Whats free on the ship

[upsman89]

We will be sailing on yhe sprit in April, But it seems everytime i read these boards you seem to have to pay for alot of extras. I know the alcohol etc.. you do,but what about say activities, dance classes, yoga, craft classes etc.. any input on this would help as I am a first timer Thanks Much

[retiredAF]

I am sure many much more experienced cruisers will answer this question with a lot more detail then I can but, your food is free unless you elect to go to a pay restaurant (and there is plenty of food). Entertainment, pools/hot tubs on the deck are free.. I think the gyms are free but not the spas of course. Getting off the ship and exploring the area are also free... There is plenty to do and see without spending too much extra money..

[spirit rev]

Upsman89

Generally you will find tht the craft classes are free. Some exercise classes will carry a charge. The Freestyle Daily listed the charge on the events listing if there was one. The Aqua Swim (wanted to try it but never got around to it) is free but you may have to wait in line to use it. The various alcoholic tastings will cost some, but not the full cost of that much drinking. All entertainment is free.

Enjoy the Spirit. We enjoyed her starting Jan. 23rd.

[discjoker]

Just one of my pet peeves so I will clarify: nothing on the cruise is free (unless of course you "win" something). Things that do not cost extra are included in your fare, not free.

[Guest BeckyThane]

Use of the gym is included in your cruise fare; yoga, pilates, and spinning classes are extra ($10 each, I think).

 

Martini and margherita clinics cost $15 each.

 

Craft classes are included, as are all the other activities put on by the cruise director's staff (bingo and horse races excluded, of course!)

 

There are three for-fee specialty restaurants (Cagney's, Le Bistro, and Teppanyaki/sushi/Asian). I found the food in the main restaurants and not-for-fee specialty restaurants (Salsa and La Trattoria) to be quite good, so you can easily get through the week without paying extra for food. Java Cafe has espresso & capuccino for fee, but why? You can order capuccino for free with your meal in any of the restaurants.

 

And, as another poster has pointed out, nothing is free in the spa. :p

[newmexicoNita]

I think the subject has been pretty well answered. You can stay busy most of the time without spending extra bucks if you choose. of course tipping will be the biggest expense, followed by alcohol (if you drink) soda card or sodas if you don't. The maritini clinic is fun, as someone said, $15 and you can split it with someone else. NMNita

[bakechef]

Having just returned from an NCL cruise, there are plenty of things that you can pay extra for, but there are just as many included in your fare. I for one was very happy to have the cruise portion be very reasonable and have the freedom to spend money on what we wanted to. By the way we spent very little on board, our room charge included tips, an excursion in mexico, the martini clinic (highly recommended), le bistro and a few random drinks. There is plenty included if you are on a budget.:D

 

MAC

[jcarcaramo]

I think the subject has been pretty well answered. You can stay busy most of the time without spending extra bucks if you choose. of course tipping will be the biggest expense, followed by alcohol (if you drink) soda card or sodas if you don't. The maritini clinic is fun, as someone said, $15 and you can split it with someone else. NMNita

What do you mean split it? How is the clinic run?

[PosadaGirl519]

My BF and I were on a very limited budget on the Spirit, but we always had fun! I know the postings make it seem so scary that you are going to end up paying twice as much... but as long as you are reasonable about booze and other on-board expenses, you are good.

 

Check the Freestyle Daily, participate in the activities. The free ones all lasted 15 - 45 min (we did trivia a few times, the golf tournament, saw most of the shows around the ship (DO NOT MISS THE LIMBO KING! He's a trip!) went window shopping, the dance parties, I made a lei in Arts & Crafts, etc.) There are ALWAYS activities and 75% of them were free. These were the only times we interacted with other people on the ship, because dining is fairly private, this was a great way to meet friends on board. Totally hit up the Chocaholic Buffet, but be warned, all the chocolate tastes exactly the same after 5 bites. Out of all the pics I took, those are the ones everyone is the most amazed by, especially when i say "This is what we ate for lunch on Friday."

 

Don't forget about the best parts of cruising:

1. Stuff your face! It's vacation, order as much as you want of anything you want! Even in the specialty restaurants, they only swipe your card at the door, they don't monitor how many sides you order. (P.S. They gladly wrap things so you can bring them back to your room, but don't get too much, because you have to carry the actual ceramic flatware and silverware, no plastic to-go containers, no bags, but they put either saran wrap of a lid on the plates.)

2. Deck actives: tanning, shuffle board, ping pong, swimming, basketball, a driving net (clubs provided)

3. MOST of the gym is free (ellipticals, treadmills, weights, the track on deck 13 (but you may need to knock people out of the way) etc.)

