Awful, nasty experience. Jeez where do I start?? I will dot point.. * the room had ONE power point. That's all. Called guest services and asked for an extension cord as I have a cpap machine. They didn't know what an extension cord was. * The so called lemonade is lemon cordial, the iced tea was a really strange flavour. Coffee from the machine was actually undrinkable... it was like drinking the grinds and hot water. We bought two cappuccinos from a cafe and they were barely coffee... so NO coffee for the whole trip * At brekky they have 2 toasters for everyone... be prepared to wait an eternity. * The staff still open ypur door of the room even when thete is a do not disturb on the door... not very nice when you're half naked * You can download their app and "free wifi" however if you want to keep contact and chat with another person on the ship it costs $9. So take a kiddies radio if you want to keep contact with ypur kids/ partner/ whoever, bring a radio on board. * it costs $30 to get JUST social media on the trip, or pay $50 to get that and e mail etc. The internet " cafe" is 3 computers in a walkway and cost , minimum, $15 for 24 hours. * the tv in the room is old , has about 8 channels, no movies or anything remotely watchable. There's no DVD player. * There's shampoo, soap and body wash in ypur bathroom. That's it. * The so called ' serenity ' adults only area was far from serene... jam packed and blaring music. I don't think they know the meaning of serenity. * The included restaurant... where to start? Firstly you have to stand in a huge queue, where you see the first staff with an I pad. Tell her your cabin number and she taps away at it for about 5 minutes, says no table available. Take a buzzer and go away!!! Come back when the buzzer goes. Get shown your table and given a terribly expensive wine list. The wine I like is usually $15 a bottle. There it was $50. And no option to buy just a glass. So no wine, lemonade or coffee. Then they blare this music out and do a dance. It's so noisy that we can't talk to each other. * The food was the absolute last straw. It was so disgusting that I am making a formal complaint. * NOT WORTH IT, DONT GIVE THEM YOUR HOLIDAY MONEY, wish I hadn't!!! Read Less

Carnival are now offering alcohol drink packages on Australian cruises. They cost $119.00 per day. DO NOT purchase one. My husband and I purchased one and found that we would have been better off to pay as you go. There was no value in the package, we would of saved ourselves a lot of money without this package. We had no problems getting drinks from the Pool Bar but the first night I went to the casino and asked for a drink there was a problem that took the staff a long time to fix. My husband and I then asked for a drink each in the restaurant and were told that our cards did not work. After having the waiter take our cards and referring this to a supervisor we eventually got a drink. My husband then got sick and was in our cabin for the last four days of our cruise. He did not consume any alcohol in this time. I knew that the package was non refundable but thought that maybe I could get OBC for a future cruise as a good will gesture. I approached Guest Services and was dismissed. I was told that the package was non refundable and non transferable. She couldn’t have cared less, she didn’t even ask if I needed help with my husband. On the other hand the next time I approached Guest Services for help (I needed a wheel chair to take my husband off the ship) they could not have been more helpful. The cabin was nice. The food was a hit and a miss. Some nights meals were good and other nights stone cold so that you couldn’t eat it. The ship itself was very well maintained and there was always staff cleaning in the main areas. Overall I had a good cruise, my husband did not. I would sail with carnival again as it is an affordable holiday. Read Less

GREAT!!! First time experience with Carnival Spirit 28th/9th to 06th/10th. I loved both on Sea & land experience. Carnival Spirit keeps guest onboard as happy and safe as possible & the cruise ship staff have to maintain standards for guest at sea for 24 hours of your intended stay. You must Appreciate Every single staff for there work ethic and I mean every single staff. You could not fault the staff I loved the environment they created for themselves to maintain a work life kind of a balance. All Of The Staff Members need a raise. Getting the chance to meet the culture and life on the islands was insanely Beautiful I mean the memories you guys aloud me to See, Taste and Feel will never be forgotten none the less I strive to travel the Seas another day with Carnival Spirit. Carnival Spirit is the fun ship the shows they host at night inside the Pharaohs Palace and Versailles Lounge are HIGHLY RECOMMENDED go and watch. I Personally loved having live entertainment I mean you dont get that everyday. What is also AMAZING is you are bound to meet new and intresting people. I have compliments for each and every single day I was aboard that ship but I'm going to end with this last little quick review. I really do look forward to traveling the Sea again with you Ladies and Gentlemen later again. Food was amazing 24hour pizza I mean need I say more. 24hour PIZZA. Thank You from New Zealand. I loved when Captain Adriano Binacchi would say: As we say in a Italy CIAO.. CIAO.. Read Less

I chose this cruise because it was the only option that was available for school holiday. The cabin and balcony are small for $4040. The food is average overall. The continental breakfast on Deck 9 is really a disappointment with limited choices. The main dining is ok only because of the melting chocolate cake but not great. Outdoor facilities are always occupied such as golf, basketball, pingpong. I had tried at least 3 times and eventually given up trying coz always crowded. The basketball court (apparently also for volleyball) is very small and always full of people. The staff are very friendly- perhaps the only highlight. Entertainment such as shows and live music are only average. I went to the same 3 Islands the same deal last year with Pacific Eden which i paid a lot less but with much greater experience on board. Overall I am greatly disappointed and won't come back at all. Read Less

The guys in the dinning room that looked after us GUSTI, WAYAN AND WIJAYA where so good to us made our experience wonderful great service and could not ask for better service thank you guys we will miss your great smiles The cubin we had some problems with the toilet did not flash for the first 2 days we asked for some one to fix it but it was still not flushing when we complained the third time it was fixed the fridge in the room did not work and the ship swaied so much that I could hardly sleep Intertainment was great fun we really enjoyed it just wish it was less movement in the cubin that was the most disappointing part of the cruise... I would like to travel again with carnival if the price was right and the cabin was not so ruf my family also traveled with me but because of the last experience they would rather try a different ship or cruise and Sertenly not at the tail of the ship it was not the best I've ever had I travel with ships before and I must say this ship was not for the weak stumik any way hope you take my review quite series and please reward those guys in the dinning room service they were amazing .... Read Less

Everyone is free for this date to be with my siblings post 90 th Birthday Of our mother. We have enjoyed our stay as All staff were accomodating especially the Food services staff.,Emmanuel, Rodrigo, and Jennifer .There was also a cleaner ,Casmina who were very polite ,hard worker and courteous Shops are good as well. It has varieties of perfumes, souvenirs and goods on special prices .Entertainment is good ,entertainers,singers are wellI prepared and professionals,We enjoyed watching them. I hope that there will be church service for us Christians on Sunday or even video of church service.We did not go to Moreton Island due to strong wind, it will be impossible to go there on small boat. The Captain decision not to go there is acceptable. Of course, safety comes first,It was well compensated by giving us refund which we used for shopping souvenirs,bought photos ,treated ourselves with yummy seafood dinner and drinks.I hope our bonding will be more when we got time together. Thank you Carnival Spirit for giving us this memorable moment. God Bless you all!, Read Less

First time on Carnival cruises. Not disappointed at all. Rated excellent for service,entertainment and cleanliness. Every stop was on time.Weather was great (August) and that's the best time to visit these islands with lower temps and humidity. Only onboard on top decks we need some extra warmth. Could not fault staterooms with excellent stewards. A good surprise was the Carnival Hub app that simply works so well. Text to your friends anywhere onboard for $9pp is fair. It also has 'what happening' for the whole cruise with the ability to notify 15 mins before what you choose. The app contains details of event locations with maps plus ship time. You don't have to pay for internet use for this...just as well as the cheapest deal is $120 that only gives Facebook/Messenger (no calls but pic and vid work) and very limited Google. No emails at this price either...have to pay $60 more for that. Entertainment was high standard with excellent showrooms. Soft drink package is $82.50 but I should have considered paying separately as were only $1.75 each. Great free coffee,Pizza and ice cream all 24 hours. Coffee included cappuccino and hot chocolate with frother. Pizza was OK but not fabulous. Same as ice cream. Gym etc was very modern and well equipped with steam room sauna and spa in a private atmosphere. Restaurants had beautiful decor nice meals with excellent service. Felt that meals repeated with limited choices but themes were a nice touch. Every night the staff added a few minutes of dancing that we looked forwarded to. They also dressed for theme nights. We did not dine at extra cost restaurants so cannot comment on these but they seemed enticing. The burger bar and Tacos were a nice option. Did not try the topside grille but it smells nice when passing. Finally saw Mystery island after previous cruises could not get there. We thought they underrated it. Beautiful clear waters with nice beaches to snorkel free. Good tracks as well that avoids getting bogged in sand. Plenty to do in a nice surroundings. Mare island wasn't much but still was enjoyed as long as you can walk a few Klms. Vila doesn't change but there's still plenty to do and the only place to shop duty free. Lifou is still lovely. 9 years ago we snorkeled in Janeck bay free - now it's $30pp! The cave trip is definitely worth the $10 but it's around 2k walk and not sold on ship. A lovely trip overall only slightly spoilt by rough weather on way back. Big swell of 6-8 meter waves rocked the ship forward to aft but the great stabilisers reduced the sideways movement. Some passengers over dramatised the movements after a few plates were broken and thought they were going to die so contacted the media for their fame - but most knew they were in good hands and returned on time. I've been in much worse when the harbour was closed for 2 days and nobody was even injured! Accolades to Carnival's Captain and all staff for a great trip. I would rank Carnival above some other brands. Read Less

