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Less Quality & Quantity SPEND! SPEND! by
A Traveler from Chicago Sailing date: Jan 2010Pros: Friendly staff Cons: Lower quality & quantity of food, narrow corridors, drund entertainer, cheap I was expecting the same level of service and quality of food as RC & Celebrity. Portions are small in the dining room. If you want the food you expect on other cruise lines you will not get it without paying extra for each meal onboard.
The cruise was low priced for a reason.
Freestyle Cruising = More fees + Less Quality/Quantity of Food + Tips for the Officers + Fewer Activities
The staff was friendly. The excuse for each deficiency was that it was NCL Freestyle. They have automatic debits on your account everyday of $12 for tips. Unfortunately according to each steward that I spoke with they only got a very small amount of tips. You figure over 2000 guests paying $12/day for about 1000 staff that is $25/day per every staff member. The official mantra was that the $12/day tip went only to housekeeping and restaurant staff.
My solution is to give direct tips every night to the waiter/waitress & to your room steward(ess). On the next to the last day you can back-off all or most of the tips from your bill. I had much better service this way.
There are few events onboard except for selling you something or gambling or drinking. I simply stayed pool side in the shade.
IF you like low ceilings and no open interior spaces you will love this. It reminded me of a finished basement. It was well done and tasteful but I always felt enclosed. The corridors are 3-4 feet wide. This is far less than RC, Celebrity and Carnival. You feel like you are in a tunnel or a cheap hotel in the corridors.
It is very clean with a great decor! Ship QualityIF you like low ceilings and no open interior spaces you will love this. It reminded me of a finished basement. It was well done and tasteful but I always felt enclosed. The corridors are 3-4 feet wide. This is far less than RC, Celebrity and Carnival. You feel like you are in a tunnel or a cheap hotel in the corridors.
It is very clean with a great decor! Dining/FoodYou can eat dinner 5:30 to 9:00pm. I prefer a set time with a large table every night. This is not possible but it is freestyle.
The portions are small and the good food is in the extra pay restaurants. If you want great food you will pay for it or go on another cruise line without freestyle
There are many specialty restaurants and you will pay extra. The food in most of these are not up to Celebrity or RC standards either. Stateroom Qualityclean and comfortable Ship Staff Quality
Good staff except at the service desk. Every question is met with "it is NCL Freestyle. "
Do not expect a smile when you ask to give your own tips on your own. Entertainment & ActivitiesThe night shows are usually great. One night there was a 22 year old man from New Orleans that appeared to be very intoxicated or high. He could not dance to the beat at all. His singing was garbled and did not match the music. There was a steady stream of people leaving all during the show
I got up and left half way thru. This is rare for me to do. It was terrible.
The other singers, dancers and comedian were very good to excellent. So 5 out of 6 nights is pretty good!
The day time activities are limited to selling, drinking & extensive gambling options! There were few free activities except being pool side.
If you have a lot of money to drink, gamble and buy you can still enjoy the pool and workout club. I saw a large number of people that got bills for over $1000 when they left the ship! Wow were they angry for drinking and buying and paying extra for meals!
 11 out of 14 people found this review helpful.
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  Good cruise...for Freestyle Dining fans by
Al R from Boston, MA Sailing date: Jul 2010Pros: Convenient to eat ANY time of day. Good cabin Steward. Nice itinerary Cons: Mediocre service. Cabins clean, but cleaning around rest of ship mediocre. The Norwegian Jewel cruise out of New York is decent. VERY convenient for people out of NY, NJ, and Connecticut. 90% of cruisers from those 3 states. Freestyle Dining...meaning can "drop in" to Blue Lagoon "comfort food" restaurant 24/7. Main restaurants open seating several hours daily for each meal breakfast, lunch, dinner...go any time. LOTS of people eat at Garden Cafe...high QUANTITY of food eaten. Mediocre QUALITY of food. Entertainment was good. Intinerary great. Good cruise director and staff. Next cruise I'll fly to Florida instead of driving to NY to cruise on the Jewel. Ship QualityDecent but not extraordinary. Due for a complete makeover in April 2011? They need to use a steam cleaner on the chairs in the Spinaker lounge! Elevators and some public areas smelly sometimes. Dining/FoodQuality mediocre. Quantiy huge. Variety of times GREAT. PRICE for MOST of the restaurants...a little high? To eat at Cagney's or Teppenyaki''s it's $25 per person...ADDED to cruise bill (didn't cruise prices used to include food?). Mama's is $10 surcharge (and no veal at this Italian restaurant). Tango's Mexican is $10, but worth it! Stateroom QualityWe had a "cheap" stateroom on Level 4. TV quality poor (little old CRT TV, with few stations!)...but otherwise we were pleased with size/storage of stateroom. Great shower. Comfortable bed. EXCELLENT steward! (Thank's Arvin and Frank!!!!!!) Ship Staff QualityCabin stewards great. Watched plates/cups rolling near pooldeck 3 hours for somebody to pick them up! Restaurant staff degree of "pleasantness" mixed. Some great. Others going through the motions doing their jobs....but not showing passion or happiness. Tips included in mandatory service fee added to EVERYBODY ($12pp per day). Less individual attention than on more "traditional" non-freestyle cruises. Entertainment & ActivitiesGood entertainment. Second City Improv troupe excellent...especially in the workshops they held! Singer good. Cirqe de Bijou headliners OUTSTANDING. Dancers and other singers fair. Good cruise director (Parker) and Assistant CD (Sinan) Children's Programs
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Nassau, BahamasSHOPPING. We didn't go to Atlantis, but would if we returned.
