Comprehensive Gem Review, 2/11-2/21

[ResidentMusician]

Hello everyone -- my first post and I hope it is a useful one. This is going to be very detailed. I will categorize to make things easier to read, and then include some final impressions at the bottom:

 

Intro -- This was the third cruise for my wife and I. Our first was on the HAL Veendam and we loved it. Our most recent cruise was on the NCL Breakaway in February of 2014. While we enjoyed that cruise, there were a number of shortcomings regarding ship "vibe", food, and service that tempered our expectations for this cruise. We simply thought HAL was the better line for us, but given our preference for sailing out of NYC, we gave NCL another chance. This cruise far exceeded those expectations and we were incredibly pleased with almost every aspect of the trip. NCL really got our attention with this one and we went ahead with the CruiseNext deposit as a result. If you are sailing on this ship soon, with this particular crew and staff, you should have a wonderful time.

 

Cabin -- My wife and I stayed in an obstructed oceanview. We ended up paying just marginally more than an inside, and the small bit of extra space, plenty of light, and decent view (maybe 50% obstructed) was more than worth the extra money, especially for a 10 day cruise. Our cabin steward Gene was fantastic; discreet, thorough, good natured guy. On the last day we left our appreciation clipped in the mouth of a dinosaur towel animal he left, and we put the glow necklace from the white-out party around its neck. We are weird. Later in the day we found that same necklace around a new towel animal. A nice touch and gave us a good laugh. The cruise was full of nice touches.

 

Food -- We were surprised at how much better the food seemed compared to our Breakaway cruise just 2 years ago. We noticed on embarkation day the giant crates of supplies and food being loaded into the ship; I wonder if the quality of food does fluctuate with the quality of these shipments, and if that could explain the difference. Whatever it was, the food at every level, from the buffet to Cagney's, was massively improved v.v. the Breakaway 2 years ago. One small example -- we ate at Le Bistro on the Breakaway and ordered the mushroom soup. That soup was delivered to us in the bowl and tasted fine. This time however, the bowl was delivered with the mushrooms only, and the soup was poured over them at the table. The soup was delicious... was it actually better or did the presentation make the difference? Who knows, but presentation is what helps to set one dining experience apart from another. Our waitress was phenomenal and I regret not remembering her name. Orchid Garden was ok/pretty good -- I expected roughly strip mall quality chinese food and what I got was a solid step above that, and for free. In general, expect chain restaurant quality and be impressed, or expect gourmet and be disappointed. I believe this general statement could apply to most mainstream cruises.

 

We had the 5-meal package and ate at every specialty restaurant except Cucina. Our waiters at Moderno were hilarious. I had my green card up, indicating to bring more meat over, and my wife was surrendering with the red card, indicating she was full. A few times as they refilled my plate, our waiter asked her if she wanted more and she politely declined. With a mischevious sideways grin, the waiter gave her a bit more anyway. I noticed another table that probably wouldn't have appreciated this humor and the waiter didn't try the same thing there. We thought it was hilarious, and the ability to read guests in this way was a signature of the crew all over the ship. Very well done.

 

One small criticism/suggestion -- I would love to see more fresh juice options on board. This is a criticism I've had of all 3 cruises I've been on. I only noticed fresh juice available at breakfast (a la carte) and the options were limited. I would gladly pay a bit extra for this, either through the fare or a la carte. It would enhance one's ability to eat a little healthier while on board. It's a little too easy to triple the cholesterol intake without much in the way of counterbalance. The fresh fruit -- pineapple, melon, apples, oranges were consistently available. I did miss berries but there was a cold berry soup as well as cold watermelon/mint soup that were both refreshing and nicely done.

 

Pro-tip -- take a look at the boards indicating the reservation status of various dining venues, especially if you plan to eat in a complimentary restaurant. Overall the service and food was excellent, but one time there was a random spike in guests at Magenta and they did get bogged down. We could have avoided the log jam if we had looked at the board.

 

One other small criticism -- the wings at O'Sheehans are close, but no cigar yet. They have the right crispy texture but the sauce is missing a true buffalo profile. If they get this right I will abandon all life goals and cruise continuously until I have exhausted all money and lines of credit.

