Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Review of the 3/15/09 Spirit out of New Orleans

Phoenix cruiser

By Phoenix cruiser,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

Recommended Posts

Phoenix cruiser

Phoenix cruiser

Posted
Posted

We sailed on the NCL Spirit out of New Orleans to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala on March 15. This was our 9th cruise and 3rd on NCL. This is not a blow by blow account, rather it is our thoughts on some key aspects of the cruise. We will be glad to answer any specific questions here or via e-mail to azboeing@yahoo.com.

Boarding

We stayed the previous day in New Orleans, flying down from Philadelphia. We took a taxi to the port, and from the time we exited the taxi at 12:30 until the time we were on board was at most 10 minutes. We are Latitudes members but the regular line did not appear much different. We were not allowed into our cabin until 2:00 so we ate lunch in Raffles.

Cabin

We had a BA balcony on deck 11. The cabin itself was large enough for the 2 of us without bumping into each other and there was a surprisingly large amount of storage space. The bathroom is adequate and the shower was as large as the one in our suite on Celebrity. The amenities are very Spartan- the soap and shampoo are from a liquid dispenser. The balcony itself is not much longer than the width of the chair, but is serviceable for sitting out on sea days and reading. It did have a low snack table which is a nice touch. Our cabin steward and his assistant were generally very efficient. The first day we did not get a refill on coffee and creamer, but when we left a note- after that we always were well supplied. Ice has been mentioned on the CC board as an issue, but we always were well stocked without having to ask. Our steward was never intrusive in spite of our different schedule every day, yet they were visible on the hall so we never had to search them out. As an aside, he was a wizard with towel animals- not important to us when they are absent but a nice extra at night.

Dining

This has to be the most personal aspect of any review, so take this as our opinion for whatever it is worth. We ate breakfast and lunch (when we were on the ship) exclusively in Raffles. The breakfast buffet had a multitude of traditional and non-traditional choices. Our favorite staples were the smoked salmon (aka lox) and herring, along with waffles and French toast. My only complaint was the coffee was a bit strong for my tastes, but I have the same issue at work. Lunches also had a wide array of choices including vegetarian and Middle Eastern fare. We ate dinner every night in the Garden Court. Since we always asked for a table for 2, our longest wait was 5 minutes and most nights we walked right in. They do have the restaurant style buzzers so if you need a larger table you can wander the ship waiting for your table to be ready. The food in both the buffet and the dining room met our expectations. We did not expect five star dining, it is after all mass market. We have never selected a cruise based on the quality of the meals, as we can always dine in luxury in Philadelphia. We never had any complaints as to taste, temperature or service.

Public Areas

We used the pool on sea days and also stayed on board in Guatemala. The pool itself was never crowded, the only time we couldn’t use it was when they had the occasional contest. The hot tubs were usually uncrowded as well except the last day at sea, even then it wasn’t difficult to find space for 2. The Spirit has loads of deck space and lounge chairs on both decks 12 and 13. Of course on sea days finding something near the pool is hard, but either fore or aft there were still open loungers. The Galaxy of the Stars Lounge was one place we frequented for dancing- since we went against the grain of many of the passengers we sometimes had the dance floor to ourselves. The atrium is very attractive with the glass elevators and the shops are convenient, but of course as expensive as on any cruise line.

Entertainment

We did not go to any of the shows, not really our thing. We particularly enjoyed listening to a husband and wife duo, Arwin and Emily, with “easy listening” music.

