Norwegian Gem Cruise Reviews - Reviews

We had the best time on our Norwegian cruise to the Bahamas. The staff on the Gem work so hard keeping the ship clean. Gugu kept our room clean and was always around when we needed him. Norwegian's private Island stirup Cay was beautiful they had even had a barbecue. The food at the Asian specialty restaurant was a complete waste of money The shows were really good, some were like broadway shows. My 6 year old absolutely loved splash academy he couldn't wait to go each day. The food was great at the start of the cruise towards the end its was just okay. I wouldn't recommend going to the aquarium at paradise Island it was to small for what they charge. You can find really nice free beaches in the bahamas We came back to New York relaxed, rested and tanned.

First time cruiser here and had the best experience!!  The ship was clean the staff was amazing and the food and activities were outstanding.  I am proud to be a Norwegian Cruiser.  The islands were breath taking....make sure you go to Blue Lagoon truly beautiful!  Have fun fellow cruisers xoxo

This was our families first cruise, our five children and us was very impressed, from the moment we boarded the ship the party started and we felt like we were  vacation, the rooms was exceptionally clean and our Stewart was always helpful and pleasant, the food...no words the crew members was always pleasant and we're already planning our next cruise with norwegian. 

The ship, the Gem is awesome. The food was great. The stateroom, midship balcony was small, yet comfortable. The service was excellent, staff was attentive. Plenty of things to do onboard. The first two ports are very nice, we went to Cocoa Beach for some shopping, and Great Stirrup Cay, NCL's private island, was fun. Our stop in Nassau wasn't the greatest. The port area was a tad seedy. As soon as we got to Festival Place we were acosted by many "cabbies"  offering tours etc. That really isn't our thing. Some of our port departures were earlier than advertised, however, we were already back on board by then. The two days back to New York were kind of a let down. While on the way down to Canaveral there was lots to do on board. Excursion planning, shopping highlights, etc. On the way back there was some shows but not many geared towards our age group.  We enjoyed ourselves, it was a nice trip. We have heard that after our cruise, the route was modified, with more port time and even an overnight. We will definitely cruise with Norwegian again.

I completed the surgery it was horrible the room wasn't ready the agent never told cruise line I walked into a dirty room broken phone food on floor due to ncl stating they were told my room was empty when I already had my room my number an agent called me I called back 4 days ago and no one called back unprofessional 

Having sailed on Norwegian Spirit in 2011, I was confident of an equally pleasant experience on Norwegian Gem.  Unfortunately, most of the crew appeared dispirited and unmotivated, possibly also overstretched.  The shore excursion staff were unhelpful and uninformed.  The live entertainment (in the Atrium and Magnum Champagne bar) were mournful or wacky or poor; there was a general air of unhappiness.  The ship was quite crowded which meant each meal was a competitive exercise -- survival of the fittest ruled in the Garden Cafe restaurant and the ship's pools on sea days exceeded what would be hygienically recommended in terms of numbers of bodies in the pool.  This last was important because four of the seven days were sea days.  The shore visits were clumped together as three days in a row. Port Canaveral may have been nice for those going to Disney.  If one is keen on beaches, Great Stirrup Cay was adequate but the rigid lines of loungers, nearly all of them without shade, gave the beach an almost Stalinesque appeal.  Finally, when an organized outing in Nassau was cancelled at the last minute, there was literally nothing else to do in a town with no discernable attractions.  The Mandara Spa was the best and only relaxing area of the ship.  Spa staff were also noticeably more customer-oriented and upbeat.  That said, many of the restaurant staff were also courteous and helpful but their efforts were at times offset by kitchen errors. 

