Norwegian Gem Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Most caotic registration ever. They make you book a check-in time and then push premium members ahead of you. Took one hour in line to check in, people were screaming at the personnel who had no real response. Food was mediocre at best. Nothing to do on board. All activities either child centric or sale events. No real TV service except news channels. Since we were just off-shore some entertainment channels didn't seem like a lot to expect. Tours were ridiculous since there was nothing much to see in the towns we docked in. Saw every high school in St Johns Bay, all four of them. Pretty places but not much to offer. Chaos continued when we docked in Maine. Customs scheduled announcements were not properly made, leading to arguments as people on tours had to push ahead of the line, and we had to run the length of the ship three times to get through customs. It was ludicrous and exhausting and mirrored the disorganization of the cruise director during the entire cruise. All in all I would not recommend this ship or this destination. Big disappointment. 

The entertainment, dining, excursions were all awesome.  I recommend to anyone Norwegian cruise lines, they do cruising awesome.  The prices, food and all activities were great each and every day.

OUR CRUISE ON THE NCL GEM WAS THE THIRD CRUISE ON THE

GEM THIS YEAR.  THE FOOD HAS IMPROVED AND ALSO THE

MUSICAL  REVIEWS.

WE WERE SO PLEASED WHEN MEMBERS, AT LEAST FIVE, OF 

THE CREW REMEMBERED US BY NAME.  AS USUALTHEIR

SERVICE MADE US FEEL RIGHT AT HOME.

It was a very good experience. Everything was great except very few issues. Great food, great entertainment. Most the people working onboard were very nice except a girl working in the main dining restaurant who was very rude. Also disembarking could have been improved.

We had a really nice time on the cruise. Weather was great, the ports were great. The only thing I didn't like was the Kids camp was open from like 9am to 12am then closed opened back up at 2pm closed again at 5pm opened again at 7 til 10pm then you had to pay extra after those hours. Most of the fun stuff was done when you had to pay extra and the closing so often was a burden. It should be staffed enough to stay open 9am-10pm and if the kids what to leave whenever to eat they could. Besides that I have no complaints about the cruise.

we enjoyed all entertainment    Gertar player    everything , shows were great. My    husband and I have sailed on carnival line many times.  We are in the VIFP CLUB>   All of our future cruises will be on the GEM.    We enjoyed our trip very much.

It was a very pleasant sailing our cabin wasn't what we expected and were very disappointed by it. After speaking with travel agent and registering our valid complaints with the customer relations desk we were upgraded to a min isuite which made the trip absolutely more enjoyable. 

We went to NCL's private island but was disappointed that their lagoon was close to tourist,but had a great time at their Bacardi beach instead. Weather was perfect,water was turquoise and calm.

Once in Nassau we took the excursion to BLue Lagoon Island ,,,that is the absolute best place to take kids to, t is a restful beautiful island only wish we were able to stay there longer !

Dining was terrific!  The Grand Pacific dining room is indeed grand!  The staff worked diligently to get us our desired seating. Our room attendant, Manuel, was top notch.  The NCL staff are charming especially the Phillipinos  [females].  NCL must stage a national beauty contest and hire the top hundred most charming and beautiful.

The itinerary on this trip makes for a nice week.  All three ports are very walkable. In Halifax, we enjoyed a walk along the boardwalk and then up to the Citadel.  There's a mall along the way where there is a dollar store and drug store in case you need to pick up any necessary items and souvenirs.

We walked backed to the boardwalk and took a ferry over to Dartmouth.  The ferry is free for seniors until about 3 pm.  There we enjoyed a lobster roll at Evan's, which is inside the ferry terminal and recommended by a local tourist information person. 

In St. John, it is an easy walk to the Reversing Falls. From there you can walk to the downtown area and the City Market.   It is a few blocks from there to the Jewish Heritage Museum, which is a gem of historical information.

Portland has many sights to see.  We walked to downtown and enjoyed Remy's, a Maine department store chain.  We had a great fresh lobster meal at the Porthole.

The ship itself is fairly nice. The entertainment was decent.  The thermal spa is smaller than NCL's larger ships, but still a great place to relax. 

Our biggest disappointment was in the food. NCL has changed its menus since our last trip last September. The specialty restaurants now charge ala carte, there are extra charge items in the main restaurant as well. Favorite items have been eliminated.  When we dined at Le Bistro, it wasn't only us who were wondering why the rack of lamb was taken off the menu.

One final comment:  We encountered fog for a good part of the trip.  The fog horn blared every few minutes. We discovered you don't want to be on the sun deck in front of that horn when it blows. 

Everything about the cruise was great .We had an upgraded meal package which was wonderful. The free drink package was also a very nice option. Just remembered the bad part . Getting off the ship in Portland ,Maine It was a cluster mess .Not sure that it was Norweigan`s fault it could have been US customs.The line wrapped around the interior of the ship like a snake.We were lucky to be towards the front portion of the line.

