8/23-30 Gem Review

[steviek49]

Hello Everyone,

 

Just returned back home in NY from our 11 night European vacation including the 7 night Gem cruise.

We are a family of 4 (53,50,19 and 17) and this is our 4th NCL cruise (Crown,Dawn and Spirit)

We have also cruised with Princess, Carnival and HAL and have enjoyed them all. Gem was no exception.

We flew American Airlines non-stop from JFK to BCN. Flight was uneventful and on-time and we arrived at about 8:30 am on Friday. We went easily thru customs and took a taxi from airport to the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona. If you don't have to be right in all the action, I would highly recommend this hotel. HOHO Bus, metro very close but we chose to use Taxi service. We booked two rooms and one was ready immediately and the other was ready at 2pm. By the way, this hotel is rated 5 stars by Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz (I'd rate it 4 stars due to it's lack of a concierge and slow elevators) and we were able to score a great price of approx. 95 Euros per night per room including Hiltons magnificent Breakfast which costs regularly 24 Euros per person. Hilton ran a great January special and we paid in advance for it.

The hotel also has a nice pool deck with food, bar, loungers, massages ect. This hotel was also approximately 200 yards from the beach. After some intense sightseeing we used both the beach and pool.

After 2 full days in Barcelona (we booked Gaudi Bus tour, toured Picasso Museum and La rambla on our own) we woke up on Sunday morning, ate our Hilton Breakfast and took a Taxi to the port. We arrived at the port at approx. 1:30 and was on board Gem at 2:05 pm.

We booked 2 connecting balcony cabins (9524 and 9526-forward). Nice rooms and Jerry was an outstanding cabin steward. Unfortunately, we were told by a crew member that the dining room was closed for lunch (it was not) so we went to the Grand Buffet on deck 12.

The Grand Buffet was one of the disappointments of this cruise. This cruise had alittle over 3000 passengers (alittle over 700 Americans) and the Grand Buffet was a "ZOO" IMHO throughout most of the cruise. I've read on CC that this Buffet had action stations and crewmambers to carry your tray to a table but to be honest it might as well have been a regular buffet because it was mobbed and very difficult to find a table anywhere near the buffet area. In addition I could not find anyone to help any of us carry our plates of food to tables.

Anyway we found some tables in the back of the ship ate and then found some loungers on deck 13 overlooking the pools. The cushioned loungers around the pool were all taken. We joined in the Bon Voyage Party (wife won a spa facial and girls won some raffle tickets) and had a great time.

We ate our first dinner at the Magenta MDR. We ate at 7:30pm, there was no wait for a table for 4 but since we requested a window table we waited 3-5 minutes. We have very good food and service overall but the coffee came a good 10 minutes after dessert was served.

Next we went to the show. The show room was beautiful with great sight lines throughout.

The act was a gentleman who played many instruments. He was talented but we became bored and left early. We retired to our cabins to catch up on some sleep.

Day 2- At sea. We slept very late and missed breakfast. We went upstairs to deck 12 to find some loungers but at 11;30 had no chance by the pool. But we did find the great day beds in the front of the ship on the sundeck on deck 13. We used this spot for the remainder of the cruise. It was delightful, quiet and out of the way. When we got too hot we had the choice of a big freshwater shower on deck 13 or walk down the stairs to the pool and take a quick dip.

Note: Our second disappointment with the Gem was the pool deck. With over 700 kids on board, the children basically filled one of the pools (with the yellow slide), and filled the hottubs. This left the adult pool for the rest of us. This pool was not big. It was probably not much bigger than 18 by 40 with a surrounding wet area. This is simply not big enough for 2000+ adults. IMHO there should be at least one more pool on this class ship.

Anyway we lounged throughout the day and had a nice day. We ate dinner at the Grand Pacific Dining Room @ about 8pm. Once again good food, good to very good service but once again coffee was served too late to have with dessert.

Off to the show which was much better this night. It was a prodection called "COLORS". We enjoyed it!

Day 3 -Malta We woke up early to see the beautiful arrival into port of Malta. We got off the ship after a quick breakfast in MDR and without planning took a Horse and Buggy ride around Malta. It was nice and we stopped at a few places and took photos. We returned to the ship at about 2pm, ate lunch at Grand Buffet (again mobbed) and went back to our daybeds to rest and relax.