This was our 3rd cruise with NCL and 2nd on the Gem. The trip started with a 90 minute wait on line in the terminal to check in. Cruise documents had said check in would start at 9:30 and embarkation at 12 noon for a 3 p.m. departure. We arrived at the pier at noon and finally snaked our way to boarding at 1:30. We did sail pretty close to on time. Our balcony room was ready, bathroom clean, tabletops not so much. Breakfast on the open rear deck is our favorite meal, except for the fact that crew can't seem to keep up with the demand for coffee; more coffee stations are needed. Lunch and dinner in the buffet are  noisy chaos, so we try to do a late lunch and use the main dining rooms for dinner. Once my husband learned two trips ago that he could ask for double portions, the quantity of food in the main dining rooms is fine but we wish that the two different rooms offered two different menus for more variety. We ate in La Cucina one night, just for a change ( which I guess is exactly the objective). Stirrup Cay is a nice beach day but the traffic flow at buffet there needs to be reorganized. Two lines are formed to the two identical serving areas. However, within those areas, food choices also repeat. As we approached, we were handed plates by staff and told to enter the line half way down, since the food choices would repeat. However, when we tried to do that, other passengers already there reacted as if we were cutting the line. If there are actually four sets of choices, there need to be four lines. We found the evening theater entertainment to be the least varied of all our NCL cruises- we had a magician (OK), a comedian (hilarious!), and the rest of the week relied upon the ship's own singers/dancers for a collection of themed musical performances. They were very good, however, and we especially liked the choreography and execution of the dance numbers. The excursions on this itinerary were, for us, not particularly attractive but the beautiful weather we had left us happy to spend most of the week up on the sundeck- always plenty of lounge chairs. From what we observed, the pools are on the small side for  a ship this size. Our interactions with staff were pleasant although communication of information was not as complete as past trips. We found ourselves stumbling upon or missing out on things it would have been helpful to have been told and despite the constant crawl across one of the in-room TV channels, the weather information and forecast was N/A for the entire week- information that was constantly available on our other NCL trips and should have been here since its spot was there crawling across the screen. On average, this trip was comparable to our other NCL trips. Would we go again? Probably- but we may try another line first for comparison.

Usually book a balcony but all those cabins are full of smoke so we tried an outside cabin.  The cabin was fine except do not book stateroom 8106 unless you are deaf.  It sits over the boat deck and near the bowling alley disco & smoking area so noise travels up the stairway inside and outside from howling drunks who congregate outside Bliss.  Called the guest relations every night - they offered to move us but only had a cabin way forward available and we were all moved in.  Security was very lax in taking care of problem thus the nightly calls.  Guest relations did try their best to make it up to us with comp dinner and shipboard credit but I would rather have had the sleep.  On the plus side we had a good cabin stewart and the staff was very accommodating.  Also, the fish was good which is unusual on many cruise ships.  Excusion to Disneyland was too expensive and not enough time.  We made out own arrangements to Atlantis and were happy with that choice.  We liked the comedian Michael Somervile and would have liked to see more comedians.  All in all we would recommend this ship before the summer season for couples on their own.     

I wanted this cruise to be perfect. It started out with miscommunication on the room. The bathrooms are so tiny. I was told bowling was $5.00 a person per game no it's $9.00.  Eerything cost something. i got the gift certificates for the family thinking they could be used in the casino..no only on purchases on the ship. The casinos was so smokey certainly a health risk. Disgusting for a non smoker. Food was good. The crew worked hard and was very friendly. Overall, the cruise was nice after I got over the disappointment of the room  We were told the Haven only to be placed on the 11th floor with no Haven access. I will think twice before  cruising with Norwegian again.

The entertainment was not good. This was my 4th cruise and it was the worst shows and entertainment during the day was boring! The food was good but had much better on other Norwegian boats and other cruise lines! And the front desk was horrible to deal with, they just yes you to death, no one had knowledge about the cruise ( asked would they be showing the uconn game?Answer:no can't show sports,well 2 different bars were showing the game)

We had such a good time last year on the Gem that we booked the same itinerary and ship this year and brought some family along .  The Gem is a nice ship. Customer service is always right on any problem you have. There was a one night cruise ahead of our boarding. Maybe that was why our room wasn't the best when we arrived; the bathtub had LOTS of hair in it.. gross.. but within 3 minutes the supervisor had our guy there to clean it.. and the room was fine the rest of the time. I am a neat and germ freak, so I actually cleaned the whole room myself with spray and wipes,, but our cabin steward did a good job after that first time.In his defense, he worked alone!  No assistant like we have always seen .

I am not usually a complainer, but one major problem was the entertainment or lack of. The ship dancers were not in sync, and were actually a lot of the same shows we saw LAST year!  The comedian/magician was just so terrible that we got up and left. Guess cutbacks really show in their entertainment line. Did not bother to go to the single comedian since we were ALL so disappointed with the shows we did go to. 

Also they frown upon bringing extension cords onboard, which I understand. If everyone did it might create an overload. That being said, tho, my husband needed a cord for his CPAP machine and there were "none" available.. probably since a lot of people need them now. We were kind of in a bad situation here.. he needed it and there were none, so we were told.. BUT>. the electrician was able to bring one for us which we really appreciated. There needs to be some kind of waiver so your own can be brought onboard.

Our entire group of 10 booked mini-suites; we didnt realize that the kid's club would go on late into the night and they were allowed to run and jump the whole time . We had the exact same cabin last year and it was fine. From 1030 till 130 in the am this went on.  It was very disturbing to those of us who don't bring in the midnight hour. One lady in our group was directly under the kid's club and could not rest in the afternoon or even use her balcony. We actually were under the kid's pool and heard the moving of chairs and dropping of heavy things, but also had vibrations on the ceiling from the kid's club.!  My husband has to retire early due to his medical condition and it was greatly stressful for him, and he is a very heavy sleeper!

