Gem - 9 Days in DOS - March 2014 - Review

[Fishbait17]

We returned on Monday from our first sailing on the Fabulous Gem and thought I’d do a review of the highlights.

 

Background: We booked the 9-day sailing about three weeks ahead of time, as we were waiting for a good time to take time off. Once we found a time window, I looked at both the Breakaway and the Gem (for the NYC port) for a few week sailings and settled on the Gem because of availability of the Deluxe Owner’s Suite - which I have always wanted to try on that ship. We have always wanted to sail the Gem, and had three other Gem sailings booked that we had to cancel, and with everything we had heard, I was just dying to try her out! I loved the long relaxing itinerary with ports we had been to several times before, just what we were looking for. One week before sailing, our 24 yo. daughter phoned and asked if she could join us. Knowing that the DOS is only one-room and not wanting to spoil the “romance” ;), my CAS agent managed to find her one of the very few cabins left - an OV on deck 8.

 

Embarkation was very easy, but delayed a bit. We arrived at the terminal fully prepared to go though the regular check-in with our daughter, but were told just to take her along with us to the lounge, which was very nice. I had been arranging the Meet and Greet (very last minute as interest in our Roll Call didn’t perk up until the very end), and during the last week was hit with serious vertigo (from a virus I carry) so I turned most of the organizing over to my daughter, who did a fine job. In turn, she was permitted to dine at Cagney’s with us upon embarkation and disembarkation (the only times we dined there).

The suite was exactly as we had expected - I had been drooling over pictures for years so I pretty much had it memorized before we ever saw it. It’s a suite that is not on every ship, or at least not exactly the same. One large room above the Garden Villa with a whole wall of windows, a king bed, a seating area, the “service bar”, a nice interior bathroom, and that FABULOUS balcony overlooking the pool deck! The balcony appeared even larger than I had pictured it, with hot tub, two loungers, a daybed, a dining table for four, two smaller tables, an umbrella, and TONS of space, and it was the absolute highlight of our vacation. I’m not sure I have ever sat by the pool on any ship (I don’t do sun and get claustrophobic in crowds), so have always missed out on the poolside activities. Between the fabulous weather we had (after this looong winter), the wonderful long sea days, and the hot tub and amazing views and entertainment, I found myself struggling to find time to do anything else. Lying flat on a lounger staring at the stars while listening to the Bob Marley tribute on the pool deck was one of the most Zen moments of my life. We used the hot tub for sail away (mid-50’s in NYC) and almost every day (it has to be filled every time, but once filled retains heat well). I was worried about the wind out there (it’s even more exposed than the forward suites, without the metal solid wall) but we only found a few times where it was too windy to stay outside for hours. I found myself watching the pool deck entertainment morning to late night, people watching (and chair hog spotting :D), and reading for hours on end. It was lovely, just the break we needed after the long long northeast winter… I have always been partial to the forward Owner’s Suites, but would gladly trade for this DOS setup every time I sailed as just a couple… (for a family, the OS or 2-bedroom suites are a better setup).

 

I said we got lucky with the weather, and we did. Sailaway was a very nice day in NYC for March (mid-50’s and sunny!). Our first sea day was a tad windy and cool, but we had so much to do on the ship that it didn’t matter. At our Meet and Greet, we presented “Robbie - the Gem-It Mermaid” with a snowman charm to represent our roll call group who had all emerged from the frigid winter as pretty much, um, snowmen... Our second sea day was GORGEOUS, maybe mid-high 70’s, perfect.. The third day was also lovely and warmer, and after three-quarters of the day on the balcony we arrived in San Juan at 3pm on schedule. What an amazing view for arriving into ports! In San Juan we just walked to the forts and explored for a few hours. Another beautiful morning found us in St Maarten with six total ships (20,000 pax total :O). We taxied to a quiet beach club on Simpson Bay and spent half the day, had some drinks at Maho Beach (packed!!!), and took the public bus back to Philipsburg to have a few more drinks, and water taxi back to the ship. St. Thomas was next, another beautiful day with only one other ship in port. We had rented a car from Avis (use Budget instead) and went to Magen’s Bay - in retrospect I would have just taken a taxi there as it was uncrowded and we stayed all day. We stayed onboard in Samana, and it was a bit too hot on the balcony for me - so I spent the day in the casino “earning my keep” LOL. Upon leaving Samana, we were on the balcony watching for the whales, and spotted two breaching pods!! They appeared on the starboard side about 1/2 hr to 1 hr after setting sail and were beautiful. Our last two sea days were again lovely, and we sat out on the balcony until about 2pm on the last day, when it started to get a bit windy as we were approaching a storm. By the time we returned to the cabin about midnight, I could barely open the balcony door and it was blizzarding outside! When we woke up the next morning in NYC, the decks were covered in a good inch or two of ice and our beloved hot tub was completely iced in! All in all, the only time we didn’t use that balcony was the first sea day, the last afternoon and night, and one night in between when it was too windy - absolutely BEAUTIFUL weather…

