Introduction of 2.0 - review of the inaugural 2.0 cruise aboard the 3/30 Jade cruise

[owl61]

Here's a copy of a member review I submitted of the inaugural free style 2.0 cruise which occurred on the 3/30 Jade sailing from Barcelona to Istanbul.

INTRODUCTION

We returned yesterday after sailing from Rio to Barcelona on the Oceania Insignia and then from Barcelona to Istanbul on the NCL Jade. Our Jade voyage premiered the brand new "2.0" upgrade to NCL's free style cruising format. Upgrades include an increase of 20% pp in the food budget, new menus, bedding, linens and pillows, improved toiletries, increased hours for food and entertainment venues, new forms of entertainment and other changes geared to improve the overall quality of the NCL product. The 2.0 upgrades are scheduled to be implemented fleet wide in the near future. As members of the ad hoc on board Cruise Critic group we were privileged to meet with several senior corporate officers who explained the roll out of 2.0 and the rationale of the free style format in which customers are offered a wide range of dining and entertainment choices.

Several months ago, Apollo Management, a private equity company, purchased control of Star Cruises Ltd. which owned the financially troubled NCL and NCOA (NCL America). Immediately thereafter NCOA's new (2006) Pride of Hawaii was transformed from an American flagged ship unprofitably serving the Hawaiian islands exclusively to the foreign flagged NCL Jade now scheduled for service in Europe. The Jade dry docked in Cadiz for 10 days immediately prior to our cruise in order to make improvements consistent with the new "2.0" upgrades. In the case of the Jade this involved installing a large casino inasmuch as casinos are prohibited on American flagged ships. Unfortunately, it also included removing the self service laundry rooms. Not having a washing machine on board may be okay on a 7 day cruise, but it's a bit inconvenient on a 12 day cruise especially given the high price of the ship's laundry services.

 

Coincidentally, last year Apollo Management also invested a huge chunk of money in the Oceania cruise line. I don't know to what extent Apollo has taken an active role in Oceania ship management, but our recent post-Apollo Insignia crossing seemed to have lost a bit of luster in comparison to our Insignia crossing of last year, especially in terms of entertainment. On the contrary, NCL with its new 2.0 upgrade is a vast improvement over what I had experienced with NCL in its pre-Apollo past. I estimate that I have sailed NCL 4 or 5 times in the past and based upon the totality of my cruising experience (more than 55 cruises) regarded it a notch or two below HAL or Celebrity in terms of overall quality. I would now equate all three in terms of food and service and definitely give the nod to NCL for entertainment.

Our cabin cost less than $100 pp per day. Due to the decline of the US$ versus the Euro, one cannot now eat decently in Europe for that amount. This cruise provided a wonderful value and I enthusiastically recommend NCL especially if it can hold down its prices.

 

CABIN

In view of the season and itinerary my wife and I opted for a standard outside cabin on deck 5 located beneath the French Bistro specialty dining room. It was quiet and everything worked as it was supposed to except for a somewhat erratic shower that tended to fluctuate ever so slightly in water temperature and pressure during operation. This minor flaw did not rise to the level of a call to the Maintenance Dept and in my wife's eyes was more than offset by the presence of a hand held hairdryer located by the cabin's mirrored make up desk. Unlike some other cabin thermostats ours was easy to read and to adjust. The bathroom was predictably cramped, but had sufficient shelf space for our toiletries etc. The towels, bed mattress, pillows (not down) and bedsheets (probably not extravagantly high thread count Egyptian cotton) were not super plush, but were of superior quality and were comfortable. Ship supplied soap and shampoo were dispensed from economy sized metal wall containers. I was disappointed with the absence of better soaps/shampoo in view of the expected 2.0 upgrades. We used the more upscale Elemis toiletries leftover from our Oceania crossing.

The cabin had adequate storage space because we did not have to hang up much in the way of "dress up" clothes. I travelled with a single sports jacket and 4 pair of dress slacks. The NCL free style format doesn't require suits/jackets for men nor did the resort casual dress code of our Oceania crossing. Accordingly, we could do with fewer clothes even though we cruised a total of 27 nights and had another 9 on shore. Had this been a standard 12 night dress up type of cruise I suspect closet space would have been inadequate.