. The noise from the pool was taken care of after we complained to the customer service desk.. and tho they could not do much about the kid's club, since several cabins in our group and several that were not complained, Norwegian, tho, did assure us they would try to help as a token of goodwill and did so. 

The customer service on the Gem was fabulous, and took every issue seriously and  resolved it the best they could at the time.  We also had a toilet issue and a TV issue and all were taken care of quickly and properly. We received a bottle of wine and chocolate covered strawberries in our room because we had had so many issues.  Again, even tho we had a lot of them, each was taken care of quickly and we got calls from customer service after every resolution to be sure it was done.

Would I travel the Gem again? absolutely!

To short.fun just beginning.but we really have a good time.staff pleasant and courteous.attentive to our needs and very professional.the bandeoke is very entertaining and the singers and musicians very good.food is good.i notice portions served are smaller,but that is excellent.i know we can ask for 2nd servings.overall our experience is excellent.will highly recommend.this is our second one night cuise.already booked for the breakaway in october and thinking of booking a mediterean one in may of 2015.

It was just what we needed to relax. The staff was so amazingly sweet! Whenever we needed something they wouldn't hesitate to help us. Everyone was more than willing to get us what we needed. The food was delicious. They always had different foods to choose from. The pool was nice & clean. The chairs to tan on the top deck were awesome, we fell asleep there just taning, hearing the waves. 

I went on a 9 night cruise with two friends.  We had a mini suite which worked out fine for us.  We had a good time.  The boat could use some spucing up -- it is getting a little tierd looking.  Food was good, entertainment was super. The only thing we did not care for was the stop in Samana, Domincan Republic.  If you did not go to the beach there was not much to do.  We walked around the town and did not feel safe because the vendors kept following us and pressuring us to buy thier wares.  We would have preferred to have a stop in one of the other Caribbean islands or even in Key West.  I heard the same comment from many people on the boat.

This room was good but the Balacony was a bit tatterd 

The chairs were rip .paint was peeling

also instead of selling drinks ,when first comming aboard 

Some cruise line offer free Champane 

and spme of the pulbic rooms look a bit shabby

Your staff was bryond ecellent

The ports were good

We look gorward to another  cruise with Norwegian 

I had a great time on this cruise.  The freestyle cruising atmosphere was exactly what our group and I were looking for. The staff was very helpful and we were lucky enough to connect with some wonderful staff members that made our trip outstanding.

Our first Norweigian cruise. Maybe we are becoming cruise snobs after 15 cruises....not a fan of freestyle dining.  Like commraderie with table mates and wait staff that you get at scheduled dining times. Also the service is faster on other cruise lines. Food was below average.  Specialty dining was disappointing, we ate at Cagney's and Italian restaurant. Have done specialty dining on other lines and the food and service was amazing. Not so with these two restaurants. That being said itinery and price were great for the last minute cruise we booked to just get away from the snow and cold. We booked a very tiny inside cabin...first one in a long time and it was smaller than other cruise lines.  Great quiet lounges at back of ship for at sea days if you can get one. Lots of "saving" of lounges that seemed abused. If you weren't up at crack of dawn forget getting a chair even though no one sat there all day. Other lines police this a bit and open chairs up.  Broken light in our cabin was repaired immediately. Room service was used twice for breakfast, first time great second time never came...that was breakfast on departure day.  Walked from pier to bus terminal and saved a lot of money. No cab in New York and we took the bus from Philadelphia and saved on tolls, gas and the 40 dollar a day parking rate. A highlight was the "washy, washy, happy, happy" lady who greeted us at the cafeteria all day long.  She was so friendly while making everyone wash their hands and be healthy.  She was even there as we left the ship saying goodbye...like the Walmart greeter!

As a first timer "Cruiser" I enjoyed myself. However the food choice was a bit repeative, although it was top quailty.

The food included in the cruise price is extremely limited. No seafood for free, and although the buffet was vast it serves the same exact thing every single day. most of the activites "included in the cruise price" were 30 minutes or less. You are pressured to spend money everywhere you turn. it kinda takes the fun out of cruising. I would rather the ticket price be higher and include more, because you get the bare minimum in the all inclusive" package deals. DRINKS ON THE SHIP!!!!! beware, I had a jager bomb and my wife had a appletini yes you counted right just two drink and the price was a whopping 29.68 USD

Diamonds International or any variation of the name steer clear...they will offer you little trinkets that look amazing on the boat. but they are not!