 

We didn’t use the Haven much, having such a lovely balcony of our own, and the few times we went there were kids having fun in there - not exactly "tranquil". We did see some parents saying “quiet down” etc, but the kids we saw weren’t listening. One time, there was a rather raucous game of Marco-Polo going on, culminating in one child vomiting all over the floor (she missed the pool). It may have just been the times we stopped in there, but there were a lot of kids on board as it was Canadian spring break. It wasn’t an issue for us, but just giving a heads up to anyone looking for tranquility (I know there’s a lot of debate on here about this issue)… Not too many college Spring Breakers on board, a few maybe, but we didn’t use the venues (like Bliss) that they were likely using. Our daughter was Spring Breaking, but being a struggling law student, she spent 75% of her time in quiet spaces studying. Chair-hoggers filled the pool deck, but most of them appeared at their “reserved” chairs by 10am - although there were a few (like one large family in particular) who would reserve poolside chairs for everyone (kids included) that remained empty more than half the time throughout the day… Although the pool and sun decks were pretty much full, we only actively saw a few people who had a hard time finding seats somewhere. The family pool and hot tubs were LOADED with kids of ALL ages, my husband commented that he would be afraid to use those hot tubs!), and after the first day we never saw children in the adult pool and hot tubs. Poolside entertainment was excellent, especially at night, and the passengers seemed active and happy!

 

We dined out several times - six of nine nights at the specialties, two nights just picking up buffet food, and one night having La Cucina delivered to our cabin (tasty). We dined at Cagney’s twice, as we hadn’t been there in years, and liked the new menu very much - the Wagyu sliders and burgers are excellent, and the steaks very good. We dined at our favorite, Le Bistro, twice - everything was yummy as usual, but the Lobster in Butter dish was very, very tiny this time - a "four ounce" tail that actually was more like two ounces - three bites - no matter as it’s so rich that’s about all I could eat. Moderno was excellent and it’s sad to see how underutilized it is - there were only two or three tables in use every time we looked. It’s an excellent place to listed to Leo (the guitarist) who is just fantastic and fills the atrium for hours every time he plays. We also tried Teppanyaki again, and while it was tasty and we had a good chef, it’s just become too “mainstream American” - too much salt and garlic to please the masses. One night we thought we might dine at Magenta (which we passed every night where there were always lots of people waiting) and were told we couldn’t get in without a reservation (it was late after the San Juan stop) - so I know they were taking reservations there, don’t know about the other main dining room as we never passed it. We didn’t mind, we just went to the buffet to get a plate for our cabin.

 

I mentioned Leo, the guitarist, because he was very very good and popular, hard to find a sat when he was playing. Other than that, we skipped pretty much all entertainment in favor of the casino or our cabin and balcony. The casino (of course) took all my allowance, but I did well there, getting a lot of play and points for my $$$. The casino picked up two dinners, plus most our other onboard charges including spa treatments, drinks, dinners, etc - I went in as Golden, left as VIP I think but it will drop on March 31). Casino staff (bar waiters included) was awesome, friendly, helpful, efficient. Our daughter, who is a wiser player than I ;), left happily with several hundred $$ in profit.

