Norwegian Spirit Cruise Reviews - Reviews

     I took the cruise in reverse previously and did this one because Turkey was replaced with Montenegro and Croatia. One shore tour was to the Amalfi Coast another to Cinque Terre. and then the two new countries. Fantastic tours showing the ability of man to live and grow in challenging places, among rocks and along steep cliffs.

     However nice the days and tours ashore, the cruise line has downgraded many parts of what was once an outstanding value. Shows have been downgraded and no longer challenge Las Vegas in quality. Emphasis on Free Style Cruising and keeping down the fare is showing primarily in the show and food quality. After 20 NCL cruises, this is probably our last one.

The offer we received from Norwegian with a deluxe penthouse -- pre-paid gratuities, beverage and dining package -- really made our cruise a great value, plus an exciting itinerary!  NCL Spirit is an older ship in need of decor updating, but the ship was clean and well maintained.  The majority of the staff were very good and provided excellent service.  Our stateroom was very large and well laid out, the steward was superb, but the butler was little seen.  Again, the decor was dated, although the bed / linens were very comfortable.  The bath offered a toilet room, double sinks, a jacuzzi-style tub that I wouldn't use because paint was coming off, and a shower cabin -- all very clean.  Little glitches were frustrating; unable to regulate the water temp (it was too hot) and main light switch wouldn't activate.  Our dining experience was a highlight (DIning Package); Cagney's was Excellent, Windows was Very Good, Le Bistro and La Trattoria were Good, Shogun was O.K with an uninspiring menu.  We didn't do other dining venues.  The real benefit of the penthouse and above is having breakfast & lunch in Cagney's, as well as a dedicated concierge (Karin).  She was a real professional, patient and kind, and got us on/off the ship efficiently, plus provided port info.  Overall, NCL does a lot of up-selling (photographs, tours, next cruises, jewelry, knick-knacks, etc,) which can get bothersome, but it's easy to pass on.  The Captain kept passengers informed of the ship's status, especially during a medical emergency event: two passengers required evacuation which caused the Captain to return to Messina, delaying the onward schedule, and the port call in Mykonos was cancelled giving us another sea day.  Overall, a very good cruise given the price and packages.  We would definitely take another NCL cruise!

The cruise staffing made the 12 day cruising experience an exceptional one. The port's that were visited summarized the history of Europe in a nutshell. The cabin was always ready-made and clean. The 11106 cabin staffing will be missed.The food menu and preparation was disappointed. Nevertheless, the bartender and snacks kiosks menus saved the day and night needs. The activity director, Jill and her staff made sure everyone had something to be happy for.

As a busy person vacation always is been my favorite time  this was only my fifth cruise, for my husband ( only 3 years ) his 177. :)  another story x another day  he 

introduced me to the cruise vacation experience so far is been good ..

this cruise was perfect and was my decide point because before I when to a Panama Canal with NCL and I was so disappointed 

first my first cruise was cancelled because a problem with the ship ( happy happen 

     When I was not aboard) not your fault 

so we got our money and discount x our net cruise, we book immediately and we upgraded to a window what turned to be a nightmare 

first i understood the window was going to be the same or better of our first time was NOT we talk to your main Desk on the ship and they said was our  mistake so I said I will talk to my travel agent and we want to enjoy our vacation unfortunately that was the beginning of a bad vacation no only that b

some how al fuel odor got into our room and make our room a nightmare because I got a asthma attack you employees bring a humedefired tha make the air better but the room so hot,  from day one nothing works good ! the shower drain was clogged the came and tried to help was good x 2 day and we have a problem with the toilet so we alternate and one day was the shower others the toilets, 

one of the atracción on your cruise was the main restaurant, the food was great and course it happen my husband order some ham and cheese omelette  when my husband cut into the eggs where running :( .....,just one more we all dress to take a picture so we stop on one of the small cafe to have a copy and the waitress spill the Coffe on a new suit.  As you can see was a vacation from hell 

we took a cruise to Alaska on another cruise line  and one of the best things you have  is the service personnel they are so good and helpful that I said to my husband I want to give a NCL another chance,  so we book  this trip and was great some problems with the toilet but in general was a great cruise 

my special thanks to grace who do my room ever day with a great smile 

to Joseph who make my  omelette perfect every day on the 12 flooor

to Nieva a waitress in one of you special restaurants (steak house ) who was fantastic .

Also some of your capitans on the restaurant on the 12 floor who

found my mint tea and cream cheese 

sugestions 

more mint tea, cream cheese is a must with English muffin and how a pinch of water with ice on the room?

How about a real Chinese chef  ? 

