Norwegian Spirit Review

First Spirit Cruise after drydock - BIG MISTAKE!

Review for the Mediterranean Cruise on Norwegian Spirit
User Avatar
mertziek
10+ Cruises • Age 70s

Rating by category

Cabin
Value for Money
Embarkation
Dining
Public Rooms
Entertainment
Fitness & Recreation
Service

Additional details

Sail Date: Feb 2020

We booked this cruise 18 months before the sail date. The itinerary was great and included many bucket list places for us. Several months after we booked, we found out the ship was going into a major renovation/dry dock. We debated canceling but the itinerary had so many of our bucket list places it was too good to pass up. A few months before sailing, we were advised our 21 day cruise was down to 20 days and leaving a day later. We were given the option of a night in NCL’s hotel or a $300 credit plus we lost a port - Kusadasi. So much for seeing Ephesus this cruise but we stayed with the cruise. 1 day before we were scheduled to leave our home and start our travels, we received another email saying the ship’s departure was delayed another 3 days so we were now on a 17-day Cruise AND we lost 4 more ports of call. We had now lost 50% of our original itinerary with many changes in port times resulting in shortened visits. We were given the option to cancel with no penalty but were able to arrange for extra time in Rome and decided to go for it since we still were going to Israel, Egypt, Oman, Jordan, and UAE. On our travel day there were rumors on Cruise Critic the entire cruise was canceled so more stress but within 2 hours we were able to determine our cruise was still on. Toughest 2 hours I’ve ever spent at an airport!

So off to Rome where we had a fabulous time for 6 days. Embarkation day arrives and on check in we are given a cabin different from what we had booked. We were told it was an upgrade. Huh? We were booked in a DOS so there were no upgrades but they told us we could sort it out with Guest Services once we got onboard. Once we were checked in we learned the truth from our Concierge. No suites were completed so we were downgraded into a balcony across from a service entrance and with a connecting door that seriously leaked noise. We were told it would only be for 1-2 days. We moved into our suite on day 13 of a 17 day cruise. I fault NCL for not disclosing this to us when they delayed the embarkation day. They certainly were aware of it and willfully withheld that vital piece of information from us. Yes, had we known the day before we left home, we would have canceled the entire trip and called it a day but we were stuck. We may even have canceled before final check in had we known it would be 13 days before we were able to occupy our booked suite.

Now a bit about our travel habits. We are not balcony room people. We travel in OS or DOS’s or we stay home plus we usually only travel once a year. So this was a new experience for us. The room was small but we did find places for everything although we are not used to eating, reading, watching tv, and writing in the same place we sleep - our bed. We enjoy spending time in our cabin when we cruise. We heard noise from the service alley at all hours of the day and night as well as noise from the adjoining cabin. Not the best experience but we did manage to survive in there for 13 days despite toilets not flushing, hammering above our room all hours, room phone not working, workers throughout the ship with open panels all over the ship, and general disarray throughout the ship. Several venues were never completed like the Spa, many were delayed in opening like Teppanyaki, and many cabins were in far worse shape than we were. Some passengers reported no toilet seats, toilets either not flushing or flushing on their own in the middle of the night (happened several times in our cabin - so bizarre), no shower heads and even one person with no door to the room. I’m still wondering what happened to the people who were originally booked in the balcony we were given. Where did they get downgraded to? Personally we found the renovation workmanship to be shabby and cheaply done. NCL should get their money back! We had big dents in our ceiling and we were the first guests in there! Eventually we were able to move to our DOS where most things were done but finishing touches like cabinet shelves above the bar area were still missing, no pictures on the walls - you get the idea - just the basics. Overall though we enjoyed the DOS after being sandwiched in the balcony. And the staff bent over backwards helping us move. It took us 90 minutes to pack, move, and unpack. Yes, we were anxious to get into our suite by then! Quite honestly we got used to only one of us moving in the balcony room at one time and could only laugh after we got beyond our disappointment and anger at NCL for deceiving us.

Cabin Review

14 Helpful Votes
previous reviewnext review

Find a Norwegian Spirit Cruise from $699

Any Month

Get special cruise deals, expert advice, insider tips and more.By proceeding, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

© 1995—2024, The Independent Traveler, Inc.