Norwegian Jade Review

Wish the cruise kept going!

Review for the Eastern Mediterranean Cruise on Norwegian Jade
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amplexusomnium
First Time Cruiser • Age 20s

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Sail Date: Jun 2009
Cabin: Mid-Ship Oceanview Picture Window

We are an American couple in our 20s that before this cruise had only been on 2 Carnival Caribbean cruises that were no longer than 5 days.  I will compare some aspects between Carnival and NCL throughout the review in case some find it helpful.  Also, we travel about 3 times a year so when we do travel we try to be as frugal as possible, so I will share our tips for those who want to save money.Before Embarkation:  We flew into London the day before, walked around the city and stayed at the Radisson Hotel on Canary Wharf which we booked through Priceline and got a great deal.  It was a little out of the way, but the tubes were quick to get where we wanted to go.Embarkation:  Getting to Southampton was a little hectic taking the tubes with our suitcases and carry ons to Victoria Station and then catching a bus to Southampton.  However, we saved hundreds of dollars compared to what the cruise ship was charging for 2 people.  When we got to the bus station we waited with others for a taxi (5 pounds) to the port.  Then we went through a quick security check, checked in, and waited for our color to be called to board the ship.  When you board they offer champagne which was nice and you could go right up to the buffet.  Our rooms were ready in the hour, overall everything ran smoothly.The Stateroom:  We had an ocean view stateroom.  Our beds weren't pushed together when we got to our room, but it was no big deal because they fixed it at turn down.  The rooms have plenty of storage space (although I wish there were more hangers in the closet).  The decor is very nice and having the coffee maker in the room and hair dryer was a plus as we did not have this in Carnival.  Also, the bathroom has sliding doors on either side of the sink for the toilet and shower with lots of shelves (I loved this!...compared with Carival who I think had one tiny shelf, no separation doors and water from the shower would get all over the floor.  There is a turn wheel/mailbox outside your door to change to "make up room", "turn down," and "do not disturb."  Mints and our Freestyle Daily were on the bed every night.  Another difference was that on Carnival our stateroom person memorized our names, but on NCL they work in a team so this didn't happen, but no big deal.  The had a movie listing for those nights you just wanted to relax in your room as well.The Ship:  Overall the ship felt more like a hotel than a ship.  I loved the Hawaiian theme and thought it wasn't "over the top" as some reviews had conveyed.  Everything had a sort of themed contemporary style feel to it and there was so much to explore that we didn't notice some spaces until the last day at sea.  Bars:  On Carnival the bars hardly ever had people in them and were themed like a tacky casino.  NCL's bars were hip and stylish with leopard couches and packed as soon as they opened.  They also had a lot of alcohol and beer selections from all over the world and also, for a fee had tastings you could go to.  Each bar was themed differently, and there was a DJ every night in the 2 that had dance floors.Casino:  The casino was quite large on the ship (due to getting rid of laundrymat service).  You could sign up for a casino card and get a coupon booklet.  The theme was Chinese with red chinese laterns and dargons in the carpeting.Theater:  The Stardust theater was fun to walk to each evening down the hall of masks and mirrors.  The theater was tastfully decorated with plenty of seats.  Carnival's shows were no match for NCL.  I used to be a performer and would walk out on Carnival's shows because they were that bad.  NCL had people who performed with Broadway and had AMAZING voices.  I enjoyed all the shows performed by the staff and also the other variety shows that were brought on the ship.  They had a world class juggler from Germany who was amazing, a magician who was both good and funny, some comedians, flamenco dancers from Spain, and performers from Cirque de Soliel.Pool Area:  There were 2 main pools (1 for adults and 1 for kids) and 4 whirlpools.  On Carnival there was only one pool and my husband and I did not like having the kids take over the space every day.  On NCL having the two pools was nice.  The kids one had a waterslide and besides that there were also 2 baby pools in nearby locations.  The kids pool was heated, so we did jump in it a few times as the adult one was not, but both were great on hot days.  There is a buffet by the pool, the BBQd out by the pool for 4 days, there is gambling, ping pong, and 2 bars also.Exercise:  The gym offered free classes and classes you had to pay for (I didn't make it to either because I was enjoying myself).  Lots of equipment, a lockerroom and ocean views.  However, on rough Atlantic days I don't recommend running on the treadmill.  There was also a running track on one of the decks (I liked Carnival's better), but you couldn't really tell it was a track.  They also had bleachers, basketball, tennis and soccer in a closed off court.  One thing I did miss from Carnival was the mini-golf, but I know you can't have everything.Spa: I didn't use it, but it looked like it had a lot to offerOther Rooms:  There was a game room with lots of board games that you could take out of the gameroom if it was crowded.  