Excursions/Ports

Although we only use ship’s excursions on the rarest of instances, we (I) decided to save my planning mode for this summer in Europe and so we elected 3 Mayan ruins tours. In Costa Maya we took the ½ day tour to Chacchoben. The guide was extremely informative and the overall experience was very rewarding. This was the hottest day of the cruise, nearly 90, so it was appreciated that they provided bottled water. The port area at Costa Maya has shops and a free swimming pool. The area was devastated by Hurricane Dean and building is going on everywhere. We stayed on the ship in Guatemala and had an extra “sea day.” There is nothing at the port, it is in an industrial area. In Belize City we took the Altun Ha and Olde Belize River excursion. The bus ride was rough as the road deteriorates rapidly the farther you get from the city. A good test for your spinal column. The ruins and the river trip were both worth it, you still can climb on one of the pyramids at Altun Ha and we saw lots of wildlife along the river. The only negative was that we hit something submerged on the way back to port and damaged one of the props, causing us to use up the gas. We practically drifted into a marina to get refueled. Even though it was a ship’s excursion we were concerned about spending the night in Belize. The Tulum excursion is Cozumel was the highlight, both because of the guide who is studying archaeology and the fact that the site is located adjacent to the water on a cliff overlooking the beach. The Spirit docks right in the heart of Cozumel so we had an easy walk to the shops after the tour.

Passengers

There was some anxiety in the back of our minds as to the effect of cruising during spring break. Since my wife is a professor, we were boxed in to this time. At least for this cruise we had no reason to worry. The college students were not intrusive at all and seemed very well behaved (although I am sure NCL is much wealthier from their bar bills). There were also plenty of folks like us (we are in our late 50s) who are AARP members. The majority of the passengers were from the US, with a lathe number from Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Disembarkation

We were in the first “non-preferred” group to leave. We did not elect to use the carry your own bags off option. The gangway turned out to be a major bottleneck, along with the ensuing line for passport control/customs. From the time we got in line to the time we exited customs was almost an hour. Not sure there is any solution- could not imagine what it is like with a 4000 passenger ship!

All in all a very enjoyable cruise. It will be interesting to contrast with our first river cruise in Europe this summer (148 passengers).

Link to comment
Share on other sites
mactrio

mactrio

Posted
Posted

Thanks for a great review, we were on the Spirit in Feb and did the same excursion in Belize. On our boat ride back the boat was too heavy in the back and we were getting soaked by the spray, the driver couldn't go fast and it took 1/2 hour to get to the dock instead of taking 10 minutes. We still had fun though. In Guatemala the port does have a shopping area and inside there is a little entertainment just music & dancing. It was very enjoyable to sit and watch the men/women dance and I hope you got to see the send off. The locals line up and play music, bang drums & dance as the ship gets ready to pull out. They line up their cars and honk the horns and flash lights. It was fun to watch from the comfort of our balcony.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
pappagene

pappagene

Posted
Posted

My DW and I were on the cruise the week before you and we thought the same as you about Santo Tomas, but we decided to go ashore and see what was happening. Off to the right of the ship was a shopping center where you could look for and purchase various local (I assumed) crafts and be entertained by musicians and dancers. It was enjoyable to meet the people and help them out by purchasing their wares. Some of them told us that they traveled long distances just to sell items for just one or two days a week.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Phoenix cruiser

Phoenix cruiser

Posted
  • Author
Posted
I look forward to get those daillies. We are cruising on the Sprint on 4-12-09. This is our first cruise and very excited.:D

 

Is there anything that you would suggest us do?

 

 

 

 

That is a personal choice, so without knowing your likes and dislikes I can't recommend anything specific. In general I woiuld say 2 things- 1) read as much as you can on these Boards, not just under Norwegian but also go to the Port of Call areas. I am always surprised at how people just sign up for a cruise and then are dumbfounded by things that are clearly posted on the cruise lines' FAQ section. 2) Expect that things will not be 100% as you planned and go with the flow. I think people who say their vacation was ruined becuase the dining room ran out of steak one night are destined for perpetual displeasure. Be relaxed and enjoy yourselves.

 

WARNING: Once you go on your first cruise be prepared to be hooked!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
slouman

slouman

Posted
Posted

Nice review...

 

Question - after the last refurb. does the Spirit still have coffee makers in all of the cabins? If so, do they provide a decent brand of coffee to use or should we bring our own? We will be on their upcoming repositioning cruise next month.

 

Thanks,

Robert

Link to comment
Share on other sites
newmexicoNita

newmexicoNita

Posted
Posted
We sailed on the NCL Spirit out of New Orleans to Mexico, Belize and Guatemala on March 15. This was our 9th cruise and 3rd on NCL. This is not a blow by blow account, rather it is our thoughts on some key aspects of the cruise. We will be glad to answer any specific questions here or via e-mail to azboeing@yahoo.com.

