Ncl Jewel What did you like and what did you hate

[Jaytea]

Just returned to Sydney 1 week ago after a 14 day NZ trip. Sailed on the Jewel in 2017 so we were interested to see her post refurbishment. Very pleased with the beautifully updated public areas - no brassy glitz or glitter here, just very refined & classy. All new flooring & furniture in Garden Cafe & other eating venues. New carpet in public areas. New upholstery in theatre. 

Biggest surprise & plus for us was the installation of USB ports in staterooms - 1 on each side of the beds under a new bedside lamp (beside lamp switch), & 1 next to the coffee machine (in balcony staterooms). We found this very useful with only 2 power outlets - charged all our iPhones, iPads & laptop via the USB ports. 

Nothing to hate about the Jewel. Great entertainment, food & specialty dining. 

[debeni]

We recently got off the Jewel on Feb 13^thafter a 14-Day cruise to New Zealand.

 

We loved to have breakfast at the Great Outdoors, Aft 12.  It’s also a great place for an afternoon beer.

 

We experienced all the bars and enjoyed the entertainment. (Atrium Bar, Magnums, Bliss Ultra, and the Spinnaker).

 

Our favorite complimentary restaurant was Tsar's which we enjoyed at least four times.  Never had to wait more that 15 minutes to get seated.

 

The entertainment at the Stardust Theater was better than we remember from previous NCL cruises.  We arrived 20 mins before the shows and never had a problem finding a seat.

 

[KarimaJ]

I loved the jewel toned colors throughout the ship, Spinnaker lounge and Martini bar. The lounge is at the front of the ship with big glass floor length windows, beautiful to watch that Alaska landscape go by. We enjoyed the Indian food on the buffet too. I have a full review posted if you go to my profile.

[Scoreboard2017]

We also loved the Jewel. The Spinnaker lounge was a great place to hang out in with a great view. I haven't seen anything like that again on another NCL ship. The only other NCL cruises we have taken were on Star & Breakaway. Would cruise on the Jewel again just for Spinnaker.

[Sauer-kraut]

2 hours ago, Scoreboard2017 said:

We also loved the Jewel. The Spinnaker lounge was a great place to hang out in with a great view. I haven't seen anything like that again on another NCL ship. The only other NCL cruises we have taken were on Star & Breakaway. Would cruise on the Jewel again just for Spinnaker.

 

The SUN has a forward observation lounge too.   Loved that area!

[misguy]

The Spirit had the Spinnaker Lounge as well.  And that makes a great vantage point for Alaska when the weather is bad.  Do you know if the Jewell has heated pools, that would be important in Alaska.

[Von & John]

4 hours ago, misguy said:

The Spirit had the Spinnaker Lounge as well.  And that makes a great vantage point for Alaska when the weather is bad.  Do you know if the Jewell has heated pools, that would be important in Alaska.

 

The pools are heated - not to hot tub temp - but they are heated.  They were in use throughout our Transpacific Cruise:  Vancouver to Tokyo  --  Sept/Oct 2018

Vancouver / Ketchikan / Juneau / Seward / Petropavlovsk / Otaru / Hakodate / Aomori / Tokyo

[Monica887]

I also have lots of love for the great outdoors and spinaker. It's been a long time though so I can't speak to the updates. I used to think it was sort of a boring ship, but since my last few we're on the mega ships, I truly miss the jewel/gem. The big ships have more "stuff" but is lacking those nice loungy spaces that weren't packed with people.

[mugtech]

Gem also has a great Spinnaker Lounge, probably the Pearl and Jade have same.

[marx]

We cruised on the Jewel from Vancouver to Seward last August.  Overall, we loved the ship.  So many outdoor places to view the glaciers (we cruised by Hubbard and Glacier Bay).  The shows were okay and the food generally very good.

[misguy]

How was the internet service on board, I would like to do some live posting of the cruise, the questions is will the bandwidth be there?

 

[debeni]

The internet speed on board is REALLY slow. It is frustrating to watch your online time decrease while you wait to bring up webpages.  It took an hour to make a flight reservation online.

 

To save time, we typed our emails in Word before going online and then did a copy/paste.

 

We didn’t try uploading pictures, but I would think they would be very time consuming, if possible.

[misguy]

3 hours ago, debeni said:

The internet speed on board is REALLY slow. It is frustrating to watch your online time decrease while you wait to bring up webpages.  It took an hour to make a flight reservation online.

