Everything...JADE! (Coming home to Houston 11/14/15)

[Linda the Book Lover]

Just put up a Jade review from my Jan 2 cruise. I think it's a pretty balanced assessment of the Jade.

 

I will check it out. I enjoy reviews especially when they are balanced.

[Oakman58]

When I read reviews I disregard the ones that are all negative and also the ones that are all positive. The rest are usually what I can expect on the cruise I’m taking.

Leaving Friday for Houston and Saturday we will be on the Jade.

[Sylrgrl]

What do you have to pay for with room service? It is not all complimentary? If you don't have a dining plan is it worth going to a specialty restaurant?

[spaceye]

I just got off the January 2 sailing. I liked it. Food and service were good. The entertainment was outstanding; I'll probably write more about it later. Believe the hype!

 

I didn't like the sparse daily activities. I feel like the amount of advertising disguised as "activities" has reached a tipping point. :mad:

 

Any info on mdr menus recently changing?

 

I was pleased to find that there were no à la carte items on the MDR menus on my sailing.

 

What do you have to pay for with room service? It is not all complimentary?

 

You can order continental breakfast items to be delivered in the morning for free. Otherwise, all room service orders incur a flat $7.95 charge.

Edited January 13, 2016 by spaceye

[hlb76]

Question.... am I missing reviews? I have yet to find any on the boards. I was hoping for a detailed review on here. I do see some on the review section but not the forums. Am I missing them??

[Linda the Book Lover]

Question.... am I missing reviews? I have yet to find any on the boards. I was hoping for a detailed review on here. I do see some on the review section but not the forums. Am I missing them??

 

There are a bunch under Reviews section for the Jade.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/reviews/

[PacPaliFamily]

We were also on the January 2 cruise and I just read all the reviews that have been posted. Our experience was somewhere between the one that has nothing positive to say and the one that has nothing but glowing comments. We sailed on the Jewel out of Houston twice last year and our service was not nearly as good on the Jade overall. We had connecting cabins with two different stewards and two very different levels of service. One waitress in the Grand Pacific gave us excellent service with many smiles. One waiter couldn't have been more rude, tried to serve multiple courses at once, then when I requested he not do so he basically stood over my shoulder while I finished. The guys at Magnums were great, but with so many people having the UBP you just have to be patient at times. That was the case at all the bars. Food was really hit and miss. Really didn't understand the negative comments on the entertainment as that was one of the highlights. We got a very good price on this cruise and I kept telling myself you get what you pay for. We just returned to NCL last winter after many years of sailing other lines. We're on the Epic in March and that experience will probably determine if we continue with NCL or not.

 

 

Accurate / agree!

 

Service in Le Bistro on the 1/2 sailing was a joke. Robots would have been warmer. Sushi / Teppan / Jasmine Garden were surprisingly good (yup - even the sushi). Moderno hit or miss. La Cucina was decent food, poor service. Funniest part about La Cucina was begging the reservations lady to move a rezzy from 6:30 to 6P. ”can't do it...nope...no tables”. Restaurant remained 3/4th empty the entire time we were there!!!

 

Many, many staffers struggled to answer the simplest English questions. Guest Services was an oxymoron. At check-in, the cabin had leftover clothes and items from previous guests. Bedside lots didn't work; heating and cooling went in and out; shower door fell off tracks! Cabin steward consistently did not remove used plates, dishes, etc; or turn down cabin properly.

 

Tendering in Belieze was a stampede hazard at best; fire hazard at worst. It was like they had never tendered before. Honduras was much smoother.

 

Entertainment was very good - magician and Elements show very enjoyable. Great staff in the kids' club - by far the most polished staff on the ship.

 

At this point, I think NCL has re-positioned to emulate Target: ”mass” that markets itself as ”class”. There's nothing wrong with that, just caveat emptor. After 4 NCLs to date, probably time to try Holland or Celebrity or back to Disney.

[comcox]

What do you have to pay for with room service? It is not all complimentary? If you don't have a dining plan is it worth going to a specialty restaurant?

 

I believe the a al carte dining pricing kicks in sometime this month so that if you don't have the Specialty Dining Package you will be paying per course.

[Shaned122]

It'll be on the big screen so you can watch it in the atrium or the Blue Lagoon.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

I am so glad someone asked about the sports bar! lol

 

I was afraid I was going to miss my Spurs

[Shaned122]

I am cruising on the Jade on the 23-30th cruise and honestly some of the reviews had me nervous but reading in here seems like some genuine, upbeat opinions that are putting my mind at ease! Thank you!

 

Also, and the 3 people I'm going with all got the unlimited drinks package so hopefully the sauce will help make it an awesome trip too lol

[mysticalmom]

Thank you so much for the info. We are excited for this excursion. I have been reading some reviews and they mentioned about tipping. Were they pushy at the end for tips?

 

Nope- not to us. They just did the regular "if you feel as though we all did a good job, you are free to leave a tip in the gift shop" and left it at that. Nothing else mentioned. :) I hope that helps!

