Turtles06

Oh no. We just spent 23 nights on the Gem (B2B cruises) and reading this, I just realized that we didn’t have a single towel animal. Now I guess we didn’t have the terrific time I thought we’d had. 😂

That’s All, Folks I want to thank everyone who’s taken the time to read this review, and especially those of you who were also kind enough to comment along the way, either in words or with emoji reactions. I really appreciate it. If anyone has any questions, I’ll do my best to answer them. Good health and safe and happy travels to all. Judith

ONE LAST PHOTO Yes, this photo tells it all. The day after we returned home from the Gem, I tested positive for covid, the first time since the pandemic began. Fortunately (and thank you vaccines), my case was a mild one -- cold-like symptoms that resolved themselves quickly -- but also some fatigue that lingered longer. Happily, and amazingly, my wife did not get sick. We certainly knew going into this trip (and the other trips we’ve taken in the past three years) that getting covid was a possibility, and obviously we took the risk. Interestingly, there was almost no mention of covid on board the Gem, except that early during leg 1, we returned to our cabin one morning and saw all the cabin stewards suddenly wearing N95 masks. (They had previously been unmasked.) Our attendant told us a passenger had covid. That’s all we knew, and by that afternoon, the attendants were again unmasked. Not long after, on the other side of our deck, we saw a large plastic bag filled with towels tied to the outside of a cabin door. Perhaps someone was isolating inside? But that was it. No other mentions or signs of covid, in three weeks. On February 16, Gem Captain Deep D’Souza ended his last daily announcement to guests by wishing everyone well and stating that, “if the last three years have taught us anything, it’s that the gift of good health is the most cherished one we can hope for.” Indeed.

Return to New York Alas, all good things must come to an end. The Gem began her sail-in to Manhattan early on the morning of February 17. Unlike the crystal clear, middle-of-the-night sailaway on January 26, it was quite foggy and misty out. This, however, made for some dramatic visuals as we approached the Verrazzano, the Statue of Liberty, and lower Manhattan. The original itinerary showed that we would be docking in NY at 10am, but several days before the end of the cruise, we were told it would be 7am. As things turned out, it was 8:30am. And that was that, we were off and on our way home.

The penultimate sunset of our 23-day adventure was one of the most beautiful

Our booking confirmation for our HAL Rotterdam sailing on 7/1/23 said that for speciality dining, "reservations and dining times will be available to pre-reserve by July 6, 2021," which of course was ridiculous and did not happen (nor did I expect it to). We were in fact able to make reservations in late December 2022, about 6 months out.

Even on just a one-week cruise last fall to Bermuda on the Joy, the taxes, port fees, and gratuities totaled nearly $900. I think that is going to change the cost of most private travel insurance. And since those are refundable expenses, they aren't insurable, and it makes no sense to pay to include them. .

What a shame. St. Kitts is a beautiful island.

One last port: Curacao With the exception of Curacao, all of the ports on leg 2 of our B2B were ports where we’d also stopped on leg 1, and so I’ve already written about them above. So now let’s turn to Curacao, which the Gem visited on February 11. For this day, we’d planned our own walking tour of Willemstad, the historic center of which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The day turned out to have the worst weather of all our port days. Grey skies, some sun, and sudden and intense tropical rain that had us fairly drenched despite having umbrellas and taking shelter. Still, we managed to have a good walk, from the Otrobanda District in which the Gem was docked, across the Queen Emma Bridge -- a pedestrian-only floating pontoon bridge that swings open periodically -- and into the Punda District on the other side. Along the way, we of course got to enjoy the colorful buildings for which Willemstad is well known, as well as the more modern street art. We started at the Rif Fort, not far from the cruise port. This is a 19th Century fort that is now a touristy shopping center, but where you can still climb the original walls and have a great view of the Queen Emma Bridge and the beautiful buildings of Punda. We walked along the water, and then over the bridge, which was fun. I was hoping it would swing open while we were on it, but no such luck. Dominating the skyline of Willemstad is the Queen Juliana Bridge, which sits 185 feet over St. Anna Bay and is the highest bridge in the Caribbean: We made our way through the colorful streets of the Punda District As in Aruba, Willemstad also has a Queen Wilhelmina Park. Nearby is the Curacao sign at the top of this post, as well as a Dushi sign (Dushi having a number of meanings in the local language of Papamiento, but generally expressing the warmth of the people of the island): One of the most important buildings in the Punda District is the Mikvé Israel-Emanuel Synagogue, the oldest synagogue in continuous use in the Western Hemisphere. Because it was a Saturday, the synagogue was not open to visitors, and so we could not see the interior and its famous sand floor (which I remember well from a visit when I was a teenager): My feeling about license plates, if you have it, flaunt it: Back at the Gem, with the rain having cleared out, we had some wonderful views of Willemstad, including of the Queen Emma Bridge lit up at night as we sailed away:

Oh, is it really that easy? 🙂 What about the South Coast Tour, stunningly beautiful from start to finish. 🙂 [I'm hoping the OP has two days in Reykjavik]

" 2 hours ago, @PistolPete13said: You know, Celebrity is one of the lines I’d definitely consider trying but the fact that they don’t sail out of NYC squashes that thought." The Summit is indeed an older ship, but she was basically gutted and beautifully updated from the inside out in 2019 (unlike anything NCL has done to the Jewel class ships). We loved our NE/Canada cruise on her in September 2019 from Cape Liberty. (She no longer does that run from NJ.) @PistolPete13 no reason for you to remember, but from your perch on Staten Island, you got a photo of us on our balcony on the Summit as we sailed away, just as we approached the Verrazzano. 🙂

Yes they are (the service charges). Also any shore excursions, pre-paid WiFi package upgrades, pre-paid DSC [if you pre-paid them], everything but your cruise fare. (I nailed down this info with NCL some time ago for just the same reason -- what did I need to insure?)

