Live Review NCL GEM 11/6-11/13 Lots of Pictures Plenty of Random Thoughts Pre Cruise Adventure in Venice

[LATTELOVE]

1 hour ago, BennyBrun said:

Milan Central Station … absolutely stunning!

Yes, I agree,  we have been to this train station.

Very beautiful.

I love the high speed train, such a smooth ride.

 

.

 

[Muckyduckway]

Welcome back to Europe!

This is long-winded and may be of zero use to you but wanted to try to 'pay you back' for your great reviews.

I don't know if you plan to do any sightseeing in Trieste once you arrive by train, or even if you travel light enough to do this. There is a number 24 bus that goes from the square outside Trieste Centrale. It takes you through town and up to the top of San Giusto, where the Cathedral and Castello are located. The small fee to visit the Castle is worth it for some good views of the city from its walls and if the Gem is docked at the central terminal a great view of it too.

 

You can take the bus back down and get off right in front of the Cruise Terminal (again, assuming the Gem is docked there.)

 

A single ticket on the bus (you can buy from machines or any kiosk) costs €1.35.

 

Alternatively, you could walk from the train station to the cruise terminal, via Grand Canal, the Borsa and Piazza Unita (its only about a kilometre) and take in some of the sights as you go.  While Cafe Degli Specchi in Piazza Unita is indeed touristy, you get a great view of the ship from a comfy sofa and for the price of a cocktail get three little canapés, a small jar of nuts and a big glass bowl of potato chips (crisps). If it's sunny, it's a nice way to ease yourself unto the ship.

 

There's also a small supermarket (Despar) on the opposite side of Piazza Unita if you need any last minute snacks/supplies.

 

Hopefully you'll find checking in as pleasurable and easy as we did - from the road outside the terminal to the gangway of the ship took 23 minutes and that included 5 minutes waiting for our key cards as we had been upgraded.  They were also offering cookies to everyone embarking (havent encountered that before).  That trend continued on the Gem, with a variety of goodies on offer from wandering crew in the Atrium and bars, ranging from cookies, to spring rolls to chicken tenders.

 

Hope you enjoy the Gem as much as we did, your itinerary is different to ours but we also visited Dubrovnik (if you take the bus into town, buy return ticket at station, then go out onto the main road and turn right to find the local bus stops (NCL charges 15 - not sure if it was € or $, but the local buses are more frequent and less crowded and only cost 24 Kuna return. We used a fee free card and the cost per person was about €3.25, many cafes and shops will take euros but official outlets such as bus ticket vendors will only take kuna). Recommend having burek if you enjoy savoury pastry snacks, they're very cheap and tasty, we bought from a chain bakery Mlinar but it was good) and Corfu (had wonderful salad for lunch in one of the Liston cafes and couldnt resist a cheese pie from a local bakery for our mid morning snack.

 

The only negative we had about the Gem versus the other Jewel class ships was the lack of power points (most likely to be remedied by impending drydock).

 

Happy travels.

[LATTELOVE]

1 hour ago, BennyBrun said:

I went back to the sweets again… this fried donut is filled with 1/4 jar of Nutella… it is soooooo gooooood!

Oh man,

This brought back some good memories

of our trip to Italy.  Time to go back.

Food looks out of this world.

 

Hope you enjoy it to the fullest and

eat a lot of those sweets for me.

Just wished I was there.  😃😆

[Muckyduckway]

OR you could pop into Eataly, just walk past the terminal and it's the building after the fish market clock tower.  Almost everything here is produced in Italy, they have all kinds of food and some cafes and a big wine shop. The cafe is a nice spot for a coffee with a view of the marina and some food and drink samples as you potter around wondering how on earth you could get some of this stuff home with you.

Edited November 3, 2022 by Muckyduckway

[Hogladyrider]

@BennyBrun...WOWZA great pics!

[Turtles06]

5 hours ago, BennyBrun said:

Who would be a good person to go ask that question?  I doubt guest services would know … need to narrow it down a bit to find the right person to ask that.

Sorry I didn’t see your reply sooner. CC as you may know was having log in issues.

 

Re the dry dock and the tub/showers: The GM might know, maybe the Concierge (for the suites).  Engineering/plumbers?  😊

 

I just saw your Nutella-filled donut. OMG. I love Nutella, that looked amazing. 
 

Safe and fun travels!! 

 

 

[BennyBrun]

16 hours ago, Max and Ruby said:

My account had issues the last few days, but I can log in now and comment! 🙂  I'm gaining weight just looking at these pictures! Nice to see that the train had a place for your luggage as well, but it's not very secure is it?

It is not very secure at all but it does not make very many stops as you fly through Italy and you can keep your eye on it.

[BennyBrun]

16 hours ago, FionaMG said:

It's not and theft does happen. My friend, who lives in France and is a regular user of the Eurostar service, once had her luggage stolen but luckily spotted the thief as he was making his getaway and had the wherewithal to get him stopped. 

I usually suggest taking a bicycle chain if you're travelling with heavy luggage on European trains so that you can secure it to the structure of the luggage holders.

OMG that is a genius idea.  I will have to keep that in mid next time!

