As a former concierge & agent for a very successful luxury cruise agency, I have been fortunate to have sailed as a guest on Crystal (3 times),HAL,Cunard, Windstar, etc. Now I'm a 'civilian' and until this month, had not been on a cruise in almost 7 years. I wondered if a mass market ship could meet my expectations and more importantly, would my current partner (who had previously never cruised and has never been to Europe) embrace the cruise experience as I have?

We chose the NCL Jade because of the wonderful itinerary and the price. We paid about $800 CAD pp for an inside cabin, ports & taxes in. That's a great deal in my books. Yes, we had some further expenses onboard, including the daily 'service charge' etc. and we paid the upgrade for 3 specialty dining reservations (more on that below) but overall, I still believe the cruise to be an excellent value. I think anyone that complains about the 'nickel and diming' that goes on should get their head out of the sand and pay attention to the facts. The Jade has over 1,000 crew members on board. We never had a dirty plate or empty water glass the entire cruise. The abundance of food available was incredible and I found the quality in the buffets to be excellent (aside from the desserts...more on that later) The entertainment alone must cost a fortune and the plethora of wonderful musicians performing daily really added to our overall enjoyment of the ship. How could anyone think the cruise lines can endure and prosper if they don't try generating on-board revenue? So what if they overdo the self promotion a bit? You don't have to join in on bingo or purchase bottled water or have your photo taken.

I digress! You really just want to know what to expect from your Jade cruise, which is why you're reading this. So, here are the highlights, in 'quick read' format: Read more