Since this cruise was celebrating our 25th anniversary- we chose to eat at Le Bistro. We brought with us a bottle of wine (Hilton gave to us for our 25th). We have a Great meal with Great service and they served our wine to us (although they charged us a $15 corkage fee). I felt that this restaurant was well worth the $15pp charge due to the atmospher and superior service evidenced by extra attention as well as dessert served with coffee.

Then off to the show which was great! Second City!!!

We returned to our cabins to get ready for the 3 Italian Ports. We had booked on-line "Sorrentolimo" and had a driver waiting for us to take us wherever we wanted. This saved us hundreds of dollars per port as compared with comparable tours by NCL.

We woke up early and went to the Grand pacific MDR for breakfast at approx. 7:20. This was the worst service we ever had on any ship. It took 10-15 minutes to get our juice, even longer for coffee and by 8am I left w/o eating. My wife and girls remained behind and waited for their meal. When the order finally arrived, all together wrong- they walked out as well. However as they walked out the Maitre D (Sanja) asked if everything was well- my wife told her of our experience. She was very apologetic and begged us to have dinner at the Grand Pacific that evening and ask for her.

Day 4-Our driver was waiting for us as soon as we departed the ship and proceeded to a beautiful drive past Naples along the Almafi coast. Then to Sorrento-there we shopped and then had a wonderful meal overlooking the Med. Then on to Positano. Finally we went to the ruins of Pompei and met with a licensed tour guide. It was a GREAT day.

We returned to the ship and decided to give Sanja a try and went to the Grand Pacific for dinner. I must say- she made a big difference. Food was again good but service was impeccable! She came to check on us several times and begged us to continue to dine in her MDR each dinner. We did and we were glad we did. Best Service we ever had on a cruise ship from that night on.

Day 5- A Day in Rome. Once again Driver was waiting for us as we walked off ship. We spent the entire day in Rome. We arrived By 10 am and met our licensed guide who took us on a 3 hour tour through Vatican. Vacitan Museum, Sistine Chapel, Saint Peter's Church ect.

WOW!!! After that tour the driver took us to stops at Trevoli Fountain, Spanish Stairs(steps), the Colleseum, and a surprise visit to the Malta, Egypt and US embassies. Driver even arranged to have my 2 daughters picture taken with the soldiers guarding the embassies.

Dinner was great, as previously mentioned.

Show, I believe was a magician. Was not impressed.

Returned to our cabin to get ready for next day's 3rd Italian port.

Day 6= Pisa/Florence. Driver once again met us at the port. We first drove about 25 minutes to Pisa. Since it was early it was not yet crowded and we took some great photos in front of the Leaning Tower. Then off to Florence -it took about an hour and 15 minutes. Florence was beautiful and we spent hours shopping. We also made a reservation to the Gallery of Academia to see the real "DAVID". Much Bigger than I imagined and well worth the price of admission (14 Euros pp) Like Sorrento and Rome , the driver picked out a wonderful Italian Restaurant for Lunch.

Another great dinner at Grand Pacific.

Did not see the show that evening.

Day 7= Cannes, France. At this port we needed to be tendered into port. The tenders were big but they made sure that not one seat went unused. That, combined with no airconditioning made for a "not so great "tender into Cannes. But once we arrived Cannes was magnificent!!!!5 Star hotels everywhere, each with it's own private beach. We found a public beach, spread out our towels and enjoyed a wonderful beach day in Cannes. Would love to return here, alone with my wife, in the near future.

Took the tender back to the ship at 1:30pm. Ate lunch at Grand Buffet (again mobbed), and found our daybeds. I must say-the trip back to Barcelona, was very choppy and my wife and girls were both under the wetaher despite taking dramimine(spell?). We skipped dinner and went to bed early.

My 3rd and last disappointment with the Gem was the atrium. Unlike the Dawn, it was much more modest with only 2 levels and lacked the wonderful ambience of the Dawn. It was somewhat crowded and although there was a piano player- the mood was missing due to alot of noise/action/talking and kids rolling around near ther piano player. I remember the atrium lobby of the Dawn being beautiful with a suspended piano player, quiet and elegant atmosphere.

