Just off the Gem (4/9-4/16 to Florida & Bahamas) REVIEW

[myra711]

Leaving on Gem in 3 weeks. More than a little nervous after so many less than rave reviews about the food and service. This will be our 26th cruise... 2nd on NCL. We can have a great time pretty much under any conditions but we will have DH parents with us.:eek: They are accustomed to excellent food and service on the other lines they have been on. Will let you know how we make out. It is the first Bermuda trip for Gem.

 

Smilz - my experience was not the same as the OP's . I wrote a review yesterday under something like "A few thoughts from a first time cruiser" if you want to check it out. Food was mostly fine to very good, with a few clunkers. Service was similarly acceptable to very good. The staff who were the entertainment coordinators (what are they called?) were really fun and very nice. Senior cruise staff were omnipresent. I do know that the ship had a lot of kids - I heard that there were over 3000 pax - but they weren't where I went, for the most part. LOL! I'm thinking I spent a fair amount of time in the casino and spa! But I was also all over the ship - kids were there, but not bothersome to me. Maybe I got lucky.

 

Anyway, hope your experience is a good one.

[shepherdqueen]

WOW - They handled my allergy (which is to alcohol and I can't eat the sauces, etc.) the same way but they had my food prepared and accessible. The way they handled your GF allergy (not having what you needed available) was the worst I have read on these boards. :( I am sorry they didn't handle it better.

[strype2]

Is it true they charge to use the spa facilities? Hot tub, equipment, etc..???:eek:

[JohnGaltny]

Thanks for the balanced perspective.

 

We're on the Gem in 10 days for our first NCL. We enjoy, or at least make fun of, pretty much anything so I'm curious to see what happens

[ussenterprise]

Thanks for the review. I was on the Gem March 26/April 2 and I like to get other perspectives. We also had the same situation regarding kids running wild. We found the service to be better in Magenta than in Grand Pacific and the food in La Cucina to be as you described. You have the right "cruising attitude" IMO. It is what you make of it.

 

Had a great time overall tho and will consider NCL for future cruises.

[atlast95]

Welcome back! Sorry the food was a disappointment! I wondered if you saw any of the production shows?:cool: Also what room were you in, as I always take the outside deck 8, obstructed rooms, but near to the atrium! thanks:):):)

 

I am very interested in your opinion of the deck 8 obstructed view cabins. I have heard that they can be noisy since maintenance is done on the life boats at night and light shining into your room can be annoying.

[odessy]

We also had the obstructed view room, and it was fine for us, But I noticed you had Christina as your room steward, did you have Sudesh as well? They were fantastic.

[RedSox5]

We also had the obstructed view room, and it was fine for us, But I noticed you had Christina as your room steward, did you have Sudesh as well? They were fantastic.

 

No, we didn't see anyone named Sudesh.

[RedSox5]

Update on my account:

 

Had a $134 charge show up on my credit card statement today. Called Norwegian and was told that "the girl at the desk on board must have made a mistake when she told you your account was all settled." :eek::mad: I know that is not true because we checked our balance each day on our TV screen, and would go put say $100 towards our account, keep track of how much we spent, and then when we had spent almost $100, go put more cash. In other words, we watched our account very closely each day and kept very good track of it.

 

I'm just not sure what to do now. I went from being out $14 to being out an additional $134 :confused: Needless to say, after all of these problems with the billing, this was probably our last cruise on Norwegian.

[Leosmom]

Thanks for your balanced review. Sorry to hear about your food allergy problems. I am thinking of booking on the Gem....but not sure now!

Was your credit card problem resolved?:confused: Hopefully it was finally corrected.

[peg013]

Update on my account:

 

Had a $134 charge show up on my credit card statement today. Called Norwegian and was told that "the girl at the desk on board must have made a mistake when she told you your account was all settled." :eek::mad: I know that is not true because we checked our balance each day on our TV screen, and would go put say $100 towards our account, keep track of how much we spent, and then when we had spent almost $100, go put more cash. In other words, we watched our account very closely each day and kept very good track of it.