 

The Gem itself was fantastic. She carries one of the nicest crews I have had the pleasure to sail with.. Our concierge (Pearl) was one of the best I have ever had - she was so thoughtful and pro-active - it was her last week as concierge as Carlos was getting on when we got off. After a week back in the casino, Pearl is heading home for vacation - Have fun Pearl! Our butler, Jeffrey, was very, very sweet and tried so hard - but was not totally efficient. We had breakfast delivered a couple times and dinner once, and each time our order was messed up pretty well, but it was fine. He also had trouble finding us our requested “upgraded” brands of liquor and we ended up settling on other choices (we paid approx $30 per bottle to upgrade). Our steward, Rodrigo, was AMAZING - and presented us with some truly unusual towel animals, including a life-sized alligator on the floor one night (scared the bejeezus outta me!). After my last two sailings on the Breakaway, I loved returning to the Gem/Jewel-class layout and crew, and have definitely decided it’s still my favorite - big enough, but not huge and crowded like the new builds. We are already dreaming about our next sailing on her in the same suite!

 

I’d be happy to answer any questions about specifics!

 

Robin

[hbooden]

So glad it sounds great!!!! We will be on. board in December! Just a quick question about Simpsons bay? What beach club did you go to? Was just looking up where to go:)

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[Fishbait17]

So glad it sounds great!!!! We will be on. board in December! Just a quick question about Simpsons bay? What beach club did you go to? Was just looking up where to go:)

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

We went to Karakter Beach Club On Simpson Bay (also called "The Bus"). It was a great choice for a crowded port day. We got there early (first ones there, got three loungers, an umbrella, and lots of drinks and lunch, and left by about 2:00pm, just when it filled up.

 

Robin

[meatball_nyc]

Thank you for the really nice review.

I loved reading it.

 

The thought of lying out on the balcony, staring at the stars while listening to music sounds like my kind of vacation. It must have been like heaven after the winter we had, and I hate to say we may get more snow Tuesday into Wednesday. Too bad it snowed the end of your trip. Mother Nature just won't stop with this nasty weather.

 

Loved that you brought Robbie a snowman! Did you have to present it to the Captain?

 

I think I may have to try the Gem next year. Not sure why I haven't already. My first NCL trip will be this summer with my son (18) and 8 other family members. Reading all the reviews here has helped with all my research.

 

Thank you again for such a nice review. I appreciate you taking the time to share it with us. Glad you had such a great cruise!

 

Happy Cruising!

 

 

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Every Day at Sea is a Great Day

[Heytoots]

Great review! We were on the Gem in the Haven Feb 26th-Mar. 3rd and had Rodrigo also!! On the last night, we were surprised by the lifesize alligator too!!! He is fantastic! Sounds like the DOS would be a lovely suite next time. We never really got to spend too much time in the courtyard area, because of the amount of kids that were NOT supervisored.....and actually, some of the parents were worse than the kids, but.......it's a gamble when you book a cabin in the Haven. Watching the chair hogs at the pool sounds exactly like something I would do!!!! ;)

[Always Cruising]

Do Casino players all go back to the beginning level after March 31? I thought if you had play, you kept your player's designation for another year. Sounds like you loved your cruise - glad it was a great trip.

[Fishbait17]

Do Casino players all go back to the beginning level after March 31? I thought if you had play, you kept your player's designation for another year. Sounds like you loved your cruise - glad it was a great trip.

 

I should retain my Golden status, as after March 31, all points earned from April 1, 2013 thru March 31, 2015 will count toward the new status, and I will lose my points earned during the year before. I don't know what's going to happen on April 1 this year when its rumored that CAS will be undergoing more changes...

 

Robin

[Sea saw 56]

A couple questions about the suite itself. Does the DOS have a guest/powder room like the OS? Is it possible to close the sleeping area off from the rest of the room (from noise & light), in case one likes to get up early to have coffee and the other one likes to sleep in?

[Fishbait17]

A couple questions about the suite itself. Does the DOS have a guest/powder room like the OS? Is it possible to close the sleeping area off from the rest of the room (from noise & light), in case one likes to get up early to have coffee and the other one likes to sleep in?

