Norwegian Gem Review
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First off, this was our first cruise on NCL and we enjoyed it very much. Many things felt much more relaxed than recent experiences on RCCL. The ship was mid-size by current standards, and it felt about right to us. There are some onboard activities, but with only two at-sea days, you did not need a lot of things onboard.
We flew into Montreal, where we did our own 3-night pre-cruise visit. We arrived in Quebec City by train, and we arrived almost next to the dock and walked two blocks to our hotel. We stayed one night before boarding, and took an organized walking tour of the city on boarding day. Embarkation was smooth and easy, due to our arrival at the ship just after 1 pm. We were located at the first overflow pier, Wharf 30, and the only facility they had was a semi-permanent tent. Not the nicest start, but everything was better once we boarded.
We bought a 5-meal specialty dining package, and went to four different restaurants:
Cabin Review
Mid-Ship Balcony
The cabin was nice, with a great starboard location. We used the balcony most mornings to observe the scenery as well as watch our arrival into port. The bathroom felt larger than other ships we've been on, with enough room to maneuver easily. Beds were comfortable and faced forward, unlike many ships where your head is against the window, but I guess that's what you get with a balcony cabin.
Our cabin attendant did a pretty good job overall, but they were repainting the bathroom trash cans during our voyage and we did not have a trash can for a couple of days. Not that big a deal.
Port Reviews
Sydney (Nova Scotia)
Not a tourist trap, just a nice little city. We had been here before, so we skipped the Cabot Trail and other excursions in favor of a relaxed day. We also went to a concert for Celtic Colours (international Celtic music festival) instead of the ship-offered concerts.
Halifax
We enjoyed walking around Halifax. We have been here before also, and took advantage of this to catch up on things we had missed the first time. Our cruise ship dock was about 10-15 minutes walk to the center of town, and we did some sightseeing along the way. A beautiful, pleasant day overall.
Boston
What's not to like? We did the Freedom Trail walk on a pretty nice (but windy) day and saw a LOT of our country's history. I would come back here, or be happy to have Boston be the start or end of another cruise.
New York (Manhattan)
This was our port of disembarkation. The experience could have been better. There were long backups getting off the ship, we had to walk to one end of the baggage hall only to walk back to where we'd started (that is where our bags were) and then stand in line for one of three customs agent stations that were staffed. At least we had some time to enjoy New York once we got out of the terminal. Note: the rating above is only for the cruise terminal, NOT for New York in general! It's a great city to visit. We went to the Sep. 11 memorial, saw a Broadway play, went to great restaurants, enjoyed beautiful fall weather, and generally had a blast.