March 2nd Spirit 9 Day Review

[tncap]

My partner and I just got off the Spirit 9 day Mexican Riviera cruise. We booked an aft balcony (5297) last August and had a pretty active roll call throughout. This was our first experience actively participating in a roll call and it was a great experience! It was nice recognizing people around the ship all the time.

 

We booked the Holiday Inn San Diego on the Bay. While I could have cared less where we stayed, my partner wanted this hotel so he could watch the Spirit dock in the morning. Our balcony room facing the bay was around $170. The layout of this hotel is slightly confusing as there are several buildings that aren't connected. Be sure to ask which elevator to take!

 

This hotel offers complimentary transportation to and from the airport, as well as the cruise terminal. The terminal is directly across the street though, so it was no problem crossing over with our seven pieces of luggage. We flew in so I have no idea if they do a park and cruise package.

 

This is what we got to wake up to:

 

For some perspective:

 

The hotel sold wine but not soft drinks/mixers for our alloted carryon so we headed to Rite-Aid about three blocks away. It was quite convenient since, in Tennessee, wine and liquor cannot be sold at convenience stores, nor can they be sold where beer is sold.:rolleyes: The wine sales don't begin until 10:00am however, so several cruisers just walked around the store until then.

 

We each carried on a bottle of wine and twelve bottles of mixers, though it was apparent from the security check we could have taken on as much as we pleased. We ordered two bottles of Absolut from Bon Voyage (before the prices went up). We also "forgot" and left a runner of Bailey's in our checked luggage.;) There was also a bottle of red wine with the fruit basket from Bon Voyage, plus four bottles from a winery we visited later in the cruise. Seven bottles of wine and 2.75 liters of liquor was overkill but we did the best we could.:D

 

 

You can also see where the 220v outlet for the Aussies has been added next to the 110v.

 

-Robert

[4hunters]

Excellent start -- keep it coming! :D

[beachesanywhere]

More, more, more, Please:) We leave in 3 days:D:D

[tncap]

This was our first cruise with anytime dining, and it was quite hit or miss. I believe the entire upper level of the Empire (pronounced ahmpeeyre, or something to that effect:p) Dining Room was ATD. We were able to get booths or tables for two, and we generally ate between 6:00 and 6:30. There is more also more privacy if you ask for a table for two by the balcony. Much less privacy with tables by the windows. One night, we finished our meal in a little under an hour. Another, it took well over two. Ask for Joel from Honduras! If you get seated with Kanoksri from Thailand, ask to be moved.

 

We tried the martini tasting the first night, though it is available all cruise. The chipotle martini is... interesting. We each tried four. Small but powerful!

 

 

Sea Day 1

 

We tried breakfast and lunch in the dining room for the first time. I think I prefer lido for breakfast just for the entertainment value. The lines at lunch though would definitely have me doing lunch in the dining room. Incidentally, these two women got into a yelling match because one stuck her finger in the other's dessert plate on lido. Cruising makes us normal people feel so much better about ourselves!:D

 

We attended the food and wine pairing in the steakhouse around noon. Anna, the sommelier and host, was excellent! She is one of the stars on the Spirit.

 

 

We arranged for our Cruise Critic meet and greet in the piano bar at 2pm. We weren't quite sure what to expect having never attended one, but we had a great time. It seemed well-attended and afterward we headed to the casino for an impromptu slot pull amongst us. Our $90 lasted us over an hour and provided waaay too many laughs! I also got addicted to the casino vault around this time. On the 9 day cruise, 2 of 3 iPads+$500 were won, and I think one each of the $200 and $100 cash prizes. They are making a ton of money off that thing!

 

The show, Jazz Hot, as well as the comedians, were good. Russ Nagel was probably the funniest of the cruise.

 

Sea Day 2

 

This morning we attended the cooking demo in the steakhouse, as we had reservations later in the cruise. It was very crowded. Sit in the upper level of the steakhouse for the best view. The mac and cheese at the demo was probably the best I've ever had! This is also a good opportunity for free entertainment because whenever you have food being passed out and people eating while others wait, there is bound to be some humorous complaining.

 

We played bingo on a lark with some of our new friends from the meet and greet and I ended up winning $800! We ended up having a pretty lucky roll call as another member won $250 at a different bingo session and two couples combined for over $1K in slot winnings. The juggling/comedy act this evening was much better than the one I remember on the Miracle five years ago, and the comedians were hilarious per usual.

