Back from Gem 1/11 sailing

[sue cubic]

First time cruiser--first time poster. This will be good for a giggle to most of you. I accompanied an experienced cruiser, however.

 

I've been lurking on this board for the past couple of months, and realized that most reviews contain a lot of personal opinion, so I'm going to attempt not to inject my personal opinions. Just the facts...

 

Very cold in NYC, but we evidently got the _one decent weather day_ that week. Got on the ship around noon, and headed straight to the main dining room, as my companion said the buffet would be jammed. Had a very nice lunch. Rooms were available around 2:00. Time to unpack so we could move around in the cabin, and some time to explore the ship. Half-hour late leaving port, so no good chance at sail-away pix. The lighted city was beautiful, however.

 

Nice dinner at Magenta. Then off to check out the night life. Since I have nothing to compare this to, I was very pleased with the nightly shows. There is much talent aboard. I enjoyed the production shows--12 singers and dancers; the magician was entertaining; the hypnotist produced a very rollicking show; Second City improv was impressive; Bud, the comedian, similar to a George Carlin show, Cat's Pajamas an updated barbershop group; Elvy Rose (Cuban singer) had so much energy she wore me out just watching!

 

We had an inside cabin, as I saw no sense in a window. How much time does one spend looking out a window?? I had no desire for solitude on a balcony. Our cabin was on deck 5, midships, right beside the elevators. Couldn't have asked for more convenience. But the cabin was very small, and a bit hard to accommodate 2 persons. Closet is ample, but you might want a few extra hangers. 3 drawers, and plenty of shelf space. Closet held 1 large suitcase, and the other went under the bed. If someone was in the bathroom, and the other wanted in the closet, you basically had to take turns. :)

 

Room TVs have ESPN, BBC, Fox News, the ship activity channel. You can rent movies on the TV (I think it was around $9 for a movie). Rooms are very clean and well-attended several times a day. On the 3rd day, we discovered the "do not disturb" sign outside the cabin door--on a dial.

 

Shower gel and shampoo are in a dispenser. No conditioner, no lotion. Of course I hadn't taken those things, so had to buy them at the duty-free store. Perhaps those things are available in the more pricey rooms, but I wouldn't count on it. The TP is horrible--you need half a roll each time. :)

 

Awoke first morning, and fell back on the bed. We were going through what was left from the storm that had hit a couple of days before. 14' waves. Didn't even have a chance to get my "sea legs". Twas an interesting day, with everyone staggering down hallways, etc. Carrying food was fun! Many people were quite sick. Never saw so many canes in my life! Obviously experienced older cruisers. Thankfully I didn't get sick!

 

We found the sun/warmth maybe around Miami. Since this was the first time for me, I intended to be out on the water as much as possible. I didn't do this to spend a week in a floating hotel. :) So my spot was the outdoor cafe, right over the wake. It was much simpler getting breakfast out there anyway--they made omelets and custom cooking right there. Or pick up food from the buffet and carry it out. You could always get a table out there. Or spend all day there reading. I went into the library one day, and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Boring!

 

I didn't play bingo (at $40 a pop), but did go to a couple of trivia and sudoko things--not well attended and kinda boring.

 

Casinos are casinos, right? If ya like it, ya like it. We walked through and spent a little time each evening, and never saw anyone win much. There were tournaments for various games, which ran throughout the week.

 

The piano bar had a pianist and a guitar player taking turns--early and late. Both were good entertainers--talented and personable.

 

The buffet is now "stations", which works well. Still a buffet, but now everyone can head for the type of food they want--breakfast (even for lunch), Italian, Asian, deli, salads, desserts, fruit, grill, carved meats, etc.

 

Yes, there was a "chocolate night"--which was packed! Never saw so many desserts in my life! Ice carvings there too.

 

We did the Tex-Mex restaurant, and as someone mentioned here previously, the lobster tacos are wonderful. Then we did Cagney's, and were not impressed. The rib eye steak had a lot of gristle in it, and wasn't as tender as the regular sirloin that's on every night's menu in the regular restaurants. The "special" fries they offer are nothing special in my book. It's a $25 cover charge, plus $10 more if you want some of their dishes.

 

Speaking of lobster--one night at the main dining room and Magenta, they had a lobster/fish combo. They were more than happy to skip the fish and give you 2 lobster tails instead. It was very good. The beef kabobs at Magenta, however, were awful--so tough you could barely cut them.

