First NCL Cruise, Jade out of Tampa, January 3rd

Background: My 13th cruise, my mom's 30somethingth, and my 5 year old daughter's 3rd. I have sailed HAL, X, Princess, Carnival, RCCL, Disney, and Seabourn, so a good variety of things to compare our cruise to. We knew going in that the NCL Jade is quite due for some upkeep, but the timing of the cruise worked perfectly with work and school schedules so we decided to give it a try.

Embarkation: Fine, similar to other lines. We got there way too early (early flight) so did sit around a bit, but that's our own fault. I have sailed from Tampa before and find the port relatively easy.

Cabin: Minisuite. The location was great for us, port side 11th deck mini. Close to buffet and children's club. Under La Cucina, not noisy at all (except for occasional late night hall hooligans) and we are VERY sensitive to noise. Cabin is worn. Was hoping for it to be a bit more spacious given it's "minisuite" status but really felt like it was smaller than our recent Disney verandah. (Haven't compared actual sq ft but its really about the perception rather than the reality anyway, I guess?) Once sofa bed was folded out for DD, AND we had adult beds separated to twins, it was SNUG. I am glad we had a bathtub for DD. Balcony could use an extra chair or even a footstool that a child could sit on, we could not really all be out there at once. I like the concept of in-room coffee but when SO poorly executed it is just a space hog. (Foul coffee, not enough creamer, leaked like a sieve.) The TV channels were not good- I loved the "on demand" options on Disney, sometimes a little relaxing movie time for an overtired Kindergartener is just what the doctor ordered. Beds were reasonably comfortable. Room was cleaned daily but the desk and TV stand were very dusty and the desk was even sticky from prior occupants :( Also why not automatically 3 beach towels and 3 bath towels in a room with 3 passengers? 2 of each were given.

Food: Not as bad as I expected. But my expectations were low. It was better than Carnival. Buffet I was quite shocked (embarrassed?) to see meatloaf offered at a carving station. No smoked salmon (other than "smoked salmon mousse" on little cucumber slices, actually looked reasonably nice, but still, not smoked salmon.) Omelet stations at breakfast in the buffet seemed to function relatively well (if often over cooked to the point of being dark brown) and I liked that as an option. Fruit selections were tasty, ripe melons and pineapple. Mixed frozen berries dumped unceremoniously in a bowel still thawing- ugh. MDR We had lunch in Grand Pacific on embarkation day and it was enjoyable. I was very surprised how good their chicken salad was. We had breakfast here once (I had already eaten but my mom liked her waffle and poached egg although the waffle appeared to not be the multigrain variety as ordered), and lunch here once. Takes a little time but sometimes more pleasant than the buffet. Dinners/Specialty Dining We made reservations for our 3 dinner package online just at 90 days. Could not secure the earlier times we desired (6 is ideal). Our 7pm Cagney's reservation (I still have the printout) was mysteriously changed to 7:15 with no notice, I just happened to find out when going over the reservations at the desk. We were able to change one of the three (7pm dining was too late for my daughter) to 545.

Teppanyaki was OK, daughter liked the show, I thought it was kind of hot and loud and smelly. We elected for the low sodium option. The salad they brought was delicous and even my picky 5 year old liked the miso soup. I had filet and shrimp-- filet nicely done (medium rare, maybe it was just a little more than that but had excellent taste), shrimp a little too cooked. I got an extra helping of the vegetables which I enjoyed, but could not even eat 10% of the large serving of rice, and left some steak and shrimp too. Lots of food.

Cagney's- decent food, hard to get anyone to wait on you! We were tucked in a back corner behind the entrance to the galley. Polite enough but I think overworked. Arugula salads were full of wilted yellowed arugula (we eat arugula a few times a month at least so I know old arugula.) I had the bison, very happy to have that choice. My mashed potatoes were cold though. This whole meal seemed to kind of represent some of the lack of attention to detail I felt throughout the ship.

Le Bistro- the cones appetizer was very good. Mushroom soup also good. Frisee and duck salad too bitter (yes, I know frisee is bitter but usually mixed with less bitter leaves or tempered with a milder or sweeter dressing.) Rack of lamb good, accompanying vegetables were an afterthought. Chocolate fondue was fine.

