ON GEM NOW

[Smileonboard]

I boarded the Gem yesterday from NY- I have really found it helpful to read about other’s experiences as I was waiting to cruise. It was certainly a bit of a different experience preparing for this cruise with all the stories looming around . Our experience was good. I am traveling with my hubby and 12 year old son. We drove to the port - parking was easy but expensive. We walked over to pier 90 - we had 9:00 check in  so the testing hadn’t started yet. We had to wait 1/2 hour then it was super quick. We tested and waited about another 1/2 hr for the results. From there got our wristbands and went over to pier 88 - we have a suite so checkin was so easy and we were on board by 11. However, the regular checkin was organized and lines were not terrible. The ship left port around 4:40.if anyone has any questions about boarding or the Gem I would be happy to answer. I will post about our experience throughout the cruise. 

[Smileonboard]

This is how I start my cruise every time - sitting outside with a margarita- it’s been over 2 years so was a wonderful feeling to be back. This is the first time we are on the Gem - we have been on the Escape and the Getaway. This is our 10 th cruise. The buffet was really good for lunch and it is still self serve. Great choices - wasn’t crazy for the desserts- they look better then they tasted. Salad bar options were great. My son really enjoyed the pizza and chicken soup .Everyone had their masks on and as soon as settled at the table took them off . 

So far the one big con for us ( which we knew before we sailed ) is no kids club. My son turns 13 in 4 weeks but they will not allow him in the teen club and splash academy is closed. He loves going to the kids club so he is a little disappointed. He went to the arcade and we did Trivia and saw the welcome abroad show where Flip did comedy and it was enjoyable- We ate at Moderno and it was great- the salad bar is awesome and the meats were cooked to medium - medium rare. The banana caramel meringue tart was incredible ! 
 

 

 

[Smileonboard]

Some sail away pictures from our cabin. We are in a aft facing suite. 

[vadersprincess12]

Hi Smileonboard ~ we will be sailing on the day you come back.  What is the passenger capacity onboard?  

 

I'll be following your posts to get a feel for what our cruise will be like.  We chose a 1:30 check-in time because we have to drive 4 hours and didn't want to feel rushed so hopefully the testing at that time will be smooth.

[goldmom]

Thank you for posting.  We love the Gem and I watched your sail away yesterday on the NYC port cam.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise.

Do you know who the Concierge is?  Thanks!

[Smileonboard]

4 hours ago, goldmom said:

Thank you for posting.  We love the Gem and I watched your sail away yesterday on the NYC port cam.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise.

Do you know who the Concierge is?  Thanks!

We have only been on the larger Norwegian ships so it’s a nice change but I must admit our favorite is the escape - we are going on the joy in the summer so we will see. The crew has been great - the concierge is Suzana Bajramovic - 

[Smileonboard]

5 hours ago, vadersprincess12 said:

Hi Smileonboard ~ we will be sailing on the day you come back.  What is the passenger capacity onboard?  

 

I'll be following your posts to get a feel for what our cruise will be like.  We chose a 1:30 check-in time because we have to drive 4 hours and didn't want to feel rushed so hopefully the testing at that time will be smooth.

I think it will be quiet at that time - when we were walking out at there was no line - very orderly- 

I was told the capacity is around 60 percent. 
Hope you have a great trip- 

[mking8288]

Thank you, what a refreshing & positive thread posting on what's life onboard the Gem ... one of our favorite & been on her a few times. 

 

When you get a chance, can you kindly post who are the senior ship officers currently onboard, the CD and what's showing in the Stardust Theater, etc. (no need to rush, wait till you disembark & get home is perfectly fine, thank you in advance)

 

Don't forget to bring the 13 years old to visit the Bridge Viewing Room (Deck 11 Fwd port side), it is usually open - dawn to dusk on sea days, curtains closed or shut for navigation & safety reasons.  Guess where the ship captain's nice sleeping quarters, unmarked is located, hint hint - next door. 