 

We went ashore at each stop and found our own excursions. You need to talk to more than one taxi driver--prices varied from $60-$20 for the same transport. The port in St. Martin is the most beautiful. The port provides free golf cart transport for the length of the dock--there were 4 ships docked the day we were there. It is a lot of walking. There are lovely shops around the end of the pier--places to sit, and refreshments. We did a couple of island tours, including one beach in Antigua. Tell them you want a "calm" beach (if that's what you want).

 

Tortola is a rather crude port--far to walk (for older folks) and nowhere to rest on the way. "Tent city" at the end of the dock with the usual junk for sale. We didn't do a tour there, but heard that it consists of beautiful scenery but a very scary drive--along the edges of cliffs.

 

I hope this helps someone heading out on the next cruise. I'm happy to answer any other questions that I can.

 

Sue

[c4blunjit]

I was on the same cruise. An officer told us that there were 90 mile an hour winds and that windows broke on deck 14. There were "barf bags" everywhere. I don't know if I would do another winter cruise out of NY. They had a similar problem with weather issues the day after Xmas. I was more than a little scared that 1st night.

 

We had a great time and relaxed. We had issues with our steward...our bathroom wasn't cleaned and we found someone else's razor & shampoo in there! There was a thick layer of dust on the telephone...I can't believe no other cruisers reported this before us. We did find out that the built in tip system ($12 a day...each) can be adjusted and directed where you would like. Interesting info.

 

I think that the ports were too close together...5 in a row with no down time in between. We are exhausted today///I feel like I have jet lag!!

 

Long Bay Beach in Antiuga was beyond beautiful. Orient Beach (nude beach) in St. Marten (French Side) was a learning experience.

 

The food was great...how can you go wrong? However, the lunch menu is the same everyday in the dining room...was a little boring.

 

The ice cream in the buffet in yummy....especially with chocolate covered raisins & syrup. Too bad I discovered this the next to last day!!

 

Breakfast is the same in the dining room or buffet. I thought the eggs benedict in the restaurant would be better than the buffet....wrong. Exactly the same eggs. I was also looking forward to belgian waffles....the waffles were thin and tasted frozen.

Somehow, I still managed to gain 10 lbs!!

 

We met some very nice people....but most seem to come in groups and stick to themselves. Not the most friendly ship....typical NYers...wait...I'm a NYer!

 

Entertainment was OK...not great...no headliners like on some other ships.

We had some fun in the casino...however, also did not see anyone winning big.

 

All in all, it was a great vacation...Norwegian is not luxurious...Celebrity & Princess had cold drinks for their passengers when they reboarded after the islands...even a place to drop your heavy wet towels. Norwegian didn't have anything. I can sum it up by saying that the rolls at dinner were nestled tightly in a napkin/basket...but they were not warm. It doesn't take much effort to warm up the bread....just makes it a little more elegant...which Norwegian Is NOT!!

[llam]

Thank you for your well balanced review of your Gem cruise, I enjoyed reading it. Just an FYI suites have skin lotion, hair conditioner and bar soap in addition to the shampoo and body wash in the shower.

[clear2cruise]

Sue - what day & time is the "chocolate night"?

[clear2cruise]

c4blunjit - how many flavor is the ice cream in the buffet, this is regular ice cream that we're talking about? On the Epic, there were 6 - 8 flavors during lunch in the buffet, and they were yummmy! :D

[AllBoys2002]

I was on the same cruise. An officer told us that there were 90 mile an hour winds and that windows broke on deck 14. There were "barf bags" everywhere. I don't know if I would do another winter cruise out of NY.They had a similar problem with weather issues the day after Xmas. I was more than a little scared that 1st night.

 

We had a great time and relaxed. We had issues with our steward...our bathroom wasn't cleaned and we found someone else's razor & shampoo in there! There was a thick layer of dust on the telephone...I can't believe no other cruisers reported this before us. We did find out that the built in tip system ($12 a day...each) can be adjusted and directed where you would like. Interesting info.

 

I think that the ports were too close together...5 in a row with no down time in between. We are exhausted today///I feel like I have jet lag!!

 

Long Bay Beach in Antiuga was beyond beautiful. Orient Beach (nude beach) in St. Marten (French Side) was a learning experience.

 

The food was great...how can you go wrong? However, the lunch menu is the same everyday in the dining room...was a little boring.

 

The ice cream in the buffet in yummy....especially with chocolate covered raisins & syrup. Too bad I discovered this the next to last day!!

 

Breakfast is the same in the dining room or buffet. I thought the eggs benedict in the restaurant would be better than the buffet....wrong. Exactly the same eggs. I was also looking forward to belgian waffles....the waffles were thin and tasted frozen.

Somehow, I still managed to gain 10 lbs!!