Having just returned from B2B cruises in which we transited the Canal for our third and fourth times, through the original locks, I don't think you would find going through those locks too similar to your previous day. (In fact, since our turnaround day was in Fuerte Amador, our two transits of the Canal were separated by just a day, and I found the second just as fascinating as the first.) I also think it would be very interesting to go through the locks in a ferry-sized vessel, something we've never done. All that said, you mentioned that you have two kids under the age of 10, and I wonder how well they would hold up on that second day. The full transit of the Canal, which you will have just done, is a long, hot, and humid day. Would they be up for doing some of it again the very next day? Would they even be interested? Only you can assess that. I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to do that day, and of course I hope you enjoy the full transit! As it happens, on our southbound transit last month, we followed the Emerald Princess through the Culebra Cut. Here she is passing under the Centennial Bridge, and then approaching the Cocoli Locks.

Don’t assume that they do. This may just be other misinformation from a HAL phone rep.

Thanks for taking the time to post a review, and share your lovely photos! I'm sorry you missed the Falklands, but glad you still had a great trip. Ah, too bad. You missed this (which I enjoyed, but I realize is not fun for most people):

Thank you so much! 🙂

You just can't make this stuff up. (And I had an even more frustrating call today with HAL Shorex. My brain is still fried over that one.)

Do a search in this forum for Saga Tours. Also search the individual ports.

I agree, little negativity re possible menu changes. Folks seem happy that favorite dishes might be available more frequently. The negativity is over the absurd process through which HAL is rolling this out

Folks who have existing reservations could cancel if they don’t like the new menu or if they’d booked for a specific night’s entree that is going to be eliminated.

The Freestyle Daily What? Comments about the Freestyle Daily? In all the cruises we’ve taken, I don’t think I’ve ever commented on the ship’s daily paper, but the Gem’s Freestyle Dailies on these cruises were an embarrassment. Factually incorrect information, significant missing information, and poorly written. For example, on the day of our port call to Curacao (leg 2), the Daily gave the contact information for the port agent in the Dominican Republic -- a different country! The Daily for that day also had information about Isla Catalina – also in the Dominican Republic and not even a port on that cruise. (The Gem had called at Isla Catalina on leg 1.) For both of our port calls to Aruba, no information at all was given for the port agent. On each of the two days we transited the Panama Canal, the Freestyle Daily had several paragraphs containing some Canal facts, mostly about the Canal Expansion (seven years ago), and seemingly pulled from something written so long ago that it described the expanded Canal as though it had just opened. (“The long awaited opening of the expanded Panama Canal is expected to double its capacity . . . .”) In fact, the expanded Canal opened on June 26, 2016, which actually was stated at the very outset in this same piece in the Daily. (“The Panama Canal Expansion has been completed at last with its official inauguration on June 16, 2016.”) Apart from the use of dated material, I was hard pressed to understand the focus on the expanded Canal, since the Gem of course was going through the original locks. Also, for both transit days, the Daily listed an anticipated arrival at the first set of locks, but neglected to include any information about the anticipated arrival under the bridges that mark the start of each transit, the Atlantic Bridge on the Atlantic side, and the Bridge of the Americas on the Pacific side. As a result, our neighbors on leg 2 missed us going under the Bridge of the Americas at 5:35am on Feb. 7, and were quite upset about it. I suspect they were not the only ones. Guest Services told me that the Dailies are reviewed before they are sent around the ship. If so, then better review is needed. I think it reflected poorly on the Gem that this sort of stuff was provided to guests.

Seen around the ship During the second leg of the trip, it appears that we took on some chocolate milk in the Dominican Republic. This stuff was incredibly delicious. (And not even whole milk!) If you were on board, I hope you had some!

It definitely is. I can't imagine paying for Moderno (whether cash or OBC), and, quite frankly, my wife and I have decided it's not even worth using a FAS dinner or a Lats voucher there any longer. The quality of the food just isn't good; the meats are tough and generally cold. And at least on the ships we've sailed (mostly Jewel class), NCL just can't pull off a churrascaria; it's not busy enough to have the meats coming around as they should. I wish they'd find a better use for the space. YMMV.

Some additional words about the Canal I wanted to offer a few tips about transiting the Panama Canal for those who have never done it, whether partial or full. First, before you go, please read David McCullough’s masterful book about the building of the Canal, The Path Between the Seas. You'll appreciate even more how incredible and extraordinary it is that the Canal was even completed, let alone that the mechanisms developed then to operate the original locks are still in use today. Also, please don’t spend the entire day of the transit in the same place on the ship, including your own balcony. Be sure to move around, especially as the ship goes through the locks, and see the operations from all perspectives -- forward, aft, midships, high, low. Things move slowly through the Canal; a full transit takes most of the day, and you’ll have plenty of time to get around the ship. In addition, it will be hot and humid. The sun (assuming it’s out), will be intense; the Canal is only about 9 degrees north of the Equator. Apply and re-apply sunscreen, wear a hat, and stay hydrated. (Thanks, Mom!) Fun factoid: Many people think of the Panama Canal as running East-West, since it takes a ship from the Atlantic to the Pacific (or vice versa). But the actual direction is much more NW-SE. When you transit from the Atlantic to the Pacific, you will end your day about 20 miles further East than where you started (and of course further South). [A good clue for Final Jeopardy. 😊]

Thanks, I really appreciate your very kind words!