Greek Isles- NCL Jade 7/13/2012 review

[dutchess43]

This has to be the most beautifully written review I have ever read. Love the pics they were magnificent. My question to you is what camera did you use?

[ge1shh]

Hi, I have only just seen your review. We have just returned from the back to back Venice/Turkey/Greek Islands cruise, and I'll be putting a short review on myself when I get around to it.

 

I was impressed by your photographs and until I just saw this part of the thread, I was going to ask you what camera you had, and I wondered it was a Panasonic Lumix. Seems I was right, even to the exact model. I had this camera last year, but gave it to my son in a fit of generosity as he desperately needed a new camera. I was persuaded in the photography shop to buy a Sony Cybershot instead, for better features and video-ing. Despite the latter camera having excellent reviews, I have been disappointed with it, and I decided I couldn't do without my panasonic lumix. I recently managed to get hold of one secondhand, and took both cameras onto the recent cruise. So I've been using both, and comparing. And I can see that the Lumix makes everything much brighter, and evens out the shadows which can sometimes conceal the detail. I do prefer it for the majority of photos, and I could recognise that quality in your photos.

 

We had a great cruise, and agree that Santorini was the highlight.

[tiggerman101]

This has to be the most beautifully written review I have ever read. Love the pics they were magnificent. My question to you is what camera did you use?

 

See below

 

Hi, I have only just seen your review. We have just returned from the back to back Venice/Turkey/Greek Islands cruise, and I'll be putting a short review on myself when I get around to it.

 

I was impressed by your photographs and until I just saw this part of the thread, I was going to ask you what camera you had, and I wondered it was a Panasonic Lumix. Seems I was right, even to the exact model. I had this camera last year, but gave it to my son in a fit of generosity as he desperately needed a new camera. I was persuaded in the photography shop to buy a Sony Cybershot instead, for better features and video-ing. Despite the latter camera having excellent reviews, I have been disappointed with it, and I decided I couldn't do without my panasonic lumix. I recently managed to get hold of one secondhand, and took both cameras onto the recent cruise. So I've been using both, and comparing. And I can see that the Lumix makes everything much brighter, and evens out the shadows which can sometimes conceal the detail. I do prefer it for the majority of photos, and I could recognise that quality in your photos.

 

We had a great cruise, and agree that Santorini was the highlight.

 

Yea, this is my third one. I can't say enough about them. They are just an awesome Point & Shoot camera. On top of that, they are very compact and can fit in any pocket. I just slide it into my front pocket and I am off. The features are nice, but I never even have to get too advanced with them. I usually just adjust the picture size from "4x3" to "16x9" depending on my needs. The night feature works well also. I confess that I have never even tried the video on it.

[SoundDawg]

Hey Dave! Just stumbled upon your review today and absolutely loved it! Maybe when Logan is quite a bit older we will be able to do this trip. It looked awesome and your story telling was great!

[lanceholt]

Your review was fantastic. We were on the Jade in mid May, back to back Adriatic and then Greek Islands with a few days in Venice before the cruise. You captured the spirit of the islands perfectly, I felt like we were reliving the cruise! We have been to a lot of places, but this cruise was the very best.

[OpalGem]

David,

Simply FABULOUS review!!! Thanks so much for sharing. This is one of my dream trips. Your pictures made me want to go now. Appreciate all the pictures and the attention to details for those of us still trying to get it togather to go further than the little slice of the world that we have covered so far.

CJ;)

[Carolina Daisy]

We have booked this very cruise for next July and can't wait. I will be studying your review for tips, very helpful! Thank you!

[tiggerman101]

We have booked this very cruise for next July and can't wait. I will be studying your review for tips, very helpful! Thank you!

 

Have fun. Let me know on here if you have any questions. It was a great trip.

 

Hey Dave! Just stumbled upon your review today and absolutely loved it! Maybe when Logan is quite a bit older we will be able to do this trip. It looked awesome and your story telling was great!

