Spirit of Adventure = A review

[hybrn8]

Friend and I just returned from two weeks aboard this lovely little ship (350 pax) which is owned by the British firm, Saga Holdings. Saga has tried to distinguish this ship from its other two (Ruby and Rose) by marketing it to a younger (21 years vs. 50) clientele. This was not entirely successful as that bit of information is pretty well hidden in the brochures! So, there were lots of elderly but active folks on the trip.

Although there is some effort to accomodate foreign (ie, American and Canadian) guests, this effort is rather half-hearted. We were only 2 Yanks on board! They don't want to be overrun by non-Brits, I think.

The ship has a very clean, uncluttered look and we were very comfortable in our category 7 twin. There was more than enough storage and bathroom space for two women! Walls, though, were a bit thin!

The overall ambience was refined and subdued which suited us very well. We enjoyed the food, for the most part. We did not enjoy the maitre'd who refused to consider letting us dine in the main dining room alone - there are always going to be at least 4 people at your table, even if the room is only partially filled. However, at breakfast it was often easy to get a table for two. Americans have much different eating habits than the British, preferring to sit down and eat and go on and do something else rather than linger for course after course. Pretty early, we figured out that we could get two courses and then make our apologies and go get desert elsewhere!

There are two places to eat - the main dining room and a veranda buffet style indoors/outdoors area. We took most lunches at the latter and all but one or two dinners at the former. There are no assigned seats and you can go to either venue whenever you want. I dislike, greatly, buffets and do not go to them unless it is my only choice but the service in this area was so good that it made up for the waiting on yourself routine I so dislike.

The staff really made the trip - from the captain down to the dishwashers, everyone was wonderful. The waiters and cabin attendants were mostly from the Phillipines and their joyful demeanor was, at times, at odds with some of the more stuffy British clientele. These toffs were, happily, few and far between!

There are lots of single cabins and many travellers were on their own.

Shore excursions are included in the fare and there were at least two to choose from daily. We made our selections before we left and then did a few last minute adjustments as we went along.

The entertainment might have been good had it not been for a terrible sound system in a very low-ceiling room. Too bad but not sure what can be done about it.

There were speakers who were very interesting but I often felt like there was going to be a quiz and often got simply too much information! Very much appreciated by those who like the Swan Hellenic style.

The mostly fine weather saw many passengers outside in deck chairs or at tables poolside. Many, though, spent quiet (and I mean pin drop quiet) mornings in the library. The library is gorgeous and has thousands of interesting books. The DVD library was a bit of a bust, however. There are 3 computers for internet use but there were no packages and rates were nearly one pound/minute!!!! The man in charge of the library is also in charge of the computer/digital camera center and he was simply wonderful. There was even a digital photo contest at cruise-end.

Alcoholic beverages were very reasonable - a glass of good wine cost about $3/glass. There were always coffe, tea and fruit drinks available.

There are many, many thoughtful touches throughout the ship and I would not hesitate to recommend her to anyone who is a self-starter and doesn't need rah, rah, rah day and night. And speaks softly and doesn't put themselves forward.

The ship could be a bit smoother in rough(ish) water but I understand some improvements to the stabilizers are scheduled.

If there were balconies, I would book again today but it is probably going to be at least a year before we go back to Europe for a cruise and the line's mid-term itineraries interest us not at all (Carribean and S.America).

Post questions if any occur..........

[wynkys]

Thank you for a comprehensive review as there aren't too many around covering this interesting ship.

Due to the fact that it is a ship that doesn't repeat ports too often, did you find that there were a lot of passengers on board for extended stays?

 

Wayne

[hybrn8]

when we returned to Harwich. The ship was going on to the Baltic capitals and had already been to Norway for a week before we got aboard for our fjord cruise so maybe that would contribute to everyone leaving. We met folks who had been on previous SoA cruises and we met folks who had never been on a ship. Real mixed bag. But Brits don't do the name/trip dropping that we Yanks seem to enjoy - they keep themselves to themselves and don't like to put themselves forward.

[engineer38]

Actually you are right about the Baltic, but we didn't visit the all the capitals! The route was Kiel Canal, Travemunde for Lubeck, Copenhagen, Helsinki, St Petersburg, Tallinn, Saremaa (a tiny island in Estonia), Riga, Klaipeda, Keil Canal by night and back to Harwich. Saremaa has only been a cruising destination for about a year so the facilities are a bit underdeveloped. It was nice to be the only ship in port after 13 in St Petersburg. There is a meteor crater and a castle which looks like a child's toy there. Not many of the bigger ships can get into Travemunde either.

 

This was our third cruise in SoA, and it's getting better every time, though with 350 it's full. There are usually fewer on board on the remote (from UK) destinations, limited by the charter flights at each end. But most of us could drive or travel by rail to Harwich.

 

While in Riga we were in port with Saga Ruby so had the opportunity to vist one of the big (relative term!) sisters. Personally we shall be staying with SoA for us Ruby feels too big! Can't even imagine what travelling in a 3000 capacity ship is like, but I guess it must suit a lot of people or the lines wouldn't be building them!

[mancunian]

So glad you enjoyed the cruise. We enjoyed our trip from Sri Lanka to Singapore in November very much. We have recently booked again for next summer to do the rivers of France and Spain.

 

I think the American passengers will increase. I don't think they are trying to keep them off, they are just a little late in marketing this. I do hope this is true because our all time favourite ship Marco Polo finishes in March and the thing we loved was the mixed nationality aspect. We do however prefer the mixed nationalities to be English speaking because announcements in several languages must be terrible.

 

It sounds as if Jeffrey is still in the Library and that can only be good. He was so, so helpful.

[fenella]

Hi Mancunian

Do you remember me from another board about the Spirit of Adventure last year.

I am glad that you enjoyed the ship so much that you have booked again for next year.

I have also booked Vineyards of France and Spain for August 2008. Is that the same cruise as you?

This year I went on a cruise to the Baltic aboard Celebrity's Constellation.

Whilst this ship was truly magnificent and luxurious I found it too big (too much walking from one end to the other) and I did not think the food was as good as Spirit.

I am really looking forward to seeing all the friendly crew again.