GEM Cruise 12/18 - 12/25 LONG review

[nattie]

We just got back this weekend and to be honest I didn't expect much given my previous less then satisfactory experiences with NCL and all the "worst ever" reviews. But, this time they won me back. We had enjoyable and relaxing cruise, alas not enough sun (if only NCL can miracle 80s in NYC in Dec!)

 

I honestly don't get all the horrible reviews. What did you guys expect? A $5K/night suite at the Ritz? Anyway, everybody is entitled to their opinion and no other judgement will be passed on here.

 

Background: I have traveled with DH, DS (20 mo old), Grandmother and friends (couple with 2 older teenagers) on the 12/18/10 sailing out of NYC. This is my 3rd NCL cruise and let me state that NCL was my least favorite cruise line before this.

 

Precruise: We took a bus from DC to NYC (Vamoose) and stayed a night before at Sheraton Chelsea. Uneventful bus ride (outlets and WiFi were available and everything worked). Decent hotel. Very small rooms, but I guess what can I expect from Manhattan? We got the rooms free courtesy of our friends (points), so no complaints what so ever. Walked in the blistering cold to Times Square - tons of people. I am not "I LOVE NYC" person, so let's just say everyone else enjoyed themselves :). Restaurant in the hotel was small but very good food and surprisingly big tapas portions.

 

Boarding: Aside from nasty NYC cab driver (not a fault of cruiseline obviously) - complete breeze. We arrived at the pier at 11 am were on the ship by 12:15 pm. Awesome perk - me and my friend both wanted spa passes ($99/week exclusive spa area) end were prepared to run to the spa immediately upon boarding to get them. They sell passes, soda cards and let you make restaurant reservations right in the holding area!!! What a great solution. By the time we got all that squared it was time to board.

 

Stateroom: We had 2 connecting BB (I think) balconies on 9 right across from midship elevators. Not spacious but plenty of room for all of us. I liked the glass shower doors a lot instead of clingy curtains. Also a great perk for us were coffemakers in the room. My grandma constantly drinks tea, so this was a lifesaver. Otherwise standard rooms.

 

Overall ship: Very clean, well maintained. We sailed at full in the winter weather and mostly I didn't feel crowded. Obviously there were jams sometimes (show release, first debark at port, etc.), but not enough to complain about.

I really liked the Bliss lounge set up with beds and overall "lounge" feel.

I think 12th floor set up midship is of poor architectural design. Midship elevators release you on small landing with entrance to the kids area to the left and buffet to the right. Quite a crunch at peak pick up/drop off times for kid club.

Also I am not sure who designed an entrance to "under 2 zoo" that you have to go outside to the pool area and then reenter the kids club through seprate door at kiddy pool? In the warm weather I am sure it is not an issue, but leaving from NYC it was quite a dash to get there with wiggly toddler. Adding to the same design flaw - Smoking area near the main pool is right outside kiddy pool area. Really? Don't people designing the ships have kids? Or heard of harm of secondhand smoke?

 

On the kiddo subject: We obviously have not utilized kids club (too young) but I agree with other posters that sign in/sign out process looked quite cumbersome and obviously needs some fine tuning. We did utilize the "under 2 zoo" area (playroom with age appropriate toys) and kiddy pool. Kiddy pool was perfect for babies with warmed up water, walled off from general pool deck noise and hub-bub. The only issue I have had is older kids playing in that pool. It clearly states under 2, why your 11 yo is playing there? I do not take my diapered tot to the big guys pool, but he wants some water time too not trying to avoid getting hit by big kids in tiny pool.

 

Service: We have had nothing but excellent service throughout this cruise. In fact, I have changed my opinion of NCL and it is no longer the "bottom of my list" cruise line.

 

Food: Nothing to write home about, but in no way horrible. On the subject of variety, how many breakfast foods can you honestly do? They even had eggs benedict at breakfast, come on people! I personally thought that buffet selection was good with regular american fare available daily, salads, soups, etc. On top of that they always had a number of dishes from Indian cuisine and a lot of Asian dishes (we had a large number of asian cruisers, so those were always extra popular). My grandmother normally has issues travelling since she doesn't speak english and has trouble selecting what she wants in the restaurant on top of the age related stomach issues. She LOVED the buffet and ate there daily.

