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Holiday Reviews > Cruise > Thomson Cruises > Thomson Spirit > Thomson Spirit Cruise Ship > Read Reviews
Thomson Spirit Cruise Ship ReviewsPage 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
| Itinerary: |
Thomson Spirit Cruise Ship |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr N Stoneman |
| Overall
Rating: |
9/10 |
| Comments: |
Third time on the Spirit and yet again a superb value for money holiday. Staff are excellent and the ship is very clean although showing signs of wear and tear. Minor criticisms are the standard of food on the gala night, which compared to previous cruises was poor, one night the lido deck was sealed off for a staff party, which was exceptionally loud, more so than the volume of music all week. A lot of passengers commented on the inappropriateness of this party, last but not least food in the lido restaurant was on occassions luke warm. But the holiday was still worthy of a 9 rating and cannot be beaten for value. Did not watch any shows, not our thing, but everyone said they were execellent. The resident band Top men are the best in house band we have seen and can only be described as first rate and fantastic. If you get a chance have dinner in sirocco's as for £16 each you get a six course meal with brilliant service and food. Excursions are still expensive and research on the internet is time well spent, travelled to Pisa by bus and train for £4.50, ship charged £30. If stopping for Rome first class train from harbour gates is 9 euros, compared to £35 on an excursion. Dont let the minor gripes deter you, this is true value for money holiday. We will return over and over again
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| Itinerary: |
Mediterrainian Rennaisance |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs S Bellis |
| Overall
Rating: |
9/10 |
| Comments: |
1st time cruisers, very impressed with the Cruise. We read the reviews lots before going and on a whole agreed with the majority of other people. My husband and I are 31 and 40 and therefore were slightly worried that we would be too young. Although we were probably two of the youngest travellers we were made to feel very welcome and felt very comfortable, it was lovely how everyone no matter what nationality,age or social background could get on and have fun. The cruise is very social and although if you went to the Compass Rose (as we did most nights) you didn't know who was going to be on your table we found that everyone got on and had fun, whether you are in your 30's or 80's!!
The ship is a little tired looking but this did not faze us at all, the welcoming staff and happy atmosphere over rid this. There might be bigger and mose plush cruisers out there but I would rather be happy on the Spirit!!
The staff were fantastic, how they have as much energy and happy go lucky personalities all the time, I do not know. this was especially evident on the first day at sea, the sea was very rough and there were ALOT of people being ill, even the most hardened cruisers said they had been unwell and confined to their cabins all day. One waiter saw that I felt unwell and when I was "trying" to eat he came over and advised what I should eat, "only a little to drink at a time and something like a sweet pastry", with this off he went and got me a variety of snacks, it touched me how he was extremly caring and could see I was very very ill. He even asked in the evening how i was feeling, there aren't many hotels around that would have staff doing this!!
The food was great, we ate in the Compass Rose most nights, although you sat at tables with other people you could choose the food from a menu and it was served to you, it was also a chance to meet people. The Lido resturaunt was packed with food 24/7, breakfast (we had breakfast here ever day, although you could have it at the Compass Rose) it was hot and plenty of variety. Afternoon snacks here were good aswell (scones, cream and jam, yummy). The evening food was very very good here aswell, we only ate here the night I had sea sickness as I didnt feel very sociable!! Again lots to choose from. They also put cheeses etc on at night, so after a few drinks and just before bed it goes down well, if not fattening!! They also put on food from 1am until 6am outside in the Lido pool bar/snack area. We didn't make it that late to eat, and I'm not sure who does at that time of the night, but someone must.
Sirroco's is a small resturaunt which you pay a £16 per person supplement for, this is worthwhile doinf for one night as a night on your own, on your own table with your own waiter is a nice treat. We had a 5 course meal, entree, soup, salad, main meal, dessert, we wanted to decline the salad and soup but the waiter insisted and we gave in as he promised "small portions", but despite us thinking we would be stuffed the courses were far enough apart to let the previous one go down, it was well worth the extra money.