 

To save time, we typed our emails in Word before going online and then did a copy/paste.

 

We didn’t try uploading pictures, but I would think they would be very time consuming, if possible.

How long ago were you on here?  

[debeni]

We were on the Jewel for the 14-Day New Zealand cruise that ended Feb 13, 2019.

[misguy]

Thanks, that doesn't bode well for it being any better now.  I was hoping.

 

[pbenjamin]

On 2/26/2019 at 1:50 PM, Von & John said:

 

The pools are heated - not to hot tub temp - but they are heated.  They were in use throughout our Transpacific Cruise:  Vancouver to Tokyo  --  Sept/Oct 2018

Vancouver / Ketchikan / Juneau / Seward / Petropavlovsk / Otaru / Hakodate / Aomori / Tokyo

Are pools open during Alaska cruises?

[Von & John]

40 minutes ago, pbenjamin said:

Are pools open during Alaska cruises?

 

Yes they are!  Johnny & I loved to cruise the Inner Passage in the hot tub, with a cocktail in our hands...

[Laumau]

Thanks everyone for all the info. We are taking the cruise in June Vancouver to Seward. First cruise ever! 

[Von & John]

3 hours ago, Laumau said:

Thanks everyone for all the info. We are taking the cruise in June Vancouver to Seward. First cruise ever! 

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic...

Enjoy your first cruise...

Have a great time in our Amazing State!

[misguy]

6 hours ago, Laumau said:

Thanks everyone for all the info. We are taking the cruise in June Vancouver to Seward. First cruise ever! 

We are doing that cruise at the end of May going the other directions.  Watch out for cruising ducks on board🙂

[ProfCruise]

The Jewel and her sister the Pearl are our two favorites!  We've spend many, many days on both.  Just the right size and, as others have mentioned, we love the Spinnaker Lounge and the Great Outdoors.  Also, walking or just sitting on the Promenade deck.  So relaxing and lovely.  Wishing I was joining you!  Enjoy!

[LinnieRed]

On 2/16/2019 at 8:06 PM, Von & John said:

We immensely enjoyed our only trip (to date) on the Jewel & would happily sail her again... 
We were on the Transpacific:  Vancouver to Tokyo (19 nights) - Sept/Oct 2018. 
This cruise was just b/4 the dry dock.  Even though this was a repositioning cruise - I believe the cruise was sold out.

 

It was a fabulous cruise with an amazing Cruise Critic Group!!!  I know many people prefer smaller Meet & Mingle - but our first one had 175+ people attending - not everyone signed in...  With great participation...  Due to the planned number attending - our event was held in the Spinnaker Lounge.  The peeps were up & Mingling...  Both before the event & after...

 

Cruise Critic Peeps rose to the challenge...  With ten (10) Sea Days - there were many planned events & activities.   With eight (8) Port Days - it was amazing the number of planned private excursions.  In addition, as happens many times, friendships were formed and informal activities became prevalent...  This group was truly a Blast - even the Captain joined in on the fun of the International Dateline Crossing "Pirates of the Pacific Party" - which led to the Mutiny Charge of the Bridge... 

 

The Jewel Special Events Team - Shout out to Katherine - embraced our Fun Loving Group & hosted a Cruise Critic Farewell Event in Le Bistro...  We had 125+ join us for the Farewell Event.

 

Now that I've bored you with reminiscing - on with information regarding the Jewel...

 

On this trip John & I made an effort to enjoy a beverage in every bar!!!  Our Faves were:

Deck 13 Outdoor Bar (Can't Remember the Name):  Met great friends here (Cruise Critic Peeps) & fabulous bartenders... 

Spinnaker Lounge:  Sea Days & late every evening...  Amazing bartenders... & Friends we met @ Outdoor Bar...

Martini Bar (Shakers) / Magnum's Champagne Bar:  Live Entertainment & great place to stop for pre-dinner cocktails

Fizz Lounge (Now Bliss Ultra Lounge):  Live Entertainment & a great place to stop for pre-dinner cocktails

Sugarcane Mojito Bar:  Very limited seating for a "Bar" - but nice for a pre-dinner cocktail - especially if we were dining in Cagney's or Moderno.