We had dinner once in the buffet (I was feeling a little under the weather and just wanted some bread and cheese and soup), and once in Jasmine Garden. I would not eat there all the time but after a few martinis and not wanting to spend hours in the MDR I liked it as an option for "free" food that tasted OK and didn't take days to get. Spring rolls were very good, potstickers good, waitress gently steered me away from orange peel beef, we got kung pao chicken and lemon pepper shrimp, both good. They need some sriracha on the tables.

Room Service NCL WHAT ARE YOU DOING, THIS IS TERRIBLE Our first room service order (continental breakfast) only VAGUELY resembled the items we ordered. Perhaps it was meant for someone else? Plus the croissant was moldy (which I did not notice until biting into it.) The coffee rivals Princess for pure undrinkability. Another time we decided to pay $7.95 for room service lunch. I love meeting crew from all over the world and talking with them, learning phrases in their native languages, etc. But they really need to put people with better English skills on the room service phones. It was so confusing. Then we had a call back to clarify which revealed what we had been promised was not even available. Our "30-45 minutes" order took well over an hour and that is after a call at 45 minutes "to check'. My salmon filet was raw in the center. The baked potatoes were requested to come with butter and sour cream but instead came with sour cream and bacon all over them. (We just picked off the bacon but I can see where this could be more of a problem for folks with religious restrictions on eating pork.) No salt or pepper provided. Then we called to complain about the whole ordeal, they took the charge off, my mom was pretty irritated and requested a phone all from "someone in charge" which was promised but never received. They did manage to send up some chocolate covered strawberries with a super generic note.

OK, bed time, more tomorrow including kid's club, pool deck and waterslide situation, beverage package and entertainment.

Tried to add picture of salmon, not working.

Can't wait to read your take on the pool deck/water slide situation

Kid's club- Best part of the whole cruise. My daughter was thrilled with Splash Academy. It was broken down by age group unlike our recent Disney cruise which was a free for all. They even did a circus presentation on the last day in the theater on the big stage! She thought she was a famous actress :) This is primarily the ONLY reason I will consider NCL again (and not cancel my current reservation.) Happy kids, happy mama.

Pool deck and waterslide situation- I didn't know any of the background, just that the waterslide never worked. At first I thought they were working on the slide then I realized it was being dismantled. My daughter was absolutely crushed- we had been looking at pictures and videos of the pool deck in advance and she was SO excited. This is totally unacceptable to be dismantling a major feature of the cruise (and then have NO pool for children to swim in!) while there are still guests onboard. I will be contacting NCL either directly or through my TA, haven't decided which.

Beverage package- Worked well enough. By the glass wine selection pretty limited. Hard to get a drink due to long lines a lot of the time. What's up with the big containers of premixed drinks? I refused those and asked for fresh. Next week that will probably be a surcharge too.

Entertainment- I do not cruise for the entertainment so I am not a great judge, but I did happen to hear the atrium guitar player (good!), martini bar area guitar player (also good!), passed by the New Orleans band (Showtime?) and WISHED I could have stayed to listen (it was my daughter's bedtime). Took her to Elements which she thought was incredible! So, if I go again when kids are older and can stay up later, I think I would be interested in some of the live music.

Bottomline: Overall, I am not totally impressed. Customer service and attention to detail is severely lacking. The waterslide incident and the room service/raw fish debacle have made me quite upset. But, my daughter liked the kid's club and when I sail with her I want her to be happy, so we will probably keep our reservation on the Escape (in the Haven, which is probably the only way I will ever go on another NCL trip) as long as I can get some reasonable response on the two issues above. We did meet a wonderful bartender who we gave a nice cash tip to on the last night and then found out would be on our upcoming Escape sailing so I look forward to seeing her again.

Thank you for taking the time to write a review. I'm disappointed that there were issues with the food and service. I'll be cruising on the Jade in April.

But, you will love the Escape - especially in the Haven. Please come back and post your experience on that ship.

Interesting review. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. We have been considering Jade as our return to NCL but are still undecided. Reviews seem to be all over the place.

Only quibble I have is that they are not going to take a ship out of commission thus cancelling at least one cruise just to remove a water slide. Although I do understand your daughter's disappointment.

Do you happen to remember the bartenders name who is going to the Escape?

Totally agree with above poster, BUT it would be nice to know ahead of time that something you think is available for your kids, is not going to be. Specially since it is advertised in brochures and video!

Myla

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Interesting review. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. We have been considering Jade as our return to NCL but are still undecided. Reviews seem to be all over the place.

