The menu leaves a lot to be desired.

Norwegian Gem Cruise Review to Caribbean - Eastern

luengler

Contributor Level: Deck Hand

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 16

Overall rating:

3 out of 5

Verified Review

11 Night Eastern Caribbean (New York Roundtrip)

Sail date: April 18, 2017

Ship: Norwegian Gem

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 11564

Traveled as: Singles/Friends

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

Some of the shows were very good and others weren't . The food selection in the dining room was awful. The food in the buffet was somewhat better. There was no lobster on the ship so for the first time in 31 cruises, we didn't have surf and turf. We were disappointed.

They had a good dance band and sailaway party. However, we would like to have seen the band play more during the evening that wasn't during dinner.

The ship itself was not in tip top shape as the paint on our balcony was pealing so much so that our balcony floor was almost covered with paint chips every day. One of the dance floor in the "Bliss" was so sticky that it ruined a pair of my dance shoes.

The evening movies were shown in the atrium where there was often a lot of noise and light with a lack of seating.

Even after paying a hefty fee for the drink package, we found out that it didn't cover bottled water or fresh squeezed orange juice. What a disappointment, again.

Most cruise ships have dance lessons on all sea days, not so with the Norwegian Gem.

Getting on the ship was a joy. Not so with getting off. The worst system in all our cruises.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

Terrible menu in the dining rooms. No lobster on board.

Onboard Activities

1 out of 5

Very few activities that appealed to us during the day that didn't include paying extra money.

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Some good shows and some were a waste of time. The comedian was great.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Michelle and Realyn were awsome.

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Some balcony's were in dire need of a paint job and one of the dance floors was so sticky that it ruined a new pair of dance shoes.

Cabin / Stateroom

3 out of 5

The mini suite was the size of an old balcony cabin which was OK, but nothing special. The balcony was in terrible shape with pealing paint.

Ship tip

Don't expect great food in the dining rooms.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

New York, New York

5 out of 5

San Juan, Puerto Rico

5 out of 5

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

5 out of 5

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

5 out of 5

Basseterre, St. Kitts

1 out of 5

Tortola, British Virgin Islands

3 out of 5

5 Comments

LindaDrigant 7 years ago

I agree with the same comments. No lobster was a big disappointment but even more so was the attitude of the crew and waitstaff. It was a completely different experience from our other cruises.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

paulsa 7 years ago

ncl did away with lobster

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

esm54687 7 years ago

wl1962: you are correct but until these ships start sailing at less than 100% capacity then things will continue to change and change.... having a 3rd / 4th passenger sail for free is great for the family but expenses have to be recovered elsewhere.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

wl1962 7 years ago

They lose the lobster. They lose the chocolate buffet. Food not as good as before. Attention cruise lines you can build bigger ships but the people may not come if you dont keep giving a good value. That is why you see 299 specials a week before the ship sails. Or less

Thumbs Up 1

Flag

esm54687 7 years ago

Sorry you had disappointment after disappointment on your vacation. These are valid things you experienced but from another point of view: - if you read the T&Cs of the UBP it clearly indicates what's included and not included so the water / juice thing shouldn't have been a surprise - lobster has been off the menu for some time now and many cruise forums / sites have the latest menus that reflect that change. I agree it's a shame but not new - the disembark system is completely at the mercy of the local port authority and US Customs...... that's one thing NCL and all the cruise lines have no control over...... and also at the mercy of rogue passengers who feel entitled to not follow any system that is place to muck it yup. - Bliss is a night club and you can thank a fellow passenger for spilling a drink and not telling anyone.... thus a sticky floor to ruin your dance shoes. I bet if you went back during the next day it would've been cleaned up. - evening movies.... completely agree with you - instead of dance lessons they probably offered many other things to do on sea days..... I'm sure someone will complain that the other cruise lines offer dance lessons on sea days and not offer basket weaving lessons. - after 31 cruises I'm sure you have seen many many changes on many cruise lines that adjust with the times..... these are super small things that you were disappointed in..... example: "some shows were very good and others weren't"??? they have 2500 passengers coming through every week so of course they can't have every show that satisfies every person.

Thumbs Up 7

Flag

Other reviews of this sailing

Great Cruise

Overall great ship

Bithday Celebration trip