Great Stirrup Cay (Cruiseline Private Island), BahamasWONDERFUL snorkeling at this beach...BEAUTIFUL tropical fish near the "reef" off the island (bring a kickboard or vest!). NCL should provide more WATER/LEMONADE/ICE TEA for guests. Get an early tender ticket or you won't get a chair!
Port Canaveral, FloridaWe did the "public" bus to Coral Beach...not via Norwegian's excursion department. Bus goes to WalMart, the local mall, and beach. Just before boarding the bus to return to ship, got a CASE of water bottles at CVS...GREAT decision!
10 out of 13 people found this review helpful.
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Very good, but not outstanding. by
Omar from NY, USA Sailing date: Jul 2007Pros: Cleanliness and food. I liked the excursions which is why I went especially coming from and going back to barcelona. The ship was clean and neat but the service was not matching. Stateroom QualityToo dark, smaller than I thought.
Ship Staff Quality
Entertainment & Activities
Children's Programs
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Civitavecchia (Rome), ItalyBeautiful scenes and nice weather.
Excellent.
Don't Miss: The shopping. Livorno (Florence & Pisa), ItalyMajestic stuctures.
Great.
Don't Miss: Pisa. Messina, SicilyGreat.
Easy access and great in and out of boat. Lovely people and nice scenary.
Don't Miss: Mount Etna. 8 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
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What I expected by
A Traveler from los angeles, ca Sailing date: Jul 2012Pros: Free-style dining Cons: Not enough quiet space to just lounge Likes:
1) The shows were entertaining. Not quite vegas good, but butter than average.
2) Free-style dining. I liked eating whenever I wanted and I liked the 24 hour "Blue Lagoon" restaurant. It had great buffalo wings.
3) Shuffle board.
4) Game room - it was always full!
5) Beautiful view of a glacier
Dislikes:
1) There are other dining options that you have to pay for.
2) There was not enough quiet lounge space. If it was raining or windy, you have to be inside. The best place was the "Spinnaker Lounge", but during the day there were always events like Bingo, activities for kids, etc., so it was too loud to just take a nap. There were plenty of other venues for them to use, but for some reason this room was always used.
3) The emergency protocol wasn't thorough. They showed us how to find and put on our life vest, but not where I was supposed to meet in case of an emergency.
General:
The food was vegas-buffet quality - good. The sit-down places for meals were better than the buffet but not gourmet. For example, the first night I ordered the lobster and fish, and both were over-cooked.
Ketchikan - nothing to really do here except buy jewelry.
Juneau - awesome place! Canoeing to Lake Mendenhall was the best. We got really close to the glacier and poked at icebergs!
Skagway - easy to access trails right off the ship. No need to book an excursion if you just want to hike (anywhere from 2-14 miles).
Victoria BC - go to fisherman's wharf where you can feed a sea lion and get shuck for a buck! Ship QualityBe sure you familiarize yourself with what floors connect the whole ship. There are shortcuts through the staterooms on floors 8 and 11. Dining/FoodI wish they had more variety of hot sauces for Asian cuisines. Tabasco is hard to come by. Stateroom QualityVery tight space, but very comfortable bed. Only has shampoo and body wash, so bring other amenities. Ship Staff Quality
Entertainment & ActivitiesShows were generally good.