The television set appeared to be a 17 incher and offered surprisingly little in the way of movie programming. Fox and CNN were available continuously, but were nauseatingly repetitious especially in view of the prevailing economic and geopolitical nightmares. Spa and excursion advertisements together with replays of stultifying port shopping talks screened incessantly.

There was a tiny refrigerator intelligently located at eye level. Once we emptied it of the ship's wine and beer supply it served to chill our own assortment of soft drinks. In fairness to NCL the price of a can of coke was only $2 compared to the $3 on board the Insignia. The ship also offered a special bottomless glass promotion whereby one person could get an unlimited amount of soft drinks for the duration of the cruise for "only" $72.

As usual, our room steward and her coworker did a good job and were always ready to do an errand or coordinate the room's make up. And my wife got a kick out of the towel animals one of them always made. My only concern is that as the US $ tanks the industry will lose a universe of competent workers no longer willing to tolerate the long hours because their emerging economies provide better opportunities.

 

PUBLIC ROOMS/FACILITIES

The Jade is a new 90,000 ton vessel and felt even larger. Throughout the ship, brightly colored Hawaiian motifs, e.g. light fixtures, sculptures, wall coverings, furniture fabrics, etc., give testimony to the genesis of the vessel. In particular, the reception area houses some extremely tacky Hawaiian remnants. I suspect that over time much of the Hawaiian stuff especially the massive, plastic, flower lei light fixture - approximately the size of a whale - will be recycled.

 

The clothes/souvenirs/sundries shop space was department store sized. I think the main dining room of the Insignia would easily fit into the Jade's shop space. The two-tiered main theater (decks 6 and 7) was also spacious and professionally equipped affording high production values. Seats were arranged in standard theater format - gradually rising rows with little space between rows. One seated in the center of a row could not easily, much less unobtrusively, leave in the middle of a show. In addition to the main theater there was a spacious performance stage, dance floor and bar on deck 13 where each night a variety show and dance band performed. This was a more relaxed space consisting of individual tables, banquettes and chairs. Two smaller entertainment venues where feature acts performed were located in open flow spaces on deck 7. The open locations did not promote a sense of intimacy which might have added more charm to these venues.

 

The card room, and adjacent "life-styles" and frequent cruiser (Latitudes Club) rooms on deck 12 were smallish for a ship of this size. In deed, bridge sessions were conducted in one of the dining rooms as the card room could not possibly accommodate duplicate play on a 2400 passenger ship such as this. The library was also comparatively undersized and contained few nonfiction selections. If there were any travel guide books in the shelves they were checked out before I got there. Library procedures didn't prohibit checking out such reference materials for the duration of the cruise. Consequently, don't rely on the library as a source of info about the wonderful ports the ship visits.

 

The gym contained sufficient elliptical, rowing, cycling and treadmill machines to avoid lines. TVs with audio headphone inserts were hooked up to most aerobic equipment to make working out more diverting...if you consider Fox diverting. There were adequate free weights, benches, and cable machines for strength workouts. Attached to the gym was a dry sauna and shower area. Consistent with the free style format, some additional spa facilities (heated pool, wet sauna, heated benches, etc) were available for a fee.

 

As is my custom, I did not visit the Internet space or the beauty spa at any time while on board. The former was the source of the usual complaints about high cost for slow speed. The prices in the latter ($42 + tip for a men's haircut) did not generate my interest though flyers advertising spa specials were invariably slipped inside the pages of the daily events brochure delivered to our cabin each evening.

We did not spend a lot of time on the pool deck 12 as for us weather was not conducive to sunbathing and, after all, it was a Mediterranean cruise with 8 ports in 12 days (besides we live in Rio close to the beach). It was a nicely laid out space with 2 large pools (I was told one was heated), three hot tubs, a small performance stage, a bar and grill etc., all pretty standard stuff except for an enormous, twisting, yellow water slide that I never saw in operation. It would be fun for the kids, but I suspect its days are numbered, however, facilities for children seemed plentiful. A young woman working in the children's program informed me the kid program was divided into 3 age groups and the teens (12-17) had their own private club room furnished with recreational equipment including some mind numbing video games. I recall she mentioned 140 kids were enrolled in the 3 groups.