 

Only quibble I have is that they are not going to take a ship out of commission thus cancelling at least one cruise just to remove a water slide. Although I do understand your daughter's disappointment.

My understanding is that the slide was taken out to make room for a stage for the 2 February music cruises. It's too bad that it had to effect 3 cruises prior to them. We are on the Jade the week prior to the first music cruise. Hope there are not more things closed down in preperation.

There are actually six music cruises starting Feb 6

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Bottomline: Overall, I am not totally impressed. Customer service and attention to detail is severely lacking. ...

I'm sorry you had such a negative experience. We were on the Jade for 23 days in April/May and again in October for 14 days and have only high praise for the service. We had continental breakfast several times on both cruises and except for the one time they forgot our yogurt the orders were correct and nicely prepared.

We ate at Cagneys on each cruise, and each time had excellent service and delicious food. The same was true of Le Bistro and La Cucina.

Our room stewards for both cruises were awesome and went out of their way to help my mobility-impaired husband.

Hopefully your next NCL cruise will demonstrate the excellent service that NCL is usually known for.

We wee on the 26 December sailing of the Jade out of Tampa. Our 54th cruise on several cruise lines. We ate twice at Teppanyaki and twice at Cagney's. By far Teppanyaki was the best meals we had on the cruise. Cagney's was a big disappointment. The menu is limited. Why they wouldn't have at least one pork dish was puzzling. The first meal, we were seated in a corner and our waitress was beyond uninterested. Just going through the motions. I ordered the Sea Bass and it was like a piece of fish with whipped cream. Steaks were ok but not work a specialty dining price. The second time at Cagney's we were seated at a table in another corner that vibrated so badly even the waiter commented. Again, food very unimpressive. We were on the Escape in May 2016 and the food at Cagney's was way beyond this experience. In fact, the food on Escape was better than all the dining venues we went to on the Jade.

"Beyond uninterested"..... exactly my experience too!

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Okay. So now I'm starting to worry. We are on Jade for 12 nite on Jan 25. In the past week there has not been many positive comments. I am wondering if this is because of its upcoming drydock, or is it the standard. Food is subjective but other comments about "uninterested" staff is a concern. I am also worried about ongoing repairs and construction and deconstruction that seems to be happening. What won't be available or operating by the time we board!

Okay. So now I'm starting to worry. We are on Jade for 12 nite on Jan 25. In the past week there has not been many positive comments. I am wondering if this is because of its upcoming drydock, or is it the standard. Food is subjective but other comments about "uninterested" staff is a concern. I am also worried about ongoing repairs and construction and deconstruction that seems to be happening. What won't be available or operating by the time we board!

Kate, don't worry about the staff. We were on the second week of December, and I found the staff to be incredible. We would see members of wait or bar staff in different venues all around the ship throughout the week and they would remember us and say hi like we were old friends. We felt like we were part of a big family. It was a wonderful time on the Jade and I would happily hop back on next week if it were an option!

Never a good idea to cruise right before or right after a dry dock or charter.

I don't feel like two months is right before

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But the charters start Feb 6

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And no one told me it was going into drydock when I booked in July. Would have reconsidered if u had known. As a matter of fact, if I wasn't on cruise critic, I still wouldn't know! Not sure if that's right.

I'm sorry you didn't have a great experience on the Jade but I hope you still enjoyed your cruise. I see that you are sailing on Crystal in June. I have been considering this line but I am worried that it won't be as fun for my kids as it will be for the adults. I hope that you will write a review after that trip :D I imagine that you will experience far different service than you did on the Jade.

We will be sailing without the kids on Crystal, so expectations will be a lot different. I don't think my 2 and 5 year old would have a lot of fun on a port-intensive Crystal cruise.

We will be sailing without the kids on Crystal, so expectations will be a lot different. I don't think my 2 and 5 year old would have a lot of fun on a port-intensive Crystal cruise.

Ahhh, gotcha. Mine are 4 and 11 and although my 11 yo should be fine (she would prefer to attend a lecture than go on a waterslide or kids club any day) I think my little guy may be bored though. I hope you have a fantastic time on your upcoming cruises.

I am on the JADE in April....feel like I am walking into the Twilight Zone now!!! LOL 2nd NCCL cruise first time on DA JADE!!!

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Thanks for the feedback.