JUST BACK FROM THE JEWEL** I will try to answer any questions!!

[tinkerbelldee]

Guess I will just have to keep listening to his CDs. We bought both of them on the Dawn last year and I listen to them all the time. Maybe I should pack them for evenings on the balcony

[cindibplus4]

I have to say that I found both Cagneys and Le Bistro very good but would not consider either of them of 5 Star quality. The food there is consistant to what I would consider a very good meal out but not superb. I felt they were both worth the extra charge and would recommend them. I just don't want to give the impression that they are "to die for meals".

[ssabaste]

I have to say that I found both Cagneys and Le Bistro very good but would not consider either of them of 5 Star quality. The food there is consistant to what I would consider a very good meal out but not superb. I felt they were both worth the extra charge and would recommend them. I just don't want to give the impression that they are "to die for meals".

 

Cindib, that's a great way to describe it...and sets very good expectations on the restaurants. :)

[claudie]

cindi, can you tell me anything about the indoor lap pool? I think I read somewhere that there is a fee? On the Dawn it was free and used by many for playing around in rather than lap swimming. I need to keep up with laps for a life guard course when I get back so I'm hoping it's possible.

[markf]

I live in Metropolitan New York City--Cagneys doe not compare to any top rated NY steak house--I would not even compare it to Mortons--it is ok but not great--as a matter of fact i did not have any memorable meals on the Jewel in mid Feb. The food was good but not memorable

[trickiedick]

i live in Manhattan where we have some of the best chefs in the world...how can you expect a cruise to compare...i have my expectations in check

 

april 16...here we go...:rolleyes:

[DragonflyCruiser]

Thanks for answering questions for us.

 

Was there a murder mystery dinner? Is there a decent pino player? We really enjoyed Bobby Hamilton on the Sun and were hoping for someone similar.

 

Thanks!

 

We were on the Jewel for the first crossing in Sept. We really enjoyed the murder mystery. My husband was the murderer and I didn't have a clue. Fun evening with fellow CC. We had a group of about 30 that evening. We will return this Sept for the Istanbut, Egypt & Greece tour. Hope the shows and murder mystery are in place but different from last year! Some of the shows sound really familiar. We had a great time and can't wait to retun. The group of CC we met were all very special and it was fun to put web names with faces!

[cindibplus4]

Claudie,

I did not use the spa services. I believe there is a $60 fee for the entire week. This includes the lap pool and sauna and other things. However I believe that if you have a spa treatment it is free for the remainder of the week ( not positive about that though). I planned on paying for it to use after my runs but I didn't even have clothing back until Tuesday night and by the time I got back on track I figured it was too much to pay fo half a week. My husband had a massage and then went in to use the facilities and said it was incredible. So it would be worth checking out the first day you get there.

For the record my husband thought he had the best massage of his life there and he has one every vacation we go on which is about three times a year.

[claudie]

Cindi, thanks for the info regarding the spa. I'll definitely look into that as soon as I board. Thanks for your review also. It sounds like you made the best of an unpleasant beginning.

[DragonflyCruiser]

Make that Istanbul!!! My fingers were walking on the wrong key!

[whineconnoiseur]

Any thoughts on talking an infant (7 mo) to the upcharge restaurants?

[flarad]

We leave next Sunday (8 days!!!):) on the Jewel. I keep reading about people pretipping. Who did you pretip and how much? I need details, we've never pretipped or tipped above the fee before. I didn't realize that it was expected. We did Disney last and I never heard of this. Please help :) Also, we are coming in from Naples in the am of the cruise, Did you have info that had the terminal in it? Was it easy to find the terminal? I read that it was hard to find where to go on embarkation. With four people on deck 11 will it be hard to get an elevator up on embarkation? Is it crowded? Loved your information. It's the first good information about kids I've read!:o

[DragonflyCruiser]

Enjoy the Jewel! We loved it. As for tipping, I assume you mean on board? If so, $10 per person will be added to your bill daily to cover all that. No need to tip unless you feel someone was extra special to you. Drinks already have the tip in the cost too. It makes life much easier. Tipping at the port for porters is not included in anything.

 

Elevators are a good size and there are 3 at each bank. If you will walk aft or forward on the ship when you board you may have better luck getting on an elevator that isn't full on the day you board. The ones at the gangway tend to be really busy.

[WaldosPepper]

Any thoughts on talking an infant (7 mo) to the upcharge restaurants?

 

If you feel certain the child could somehow manage to be comfortable there for upwards of 2 1/2 hours while you dine, then I suppose you could consider it. Please keep in mind these are "fine dining" venues, and fellow guests are also paying to be there. Squirming and/or screaming infants would be considered a serious detraction from the atmosphere and enjoyment of such an experience, and could certainly create a bit of unrest among fellow diners. :( If there is a possibility of engaging a babysitter to mind the baby while you dine, that would be a far preferable option. Your call, of course. ;)

[DragonflyCruiser]

Any thoughts on talking an infant (7 mo) to the upcharge restaurants?

 

I agree with Waldospepper! Also, think of yourself and the fact that you are on vacation! I'm sure you would enjoy the evening a lot more with just your hubby. The baby won't appreciate fine dining anyway!

[Cinderellie]

Tinkerbellmom, you mentioned you were going on Spring break with all 4 of your kids on the Jewel. We are going on the Jewel with kids on the 4/9 sailing. Are you on that one?

[cindibplus4]

In my opinion it depends on the baby. My husband and I went to dinner with friends ( very upscale place)and when we got there they had the 5 month old with them in an infant seat ( much to our surprise and initial dissapointment), however her never made a peep and slept through our entire meal. I would say that if we had paid $200 each couple like we had and the baby was screaming the entire time then we would have had a different opinion. I would say give it a shot and if the baby gets fussy you might need to adbandon your meal out of respect for the other patrons. They can always send it up to your room. We had gone to the French rest. and when we didn't have time for the fondue dessert the waiter offered to have it sent to our room ( which we passed on but still an option)

As for tipping I gave our room steward a tip at the beginning of our trip (second day). We had four kids with us so $20. per room ( two rooms). He made sure all our special requests were taken care of. Like having my favoirte soda with cut up limes in the fridge each evening when he turned down our beds. He also found out info for me on where to go buy clothing when mine was lost. Little things like that made a big difference. But do not feel compelled to tip. It is something I like to do and I feel it does go a long way. Besides with four children with us I felt that he would most certainly deserve it.