Spirit vs. Dawn or Jewel

[cruisin0504]

We loved the Dawn and the Jewel. The timing and itinerary for the Spirit in Feb. works out best for us, but we aren't so sure about the ship. Anyone have any thoughts about how it compares?

[cruisin0504]

Any thoughts to share out there???

[Maryfrei]

I have been on both and loved both. On the forum, my assessment is that the Dawn has an edge in popularity as it is newer, bigger, has a movie theatre and a couple of extra restaurants. This topic has been discussed quite a bit on the forum, here is a link to some search results with many threads you may find useful.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/search.php?searchid=3749720

[bobbygirl]

We've done the Jewel, off on the Spirit Sunday, so I'll be able to compare a bit!

[johnql]

I've been on the Dawn twice and the Spirit once. I would sail either again without hesitation.

 

Differences? The Dawn is bigger and newer. She has a dedicated movie theater and one extra alternative restaurant (Salsa). The Spirit's Asian decor is eyecatching and, some would say, quite lovely.

[electricron]

The Spirit is slightly smaller than the Dawn and Jewel. So everything, except the casino, is slightly smaller. But, there's less passengers aboard the Spirit, so you should have about the same amount space.

 

The biggest difference between the Spirit and the other two on your list:

The Spirit has no mini-suites, so you'll either have to book a smaller balcony or spend more for a penthouse suite. Althought the sizes of the different category cabins are basically the same.

The Spirit has one less speciality restaurant, lacking the Tex-Mex or Tapas Bar Restaurant you'll find on the others.

The Spirit's cabins lack the small refrigerator, using an ice bucket instead. But you'll find refrigerators on the suites aboard the Spirit.

The Spirit lacks sell service laundries, although it provides the same laundry services from the ship's main laundry.

The Spirit has several decks of public spaces aft, with just one deck with aft facing suites. The Spirit also has just one deck of forward facing suites.

The Spirit's main show room is located aft, not forward on the ship. This design feature means you enter the showroom at stage level and climb up for seats, instead of the reverse setup.

While using the same diesel engine arrangement used on the larger ships, the Spirit uses convential shafts, propellers, and rudders arrangements rather than an azipod arrangement. This means you'll feel more vibrations on the aft part of the ship from the propellers at high speed aboard the Spirit. But not too much to be uncomfortable.

Azipods, self service laundries, refrigerators and mini-suites are more recent standards that arrived on NCL ships after the Spirit was built. Otherwise, you should experience the same vacation experience on any of the ships you listed. If you prefer the Spirit's itinerary, choose it and have a great cruise. What's lacking aboard the Spirit shouldn't ruin your cruise.

[cruisin0504]

Thanks so much for the great info. It is very much appreciated.