Both the itinerary & size of the ship is what I liked the most. I've sailed a few times with NCL Spirit & it is like coming "home" The activities, entertainment, service, dining is one of the reasons I keep coming back. All staff are professional, personable. They take personal cleanliness as high priority so having staff at the buffet entrances to ensure guests have washed prior to entering is greatly appreciated. The cabin steward is personal & aware of personal needs & strives to ensure that everything is to the satisfaction of the guest. All dining is excellent and especially the Bistro. One of the best french onion soups I've tasted. As a solo traveller, having a solo meet up is appreciated so that there is an opportunity to connect with other cruisers. Possibly, the dining staff can be aware of solo cruisers so if they want to sit with others while dining, there may be more opportunities to connect. Read Less

Cruise from Roma to Barcelona, Nov 11 to 22 2018. Cabin 10568. Two person. Good cruise from beginning to end. 1 days at sea. The food was very good with plenty of choice. Service also excellent the staff were wonderful could not do enough for us. Always greeted us with a smile and "have a good day". Plenty to do on board ship something for everyone. Tours offered good variety and were very enjoyable with exellent guides. The only complaint I have is that I bought the cruise in July 2018. Then there was an offer that when you bought you could choose between several offers such as open bar, free WIFI ect. I wrote to Mrs. Kassie Hoover who sent me the email that I had already bought the trip for two people, that I qualified for the offers. I never received an answer I only bought the WIFI package for the trip since the open bar was very expensive. Read Less

I cruise with NCL because their itineraries are port heavy with very good excursions. If you use the $50 per excursion perk, it is very affordable. Embarkation and disembarkation are very easy. Entertainment is diverse and fun. Crew seem to enjoy their jobs (not a fake atmosphere of hospitality). Speciality restaurants provide an upgrade from the regular fare, which is adequate but nothing special. There are always lots of fresh options if one wants to eat healthy. I have gotten to the platinum level, and plan on cruising with NCL in the future. I am a solo traveler, and NCL is safe, affordable, pleasant, and relaxed. I cruised a "high end" line last year, and really did not like the formality and presumption of the ship. The cruise experience is a matter of taste, but for me, I enjoy the happy, fun, relaxed, and diverse experience of Norwegian cruises. The Spirit is an older, smaller ship, which I also like. The ship is clean and well maintained. Read Less

