We boarded the Norwegian Spirit in Barcelona. We have been on this ship twice before, prior to its expansion and name change. The ship is the oldest in the Norwegian fleet. Though it is keep spotless and the staff is wonderful it still is an old ship and looks 'tired' in some areas.

Embarkation, was fine with little wait. Boarding in Barcelona after you check in and go through security there is some stores where you can buy wine and liquor. There is no further security checks, so after checking in you can buy wine and liquor for your stateroom. If you bring the wine to the dinning room there is a corkage fee ($ 10). Luggage was in our room in about one and a half hours upon boarding. I would suggest that you pack a bathing suit in your carry-on. The day was very hot and a quick swim would have been nice. The usual buffet was being served on the upper deck.

Cabin,was a standard one. The balcony was small (re: old ship). There was no refrigerator in the room (re: old ship). Room and bath were very clean and beds were nice and comfortable. The major issue for the cabin we were in (11556 and 11558) was that it was directly under the ships gym. The gym was open from 6am to 11pm everyday. At 6am the treadmills would start AND the free weights would bang to the floor. This went on pretty much all day into the night. So we were all up at 6am. Because we were in a new port almost everyday this was a problem BUT, if you wanted to take a nap, or go to bed early, that wasn't going to happen until 11pm.....every night ! It is my own fault for not checking out the deck plan prior to choosing my cabins. I would strongly suggest that before going on any ship look at the deck plan and see what is above your cabin. Again the placement of the gym over at least 8 cabins is evidence of an old ship. Read more