 

I'm just not sure what to do now. I went from being out $14 to being out an additional $134 :confused: Needless to say, after all of these problems with the billing, this was probably our last cruise on Norwegian.

 

Did you ask NCL for an itemized list of all charges on your bill? Didn't you get one on board around 2-4 AM on the last morning? You need that list to check against all your saved receipts/deposit slips to see where the mistake was made, if one was made.

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review.

 

Kirk

[cynbar]

Update on my account:

 

Had a $134 charge show up on my credit card statement today. Called Norwegian and was told that "the girl at the desk on board must have made a mistake when she told you your account was all settled." :eek::mad: I know that is not true because we checked our balance each day on our TV screen, and would go put say $100 towards our account, keep track of how much we spent, and then when we had spent almost $100, go put more cash. In other words, we watched our account very closely each day and kept very good track of it.

 

I'm just not sure what to do now. I went from being out $14 to being out an additional $134 :confused: Needless to say, after all of these problems with the billing, this was probably our last cruise on Norwegian.

 

OP ---- If NCL doesn't resolve this quickly, don't forget you can dispute the charge with your credit card company. We have had to do this a couple of times (not with NCL, however) and each time it was amazing how quickly the merchant rectified the mistake!

 

By the way, thanks for your review. We have sailed the Gem twice, and both times felt the quality of their food was not up to other lines we cruise. It's a shame because overall we really liked the NCL product, especially as our cruises were in Europe where the freestyle and casual aspect was welcomed after LONG port days.

[newmexicoNita]

I'm going to try to keep this somewhat organized. Just got off the Gem this morning and want to get a review written while everything is still fresh in my head.

 

Let me start by saying that it should go without saying, but the following review is obviously our opinions ("our" being myself and my boyfriend- 26 and 27 years old). We are very easy-going, "who cares, we're on vacation" type of people and truly had a great time on our trip. We firmly believe that if people have a BAD time on vacation, then they're doing something wrong!

 

A little background info.- this was my 9th cruise (details are in my signature), his 3rd. Neither of us had been on Norwegian before.

 

This was a 7-day cruise from New York City to Port Canaveral Florida, Great Stirrup Cay, and Nassau.

 

Saturday:

We arrived at the pier at about 10:30 and only waited about 10 minutes or so in line. After we went through the line and were all checked in, they told us that boarding would begin around 12:00. We walked over to the sitting area and sat down. A gentleman that worked for the pier came over and was very animated and was almost yelling he was so agitated. He told us we couldn't sit there (it was seating like you'd find at an airport, and we had left about 5 empty chairs between ourselves and the family nearest us) and asked us to follow him. He brought us over to where others were sitting further down, and had us sit in the only 2 empty seats between 2 different groups/families. He said that we were not allowed to leave any empty seats. We were a little suprised by how animated he was and did hear (and somewhat agree) with other guests that we were near that this particular gentlemen acted like he was herding cattle. At about 12:15, our number was called and we were on the ship in no time. Overall, embarkation was smooth and relatively quick. The particular gentleman we encountered didn't give the best first impression, but it wasn't the end of the world.

 

Once on board we explored the ship and got some lunch at the buffet. It was crowded (as expected) but we liked the layout of the buffet and didn't find it as congested as some other ships we had been on. We headed to the back of the ship and ate outside at the Garden Cafe. Overall, we really thought the buffet food was good- 5 star restaurant good? No. But do we expect that at the buffet? No. Compared to some other cruise buffets, it was very good.

 

Dinner that night was in the Grand Pacific dining room and it was terrible. My boyfriend got steak and it looked (and tasted according to him) like something you'd get from the school cafeteria. I have a gluten allergy and wasn't thrilled with the way it was handled. I won't go into details here because I know that so few people have food allergies, but if anyone has specific questions, I'd be happy to talk about it further.