 

We met some very nice people....but most seem to come in groups and stick to themselves. Not the most friendly ship....typical NYers...wait...I'm a NYer!

 

Entertainment was OK...not great...no headliners like on some other ships.

We had some fun in the casino...however, also did not see anyone winning big.

 

All in all, it was a great vacation...Norwegian is not luxurious...Celebrity & Princess had cold drinks for their passengers when they reboarded after the islands...even a place to drop your heavy wet towels. Norwegian didn't have anything. I can sum it up by saying that the rolls at dinner were nestled tightly in a napkin/basket...but they were not warm. It doesn't take much effort to warm up the bread....just makes it a little more elegant...which Norwegian Is NOT!!

 

Yeah we did!!!! LOLOL

 

It was actually quite interesting being in an AFT facing balcony and having drinking glasses fly off the shelf, smash into the wall and come crashing to the floor at 2:30 AM. :eek:

 

Wouldnt trade that experience for anything!!! ;)

[jrsegrl]

On the Gem 1/11 also. The first 2 days were definitely rolling. I've done 24 cruises in the last 10 years and never seen so many sick people. Can't complain though cause husband and I like the rocking but did feel badly for those who were affected adversely.

 

Food was good. Much improved over last 2 NCL cruises (on Gem and Dawn). Not just my opinion but other repeat NCL cruisers said the same. Shows were decent but not the best. Not usually a Second City fan but we enjoyed this show.

 

You can ask your SR host for bar soap and lotion. They probably have conditioner also. They stopped automatically leaving these items - and the bedtime chocolate.

 

We've always met a lot of nice, friendly people on NCL and that was still true but there also seemed to be more than a few big grumps. There was even a 'loud argument' in the hall outside my SR one afternoon. And on 3 different occassions we had the pleasure of getting on the elevator with fighting couples. Very odd.

 

Overall it was a nice cruise. Weather was beautiful after the first 2 days.

[mking8288]

Thanks - very informative and I can picture the trends with NCL these days. ;)

 

A few questions - were there any photo packages for sale during this sailing? Or, was it a la carte except for the 10% Latitude discount or what not? Once upon a time, NCL offered unlimited photos at a fixed/set price (around $200 based on 7 nights, I vaguely recall) but we haven't seen or read about such deals lately. :p

 

Also, supposingly - for photos purchased, a CD-ROM is provided so that one can make extra copies once home - which I find hard to believe unless they are charging extra for it? :confused:

 

Did specialty restaurants offered any 2 for 1 specials or early bird deals? Another post mentioned that no reservations were needed and walk-ups were easily seated on most evenings, sound like they're not too busy ....

 

We will be on the Jewel in 20 days and onboard on Valetine's Day as it will be a full seaday, but will probably just stick with our MDR. It's good to hear that food overall has been improving, and not that they're bad to begin with - I always felt (it's subjective & our "group"'s impression) that the soup are usually too salty or high on sodium & commented on the cards/online post-cruise random surveys that F&B need to cut back on it.

 

TIA & I think we can handle 10-15' wave just to get out this icy, snowy & winter Northeast weather - afterall, we managed our previous sailings to Bermuda on the much smaller NCL Crown then with equally stormy & tall waves. :D

[jrsegrl]

Can't answer about photo pkgs but will say we saw less of the photographers than usual.

 

The only spec. restaurant discount I saw was 1/2 price for under age 12. The only one that seemed to be booked ahead was teppanyaki. The others all seemed to have good availability. This changes from cruise to cruise though - depends on the crowd.

 

Food was definitely improved but it has been a work in progress for the last 2 or 3 years. There were a few things I thought were a little salty - moreso in Grand Pacific than Magenta or the buffet though so don't think it is an overall issue, just depends on who is cooking. I don't use much salt at home though so its a little hard for me to judge.

 

You are right about this nasty NE weather. Wish I was back onboard. I think what was making some passengers seasick was the motion. My husband called it being in the trough. So we had 2 days of the ship rocking back and forth basically like you would rock a cradle. We did have one issue with our veranda door opening on its own. We came back to our SR and had trouble opening the door - husband is a bit brawny and was able to push it open, something I wouldn't have been able to do on my own. A few things blew around but no damage. Don't know if it was from winds or vibrations or jolts from waves but something would work the veranda door handle open which puts a lot of pressure on that security pin. It was fine once we got to calm weather though.

[sue cubic]

Sue - what day & time is the "chocolate night"?

 

It was the next-to-last night at 10 PM in the Garden Cafe (buffet).