Boarding

We stayed the previous day in New Orleans, flying down from Philadelphia. We took a taxi to the port, and from the time we exited the taxi at 12:30 until the time we were on board was at most 10 minutes. We are Latitudes members but the regular line did not appear much different. We were not allowed into our cabin until 2:00 so we ate lunch in Raffles.

Cabin

We had a BA balcony on deck 11. The cabin itself was large enough for the 2 of us without bumping into each other and there was a surprisingly large amount of storage space. The bathroom is adequate and the shower was as large as the one in our suite on Celebrity. The amenities are very Spartan- the soap and shampoo are from a liquid dispenser. The balcony itself is not much longer than the width of the chair, but is serviceable for sitting out on sea days and reading. It did have a low snack table which is a nice touch. Our cabin steward and his assistant were generally very efficient. The first day we did not get a refill on coffee and creamer, but when we left a note- after that we always were well supplied. Ice has been mentioned on the CC board as an issue, but we always were well stocked without having to ask. Our steward was never intrusive in spite of our different schedule every day, yet they were visible on the hall so we never had to search them out. As an aside, he was a wizard with towel animals- not important to us when they are absent but a nice extra at night.

Dining

This has to be the most personal aspect of any review, so take this as our opinion for whatever it is worth. We ate breakfast and lunch (when we were on the ship) exclusively in Raffles. The breakfast buffet had a multitude of traditional and non-traditional choices. Our favorite staples were the smoked salmon (aka lox) and herring, along with waffles and French toast. My only complaint was the coffee was a bit strong for my tastes, but I have the same issue at work. Lunches also had a wide array of choices including vegetarian and Middle Eastern fare. We ate dinner every night in the Garden Court. Since we always asked for a table for 2, our longest wait was 5 minutes and most nights we walked right in. They do have the restaurant style buzzers so if you need a larger table you can wander the ship waiting for your table to be ready. The food in both the buffet and the dining room met our expectations. We did not expect five star dining, it is after all mass market. We have never selected a cruise based on the quality of the meals, as we can always dine in luxury in Philadelphia. We never had any complaints as to taste, temperature or service.

Public Areas

We used the pool on sea days and also stayed on board in Guatemala. The pool itself was never crowded, the only time we couldn’t use it was when they had the occasional contest. The hot tubs were usually uncrowded as well except the last day at sea, even then it wasn’t difficult to find space for 2. The Spirit has loads of deck space and lounge chairs on both decks 12 and 13. Of course on sea days finding something near the pool is hard, but either fore or aft there were still open loungers. The Galaxy of the Stars Lounge was one place we frequented for dancing- since we went against the grain of many of the passengers we sometimes had the dance floor to ourselves. The atrium is very attractive with the glass elevators and the shops are convenient, but of course as expensive as on any cruise line.

Entertainment

We did not go to any of the shows, not really our thing. We particularly enjoyed listening to a husband and wife duo, Arwin and Emily, with “easy listening” music.

Excursions/Ports

Although we only use ship’s excursions on the rarest of instances, we (I) decided to save my planning mode for this summer in Europe and so we elected 3 Mayan ruins tours. In Costa Maya we took the ½ day tour to Chacchoben. The guide was extremely informative and the overall experience was very rewarding. This was the hottest day of the cruise, nearly 90, so it was appreciated that they provided bottled water. The port area at Costa Maya has shops and a free swimming pool. The area was devastated by Hurricane Dean and building is going on everywhere. We stayed on the ship in Guatemala and had an extra “sea day.” There is nothing at the port, it is in an industrial area. In Belize City we took the Altun Ha and Olde Belize River excursion. The bus ride was rough as the road deteriorates rapidly the farther you get from the city. A good test for your spinal column. The ruins and the river trip were both worth it, you still can climb on one of the pyramids at Altun Ha and we saw lots of wildlife along the river. The only negative was that we hit something submerged on the way back to port and damaged one of the props, causing us to use up the gas. We practically drifted into a marina to get refueled. Even though it was a ship’s excursion we were concerned about spending the night in Belize. The Tulum excursion is Cozumel was the highlight, both because of the guide who is studying archaeology and the fact that the site is located adjacent to the water on a cliff overlooking the beach. The Spirit docks right in the heart of Cozumel so we had an easy walk to the shops after the tour.

