Norwegian Gem Cruise Reviews - Reviews

The food was average except in the speciality restaurants. My wife as well as 5 or 6 others I spoke to all got very sick and missed a day and half of the cruise because of the food at Cagney's Steak House.Also there was a charge od $10 per day per passenger for services that was not disclosed to us and many others I spoke to were uypset about that...

The ship is very beautiful. The ports of call are all nice and offer different things.

Overall, a pleasure to cruise on this virtually brand new ship. Non-smoking policy is a great improvement over our cruise last year - smoking only allowed in casino, which was very smoky, and a few places on deck. For the first time, we were able to visit all of the bars. The whiskey/beer bar was very comfortable and the entertainment was terrific. The two main dining rooms were very well appointed and comfortable. Staff and food were great, as usual. Tendering still needs to be better coordinated and it would help if there was someone manning the excursion desk in the morning of the excursions for last minute questions.

PRETY GOOD ALL ROUND THE ENTERTAINMENT COULD BE BETTER BUT THE FOOD IS FANTASTIC THE SHIP IS NEW AND VERY MODERN

This was the third winter in a row, I decided to sail to the Caribbean from New York. I was a little disappointed that my favorite ship, Norwegian Dawn, had been replaced by Norwegian Gem. I shouldn't have worried. The Gem is a lot like the Dawn but newer and a bit reconfigured. The staff, entertainment, and appointments were as terrific as ever. The food was better than ever, and the buffet has been made to feel more like a real restaurant with linen tablecloths and candlelight at dinner. The specialty restaurants were wonderful, and it was easy to get a reservation. The cabin was good (and I always book an inside cabin!). If I wanted to improve it, I'd install a light in the closet. It was hard to see if you were trying to get something without turning on the lights and waking your companion. My complaints are absolutely minor. If you like Freestyle, you'll love Norwegian Gem.

What's not to like about a brand new ship. There was not much to do on board. The food in the regular dining room was bland. The food in the buffet was tastier.

If you live in Manhattan as we do, leaving from New York City was a big factor in booking this cruise. The ship is very big but if you walk alot you won't mind. The stateroom with a balcony was very nice. The clothing space was adequate. The bathroom and shower area was ok. All the ship employees were very friendly and helpful. The entertainment was excellent. The cruise ports were ok except for Freeport which we felt was "what for". Eliminating Freeport and adding Key West would add to this cruise. The big screen TV on deck 7 is wonderful. Watching the Giant New England football game and the ball coming down on New Years Eve were a great experience. Freestyle dining is great. You must set up your specialty restaurant reservations as soon as you get on board for the first 3 days then at 7:00am every morning after that or you wouldn't always get the restaurant you like. This could be a problem if you sleep late. We liked this New Years cruise so much we already decided to do it again next year.

The ship itself I have no qualms- but wait times for elevators was multiple minutes each time, travelling with an older person made it difficult and frustrating-

we are Gold Latitude cruisers with NCLand at first sight she is a spectacular ship. We found it next to impossible to make a dinner reservation at any of our favorite spots due to the overbooking of the ship( 2400 capacity/ 2900 on board)If not for our balcony cabin we would have been VERY displeased with the whole itinerary. Shore tours also beyond capacity and tour operators were glib and rushed. We voiced our concerns with the appropriate staff on board and they were in agreement that many venues should have had tighter crowd control.

I don't have any other cruising experience to compare this to, however many on the ship said this definitely was not the norm for cruise. I found it extremely difficult to get dinner reservations and when dining in the garden cafe ( which was the only place we could have our dinner unless we wanted to wait until after 9:00 pm to eat) maneuvering the lines and looking for a table was again extremely difficult and uncomfortable.

It was brautiful, first cruise and it will not be our last. Free Style dining is the only way to go. Fantastic 5 star restaurants and first class service from everyone.

A new ship is always so clean, plus this gave you a feeling of spaciousness too. I had a inside room, 1st time in a long time, but it was a 2 day trip to nowhere, so figured it was ok. Well, it was really very ok, and the bathroom was roomy too. Shower stayed warm on this cold weekend. Fluffy winter blankets were on the beds. Personnel were helpful when needed.

It is hard to get around the ship. We did not like the design of common areas. Passenegers were promised a football game. The ship got large numbers of people into bars spending money and kept announcing the game will be on in a minute. It never happened and people were very upset.

