Review - 9 night Eastern Caribbean on the Gem

[alg7334]

My husband and I recently did the 9 night Eastern Caribbean Cruise out of NY on the NCL Gem. This was our second time sailing on the Gem (3rd cruise with NCL, 2 cruises with other lines). We are both 29 years old and we traveled with 3 of our friends who are ages 26-29.

 

Getting There

 

We all live in Connecticut and really didn’t want to pay $400 to park for the 9 nights, so we opted to take the MegaBus for the first time. This really was an excellent option! We paid a total of $18 for two people round trip. We left on a Thursday at 8:15 a.m. (arrival time in NY 11:00 a.m.). We took a cab from our house to the MegaBus stop. Cab fare with tip was $20 for all 5 of us. There were only about 10 other people on the bus so there was plenty of room to grab our own seats. We all either watched TV shows on our phones or played games on the ride down. Easy, safe and CHEAP! The bus dropped off on 7th Ave & 28th St, which is about 2 miles from the pier. We didn’t want to walk it with our luggage so we grabbed a cab. Total for the cab to the pier with tip was $15.

 

Embarkation

 

Cab dropped us off right in front of where they collect your bags at the pier at about 11:30 a.m. We handed our bags off and proceeded into the terminal. There were several long lines through the whole embarkation process but everything moved fairly quickly.

 

Note: do not use the Latitudes Priority Check-In line if you are returning NCL guest. That line was much longer than the regular lines – I think because they only have 1 or 2 people working it where as the regular line has probably 15 people.

 

Have your passport and tickets out with you immediately upon entering the terminal to ensure that you and everyone else in line moves through quicker. There are a few stops during check-in. The first is to show your tickets & passports. The second is to put your carry on bags and everything in your pockets through the scanner. The third is to sign your health form and get your key card. The fourth is optional photo.

 

The total embarkation process took about 40 minutes from the time of drop off to the time we stepped foot on the boat. I know that sounds long, but it honestly felt more like 20 minutes. We were on the ship at about 12:15 p.m. and headed to lunch in the Grand Pacific (main dining room) while we waited for our rooms to be ready. Avoid the buffet on embarkation day!!

 

Bringing Wine On-Board

 

It was our first time opting to bring our own wine on board and we’re really glad that we did. Yes, it seems silly at first to pay an additional $15 for your own bottle of wine however after doing some math we saw the real value. The cheapest bottle of wine on board was $28 I believe and probably a brand that most people wouldn’t be crazy about. I am no wine snob – I personally like Barefoot, which is a $12 bottle. So $12 for the bottle + $15 for the fee, I’m still saving $1. Obviously if you like better wines than Barefoot, you save much more. Now say you were just going to buy 1 glass of wine with dinner each night at about $9 per glass, that’s $81 for the week times two people (my husband also likes wine with dinner), you’re now up to $162 just for wine with dinner. We brought 4 bottles of wine on for $60 – so immediately saved over $100.

 

Ok so the process – it was actually very easy and not inconvenient or a hassle at all! We packed our 4 bottles of wine in a wine carrier and put it in our backpack (which was used as one of our carry-ons). When we got up to the scanner where you put your luggage through I told the employee that we had wine with us. He pointed out the desk to bring it to after the scan, which was immediately after the scanners, but off to the side a bit. We went over, told the employee we had 4 bottles and showed him their necks vs unpacking the entire bag. He put a little white sticker on each one that said “corkage paid”, had us sign for the charges and gave us a receipt. Total process took about 2 additional minutes and we headed back into the line where you get your key card. Totally worth it in my opinion and we’ll definitely be doing it from now on.

 

Also I noticed this time that at each port, right when you came back in after the check in and scanner there was an employee standing there to do the corkage fee if you brought wine back with you during each port. So if you wanted to do this but were flying in or didn't have extra room in your carry on, you could always grab wine at ports and still be able to enjoy them during your cruise. Or if you run out the first few days and need a refill. ;)

 

** The rest of my cruise will be in no particular order but instead by categories so you don’t have to read everything to find what you are interested in **

 

Stateroom

 

We were in a mid-ship inside cabin on deck 5, category IE room # 5081. It was a sideways cabin, which we really enjoyed the layout. It was pretty much the same as a regular inside cabin except the bed faces forward instead of sideways and the closet is not directly across from the bathroom but instead opposite the bed, giving the room a bigger feel and making it easier for two people to get ready at the same time. The beds were very comfy and there are extra pillows in the closet. Closet was very roomy and there was also lots of draw and shelf space.

