Carnival Spirit Review

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Review for the South Pacific Cruise on Carnival Spirit
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Kateva
6-10 Cruises • Age 40s

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Additional details

Sail Date: Jul 2017
Cabin: Vista Suite
Traveled with children

We went on this cruise as a family group of 10 ranging in age from 2.5 years to 73. As noted in other reviews, this ship is incredibly gaudy and over the top in terms of decorations, so a little hard on the eyes! Having cruised before on several other lines (Holland America, Princess, Norwegian), there were a few things that I felt didn't stack up to other cruises I've been on.

1. I felt the food was well below par both in terms of variety and quality - it was fine but that was about it. Also outside of mealtimes at the buffet and restaurant, the only (free) food available (or between meals) was pizza and soft serve ice cream - no healthy options at all. Room service was all subject to extra charges, as were a couple of other options like sushi and the coffee shop which offered the types of things which on other cruises tended to be included as part of the food offering.

2. No drinks package was disappointing, especially as unlike most cruises there were no happy hours and the pricing was around what you would pay in a normal bar on land which I felt was excessive given the captive options. The wines available on the wine packages were very average and several of the listed ones weren't actually available - there were no pinot noir wines available at all in the bars.

Cabin Review

Vista Suite

Cabin VS

We chose a vista suite as we were travelling with a young son and wanted a separate bedroom for his naps and evenings. The Vista suite had a great wrap around balcony at the rear of the ship, which was a nice spot (and out of the wind) for afternoon reading while he napped. The cabin itself is very dated and quite gaudy (presumably not one of the ones that benefited from the 2015 upgrade), but lots of storage space and a reasonable size - one drawback is the "dressing room" which occupies the space between the bedroom/bathroom/living room and which would be better if it were simply opened up. We didn't have any issues with noise from the engines but obviously being at the back of the boat, the location isn't ideal if you're someone who wants to go back to your room a lot...since most activities and public areas are from the middle of the boat forward.

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