The Norwegian Gem is a beautiful ship - layout is easy to remember, access to all of the main areas was easy, and everywhere you turned was a bathroom, an elevator, a bar, or something to do. The staff was fantastic as well, hard working and friendly, and many of them remembered our names.

As first time cruisers, we picked this ship to test out the waters of cruising, and we loved it. The only "negative" thing were the people - the majority were older people who were not very friendly nor talkative, and most of the boat was cleared out by 9pm. We attended the Meet and Greet of the Cruise Critic group, and have to say that NO ONE was friendly, we sat alone to eat lunch, and no one bothered to introduce themselves (we introduced ourselves to the 2 couples there when we arrived). I had thought that it would be a more congenial atmosphere (def. not).

While in Orlando, we rented a car and drove to Orlando to go to Universal. The price of the car and park wasn't too bad, and we had a great time. The park was empty and we were able to do everything we wanted at Islands of Adventure (Harry Potter!). Read more