They pressure you to buy stuff you can't afford, like 25,000 braclets and 48,000 Diamond rings. I am a blunt person and I repeatedly told them no but they had my credit card and identification because we bought one of their "deals". So they kept us hostage by refusing to give us our cards back until I made a scene and they let us go. ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT $199.00 pair of earings were fake they made my wifes ears burn. we had to spend half our day in St. Thomas hopping between 4 different diamond international stores to return them. We had to make a scene there as well for someone to finally take their product back. ANYTHING YOU BUY YOU CANNOT RETURN!!!!!! THEY CONSIDER IT BUYERS REMORSE EVEN IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT OR IT BURNS YOUR WIFES EARS BECAUSE THE METAL IS CHEAP YOU CANNOT RETURN IT!!!!!! Finally I threatened to stop everyone who came into the store and show them my wifes ears before they would refund my card. Even then I get back to the ship only to find out that my credit card had been authorized for 52,000 Dollars. Which I had to spend 28 dollars in phone and internet charges to clear up.

In every port things are not cheap like people say they are.... if anything they are more expensive. A pair of flipflops you get from walmart for $10.00 you won't find for cheaper then 40.00 USD cigarettes and booze are cheap but even the food is outragious.

My biggest upset was I was not prepared for the real cost of a cruise. No warning is giving to first timers about the on board mandatory service fee's which are 12.00 per person per day...yes you heard me right! so if a family of 4 takes a cruise it is an additional 100.00 USD A DAY. So a 9 night cruise is 900.00 DOLLARS you get to pay at the end on top of the cost of the ticket.

My advice to anyone who reads this is ...Rent a sail boat it will be cheaper and more fun or prepare to drop about 6,000. bucks for a decent cruise.

Happy cruising and good luck.....OH and the ship was very clean, and the staff was friendly, I suppose because they are robbing you blind.

Had a great time on the Norwegian Gem Eastern Carribean Cruise out of NY.  The ship is beautiful and everyone works very hard to make your trip memorable.  The Entertainment was all bvery good, our Favorite was Leo in the lounges, he played guitar and sang and always to a packed house! Almost all the food services were excellent.  Our only negative was the service in the Grand Pacific.  We felt ignored and neglected.  The food was as good of in the Magenta (where we got excellent service all the time) but after they finally took our order and threw our food on the table, the wait staff was never seen again.  Not so much as a "How is your food" or "Can I get you anything else"  We gave them three shots over the 9 day cryuise and always the same, lame, service. We LOVED the Hibachi in the Tapanyaki Restaurant, A++.  Excursions from the ship were fun, informative and well organized.

 Were very disapointed with our last cruise. We sailed once with the Princess and 3 times with NCL, once with the Jewel, everything was awsome! The princess was fantastic! the service and food were out of this world, but the Gem is another story!!! The second sail was with the Gem, the room service was so so, the food was not that good and the choices at the buffet were quite skimpy compare to the Jewel. On our THIRD and last sail with the Gem, the room service was so pettyful, found an old coffee bag in the coffee machine from the previous sail in our room, had 1 creamer, 1 sugar and no sticks to stirr the coffee. we asked for more creamers, sugar and sticks, it was a battle to get creamers everyday day and we never got the sticks, we asked for an ashtray for the balcony, we got it on the first day, we had to ask again on the 2nd day then it was never brought back on the balcony for the rest of the cruise. The dining room experience was just awful, we waited 45 minutes to get our soup and it was cold when we got it, waited 1/2 hour to have our bottle of olive oil filled up and brought back, most of our meals were served less then warm, it took for ever to clean the table for dessert, the waitrice did not even know how to open the botlle of wine, WE had to show her, every waiters looked so confused and lost, the food was also way too salty... For the buffet, again the choices was so pettyful, lack of taste and also very salty this time, the different Italien dish were tasting all the same, much lack of variety in all the stations and I could go on and on...Most of the people ( I would say 90%) we met on the cruise were very much disappointed, talking about how bad and tasteless the food was, the very poor choice at the buffet and how bad their room service was, same for the dining room service, compare to other ships on NCL, we all agreed that the Gem takes a 2 out of 10, So I am glad we were not alone. We found out later that most were new crew without experience, the experience crew were transfered to the Breakaway to help out. It is too bad because lots of the people said they will never sail on the Gem again, they rather pay more and satisfied on other cruise ships. We all wished they would bring another ship in New York, the Gem is too pettyful and getting worst. Not at all very pleasant for NCL lovers to return to the Gem since it is the only ship leaving from New York !