[sjn911]

Really enjoying your review and especialy luck with the activities!!...Sarah

[silvercrikhix]

Great start! Looking forward to more! Congrats on the lucky $800 :D

[tncap]

Manzanillo

 

Our roll call had several members interested in going to Las Hadas in Manzanillo as it was free to use the facilities and beach access, and was pay-as-you-go as opposed to all-inclusive.

 

We ended up with 5 couples going and thanks to iwannacruznow, our Spanish-speaking roll call member, we got a price of $10/pp roundtrip, which was about half what other taxi vans were charging.

 

 

The ride out to Las Hadas was around 30 minutes, but well worth it!

 

Las Hadas lobby:

 

Pool area:

 

Swim-up bar:

 

Beach area:

 

There is also a section on the beach with tent-covered chairs that were available to use free of charge.

 

We even came across a starfish in the surf:

[debster11]

Ok I gotta ask. 7 suitcases for the two of you?! :eek::eek: Wow, awesome!

[tncap]

Manzanillo

 

You can see the covered seating area to the right of this photo:

 

Las Hadas was much nicer than I was expecting. Except for some retirees that spend their days sailing their watercraft up and down the Baja (tough life!), we basically had the run of the place.

 

That evening, we attended Chef's Table. Chef Jerry Furtado is quite charming. While I am glad we went, in the future I would rather have two nights in the steakhouse. Both red and white wine were unlimited, however, and they seemed to top the glasses up after one or two sips.

 

For a beautiful comprehensive review of Chef's Table in general, check out this thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1538638

 

Some in our group attended the "super deck party" that evening, but it fell a bit short. The age demographic on this cruise was relatively advanced (;)), due to both the length of the voyage and that it occured during the early part of spring break season.

 

We attended karaoke with Jay who, might I say, is absolutely brilliant!:D

[new_cruiser_75]

Thank you, thank you! You seem to be the first to do a review with pictures since the dry doc.

 

With just over 2 weeks left until I get to walk in your shoes, this is just adds to my excitement! :D

[xbatt8]

Very happy to hear most of the review so far. We leave in just a matter of hours.... :D

 

Bob

[CupKayke]

O-o-o awesome observations. ;) I like you already! Great review. :)

[sharecruises]

Congrats on your win

 

Hoping to see more pics/hear more about dry dock

 

I will be on Spirit this May to Alaska

 

How was the Serenity area?? Is the ship in "good shape"?

 

How were the Hot Tubs??

 

thanks in advance

[chadsjewel]

We were on this sailing and I cant wait to read your review! I havent done mine yet *blush*

[tiggerman101]

Good job so far! It is good to see something about the ship post dry dock. We shall see her in person soon! Looking forward to meeting you guys on our Baltic cruise next year.

[karatemom2]

Beautiful photos! Thanks for the great review. I am following along closesly as we are leaving on the same trip in a couple of weeks. We also have a few people interested in Las Hadas. Could you tell me if your traveling companion arranged that van in advance or did she negotiate it that morning at the port? Also, you mention there was not charge to use the facilities, but just pay as you go. We had been informed that day visitors were required to buy coupons equating to 400 pesos per person that could then be used to purchase services, but from what your describing we can just go and purchase what we want as we go along. Is that correct?

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post your photos and review!

[PCHENG]

Thank you for the review. I have been eagerly awaiting for reviews with pics of the Spirit post dry dock, and yours is the first even though the dry dock was completed almost two months ago.

 

Please post more pictures of the ship itself. I am curious to see all the new things added including the new waterworks, serenity, and the new barbecue space.

[surfer_00]

hola there roberto! Great pics so far! I just finished my review in the review section of CC. I haven't even unpacked my camera yet lol. Looking forward to reading more :)

[gelo7]

Excellent review.

[tncap]

Puerto Vallarta

 

We were docked with the Sapphire Princess today as well as our two days in Cabo. I love that forward promenade deck at the very front of the ship!

 

 

You can see here where Green Thunder goes over the side of the ship, though I never knew it as it goes VERY fast!

 

 

We went on the Signature Dolphin Swim, booked through the ship. While this excursion is not cheap, it was well worth it. We were in a small group of five with two dolphins and a trainer. While the facility seemed a bit small for 22 dolphins, it is clear that the trainers have great passion for what they do. We had around an hour actually in the water.