My DH and I along with friends normally ate dinner at the main dining room (service in Grand Pacific is far superior to Magenta) around 8 pm. NEVER did we have to wait for a table for a group of 6. Couple of my dishes were a bit salty and shrimp cocktail they offer was pretty laughable, but you can always find something to eat. We were done with our dinner well ahead of 9:30 pm show times and they did include desert.

We only went to specialty restaurant once - Cagneys for Xmas eve. Worth the money all the way.

I would like to note a great concept I have not seen previously - Blue Lagoon. It is a 24/7 sit down restaurant with "soul food" - wings, fish and chips, burgers, etc. On other ships you always have something, but it is normally limited to cold sandwiches and cookies. I have only ate there once (just to try the wings to be honest), but teenagers ate there every night :) When my kid will sleep in past 6 am, I'll certainly partake of late night afterparty fare.

 

Entertainment: It was a low point for me. Nothing against fab cruise director (Mr. Sugar) or his crew, they were a lot of fun and really tried. We have seen most of the production shows or variation thereof on other lines before, so bah-hum-bug. I normally like to go listen to live bands/guitar player/piano singers after dinner. Both guitar player and piano guy (singing one, Greg) were horrible. They had 2 piano players, one of them had classical repertoir (excellent) and the other your usual sing a long songs (horrible). Bands were good but hard to find for me, I have only heard them outside at sailaway/carribean parties.

Other entertainment was juggler (really? so not fun), comedian (decent), celebrity singer (never heard of the lady and didn't go to the show, so can't comment) and Second City comedy troupe. My DH was really excited about them (I guess they are famous?) but both of their shows were REALLY boring and we walked out from the last one.

As usual, highlight of the netrtainment on board are your fellow cruisers. Things people come up with you just can't make up.

 

Ports: Not a lot to see, obvoiusly, given that we did practically identical cruise last year from Baltimore on Carnival.

- Port Canaveral. Nothing to do in walking distance. Took $10 roundtrip shuttle to Cocoa Beach, took beach pics in chilly weather, shopped in Ron Jon and had beer at the bar.

- GSC. Didn't disembark since it is tender port and a lot of straved for sun cruisers :) Had run of the ship and pool deck. Great beach weather and tons of sun. My friends did disembark, loved the island and had great time snorkeling and enjoying the sun.

- Nassau. Wanted to go to Cable beach (we planned on doing a beach day with friends and thought of nice public beach with facilities). Driver dropped us of in front of Wyndham. We ere not allowed on the beach and asked to pay $40/person for beach access. We refused and went to Junkanoo beach. Not a good beach, but it worked for couple hours and water access. Besides we just walked back to ship instead of paying for cab. I am not sure if the lady at Wyndham just seen 8 people with baby and decided to cash in or if they do have new policy. Other people we met were dropped off there same day and were able to get to the beach without issues.

 

Disembark: The fastest one EVER. Our color (pink) was called 9:45, we were in the cab at 10:20. Do get a porter, they have a priority customs line.

 

Xmas note: Of course there was Santa for the kids on Xmas eve. I commend NCL for buying a small present for every child on the cruiseship from Santa. It was very touching gesture and we didn't have that on Carnival last year.

 

Officer note: I have NEVER seen senior officers of the ship to be so visible and friendly as on this cruise. Normally you are lucky to get a nod from Cruise Director. This time we have talked to Hotel Director practically daily, he would be extremely visible throughout and come up and ask if everything is OK. Really nice guy from Midwest, honestly where else you will see Hotel Director helping a server clear a table in the buffet after chatting with guests??? Also we took pics with captain and chatted with Chief Engineer.

I have personally met and spoke with (not issues realted, just chatting) 2 buffet supervisors - I was there daily with my DS and grandma - who made a point to stop by and help me with high chairs, etc.

Almost forgot, imagine, cold Dec NYC, we are disembarking the ship. There are both Cruise Director and Hotel Director standing in that cold wishing you safe journey home! The officers of this ship made quite an impression on this former NCL "non-cheerleader" :)

 

Buffet note: It is absolutely true that buffet area gets crowded. But can you name a ship where it does not? I can't. At breakfast and lunch a great tip is to utilize La Cucina seating - more room and less people. There is also a buffet extension on the aft - not crowded, almost no lines and a walk through the doors from La Cucina. They also have kid corner with kiddy approved food and 24/7 juices for little ones.