WE returned to Barcelona on time and disembarkation was fast and easy. We got off at about 9:15 and had about a half hour wait for a taxi. Our taxi took us to our next hotel (Hotel Rekord). We checked into this lovely boutique hotel at about 10:30am and spent the day catching up on the "free internet" and going back to La Rambla. We did some shopping, had dinner at an outdoor cafe near the port. Returned to the hotel . The following day

we had included breakfast at the Hotel Rekord (great service at this hotel) and took a cab to the airport back to JFK.

 

In sum... We had a wonderful European Vacation! Hilton and Hotel Rekord were 2 good hotel choices but remember they were about a 10 minute (10 Euros each way) ride from the La Rambla area.

The Gem was a pretty ship. She looked brand new, was very clean. had good food and good service. I can't help but think that the service would have been spotty had it not been for Sanja! But I will say that Service was great once she helped us. Cabin Steward was GREAT!!

Ship was easy to navigate since most places were on either deck 7 or deck 12.

We had a difficult time deciding between Gem and Voyager of the Seas and ultimately picked Gem because of her significantly lower price. We still want to try RCI but we were glad we chose Gem. The money saved was used to hire our Private tour Guides and drivers.

Our only 3 disappointments were;

Gem seemed crowded. She didnot hold the 3000+ passengers well. I feel she definately needs another pool and the Grand Buffet needs to be expanded to accomodate a full ship.

Too bad they took out the bigger Atrium- it may have felt less crowded had the atrium been left like the Dawn class ships.

But these were my only complaints. We had a wonderful cruise with wonderful ports of calls in comfotable and relatively reasonably priced connecting balcony cabins.

I recommend this cruise!

If anyone would like to ask questions, I will try my best to answer.

[uneamie]

Great review.....sounds like you had some legitimate complaints. Glad to see a few were resolved.

 

I am not much of a pool person on the ship.....we have a pool at home so I have no need to do it on the ship....that said, I think you have a valid complaint about the pool area not being able to handle all the adults.....and the kids taking up all the hot tubs......every single cruise I've ever been on ....the kids took up all the "hot tubs" and I would think the cruise lines would "get this by now"....and have a few hot tubs that are exclusive to "adults only". ugh! And I don't mean in just the "spa area"....where it is for adult.

 

Buffet area....hmmm, I sure hope it's not that crowed when we go in January. We intend to use the "Great Outdoors" for our daily breakfast.

 

I appreciate your honestly and am glad you enjoyed your wonderful cruise...aside from all the little things that went wrong.

[steviek49]

Great review.....sounds like you had some legitimate complaints. Glad to see a few were resolved.

 

I am not much of a pool person on the ship.....we have a pool at home so I have no need to do it on the ship....that said, I think you have a valid complaint about the pool area not being able to handle all the adults.....and the kids taking up all the hot tubs......every single cruise I've ever been on ....the kids took up all the "hot tubs" and I would think the cruise lines would "get this by now"....and have a few hot tubs that are exclusive to "adults only". ugh! And I don't mean in just the "spa area"....where it is for adult.

 

Buffet area....hmmm, I sure hope it's not that crowed when we go in January. We intend to use the "Great Outdoors" for our daily breakfast.

 

I appreciate your honestly and am glad you enjoyed your wonderful cruise...aside from all the little things that went wrong.

 

Hi Uneamie,

 

I, too, have a pool at home but when I go on a warm climate vacation I love being in or near the pool.

My pool at home is approximately 18X36. It holds our family of 4 quite well and even holds up well when we have about a dozen or 2 guests. But with only 2 pools on deck 12 on the entire ship (and one is really used by children) one small pool is just not enough for the rest of the passengers.

 

I've ready so many nice comments about the "new" action stations on Gem and Pearl that I was surprised that "Great Outdoors" was a disappointment.

yes, there were action stations but when there are so many people- it seems like one big buffet line.

 

As for the little things that went wrong.......not nearly enough to spoil a wonderful vacation.

Up until now only the 2 Carnival Ships that I was on seemed crowded (Imagination and Victory).

NCL's Crown with 1200 px and Spirit and Dawn with a full ship did not seem crowded at all.

Thanks for the comments!

Steve

[prg2101]

Hi Uneamie,

 

I, too, have a pool at home but when I go on a warm climate vacation I love being in or near the pool.

My pool at home is approximately 18X36. It holds our family of 4 quite well and even holds up well when we have about a dozen or 2 guests. But with only 2 pools on deck 12 on the entire ship (and one is really used by children) one small pool is just not enough for the rest of the passengers.

