Norwegian Gem Extended Hurricane Sandy Cruise Review with Photos!

[YankeeFan4Ever]

I would hope that this is not the LAST posting of your cruise. I would love to hear about getting into Boston and NYC.

I will be on the Gem in May. As I said I had several friends on board The Gem for your cruise (Staff Captain Zeljko Jurac and Sinan and some others). I am glad that cruises like that do not happen very often.

 

Thank You for taking the time write and post pictures.

 

Mandy

 

You're welcome, and don't worry, I still have a few more post to make to wrap up my review! :)

Edited February 11, 2013 by YankeeFan4Ever

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Wow, impressive videos!!! The sounds of the waves was incredible!

 

Fantastic review! This has been the best review I've read in ages!

 

It's great you were able to still enjoy yourself and not be grumpy that the hurricane ruined your cruise.

 

 

Thank you!

 

We had a blast! It was one of our best cruises, with memories and experiences that will last a lifetime. We got to witness Mother Nature's fury up close.

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Rough Night

After the show, my wife and I decided to have a few more drinks at Magnum’s champagne bar before calling it a night. We got back to our cabin around midnight and watched a little TV.

 

We had a difficult time falling asleep because of the constant motion. We were lucky to have a midship cabin as I could only imagine what people were experiencing in the forward or aft sections of the ship.

 

I finally dozed off around 1:00 AM but was awoken a few minutes later by the sound of toiletry items flying off the bathroom shelves. At this point, the ship was moving so violently, that I didn’t even attempt to get up and inspect the damage! I figured it would be better to stay in bed with my wife, who, by the way, was sleeping like a baby!!! :p

 

I cannot describe to you what it felt like. Although I knew we were safe, I still found it hard to ignore the sounds of the ship creaking and groaning while we were bouncing up and down, side to side and back and forth as various waves pummelled the side of the ship. Needless to say, I didn’t sleep very well that night. :(

 

We awoke sometime after 7:30 AM and got dressed. By this time the motion had eased considerably and I really wanted a nice, civilized breakfast in the dining room.

 

Later that morning, Captain Gustavsen informed us that the storm had made landfall in New Jersey and that the Manhattan Cruise Terminal had been damaged. It was to remain closed until further notice. He also congratulated all passengers for being so brave during the peak of the storm and told us that the wave heights recorded were 40 to 50 feet!!!

Up Next: A Yankee fan visits Boston!

Edited February 11, 2013 by YankeeFan4Ever

[letsgomets]

We leave on the Gem in 3 days. Enjoying your review -- I had been wondering what it was like on the Hurricane Sandy cruise. Can't say that I share your baseball affections, although I think this year I need to switch my allegiances to the Jays given that they have my favorite ex-Mets!

 

Too bad you couldn't tender over the Nantucket to wait out the storm! Fantastic island (and lots of Red Sox fans).

[bbryan5]

Awesome review, and great pictures. I'm curious, what type of camera/lens setup did you use? Very clear/sharp pix!

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Awesome review, and great pictures. I'm curious, what type of camera/lens setup did you use? Very clear/sharp pix!

 

Thank you! I use a Nikon S9100 point-and-shoot camera set on auto mode. Afterwards, I import the photos to Adobe Photoshop and tweak the colors and sharpen them. :)

[Brighton Line]

Awesome review, and great pictures. I'm curious, what type of camera/lens setup did you use? Very clear/sharp pix!

 

Great Review,

Here we are safe and sound in Boston Caribbean Princess

 

Tugs x2 plus 21 lines and 6 Thrustors all night

 

 

 

Royal Caribbean Ship (unknown) docked behind us, then NCL Dawn behind her.

 

From the roadway when the let us off the ship, Wednesday. That Cargo Ship had a tug all night during height of the storm too.

 

 

Now back to your great review, I'm sea sick reading it.

[kylenyc]

Great Review,

Here we are safe and sound in Boston Caribbean Princess

 

Tugs x2 plus 21 lines and 6 Thrustors all night

 

Royal Caribbean Ship (unknown) docked behind us, then NCL Dawn behind her.

Nice pics. Thanks for the memories!

 

Yeah I'm queezy too reading this review.

 

I can't wait to see Sinan again in 11 days. Favorite CD ever and hoping for a smooth sailing! I won't be complaining about any measly 5-10 ft swells. :p

[antsnanny]

Thank you gelo7, canehdn and Barb Nahoumi! :)

 

Yikes 40 to 50 foot waves. I was in 40 ft. waves in 2004 and I thought that was crazy. Great review, thanks so much. Any good pictures of the waves?

[NayRN]

Nice pics. Thanks for the memories!

 

Yeah I'm queezy too reading this review.

 

I can't wait to see Sinan again in 11 days. Favorite CD ever and hoping for a smooth sailing! I won't be complaining about any measly 5-10 ft swells. :p

 

I'm excited to have Sinan as our CD in August....hopefully he won't be on vacation or changing ships before then! I've heard nothing but good things about him!!!

