Talk to Me About Spirit

[cruisexlife]

Hello,

 

I was searching for a Carnival cruise for November 2015 and either the itinerary or price wasn't appealing to me, and I could not find one that could appeal to both. So I meandered over to www.ncl.com , and lo and behold, I found a cruise I like, 2 actually, but the other is Breakaway, but that'll depend on flights, but I wanna see Tortola, and.....

 

Back to the point. It's a 7 night cruise for Thanksgiving Week on Spirit. Here's the itinerary.

 

Sat Nov. 21st: Port Canaveral, USA, Depart at 4PM

Sun Nov. 22nd: Nassau, Bahamas, 8AM-3PM

Mon Nov. 23rd: Day at Sea

Tue Nov. 24th: St.Thomas, US Virgin Islands, 11AM-7PM

Wed Nov. 25th: Tortola, British Virgin Islands, 8AM-6PM

Thur Nov. 26th (Thanksgiving): Day at Sea

Fri Nov. 27th: Day at Sea

Sat Nov. 28th: Port Canaveral, USA, Arrive at 7AM

 

This is a great itinerary for Thanksgiving Week in my opinion! In Nassau, we'll go to the Bob Marley Resort Spa like we tried to last time (read my review to find out :D), in St.Thomas we can go to Magen's Bay Beach or Coki Beach, or go snorkelling, or back to St.John's, and Tortola will be new, but we can visit the baths at Virgin Gorda, something I've longed to do since I learned about them. :D There are also 3 sea days, perfect for some ship relaxation time.

 

What is onboard the ship to do? I'm not picky, and I have loved every ship I've cruised on, and if you look in my signature and see which ones, you'll realize I have not and do not cruise based on ship, but more on ports. So as long as there are hot tubs, a gym, deck-chairs, good food, and a place for em to sleep, I'm good!

 

My mom will be going with me, as we have kept our Thanksgiving cruise tradition for 6 years now, and she actually cruised on Norwegian twice with friends before I was born, and after checking, she still has loyalty points! So we will have the Latitudes Reward Benefits for our room .What are they? She has 14 points I believe, two 7 night cruises.

 

What is the deal with the "Free Ultimate Dining Package"? I went through and did a mock booking and it was the same amount as the regular price of an oceanview ($1540 for 2 on Deck 8 or 9, Full Window, not bad), so I want to get it .What are the restrictions, and what are some onboard restaurants? Can i only choose one? Do I have to eat there every day to utilize the privliges?

 

What are the passengers like on a 7 night holiday week Caribbean cruise? Lots of little kids, teenagers, trashy people? We don't mind it, but I just want to know what to expect.

 

Lastly, are there any ways for the price of my cruise to go down over time? We always book Early Saver on Carnival, and basically if the price drops, no matter the sale, which has happened to us every cruise, they give you the difference in onboard credit. We got $350 back on our balcony room on Glory, it was most of our excursion money! :D Or is $1,540 final, beofre flights and excursions? On Carnival, it's either $1,380 for an itinerary we've already done, as well as inconvienient port times and departure dates, in an obstructed room (the only reason we wanted this one was for a specific room which sold out) or $1,680 for good ports and times and a nice room. So $1,540 isn't bad for a new experience and a new port.

 

Thanks so much to anyone who can help me! :D Happy Cruising! :D

 

PS- I came back to edit this once I realized that no excursions are shown for St.Thomas or Tortola, can someone please explain? I do like the variety of Nassau Excursions as well as the lower price than Carnival.

Edited February 7, 2015 by cruisexlife

[dexddd]

We've been on the Spirit and going again in Dec. The Spirit is the oldest in the NCL fleet but a very nice ship IMO. There is a lot of brass and wood throughout plus it has an Asian decor. Check a thread by computerworks for a great review with pictures.

[titangas]

Spirit is one of m favorite ships.

 

I am not a big fan of the huge MEGA ships. I think the size of the Spirit is just about perfect.

 

Very well decorated, with a classy Asian flare.

All of the Specialty restaurants are in nice locations, with a good feel with the exception of the Italian one.

 

The Spirit has a great section in the AFT. It has some tiered seating and a great place to just hang out while at sea.

 

If you are picking the cruise based off of itinerary anyway, the Spirit surely will not disappoint.

[cruisexlife]

Spirit is one of m favorite ships.

 

I am not a big fan of the huge MEGA ships. I think the size of the Spirit is just about perfect.

 

Very well decorated, with a classy Asian flare.

All of the Specialty restaurants are in nice locations, with a good feel with the exception of the Italian one.

 

The Spirit has a great section in the AFT. It has some tiered seating and a great place to just hang out while at sea.

 

If you are picking the cruise based off of itinerary anyway, the Spirit surely will not disappoint.

 

That's what I was thinking. Thank you so much for your input!