 

DINING

Eating is where the free style format really comes into play. There are approximately a dozen dining venues on the Jade, most of which specialize in a certain type of cuisine and most of which carry a cover charge ranging from $10 - $25 pp. Reservations for the specialty restaurants are recommended, but not required. They accepted seatings anytime from around 5:30 to 10. The main dining rooms, the Grand Pacific and the Alizar, do not take reservations save for large parties or those in the ultra high cabin categories. Reservations and lines at the main dining rooms were a subject of much discussion at our Cruise Critic meetings with the senior ship staff and changes were introduced during the course of the cruise. The two main dining rooms have identical menus and do not charge extra. We ate 4 or 5 times in the Grand Pacific including a breakfast and a lunch and were satisfied with the quality of the food. Service, however, was spotty bordering on unsatisfactory. The walls are adorned with Hawaiian motif frescoes and other "Hawaiiana" permeates the decor, but it is actually a warm and comfortable environment. I can't say the same for the Alizar though I only peeked in while passing. I played some bridge there during the day when it was not serving food and thought it sterile.

We first chose to eat in the Grand Pacific on the second night of the cruise when at the Cruise Critic get together we were informed by the jovial hotel director, Armando Da Silva, that lobster was on the menu. That evening we were served a well prepared, large Maine lobster tail that was as good as anything I have eaten on any ship including the Insignia and other premium or luxury lines. It went downhill thereafter, but it was never worse than satisfactory. Lobster was served a second time, but this time it was a small rock lobster tail served with other seafood on a bed of pasta...not bad, but nothing like the first lobster offering. On the other occasions we opted for dinner in the Grand Pacific the food was only satisfactory. I am a hard marker.

 

Given the low base price of the cruise, we felt no hesitation about paying an extra $10 -$25 per person to dine extraordinarily well at the French Bistro ($20 pp), Cagney's, the steak house ($25 pp), or the Chinese spot ($15 pp). This was made even more enticing by 2 for 1 pricing if you could bring yourself to sit between 5:30 - 7 pm. (Not to mention the comp that all CCers received from management as a way of thanking us for our input.) I didn't think the Italian specialty restaurant, Papa John's ($10) was particularly good, but it's awfully hard to assess a place on the basis of just one dining experience. At a minimum I think they ought to put table clothes on the tables. Classic white and red checkered ones would do a lot to spruce up Papa John's.

We dined three times at Le French Bistro and the food and service was consistently excellent. Winning appetizers are the fois grois (I don't endorse the methods and rarely eat this) and mussels. The soups and salads were not as impressive. The duck confit, steak au poive (a thick filet), and lamb were delicious main courses. It's hard to make bad profiteroles, but the desserts were not as good as the appetizers and main courses.

We dined twice at Cagney's. The colossal shrimp cocktail is a winning appetizer. Crab cakes a distant second. Salads were very good. The steaks, billed as aged prime beef, were excellent, but on one occasion I ordered the prime rib and it was disappointingly flavorless. I should have sent it back, but was already pretty full by the time it was set before me. Service was outstanding.

We ate once in the Chinese specialty place. The pork spare ribs may have been the best meat dish I experienced while on board. But be careful. It's an appetizer big enough for a meal in and of itself...half a dozen meaty, succulent spare ribs coated in a delicious barbeque sauce. I complimented Paul, the head chef who attended one of our CC meetings, but suggested that he halve the portion (while at the same time doubling the meager 3 ounce Saki pour for which they charge $6 or $7). Service was not good, but it was the first night on board and I would make allowances for new staff and procedures.

Lunch when not dining ashore was either the buffet at the Garden Cafe on pool deck 12 -a burger or a freshly prepared Caesar salad with chicken. Iced tea was always available, but no other beverage was free. The food is indistinguishable from buffet lunches on other mid market lines like HAL or Celebrity. Good, but not great. Service could be improved. I'd like to see staff helping with getting drinks or utensils and to be more proactive in securing seats for the elderly. The same goes for the food and service at breakfast although reconstituted orange, apple and cranberry juice were also available free of charge. Fresh squeezed juice was available, but for a modest fee: the epitome of free style cruising where you can choose how and at what cost you wish to consume...but that juice surcharge may be carrying a good idea a bit too far. One breakfast in the dining room was painless, but the experience convinced me it was not worth the extra time involved in ordering kippers and onions especially on a Mediterranean cruise when you are eager to disembark.

