NCL Spirit Med Cruise Q&A

[mypleasure]

There is a tram in Istanbul that costs 2TL which will take you to the Blue Mosque. Walk from there.

Temperatures can get very high in Istanbul during summer and it is brutal. Save your energy and use the tram.

[ttnc4me]

There is a tram in Istanbul that costs 2TL which will take you to the Blue Mosque. Walk from there.

Temperatures can get very high in Istanbul during summer and it is brutal. Save your energy and use the tram.

That may have answered part of my question; being, why did seemingly many people walk to the Mosque instead of take the tram?

[jenjens1023]

Fly to Barcelona tomorrow to catch this wonderful cruise. Need to get off the computer and tackle my lists...

[Joannel1958]

Thank you all very much who have posted info about their Spirit Cruise. This will be our first time to Europe so anything we can get for ideas is just great. Now I not saying we haven't done any research because now that I'm retired, I have researched this trip for about a year.

Our trip is somewhat similar to yours Seaing The World. We'll be just outside London ( Horley) for 5 nights, then Barcelona for 3 nights, Spirit for the 12 Day and then we board the Jade the same day we leave Spirit for a 7 Day Greek Isle cruise. So all the info about the Wine, WiFi, Istanbul etc. is invaluable.

What time would you all recommend we get to the port in Barcelona to board the Spirit, checkout time is 11 am I believe. But I would like to get on-board as soon as possible and explore the ship. What did you folks experience ?

 

Thanks Again

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

We checked out of our hotel at noon and went directly to the port. We checked in and only sat for about 10 minutes. Went straight to our rooms and then to lunch.

Edited May 8, 2013 by Joannel1958

[Joannel1958]

That may have answered part of my question; being, why did seemingly many people walk to the Mosque instead of take the tram?

We walked, it's not a bad walk. We did't have ant Turkish money at the time and in April the weather was nice. It's a pretty walk over the bridge. By the end of the day we were tired, but walked it back also. The lower level of the bridge has restaurants as they catch their own fish from the bridge. There are also food barges by the bridge where people yell over their orders!! very interesting.

[Joannel1958]

Fly to Barcelona tomorrow to catch this wonderful cruise. Need to get off the computer and tackle my lists...

 

 

take less clothes, didn't wear alot of what I took. You are so busy we didn't change for dinner some nights.

[umpy10]

We checked out of our hotel at noon and went directly to the port. We checked in and only sat for about 10 minutes. Went straight to our rooms and then to lunch.

 

Thanks for the info, I like to board ASAP to explore before it gets busy.

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

[Da-Painter]

That may have answered part of my question; being, why did seemingly many people walk to the Mosque instead of take the tram?

We walked because we wanted to see the city, we knew it was not far. About half way there, we came across a block long small garden of blooming tulips, quite surprising to see, very pretty.

Like the other person said, by the time we got back to the ship, about 4PM, we were tired. Would do the walk again, we are walkers, though, sometimes DW has enough, no regrets. :)

[Joannel1958]

Thanks for the info, I like to board ASAP to explore before it gets busy.

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

 

 

Bring your swimsuits in your carry on if you want to sit by the pool. Took a long time for suitcases!!

[MollyMoo1]

Really helpful advice thank you. Can't wait!

[mypleasure]

We walked, it's not a bad walk. We did't have ant Turkish money at the time and in April the weather was nice. It's a pretty walk over the bridge. By the end of the day we were tired, but walked it back also. The lower level of the bridge has restaurants as they catch their own fish from the bridge. There are also food barges by the bridge where people yell over their orders!! very interesting.

 

I sailed last May and remember a conversation with Ed Harris the Maitre 'D of Le Bistro. He asked how hot it would get in the Med in Summer. I told him we sail in May when the weather is bearable by the end of June it is too hot for me and July and August it is brutal. When I saw him in February the first thing he said to me was that I was not wrong about the weather and it was way hotter than it ever gets in Jamaica (his home) and he had found it uncomfortable.

 

The tram costs 2TL or you can walk. If you are going to try walking to the Blue Mosque from port then make sure you are wearing sun block, a hat and have at least 1 litre of water to drink. Early in the morning it is unlikely to be more than 25C but by noon it can be 35C and climbing in Istanbul from mid June onwards.

[Joannel1958]

Athens was the hottest spot. Climbing up all that marble and there is not any shade. We also rode the subway which is not air conditioned. We carried water with us everywhere. Ephesus was also hot whith no shade. You can buy water right before you go into Ephesus for one lire.