Regarding the trips, we did our own thing most days, except Rome. The places we visted were good, although most stops we ended up mooring at a port that looked more like an Industrial Estates. Villefrance - port was very pretty, got a small boat into the village, had a look round then a train to monaco/Monte Carlo, be aware that you neeed to check train times as we got there and the next train wasn't for another 2 hours, so it ate into our day a bit. Villefrance is very pretty, lots of shops/cafes etc. Monaco/Monte Carlo, is somewhere you must go, but VERY expensive. we had 2 beers and 2 lots of sarnies and it came to just under 40 euro's, we didnt mind too much as we were sat infornt of the Casino!! Livornio - Port was an industrial est looking place with buses being put on by Thomson in to town. Not much there except shops really, but we got a train to Pisa. Pisa is worth seeing, but thats all that is really there, we wanted to go tgo Florence but again ran out of time. You can get taxi's to Monaco but they are 40 euros each way, and the train it about 5 euros return. Rome-we paid 35 euroes each to go on the Thomson coach which took us there. The journey was nearly 2 hours, so we got dropped off about 1030 and picked up at around 5. We thought it was an expensive transfer but at least we got there and back in one piece and the guide on the coach told us all the best places to go and how to go about it. We walked the whole day and managed to see all we wanted to although a bit hurried, but this is a fantastic place to go and we definalty want to go back for a long weekend. You can get buses, trains, tubes and taxi's around town but it was a nice day to walk and you see loads more. Perhaps not for the less mobile though. Sardinia, aparently a beach stop, although the beach we found out was a 20 euro each way taxi journey away!! So we had a day on the ship sun bathing. Menorca-yes!! A pretty, pituresque port and you could get straight off the ship and into the town. Lots of shops, although we got a bus to a beach which was about 20 mins away and 3 euro each return journey. The places we stopeed on the whole were good, although Thomson did charge a lot for their trips. The one thing that was slightly disappointing was that if you didnt want to do their trips you were literally left to your own devices. The cruise news which we had every night gave you details of the next days stop but aswell as a map, but they failed to point out where the bus/train stations were aswell as distances of things like Florence/Pisa/Monaco aswell as how much taxis/trains/buses were etc if you did decide to do your own thing, but we put this down to that they want you to go on their trips so they can get the money out of you.
Drinks prices on the ship were very reasonable. My husband I like to have a drink and in a week, including 70 euros on a trip and 60 at the casino we spent just over £400 between us. A pint of lager is 2.40 euros and a glass of wine 2.20 euros. Compared to a night out where we live, this is very cheap. The rooms are small but comfy, we were disappointed at the sinlge beds. Although we asked for a double/twin room we later found out from the dekc plan that there re very few double bedded rooms. It wouldnt be so bad but the beds didn't move and were in an L shape. We were in room 547 and i'm not sure how noisy it was compared to others. You could hear the engine and your wobbly bits did jiggle when sunbathing!!! But it didn't put me off. Most nights I was so tired it sent me to sleep. The slight rocking of the bed was also quite thearaputic!! The rooms were clean and there was plenty of storage space. All in all a great week. I would definatly go again except perhaps not in mid Sept as the weather was dodgy, we had sun, rain, wind and extremly choppy sea all in one week.
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| Itinerary: |
Mediterranean Renaissance |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Sep 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomas Cook |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr M Smith |
| Overall
Rating: |
5/10 |
| Comments: |
Just returned home from a week on the Thomson Spirit. For those wondering about the vibration yes it is still there and worse than a couple of years ago. I spoke to s senior officer who said they had carried out numerous repairs and investigations and they CANNOT cure the vibration.
The standard of food has gone down, the choice is not as good as it was the Lido food seem to be out too long and was either not very hot or dry due to the heat lamps. The cabins are tired, tiles loose on the floor, discoloured gouting etc. We had a cabin midship level 3 this was ok, we visited some firends on deck 1 and 2 at the rear and the vibraion and noise was terrible, I would have needed ear plugs for me to sleep down there.