Did basically the same cruise almost 4 years ago,on the same ship,and after having a fabulous time on that cruise,that we decided we would do the same cruise again. What a huge disappointment it was.Previously we had an Oceanview Cabin,but this time we had just an indoor cabin.Huge mistake!!!Our cabin was directly below the Operations Room for the Gaming Room.No problem whatsoever with the Gaming Room noise,other than a staff member who insisted on wearing stilettos all night,every night,on floorboards.One night the clunk,clunk,clunking didn't cease until 2:00am ,and then two nights later until 4:00am.On a whole,we didn't get any ( decent) sleep until two nights before we returned to Port in Sydney.We complained about the continual noise to the ' Guest Services Desk",who kindly arranged for two different Staff Members to enter our cabin on two different occasions to evaluate the noise above us,and on both occasions I was lying on the bed crying my eyes out.They both agreed there was an issue with the noise above ,and approached the Staff Member in Gaming,who contributed to the noise.The Staff Member in Gaming stated that she has a job to do ,which we wholeheartedly agreed with,but we felt she could have offered to change her style of shoe she wore to a much quieter sole of her shoe.After deliberation,we were offered another cabin,on Deck 7,at the back of the ship.On inspection,we declined the offer,as it was directly in line with the propellor,and made as much noise(whirring) as we were already experiencing.Finally,onboard credit was offered but it didn't come anywhere near the inconvenience we experienced.The Cabin number was 1193.We,needless to say,was bitterly disappointed with the cruise. Read Less

We needed a break, but without flying half way across the world. We are Kiwis, with about 10 cruises under our belt. We love Princess. Unfortunately, at this time of year, there is only Carnival sailing out of Aussie, we had a break in work pressure, so it was now or 6 months time. We are an extremely middle aged husband and wife. We scored a good two-for-one deal, and we didnt find out until we were about to leave NZ that our balcony had been upgraded to a suite! We were quite excited about that. A quick look on the deck plans showed it was a large suite, over the back of the boat. The first disappointment with Carnival is there lack of info. We couldnt find out what, if any extras you got with a suite. No information on what we could take aboard (bottled water, for instance), alcohol packages, port excursion costs, how to book a set time dining, were toiletries supplied, you know, just basic stuff. We fly to Sydney and eagerly wait the next day. We stayed the night a couple of hundred meters away for the terminal at Circular Quay, so next morning, after a bit of shopping, we head down. We dropped out bags at the bag drop and then went back to the shops, returning a few hours later. We were a bit early from our designated time, but were told as we were suite, we could go straight on (again, would have been good to know, as we were basically mooching round, killing time). Embarkation was the usual, but the worse things were the passengers! I could not belive the amount of people that had to stop and take selfies every few steps! This was not the young either, and why oh why could they not wait until they could step aside and let the queue behind them through??? do you really need five of the walk up to the gang plank, one on the gang plank and one as you put your first foot on the boat?? are you really going to look at these photos again?? So yes, I was the grumpy person that rudely pushed past you. Have some consideration people! We found our floor, then the room. Some better signage would have helped. They could also use Princess's trick of different colour carpet on port and starboard side. It didnt really matter too much to us, as we were along the back, and you could walk right round, but it would have made things a little easier. We found our room, which was a different setup to what we were use to. You walked along a narrow part which had a desk on one side, then to a wider part that had a couch with a chair in front of the couch (really, really surplus to requirement, it just took up room), I assume the couch probably folded out to a bed, but as there were only the two of us, we never found out. The couch was quite comfy. After the desk (with its own chair)there was another table that had the fridge under it. If you sat on the couch, you would be looking at about a 16 inch TV set into about a 26 inch cabinet with another table underneath and a cupboard. No mini bar! In the middle of the cabin was the bathroom, which was a decent size and not too bad a layout. It did have a shower over the spa bath. I would have loved a bath, but it just looked a bit, well, gungy. Between the bathroom and a passage way that led to the bedroom was a small dressing room. It was like they didnt know what to do with the space, so there was a table (with a stool) and mirror there. There was also a make up mirror in the bathroom, I guess this is what makes a suite a bit different from a balcony cabin, I dont know. Then you walked into the bedroom. On one side was a double sliding door wardrobe, the same sort of TV set up in the middle and another door leading the dressing/make up room. We didnt use this door, as it opened into the room, causing a barrier that in the middle of the night you would have walked into. The cabin, while not tatty, did have a lot of wear marks, worn areas, etc. Again, it certainly felt a little gungy. There was a picture on the bedroom wall, of a pre adolescence Venus and Cupid, naked in a sexual pose. While some may have called it art, I actually found it quite offensive (and I am no prude). The murals on the walls in the corridors were of a Roman/Greek style and to me, they just did not look appropriate on a family type ship. A lot of the decor looked like the kids had gotten carried away in the crayon box. So there were heavily patterned walls and squiggly patterned carpets. It was a bit claustrophobic. The general layout of the ship was not overly difficult to find your way around, if you got off the lifts there were usually the names of the areas in bright different coloured lights above the door ways leading to the public areas. The cabins were all on some floors and the entertainment/food areas on others, so everything was grouped together. We did a couple of trivia events, but apart from the Red Frog, there didnt really seem to be any seperate areas like we were use to. The Trivia was just down one side of the boat and you couldnt really hear, unless you were close. The middle of the ship was hollow for about 7 or 8 floors, so the noise carried quite a bit. It was all a bit noisy and busy. Before cast off, we had the usual safety briefing. If you thought the rapping Air New Zealand one was bad, this was worse. We had to all go to the muster stations, which were outside, along the decks. Then we all had to line up, shoulder to shoulder, about 5 deep. Straight lines please. We then had to stand there for about 30 minutes while they (did something, I assume). We were scanned in, so I guess it was looking for those that hadnt arrived, I dont know. The usual talk took about 3 minutes, they we had to all fight our way back in. Thankfully we didnt have to take our life jackets, but it was a very degrading experience. Dinner that night was pretty disappointing. We ate at the main dining room (we were booked for 7.45, but managed to get it changed to 5.30 thereafter). I had a prawn cocktail with a nice sauce (I think it may have been bourbon flavoured?). it was a tasty sauce, I remember that much! The steak was also from the every night menu and was very average. Dessert was their "signature" dish, a chocolate cake in a ramakin with a chocolate sauce inside and some vanilla ice cream. Again, very average. I have had that dessert at a local restaurant. Still, it was only night 1 and it takes a day for everything to settle. We had an early night, as we were tired from travelling and all the excitement of getting on board, etc. Watched a little TV and a good nights sleep. The bed was reasonably comfy and it was great to have a top sheet, instead of just the duvet. The pillows were a little flat, but Hubby likes that. The next morning, we were up the the old buffet style for breakfast. There were lots of stations set up with different things. A quick walk around to see what was available and which stations to avoid (remember the old cruise joke about going on as a passenger and leaving as luggage) I found some water melon and put that on a plate, there were no trays supplied, so I useed a larger plate to hold the smaller plate. Then I found the eggs bene (the quality varied from day-to-day), further round some nice french toast, then some wee pots that you put in the butter, maple syrup, etc (or sauce or jam or whatever). By the time I had queued for each of these and found a table, it was cold. The idea is good, but it was just too hard, without jumping up and down every few mouthfuls to get the next course to have it hot. Very disappointing. I finished unpacking and sorting the cabin. The young lad had been in the day before and asked what time would we like the cabin serviced. Again, this was a little disappointing as it was a suite. With Princess, they come when you are not there, morning and evening. He hadnt come at the agreed time (we gave him a couple of hours), but did come later and we got it right for the rest of the cruise. Toiletries were not replaced as they were used, shampoo and conditioner were a dispense container on the wall. Fortunately, we had bought our own. Tea that night was better, but again the selection was pretty average. I also dont consider a mince pie find dining. Tonight, the wait staff not only had to do a great job (which they did pretty good at) serving the meal, but there were expected to do two dances between main and dessert courses. Yes, it was fun but come on Carnival, these guys had a lot to do anyway. I cant remember how big the dining room was but it was over two floors. The downstairs was booked dining and upstairs anytime. The tables were all laid out with about 3 waiters per 4 or 5 tables. Again, Princess has this better with each waiters tables set in little alcoves where they can serve the meals/drinks from. This was again very noisy with a lot of kids yelling and screaming. There were even some sitting on the tables! Yes, there had also been some at the late time the night before. I didnt make it to much of the entertainment or the outside pool decks, etc. Partly because we had our own balcony, which was the best I have ever had. It was quite wide and wrapped around to the side of the cabln. Probably had something to do with the shape of the boat. It was very, very spacious and the furniture appeared to be in good nick. There was a lot of rust on the metal parts of the ship. Unfortunately, we did have about 24 hours of 6m swells and that kept me very cabin bound, not enjoying the cruise much! That was no ones fault, but the risk you take with cruising. I do enjoy a bit of gentle rocking usually (esp at night when you are going to sleep), but this was rather excessive! Would I pay for a suite? No. For us, a balcony represents better value for money. We do tend to spend a lot of time in the cabin. We dont use the pools, so it is nice to have that fresh air. This suite did not have great views of the sea, as the windows were not all floor to ceiling and they were broken up with panals that probably had something to do with the structure of the ship. There were no other gains (apart from getting on faster) that we could ascertain from having a suite. About three days out, the disembarkation notice came round. We were expected to take our own bags off, Those needing assistance could opt for that. Again, it felt very cheap and we felt unloved. There was some info came round with shore trips, but by then we had made our own arrangements. See below. Overall, it is definitely designed with families in mind. If you like a more peaceful cruise, or something a little more refined, then this is not the line for you. We did the hop on hop off bus at Noumea. There really was nothing to see, a couple of arcade type malls, no good shopping and an expensive ice cream! A market with about 10 stalls, not very inspiring. Most people just went round and back to the boat. Ship docked at container terminal and you could not wander round. Straight off ship and onto bus or tour. AU$25pp. but the ticket on board (charge to room) before disembarking. Didnt get off a Mare as the weather was wet and not that warm. A lot of those that did, came straight back on again. Tender port. Isle of Pines was nice, nice beach that we swum at. Locals had small market with local and coconuts food for sale. Could have paid AU$50 each to go to another beach that had turtles, etc, but the local one was nice. Plenty of fish to see if snorkling. Read Less