There was also a library that had lots of books you could check out, daily crosswords and newspapers.  In the Medusa Lounge there are "Whatever" rooms where you can meet with friends, hang out or play video games such as the Wii.Entertainment:  There was one variety show and one main show a night it seemed.  They also had bingo (for a fee), dance classes, tournaments, socials, games and lots of stuff going on all the time.  One thing I appreciated was the lectures that were provided about the history of the ports of call.  Also one night they had the White Hot Party, which my husband and I were skeptical about because while waiting in line all we saw was white hair.  Howeever, they transformed with lounge with ice luges, jello shots, silhouettes of dances, video and good music.  The senior citizens who made up the majority of the ship besides families were always the first people to the bars and parties, which I thought was great!  They also had a free murder mystery dinner where we met some other people our age and really enjoyed that.  There was always live music around the ship and things to see and listen to.Casual Dining:  I gained a few pounds coming back from this cruise.  NCL kicks Carnival's butt on dining!  Let's start with outside dining.  There is a buffet by the pool, like I said they also BBQ outside the pool and you can order food upstairs at the bar as well.  Behind the main buffet inside is another outside buffet that changes it's theme daily (one day it was German, one day it was Spanish, etc.).  The main buffet was always the most crowded during the day.  They have a special section for kids with their own tables.  Then there is a salad station with cheeses, veggies, and salads.  Then there is a hot station with comfort foods and sliced meat.  Then there is a fried station with hamburgers, hotdogs, fish and chips, brotwurst, etc.  Then there is a melted sandwich place next to the pizza.  Then there is an Asian section with noodles, rice, curries, sushi.  Then there's desserts...everything you need.  Up from the main atrium is the 24 hour restaurant where they serve comfort food, appetizers and desserts.  There was also room service 24 hours and you could order breakfast in bed.Main dining:  We didn't use the speciality restaurants at all (and there was never a 2 for 1 discount our entire cruise).  However the main dining spots, Alizar and Grand Pacific were great!  We only had to wait once and it was for literally 3 minutes.  Please take note that males must wear pants into both of these restaurants.  My husband didn't bring pants so he had to purchase $50 ones from the gift shop.  Grand Pacific is the fancier of the 2, but they both serve the same food.  We ate at Alizar the most because of it's modern atmosphere and we could be seated by ourselves.  You really feel like you are in a restaurant, rather than at sea.  The food was amazing!  and I was excited to go there every night.  My only complaint is that the fish always seemed a little tough (Carnival's was better), but the quality overall was superb.Ports of Call:  This is where NCL goes downhill for me...on providing information.  If I didn't go to the shopping talk, I wouldn't have known that at some ports you have to pay $20 for shuttle service, which ones had tenders and how far away we were docked.  I found this absolutely annoying and couldn't imagine having small children or older adults and not having this information.  Also, the shopping maps were very vague and if you go to the front desk sometimes they will give you a map, sometimes they will say that don't have any when they do.  We talked to people and heard that NCL had scared them out of going out on their own for the excursions as well.  Families and older people are going to take the excursions, but younger couples and families with older children were literally being scared out of going out on their own with lack of information.  My husband and I were prepared, but not as prepared as we could've been.  I brought my Ipod Touch and downloaded maps from Frommers.com of the cities. I also had a Europe Ports of Call book which was helpful. I also had train schedules, but thought NCL would provide a map of the port...which they didn't, but some port authorities did once you got off the ship.  My advice: if you see a map and have a good camera, take a picture of it to review later in case you get lost.  Also, if you are a student, or were a student not long ago bring your ID for major discounts.  For the ports I will compare excursion prices with what we spent for 2 people for a similar itinerary.  I'll tell you what we did, but won't go into the detail of each site because you can find that on tripadvisor.comMalaga Spain:  We took the shuttle, walked through a nice park for 10 minutes and went to the Cathedral, which was free if you walk into the main church rather than going in through the museum.  Then we went to Alcazaba fort (1.20 Euros per person, .60 for students), which gave good views of the city and the Roman Ampitheater beside it.  Then we climbed the very steep hill to Castle Gibralfaro wich you only climb for the amazing views of the city, gardens and bull ring (costs the same as the fort).  Then we went to Picasso's family home, where there wasn't much to see (1 Euro per person, free for students).  Then we walked around the city and made our way back to the ship.  We paid a total of about $8 for 2 people.  