Live From the Jade, Nov 13 to Dec 21, from Athens to Cape Town

[Ken the cruiser]

These pictures are from the outside and inside the Rameses tomb, which I must wash pretty elaborate!

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

This was a picture of the ceiling. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Then last but not lease was the Valley of the Queens and the tomb of Nefertari!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cruiserman55]

Hello:

Has anyone managed to arrange a sunset/night drive on Dec. 17 while the ship is docked in Richards Bay? It seems most are leaving from St.Lucia so would have to arrange our own transportation to and from but even then, they're hard to find.

[Ken the cruiser]

Then to cap off a wonderful experience, it was time for another boat ride back across the Nile to the hotel to have a cup of tea outside before we headed out on our 3.5 hour ride back to the ship!

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Cruiserman55]

Has anyone managed to arrange a sunset/night drive on Dec. 17 while the ship is docked in Richards Bay? It seems most are leaving from St.Lucia so would have to arrange our own transportation to and from but even then, they're hard to find.

[Ken the cruiser]

7 hours ago, 1emerald1 said:

Thanks for the great review and pics!  So how would you compare NCL dining and entertainment to Princess?

I had to ask my DW for the official answer. Princess is way better than NCL. Of course, we also book Club Class Dining versus having to make reservations in the MDR on both lines. We also like to eat breakfast in CC dining dining whereas on the Jade we have found ourselves eating breakfast and lunch up in the buffet. 

 

But I will say we have not gotten heartburn from any meals we’ve eaten so far on this cruise like with Princess. What can I say, we’re old and heartburn plays an important factor in our dining decisions.😂

 

Edited November 21, 2022 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

Day 9 - Nov 21 - Safaga, Egypt (day 2)

  

 

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

Today we went on a 3 hour tour where we were for most of the time we were looking through glass windows and beautiful coral reefs and fish! A much different adventure than yesterdays! 😂

 

But on the way to the theater to go on the excursion, we saw this on one of the cabins. It will be interesting to see if any more pop up as we walk through different hallways.

 

 
But back to the more cheerful business at hand. There were very few people in the theater today going on excursions. But in our case there may have been 2 empty seats on the 20 minute bus ride to the boat.

 

 

 

 

This marble structure was at the entrance to the resort area where our partially submerged glass-bottom boat was docked.

 

 

As you might image these were pictures taken up top on our ride out to the coral reef.

 

 

 
This little island is what the coral reef we’ll be observing surrounds.

 

 
Then once we got there, down some stairs we went. Within the first few minutes, we saw our first and what was to be our last turtle.

 

 
But we saw some other fish and some uniquely shaped coral.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

[LouChamp]

Aloha! Love your reports. Your pictures of Egypt bring backs great memories. Having been blessed to traveled the world, visiting King Tuts tomb in the 1980s was a top 10 memorable experience.  Thank you for sharing and as I always ask my fellow cc friends to do…please post food pictures lol! Have a wonderful thanksgiving and smooth healthy sailing. 

[Ken the cruiser]

13 hours ago, 1emerald1 said:

Thanks for the great review and pics!  So how would you compare NCL dining and entertainment to Princess?

My time was limited this morning due to the early excursion, so I only had time to address your dining question. As far as entertainment goes, and my opinion is based on our experiences since cruising started back up with Princess and our current  experiences on the Jade.

 

We overwhelmingly like Princess’ entertainment offerings more because they always seem to have quality guest entertainers, funny game shows every night, and quality guest lectures on sea days. On this NCL Jade cruise so far, and we’re only on day 9, the guest entertainers in the theater have been pretty mediocre, except for the CD’s show. He was awesome! There was a classical guitar musician that we fell asleep to during both of his shows and an older UK singer whose focus was on Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack songs. Another snoozer. Sorry, I graduated HS in 1970 and Frank Sinatra, Count Bassey and classical guitar music just doesn’t do it for me. Now, throw in some rock music from the 60s through the 80s, now you’re talking!

 

There are no guest lecturers scheduled on this 19-day leg at all, and probably none on the second 19-day leg either. With both of these awesome itineraries and as many 60+ guests as there are on this cruise, you would have thought NCL HQ would have reached out with some free cruises to book a few professional lecturers, but nope. Heck, they don’t even offer port lectures by the excursion staff to sell their tours!

 

As far as game shows go, no one does them better than Princess! During the past 8 days of this cruise, there may have been 3. We went to 2 of them and they were poorly executed and just weren’t that funny, not like Princess anyway where they have it down to a science! When NCL does offer a game show, they usually schedule it at 8:45 pm, which is an hour after the early show finishes and impossible to go to if you also want to go to the 9 pm show based on when you ate dinner. 

