*LIVE* NCL Jade Jan 7-12,2024

[schmoopie17]

1 hour ago, laudergayle said:

 It was one of the first out of Athens and Covid tests and masks were required.  The ship had a 38% occupancy.  It was an amazing cruise, but felt a little like a ghost ship.  

Or more like a bandit ship, with everyone running around in masks.

[izzy19]

This is great work...it helps us get a feel for the ship we'll be on in a couple of weeks...

[Enchanted8808]

8 hours ago, BarnCat1 said:

 

 

 

If I can remember correctly, on previous cruises on the Gem (Jewel Class), since smoking areas have been cutback, the smoking was on deck 13, port side, at the Bali Hai bar, which overlooked deck 12 pool area.

 

This would mean on the Jade it's at The Pit Stop, deck 13 overlooking deck 12 pool area as well. Both are right outside of Spinnakers. Also, in the casino and Cigar Bar.  

I was on the Jade from November 26th through December 24th, 2023. For the first two weeks you could smoke at the bar in the casino and for the second two weeks The casino bar was a non-smoking bar but you could smoke around the casino if you were playing. The entirety of the cruise the cigar bar was just for cigars not for cigarettes. The smoking area portside at the pit stop bar on deck 13 was always very congested with smokers. 

[bluesea777]

On 1/9/2024 at 3:52 PM, CAKEisgood said:

My pic of the pool is upside down. I’m about to toss my phone overboard 😡. Here it is and my apologies for it being upside down 

 

When taking landscape photos make sure the shutter button is on the right hand side of the phone screen.

 

 

[CAKEisgood]

Dinner at La Cucina was amazing. We enjoy this restaurant on the Escape and the Prima. Excellent service and food is delicious. 
 

I ended the evening with lemon cheesecake and lemoncello 

[Mommapadraig]

11 hours ago, CAKEisgood said:

Dinner at La Cucina was amazing. We enjoy this restaurant on the Escape and the Prima. Excellent service and food is delicious. 
 

I ended the evening with lemon cheesecake and lemoncello 

On our first couple cruises we didn’t think La Cucina was very good. Then on our last cruise on the Epic we had heard about their lasagne. It changed our opinion about it. The whole meal was fantastic. We ended going back there for our latitudes reward dinner.

[CAKEisgood]

It’s day 5. Sea day as we head through the Florida Strait and up the West coast of Florida. 

[CAKEisgood]

Tampa disembarkation program 

[CAKEisgood]

For the Haven, the concierge and butler aren’t included in the daily service charge. There is an ATM in the casino to get cash for their tip (if you forget to bring cash, like we did 🤪). There is a $6.95 fee for the transaction 

 

or to get cash to tip other staff who made your cruise extra special. 
 

the ATM also will break smaller bills. 

[CAKEisgood]

On deck 7 is the promenade to walk around the entire ship. 
 

 

it is very windy at the front of the ship. It was like walking through a wind tunnel. Some parts are bit narrow and I stepped aside to let people pass. There were a few walkers who were on a mission and it looked best to just step aside  

 

 

one of the wider sections on the promenade 

 

and the back of the ship! 

[CAKEisgood]

Our concierge, Iulilia, and butler, Rogievel, surprised us today with this beautiful Happy Anniversary cake! Wow! It looks so good I can’t wait to try. We will enjoy after dinner (Le Bistro, which Iulilia pulled strings to get us a reservation there tonight) 

 

I love cake 🎂 

 

There are beautiful baked treats in the atrium on deck 7, same place as the Starbucks, if you are in need of a sugar fix 

[CAKEisgood]

23 minutes ago, CAKEisgood said:

the ATM also will break smaller bills

I meant the ATM will break large bills into smaller bills. 💸 

[Travelicious]

That cake looks delicious!

[SenatorsFan]

Happy Anniversary! 🥂

[CAKEisgood]

We went to the Old World v New World wine tasting.  Fabulous presentation and choice of wines. Lots of fun 

[Mommapadraig]

Happy Anniversary!