This was one of the worst cruises I have been on. It wasn’t awful, and we mostly still enjoyed our vacation, and there are some things that this ship was very good at. However, everyone in my family had GI issues that caused them to miss activities, and one person was up all night with vomiting and diarrhea. We did not eat off the ship, and it was not norovirus, so I believe it was from the food on the buffet not being hot. Embarkation was quick and easy and the luggage arrived quickly. The cabin had very few drawers and the balcony seemed smaller than normal. The AC worked well until the last day when they kept turning the system on and off. There was a lot of noise in the cabin from the pool deck above us, and it woke us up most mornings around 4 and again around 6 when the crew worked up there. We were told that our balcony would be inaccessible in port because it would be washed, we had no water one day for 4 hours while they maintained the potable water system, and several days workmen came into our cabin to scrape and paint on the balcony. They never cleaned up after themselves, so we tracked paint chips into the cabin and the steward would vacuum the room but not the balcony. There were sometimes paint fumes when we came back to the cabin. I realize they have to maintain the ship but this seemed like a lot of restrictions on our ability to use our cabin for a single cruise. The voice mail system never worked. The bed was comfortable and there was a lot of storage space under it for suitcases. The ice tongs in the cabin were filthy. There were dark chunks of dust coming out of the vent in our ceiling and getting all over the white duvet so it seemed like they were not using filters. Our steward did a good job for the most part but we always put out the sign in the morning and he wouldn’t come for 4 or 5 or 6 hours. The stewards on this ship were also maybe the most unhappy bunch I’ve ever seen on a ship. No smiles or warm greetings in the hall, they just seemed miserable. The waiters seemed pretty stressed out, too. If you moved out of the way to yield to crew carrying something heavy, there was never a thank you or any acknowledgement at all. Everywhere except the buffet, the food was very good but it often wasn’t hot and the service was not very good. We often waited close to half an hour for anyone to take our orders and then waited another 20 minutes or so for appetizers. When the waiters say “thank you for your patience” and “it’ll just be a few more minutes” over and over during a single meal, you need more help in the kitchen or more servers or both. The greetings at the restaurants weren’t very warm either except at Cagney’s, where the hostess was on the ball and had studied passenger photos so she could call people by name when they showed up for their reservation. In Shogun, the manager acted like we were inconveniencing him by showing up at his restaurant. He later came by and noted that we were just having water and hadn’t ordered any drinks and he made a face. Waiters forget to bring coffee after you’ve ordered it. I saw waiters carrying water pitchers with their hands on the spouts. Seems like the crew needs a refresher course in food safety. The buffet was one of the worst we’ve experienced. We were told that there is no dedicated kitchen for the buffet and that all the food has to be brought in an elevator from 6 decks away. None of the food was ever hot unless it was prepared in front of you (like the omelets or stir fry). I can’t believe this ship could pass a surprise health inspection. Also, a lot of the food was not very good. It looked good, and you’d put it on your plate and get it back to the table, and then the trouble would start. Almost all of the pieces of meat and chicken I took were too dry and tough to cut or chew. The “steamed” vegetables were nearly raw. The ice cream was always melted. The soft serve ice cream was always a liquid. They ran out of lemonade several days before the end of the cruise. The buffet is also not big enough for the number of passengers. Even during off peak times, if several buses came back at the same time, the buffet was wall to wall people and you had to circle to find a seat. Omelets are made from powdered eggs. Once when I asked for ice cream the woman took a bowl sitting next to her, poured something out of it, and was going to put my ice cream in it until I objected. The app was useful but didn’t always work. I was impressed that the perks we got when we booked (shore excursion credits and free dinners in specialty restaurants) were properly applied to our cabin account without having to go to the front desk. I think the NCL business model must be to sell the base fare at a reasonable price and then try to force you to pay exorbitant prices for everything once you get on board. This results in a hassle when you come back on the ship because they don’t want you bringing bottled water or sodas onboard. We often had our stuff x-rayed in the terminal building and then again on the ship, where they gave you a hard time if they saw your half empty water bottle. It seems to me there is no security issue here – there was more smoking on this ship than I’ve seen in years and lit cigarettes seem like a much bigger threat – it all just smacked at trying to get you to throw out your water bottle so they could sell you another one. Drinks were expensive (some were $13 and sodas were $4) and laundry (there was no self-service laundry) was ridiculous at $9 for a pair of pants. All of the music acts except for the piano player were excellent. Most of the shows were excellent too. Don’t miss the production show Elements, which was one of the best I’ve seen, but you’ll have to go very early to get a seat. Shore excursions were well run but they pack the buses full. This led to some tours leaving late while the guides went to talk to the ship people about why the group was so big. It’s also a problem when there’s a problem on the bus. One bus was dripping water on people in the back. Two people were able to move but there were no other open seats so I assume that other people got wet. I didn’t love or hate the ship. The tiered seating areas on the stern were very nice and Galaxy lounge has great views. The theater is backwards from on most ships (you enter from the sides of the stage and then go upstairs), but this cut down on the number of people coming in late. The seating in the theater was awful though. The seats are very low to the ground and very close together – once you’re seated no one can walk in front of you – and there are no side aisles. The seats go all the way to the walls except for a few places where small people can squeeze by on the ends. The coffee bar was very good but expensive. Disembarkation was quick and easy. All in all, I won’t be back on an NCL cruise anytime soon. Read Less

We have sailed NCL three times prior and although we know food and service has gone down,we did not realize it has gotten beyond bad. We were on the 11/11Rome to Barcelona cruise. To be fair there were some good points. Getting on and off the boat was seamless. However ,everything had major issues. Customer service should be called customer disservice. We had booked an internet package and had documentation of this from our travel agent and NCL. Despite this the ship had no record and it took three days and numerous e-mails and phone calls(which took time away from our vacation). When this was fixed, Guest Relations instead of apologizing profusely acted like they were doing us a favor. We also had issues with four rooms next to us being reconstructed at all hours and issues with cabin steward. We did get an extra speciality dining dinner. When we asked about OBC, we were told NCL did not think our issues were serious. The food had no flavor and was never warm in main dining on the two occassions we ate there. Also service was slow and attitude of staff was we will do bare minimum and that is it. Sea days had no lectures or other activities other than pay to play bingo,art auction,or drink on your own! I was told someone from NCL would contact us while on ship, I am still waiting. As for using NCL, i GUESS NOT! Read Less

