Need info on Spirit

[MOW]

Would appreciate any information I can get on Spirit. Critique rooms, food, age group, etc. Spirit to Alaska info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!:)

[YooperGale]

Hi,

I am booked on the Spirit for May of '07, so i can't help you. I'm just "bumping this up" so maybe someone else will see and answer it.

Gale

[direfun2000]

You may want to try doing a search to see of that comes up with any info. Have a great cruise.:)

[lindalo5032]

Would appreciate any information I can get on Spirit. Critique rooms, food, age group, etc. Spirit to Alaska info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!:)

 

We were on the Spirit last year in July, northbound Alaska. LOVED IT! :) We are going again in August this year, southbound.

 

We had an extended balcony cabin on the Panorama deck--it was GREAT!! The cabins are nice size with plenty of storage. There are two closets and shelves in the bathroom with plenty of room for your toiletry items. We did take an over the door shoe hanger (the kind with clear plastic pockets) to put our miscellaneous stuff in (camera, sail & sign card, sunglasses, tour information, etc.) This makes it easier to find your stuff quickly.

 

The food was good, although we only ate on the Lido deck. We are more "buffet" type people than "dining room" folks. We are both kind of picky and prefer to select our food from a buffet. There is also a deli and pizzeria on the Lido deck. Also hamburgers and hot dogs available by the swimming pool.

 

There were people of all ages on the Alaska cruise.

 

The Spirit has a naturalist on board who gives informative talks, and also announces wildlife sightings over the sound system.

 

If you have any specific questions, I'll be glad to answer them. Also, if you go to the review section, there are lots of reviews on the Spirit and Alaska.

 

Have a great time--we fell in love with Alaska and I bet you will too! :)

[rvrgirl]

Would appreciate any information I can get on Spirit. Critique rooms, food, age group, etc. Spirit to Alaska info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!:)

 

We had a blast on the Spirit last year. We did the Mexican Rivera cruise.

If you can, Try to book the extended balcony room. Much bigger balcony!

[jrmende63]

Would appreciate any information I can get on Spirit. Critique rooms, food, age group, etc. Spirit to Alaska info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!:)

I am going on May 17,2006! To Alaska...So I can answer when I get back!:p

[julia]

I just booked our third trip on the Spirit today! It's not necessarily our "top favorite ship" (it's pretty close though), but since it sails from our home town, it's just too convenient!

 

We enjoy the Spirit's layout.

We especially like the dining room.

The gym is really great and nicely laid out.

The sports bar is a great place to hang out.

The food is quite good, but can be spotty at times.

The cabins are convenient and well thought out, but they could use some "spark" in the decor (JMHO).

The theater is really pretty.

There are some really nice public areas throughout the ship.

 

Enjoy!!

[Beach4me]

I am going on May 17,2006! To Alaska...So I can answer when I get back!:p

 

Please post a full review when you get back...including any of the excursions you do. I'm doing the southbound run in July, 2007...and I booked a Juneau whale-watching trip with Capt. Larry this afternoon! To say I'm excited about this trip is a bit of an understatement. Last time I did Alaska was over 25 years ago!

 

Have a GREAT trip...and be sure to tell us all about it!!

[sea_u_onboard]

Would appreciate any information I can get on Spirit. Critique rooms, food, age group, etc. Spirit to Alaska info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!:)

Go to the Alaska thread - lots of info on the Spirit. You can also check the group in my signature.

[YooperGale]

Hi lindalo,

Did you go to Sitka? We've been to Alaska once before but didn't see Sitka. However, I also want to be sure to see glaciers. Will we see them on the Northbound May 30th, 2007 cruise?

Gale

[momma561]

We just got off the Spirit (12 day Hawaii cruise) last Friday and have nothing but good things to say about the ship. Nothing to compare it to though, as this was our first cruise. We had a balcony room on the Panorama Deck (8th floor) and found the king size bed and all the new linens most comfortable. Food was plentiful and great, whether in the dining room or the lido deck(buffet). Room service was also great.. make sure to try the cheesecake! If you get a chance, reserve in the Noveau Restaurant.. it's $30 per person, but you won't regret it!

Twice over the 12 days they offered laundry service (fill the bag in your room) for $15 so that was great. I also did laundry myself in one of the laundrette's. I believe that they are located on deck 1,3,4,6 & 7. Had I known that was available, I wouldn't have packed so many clothes. Would have had more room for souveneir's!! Casino is a blast, but seem to pay out for the first part of the cruise and then recoop their money the last 3-4 days! Hope this helps... as you can tell i'm still wound like a top from our cruise experience and can't wait for the next one!!!

