the good ole 'stand-by'

Norwegian Gem Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

thedad

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 50

Overall rating:

3 out of 5

Verified Review

9 Night Eastern Caribbean (New York Roundtrip)

Sail date: November 06, 2013

Ship: Norwegian Gem

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: GTY

Traveled as: Family (young children)

Reviewed: 11 years ago

Review summary

we have cruised on the gem many times. we kinda knew what we were getting into. a couple different islands where nice. had just a couple of issues:

first was having a room on the 8th floor right above the stardust theature was new for us. we didnt realize they would be practicing well into the night/morning. finally on the third night i called the front desk (because we could hear what was going on) and they moved us to the ninth floor in the middle of the ship the next day.

secondly, my daughter, who did not attempt the water slide much on the last cruise, was very eager to go down it this cruise which i was happy about. although we didnt realize that they did not open the slide untill 10am which made the schedule of the day very tough (having to meet with dora, etc) so i spent at least a half hour trying to get someone to open the slide a little early. after much haggling, they said they would. so we waited by the slide for fifteen minutes. no one showed to open it. we had to go. dora could not wait. when we returned to the room i called the front desk and they said that someone was there waiting for us. much confusion to no result. they did send some chocolate covered strawberries to the room as a smooth-over.

overall a decent cruise. i think we are ready to put the gem to rest and try another boat.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Children's Programs

5 out of 5

kids club was excellent

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

after talking with other people we have come to the conclusion that the 'freestyle' may be hurting the staff's curtiousness, or 'going out of their way for you.' on royal, where you tip at the end, we feel the staff is much more eager to assist or 'go out of their way' for you

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

we always find old shoes under the bed, and this time we found a set of keys in one of the drawers to which we were sure belonged to the last people and were probably out by their car looking for them. i had to run them to the front desk which was mobbed, before we set sail and try to hand them in to someone.