Norwegian Gem Cruise Reviews - Reviews

I had a great experience. It would have been exceptional but there were 2 downfalls...1st..too many kids and rules not enforced, for example, not being allowed in the front row of the theater, not being allowed in the adult pool(s). I also believe more rules should be put in place...Not allowed in Bars after 8 or 9pm. Not being allowed at the 9pm show....2nd too many sales trying to be made. If I goo for a massage, hair cut or pedicure....I don't want to have to listen to a hard sales pitch for products. I just want to relax.

Our family of 6, including my 94 year old mom who suffers from dementia, booked the Haven Garden Villa for nine days. It was really a magnificent suite with its own indoors and outdoors, living room, dining room, stereo, bar, hot tub, steam room, upstairs outdoor deck, access to the Haven pool, which was made all the better because of the staff perks that came with it - a lovely involved concierge and butler who paved the way for us from start to finish. No lines, no worries. We had special parties, met the captain and crew, saw the engine room, the bridge, ate in private areas of the French restaurant, Le Bistro, had reserved seats for the shows, took a limo home with a van that followed with our luggage. We felt pampered all the way. The service was excellent, the staff the same. The housekeeping was exemplary - spotlessly clean. Some cons - The food could be rather hum drum at times and we had to wait so long for our dinner that we missed two or three 9 pm shows. We finally learned to go to the Garden Cafe, load up our plates and bring them back to our dining rooms for a dinner in our own Villa. The butler set up the dining room table and cleared most professionally. The activities were the usual ho-hum - lots of classes in things that they want to sell you like jewelry and art. Lots of “risque” and silly game shows. Duty free shops, jewelry and souvenir shops to browse through. But there were activities that provided opportunities to tell your own jokes and sing your own songs. The audiences were appreciative, especially when the singers were kids.The lounge singers were nice though and the entertainment staff did try to get a laugh from us. The casino was the smoke filled sad lonely place that it usually seems. Some of the shows had spot lights that shown throughout the audience. This was blinding when the lights hit your eyes. I had to close my eyes and listen to the singer instead of watching him too. What would I have liked more of: Educational activities - learning about the ship, nautical stuff - knot tying for instance, astronomy, the geology of the islands we were visiting. I’d also have liked a special lounge with soft music, free drinks, some entertainment and an opportunity to meet other suite guests just to sit and chat. The Celebrity Silhouette had that and it was great. I would have gone back to talk with this group more than once, but unfortunately this lounge didn’t exist. By the last few days of the trip life was pretty boring. Overall however, I think Norwegian tried to go out of its way to keep us happy, safe and involved.

Enjoyed the cruise very much. The accommodations were very good, the service was quite friendly and helpful. I found the cleanliness of the cabin on arrival to be less than stellar however. There were black hairs in the tub and dust on the several of the surfaces. This was remedied when it was pointed out but it should not have happened in a mid ship balcony cabin. Food was for the most part above average except for one meal that fell short in the dining room that I reported in my review to NCL ( fatty steak with fried fast food type shrimp - quality very poor.) Overall, the cruise was quite good.

The good- The ship is beautiful, very clean, well staffed, and has great activities and entertainment. The bad- The food is terrible, the buffet is strictly cafeteria food, and very bland tasting. The two other free restaurants offer the exact same menu each night, serving very small portions, The first night I ordered the steak & lobster tail, the lobster tail was extremely small, and the steak was not cooked to order. When I asked if they could cook my steak more, they microwaved it, if you ask for more food, you can sense that they really do not want to give you any extra. The only place to get a really good meal is to pay for one of the specialty restaurants. I actually lost weight on this cruise, whats wrong with that picture.

Had a wonderfull time all around. The food and servicice at the buffet was exceptionally good. The entertainment deserves a five star review. Housekeeping was great. Everything was clean and fresh every day. Love it. The service at one of the main dining areas needs improvement, but I am certain that it will be addressed by management. Love the boat, the people, the service, love it all. Will definetly take another cruise on the Norwegian Gem.

My husband and I just returned from our first cruise. We chose a 9 night Norwegian Caribbean cruise through . Our experience far exceeded our expectations. The whole trip was so professionally handled for us from the searching at to the very last minute of our selected cruise. We will certainly do this again! Thank you!!