 

ENTERTAINMENT

The older I get the less important the shipboard entertainment is to me, but it must be said that the laid back atmosphere of the Insignia crossing (laid back to the point of boring) was in stark contrast to the go go activity on board the Jade. And we didn't even try to take it all in.

There were port lectures and other talks on various subjects ( none of which interested me except the one on acupuncture) as part of an NCL "University" at sea shtick - a good idea that can be refined to include well informed speakers on topics germane to the extraordinary itinerary. There's lots of room for improvement here. Of course, there was the usual array of team trivia, ping pong and shuffle board tourneys and various and sundry activities conducted throughout the days (and evenings) we were not in port. I played bridge most afternoons we were at sea so did not attend a lot of other organized stuff during the day. Bridge and an occasional workout was pretty much the limit of my sea day regimen. We only had three sea days.

In the evening there were two different shows in the main theater. Each of these shows was repeated at a different time slot later in the cruise - an innovation designed to afford greater latitude in planning one's evening activities. This is the essence of free style cruising as redefined by the new NCL management. In my opinion the shows were good. They emphasized the vocal skills of a talented ensemble cast. All music and singing was live. No recorded sound tracks. I would have liked to see a bit more dancing and costuming/lighting - a more glamorous stage production in general to complement the singing which was itself uniformly excellent. I didn't catch all the shows - some were variety acts in which we have little interest generally speaking.

In addition to the main theater a program billed as Second City Entertainment (related to the comedy ensemble organization from Chicago) ran continuous music and comedy performances from 7 - 11 pm in the deck 13 cabaret lounge. I liked the idea, but frankly, like the NCL U speaker series, I think the execution could be better. Of course, that might mean higher fares or it just might mean giving the current crop of "skitskers" more time to hone their acts. Or it might mean my sense of humor and tastes are stupidly peculiar. In any case I didn't spend a lot of time in the Second City venue.

The highly successful show, Tony and Tina's Wedding, was presented once during the cruise. True to the free style pricing concept it carried an extra charge of $25-$35 depending on seating. CCers were comped at this event apparently when it became clear ticket sales were slow. Unfortunately, the show was presented the evening we were overnighting in Venice (which probably explains the slow advance ticket sales) and my wife and I just got back to the ship too late to take advantage of the offer of a free show. Attendees said it was a fun event, but the food while in keeping with the theme of the performance - paper plate catering from a poor Italian restaurant - was too in keeping therewith. In other words, it was not good.

There were other feature performers at the lounges on decks 6 and 7. This included a small combo that provided music for dancing as well as a singer/piano player who many thought was excellent. Shows ran throughout the evening.

In addition to the usual assortment of slots, card, craps, and roulette tables, the new Jade casino included a house dealer Texas hold 'em table that looked to me to be table stakes (although there was likely some limit). It was fun to kibitz. I play poker and gamble socially, but I don't like to lose money so I don't gamble in casinos. For the life of me I cannot fathom the rationale put forth by those who do, to wit, that its worth it to spend the money gamblng because it is fun. How on earth can losing be fun and how on earth can anyone not lose against the house?

 

PORTS and EXCURSIONS

After a transatlantic crossing of 15 nights on the Insignia that ported only in Salvador, Agadir, and "lovely" Cabo Verde prior to arriving at Barcelona, the ports visited by the Jade were spectacular. From Barcelona, a sea day to unwind, then Rome followed by Naples (Pompeii), overnight in Venice, then Dubrovnik, Athens, Izmer (Ephesus) and Istanbul overnight. These are some of the best ports in the world. There is so much to see and it can be seen without the necessity of pricey ship excursions.

A round trip train ride into Rome cost 9 euros and was easy as pie from Civitavecchia (about 1 hour). Get out a short walk from St Peter's or go on to the central station to be near the coliseum and forum.

