Since this was out first time on an NCL cruise, we were a little apprehensive because people we talked to were either hot or cold about NCL - no in betweens. However, we found the service on this Jade cruise to be the best of the 10 previous cruises we had made on other lines. As an example, we prefer a table for 2 in the dining room. The Jade had many tables for two, and they were not stuck next to a serving station. Many of their tables were at window locations, too. And if they didn't have a table ready when we arrived, they provided a coupon for 2 glasses of champagne at any bar on the ship while waiting. We also try to find good wait staff in the dining room, and the Jade moves their servers around each evening. But to their credit, nearly every staff we encountered met our needs, smiled during their service, and took time to speak and offer their insights! This does not always happen on other cruise lines, and we have requested table changes on previous cruises because of the wait staffs!

The Jade has a number of specialty restaurants from Japanese steak house to French bistro, and we ate in the Italian restaurant one evening. We were very impressed with the food and serving there, too.

I could go on and on about the staff - the matre-de, the bar attendants, the main service desk, shore personnel, etc. - all of these staffs went out of their way to make sure their service met our needs! We were also selected to have dinner with the environmental officer one evening, and after the dinner, he invited us (3 couples) to join him for a brief tour below decks on our next sea-day. Great experience! Read more