 

Sunday

We spent the day hanging around the ship as it was a sea day. There were plenty of activities scheduled, and we went to "Name That Tune" which was just fine. It was sunny, but too cool to really enjoy the pool deck. Overall, it was a relaxing day. We ate breakfast in the Grand Pacific and it was pretty good. We enjoyed Lunch at the buffet, and had made a reservation for Cagney's for dinner.

 

We went to the martini tasting in the afternoon and thought it was great. It was $15 a person but it was fun and the drinks were STRONG!

 

Cagney's was terrible. I had such high hopes for it, but we both were very disappointed in the food and the service. We sat at our table for over 20 minutes before anyone even came over to say hello, take a drink order, etc. Finally, the waitress came over and explained that she had a really big section to wait on that night and was really behind. Obviously, we had no where to be, but it was frustrating to sit and wait and be ignored for so long. Eventually we ordered, and were served and the food was just ok at best. The food was edible, but certainly not any better than going to a mediocre steakhouse at home- I've had better steaks at Outback Steakhouse and Ruby Tuesdays.:( We bother ordered Filets- he had the Cagney's fries which were good, and I had a baked potato which was served totally plain and lukewarm at best. By the time I asked for butter, the potato was cold. Throughout the week, we had talked to other families here and there that were also disappointed in Cagney's. We also talked to a woman on our last night on board that was on her 43rd Norwegian cruise and had never experienced such bad service or food quality.

 

Monday

We did the Disney World excursion in Port Canaveral and it was great- very, very well run and we had a great time. We felt the excursion was worth every penny. Breakfast was at the buffet and for dinner we had made reservations at Tepenyaki (I'm sure I spelled that wrong :p)- the Hibachi restaurant. It was good and the waitstaff was much better about handling my food allergies than we had previously encountered. Again, we would say the food was "good", and not great- we've had significantly better hibachi here at home. The Hibachi cook was great- very entertaining and kept us laughing. The only issue that night was with a family that chose to arrive to Hibachi practically one-by-one whenever they felt like it. They request that your party arrives right on time so that the 'show' (the hibachi cooking) can start on time out of consideration for your other guests. This other family (a group of 14 that literally came in in probably 5 or 6 different waves... all at least 20 minutes late), was SO inconsiderate, and quite frankly behaved like animals.

 

I might have the day wrong, but there was a comedian named Bud Anderson that was funny. His show was borderline "adult" and enjoyable. Other than this, we didn't go to any of the shows- not on purpose, we just didn't happen to make it to any.

 

As a side note: Throughout the week we ran into some of the most rude, inconsiderate people we've ever run into on a cruise. Of course, in any large group there are always going to be "those people" but this seemed like the majority. Additionally, I have never seen so many kids running freely throughout the ship. I knew that because it was right around April vacation week, this was a definite possibility. I am a middle school administrator so I certainly don't mind kids. Also, I feel like I have a pretty good handle on "typical" kid behavior and was shocked at the sheet number of kids whose parents allowed the week to be a free-for-all. A few examples: a group of kids (probably 7 or 8) sliding down the railings of the stairs and right into an elderly woman- luckily another guest that didn't even know her literally caught her to prevent her from falling to the ground. The kids laughed hysterically- no parents in sigh- and took off running. Another time, a group of middle school aged kids were sitting outside at the Garden Cafe. A waiter was cleaning the tables, putting all of the dirty dishes onto a tray. The kids proceeded to throw whatever was on their plate- grapes, pieces of bread, and even ketchup at the waiter trying to get the food into cups (as if they were playing basketball) he had balancing on his tray. Again, no parents in sight. A final example, after the Crew Talent show on Friday, we watched 2 girls- about 10 years old- that didn't want to wait in the crowd and the theater emptied up the aisles once the show was over. Instead, they proceeded to step up on the seat part of each chair, and step over the back and onto the next seat and so on so that they could beat the crowd. That's all I'll say about this, as I know kids and behavior are a topic that are heavily discussed on here. I'm not suggesting that this behavior was in any way Norwegian's fault, nor am I suggesting that they could have/should have done anything about it. Just pointing out that it was certainly the worst I've seen- and 8 of my 9 cruises were at times when many schools were on vacation- either April or over the summer.

