Also back from Jewel-3/18-3/25

[lgfromdg]

We absolutely loved the Jewel and our cruise. Unlike Glen925, we weren't in a suite; we were in an OV on Deck 4.

 

Embarkment - a breeze. The Pearl was not in port so we embarked from the terminal. Got off the NCL shuttle at 11:30 and we're in our room by noon. When we went to lunch all that was open was the Garden Cafe; but by the time we were done, Tsar's was open so if you don't want a buffet just wait a bit.

 

We were very happy with our room. There was plenty of storage, the beds were comfy and the bathroom was surprisingly big. The best packing tips I got were to bring a power strip, over-the-door shoe hanger for toiletries and a small fan. We would have been lost without them.

 

Our roll call was about 30 people and 15 showed up for the Meet & Greet. 4 officers showed up including Paul, the Cruise Director and Armando, who is in charge of Hotel. It was great to finally meet everyone, especailly Naaz, Happy Tigress, who arranged the Meet & Greet (and who received many perks from NCL during the week for doing so). Paul did say that he and other NCL staffers do check on the CC Boards to get and idea what cruisers are saying to each other. It was a very informative and entertaining meeting.

 

Food - Have to agree with Glen925 about the main dining rooms. We ate at Tsars the first 2 nights, then never again. The Garden cafe wasn't bad for lunch - the made to order pasta was my usual. We ate at Cagneys, which we liked very much, Le Bistro - which was very good, Mamas - which was good and Teppanyaki - the food was pretty good and it was very entertaining. The room service menu was not very extensive; a few more options would have been appreciated. While the food wasn't the greatest, it wasn't the most important thing to begin with so it didn't really color our opinion of the cruise.

 

Entertainment - We only saw 3 shows. Band on the Run - I didn't like it but many in the audience did. The Fountains show - Loved this one. It was nice to see the crew get to show off their talents and the finale was hysterical - don't miss this. Le Cirque Bijou - I really didn't want to go to this (since it was the same group from Band on the Run) but my daughter wanted to. I am so glad we went; the show was amazing. Also, there was at the end a Goodbye Show. Paul, the Cruise Director and one of the show's performers sang a song about how we were all part of the Jewel family now, the crew members from all the departments filed through the theater and on to the stage. It was so nice to see representatives from all departments, room stewards, cooks, servers, officers, get accolades for their service. The whole Jewel staff was so friendly and accomodating; they really made the cruise special for us. We went to the Spinnaker Lounge each evening where a group called the Ironics performed. Late rin the evening, Paul would come and perform with the. He is very talented and quick-witted. we had a great waiter there who quickly learned our drink order and made us feel like VIPs. Whenever we saw him on the ship, he always came over to ay hello. One tip- add an extra tip to the bill and you get much stronger drinks! We wento to the casino a few nights; didn't win but didn't lose much either. Went to Bingo once - very expensive.

 

Ports - Old San Juan - had fun there. Grabbed a tour at the pier that only cost $20 a person. Free drinks (Bacardi) at the Visitor Center. Antigua - did the Rain Forest Zipline. Lot of fun but hard work. 156 steps at the end in the heat almost did me in. We didn't really like Antigua - too dirty and smelly. St. Thomas - loved this place. I would love to go back for a resort vacation there. We took the Sunny Liston Tour and had a great time. Great Stirrup Cay - though the sea was choppy, we were able to go ashore. We enjoyed it since it was the only time we spent on the beach but a lot of people didn't.

 

Immigration at St. Thomas and Miami - long lines - what more can I say.

 

To sum up - everyone I talked to had things they absolutely loved and things that they didn't like at all. But pretty much everyone said they had a great time and would cruise the Jewel again. My daughter & I were so sad to leave the ship. It was a great vacation and was everything (and more) that I hoped it would be.

 

One last thing - we had some rough seas Sunday, Monday & Thursday night. It was fun to watch everyone try to walk without bumping into something or someone - I'm sure my daughter & I gave people a lot of laughs. I am having problems tonight at home - I feel like I'm rocking back & forth. Think I'll take some Dramamine and hit the hay.

 

Laura

[BeachBumMama]

Gotta love those power strips!:p

Welcome home and glad you enjoyed your cruise. Sounds like this ship is another winner for NCL, I haven't read anything bad about her yet.:D

[CamilleandNick]

Enjoyed your review. We got off on 3/18 before you got on. Loved it.

No Captain at your Meet and Greet?

[lgfromdg]

No captain. We were a pretty small group so I think we were lucky to get what we did.

[msknow]

Was your Meet and Greet associated with Cruise Critic or something else?