The ship for a similar excursion charges $62.99 per person.Barcelona: When we arrived we took a shuttle ($10 per person) at night we walked down Las Ramblas, used an internet cafe (5 Euros for 3 hours...cheaper than the ship), and walked to the magic fountain. This is free and if you climb to the top gives gorgeous views of the city and fountains...highly recommend it.  The next day we bought subway passes and did our own Gaudi tour: Parc Guell (free), and viewed Casa Mila, Casa Batllo, and the Sagrada Familia from the outside (12-17 Euros per person to get into these houses).  I hope to make it back to the Sagrada Familia to see the inside, but we were pressed for time and money.  The ship charges $69.99 per person to see Gaudi's architecture and only goes inside the Sagrada Familia, not the others ones, except the park which is free anyways.  We spent with travel $15 for 2.  Cannes:  This is so close, you take a tender, hop off and walk a block to the main street.  We walked down, saw the expensive shops and where the film festival takes place.  Then we took a ferry to the Lerins Islands (St. Margarite).  The ferry was 9 Euros a person round trip.  The island is beautiful.  There are little restaurants, beaches, and the fort where the man in the iron mask was held (we got into this free with our student cards) and beautiful views of the riviera.  Then we caught the ferry back for lunch on the ship for a total of about $25.  The ship doesn't have excursions to the island, but just to go on the beach and walk down the main strip they charge $77.99 per person.  We heard from others on the ship that if you wanted to use the beach at the Carlton hotel on your own it is $20 a person.Florence:  We were one of the first people off the ship here.  We shared a taxi with a family to the train station to get to Florence first.  In Florence we went and saw the David, walked through the Plazas, got Gelato, did wine tasting and caught a train to Pisa.  I recommend doing Pisa first and then Florence because the Duomo and the Santa Croce church didn't open until 1 and it's an hour and a half train ride.  In Pisa we took a taxi to the leaning tower, got our pictures, souvenirs and hussled back to the train on foot, and then took a taxi back to the ship.  We spent for the whole day in Florence and Pisa with the sights, food and transportation for 2 $75.  Per person the ship charges $425.99.Rome:  This was the craziest.  Again, we were the first off the ship.  The ship provides a shuttle into town, but we wanted to catch the 7:30 train to Rome so we couldn't wait for their shuttle.  Someone brought with them a GPS with downloaded Europe maps (genius idea!)...they navigated us to the train station.  We figured we could do the Vatican or everything else, so we opted for everything else.  We got off at Termini, walked directly to Piazza Republicca and the Baths of Dioclentian, then we took the subway to the Colosseum (get your tickets at Palantine Hill, then walk back to the Colosseum...we passed 100 people in line).  The we walked to the Church of St. Clemente to see the underground layers.  Then we went to Palantine Hill which was nothing and the Roman forum.  We then took the subway back up, walked to Trevi Fountain, Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, ate pizza, saw the Spanish Steps and Tragan's column and caught the train back, ran to the shuttle and just made the ship.  We paid with everything $75 for 2 while for a similar excursion the ship charges $175.99 per person.  We heard great things from those we tried Roma Limo and were able to see everything but they never got back to us before the cruise.  Gibraltar:  We climbed the rock rather than taking a tour.  At the toll booth the guy asked us where our car was...haha.  We saw the monkeys, didn't go into any of the tunnels do to expense and time, walked through the town, and ate lunch for $20 for two.  The ship for similar charges $60 per person.Lisbon: We took the free ship shuttle into town, then took Tram 28 up to St. George's castle (5 Euros per person or 1/2 price student) for good views of the city.  We did some shopping up there, then went to the Monastary (free for students), Tower of Belem (free for students), had lunch, saw the monument of discoveries and took the bus back to the ship for a total of $40 for 2.  The ship for similar charges 55.99 per person.  People were the nicest in Lisbon out of everywhere we visited.Vigo: We got off the ship, got to the train station, which was about a 15 minute walk and took the train to Santiago.  We went to the cathedral, ate lunch in the little town and took the train back to the ship for a total of $55 for 2 and ship's prices are $189.99 per person.  Tips:  Bring empty water bottles and refill them on the ship for excursion and pack snacks to hold you over.  Everything is expensive in Europe, but we saved a lot with our student cards and spent the most money on transportation.  If you have an Ipod touch, download maps, train schedules, and you can also download Rick Steve's Audio guides and maps off of itunes (which I listened to on the ship before we got there to save time).  Time time time!  You can never have enough.  Make sure you validate train tickets before boarding the train and if you are doing things on your own and have a gps, download the maps and bring it!  I was very happy with NCL and would cruise with them again over Carnival. 

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Mid-Ship Oceanview Picture Window

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