Norwegian Jewel Review

4.0 / 5.0
2,355 reviews

8 out of a possible 10

Review for the Bahamas Cruise on Norwegian Jewel
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ciccio
First Time Cruiser • Age 40s

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Sail Date: Jul 2010
Cabin: Mid-Ship Inside
Traveled with children

My family and I set sail on the Norwegian Jewel on July 24, 2010. My family of 10 people ranged from 70 years old to 2 1/2 years old. This was my 11th cruise and 3rd on a NCL ship. We did have a good time with some aspects of this cruise being above average, while others were average at best. Getting onto the ship went very quickly. I am a Latitudes member, however the officials at the port suggested that I go onto the regular line as it was much shorter. They were right as we were on the ship by 11am. My room stewards Ray and Goldie on the 11th floor were outstanding. Anything you asked them to do they did it and often before you could blink it was completed. My room was very small compared to other interior rooms, however I do not spend much time in my room so it was not a huge deal. The pool deck seemed small compared to other ships as there wasn't much room for guests to sit. For a ship that advertises itself as a family ship with Nickelodeon, it was no designed well for kids. The kids pool was a joke. It was the size of a bathtub. It looked like a true germ pool. The family pool started a 4ft 11in and ended at 5ft 9in. Thus it left the middle of the pool empty with everyone crowding around the edges, holding onto side walls. How Stupid! The Water Slide was small and almost everyone who tried to go down it got stuck halfway down the slide as it had poor water flow. Having a 2 1/2 yr old, I see the NCL commercials on Nickelodeon every 5 minutes, having the characters on-board was a driving force to why we booked our cruise on this ship. However, the Nick activities were limited and if you didn't look for it, you didn't find them. They had 4 picture opportunities with characters. They charged for breakfast with the characters $15 for adults $10 for kids. However, they did entertain the kids with dancing and activities so it was worth it. However, the breakfast was held only once the 2nd morning of the cruise. There were a couple of Nick shows by the pool and 1 afternoon Slime Time Live Show. But that was it. Don't expect to see characters around the ship or pool side. For the adults that's fine, but for the kids its disappointing. The food overall was pretty good. I feel the specialty restaurants are a waste of money and when you spend as much as you do for a cruise, charging for a meal is a disgrace! We ate a Tsar's Main Dining room most nights as it was decorated much nicer then Azura. The hostess at Tsar's was sweet and very accommodating. Azura looked like a large empty room. One night we ate dinner at the garden buffet outside in the back of the ship. Yes it was a buffet, but the tables in the back at sunset made up for it as it was beautiful. Yes the Lobster's on Formal Night were small but I ordered 3 and our outstanding waitress Elizabeth (who has served me on Dawn and is by far NCL's best Waiter/waitress)brought out 5 instead of 3 for anyone at the table that wanted another.The Lobster was delicious and cooked well. The cruise director was no where to be found on this ship. Ive been on cruises where the cruise director was pool side and involved in all activities. This guy I think his name was Parker was only at the night shows. The magician/comedian Jean Pierre was outstanding. Ive seen the show Band on the Run 3x now dating back to 2000 and NCL really needs to change it, but for first time cruisers it is good. The Cirque Bijou show was good, but didn't live up to the hype that i read about on Cruise Critic or the way the cruise ship built it up. The Cat's Meow vocal band that was on board simply stunck. They were truly boring. The Second City gang were funny as usual. The outlay of the ship is weird and difficult to get around. The ports of call were not exciting but we had good weather and enjoyed each. Orlando was nice. Went to Cocco Beach, which is over rated, but the most affordable excursion. Would have loved to have gone to Disney or Universal or Sea World, but at $180 per person, booking that excursion for only 6 hrs is crazy! NCL needs to work out a deal with the parks to make it more affordable as it simply is crazy to pay that much money for 5-6 hrs. Nassau was nice but I avoided the Atlantis as I have been there several times. For first time cruisers it is a must see. I had a yard Margarita at Senor Frogs...I highly recommend you try one. The private island is great, but try to get one of the first tender #'s (1-4) to get a chair. I also recommend try to rent a crab shell as there is very little shade and renting one could get you some quick shade whenever you need to get out of the sun. The water is crystal clear and the snorkeling is pretty good. My family did adjust the service charge as we felt it was unfair to pay 12 per day for a 4yr old. Guest Services did not hassle me for reasons why I requested the adjustment and simply asked me to fill in a short form. Disembarkation was a mess. They did not follow the color codes that they had assigned to times. For example I had color Lavender which was scheduled to disembark at 9:45am and we were called at 11am after other colors that should have been called after us. To sum it up, I give this cruise an 8 out of 10. It was an average cruise, however living in NY it is a lazy man vacation...I get to the port and I'm on vacation. Its easy.

Cabin Review

Mid-Ship Inside

Small interior room.

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