Bingo is a rip off. You pay $40-70 to play 3 rounds, and the prizes ranged from $100-$500 (despite over 100 people playing per session). 7 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
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First Class All the Way by
Mike from Philadelphia PA Sailing date: Jan 2010Pros: Service, trips, service, spa, SERVICE Cons: Drink prices As firist-time cruisers, we can not compare to other ships. But we found the stateroom layout comfortable, VERY clean ship, well-maintained. Ship QualityModern, clean, all the public areas were attractive and comfortable. I cant believe people still smoke -- we avoided the casino because of the smoking. Dining/FoodTwenty meals, great food, and only one inattentive waiter. We were always seated quickly, usually waited on promptly, and the cuisine was top-notch. Stateroom QualityCleaned twice a day. Comfortable cabin, though cozy (small). Ship Staff QualityEveryone we encountered was friendly, professional, without being intrusive. From the cruise director to the busboys, everyone had a great POSITIVE attitude. Entertainment & ActivitiesThe daily schedule was a bit overwhelming. Plenty to do, but the schedule was difficult to read and remember. 7 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Norwegian Jewel Western Carribean Cruise by
Heidi T. from Chicago Sailing date: Nov 2009Pros: Great service, great food, extremely relaxing, lots to do or not do! Cons: lots of hidden expense, shore excursions over-priced and not that great Over-all our experience was wonderful. We were not prepared, however for all of the additional charges that we would incur. Alcohol is expensive and there is a 17% charge added to every drink. There is an upcharge for many other things on the ship- soda $6/day per person, tipping is $12/per person per day on top of whatever you decided to tip. Laundry is very expensive ($4.95 for a pair of shorts etc.). You get a ship credit card when you arrive and it is used for everything so it is easy to over-charge without thinking about it. If you get your account printouts daily and are aware of what you're spending you are smart!! Ship QualityShip was fairly new, easy to get around, and VERY clean. The pool area could have been bigger but if you are traveling with kids this ship is great- everyone we talked to that had kids raved about it. Great childcare and kids areas! Dining/FoodOver-all the food was pretty good in the free restaurants. The free ones pretty much serve the exact same things but you have change of scenery. Lots to choose from though. We spent most of our time for breakfast in the "Garden Cafe" because there is a great open air place to eat on the rear of the ship that is not crowded and beautiful. There are charge restaurants with great food... I believe extra charges per person range from $10 on the lower end and $35. Stateroom QualityRoom was small but very clean and comfortable. Ship Staff QualityStaff was extremely helpful, respectful and friendly. Entertainment & ActivitiesThe 4 musical/dance shows that we saw were literally close to broadway quality. We didn't see the comedians or the other musical guests but heard they were good Children's ProgramsWe don't have kids but every single person we talked to who did said this was the best ship for kids. They have a kids program and will take children at 2 years of age as opposed to other ships that won't take children until they are 3 I guess. They all said it was wonderful to be able to enjoy meals in peace and not have to worry b/c their kids were in great hands and having fun. 6 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
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Very nice, some "nickle&diming" food ok by
Dave G from Philadelphia region Sailing date: Mar 2010Pros: Ship was beautiful, service was good Cons: too much "nickle and diming", would rate food B-, kids program only decent
I am recommending the Norwegian "Jewel" as a ship - it was very nice and clean. I'm a little torn about recommending NCL as a cruise line, though.
The rooms (we had an outside balcony) did a great job of maximizing space (some even have a bunk bed that flips down from the ceiling). Our state room was very well laid out, perfectly maintained and well-appointed. Daily cleaning and turn down service was excellent. Cleaning staff addressed all of our requests - an extra blanket, remove the coffee pot, etc.
Some "nickel and diming", automatic 18% on all bar and spa treatments plus mandatory $12/day/person gratuity that goes in to the general pot for cleaning staff, etc).
Ship Quality
- Ship was new (2005).
- Kids program was only ok for our 9 year old
- No movie theater on board
- Hot tubs were always very crowded
- No bowling alley or rock wall like some other cruise lines Dining/FoodI would give the food a B- or C+ based upon:
Buffet - great selection, a bit of a madhouse at most times. Like most buffets, though, food was only so-so.
Restaurants -
food was pretty good, most service was pretty slow - we had to rush them at the end to make a show. Only 4 of the ~10 restaurant were free (2 of these 4 were buffets). The non free rranged from $10-25 per person 'upcharge' - kids eat for 1/2 price, even if they order off of the adult menu.