[WaldosPepper]

This is a fabulous review, and I agree that your photos are wonderful! I also agree that your wife is a very lucky woman. :D

 

Thanks so much for taking us along on the journey, and for demonstrating that it is indeed possible to have a simply glorious cruise even when mother nature conspires against you. ;)

[jjduke]

Hi,

 

Great review so far! Thanks for all the pictures.

Waiting for the Boston part because I was on the Norwegian Dawn that day.

Maybe you have a picture passing us. Would be nice to see us from your perspective :D.

 

jjduke

 

Edited February 12, 2013 by jjduke
Picture added

[deladypilot]

Love the review. I cant wait to read more. I am so impressed with what you are telling us about the crew of the GEM and how they handled a very bad situation. Guess I need to book a trip on it

 

Keep it coming

[canehdn]

for your fabulous review YankeeFan. It was great reading and your photographs and Youtube vids are amazing. Your camera takes beautiful pics ... some of them almost look 3D they are so clear. Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

Cdn in KS

[Burpelson]

Nail bitingly great review. So glad it ended well for you guys.

[mommacap]

Thanks so much for this fantastic review.:)

 

We are looking forward to our first cruise ever in May.:D As it is on the Gem, your faith in the Captain and crew - even after all you've endured - is quite comforting for our family.

 

With all the news coverage about the Triumph (we're praying they return home safely and soon), my 13 and 11 year old children were getting a bit nervous.:eek: Since showing them your ongoing review and praise for the crew, they have calmed down and are once again looking forward to an amazing vacation.:D

 

Your family is not only beautiful on the outside, but your words show you are beautiful on the inside as well.:)

Edited February 12, 2013 by mommacap

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Great Review,

Here we are safe and sound in Boston Caribbean Princess

 

Tugs x2 plus 21 lines and 6 Thrustors all night

 

 

 

Royal Caribbean Ship (unknown) docked behind us, then NCL Dawn behind her.

 

From the roadway when the let us off the ship, Wednesday. That Cargo Ship had a tug all night during height of the storm too.

 

 

Now back to your great review, I'm sea sick reading it.

 

Thanks for posting those pics! Very interesting to see how the Caribbean Princess rode out the storm.

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Yikes 40 to 50 foot waves. I was in 40 ft. waves in 2004 and I thought that was crazy. Great review, thanks so much. Any good pictures of the waves?

 

Unfortunately, I didn't get any photos of the larger swells as these happened during the night of October 29th.

[YankeeFan4Ever]

I'm excited to have Sinan as our CD in August....hopefully he won't be on vacation or changing ships before then! I've heard nothing but good things about him!!!

 

Sinan is by far the best CD we've had in 8 cruises.

 

Have a great trip! :)

[YankeeFan4Ever]

This is a fabulous review, and I agree that your photos are wonderful! I also agree that your wife is a very lucky woman. :D

 

Thanks so much for taking us along on the journey, and for demonstrating that it is indeed possible to have a simply glorious cruise even when mother nature conspires against you. ;)

 

 

Thanks! :o (that's me blushing again!)

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Hi,

 

Great review so far! Thanks for all the pictures.

Waiting for the Boston part because I was on the Norwegian Dawn that day.

Maybe you have a picture passing us. Would be nice to see us from your perspective :D.

 

jjduke

 

 

 

Thanks for posting the photo of the Gem as we pulled into Boston!

 

Sorry, I don't have any pics of you guys.

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Love the review. I cant wait to read more. I am so impressed with what you are telling us about the crew of the GEM and how they handled a very bad situation. Guess I need to book a trip on it

 

Keep it coming

 

 

You should consider booking a cruise aboard the Gem, she's a great ship and I can't say enough good things about her crew. :)

[YankeeFan4Ever]

for your fabulous review YankeeFan. It was great reading and your photographs and Youtube vids are amazing. Your camera takes beautiful pics ... some of them almost look 3D they are so clear. Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

Cdn in KS

 

 

Thanks! Glad you're enjoying it!

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Nail bitingly great review. So glad it ended well for you guys.

 

 

Thank you! :)

[YankeeFan4Ever]

Thanks so much for this fantastic review.:)

 

We are looking forward to our first cruise ever in May.:D As it is on the Gem, your faith in the Captain and crew - even after all you've endured - is quite comforting for our family.

 

With all the news coverage about the Triumph (we're praying they return home safely and soon), my 13 and 11 year old children were getting a bit nervous.:eek: Since showing them your ongoing review and praise for the crew, they have calmed down and are once again looking forward to an amazing vacation.:D

 

Your family is not only beautiful on the outside, but your words show you are beautiful on the inside as well.:)

 

 

Thank you so much for the kind words!

 

Please tell your children my wife and I are glad our review is getting them excited about their first cruise! I promise they'll have the time of their lives!

 

If they have any questions, please feel free to ask me and I'll do my best to answer!

 

Have a fantastic cruise! :)