 

But we’re good, especially since these two B2B itineraries are so awesome. However, we have 30 more days to go on the Jade, so there is plenty of time for them to improve their guest entertainer selections. OTOH we’re not holding our breath when it comes to listening to a guest lecturer or even going to port talks given by the excursion staff. 😁

 

[Ken the cruiser]

14 hours ago, Cruiserman55 said:

Hello:

Has anyone managed to arrange a sunset/night drive on Dec. 17 while the ship is docked in Richards Bay? It seems most are leaving from St.Lucia so would have to arrange our own transportation to and from but even then, they're hard to find.

If you haven’t already done so, you may want to ask your question on the Dec 2 Jade Roll Call. I’m sure someone on there might be able to answer your question. We’re going on a NCL safari excursion on that day, and I’m sure we’re going to be ready to relax when we get back to the ship after that.

[Ken the cruiser]

38 minutes ago, LouChamp said:

Aloha! Love your reports. Your pictures of Egypt bring backs great memories. Having been blessed to traveled the world, visiting King Tuts tomb in the 1980s was a top 10 memorable experience.  Thank you for sharing and as I always ask my fellow cc friends to do…please post food pictures lol! Have a wonderful thanksgiving and smooth healthy sailing. 

Nope, as I mentioned earlier, food pictures are not my thing and to be honest, the food presentations are not all that great anyway. It’s just food put on the plate, nothing special. Sorry!

[FlorenceItaly]

My SIS is on this cruise and I am really enjoying your reports and pictures.  THANK YOU!  It is greatly appreciated.

[kirsten1526]

If you go on a larger NCL ship, the productions in the theatre are amazing!!! The breakaway class has a special cirque venue and the shows there likewise thrill! I think the smaller ships (especially the low capacity sailings) may not be as good as Princess. I love their 5 Skies!! You won't have any lectures on NCL. Just the type of passenger. Though, I love the games. Somehow, my husband and I have been voted to play in the past 3 Newlywed, Not so Newlywed Games and Perfect Couple. We won 2 of 3. Let's see the Dec 2 cruise if we are again voted in 😉

[Ken the cruiser]

5 minutes ago, kirsten1526 said:

If you go on a larger NCL ship, the productions in the theatre are amazing!!! The breakaway class has a special cirque venue and the shows there likewise thrill! I think the smaller ships (especially the low capacity sailings) may not be as good as Princess. I love their 5 Skies!! You won't have any lectures on NCL. Just the type of passenger. Though, I love the games. Somehow, my husband and I have been voted to play in the past 3 Newlywed, Not so Newlywed Games and Perfect Couple. We won 2 of 3. Let's see the Dec 2 cruise if we are again voted in 😉

We understand and that’s OK. Our previous NCL cruise was on the Getaway in Dec 2017 with 4000 other passengers, and they had great evening shows, funny game shows and a variety of other fun things to do. However, that’s not the case on the Jade on this cruise. Hopefully it will change once you folks board in Dubai! 😁

 

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, kirsten1526 said:

If you go on a larger NCL ship, the productions in the theatre are amazing!!! The breakaway class has a special cirque venue and the shows there likewise thrill! I think the smaller ships (especially the low capacity sailings) may not be as good as Princess. I love their 5 Skies!! You won't have any lectures on NCL. Just the type of passenger. Though, I love the games. Somehow, my husband and I have been voted to play in the past 3 Newlywed, Not so Newlywed Games and Perfect Couple. We won 2 of 3. Let's see the Dec 2 cruise if we are again voted in 😉

Tonight after we eat at Cagney’s at 5:30 pm, here are our entertainment choices. Chances are we won’t get out of Cagney’s until after the 7 pm show starts and we definitely want to see the Yury and NATO Acrobat Show, so there you go.

 
ACROBATS YURY AND NATO

Tonight be prepared to be amazed by the acrobatic brilliance of Yury and Nato in their circus variety show! They bring you an action packed evening with many artistic acts and incredible tricks. Nato, also known as the “Queen of the Rings”, is dynamic and extravagant. Yury is a superpower not to be missed and is a Guinness Book of World Record holder for one of the best hand stands ever. Come and see a show for all ages that is not to be missed!
Time: 7:00p & 9:00p, Stardust Theater, Decks 6 & 7, Fwd

THEMED TRIVIA: HARRY POTTER
Join your Cruise Director’s Staff for this Harry Potter trivia that will test your knowledge. This trivia is potentially about as difficult as they come–even experts have difficulty achieving a perfect score. Give it a try.
Time: 8:45p, Bliss Lounge, Deck 7, Fwd

THEMED PARTY: LIVE PARTY BAND
Join your Assistant Cruise Director Chelsea, Cruise Director’s Staff and the Classic Tones tonight as we show case a high-energy performance recreating some of your favorite songs that must be seen and heard to be believed.
Time: 10:00p, Spinnaker, Deck 13, Fwd
ACTIVITIES FOR FAMILIES

But once again the excursions and the sunsets are what make this cruise so awesome! 😁

 

 

Edited November 21, 2022 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

Just got back from sneaking into the 7 pm show a few minutes late, found our favorite seats, and definitely had a great time.