Booked this cruise for a family of four (2 adults and 2 kids aged 12 & 14) to celebrate my 50th birthday. We’d never cruised before so we weren’t at all sure what to expect, but loved the idea of Island hopping whilst taking the hotel with you. The Spirit really is a unique experience. From the wild mix of decor to the excellent crew and entertainment, it really is a great and at times overwhelming experience. Thank god for Serenity and well-priced cocktails!!! Our cabin was a 4K obstructed view quad with tender/water shuttle partly obscuring our view - until we got to tender ports, where we had unobstructed views. This was particularly cool at Mystery Island. The cabin was roomier then we expected. The beds were ridiculously comfortable and the pillows are spectacular! I can see why so many people rave about them. Circle C kids club - our kids went there on the first night as a meet and greet and were very reluctant. Boy, were they in a for a surprise! They met so many kids there, they barely ended up in there at all, they were so busy being teenagers together all over the ship. They’re still friends with the kids they met, having regular post-cruise vide chats with kids from all over Australia (and we live in NZ). We barely saw them when we were on the ship. It gave us a chance to have a great holiday of our own (which, as anyone with kids will know, is not always easy on a family holiday). Drinks and food were great. Buffet lines could be long at times but there was always plenty of food and of course there was the restaurant to eat in if you didn’t feel like buffet food. Guys Burger Joint was a personal highlight. As was the BBQ that was running on the odd day (not every day). Personally I’ve become a cruise convert: I’m not sure I’d go straight back on the Spirit - I’ve been there and done that, time to check out another ship. Would I recommend the Carnival Spirit? Yes. Yes I would. Read Less

Decided to find out why Australia loves cruises so much at the moment. So, we took the plunge and went on our first cruise. Would it be our last? Overview: We booked on a “special” offered by Carnival. As it turned out we seemed to have got a great deal as our special turned out to be an upgraded room and also instant Carnival Red Status (this may have been as we called Carnival to ask a few queries prior to the cruise and the lady in the US was excellent and was eager to help out). Boarded early at 11:30 on Friday. We found embarkation to be surprisingly quick and efficient. However, we did see from the ship that there were longer queues as the day progressed. Departed right on time at 4 p.m. Leaving Sydney Harbour on a big ship was on my wife’s “to do” list so this was excellent. Sydney is a magnificent harbour and we were lucky that the weather held just enough to make it spectacular. We then spent Saturday and Sunday at sea as you cruise up the Australian East coast. Monday morning, we were up early at 5:30 a.m. to see the return trip into the harbour. Again, this was worth getting up for albeit the sun had not really woken up yet to greet us. The ship docked at 6:30 a.m. and by this time the sun had begun to shine through. We were fortunate (for us anyway) to be assigned to a later disembarkation time meaning we could watch the arrival into port, go back to the room and shower and have breakfast and a coffee and not have to rush anywhere or stand in any long queues. Weather: Friday was overcast. Saturday was overcast, rainy and a little breezy causing some methodical rocking of the boat but nothing too dramatic. Only real downside with this is that everybody is inside making it feel a little cramped and busy onboard. Sunday saw the sun come out and change the whole mood of the ship and the feeling of space increased dramatically as people spread out into the open sunny areas on deck. Room: The room was far more spacious than we expected. It is a little dated but was more than adequate, especially as we did not really spend much time in the room. The balcony was also a usable size which came as a bit of a surprise and was a great place to sit and have some quiet time. There was also plenty of storage space. Only a couple of issues for us. The pillows were really, really soft. The walls are not the thickest. One room above us had people in it who were up early each day and would be stomping around the cabin. It was a bit annoying and inconsiderate. Similar with those getting back to their rooms early in the morning and staggering along the corridors talking a lot louder than they realise. Life on a ship I guess. Food Stations: Better than expected but we did not have high hopes in this department. There certainly is enough for everyone and many people seemed to enjoy (no really, really enjoy) the unlimited freedom to eat almost non-stop through the day. Food stations ranged from the beer absorbing pie and snag station to a very tasty and healthy salad bar. Did seem to be something for everyone. There was also a dessert bar and unlimited self-serve cones in vanilla and chocolate. A number of the food stations are around the pool area so you could swim, drink and listen to the DJ/watch movies. Main Dining: For a slightly more sedate experience we dined at the main restaurant in the evenings to enjoy their 3 course dinners. On two of the three nights we found the food to be very tasty and of a good quality. However, the Mexican theme night seemed to be a bit lazy. The flavour was fine, but it was really just the same as the Mexican food station out by the pool and certainly not up to the standard of a good quality Mexican restaurant. Each evening we had a bottle of wine with our dinner (at extra cost). The wine was reasonably priced with a relatively small wine list trying to cover most tastes. We had lunch in the dining room on one of the days and it was by far and away our worst meal of the cruise. A couple of the dishes presented did not accurately represent the words on the menu which was odd. Also, there is a fine dining restaurant for an additional surcharge of $55 per person but we did not feel the need to try it. Bars and Casino: There are plenty of places to get a drink. Everything from a piano bar to a pub and sports bar type places. And for a captive market they were reasonably priced. 500ml can of Heineken A$8.5. Most cocktails were around the A$13 mark. There was a “cruise special” full drink double for A$5. In other words, a double JD and (double) coke was approx. $13 but 2 JD and cokes were $18. There was a reasonable selection of spirits depending on which bar you were in. There was a lot of people drinking a lot of grog. Clearly a large chuck of the Carnival profit for this type of cruise would be from bar sales. There were many groups of birthdays, bucks, hens and other celebrations and some people were having a bit too much. We found it a little odd that being on the ship seemed to be a great place for some of these groups to get a bit plastered, especially as the majority were drinking responsibly. However, as one of the cruise comedians put it, the afternoon drinkers look like they are going to get really messy but by 7 p.m. they are generally tucked up in bed Read Less

I chose this cruise because of the price and that I had never been on carnival before. Staff were excellent and always happy and helpful. A few went above and beyond. Very, very clean ship. Cabin stewards did a wonderful job and were very thorough. I really had a wonderful time and did not want to leave. The cruise director Chloe was amazing and got involved in everything. She was so genuinely friendly and such a beautiful person inside and out. Plenty to do on sea days and plenty of entertainment. Food was excellent in the buffet and in the dining room. The Nouveau restaurant was absolutely fantastic with large servings and the food was served in beautiful and amazing ways. I truly enjoyed the cruise and would definitely sail with carnival again. My only suggestion would be if we could book and pay for shore excursions before the cruise. Read Less