 

Beverages -- The beverage package is really nice to have. We chose it as a perk and would do so again. We aren't huge drinkers but the ability to try a number of different cocktails, wine, etc without considering cost really adds a luxurious element to the cruise. Remember to ask for the liquor you prefer -- everything I ever ordered... Patron, Maker's Mark, Ciroc, Grey Goose, Black Label, Glenfiddich, were all fully included in the UBP. If you get to know bar tenders, they realize you have UBP and can make some great recommendations or put interesting twists on your favorite drinks. Good fun. All the deck 6 bars, Maltings, Shakers and Magnums kind of melded together for us. They made fantastic cocktails there and were very friendly. The guys behind the bar at O'Sheehans were also very nice; we got simpler drinks there in general so I can't speak for the more complicated libations, but everything they made for us was excellent as well and, as was the case with so much of the crew, they were fun to talk to. Those ended up as our favorite places and I thought they were a cut above the other locations, but we got some great drinks at Spinnaker as well -- if my wife can remember the names of some of our favorite bar tenders I will add them later.

 

Entertainment -- We didn't get to catch all of the shows we wanted to see, mostly due to our own poor time management and having too much fun. Having too much fun can be an issue on this cruise so watch out for that. We did get to see the Balskat Duo, just walked in knowing absolutely nothing, and we were totally blown away. Absolutely beautiful performance not to be missed. The ship was moving just a bit at the time of the show and it was unbelievable what they were able to do -- I overfilled my coffee cup earlier in the buffet and had trouble not spilling it on my way to the table.. so I could not comprehend how they were able to perform so flawlessly. Other reviews have mentioned this duo: do not miss this show.

 

Magic was alright. I can see where the criticisms come from but we enjoyed it nonetheless. It perhaps felt like a similar, impressive trick recast a few times with a bit too much banter thrown into the show. But it's worth checking out.

 

Second City was a mixed bag. The quality of the show depends somewhat on audience participation and I thought some of the suggestions in the adult show proved to be repetitious, with an over-emphasis on drinking alcohol and male body parts. I'm not in the least easily offended -- I thought they could have gone much further in the 18+ show and pushed boundaries a bit more. The group chemistry wasn't quite as tight as the group I saw on the Breakaway 2 years ago, but I do think that if the audience gets in the zone with their end of the deal, the performers have so much more to work with. Anytime there is an improv element there is a huge degree of variance. The kids show was painful. I think it was an experiment and maybe worth trying, but it just doesn't work. Whose Line is it Anyway, Kids Edition simply doesn't work for adults drinking cocktails, and I'm not sure the humor works for kids either. The fully scripted show had some very nice moments but again I think Second City is best aimed at 18+ and let it rip.

 

 

We missed Tenors of Rock but we generally heard good buzz about it.

 

Entertainment is the only category where this cruise did not trump the Breakaway, but that's because they were both quite good.

 

Ship -- I fully realize this is a deeply subjective matter and I don't want to generate a huge discussion on this topic so I will keep it brief. We enjoy the smaller boat. We felt crowds less generally. We felt like we were sold less stuff generally. We don't use the casino (maybe someday) and we almost never had to walk through it if we didn't want to, which was appreciated. The Breakaway casino in comparison, is much more centrally located and feels unavoidable. The promenade and connection to the water felt more intimate on this ship. Again, subjective but those are my thoughts. I think people are likely to have strong opinions on this and it is important to figure out where you fall in your preference so you can book the best cruise for your taste.

 

I can't compare to pre-renovation, but the ship was in excellent condition and the decor was very nice. I was expecting a noticeably older feeling ship than the Breakaway and that wasn't really the case. I will say that the water slides on the Breakaway are terrifying and awesome and the slides on the Gem are kind of weak sauce, to quote the teenagers.

