Just Returned From the Gem Spetember 6 to 13

[Friedbergny246]

Thank you all for the feedback. I will begin to write up day #2 after the holidays. I thought that Ridzaly was a good butler. He did everything I asked for. He was a bit tenative and I felt that he was not creative in terms of what he brought for snacks. He always brought exactly what I asked for, nothing more, nothing less. I wanted him to be a bit more creative. To tell you the truth, with all of the food on the ship, I was usually not hungry for the snacks so much of it went to waste. I thought Virginia was a beautiful person. She would prompt me about events that I had expressed an interest in such as the pajama jam event and the murder mystery lunch. As a general statement, I found the service on the ship to be excellent. Being in the Haven is such an amazing thing. I have never been pampered as much as I was. At the end of the cruise I gave Ethan $25.00 and asked him to divide up the money among the staff members that he felt deserved it. He then wrote thank-you cards and put the money in the envelopes. I distrubuted that cards along with my own tips. I found that the staff was very touched with this and I thought that it would be a good experience to teach Ethan (7) about tips.

[Friedbergny246]

Thank you for the review. We are taking our Grandson in Nov. we wanted to try the aft suite this time but LOVED the Haven May 2013.

Question, did they set up the Nick Sponge Bob package for your son the first night. We purchased this for Logan and want to surprise him with it the first night.

 

Sorry, I did not see this until after I wrote my post. Yes, the Sponge Bob kit was set up at turn down. The blanket, and the pillowcase were laid out in the second bedroom. That kit was the best $39.00 I spent. Ethan still uses it and tells me that he dreams of the cruise whenever he uses it.

 

I cannot tell you how much we as a family bonded on the cruise. We spent a lot of quality time together. One thing I will not as a tip is to let your kids enjoy the cruise in their own way. GARYLEV'S dad David told me that most kids just want to eat ice cream, cheeseburgers, and cookies and hang out at the kids club. The first few days we tried to bring Ethan to all of the events on the ship. We realized that he did not want to see shows, or eat two hour dinners. After that, we left him in the kids club for as long as he wanted and I think it made the cruise for him.

 

I am a step dad so, I had not spent as much time alone with Ethan as I would like to. We bonded for sure on the cruise, and seeing Ethan and Francis enjoying the time on board ship for their first "real vacation" was heartwarming and I get a little emotional remembering it. NCL sells vacations, that is what they do for a business. The staff onboard is responsible for making the vacation so special and they did.

[shaun07]

Hoping for an update soon :p

[shaun07]

???

[mom_to_wolfie]

Great comments. Looking forward to more!

[PathfinderEss]

Enjoying your review.

[knitlady037]

The Gem is an awesome ship and many hotel director's can take lessons from Jenny on how to keep a crew happy. Especially on the Breakaway. Just wish they would change up the itinerary for the Gem. Would rather go to Bermuda on her any day than the Breakaway. Booked the Dawn for next years Bermuda trip instead.

[pixiedustdawn]

Thank you for your wonderful review! The Gem is definitely the sweetheart of Norwegian! Jenny runs a fantastic ship!