This was a first time cruise for my family and another (10 of us in total). I've travelled a fair bit and worked in resorts, but have never done a cruise and I was pleasantly surprised. To cut to the chase - my wife is coeliac and had major issues with the food she was served. We told them she'd need special food (gluten and dairy free) and we were assured she'd be looked after prior to booking/departure etc. Her expectations around food are pretty low, but she's been treated to good coeliac food on other recent holidays we've been on. Really, all she wants is average food that won't set off her immune issues/allergies. It quickly became apparent to us on the cruise that every meal was going to be a gamble. We had a standing table for dinner and the same waiters every night and they quickly got a handle on the situation - however, the odd side dish or dessert would slip through will dairy or gluen in it. And some of the gf/df mains they served were terrible. Overall, dinner was good though. Lunch and breakfast was a different story however. The only coeliac breakfast foods on offer in the restaurant were pancakes and fruit... and the pancakes weren't great. The non-allergen food wasn't really worth the wait there either, so we started eat breakfast at the buffet from day 2. At least the bacon there was gf/df. For me (without food allergies) - the buffet was great. Burgers, Mexican, omelettes and pizza were a highlight for me and I would have been happy to have dinner there most nights. It was a nightmare for my wife however, as just about everything available wasn't gf/df - the pizza place did a decent gf/df pizza, but not something you'd want for every meal. Occasionally, we'd find friendly of sympathetic chef who'd cook a meal specifically for her, but we found that the vast majority of staff would run with the low-risk option of answering 'no' when we asked if something was gluten or dairy free. Only a few of them would actually check. Even though she was as careful as possible, by about day 5, her food allergies were significantly triggered and it put a damper on the whole cruise for us. The only other damper was the ridiculous 'roll call' held on deck about 2 hours after boarding. I've never seen anything like it. If you haven't been through it before, I suggest you do all you can to avoid it. The process consists of lining all passengers up on deck 3 at the 4 evacuation points and standing there, packed in like sardines in the belting sun, for about an hour with no explanation about what is going on. Those who come early are punished by having to stand at the back and by simply being there the longest. After about an hour (or a point where they think enough passengers have turned up perhaps?), they give you a 5-second demonstration of how to put on a life jacket that only about 5% of people can see and then turn you loose. It was like a re-enactment of the roll call at a POW camp - staff told us there was 'no sitting' and people started feeling faint and claustrophobic. Not a great way to start the cruise! Also - the kids club pretty much sucked. We had kids in 3 age groups and the only ones to enjoy it were the 8 year olds. The kids club spaces were stuffy and boring for the older kids. Read Less

Travelled 30/04/19 nights to new Caledonia Dad- 40yrs second time on a cruise (first with P&O) Positives Good value Great for kids and young families Plenty to do Photos are an upsell but they do it well Ship is meticulously clean and well maintained Negatives Some closed spaces funnelling people place to place. No late night stage shows for mum and dads only No alcohol or barista coffee packages. Passive smoking outside in the quiet areas no matter where you go. Can be hard to get your hands on a decent coffee without walking very far. Ships layout and staff setup/designed to get more money out of you. Upsell Upsell Upsell My review Having read some recent negative reviews but still deciding to book a cruise on the carnival spirit I'm still glad I did but personally wouldn't do so again. I still had a good time (not great) even if It's a bit of a mixed bag. I ticked the box for a family cruise and it's mostly what I got. (wife and 2 kids 6/3yr old) Ship - ships decor is old and a very weird mix of styles! You can definitely tell it what once was probably nicely themed is now a miss mash of styles as over the years of refurbishment it now looks tired and does not draw you in to feel like you are somewhere special. Ship went a Australian refit once apon a time but is largely American still with pictures, paintings and even the big screen advertising what's on has lots photos of overseas people enjoying themselves. It just leaves an overseas eclectic impression and taste about it all and nothing home grown about it. Which is a real shame as It would be outstanding, it really needs to bring a southern land flavour. Many times (but not always) i smelt the stacks diesel or cigarette smoke through some of the lifts and corridors which wasn't plesent. (never in cabins) Rooms were spotless and beds comfy. Watersides were a hoot! But you can still smell diesel burning from those iconic fins from them. Guests - guests were mostly Australian and everyone had a great time mixing and getting to know each other and no idiots mucking about. Think good ole RSL crowd..it's mix of kids thru to oldies and young mums and dads. If that's your thing great :) (it was mine) but if your single and looking to score or meet someone special for fun times your on the wrong ship..other wise everyone is a well behaved fun loving crowd. Food - can't fault the food except the free pizza and ice cream. Pizza can be either burnt or very oily and ice-cream runny alot if the time Just roll the dice on those ones... Drinks - SHIP DOES NOT HAVE AN ALCOHOL OR BARISTA BEVERAGE PACK which is WEIRD.. but prices are very reasonable and they don't skimp on LIQUOR when mixing your drink. Negative is that they will mix coke and coke no sugar in the same drink so if aspartame is a bad taste for you then it might be a problem..even if you ask for just coca cola they will still mix them. Barista made coffee is not perfect if you like it strong, and if you ask for an extra shot they look at you strange and tell you to just get the next size up.. Staff - Always professional but many have ZERO personality about them. Don't always expect a warm genuine hello or a big smile, more like a robotic tone.. These folks work very hard 7 days a week for around 7m of the year and many seem tired, you may find about a few dozen of the 900 odd staff onboard that love a chat but not always but when you do its refreshing. One thing I will say is it's very frustrating that many speak broken English so are hard to understand or they find it difficult to understand you it's very frustrating as you have to ask them to repeat what they said. I have even seen the occasional staff to staff chatter they had an issue understanding each other as well as there is a mix of different nationality/languages between them. Please do remember that they are always remain professional and they do their job well. Entertainment - All activities (and there are a lot) are always amazing good ole fun, the DJs are on always point with music a definite credit to them and the fellow acoustic guitar and piano players around the ship are awesome. However the stage shows (which I personally look forward to) are the like high school musicals.. Or rock estedfords. If you have cruised before on P&O knowing how well they are at stage shows you will be very disappointed with carnival. Dancers and acting are good but the shows are designed for family's no wow factor and very cheesy at times in my opinion. Kids, teens will love it tho and they are everywhere but most adults in the crowd like me were pretty bored. The comideans after 10.30pm were OK. The cruise director and various entertainment leaders are all a mix of UK and Americans so you will find themes for their shows that are just a bit too worldly and not really suited for Australians or my tastes anyway.. Water Slides are awesome, even for the adults!! And the kids really loved the Dr suess activities. The 18+ only adult retreat is small and nothing special with a small pool and SPA Main pool deck area is split into 2 areas its honestly its a bit cramped but 1/2 is covered which is handy on rainy days. The second pool area is always quiet but everyone is allowed to light up around one side so it reeks of cigarettes. In my opinion they should make it smoking upstairs on the balcony only. Movies shown on the big screen are great but sound is cranked up waaay too loud noticed by many and pop corn is plain.. (not cinema buttered quality) They have a night owls camp for kids so mums and dads can enjoy a night out but just don't expect anything spectacular on stage for entertainment.... It's pretty ordinary plus they don't deal with toddlers not toilet trained very well.. Just call you to collect or at the first sign of trouble. Shopping - prices good /staff great seemed very popular but it's not my thing so I can't really comment. Rooms - we had a family stateroom Its not large but very well setup and it's really all you need. Beds are super duper comfy. Only negative is aircon barely works. Spa and salon - obviously different strokes for different folks but I found it frustrating as I just wanted a haircut and neck and back massage.. Simple right? Well nope.. I had to fill out a complicated form and was being sold package treatments only that included all the fancy stuff for fingers and toes. Staff just didn't seem approachable on getting something simple and basic. Kids club - kids club seems to be setup very well, just remember that the staff there are babysitters/child minders and not nanny's. Read Less

We found the experience very enjoyable from the time of embarkation till disembarkation. The staff were friendly and helpful. Entertainment was of a high standard and was excellent. Our first port of call was Noumea and I was able to catch the hop off, hop on bus at a cost of $20. This was arranged through Ports and shore excursions. It proved to be an inexpensive way to view Noumea. A must see is the War Memorial in Noumea. I would highly recommend the Cliffs of Jokin tour on the Isle of Lifou. Included in this tour is a visit to a vanilla growing farm. As this was our second cruise to these islands I would also strongly recommend visiting Jinek Bay which is also on Lifou. The snorkelling at the Bay is a fantastic experience as there is a vast amount of coral which is easily visible and as for the aquatic life, it is amazing. Read Less

