Spirit 12/18-12/25 review

[margaretevanescence]

Coxen Hole, Roatan - pictures from our balcony

 

We left for the ship at 3:15PM arriving back in plenty time, but unfortunately a few from the Spirit did not. We watched a couple passing back and forth between the gangway and port security waiting for 4 passengers with the same last name - we assumed their family/kids. The couple ended up staying on shore as the boat left them behind...

 

I had no idea people were left behind! I noticed at every port at least 2 people were late getting on but never noticed anyone left behind. That's a bummer! I hope everything worked out okay.

[Stickman81]

Great job on the pictures.

I enjoyed the underwater snaps!

[jdvmd]

Coxen Hole, Roatan - pictures from our balcony

 

 

 

For our excursion in Roatan, we found a beach club on West Bay Beach (on the CC ports board) called Bananarama. They have a neat story and donate a portion of their profits to a community effort to called "Familias Saludables" which is a non-profit, non-denominational organization devoted to fighting the AIDS epidemic on Roatan and the Bay Islands. Their major focus is on reducing the incidence of mother-to-child transmission of the virus both at birth and via breast milk.

 

I contacted them via an 800 number and paid $30 pp. in advance. When we arrived on Roatan (once again after having a bit of trouble finding the right gate for our driver - if you decide to go, contact me and I will give you MUCH better directions) we eventually found the driver with a Bananarama sign. He loaded the 4 in our family plus my parents into his large and air-conditioned van. We took a gorgeous 20 min. trip up over the mountains and back down to West Bay Beach and the Bananarama resort.

 

Our $30 bought us a private driver to and from Bananarama at times that we chose, a beach chair and a welcome drink - we had pina coladas! The weather was amazing and the water was so incredibly clear while we were there. All of us snorkeled, which was the absolute best of any place that we tried on the trip!

 

I had read Mitsugirly's review extensively (thank you Mitsu!) and we were easily able to find the channel out to the reef. The landmark was a huge inflatable triangular shaped slide which was about 100 yards to the east (left if facing the water) from Bananaramma. Several of us swam out three times and saw the most amazing coral formations and species of fish. DD and I even saw an eel on our last swim. The second time out we swam past the reef closest to shore, over a channel of about 20 ft. in depth to the outer reef. The drop off there was sooo deep that it was scary - I estimated that we were looking 60 ft. down but DH thinks it was more like 40-50 ft.

 

Our pictures, both in the water and on land, were taken by underwater disposable cameras which we plan to develop in the next few days. I'll post those as soon as possible.

 

Around 1:00PM we had lunch at Bananarama's beach side restaurant (they also have a fine dining spot). Nachos, smoked fish and tortillas as an appetizer, then we tried pulled pork quesadillas, cheeseburgers, fish tacos, etc. All were very good and fresh tasting. The fries were excellent :)

 

We left for the ship at 3:15PM arriving back in plenty time, but unfortunately a few from the Spirit did not. We watched a couple passing back and forth between the gangway and port security waiting for 4 passengers with the same last name - we assumed their family/kids. The couple ended up staying on shore as the boat left them behind...

If anyone ever watches HGTV's "House Hunters," the folks who bought Bananarama were featured in the show about two years ago. The show repeats pretty frequently.

[margaretevanescence]

If anyone ever watches HGTV's "House Hunters," the folks who bought Bananarama were featured in the show about two years ago. The show repeats pretty frequently.

 

My mom watches that show a lot! I will tell her about it :D

[christiecruise]

The last port was Cozumel. We were up pretty early so DH and I had breakfast at Cagney's while the kids got Raffles and ate in our room. The NCL Star was docked just across the pier from us and it was a bit strange to look across the balcony and see right in to their rooms. No undressing with the curtains open!

 

We left our room just after 9 AM with the expectation of meeting our guide at 9:30. It took a bit longer than planned as so many people were getting off both ships at the same time.

 

Geez, once again we had a bit of a delay trying to locate our driver - as due to regulations he had to meet us outside of the port area. This ongoing issue in every port was frustrating! It really never should have been difficult, but the emailed directions that we got from each and every tour provider were vague, misleading or just not specific enough for someone doing it for the first time. I would be SO happy to help any CCers with directions to the meeting points if you choose any of the same tour providers!!