 

I've ready so many nice comments about the "new" action stations on Gem and Pearl that I was surprised that "Great Outdoors" was a disappointment.

yes, there were action stations but when there are so many people- it seems like one big buffet line.

 

As for the little things that went wrong.......not nearly enough to spoil a wonderful vacation.

Up until now only the 2 Carnival Ships that I was on seemed crowded (Imagination and Victory).

NCL's Crown with 1200 px and Spirit and Dawn with a full ship did not seem crowded at all.

Thanks for the comments!

Steve

 

 

I dont think the OP was referring to the "Great Outdoors"...rather the "Garden Cafe"....I think Buffet stations on most cruiselines are a mess....Its a free for all and people can be rude about it....As for the crowds, we book cruises when most people dont, that way it wont seem so crowded...(we did sail the Gem over New Years and YIKES!! It was packed)

[uneamie]

I dont think the OP was referring to the "Great Outdoors"...rather the "Garden Cafe"....I think Buffet stations on most cruiselines are a mess....Its a free for all and people can be rude about it....As for the crowds, we book cruises when most people dont, that way it wont seem so crowded...(we did sail the Gem over New Years and YIKES!! It was packed)

 

 

I hope that means the week after New Years it won't be! ;)

[steviek49]

I dont think the OP was referring to the "Great Outdoors"...rather the "Garden Cafe"....I think Buffet stations on most cruiselines are a mess....Its a free for all and people can be rude about it....As for the crowds, we book cruises when most people dont, that way it wont seem so crowded...(we did sail the Gem over New Years and YIKES!! It was packed)

 

Yes, I did mean the "Garden Cafe"

As for when I book cruises.... yes -all of our 8 cruises on 4 different cruise lines were during holidays or summer. We expect these cruises to sail @ full capacity and as far as I know they all did. BTW, soon my wife and I will be able to cruise during off -season as the girls are now 19 and 17- yeah!!!

I just felt that the Gem didn't handle the capacity crowd well. She felt crowded.

For example; In the last night of the cruise we had some very choppy waters and my wife and 2 girls did not feel well and went to bed w/o eating dinner. Not wanting to go to the MDR by myself, I decided to go up to the Garden Cafe for dinner. She was empty. The action stations worked well and I had a pretty decent dinner.

Now probably all ships' buffets worked well when not crowded but I felt that other ships that I have cruised on worked better-felt less crowded when the ship was full.

Again, please understand that we enjoyed cruising on the Gem very much.

These were just my observations that i wanted to pass onto others who wish to gain a better understanding of one passenger's experience aboard her.

Steve

[prg2101]

Yes, I did mean the "Garden Cafe"

As for when I book cruises.... yes -all of our 8 cruises on 4 different cruise lines were during holidays or summer. We expect these cruises to sail @ full capacity and as far as I know they all did. BTW, soon my wife and I will be able to cruise during off -season as the girls are now 19 and 17- yeah!!!

I just felt that the Gem didn't handle the capacity crowd well. She felt crowded.

For example; In the last night of the cruise we had some very choppy waters and my wife and 2 girls did not feel well and went to bed w/o eating dinner. Not wanting to go to the MDR by myself, I decided to go up to the Garden Cafe for dinner. She was empty. The action stations worked well and I had a pretty decent dinner.

Now probably all ships' buffets worked well when not crowded but I felt that other ships that I have cruised on worked better-felt less crowded when the ship was full.

Again, please understand that we enjoyed cruising on the Gem very much.

These were just my observations that i wanted to pass onto others who wish to gain a better understanding of one passenger's experience aboard her.

Steve

 

I definetly understand that u enjoyed the Gem, we just felt that the "buffet" setup on the newer NCL ships were laid out better than 2 other lines that we have sailed since the Gem....RCCL and Princess both had REALLY crazy setups that were just a cluster to get used to....Good piece of info that you passed on though......its what this site is here for my friend...;)

[hat776]

As we live in the Med, lazing by the pool seems a waste of time for us. Plus we never cruise in school holidays.

However, it always amazes me how NCL doesn't forsee that with 3000 pax in peak Summer months those pools won't be able to cope.

I suppose they reasoned that since the problem only arises during July/August they would save on space.

It's the same for the Atrium - it is adequate but does not have the WOW factor.

I've only been on the Gem so can't comment on other ships.

