I booked this cruise on an impulse ... I had received some bad personal news in May (i.e., my marriage was crumbling ... no need to go into details!) and decided to console myself with a cruise. I had been on one previous cruise, also on NCL, back in 2004 and really enjoyed it. I looked up cruises with low or zero solo traveler supplements and found this 10 day excursion to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands for a great fare.

Overall, I had a great time. Embarkation was easy enough. After arriving, the first impression you get is of the ship itself, and I thought it looked great. The external artwork, such as the gems, is fun, and inside the ship there are many murals and paintings and pictures of all kinds. Each of the three stairwells (with elegant wooden and glass staircase bannisters) had different themes of artwork: different kinds of gems; different passenger ships; and different kinds of sea life. The main atrium was very attractively done and looked quite elegant after recent renovations. However, I would say it seemed a bit small for the size of ship and number of passengers.

The Gem has several open decks for walking on, sitting down, and other activities. There is an old fashioned Promenade Deck that traverses the entire ship (Deck 7). There is a large pool deck with lots of loungers on deck 12 (the two pools seemed small for the number of guests but there were several hot tubs to use). There is also a sun deck on deck 13 with places to lounge. Read more