Steak at Cagney's steakhouse ($25 upcharge) only ok
-Wine prices didn't seem overly high
- In addition, some things that I feel should be included like SODA, are not free - sodas are either $1.95 each, or you buy a full week unlimited pass for like $6.50 / day (~$50 for a week). My guess is that some other lines include this (I know Disney does), but charge much higher upfront fares.
- Room service - very fast, 24 hours, but limited variety. Breakfast options are limited to continental only (no eggs, breakfast meat, etc)
Stateroom QualityAlready mentioned, but very well-kept, well-appointed, well laid out. Ship Staff QualityVery helpful, cheerful, no real issues.
Service at outside bars and some restaurants was pretty slow-had to really flag down a waiter to get a beer when sitting at one of the tables several times.
Entertainment & ActivitiesEntertainment was the best feature - always plenty of live music on the ship, unique activities such as pub crawl, chocolate lovers buffet.
No movie theater, or unique stuff such as a rock wall or bowling alley.
Shows in theater were excellent - Cirque du Solei type show, comedian, magician, music variety Children's ProgramsOnly average here - we only used this a couple of times with our 9 year old (can't speak for little kids or teens) - only a modest amount of physical room devoted to the kids area. We went over spring break, so it was pretty packed. Seemed like it was very well staffed. Included one or two dedicated hot tubs for kids only. 10 out of 15 people found this review helpful.
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The on-board expenses get you. by
Melissa from San Francisco, CA Sailing date: Jul 2007Pros: Cleanliness. As with most cruise lines, the on-board expenses cost more than the cruise itself. NCL has restaurant cover charges, overpriced drinks, confusing tip lines in receipts (considering tipping is adding on at the end), and outrageously priced excursions. I left on the final day feeling like my wallet had been stolen. Besides the prices, the staff, in-room services, non-cover charge restaurants, and bar were above par. Dining/FoodThe Italian restaurant on board was awful. The meat was low quality. The reservation system was cumbersome. Overall, it was so-so.
Stateroom Quality
Ship Staff QualitySome waiters treated me more like a number than a person, but overall, the service and staff was very friendly and competent.
Entertainment & Activities
Children's ProgramsI didn't bring children, but there were definitely too many on board. I heard them running down the halls, witnessed them pushing all the buttons in the elevator, and saw them messing around on exercise equipment.
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Civitavecchia (Rome), ItalyRome is crowded.
I recommend to go on the off season. Also know that to see the Sistine Chapel/St. Peter's Basilica, you must have you shoulders and knees covered (which is hard to do in 90-degree July).
Livorno (Florence & Pisa), ItalyChique Terre is awesome!
I've seen Florence, and I recommend the Chique Terre excursion. It much more quaint and colorful. Plus, the boat ride is a nice break from all the walking tours.
Don't Miss: Chique Terre. Naples, ItalyDon't Miss: Pompeii. Messina, Sicily
9 out of 13 people found this review helpful.
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Unhappy Employees by
A Traveler from Orlando, FL Sailing date: Mar 2010Pros: All the food choices, bars and nice decor Cons: Rude employees, bad port of call, poorly designed ship Very nicely appointed. Lots of bars and places to eat. Awful employees. Ship QualityShip was beautifully appointed, a little confusing to get around. Poorly designed for easy flow, but nice accomodations. Dining/FoodFood was fairly good, Cagney's was very good. The sushi was sub-par, but for $15 for all you can it, it's worth it to get out of the dining halls. Stateroom QualityUncomfortable beds and awful linens. The decor was very nice though and the closet space and design was very useful. Ship Staff QualityEmployees were flat our rude to us half of the trip; they spilled someone's beer on me without apologizing and lied to me saying it was water, didn't greet us or introduce themselves to us in dining rooms, stateroom attendants did nothing more than exchange dirty linens and service in the 24 hour dining hall was appalling. Entertainment & ActivitiesSchedules to find out what was happening were hard to come by. 7 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
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Terrific Trip by
A Traveler from Norther New Jersey Sailing date: Oct 2008Pros: Food, service, crew's attitude and courtesy Cons: LOUD music almost everywhere, some tacky entertainment,. The ship was very clean, virtually vibration and engine noise free, and relatively stable in heavy seas. Ship QualityThe Jewel is huge, but after inial confusion easy to navigate. Dining/FoodWe seemed to never stop eating. Stateroom QualityThe stateroom was well laid out and very comfortable, with the exception of the too-soft beds. Ship Staff QualityEveryone went out of their way to help and they were always pleasnt. Entertainment & Activities
7 out of 9 people found this review helpful.
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