1st Jewel Cruisers out of Bayport?!?!?!?

Where are you? We need your reviews, your insight, your guidance!

How was the embarkation process?

Where is the VIP area? How do we find it?

How's parking?

How were your ports of call?

Where are the Freestyle Dailies?

And I'm sure we all have many, many more questions. Jewel, Bayport cruisers post some info........PLEASE!!!! Inquiring cruisers are needing to know!!

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Waiting anxiously. Thank you in advance

Waiting anxiously. Thank you in advance

Have you booked?

We cruised in to the new terminal last week, so I can't answer all your questions, but I can tell you the terminal is very nice and really well staffed. Multiple lines were open at immigration and everyone greeted us with typical Texas hospitality.

I believe there is a link to directions on the NCL web page, or you can go to the terminals' website for information.

It is truly in the middle of nowhere, but is a very well planned port. Of course, there were no cars parked there since we had all embarked in LA but it appeared to be an adequate amount. All single level, outside, uncovered parking. I did not see any signs with parking prices, but I am sure it is on the port's website.

Hey hey,

i rarely post on here but told myself i would this time since its the first cruise of the season from Houston- and also with trujillo being a new port.

To answer a couple of your questions

-worst embarkation process we've ever had (granted, only 5th cruise). we waited IN LINE for roughly 2 1/2 hours. If i were going again tomorrow I would show up roughly 1:30, but that's just me

-on the plus side, parking was the best of any port we've sailed from- go figure. $80 if you pay there or $75 if you book online. we logged on that morning to purchase and were too late to get the $75 deal, so book early i guess

-i will try to post dailies as well. never posted pics but i'll try

any other questions people wanna know

What made the embarkation process so bad? Lack of employees? No one knew what to do? Inefficient flow of the embarkation process?

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-worst embarkation process we've ever had (granted, only 5th cruise). we waited IN LINE for roughly 2 1/2 hours. If i were going again tomorrow I would show up roughly 1:30.

What time did you get there?

Would you happen to know if they had a Chefs Table...if so, which night?

How was Trujillo?

Thanks for posting!

it appeared the employees weren't quite sure what to do. and it was odd that everyone stood in line to get cards and check id's and stuff- as soon as you were finished with that process, we were headed to the ship. every other port we've sailed from- you did all your paperwork and onboard spending account, then were seated and waited for your group to be called to board ship. maybe we just had a bad experience- but we weren't alone- everyone appeared to be very annoyed

mdallasm1

Thanks soooo much for posting :D:D

We've been waiting to hear how everything went last week... so sad to hear you waited that long in line for embarkation :eek: what time did you arrive at the port? did they say what took so long? :confused:

Truly appreciate posting of the dailies, if everything works out :)

How was the weather?

How was Belize and Trujillo?

Hope you had a fabulous cruise!!

Thanks again!

Hey hey,

 

i rarely post on here but told myself i would this time since its the first cruise of the season from Houston- and also with trujillo being a new port.

 

To answer a couple of your questions

 

-worst embarkation process we've ever had (granted, only 5th cruise). we waited IN LINE for roughly 2 1/2 hours. If i were going again tomorrow I would show up roughly 1:30, but that's just me

 

-on the plus side, parking was the best of any port we've sailed from- go figure. $80 if you pay there or $75 if you book online. we logged on that morning to purchase and were too late to get the $75 deal, so book early i guess

 

-i will try to post dailies as well. never posted pics but i'll try

 

any other questions people wanna know

Anyone have any information on must do excursions? Thanks in advance!

we arrived just before 10:30 or so.

Didn't see anything about the chefs table and we were interested in doing that. i'm kind of regretting we didn't ask about it now. lol

trujillo was a FASCINATING experience. being the first ones there- they were beyond excited to have us. I talked to dozens of hondurans because i was so curious of their thoughts. i was told by more than one person that we (being cruisers) were their heroes. one lady who lived there but was actually from Pennsylvania said that they had a very poor economy and very few jobs. when we got on our bus it was surreal- they cancelled the schools that day and the streets were literally lined with people waving and smiling. so many people had their cameras out taking pictures of us. i heard the president of honduras was at the port too. There were multiple tv station crews out filming the whole experience. Definitely a neat experience to be apart of.

While i am talking about Trujillo let me tell everyone about our excursion experience. We booked a day at the banana coast resort as i'm not a fan of ship excursions #1 and #2 was scared with this being the first stop there, that they wouldn't be very organized. We loved this place and would definitely go there again. The people i talked to on the ship that went on the ship beach tour didn't seem overly excited about their experience. This was a small sample size as i only talked to a few people but overall that's what i got. Our biggest complaint was no a/c in the school bus we took back and forth from the pier. But a lady i talked to in the casino said the ship buses were the same. the highlight by far of this port was the food at banana beach resort. THE BEST FOOD WE HAD OUR WHOLE CRUISE, including Cagneys and Le Bistro. lol

anymore questions- lemme know

Have you booked?

Yes. I actually won a Jewel cruise and upgraded to an aft penthouse. I am takung my niece for her 18th and grad. present.

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Thanks much for answering our questions...sounds like you had an amazing experience in Trujillo :) we've also booked Banana Beach Resort and are now super excited!! Hearing about your experience there has helped reassure me that we made the right choice...

How was Belize?