[cruisexlife]

We've been on the Spirit and going again in Dec. The Spirit is the oldest in the NCL fleet but a very nice ship IMO. There is a lot of brass and wood throughout plus it has an Asian decor. Check a thread by computerworks for a great review with pictures.

 

Thanks so much, I'll go look for it.

[minaco]

We have sailed on the Spirit twice out of New Orleans to the Western Caribbean. Loved it both times. So much so that we are now booked on her again for a 12 night Mediterranean cruise in August from Barcelona to Venice. We find the size of the ship to be just right. Another unique thing with this ship is that the main auditorium is located at the aft of the ship as opposed to forward where they usually are.

[Cokeman305]

Great deal we booked it this weekend and got the unlimited beverage package!

[mitsugirly]

Hello,

 

I was searching for a Carnival cruise for November 2015 and either the itinerary or price wasn't appealing to me, and I could not find one that could appeal to both. So I meandered over to www.ncl.com , and lo and behold, I found a cruise I like, 2 actually, but the other is Breakaway, but that'll depend on flights, but I wanna see Tortola, and.....

 

Back to the point. It's a 7 night cruise for Thanksgiving Week on Spirit. Here's the itinerary.

 

Sat Nov. 21st: Port Canaveral, USA, Depart at 4PM

Sun Nov. 22nd: Nassau, Bahamas, 8AM-3PM

Mon Nov. 23rd: Day at Sea

Tue Nov. 24th: St.Thomas, US Virgin Islands, 11AM-7PM

Wed Nov. 25th: Tortola, British Virgin Islands, 8AM-6PM

Thur Nov. 26th (Thanksgiving): Day at Sea

Fri Nov. 27th: Day at Sea

Sat Nov. 28th: Port Canaveral, USA, Arrive at 7AM

 

This is a great itinerary for Thanksgiving Week in my opinion! In Nassau, we'll go to the Bob Marley Resort Spa like we tried to last time (read my review to find out :D), in St.Thomas we can go to Magen's Bay Beach or Coki Beach, Coki Beach is an awesome place for snorkeling. I probably seen more there than any other place snorkeling (which includes any snorkeling by boat as well). I have a huge review in my signature line if you are interested with TONS of pictures of the snorkeling. or go snorkelling, or back to St.John's, and Tortola will be new, but we can visit the baths at Virgin Gorda, something I've longed to do since I learned about them. :D There are also 3 sea days, perfect for some ship relaxation time.

 

What is onboard the ship to do? I'm not picky, and I have loved every ship I've cruised on, and if you look in my signature and see which ones, you'll realize I have not and do not cruise based on ship, but more on ports. So as long as there are hot tubs, a gym, deck-chairs, good food, and a place for em to sleep, I'm good!

 

My mom will be going with me, as we have kept our Thanksgiving cruise tradition for 6 years now, and she actually cruised on Norwegian twice with friends before I was born, and after checking, she still has loyalty points! So we will have the Latitudes Reward Benefits for our room .What are they? She has 14 points I believe, two 7 night cruises.

 

Latitudes and points give you different things along the way. Two cruises and 14 points puts you at Bronze, which is the bottom of the tier and just starting out.

 

What you get:

 

Monthly Latitudes Rewards Insider Offers on Select Sailings(varies for international guests)

 

 

 

Complimentary Latitudes Rewards Online Magazine

 

 

 

Priority Check-in

 

 

 

Onboard Latitudes Rewards RepresentativeOnboard Discounts:

10% discount at Duty-Free Shop on all Norwegian Logo merchandise, good for one purchase only. Cannot be combined with another additional discount or coupon. On Pride of America only, 10% discount on any item excluding sale items, alcohol, tobacco and onboard...

 

 

 

entertainer products (including their CDs and DVDs); Free work of art for attending art auction; 30 free minutes with 250-minute internet package purchase; 15 free minutes with 100-minute internet package purchase

 

 

 

Members Only Cocktail Party

 

(Not available on Norwegian Sky, Norwegian Epic, Norwegian Breakaway or Norwegian Getaway)

 

 

 

Ship Pin

What is the deal with the "Free Ultimate Dining Package"? I went through and did a mock booking and it was the same amount as the regular price of an oceanview ($1540 for 2 on Deck 8 or 9, Full Window, not bad), so I want to get it .What are the restrictions, and what are some onboard restaurants? Can i only choose one? Do I have to eat there every day to utilize the privliges?

 

It's just what it says...you get the dining package for free which includes specialty restaurants to eat at while you're on board (I think there's 1 that isn't included). When you book, you're not going to see a cost difference in price of the cruise itself. But you pick the package you want and put the code in during booking to get it.

 

Ultimate Dining Package

 

Take advantage of Norwegian's Ultimate Dining Package – Try a Norwegian specialty restaurant every night of your cruise for one special rate. Bring your appetite and desire to taste something deliciously new each day.

