Nov 12 Day Mediterranean Cruise

Norwegian Spirit Cruise Review to Europe - Mediterranean

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 47

Overall rating:

2 out of 5
Verified Review
Norwegian Spirit

12 Night Grand Mediterranean (Venice To Barcelona)

Sail date: November 14, 2014

Ship: Norwegian Spirit

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 6537

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 9 years ago

Review summary

I was disappointed at the customer service provided during the cruise by the cruise staff. Most of the staff were new and not properly trained. Just trying to apply cash to settle your account instead of a credit card which is the most commonly used method was a chore.

When trying to get specific details about the cruise excursions, I had to speak to 3 members at the desk to find a person who was knowledgeable enough to help answer my questions. Be aware the excursion details do leave out a lot of details that are very important, so ask questions to avoid surprises.

The main dining room customer service was the same, with over 40 minutes waiting to be served all the while hearing excuses as to why my table order was taking so long. This happened consistently, and when the food arrived many times it was no longer hot. The food service in the buffet areas and the main dining rooms was terrible and even the offerings for vegetarian were not desirable or very healthy. Most food is so full of grease, gravy, cheese, creamy sauces and other unhealthy selections, that you are forced to eat salads day after day in order to avoid all the heart clogging food additives. 

There is a daily tip charge that is deducted every day per guest of $12 which is divided among all the staff. What you are not told is that at the last day of the cruise you can have the total charge of $144 deducted from your room charges, so that you can tip the people you choose, in the amount that you choose.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5
Too many unhealthy additives to most of the food choices (fatty greasy gravies and sauces, cheeses)

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Service and Staff

1 out of 5
Too many new crew members who are not properly trained or value customer service. My room attendant 'Christian' was awesome. He went beyond the call of duty each and every day of my cruise which made me happy to come to my room after experiencing such terrible customer service in other areas of the cruise staff.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5
Rooms are small so be prepared or spend the extra to get a room with a balcony so that you have a balcony door to open to get fresh air into your room. Beds are good size, bed linen is fair.

Ship tip

Cabins are small so be prepared, otherwise spend the extra money to get a balcony so that you can get fresh air into your cabin room. Food is not very healthy so be prepared to eat a lot of salads that you can prepare yourself to avoid all the grease, gravy, cheese and fatty additives found in food.

Ports of call

Piraeus (Athens), Greece

3 out of 5
Enjoyed the tour of the coliseum.

Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey

5 out of 5
Visit the ruins of Ephesus.

Istanbul, Turkey

3 out of 5
The bazaar is crowded and there are peddlers trying to sell you things on the street so be prepared. Just shake your head 'No' and don't try to communicate with them because they will never leave you afterwards. The peddlers will go on about their business if you just shake your head 'No' that you're not interested. Don't expect to see the bazaar in 1 day, just see what you can in the time allowed.

Mykonos, Greece

5 out of 5
No excursion, just took the shuttle bus to the small shopping right off the ship. It was a great shopping experience with beautiful quality clothing, jewelry, purses, ect.

Naples, Italy

3 out of 5
Tried pizza, not good. So for pizza in Rome instead.

Civitavecchia (Rome), Italy

5 out of 5
Ship arrives Rome on Sunday when everything at the square is closed. This was very disappointing. Tour of Rome was enjoyable.

Livorno (Florence & Pisa), Italy

3 out of 5
The area around Pisa is very small and it takes about 1 hour to see it afterwards there's not much else.

Toulon, France

1 out of 5
This was the worst excursion of all. It rained the entire day and they expected you to walk for over 2 hours in the rain. The tour bus left and didn't stay around for the people who didn't want to walk in the rain for 2 hours.
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