Norwegian Gem Cruise Reviews - Reviews

I couldn’t of asked for a better cruise.. already looking forward to our next .. purchased our cruise next certificates onboard..

This was our first ever cruise and we are so glad we got to do it on the Gem! Beautiful and clean, and much smaller than a lot of the other ships in the NCL fleet. Very comfortable and the crew was absolutely amazing.

This ship was absolutely wonderful from top to bottom the crew were so nice enthusiastic made the cruise awesome being jewel class made it not crowded able to see shows when ever and eat whenever loved every bit of this cruise ship

Everything was very nice. Spa was highlight for us. Food was so so.

This was a really fun cruise! We enjoyed it and got lucky with the weather for the most part. Anytime we don't have to be at work, plan meals, cook, or clean, and can have some R&R alone with each other is always a good time!!

Though we didn't admit it to each other, my husband and I knew something was off when we sat down to our first meal on the Norwegian Gem in the Grand Pacific shortly after boarding and he bit into a dry cheeseburger, and I forked through mashed potatoes that tasted similar to KFC. I kept my worry to myself and hoped the food would improve. He apparently did the same. Spoiler: the food did not improve and the service would actually get worse too. The next sea day we jetted towards Orlando from NYC and the decks were not usable. The wind created from the ship on deck made the temperature outside something like 50 degrees, and as a result the inside of the ship was cramped and crowded. We were still fairly upbeat though at this point in the trip. The on-board activities left something to be desired but my husband wanted to try his hand at "deal or no deal"- only to get up to the spinnaker lounge and find out it was a $25 buy-in. Bored already, we bought in and lost out. Once we made Port Canaveral we had a great time doing the Airboat Adventure and Alligator Jungle Tour. Admittedly, the Alligator Jungle park is a small park with limited enrichment for the animals- if you are expecting something along the lines of Disney's Animal Kingdom you will be disappointed, but it was a fun day and the employees are knowledgeable and clearly love their jobs and the animals they take care of. Airboat rides are super fun too! The night following Port Canaveral we experienced Tropical Storm force winds. The ship closed all of the decks, the boat was rocking like crazy, you could see lightning, it was hard to walk, and my husband and I didn't get to sleep until almost 3 am. There was no concern or announcement from the staff or crew despite the fact that many of my fellow cruisers also seemed concerned and upset. The rocking was so bad the spa and thermal suite actually drained and closed the pools and spas because the water had poured out into the rooms. Doesn't that at least deserve a "Hey everyone- just some minor turbulence" sort of announcement from the captain? My husband and I thought the whole thing was very unprofessional. The next port was the private island at Great Stirrup Cay. First, the Captain got on the intercom and started to announce that Royal Caribbean had cancelled THEIR private island trip so we might too. 20 minutes later, we were tendering over to the island. He had pissed off 2000 passengers for no reason. Once my husband and I reached the island, I was sorely disappointed. I went on a cruise previously with Carnival and went to Half Moon Cay, where the beach was PRISTINE. I cannot say the same for Great Stirrup Cay. Mostly sharp rocks and seaweed, the private island here was not ideal. We did a quick walk around when we were told our shore excursion (parasailing) was not ready yet (come back in 20 minutes). The private island was honestly a let down- but I didn't even know I had a bigger one coming. We returned to the shore excursion booth where we were greeted by an employee sucking on a lollipop who informed us between licks that our one and only excursion was cancelled. We might be able to go on a waverunner maybe. But we had to ask the other guy- who had a line. We wait in that line. And he tells us nope- all of the shore excursions are sold out except for kayaking (which I could not do due to a shoulder injury). We have a shore excursion credit and I ask where that goes. He says he can't help with that. They have an attitude of total disinterest. These employees do not care if they just ruined your whole day. Which they did. So we decide to go back to the boat and try to go to guest services or the shore excursion desk there to get it fixed. Onboard we are met with the same disinterest- and then we are told no one on the ship can help us. Not a single soul. Everyone you see- is on the island. No one will be available to help us until 7pm- 1 hour after the ship leaves the island- so the day is a wash. We have lost our excursions for the day, there is no salvaging it. At 7pm we had to argue with the shore excursions desk to try to get our $50 shore excursion credit moved to the next port- which they refused to do. I put in a complaint regarding the attitude of the employees on the island and the events of the day and that resulted in a 25% reduction of my shore excursion cost for the next day, but only after I demanded to speak to the manager of the person I was speaking to. Our next port was Nassau. At this point I want to say if you are interested in parasailing- book the "Discover Atlantis" shore excursion in Nassau- Atlantis offers Parasailing for $70pp- $30 pp cheaper than Norwegian, and you are in the air twice as long. Our tour guide for the Discover Atlantis tour- Ranique- was fantastic and knowledgeable. Because of her, we were able to do the parasailing and waverunning that Norwegian couldn't accommodate for us the day before- and we were able to do it for far cheaper! The next two days were Sea Days, and they couldn't have gone by fast enough. The buffets were so crowded that we were told by the staff that if our room was close enough it was better to just take our food and leave. When we did that, our food was ice cold. The decks were freezing wind tunnels and unusable on sea day two. The specialty restaurants were completely booked because the buffet food and dining room food was so bad that you had to buy your way out of it and I think everyone on the cruise realized that. The only two really good meals I had on the ship were at Cagney's and Moderno- and even so I would still only give them a 4/5- Maybe even a 3 for slow service that got slower once they realized you weren't drinking. The slow service was especially pronounced in the main dining rooms. All of that being said- and that isn't even all of it- here are some of the positives: 1: We had the spa thermal pass and it was a wonderful retreat, though at nighttime it was poorly placed under the Spinnaker lounge and the bass beats and pounding dance floor are a little distracting. 2: Our room steward was the nicest guy ever. His name is Emerson, and if after this you somehow choose to cruise on the Gem....I hope he's your room steward. 3: Our cabin was clean and spacious for an inside cabin. 4. We really enjoyed Cagney's and Moderno- we just wish that you didn't have to upcharge yourself to good food. TL:DNR -Bad Customer Service -Shore Excursion Cancellations -Slow Dining Service -Bad Dining Quality (Soggy Food, Temperature, Descriptions, etc) -Rocky Waters -Windy -Ship activities not very entertaining -Best Experiences happened off the ship- just go to Atlantis.