 

Weather conditions/Ride -- On this particular cruise I feel we had pretty favorable conditions. Obviously the RC situation was in the headlines at the time of boarding and many people I'm sure were thinking about it. On the 2nd night we had a bit of choppiness and the outside decks were closed for some hours due to high winds. It's more motion than I've felt on my previous two cruises but it was actually pretty interesting for us and didn't really bother either of us. I do think it's possible my body tired from it, as I went to bed early that night and fell asleep almost immediately, but I didn't feel sick and I did not take any medications. I'll consider myself fortunate. Based on overhearing some conversations, I think some guests -- I could venture to say 10% -- felt some ill effects, but nothing to the point of seeing green faces. I have no idea how to evaluate a captain, but he sounded and looked very professional and in control, and did update us as needed. I do believe the navigation channel locked at a wave height of 8.2 feet. Other variables seemed to update regularly such as wind speed and temperature. It seems hard to believe that we had 8.2 ft waves for almost 24 consecutive hours. I would guess at the height of the choppiness we were experiencing 12-15ft, but it's only a guess. On the Veendam some years ago we had 10-12 ft seas that were slightly less rocky than the 2nd night here, so I base my evaluation on that experience. If you don't want to feel this stuff the Breakaway did seem less prone to transferring motion to the passengers.

 

Crew/Service -- Absolutely fantastic. Head and shoulders above the Breakaway 2 years ago. We didn't see a ton of Alvin due to our own preferences and interests, but he seems great. Even help desk people were very polite and friendly, which I feel is somewhat rare. On the Breakaway I asked to break some large bills so I could tip and I still remember being told that they "could not act as a bank" -- this time I changed bills with no problem a couple times, and I was happy to pass it on to the crew. People at the excursion desk were great, gave us inside info on some trips. By the way, for what it's worth, I think there is definite truth to the idea that you pay more for excursions through NCL.... however I just checked our St Maarten excursion through Mirabella Catamaran, and we actually paid $4 less through NCL than they have quoted on their direct website, so it's not always a sure thing. I'm running out of gas so I'm skipping the ports/excursions category and heading straight to one of the most important variables......

 

Guests -- The friendliness and shared sense of enjoyment among guests is one of the single biggest wild cards in any cruise experience. Having a community like Cruise Critic gives us a venue for encouraging each other to increase the value of our vacation by being pleasant to one another.

 

In general, because of the amazing work and example set by the crew, I felt like guests on this ship were generally more pleasant and amicable to one another than what we experienced on Breakaway. We are also better now than we were then at ignoring the complainers and the guests who are occasionally rude to crew members. I'll never understand how it is that some people find themselves in such a rush on these ships, when there are literally thousands of dedicated crew working tirelessly to serve us, and no real-world responsibilities whatsoever. For us the buffet on the Breakaway was a hub for pushyness and impatience, and I think on this cruise the inclusion of dining packages and drink packages as perks for so many guests did help to spread the traffic a little more evenly throughout the ship, which helped. There will always be some difficult people, but the proportion on this ship was low enough to completely ignore.

 

There were many kids on this cruise but the vast majority were respectful enough and seemed to find ways to enjoy themselves without taking away from the enjoyment of other guests. I loved that at least at times, adults-only policies were enforced, like at the 18+ second city show, or the adult white-out party where Alvin came on to very politely remind parents to remove their children from this obviously inappropriate setting. Well done. Hot tubs, pool and slide were kid magnets -- that's ok for me. When I did share a hot tub with younger folks they were fine.

 

The guests category should be included in every review of a cruise. It is 20% of the experience, and my wife and I were both very happy to meet so many friendly people.

 

I am officially out of gas.

 

tl;dr version: If you are going on this cruise soon, you should be excited. It's going to be great!

Edited February 22, 2016 by ResidentMusician
Adding more info

[Adele1]

Totally agree with your review altho I have not been on the Breakaway.

 

The main dining room menus have been vastly improved & while lobster is no longer free they offer so many good Italian dishes one need not go to La Cucina.

 

Crew handled the crowds very well.

 

Leo in Magnums was superb as were the shows I saw. Loved the female comedian.

[Clarea]

Well written review, thanks.

[2boyzmom]

Totally agree also. We have don e the Epic and are done with the mega ship environment. Staff seem happier on smaller ships.

[lunaxmars]

Thanks so much for your review! I board the Gem for my trip next month. :D

[lizanne_1]

Thank you for an upbeat review. We too were on the Breakaway, and next week will be our first time on the Gem. I'm feeling a lot more optimistic now, thanks again!

