Amazing time we had

Norwegian Gem Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 47

Overall rating:

3.5 out of 5
Norwegian Gem

12 Night Southern Caribbean (New York Roundtrip)

Sail date: November 26, 2018

Ship: Norwegian Gem

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 9660

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

My cruise was a vacation given to me from my big sister we had an amazing time and will be looking forward to an Alaskan cruise with NCL because of the ease of it all.

Embarkation

5 out of 5
Smooth as butter

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5
The specialty restaurants were delicious Teppanyaki,LaCucina,and Cagney's steakhouse i would definitely pay if necessary the main dining room grand Pacific wasn't so grand too slow with service,the Magenta was magnificent and the buffet was ok

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5
Watched movies and football games in the atrium they NEED popcorn..bingo was a ripoff and the spa was overpriced as usual..

Entertainment

4 out of 5
The stage shows I saw were amazing the dj wouldn't take requests so the floor was empty until your songs were played..Before the ship sails everyone should know about the themed nights such as the 70s so that we as customers can bring our outfits with us as well..

Service and Staff

4 out of 5
The staff were very nice and accommodating

Ship Quality

4 out of 5
The ship was very cleaned..washy washy lol

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5
We initially booked an inside cabin then bidded on a balcony and so glad we got it..The tvs had 5 stations and 3 of them were about the ship so just in case u don't leave ur room(queasyness) bring along your tablet

Ship tip

Be kind pack ur patience and get to know ppl.. Don't bring too many outfits like we did.. wore less than half and have a ball you're on vacation

Ports of call

New York, New York

3 out of 5

San Juan, Puerto Rico

3 out of 5
We got off the ship to go to Walgreens for souvenirs was scared to go any further

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

3 out of 5
Had to take bus to shopping area

Bridgetown, Barbados

3 out of 5
Just went for souvenirs

Castries, St. Lucia

3 out of 5

St. John's, Antigua

4 out of 5
Beautiful time at the beach

Basseterre, St. Kitts

3 out of 5
15 dollars to take you to spend more money to shop is ridiculous luckily they had 2 vendors on the pier and we shopped with them

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

3 out of 5
A long walk to the outside mall to shop

Disembarkation

3 out of 5
They cared less how me my cane and my luggage got off the ship just stood in the long line and exited the blg..and beware of the con artist at the taxi stands charging 30 dollars to go to the bus terminal which only costs 10 dollars
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4 Comments

orangeyahppy    5 years ago

Sorry for the typo but you knew what I meant. Anyway, the reason why I asked is because my bid was put in back in September and was just denied. I have heard that some cruisers will wait until the ship arrives in FL because some miss their cruise and then you can try and get a better room then. I was wondering if that was her case or not.

esm54687    5 years ago

orangeyahappy: your questions are a little confusing but I will try 1) as soon as you get the email or see the upgrade notice in MyNCL you should bid. The sooner you bid the better chance you have of getting the award because if you wait there may not be any inventory to award you 2) cabins are usually available approx 1pm on embarkation day so you have to wait until then to go to "bed" 3) most people go to the buffet as soon as they get "on the ship" but I recommend the MDR as people tend to forget it's open.

orangeyahppy    5 years ago

When did you bid on the balcony? How long did you wait before you started to bed? As soon as you got on the ship?

freehawk    5 years ago

Thanks for the review, especially on the specialty restaurants.

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