[G&L in WPG]

Did you do any excursions (carnival or otherwise) in Hawaii?

[K.T.B.]

I'll get back to you in a couple of weeks... ;) Sooooooooooo looking forward to this cruise!!

[MilliesMom]

We were on the Spirit in Jan 06 to celebrate our 19th wedding anniversary, sailing to Acapulco. We booked a mini-suite and it was GREAT. The ship is beautiful and we really had a great time. We've cruised many times before, first time tho on this ship. Food was good (except for a few of the desserts that definitely looked better than they tasted), shows were fun, and the crew treated us extremely well.

 

We loved the ease of flying into San Diego and having the port 5 minutes away.

 

Enjoyed the ship so much that we have booked two different itineraries for the Spirit for next year with family and friends going out of San Diego. Next year we have booked balcony cabins not the mini suite again. The mini suite was fantastic, but we get more cruises for our $ with a less expensive cabin. I really liked the balcony and feel they are worth the extra $.

 

There are lots of places on the ship to have some quiet time, lots of places to get involved with all the fun, and many venues for all kinds of dancing. We truly enjoyed the dancing in the atrium lounge area at night. The disco was fun, but a bit too loud long term.

 

I think the ship had a good mix of ages on board.

 

I'm sure you will have a marvelous trip to Alaska. What awesome scenary.

[Makeithappen]

We did a family reunion cruise over New Years on the Spirit, I think 3 years ago? The ship is lovely, well designed and easy to get around. The food was good to very good and entertainment excellent. We didn't get to try the speciality restaurant due to dining nightly with our 20 plus group, we thought it would be rude to not eat with Mike's parents, especially as they had paid for the trip. I've heard the specialty restaurant is worth the extra expense. We had one of the aft balcony cabins, what a great view!

 

We've done Alaska two times and would do it again. If you have the resources and time please consider the Denali add on tour, it is worth it! If you enjoy Alaska plan on doing a South American cruise it is even grander seeing all the glaciers going through the Chilean Fjiords.

 

If you have specific questions I'll try and answer them. My cruise memories are morphing into one happy collective memory and I have to sort through to pull out details.

 

Happy Cruising!

 

Jill

[julia]

It's been several years since we were on the Spirit. I know it was in drydock this past January, but can any recent cruisers tell me if they upgraded the beds? I see here that the "bedding" is new, but how about the actual beds themselves? (Unfortunately, I recall them as being uncomfortable).

 

Thanks!

[lindalo5032]

Hi lindalo,

Did you go to Sitka? We've been to Alaska once before but didn't see Sitka. However, I also want to be sure to see glaciers. Will we see them on the Northbound May 30th, 2007 cruise?

Gale

 

Yes, we did go to Sitka, and yes, you will see glaciers--the day before arriving in Whittier, you will cruise College Fjord--awesome!! Do a Google search on College Fjord and you will find pictures of the glaciers there.

In Sitka be sure to visit the National Historical Park. It's a beautiful area within walking distance from the dock.

 

Have a great time!!

[Beach4me]

We've done Alaska two times and would do it again. If you have the resources and time please consider the Denali add on tour, it is worth it!

Jill

 

Jill, did you do Alaska on the Spirit? (Can't see your signature line while I'm respondind...didn't look before I hit 'quote'.) Did your Denali tour include the 'Natural History Tour' that everyone on the Alaska board complains (without details) about? If so, please give me your take on it. It's part of the package so we're 'in'...but would like to get a firsthand account of that part of the tour. Also, what hotels did Carnival put you up in in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Denali (if you did the Carnival tour).

 

Thanks!!!

[sklap81]

I am going on May 17,2006! To Alaska...So I can answer when I get back!:p

 

We will see you there, my hubby and I are on that same cruise! :)

[YooperGale]

Hi Mow,

Aren't you glad I bumped this up so you got some responses? Be sure to let us know how your Spirit cruise goes.

Gale

[YooperGale]

Thanks, lindalo, for the information on seeing glaciers.

[MSUcruisers]

I'm wondering how the entertainment onboard is. We will be on the Spirit January 26. I read in a posting that someone missed having a band on the lido deck. Hopefully, that is still not the case still. My husband expect that with a Carnival cruise.