I haven't taken a ship excursion in any of my last 40 cruises, but we opted to take one offered in Naples. It was described as going along the coast to Sorrento for a visit there, then to a mountainside farm for lunch, then to Pompeii. Our price of $149 pp (subsequently increased to $165 after we booked) included admission to Pompeii (11 euros) and a guide inside (11 euros). Not surprisingly the tour bus stopped right in front of a tourist shop in Sorrento and the local guide marched a bunch of passengers right into the shop. Yuch. About an hour later we reboarded and travelled to a nearby farm where we observed how mozzarella was made, followed by a great al fresco lunch before busing to Pompeii. Much to my consternation and surprise the guide announced we were carving time out for a shopping stop at a cameo store. This stop was not included in the tour description (it was in another that recited a cameo store stop might be included time permitting). I complained to the tour operator to no avail (she was just following orders) and later to the ship excursions desk. It is not fair to include unannounced shopping stops in a tour, especially one including an abbreviated stop at an archeological site like Pompeii. Doing so prevents me from making an informed decision on how to spend my time and money. All things considered, however, it wasn't a bad tour because a private excursion that would have included stops in other Amalfi coast towns would have been more costly given the euro dollar exchange rate and it probably would have been overly ambitious to drive too much along the Amalfi coast and still do Pompeii properly.

Venice is Venice and the only negative is the rotten exchange rate which makes buying Murano glass more expensive than ever. Thanks, George Bush, for spending our tax dollars like a drunken sailor.

Walking old town in Dubrovnik is a good way to spend the time there. Ditto the Plaka and Acropolis in Athens.

Some CCers put together a private tour to Ephesus when we arrived in Izmer. Our guide, Levant, was well informed and well spoken. He didn't think of providing a break for lunch, but we managed to squeeze in a 20 minute stop outside the Ephesus site before going on to the nearby museum. A very good tour for $60 pp. I suspect the ship charged twice as much for a similar tour probably with much more time taken out for a lunch at the expense of seeing the archeological site itself.

Istanbul was interesting and a place where we could shop with greater enthusiasm. We stayed an additional 4 nights at the Hotel Niles. It is located steps away from the Grand Bazaar and cost 62 euros for a double with a delightful roof top terrace breakfast included. It is an excellent choice when staying in Istanbul especially because the front desk manager, Seda, is an energetic bundle of information and joy. She will do whatever is necessary to make your stay pleasant and fruitful.

 

DISEMBARKATION

One of the 2.0 innovations is a glass of bubbly and an escort to your cabin when embarking. All fine and well on the front end. The disembarkation in Istanbul, however, was horrendous because getting a cab from the port to one's hotel or the airport was unneccesarily nerve wracking. The dispatcher and taxi drivers at the closest taxi stand 40 meters from the port exit refused to use the taxi meter as the law mandates. When I observed what he was doing I went back to the terminal and got the port police to observe the situation. Of course, they spoke to him, but did nothing to alleviate his conduct. After they left the dispatcher continued to demand outrageous fares for his drivers and denied me a cab at any price. We almost got into a fist fight. The drivers almost all wanted to negotiate an absurd fare (5 times the going rate in many cases) and the passengers were hostage to this outrage. We finally walked towards another more distant exit and although it , too, was a circus, we were ultimately able to hail an honest cabbie.

I believe the ship can and must take some action to ameliorate this situation. Local taxi police or officials should be on hand. Local interperters should be retained to oversee the process of securing a cab. Advance communication with the taxi cab union, port police, or municipal government might curb this abuse. Something. Anything. Nothing sours the cruise aftertaste quicker than an altercation with a cheating taxi driver who wants to rob you by grossly overcharging.

 

CONCLUSION

The 2.0 free style format introduced by the new NCL team is a wonderful cruise value. Cruise lines can maintain low base cruise fares only if they earn revenue from related sources e.g. the bar, souvenir and jewelry shops, art auctions, excursions, photos, casino, etc. Rather than complain about the high prices for drinks, photos and excursions, savvy cruisers should appreciate that this revenue structure allows them to cruise at amazingly low prices provided that they cruise wisely. Take your own photos, organize your own excursions, drink responsibly (or bring your own for in cabin consumption) and be discrete about purchases in general. Those who do purchase numerous add on items from the ship in large part underwrite the cost of the cruise for others. Free style cruising advances this concept another step forward by charging for alternative dining and entertainment venues. It allows one to cruise for a modest price, but also affords one the opportunity to cruise more luxuriously if one opts to spend more.