My husband, daughter and I traveled to Canada and Maine from NYC on the Norweigen Gem.  The cruise was awesome.  We have been on 17 cruises with other cruise lines but never thru Norweigen until now.  The food was spectacular.  We enjoyed the buffet as well as the anytime dining.  The shows were first rate.  I loved the variety of music and dancing by the performers.  The special guest performers were extremely good too.  

If I had one complaint it would be all of the fee required restuarants on board.  I feel like cruising is pushing these types of restuarants on board and when families cruise the think everything is inclusive.  My family won't be paying between $25 and $30 per person to eat when other food is offered and included in the price.

We really like the Gem and sailing out of NYC is always a thrill.  As is sailing to Canada.  Everything was good except for one thing.  Our room was terrible.  On every cruise we've taken I've always taken the time to decide what room we want making sure there are only cabins around and below and above our cabin.  This was the first time I took guaranteed and let them decide on the room.  Every night we could hear noises that would prevent us from sleeping.  We mentioned it a couple times and nothing was done.  Otherwise it was a good cruise even with all the fog.  

This was our second cruise on the Gem since they introduced their new menu on April 1.  The meats in the main dining room are now as good as you will find on any of the premium cruise lines.  The house band's (Show Band) new musicians are a cut above what I have listened to in the past.

Surprised to find bar soap (our preference) in our balcony state room.

O'Sheehans Pub continues to disappoint in the quality of their meals, and the availability of the draught beers listed on their menu.

Procedure for clearing immigration at first US port (Portland in this case) needs to be reviewed.  It was 11:30AM before the last of the US citizens were free to enjoy themselves. If you were not getting off the ship in Portland, why couldn't this wait until we reached NYC and had to go through customs anyway.

Although the Gem went through refurbishing in the fall the carpeting in our room was stained in several places and could use a thorough cleaning.

We enjoyed the shows.  Cruise was a great value for us.

FS from NJ

The best part of this cruise was by far the onboard entertainment. The ports of call were also nice. The dining on board is not all that great unless you pay to go to a specialty restaurant. Activities onboard are limited and repetitive and often require an extra fee. Drinks are very expensive if you don't have a beverage plan (almost $10 for a 1/4 glass of wine, really?). Not a terrible cruise, but definitely did not live up to the hype. I won't be sailing with Norwegian again.

We LOVE the Free Style cruising experience! For our 20th Anniversary Norwegian was the best choice we could have made for the best most memorable time ever for our 20th Anniversary. Also, the outstanding staff and sparkling personalities made everything fun, a joy to wake up and spend the day on board. So may special touches throughout the week. This was our first week long cruise and we didn't want to leave! A 5 Star Cruise!!!!! ***** :) :)

My favorite part of the cruise was the ultimate beverage package (that promotion was awesome)!  I felt like I was at an all-inclusive with the added bonus of being on a cruise!!! The bartenders in the casino Kerwin and Mervin were exceptional!!!  We also had the dining package and ate at a Cagneys, LaCucina and Maderno....all I have to say is WOW.  That being said we also ate in the dining room and the Garden Cafe.  I will say I much preferred the Garden Cafe.  I loved all the choices and the themed nights!!!  I was traveling with family and unfortunately we had a family emergency.  The medical staff was FANTASTIC!!  It was a very stressful situation and the doctors and staff were so wonderful.  Their bedside manner and care were high above anything I expected or received state side.  Kudos and many thanks!!!  This was my 8th cruise but my significant others first cruise and I have to say although he was very skeptical and considered flying home once we reached Florida, he stuck it out and wants to go again.  I attribute his change of heart to all the staff on board the Norwegian Gem!!!  Thank you with all my heart!!!

Last year I went on the breakaway and it was a lot bigger than the gem but the gem is still fun and beautiful! I enjoyed every second of my vacation !!

Entertainment was good. The ncl production cast was  amazing.  Seems they have gotten cheap with food selection at dinner.  No more lobster unless you pay 25.00 plus gratuities! Barbeques on deck at lunchtime were great...staff great....

We were not informed that the ship was skipping Great Stirrup Cay until we arrived at port. We were compensated $50 per room not person. I hate Nassua and got stuck there for 2 days due to change in itinerary.  Events scheduled were horrible and missed things because the staff were ill informed. The dining service was horrible  themixed drinks were horrible

We received notice of itinerary change upon boarding that said we'd be in Nassau for an additional day instead of the expected day at their private island.  We were provided with $50 credit.  Seeing as I go on a cruise in order to go to places I've never been, I was disappointed with the minor credit.  I look at it as though if they just didn't leave NYC harbor and gave use $50 credit X 7 days, I've been ripped off.  We did enjoy the cruise and the food at the specialty restaurants was very good.  Could use a few more bartenders at the busier areas/times but overall a good job by the employees as they were accommodating.