 

The location was also great. It was immediately around the corner from the staircase in the middle of the ship, right under Magenta, so convenient and close to everything. Major downfall here though that I did not think through when booking – if you are a light sleeper this room is NOT for you! We learned rather quickly that our room was immediately above the galley… above a swinging door that was constantly opening and closing with employees moving food to two dining rooms. There was a loud creek and squeak when the door was opening followed by a loud slam when it closed. 24 hours a day, every day for all 10 days. So needless to say I did not sleep much during this trip.

 

Inside rooms have a mini-fridge, hair dryer and safe. There was only one plug so I recommend bringing a power strip and extension cord. There was no coffee maker but as soon as I saw our room steward, I immediately shoved $10 in his hand and asked him to empty my mini-fridge and bring me a coffee maker. By the time we got back from dinner that night both were done. My friend traveling with us staying a few rooms down asked him for a coffee maker also (but opted not to give him $10) and he never brought her one. So if you are depending on being able to make your own coffee like I was, it is worth the $10 to ensure that it happens!

 

Food

 

We really enjoy the food on NCL and I have actually come to like that they have the same consistent menu on all of their ships and on the same nights. Once you cruise with NCL a few times you learn what nights certain things are served (steak & lobster night are always the first night) and you can look forward to your favorite dishes. If you really pay attention it can also help you plan which nights to make reservations at specialty restaurants.

 

We ate in the Grand Pacific most nights. We happily brought our wine with us and the servers always put it in a bucket of ice right next to our table to keep it chilled (red wine stayed on the table of course). One side of the menu stays standard each night, the other side changes each night. The changing menu is the same in Grand Pacific and Magenta however the standard menu is slightly different. We ate in Magenta twice. For dinner men are required to wear pants in the Grand Pacific, but I believe they were allowed to wear shorts in the Magenta.

 

We only ate at the buffet once or twice for lunch. Big selection however it stays pretty much the same each day. Pretzel bread is the best! Our group liked to skip dessert in the dining room and head down to the buffet for dessert most nights, as there was a bigger selection. My favorite is when they have a fruit cobbler out so I can get that and walk over to the ice cream station and get a scoop of vanilla on top of it – heaven!

 

We usually had breakfast in the Grand Pacific. The serve was always fast enough to get us in and out on port days. Great way to avoid the buffet crowd. We also had lunch in Grand Pacific a few times – they have really good corn chowder!

 

Blue Lagoon was a late-night favorite but also a great lunch place.

 

My husband and I had a date-night away from our friends one night and went to La Cucina. We love this place so much we actually went twice while on our honeymoon last fall! This time there was a completely new menu and it seemed upgraded from their prior menu, which was already delicious! We love the tomato-mozzarella appetizer. My husband also got calamari (no additional charge for extra appetizer). For our dinner, we actually got 3 dinners – 1 for each of us and 1 to share (no additional charge for third meal). I got the veal and he got the salmon and then we shared the carbonara. Everything was delicious but the carbonara was my favorite. It was not overwhelming with cream but it wasn’t dry either – it was the perfect amount of sauce. I had the carbonara in the Magenta one night as well and while it was good, it was nothing compared to the one in La Cucina. Delicious and completely worth the $15 cover charge! YUM!

 

The Gym

 

We did go to the gym the first couple of days before we got to any ports, but slacked off on the way home. The gym is very nice and has lots of cardio equipment (treadmills, elliptical, stair steppers). There is a TV on each piece of equipment however for some reason the movie channel is not accessible and the channel numbers are slightly different than what’s in the cabin. There are sanitizing wipes to clean the machines with and cold towels for during or after your work out. There are some weight machines next to the cardio equipment and there are separate rooms for free weights and classes.