 

No separate powder room and no way to separate spaces besides sheer curtains around the bed, which just got in the way. It took a bit but we learned our way around the lighting system and would just use dim lights to make a coffee and take it our onto the balcony when the other was sleeping. It didn't matter as much to us this sailing as we both slept on similar schedules most nights. Definitely not a good suite for more than two though.

 

Robin

[mommyto2girls]

We stayed in 15500 in January on the Gem and although we liked it we did not love it. We had some rough seas and that is not where you want to be. We love Pearl we were lucky enough to have both her and Carlos onboard. The Gem is our favorite ship by far. We do prefer the 2 bedroom Haven to the DOS I know I may be in the minority.

[jaja]

Thanks for the great review Robin !!!!

 

I agree the Gem staff is great...

[Lizcourt]

Wow, great review -- and coincidentally, we spent the week right beneath you in the Garden Villa. We also had Jeffrey for our butler and Rodrigo for our steward in 14000 (my sister's family was in the other Villa, 14500, and had a different butler and steward.both of whom they LOVED) and found both of them and the wonderful, fabulous, amazing Pearl to be bar none the best staff we have ever had on any cruise in any cabin level. The only thing I would mildly disagree with is your take on the Haven, but as you said that may just be that we were in there at different times than you. We never saw kids other than my 12 year old niece in there (SO glad to have missed the vomiting!!!) and any time we were in there it definitely lived up to its name: quiet, tranquil and a definite haven.

 

Will be posting my own review soon, but just wanted to say a belated "hi" from the folks downstairs!

[whenisthemidnightbuffet?]

Thank you for a great review. Sounds like you had an enjoyable sailing and your suite sounds delightful with its exceptional outside living to be able to enjoy all of the main pool's activities while maintaining a comfortable distance, best of both worlds.

[Fishbait17]

Wow, great review -- and coincidentally, we spent the week right beneath you in the Garden Villa. We also had Jeffrey for our butler and Rodrigo for our steward in 14000 (my sister's family was in the other Villa, 14500, and had a different butler and steward.both of whom they LOVED) and found both of them and the wonderful, fabulous, amazing Pearl to be bar none the best staff we have ever had on any cruise in any cabin level. The only thing I would mildly disagree with is your take on the Haven, but as you said that may just be that we were in there at different times than you. We never saw kids other than my 12 year old niece in there (SO glad to have missed the vomiting!!!) and any time we were in there it definitely lived up to its name: quiet, tranquil and a definite haven.

 

Will be posting my own review soon, but just wanted to say a belated "hi" from the folks downstairs!

 

Well howdy neighbor! :D. Hope we didn't make too much noise!

 

Robin

[Irene7]

Thank for the review and I'm happy you had a good time. Looking forward to our sailing on the Gem, but we have wait a whole year :(

[canalslb]

Great review! We will be on the same cruise April 23rd. Would you elaborate a little more about the excursions in the different ports? We are still trying to decide what to do. With 4 ports in 4 days should we go all out - or alternate between vigorous and leisurely excursions?

[boopsahoy]

Leo I fantastic! he was one of the highlights of our last few Gem cruises. He ALWAYS had a crowd, no matter what venue they had him in.

[Fishbait17]

Great review! We will be on the same cruise April 23rd. Would you elaborate a little more about the excursions in the different ports? We are still trying to decide what to do. With 4 ports in 4 days should we go all out - or alternate between vigorous and leisurely excursions?

 

How much you do really depends on you and what you want to do. After our long lazy winter, we found ourselves out of shape and positively exhausted after each port - but everyone is different. We saw people dancing the night away on the pool deck while we were upstairs in our pajamas trying to stay awake until 11pm lol. Our excursions were all simple, do-it-ourselves affairs. Walking around San Juan, taxiing to the beach in St Maarten, driving to the beach in St Thomas. You can pretty much do anything you might want to do in any of the ports, but I would suggest that you do a paid (preferably ship's) excursion in Samana, as the port is not really set up for DIY (the excursion to Cayo Levantado is a good one for just a beach day, the there are good, more adventurous excursions to the mainland of DR). For the others, it's totally up to you, your energy level, your interests, etc. all we wanted from the trip was warm weather and relaxation, and we got it.

