A last minute choice as we would normally do a road trip to Queensland this time of year (Australian Winter). Had only done 2 cruises previously 1 on Azamara Journey....Athens to Barcelona and 2 Celebrity Millenium Singapore to Hong Kong. Price for this local cruise was a big factor and we weren't disappointed with anything. Boarding was very smooth and efficient all tendering and disemarkation very well managed. Delighted with our Guarantee balconcy cabin 4231 at rear of ship...plenty of storage space and layout very good...great bathroom. Cabin steward always happy and remembered our names and cabin beautifully clean. Dinner a Empire dining room was excellent and very attentive waiters. Lido buffet area always clean and food very good. Bar staff always helpful and mostly knew our regular order. Alround nice ship and staff and good value. Not the same demographics of passengers as previous cruises but a very lovely crowd. Read Less

The embarkation process was efficient but the security checking staff need to improve their manners and consideration of elderly passengers, and try to emulate their counterparts at airport security checks. Dining in Empire rooms unsatisfactory, queues to get in, noisy loudspeaker announcements and meat and fish dishes sometimes tortured. Exactly the same dishes available in better condition in La Playa grill. Price of wine unreasonably high cf my previous cruises, $14.25 per glass. The La Playa grill was well run with pleasant and efficient staff I was told there was no longer alibrary on board, a deprivation The cabin was good and steward efficient and pleasant The electronics for allocating places on tenders to go ashore at Ile des Pins broke down leading to delays, confusion, and yet more queuing. Someone at breakfast first day out warned me to “expect the atmosphere of visiting your local RSL club in Sydney “ - a very perceptive remark. Sorry to be so negative but the senior management of Carnival needs to improve Read Less

My daughter (7) and I (35M) got a great deal on this cruise. We figured it would be a good way to kill time during school holidays and were not wrong. The ship had a great atmosphere with happy cruisers, excellent service and fun entertainment. I Getting on and off the ship was very fast. We had the "Faster to the Fun" package, and I highly recommend it. No lines, anywhere! It took less than 10 minutes to board the ship and less than that to disembark. Tendering and access to guest services was also a breeze with this perk. Dining at the Empire restaurant was a highlight. The range and quality of cuisine was better than I expected. The wait staff however were truly the stars - you have to see this for yourself. Get to dinner early and there is no wait to be seated, even with Anytime Dining. Poolside fare at Guy Fieri's hamburger bar and the Blue Iguana taco stand were surprisingly good too. I preferred this to the offerings at the buffet. We had a dinner at the Noveau steakhouse. It was a great meal with good service and complimentary wine as we went on the first night. We went to quite a few of the shows and they were of a high quality. The ship board activities for children were also fantastic. The Cruise Director, Eli, was personable and did a great job. My daughter enjoyed art classes at Soul Play (for an additional fee) and Camp Ocean. In fact my daughter said on disembarkation day that she would rather return to Spirit (as opposed to Ovation/Explorer OTS) as Camp Ocean was so well organised. The waterslides at the back of the ship were also really popular with her. There was hardly any waiting. I found the gym a bit small. The dudebro to dumbbell ratio was a bit high, resulting in waits for some equipment. There was good cardio equipment though. Another thing which could be improved was the speed of the internet, which at times reminded me of the late 1990s. Overall though, this was a great cruise at a bargain price. The Spirit is an older ship but the crew more than compensates for this by their keen service and enthusiasm. I would definitely go again. Read Less

Having cruised before, I was really excited about taking my adult daughter on her first cruise. This trip was so disappointing. I had heard of the queues on cruise ships but never experienced them until this trip. A diabolical nightmare embarking and a line wait for absolutely everything. The only time we didn't wait for anything was attending a show and I was stunned to see the theatre half empty. The ship's decor is very dark and gloomy and an ugly brown greets you everywhere. The service was appalling! I've cruised before where a smile greets you everywhere and you're never without someone asking if you need a refill. Staff on this ship all looked emotionless and appeared to walk around with broom and shovel but never doing anything. We saw our cabin attendant ONCE when we boarded and never again. One day our room wasn't even attended to from how we left it in the morning. The food was bland and tasteless. Service again in the buffet emotionless and dull. Can't fault one waiter Coco in the dining room who was a bundle of energy and delightful. Cabin also dark and gloomy. We had an extended balcony and the door didn't shut properly so we put up with a howling whistle for the whole cruise. Asked someone to look at it - they looked at it and that's all they did. Paid for the steak restaurant one night and my daughter was violently ill that night from whatever she ate. An expensive cruise where you paid for absolutely anything extra. Couldn't wait to get off and won't be cruising with Carnival again that's for sure. Read Less