[Smileonboard]

Today started off sooooo windy it was hard to be outside but by the afternoon the weather changed a lot and it was beautiful- I spent some time reading on my balcony. There was a meet and greet for cruise critic and it was great meeting other users and the officers. We wandered around the ship and played some chess - arcade - balloon twisting class - we went to the art auction and secured a nice piece of art - had some lunch at O’ Sheehan’s - wings , spinach artichoke dip and chicken salad with a margarita. Everything was really good. We tried to do some trivia which we enjoy but I can’t get over how small the atrium is - I don’t know what Norwegian was thinking making that the center of everything on their ships - there is never a seat I swear it is worse then the pool deck on a sunny day - this ship is only at 60 percent capacity and still it is so difficult to enjoy the activities there . My husband brought my son to Entourage to hang out with some other kids at open house since he can’t be there himself - he enjoyed playing Mario smash brothers with some other boys. Came back to the cabin for a rest and get ready for the evening . 
Had some nice treats waiting for us - M&M’s - gummies - chocolate plate. 
Tonight we will see the early showing of Swing and then dinner at MDR - 

[The Traveling Man]

21 minutes ago, Smileonboard said:

Today started off sooooo windy it was hard to be outside but by the afternoon the weather changed a lot and it was beautiful- I spent some time reading on my balcony. There was a meet and greet for cruise critic and it was great meeting other users and the officers. We wandered around the ship and played some chess - arcade - balloon twisting class - we went to the art auction and secured a nice piece of art - had some lunch at O’ Sheehan’s - wings , spinach artichoke dip and chicken salad with a margarita. Everything was really good. We tried to do some trivia which we enjoy but I can’t get over how small the atrium is - I don’t know what Norwegian was thinking making that the center of everything on their ships - there is never a seat I swear it is worse then the pool deck on a sunny day - this ship is only at 60 percent capacity and still it is so difficult to enjoy the activities there . My husband brought my son to Entourage to hang out with some other kids at open house since he can’t be there himself - he enjoyed playing Mario smash brothers with some other boys. Came back to the cabin for a rest and get ready for the evening . 
Had some nice treats waiting for us - M&M’s - gummies - chocolate plate. 
Tonight we will see the early showing of Swing and then dinner at MDR - 

Thank you for sharing.  We also love the Jewel-class ships like the Gem.  Just like Goldilocks, we find them to be not too big, not too small, just right!  Glad to hear you were able to have a CC M&G.  We were on the Epic in October and they cancelled ours because of Covid restrictions.

[cresx]

Thank you for sharing. We will be on the Gem on the 9th. 

[EllieinNJ]

Thanks for sharing.

[Arcalle]

Have so much fun! Love the gem. I’ll be on in March. Who is the current cruise director? ☺️

[HowardK]

OP- I really like the pictures of the ship in the evening. I remember one time I had a October sailing and it started to get darker earlier which i found nice and calming. I hope you enjoy your cruise.

[Smileonboard]

Last night show Swing was pretty good - some boring numbers but mostly entertaining and great dancing . Dinner in the MDR was good not great but the service was great - the onion soup was good and the grilled veggies Mediterranean was great. All of the crew have been awesome. Dinner tonight was La Cucina and I have to stay it was a pleasant surprise- most of the food was delicious however, the pizza was underdone but they didn’t charge us for my sons meal since that was his entree.  The show was a hypnotist again kinda entertaining but some boring parts -

we woke up early today to have breakfast and make the 9:30 ferry to fort Sumter in Charleston SC - that was a great tour and very interesting- we then went to king street and walked  around and browsed some shops. Came back to ship had lunch at the buffet which was really the only option other then the grill - the Asian food was really good and the oatmeal cookies yummy ! We did some trivia and hit the arcade for a bit and my son won a Nintendo 2D which  I am sure I paid for 3 times over 😬however, he was so excited so I guess it’s worth it - off to bed now - tomorrow Port Carnaval and the Kennedy Space Center - 

[Smileonboard]

On 12/27/2021 at 4:20 PM, mking8288 said:

Thank you, what a refreshing & positive thread posting on what's life onboard the Gem ... one of our favorite & been on her a few times. 