 

Robin

Edited March 22, 2014 by Fishbait17

[WaldosPepper]

You are right on when you say the staff on Gem are amazing. We were on the 1/29 sailing, and also had the pleasure of having Rodrigo as our Steward. His towel animals are just incredible! One night we arrived to find three Dragons on our bed, a momma and two babies. When I commented to him that his were the best we'd ever seen, he said "oh, wait... I haven't done the best one yet..." Later that night we returned to find this...

 

 

My poor DH almost jumped out of his skin at first, and then we laughed out loud. We could hardly wait until morning to thank him. Just a great imagination, and a great sense of humor. Very creative...

 

 

 

 

I also must agree that the staff in the Casino on Gem are, by far, the best. We were blown away by the level of service and attention to their guests.

 

Pearl is truly a fabulous concierge, as well. We were familiar with her from previous sailings on the Jewel where she was the Casino Host. She was fantastic then, and is even more so in her new role. A delight.

 

So glad you were able to enjoy such a fabulous escape from this wretched, never-ending winter!

[Leavethekidswithmom]

Well howdy neighbor! :D. Hope we didn't make too much noise!

 

Robin

 

Robin,

Great review, we were on the Pearl for (12/14) 11 day southern in 15000, perfect weather, perfect cruise, loved the H2..

 

I got a question, are there 2 zones on the Bose with speakers outside?

 

Thank you,

Robert

[Fishbait17]

Robin,

Great review, we were on the Pearl for (12/14) 11 day southern in 15000, perfect weather, perfect cruise, loved the H2..

 

I got a question, are there 2 zones on the Bose with speakers outside?

 

Thank you,

Robert

 

Robert, I don't really remember. Most of the time there was live music poolside, so we wouldn't have heard our own music anyway, other times the prerecorded poolside music would be playing - I do remember hearing "Get Happy" at least three times a day lol. We also brought our small portable Bluetooth Bose speaker, just don't remember if we used it outside..

 

Robin

[CasinoCruzGirl]

We returned on Monday from our first sailing on the Fabulous Gem and thought I’d do a review of the highlights.

 

Background: We booked the 9-day sailing about three weeks ahead of time, as we were waiting for a good time to take time off. Once we found a time window, I looked at both the Breakaway and the Gem (for the NYC port) for a few week sailings and settled on the Gem because of availability of the Deluxe Owner’s Suite - which I have always wanted to try on that ship. We have always wanted to sail the Gem, and had three other Gem sailings booked that we had to cancel, and with everything we had heard, I was just dying to try her out! I loved the long relaxing itinerary with ports we had been to several times before, just what we were looking for. One week before sailing, our 24 yo. daughter phoned and asked if she could join us. Knowing that the DOS is only one-room and not wanting to spoil the “romance” ;), my CAS agent managed to find her one of the very few cabins left - an OV on deck 8.

 

Embarkation was very easy, but delayed a bit. We arrived at the terminal fully prepared to go though the regular check-in with our daughter, but were told just to take her along with us to the lounge, which was very nice. I had been arranging the Meet and Greet (very last minute as interest in our Roll Call didn’t perk up until the very end), and during the last week was hit with serious vertigo (from a virus I carry) so I turned most of the organizing over to my daughter, who did a fine job. In turn, she was permitted to dine at Cagney’s with us upon embarkation and disembarkation (the only times we dined there).

