Here is our review of the Gem's 15 day transatlantic cruise, which departed from New York on Apr 18 and arrived in Barcelona on May 3.

Cabin: We were in an AD suite on deck 10 aft. Loved the extra space and wide balcony at the rear of the ship. We were able to use the balcony during the Atlantic crossing even though the weather was cool because the ship blocks a lot of the wind. The only negative to being at the aft is that we were a long way from the spa. The main reason we went with a suite is the VIP perks. NCL has the best suites in the industry. Our cabin steward was Barrington, and he was great. Our butler Mark Santos was fabulous. He couldn't do enough for us. For example, one of the VIP perks are the suite snacks delivered to your cabin in the mid afternoon. These treats vary on rotation from canapes, to truffles, to chocolate covered strawberries, to cheeses, etc. Well, on the third day of the cruise my wife mentions to Mark that she really likes the chocolate strawberries. So every day since then Mark brings both the regular treat of the day, plus a plate of strawberries. If the treat of the day was the strawberries, we would get 2 plates of them. Then a week later, she mentions to Mark that she really liked the giant soft pretzels that we got last year on the Sun. Mark said he would talk to the chef about it. So every day since then Mark brought the regular treat of the day, plus the plate of strawberries, plus a plate with two soft pretzels. Another VIP perk is being able to have breakfast and lunch in Cagney's, avoiding the crowds in the Garden Cafe. The food is great, and although the breakfast menu doesn't change, there's enough variety that you could go over a week without having the same thing twice.

Food: We ate at every restaurant on the ship except for Teppanyaki. We found that the service in the main dining rooms was a bit slow, but that could be due to the crowds. The main rooms had a rush right at opening at 5:30, and the specialty restaurants were not overused at all. The demographic on this cruise was an older crowd that tended to eat early, which freed up space in the restaurants for late diners. The quality of the food was fine in our opinion. It was not 5 star dining, but we didn't have one meal that we regret ordering. The portions were small, especially for the appetizers, but that is OK. You can always order multiple appetizers or entries or desserts if you like. We never left the table hungry or dissatisfied. Our favorite restaurant was Le Bistro. We had 2 dinners there, and the beef tenderloin was excellent both times. Our least favorite experience was the Garden Cafe. Read more