We found the Carnival Spirit to be a very nice cruise ship. Overall, received good service and attention from the staff. The ship interior is quite nice - nicer than I had expected. This was our second cruise (first was in the Caribbean) and we came away with four key lessons learned:
1. The 7-day Northbound Alaska cruise is the best to select. This is what we had and I'm so glad we did. The reason? The Northbound trip saves the best scenery and glaciers for the last. The round trip cruises that take you back to Vancouver would miss the sights of the last two days of Prince William Sound and College Fjord which, in my opinion, was the photographic jewel of the trip.
2. If you can afford to do so, upgrade to a suite. At a minimum, you absolutely must have an outside balcony. I decided to upgrade to a suite several months before the cruise and IT WAS THE BEST DECISION I'VE EVER MADE. Of all cruise destinations, ALASKA IS THE ONE cruise where you truly get value of an outside balcony because you are seeing sights all the time along the way. For most cruises, all the outside balcony lets you see is ocean - no big dealt. On an Alaska cruise, you'll see beautiful scenery, glaciers and wildlife galore. I found about 2/3rds of all the pictures I took were from our room balcony and I got some absolutely beautiful, postcard-like pictures that will I will have for my lifetime.