 

Closing Statement: Woo, that was long review... Overall, I would give the cruise 3.5 out of 5. Not because of the cruiseline, in my opinion they did an excellent job. I just wouldn't do a cold weather cruise out of NYC again, too much cold and too little sun. However, we had great time with family and friends and enjoyed every minute of our vacation. I would absolutely do NCL cruise again, may be even out of NYC, just in summer.

 

Ask if you have questions, will try to help.

[marinaro44]

Well said. Welcome back.

[welove2cruise232]

nattie, thanks for posting your great review! I do have a question -- what was the hotel director's name?

[smilz]

Can you tell me more about the toddler pool and playroom? We will be sailing on Gem to Bermuda in May. We will have our 2 1/2 yo grandaughter with us. A first for us. I am somewhat out of my element and need all the advise i can get!! :confused:

[giddy2travel]

first off thanks for your detailed review always good to have first hand news

I was wondering about the spa pass if you got it before you checked in or after and where was the desk located?

how much did you use the spa?

also are there 2 different show times for things?

you wouldn't have dailies to post would you?

thanks

[gram2trips]

Great review. Thanks for posting. We (DH myself, daughter SIL & triplets) will be on the Gem the end of March. I have made a few notes. Will be our 1st cruise with NCL.

[Birdnutty]

I'll be on the Gem in Feb, and after the recent reviews was a little nervous, too. It sounds like they have gotten some of their issues taken care of. In previous posts, many said the HD was never around, and you said the opposite. Yay!! Was it Fillipo Bertuzzi, or someone different?

 

Our Feb cruise from NYC will be just as cold, but we have 2 more days down in the Caribbean, so I'm hoping our weather is a little warmer, at least for those few extra days. I'm gonna need some natural Vitamin D by then, for sure!

 

Thanks for your review.

[nattie]

nattie, thanks for posting your great review! I do have a question -- what was the hotel director's name?

 

First name is Erik, but for the life of me can't remember his last name. I'll ask my DH, he might know.

[nattie]

Can you tell me more about the toddler pool and playroom? We will be sailing on Gem to Bermuda in May. We will have our 2 1/2 yo grandaughter with us. A first for us. I am somewhat out of my element and need all the advise i can get!! :confused:

The pool and playroom are on deck 12 next to the main pool and kids club. It is very confusing on how to get there at first - you need to get out to the main pool area and go to other side of the ship end enter enclosed baby pool area and go throw another door into under 2 room. The room is a small playroom with age appropriate toys. I am attaching some pics.

The pool and outside play area were nice with sitting for parents and a little slide in the pool for kiddos. Also a pic attached.

Please do not forget that at 2.5 yo your granddaughter could go to the NCL kids program if she/you chose to. NCL programs start at 2 and they will even take non-potty trained kids (the only line I believe), you will just get a beeper in case of diaper emergency.

 

Hope this helps! Enjoy your cruise!

[nattie]

first off thanks for your detailed review always good to have first hand news

I was wondering about the spa pass if you got it before you checked in or after and where was the desk located?

how much did you use the spa?

also are there 2 different show times for things?

you wouldn't have dailies to post would you?

thanks

 

LOVED the spa! As any mommy would attest to, we need quite time :)

 

As soon as you get your room cards, they let you in the holding area - just a big area similar to airport seating - to wait for embarkation. You are given a number and they call groups of people by numbers to embark, so there is no long lines of passangers waiting in the cold outside.

In that holding area (after you check in, get your charge card, etc.) NCL has tables set up with spa stuff (that is where I got my pass), soda cards people and restaurant reservations people. I really like this because you can take care of a lot of things while you are waiting anyway.

 

Spa is located on deck 12 forward. The "members-only" area consists of large unisex area with thallasotherapy (sp) pool, large hot tub, showers, heated stone lounges and just regular lounges next to huge picture window (awesome view) and female/male only areas with more lounges, 2 individual hot tubs, sauna (also with awesome view), steam room, lockers and showers. I was joking that spa showers alone (much larger then the ones in stateroom) were worth the price of admission!