[TrikeRider]

Nice review! I was on the Gem this past April and noticed some of the same issues. I stayed with the specialty restaurants and I did enjoy them.

[steviek49]

Nice review! I was on the Gem this past April and noticed some of the same issues. I stayed with the specialty restaurants and I did enjoy them.

 

The specialty restaurants on my 8/23 cruise were not very crowded at all. I made a point of checking on many of them and most of the time they appeared less than 1/2 capacity. We ate in le Bistro at 8pm on day 3 and the place was'nt nearly full.

Now I understand that about 70 percent of the pax were european and that the norm is to eat much later. But I did check later in the evening and although the Magenta and Grand Pacific looked very busy, the specialty restaurants did not.

I read this on CC before I left for Barcelona and asked if there were any 2 for 1 specials since they were not crowded. But I was informed none were offered. I also heard because they were not being used that crewmembers were seen going about the ship asking people to to try them. I also noticed that happening.

 

As for the pools, I really don't understand this. NCL and other cruise lines are aware that these areas are high usage areas. There should be more space for pools on new ships. If not, it's because they probably feel the space doesn't generate enough money. If that's what they think -I disagree. For one thing people do drink at the pool area. In addition it can affect the whole cruise experience and some people may opt to use their money in other vacation places that satisfy their desires.

I do know that when I book my land vacations in warm climate area, I will choose hotels/resorts that meet my water needs.

 

Thanks for your comments.

[steviek49]

I definetly understand that u enjoyed the Gem, we just felt that the "buffet" setup on the newer NCL ships were laid out better than 2 other lines that we have sailed since the Gem....RCCL and Princess both had REALLY crazy setups that were just a cluster to get used to....Good piece of info that you passed on though......its what this site is here for my friend...;)

 

 

I agree. When not filled to capacity I can see that the action stations can work better than some other cruise lines.

[Wasasalad]

Your ports sound just great! What cruise were you on? What ports did you go to?

Thank you

 

Hello Everyone,

 

Just returned back home in NY from our 11 night European vacation including the 7 night Gem cruise.

We are a family of 4 (53,50,19 and 17) and this is our 4th NCL cruise (Crown,Dawn and Spirit)

We have also cruised with Princess, Carnival and HAL and have enjoyed them all. Gem was no exception.

We flew American Airlines non-stop from JFK to BCN. Flight was uneventful and on-time and we arrived at about 8:30 am on Friday. We went easily thru customs and took a taxi from airport to the Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona. If you don't have to be right in all the action, I would highly recommend this hotel. HOHO Bus, metro very close but we chose to use Taxi service. We booked two rooms and one was ready immediately and the other was ready at 2pm. By the way, this hotel is rated 5 stars by Expedia, Travelocity and Orbitz (I'd rate it 4 stars due to it's lack of a concierge and slow elevators) and we were able to score a great price of approx. 95 Euros per night per room including Hiltons magnificent Breakfast which costs regularly 24 Euros per person. Hilton ran a great January special and we paid in advance for it.

The hotel also has a nice pool deck with food, bar, loungers, massages ect. This hotel was also approximately 200 yards from the beach. After some intense sightseeing we used both the beach and pool.

After 2 full days in Barcelona (we booked Gaudi Bus tour, toured Picasso Museum and La rambla on our own) we woke up on Sunday morning, ate our Hilton Breakfast and took a Taxi to the port. We arrived at the port at approx. 1:30 and was on board Gem at 2:05 pm.

We booked 2 connecting balcony cabins (9524 and 9526-forward). Nice rooms and Jerry was an outstanding cabin steward. Unfortunately, we were told by a crew member that the dining room was closed for lunch (it was not) so we went to the Grand Buffet on deck 12.

The Grand Buffet was one of the disappointments of this cruise. This cruise had alittle over 3000 passengers (alittle over 700 Americans) and the Grand Buffet was a "ZOO" IMHO throughout most of the cruise. I've read on CC that this Buffet had action stations and crewmambers to carry your tray to a table but to be honest it might as well have been a regular buffet because it was mobbed and very difficult to find a table anywhere near the buffet area. In addition I could not find anyone to help any of us carry our plates of food to tables.

Anyway we found some tables in the back of the ship ate and then found some loungers on deck 13 overlooking the pools. The cushioned loungers around the pool were all taken. We joined in the Bon Voyage Party (wife won a spa facial and girls won some raffle tickets) and had a great time.

