. Would you recommend or should we look for something else. We did a tour of South Beach/Little Havana last year on the Dawn.

 

Thanks for your help.

[SueSun]

Travelingsisters, I did the duck tour with my sons 12 & 14 at the time and we really enjoyed ourselves. It is a good way to see many sights/mansions/yachts, etc in a short time. I recommend it. Be sure to QUACK loudly at the tourists!!! :)

[ccastano]

Include us as some of "the people eating" at Raffles (insult not taken).

 

 

Sorry about that...I should have also said we were some of the people eating there, we ate there quite a bit since my kids loved being able to have pasta, chicken nuggets, and cheeseburgers all day every day!

 

I was just amazed at how grabby and pushy everyone in there got when it was busy. I was very laid back about it until towards the end of the week, and it did start to wear on me a little. I had so many plates jammed into my back in that place I can't count, and I don't know how many people turned around without looking and ran right into me, I had one guy jamb his elbow right into my dessert plate. The crew though..was excellent, in Raffles or any other restaurant.

 

When we decided we didn't want to deal with feeling like a herd of cheep hurrying for the best grass we went to Windows, which my kids also loved.

 

 

How about that chocolate buffet??

[nhvacation]

I had so many plates jammed into my back in that place I can't count, and I don't know how many people turned around without looking and ran right into me, I had one guy jamb his elbow right into my dessert plate.

 

 

I certainly agree! Previous posters mentionned the awkward layout of Raffles and I would have to agree with them. Combine the layout with crowds or some pushy people and it could get to be a bit much. It was convenient for snacks and quick meals. We too lingered over dinner at other venues. Compared to other ships, I thought the seating arrangements at Raffles was good.

 

Sadly, DH and I did not make it to the chocolate buffet. (Teenager did.) On this cruise, it was held after 11pm. I'm a very early riser and just couldn't force myself to leave the cabin having settled in with a good book. I know, I know. Perhaps next cruise I'll make it! I found Carnival's midnight buffets disconcerting and thought I was avoiding that kind of event with NCL.

[Seago2]

You said it! Carnival's buffets are wierd. The food is totally slimy- like it's been Vaselined-up for the photo ops. It's also a bunch of strange combinations and basically looks like Norwalk On Ice. The yellowing carved out fruit also gross.....

 

They had a dessert buffet one afternoon but it was as tasteless as any other time. I have to say that the food on Carnival was overall very, very good. But the desserts were bland, tasteless, Crisco-y...