 

Maltings:  It took us until our final sea day to actually be able to capture a seat @ the bar...  We met another nice couple & were chatting about previous cruises - we mentioned the NCL Wind Hawaii to Fanning Island & our bartender overheard us.   He said - I used to be the bartender on the Wind...  Now this cruise was 12 year previous - we looked at him & said...   Pool Bar - right?  Yes...  He looks @ us & says...  Alaska?  Yes - we spent a few (OK - many) hours with him on the Wind & attempted to offer him a job @ one of the Remote Lodges we were operating back then...

 

Before dinner on our final night...  We realized the slide was to be removed during dry dock.  To this point I had not made it into any of the pools nor hot tubs.  Terry & I decided we needed to complete the slide, pool, hot tub circuit...
While we were cheered on from Top Siders - we made multiple trips down the slide & spent time in every pool and hot tub...   I will neither confirm nor deny the potential there are pictures/video of this circuit...

 

We enjoyed most meals...

Specialty Dining:

Moderno's:  For the first time, Moderno's takes top spot...  It may have been the night we were there, but not only was the Salad Bar Great - the meat was amazing.  Every bite was grilled perfectly, fresh & hot...  The best piece of advice our server gave us was - if we like our beef Med Rare - to let the Pasadores know & they will ensure to request it from the Chefs...

Cagney's:  Great service & Food

Le Bistro:  Wonderful Meals

Teppanyaki:  OK  --  the Teppanyaki experience was much different than we had experienced on other NCL Ships

La Cucina:  Great Service - Ate way too much!

 

Complimentary Dining

Tsar's Palace:  Great place for leisurely Breakfast, Lunches on Sea Days & Dinners.  Most breakfasts we were seated near a window - amazing scenery...  We much preferred Tsar's Place to the Azura Dining Room.  We had dinner one night in Azura & that was enough - their rhythm & ambience was just a little off...

 

Chin Chin:  We enjoyed both Dinner & Lunch (Sea Day) in Chin Chin

The Buffet, Great Outdoors & O'Sheehan's worked for a snack or quick meal. 
Breakfast & Lunch Overflow - La Cucina is open to sit in - after grabbing your food from the Buffet &/or Great Outdoors.

 

We love the size of the Jewel  --  in 19 Days - including 10 Sea Days...  We never felt like the ship was too crowded...

Off topic question for you: we are taking the Transpacific Tokyo to Vancouver. How was the international dateline crossing handled on your trip?

In your direction did you go from say Thursday to Saturday? Or Saturday to Thursday? None of us seem to have a solid answer.

 

Thanks

[Von & John]

7 hours ago, LinnieRed said:

Off topic question for you: we are taking the Transpacific Tokyo to Vancouver. How was the international dateline crossing handled on your trip?

In your direction did you go from say Thursday to Saturday? Or Saturday to Thursday? None of us seem to have a solid answer.

 

Thanks

 

@LinnieRed

We had the same challenge finding info, prior to our cruise...

We lost a day heading West (but gained it back flying home)...

You will gain a day heading East...

My understanding is that your additional day crossing the Dateline will appear as

Funday1 (original day)

Funday2 (additional day)

The cruisers before us (Eastbound) talked about the challenges the Restaurants had for reservations for Funday2...

 

Our CC Roll Call planned a "Pirates of the Pacific" International Dateline Crossing Party... 

NCL Signed the certificates I created for us...

[LinnieRed]

2 hours ago, Von & John said:

 

@LinnieRed

We had the same challenge finding info, prior to our cruise...

We lost a day heading West (but gained it back flying home)...

You will gain a day heading East...

My understanding is that your additional day crossing the Dateline will appear as

Funday1 (original day)

Funday2 (additional day)

The cruisers before us (Eastbound) talked about the challenges the Restaurants had for reservations for Funday2...

 

Our CC Roll Call planned a "Pirates of the Pacific" International Dateline Crossing Party... 

NCL Signed the certificates I created for us...

Thank you so much for this info! We get an extra cruise day for free 🥰. The party sounds like a great idea. 

[spanishguy1970]

We love the jewel class our favorite specially the Gem, we have been on it twice. We have also been on the Jewel twice, once for 28 days and another time for 17. The 17 day we took out of NYC we enjoyed it until the last week of the cruise the whole deck and our stateroom smelled of sewage, it was miserable. We decided to give it another try for 28 days and it was perfect.