 

Anyhoo, the famed Gerry of the CC Cozumel Board was our driver for the day - and as all have said in the past - he was amazing. I had emailed in advance that we wanted to spend the bulk of our time snorkeling, but once we found Gerry at 9:45 AM, he asked if we'd like a brief tour of the island. We agreed and asked to stop at an ATM first for cash and at a pharmacy for more sunscreen. Gerry suggested that we convert some USD (which were spit out by the ATM in the port area) for places on the far shore which might give us a better price in Pesos. He took the money for us to a shop a few doors down and got us a better conversion rate as he was local - the first of many things that Gerry did for us. A few doors farther was "Drugs and Deli" were we bought sunscreen for $16.50 USD - so bring plenty!

 

Off we drove in his small wagon for the north side of the island. Gerry asked if we would like to stop at a store for beers, etc. but we had brought water with us so declined. We drove on a road paralleling the shore line and Gerry told us stories about the monuments and grand waterfront homes that we passed.

 

He also related that Mexican President, Felipe Calderón was vacationing on the island that day, and drove us by his compound complete with armed guards and dogs spread out over a mile or so. Across the road, away from the ocean was the airport which had two WWII airplanes displayed next to the road. Gerry related the story of how Mexico had participated in WWII at the invitation of the US, but declined to become involved in future wars. It seemed to me that he was proud that his country had never been persuaded to become involved in future conflicts.

 

We stopped to snorkel at the free beach adjacent to the Money Bar at Gerry's suggestion. Did not see much and everyone was stung once or twice by something (maybe tiny jellyfish?), so the kids actually said that we should just do a tour of the island. Gerry next took us to a free Tequilla tour which was really fun!

 

 

 

 

Part 2 of Cozumel next!

[christiecruise]

If anyone ever watches HGTV's "House Hunters," the folks who bought Bananarama were featured in the show about two years ago. The show repeats pretty frequently.

 

Thanks so much for the tip! Loooove House Hunters - will look for the episode. Also neat that they are a "green" resort and have recently adopted many eco-friendly policies.

[christiecruise]

After the tequila tour (and a souvenir bottle for DH), we headed to Punta Sur, a preserve on the far southern point of Cozumel. I had read much about how beautiful it was along with good snorkeling. Alas, when we arrived at the gate, Gerry found out for us that the surf was heavy and the water clarity was only 40%. We opted to pay $6 pp.(USD) to tour the preserve and lighthouse, but skipped the extra $6 pp. to go to the farther off beach. Probably a good decision - here are some photos:

 

 

Looking over the alligator lagoon

 

 

 

From the lighthouse

 

[imghttp://images3a.snapfish.com/232323232%7Ffp73449%3Enu%3D%3B638%3E99%3A%3E257%3EWSNRCG%3D34969675%3A4348nu0mrj[/img]

 

[christiecruise]

I had no idea people were left behind! I noticed at every port at least 2 people were late getting on but never noticed anyone left behind. That's a bummer! I hope everything worked out okay.

 

Hey Valerie,

 

My Dad had been watching them from his balcony. The 4 people with the same last name were asked to call the operator immediately on at least 3 occasions during the last half-hour before we departed. You must have been doing something fun and missed hearing the announcements! ;)

[christiecruise]

I'm having so much fun now that I've figured out how to post photos...

 

Here are more from Punta Sur:

 

 

 

 

 

[christiecruise]

Next, Gerry drove us up the East coast of Cozumel - passing the Bob Marley Bar...

 

 

and some blow holes

 

 

to a fantastic beachfront restaurant for lunch

 

 

 

 

We invited Gerry to join us

 

 

[christiecruise]

The company

 

 

And the food was amazing! I ordered a ceviche which I split with everyone and after half of my share remained, I remembered to take a picture. The total bill for our group (they charged us 1/2 price for Gerry), including 6 drinks, guacamole, salsa and chips and 5 entrees came out to $77 US.

 

 

Kids had red and green enchiladas which were fabulous,

 

 

 

DH had the butterflied shrimp which were outstanding! This place tied Maya Chan for the best food of the trip!

 

After paying the bill, the staff wanted to give all of us a shot of tequila at the end "on the house" - only DH accepted!

 

 

[PreciousCruiser]

Great Pics! Glad U were able to post them. Do you have any of Banarama? We were thinking of going to The Infinity Bay Resort or Mayan Princess, but Banarama was also an option. Would love to see more pics. Pls. keep them coming.

[christiecruise]

Great Pics! Glad U were able to post them. Do you have any of Banarama? We were thinking of going to The Infinity Bay Resort or Mayan Princess, but Banarama was also an option. Would love to see more pics. Pls. keep them coming.

 

Banarama pics are all on our disposable waterproof cameras - thanks for the reminder - might run out right now!

