After our last NCL cruise I booked this trip with hesitation to use our last Cruise Next certificate. NCL really redeemed themselves with great service, food and extra touches that made us feel appreciated instead of being squeezed for every nickel or using fine print to avoid delivering what we paid for. Overall great cruise and I loved the Jewel. Id definitely book this ship again. Do be aware if cruising NCL in Alaska that NCL docks in arguably the worst location in every port. You will lose 30-70 minutes in every port to take shuttles to get to where other cruise lines dock. In some cases that gives an opportunity to see something new, but mostly it’s just lost time waiting in a line and on the bus. If you have a longer excursion you may not be able to explore town.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Quick and easy. Only downside was room was not ready until 3:20pm.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
The first few days started off with some of the best food we have had. MDR dining menus got repetitive after a few days however with limited variety and largely just variations of a dish from the day before. If you compare to the menus posted on Prof Cruise for NCL 2024 MDR menus we seemed to be missing 1-2 appetizers and 2-3 entrees each night.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
Not a lot to do that interested us.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
NCL main theatre shows not our thing. What really saved the entertainment was the various musical acts around the ship, especially C4 Groove who was amazing.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Excellent friendly staff around the ship.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Loved the Jewel. If you didn’t know it was an older ship you could easily be fooled into thinking it’s just a few years old. Very well maintained and great venue sizes and design for the ship capacity.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
This is an obstructed ocean view cabin. The view is very good with very little obstruction. Be aware there is a walkway outside the room where the lifeboats are. We never saw any crew and it’s not open to guests. It is however always lighted so the room never goes fully dark. You can also hear noise from musicians each night until about 10:30pm.
Just enough space for two people in the cabin. There is a fold down bed and another bed under the main bed. If your a couple you will be comfortable but I can’t imagine even a small child as well in the room. It’s literally just enough for two.
Bathroom is another story. Cruise ship bathrooms are small but this one has a very weird layout. If your larger using the toilet may be a challenge. The shelves in the bathroom are very narrow which makes keeping items on them tough. We got used to it over seven days but definitely cursed the setup the first few days.
Ship tip
The MDR (main dining room) was never busy for breakfast or lunch while the buffet was a zoo. Service was always quick and food excellent. Skip the buffet especially on embarkation day.
Cruiseline is missing Ketchikan from the port list. NCL stops at Ward Cove which is actually a really nice shopping area with live music but absolutely nothing else around. You need to take a shuttle to get into town. Due to construction this took about 25 minutes each way to be dropped off where every other cruise like docks in town. Plus time waiting for the shuttle. This is definitely a town you want to walk around (Creek street in particular) so keep in mind when booking excursions the shuttle time to allow yourself time to explore if you sail with NCL.
We stayed here three days after the cruise. Id say thats the perfect amount of time for this area. Take a small boat cruise to see the local glaciers or wildlife. Safari Lodge is a great place to stay.
Due to wind and fog we never got close so it really wasn’t anything special from that distance and barely visible without binoculars. If your able to get closer like we have on past cruises it’s stunning but on this trip nothing noteworthy.
its great to hear about redemption. NCL is really struggling with the reviews. Thier certificate program really gets them the buissness and its a very good deal for the customer
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