Review:Thanksgiving Cruise 2008 Norwegian Spirit

[teefleur]

Sailed 11/23/08 out of New Orleans and in spite of the annual jewelry show at the Convention Center, traffic was not that bad. We were fortunate to have a relative drive us to the port, so parking was not an issue. We arrived about 11:15 and were on board shortly after noon. I did note that there were some empty parking spaces in the Erato Street parking lot, which was the location of our cruise terminal.

 

The ship, even after spending three weeks in dry dock, looked a bit “tired.” There was indeed new carpet throughout, but we never saw or heard one vacuum cleaner the entire week, and those carpet “hairballs” were everywhere. All the windows were dirty, including the glass on the balconies, and when we first arrived in our cabin, part of the lighting and the only 110v plug by the desk did not have juice. Electricians did come fairly soon though, as several cabins on our deck had the same problem. I noticed stains and smeared dirt on many walls. The condition of the furniture in our cabin was deplorable.

 

The built in corner cabinet is a rather strange design. The TV is on the top shelf and the coffee pot and accessories fit nicely on one of the lower shelves – but there is no where to plug it in. As I indicated above, the only 110 outlet is by the desk – with the exception of the bathroom outlet (with the caveat that it’s for shavers only.) So we moved the coffee pot to the tiny desk. There is plenty of storage for clothes, lots of hangers and your suitcases will fit nicely under the bed. The safe is not very convenient, however. It's in the closet, almost on the floor. If you have bad knees or need your bifocals to see the numbers, you're gonna have a problem.

 

All of the staff was friendly and helpful. We were on deck 11 and at times it was late before our room was made up. I think our steward(ess?) did not have enough help. She had the entire starboard side and at times I saw her on the port side, too. A busy gal! But when she got to our room, it was left very clean.

 

The food was fairly good; tasty entrees, good desserts, something for everyone, I’m sure. We ate dinner in the Garden Room, good service but LOUD. One evening, there was a ship announcement that was positively deafening! Lobster night was a let-down. You only get HALF a lobster (about the size of a crawfish) and mine was rubbery and dried out. Raffles Buffet had a nice selection every day and was very crowded at lunch time. Breakfast was really sloooooow if you wanted a special omelet or fried egg. Not enough cook stations and the cooks should have access to more than one pan and burner at a time. Room service was pretty fast, but very limited on choices, especially if you wanted to order breakfast on the door hanger the night before. The room service menu lists a 3 egg omelet available 24/7… But you can’t order it on the breakfast menu! DUH! Oh, one more note on breakfast at Raffles… don’t go too early. DH went before 7 and was very disappointed to find no grits, no biscuits and no gravy. A bit later, all three were available. Note on grits: watery at times. Note on biscuits: not SOUTHERN biscuits! If they’d been made with a little sugar, they’d have been scones! We dined at Le Bistro one evening. Small and intimate, but not worth the extra price, in my opinion. TERRIBLE COFFEE! The only decent coffee we had was from the little packets left in the cabin that fit in the little coffeemaker.

 

We made no excursions this trip, instead we spent time just visiting the port shops. Several people have remarked on the “pushy” vendors in Costa Maya. They are right. Many shops had some beautiful glazed pottery, painted leather and other representations of Maya and Aztec crafts. That port is still recovering from hurricane Dean 2 years ago, so we did spend a few dollars there. There is also live music and a place to sit and enjoy a cerveza or two if you like. Of course there are all the ubiquitous jewelry shops, but you knew that already.

 

We didn’t go ashore in Belize at all, but we have on previous cruises. Banana plantation and the Belize Zoo were very interesting, as I recall. I am now too old for zip lining and cave tubing… sigh.

 

I always refer to Cozumel as the “Atlanta” of the Caribbean. If you fly on the east side of the country, you invariably have to change planes in Atlanta. And if you sail the western Caribbean, your ship will invariably dock in Cozumel. Our visit in Cozumel was a bit different this time, however. DH developed a toothache the night before we arrived there… Does anyone remember Tom Hanks in Cast Away? Well, DH has been putting off having a tooth crowned – and it caught up with him. If he had been able to find an ice skate blade and a rock, very likely he would have tried to solve his problem on his own! Fortunately, the medical clinic aboard the Spirit referred us to a great dentist, who was able to X-Ray and put in a temporary filling – for $43. Try finding a bargain like THAT in the States!

 

We slipped in to the port of Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala in the cool early hours of the morning. Veils of fog lingered between the surrounding hills covered with dense vegetation. As the ship turned to parallel the dock I was dismayed to see what looked like an acre of boxcar shipping containers and dull metal warehouses. This did not look promising but going ashore later, I was pleasantly surprised to find that one of the warehouses was actually a market teeming with native crafts, jade and silver jewelry, embroidered purses and clothing, leather goods and tee shirts, of course. And there were bargains to be had. Just make up your mind what you will pay and be prepared to walk away. You will most likely get your desired item at your offered price. There is a stage in the market upon which various native presentations are given throughout the day. Wonderful folkloric dances performed buy local young people in colorful costumes as well as music played by native artists. Buy a cold drink at one of the little tiendas against the wall, have a seat and enjoy the show! A few dollars in the tip jar is appreciated.

 

And here is the REAL surprise… Be sure to find a place along the rail as the ship prepares to sail for this! The locals drove up, law enforcement and taxis, and parked at the dock with flashing lights on their cars or emergency blinkers on, some blowing horns. ALL of the shopkeepers came to the dock to wave and shout “thank you” and the entertainers put on an amazing show with singing, dancing and music until the ship sailed away. I have never seen such a demonstration and was overwhelmed by the friendliness and apparent gratitude expressed to the cruise visitors. This made a good impression on all of us, I think, and I will definitely visit that country again.

 

We encountered some very rough weather on our approach to the mouth of the Mississippi River on the way home. No way to avoid it by going around but the Spirit is a very stable ship for its small size and seemed to handle it very well.

 

We enjoyed the “On Broadway” performance in the Galaxy of the Stars Theater, a very spirited performance by some very good entertainers. We did not go to see the magician but had a report that he was very good. At Champagne Charlie’s, we listened to excellent singing and keyboards by Arvin and Emily.

 

Overall, I would rate our cruise as good, but not great. All things considered, while the itinerary was very nice, the experience of the ship was not as we had hoped and it seems the Spirit may be a ghost of her former self, unless some dramatic housekeeping is done soon. Would I cruise NCL again? Probably, if the price was right or there was no other cruise line available. Freestyle is OK, but I hated seeing baseball caps covering greasy hair and hairy armpits hanging out of torn off sleeveless shirts in the dining room. I wouldn't like seeing that at McDonald's, come to think of it.

 

Best overheard comment on the ship... Young daughter to Dad while passing through Raffles Buffet, "You mean all this stuff is FREE?!" :D

[mactrio]

Thanks for the review, we're doing the same itinerary 2/22/09 and we appreciate your comments.

[EmmasNana]

Thanks for the review! If you are in a balcony cabin, which side of the ship would you want to be on to be able to see the entertainment as the ship sails away from Santo Tomas de Castilla?

[teefleur]

We were on the starboard or right side.