Passengers

There was some anxiety in the back of our minds as to the effect of cruising during spring break. Since my wife is a professor, we were boxed in to this time. At least for this cruise we had no reason to worry. The college students were not intrusive at all and seemed very well behaved (although I am sure NCL is much wealthier from their bar bills). There were also plenty of folks like us (we are in our late 50s) who are AARP members. The majority of the passengers were from the US, with a lathe number from Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Disembarkation

We were in the first “non-preferred” group to leave. We did not elect to use the carry your own bags off option. The gangway turned out to be a major bottleneck, along with the ensuing line for passport control/customs. From the time we got in line to the time we exited customs was almost an hour. Not sure there is any solution- could not imagine what it is like with a 4000 passenger ship!

All in all a very enjoyable cruise. It will be interesting to contrast with our first river cruise in Europe this summer (148 passengers).

 

thanks for a good and short review...You covered all the details.

 

Niita

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Phoenix cruiser

Phoenix cruiser

Posted
  • Author
Posted
Nice review...

 

Question - after the last refurb. does the Spirit still have coffee makers in all of the cabins? If so, do they provide a decent brand of coffee to use or should we bring our own? We will be on their upcoming repositioning cruise next month.

 

Thanks,

Robert

 

We were in a balcony and we had the same kind of coffee maker found in most hotels. We thought the cofee brand was good- for reference we are maxwell House people at home.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
joteacher

joteacher

Posted
Posted
Nice review...

 

Question - after the last refurb. does the Spirit still have coffee makers in all of the cabins? If so, do they provide a decent brand of coffee to use or should we bring our own? We will be on their upcoming repositioning cruise next month.

 

Thanks,

Robert

 

We were in an inside room and had a coffee maker...although to be quite honest, while the coffee was good, we much preferred ordering it from room service (especially in the morning). We would order coffee, juice, and a sweet roll to get us going before we left our cabin.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Clairescurtains

Clairescurtains

Posted
Posted
Nice review...

 

Question - after the last refurb. does the Spirit still have coffee makers in all of the cabins? If so, do they provide a decent brand of coffee to use or should we bring our own? We will be on their upcoming repositioning cruise next month.

 

Thanks,

Robert

 

Robert,

You ought come over and join our rollcall. We have quite a large group and have a Meet and Greet with a gift exchange going on. Not much chatter today but maybe you could prompt some if you post over there. Here is a link http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=759788

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Don Haynes

Don Haynes

Posted
Posted

Bring your own brand of coffee and a package of 4 cup coffee filters for the Spirit. Not knowing which brand of coffee you prefer, bring it. The Spirit is a wonderful unique ship, although she is beginning to show her age, she is still not out of date. And she is getting mostly great reviews this winter from New Orleans.

 

This summer the Spirit will be sailing out of Boston for the first time to Bermuda. Every bone in my body expects great reviews from New Englanders as well. The Spirit will be a wonderful replacement for the former Majesty, which had a good following in Boston.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
nocruiser66

nocruiser66

Posted
Posted

We did have a coffee maker and found it very handy to have coffee when getting ready for our day. We drink strong coffee at home and find most restaurant and hotel coffee to be too weak; however whatever brand NCL is using made pretty good coffee. The coffee is in the filter packs ready to brew. Much more convenient than carrying your own coffee and filters.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Phoenix cruiser

Phoenix cruiser

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Here is a gallery of photos from the various ports as well as of the Spirit herself.

 

http://picasaweb.google.com/azboeing/NewOrleans?feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/azboeing/NCLSpiritCruiseShip?feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/azboeing/CostaMayaChacchoben?feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/azboeing/BelizeAltunHa?feat=directlink

http://picasaweb.google.com/azboeing/CozumelTulum?feat=directlink

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...