 

Entertainment

 

it was impossible to get bored on the Gem! So much to do and such a great variety. We spent most of our time in the Spinnaker because we felt they had the best variety of shows. We actually only went to the show in the Stardust 3 times out of the 9 nights. Review of some of the shows/activities we went to:

 

Art Auction (Magenta) – we enjoy going to the art auction, not because we are ever going to actually buy anything but because it is a unique experience. How many people really go to art auctions at home? You get to see some nice paintings and learn a little bit about the history of the artist and you get to see the excitement of much richer people (probably Haven guests) actually bid on the art. Pretty fun!

 

Newlywed Not-So-Newlywed Game Show (Spinnaker) – what a great show! Do not miss! They take 4 couples ranging from married less than a year to married the longest they can find (I believe on ours it was over 50 years). They put the men in a separate room and ask the women questions and then bring the men back. The men have to guess what they think the women answered with. Then vice versa. Very funny and great to see some of the dynamics between the couples and how they change from first year together to a lifetime together! Great time!

 

55 to Stay Alive (Spinnaker) – really fun game show that my husband actually participated in! You pair up in teams of male and female and have to do a variety of things in under minute. Some of the things they did were bounce ping-pong balls off each others chest into a bucket, suck up cotton balls in their nose and shoot them into a bucket, pop balloons with your butt and other random tasks. Very fun and hysterical.

 

Battle of the Sexes (Spinnaker) – another excellent game show were they get volunteers of males and females to compete as a group against each other. We have a variety of tasks we have to complete such as throwing all of our shoes in a big pile and whichever team (men or women) can put all their shoes back on first wins or whichever team can make paper airplanes that fly the furthest first wins.

 

Quest Game Show (Spinnaker) – oh boy, do not come to this show if you are easily offended!! But if you have a great sense of humor and love to laugh definitely make sure you don’t miss this one!!! So people join teams and they are given outrageous tasks to do. Whoever can complete the most tasks first wins. Some of the things they had to do were two guys had to dirty dance, two girls had to make out, a guy and a girl had to switch outfits completely (definitely show a girl completely topless during this one), men had to get dressed up like a women (lipstick, purses and everything!) and then some tamer tasks like find someone with a tattoo or get 4 bras from people in the audience. It was really funny!

 

The Second City (Stardust & Spinnaker) – the Second City is a group of comedians that do a couple of different shows towards the end of the cruise. The main one in the Stardust was very funny and family friendly of course. They poke a lot of jokes at the cruise industry so that’s always a lot of fun. They also do improv in the Spinnaker – one is a family show and one is adults only. They use audience suggestions to do the entire show and then act out skits or make jokes around whatever the suggestions were. They were great!

 

Sing It to Win It (Spinnaker) – if you’ve always wanted to do karaoke but never had the guts to, this is a great way to start. The room is split up into two sides. The band will start playing a song and whoever runs up and names the song first wins for that side of the room. Then after naming the song you sing it. This was really fun because multiple people would get involved and often during the singing part of the song, tons of people from each side of the room would join and it would be a big fun party at the mic!

 

Karaoke (Bliss Lounge) – Karaoke was always a good stop during your evening. It was entertaining to see people sing (some good, some not so good). Sometimes when the guys were drunk enough they’d want to go and sing themselves! We went a few times but never stayed long as it’s pretty rocky in the Bliss the lounge, plus you are facing backwards to watch the singers which can create some nausea.

 

White Hot Party (Spinnaker) – my husband and I did not make it to the White Hot Party but our friends went and they said it was awesome! They had drink specials and they said the DJ was amazing! The music was so good and everyone was dancing like crazy that they stayed until after 2:00 a.m.!! Then a bunch of people went to Blue Lagoon for a late night snack (picture your days of going out to the bar until close and then hitting the diner before racing the sun home).

