Spirit out of New Orleans

[EastTexans2]

We're looking at a 2009 cruise on Spirit out of New Orleans. Never been on NCL, but New Orleans is just as close as Galveston for us.......so tell me the good, the bad, etc. about Spirit.

 

Also what do they charge for port parking in N.O.?

[CRUZIN TOM]

Please check out the Roll calls page for the Spirit. You will find some good info there for a start. We will be on our first out of NO next Feb.:)

[GORDONCHICK]

While I've not been on an NCL ship, I do know that the roll call isn't the right place to find out about the line and ship. It's to get to know your fellow cruisers (and possibly share info).

 

I, too, am looking for info on this ship and NCL in general. We've been on four cruises, three of those out of Galveston. Our experience on lines and ships are in my signature. Any help would be appreciated.

[GORDONCHICK]

We're looking at a 2009 cruise on Spirit out of New Orleans. Never been on NCL, but New Orleans is just as close as Galveston for us.......so tell me the good, the bad, etc. about Spirit.

 

Also what do they charge for port parking in N.O.?

 

What date are you looking at? We have a group deal for 1/11/09. Our leader usually gets great hotel rates for the night before the cruise and we've always had free parking for the cruise at that hotel while we were gone. We usually took a taxi to the port.

[ctdahlquist]

I sailed on the Spirit in January of 2005, and I'm booked for a January sailing from New Orleans.

 

Of all the ships and lines I've been on, this has been my favorite. The medium size is just right with enough room for nice imenities without the crowded shopping mall atmosphere. The decor is elegant but colorful, and Windows restaurant is one of the most impressive I've seen with a wonderful view out the stern.

 

You'll find a nice selection of restaurants, some for free and some for a very reasonable fee. Food in the specialty restaurants is better than the main dining rooms, although I enjoyed all my meals on this ship (food is subjective, so you may completely disagree with my assessment).

 

The new itinerary is interesting to me, stopping at Honduras, Guatemala, Belize, and Cozumel. This is somewhat more of an adventure itinerary, so if you are active and don't mind stepping out of your comfort zone, you should enjoy it. If your idea of a nice port is strolling down a shopping street on the hunt for watchers or diamonds, then this trip may not appeal to you.

 

I hope this helps.

[GORDONCHICK]

Thank you. This is much more helpful. We've been to Belize and had a wonderful independent tour guide and will use him again, though I'd love to try cave tubing at some point. We've not been to Guatemala before, but made connections with a tour guide there on our Alaska cruise (of all places).

[jetskier]

To answer your question on parking, it is $14 per day at the Eurato St. terminal. I have not been on the Spirit yet. I am however on its 15 day repositioning to from New York to New Orleans. Now you want to talk about places to visit: St. Thomas, St. Lucia, Barbados, Aruba, Curacao, Santo Tomas, Belize, and Cozumel.

 

I find that NCL has better sailaway parties than CCL. There are more trivia contests throughout the week for NCL logo prizes instead of medallions and SOTS trophies. With Freestyle dining you can eat when you want. The only downside is that you dont get to know your waiters or tablemates. But with all the speciality restraurants onboard, you would not in the main dining every night anyway.

 

NCL does have some of the highest drink prices of all the cruiselines as well as the strictest luggage search for banned alcohol.

 

The ports of call out of New Orleans will be great especially if you love the water or scuba dive.

 

Dave

[Toyz711]

we are booked for this dec, will be driving down. when the spirit starts cruising there, for this season, more reviews and reports will be showing up with the current information. like mine, when i get back. one reason we are going, DH is excited about cruising (again) he loved the NCL star that much!! freestyle made a big fan with him.

[klct39lg]

We sailed out of NOLA last December and stayed overnight at the Sheraton which was great, very comfy beds. My sons (then 12 and 16) and I walked to Cafe Du Monde the morning of embarkation; loved that. Our Princess cruise left from the Poland Ave. Terminal so we just parked there for the week for $98.

 

I have been reading as much as possible about the Spirit on the NCL FAQ sticky, and it sounds perfect for us. We are a family of four and will sit together at dinner, so not concerned with tablemates or getting to know the waitstaff.

 

I am definitely looking forward to the specialty dining and the ports. We want to do some cave tubing and a canopy tour.

 

:)

[tomk3212]

We're looking at a 2009 cruise on Spirit out of New Orleans. Never been on NCL, but New Orleans is just as close as Galveston for us.......so tell me the good, the bad, etc. about Spirit.

 

Also what do they charge for port parking in N.O.?

 

EastTexans,

 

We've cruised on the Spirit three times; twice out of NYC & once out of Seattle. Short answer; we love the Spirit & would happily sail on her again!

 

Suggest that you search the "Norwegian Cruise Lines" section with a keyword of "Spirit". You should find LOTS of info on the ship. Please post again any specific questions.

 

Have a great cruise!

 

Tom & Eileen:rolleyes:

[EastTexans2]

Thank you for all of your replies! Spirit sounds wonderful......and I'm sure we will be booking for January 09.