BACKGROUND My husband (51) and I (56) were celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary. This was my 5th cruise and my husband's 2nd.

EMBARKATION Since we live in Philadelphia, we were dropped off at the pier by a van service. We arrived early, around 9:15. We were told to sit down until they were ready to begin the screening process. At 10:30, one of the agents came up to us, and another couple, and told us to follow her. She said that she knew that we were one of the first people to arrive so we were told to wait in line to have our carry-ons x-rayed. She then began directing the other people behind us. The baggage screening started and we were directed to the registration area. We used the Latitudes line and were given #3. We were the first ones processed in the latitudes line so I'm assuming #1 and #2 are possibly reserved for suites and possibly wedding parties. We then sat down and waited until they began boarding the ship. Around 12:30, they began calling numbers. It was difficult to hear the man calling the numbers. By 12:45 we were walking up the gangway and 15 minutes later we were seated in Windows ordering lunch. CABIN We were in Balcony 9530. The cabins were ready by 2:00. Our luggage was outside our room by the time we returned after sail away. There was plenty of room to put our clothes away. We had new pillows and a new mattress with a topper. There was a top sheet also. A card was in the room asking us to order fruit for our room. It was delivered the next day and was replenished as needed. Our stewards, Budi and Leslie, were terrific. We were up early every day so our room was cleaned by the time we returned from breakfast. Turn down was also done promptly every evening. We loved the location of our cabin - close to the forward elevators. Even though we were opposite the crew entrance, we never heard any noise even during the last evening when the luggage was being moved. We had towel animals six evenings. The bathroom was surprisingly large for a cruise ship.

SHIP We were a little concerned after reading some of the reviews, but I have to say I thought the Spirit was in pretty good shape. You can see some areas of the carpet showing some wear and also, some of the windows need to be replaced but that in no way took away from our enjoyment of the Spirit. My husband is a carpenter and he always notices things that need to be repaired and he didn't think the Spirit was anywhere near as rundown as some of the reviews lead us to believe. We saw a lot of ongoing maintenance (again, my husband noticed it more than I did). The hand rails on some of the outside stairs were being refinished. They would remove one of the handrails and put up caution tape, refinish it, replace it and then take the other side off. We really did love the ship. It was very elegant and it was very easy to find your way around. Our first night out was really rough, with rain, thunder, lightening, wind and a lot of rocking and rolling. A lot of passengers were ill. Things had calmed down by Sunday afternoon and it was smooth sailing after that. ENTERTAINMENT We enjoyed most of the shows. Chantz Powell was terrific as was the illusionist, Richard Burr. We didn't see the comedian, Richie Byrne. Neither my husband nor I liked Second City. The 70s Disco party in Galaxy of the Stars was a lot of fun. Quest was also really funny and had some drama with a complaining woman and a girl in a toga. Don't miss Los Amigos in Champagne Charlie's. The Crew show was also really good. Most sea days were spent by the pool although there were some activities going on --- some you had to pay for and some were free. The pool area gets crowded so you need to get out there early. PORTS Read more