Jade Family Tips & LFK

[macdon221]

Good Day All,

 

Experienced cruisers on the larger ships (160,000 tons plus), new to NCL and the Jade, 4 kids aged 11-6.

 

Looking for any tips and tricks from the experienced NCL'ers as well as the Jade pros! Best place to eat on Embarking day, quiet areas to sit, best place for lunch, snacks, tips for kids, tips for adults, etc.

 

Also, we have pretty much made up our mind to attend LFK as we visit Roatan. Any suggestions for the LFK packages, basic and add to it; do you get to use any chairs with just the island discovery package, food/drink prices if buying al la carte there, time to travel from the port to LFK, is the zip-lining worth the cost, are towels provided or available, how much time should we give ourselves to get back to the ship, etc. Are they cash only, tipping etiquette for transportation personal? Should we get the tour or just self guided for the zoo. Can you snorkel here?

 

I know that was a lot of questions rolled into one paragraph, but I appreciate any and all response!

 

We really enjoy these forums!

 

Macdon221

[Starflyr3]

When are you going?

 

Most of the LFK questions can be answered on their website - http://www.littlefrenchkey.com

 

I just put in our reservation for there for our March cruise today.

 

Looks like you can snorkel, since they have snorkeling tours. As for payment, if you use a CC, they add a 15% fee to the total price, but not for cash. We're bringing 6 people, and most likely doing the VIP package so that everyone can do all the things without constantly grabbing for a wallet. I also read onTripAdvisor that apparently, VIP ghetto be 1st in line, followed by those who prepaid for that particular thing, followed by those who want to add it on and pay as they go. Can't speak to how true that is, though. We'll be there over spring break, so I'm hedging my bets that it'll be "crowded" with lines.

 

:)

[macdon221]

We are doing the Feb 6th sailing. We booked only a week or so ago...so doing a bit of a scramble to get some information. Trying to escape the Central Canadian Winter!

[Starflyr3]

ah, fun! Enjoy!

 

I havent been on Jade, but we went on Jewel last year, same cruise. Where to eat lunch on embarkation day...depends on your kids. If they are instant gratification type people and are hungry, Id head for the buffet. If they like trying new things and could wait a little, Id go to the MDR, b/c its less crowded. Splash Academy will have sign up when you get onboard, we did (and plan on doing) that first thing. Granted, it was crowded (spring break again, cause Im crazy).

 

Quiet area, for us, was in the spa. We had passes, and would drop the kids at SA and go sit on the heated tile loungers and watch the water. It was great. The library and card room were also usually pretty calm. The rest of the ship was seemingly always "happening".

 

lets see...snacks... we would usually go get ice cream, either from the buffet or from the bar/eating area by the pool (Topsiders, I think). Personally, I found the cakes and such at Carlos' to be kind of...icky. Like it was frozen and all the flavor leeched out. AND it cost $$ too, which just added insult to injury. O'Sheehans (on Jewel, I guess Blue lagoon on jade?) was really packed on sea days, but really empty on port days (we stayed onboard in Belize last year). Our other quiet area was our balcony (we were in 11566, a minisuite, which was 1 floor down from garden cafe and just under SA. It wasnt loud except for the last night.)

 

If I could go back, I would do a few things differently. #1, I would take the kids to the nightly shows that werent labelled "adult". They came to one at the end of the cruise and LOVED it. They can do daycare/SA/whatever at other times. #2, I would (an AM CURRENTLY) plan my own excursions, that were more kid-friendly and less...tourist trappy. (playa mia was OK but...) #3: I booked in the Haven this year because the pool was crowded and COLD on the main deck (and because nobody slept last year - our kids are apparantly allergic to sleep, which is bad in 1 small room together). This winter has been warmer, my kids are older (4 and 7) so it may be different, but who knows?

[Shila16]

Good Day All,

 

Experienced cruisers on the larger ships (160,000 tons plus), new to NCL and the Jade, 4 kids aged 11-6.

 

Looking for any tips and tricks from the experienced NCL'ers as well as the Jade pros! Best place to eat on Embarking day, quiet areas to sit, best place for lunch, snacks, tips for kids, tips for adults, etc.

