1st time Norwegian Cruisers

Norwegian Jewel Cruise Review to South Pacific - Australia

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 9

Overall rating:

4.7 out of 5
Norwegian Jewel

12 Night Australia & New Zealand (Sydney Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 22, 2019

Ship: Norwegian Jewel

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 9622

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 4 years ago

Review summary

Fantastic cruise. Very pleasantly surprised. Well done NCL. We will be back.

Embarkation

5 out of 5
Very easy. Did not have express embarking but was still very quick.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
Czars Palace (MDR) was fantastic. Specialty restaurants were varied but service, food and ambiance was great.

Le Bistro French Restaurant

5 out of 5

Great food and wonderful service. Regret we only had 1 night there. It was very popular and waiting times for second sitting were very long but well worth the wait.

Tsar's Main Dining Room

5 out of 5

Always great food, service and friendly staff. Nothing was too much trouble.

Maltings Whiskey Bar

4 out of 5

A nice spot to drink after and before the shows.

The Great Outdoors

5 out of 5

A great spot for drinks and an easy overflow area for dining in the buffet.

Garden Cafe/Kid's Cafe

5 out of 5

Fantastic. Very well laid out. Easier to navigate than other cruise lines.

Azura Main Dining Room

5 out of 5

Very comfortable. A little more intimate than the MDR although it has the same menus.

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5
Did not participate in any activities on board.

Entertainment

5 out of 5
After 20 years of cruising the stage shows were the best we have experienced. Fantastic. The musicians in the lounge areas were very talented.

Spinnaker Lounge

5 out of 5

Great views, fantastic lectures and entertainment.

East Indies Library

4 out of 5

A quiet area for reading and sudoku every morning.

Children's Programs

We had no children on board with us.

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
Nothing was too much trouble. All the staff were friendly and happy to please.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
Once we found our way around the ship is clean, bright and has everything we needed. The brightest decor of any of our previous experiences.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5
A little disappointed in the size. But it was clean and well serviced. Happier with the walk-in shower and not the usual shower over a bath.

Ship tip

Enjoy.

Ports of call

Sydney, Australia

5 out of 5
This is our home port. Happy to be sailing from Circular quay and not White Bay.

Cruise Milford Sound

5 out of 5
Always beautiful.

Cruise Doubtful Sound

5 out of 5
Great commentary from the cruise director, Dave.

Cruise Dusky Sound

5 out of 5
More excellent commentary.

Port Chalmers (Dunedin), New Zealand

4 out of 5
A quiet day in Port Charmers. Visited several of the historic sites and maritime museum.

Akaroa, New Zealand

5 out of 5
Always a delightful port. Disappointed in the tendering process.

Picton, New Zealand

5 out of 5
A great city with very friendly locals. A nice community markets by the docks.

Napier, New Zealand

5 out of 5
Another great city. Very appreciative of tourists and happy to help wherever they can.

Tauranga, New Zealand Did not visit port

Unfortunately a passenger fell overboard during the night and the vessel was involved in his search. We subsequently missed the tide into Tauranga.

Auckland, New Zealand

3 out of 5
Downtown was a bit chaotic due to a new railway station being built. The causeway area is always interesting to visit.

Disembarkation

5 out of 5
Also very efficient. Pleasantly surprised. Well done NCL.
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2 Comments

workhardflymore    4 years ago

Thanks for sharing this review as we'll be on this itinerary soon. Did the bushfires affect your stay at all?

RelleCruz    4 years ago

Thanks for a great review. Really helpful. Glad you had a good time.

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