There are rumours it is having a major refit soon, but again I think it will not be noticable as it sounds more like a hull and structure safety inspection and I dont think you will see much difference cosmetically.
If you go all inclusive be sure to specify branded drinks when you order otherwise they give you the house spirits which are cheap and nasty, most branded are available with NO supplement to pay.
The entertainmment staff were not as friendly as previous cruises, they seemed to think they were above eveyone else and the standard and quality of the shows was nothing to write home about. The games they play seem to be identical on all the ships and the show themes also the same come on get a director in with a new list to perform and get more variety. At the end of the day the cruise was ok, Thomson is the budget end of cruising so you get what you pay for, that said I would not likr to think I ever pay full or brochure price as there are many other companies with better quality ships in that price range. Hope this review is useful.
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| Itinerary: |
Mediterranean Renaissance/Jewels of |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr J Gardiner |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
We did the Mediterranean Renaissance and Jewels of the Mediterranean cruises. Never having cruised before I was a bit apprehensive in case I found it a bit over the top we (or rather I) chose the Thomson Spirit because of its casual but smart dress code with only 1 formal evening. I was hooked on the first night the excellent staff , quality of food and service was tremendous. We booked a suite on deck 8 for no other reason other than we wanted something special for our 1st cruise and it was excellent, I don’t think I would be as extravagant as that again but it was great to retire to your cabin with plenty of space around you. Angela the housekeeper was fantastic, and kept the room tidy even straightening my watch which was on the table! My sister and brother in law also came on holiday with us for the 2 weeks, they had cruised with NCL and Costa before and felt the staff on the Spirit were best they have encountered and much more personal, they also thought the shows in Broadway Lounge were better, but felt the other much larger cruise ships had better layout /décor. The ship was just the right size for us and yes the slight judder mentioned in other reviews is still occasionally there, otherwise it was perfect.
We ate every night in the Compass Rose and were introduced to waiters Aly and Sujan who asked if we wished a table each evening at about 8pm we were glad we said yes as from that time queues started to form, but Aly made sure we didn’t have to wait indeed on 2 occasions when the restaurant began to fill earlier he sought us out in Raffles to advise us, both he, Sujan and Rod the wine waiter were absolutely first class and well worth the extra tips we gave them. Another reason to eat in Compass Rose was the waiters have a few songs for you about 9pm it all added to the atmosphere making each meal a memorable and enjoyable occasion. We also did a couple breakfasts in there as well but usually we ate breakfast/lunch in the Lido. A bit of advice for men don’t take a royal blue polo shirt with you into the Lido as you will merge with the table clearing staff! I wore mine only the once! (Green polo shirts are daytime waiters colours)
Entertainment was great we enjoyed the shows and although not West End class they were fine as were to 2 guest entertainers Bernie Flint and Taffy Spencer.
The all inclusive is a bargain, ours was free anyway as we booked well in advance, and service was pretty quick although if you are tucked into a corner in High Spirits Disco you might not get noticed.
We enjoyed Raffles and Horizons for some late evening easy listening music by the Oceans Trio.
The Top Men Band are superb, we were having a drink (as usual) overlooking Lido deck one lunchtime and they started a set slowly then out of the blue were versions of Guns and Roses, Free, Eagles etc tracks very, very versatile musicians.
The Captains Gala dinner was the day we were at sea and it was announced it would be in Broadways so we were all ready in our best clothes and were ready early so went down about 6.30 into Raffles for a drink or two, the bar got really busy, but what we didn’t realise was that the doors on the right hand side of the lifts are closed so the queue for photos starts in Raffles and snakes all the way into Broadways, no announcements are made to this effect (all you are told is to meet in Broadways) so we missed the photo shoot the first week but were wiser the 2nd time. Photos on ship are grossly overpriced but I suppose they will be when people like us buy them.
