Honest Opinion - Gem over Thanksgiving

[luckynumber6]

Hello!

 

I am looking for your honest opinion....My husband and I only take the kids on cruises aabout every other year due to cost. We have 5 kids. We pick our cruises by price and ports - not cruise line. We did take the kids on RCL ENchantment this summer and had a good time, but thought the ship very boring for kids and would never ever go again on that ship.

 

I was able to get a great deal on the GEM over Thanksgiving for the 7 of us.

 

So my question is....is the GEM "fun" enough leaving NY in November? I am just so worried about it as this is an extra vacation for us and can justify it - if I know the ship and such are as fun as our other cruises....I think I was just soured from my recent trip on the ENchantment - where they just had so very little to amuse the kids....

 

So I guess I am asking in too many words...if you know anything about the Gem - Please tell me - is it kid friendly, are there lots of activities, please give me your thoughts.

[greenpepperburger]

The weather won't be great for swimming out of NY (obviously), but I found that the Gem was always full of activities. Granted I'm not a child, but a scouring of the freestyle daily leaves nothing to be desired - sports games and competitions, dance classes, classes, and of course the kids and teen clubs.

 

Have a great time! We LOVED the Gem.

[coka]

Well, looks like you already booked it, so I am very sorry to have to tell you that yes...the Gem is a fun ship! Your family should have a wonderful time! Did I scare you for a second? I was on her 8/7 and there appeared to be a special effort to have family activities onboard. Family karoake, family disco, family etc! NCL has a Kids Crew program and they also have a teen center. Bowling, Wii, and other activities as well. There should be a lot of families onboard that week and I would be very surprised if you came back disappointed. Have a great trip!

 

coka

[MommyJamiex4]

Just wanted to say how nice it was to see another family of 7. We have 5 kids ages 16,13,9,7 and 7. How do you arrange your cabins? We had a very interesting time last week on Carnival. :eek:

[jaldag]

We were on the Gem last year the week after Thanksgiving. But I heard there were lots of kids aboard during the Thanksgiving cruise.