I went on this cruise with my family during Labor Day weekend 2006 and would not recommend it.

We ordered wine, but were not provided with wine glasses. When we asked for them, the waitress said they were out. Mind you, this is a dinner cruise, so one assumes they should be able to serve drinks properly. The food is not what you would expect for the price you pay. We were one of the few tables with children, but were continuously asked to wait for other tables to go to the buffet, and by the time we were finally permitted to serve ourselves (because by the time we got to the buffet, the servers had left!) there was little food left and they were not replenishing the food.

They clearly do not rely on repeat business.

As a native Chicagoan I can tell my fellow neighbors and out of towners the same - DO NOT WAIST YOUR MONEY ON THIS CRUISE!!!!! There were over 20 of us on a August 13th Dinner Cruise and it was a nightmare. The buffet ran out of food. The DJ announced on 3 occasions that there was no need to stand in a long line at the buffet because there was more then enough food for everyone and even for second servings. So our group decided to wait as the line was initially long. BIG MISTAKE! By the time we got to the line (which seemed to never get smaller) there was no main course of prime rib and ham left and many of the tray stations were empty. The only thing really left was rice and potatoes. We really did not wait all that long to get in line. And there were alot of people who still did not get in line yet.

So many, many people complained. It looked like a mutiny was begininning. The captain came down and tried to make people happy as if his presence would cure hunger. His name was Dale. He also brought out the restaraunt manager. His name was Frank. Atleast that what there name tags said. They both apologized and repeatedly said more food was being cooked. We didn't see anymore food. A group of people were left standing at the buffet with empty plates. Most gave up and went back to their seats with empty plates being left behind.

I questioned the DJ as to why he told everyone there was plenty of food? His reply was "That is what I am told to say by management". He told another lady the same thing. My reply was "I got 20+ people here who need to eat!!!!"

One of the server people told me that it is not their fault. She explained that the amount of food is ordered by someone else based on the number of people who purchased tickets. She started to explain exactly how much was ordered and she was apologizing and being sympathetic because the workers wanted to help but there was only so much food ordered. So I explained to her "Why did the DJ say there is all this food for everyone including second servings so you don't have to wait in a long line?" Again, she apologized.

The view of the city was fantastic but don't expect to eat. 11 of us ended up going out to eat at Navy Pier after the cruise cause we were so hungry. What a waist of money.

I booked a cruise for 8/7/05. I was a mistake. I recommend no one take this cruise. From the start I knew it was going to be bad. We got there at 7:30 PM. The boat was scheduled to leave at 8 PM. We had to wait in line to pick up our tickets. I tried to pick them up a week earlier and was told I had to pick them up the same day. Well, the line was long and not moving. We finally got our tickets around 8 PM. Everything in the dinner came about 20 minutes apart. We were seated and 20 minutes later, we got salad, 20 minutes later, water, 20 minutes later, bread (I asked 3 times). I finally got up and went to the bar to get my drinks and the line at the bar took at least 20 minutes. Without any exaggeration, dinner was finally served at 10 PM. The food was good. No complaints there. By the end of the night, I did have 3 drinks on the tab with the server. She told me not to worry about it. She felt bad that they were so understaffed. I would say that this cruise is a good idea but Spirit of Chicago is not executing well. I would not waste my money on this disaster. I had to apologize to my date for the bad choice, repeatedly. There are better ways to spend $300.

We went on a Sunday evening cruise July 17th. 2 adults and 3 children ages 12-17. Except for the magnificent view of the Chicago lights at night, I was disappointed. Our service was terrible! I would not go on The Spirit of Chicago Cruise again, I would try a different cruise option.

Location: Excellent. Departs from the south side of Navy Pier.

Boat: Very nice. It wasn't new, but it seemed clean and well maintained for the most part. Dining areas were nice, bathroom was marginal. Outside decks nice to very nice. The ride was steady and smooth on a fairly windy cruise. I enjoyed riding on the upper outside deck on the way back, it was a fantastic view and where most of the value of this cruise occurred for us.

Dress: business casual to suit/dress. We wore dress slacks and dress shirts. (I would have worn a sport coat and tie but it was 96F out and I was too hot)

Seating: Satisfactory. Some tables are window seats, some are seated mid-room, but still afford a reasonable view while dining.

Food: Good. This was a Sunday evening buffet. Food was just good, not better than that. Perhaps I expected better for the price. Drinks are extra. We purchased a soda/juice option which was most cost effective for us. I did not purchase alcoholic beverages, but they are available and looked pretty good.

Service: Terrible!! This truly ruined the experience for us. I hope it was just our waitress. Other service attendants appeared to be doing a better job than ours. (example: we had to wait 30+min and ask her 5 times for refills of our beverages, all the while she would go to other tables and accommodate them; inexcusable.) I have had better service at McDonalds, totally unacceptable for an expensive dinner cruise. In case someone from the Spirit of Chicago is reading this, HINT: No Service = No tip. I was going to leave a token gratuity, but my generally mild-mannered wife was so upset she said absolutely no gratuity at all was deserved. I hope others will find better service than we had. I overheard several others complaining to staff/management about their servers as well, not sure if we all had the same one or not. Be forewarned.

Price: $75 each (with a $10 each discount).

Highlight: the cruise back into the harbor at night with the stunning beauty of the Chicago lights as the backdrop. We did not go on a night where fireworks from Navy Pier were present, but others have told me that is quite nice as well.

I would not go on this Spirit of Chicago Cruise again, specifically because of the terrible service for the expense involved. I would definitely go on another cruise, but on a different boat/yacht, perhaps on a night when fireworks are displayed from Navy Pier.