[BennyBrun]

15 hours ago, Muckyduckway said:

Welcome back to Europe!

This is long-winded and may be of zero use to you but wanted to try to 'pay you back' for your great reviews.

I don't know if you plan to do any sightseeing in Trieste once you arrive by train, or even if you travel light enough to do this. There is a number 24 bus that goes from the square outside Trieste Centrale. It takes you through town and up to the top of San Giusto, where the Cathedral and Castello are located. The small fee to visit the Castle is worth it for some good views of the city from its walls and if the Gem is docked at the central terminal a great view of it too.

 

You can take the bus back down and get off right in front of the Cruise Terminal (again, assuming the Gem is docked there.)

 

A single ticket on the bus (you can buy from machines or any kiosk) costs €1.35.

 

Alternatively, you could walk from the train station to the cruise terminal, via Grand Canal, the Borsa and Piazza Unita (its only about a kilometre) and take in some of the sights as you go.  While Cafe Degli Specchi in Piazza Unita is indeed touristy, you get a great view of the ship from a comfy sofa and for the price of a cocktail get three little canapés, a small jar of nuts and a big glass bowl of potato chips (crisps). If it's sunny, it's a nice way to ease yourself unto the ship.

 

There's also a small supermarket (Despar) on the opposite side of Piazza Unita if you need any last minute snacks/supplies.

 

Hopefully you'll find checking in as pleasurable and easy as we did - from the road outside the terminal to the gangway of the ship took 23 minutes and that included 5 minutes waiting for our key cards as we had been upgraded.  They were also offering cookies to everyone embarking (havent encountered that before).  That trend continued on the Gem, with a variety of goodies on offer from wandering crew in the Atrium and bars, ranging from cookies, to spring rolls to chicken tenders.

 

Hope you enjoy the Gem as much as we did, your itinerary is different to ours but we also visited Dubrovnik (if you take the bus into town, buy return ticket at station, then go out onto the main road and turn right to find the local bus stops (NCL charges 15 - not sure if it was € or $, but the local buses are more frequent and less crowded and only cost 24 Kuna return. We used a fee free card and the cost per person was about €3.25, many cafes and shops will take euros but official outlets such as bus ticket vendors will only take kuna). Recommend having burek if you enjoy savoury pastry snacks, they're very cheap and tasty, we bought from a chain bakery Mlinar but it was good) and Corfu (had wonderful salad for lunch in one of the Liston cafes and couldnt resist a cheese pie from a local bakery for our mid morning snack.

 

The only negative we had about the Gem versus the other Jewel class ships was the lack of power points (most likely to be remedied by impending drydock).

 

Happy travels.

Wow thank you so much for the useful information.  I don’t have much time Trieste because I am coming in via train from

Venice.  NCL wanted ridiculous  for transfer I am sure they are counting people wanting the convenience vs dealing with the train. BUT I might take that walk to the terminal from the train station. 
 

In Dubrovnik where did you find this bus and station?  Is it right outside the cruise terminal?  What number is the bus because that is something I would definitely do!  Trust me I will be eating my way at every stop 😂 

 

This will be the first time on the Gem but excited and I have my converter ready to go!  Thank you so much !  I love this sharing of information 

[BennyBrun]

15 hours ago, LATTELOVE said:

Oh man,

This brought back some good memories

of our trip to Italy.  Time to go back.

Food looks out of this world.

 

Hope you enjoy it to the fullest and

eat a lot of those sweets for me.

Just wished I was there.  😃😆

I have to pace myself lol I had soooo much yesterday 😂 

[BennyBrun]

15 hours ago, Muckyduckway said:

OR you could pop into Eataly, just walk past the terminal and it's the building after the fish market clock tower.  Almost everything here is produced in Italy, they have all kinds of food and some cafes and a big wine shop. The cafe is a nice spot for a coffee with a view of the marina and some food and drink samples as you potter around wondering how on earth you could get some of this stuff home with you.

That sounds fun too.  Is this by the Trieste terminal?

[FionaMG]

2 hours ago, BennyBrun said:

OMG that is a genius idea.  I will have to keep that in mid next time!

 

It does mean you need to remember to get up to unlock it a few minutes ahead of arrival at your station but that's a minor inconvenience in exchange for the peace of mind, especially if you're in a seat where it's difficult to keep an eye on it.

[Muckyduckway]

4 hours ago, BennyBrun said:

In Dubrovnik where did you find this bus and station?  Is it right outside the cruise terminal?  What number is the bus because that is something I would definitely do!  Trust me I will be eating my way at every stop 😂 

The cruise terminal at Dubrovnik is Gruz. If you had loads of time you could walk but the buses are frequent and easy to use and as long as you have the means to buy in Kuna (either cash or a card that works in Europe), are absolutely the best option.

 

When you get off the ship the bus station is the white building to the right. Walk through the canopied port arrival point and turn right.

 

The tickets can be purchased at the Tisak! (Recommend return ticket to save looking for ticket outlets in town)

 

Slightly to the right of the Tisak kiosk there's a zebra crossing out to the road, at the road turn right and the bus stop is visible immediately, about 50 yards maybe, see photo. There are bus stops in the station but they are longer distance buses that don't serve the city.