Last minute cruisers out of Civitavecchia since we live near Rome and we love the ports of call in this Western Med cruise(plus a new one for us, Almeria Spain.) Spirit is small and you can become well acquainted with or hide out from folks, love that we knew our dining room wait staff well and became friends with some folks we first met in the hot tub, because we saw them again so often! We enjoyed meeting the officers at the cruise critic meet and greet, Spirit staff really are a family and I appreciate the reminder to let them know if we need anything immediately at the beginning of the cruise don’t wait to say at the end everything was good BUT... Read Less

Cruised NCL 7 times in last 7 years. 1st European cruise. Amazing excursions everyday. Fantastic service at the restaurants. Disappointed with the lack of entertainment/bars that I’m used to on the bigger ships of NCL. What makes NCL so great are the specialty restaurants and the entertainment on the ship. Howl at the moon, blues bar, Broadway type shows were sorely missed on this cruise. The service at the restaurants could not have been better. We are at the main dining room one night ((we purchased 8 specialty dinner for 2) and we were pleasantly surprised at how good the food was. The staff did a tremendous job with all of the excursion planning each morning and each destination had a lot to offer. We had terrific guides on each visit too. We are very excited the the Epic will be coming to Europe soon. I have been on this ship twice already and it’s one of my favorites. Read Less

We took cruise for Anniversary with our elderly mothers. It was our first time on Norwegian cruise. We usually book Royal Caribbean. We chose this particular ship for the very appealing itinerary. The ship was satisfactory. Food was good. We were able to upgrade to balcony which is a bonus for Mediterranean cruise. The sunrises were spectacular. Service and cleanliness of cabin was exceptional. On board activities were not appealing but if you just want to relax, read or sleep would be perfect. We would have appreciated in cabin movie options and not having $7.95 room service charges. Did not like general movie theatre area.it was not comfortable. Theatre/movie needs upgrade and theatre style seating. Bed was not comfortable. The port excursions were comprehensive and we enjoyed all of them. The time between each course during dinner took too long at Windows and Garden. Overall, we were satisfied with our experience. It was definitely a destination cruise. Careful planning and preparation should be considered for anyone with disabilities or physical challenges specifically for excursions. Read Less