If you are going to buy perfume/aftershave on the ship wait for the 10% off night, different nights for ladies and gents toiletries.
We enjoyed waking up each day in a different port except Livorno, I thought we were in Leith Docks! We took the shuttle bus (1 euro return each) into town but only stayed an hour, stumbled across a market bought a couple of cheap watches and my wife bought a skirt otherwise it’s a bit of a dump.
We took trips to Rome Monaco/Monte Carlo, Pompeii, St Tropez and tried to do Barcelona ourselves, the trips were all excellent We decided to do the hop on/off bus tour of Barcelona which was a shambles after standing a queue we found out we had to stand in different queue to get tickets to go back and stand in that one 20 euros a head as well. You may be able to hop off but hopping back on is a different matter we walked to Sagrada Familia which isn’t as close as maps make out and got a taxi back for 8 euros should have just got one there and back in first place, the bus tour is great if you are on a 2/3 day break but when time is restricted not such a good idea.
We really had a great time on the cruise and enjoyed sailing away particularly from Mahon where people lined the streets to wave goodbye almost forgot if you like Gin then go to the Gin shop on the shore turn right when you leave the ship its 7 or 800 yards along the road you can drink as many free samples as you wish and the Gin is cheaper than the shops (Tip from my Thomson rep step daughter from her time in Menorca!
As I said we enjoyed ourselves and have booked Red Sea cruise in March next year on the Spirit again also on Deck 8, not a suite this time though! Looking forward to visiting Petra and Valley of Kings already (not to mention to All Inclusive drinks package!).
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| Itinerary: |
Jewels of the Med |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs T Knight |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
This was our third cruise (all with Thomson) and each time we think they can't get any better but they do. From the second you board the ship everything is taken care of and all you have to do is relax. All staff from the cabin girls right through to the officers on board are welcoming and efficient. Waiters, bar staff, the entertainment team and even the destination services team recognise you as having been before and some even know which cruise you were on, not bad considering they meet 1000 new people every week. Emma, Paul, Laura and Gemma are an exceptional entertainment team hosting quizes and competitions throughout the week. The food on board was the best we've ever tasted and my husband loved the 24hour dining option! If you are reading this wondering whether cruising for you then it definitely is.... thomson cruises are for everyone, you can be as sociable as you want to be or just relax the days away.
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| Itinerary: |
Full Board |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Maberley |
| Overall
Rating: |
8/10 |
| Comments: |
It was the first time I went cruising as a holiday. I have enjoyed the experience.
The holiday does gives you an opportunity to see different countries in a short space of time.
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| Itinerary: |
mediterranean renaissance |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr T Gaffney |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
Wasn't sure about this as we've never cruised before so bought some sea legs from ebay and off we went. Had a fantastic holiday. Excellent food, excellent entertainment from the Broadway show lounge and the Top men band on deck and in high spirits bar not to mention the virtuoso violin and piano from Victor and Joseph in the Explorers lounge and the jazz trio in Horizons bar. You can have a quiet life on board or party through the night there's something for everyone. The daily "cruise news" delivered to your cabin each evening allows you to plan your itinery for the following day if you can fit it all in as there's so much going on. What really made this a holiday to remember though were the staff. Everyone from the entertainment team, bar and restaurant staff, reception, housekeeping and maintainence were extremely hard working, helpful, friendly and courteous, they also always look happy and nothing seems to be any trouble to them. This was our induction to cruising and overall we are very impressed, so impressed that we are looking towards doing the same thing next year
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| Itinerary: |
All Inclusive |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Portland Direct |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr D Thomas |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
Just back from a wonderful stay and cruise. First week spent in the Son Matias Beach Hotel. Excellent hotel. We have stayed in numerous Thomson Gold hotels, and this is easily as good as, and better than a few of those. The food is outstanding and the staff are all nice. The position could not be better, as it's right on the lovely beach at Palma Nova, and ideal for walks along the prom.
