Tell me what you love about NCL, esp. the Jewel!

[ZoneHPH]

The crew is what makes NCL ships special. The Jewel is a beautiful ship!

[gweeptrish]

Besides the laundry what else are you discouraged by? Anything specific you want to know?

 

We were on the Jewel out of NYC just a few weeks ago with a 7 month old. We have zero complaints about the trip.

 

The other big one that threw me was the saltwater pools. It never occurred to me that a pool might not be freshwater. It'll take a little getting used-to, I guess.

[Carnac767]

You'll hardly notice the difference. IMHO, a saltwater pool is far better than a heavily chlorinated freshwater pool, any day. Saltwater pools are becoming very popular for home swimming pools, also. Very low maintenance compared to a freshwater pool.

[Family Travel Story]

I'm glad to hear the main dining room food is good. We're planning to eat there instead of the cover charge places. We want to save our dollars to do the dolphin encounter in Nassau. My daughter is obsessed with sea mammals.

 

I have been on several NCL cruises and one on the Disney Magic. Although I am not a huge fan of the main dining room on NCL ships, especially with all the great specialty restaurants, I do think the food is at least as good as it was on Disney. With that in mind, NCL does not have a very big incentive to make the main dining room that special, as they do want to drive your $$$ to the pay food, which by the way is really good.

[Seago2]

Caesar salad. Non-stuffiness of fellow pax and relaxed dress code. Sailing out of NYC. Generally relaxed atmosphere. Pricing, pricing, pricing!

 

Have fun!!

[debnjoe1438]

one other thing, i thought this ship have bowling alley and it docent. Gem and the rest of sisters ships does.

 

No bowling alley on the Jewel

[newmexicoNita]

We just booked a last minute cruise on the Jewel (2/25) out of New York. We're veteran Disney Cruise Line travelers but one of us can't fly right now (recent surgery) so we wanted to try a cruise out of a port within driving distance instead.

 

I was really excited to try NCL but in reading up on what is and isn't included or available (compared to DCL) I find myself getting a little discouraged. So I was hoping you all would tell me what you love best about NCL so I can look forward to the best stuff instead of worrying about what isn't the same.

 

What should I be sure to try or to not-miss when we're on the Jewel? We've got two small kids (5 and 2), what should we make sure they get to try?

 

First of all, you have to take the 2 lines and look at them in a different light. Disney is twice as expensive and yes, more upscale. Both have fun kids programs, NCL has great dining choices even if there is a sur charge in many of them and you will find the crew on NCL very friendly and ready to assist at every turn. We like the freestyle, casualness.

 

Again, the most important thing to remember they are very different types of cruise lines, each with a special personality.

[Warmer Climes]

We did the Jewel two years ago when our youngest was 11. She is getting to be cruise vet by now and that cruise was her favorite. The biggest problem was prying her out of the kids club so we could hit the hay.

 

She hated the long, relatively formal dinners that kept her away from her friends in the kids program on the two traditional dining cruises we did. Lots of times when she was younger she wasn't that hungry, so we got her a light dinner at the buffet and then she went straight to the kids program where the staff greeted her like Norm walking into Cheers. And then we went and had a nice dinner together. I have great pictures of her with the captain of the Dream because he went to the kids club and met everyone.

 

I know from reading reviews that Disney does a great job but if you do the Jewel with an open mind I think you'll have a fabulous time with your family.

 

Barb

[Sauer-kraut]

Much easier to pack a suitcase for an NCL trip! NO pirate/princess/prince/matching tshirts/formalwear needed at all!! :D

[Leafpeeper]

We went on Jewel last year because our twin granddaughters wanted to see Dora. They had a blast.

 

We sail on lots of different cruiselines and have found things we really like on each of them and wish we could combine them all into one ship but unfortunately can't.

 

We just got off a disappointing cruise from NJ on Explorer of the Seas. it was our 3rd time but definetely not the charm. A huge number of passengers were from NE but the CD catered to all the NY/NJ people. He's done that on other cruises too and I found it annoying. I've never experienced that on NCL cruises.