 

Here are a few of the ship:

 

Leaving NOLA on Dec. 18th

 

 

 

Latitudes party 1st day at sea

 

 

Windows - evening night 1

 

 

Dinner at Cagney's 2nd night - the lovely Mercedes, our server!

 

[christiecruise]

A few more pictures from Cozumel:

 

 

 

 

Surfing Santa with armpit hair!

 

 

Sad to say Good-bye to Gerry, but he was a great guide!

 

[christiecruise]

After our great day in Cozumel, we were tired and feeling like the end of the trip was arriving too soon.

 

When DH the kids and I arrived back to the ship, my parents had a "do not disturb" sign on the door. We waited an hour or so before knocking, thinking that they were just napping after their day on Cozumel - they had planned to walk around the town and maybe take a taxi to a nearby beach bar.

 

Unfortunately, Dad opened up the adjoining door with his bottle of rum and a glass in hand and told us that he would like to join us alone for cocktail hour. Mom had been up all night with stomach cramps and after reporting to the medical facility in the afternoon had been "confined to quarters" with suspected Norovirus.

 

Here is the crazy thing - my mother is the queen of hand washing and had spent the past few days telling the rest of us to wash, wash, sanitize, not touch our faces or blow our noses (we all have allergies) unless our hands were clean. Poor Mom.

 

Dad had brought dry toast to her from Raffles in the morning and she had spent all day in bed :( After Mom was sleeping in the afternoon, Dad did go up by himself to the pool area and said that he enjoyed sitting near the band and had a bartender who kept refilling his drink.

 

DD did not have the Norovirus (we think) but was feeling a bit "off" in the evening, so our dinner in Windows was just Dad, DH, DS and me. We had a very good meal at a great table in the aft of the dining room.

 

It was wonderful that the ship had room service - Mom and DD ended up ordering chicken soup and ginger ale - DD spent the evening in our balcony room.

 

The rest of us went to bed by 10:30 to get some sleep, and thankfully the rest of us avoided "the little bug" as Capt. Lars called it.

 

Had a fun gorilla towel animal on the bed that evening

[christiecruise]

Last day, at sea. DH and I had breakfast at Cagney's, and after found out that Mom was feeling much better. She really wanted to get out and walk around, but was still confined to cabin until 5PM as long as she had no more symptoms - and she obeyed. Thankfully, they had a balcony and she spent the majority of the sunny and warm day there.

 

Dad, DH, DD, DS and I enjoyed the bulk of the day around the pool, near the band. The pool band was so enjoyable - just laid-back. I finished my Margaret Atwood novel, "The Year of the Flood", DH worked on "Caribbean" by James Mitchner, DD was reading "Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter" by Mario Vargas Llosa, DS listened to his "Beats by Dre" and Dad concentrated on rum and cokes along with a few trips to check on Mom.

 

 

Hubby took some pics of ice sculptures being carved on the pool deck

 

 

 

The day was really nice until about 4PM - I took these next pictures just after the clouds started taking over

 

 

 

Next Dad, DH and I headed for the -

 

[christiecruise]

When Dad, DH and I headed to the Bier Garten, Mom still had an hour left on her confinement. NFL games were on the TV's which were located above the bar area and we saw a few guys smoking cigars. I brought up 2 Cubans from our cabin that DH had purchased in San Pedro after our snorkeling tour, which Dad and DH enjoyed along with beers while I had a few cocktails. Great crew at the Bier Garten - we said we couldn't believe we'd not been up there sooner on the cruise. Goes to show how much there is to do on the Spirit - hard to fit it all in!

 

 

Meanwhile, the kids got ready for dinner and waited for us in our room while enjoying the last Harry Potter movie.

 

 

We had a great Christmas Eve dinner at Windows around 7 PM. All of our food was very good this evening and we headed back to open gifts at 8:30.

 

 

We wrapped up the evening after opening gifts and everyone headed back to their cabins to pack before bed. I went out to the Grand Centrum to deliver some tips and realized that the Christmas Carol program was about to begin. Called DD, but she was already in her jammies, Mom was not, so the two of us went down for the program.

 

I wish that I had taken the camera, as it was so special! A large group of the crew, plus all of the officers stood on the twin staircases which flanked the Christmas tree in the Grand Centrum. Song booklets were distributed and the crew, officers and a group of at least 300 passengers joined together to sing carols. The main floor was full and the next two ship floors were filled with passengers looking down from the railings.

 

Mom gave me a huge hug and we were both so happy to have one traditional Christmas experience during our Caribbean Christmas week.