Laura

[lgfromdg]

It was a Cruise Critic Meet & Greet put togther from our Roll Call. Naaz, Happy Tigress, arranged it with NCL. They assigned the day (Monday) spot (Star Bar) and time (3:00).

[mandiecandie5]

Hi,

 

Can you confirm what the extra charges were on any of the specialty restaurants? I am confused as to what the Jewel is charging. Thanks in advance! :)

 

Cagney's- $20

LeBistro-$15

Teppanyaki-?

Sushi place-?

Others-?

[lgfromdg]

We ate at Cagney's -$20, LeBistro - $15 & Teppanyaki - $20. There was an additional charge of $5 if you ordered from the bottom of Cagney's menu which included Surf & Turf, a 24 oz Porterhouse and maybe 1 or 2 other items. I think there was also an additional charge at Le Bistro if you ordered from the Tastings Menu. I don't recall there being any additional charge at Teppanyaki. I didn't go to the other restaurants so I don't know their additional charges but it was probably $15. No additional charge at Mama's, Tango's and Blue Lagoon.

 

Don't forget that on many nights if you dine at 5:30 or 6:00, you get a 2 for 1deal at Cagneys & Le Bistro. That doesn't apply to the Tastings Menu at Le Bistro though. I also think that Teppanyaki doesn't offer the 2 for 1 since it's such a small restaurant.

[JennKach]

Chin Chin was $10, no charge for our daughter eating off the kid's menu. We did order her an appetizer for no charge.

 

At Cagney's, the left page of the menu was $20, the top right page was $25 (nicer steaks) and the bottom right was $30 (surf & turf and a few others). You can order as many appetizers, sides and desserts as you want.

 

Sushi was a la carte but I don't know the prices as I don't eat it. Someone else mentioned an all-you-can-eat lunch special for $15.

[mandiecandie5]

Hi, A big thank you for clearing up the prices on the specialty restaurants! :) :)

[hotspur]

Teppanyaki on Jewel was an additional charge, more or less depending on what you ordered.

 

Main dining room food on Jewel was comparable with any other mass-market cruise line: just fine.

[kim826]

I too was on the 3/18 Jewel. I agree with most of the other postings. The cruise was great but we really noticed a decline in the food quality in the dining room since our last NCL cruise on the Star last year. We ate in the dining room once and ate at the Specialty Restaurants the rest of the time. My husband and I are fairly easy to please and have only used a Specialty Restaurant once before (in 9 cruises), so this says a lot. We had a mini-suite and our attendant did a fantastic job. We enjoyed all of the shows except Charles Bach -- I'd give that a C- or D+ grade. Had fun at the Second City shows. We toured San Juan on our own. Went to Dickenson's Bay in Antigua and did a city tour in St. Thomas. We stayed on the ship during the private island day as the couple we were with took one look at the tender being bounced around and said "no thanks". We had a great day lounging around the pool though. The seas were a little rough for some of the days but we got many laughs watching each other try to negotiate the hallways and avoid tables, etc. I would really prefer that NCL bump up the price a little so we wouldn't have to pay a daily fee for the spa as well as doing a better job in the dining room. I don't like the nickel/dime feeling.

[BeachBumMama]

We stayed on the ship during the private island day as the couple we were with took one look at the tender being bounced around and said "no thanks".

I had to laugh at this. Was on a cruise with some first-time cruiser friends once and I never give the bouncy tender a second thought if seas are a little rough. I always figure if they've deemed it safe to let the tenders run I'll take their word for it. But once, we were about to board the tender and the friends faces looked as if it were a roller coaster ride I was trying to coax them onto.:p It took me and the staff awhile to coax them on but they went.:)

 

I would really prefer that NCL bump up the price a little so we wouldn't have to pay a daily fee for the spa as well as doing a better job in the dining room. I don't like the nickel/dime feeling.

I think the problem with bumping up the price to compensate for the spa is that most won't use the spa, therefore they feel as if they're paying for anothers use and not their own. And in return, will go to the spa since they are paying for it, and then it just becomes another crowded place on the ship and defeats the purpose of paying for a little solitary confinement so to speak.:p It's like bumping up the price to include some fitness classes when not all use them. Or after hours babysitting care when not all use that.

 

I certainly see your point though:) . My last cruise was the first time I really felt the nickel/dime feeling. Maybe I just never really paid much attention before, but the freestyle daily was filled with ads every day etc. It seemed more so than usual. Diamonds, spa, casino, etc. Like junk mail at home or spam in my email. Personally, I think they should keep the freestyle itself with all the going's on and ship info seperate, and then all the extra stuff beside it and not in it. Then again, that defeats their purpose of wanting you to see it because I looked through thinking I would find information but all ads. If it were seperate, I probably would glance at it for a brief moment or only if I wanted the spa info etc.:)