 

Tuesday:

We had breakfast in the buffet after going up to get our tender tickets for the tender to Great Stirrup Cay. We picked up our tickets at about 8:45 (ticket pick up started at 7:30) and were given number 18. They started calling groups (beginning with 1 and 2) at about 10:00. However, there was about 20 minutes between groups so we didn't get off the ship until about 12:15. We weren't real thrilled with the wait. I'm not sure how exactly to solve the problem (maybe arrive to the island sooner so that even the later groups have enough time on shore?), but sitting around for over 2 hours waiting to get off the ship wasn't enjoyable. The island itself was great- we walked as far as we could away from the crowd and found a group of chairs. They are doing construction on the island so there was equipment and construction workers, but it was a great day- beautiful weather and beautiful island. We ate lunch at the barbeque on the island which was good.

 

Dinner was at the Mexican restaurant and it was probably our favorite. I would say that it was the only restaurant that was worth the additional charge. We both had fajitas which were great, and we also had a nachos appetizer and the waiter brought over margarita samples.

 

Wednesday:

We ate breakfast at the buffet and got off the ship and walked around Nassau and did some shopping. Ate lunch back on the ship at the Blue Lagoon which was ok (kind of like diner food). Got back off the ship and went to Senor Frog's and had a GREAT time... I had been there before, and really enjoyed going back.

 

Dinner was at the Italian restaurant, La Cucina. Again, it was ok. We thought it compared to Olive Garden- so, in our opinion, not worth the extra fee. Our waitress was awesome and really made it fun, but the food really was just ok.

 

Thursday:

Breakfast and lunch at the buffet. It was sunny and beautiful and we were out by the pool most of the day. The band was good and we had a relaxing day.

 

After dinner we went to the Newlywed, Not-so-newlywed game. It was good- typical cruise Newlywed game... always good for a laugh.

 

Friday:

Breakfast at the buffet, and lunch in the Grand Pacific. Lunch was great- kind of more along the lines of what we had been expecting all week. In the afternoon we went to the Crew Talent show and it was wonderful... very entertaining. The "Fountains" act was our favorite.

 

It was sunny, but very windy and way too cool to hand out by the pool so we just relaxed inside for the day. We made reservations one last time at Tepanyaki and it wasn't nearly as good as the first time. Again, we had the pleasure of eating with a SCREAMING baby (about 1 years old) at 10:00pm. Again, the parents did nothing as the baby screamed and the other 2 kids (probably 8 years old) threw their knives at each other, banged on the windows, spilled a glass of water, and stood up on their chairs for no apparent reason. After dinner we went to the farewell show and saw George Solomon (singer) who had performed earlier in the week but we hadn't gone to that show. He was good- great voice and wonderful entertainer. Bud Anderson (comedian) performed again- not as funny as he was the first night, but still good. It was a family show, so that could have been why.

 

Saturday:

We did the "express walk-off" and were off the ship and in a taxi to the train station by 8:30. Very smooth. No complaints.

 

Other info:

Our cabin was an inside cabin on deck 8 and would never make the mistake of being above the night club again. It was our own fault for choosing the room, but the music was SO loud until 2am or later every night- we didn't sleep well all week. Again though, our own fault- lesson learned.

 

Christina was our cabin steward- she was wonderful.

 

Cruise Director: Jill (just ok- I've seen better)

Assistant: Megan (ditto)

 

Overall, we felt that the quality of the food and service was seriously lacking. In all restaurants- specialty and the main dining room- we felt that something was missing- the staff seemed very robotic and not genuine at all. Perhaps this is a result of no one actually working to EARN gratuity anymore? :confused: As I mentioned earlier, the couple we talked to said that the service and quality was the worst they've seen in dozens of Norwegian cruises. Another couple we talked to had been on 4 other Norwegian cruises and agreed. They too mentioned that they weren't thrilled at the Italian Restaurant and were so disappointed by Cagney's that they complained to the front desk and were given an on board credit of $20. For the amount of extra money we spent on specialty dining (upwards of $200) we do not feel AT ALL like it was worth it.

 

Would we sail Norwegian again? Yes, if it was an ideal itinerary. Would we pay for a specialty restaurant again? Nope. We prefer Royal Carribbean or Celebrity, but also are not totally opposed to trying Norwegian again- just real hesitant.

 

Overall, the ship was in great shape- very clean and well maintained. In terms of the ship itself, it was one of my favorites- liked the layout, and some of the extra features- VERY comfortable, very unique chairs on the promenade deck, we liked the assortment of furniture in Bliss and in the Spinnaker lounge, the lawn furniture by the pool, and appreciated the 'different' vibe the ship had. Thought that our cabin was the nicest we've had (always just do a regular inside room)- the sliding door on the shower was a nice feature.

 

As I had read on these boards before we left, we did feel "nickle and dimed" on Norwegian. Things we had done on other ships in the past that were free, were not free on Norwegian (a behind the scenes tour of the ship, for example).

 

I'm sure I'm leaving stuff out, so if you have questions, please ask!:)

 

from your nickel and diming comments I am guessing you haven't cruised for awhile. Many lines are adding more and more pay extra stuff that used to be free.

 

Nita

[JohnGaltny]

Would we sail Norwegian again? Yes, if it was an ideal itinerary. Would we pay for a specialty restaurant again? Nope. We prefer Royal Carribbean (not Celebrity though), but also are not totally opposed to trying Norwegian again- just real hesitant.

 

I did a review several weeks ago on this same itinerary and we come to the exact same conclusion.

[barbienj]

We also had the obstructed view room, and it was fine for us, But I noticed you had Christina as your room steward, did you have Sudesh as well? They were fantastic.

 

 

Sudesh was our room steward on the 6/5 sailing. He was FANTASTIC!

 

THe food on our sailing was just ok. The service in the main dining room was terrible. Same things the OP posted. I ordered a steak med. well and it was like a hockey puck and lukewarm. No sour cream or butter with the baked potato. Not being acknowledged for 10-15 minutes after being seated. Not being asked if we would like coffee or tea with dessert.

[DCT61]

Not necessarily talking about the OP, because he/she isnt the first to make the statement... but Im amazed when reading these reviews, how many times I read of people readily accept charges for activities on other cruiselines, but consider the same charges "nickel and diming" on NCL.

[Hockey19]

I am just of the Jewel which does the identical itinerary. I'm sorry to hear how things went. I must say I'm a bit confused as many of the issues you mention do not jibe with some standard practices, especially the bill. NCL places an itemized final bill on your cabin mail slot on the last night. You also can have one printed whenever at the purser/reception desk. Unless you charged something way late at night, your door bill should have been accurate. Not sure why nothing would not have been received by you or presented. You are an experienced cruiser on very nice lines and I would think these things would run true on others as well. I cannot deny your stated experience but your tender experience also seems odd. On the Jewel (which i believe is a sister ship to the Gem) two tenders (stored on site) ran to Great Stirrup. Each tender holds up to 400 passengers but they usually fill them at about 275-300. There are 2800 max passengers. At 550-600 per trip, you should get to tender 8 or 9 full tenders (4 trips) before all should have been off if desired. I can see a number like 18 since they do stagger the tickets but 12:15 it seems like a strange one off for a 8:45 ticket pick up.

Regarding the specialty restaurant (and any other issue), NCL is very active in making it's ship officers available by phone. Their numbers are posted on TV are always available by asking. They roam the ship constantly. NCL's ability to let it's leaders address any concern (small or large) during your voyage cannot occur unless you request it during the cruise.

I certainly feel badly that your trip went poorly. No one wants to have a bd cruise experience. My only recommendation for the future is to let the ships officers (if general staff fails you) to try and fix your problem right there and then. The boards are always available to hear your story but the ending may have been better if an opportunity to resolve the problem was given to NCL's leaders when it was happening.