 

The Man From Mars (Stardust) – my husband and I have had the pleasure of seeing this show when we sailed on the Gem a few years ago and this is to date our favorite show of any cruise we’ve been on. What a fantastic show! DO NOT MISS! It is a cirque-style show of acrobatics with hysterical comedy built in. What is unique about this show is that they do not talk at all – ever. The entire show. But you will laugh hysterically. Dizzy, the man from mars, is so cute and has a very animated face so you can easily tell what he’s up to. His wife is also in the show and she is absolutely stunning. Watching the two of them together you can tell how in love they are and it makes the show that much better knowing they are a real life couple doing this together. Great show! They also performed again during the Farewell show but this time it was a magic act by Dizzy and he spoke throughout it. It was good, but I prefer his main show hands-down.

 

There are a lot of other shows that took place in the Spinnaker that we would have loved to see, but we just couldn’t stay up that late. Some didn’t start until 11:30 p.m. some nights! I would love it if some of these could be just a little bit earlier but I think there’s a lot of adult content at night so they have to make sure the kids are asleep first! We also spent a few sea days playing board games in the game room. Really fun!

 

We did not travel with kids and there really weren’t a lot on our ship (I think I saw maybe 10 kids all week) so I cannot make any comments on the kids program.

 

Staff

 

By far the best staff member on the whole ship is Sinan, the cruise director. He is just excellent! He is so funny and plans such great events for people. He is very nice and approachable and just very cute & sweet. We saw a rumor on Cruise Critic that Sinan is heading off to Epic and we asked him about it. He said it’s true he’s going on another ship but doesn’t know where yet. I had secretly hoped he’d be on Breakaway. It will be sad for the Gem to loose him (he’s been on for over 2 years) but exciting for whatever ship gets him next as he’s the best!

 

Service was always good where ever we were, however the employees on NCL don’t seem to really try to make a connection with the guests. Our room steward really would only say hello – he never even asked how our day was or anything like that. I find that overall NCL staff doesn’t do as much to get to know you personally as other competing cruise lines. We had hoped to fill out one of those vacation hero cards for someone but no one stood out during our cruise.

 

Hiccups

 

As with any vacation, there are always a few hiccups. We did encounter a couple of small problems. Nothing ruined our vacation by any means but people are always curious about the bad so I thought I’d share. One was the noise from the galley as I previously mentioned above. I hated to even bring it up to the guest relations desk but I was so tired from not sleeping at all I figured I’d mention it and what could be done. I said that I realize they have to work and by no means am I saying not to. But was there a way to prop the door open during the night, even just for a few hours so I could sleep. Unfortunately they couldn’t do that because as I said they need to work and feed the 2,000 people on board but she did offer me some earplugs which was appreciated.

 

Other thing that happened is the first couple of days our room smelled a little bit like sewage from time to time. We ignored it at first to see if it would go away but by day 2 I figured I’m paying all this money to be here, I should tell them about it and give them the opportunity to fix it (they can’t fix a problem they don’t know about!). Within literally 2 minutes of calling them to tell them about the smell, someone as in our bathroom checking out the drain pipes. Turned out whoever cruised in that room before us brought a lot of sand back with them from the beach so the shower drain had a lot of built up sand. While we were out to lunch they sucked the sand out and put in some chemicals of some sort so when we returned the smell was completely gone and never came back.

 

A day or two later we received a card with a complimentary bottle of wine. I’m not sure which of the two people from the above situations sent it, but it was a nice touch and nice way for NCL to show us they cared, accepted responsibility and wanted to do whatever it took to make our vacation better. We were not affected by these hiccups or upset with NCL, but it was nice they made it up to us anyway. Very classy.

 

Ports of Call

 

Click on the links below for detail reviews on each port and what we did:

 

San Juan

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=38292413#post38292413

 

St Maarten

 

Cruise Critic will not let you make new posts in the St Maarten room for some reason so please see my review on TripAdvisor instead:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g147347-d2083816-r160145907-Soualiga_Destinations-Philipsburg_Sint_Maarten_St_Maarten_St_Martin.html

 

 

St Thomas

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=38292671#post38292671

 

Samana

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1840957

 

Disembarkation

 