Folks who previously cruised NCL and found it wanting in terms of food, accomodations, service or entertainment should give the new company another chance. You will be pleasantly surprised especially from a cost benefits analysis basis.

[CRUZIN TOM]

THANKS FOR THE GREAT REVIEW. We just can't wait until next February for our cruise on the Jade out of Barcelonia. You critique of the ship was outstanding. Thananks for all of the comments. Lets hope with a little more time NCL will finish up with the 2.0:)

[jlines]

Great review David. Its very fair and balanced and I agree with just about everything you said. We had a great time and know that it was by far the best way to get a taste of Europe. Happy future cruising!

Jean

[luv2getaway]

Thanks for the very well thought out review! You highlighted the good and the not so good with a nice balance. I love the freestyle cruising and look forward to the 2.0 concept on our South America cruise in December.

[EileenN]

Outstandingly done!!

[disneydiane61]

I so appreciate you detailed review. I am looking forward to reading many more 2.0 updates from all of the NCL CC'er out there. Thank you for taking the time to write and post.:p

[AFT_LOVER]

so now CAS can do the rest. I also thank you for the excursion clue that is a bargain. Hope we also get Levant (sp)

[owl61]

Thanks for the compliments.

Jean , thanks again for organizing the Ephesus tour. Out of curiosity where do we disagree re the Jade experience?

[Carnac767]

Thanks for the thoughtful and well-written review.

[coffeebean]

owl61...

 

Thank you for your very comprehensive review. I have one question regarding the main showroom shows, days and times. Did the Freestyle Daily have all the shows, days and times listed on the day of embarkation. If they weren't, it would be a great idea for the passengers to know the entire schedule of all the main showroom shows. It will be much easier to make dinner reservations so there won't be any conflicts with the shows.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

I'm afraid I am still unclear on the Freestyle 2.0. Does a passenger opt for this and pay an additional one time fee to receive the upgrades or does every passenger benefit from the Freestyle 2.0 which is automatically included in the price of the cruise?

[owl61]

I'm afraid I am still unclear on the Freestyle 2.0. Does a passenger opt for this and pay an additional one time fee to receive the upgrades or does every passenger benefit from the Freestyle 2.0 which is automatically included in the price of the cruise?

 

Passengers do opt for 2.0. It is simply the name given to the new upgrades soon to be fleet wide (June, 2008). Options that cost extra are the specialty restaurants, the Tony and Tina Wedding show, and certain spa facilities.

[owl61]

I'm afraid I am still unclear on the Freestyle 2.0. Does a passenger opt for this and pay an additional one time fee to receive the upgrades or does every passenger benefit from the Freestyle 2.0 which is automatically included in the price of the cruise?

 

owl61...

 

Thank you for your very comprehensive review. I have one question regarding the main showroom shows, days and times. Did the Freestyle Daily have all the shows, days and times listed on the day of embarkation. If they weren't, it would be a great idea for the passengers to know the entire schedule of all the main showroom shows. It will be much easier to make dinner reservations so there won't be any conflicts with the shows.

 

I don't recall seeing a schedule of the future shows in the daily activities brochure, but one must exist. It's a good idea to post a schedule somewhere, for sure.

[jlines]

Thanks for the compliments.

Jean , thanks again for organizing the Ephesus tour. Out of curiosity where do we disagree re the Jade experience?

You are welcome again. I'm glad you and Stella could join us. There were just minor things I saw differently - we found lemonade at the buffet, we had a very good meal at Pappa's, we used the pools a couple of times (and even went down the waterslide), etc. You were dead on with the major things.

 

owl61...

Did the Freestyle Daily have all the shows, days and times listed on the day of embarkation. If they weren't, it would be a great idea for the passengers to know the entire schedule of all the main showroom shows. It will be much easier to make dinner reservations so there won't be any conflicts with the shows.