We originally planned on arriving to the port at 11:00 a.m. however, sounds like we might want to rethink this plan if things don't get better...

we arrived just before 10:30 or so.

 

Didn't see anything about the chefs table and we were interested in doing that. i'm kind of regretting we didn't ask about it now. lol

 

trujillo was a FASCINATING experience. being the first ones there- they were beyond excited to have us. I talked to dozens of hondurans because i was so curious of their thoughts. i was told by more than one person that we (being cruisers) were their heroes. one lady who lived there but was actually from Pennsylvania said that they had a very poor economy and very few jobs. when we got on our bus it was surreal- they cancelled the schools that day and the streets were literally lined with people waving and smiling. so many people had their cameras out taking pictures of us. i heard the president of honduras was at the port too. There were multiple tv station crews out filming the whole experience. Definitely a neat experience to be apart of.

 

While i am talking about Trujillo let me tell everyone about our excursion experience. We booked a day at the banana coast resort as i'm not a fan of ship excursions #1 and #2 was scared with this being the first stop there, that they wouldn't be very organized. We loved this place and would definitely go there again. The people i talked to on the ship that went on the ship beach tour didn't seem overly excited about their experience. This was a small sample size as i only talked to a few people but overall that's what i got. Our biggest complaint was no a/c in the school bus we took back and forth from the pier. But a lady i talked to in the casino said the ship buses were the same. the highlight by far of this port was the food at banana beach resort. THE BEST FOOD WE HAD OUR WHOLE CRUISE, including Cagneys and Le Bistro. lol

 

anymore questions- lemme know

in belize-the tendering process was not so great- has anyone actually had a good tendering process? lol. we booked a private snorkeling trip to cay caulker. we wanted a private tour as we have 2 girls (6 and 10), and were traveling with my sister in law who has mobility issues and my wifes grandmother who is 80. we felt like having our own boat would be the best way. unfortunately this was our worst stop- it took over an hour to get to cay caulker and the boat ride was extremely rough. when we got to cay caulker we decided to eat lunch and rent golf carts to explore island. this turned out to be the best part of our day. we only actually snorkeled for roughly 20 minutes as we were pretty wiped from the boat ride. this was our 3rd time to belize and for us may be the last time. although we were talking to some people on the ship that said belize was always their favorite port. everyone has their own opinion i guess

maldallasm1,

Were there any staff members that impressed you. What did you think of the Jewel?

tendering process...I know right?!? :( not my favorite :(

2 people in our group have mobility issues and we're struggling to find a suitable excursion in Belize... do you mind sharing the company you went through for the private tour? that just might be the answer to our dilemma...

Thanks again!!

in belize-the tendering process was not so great- has anyone actually had a good tendering process? lol. we booked a private snorkeling trip to cay caulker. we wanted a private tour as we have 2 girls (6 and 10), and were traveling with my sister in law who has mobility issues and my wifes grandmother who is 80. we felt like having our own boat would be the best way. unfortunately this was our worst stop- it took over an hour to get to cay caulker and the boat ride was extremely rough. when we got to cay caulker we decided to eat lunch and rent golf carts to explore island. this turned out to be the best part of our day. we only actually snorkeled for roughly 20 minutes as we were pretty wiped from the boat ride. this was our 3rd time to belize and for us may be the last time. although we were talking to some people on the ship that said belize was always their favorite port. everyone has their own opinion i guess

we loved all the kids crew staff. we were really concerned about this cruise as it was our first with norwegian and since our last was with disney. but the norwegian team, especially bella all knew our kids names and were quick to hug and call them by name no matter where we saw them.

we also really liked all the staff at osheehans (this was by far our favorite place for a quick bite on the ship) as we are not buffet fans. i will say this ships buffet area was the most orderly and well layed out of all the ships we've been on. we went to osheehans every morning for breakfast. our girls loved that they would bring hot chocolate in a pot just for them.

we really liked the bartender at the whiskey bar too but i can't remember his name. he would always remember our names when we walked by and remembered the drinks we liked too.

the other person that made an impression on us was celeste from the photo dept. she was just very friendly and always was joking and having fun with our girls

tendering process...I know right?!? :( not my favorite :(

 

2 people in our group have mobility issues and we're struggling to find a suitable excursion in Belize... do you mind sharing the company you went through for the private tour? that just might be the answer to our dilemma...

 

Thanks again!!

we booked with a guy named ivar- he is highly recommended on here and i would agree. they did an incredible job. just wasn't our cup of tea. kind of pricey but overall i think it was a good value. $575 for 8 of us.

All,

Boarding did in fact take longer, but it's a brand new terminal at the beginning of the season.

On Oct 11, the Jewel left Houston at 6:30, two and a half hours late. Yesterday, however, the Jewel left at 5:15, only half as late. (I've been watching the port webcam. :))

These adjustments occur every season, especially at new home ports. They typically work out the kinks within a few weeks.

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ok, that didn't work out so well. i'll keep trying

Thanks much :)

we booked with a guy named ivar- he is highly recommended on here and i would agree. they did an incredible job. just wasn't our cup of tea. kind of pricey but overall i think it was a good value. $575 for 8 of us.

Fingers crossed :)

ok, that didn't work out so well. i'll keep trying

Anybody have tips on posting pictures?

Upload to Photobucket, then link to the pics there. (That's what I do. :))