 

When you get a chance, can you kindly post who are the senior ship officers currently onboard, the CD and what's showing in the Stardust Theater, etc. (no need to rush, wait till you disembark & get home is perfectly fine, thank you in advance)

 

Don't forget to bring the 13 years old to visit the Bridge Viewing Room (Deck 11 Fwd port side), it is usually open - dawn to dusk on sea days, curtains closed or shut for navigation & safety reasons.  Guess where the ship captain's nice sleeping quarters, unmarked is located, hint hint - next door. 

I will check out the Bridge Viewing room - thanks - on one cruise we were able to get a full tour of the bridge and it was a great experience - 

Jasper is the CD - Captain Kim Karrison

General manager Joao Gigante 

shows in the theater first four evenings are Swing - Comedian Flip -- Hypnotist - Magician- 

[Smileonboard]

We had some breakfast at the buffet - the scrambled eggs with spinach , tomato and sausage was good and not overly dry like buffet eggs are usually and of course the bacon is always perfectly cooked - again the baked goods have been terrible at the buffet. We went to the Kennedy space center - we did this on our own and not a ship excursion- it was so crowded - I guess being a holiday week it was extra crowded - certainly was not a limited capacity - it was a great place but hard to do a lot with the crowds - the weather in Florida was beautiful - sunny 80 - after we got back we sat by the pool - had a drink and relaxed. I went to the spa and got a facial and massage and it was fantastic!!!!!! 
Our evening was our normal activities- trivia - show which was a magician and enjoyable and dinner at the orchid garden - again the food was very good. The crew continues to be cheery, and very attentive- 

the mask wearing hasn’t been as bad as I thought - everyone is complying for the most part - a few here and there rebel - anytime you are settled somewhere off they go- some keep them on sitting most fo not. 
There have been some good sales in the atrium each night -

we stopped at the kids glow party and the crew were basically dancing with each other - there is a very low number of kids on the ship which is so strange since it is Christmas week - I am missing the dynamic of the fun parties but then again we have been up and out really early and in bed by 10:30 most evenings 😆

 

[JGmf]

Thank you for posting these.  I'm enjoying the read.  Was on Gem on Dec 14...prior to the masks.  We were at about 33% capacity, so atrium wasn't that crowded.  Totally agree on the baked goods/desserts.  Very underwhelming, but probably better off I didn't eat them given all the other drinking and eating.

[BennyBrun]

Thank you for the review and posts!  I hope you have a fantastic cruise.  Next time you might want to consider parking on the NJ side depending where you are coming from and catch the Ferry close to the NCL terminal.  The parking is cheaper compared to the NYC parking.

[db64]

On 12/30/2021 at 3:07 PM, BennyBrun said:

Thank you for the review and posts!  I hope you have a fantastic cruise.  Next time you might want to consider parking on the NJ side depending where you are coming from and catch the Ferry close to the NCL terminal.  The parking is cheaper compared to the NYC parking.

Where on the New Jersey side do you park?  

[BennyBrun]

1 minute ago, db64 said:

Where on the New Jersey side do you park?  

There are several options depending on where you are coming from.  The NY Waterway has a lot of departures from various points in NJ to the pier in NYC so we either do the parking at Weekawken or Jersey City depending on parking deals we can find on the parking apps.  I would avoid a Hoboken departure point since space is a premium over there.

[BennyBrun]

Also another option we have tried is using the park and ride with NJ transit by Secaucus.  It’s very cheap to park there and the bus goes right into PA and then it’s just a cheap ride to the terminal.  It all depends on how much you want to spend / save and your tolerance for the inconvenience. 

[natefish95]

Thanks for your posts! If you get a chance, could you find out if the thermal suite is open or if the free steam room in the gym locker room is open? 

[Back to school]

I love the Gem, August 2021.  Good times!

[WYB!]

Hello,

 

Happy New Year!

 

What is working out in the gym like?

 

Thanks,

 

- WYB