 

Also, we have pretty much made up our mind to attend LFK as we visit Roatan. Any suggestions for the LFK packages, basic and add to it; do you get to use any chairs with just the island discovery package, food/drink prices if buying al la carte there, time to travel from the port to LFK, is the zip-lining worth the cost, are towels provided or available, how much time should we give ourselves to get back to the ship, etc. Are they cash only, tipping etiquette for transportation personal? Should we get the tour or just self guided for the zoo. Can you snorkel here?

 

I know that was a lot of questions rolled into one paragraph, but I appreciate any and all response!

 

We really enjoy these forums!

 

Macdon221

 

We leave tomorrow on the Jade tomorrow with our two daughters, age 4 & 6. When we get back, I will be sure to leave a review/tips from our experience. :)

[asdjl]

Unless they had them returned, I thought Little French Key, unfortunately (and some say illegally) had the animals confiscated by the government? I hope they have them back because I really want to go there and see the zoo, etc.

[Linda the Book Lover]

Unless they had them returned, I thought Little French Key, unfortunately (and some say illegally) had the animals confiscated by the government? I hope they have them back because I really want to go there and see the zoo, etc.

 

Oh no! :eek: I had LFK on my list. I looked online and found something from the summer. There is much discussion on if this was legal based on it being a private island and the animals belong to the owners etc. on other

 

http://thenewroatan.com/clarification-post-about-the-removal-of-animals-in-little-french-key/

 

There is also a CC thread with links to other information. It seems these has been an ongoing issue with the animals.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2253748

Edited January 8, 2016 by Linda the Book Lover
typo

[cdnsteelman]

Good Day All,

 

Experienced cruisers on the larger ships (160,000 tons plus), new to NCL and the Jade, 4 kids aged 11-6.

 

Looking for any tips and tricks from the experienced NCL'ers as well as the Jade pros! Best place to eat on Embarking day, quiet areas to sit, best place for lunch, snacks, tips for kids, tips for adults, etc.

 

Also, we have pretty much made up our mind to attend LFK as we visit Roatan. Any suggestions for the LFK packages, basic and add to it; do you get to use any chairs with just the island discovery package, food/drink prices if buying al la carte there, time to travel from the port to LFK, is the zip-lining worth the cost, are towels provided or available, how much time should we give ourselves to get back to the ship, etc. Are they cash only, tipping etiquette for transportation personal? Should we get the tour or just self guided for the zoo. Can you snorkel here?

 

I know that was a lot of questions rolled into one paragraph, but I appreciate any and all response!

 

We really enjoy these forums!

 

Macdon221

 

Just off the Jade with two kids (2/4). Our third time on her so very familiar with the ship.

 

1. Splash Club on the Jade was great, sign your kids up ASAP if they are interested. The team onboard in December was primarily (but not exclusively) Peruvian and were excellent.

 

2. The family eating area at the fore end of the Garden Cafe buffet has lower tables and ottoman style stools for smaller kids and is great for breakfast / lunch (and dinner in our case too). One challenge is that the Garden Cafe can get very busy so lots of non families plunk themselves down there for lack of other space.

 

3. The great Outdoors (aft through the Garden Cafe) is the best place IMO for lunch and snacks al fresco but it can be breezy depending and it can also be tough to find seating. The Blue Lagoon (24 hours - Deck 8 port) is awesome for comfort food and snacks - passable wings, artichoke dip is awesome and yummy tomato soup (can be slow service-wise in the later hours).

 

4. Lots of book readers / game players in Spinnaker Lounge if you want quiet during the day. There is also a library and game room (quiet) just fore of the pool deck.

 

5. Deck 14 fore there is a sun deck that gets minimal use in my experience so not a bad place to get a little P&Q while catching some rays and there is an outdoor shower for cooling off.

 

6. We did LFK on our own - $50 return taxi (just negotiated with the hawkers where the tender drops you off) but they charged us $20 pp to barge across to the key (entrance fee) instead of $10 as advertised because "we arranged our own transport". We then just ate and drank a la carte. We were able to use all loungers etc without extra charges. The "zoo" was really just a few enclosures and you really don't need a guide here at all - seriously 10 minutes max. It was ~45 minutes each way (maybe a bit less) in the taxi. We took our own towels from the ship - none provided at LFK that I saw but then I didn't really look for them either.

[anonmom]

We leave tomorrow on the Jade tomorrow with our two daughters, age 4 & 6. When we get back, I will be sure to leave a review/tips from our experience. :)

 

Please bring back and post the new splash academy schedules and the new MDR menus!