 

 

Here's a link to the specialty restaurants and what they are:

 

 

http://www.ncl.com/sites/default/files/Dining_Flyer_062211.pdf

 

What are the passengers like on a 7 night holiday week Caribbean cruise? Lots of little kids, teenagers, trashy people? We don't mind it, but I just want to know what to expect.

 

There's no way to predict what people will be on board with you at any given sailing. If it's a holiday week, then there might be more children and families, but then again, most children only get 1 extra day out of school during Thanksgiving.

 

Lastly, are there any ways for the price of my cruise to go down over time? We always book Early Saver on Carnival, and basically if the price drops, no matter the sale, which has happened to us every cruise, they give you the difference in onboard credit. We got $350 back on our balcony room on Glory, it was most of our excursion money! :D Or is $1,540 final, beofre flights and excursions? On Carnival, it's either $1,380 for an itinerary we've already done, as well as inconvienient port times and departure dates, in an obstructed room (the only reason we wanted this one was for a specific room which sold out) or $1,680 for good ports and times and a nice room. So $1,540 isn't bad for a new experience and a new port.

 

As long as you are before your final payment due, you can get a reduction. There's no ES like Carnival. It goes down, you call and get the new price. However, just know that if you book during a special (like this with the dining package) you might lose that package if you have to cancel and rebook at a newer rate. Sometimes it happens, other times it don't.

Thanks so much to anyone who can help me! :D Happy Cruising! :D

 

PS- I came back to edit this once I realized that no excursions are shown for St.Thomas or Tortola, can someone please explain? I do like the variety of Nassau Excursions as well as the lower price than Carnival.

 

We absolutely loved the Spirit (we cruised her in 2011) and it's one of my favorite "smaller" ships. It's so different than any of the others in the fleet with the Asian decor. I have a review I did of her listed in my signature line. (Hopefully the picture link will work, if not, I can point you in the right direction).

[newmexicoNita]

We have cruised her 3 times and the downer is the size of the cabins; they are really small and the ship was designed in Asia for smaller people. This isn't a huge problem though, by anymeans. The bathrooms, though small are very nice;the ship is so pretty, not glitzy, just pretty and the smaller size appeals to us. I don't think you will be disappointed even though she is older. Of course they have the same friendly crew as most NCL ships and the same dining choices.

[mitsugirly]

We have cruised her 3 times and the downer is the size of the cabins; they are really small and the ship was designed in Asia for smaller people. This isn't a huge problem though, by anymeans. The bathrooms, though small are very nice;the ship is so pretty, not glitzy, just pretty and the smaller size appeals to us. I don't think you will be disappointed even though she is older. Of course they have the same friendly crew as most NCL ships and the same dining choices.

 

I'm not sure if you have ever cruised on any of the other NCL ships, but the size of the room on the Spirit is about the same as most of the NCL ships. None of them are really big...unless you get a suite or the Haven of course.

 

We sailed in an interior on the Spirit and they are 145 sq ft. Now take the newest ship in the fleet, the Getaway, and look at the size of the room and you'll get a whopping 135 sq ft. :eek:

 

We also felt the showers were bigger too. They weren't just sqaured or round, they had a bump out kinda in them. Much bigger than most in the fleet.

 

What ever you do, don't sail on the Sun or Sky...the bathrooms are ROUND and so small you can't even bend down. :eek: :p

[luddite]

The Spirit is wonderful. Also beautiful.

The likelyhood of a price drop for the Thanksgiving trip is nil.

[cruisexlife]

We absolutely loved the Spirit (we cruised her in 2011) and it's one of my favorite "smaller" ships. It's so different than any of the others in the fleet with the Asian decor. I have a review I did of her listed in my signature line. (Hopefully the picture link will work, if not, I can point you in the right direction).

 

 

Thanks so much for all your help!

[titangas]

We have cruised her 3 times and the downer is the size of the cabins; they are really small and the ship was designed in Asia for smaller people.

 

The balcony room we had on the Spirit was one of the larger standard type cabins we have ever cruised on.

 

12 nighter and never felt cramped.

 

She is an awesome ship.

[mitsugirly]

Thanks so much for all your help!

 

 

You are very welcome. If you decide to go on the Spirit, I hope you have a wonderful time and enjoy it as much as we did. :)

[Debala715]

My husband and I just booked this trip last night. This will be a first cruise for both of us. This appealed to both of us because we both get Thanksgiving and the Friday after off from work as paid holidays, so we will only have to use 3 vacation days.

[missaud]

Titangas--- what cabin did you have? We are looking at sailing on the Spirit in 2016 but I am having a hard time deciding on a cabin. We love the aft balconys but I don't know whether to get BA mid or a BC or B3 family.