Would never go on the NCL Gem again. As a facility, the ship is fairly well maintained given it's age. The food is inedible at the buffet (except for the last night - it was great.) You really have to be specific when ordering your drinks or they mix up whatever and act annoyed doing it. I don't think they even know whats on the drink menu. Carefully choose excursions - they seemed like ripoffs to us. Getting off the ship is a nightmare and seems really unsafe. Passengers are herded into narrow hallways and stairwells. Tour guides will berate you for being late when it's due to no fault of your own. There doesn't seem to be any leadership on this ship.
Embarkation
1 out of 5
CHAOTIC - PROBABLY BECAUSE DISEMBARKATION IS UNORGANIZED AND CHAOTIC
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
Buffet is gross and unappetizing; bartenders obviously don't read drink menu - they mix up whatever. Food in specialty restaurants is good.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
Pretty boring cruise. Thermal spa is good when it's open but they will close thermal pool during high seas.
Entertainment
2 out of 5
Shows got better last two days of cruise. No comedy shows to speak of. Shows are better on other NCL ships - the bigger ones.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Service is mixed. Our room attendants were great. Bartenders can be dismissive. Ship seemed understaffed. Staff gave conflicting info - not very well trained.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
For an older ship (there was an ashtray mounted to the wall next to the toilet) it is very well maintained. Except for dirty dishes stacking up in hallways, ship seemed clean. Public bathrooms were fairly clean - sometimes they had a septic odor.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Nice size stateroom centrally located. Cabin steward was great. Decor was nice. A benefit of an older ship is great water pressure - our shower was awesome.
Getting off the ship is a nightmare and feels quite unsafe. We arrived at 4pm and were herded like cattle into stairwells. People had been drinking all day and became aggressive and angry. Staff were nowhere to be found and no one knew what was going on.
Again, dead/dying reef and food is used to attract fish. Lots of moon jelly fish. People complained about being stung. This is an open sea snorkel - not in a protected bay. Water was very rough. Catamaran was over crowded. Not good for inexperienced snorkelers.
I have no clue where you ate and where you were getting your drinks but you must have been at the wrong places. The ship was rehabbed in 2018 so it's not old. Maybe if you ate in one of the MDR you might have better food. We only ate at The Great Outdoors everyday and had no problems. Don't know where you were getting off the ship at ports but never had to wait in hallway. Unless of course you had to be the first one off. Embarkation was a breeze, but I will agree there was a huge issue getting off. We always leave from NYC and never have any issues getting on or off. We spent 18 days on Gem in January and loved it. Spinnaker lounge was the place to be and the best fun loving bartenders there. We can't wait to go on Gem again.
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