If you are a family with kids, and have not cruised before, you will have a good holiday, and some elements were handled very well. However Carnival overall simply does not meet the standards set by other cruise lines we have experienced EMBARKATION was quicker than other lines, and bags were also at our cabin more quickly. The ship is kept beautifully clean, but the decor is a jumbled cacophony of Art Deco, Egyptian, Chinese, Renaissance, Mexican, and any other theme the drunken decorator could come up with. Layout is easy - most public entertainment areas, bars, dining and activities on decks 2, 3, 9 & 10, and clear guides throughout. CABIN is good - slightly more storage and bathroom space than interior cabins on other ships. Main problem with layout - the Adults Only Serenity Retreat was right below the water-slides: shrieking children are not our idea of serenity! DINING was fine for kids, but not up to the standard we are accustomed to on other lines. I would like to say before I review the food, that our dining room team of three waiters gave fantastic service - nothing was too much trouble for them, and they were wonderful with the kids. The La Playa buffet food was mediocre, and mostly the same menu items day after day after day at breakfast, salad bar, sandwich, pie, sausage and pizza stations. The only variations were at the one outlet serving the meals such as curries or fish dishes, and the sweets bar, with new selections each day. The quality of the food overall there was a little lower than the "All you can eat" at our local club. After hours, the ONLY food available is greasy pizza, unless you want to pay for room service. Not even a crummy pre-wrapped biscuit to have with your cuppa. The Empire Dining Room food was better, but not fantastic. (Example, a "Tower of Leek and broccoli" on the menu, was a couple of overdone pieces squished into a tiny dish). Several times the signature dessert of Melting Chocolate cake arrived at the table as a ramekin of uncooked cake mix. Chef's Table was our main disappointment of the cruise. On every other cruise Chef's Table has been an amazing fine dining experience, with an elegant private dining room, beautiful china and glassware, incredible food with matching wines, and good conversation. In comparison, the Carnival Chef's Table, at the same price as other lines, was a MEDIOCRE JOKE. * Appetisers eaten standing up, served on sharp plastic spoons, and so rushed we barely swallowed one before the next was there. * Entire CT served in the galley, with a tablecloth thrown over a table so big we could not talk to any other guests because they were too far away. We could not have talked to them anyway, because the din, shouting and clatter of the galley meant we could not have heard them. We also could not hear most of what the chef was saying as he explained each course. A galley tour and a CT are two completely different experiences, and do NOT belong together. * Food was good, but not of a standard we would expect from a CT. Pork belly was full of gristle, and the fat not rendered. De-boned quail was overdone and had a bone in it which hurt my husband's tooth (but the staff argued with him and basically told him he was wrong about this!). Meats had not been adequately rested, so plates were swimming in meat juices and blood. Cocoa content was so high in the choc desert it was dry and claggy and not possible to eat a whole serving. The bread, and the citrus dessert, were excellent. The food and presentation in Nouveau Restaurant were far closer to what we expected from a CT experience. * Every other CT has matched wines. CT on Spirit has the cheap house red and house white. As I do not drink, I was left with water, and never offered to obtain even a soft drink for me to go with the meal. We asked the waitress a question about the wine, and she had no clue. Asked if there was a sommelier and she said "What's that ?!" She really had no idea how to serve, and it turns out that the waitress assigned to CT (which is meant to be the pinnacle experience of dining on the ship) was on her first cruise! ACTIVITIES - Carnival is geared to young families, and did well for them. Our grandchildren (girl 7, boy 9) loved Kids Club - however the exorbitant cost of up to $50 for them to stay in the evenings if parents had an activity to attend was excessive - when our own children were with Royal Caribbean Kids Club it continued until 11 pm every night. The water-slides and pools were popular and they loved the Dr Seuss activities. Our adult kids report that many of the games in the Arcade were "stuffed" or faulty. As a family, we love the Trivia and games. These were of a similar standard to other cruises, except for one thing - on other ships, teams exchange papers for marking, while on Spirit, teams mark their own papers. This seems only a little thing, but while most people are honest and play fair, it became obvious that some teams were adding answers and doctoring their scores. This system means that the cheats often win, and those who play fair are penalised, which takes away some of the shine. When we tried to ask the crew member running the game to swap papers for scoring, it was refused, even though we also heard other cruisers making the same complaints about the cheats. Several times answers were wrong, and the quiz master said that "that question is wrong, but the boss won't let us change it", or allowed points for all answers given for those questions, or for teams who protested loudly that their wrong answers were correct. Games need to be fair for all playing. COMEDY CLUB was great overall, with three of the four comedians catering equally well for the PG and adult audiences. Michael Bennett, Jacques Barrett and Stephen J Whitely were outstanding. (The fourth, John Cruickshank, sadly appeared to feel that simply picking on audience members and unleashing a stream of F and C words was enough to make it a funny adult show - it is not.) THEATRE PERFORMANCES - on Royal Caribbean ships, we stay for the show almost every night, and these have been a variety of top class acts which we would be happy to pay full price for back home. A typical cruise would include specialist music acts, professional dance troupes, and variety performers such as hypnotists or magicians. On Carnival Spirit, the show every night was the same 4 male and 4 female dancers, simply singing and dancing a different theme each night - 80's, 90's etc). They worked very hard, but did not come close to the standard of any acts seen on our previous 4 cruises. We tried going to several shows, but lost interest and left again after a few minutes. There was one act of a magician / escape artist which was quite good, I think she was part of the crew as the 8 regular dancers were part of her show. DANCING- hubby and I love to dance, and always seek out the best live music on cruises to dance in the evenings, however Spirit seems to almost actively discourage the idea of couples dancing, even though they promote this on their website. In the Red Frog Pub, there is a very small dance floor, but the music is mostly rock (the 3 man band is very good). So we headed to the central lobby, where a duo plays easy listening tunes and there is another small dance floor. We dance Ceroc (a mix of Swing and Modern Jive) which needs a fairly fast tempo. However, whenever we got up to dance to a quick song, this duo would immediately change back to slow music, even if we were the only couple dancing, and specifically requested some faster songs. A few other cruisers even noticed this happening and commented to us about it. We could occasionally dance to the excellent guitarist at the Alchemy Bar, but the dance floor there is about the size of a dining table! The cruise activities also included a Salsa and a Ballroom dance class, but the instructor (one of the show dancers) pushed the class so fast that even as fairly experienced dancers we struggled to keep up, and most of the guests were hopelessly bewildered. SERVICE was great overall - the majority of staff went out of their way to be welcoming and helpful. However, the few times we raised an issue with a staff member, the response was to argue with us and tell us why we were wrong!! The waiter we spoke to about the bone at Chef's Table took the plate away, then brought it back (without bone chip) and tried to show us that it was just pepper on the plate. When we arrived for a booked lunch in Nouveau, we told the waitress that we would like to try and get to another event after our lunch, and would like to order quickly. We then waited 20 minutes without service, and when we called her over and asked again if we could order, she told us this was Nouveau and we should not expect a quick service or lunch !! SHORE EXCURSIONS - like all cruise lines, the shore excursions are exorbitantly priced, with a minimum 150% mark-up over the same tours booked with local companies. Unless you have mobility issues, or want to go a long way from the ship, and need the guarantee that the ship will wait for you if delayed, do your own thing. There are plenty of affordable and interesting options available, often identical to the ship tours. On Isle of Pines, our $20 local bus tour travelled in convoy with the $50 ship tour bus (and we got an extra stop, as the ship bus was too big to get down the road to Queen Hortense’s Cave). Carnival Spirit is fine for a cheap casual family holiday with young kids, but as discerning cruisers with a love of good food and entertainment we will be returning to Royal Caribbean. Read Less

We'd just finished our Tasmanian cruise in March and were back aboard Spirit April 11th to New Caledonia. This was 8-nights and we travelled with about 30 friends including their kids. Check-in was much smoother as we found Carnival no longer takes passengers' photos rather now relying on the passport photo so check-in is smoother. We also found that the Carnival check-in so now closer to the start of process. We were onboard quickly and our Sail and Sign cards were ready reaonably quickly. As we'd been on only a couple of weeks ago, a number of staff recognised us so it was good to know that I'd had a positive impact on some of the staff during my previous cruise. As we were travelling with mostly cruise and Carnival newbies, we'd show our friends around On this cruise, I found Carnival wi-fi to have been flaky often dropping my connection. I don't get an internet package but I always get the chat option for $9 but found it too unreliable this time. We went to the sail away show which was ordinary but the performers must be getting over doing the same shows each week. The island night show was OK which was called Getaway Island or something. I'd probably had too many blanc de blancs to remember. One of our cruise crew made it Lip Sync Battle and that was a great night. We did Nouveau yet again but I booked before boarding and got the confirmation. I went up there to change the booking as we decided to do Nouveau another night and they couldn't find the booking. I showed them the email confirmation. Anyway, no drama. This time we chose 5:30 dining as our friends travelled with children and I hear they like to eat early. This was our first early dining and it turned out pretty convenient actually. There was enough time to go to the shows and even have a quick power nap after dinner. Dinner was great and our wait team was headed by a great guy. Again, food was great all throughout. I had a couple of prawn burritos as well as a turkey BLT wrap from the deli as an example. One things I'd always had concerns for was the slippery tiles when they got wet. Once wet, these tiles turn into an ice-skating rink. I always thought it might have been my shoes causing me to often slide as I'd never seen anyone stack out but on this cruise, one of friends hit the deck in an area where I'd slip only moments beforehand. They were just in the process of cleaning as I went through there but our friend took a tumble monuments after. This was near the lobby bar and because the photographers set up along that area, it act as a choke point. Our friend was a little battered and Carnival had her x-rayed but she hadn't broken anything. We arrived at Noumea on a Sunday and very little is open so I just walked around the town for a bit. Some of the others went on their own activities. I'd been to Noumea a few times before so I didn't feel compelled to do too much. Again, I'd noticed a number of bar staff would pour me the more expensive Scotch and in one case, pour me a double having never asked me what I wanted. I hadn't been served by this one bar waiter so he wouldn't have remembered that I'd have double every now and again. This was also earlier in the day. In any case, there were a few minor issues this cruise but we had pretty smooth sailing. The kids weren't too annoying and guests not too rude. This was also the second cruise where I'd didn't really go to Alchemy, a place I practically lived at on Legend and Spirit last year. I just didn't feel the vibe. Again, the Spirit class ships have a good passenger to space ratio and you'll always find a quiet area. I feel for a lot of the staff as they're on 7 days a week for 7 months have to endure petulant children and adults, the same music being piped in around the ships, the same guitarist for a few weeks and all for very little money. The staff are lucky if they get a few hours ashore. Some of them simply seemed disinterested, wanting to be elsewhere. Carnival have a very thin veil they need to maintain; the ship is supposed to be fun all 'round and when staff don't share those values, that façade quickly deteriorates and we get a glimpse as really how awful some of the staff have it. I'm still booked in for a 3-night June cruise but I'll be a lot more savvy booking future cruises with Carnival based on value rather than timing. Read Less

