My husband and I are in our late 60's and this was our 9th cruise, 7 of them on NCL although it has been several years since our last cruise. We prefer NCL's "freestyle" dining options which is why we started with them many years ago. This was our second trip to the Mexican Riviera, our first time on the Jewel. Our overall experience was very good.

There have been changes, mostly in the quality of the food. We ate every breakfast and dinner in Tsar's MDR. We were always there early enough to get a table by a window which is why we prefer it to the Azura with its no windows, low ceilings and darker atmosphere. The food was hit and miss. The rack of lamb; Chateaubriand; Steak Diane; fresh rolls and onion soup were wonderful. The lasagna was highly salty; the pasta with duck confit had very little duck and the flounder was more crust than fish and dry. The breakfast menu was fine but doesn't change. I had the melon plate everyday but then would have to go up to the Garden buffet later to get pineapple and grapes. The fish & chips; corned beef sandwiches and buffalo wings in O'Sheehan's were a good lunch option.

We really enjoyed the entertainment and attended the early performance every night. The comic-magician had me in tears; the regular comic was equally funny and the Russian acrobats breath-taking. We didn't like Band On The Run mainly because it was so loud I had to sit with fingers in my ears. I also went to the three cooking demos, played lots of trivia contests and got two book read. Read more