[CAKEisgood]

2 hours ago, Travelicious said:

That cake looks delicious!

I thought we’d wait until after dinner to have cake, but my husband could not wait. Half of the cake is gone and it’s 4 pm. 😉 It is really good. It’s a white cake with a strawberry filling and whipped cream frosting. The cake is light and airy. I’m a baker and I can say with confidence this is a superbly crafted cake.  
 

I imagine the rest of cake will be gone before we disembark tomorrow morning 😁

[Yesimapirate]

I'm really happy to see your having a good cruise.  Pre-covid we sailed the Jade twice and absolutely loved it.   However,  our experience in Oct 2022 Mediterranean was completely different.   The crew was untrained and surely.   Food inedible including a completely raw cheeseburger at the Haven lunch at Cagney's.  It was so bad the Asst Food & Bev Manager spent nearly an hour complaining TO us.  Upper management on the ship at the time clearly didn't give a damn and a fish rots from the head down. 

 

I'm very happy to hear that it seems to have changed back to what it once was.

[ggTexasGal]

1 hour ago, Yesimapirate said:

I'm really happy to see your having a good cruise.  Pre-covid we sailed the Jade twice and absolutely loved it.   However,  our experience in Oct 2022 Mediterranean was completely different.   The crew was untrained and surely.   Food inedible including a completely raw cheeseburger at the Haven lunch at Cagney's.  It was so bad the Asst Food & Bev Manager spent nearly an hour complaining TO us.  Upper management on the ship at the time clearly didn't give a damn and a fish rots from the head down. 

Surely you meant "surly"? 😉

[CAKEisgood]

2 hours ago, Yesimapirate said:

I'm very happy to hear that it seems to have changed back to what it once was.

Hello and thanks for this comparison. I was just saying to my husband I have no complaints about this cruise. The food has been excellent and the  crew very attentive ( in all areas, not just The Haven)  

 

The layout of the Jade, at first, was a bit confusing, but I got up early one morning and walked end to end several times to get my bearings. The decor is sophisticated. It is clean! We really like The Jade and look forward to more sailings on her 

[CAKEisgood]

We had dinner at Le Bistro and both of us had the same dish we had the other night, AND it was better. I couldn’t believe they topped the previous night, but they did. 
 

Seas are rough, for the Gulf of Mexico, and the ship is rocking a little bit side to side, so some might experience a little motion sickness. I saw a few passengers with a patch behind their ear. I might consider doing that for a longer cruise…I have to look outside and see the horizon otherwise I get motion sickness, hence a balcony cabin is an absolute must! At night I will go out to the balcony to look outside and calm my stomach. My husband thinks I do that just to go outside 😆

[CAKEisgood]

This is the last of the anniversary cake 

I have enjoyed sharing our journey on The Jade. She is an awesome ship and the crew is incredible. 
Thank you for following along.  
Have a beautiful rest of your day, wherever that may be, and Happy New Year 🎊 2024 🤩🥳

[Ozzieru1e]

10 hours ago, CAKEisgood said:

I thought we’d wait until after dinner to have cake, but my husband could not wait. Half of the cake is gone and it’s 4 pm. 😉 It is really good. It’s a white cake with a strawberry filling and whipped cream frosting. The cake is light and airy. I’m a baker and I can say with confidence this is a superbly crafted cake.  
 

I imagine the rest of cake will be gone before we disembark tomorrow morning 😁

Wow‼️. You had me at the whipped cream frosting🤩. I’m plan to cruise in May on the Joy in the Haven and I’m hoping the butler can provide us with such a delicious cake 🎂

[izzy19]

Cake...did you happen to notice if there was any Ginger Beer (non-alcoholic) on board?  Thanks again for all the updates

[JIMESOPUS]

@CAKEisgood Thanks for a great review, we will be back on her in a couple of weeks, love the Jewel class ships. We had that cake before for our anniversary and it still looks delicious.

 

Jim