The suite was exactly as we had expected - I had been drooling over pictures for years so I pretty much had it memorized before we ever saw it. It’s a suite that is not on every ship, or at least not exactly the same. One large room above the Garden Villa with a whole wall of windows, a king bed, a seating area, the “service bar”, a nice interior bathroom, and that FABULOUS balcony overlooking the pool deck! The balcony appeared even larger than I had pictured it, with hot tub, two loungers, a daybed, a dining table for four, two smaller tables, an umbrella, and TONS of space, and it was the absolute highlight of our vacation. I’m not sure I have ever sat by the pool on any ship (I don’t do sun and get claustrophobic in crowds), so have always missed out on the poolside activities. Between the fabulous weather we had (after this looong winter), the wonderful long sea days, and the hot tub and amazing views and entertainment, I found myself struggling to find time to do anything else. Lying flat on a lounger staring at the stars while listening to the Bob Marley tribute on the pool deck was one of the most Zen moments of my life. We used the hot tub for sail away (mid-50’s in NYC) and almost every day (it has to be filled every time, but once filled retains heat well). I was worried about the wind out there (it’s even more exposed than the forward suites, without the metal solid wall) but we only found a few times where it was too windy to stay outside for hours. I found myself watching the pool deck entertainment morning to late night, people watching (and chair hog spotting :D), and reading for hours on end. It was lovely, just the break we needed after the long long northeast winter… I have always been partial to the forward Owner’s Suites, but would gladly trade for this DOS setup every time I sailed as just a couple… (for a family, the OS or 2-bedroom suites are a better setup).

 

I said we got lucky with the weather, and we did. Sailaway was a very nice day in NYC for March (mid-50’s and sunny!). Our first sea day was a tad windy and cool, but we had so much to do on the ship that it didn’t matter. At our Meet and Greet, we presented “Robbie - the Gem-It Mermaid” with a snowman charm to represent our roll call group who had all emerged from the frigid winter as pretty much, um, snowmen... Our second sea day was GORGEOUS, maybe mid-high 70’s, perfect.. The third day was also lovely and warmer, and after three-quarters of the day on the balcony we arrived in San Juan at 3pm on schedule. What an amazing view for arriving into ports! In San Juan we just walked to the forts and explored for a few hours. Another beautiful morning found us in St Maarten with six total ships (20,000 pax total :O). We taxied to a quiet beach club on Simpson Bay and spent half the day, had some drinks at Maho Beach (packed!!!), and took the public bus back to Philipsburg to have a few more drinks, and water taxi back to the ship. St. Thomas was next, another beautiful day with only one other ship in port. We had rented a car from Avis (use Budget instead) and went to Magen’s Bay - in retrospect I would have just taken a taxi there as it was uncrowded and we stayed all day. We stayed onboard in Samana, and it was a bit too hot on the balcony for me - so I spent the day in the casino “earning my keep” LOL. Upon leaving Samana, we were on the balcony watching for the whales, and spotted two breaching pods!! They appeared on the starboard side about 1/2 hr to 1 hr after setting sail and were beautiful. Our last two sea days were again lovely, and we sat out on the balcony until about 2pm on the last day, when it started to get a bit windy as we were approaching a storm. By the time we returned to the cabin about midnight, I could barely open the balcony door and it was blizzarding outside! When we woke up the next morning in NYC, the decks were covered in a good inch or two of ice and our beloved hot tub was completely iced in! All in all, the only time we didn’t use that balcony was the first sea day, the last afternoon and night, and one night in between when it was too windy - absolutely BEAUTIFUL weather…

 

We didn’t use the Haven much, having such a lovely balcony of our own, and the few times we went there were kids having fun in there - not exactly "tranquil". We did see some parents saying “quiet down” etc, but the kids we saw weren’t listening. One time, there was a rather raucous game of Marco-Polo going on, culminating in one child vomiting all over the floor (she missed the pool). It may have just been the times we stopped in there, but there were a lot of kids on board as it was Canadian spring break. It wasn’t an issue for us, but just giving a heads up to anyone looking for tranquility (I know there’s a lot of debate on here about this issue)… Not too many college Spring Breakers on board, a few maybe, but we didn’t use the venues (like Bliss) that they were likely using. Our daughter was Spring Breaking, but being a struggling law student, she spent 75% of her time in quiet spaces studying. Chair-hoggers filled the pool deck, but most of them appeared at their “reserved” chairs by 10am - although there were a few (like one large family in particular) who would reserve poolside chairs for everyone (kids included) that remained empty more than half the time throughout the day… Although the pool and sun decks were pretty much full, we only actively saw a few people who had a hard time finding seats somewhere. The family pool and hot tubs were LOADED with kids of ALL ages, my husband commented that he would be afraid to use those hot tubs!), and after the first day we never saw children in the adult pool and hot tubs. Poolside entertainment was excellent, especially at night, and the passengers seemed active and happy!