We got back to NY really early. We weren’t suppose to return until 10 a.m. but the night before the captain announced that we’d be getting in by 8 a.m. This was fine with me because I was ready to go home at this point but I didn’t want to wait around all day for my bus ride home. Our MegaBus ticket home wasn’t until 12:20p (there is another bus at 9:20 a.m. but we didn’t book that one originally because our itinerary said we wouldn’t be back until 10 a.m.). Since we didn’t pay that much for the tickets we decided that we were going to do the express walk-off and catch the Metro North train to New Haven. Our friend was watching our dog for us at our house so she had our car to come pick us up. Our friends we traveled with decided they wanted to still take the MegaBus home so we split up. Everyone had to be out of their rooms by 8 a.m. so my husband and I got all our stuff and went downstairs to wait in line for express walk off. The boat was not cleared by customs for people to leave until about 8:25 a.m. From the time they announced we could get off until the time we were through customs and in a cab was a total of 8 minutes!! It was great! We had our customs form and passports in our hands and breezed through quickly – there was hardly anyone else in the terminal as we were probably within the first 20 people off the boat. We hailed a cab and made it to Grand Central with 13 minutes to spare before our train left. Our friend picked us up in New Haven at 11 a.m. and we were home by 11:30 a.m. Our friends were still sitting in a public area at that time waiting for them to be called to leave. I hate waiting around so to me the extra $15 it cost for the train ticket home was totally worth it. We picked up our friends at 3 p.m. from the MegaBus stop in Hartford – they said the ride home was easy and the bus was not packed.

 

Closing

 

In closing, this was a great vacation and we really enjoyed the variety of experiences we had. NCL is our top choice for cruise lines. We really enjoy the food, the entertainment, and the casual/laid back atmosphere. We will definitely be cruising with NCL again (in fact booked the Breakaway when we came home – there’s one leaving on my 30th birthday!). :D

 

Please let me know if you have any questions at all and I’ll do my best to answer them. Thanks for reading!

[sparks1093]

Thanks for the review! Can't wait to sail on her!

[debshomespun]

What date did you sail? Thinking of sailing in April next year. How was the weather the first and last sea day...warm enough to do sunning? Also, were the seas in the Atlantic smooth or rough? Glad you enjoyed your cruise and you did an excellent review!

[alg7334]

What date did you sail? Thinking of sailing in April next year. How was the weather the first and last sea day...warm enough to do sunning? Also, were the seas in the Atlantic smooth or rough? Glad you enjoyed your cruise and you did an excellent review!

 

We cruised 4/18 - 4/27. It was perfect because it was right after spring break so there were hardly any kids on board (not that I don't like kids but it makes the pool area feel a little less crazy!). It was definitely a little chilly the first and last sea day but we saw lots of people still sitting in bathing suits in the sun. The seas were surprisingly very smooth - in fact smoothest sail I've been on (but I usually got in September or October hurricane season).

[lolane1]

Thanks for the complete review and the tips you included.

BTW, Barefoot wines cost about 6 dollars at Trader Joe's wine shop. And that's retail. So there is a definite large markup. You make a good point about bringing your own wines. Glad to hear the process was easy. Some great wines are available at TJ's inexpensively and even with the corkage fee, they would be so much less than the price on the ship. Thanks.

For those of you staying in NY prior to cruising Trader Joe's is on 14th street between third avenue and Union Square. I am not sure that the west side TJ's sells wine.

[francina]

Thanks for the review. I will be sailing the same places in January. This will be my first time on the Gem and it looks like I am going to have a blast.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

[L2S]

Thks! I've never cruised with NCL, but I'm considering it in 2014. This helps a lot.

Edited May 23, 2013 by L2S

[hbooden]

Love all of this!!! Our cruise is dec 2014:) but the same boat! And the same ports except samana:) we go to tortola. Again thanks I have never cruised before and we are excited!

[eh24fan]

My parents, grandparents, 13yr old son and my mom's friends were on this sailing as well! They LOVED IT! So much so that we just booked the same one next year, 4/5/14!

[alg7334]

Excellent! Glad you found it helpful - hope you all have a great vacation!!!!

[canehdn]

Really enjoyed reading your unbiased review. So sorry to hear about the noise in your cabin ... I always make sure there are only other cabins both above and below us at time of booking. Have heard too many such complaints, but at least you made the best of it. Everything else sounds like you had a wonderful cruise with your group of friends.

 

Thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts with the rest of us CC'ers.