 

Hey Chris. Hope you guys are doing well. We enjoyed meeting you on the 9/11 cruise. Logan will be up and sailing on his own real soon....

[Snowrose]

Loved your review! Thanks so much for all the time and trouble you took. It was fantastic!

[sjn911]

A dream cruise of mine..absolutely wonderful detailed review and beautiful location and ship pictures..you really gave us all a huge treat and I sure had a nice evening reading here...thanks ever so much..some places i have been over 30 years ago others I have yet to do..you had a great trip and i always love your sharing on CC..thanks sooo much..Sarah

[montycjv]

What a wonderful review!! We are booked on the same cruise starting July 19,2013...and we're in the same aft balcony cabin. After reading your review, I checked with my travel agent and learned the same cabin was available so we moved from a standard balcony to the aft balcony.

Your wonderfully written review confirms that we made the right decision to sail on the Jade next summer.

Bravo!

[tiggerman101]

What a wonderful review!! We are booked on the same cruise starting July 19,2013...and we're in the same aft balcony cabin. After reading your review, I checked with my travel agent and learned the same cabin was available so we moved from a standard balcony to the aft balcony.

Your wonderfully written review confirms that we made the right decision to sail on the Jade next summer.

Bravo!

 

Thank you. It is a good cabin. The balcony is nice and very deep. I did find trash out there some, but it didn't really bother me. We are "Aft Junkies". I just love the views from back there. It is a great place to enjoy departures as the Jade doesn't have the best open viewing areas up top. Enjoy!

[Arkansas mema]

Well, tomorrow was Santorini and the port I was looking forward to the most. I was really excited. If anyone is actually reading this (seriously, anyone but the two that have commented? lol) then be prepared for a ton of pictures. Santorini did not disappoint. In fact, in over 50+ ports that I have been to, this one shot to the very top for me.

 

 

Are you serious? I didn't get past your review of Venice before deciding this has to be the next big cruise (after the Panama Canal on the Spirit in April)!!!

[Tinkers70]

Thank you so much for writing this review. I've thoroughly enjoyed reading about all the ports you visited.

 

I'm super excited now about booking a similar cruise for 2014 and it's all down to reading about your vacation

 

Thanks a million :D

[wnycruisefam66]

Thanks for taking the time to do this great review! We're cruising June 2014 with some of these same ports. I really appreciated seeing what you did in Mykonos. We're looking to do some sightseeing there, but also want to stop at a beach (kids really want to do that!). Thanks again!

[jdvmd]

Beautiful pictures!

[meltingmoments]

Ooo this review has come back onto the first page again!! :)

 

I love reading this review and the photos are amazing!! I'm already super excited about doing this cruise..........and now I'm reading this all over again!!

 

Thanks for taking the time to do it, it's much appreciated! :)

[didytak]

 

L<3VE this pic with the flag! :) (I'm in the middle of your review and will do my big thank you post at the end, lol! :D

[didytak]

Wow! Thanks for doing such a thorough review of both the ship and the ports! We just booked a very similar itinerary on the Jade for June! (Katakolon instead of Izmir for us.)

 

Your pictures are just amazing, and they made me VERY excited for all of these wonderful places!

 

I have to go back through and take specific notes - I'll be back if I have any questions (Thanks for answering the ones already asked as some were ones that I had as well :))

[linktobze]

Your welcome. I enjoy doing them, they just take a lot of time. I just like to take pictures. Everything was taken with a Panansonic Lumic DMC- DZ8. This is the second Lumix camera I have owned and I love them. They are just a great Point and Shoot camera and they fit perfectly in my front pocket.

Can't find PL DMC_DZ8...Was your camera PL DMC-FZ8?

[Harborside]

Thank you for your review. We just booked NCL Jade for Oct 2013 and I feel so much more informed and comfortable going now.

The "Greek Isles" have been on my bucket list for a long time. And a few days in Venice....icing on the cake! Thanks for your time and reviews......

