In May 2010, we sailed on RCCL's Voyager of the Seas and had a wonderful experience, so decided to book another sailing on that ship. In December, we were informed that the sailing was cancelled because the ship was being chartered. We had already purchased non-refundable air tickets, so were forced to find another itinerary leaving from Venice with dates that matched our original itinerary. The Jade was our best option. Actually, the Jade's itinerary was more interesting, in my opinion, than what we had booked on the Voyager, but I was skeptical about the ship.We arrived at Marco Polo Airport in Venice on Friday afternoon and were immediately challenged by the ticketing system for water transportation to the hotel. There were self-service machines in the baggage claim area, but we were not sure which ticket to purchase. Making the decision took about 10 minutes. When we walked outside, we weren't sure which direction to proceed in to get the Alilaguna to the hotel. Then I noticed that there were booths with live people in them, who were selling tickets and answering questions. It would have made more sense, in my opinion, for the live people to be set up inside the terminal as a first point of contact.We stayed for one night at the Best Western Sant Elena, a hidden jewel. It is located about a 25 minute walk from the major attractions of Venice, tucked into a quiet neighborhood just yards from the Sant Elena vaporetto stop. The price was great and we were upgraded (without asking) from a deluxe king room to a huge two story apartment with its own roof deck! The hotel was immaculately kept, front desk staff were helpful, and there was free internet available on 2 lobby computers.EMBARKATION: Embarkation was quick and fairly simple. We arrived at Piazelle Roma around 11:00 and were able to find the free NCL shuttle to the cruise terminal thanks to a previous Cruise Critic review. You turn your back on the Grand Canal and look to the back left corner of the parking lot. Without this information, we would have roamed around aimlessly. Check-in was a breeze, and we were on the ship by about 11:40. SHIP: We found the ship to be much more attractive in person than online photos had suggested. The strong Hawaiian decor and bright colors did not seem gaudy like they did in the photos. The public areas were always clean and adequate. On sea days it was difficult to find chairs right around the pool, but we had no problem finding seating on the level above the pool. CABIN: We booked in Category AF, now called a Penthouse, but what was called a Romance Suite when we booked. The cabin was located on the aft of the ship and we spent a lot of time out on the balcony watching the sights and the wake. There was not a lot of engine noise, and we felt it was a very private location. Really loved the aft! We had an annoying issue with water periodically accumulating on the balcony, sometimes soaking it completely. I'm guessing it came from cleaning of other balconies in the same area. The room configuration bothered me. It seemed that NCL crammed way too much "stuff" into it and it seemed confining. We had the cabin steward remove a chair from the small dining table and we then pushed the table against the wall. We also had the steward remove the bench at the end of the bed to make more room. I cannot imagine having more than 2 people in this cabin, although NCL now claims it can sleep 4. The love seat is tiny. We got a LOT more for our money with a Grand Suite on Royal Caribbean! But, the suite perks on NCL are definitely nicer. The bathroom was nicer on Royal, but ours was adequate. Unfortunately, we had a problem with the plumbing in the bathroom and eventually 7 different people came to look at it and service it over a 2 day period. ENTERTAINMENT: This was a pleasant surprise. The entertainment was innovative and well done. There was never a problem finding seats for ths shows.DINING: We ended up never eating in the main dining rooms, so can't evaluate. We ate at the Blue Lagoon on embarkation day and had quick service and fairly good food. We ate at the Garden buffet in the Great Outdoors area for most breakfasts and lunches, and also went to the buffet for dinner twice. We found the selection to be quite adequate and the food tasty enough. While always crowded, it was not an issue. We ate at 3 specialty restaurants. I'd rate Teppanyaki first. The service at both Jade Garden and Cagney's was slow and disappointing, and the food was good but not excellent. Very surprised by the small size of the side dishes at Cagney's. The shrimp cocktail had 3 shrimp, and side of onion rings had 3 onion rings (average sized, not large rings!)FITNESS CENTER: The fitness center was less crowded than we anticipated it would be. By the end of the cruise it was a bit more crowded, but it was adequate. Generally, the fitness centers on ships seem hot and stuffy, but this one did not seem so.JOGGING TRACK: 5.3 laps make a mile. If you tried to run after about 8:00, it was difficult because passengers would stand at the back of the ship to check out the views, not realizing they were on the track. So, it turned into somewhat of an obstacle course. I ended up running early and had better luck.STAFF: This is an area that needed some improvement. While staff were never rude, we did not feel that anyone went out of their way to connect with us. We are very low maintenance people, but enjoy it when someone asks how our day was, or engages in a bit of conversation when we encounter them. This did not happen much. PORTS: Great itinerary! We arranged for independent tours in Athens and Ephesus and both were wonderful. It was very easy to navigate Dubrovnik and Split on our own.DISEMBARKATION: We thought we would leave the ship around 10 a.m. because we had a hotel booked in Venice for the night and were in no hurry. But when we left our cabin at 8 a.m., there were so many people already congregating in the designated public areas, we took advantage of the opportunity to leave with the 8 a.m. group. We took an NCL bus back to Piazelle Roma. We were surprised that there was no "customs" to go through at all. POST CRUISE HOTEL: We stayed at the Hilton Stucky Molina and were disappointed with the value. The room was small and dark and the concierge was rude and condescending. It is a beautiful property physically.Overall, we had a great time and NCL proved to be a suitable replacement for our original cancelled cruise. We are now "sold" on aft cabins. But, because of the cabin layout, I would probably not book this category again.