We ate our first dinner at the Magenta MDR. We ate at 7:30pm, there was no wait for a table for 4 but since we requested a window table we waited 3-5 minutes. We have very good food and service overall but the coffee came a good 10 minutes after dessert was served.

Next we went to the show. The show room was beautiful with great sight lines throughout.

The act was a gentleman who played many instruments. He was talented but we became bored and left early. We retired to our cabins to catch up on some sleep.

Day 2- At sea. We slept very late and missed breakfast. We went upstairs to deck 12 to find some loungers but at 11;30 had no chance by the pool. But we did find the great day beds in the front of the ship on the sundeck on deck 13. We used this spot for the remainder of the cruise. It was delightful, quiet and out of the way. When we got too hot we had the choice of a big freshwater shower on deck 13 or walk down the stairs to the pool and take a quick dip.

Note: Our second disappointment with the Gem was the pool deck. With over 700 kids on board, the children basically filled one of the pools (with the yellow slide), and filled the hottubs. This left the adult pool for the rest of us. This pool was not big. It was probably not much bigger than 18 by 40 with a surrounding wet area. This is simply not big enough for 2000+ adults. IMHO there should be at least one more pool on this class ship.

Anyway we lounged throughout the day and had a nice day. We ate dinner at the Grand Pacific Dining Room @ about 8pm. Once again good food, good to very good service but once again coffee was served too late to have with dessert.

Off to the show which was much better this night. It was a prodection called "COLORS". We enjoyed it!

Day 3 -Malta We woke up early to see the beautiful arrival into port of Malta. We got off the ship after a quick breakfast in MDR and without planning took a Horse and Buggy ride around Malta. It was nice and we stopped at a few places and took photos. We returned to the ship at about 2pm, ate lunch at Grand Buffet (again mobbed) and went back to our daybeds to rest and relax.

Since this cruise was celebrating our 25th anniversary- we chose to eat at Le Bistro. We brought with us a bottle of wine (Hilton gave to us for our 25th). We have a Great meal with Great service and they served our wine to us (although they charged us a $15 corkage fee). I felt that this restaurant was well worth the $15pp charge due to the atmospher and superior service evidenced by extra attention as well as dessert served with coffee.

Then off to the show which was great! Second City!!!

We returned to our cabins to get ready for the 3 Italian Ports. We had booked on-line "Sorrentolimo" and had a driver waiting for us to take us wherever we wanted. This saved us hundreds of dollars per port as compared with comparable tours by NCL.

We woke up early and went to the Grand pacific MDR for breakfast at approx. 7:20. This was the worst service we ever had on any ship. It took 10-15 minutes to get our juice, even longer for coffee and by 8am I left w/o eating. My wife and girls remained behind and waited for their meal. When the order finally arrived, all together wrong- they walked out as well. However as they walked out the Maitre D (Sanja) asked if everything was well- my wife told her of our experience. She was very apologetic and begged us to have dinner at the Grand Pacific that evening and ask for her.

Day 4-Our driver was waiting for us as soon as we departed the ship and proceeded to a beautiful drive past Naples along the Almafi coast. Then to Sorrento-there we shopped and then had a wonderful meal overlooking the Med. Then on to Positano. Finally we went to the ruins of Pompei and met with a licensed tour guide. It was a GREAT day.

We returned to the ship and decided to give Sanja a try and went to the Grand Pacific for dinner. I must say- she made a big difference. Food was again good but service was impeccable! She came to check on us several times and begged us to continue to dine in her MDR each dinner. We did and we were glad we did. Best Service we ever had on a cruise ship from that night on.

Day 5- A Day in Rome. Once again Driver was waiting for us as we walked off ship. We spent the entire day in Rome. We arrived By 10 am and met our licensed guide who took us on a 3 hour tour through Vatican. Vacitan Museum, Sistine Chapel, Saint Peter's Church ect.

WOW!!! After that tour the driver took us to stops at Trevoli Fountain, Spanish Stairs(steps), the Colleseum, and a surprise visit to the Malta, Egypt and US embassies. Driver even arranged to have my 2 daughters picture taken with the soldiers guarding the embassies.

Dinner was great, as previously mentioned.

Show, I believe was a magician. Was not impressed.

Returned to our cabin to get ready for next day's 3rd Italian port.