[margaretevanescence]

 

I wish that I had taken the camera, as it was so special! A large group of the crew, plus all of the officers stood on the twin staircases which flanked the Christmas tree in the Grand Centrum. Song booklets were distributed and the crew, officers and a group of at least 300 passengers joined together to sing carols. The main floor was full and the next two ship floors were filled with passengers looking down from the railings.

 

Mom gave me a huge hug and we were both so happy to have one traditional Christmas experience during our Caribbean Christmas week.

 

I thought the Christmas carol was wonderful. I was getting a little homesick because this was my first Christmas eve without my mom and grandma. We are a very close family. Me and a friend stood near Champagne Charlies singing along with everyone. I agree with you, it was wonderful. Good news! I was able to get some of it on video, I will post it on here later.

[christiecruise]

Seems like I should do a wrap-up of the week, so here goes...

 

We booked this trip to: enjoy spending time together as a family; experience sunshine during our darkest days in Ohio; visit amazing ports where we could snorkel and relax on beautiful beaches.

 

By that criteria, the trip was fabulously successful! On top of that, we felt that the Spirit crew and officers were outstanding and made our vacation even more enjoyable.

 

I don't think that there were any negatives on this trip, we all enjoyed it very much, however our family has decided that cruise vacations may not be the way we want to travel together in the future.

 

Here is why:

 

Our kids are 17 and 20 and social life on board the cruise ship was not their cup of tea. They had both just come off of difficult semesters where they worked very hard - and wanted to sleep, do the islands, eat dinner with us and the grandparents. Neither of our kids went out at night unless for a half an hour with one of us. They were not disappointed, but didn't feel that anything on the ship was compelling enough to seek out in addition to what we did as a family. I realize of course, that this was not the fault of the ship!

 

We all enjoyed having nice dinners together - without having to cook or clean-up. Mom and I probably appreciated the cabin stewards the most, as we do those tasks at home. However, Mom, my sister and I love to cook - and make dinners on our vacations together (and at home) which far exceed what we ate most nights on our cruise.

 

The entertainment on the Spirit was fine, what we saw was enjoyed, but not what our family would normally seek out or pay to see. We also felt that the time on each island (with disembarking and reembarking each day) was too short, and would prefer to have more time on land to experience the ports.

 

Our next family vacation is in late June of this year to Lake Tahoe where we are renting a 4,000 sq. ft. waterfront home along with my sister from Seattle. The property had a pier for boats which we will rent and a sandy beach on which we will relax or launch our kayaks at any time of the day. The women will be cooking several times during the week, with clean-up on going all week. No bartender or steward. It will be very different from our fabulous cruise, and I will be interested to hear the kids' comparison to our week on the Spirit. The cost per person for the house, rental cars, food, meals out and activities - I am estimating to be the same or slightly less pp. than the cruise cost pp..

 

DH and I are still looking at a NCL trip on the Jade to the Canary islands and a 25 yr. wedding anniversary trip on NCL on the Copenhagen/St. Petersburg route. I think that cruising for us is all about seeing foreign ports where we travel without unpacking a suitcase every other day.

 

I don't mean for this to be a negative review at all. We loved our vacation on the Spirit!

 

Happy cruising to you all, and once again, thank you to all CCers who helped me plan a wonderful cruise for my family!

 

XO - Christie

[PreciousCruiser]

Christie: Thanks so much for posting your review. I thoroughly enjoyed all of it. Enjoy ur next vacation in June. I've always wanted to go to Lake Tahoe, although, I was always thinking of going in the winter for snow skiing. Never thought about going in the summer. That sounds awesome! I'll have to keep that in mind. Thanks again... :)

[Nayola]

Great review! Thanks for sharing your photos, insight, and tips.

[notes4theheart]

You mentioned two wonderful servers in the MDR. Do you happen to remember either of their names?

 

I'll be sailing soon and I'd rather ask for an exceptional server.

[christiecruise]

Hi notes4theheart,

 

I can only remember one tonight, but will check my notes. Joeslep - not 100% sure of the spelling, but am sure that he pronounced it "Joe-Slep" was outstanding. He really made our dinners in Windows so enjoyable.

 

Hope you have a great experience on the ship and in the wonderful ports!

 

Christie

[notes4theheart]

Hi notes4theheart,

 

I can only remember one tonight, but will check my notes. Joeslep - not 100% sure of the spelling, but am sure that he pronounced it "Joe-Slep" was outstanding. He really made our dinners in Windows so enjoyable.

 

Hope you have a great experience on the ship and in the wonderful ports!

 

Christie

 

Thanks so much!