Our second week was spent on the brilliant Thomson Spirit, on the "renaisance" cruise. From the moment we got on the ship, until the moment we left, everything was A1. The ship is run like a well-oiled machine, very smooth and slick. The food is out of this world, and all the staff and crew seem to take great care and delight in making your stay as pleasant as possible.
The entertainment team were totally professional, and so talented. One or two of the shows were not to my particular taste, but you cant please everybody.
I need to give our two waiters in the Compass Rose dining room a special mention, they were Elvis and Bert, two lads from the Philipines who were absolutley brilliant throughout our holiday. Also Ahmed, who was our lad sorting the room out, and Sonia, apretty waitress with a ready smile who was always a big help. All in all I cant praise it enough, and I will be booking this all again.
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| Itinerary: |
Jewels Of The Med |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Portland Direct |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs J Barden |
| Overall
Rating: |
9/10 |
| Comments: |
On our first day, we were a little worried about whether we were going to enjoy our first cruise on this ship. This was simply because everyone was on board, due to being at sea all day! The two pools were small (our only complaint, but we heard that pools are generally fairly small on most ships) and overcrowded. However, when we docked, most people got off the ship and the pools werent too bad. We soon settled in. That night was Captains Night, absolutely fantastic! You meet the Captain, have pictures taken with him, have a free cocktail and then go to dinner. The lifejacket practice was very funny, but taken extremely seriously. The practice horn was the loudest thing we have ever heard!
We tended to have breakfast and lunch in the 24 hour lido buffet restaurant and dinner in the waiter service 6 course Compass Rose. The waiters reserved our table for the early sitting of dinner (6:30pm) every night for us. The food was the best we'd ever had (it even beat the food we had at a Thomson Platinum hotel!) and the staff were wonderful. The ports of call were great, although the excursions with Thomsons were expensive. We did the Pompeii excursion, very interesting but sooo hot! The weather throughout our holiday was suberb. Also, the beach in Corsica is a short 5 min walk from the ship and is well worth a visit! The sand was white and the sea clear. The entertainment was fantastic but we had to be in the show lounge at least 30 mins before it started to get a good seat! However, there are 2 perfomances, so not to worry! There is entertainment practically through most of the night! Drinks were also at a very reasonable price onboard.
We were in an outside cabin on deck one, not a problem with engine noise and we found the slight vibration was felt less in our cabin there! We got used to this judder and didnt let it bother us! Overall, a fantastic holiday - hope to go back next year!
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| Itinerary: |
Jewles of the Mediteranean |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Aug 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr P Turner |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
We have just experienced the best holiday ever on board the thompson spirit, our first cruise and definitely not our last. We were so impressed with the organisation everything went smoothly. We up graded to a deluxe cabin which was superb and our housekeeper Milene was so friendly and kept our cabin spotless with her twice daily visits. The little touches like turning the bed sheets down for us were lovely. We found the ship very clean and well looked after, ALL the staff were friendly, nothing was too much trouble for them, they made us feel very special. The quality and choice of food was great, and the entertainment was like something from the West end, faultless performances every night from the very talented showteam. We particularly liked the fact that the shows were on twice per evening allowing us to eat early or late. We would reccomend this ship to any one and we will definiteldy return next year for the 2 weeks instead of one.
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| Itinerary: |
Renaissance &Jewels of the Med |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs L A Mors |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
This was our 3rd cruise on the Spirit and will not be our last. We had planned the trip with another family from Liverpool we had met on the Spirit in 2005.We were on a 2 weeker and Pat,Graham, Adam and Hannah were on a cruise and stay for the first time. I knew they would want to return and do 2 weeks. We were thinking of The Emerald for an eastern Med.trip but our teenage daughters Natalie and Hannah persuaded us that it had to be the Spirit as it is so geared up for their age group.The kids had a ball and met so many friends. Lots of tears after the first week when their new friends got off (Natalie,Nicky,Sam, Ashleigh,Gillian,Adam,Craig, Gerry you know who you are!)but it didnt take long to meet new ones, Ellie, Erlend, Valentino, James.And they all loved Spikey and Roni from High Spirits!!