 

Take a sports bottle and fill it at the buffet every morning with ice. By the time it melts you have a nice cold drink.

[sweetpea222]

Yowza. That's hot! We often get the low 30s here, and sometimes mid 30s to even 36, 37 so we know hot, but it's not comfortable at that temp unless you have some water to relax in. We will be taking the tram I think.

 

Were you in Istanbul on a Monday? I just read that the Hagia Sophia is closed on Mondays. :( Of course, that's the day we're there. We do the reverse of this cruise, sailing out of Venice.

 

Should we try for the Blue Mosque, Topeki Palace, and Grand Bazaar then? We plan to DIY,

 

Thanks

[FairyGodmother55]

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.

 

What did you do while in Toulon?

We went to Bandol. Great little town.

 

Do you have any favorite spots on the ship?

Aside from our balcony? As Realitoes said, Galaxy of the Stars is a great spot, especially the perimeter window area. We also watched sail away from deck 7 aft a couple nights. For a quick dinner, Blue Lagoon and the adjacent bar are great (tell Ed the bartender Mindy & Tim say hi). And spent a lot of time (and money) at the roulette table in the casino.

 

How was the food in the MDR?

Mostly great. I am sensitive to high sodium levels and had a lot of problems with that. On the last night, I ordered lamb and it was totally inedible. Other than that, I found the food to be really excellent quality (despite seeing the staff walking around with food plates under plastic covers, which reminds me of eating in a hospital). Ate breakfast two mornings in Windows and had the eggs benedict both times because I found it to be really good. Otherwise it wasn't much different than the food being offered in the buffet, which we found to be really good.

 

Did you eat in any specialty restaurants and if you did, were they worth the extra cost?

We ate at Cagney's Steakhouse and had one of the best filets I've ever had. Everything at Cagney's that we tried was amazing, and we probably ordered half the menu. Also ate at Le Bistro, where I had some sodium problems with all my dishes but the desserts alone were worth the cover charge (get the Napoleon if you like nutella).

 

Where did you go when you were docked in Livorno?

We took the ship's "Florence on your own" tour, which was a shuttle that dropped you off in Florence and picked you up at the end of the day. We had a guide who explained sites and handed out maps and answered questions on the way there. Then we were led to a leather shop where we had a short demonstration and we were able to use the restrooms any time during the day, if we needed. Then that was our meeting point in the afternoon to go back to the shuttle. It was overpriced but worth it for us, since we reached a point in our planning where we didn't want to research public transportation any more (we planned this trip in essentially 3 weeks after Carnival cancelled our Sunshine sailing).

 

Enjoy your cruise and your birthday celebrations!

 

Thanks for all the info! We are on the May 6th trip from Venice. We also booked the ships transport into Florence. Where do they drop you off? Is it central? We don't want to spend time in a leather shop as we have tickets for Uffizzi.

 

Also, what did you do in Naples?

 

Kim

[Realitoes]

Realitoes--I love to hear that you walked in Istanbul. One question: everyone (on another site) mentions that going to all the sites is uphill. Is this a nice, gentle hill or a wipe-you-out hill? I'm fairly fit, but it's also going to be hot when I'm there. Just want to know if the hill will be any problem...

Thanks!

 

It is a bit uphill, but not really that bad. We were docked so close to the bridge and wanted to see the town, so we decided against the trolley (the ones that went past us were really packed). It was a nice walk there and back - except for the Bazaar - which was just a mad house! :)

[budgetfairytale]

Thanks for all the info! We are on the May 6th trip from Venice. We also booked the ships transport into Florence. Where do they drop you off? Is it central? We don't want to spend time in a leather shop as we have tickets for Uffizzi.

 

Also, what did you do in Naples?

 

Kim

 

They drop you off in town. The highlights of Florence are all very close and walkable. I can't remember the exact name of the square where we were dropped off but it's close to Uffizzi. When in the square we were "suggested" to go into the shop and watch a 5 minute gold leaf presentation. DH and I skipped it in favor of the pizza shop next door.

[tabster]

Just wanted to say I really appreciate all of the comments thus far… Usually, I just lurk and gather information, but had to ask some questions about disembarking in Venice.

In your experience, what time did disembarkation start and what was the latest time allowed on the ship? Since we can be out all night, do you still set luggage out the night before? Or, can you self disembark?