 

 
We also saw our steward in the hallway afterwards and my DW asked for some laundry bags and slips as we wanted to put in a bag tomorrow morning. He told her there is currently a $29.95 promotion going on and just to mark the bag with “promo” and $29.95 as the cost. What’s odd is there was no flyer on the bed letting us know that. So we’re wondering when he would have told us if she didn’t ask for the bags. Anyway, beggars can’t be choosy, so yay for us! 😂

  

[LizikinsLivesToCruise]

Enjoying your review, thanks Ken! Your photos from Luxor bring back wonderful memories of our Nile River cruise in 1998. 

[Ken the cruiser]

Speaking of excursions, tomorrow’s adventure to Petra, Jordan is going to be another highlight of this first leg. Thank goodness there will be 4 sea days afterwards to recover! 😂

 

Here is the description.

 

 

  

 

 

 

Edited November 21, 2022 by Ken the cruiser

[1emerald1]

7 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

My time was limited this morning due to the early excursion, so I only had time to address your dining question. As far as entertainment goes, and my opinion is based on our experiences since cruising started back up with Princess and our current  experiences on the Jade.

 

We overwhelmingly like Princess’ entertainment offerings more because they always seem to have quality guest entertainers, funny game shows every night, and quality guest lectures on sea days. On this NCL Jade cruise so far, and we’re only on day 9, the guest entertainers in the theater have been pretty mediocre, except for the CD’s show. He was awesome! There was a classical guitar musician that we fell asleep to during both of his shows and an older UK singer whose focus was on Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack songs. Another snoozer. Sorry, I graduated HS in 1970 and Frank Sinatra, Count Bassey and classical guitar music just doesn’t do it for me. Now, throw in some rock music from the 60s through the 80s, now you’re talking!

 

There are no guest lecturers scheduled on this 19-day leg at all, and probably none on the second 19-day leg either. With both of these awesome itineraries and as many 60+ guests as there are on this cruise, you would have thought NCL HQ would have reached out with some free cruises to book a few professional lecturers, but nope. Heck, they don’t even offer port lectures by the excursion staff to sell their tours!

 

As far as game shows go, no one does them better than Princess! During the past 8 days of this cruise, there may have been 3. We went to 2 of them and they were poorly executed and just weren’t that funny, not like Princess anyway where they have it down to a science! When NCL does offer a game show, they usually schedule it at 8:45 pm, which is an hour after the early show finishes and impossible to go to if you also want to go to the 9 pm show based on when you ate dinner. 

 

But we’re good, especially since these two B2B itineraries are so awesome. However, we have 30 more days to go on the Jade, so there is plenty of time for them to improve their guest entertainer selections. OTOH we’re not holding our breath when it comes to listening to a guest lecturer or even going to port talks given by the excursion staff. 😁

 

I just got off the Discovery on 11/5 and had absolutely the best food I've had on a ship in over 30 years.  A new Excecutive Chef, Davide Menabo, absolutely brilliant!  I just hope Princess treats him well and he doesn't wander over to Viking!  Glad you're having a trip of a lifetime!

[ringers0815]

I just loved Petra when we were there in 2015. Another visit I would like to do again one day. Have a great day in Petra!

[LouChamp]

8 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Nope, as I mentioned earlier, food pictures are not my thing and to be honest, the food presentations are not all that great anyway. It’s just food put on the plate, nothing special. Sorry!

No problem. Enjoy!

[CruzinMel]

I am so enjoying this cruise of yours - thank you for sharing it with us!

[Ken the cruiser]

We have arrived in Aqaba, Jordan!! Now on to Petra! Yay! 😁

  

 

 

Edited November 22, 2022 by Ken the cruiser

[PATRLR]

On 11/19/2022 at 2:43 AM, Ken the cruiser said:

Club Balcony laundry update. My DW wanted confirmation that we did indeed get 2 free bags of laundry each, so we visited CruiseNext again last night. This time we talked with a more senior person and he said we got 2 bags each if we were Platinum. If not, Club Balcony suite guests get 1 free bag each (for the first 2 guests).
 

We found out the person who we had talked with earlier, who BTW was standing right next to the guy, was new and got confused. No big deal as we have plenty of nonrefundable OBC to use. But it would have been nice to at least had a flyer when we arrived describing what amenities we get for being in a Club Balcony. We ate last night at the Teppanyaki specialty restaurant and met a couple with 1 child who are also in a Club Balcony suite that were washing their clothes in the sink because they didn’t know about the free bags of laundry available for Club Balcony guests.

 

I just find it curious that the Cruise Next folks are the ones making such decisions.  Afterall, this is a benefit of the room you booked, not Latitudes.  

And then you later posted that Guest Services seemed to override what CN said.  Hmm... this shouldn't be so difficult 😉 .

Great live posting by the way.  We're 5-10 years away from doing cruises like this one, but, God willing we'll get there eventually.

Edited November 22, 2022 by PATRLR