[sue cubic]

c4blunjit - how many flavor is the ice cream in the buffet, this is regular ice cream that we're talking about? On the Epic, there were 6 - 8 flavors during lunch in the buffet, and they were yummmy! :D

Usually 3 or 4 flavors of regular hard ice cream, plus some sherbets and frozen yogurts.

[sue cubic]

Did specialty restaurants offered any 2 for 1 specials or early bird deals? Another post mentioned that no reservations were needed and walk-ups were easily seated on most evenings, sound like they're not too busy ....

************

Not that I saw--unless you wanted to sign up for an NCL Master Card. That offer was a 2 for 1 voucher for on specialty restaurant. I never saw any specialty restaurants very busy, except for Teppanyaki.

[DMH15]

Yes, suites receive conditioner and lotion. A lady at trivia was upset and told me she didn't get any in her balcony cabin. As most hotels provide these I wouldn't have packed them either. They really should be available for all, even if "by request" cards left in each stateroom.

[c4blunjit]

I didn't notice the flavors of ice cream...there were a bunch....I was told that the pistachio was good...I really enjoyed the rocky road with raisinettes and chocolate sauce. OMG!! Back on Weight Watchers in the am.

 

The specialty restaurants were not crowded at all. I don't think people wanted to spend the extra $$. We did the Murder Mystery Dinner...it was not run well and was kinda lame. We were running all over the ship trying to find it...it wasn't in the "Magenta" where we were told it was...they started in the show area and then went to the Magenta. We ended up being 15 minutes late because no one knew (including the girl selling the dinner) where it was!! We missed the champagne (which I asked for and got) and the whole setup of the game. I said this on another post...NCL is not the most elegant of cruise lines....in fact, it's almost "no frills". Just look at their CEO!!

 

The waves were 20 feet and higher. They had to cancel the show because the dancers would have fallen off the stage...I watched a presentation on shopping (also lame) in the showroom & the "shopping expert" almost fell twice. Very scary...didn't get sick but was "scared s_ _ tless!"

[SASA13]

On the Gem 1/11 also. The first 2 days were definitely rolling. I've done 24 cruises in the last 10 years and never seen so many sick people. Can't complain though cause husband and I like the rocking but did feel badly for those who were affected adversely.

 

Food was good. Much improved over last 2 NCL cruises (on Gem and Dawn). Not just my opinion but other repeat NCL cruisers said the same. Shows were decent but not the best. Not usually a Second City fan but we enjoyed this show.

 

You can ask your SR host for bar soap and lotion. They probably have conditioner also. They stopped automatically leaving these items - and the bedtime chocolate.

 

We've always met a lot of nice, friendly people on NCL and that was still true but there also seemed to be more than a few big grumps. There was even a 'loud argument' in the hall outside my SR one afternoon. And on 3 different occassions we had the pleasure of getting on the elevator with fighting couples. Very odd.

 

Overall it was a nice cruise. Weather was beautiful after the first 2 days.

 

No bedtime chocolate left on your pillow ? I am dissapointed. Going on my first NCL cruise. Going with an open mind :)

[MikeyB]

allow me to throw my two cents in.

I have been on 13 NCL cruises, including this one on the Gem.

The food is definitely getting better. The appetizers and soups were very good. The entrees were good and deserts were never a strong point for NCL. Including the chocolate night. In order to enjoy it, you must be very selective. The weakest part of the dinner meal is the service. I rate it mostly a fair with a couple of nights when it was good. Has anyone ever been asked if they would like a second cup of coffee? I was asked once, but that was likely due to my complaining to a manager about the inattentiveness of the wine steward (or whatever they are called on NCL).

The NCL shows were very good. On the last sea day of this cruise, the 4 NCL singers from their shows did 45 minutes of striaght singing. It was excellent. I found out I like opera singing! Second City was repeatative. I can repeat the Applebee's routine from memory.

The buffets were boring. The choices are reduced every year. Chicken curry every day. And I like chicken curry. The worst part of this cruises was having to listen to Fox news. Thank god for the BBC. Oh, perhaps Second City can do a routine on how many times NCL can rerun Undercover Boss during a cruise. Priceless.

We had a mini-suite. Be careful choosing one. You can be under the gym or the noisey part of the pool. And because of the bumpout on deck 12, you get less sun. The extra room is nice, but you get a bath tub you prpbably don't use that you need to take a high step in and out of.

As you can see, my opinion is slightly different from some others.

Conclusion- I like NCL. A very good value for your cruise dollar.

Lastly, if you are going to St Martin and St Thomas, buy your liquor in St Martin. It's cheaper there. Just walk further down Front Street. As you walk, the prices do drop. $8 for Absolut!