My husband and I sailed this past weekend on the "cruise to nowhere" out of Boston for two nights. This was my 10th cruise and my husband's 2nd cruise. We arrived at the Black Falcon terminal in Boston at 1 PM, which was the stated embarkation time on our tickets. We always like to arrive first thing and it turned out they started boarding at 11 AM. The check in process was a big DISASTER! It was not organized well - you'd walk in the door and be told a number (we were 15) and that group would then wait. Individuals could then "change their number" just by going to stand with another group. There was noone checking in at this moment - just people waiting in groups (not an organized line) to check in (which only took 5 minutes when we got to the desk) and then a very long line to go through security (apparently a metal detector had broken at this point so there was only one operational). Part of the problem was also that everyone was bringing their own luggage rather than having it delivered to our cabin later in the day. There were no embarkation photos, however we saw later in the cruise that there had been photos taken between 11 and 1 (when according to my ticket we weren't even supposed to be embarking!). We made it to our cabin by 2:30 in time to go down to the Grand Pacific dining room for lunch before the 3:30 fire and boat drill, and our muster station was the Grand Pacific dining room, so we lucked out and didn't have to rush through lunch. The Boston area was expecting bad whether on Saturday night and Sunday so we were concerned that this may affect the seas as well - it did. According to the tracker that was shown on one of the TV channels in our stateroom we were about 4 miles off the coast of Cape Cod and starting Saturday evening well into Sunday evening the seas were rough, but not as rough as I'd seen on my last cruise out of Boston. The ship seemed to handle the waves much better than other ships we'd been on - possibly because of the size of the ship - and the Captain kept us informed of the weather. I was surprised that he didn't bring us south a little more away from the bad weather as much as he could - it was like he had us in the midst of it. On Sunday there was a Patriots game and it was a big hooplah about trying to get us up on that satellite to view it, which never happened - personally I don't understand why anyone needed to go on a two day cruise away from it all just to sit an entire afternoon and watch a game. But NCL tried to get the satellite but wasn't able to - at least they tried to keep the passengers happy in this area. Getting off the ship on Monday morning in Boston turned out to be just as much a disaster as getting on. With only one gangway for such a huge ship it took much longer than expected. My husband and I decided to wait awhile until those that were in a rush got off. At 9:30 we were up in the Garden Cafe and they announced that it was the last call for all passengers to disembark and then 10 minutes later announced they would be closing the gangway! So everyone then rushed down and ended up filling the stairways and the elevators were then taking individuals down to that level and that would then overflow the gangway. It was not well thought out. A ship of this size should have two working gangways during embarkation and disembarkation. Maybe it's just that Boston's terminal could not handle two gangways, I don't know. Overall it was a nice cruise and the ship is absolutely beautiful, particularly our balcony stateroom. My husband and I were glad to get away for a relaxing weekend and were happy to be able to get the chance to see the new ship.

This was a two day cruise to nowhere. The ship was beautiful and the staff couldn't have been more friendly. The entertainment was outstanding and the food excellent. We have nothing bad to say about this cruise.

The ship was nice. Beautiful interior.The only thing I wasn't happy with was the fact that if you got on the wrong elevator either in the back, mid, or front of the ship you couldn't get to certain places on the ship from those elevators. You were blocked off and had to walk to the right elevator and go up or down from that point. Not very good for the elders that were traveling with us.

This is Norwegian at its best, or worst depending on what you are looking for. If you enjoy Pork Chops, Chicken, or anything else you can cook at home (Faster by the way) Then this is the cruise line for you! Try not to look at the daily bulletin because they don't do what they promise for the day, ie The Patriots Vs Jets game on December 16 2007! They had plenty of reasons why we did'nt see it but not a lot of sympathy for all the Pats fans when we did'nt see it. Do not eat at the Blue Lagoon unless you want your party to all eat alone, as the food get's delivered to each person seprately. Also be ready to wait up to 2 hours for your breakfast or dinner in the restaurants you can get a beeper but don't go away, you'll miss out on one fine pork chop meal. Make sure you pack plenty of snacks on this boat, there are times during the day when you cannot get food (except the miserable Blue Lagoon or the Mexican restaurant, which you could starve at before you get any service!) Even the bar service on this ship was slow! What a pity! I do suggest that you get on board and find, Nigel Leventic he is the restaurant Manager, you are going to need him to get any service, then go and find Klaus Lugmaier, he is the Hotel Director and if you want any kind of sevice in your stateroom he can lend a sypathetic ear but no much else. Better yet, bully up and pay the extra money to go on a real cruise line, eat Lobster and filet mignon, and be treated Royally or like a Princess, or a Celebrity, or have a Carnival of a time. Leave this cruise line to the cheap and unfamous and invest in a great time instead of a waste of time. Norwegians new tag line EXPECT NOTHING AND GET IT!!!!

ship was very nice. but the food wass not worth the wait , which was substantial everywhere you went.stand in line all day to eat. extra fees almost every where you go.

The Gem is new, clean and ultra-luxurious. I loved the theatre set up with its comfortable excellent viewing seats from any area and its great entertainment. Our state room was an inside cabin but well designed for maximum efficiency and included very comfortable, well padded beds. I slept like "a rock" even with the huge 12-foot swells caused by the northeaster the area was undergoing. The food in the dining rooms was excellent, although the crew sometimes seemed new to the job. I got the "wrong" dessert one time but it tasted great. Wine service at dinner, however, is lacking. One evening the wine was delivered with the meal instead of before it and one party received the wrong wine. Another time the wine never came at all. Apparently, the wine stewards come from too far away to service properly. Overall, I loved the ship and its accommodations plus the fact that it left from BOSTON. Would go on the GEM again without question. Taking it in the winter during a storm was quite an adventure. The crew who usually serve tropical drinks on a warm water trip were out shovelling snow on the top deck and building snowmen! What FUN! I actually saw two people in the jacuzzi on the icy deck and would have enjoyed that experience myselfl. The Thermal Bath offered by the onboard Fitness Center would have "topped off" my trip, unfortunately, it was too popular overall to accept any more reservations. Maybe next time I'll plan better and have that experience as well! Great job, GEM crew. A good holiday time was had by all. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

This ship is spectacular!