We did enjoy our cruise but found the ship to be rather tired, especially in the hallways. The pods on decks 9 and 10 were nice to lay in with a book if you could get one, but I always would put a towel down 1st as the cushions and the mat you lay on were stained and a bit grubby! It was nice to have the Serenity adults only area to get away from the kids that were often left to run wild over the ship (no fault of the Carnival! ) Another thing I feel I have to mention is a big annoyance to me is the ever increasing amount of cruisers who find it acceptable to "reserve seats" for their family or friends! This is againts many cruise liners policies but always never enforced! In Europe it is quite common in a resort to find 50 + chairs with towels draped over them and not a soul in sight as theyre all out shopping etc.... I find it the height of rudness and very un Australian! I found the food on the ship very hit and miss, in the Empire dining room sometimes there were fantastic meals being served up and the next night quite the opposite, much the same for me with the buffet upstairs too, there was an amazing layered shoe string pastery with blue berrys and cream for lunch one day and then 2 consecutive days following that there were just cup cakes on offer! The shows at night were ok ( no orchestra ) and the dancers were full of energy. We also found that many of the on board activities during the day were had $ symbols! When we checked into our cabin the shower had not been cleaned and there was a razor and used soap in there! staff were mostly friendly bit not trained to a standard of some other ships I have been onn for example I found myself walking around or stepping aside of some of them instead of the other way around. In all honesty I can only rate my experience as very average compared with others I have sailed on. It was our 1st time on Carnival and I won't be returning. Read Less

I choose this cruise Because of the friendliness and helpfulness of the staff .Far supérieur than of have met on all cruises l have been. Stewards are amazing at remembering everyone’s names. Due to cancelled flight, didn’t get a chance to explore Sydney . Embarking was easy, we opted for the take bags off ship 7am get ready in area to dis embark.. Easy was directed up lift to awaiting taxis.We had issues with the balcony door not closing properly ./fridge very noisy / and paint fumes . All of these issues were taken seriously and address promptly , ,! We opted for dinner at the Nouveau restaurant first night and were again given first class treatment . The meat melts in your mouth and is heavenly. Disappointed by the fake offer of free wine first night,, apparently per table Not per person.false advertising l believed.!. So my partner sat at another table . We still could talk and got our free wine as well which was not the best but 2 glasses in it was drinkable.. The punchline comedy club was great with great A plus comedians and R rated. Shows Also :The Marriage show was a scream .so funny and r rated l think and plenty of activities and entertainment for children to play games .Guess who l am and build a tower taking middle and blocks out .The Empire Room was used for dinning every evening and we loved the happy family vibes that the staff gave out . The matridi and singers at show time / dinner time was great entertainment .We did some ship booked excursions but it was easy to book off ship at some places. Ship at Noumena has a bus that takes and return s people to the ship . Drops off along the waters edge and a walk to shops and large information centre to view assortment of other tours . Traveling with another cabin buddy who was very pleasant and considerate ,we had a fun time all up . I plan to go back but not happy they are moving to Brisbane. Last thing was the entertainment same old shows but new actors Unsure if that is common for a yr or a certain time span. For frequent travellers it’s a bit boring but the new actors singers put their version of the show into a different light . Read Less

It was a good time of the year to be out of Australia. So Singapore to Sydney sounded good Cruise was just average in terms of dining and entertainment. The formal dining - service was very good from Ilham and staff. The food was so/so. A number of dishes were not up to scratch - cold/cool, tough, undercooked etc. One entree, braised rabbit, tasted very much like minced beef and was served as a party pie - one swallow, and gone. Some meals however were very good. However the range of food was not great, and repetitive. On the plus side, serving sizes were generally good, not too big. Formal dining suffered from very intrusive 'entertainment' provided by waiting staff. These people are amateurs with an inflated opinion of themselves. This entertainment occurred too often, was too long and too loud. The announcer went on too long and far too often about how good her staff were. Buffet dining was also average - fruit (apples, pineapple) was of mediocre quality. Variety at lunch time was limited. Also, can't they afford a range of teas besides just Liptons? Coffee was undrinkable, but Carnival are not on their own there. Entertainment featured 2 magicians and 2 hypnotists - surely one of each is enough.we stopped going to the shows, though some were reportedly quite good. The resident singers/dancers were quite good. Guest relations were very helpful, and the sales outlets were far less pushy than on Celebrity or Holland America. Misinformation abounded, whether from the line itself, guest speakers ("Darwin does not have a hop on hop off bus)" and other passengers. Read Less

