Review of Norwegian Gem, November 1 to 8th, Part 2

[Susan18]

Tueday, Malta: As I had heard this was a great port to shop in, we did not schedule a tour. And yes, it is a very beautiful port as you arrive.

We got off the ship at 8 am. There was an ATM at the Bank of Valletta, right after you walked out of the terminal, which I used to get money when we got back on the ship.

Also, as for money, the ship charges $ 10 for every transaction to exchange your US dollars to Euros, plus you get a not so good rate. The rate on the ship was about .62, while I exchanged mine at home before I left for .65 at AAA, for no fee.

Across the street is a bus stop into the center of town, but the bus does not start until 9 am.

We walked to the taxi stand of about 50 taxis. We were going to take a taxi to the center of town, which I had read was about 10 Euros. However, the 2 taxi drivers that we asked refused to take us, they only wanted to give us a tour of Malta. The taxi drivers were very aggressive about us taking tours as we walked past, even stepping in front of us.

As we had no choice, we walked to the center. Malta is very, very steep. You would look up and see 100 steps, climb them, and then see another 50 steps to the left or right. Over and over. Once we got to the top, the stores began opening at 9 am.

The shopping was great. Good prices. We bought glass bracelets for 5 Euros, Malta soccer shirts for 10 Euros, purses, t-shirts, etc.. We felt safe, except for the aggressive taxi drivers.

If you have any problems walking at all, this is the port to take a tour.

At the terminal, there were also a few nice shops and a duty free shop, which we bought a few things in, but it was small compared to other ports that I have been in.

Once back on the ship, I went to lay out on the balcony at about 1:30 pm. Within 20 minutes, 2 different NCL crew members rode by my balcony on their trolley car. I was also sprayed by the people powerwashing the boat. Was I soaked? No. Did I have to change my clothes? Yes. I called the front desk to complain about the people going by the balcony and about being sprayed. They said they would look into it and call me back. Never heard from then.

I have had balconies on all of my cruises. I never had anyone ride by my balcony, nor have I ever been sprayed.

The ship was very rocky that night. Our drawers kept opening and closing. I later found out from 2 other couples on the 11th deck that their balcony doors kept opening and closing all night long, that the balcony locks were broken. They were kept up all night by the slamming. They called the front desk and received no help.

Weds. Naples: We took a tour of Sorrento and the Almafi coast. This was a nice tour and the scenery was beautiful. However, you could book this tour for a much better price on your own. I only booked this tour through the ship as I was traveling alone with my daughter and did so for safety reasons. I have never booked a tour with the ship before. Please, do some research, save some money and have a better time, where you get to decide where you go.

When I returned to my room that night, I received a note that my tour for Friday to Siena and Tuscany had been cancelled. I went to the excursion desk. I understand that they have to cancel tours if they do not get enough people to go, but since they have me the tickets to this tour when I boarded the ship, I would think that you could assume that the tour was a go. No so. Any of my second choices were sold out by then. I asked if they could accomodate me on the booked tours or at least try since I had booked this tour in February when I booked the cruise. No. I asked if I could have some free internet time so I could find something else to do in port. I was told that was "Not happening". I even talked to the front desk. I don't understand how I would be charged the full price if I cancelled with less than 48 hours notice but it is OK if they do.

I used the internet on my own to see if I could get to Siena myself, which I could, but it was a 2 hour train ride. The internet cost me $ 3.95 for an activation fee and $.75 a minute, so it cost me $ 13.75 to use the internet.

I begrudingly went back to the excursion desk and booked the Pisa and Tuscany tour, even though I had been to Pisa the previous year.

Thurs. Rome: As we had spent 5 days in Rome the previous year, we decided to go shopping in Rome.

At the port, there are shuttle buses (look to your left) to take you to a shuttle stop in town. Be prepared to run for the shuttle buses, as all of the crew members are also running for the shuttle buses. You would think that they would let the guests have first use of the shuttle buses.

Once dropped off, it is about a 5 minute walk to the train station. When you enter the train station, there is a line, a long line to the left, to buy the train tickets. Instead, look to your right, there is a tabachi, or news stand. We went in here and told them we wanted a BIRG, 9 Euros each. This is good for the train to Rome, and all of the buses, metros and trams in Rome.

You must validate your ticket in the yellow machine before you board the train. However, since the train was coming (the 7:33 train), we did not validate the ticket. I had read previously that you can date and sign the ticket to validate it, which I did. This must have been sufficient, as a conductor came aboard and checked all of the tickets.

The train takes 1 hour and 20 minutes to get to the last stop, the Termini. If you are going to the Vatican, get off at San Pietro, which will save you 20 minutes on the train. You can walk from there.

We walked from Termini to the Colosseum metro stop, shopping along the way. T-shirts were all the same. They started out at 8 Euros, but the further you go away from the major tourist attractions, the cheaper they were. We paid 4.50 Euros for the same t-shirts.

Please, be carful in Rome. We know of 3 people on the ship that were robbed on their wallets in Rome. I bought a Pacsafe purse which is slash proof, that I wore across my body. I also wore the purse zipped under my jacket, and only opened my jacket to get the money when buying something. They work in teams in Rome. One guy was crowded by 6 people when his wallet was taken. Last year when I was in Rome, as soon as we got on the Metro at the Termini, someone grabbed my husband's hand in his front pocket to get to his wallet. He didn't even know who was doing it. Thankfully, they didn't get his wallet. They are very, very aggressive.

Friday,Livorno: We took the tour to Pisa and Tuscany. It was a very nice tour and the shopping was great in Pisa, but once again, please book your own tours.

2 people on our tour bus were robbed in Pisa. One woman had her wallet taken from her purse, which had a flap over it. Someone pretended to be on the tour with her, and she must have let her guard down, because the next thing she knew, her wallet was missing. The tour guide was nice enough to call her credit card companies for her.

I must say tha NCL puts a target on you when you go on a tour by making you wear these stickers that say NCL and have the number of the tour. We wore ours so that they were hidden under our collars.

The other woman was bumped by a pregnant gypsy woman carrying a baby. Someone told her to check if her wallet was there. Sure enough, it was missing. She ran up to the gypsy woman and grabbed her arm. The woman dropped her baby (yes, fake baby), threw her wallet down and ran like an Olympic champion, even though she was "pregnant".

Arrived back at the port at 4 pm. We decided to take the shuttle into town, as the tour driver told us that there were lots of good stores in town. The shuttle runs every 10 to 15 minutes and costs 5 Euros each, roundtrip. This is the same shuttle that you would have had to take if you did not take a tour in the morning, to get into town. I don't know how far the train station is from the shuttle stop, as I did not see any signs for the train station.

Don't bother going into town. Lots of stores, but expensive. Went back to the ship within 30 minutes.