Before the expansion and widening of the Panama Canal, there were dozens of cruise ships built sized just like the NCL Gem. These were Panamax vessels, the biggest ships that could go through the original locks. They were all a bit over 90K tons, around 965’ long, and sailed with around 2400 guests and 1100 crew. They were big enough to support two- and three-story main dining rooms, several specialty restaurants, expansive spa facilities, a main theater, and several smaller entertainment spaces. They’re great ships in general from before the days of super-slides, bumper cars and ice rinks.

I was on the Gem 11 years ago, and returned January 2023 as a solo traveler. NCL was offering great prices, with lots of extras, and I was curious to see what the solo program was like. I intended this to be a totally lazy trip – enjoy the food, enjoy the ship, meet some folks, but I didn’t care much about the ports.

Check In: We sailed on Monday, MLK day. I arrived at the NY port about 11:30. Check-in took just minutes, and I was able to walk directly onto the ship. I hung out in the deck 7 lobby for a bit, met a new friend and we went to lunch in the main dining room. Rooms were ready just before 2pm. Read more