 

I used the spa daily for about 1.5-2 hours while my son napped with dad. My friend practically spent 2 last sea days there. Note: the thallasotherapy (sp) pool turns into wave pool in stromy weather :). The spa is all the way forward and does rock quite a bit sometimes.

 

No dailies, sorry... Never really use them much, it is all very similar from cruise to cruise. As for shows I can probably tell you, might have days mixed up on some:

Saturday - Welcome aboard (sample of entertainment acts), 2 show times (7:30 (may be) and 9:30) and worth attending to figure out who is good and whom you should not waste you time on.

Sunday - 70th music review with NCL singers and dancers. Nice show to sing along to. 2 show times. Also 70th night at Bliss

Monday - juggler. 2 show times.

Tuesday - celebrity singer. 2 show times. Also Newlywed show at 8:30 in Spinnaker.

Wednesday - Comedian. 2 show times.

Thursday - World music review with NCL singers and dancers. 2 show times. OK, really strange at times. Especially when they attempted Asian culture review (as US director sees it) to at least 75% Asian audience. 2 show times.

Friday - for us it was Xmas show, so not sure what they have here usually. 2 show times.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[nattie]

I'll be on the Gem in Feb, and after the recent reviews was a little nervous, too. It sounds like they have gotten some of their issues taken care of. In previous posts, many said the HD was never around, and you said the opposite. Yay!! Was it Fillipo Bertuzzi, or someone different?

 

Our Feb cruise from NYC will be just as cold, but we have 2 more days down in the Caribbean, so I'm hoping our weather is a little warmer, at least for those few extra days. I'm gonna need some natural Vitamin D by then, for sure!

 

Thanks for your review.

 

Definetly not Fillipo. It was US guy from Milwakee (sp), I only remember his first name - Erik. My DH probably knows last.

I had nothing but pleasant interactions with him and to be honest was quite shocked (plesantly) that such a senior officer will be so accessible.

[Birdnutty]

Thanks for the info. It is very valuable.

 

Question on the spa passes.... I've never gotten one before, and have no idea what to think. Is the entire spa area indoors, so you can relax in a lounger, look out at the ocean, even in lousy weather? I'm having trouble picturing what it's all about.

 

Any pictures to show? I've been on the Gem before, but spent no time at all anywhere near the spa. But with a guaranteed 4 days of cold weather, an indoor area like this sounds pretty good.

 

Thanks so much!

[JnRsmom]

Yes Birdnutty the spa is entirely indoors. Let me see if I can help you see it....you walk in to the spa (looks like a beauty supply store) and hand them your card at the desk. The girl takes it & gives you a robe & a numbered locker key on a lanyard. You go through a door & down a small hallway past the massage & treatment rooms and enter into the womens only area. There is a long bench with an L wall of lockers where you would get changed (it is all open & people get naked there all together) or you can come already in a bathing suit. At the end of the bench is a counter with a hair dryer, Q-tips, lotion and a basket full of individually packaged shower caps in case you don't want your hair to get wet. Put your stuff in a locker and turn around and you are facing a bathroom across the room with 2 stalls & I think 3 showers. There is a freestanding thing in the middle of the floor with 2 showers~just for rinsing off. There is also a table with a huge carafe of cold water or oj. Stand facing the table. If you turn around there are 2 freestanding jacuzzi tubs. Turn around again and you will see the door to the steam room right past the freestanding showers/table. Look to your left; that is the sauna. The sauna is at the corner of the room with windows so you can see out over the ocean while you sweat & relax. Leave the sauna and walk past the 8 or so lounge chairs facing the floor to ceiling windows to the door so you can enter the men/women area. You will think you walked into Heaven here. As you walk in, you will see another 8 or so lounge chairs facing the windows. Look to your left and you will see a counter against the wall with giant carafes of hot water for tea, coffee, oj and ice water. After that is a couple of chairs overlooking the therapy pool. This is neat but watch out for those shower spouts! They feel great if you have a sore neck but they splatter hard & far. If you are standing at the pool, right past it is the hot tub on a raised platform. Go jump in there & look straight ahead and you will see a few more shower stalls for rinsing then the best part....they have 7 or 8 of these cool heated tiled lounge chairs. It may take a while before you can get onto one but don't miss it. They are very comfortable!! That will bring you back to the line of lounges by the windows. I guess the entrance to the mens area is off that wall somewhere. Scattered about are shelves on the wall filled with clean towels and underneath them is a counter with holes cut out for you to drop the wet towels in after you use them. When you are all done, you go back out to the desk & hand them the key and get your card back. Don't you feel more relaxed after that?