It was for a family celebration the buffet food was terribly the crew that was serving the food hardly spoken a word and I went I mean hardly spoke a word I don't mean couldn't speak English I mean did not say a word. At least they didn't in the buffet areas if you went to get the Mexican all the burgers no hello no nothing they just stared at you like you were idiot, no alcohol packages and the food in the dinning room was the same most night or didn't have much variety and very small portions..... The ship itself was was swarming with kid in all the bars and casino even at 1am with the only place that was supposed to be adults only The Serenity lounge was placed below the water slides at the front of the ship so you can still hear screaming kids the entire time The safety drill at the time of disembarking was very unorganised if you hadn't been on a cruise before you wouldn't even know what you were doing there we stood on the outside of the ship for over an hour just so they can show you how to put on a life vest that was it ridiculous!!!! As for the activities on board there was over 50 activities a day but you could not participate in pretty much anything without children around even in the comedy shows Read Less

If you are expecting variety, pleasant atmosphere, entertainment, luxury, relaxation, or well maintained facilities, EVEN wifi, you'll be in for a nasty shock. This was our first cruise. We will NOT be going back to Carnival cruises ever again. Our cruise was just a 4 dayer to Moreton Island. It's fortunate my husband and I can entertain ourselves, because this cruiseline is geared towards a) little children who don't know any better b) people who like to be in bars for 26 hours a day c) those with bad hearing d) dummies who would pay for things that should be freely available and e)....ah...shall I say less than your average sort of person. BOARDING: We had priority boarding. It went quite well. We arrived at 11am and boarded at 11.10. The problem was, our room was supposed to be one of the first ready, and it wasn't. No where near. We had nothing to do for 2 hours + while it was sorted. In fact, doors to accommodation were closed, with signes on Do Not Enter, until 1.30. Even then, ours was still locked and incomplete with no card to get in. Apparently we should have been able to get in early. So we had to hang around, lucky Sydney was so pretty to look at. CABIN: Our room was nice, we'd paid extra for a vista suite, one of the most roomy cabins in the ship, aft. Very nice, and nice and clean thanks to our very nice lady, Sunny, who was one of the few highlights of the cruise. The balcony was dirty and glass filthy. Don't expect a roomy suite, it's still a little cramped, but to be expected. It has a very nice balcony, wrap around the stern. Worth the money for the view and the 'get away from it all'. It had a delicious bed,...that's one of the 'dot' ratings. Pillows annoying, but the bed was lovely. The room had curtains on rails which swung and squeaked after every trough and wave. Try that when you're going to sleep??? Door to the bathroom kept swinging too. The lights, which dimmed if held pressed, were a nightmare to navigate. all over the place and which ones did which was a mystery. Plenty of hanging space and drawers (if you need that sort of thing), a big bathroom, if you need THAT sort of thing. Stupid shower water mixer, obviously people are scalded by it, because there was a sign on the wall. I hate combo faucet/shower heads where you have to press or pull the button to choose. A small lounge area with TVs, one chair had back wheels missing, never could work out if on purpose so it leaned back, or not. Lounge was diabolical. FAR to wide to sit leaning back, and vinyl, so you slipped when you tried. No cushions. If you're only 157cm, (5'2") it was ridiculous. Bottles of water cost $4.50 each. Not even one for free. Hmmmm. I'm beginning to start to wonder. DECOR: of the ship......oLD FASHIONED TACK. oh me..oh my. Think a cross between a bad Buckingham Palace / Titanic / Op shop - and you'll get my drift. (pardon the pun). ANY level surface was patterned with faux 1930s patterns. Nauseating carpet patterns, golden cupids and fat GOLD heads, swirls and glass and pretend copper and brass, wood veneer, and giant chandeliers and claw footed furniture. Oh, and my personal favourite.....the fake frescos of nude gods, goddesses, angels and just...well just naked people badly painted ...actually really HORRIBLY painted, all over the ceilings and on multiple rondels around the walls. Add to that the framed artwork...matching I'll add....of (yes you guessed it) more naked people, very ordinary artworks of things like greek gods. In our suite, Venus was being fondled by Cupid. It was pedophilic. I can't understand why someone let that be hung in a room! You've no idea how off-putting it was to wake up to that huge poster every morning. the artist should be shot. So should the decorator. It was the most hideous attempt at vintage glamour I've ever seen. TACKY. Ostentatious Tack. MAINTENANCE: The outside of the ship was not much better. I was literally scared that the balcony of our room might fall off, there was so much rust under the paint. The RAILING was stuck on top of the old one, which was warped, peeeling and rusted. The glass along the railing was absolutely filthy, as were our cabin windows. That's a shame since you could see nothing when inside the cabin, looking through dirty windows and a dirty glass railing. aLL throught the ship I noticed peeling veneer, broken foam faux gold leaf cupids etc, In our suite I found it ludicrous that a fairly nice birds eye veneer was used on cupboards and drawers and then old 1980s gold tone plastic handles attached which colour was worn off. Wardrobe door would not slide. Looking at the interior of other ships, this one was a decor disaster, and I'm not even fussy! SAFETY DRILL - i WAS pretty annoyed when we were hearded out onto the deck (though the temp was nice) and made to stand there for 20 minutes, while nothing happened, then a ridiculously simple safety blurb - how to put on a life jacket. (really??) and then stand there for a nother 10 minutes whjile nothing happens. Then a very loud horn (there go a few more of my aural cilia) and we're apparently allowed to go. FOOD: tHERE are 3 main areas to eat. a) the communal eat what you want, as much as you want, wheneve you want. (Except you can't, because it's not open all the time, only the pizza, tea and coffee is.) b) The posh restaurant upstairs. c) the main restaurant comprising of 2 levels. The food was ok. Pretty good, acceptable. I don't want to make it sound great. It was fresh enough,a nd there was plenty of it. We ate at all 3 places. POSH RESTAURANT; we booked in very early. Months ago. When we arrived we were annoyed that there was not a window table as we'd asked. "Sorry, we don't do that' he said. Why book then?? He said first come first served. Again...why book then? Food was nice, but my lobster was way overcooked. I'd say in a warmer or something for a while. It was even tough to cut. (It was my one splurge dinner.) Sides were ordered. Broccoli. 2 tiny pieces of broccoli. (If I'd known that I would have order 4 serves!!) and mash with wasabi for my husband. About 2 tablespoons of mash with no wasabi. I couldn't taste any. He couldn't taste any. So I'm saying the sides were a waste of effort. Big steak though. And tender. And we were asked "All OK?" "All good?" "Is food ok?" so many times, I lost count. Literally 20 times by 3-4 different people. It was sooooooo annoying. I had a mushroom entree which was delicious. Then the overcooked lobsters. Then a chocolate sphere, which I understood to be filled with something else..., actually it was all just chocolate, melted with melted chocolate, and with chocolate inside and chocolate smeared on the edge. ERgh. I love choc. But no counterpoint to give some contrast it was sickly. Hey chef, ever heard of raspberries? or orange? or even cream? Meals are $55 for choice of 3 courses. EMPIRE RESTAURANT: (THE middle one) Staff are tremendous. Work like trojans serving all the hundreds of people, sitting at decadently decorated tables in the ostentatious huge dining room. They're quick, efficient, and super friendly. The menu is not anything special. It has most of the food that is also served upstairs at the posh restaurant (for an exctra $30), and all of the food from the serve yourself buffet, but put on a plate for you. (free). You can choose what you want, multiple times if you want. So it's really like a buffet, but you can't see the food and someone else gets it for you. It's ok food though. Except I had bouillabaise last night which was just a broth with a few teeny bits of seafood chucked in at the last minute. And a cooked apple with lime pie inside, the apple was so tough I couldn't cut it, obviously not cooked enough, and my husband had one too, but it was only half the size!!! Breakfast is also held in this room. BUFFET: Welcome to cattle class. In many respects. Pushers, shovers, pigs. (sorry, but true. - I guess this style attracts it.) I enjoyed my couple of visits to the buffet as the food was fine, it was the people who weren't. Also, Carnival, your set up...organisation of food stations is abysmal. Identical lines of food from both sides, both converging inwards to the same place is ridiculous. Especially when that place is also the coffee and tea station. I enjoyed a cantina outside which did taco type things. It was fresh and interesting. There's an all day pizza place, but other than that, only tea coffee hot choc and something they called lemonade, but to us (Aussies) it's very strong sweet lemon cordial. It was hideous. Really, no soft drinks or even WATER!!! No juice either. I suppose you could get it from the bar if you wanted to. BARS: Speaking of bars...the inumerable multiple bars all over the ship. You couldn't escape them. Clearly the focus of attention for designers. 