I enjoyed the time on the islands the most on this trip. The days at sea saw the pool too congested and crowded. Was disappointed with food quality and the cost of alcohol. The activities on the ship were excellent. The kids club and the gym were also excellent.

Its a vacation make the most of it. Nothing is ever perfect,but the staff truly does give a great effort to make it enjoyable. The rest is up too us.

Loved the ship and the crew. A group a very had working people, and a funny cruise director. I would definitely go back - or I should rather say, stay there :-)

The Haven experience was BEYOND FANTASTIC. The food, service and overall package made for a memorable cruise

Nothing exceptional on this boat. I’ve been on 5 NCL ships and this one was my least favorite. Food: mediocre, even specialty restaurants Activities: not enough (unless you like towel folding class) Cleanliness: good Shows: blazing boots was great. Casino: terrible and casino crew were miserable

Everyone was so nice. Food was fantastic and service was top notch.

Wonderful, relaxing time. The crew was amazing! Can't wait for the next one.

We absolutely loved this cruise. This being only our second cruise, cannot say anything negative in comparison to other cruises. Did the Gem have some of the newer amenities you read about on the newer ships...no but who cares. We go on the cruise to relax, spend time with family and hopefully new friends, eat some great food and to drink. The crew on the Gem let us accomplish all these and more. We will be back!!!

just back from 11 days on the gem. we like the gem and have cruised her a few times. ok food in mdr. very good in pay restaurants. entertainment above average we think. service is a strong spot across the board for ncl. ship still shows well and is maintained well the downsides, food needs to be upgraded in buffet, sorely lacking. now my quick vent, does anybody else think its disgusting when peeps cant wait to sit down to start eating and eat with their fingers in the buffet line. people, you are plain gross. next, parents who abandon their kids and let them run wild on the ship. i know its an ageold problem but idiot parents should be put off with their offspring animals if they dont supervise them. problem solved in 2 cruises max. most peeps are respectful and polite but the few that are not, to be blunt, suck.

Great staff , excellent Cruise Director! Great cabin attendant. Great martinis at the martini bar. Food use to be better. The speciality restaurants changed the menu and do not offer the same menu as before. But overall it was good. Do not miss the made to order crapes!!!!!

We had a blast for our first cruise. We actually can't wait to do it again!

Love the Gem, Love the staff, Islands were greaqt, cant wait to sail her again!

Went on gem 3/27/2018 easy getting on ship. First day some kid flushed something down a toilet and it affected over 100 toilets, unfortunately ours was 1 of them. Cruise next woman was nice very nice,the guy on the other hand was a real prick. Security was a joke way to many underaged kids drinking nothing done at all. I've been on 8 cruises this is the only one I came home complaining. By day 7 or 8 some halls on deck 5 smelled like sewerage. Our excursions were all late to start some by as much as 40 minutes. However I will say this I meet some great people ( they know who they are) and did have a good time

We are fairly new to cruising (I’ve done Disney and Carnival). We decided on Norwegian because we could drive to NYC and save on airfare to Fl. We stayed at Hilton Garden Inn in Ridgefield NJ the night before and had our hotel stay, hot breakfast, parking for the 10 days and private car service to and from the port for less then it would’ve cost us just to park at the pier. We are the kind of people who make the most of everything. We had an absolute blast on the Gem! The ship although older, was spotless and our room was impeccable. Staff was always smiling and helpful and a joy to converse with. Every day was an adventure and we cannot wait to sail again!