I hope you saw it. I did and I wish I was back there already! Enjoy!!

[nattie]

Thanks for the info. It is very valuable.

 

Question on the spa passes.... I've never gotten one before, and have no idea what to think. Is the entire spa area indoors, so you can relax in a lounger, look out at the ocean, even in lousy weather? I'm having trouble picturing what it's all about.

 

Any pictures to show? I've been on the Gem before, but spent no time at all anywhere near the spa. But with a guaranteed 4 days of cold weather, an indoor area like this sounds pretty good.

 

Thanks so much!

 

Sorry no pics to share on that one... Yes entire area is indoors, warm, nice and safe from breezes. It is all the way forward on deck 12, so you feel movement more then say deck 6 and if seasickness is a problem for you, you might not get the relaxation factor you are hoping for.

For me, it was great, I LOVED sauna with a view. Picture this - it is freezing outside, you can see cold vapor coming off water, rough seas and you are sitting down in sauna overlooking all of that... Ahhh...

Loungers have even better view.

 

I would recommend factoring the cost of spa in you cruise budget, it was absolutely invaluable for relaxation in cold weather sailing and you get much more mileage for your $ than (less then) one massage you would get for $99.

[giddy2travel]

thank you so much ladies

I picture it all and me there with the snow falling outside...ahhhhhhhhhhhh

good times

thanks again for all the details

[rikkikika]

nattie,

 

Can you recall if the LCD TV in the cabin was accompanied by a DVD player?

[Dolphins]

We look forward to boarding the Gem in June and appreciate your positive review. Hope Erik is still the HD. We have always had excellent Hotel Directors on our NCL ships.

[bob brown]

Thanks for your well balanced and written review!

[dongordon]

Thanks for the great review.

 

I am booked on the GEM for next January (2012). I was on the ship several years ago and was surprised at some of the recent negative reviews and starting to second guess myself on going back. Your review eased my concerns.

 

I always have loved NCL and the casual environment on the ship. The officers on NCL always show up at the roll call meetings and gave out their cards to contact them if there were any concerns during the cruise. I also loved Cagney's....my favorite specialty restaurant.

 

I agree that cruising out of NYC in the winter can produce possible "non-cruise weather."

The solution is a longer cruise so that you can spend more time in the warmer islands. Our cruise next January is a 10 day cruise.

 

Thanks again for an objective review of your cruise....enjoyed it very much.

 

Don

[blitzjb]

Just got off the gem. The best kept secret is the tapas bar. Free! Located in-between the blue lagoon and tequila restaurant. 5:30-9:30 daily

[nattie]

nattie,

 

Can you recall if the LCD TV in the cabin was accompanied by a DVD player?

 

No, definetly not. And TV is small too.

[BlueC5Kitten]

Thanks for the review. Will be sailing the Gem next week out of NYC (albeit on a different itinerary), so this is helpful info.

 

Thanks again!

[Anthony&David]

Question on the spa passes...Any pictures to show?

 

I am not sure how much differs between the Jewel spa and the Gem spa, but I imagine they are similar. I have added some pictures from the Jewel spa from this past May (specifically, these are from the men's side, but it will give you some idea of what the area looks like).

[giddy2travel]

Just got off the gem. The best kept secret is the tapas bar. Free! Located in-between the blue lagoon and tequila restaurant. 5:30-9:30 daily

so sounds good just a few little questions about this tapas bar do you need to reserve if you can it is probably not too big right?

what did you enjoy there food wise specifically or just all of it?

thanks we leave in a week and couldn't get much more excited!

[blitzjb]

No reservations needed.. We were the only ones in there two of the nights. All items were good . Try everything since it is included !