9 Day Jewel S. Caribbean - LONG mixed report

[ocdb8r]

Just got off the 9 day Southern Caribbean on the Jewel (2/20 - 3/1) and we had a mixed cruise. Here's the good, bad, and ugly of it (from a first timer on NCL):

 

Good

First, I loved the ship. I think NCL does a great job with variety in the public spaces. There are lots of different little lounges, all are well themed and fairly interesting. I also though the ship LOOKED great. I would never have thought the ship is almost 4 years old, everything was in top notch shape.

Second, I agree with many of the postings on the board that NCL does a GREAT job in the buffet area. I tend to prefer sit down meals and am leery of buffets but NCL may have changed that. The stations were well tended to and food always seemed to be freshly rotated. Much is prepared in small batches at each station so it really was probably the best quality buffet food I've had on a cruise.

Third, I was fairly happy with food in the dining rooms. The MDR was a bit hit and miss but all the meals we had in the up charge locations was great. My personal thoughts are that Cagney's is the best deal, even at $20. Surprisingly, we'd put Tango's a close 2nd. For only $10 you get a nice (albeit small) welcome margarita and decent Latin food. Not amazing, but a great VALUE.

Fourth, most staff was great. Always smiles and hello's in the hallways. I got to know many of the casino staff on a personal basis (probably a bad thing for my wallet), and generally found everyone very pleasant. We had wonderful room attendants as well.

Finally, I loved the itinerary. Samana was the only port I was worried about but Paul and Steve here on the boards organized a great trip for us so overall this was a FANTASTIC itinerary. 9 days really is nice...those 2 extra days on the ship just let you sink into relaxation mode. It was tough to leave.

 

Bad

First, we DEFINITELY felt nickel and dimed on the ship. It seemed that EVERY single announcement was about something that had an extra charge to it. Waiters in some locations were VERY pushy with the drinks. On day one there were people literally blocking some of the doorways and stairwells holding rum punch cocktails for sale. It got a little tired after a few days.

Second, partially related to the above, I thought the on-ship activity offerings were really poor compared to my past cruises on other lines. There is VERY little for the 20-30 something crowd to do on the ship other than lounge at the pool and drink. Further, almost every single “activity” in the dailies had a charge (like bingo, mixology…etc.) or was a convoluted sales presentation (“seminars” on weight loss, skincare, jewelry/shopping). The few free activities listed are not really organized or tended to by cruise staff (meet to play cards in the card room, open basketball...etc.). Finally, there were some things we tried to do that we had to pull teeth for. EVERY single daily listed “Scene It” in the “Fizz Lounge” as an activity. We went 4 times and no bartender knew where the game was, how to set it up…etc. When I finally complained, the cruise staff found a similar game called Shout Out but it took 3 technicians to get it working in the “Whatever Rooms.”

Third, service in the MDR really needed help. I felt like they were trying, but the meals REALLY dragged. I couldn’t get a sense of how tables were assigned but it seemed like our staff could never keep up. Waits were sometime obnoxious (the worst being over 40 minutes on lobster night, our fault for trying to eat at 7:30).

 

Ugly

I’ll preface this by saying, I totally understand NCL could do little about this but it’s still something to think about when cruising. This was my first time with a balcony (we were in a mini-suite). I’ve had both inside and ocean view cabins in the past but was very excited to have our own balcony for this 9 day trip with 3 days at sea. Unfortunately, I’m not sure I’ll opt to pay the extra in the future. The main issue was with our neighbors. First, they chain smoked constantly. I grew up in a smoking household so I have a higher tolerance than most, but they were out of control – glasses filled with water and cigarette butts littered the balcony. This seriously limited the amount of time we enjoyed the balcony. Second, they had a toddler which made the smoking really bother me and the noise was occasionally an issue. While these were annoyances, they were minor and just part of a cruise I had not experienced in the past (the balcony just makes you way less insulated from your neighbors). If the issues had stopped there, I probably wouldn’t have bothered posting about them. The REAL issue occurred on day 6 right after we left St. Lucia (last port). I’m not sure what happened that day but about an hour after pulling away major commotion started next door; screams of bloody murder and flying furniture. We finally had to call the front desk to send security as it was obvious the guy was beating his wife as their toddler cried wildly and the two screamed at each other at the top of their lungs. One of their parents had the cabin on the other side of them and was trying to intervene (yelling over the balcony or course) but I finally just couldn’t take it and called the front desk. Needless to say, not a pleasant experience for us. Surprisingly, after that, we barely noticed them the final days of the cruise. I assume they got a strict talking to by whomever the front desk sent.

 

 

Overall a fairly mixed cruise. Good enough though that we went ahead and grabbed a cruise rewards deposit. Nothing was so fatal we wouldn’t give NCL another go around sometime in the next 2 years. NCL has some great values right now and even with the extra dining fees, a great option.

[mafig]

OMG about the neighbors you had.:eek: We've only had smokers problems once and it was a cigar smoker. Yech! He must have chain smoked cigars both on the balcony and in the cabin because when the steward was cleaning his cabin with the door open the odor wafted down the hall.:( Surprisingly it didn't both my dh and he never smoked and I did. Finally I thought to myself "well at least I'm not married to him" and that thought actually helped me.