 

We dined out several times - six of nine nights at the specialties, two nights just picking up buffet food, and one night having La Cucina delivered to our cabin (tasty). We dined at Cagney’s twice, as we hadn’t been there in years, and liked the new menu very much - the Wagyu sliders and burgers are excellent, and the steaks very good. We dined at our favorite, Le Bistro, twice - everything was yummy as usual, but the Lobster in Butter dish was very, very tiny this time - a "four ounce" tail that actually was more like two ounces - three bites - no matter as it’s so rich that’s about all I could eat. Moderno was excellent and it’s sad to see how underutilized it is - there were only two or three tables in use every time we looked. It’s an excellent place to listed to Leo (the guitarist) who is just fantastic and fills the atrium for hours every time he plays. We also tried Teppanyaki again, and while it was tasty and we had a good chef, it’s just become too “mainstream American” - too much salt and garlic to please the masses. One night we thought we might dine at Magenta (which we passed every night where there were always lots of people waiting) and were told we couldn’t get in without a reservation (it was late after the San Juan stop) - so I know they were taking reservations there, don’t know about the other main dining room as we never passed it. We didn’t mind, we just went to the buffet to get a plate for our cabin.

 

I mentioned Leo, the guitarist, because he was very very good and popular, hard to find a sat when he was playing. Other than that, we skipped pretty much all entertainment in favor of the casino or our cabin and balcony. The casino (of course) took all my allowance, but I did well there, getting a lot of play and points for my $$$. The casino picked up two dinners, plus most our other onboard charges including spa treatments, drinks, dinners, etc - I went in as Golden, left as VIP I think but it will drop on March 31). Casino staff (bar waiters included) was awesome, friendly, helpful, efficient. Our daughter, who is a wiser player than I ;), left happily with several hundred $$ in profit.

 

The Gem itself was fantastic. She carries one of the nicest crews I have had the pleasure to sail with.. Our concierge (Pearl) was one of the best I have ever had - she was so thoughtful and pro-active - it was her last week as concierge as Carlos was getting on when we got off. After a week back in the casino, Pearl is heading home for vacation - Have fun Pearl! Our butler, Jeffrey, was very, very sweet and tried so hard - but was not totally efficient. We had breakfast delivered a couple times and dinner once, and each time our order was messed up pretty well, but it was fine. He also had trouble finding us our requested “upgraded” brands of liquor and we ended up settling on other choices (we paid approx $30 per bottle to upgrade). Our steward, Rodrigo, was AMAZING - and presented us with some truly unusual towel animals, including a life-sized alligator on the floor one night (scared the bejeezus outta me!). After my last two sailings on the Breakaway, I loved returning to the Gem/Jewel-class layout and crew, and have definitely decided it’s still my favorite - big enough, but not huge and crowded like the new builds. We are already dreaming about our next sailing on her in the same suite!

 

I’d be happy to answer any questions about specifics!

 

Robin

 

 

Bet u can't wait until your next Gem cruise in the GV?

[hpecorari]

Sounds like you had a blast! Good for you.

 

Harriet

[Leavethekidswithmom]

Robert, I don't really remember. Most of the time there was live music poolside, so we wouldn't have heard our own music anyway, other times the prerecorded poolside music would be playing - I do remember hearing "Get Happy" at least three times a day lol. We also brought our small portable Bluetooth Bose speaker, just don't remember if we used it outside..

 

 

 

Robin

 

 

Thank you Robin, if you don't remember if there were Bose speakers outside, I'm sure there weren't. It was really nice to be able to turn the music up while sitting in that loud hot tub. I know life's a bitch, lol. We loved the bands, steel drum guy and the DJ, made for some killer sailaways. [emoji12]