Loved a Trans-Pacific I done in 2015 on legend, so after 12 cruises on Spirit & timing was right, so went ahead.. The ship had just been refurnished, I found some upgrades good, but not enough, still had rust around my Balcony.. Food was good.. Loved having entertainment starting at 3:00 with 2 bands in Main Bar & having a afternoon comedian in "The Punchliner" on Sea - Days. Wish they change up the stage shows a bit... The customer service was great Bar staff; Waiters & room Stewards.. Carnival is renowen for this... The price of there cruises are very low, The drinks low also. unless you want a drinks package with other lines. The daily activities where great & Bad. They had a professor talking about the ports themselves (Culture, Food&Drink, History) eg Komodo Is & Phuket. The miss was the trivia (had too many people cheating) they policed it if they where giving away Alchoal etc. The Biggest issue was the age demo of this cruise 2000 above the age of 60 & only under 140 below under18.. Carnival is normally a family cruise line, this cruise looked more like a Princess. As one other cruiser just under 50 said 'looks like a boat going to heaven or a retirement village. Read Less

We had previously cruised on Carnival Spirit in March 2013. We selected this cruise, and the previous one from Sydney, as a way of getting to SE Asia. We are in our late 60's and have previously cruised with Princess and P&O. The embarkation was staggered. We selected a 1130 - 1200 slot but on arrival there was about a 60 minute delay. We went straight to lunch and by the time we had finished, our cabin was ready. The safety brief was held on deck 3 under the lifeboats in the 30+ c Singapore tropical heat. We were on the eastern side and I was glad we were not on the Western side. The brief was the quickest have ever experienced. The ship had just undergone a 2 week dry-dock. We had the same inside cabin on the way up and noticed that we had new carpets and shower curtains. In one of the drawers was the working clothes left by a Filipino contract worker who used the cabin during the dry-dock. The inside cabin, 6159, was a bigger size that the inside ones we get on Sun or Sea Princess. The shower was also bigger. The location was quite with little noise disturbing us. We had a fixed time late sitting and were placed on a 12 seat table. Most nights there was only a max of 6. Our waiters were great as was the course selections. Unfortunately, it was a rare to get a hot meal. There was plenty of entertainment offered and the highlight for us was the "Miss Houdini" show with the production cast members. Eli, the cruise director was always friendly and entertaining. The prizes handed out were much more than I have seen on our previous cruises with Princess and P&O. We even got a bottle of red wine and a bathrobe. The Monarch card room was very crowded with the library now incorporated. Many people coming and going and very few of them closing the door when leaving. We enjoyed all the ports visited and had a mix of private and ships tours. The procedure for tendering in Phuket was a shambles. Our group was called, but before we got to the tenders, another group from the other side was given priority, splitting up our group. When we finally got to shore, 45 minutes late for the stated starting time, the other 7 coaches had already left. We then waited another 30 minutes until the last of our group arrived to fill the last 2 coaches. Needless to say, we never made up the lost time. Rather than missing the jewellery factory, we missed the temple. Speaking to others on the other coaches, they all said the Temple was one of the highlights. The ships tour in Bali was excellent. We went to the twin lakes, Monkey forest had a great lunch and a stop at a Batik factory. I also purchased one of my favorite tropical fruits, mangosteens, at a local market. They were delicious. The service offered by all staff was excellent. We would defiantly cruise with Carnival again. Read Less

This was our third cruise on Spirit and second relocation from Singapore. After the shamozzle of the last embarkation at Singapore, I think Carnival learnt some lessons and all went pretty smoothly. We departed a few hours late but that was to be expected considering the need to completely replenish the ship and remove rubbish after dry dock.The visible enhancements after dry dock included some new carpet in some public areas, the new craft room "Soul Play", the new duty free shops, the new games and, apparently, new gym equipment...but I don't frequent such places. This is a cruise ! She also had a brand spanking new exterior paint job which, according to the captain, added 1 knot to the cruise speed. All the usual suspects are still there. Desi in the Empire Restaurant, great shows in the theatre, dirty jokes in the late Comedy Show and the Manila Band in the Red Frog. The crew were as friendly and helpful as ever and the buffet served the usual "delicacies". When you get on Spirit, you know what you're going to get....and you usually get it. It's pretty laid back, the Captain is very visible and approachable...as are a lot of the other Officers, including Duncan, the Hotel Director. The cabins are clean and well looked after, the meals in the Empire Restaurant are "nice", with the meat such as lamb shanks being standouts...as they are slow cooked. The entertainment in the Restaurant is now even more impressive...as new crew talent is continually found and groomed. Fantastic atmosphere. It's probably not worth going into Port reviews as they are rarely visited by this ship, but needless to say, if you get a chance to visit Komodo Island, do it. Airlie Beach and Gladstone were also surprisingly good. Darwin is Darwin and Bali is worth a visit for first timers. My only gripe with the cruise was the dirty external windows...especially in the buffet. They were grubbby from the dry dock and they didnt appear to be ever cleaned. What a waste of a great vantage point. All in all, a relaxing, value for money cruise. Read Less