This was our second cruise on Norwegian Lines. The biggest attraction was the conveniance of embarking and disembarking in NYC in addition to Norwegian's good reputation. My husband and I enjoyed relaxing for the 9 days. But I must say the organized activities cater to the lowest common denominator. Silly game shows prevail. Also, the musical entertainment was always blasting too loud and overcame the singing artists voices. I think there may have been some very talented singers in the group, but the music was way too loud to hear them sing. The same for poolside entertainment. Do most people really enjoy blasing sounds where you can barely recognize the song or make out the words? The sound mixers leave a lot to be desired. The port of Samana was awful. We were stalked non-stop from the time we left the tender by people trying to sell taxi's, tours etc. We turned around and went back to the tender after a few hundred feet of obstacles. I understand the locals are trying to make a living, but they should also be made to understand the difference between good salesmenship and stalking! I am only mentioning the negative aspects of the cruise, we did enjoy ourselves in many other ways and are considering taking the same cruise again next year.

We had a great time and enjoyed the food and entertainment. The stateroom was nice with the balcony. This is our second cruise with ncl. Our cabin steward was great and very accommodating. I enjoyed the pool which was adults only. Kids had a pool close by. The eastern carribbean was nice with great beaches..The nightly shows were good with two shows most nights.

Nice cruise, however the service really was horrible getting aboard the ship and getting off! Never ex Never experienced such a long wait.. It took 3 hours to board and three and 3 hours and a half to get off the boat! Ncl scheduled 3 ships to be boarded at the same time! Horrible planning! Also the food and filtered water had an effect on my stomach! Be sure to bring cold and flu medicine as me and my fiancé got sick on the boat retiring home from constant cold air being blasted on the ship!

Not impressed, expected so much more. The spa was a rip off. You expect to pay more because of where you are but there are so many hidden charges that it doubles the listed price. The specialty restaurants that charge you, their food is dinner quality, the buffet is actually better and included on your cruise price

Great Cruise. Would have liked the whole day in San Juan to enjoy more excursions. 3pm-8pm not enough time. Great entertainment! Le Bistro is excellent-worth the money xmas decorations were beautiful.

Third time on NCL. Customer service was lacking. Entertainment was very amateur. no variety. Had one female entertainer who only sang Tina turner songs. She was horrible! The entertainment director lacked personality and always looked like he just rolled outta bed. Very impersonal staff. In the past the staff remembered you and your drink orders , your name... In the past the ship captain was more present... Overall it felt very impersonal and the entertainment was horrible. They've lost their edge. Other family's complaining not enough for kids to do.

the Gem is a \"gem\"

Overall it was a nice cruise; accommodations were very good and very clean.

SHIP WAS OK

We have sailed on several different ships and NCL is our favorite. The intertainment is always fun to go to, restaurants are many to choose from and food is always good. The Spinnker Lounge is a great place to relax and watch the ocean and sites whenever we are near land. Also meet alot of interesting people from different countries and states.

I recommended the ship if you come with LOTS of extra money. At the bars they add auto-tips to every drink but ask for more. You can eat for free at several restaurants where the food is below average or pay extra for decent at a specialty restauranst like Le Bistro (20$ per person extra) but charge you extra if you want something on the \"special\" side of the menu! Communication is really bad, eg: they ran a staff drill on the day passengers went on shore excursions..meaning, you couldn't get down elevators or stairs to disembark! Same thing happened on the day we left. Getting food and a place to sit at the free restaurants was nightmarish.

The ship was beautiful and just the right size. You never felt overwhelmed or lost trying to located the activites on the ship. I mostly enjoyed seeing the officer's of the ship serving and greeting the guest.

The ship was pretty, show room and dining areas nice, but the balcony cabins were the smallest I have ever seen. Seems like everything had an extra charge...movies in your cabin, $5.00 for pizza, specialty restaurants that were free on the Jewel, many activities. Bingo prices were $39-$59 to play a game with a payout of under $150. Felt like we were being nickel and dimed to death. Entertainers were very good. Stop at Corner Brook was a big waste of time...nothing to do there.

Overall good, but there is room for improvement as noted below. Port stops of Halifax and Quebec City were very nice with a variety of things to do and see. Sydney and Ccornerbrook were very small towns with really nothing to do. Shopping was a joke and heard many complaints that tours were overpriced for what they included.