We are a mid 60's couple and hubby is a photo freak so will show him all your great pics before we go and he can just copy them and I won't have to be as patient as your partner was!:) :)

[jsygrl]

Can't find PL DMC_DZ8...Was your camera PL DMC-FZ8?

 

You can't fit the DMC-FZ8 in your pocket, maybe he meant the DMC-ZS8?

[mauibound25]

My DH and DMIL will be taking the 7 day Greek Isles cruise sometime in spring or fall 2014 on the Jade. I was thrilled to see your review, and thank you so much for all of the great info and the fabulous pictures. I can't wait!:D

[modfanmike]

A couple things before I head into the actual cruise review.....We had previously been on the Jade last January for a 12 day Eastern Med cruise. The highlight of that trip was to be an overnight stop in Egypt. However, three days into the cruise the riots broke out. During the cruise, NCL kept us well informed of the situation and we knew we would have to take a few days to "wait and see" if we could dock in Alexandria. It became evident that there was no way we would be able to and NCL did an awesome job of giving us a suitable substitution. We ended up heading to Istanbul for TWO overnights in place of Egypt. I was very impressed with how NCL handled the whole thing and Istanbul was an amazing destination .I thought NCL did a great job trying to find us a suitable port in place of the overnight Egypt stop. They kept it all very organized and deciding to cruise on NCL again was easy.

 

Now the Jade does the Greek Isles and some Adriatic cruises in the summer. The Greek Isles cruise consists of Corfu, Santorini, Mykonos and Katakolon Greece on a seven day run. However, we did a "one shot" 8 day Greek Isles cruise that had an extra sea day and substituted Izmir, Turkey for Katakolon. My main port was Santorini. If any of you out there are as obsessed with looking up cruises like I am, then you have also been bombarded with images of blue domes and whitewashed buildings. I admit, they got to me and I just HAD to go there.

 

As I said, I had been eyeing this cruise since last year. I also watched the prices consistently drop after final payment. So I decided to take a little chance. I booked the lowest category Ocean View cabin just to get on the ship. I planned on watching the prices like a hawk and hoped to eventually move up to a balcony after final payment. Since you can not get a price adjustment after final payment, I decided to start low and just keep upgrading myself. This worked very well as the prices did indeed plummet in the weeks leading up to the cruise. I just kept calling and moving up. We eventually ended up in an Aft-Balcony for about a $1,000 less then we would have paid if I had originally booked it. When all was said and done, I could have moved to a mini-suite for no extra charge, but I am an "Aft Junky" and wanted the view. We ended up in cabin 10168 which has an extended balcony from the ones on lower decks:

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was a great cabin as the balcony alone was worth it. Of course, being aft, there were some soot problems and the foreign trash factor. It seems things would "fall" down from the outdoor eating table from above and land on our deck. I found straws, napkins, bacon, etc out there at times. I didn't care though, it was a great cabin.

 

Last time on the Jade we had a Penthouse Suite and we wondered if we would severely miss the "Suite Life". I has images of me with my face pressed against the glass during lunch at Cagney's begging someone to throw me a piece from the shrimp cocktail. Honestly, it wasn't a big deal to not have the perks this time. Sure they are awesome, but ultimately superfluous (we will do it again though!).

 

I was on the Jade 3 years ago in that cabin and the next to it and they would not put the loungers on the balcony for us. I'm glad that you had them.

[decemberpsyche]

Great, now you've done it! Hubby and I have a friend getting married in Venice in September, now I have to look and see what cruises are around there at that time.

Greece is my dream destination! Your pictures are breathtaking. So I'm going to go look at cruises now and then I'll come back and actually read your review instead of skimming it and drooling over the pictures.

 

Well since I forgot to hit post. There is one that leaves from Venice the day after the wedding. I think it's fate. Going on a Bahamas cruise in June will work on hubby then and maybe book one on board the ship.

Wish me luck.