Day 6= Pisa/Florence. Driver once again met us at the port. We first drove about 25 minutes to Pisa. Since it was early it was not yet crowded and we took some great photos in front of the Leaning Tower. Then off to Florence -it took about an hour and 15 minutes. Florence was beautiful and we spent hours shopping. We also made a reservation to the Gallery of Academia to see the real "DAVID". Much Bigger than I imagined and well worth the price of admission (14 Euros pp) Like Sorrento and Rome , the driver picked out a wonderful Italian Restaurant for Lunch.

Another great dinner at Grand Pacific.

Did not see the show that evening.

Day 7= Cannes, France. At this port we needed to be tendered into port. The tenders were big but they made sure that not one seat went unused. That, combined with no airconditioning made for a "not so great "tender into Cannes. But once we arrived Cannes was magnificent!!!!5 Star hotels everywhere, each with it's own private beach. We found a public beach, spread out our towels and enjoyed a wonderful beach day in Cannes. Would love to return here, alone with my wife, in the near future.

Took the tender back to the ship at 1:30pm. Ate lunch at Grand Buffet (again mobbed), and found our daybeds. I must say-the trip back to Barcelona, was very choppy and my wife and girls were both under the wetaher despite taking dramimine(spell?). We skipped dinner and went to bed early.

My 3rd and last disappointment with the Gem was the atrium. Unlike the Dawn, it was much more modest with only 2 levels and lacked the wonderful ambience of the Dawn. It was somewhat crowded and although there was a piano player- the mood was missing due to alot of noise/action/talking and kids rolling around near ther piano player. I remember the atrium lobby of the Dawn being beautiful with a suspended piano player, quiet and elegant atmosphere.

WE returned to Barcelona on time and disembarkation was fast and easy. We got off at about 9:15 and had about a half hour wait for a taxi. Our taxi took us to our next hotel (Hotel Rekord). We checked into this lovely boutique hotel at about 10:30am and spent the day catching up on the "free internet" and going back to La Rambla. We did some shopping, had dinner at an outdoor cafe near the port. Returned to the hotel . The following day

we had included breakfast at the Hotel Rekord (great service at this hotel) and took a cab to the airport back to JFK.

 

In sum... We had a wonderful European Vacation! Hilton and Hotel Rekord were 2 good hotel choices but remember they were about a 10 minute (10 Euros each way) ride from the La Rambla area.

The Gem was a pretty ship. She looked brand new, was very clean. had good food and good service. I can't help but think that the service would have been spotty had it not been for Sanja! But I will say that Service was great once she helped us. Cabin Steward was GREAT!!

Ship was easy to navigate since most places were on either deck 7 or deck 12.

We had a difficult time deciding between Gem and Voyager of the Seas and ultimately picked Gem because of her significantly lower price. We still want to try RCI but we were glad we chose Gem. The money saved was used to hire our Private tour Guides and drivers.

Our only 3 disappointments were;

Gem seemed crowded. She didnot hold the 3000+ passengers well. I feel she definately needs another pool and the Grand Buffet needs to be expanded to accomodate a full ship.

Too bad they took out the bigger Atrium- it may have felt less crowded had the atrium been left like the Dawn class ships.

But these were my only complaints. We had a wonderful cruise with wonderful ports of calls in comfotable and relatively reasonably priced connecting balcony cabins.

I recommend this cruise!

If anyone would like to ask questions, I will try my best to answer.

[njhorseman]

Your ports sound just great! What cruise were you on? What ports did you go to?

Thank you

 

 

Did you read the review? It is a review of the Norwegian Gem and all the ports are discussed.

 

:confused:

[prg2101]

Did you read the review? It is a review of the Norwegian Gem and all the ports are discussed.

 

:confused:

 

 

LOL.....I was thinkin the same thing horseman.....:eek::cool::D

[steviek49]

LOL.....I was thinkin the same thing horseman.....:eek::cool::D

 

I thought I covered it with the title too.

[franncos]

I am going to be taking the Gem out of NYC in February. I was wondering if the Gem has a dome because in Feb it will be difficult to go into the pool in Feb. Any info would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

[prg2101]

I am going to be taking the Gem out of NYC in February. I was wondering if the Gem has a dome because in Feb it will be difficult to go into the pool in Feb. Any info would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

 

 

You mean a dome over the pool, then no.........I went in the pool in

January so its not that bad...NCL has heated pools.........welcome!!!!