Like i said was great 

We like this cruise so much we've now taken it three times!  For anyone wanting to visit the Mediterranean, the lineup of ports of call on this cruise just can't be beat and the per-day cost to see so many ports in such comfort and with so little fuss makes it a real value, too.  We've taken it both ways (Venice to Barcelona and the reverse), and either way, it's a great mix of ports, sea days, and onboard experiences.  Spirit is the oldest ship in the NCL fleet and she's showing her age a bit, but she's still a nicely appointed ship, comfortable, fast, and quiet.  Our cruising experience is always about the ports of call and the dining aboard ship, and our dining experience aboard NCL's Spirit and Jewel has been a cut above the others we've sailed with.  We don't choose a ship or a cruise based on whether the ship has rock climbing walls, art auctions, or golf aboard... only where the ship goes and how we'll be living and dining aboard.  Our experience with crew, staff, and room stewards has always been excellent aboard NCL, and although we mostly explore ports and destinations on our own now, NCL certainly has a good selection of ship's excursions available in each port and they are well run.

Our only negatives about the ship have to do with her age.  The cabins have no place to plug electrical appliances and chargers in, you can't use standard hair dryers in the plugs, and the ship's finishes and fit-out are generally showing their age.  Attempting to use internet at sea is a waste of time and money (we go ashore, have a meal at midday, and use the cafe's wi-fi for free while enjoying local cuisine).  Trying to find a quiet place to read and watch the beautiful Mediterranean on sea days can be a challenge sometimes, but patiently waiting for a space in a favorite spot works.  Spirit is still quite decent and serviceable though, and our few negatives are by no means a deal-breaker for sailing aboard this ship.  The evening shows were good to very good, and we went to all of them on this cruise, which is unusual for us.  A good variety, excellent talent.

Do your own shopping around, and you'll find that a 12-night cruise in this many great ports, at this price, is difficult to beat.  And by the way, the ports of Kotor (Montenegro) and Dubrovnik (Croatia) are excellent, charming new additions to this itinerary.  We miss the port of Istanbul that used to be on this itinerary, but the new ones are good.

We took this cruise for our honeymoon, overall or trip was amazing. But that's solely due to the port of calls. Each city/town is just beyond beautiful. However, the ship is just OK, and the staff was less than ok comparatively to other cruises I've been on from other cruise lines. Remember that twelve days is a LOT of time to spend on a ship you aren't overly impressed with. The Spirit is smaller and rocks a lot. The staff is mainly concerned with money. Most of the planned activities on board that sound remotely interesting cost an additional $20-40 and they charge for shuttling to and from ports. Just a heads up, they make you itemize your laundry, so if you do wish to utilize their laundry service it will cost an astounding $100 for ONE LOAD and they do not have laundry facilities for passengers to use themselves.  The pool was not used by any passengers because it was too cold and the hot tubs were luke warm.  The food in the main dining halls are excellent however they kept putting my husband and I seated only next to the kitchen or dish stations EVERY SINGLE TIME and the service for a restaurant was not great, not exactly where you want to spend your dinners on your honeymoon. Overall, our experience was that you do not get to spend enough time in each of these amazing cities. And remember, if you do not book shore excursions every day and brave public transport, do your research on how long it takes to get to some of these cities from port (i.e. To get to Rome using buses and trains it takes 4 hours round trip and costs roughly $30 a person). We highly recommend booking shore excursions on the days you're in major cities (as these cities are about 5 million in population and there's just no other way you'd get around and see everything you want to see). In the smaller towns, it was easy to take shuttles and just walk and explore by yourselves. Just don't forget good walking shoes! Given the chance though, we'd still do the cruise all over again. Make sure to spend an extra few days in Venice if you can!! Hope this is helpful to everyone! 

I'm writing this review to warn other people.  Do not book on Norwegian Cruise Line.  The ship is very moldy, dirty and breaking down.  NCL'S  website and pictures are an extreme false representation.

Itinerary was great with plenty of time in ports for exploring. Ship was fair but has a very attentive staff. A little too much cruising between time Dubrovnik/Kotor/Venice (would have been a plus to arrive in Venice before 10 PM).

We love the ports we visited. Toulon was a magical city, Florence (Tuscany) was like a dream. Naples (Pompei) was a awe inspiring experience. Exploring Naples was fun and having Pizza at a sidewalk cafe topped it off. Mykonos was breathtaking, so we're Dubrovnik and Kotor. We would return in a heartbeat!

We loved our balcony stateroom and the ship was beautiful. We enjoyed the casino, the shows and the ships band. The crew was very friendly and service was great. The food was delicious and the only complaint I have was the lack of a midnight buffet. Finding something to eat after a night of playing in the casino or dancing in galaxy of the stars was difficult.

The best part of the cruise was all the wonderful stops. For the most part the ship was good but does need some updating. We had a nice room but bathroom was small and the shower needed a good cleaning some mold and broken tiles. The staff were pretty friend but when getting off in different ports if you didn't use NCL they weren't always so helpful. The food was good but the 1 buffet that everyone used for breakfast before leaving the ship could get a little crazy and they ran out of coffee a couple of times. We loved Henrys Pup for drinks the bartenders were excellent but they did run out of the draft beer a few days before the cruise was over. Overall it was a good Cruise but not great but with some changes I think it could be great.