[hlb76]

Anyone here cruising with the new a la carte menu please take pictures and report back :)

[Starflyr3]

Looks like in March, Jade may be docking in Roatan. Dawn itinerary has changed and they will be going on Thursdays then, while Jade will be there on Wednesdays.

 

Anybody else see the same thing?

[hlb76]

I'd love that to be true.. we sail in March and thoughts of 2 tender ports makes me sad. I'm not a fan on tendering. But I don't let it ruin my good time

[anonmom]

Does anyone have dailies, kids club schedules, menus, and/or drink menus from 2016?

 

I've read the ones Tanya and others have kindly posted here and on other threads, but would love to see the latest, especially since I know that the first pax to get the new menús disembarked this morning...

[Travel Junkie Judy]

Anyone here cruising with the new a la carte menu please take pictures and report back :)

 

As they set in with the new a la carte, the wait staff are slower with bills because of having to total the bills. At a big table this can be daunting.

 

It will probably cost more if you want an appetizer, main course and dessert.

 

If you are a light eater, it may cost less.

 

I got this from the maitre'd of Cagney's on the Jade.

 

If you are on the UDP, you are not affected by this.

 

This may all change, but was true on Wednesday.

 

Who knows what corporate will think of next!

[tanyaheart]

Looks like in March, Jade may be docking in Roatan. Dawn itinerary has changed and they will be going on Thursdays then, while Jade will be there on Wednesdays.

 

Anybody else see the same thing?

 

 

If Royal Caribbean is there, they have priority to dock so check their schedule.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Travel Junkie Judy]

Looks like in March, Jade may be docking in Roatan. Dawn itinerary has changed and they will be going on Thursdays then, while Jade will be there on Wednesdays.

 

Anybody else see the same thing?

 

If the Dawn schedule changes, the JADE should be able to dock every other week in Roatan. RCCL comes every other week and has priority.

 

Just hope you have the right week.

[DorothyB]

I just got off the Jade yesterday.

 

1) the Cagney's a la carte menu is NOT the same as the one that has been posted on this website frequently. It does NOT have "surf & turf" although you can get "surf & turf" as an a la carte item from the MDR menu - but it isn't covered by the SDP.

 

2) Someone posted that on another ship they did the "free internet" choice which is 250 minutes. They were able to purchase the unlimited on board and get a $125 credit (cost of the 250 minutes) making the net cost about $80. The internet manager on the Jade would NOT do this for me.

 

3) At the meet & greet, we were told that whether the Jade docks at Roatan for a short period to let passengers off prior to moving out to tender depends on the weather / seas. If they feel that it isn't as safe to tender in the morning, then they dock for a short period. It isn't every other week or anything like that. We did not dock.

 

4) My muster station was different than was posted on the back of my stateroom door . . .

 

5) If you get a chance to see / hear David Naster, do it!! He is a great comedian, but also uses this as a way to help people dealing with grief and tough life situations - first responders, care givers, those with serious illnesses, etc - and with bullying.

[NMLady]

I just got off the Jade yesterday.

 

1) the Cagney's a la carte menu is NOT the same as the one that has been posted on this website frequently. It does NOT have "surf & turf" although you can get "surf & turf" as an a la carte item from the MDR menu - but it isn't covered by the SDP.

 

2) Someone posted that on another ship they did the "free internet" choice which is 250 minutes. They were able to purchase the unlimited on board and get a $125 credit (cost of the 250 minutes) making the net cost about $80. The internet manager on the Jade would NOT do this for me.

 

3) At the meet & greet, we were told that whether the Jade docks at Roatan for a short period to let passengers off prior to moving out to tender depends on the weather / seas. If they feel that it isn't as safe to tender in the morning, then they dock for a short period. It isn't every other week or anything like that. We did not dock.

 

4) My muster station was different than was posted on the back of my stateroom door . . .

 

5) If you get a chance to see / hear David Naster, do it!! He is a great comedian, but also uses this as a way to help people dealing with grief and tough life situations - first responders, care givers, those with serious illnesses, etc - and with bullying.

 

Thank you so much for this update. Lots of helpful information.

We'll be on the Jade in April.

[Tracik]

Is the beer in bottles or cans? We like to use koozies. Need to know which ones to bring! Thanks!

[Tracik]

Ok, this might be a dumb question but do you have to book the shows/entertainment? Or do you just show up to the ones you want to go to?

[Travel Junkie Judy]

Ok, this might be a dumb question but do you have to book the shows/entertainment? Or do you just show up to the ones you want to go to?

 

Just show up.

Be early for popular shows if you want a good seat.

[Travel Junkie Judy]

Is the beer in bottles or cans? We like to use koozies. Need to know which ones to bring! Thanks!

 

Bottles

[Travel Junkie Judy]

Thank you so much for this update. Lots of helpful information.

We'll be on the Jade in April.

 

IF the Dawn schedule changes and they go to Roatan on Thursday instead of Wednesday, the tendering for the JADE may be different there.

Check back in March.