Thomson Cruises, Spirit Review

Good Points
Crew-around 95% of the crew fall over themselves to make the trip very pleasant, despite working long hours they are polite and made us feel extremely welcome.
Hygiene-the ship was fresh, well ordered and kept scrupulously clean.
Food-Compass Rose Restaurant was first class.
Entertainment- you will never be bored, there is just so much to do and see, all day and all night too.
Cabin-We had Deluxe cabins with good views. Very roomy and comfortable.

Bad Points
Drinks prices- Drinks are expensive, my local is cheaper! Expect to be relieved of £2.45 for a pint of lager,£2.65 for a Tia Maria and around £12.00 for a bottle of wine with dinner. Also the All Inclusive deal is limited to a few basic drinks, order anything else you will have to pay a premium on top.
Excursion prices-Some of these are a bit steep. At many Ports of call taxi drivers will do deals that are a lot cheaper for group of four. Even renting a car can sometimes make more sense.
Music on Lido Deck- Britney Spears adenoidal twang nearly drove me to leap over the side rail. Each day, Oops! .I did it again , was repeated again and again and again. This and other pre-pubescent bubble gum pop is played loudly and almost continuously throughout the day. It was so numbing I could have had my teeth drawn and experienced no pain. Please Thomson's send someone down to the music store and buy a few more CD's, more backgound music and less white noise.

General Comments
We were a family group of four and had a very good holiday aboard the Spirit on our first ever cruise. Apart from the few bad points I feel the cruise itself was good value for money. Unfortunately a small minority of passengers did lack decorum. The pool area and Lido deck is where most of them seem to hang out. It attracted those who were happy to talk loudly, in competition with the music, while ignoring their children, who bombed the pool all day and saturated those unfortunate enough to be within range. The area is one of the few places smokers are permitted to gather in any numbers. With whole tables firing up in unison balmy evenings often reeked of smouldering Virginia. Smokers also stand at the rail and appear oblivious to the fumes and ash they waft over those on adjoining sun loungers. Admittedly there are lots of no smoking areas inside the ship but if you are a non-smoker and like to eat or drink al-fresco whilst breathing fresh air there is nowhere for you go. The rest of the ship was faultless and I would recommend a cruise on the Spirit.