 

 

 

 

It was an awesome experience! Note that if you have observers in your party, they can take photos from an observation deck across the pool. While the photos that the professional photographer takes are pricey, they are well worth it.

 

There are also a ton of iguanas roaming the grounds, which all the kids seemed to enjoy.

 

[cathyz]

Congrats on your win

 

Hoping to see more pics/hear more about dry dock

 

I will be on Spirit this May to Alaska

 

How was the Serenity area?? Is the ship in "good shape"?

 

How were the Hot Tubs??

 

thanks in advance

DH and I were also on this cruise and haven't yet done a review, we just downloaded the pics from the camera today! The Serenity area was very nice, lots of comfy lounes, clamshells, other chairs and sofas, but on a sea day it is very crowded. There are also a few tables closer to the bar for eating, we could usually find one or more of those available even on busy days. The ship was in very good shape, we didn't see any furniture, carpet, etc., issues (we were also on the Spirit last October). All the cabins now have flat screen TVs, but the remotes were really bad (we traveled with friends who said the same). We had a great time and will miss the Spirit when she moves to Australia. I'll try to do a review soon and put our pics out there too.

[Payd]

Fantastic pictures and a great review. Looking forward to more!

[tncap]

Dinner in the steakhouse was amazing. Probably the best steak I have ever had. Like I said, I would prefer two nights in the steakhouse over Chef's Table, if you had to choose. As I said previously, the vibration on Spirit was quite noticeable. This can best be illustrated in this short video I took from the steakhouse:

 

 

It was so bad it was almost comical. That being said, I would sit through it again for that filet!

[tncap]

Cabo San Lucas

 

We woke up to see Land's End and Carnival Splendor out our aft balcony.

 

 

There were 3-4 ships in port on each of our two days in Cabo, but the port never seemed that crowded. I suspect quite a few people never left their ships.

 

We went with the Chileno Bay/Santa Maria snorkeling excursion booked through the ship on our first morning. We loaded up in some 24 foot zodiacs and were told for a smoother ride to sit in the back. Naturally, I sat in the front. All we needed were some paintball guns and bottles of butyric acid for a Whale Wars recreation!

 

 

We started with the standard view of the arch, Lover's Beach, etc. All water activities booked through the ship (and I imagine all private ones as well) take you by these areas.

 

And speaking of whales, though March was towards the end of the season for them, there were multiple sightings. Our driver (captain?) saw some spouts in the distance so he raced over and after a few minutes we saw several up close.

 

 

 

I couldn't have gotten better pictures on a whale-watching excursion, so I was ecstatic that this was "included" with the snorkeling.

 

The water was, as the guide called it, "refreshing." I called it "cold." The water temperature was 66 or so. Despite that, there were plenty of snorkeling excursions out and about. It was my first time snorkeling in the ocean so I don't have anything to compare it to. I was told that it is much better in the Caribbean though.

 

 

We stopped by Senor Frog's for a couple of yards of drinks. The waitress (more like impresario) attempted to get us to take shots off of various parts of her body. I don't think she realized she was barking up the wrong tree!

 

 

Betwixt the drinks, you can see the place where photos with lion cubs can be had. There has been some heated discussion whether this is legit or not. I'm going with no. I just think it is odd that the wildlife sanctuary in Mexico City it is supposedly supporting is called something generic like "wildlife sanctuary in Mexico City."

 

The hypnosis show this evening was as cheesy as I remember. I don't find contrived stuff amusing, but apparently the rest of the audience did!

[tncap]

Beautiful photos! Thanks for the great review. I am following along closesly as we are leaving on the same trip in a couple of weeks. We also have a few people interested in Las Hadas. Could you tell me if your traveling companion arranged that van in advance or did she negotiate it that morning at the port? Also, you mention there was not charge to use the facilities, but just pay as you go. We had been informed that day visitors were required to buy coupons equating to 400 pesos per person that could then be used to purchase services, but from what your describing we can just go and purchase what we want as we go along. Is that correct?

 

Thanks again for taking the time to post your photos and review!

 

She just negotiated the van that morning in port. We were not charged for coupons, we checked at the desk and just went on back. It was obvious that they aren't used to the pay-as-you-go option, but it worked out splendidly for us.