Tears from the kids and tears from me too! What can you say after being totally spoilt for a fortnight?? The immaculate cabins with the personal touches, the wonderful staff in every part of the ship where nothing is too much trouble. The fab food and marvellous entertainment. And I haven't even mentioned the weather and the trips. Sailing into Villefranche. Pulling out of Palma and Mahon. Stunning! I cannot recommend this ship highly enough. The captains parting speech to us as we left on Friday said it all. The true spirit of the ship is friendship.Meeting new people and making new friendships is what its all about and it does it brilliantly alongside excellent service.
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| Itinerary: |
Jewels of the Med & Med Renaissance |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Miss N Perrett |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
We have just returned from our first cruise & it was the best holiday ever! All of the staff work tremendously hard to ensure that the passengers don't want for anything. We had a cabin for 4 on deck 3 which was kept amazingly tidy & clean by the housekeeping staff & the chocolate on the pillows was especially enjoyed by the children. We ate in the Compass Rose most evenings & the food was delicious, George & Charlie were our waiters & along with Leroy the Maitre'd, they looked after us for the duration of the cruise. We had a free upgrade to the all-inclusive drinks package which included pretty much everything, even cocktails. The entertainment staff were all very friendly & the band Top Men were fantastic, the children joined Tribe in the Kidzone & made a lot of new friends. Favourite trips included Rome (walking tour was tiring though), Monte Carlo (must do - drive a Ferrari around the Grand Prix track) & the beach at Ajaccio. We will definately have a cruising holiday again, we all loved it.
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| Itinerary: |
reinassance |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mr M Fielding |
| Overall
Rating: |
10/10 |
| Comments: |
My wife and i have just returned fron our first cruise. We decided to do a 7 day cruise and 7 day stay as this was our first ctuise.Well i can honestly say it was one of the best holidays we have ever had.First the cruise on the thomson spirit was great we can honestly say that fron boarding to disembarking we had nothing at all to complain about. The entertainment,food and crew were eveything you could wish for and we are now firm cruisers.Second may i tell you about the hotel we stayed in for the second week it was the Platdji d'or in Alcudia this again was a smashing hotel food,staff, and location were great.We read some reviews before booking this hotel and were a bit concerned about some comments that it was only for the older end as it is an adults only hotel but i can assure you the age range was from 17/18 to 60 /65 and the hotel catered for everyone.Ican assure anyone booking these holidays they will not be disappointed.
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| Itinerary: |
Mediterranean Renaissance & Moorish |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Carpetseller |
| Overall
Rating: |
7/10 |
| Comments: |
This was our first cruise and we only booked it at the very last minute. Overall we enjoyed it but the cost of trips, drinks and photos (only 3) etc. added £1200 to the overall cost. More then we paid per person for the trip, so if you can, book all-inclusive, it’s well worth it.
Accommodation
We had cabin 4017. Overall it was reasonably comfortable. It was small with 2 beds at right angles to each other, one of which folded into the wall during the day. Very little noise in week 1 from next door cabins or engines. Only loud noise was when bow thrusters started as we entered the ports but as this was just as we arrived this worked like a wake up call for us. Week 2 was noisier as people next to us had a small child. We could hear almost every sound from them.
Staff
They were warm, friendly, made a real effort to remember your names and likes and dislikes. Exceptional!
Food
Available 24 hours per day. Food in Seven Seas Restaurant (waiter service) was quite good. Choice of 3 starters, 2 soups, a salad and a pasta dish, then choice of around 5 main courses plus a veggie option and around 6 deserts. Service was excellent.
