Norwegian Spirit Review
Mediterranean Lite; Enjoying the Spirit at a Slower Pace
Rating by category
Additional details
After cruising the Eastern Mediterranean on the NCL Jade in December 2013, I couldn’t wait to do another Mediterranean cruise. Since the Jade was redeployed to Houston for the fall of 2015, I had to choose between the Spirit in October and the Epic in December. With 10 ports in 12 days v. only five port stops on the Epic, we chose the Spirit, although the Epic was a better per day value. The first part of this review will focus on the ship and the second part on the ports.
THE SPIRIT
Reviews suggested that the Spirit was old and tired but we found that it was in good shape with a more traditional, old world feel. The atrium, glass elevators and Asian details make it a unique NCL ship. The bridge viewing room, which can be accessed through a staircase in Galaxy Bar, is very interesting with souvenir gifts from the various ports of call. Most appealing were the lion’s head from Malaysia and sculptures from Thailand (a glass ship) and India (a mini Taj Mahal). We first visited this area on our Behind the Scenes Tour for Platinum members where we met one of the female second officers but anyone can visit on his/her own.
Cabin Review
Inside
Since the Spirit is a one-of-a-kind ship, our cabin, Room 5035, was also unique at 200 sq. feet (double-sized room). It had better lighting than I remembered and a small chair-and-a half that became a shelf for our menagerie of towel animals. Gede, our room steward, was very helpful in getting us an adapter for our electronics, bar soap and replacement cushions for the chair and chair-and-a half. There was plenty of room for storage. Shower and bathroom were fine.