Excellent Vacation

Norwegian Jade Cruise Review to Panama Canal, Central America

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 56

Overall rating:

4.8 out of 5
Norwegian Jade

11 Night Panama Canal Partial Transit (Miami Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 07, 2017

Ship: Norwegian Jade

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 10596

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

This was my husband’s first cruise. I know NCL did a great job, da hubs is already saving for our next cruise. We especially enjoyed listening to the history of the Panama Canal as we made our way through the locks. A terrific job was done by the captain and his crew

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
NCL went above and beyond! Shortly after I explained my food allergies to our waiter, Jocelyn arrived at my table. She explained she would take my meal order 24 hours in advance so the chefs and cooks could specially prepare my food with no cross contamination. I appreciate knowing I did not have to worry about getting sick on this cruise. We enjoyed eating our dinner in the Alizar dining room. The food was terrific and the staff was terrific, especially the hostess who greeted us every evening with a cherry “welcome back”

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5
We were on the cruise to relax and rejuvenate. But, there was always plenty of activities offered

Spa

5 out of 5

Very clean facility and wonderful staff.

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Children's Programs

I had no children with me...but the kids club sure looked like a fun place to hang out

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
Our waiters in the restaurants were wonderful. Everyone working in the buffet made sure we had plenty to eat and dirty dishes were quickly removed from our table. Loved being greeted by the cheerful Wash-Washy/Happy-Happy/Welcome Back each time we visited the buffet. Such a sweet young man! Our cabin steward was amazing. He went above and beyond to make sure we were happy. Our cabin was always clean, towels in place, beds made, ice bucket filled twice a day and towel animals & Daily Compass greeted us every evening. I asked him to remove a bed from our room to make space for a special chair we ordered for my husband......and when we returned to our room later in the evening, poof, the bed was gone. That is going above and beyond!

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
Everything was perfect

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Very small room but very clean. Plenty of storage space and lots of hangers. Loved being at mid ship. I was afraid it would be noisy being so close to the elevator and stairs but we never heard sounds from the hallway at night

Ship tip

Looking for a quiet place to worship the sun.....climb the stairs behind the basketball court which is located on deck 13 aft. Another somewhat quiet place, mostly shade but you can find sun is on deck 7. Not sure which way you are going, the fish on the carpets and on sliding glass doors are facing forward, the lone red fish are facing aft

Ports of call

Miami, Florida

5 out of 5
Love the city. After the cruise, we loaded our luggage on a bus and visited the Everglades. After the excursion, the bus brought passengers to Miami and Fort Lauderdale airports. A perfect ending after a near perfect cruise.

Cartagena, Colombia

4 out of 5
As with any port, we did not have a lot of time to explore. We went on a canoe ride and were slightly disappointed. Our guide and the canoe guides were wonderful but we did not see any wildlife that was mentioned in the excursion booklet.

Colon, Panama

4 out of 5
We stepped off the ship here, wandered through the store, browsed some local crafts and viewed the city skyline from afar. We did not do an excursion.

Coxen Hole, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras

4 out of 5
Very friendly people. Our very well informed excursion guide shared her love of Honduras with us. The glass “bottom” submarine was very small and hot but the view of the coral reefs and fish made it worth while. Our side visits to the village for shopping and the cameo factory tour was fun

Harvest Caye, Belize

5 out of 5
Clean beach, nice shops, good food. We chose not to do an excursion but rented a clam shell for my husband who does not like a lot of sunshine. My recommendation, skip the clamshell and use the shade of the free umbrellas or trees. The clam shell blocks some good breezes to help cool you down.

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico

4 out of 5
Too many shops selling the same trinkets and overpriced jewelry. Our Off road Jeep excursion turned out to be an excursion on potholed roads. Mid way through, we stopped at a lovely place for a light exican lunch buffet which was delicious. After lunch we enjoyed a clean private beach which had plenty of chairs and hammocks. Our guides were wonderful but the jeeps are in need of repairs. Our Jeep did not have a rear view mirror, the windshield wipers did not work, the front passenger seat was broken and every idiot light on the dash was lit. The seat belts worked great and i was amazed at the leg room in the back seat.

Disembarkation

5 out of 5
After a slight delay to be cleared by local authorities, we proceeded to the theater to receive instructions to disembark. The lineoff the ship was long but moved at a quick pace. I especially liked the touch of being greeted one last time by “washy-washy/happy-happy” and a bye-bye from our adorable greeter from the buffet
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