Food in self-service Lido was very average, but breakfasts there were good and the occasional midnight curry was great!
The bar area serving burgers etc. I’d recommend giving a miss unless they have something special like a BBQ day.
Drinks
Although reasonably priced (around £2.45 for a pint of Stella and £10 for a bottle of the house wine) you can get through lots of drinks on a long, hot, sunny day. Our bar bill for 2 of us was around £500 for 2 weeks, so we wish we had been all inclusive. This wasn’t an option for us as we only booked the holiday 4 days before, and we were told this option wasn’t available.
Atmosphere on board
It was very crowded, especially the first day each week spent at sea. Getting a sun bed was difficult and they were very close together – almost touching one another. The other days when people went ashore meant this was much better. In the evenings you had to get to the entertainment pretty quickly to get a seat for the main shows.
It was hard to escape the pool-side antertainment as it was so loud and rather holiday-camp like, but it didn't last very long each day.
Age range was wide from children though to ‘oldies’. We are in our mid 50’s and that was probably around the average.IMaybe I'm old fashioned or a bit of a snob, but was surprised to find at least 50% of travellers had piercings or tattoos.
Entertainment
The main shows in the Can Can lounge were pretty good. Around 10 different shows I believe, although one was repeated while we were on board. Not always the best singers, but a very versatile group who overall performed very well with great dance routines and costumes etc..
Entertainment elsewhere was dire. The ‘Happy Band’ – we were happy when they stopped playing; the ‘Tongas Trio’ – very poor overall; and ‘Bill’ on the piano who was great on the piano – until he started singing! Most cruising veterans we spoke to felt that the entertainment was the worst they had ever had on a cruise – except the main show of course.
Ports of call and trips
Definitely felt the port s of call on the 1st week (Mediterranean Renaissance) were the most interesting. Villefranche was a beautiful bay, trips to Florence, Pisa and Rome were all great, plus trips in Sardinia and Minorca and in the 2nd week - Gibraltar. All were very reasonably priced I felt. Casablanca was a dump, and the conducted tour was so uninteresting (included a trip to a shop, a vegetable market, a 1970’s church, a fish market etc.) was so bad that several passengers wanted a refund.
Took a ‘little train’ around Almeria. Driver didn’t speak English so had no idea what was included but we had a 45 minute trip around the town for €5. Everyone agreed it was great value.
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| Itinerary: |
Thomson Spirit Cruise Ship |
| Date of
Holiday: |
Jul 2008 |
| Tour
Operator: |
Thomson |
| Submitted
By: |
Mrs A McPhillips |
| Overall
Rating: |
7/10 |
| Comments: |
As seasoned cruisers having been on The Emerald, The Topaz, Celebration and Spirit, all more than once, we looked forward to our usual excellent fortnight aboard the Spirit. I have to admit she was looking a little shabby, especially in the showlounge. For the first time ever we were disappointed with the itinerary Moorish Delights. Casablanca was disgusting, most people got to the end of the pier and turned round again, as the smell could not be tolerated. Ceuta was nothing special, neither was Valencia. As for the Spirit though, the service and standard of entertainment were as always second to none, although our eastern european cabin stewardess did not speak to us until the day before departure to ensure her tip. The entertainments team were marvellous, fantastic singing voices and dancing that made you tired just watching.
It was the other guests who spoiled it this time. I felt like I was at Butlins on Sea. Rude and ignorant people who talked all the way through caberets, and parents that had no control over their children. It would be nice once in a while to have a dip in the pool, but it proves impossible as the children are allowed to jump in regardless of whether someone is beneath them. These children then ran through the Lido restaurant, soaking wet and into the lifts, despite requests in the cruise news to cover up when indoors.
We shall have to try the Calypso I think, but I think Thomson could consider making one of the larger ships adult only, and not just out of season. If not we shall have to consider cruising with a different operator that upholds a few more standards
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Thomson Spirit Cruise Ship ReviewsPage 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
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