 

 

We also had a problem with screaming neighbors once, not on a cruise but in a hotel, where we had to call Security. Wouldn't you know it by the time Security came they had quieted down.

 

We're going on Jewel this coming Friday, so I have some ?.

 

You mentioned crowding in the main dining rooms. What time do you suggest going?

 

Any problems with Noro?

 

Did you go to the shows?

 

Did they have any 2 for 1 deals at the specialty restaurants?

 

Thanks for taking the time to report back.

[floridacruiser63]

Thanks for the review. We will be doing the same itinerary in a month!:)

[ocdb8r]

We're going on Jewel this coming Friday, so I have some ?.

 

You mentioned crowding in the main dining rooms. What time do you suggest going?

 

Any problems with Noro?

 

Did you go to the shows?

 

Did they have any 2 for 1 deals at the specialty restaurants?

 

Thanks for taking the time to report back.

 

Dinner Timing. Figure 7:30 is peak. I would try to go about 6:15 on the early side or just wait until 8/8:15. Alternatively, send someone down to get a pager or put your name in at 7 (if you'd like to eat at 7:30). Even if they can seat you a bit earlier, I saw many people returning after their pager had gone of 15 minutes earlier and they were ushered right in.

 

Noro - No issues...they are militant with the hand sanitizing. MILITANT. :-P

 

Shows were hit and miss. The Circus was the best. 2nd City Comedy Group was awful as was the comedian. We went to the comedian's "adult" show and ended up leaving...there was nothing adult about it. Tired cruise jokes. Keep in mind we are a group 25-31 and were expecting something a bit more cutting edge.

One thing I should have added to the "good" list was the small lounge acts/musicians which were very decent and provided very nice "background" entertainment.

 

NO 2-for-1's in the specialties. I did get a 2-for-1 coupon for Tango's in my Cruise Rewards confirmation packet (as well as 10 minutes free internet, a slot play promo and a couple of other things I didn't use).

 

I have all the dailies(including the inserts) and a nice high speed scanner available to me. As soon as I get out from under the laundry and missed e-mails, I will scan everything and post somewhere.

[mafig]

thanks.

 

This information is very helpful.

 

Glad you had no noro.:)

[NCL_Norway_Veteran]

Thanks for the great review. We're booked on this next month and it's always good to know what might happen. Did you do any excursions at any of the ports of call?

[lgfromdg]

Thanks for the review. We'll be on the same cruise in a little over 2 weeks and appreciate any new info we can get.

 

I would hate to have a chain-smoker on a balcony next to mine. Some people on this board will say that you can't be bothered by the smoke outside, but that's just not true. Yet, if someone smokes, it makes sense that they would get a cabin with a balcony so they could smoke out there and not in the cabin. I don't think there's an easy fix for this problem.

 

Thanks for the advice about dinner times. I was wondering if you went to the White Hot Party and if it was fun? Were there any free on-board activities that you would recommend?

[Beachbum1944]

We were also on this cruise. We went to dinner all but 1 night at 8:00 and never had a wait. There were empty tables at all dinning rooms and specialties. 1 reservation at 7:30 and we had to wait for a different table than they had for us. We were a group of 4 at all dinners. If you can hold off, go to dinner around 8:00

 

We had smokers next to us and there ashes kept coming on to our balcony under the divider.

 

We went to the White Hot Party. If you like the "Club" type of music you will have fun. We only stayed for about 20 minutes and left.

[Zeno]

It's a pity your balcony enjoyment was ruined by your neighbours! All can say is that some people REALLY are guilty of disgraceful public behaviour.

 

We had a balcony once and for us it was just not worth the extra.

[cabruntz]

We were on this cruise also. My question is did you get a refund for the fuel surcharge? We were told at the pursers desk it was not going to be OBC, but would be a credit to your credit card. We got back and looked and see two credits for 45.31 not two for 99- 9 days at 11 dollars a day.

 

Agree with most of your review. Our problem was that everything was really open. Bar city was almost as bad as putting chairs in a corridor on one side. This is on the sixth floor along the main access to the theater and the casino. The only "private bar" was the Spinnaker Lounge on the 13th floor, but this is just a big space for groups and activities. The other more private bar was the Star bar. This is a place that was always off limits to "regular" passengers. Used by villas and private parties. This ship sacrifices public space for its pay restaurants. We spent most of our bar time at the Sky High bar. Waiters were very attentive and fun there.

We had a loud bunch of people that had three rooms with the balcony's opened. Very Load when they were out.

As far as drinks and food, the drink prices were not as outrages as previous reviews said. Prices were about the same we pay in bars at home. The food was average. Went to Chin Chin for sushi, not impressed. Went to Tangos on the last night and the food was OK but the waiter service left much to be desired. The service in the two main dining rooms was fine. Eating at any time was a plus. The minus was it was like a big restaurant. Tables being bused and set up for the next group. Don't see all this commotion on traditional seating cruises.

Overall, really liked eating at anytime. The