 

Cdn in KS

[Keith1010]

Wonderful review.

 

Keith

[puddles99]

Thanks so much for your review! We're also considering carrying on a few bottles of wine since we won't have to fly to port for this cruise in the fall. I agree that the math makes sense.

[alg7334]

Thanks for your nice comments - this was my first time writing a review!

[lenquixote66]

We are doing our first ever NCL cruise in 4 weeks.

[dtowncruiser59]

Thank you for this great review, we are looking to take this cruise in December instead of the Breakaway cruise that we currently have booked. It sounds like we might enjoy this slightly smaller ship and the entertainment more than we did the very large Breakaway.

[acallahan]

How far is the port from grand central? Do you remember what the can ride was cost wise? There are 5 of us coming from ct so we are trying to decide the best way to get to ny

 

 

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[chill6x6]

I REALLY enjoyed your review! Very well done! I probably won't get to do a 9-day itinerary any time soon but I enjoy reading of those that do!

[Shilky]

Hello Alg7334,

 

Your review was great! We will be sailing on the Gem next year in May. This will be my first time on Norwegian and my 3rd cruise. I had a few questions, first is there anywhere I can get a copy of the menus for the Grand Pacific/Magenta dining rooms? Also we will have a mid ship balcony, do they provide coffee makers in those rooms?

 

Thanks :D

Cheryl

[cabincop]

thanks for the review Gem is my favorite ship and I have been on Jade Jewel and Gem, I am also going on breakaway next Jan. But to me Gem has the bbest crew on the seas

[Fins2theleft]

Thanks for the review.

[alg7334]

How far is the port from grand central? Do you remember what the can ride was cost wise? There are 5 of us coming from ct so we are trying to decide the best way to get to ny

 

 

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Same story as us then because it was 5 of us from CT. We took the MegaBus out of Hartford on Columbus Blvd this last time. It was super easy and CHEAP! Roundtrip tickets for 2 adults was $18. The bus dropped us off about 2 miles away from the cruise port. We grabbed a cab and the total from the drop off in NY to the cruise port was about $11.

 

We have also taken Amtrak out of Hartford to Penn Station before as well as taken Metro North from New Haven before. All of those cab rides are under $15 from the station to the port. I highly recommend doing one of those instead of driving and paying the $300 to park!

[alg7334]

Thank you for this great review, we are looking to take this cruise in December instead of the Breakaway cruise that we currently have booked. It sounds like we might enjoy this slightly smaller ship and the entertainment more than we did the very large Breakaway.

 

It's interesting - we booked Breakaway for November to try it out but I am a bit hesitant. I've never been on a mega-ship before and I'm not sure if I would enjoy it as much as the Gem. I'm not crazy about having to make reservations to shows. I always liked being surprised by what's in the Freestyle Daily each day. But we're going to give it a try and we'll see....

 

You will love the Gem! So much to do, not crowded, no reservations needed for anything. Have a great trip!!!!

[alg7334]

Hello Alg7334,

 

Your review was great! We will be sailing on the Gem next year in May. This will be my first time on Norwegian and my 3rd cruise. I had a few questions, first is there anywhere I can get a copy of the menus for the Grand Pacific/Magenta dining rooms? Also we will have a mid ship balcony, do they provide coffee makers in those rooms?

 

Thanks :D

Cheryl

 

Hi Cheryl - I'm sorry but I do not have copies of the menus however I can tell you that they are pretty much the same each cruise and on each ship. If you do some searching for the menus on any ship in the fleet you'll get the general idea. Lobster night is the first night only so if you like lobster do not miss MDR the first night! http://beyondships.com/NCLGem-Menus.html

 

Yes all balcony cabins provide a coffee maker. They are those little 4 cup ones - very easy to use and brews good quick coffee!

 

Have a great trip!!

[alg7334]

How far is the port from grand central? Do you remember what the can ride was cost wise? There are 5 of us coming from ct so we are trying to decide the best way to get to ny

 

 

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I'm sorry I just saw this. It is about 10-15 minutes away from the port and the cab was about $20 total with tip. You will need 2 cabs for 5 people. We traveled with exactly 5 and it worked great.