 

Our favorite thing on our NCL ships is the choice of dining. There is the formal main dining room where you can request same time every day for those people who like that. There is also the smaller more casual dining room for those who would like to wear Bermuda shorts to dinner.

 

DH enjoys time in the casino but I LOVE the Asian restaurant--especially when they have 2 for 1 nights before 7 ($15). The specialty restaurants range from $10 to $25 -- something for everybody. You don't think about it when everything goes right on a cruise, but after the dining disaster we just had on Explorer, we really missed having options like NCL gives you.

 

NCL has the best "martini tasting" gatherings anywhere for about $15pp. DH and I attended all of them because they were entertaining. We even got a complimentary greygoose shaker at the end. We only paid for one of us each time and shared the 5 martinis. No way I could drink 5 but some people did. These are good size martinis compared to Carnivals mini martini tasting glasses.

 

We do wish all cruiseline carried network tv and outdoor movie screens for sports, concerts and movies like Carnival & Princess have. NCL took away their movie theaters but added a large screen in the atrium. Not the same.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[NJsharon]

Just fresh off the Jewel today & had a totally great time!

 

Someone mentioned that the pastries/cakes in the atrium are free. Well that is the Java Cafe & they are free, but we were told we had to purchase a beverage in order to get one. So not totally free.

 

Our favorite thing about the cruise was the staff though. The entertainment crew were fantastic.

 

Nick was abundant for the kids, so they should have a great time. We saw bits of Dora's dance party in the spinnaker, Dora's storytime in the Fyzz Lounge & a party on the beach at GSC.

 

I went without my children though (just my Mum & me) so don't have experience with the kids clubs. But any other questions just ask!

[gweeptrish]

Much easier to pack a suitcase for an NCL trip! NO pirate/princess/prince/matching tshirts/formalwear needed at all!! :D

 

Yes, that's definitely a perk this time around! My kids have outgrown their formalwear, their pirate costumes from last Halloween and the matching tie-dyed shirts that our group had on our last trip. While I normally love black-tie night and dress up every time, I'm looking forward to "no fuss" on this one.

[terrirus]

We went on Jewel last year because our twin granddaughters wanted to see Dora. They had a blast.

 

We sail on lots of different cruiselines and have found things we really like on each of them and wish we could combine them all into one ship but unfortunately can't.

 

We just got off a disappointing cruise from NJ on Explorer of the Seas. it was our 3rd time but definetely not the charm. A huge number of passengers were from NE but the CD catered to all the NY/NJ people. He's done that on other cruises too and I found it annoying. I've never experienced that on NCL cruises.

 

Our favorite thing on our NCL ships is the choice of dining. There is the formal main dining room where you can request same time every day for those people who like that. There is also the smaller more casual dining room for those who would like to wear Bermuda shorts to dinner.

 

DH enjoys time in the casino but I LOVE the Asian restaurant--especially when they have 2 for 1 nights before 7 ($15). The specialty restaurants range from $10 to $25 -- something for everybody. You don't think about it when everything goes right on a cruise, but after the dining disaster we just had on Explorer, we really missed having options like NCL gives you.

 

NCL has the best "martini tasting" gatherings anywhere for about $15pp. DH and I attended all of them because they were entertaining. We even got a complimentary greygoose shaker at the end. We only paid for one of us each time and shared the 5 martinis. No way I could drink 5 but some people did. These are good size martinis compared to Carnivals mini martini tasting glasses.

 

We do wish all cruiseline carried network tv and outdoor movie screens for sports, concerts and movies like Carnival & Princess have. NCL took away their movie theaters but added a large screen in the atrium. Not the same.

 

Hi Mary

A question about your post, you mentioned that in the MDR you can request dinner the same time each night? How would we go about doing this? And can you get same location and wait staff?

Many thanks!