Carnival Spirit

The 2001-built Carnival Spirit cruise ship is the first of four Spirit-class CCL liners, with sisterships Miracle, Pride, and Legend.

The vessel (IMO number 9188647) is currently Malta-flagged (MMSI 229136000) and registered in Valletta.

History - construction and ownership

Carnival Cruise Lines (CCL) is a US shipping company, trademarked brand and subsidiary of Carnival Corporation (shipowner). CCL was founded in 1972 as an independent company by Ted Arison (1924-1999, co-founder of NCL Norwegian). Carnival Cruise Lines has the Corporation's largest fleet as both a number of vessels and GT tonnage (ship sizes and capacities). CCL has over 1/5 of the cruise industry's worldwide market.

The 2100-passenger ship Carnival Spirit introduced some significant firsts for the company, including onboard wedding chapels and alternative restaurants. Spirit-class ships also boast an impressive 80% ratio of outside cabins and lots of nice little touches such as 'designer' martinis and museum-quality artwork. The cruise vessel, that introduced a whole new class for Carnival, shares its basic design with Costa Atlantica and offers all the best of earlier Carnival ships - a waterslide, lots of bars and extensive kids' facilities.

In early 2012, Carnival Spirit underwent a US$7 million refurb to make her ready for a new home in Australia. Carnival added a totally new aqua park and waterslide, Green Thunder; a 180-foot-long twister which starts with a near-vertical drop; the Serenity deck space, Carnival's signature adults-only retreat; and a new top-deck barbecue place. Following the last refit in 2015, Aussies also benefit from enhanced coffee, more draught beers and more cabins with interconnecting doors.

Decks and Cabins

Carnival Spirit staterooms (1062 total, in 28 categories) include 50 Suites, 634 Balconies, 171 Oceanviews, 214 Inside cabins. The ship has 17 wheelchair-accessible cabins but no Spa cabins. Most cabins are sized 185 ft2 (17 m2). Most cabin balconies are sized 40 ft2 (4 m2). Suites are 4 types (Grand, Vista, Ocean, Junior), the largest are Grand Suites (300 ft2 / 28 m2, with terrace sized 115 ft2 / 11 m2).

The boat has 12 passenger decks, of which 6 are with cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

The 1,300-seat, 2-deck Empire Restaurant features Napoleonic splendor, with ceiling domes decorated with murals and crystal chandeliers. Even the portholes are trimmed in gold. The grand circular staircase boasts a sculpture of Napoleon at his coronation. Open seating breakfast is served between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. only on Deck 2 and a Sea Day Brunch is introduced for days at sea between 8:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. to replace breakfast and lunch in the main dining room. La Playa Grill Lido Restaurant situated on Deck 9 is a buffet eatery referred to by both names - Lido and La Playa Grill. It occupies a large area on Lido deck between adults-only Serenity Retreat and the main Dome pool.

There are ten food stations serving various food for lunch and dinner, such as Asian, deli sandwiches and wraps, carvery meats, salads, and desserts. The ice-cream and pizza bars, found in the eatery, are open 24 hours. The Taste Bar on Deck 2 is a little kiosk that hands out small morsels of the items on offer in the dining room. It's open in the early evening. Two chefs prepare and serve the little bites.

Follows the complete list of Carnival Spirit restaurants and food bars.

• Empire Restaurant (1250-seat aft Dining Room, with two fixed dinner seatings, or Your Time Dining; offers Seuss At Sea-themed breakfasts for $5; with the Napoleon Room restaurant annex).
• Nouveau Steakhouse (156-seat reservations only restaurant, serving seafood and prime beef steaks; with dance floor and stage for live performances)
• La Playa Grille Lido Buffet Restaurant (1458-seat self-service restaurant with complimentary food stations; operates as dinner bistro in the evenings)
• Sushi Bar (complimentary).

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

Carnival Spirit provides cruise experience like taking a journey all over the world. Legendary designer Joe Farcus got inspired to memorialize the "creative spirit" on the liner. The showroom is figured with Egyptian hieroglyphics and murals, the piano bar is a homage to Shanghai and "Chinoise" style, the Artist's Lobby accents famed European artists, the library of Chippendale is accurate of an English country manor. The hodgepodge of styles might strike you.

Carnival Spirit has much day-time fun with a big emphasis on trivia - there will be 3 to 4 games with different themes on any given day. There are also staff-led activities, such as golf chipping competitions, table tennis competitions, family scavenger hunts, along with towel-folding lessons and dance classes. A couple of lectures take place each day, given by the cruise director or by a visiting expert. Sushi-making demonstrations take place in the Bonsai Sushi and ticketed wine-and-cheese tasting in adults-only Serenity (held at least once per cruise).

Follows the complete list of Carnival Spirit lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues for kids, teens, and adults.

• Versailles Lounge (484-seat, hosts Punchliner Comedy Club/brunch)
• Dancin' Dance Club Disco and Nightclub (118-seat, 2-level Dance Club)
• Pharaoh's Palace Theatre (1167-seat, 3-level main show lounge, also used for movies, bingo games, game shows)
• Monarch's Card Room (20-seat)
• Fountain Cafe (112-seat specialty coffee bar and patisserie)
• The Champions Bar (67-seat sports bar); Artists' Lobby Lounge (85-seat wine bar); Shanghai Bar (106-seat piano bar); Snack Bar, Towel Bar; Deco Foyer Lounge and Bar (66-seat)
• Club Cool Jazz Club (135-seat jazz lounge)
• Louis XIV Casino (278-seat, served by Louis XIV Bar)
• Spirit Atrium Spirit Lobby (9-deck high midship open area with dance floor and stage, served by 147-seat Spirit Lobby Bar)
• The Jungle Interior Promenade (52-seat)
• Chippendale Library and Internet Cafe (23-seat, 24-hour Internet computers)
• Wedding Chapel (30-seat)
• Deco Walk Upper Promenade (52-seat)
• The Fun Shops (offers Bon Voyage items, duty-free liquor, jewelry, fashion boutiques, souvenirs, logo items); Formalities Shop (tuxedo rentals, special occasion gifts); Studio Photo Gallery and Shop
• Techno Video Games Arcade (24-hour)
• Circle C (kids' lounge complimentary area with video games, parties, movies, planned activities)
• Camp Carnival (aft located kids' lounge area with complimentary kids programmes and supervised activities)
• Spa Carnival complex (with Steam Rooms, Saunas, Whirlpool, 10 Treatment Rooms, Classique Beauty Salon and Fitness Center)
• Serenity (adult-only relaxation area with Whirlpool, Pool, Bar and sunbathing area with lounges)
• Sun Pool (with 1 Whirlpool) and Dome Pool (main, with 1 Whirlpool; covered with sliding roof), both served by Canopy Bar)
• Club O2 (teens club lounge with video games, movies, karaoke, and themed parties)
• Carnival Waterworks Aqua Park (with Twister Waterslide, PowerDrencher, two mini racing slides, Green Thunder Waterslide, play areas with jets and fountains)
• Volleyball-Basketball Court; 9-hole Mini Golf Course; Jogging Track, Shuffleboard.

Itineraries

Carnival Spirit itinerary program is based on departures from Sydney, Australia to the South Pacific Islands (Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji). The ship also calls at Tasmania and operates on Sydney cruises to nowhere.

For winter 2017-2018, the ship was repositioned to Asia and homeported in China following the drydock refurbishment in Singapore. The ship has been homeported in Sydney NSW Australia since 2012.

Spirit was the first Fun Ship with roundtrip itineraries leaving from China. In spring 2018 it returned to Australia. In 2019, to Asia (China) will be deployed Carnival Splendor.

In 2021, Carnival Spirit became the company's first liner homeported in Brisbane (Queensland Australia). The announcement was made in June 2018 (the maiden season was planned for 2022) and followed the approval for building a new cruise terminal in Brisbane QLD.

For summer 2020, the ship had to be deployed in Alaska (replacing Carnival Legend). The Alaskan itinerary program offered a total of 18x 7-day plus 2x 8-day and 1x 9-day roundtrips with departures from homeport Seattle WA (April through September 2020).

• 7-day Glacier Route cruises (May 5 through September 1, 2020) visit Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Victoria BC, as well as cruising Tracy Arm Fjord, while the 8-day cruise (April 27, 2020) adds Icy Strait Point.
• 9-day roundtrip from Seattle (September 8-17, 2020) features all ports on the 8-day itinerary plus day-long visit to Sitka.
• (2020) special 7-day Alaskan cruise departs from Vancouver (April 20 and arrives in Seattle (April 27).
• (2020) 2 longer "Carnival Journeys" are offered to Hawaii - 10-day from Honolulu to Vancouver (departing April 10) and 11-day from Vancouver to Honolulu (departing September 25). Both itineraries offer extended (day-long) calls at 4 ports (Hilo, Kona, Maui, Nawiliwili) with the 11-day cruise spending full-day and overnight in Maui.

Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the CCL Spirit ship was paused for 2+ years (March 2020 thru May 2022), with a planned restart from Brisbane QLD on May 29th. However, in February 2022 the Australian deployment was replaced with the Caribbean (homeporting in Jacksonville Florida, starting on March 7th) to replace Carnival Sensation.

Carnival Spirit's Australia 2022 program was based on the following itineraries:

• 3-day Getaways (themed cruises to nowhere)
• 4-day Airlie Beach
• 7-day "Great Barrier Reef" (Airlie Beach, Cairns, Port Douglas, Willis Island)
• 7-day "South Pacific Islands" (New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Fiji/including Dravuni Island)
• 10-11-days "Papua New Guinea" (Alotau, Kitava Island-Trobriand, Rabaul, Kiriwina Island-Trobriand, Conflict Islands)

In early-February 2022, Carnival Spirit's Australian schedule (June 5, 2022, thru October 5, 2023) and Carnival Splendor's Australian schedule (June 10 thru Sept 26, 2022) were both canceled. Carnival Spirit was redeployed to the Caribbean and homeported in Jacksonville FL (March 7th thru April 9th), then to Alaska from Seattle (May 3-Sept 13). Carnival Splendor was redeployed to Alaska (May 2 thru August 30).

Starting October 2023, Carnival Spirit will be homeported in Mobile Alabama, offering 8-day roundtrips to ports in Mexico, Belize, Jamaica, Bahamas (Half Moon Cay, Bimini). The Caribbean deployment will be seasonal, alternating with Alaska (during summer).

Fun Ship 2.0 upgrade was done in 2015. Spirit is Carnival's first Spirit-class liner, with sisterships Legend, Miracle, Pride, and the Costa Cruises ships Atlantica and Mediterranea. The vessel was christened by godmother Elizabeth Dole - North Carolina's senator (state's first female senator, mandate 2003-2009).

Spirit was also the first Fun Ship cruising to Alaska and Hawaii. It features world's steepest waterslide at sea ("Green Thunder"). Ship's drydock refurbishment in San Francisco (in 2012) cost USD 7 million. During the drydock were added "WaterWorks" (aquapark) and "Serenity" (adults-only resort deck).

During winter 2017-2018 season, Carnival Spirit was repositioned to China to offer Asian cruises roundtrip from homeport Shanghai. The seasonal redeployment was due to scheduled drydock in Singapore. Spirit was homeported in Sydney Australia since 2012, performing strongly on the local market. The decision made Spirit the first-ever Carnival ship departing from China. It returned to Australia in spring 2018 to continue the previous year-round itinerary program from Sydney NSW. The other Carnival Asia ship was Carnival Splendor (repositioned in spring 2018). Carnival Asia cruise shipping operations are via the partnership between Carnival Cruise Lines and Carnival Corporation's subsidiary Costa Asia.

Carnival Spirit refurbishment 2018 review

Drydock 2018 (May 23 - June 5) was in Singapore. The upgrades included new entertainment options at new clubs for youth activities - kids-only arts-crafts area ("SoulPlay") and teens-only area ("Warehouse Arcade"). Other changes included:

• redesigned retail area - new duty-free shopping brands - Clinique, Lacoste, Quay Australia, Seafolly, Swarovski, Swatch
• redesigned Photo Gallery - Pixels Digital Photo Gallery - upgraded kiosk allowing passengers to view then purchase photos through smartphones and iPads
• updated Fitness Centre (latest training equipment)

In February 2022, Carnival Spirit was drydocked in Dubai UAE, mainly for general maintenance works, as well as for changing the old livery with the fleet's new one (blue-red-white).

In 2017, on the Australia-based Carnival Spirit was introduced new kids programming, that includes new onboard activities, games, themed parties.

• On the ship were introduced an inflatable bocce court and giant-sized board games (Cranium, Trivial Pursuit, Guess Who).
• Another 2017 addition is the Cluedo (aka Clue) murder mystery game that is a group activity involving 2-6 players. At the beginning of each cruise, costumed characters present their alibis, and the players attempt to solve the crime mystery through clues given to them throughout the cruise.
• New themed entertainment events are the shows "80s Rock" (music-themed), "Glow Night" (fashion-themed) and "Lip Sync Battle" (a musical competition involving choreography, costumes, and stage sets).