2/3 of the public areas ...at least...were bars. Maybe you like that.. I didn't. Why on earth would you drink inside a ship, when you could ...well...drink outside of one? And why is there a need for 7 or more bars? Bar people will not make drinks to order. One day, I went to get a cocktail. I wanted one without orange juice as I'm allergic to it. I asked for a cocktail off the list, but substitute the oj for coconut milk or something, as I like it creamy. Barman said no. I thought he was joking. He said can't do. I said 'What?" he said can't leave out orange juice. I said I don't want oj. He said I can't do. People around me are shaking their heads...what? why? pick something else. OK...pina colada but no ice. No. Can't do. (pina colada's aren't made like dacquiri, they're not icy, and he was making them like that.) No can't do. I asked him why, he just shook his head. I said, but I'm paying for it!!! So I had to make a complaint. I never ever complain. Long stoir short. Dep Head Barman explained. They won't make drinks to order. Too many people on board. (I'm thinking, why would you hire barmen that can't make drinks to order? the bars are never crowded because there's so many of them.) Also, apparently no coconut milk. Really? on a tropical cruise? They use pina colada mix. No pineapple juuice, no coconut cream. Just a stodgy looking mixture. ergh. NO WIFI - unbelievably, there is no wifi on the ship. (I'm not an idiot, I can work out why. - they do not want passengers on their phones or tablets for free, instead of bars and restaurants, casino and shops where they would be spending money.) For this reason also, there is NO NEWSAGENT, NO BOOKSHOP etc on board. They don't want you reading, when you could be drinking or gambling or otherwise spending more money!!! So after leaving sydney and my 4g carks it, I start to wonder. Where is the wifi. I get the Carnival Hub,a nd to my dismay it costs $72 PER PERSON to get 4 day cruise long middle of the road wifi. (not hispeed and not all sites, eg no youtube). You can switch devices, but not at the same time. So husband and I could not be on wifi at once unless we had two accounts. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Even aeroplanes have wifi. Coober Pedy, in the desert of South Australia has wifi and that's 850 kilometres away from the nearest city. And you're telling me acruise ship, 10kms off coast, can't give wifi? It's because it's another cash grab. Pay for wifi, or pay to do something else. No entertainment for free on this ship. So we bought ONE wifi account, swapping devices, and only one of us using it at a time, when we needed to. however. IT WOULDN'T WORK IN OUR BEDROOM OR ON OUR BALCONY. Wifi is garbage on the ship. It's slow, and I don't know about you, I like lying in bed looking at emails whenI'm on hols. And I had to sit on the bed, as I couldn't sit on the slide wide sofa. But I couldn't get wifi in the bedroom. Soooooo annoying when I'd paid $72 for it. That's more than 2 months worth of wifi I pay at home! ENTERTAINMENT: As you may have observed, I'm not a fan of 24 hour drinking, gambling or eating. I naively expected there to be entertainment on board. Adult entertaiment. Not "ADULT" but for adults. Not bean bag tossing. Not the hairy chest competition. :/ NOT a lecture about ...wait for it....wrinkles. I didn't want to have my photo taken, I can do that. I would have played trivia or even bingo in a pinch, but these more fun games were held in random spaces in side passages in a few seats in a cafe with people filing past and talking through them. It was impossible. Adn it wasn't for grown ups so kids were running around and talking. Seriously? Think about it. Can't hear the question, can't hear the answer. No point. So...THINGS TO DO. Virtually nothing. Unless you like drinking eating or gambling or spending money on rubbish. There are shops (jewellery, souvenirs, photos.) tHAT'S it. There are theme nights, if you're willing to risk your hearing. An 80s night for this cruise. Nothing else going. So if it's raining or windy, be aware. You will be very very bored. No internet, no books, tiny pools, no activities worth doing. Just a thought...Carnival. Try some FREE activities. What about a 'get fit' class on the deck. What about an 'All about Moreton Island' exhibition for 2 days ont he way there, and an 'all about the ocean' exhbition on the way back. What about a singalong, a talent show, a cooking exhibition. What about a FREE tour of the engine room (you had to pay). What about a mini borrow-library? A music room? A makeup show. The activities were pathetic and cash grabs, and here's the worst of them. ART AUCTION: There was the most bizarre art show I have ever witnessed. And being an artist myself, I have witnessed plenty, including some pretty odd ones. The organiser was a woman who spoke 3.75 x the speed of sound. Even when she was speaking 'normally'. People were sniggering behind their hands at her. She needs to take something to slow her up a bit. Around 30 minutes of blurb on how, why, who and when, would have been soporific, but for the voice of Speedy Gonzales. she informed us that SHE would determine the starting price, NOT the buyers who usually start an auction. (OK....), and SHE would put in bids whenever she felt necessary. (??? OK......) And the starting bid for the first piece of work was $6000. Six Grand. Did I hear correctly? or have my ears lost 75% hearing due to the ridiculous noise of the music in all the bars? You might not flinch at that. But the 'work', was done in highlighter and permanent marker. In fact, I have never seen such a flagrant upsell, overqualifying sales pitch for such utter rubbish in all my life. The 'works', were clearly up to 20 years old, absolutely revolting pictures, sad huge old gold tone wooden frames bashed and beaten, and reused over and over agiain, with the work begin recycled for cruise after cruise, until some idiot buys it. at $6000. I would say none of the work was painted in Australia. It6 looked like 1980s American junk store stuff. Oh boy. To add insult to injury, a 'free' glass of champagne and orange was offered just before the auction to soften the wallets of the numbskulls who were considering a hefty purchase. Only to be outbid by the seller, who could put in a bid over you to bid you up. Leaving you bidding against yourself. They called it 'collecting'. You can collect art from your cruises. People. People. Do yourself a favour. Go to Saint Vincent de Paul op shop. Pick up the same type of thing for $4 and be done with it. Or better, go to the art show of a local community Art Society and pick up a beautiful artwork recently painted, with genuine provenance, and the blessing of the artist, in a clean and modern frame. $500 should buy you a real cracker! PUBLIC AREAS: did I mention the music? No relaxing music, just super loud, aggravating ear pounding music. In all the bars, and pool areas. All the time. Even the accoustic guitar guy, who was the best of them, was sooooooo loud I wouldn't have put my children in the pool near him. No relaxing anywhere there. Nup. SPEAKING OF POOLS: Not pools. small spa style areas. They LOOK like pools in the pictures because of the huge overflow areas, like paddle areas about 1" deep, but which take up 2/3 of the pool area. The pools themselves are minute. About 4-5 metres long adn 2-3 metres wide. It would fit 20 people in max. No self respecting adult is going to get into a pool that small with 100 kids trying to get in. There is a 'serenity' area which has an even smaller pool. Think about it. Thousands of people. tiny tiny pools. I didnt travel with my older chldren, thank goodness. they would have been bored out of their trees. MORETON ISLAND. We loved it. We took our snorkel gear and walked the 2kms or whatever it is up to the wrecks and swam around on them looking at the gorgeous sea life. Then found a quiet sushi bar and bought an Asahi and a sushi. OH! I almost forgot. THE SHUTTLE BOAT. How could I forget that. It was an exciting experience to say the least. The WAITING: We were told we could o over at any time. We left at 9.50. We didn't ACTUALLY leave until 11.10am. Why? because there were tiny shuttle boats, and so few of them, and we were all herded into the auditorium with numbers, waiting our turn. It took over an hour for our turn. Really? There has to be a better way. The cruise director made it sound like we were SOOOO lucky to be getting on "Now for lucky 38. If you're 38 you can go to the island!!" It was ridiculous. At least have some entertainment for the 400 or so people all waiting to leave. the DRIVER: Picture this. You give your $150,000 car to your 14 year old to drive up to the shops and back. That's what it felt like. On the return trip, our boat driver was so pitiful it beggared belief. My husband is a Master 5 ticket holder, meaning he can drive BIG boats. He felt like he should go and offer assistance he was so pathetic. First, he zigzagged his way through the passage with reverse thrusters every time he needed to slow or turn. (use twice as much fuel and spin the boat around erratically, over steering to compensate.) It took 10x longer to get back than it did to come over. Worst, when we came alongside the ship, he tried to reverse it again, it should have taken around 12 seconds, with maybe 3 manouvres. It was a fairly calm sea. He botched it so badly the boat spun around 360 degrees TWICE! another boat came in, instead, probably to show the driver how to do it. (aka don't reverse up, just drive up to it!!) our driver still did not do that, mucking around over steering and reversing, and ultimately going forward, but so poorly he crashed into the SHIP!! All the passengers screamed, and while I knew nothing would happen, the sound was tremendous and the other passengers scared. Crew were standing on the ship watching the pitiful attempt, in disbelief. There was even a small vessel coming in, a bumpered vessel like a 'pusher', to help 'push' the shuttle into position. It was atrocious. And terrible of Carnival to hire boat drivers in charge of their passengers who have no skill and put lives at risk. They should be ashamed. You may have figured this kind of cruise is not for me. I have done many things like this, and don't get seasick. But I was dismayed at this cruise. It was a cash grab pure and simple. Only the staff saved it. Most of them anyway. They were helpful and worked hard. Probably don't get paid enough for the hard work they do. Most were overseas workers from the Philippines or Russia. Read Less