Very good service and free-style relaxing atmosphere. The customer service is very helpful and friendly. There are adequate choices for the food variety.

Best bit-  sailing out of Montenegro.  Great variety of ports.

What could be improved - bar service on the back decks, very lame.

this was a cruise to remember, although we had visited many of the ports previously, this was our first time with NCL and would highly recommend this company, and cruise having visited 10 ports in 6 countries in 12 days. 

Dining room experience suited us as we could sit by ourselves or with other guests as we wished. Staff and food excellent.

My husband and I sailed on the Spirit as our first cruise and we did not know what to expect. The food was great, the drinks were great and the balcony stateroom was comfy and large enough. The pool is small and there are not enough chairs around the pool to accommodate everyone for at-sea days. Guests leave towels on the chairs to reserve them very early in the morning and then do not return for many hours and sometimes not at all. This was annoying and even though NCL stated in their daily newsletter they had a policy against reserving chairs, nothing was ever done. The pool was also very cold. There was not much to do on the ship while at-sea other than be around the pool so it became frustrating at times. There was also not much to do in the evenings either. It lacked entertainment. We are a younger couple in our late 20's so maybe that is why we did not enjoy the entertainment they did offer. Other than the pool and entertainment situations it was a great cruise.

The itinerary is the best, even is a little bit rush sometimes, is a great way to experience different cities or destinations.

The ship is a little bit old if I compare with others experienced before, but the staff of this one, really is amazing and make the difference. 

I think I enjoyed the staff.  I've never had such friendly staff.  Even the bands and one of the cruise director staff knew our names. I loved our room.  It was a balcony but at the back of the aft and it was about 1.4 size of a room. 

To improve, I think the tour packages could use some updating.  Too much time spent in a bus in Croatia.  An hour's drive to Sorrento but we went straight to lunch and then straight to the hydro boat to go to Capri.  There was no seeing Sorrento.  It took 20 minutes to get in Coliseum and tour director then took 20 minutes to explain the coliseum and the gladiators.  That only left 20 minutes to see the coliseum.  $400 for a tour and we only had 20 minutes.  When I suggested that if they are giving us free time, to tell us before the talk so we could have had 40 minutes.  She was upset and said be glad you got 20 minutes, the other group is already on the bus.  There is more about her but really, if I'm paying that kind of money per person for the tour.  I expect more than 20 minutes.  She could have done the explanation on the bus.  I did not come to Rome and pay for this expensive tour to hear her talk and take away my time there. 

Also, Norwegian no longer allows for liquids to come aboard for "safety" reasons.  Ok.  I get that.  But, I don't think that is true.  6 larger bottles of water was $23.  Come on, they no longer allow it so they can charge you incredible prices.  Other cruise ships still allow liquids. 

But all in all, we were happy with our cruise.

My favorite part of the cruise was the evening entertainment in the theater,.

The worst part f the cruise was the "freestyle dining" which was a fancy name for cafeteria dining and the food was awful. If you wanted a decent meal without screaming kids running around you or nearly tripping over kitchen staff's mops, you had to pay to go to one of the restaurants on board.  Having cruised before, I consider this an absolute rip off - as was having to pay $28.00 to have 10 postcards mailed, $7.00 for a liter bottle of water, $21.00 for two cocktails of the day and $13.50 per day gratuities for the staff! 

Improvements need to be made in the way the staff responds to passengers who are breaking the rules. They are hesitant to say anything and if they do say something and are ignored, they do nothing more.

A new rule needs instigating about children using the hot tubs on the Tivoli deck.  The children's pool area has it's own hot tub but there was many a time when adults couldn't get into the tubs on the Tivoli deck for the number of children already in it. 

All in all,   I wold not recommend this cruise to anyone. 

While most of the staff was friendly and helpful, the food choices were not enough. The boat is very old and doesn't have facilities that newer boats have. 

Loved the time on and off the ship.  Met some new people and became friends, spending every evening with them in Windows Dining.  GREAT time!!  Staff was friendly and attentive.  Entertainment was wonderful.  Amazing ports!

The cruise had something for everyone. Entertainment, art, great food, and wonderful ports. You will enjoy this one. The staff is helpful and welcoming, and the rooms are comfortable and well kept. 

EVERYTHING WAS GREAT AND FRIENDLY STAFF,  FOOD WAS GOOD

SHIP WAS GREAT AS WELL AS THE OFF SHORE DAYS WAS GREAT

SEA DAYS WAS GREAT NICE AND RELAXING GREAT IF YOU HAVE CHILDREN LIKE HAVING A FULL TIME CHILD MINDER