We live within 40 minutes of the Westside piers and decided to take a cruise from Manhattan. We had been on the NCL Pearl in Alaska with our whole family two years before and had a wonderful time. Even though we felt the staterooms on the Pearl were dated and shabby we had great hopes for the Gem as this time we were staying in the Haven. We just wanted to get out of the winter weather and the day we left it was 14 degrees and if possible it felt colder.

First I must say that the staff on the ship is wonderful, our steward Komang, concierge Patrick and darling Amit in the Haven Courtyard and all the staff in the restaurants were terrific. Our room on the other hand was a big disappointment. We had 14014, the last and smallest in the Haven. It is dated, garish and uncomfortable. The couch is covered in a pink slipcover than never stayed put and every time you sat down it ended up on the floor. Even though we were only two people and experienced cruisers ( 30+ on Princess, Royal Caribbean, Oceania, Regent, Celebrity) and pack accordingly there was not enough room to hang or stow clothes for a ten day cruise. One wall has no other cabin next to it and cannot possibly be insulated as it was freezing with a draft streaming onto your head in the toilet. Two maintenance men did come quickly and turned off the fan which helped. Also be aware that there are TWO heat controls. We had to turn the one near the bathroom to the highest setting. The bathroom is in the bedroom with absolutely no privacy as the door on the toilet is glass! There is a heavy curtain to pull in front of the bed that looks like it came from a bordello. The bathroom does have two sinks and nice shampoo and conditioner with an excellent hair dryer attached to the end of the vanity. The rain shower is very good but leaves lots of water in the shower at the end so you have to be very careful not to slip. There are three televisions. One in the living room ( separated by a pocket door from the bedroom that sticks out so you can gash yourself as you walk by) a tiny one in front of the bed and a tinier one over the bathtub. All have fuzzy reception. There is however a very nice selection of free movies. The mattress is the worst I have had in all our cruises. Mushy and lumpy. Can not believe it was changed or upgraded when the ship was refitted.

In September we had a grand suite on the Harmony of the Seas and last February a Penthouse suite on the Royal Princess and both ships ( I know they are newer) had this room beaten in spades. But what NCL has is the secret weapon of the Haven Courtyard which is fabulous. Although the Gem doesn't have a designated restaurant for the Haven, you eat breakfast in Moderna ( nice) and lunch in Cagney, very nice. You can even have those meals in the courtyard brought to you with a smile. Amit even made up a special BLT with chicken for me that wasn't on the menu. What a doll. There was only one child in the Haven and I think he belonged to a crew member as he was very well behaved. Mostly we all dozed, or read books or chatted ( a lovely group). The Courtyard is enclosed so we could enjoy it from the first day. When we moved further south they partially slid the roof back. You could find shade or go upstairs to a private roof deck. We only ventured downstairs for dinner ( we had unlimited specialty restaurants and tried them all, liking Cagneys the best, excellent ribeye, Le Bistro, escargot yummy sauce, or Tepanyaki (fun as usual) stay away from La Cucina (they call it Italian but don't be fooled). Read more