4. WATCH THE DRUNK PEOPLE! At sea, there is always a band of DJ playing somewhere on the ship. We sat back, nursing wine (about $6 per glass for the house) and watched the drunk people dance... and they DO dance. Hours of entertainment!

5. Photographers are always around, we had our picture taken about 25 times. It was like looking for Waldo in the gallery trying to find our pics. We only bought the one of us with the captain for about $20.

 

Honestly, I loved every minute of my cruise! We stayed well within budget by using the coupons (the ship provides them in the Dailys) and taking advantage of the drink 'specials'. We outlined what we definitely wanted to do and spend money on (snorkeling) and even found the casino to have a slightly better pay-back ratio, so we managed to make $100 last several hours! Oh, and take advantages of packages. We got the Honeymoon/Anniversary Package and got dinner and a bottle of wine at Le Bistro, canapes (not for us we learned, but other people might like non-traditional finger sandwiches) chocolate covered strawberries, small pastries, a bottle of wine in our cabin within 30 min of setting sail, and a cake! (Actually, we got 2 cakes by accident... but shhhh!) All of this for $79, where the dinner and wine at Le Bistro alone was 1/2 that. And since it was pre-paid, we got to throughly enjoy it and not stress about seeing it on the bill at the end.

 

Happy Cruising!

[bakechef]

My BF and I were on a very limited budget on the Spirit, but we always had fun! I know the postings make it seem so scary that you are going to end up paying twice as much... but as long as you are reasonable about booze and other on-board expenses, you are good.

 

Check the Freestyle Daily, participate in the activities. The free ones all lasted 15 - 45 min (we did trivia a few times, the golf tournament, saw most of the shows around the ship (DO NOT MISS THE LIMBO KING! He's a trip!) went window shopping, the dance parties, I made a lei in Arts & Crafts, etc.) There are ALWAYS activities and 75% of them were free. These were the only times we interacted with other people on the ship, because dining is fairly private, this was a great way to meet friends on board. Totally hit up the Chocaholic Buffet, but be warned, all the chocolate tastes exactly the same after 5 bites. Out of all the pics I took, those are the ones everyone is the most amazed by, especially when i say "This is what we ate for lunch on Friday."

 

Don't forget about the best parts of cruising:

1. Stuff your face! It's vacation, order as much as you want of anything you want! Even in the specialty restaurants, they only swipe your card at the door, they don't monitor how many sides you order. (P.S. They gladly wrap things so you can bring them back to your room, but don't get too much, because you have to carry the actual ceramic flatware and silverware, no plastic to-go containers, no bags, but they put either saran wrap of a lid on the plates.)

2. Deck actives: tanning, shuffle board, ping pong, swimming, basketball, a driving net (clubs provided)

3. MOST of the gym is free (ellipticals, treadmills, weights, the track on deck 13 (but you may need to knock people out of the way) etc.)

4. WATCH THE DRUNK PEOPLE! At sea, there is always a band of DJ playing somewhere on the ship. We sat back, nursing wine (about $6 per glass for the house) and watched the drunk people dance... and they DO dance. Hours of entertainment!

5. Photographers are always around, we had our picture taken about 25 times. It was like looking for Waldo in the gallery trying to find our pics. We only bought the one of us with the captain for about $20.

 

Honestly, I loved every minute of my cruise! We stayed well within budget by using the coupons (the ship provides them in the Dailys) and taking advantage of the drink 'specials'. We outlined what we definitely wanted to do and spend money on (snorkeling) and even found the casino to have a slightly better pay-back ratio, so we managed to make $100 last several hours! Oh, and take advantages of packages. We got the Honeymoon/Anniversary Package and got dinner and a bottle of wine at Le Bistro, canapes (not for us we learned, but other people might like non-traditional finger sandwiches) chocolate covered strawberries, small pastries, a bottle of wine in our cabin within 30 min of setting sail, and a cake! (Actually, we got 2 cakes by accident... but shhhh!) All of this for $79, where the dinner and wine at Le Bistro alone was 1/2 that. And since it was pre-paid, we got to throughly enjoy it and not stress about seeing it on the bill at the end.

 

Happy Cruising!

 

Sounds like my kind of fun, sometimes the adventure of the bargain can be fun, and not having a huge credit card bill is the best part. I remember a few years ago, I went on a 10 day trip to vegas, I had to have emergency oral surgery a week before we went, so it ate up half of the money I had saved for spending, on top of that my best friend forgot her credit card at home, so she had to live off her debit card. Thank goodness the hotel and palne tickets were prepaid, and the rental car company took her debit card. We found so many things to do on the cheap, and it turned out to be one of the most memorable vacations that I have ever had, we still talk about it often.

 

MAC

[chelseabell01]

the treadmills are free and have nice tv's over them, good for get rid of the pounds from all the free food LOL