[misselle60]

I was beginning to worry about my cruise starting March 2 with all the negative reviews that I have been reading, it's so refreshing to hear a great amount of positive feedback from you..

[long Island]

Great review!..Can't wait to cruise on March 2 also. This will be our second time on the Gem.

[Kingmaker_inc]

T

Leo in Magnums was superb as were the shows I saw.

 

Leo is amazing. We love him. We are so pleased he is back on the Gem... the three guys they had to replace him on his last vacation were good, but not Leo.

Edited February 23, 2016 by Kingmaker_inc

[razzzbere]

After reading so many scary reviews, thank you so much for the positive vibes!

We're getting so excited for our first NCL cruise next month!!

[Keith1010]

Terrific review. Very thorough.

 

Keith

[GUT2407]

Thanks for the review.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report.

[cv322]

What a fabulous read! Thanks for sharing your thoughts...I love your sense of humor - "If they get this right I will abandon all life goals and cruise continuously until I have exhausted all money and lines of credit."

 

...and I totally agree that the Gem is a gem ;)

[pidad]

Great review! I was on same cruise and would have loved juice options throughout the ship....maybe even a smoothie bar! We ate at all the specialty restaurants and were very pleased. Perhaps the only complaint was that the steaks at Le Bistro were not cooked to the temperature that we requested. In addition the children's menu is available at all the restaurants....very nice!

[jethrojam]

Thanks for a great review:)

[lenquixote66]

I was on the cruise after you .In my opinion Leo was great .Nobody even came close to him.

 

Second City was awful .

 

 

Lenny

[boopsahoy]

Leo is amazing. We love him. We are so pleased he is back on the Gem... the three guys they had to replace him on his last vacation were good, but not Leo.

 

I love Leo! But I have to admit this past December they had Carlos instead and he was also fantastic! (He may have actually been a slightly better guitar player and a slightly less good singer).Both are amazing! We love the Gem-we have taken about 7 cruises in a row on her out of NY!

[lenquixote66]

I love Leo! But I have to admit this past December they had Carlos instead and he was also fantastic! (He may have actually been a slightly better guitar player and a slightly less good singer).Both are amazing! We love the Gem-we have taken about 7 cruises in a row on her out of NY!

 

 

I was on the Gem 3 years ago and swore to never again cruise on the ship.I am 6'5 and when sitting on the toilet my legs were literally on the wall.

However,we decided to try again with a different type of cabin .

Our Cabin Steward was not good. He never made up the cabin before 3PM and

never brought enough towels.

[boopsahoy]

I was on the Gem 3 years ago and swore to never again cruise on the ship.I am 6'5 and when sitting on the toilet my legs were literally on the wall.

However,we decided to try again with a different type of cabin .

Our Cabin Steward was not good. He never made up the cabin before 3PM and

never brought enough towels.

 

Sorry you had a bad experience. I have never had a bad steward but I do let them know right away what I would like-ice etc.

[canadiancruiser13]

Enjoyed reading a very positive post.

 

This makes the waiting time for our cruise on the Gem in October this coming fall seem so much longer to get to. ( just 225 sleeps to go ).

 

For my wife and I when we did our cruise on RCI Allure of the Seas - nice ship but too big for us. We prefer the mid-size ships instead like the NCL Gem.

[sashabucket]

Thanks for a great review. We sail on the Gem April 1- first time on her.

[lenquixote66]

Sorry you had a bad experience. I have never had a bad steward but I do let them know right away what I would like-ice etc.

 

 

We never asked for anything .We were 2 people and had 0 washcloths ,no bath mat and only one towel,that was very day.

We left the cabin very morning at 7 and the room was not made up till 3 PM.

 

[boopsahoy]

We never asked for anything .We were 2 people and had 0 washcloths ,no bath mat and only one towel,that was very day.

We left the cabin very morning at 7 and the room was not made up till 3 PM.

 

 

I hope you complained by the 3rd day! If not to your steward then to the hotel director. You must have a had a real bad steward. Even the ones I barely interacted with always left plenty of towels! So sorry for this, but understand that its not the norm at all!

[HTML5]

Thanks for a very good review!

DW and I are ready for our first NCL sojourn on Gem and it's nice to read a balanced and mature review.