Review NCL Spirit, Mediterranean Cruise We are experienced cruisers and land trippers both. We’ve been on about 40 cruises to the Caribbean, Baltic, Mediterranean, Asia, Panama Canal, Mexico, etc. So we have a decent background for comparison. We chose the October/November cruise with NCL largely because it went to several ports we had not sailed to do far: Dubrovnik, Koper, Corfu, and Split. I would say, aside from Corfu, that only Dubrovnik turned out to be of interest. We took the cruise pre-package which included two nights at the Crowne Plaza St. Peter’s as well as breakfast and transportation to the port. The hotel was fine. It was clean; the room was of reasonable size; the food was good in the restaurants– which was a good thing because there isn’t much around the Crowne Plaza in terms of shopping or restaurants. You can go into Rome but after a long day, you hardly feel like doing that. The hotel also has attractive grounds, outside eating, decent wi-fi, and a pool, which we did not use. I would say the outside of the hotel buildings definitely needed an update, but the Europeans have a greater tolerance for decay than we do. There is a shuttle bus for which you pay a nominal fee but be aware that it runs to different places at different times of the day. So you might have to get a cab back, which cost something like 12 euros. We did not use the shuttle as we were ready to go to the Vatican about an hour before the next shuttle was going to run. Transportation to the pier was quick and easy. On Sunday morning, it took just an hour to get there, though we had to wait about 20 minutes for our bus to be allowed up to the entry area. The area is not large, and they limit the number of buses that can enter, which was not a big deal. We got there about 1 and were able to get into our cabin immediately. The buffet generally had some tasty things on it. Most were at least lukewarm, which is an improvement over most buffets. We never had a hard time finding seating at the buffet or a cleared table. As far as other venues went, we wholeheartedly approve of NCL’s policy of having one restaurant in which you could eat very casually dressed and yet have the full dining experience rather than eating dinner in the buffet and the second restaurant for those who wished to dress up a little. This is a great idea! Most often the food in the dining room was better than average. Cagney’s, however, had wonderful meals. Our steaks were huge and tender and just great, especially since the dinner was free. NCL has the absolute best perks for platinum members. The Italian restaurant had good food though we did not find it as excellent was Cagney’s. Steak or spaghetti.... Is there a choice there? Our balcony cabin was very small. I wished we had had the choice of a mini-suite. Not a lot of room in the closet. Tiny drawers. Hardly room for my folding wheelchair. It was always in the way. Comfortable bed though. Plenty of hot water and pressure. AC worked well. Some people complain about the fish tiles. We thought they were cute. We did not attend more than one of the shows. We have seen them before. Nothing inspiring. I wish they’d had MUTS. Not much in-room entertainment worth mentioning. Internet worked fine most of the time. One great thing about this ship is that it was small enough so that I could walk everywhere despite my disability. We booked a cabin at the midship elevators and I could just hop on and go straight to the restaurants and just a short distance to the shops and theater. That was wonderful. I never needed my wheelchair on the ship. Ports: Dubrovnik: I liked this port but I guess I expected more. It was attractive but mostly it was just a very attractive shopping mall full of small shops with pretty much the same overpriced junk in them. That was a bit disappointing. I did enjoy the small market and the streets were not hard to manage with the wheelchair. Before we had gone into the city, we took the Cabrio excursion which took us out into the beautiful countryside and to some wonderful viewing areas. Venice: What’s not to like? We have been here several times and simply revisited some areas we like best. This is a hard port for the disabled though in terms of bridges. In a space of four hours, we crossed about 30 and most I had to walk over. Split: The main attraction is Diocletian’s Palace. It was a nice though brief stop. Hard to get around with a wheelchair. Many steps. You have steps to navigate to get to the public toilet as well. Surprisingly not a lot of good shops. A row of junk in tents on the way to the palace and a nice market. But since you can’t bring fruit or flowers or drinks or food onto the ship, a waste. Koper: Do take an excursion. There is nothing here to see. We were driven to Piran by a cab driver who waited two hours and took us back. Nice town to see and a wonderful shop just behind the square full of hand made items. Well worth the trip alone. An absolutely filthy public restroom and a small grocery store just off the square. Pleasant walk along the sea. Very, very difficult port to manage in a wheelchair. Very steep streets and many broken up and difficult to move along. Corfu: This is another place you want to take an excursion. Corfu is full of junky little stores and is not attractive at all. We took a tour with Corfu Taxi and loved it. I always enjoy getting out into the countryside and seeing real people going about their real lives. Katakolon: We had been here before and had done the Olympia thing. I hired a guide to take us around the area on a very nice drive, to a local olive oil manufacturing site, the monastery, and Klio’s honey farm which was great. Plenty of shops to explore at the port but much the same thing over and over. Malta: Because we had a short stop, we took the ship’s Scenic Malta excursion. Not really scenic until the last hour of a four hour excursion. Otherwise it was a tour of Malta’s most trafficked areas. Stopped at a market at Marsaloxx that was rather useless. We were delayed by a full hour due to the refusal of six people to get back on time. Intentionally late. They had argued with the guide about when they should be back. We enjoyed revisiting Rome after the cruise and then spent a week in Florence. Great trip. Read Less

#6 We just returned from our cruise aboard NCL Spirit. We chose this cruise for port destinations such as Crostia, Slovenia, Greece and Malta. We stayed in Balcony Cabin 11662 and we were very happy with this location. We enjoyed the close proximity and easy access to the rear decks and often had breakfast there. We were apprehensive after reading reviews but didn't have any troubles with noise or other issues. We enjoy smaller ships with less crowds and easier to get around. Each cruise ship has pros and cons and there were many items on the plus side. We found the staff helpful and friendly overall. Some dining staff were not quite as professional but that could just be individual situations. The cabins are compact but fine for two. It's an older ship but public areas have been nicely updated. We weren't looking for problems so didn't seem to encounter them. Overall the food was good with enough variety to suit most. Some of the shows were outstanding. We would not hesitate to suggest this cruise. Read Less