11 night Vanuatu and New Caledonia cruise. Second time on the Spirit. Went on her when she first came to Aussie about 5 years ago. Said we wouldn't go on Carnival again; but my Brother and his partner ha recently been on and enjoyed it and we were keen to travel with them. It was a real mixed-bag. Embarkation went very smoothly. Muster is a dogs-breakfast though. Why they need to line everybody up like POW's at roll-call, out on the promenade without shade, packed in like sardines is a mystery. On most Princess cruises we've been on, Muster has been in the theater or one of the lounges. The ship is an interesting mix of decors. We had a Balcony Room. Room was tidy and had a fridge. Beds were ok; but not the luxury you get on Princess. Cruise was outside of school holidays, so there wasn't a lot of kids on-board. The ship didn't feel crowded and there was always somewhere quiet you could go. Service levels fluctuated a bit. Never bad.. but not always great. Sadly, we had a jumper on the 3rd night and the ship was required to return to the area to search. That meant we didn't make it into Port that day. The Captain did an amazing job re-jigging the Itinerary so that we still got to 5 Ports and didn't lose one (and arguably, some would say he gave us an improved itinerary). Mystery Island is always a crowd favourite and didn't disappoint. Port Vila always has many varied options and of course, the cheapest duty-free. We've been to all the Ports before, up to 5 times in some cases; so did our own thing for shore-tours. Entertainment was good. The live band that replaced Music Manila were good musicians (and less corny). There were a couple of good solo entertainers and a good trio of violinists playing their take on some pop and rock classics. There was an MOR sequenced duo (and they had good voices). Saw some good shows including a Freddie Mercury impersonator and entertainment was good. To top it off.. they have the Adults Comedy up to 3 times a night which was great. R18. Some of the comedy was very funny (although def Adult only). Usual trivia most days. The unfortunate let-down is the food. It's bland. MDR service ranged from poor to good (first time we had done anytime dining.. maybe that doesn't help). Felt like they were trying to rush you through.. often serving mains to the table while some of us were still eating our entrees. Constantly having to ask for extra butter.. or even bread rolls. Water empty.. no drink orders taken. Very hit and miss and not of the standard you would see on other lines. The food itself and the menus - very average. Usually only luke-warm. Uninspiring. In the past cruises, we had always looked forward to dinner as one of the highlights of the day. On Carnival.. you eat because you have to. The food is poor and you feel like they're trying to get rid of you. Buffet food was very average. Buffet and all food options close by 9pm except the Pizza which is not a great pizza. No other options for a snack later at night. I guess you get spoiled on Princess with 24 hour International Cafe, buffet open till 11pm, free room service (you have to pay extra on Carnival). Breakfast in the dining room - don't think they got the order right once. The burgers and fries closed super early (and were not great anyhow). The BBQ that they had up on top deck sometimes was good though. Coffee was disappointing. If I want to pay for a decent Espresso coffee; I want a cup and saucer.. not a plastic cup. Disembarking was fine. Pools are salt-water. Not my cup of tea (although admit some prefer them over chlorine). All-in-all, a very mixed bag. Fun to be had.. but the food was such a let down that we will have the fun on a different brand that does things right! Read Less

My sister and I travelled on the Carnival Spirit for an 11 day cruise to the Loyalty Islands particularly to visit Santo as many cruise Lines are no longer visiting this port due to the high Port Fees. We both felt that the embarkation process was too long and uncomfortable with long periods of standing in the heat without moving. The Carnival Spirit is an older ship that is showing is age and is looking rusty on the outside and tired on the inside decor. The best part of the ship is definitely the crew, particularly the stewards and waiters who go above and beyond the call of duty to care, provide for and entertain everyone. They are amazing. Unfortunately the ship experienced an unexpected tragedy on board on the third night of the cruise which resulted in an extra day of sailing so a decision was made to exclude Santo and Mare from the itinerary which was unfortunate. The captain then agreed to include Lifou and Isle of Pines instead. Unfortunately we were both underwhelmed by the meals in the Main Dining Room compared to a holiday we had on the same ship just twelve months before. The presentation and quality of the meals wasn’t anywhere near as good as the previous trip and there seemed to be obvious cost cutting measures in place. The shore excursions provided by the ship were few and usually double the cost of local providers but this is typical of all cruise lines. The entertainment provided in the nightly shows were usually very good however the Comedians hired on this cruise were well below par. We weren’t travelling with children and felt that most movies and on deck activities were directed at children so other than Trivia, Bingo and the Casino adults had very little to do. We did however feel that the new Cruise Director Chloe did a wonderful job in engaging passengers. Carnival Cruise Lines need to look into refurbishing, rethink the cost cutting and looking into hiring better quality entertainment before we will travel with them again. Read Less

The cruise Director Chloe made this cruise amazing!Loved the new menu in Nouveau!behind the fun tour very interesting!room stewards were great and always remembered our name!This ship is really starting to show her age and needs a bit of attention!Food mostly good a few meals were a bit average!Sushi restaurant fabulous!overall a great cruise! Shows were amazing usually easy to get a seat!Onboard shops Heinemann do not like new owners of the shops very expensive duty free alcohol was outrageously priced we bought all our alcohol in Port Vila for a fraction of the price!No varietyIf You didn’t want a watch handbag or overpriced junk jewellery!that was about it all I bought in 11 days was a T-shirt!! Really enjoyed trivia would have like more Aussie trivia!music trivia was always so much fun! We participated in the love and marriage show !we were recognised for the rest of the tour for the wrong reasons lol not sure I would do it again I will stick to watching others but fun to do once! Read Less

Embarkation & disembarkation process was extremely easy & smooth. Very comfy cabin. Unfortunately the drink service from waitstaff was minimal when on deck in comparison with previous cruises. We only dined in the dining room 3 times, once for lunch & twice for dinner. I don’t know if it was because we chose anytime dining but each time we had to wait to get waiters attention to order a drink. The buffet food never changed & they had one side closed off each night & so much of it was cold. We got pizza one night which was obviously someone else’s reject as it lacked any decent amount of topping (pepperoni). Once we discovered the deck bbq, that’s where we chose to eat for lunch. It was absolutely delicious. We chose this cruise for Santo but didn’t get there nor to Maré due to incident on ship. We ended up going to Lifou which we didn’t bother getting off the ship for as we’ve been every other time. Also went to Isle of Pines but because they weren’t expecting us, there were hardly any markets operating. The Casino was a total rip off, put so much money through the pokies with no return ( could’ve gone on another cruise ) which was obviously our choice but just a little run would have been nice. Was very happy with the overall experience of our first cruise on a Carnival ship. Very easy to navigate though the decor seriously needs to be updated. Met some lovely people onboard. Did a great tour while in Vila, going to Raru waterfalls, Blue Lagoon with lunch, Duty free shopping & pub stop with Karaoke. Hopefully we’ll get to Santo one day... Read Less

Have to commend the captain as he had some very difficult decisions to make but he managed to still get us our 5 stops. Wasn't very happy with the food. Main dining room menu didn't change very much and food was not as good as I have had on other ships. Entertainment wasn't as good either. Loved the daytime trivia, seemed to always be a trivia to go to and Chloe the entertainments manager was great. Thought the evening shows could have been a lot better. Room and bathroom were plenty big enough and always clean. Staff very friendly and always ready to help. Embarkation and disembarkation went without a hitch and used Carnival for transport to airport. Shore excursions were mainly booked privately but all went very well and most enjoyable, must say Isle of Pines is now my favourite island. Loved the outside cinema and watched a few good movies there. Also happy to see a few members of staff moving towels so others could sit down. Read Less

I think that your option of a cruise has a lot to do with YOUR attitude. We went along to have fun and we did. Apart from not having coffee and alcohol packages I didn’t find this cruise line any more penny pinching than any other cruise line that I have travelled on. I actually appreciated that they didn’t have an alcohol package as having to pay for each drink meant that there were less people drunk on this cruise.Decoration on the Legend was a bit quirky, but I loved it. Ship was well maintained and everything worked like clockwork, activities ran to time. We had an extended balcony cabin on deck 7 and just loved it. Cabin was well serviced by Tricia and her team, and I loved the towel animals that they made every day. Lido deck had great options and food was always palatable. MDR was excellent, the food was scrumptious and well prepared, although at times the size of the offering was small (think wedding). That was ok, we just ordered 2 when we wanted to..I loved that the entertainment and activities catered for all age levels. Slice by both cabin staff and the wait staff in the MDR was excellent. Shore tours from the ship were highly overpriced (usual for any cruise line), but we organised tours online that were half price of the ship offerings or less. People would be aware that there are cheaper alternatives in Noumea at the shuttle bus drop off point and a great market on the first floor of that building. It was our first cruise with Carnival (usually have gone Princess) but it won’t be our last. I’ve already booked a Carnival Cruise next year. Read Less