Executive Summary Getting on and off the ship was a breeze. We let the menu of the day drive where we decided to eat for lunch and dinner. We had a room on deck 10 down the hall from the Kid's Club. Cabin space was fine with enough room for two adults and two kids --clothes and belongings. One pull down bed and one pull out bed which we only opened at night. Our room stewards (Wayne and Santos) took great care of us and had towel creatures for the kid's from night 3 until the end. We tipped them extra for helping out with extra towels, ice etc. We only had questionable service on two occasions once at Blue Lagoon and once in the Garden room. This amounted to having to ask someone to take our order, remind them to bring things they forgot, or get their attention for something we needed. All our other meal service was good to very good. The kid's had a blast and can't wait to go back again. We saw only the shows and classes that interested us so had no complaints. We bought drinks a couple of times and at about $8 a drink is not all that different from some of the places I have traveled to. No more expensive than drinking in Singapore or Japan nightclubs. The ship showed some slight wear and tear, but noticeable only because I was looking for it and nothing to detract from enjoying being on board. We had planned activities to do and time to just relax with a good book and were able to make it all happen and were not really relying on ship activities to fill the day. We took advantage of opportunities like an open shuffle board court, no one at the foosball table, etc to have fun. Enjoyed the freedom of "freestyle" and thought it suited our family perfectly. (No having to tell the kids that it was 2 more hours until our next appointed mealtime.) I would cruise on the Spirit again without hesitation.

Detailed Report

New York We stayed at the Courtyard Manhattan/5th Ave. Easy walk to Times Square and Empire State building. If you look on the empire State Bldg Website they have a number you can call and they will tell you how long the lines are at that time. We parked car at an Icon Parking garage about 3 blocks from the pier $189 for the 9 days. I was able to sort of reserve a spot by going to their website. Dinner at Italian restaurant named Becco's W46th Ave btwn 9th and 10th. Made reservations a week ahead. Popular place, crowded noisy but excellent food and made special dishes for the kids. Read more