This was actually suggested in our meeting with the corporate guys. They really seemed interested in what we had to say so maybe they will start doing this in the future.

[coka]

Owl61, Awesome review! Thank you for taking the time to give detailed explanations on 2.0 and on your journey. I think you excited a lot of us who are cruising soon!

Coka

[anonfemme]

Fox news was always available, but we frequently lost CNN when we were further out to sea...they also had a great ship's log channel that posted things such as ship's speed, miles traveled from Barcelona, and other ports...sea conditions, etc....but we lost this channel about midcruise...I was sorry to see it disappear, apart from CNN, this is what I tuned into most.

[snorklinbarb]

Owl,

Loved reading about your long adventure! With 55 cruises under your belt, you offer a lot of experience!

 

I looked to see if you had put up a review about the Insignia, but couldn't find anything. Do you plan to review your trip?

 

You mentioned that the service in Grand Pacific was spotty, even to the point of being unsatisfactory but didn't really tell us anything that led to that conclusion. Did you have a bad experience and how did you handle it?

 

Can't wait to experience freestyle 2.0 myself as when I was on the Gem it was just beginning, such as the complimentary champagne on embarkation day. I understand there are free tastings of spec. restaurant items as well as samples of drinks. Did you attend any of that?

 

I think you mentioned a good piano vocalist. Do you have the name?

 

Glad to hear the CC group was well looked after. NCL really excels in that department.

[cmpaula]

Owl61,

What a well written, interesting and informative review! Well done! Does anyone know anything about the mini-suites on the Jade? We are a family of 4 that likes to book a mini-suite with an inside room across the hall. TIA:)

[coffeebean]

You are welcome again. I'm glad you and Stella could join us. There were just minor things I saw differently - we found lemonade at the buffet, we had a very good meal at Pappa's, we used the pools a couple of times (and even went down the waterslide), etc. You were dead on with the major things.

 

 

This was actually suggested in our meeting with the corporate guys. They really seemed interested in what we had to say so maybe they will start doing this in the future.[/quote]

 

I'm glad to see that others are on the same page as me. I'm even more glad that this suggestion was brought to the attention of management. Thank you.

[hayleyj]

We have been on 6 rccl and celebrity cruises and only choose NCL jade may 5th out of Istanbul for the ports, thanks for a great review. We are sailing with long time friends for the first time, they have been on NCL once before and loved in but out of Miami. I liked Celebrity once but the second time went CC and wont waste my money again. My friends will be disappointed as they like to press their clothes, that the laundry has gone though. As long as they make a mean vodka martini and I laugh once at a comedien and we get some sun, it will be great.

[AFT_LOVER]

a great review of his very exciting trip on her. Visit: http://shipcrew.wordpress.com/ from the new beds to his excursion in Cairo. The view from an employee on vacation on his old ship that brought tears when she left. Then Aloha & now he is off America. He is posting the entire trip. So enjoy his work.

 

 

 

I so appreciate you detailed review. I am looking forward to reading many more 2.0 updates from all of the NCL CC'er out there. Thank you for taking the time to write and post.:p

[cruisinbuzz]

How does one identify oneself as a CCer and thus receive all the wonderful CC comps?

[BeachBumMama]

How does one identify oneself as a CCer and thus receive all the wonderful CC comps?

Don't know of any CC comps. You may be talking of a meet and greet. A get together of people on cruise critic. If you go to the main page of the boards and scroll down to the Roll Call sections, you can then find your ship and sailing date and join others sailing with you. Sometimes there are small groups and sometimes large groups. Hope that helped.:)

[kdee69]

Wow! thanks so much for the post. We're a family of 2+2 kids from UK and have never cruised before so this was a great appetizer to our cruise on the Jade in aug 2008. I hope someone who has used the kids clubs will now post as I'm particularly interested in hearing about them.

 

Thanks

[suzyed]

Good review...but you lost me on the George Bush reference...things can't be too bad...you were on back to back cruises touring some spectacular ports....I bet that cost a pretty penny! Doesn't sound like you are suffering even thought George is spending like a drunken sailor! :rolleyes: