Having sailed on the spirit last year we decided to go again this year. The cabin was adequate for a party of four although the beds are bunk beds we stayed in an outside cabin on deck three and could feel the vibrating as commented on by other reviews even when lying in bed or sitting relaxing in bar and entertainment lounges. The entertainment was definately not as good as last year the shows in the broadway lounge were like talent shows compared to the west end shows of last year. The group did not seem to work as a team. Sue Denning in the caberat show was very good and professional. The daytime entertainment was naf and the groups were wooden with no enthusiasm.The excursions were very expensive especially if you are a family of four we took the half day pompei tour which was very good. The Bormes Les Miserable tour in Toulon was expensive and did not leave very much time to enjoy the town of Bormes as we spent a long time on the coach the tour was very steep walking up to a church which you didnt even get to go in so we decided to explore the town ourselves and left the tour enjoying the market and bars we had coffee coke and two oranges and this came to 15 euros very expensive! We enjoyed the Barcelona Nou Camp Stadium tour but this was 100 euros so if you can do this on your own you would certainly save money and have more time to explore the shop as this was rushed to get back on the coach. In the compass rose the food was good but as mentioned in other comments you do have to share your table with other people on quite a few occassions we only had a table for four once. I don't think we will be going back on the spirit again as the entertainment really let it down this year.

This is our second time on the Spirit and we chose the Romance, Romans and Riviera itinery. As usual you couldn't fault the staff and I feel humbled that some of them spend 8-9 months away from their families to serve us. The excursions were expensive and we avoided them, however we should have gone to Caucasonnes and Florence as the ports you have to dock in, Sete and La Spezia were either closed (it was Sunday) or a dump. Rome was a breeze, you just catch the train, 9 euros from Civitavecchia station and it includes the metro. Once in Rome just hop on a tourist bus as they drop you at all the key places and you can get on and off as many times as you like. Thomson would charge you 32.00 sterling for the privilege. I agree that the entertainment team were not as good as last year but they were still excellent, especially Lloyd and Sue. We too had an overpowering diesel smell one night. It never occurred to me that it may have been a fuel line. One of the stewardesses did confess to me that this would be her last year as 'the ship needs replacing, it keeps breaking'. I have to agree that Gemini, the trio, were hilarious and we got very good at mimicking 'Lollipop'. It has to be heard to be believed. He got great applause because it was so unbelievable. The logistics of getting us all on and off went very smoothly and I couldn't fault it. However Thomson ought to take seriously some of the comments as they shouldn't get complacent. Food in the Compass Rose was very good, the Lido was of a different calibre but also good. Our favourite bar was the Horizons lounge as no children tend to be up there so nice and peaceful to read.

Well Where do I start it was like heaven. It was easily the best holiday ive had ever!!!Absolutely out of this world.
The ship was fantastic, when we got there they took our luggage off for us. We were given our key cards, they we were personally escorted up to our rooms and had things explained to us, before we set off to do our own thing.
The ship was emaculate every night both the pools were emptied and cleaned, the floors were always clean and the apartments emaculate.
The food there was brilliant everything you could imagine was there. There was a choice you could have a proper waitered meal where you should have 2 waiters serving you but they all help to make sure your ok.
The entertainment was brilliant it was out of this world there was something for everyone. During the day there was always something for everybody. If you wanted a energetic game of deck hockey or just a quiet drink listening to soothing music in the raffles bar, it had it all.
I would strongly reccommend this cruise to anyone, it was the experience of a lifetime.

I would like to thank all the staff on the Thomson Spirit for making the holiday totally a magical experience!!! I'll see you next time

We travelled with our two children (boys 12 & 14). This was our first cruise and we all had a fabulous time.

The staff on the ship were very friendly, worked extemely hard and took the time out to do the extra things (small things like remembering our first names).

The food in both restaurants was good and at times excellent, Al (in the Lido restaurant) gave our 12 year old a special recipe of ice-cream and remembered it every night.

The entertainment was very enjoyable, although we agree the three piece band were a bit predicatable. Sue Denning's cabaret ~(comedy act) was first rate.

We did the Sorrento/Amalfi coast trip and wished we'd only done Sorrento as we didn't get enough time in the town and spent a long time in traffic on the Amalfi Road.

All in all Thomson and all the staff were extremely proffesional and we would definitely book another cruise with them it was fantastic.

This was our 3rd cruise, our 2nd with Thomson after sailing on the Emerald last summer. The embarkation was handled very smoothly and we were allocated a comfortable outer cabin on deck 3.
We found the Lido restaurant to be better than last years Emerald equivalent but did not like the free seated Compass Rose as much as the Emerald.
The entertainment was generally very good - Lloyd and Keef especially. However, despite being an excellent singer, Karl, the Cruise Director, had the most irritating talking voice and condescending style. Also, Emma B was like a fish out of water, especially when performing in the otherwise excellent Moulin Rouge. The rest of the entertainment team were excellent.
The excursions were overpriced. Do not be afraid to travel independently. In La Spezia we travelled by train to Pisa for a total of €25 - the cheapest Thomson excursion would have been £80. The next day the train was €9 per person for a return trip to Rome - £32 per person was the cheapest Thomson option. We were generally dissappointed with the ports we visited. Sete and especially Tarragona were industrial ports with shuttle buses needed to visit the towns.
Despite the above critiscms, we enjojed our cruise tremendously and are already planning next year.

jewels of med - 19th Aug till 26th,...first ever holiday without the children (courtesy of babysitting sister) ist ever cruise - much better than expected, cant wait to cruise again (even taking children next time)ive read other comments about fuel leaks /noise/bathroom water cold etc etc we did not experience any of this, but in fainess we paid to upgrade to the higher deck so it was worth it, although i do agree with some other peoples comments about the vibration, it was quite bad i actually had to get up out of bed at times to stop my head bouncing on the pillow with the ships vibration.(I have been told there was a problem with the ballance of the propshaft so when i book again for next year i will only do so if i get a firm guarantee that the problem has been cured !)
if not i will book their other ship as overall the service we received was good .we found no problems with cleanliness, the food was excellant,the staff were excellant the entertainment was either excellant or butlins-ish, individually the entertainers were good but when they tried to lay on a production (for example africa or elvis night) it was so bad it was embarassing ,which in itself made it amusing.
the excursions were overpriced but this is what i would expect from any tour company, but it is your choice, i chose to pay on some and use the local hop on hop off buses on others.
so after 7 nights on board i only had 2 bad experiences:- # one the lazyness and the attitude of the receptionist in the hairdressers #2 the manners and the rudeness of some of the russian passengers and their lady friends.
considering how many hundreds of people on the ship i certainly dont find this cause for complaint. .
ive read other peoples comments about the high photo & video prices, to which i agree ,i would have been willing to pay these high prices for the memories sake if the photography had been of a higher standard than the amaturish efforts for sale.
incidentally you could tell whereabouts you were in the queue on the captains night as his smile visibly fades the later your photo is taken with him . (this is also emphasised after his welcome speech as himself and all his staff discreetly abandon the champagne that he has just invited us all to drink).but then again i do understand that the captains night is just part of his job and something he has to put up with every week of his working life (i just wish he had done a better job of disguising his boredom and apathy )
please dont thing i am complaining after my few nigles,i am just stating facts, on the whole it was an absolutely amazing experience made all the better by the friendly helpfull professional attitude of the general ships staff.

My Wife and I and four friends booked this cruise to cellebrate a 50th Birthday. Having cruised on 6 other occasions we were not sure about Thomson. I can only say that it was one of the best Cruises we have ever done.

The All Inclusive!!! Deffo a good thing to do, WE had our moneys worh for the 2 weeks in the first 2 days.

The ship was spotless and the cabins were spacious.WE had breakfast every morning in the Lido Resturant and also had an evening meal there on 2 occasions. The service and the staff there was excellent.

WE had the same table in the compass rose resturant every nite and also the same waiters to serve our meals. (Give these Guys a tip, they deserve it)

The entertainment was good, something there for everyone. We spent alot of time in Raffles Piano Bar, the service in there was excellent, the bar waiter, Dennis (tip him as well) great guy. I must also mention Alexander, he was the bar waiter on the Lido deck and also in the theatre, this guys service was second to none. WELL DONE THOMSON SPIRIT.THANKS FOR A GREAT HOLIDAY!!!

The only thing l would like to comment onis the price of the trips, they are a bit of a rip off. WE have always made our own way around. You can get the Train to Rome than a Taxt to St Peters square for 1/4 of the price and also have more time to yourselves. And Taxis are also a good deal, if there are two or more taka a taxi or gat someone to share with you.

Also the Photos on the ship. You get klicked all the time by the ships photographer. We never bought any as these are a complete rip off. If Thomsons could get it in to there head to lower the price of these pics then more people would but them. They would be better selling 10 @ £5.00 than 1 @ £15.00. It's not rocket science, come on get the prices down a bit.

OVERALL.

Fantastic Cruise and we will deffo be on the Spirit again.

just returned from cruise (05/08/2005)started well at airport got to palma transfer easy ,when we arrived at the dock was treated realy well no probs getting luggage too cabin as this is all done for you shown too our cabin loads of space tv hair dryer air con all working only thing was water tended to be a little cold somtimes.ships clealiness was second too none staff were always cleaning all around the ship,ships food was 100% we ate mainly in the lido found there was somthing for all tastes couldnt fault it (plastic cups and plates were not a problem for us)they were always clean service was a bit rapid as soon as you finished eating a waiter wanted too whip your plate away but overall excellent,the ships staff done everything they could to help you nothing was too much trouble a credit too thompsons not sure about the tipping but we did leave a tip for the waiters at the end of the week our cabin stewartdess was brill she came in twice a day and lokked after us ,onboard entertain was magic there was somthing for everyone we tried all the bars found the high spirits the livlyest in the broadway the staff put on some good shows but towards the end of the week we found it a bit samey but good anyway ,we would most deffintly recommend this cruise and would travel again with them .personly unless you are a realy heavy drinker i would not pay the extra for al because prices on the boat were average (£2.45 a pint)we spent about £200 all week which is not too bad concidering the amount we drunk if u work it out.

Third cruise with Thomson everything 100% this time did find too many unsupervised children in all areas at all times.Week one was Jewels of the Med first port
Palmero,Sicily had a walk into town everthing closed as it was Sunday very dirty place had coffe back on ship by 11am.Ship excursions rang from £24 for half day to £39 for full day trip.
Naples,Italy ship exc price £22 to £43.We did Sorrento & Amalfi Coast £39 full day lovely but felt like been on bus for hours as you only have 2 hours in Sorrento an 2 hours in Amalfi.According to others Naples was very dirty with not much going on.
Olbia,Sardinia got free ship shuttle into town not much open as everywhere closes betwwen 1 and 3.
Toulon.France beuatiful place to walk into with some nice shops.10 minute walk off ship.Ship exc cost betwwen £24 and £39.
Barcelona,Spain just outside terminal got hop on/off bus(NOT THE ORANGE ONES) all day ticket on all three bus routes 15 Euros pp see all sites.Ship exc cost betwwen £23 and £28.Cheapest place for duty free cigs.
Palma Majorca got taxi in to town 7 Euros.Very big and cheap Carrefour supermarket aon left of terminal.
Second week was Mediterranean Renaissance
Villefranche,France tender to shore then bear right max 15 min walk to train station 18 Euros for 4 return tix.When you get off train stay on platform C and descend by the escalator brings you out on the sea front.Very clean everywhere.Went to Prince's Palace done shopping in the village visited Cathederal had lunch then walked down past Grand Prix route then got on local bus 3.50 Euros for 4 over to Monte Carlo tried gaming machines in Casino but if you want to have a look at the gaming tables you MUST have photo id with you.No children allowed in Casino had cold drink and people watched at Cafe de Paris.Spot the face lifts a mile away !!!All very reasonable prices to our amazement, we thought it would be expensive.There is a local shuttle train for about 5 Euros taking you around.On the way back had an hour on the beach at Villefranche.Brilliant day one Not to miss.Ship exc £25-£35 we saved £93 between us.
Livorno,Italy you can walk into town where they have lots of good shops but we done trip to Florence £23 drop you off and pick back up 15.30 ok dome was fab but just ok.Ship exc between £23 and £47.
Civitavecchia,Italy ship exc £30 up to £110.do it on your own get free ship shuttle bus to train station and return tix 10Euros we got shuttle bus to end of port then local tour bus 20Euro from port to Sistene Chapel return 17.30 back to ship.Once in Rome there is hop on/off bus.
Ajaccio,Corsica had walk in to town ok.Ship exc cost between £23 and £35.
Mahon,Menorca beuatiful port to sail in and out of.When you get off ship some steep steps ahead of you will take you up to centre well worth climbing steps for.Ship exc £19 or £55.
All staff on this ship are excellent service was always 100%.Photos are still a big rip off.All excursions are per person so can add up to awful amout of money.Did not see any shows as people stay in the show rooms all night saw comedians they were good.Poolside entertainment ok but staff displays were brilliant showing how to fold towels/napkins, ice carvings,cocktail making etc.Sunbeds are a problem but remember you are only allowed 45 mins away from beds so do as we did give benefit of the doubt waited 1 hour then removed towels as some people put towels on beds then go out for the day.

We have been on this Ship before but on a Cruise and Stay. Don't do the stay do a 2 week cruise.
This is one of the friendelist places to Holiday.
The staff are great and the food is faultless and the ship is spotless. The trips on board are expensive so try to do your own thing you'll save hundreds of pounds and if you are all inclusive it's not an expensive way to travel.
The photos are still a rip off at £15 a picture so don't buy. Pisa was £35pp for a half day we did it for £3 each on the local buses in 4hrs.
Rome was done on the train for 9e each return and we were back by 3pm, having done the open top bus tour for 14e each(£50-£100 with thomsom)and not to much trouble but remember to valadate your train ticket any where in Italy. Loads of other stop most very good but a couple not.
The shows were not as good as last years and mainly musicals and were in nead of some variety.
Still we had a brill time and have booked for next June.