We are taking the 11:30 train to Rome and didn’t know if we should store our luggage somewhere to sightsee more or if we should head straight to the train station.

Thanks so much…getting really excited!

[budgetfairytale]

Just wanted to say I really appreciate all of the comments thus far… Usually, I just lurk and gather information, but had to ask some questions about disembarking in Venice.

In your experience, what time did disembarkation start and what was the latest time allowed on the ship? Since we can be out all night, do you still set luggage out the night before? Or, can you self disembark?

We are taking the 11:30 train to Rome and didn’t know if we should store our luggage somewhere to sightsee more or if we should head straight to the train station.

Thanks so much…getting really excited!

 

I believe disembarkation was from 7:30am - 9:45am. Around those times. You can either set your luggage out by midnight the night before, or carry it off yourself. It's a bit off a walk so I personally recommend checking it. You pick up luggage tags during the sea day before arriving into Venice. The tag corresponds with the time you want to get off the ship.

[FairyGodmother55]

They drop you off in town. The highlights of Florence are all very close and walkable. I can't remember the exact name of the square where we were dropped off but it's close to Uffizzi. When in the square we were "suggested" to go into the shop and watch a 5 minute gold leaf presentation. DH and I skipped it in favor of the pizza shop next door.[/quote ]

So how was the pizza? We'll keep an eye out fori it!

[budgetfairytale]

So how was the pizza? We'll keep an eye out fori it!

 

Not the best but we were starving. Had much better pizza in Rome at La Montecarlo!

[umpy10]

From kapitman: "Chef's Table - AMAZING...9 courses 5 wines (all you can drink) almost 4 hour experience and the service and food were OUT OF THIS WORLD! $89 for the experience which includes service charge and an after dinner drink at Champagne Charlie's. I would do this dinner again in a second! (If you have to, skip the other three, do this one and then just eat in the MDR) You can not book this ahead of time. This was our first task as soon as we boarded the ship, but I do know they had availability up to day 2 of the cruise as they had 2 Chef's Table on our 12 day itinerary."

 

We're definitely going to book the Chef's Table as soon as we board, do you or anyone else recall what 2 nights they were held. Rome will probably be our busiest port day and I just can't see us properly enjoying what the chef's table has to offer when exhausted.

Hopefully they will be held on a "sea day" evening.

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

Edited May 11, 2013 by umpy10

[luv-2-travel]

From kapitman: "Chef's Table - AMAZING...9 courses 5 wines (all you can drink) almost 4 hour experience and the service and food were OUT OF THIS WORLD! $89 for the experience which includes service charge and an after dinner drink at Champagne Charlie's. I would do this dinner again in a second! (If you have to, skip the other three, do this one and then just eat in the MDR) You can not book this ahead of time. This was our first task as soon as we boarded the ship, but I do know they had availability up to day 2 of the cruise as they had 2 Chef's Table on our 12 day itinerary."

 

We're definitely going to book the Chef's Table as soon as we board, do you or anyone else recall what 2 nights they were held. Rome will probably be our busiest port day and I just can't see us properly enjoying what the chef's table has to offer when exhausted.

Hopefully they will be held on a "sea day" evening.

 

cheers...the Ump...:D

 

From your close neighbour enjoy your trip. It was very tiring but well worth it.

I am sure you posted in a previous thread but when do you leave. I will be posting some pictures in the next couple of days of our journeys

Enjoy and safe and happy travels

[FairyGodmother55]

Not the best but we were starving. Had much better pizza in Rome at La Montecarlo!

 

Mindy:

What about Naples?

[readyforadventure1]

Glad you had a great trip. I can't wait to hear more. I will be sailing on the Spirit leaving Venice on July 8. Haven't cruised or been to Europe since high school. I am really looking forward to it. I would like to go to Cinque Terre when we are docked in Livorno. Did you hear anyone on your cruise mention that?

[elaine5]

We did CT thru Princess. I bet they all use the same shore-side tour operator. It is excellent. You take a tour bus 1 hr to the 1st place, briefly walk thru the town, then walk on the path of love to the next town, then have 45 minutes free time (very small town), then take a small ferry to the next town with 45 minutes free time, then smaller boat (50 persons) to the next place where you have 2 hrs free time--good spot for lunch. There is an old part with beach and then a newer part thru a walking tunnel---we stayed on the old side and had lunch--but the new side looked very beachy and fun also. Then motorcoach back to ship---A+++ day!