 

Any of the buses that go to Pile are good, so all of the 1s, 3, 6 and maybe 9. I've attached the timetable.  When you get off the bus, the Pile Gate is right in front of you. The same stop is where you will return, taking any bus that goes to Gruz.

 

Make sure you walk the length of Stradun, a very straight street (many moons ago it was water!) that connects the Pile and Ploce Gates, check out the harbour area behind the Ploce Gate, and wander at will in the small side streets where you should fall upon the market, where you can sample the local candied orange peel. And of course try the burek.

 

 

Getting off the bus on the way back is easy as the ship is a pretty decent landmark.

But do bear in mind when using buses in most of Europe that a wave or an extended arm to indicate that you want to board the bus is needed as buses do not necessarily stop at every stop, and if the stop sign isn't already illuminated, press the red button before the stop you want to disembark the bus.

 

City timetable.pdf

 

 

4 hours ago, BennyBrun said:

That sounds fun too.  Is this by the Trieste terminal?

 

It's quite close, depends whether you want to keep on walking once you arrive and how close your actual arrival is to your chosen checkin time.

 

There's also a nice ice-cream place near the terminal called Jazzin!

Trieste has so many nice places to eat but they are fairly spread out.

You're almost certainly already aware of this, but it's worth checking Marine Traffic or other site to check where the Gem has docked early on the morning of embarkation. It should be the downtown location but nice to be sure before you arrive. My cruise docs said pier 57 so we were very pleasantly surprised to find that was not the case.

[Muckyduckway]

PS forgot to say you need to clip your ticket when you get on the bus, the machine is near the driver.  The NCL shuttles drop off and pick up at the same Pile bus stop, they had a crew member there trying to keep order. So don't be deterred from getting to the local bus by a potentially massive crowd, most of them are waiting to be herded.

[JGmf]

23 hours ago, BennyBrun said:

Milan Central Station … absolutely stunning!

 

Thanks so, so much for taking the time and effort to allow us all to enjoy your trip with you. 

 

That train station is indeed stunning.  Looking forward to every bit of this trip.

 

Signed-

Very envious

[Turtles06]

8 hours ago, BennyBrun said:

OMG that is a genius idea.  I will have to keep that in mid next time!

There are in fact cable locks made for luggage. (Not as heavy as bike locks.) Here’s one option. 
 

https://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Creek-Travel-Gear-Cable/dp/B001M0O0EE/ref=asc_df_B001M0O0EE/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312131029872&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=9865212635424838691&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9008181&hvtargid=pla-338984803345&psc=1

[BennyBrun]

So to save a few $ I stayed at Venice Mestre the first night.  The price difference was huge!  That just means I had to get on a bus this morning for a ride into Venice to the Hilton in Molino Stucky.  I also bought a pass that included the bus / water ferry for two days!  $30.00 when you buy 30’days in advance.  I was so tired when I got to Mestre that I had the local sandwich and went to bed!

[BennyBrun]

5 hours ago, Muckyduckway said:

The cruise terminal at Dubrovnik is Gruz. If you had loads of time you could walk but the buses are frequent and easy to use and as long as you have the means to buy in Kuna (either cash or a card that works in Europe), are absolutely the best option.

 

When you get off the ship the bus station is the white building to the right. Walk through the canopied port arrival point and turn right.

 

The tickets can be purchased at the Tisak! (Recommend return ticket to save looking for ticket outlets in town)

 

Slightly to the right of the Tisak kiosk there's a zebra crossing out to the road, at the road turn right and the bus stop is visible immediately, about 50 yards maybe, see photo. There are bus stops in the station but they are longer distance buses that don't serve the city.

 

Any of the buses that go to Pile are good, so all of the 1s, 3, 6 and maybe 9. I've attached the timetable.  When you get off the bus, the Pile Gate is right in front of you. The same stop is where you will return, taking any bus that goes to Gruz.

 

Make sure you walk the length of Stradun, a very straight street (many moons ago it was water!) that connects the Pile and Ploce Gates, check out the harbour area behind the Ploce Gate, and wander at will in the small side streets where you should fall upon the market, where you can sample the local candied orange peel. And of course try the burek.

 

 

Getting off the bus on the way back is easy as the ship is a pretty decent landmark.

But do bear in mind when using buses in most of Europe that a wave or an extended arm to indicate that you want to board the bus is needed as buses do not necessarily stop at every stop, and if the stop sign isn't already illuminated, press the red button before the stop you want to disembark the bus.

 

City timetable.pdf 1.46 MB · 0 downloads

 

 

 

It's quite close, depends whether you want to keep on walking once you arrive and how close your actual arrival is to your chosen checkin time.

 

There's also a nice ice-cream place near the terminal called Jazzin!

Trieste has so many nice places to eat but they are fairly spread out.

You're almost certainly already aware of this, but it's worth checking Marine Traffic or other site to check where the Gem has docked early on the morning of embarkation. It should be the downtown location but nice to be sure before you arrive. My cruise docs said pier 57 so we were very pleasantly surprised to find that was not the case.

Wow !!  Thank you so much!  This is very very useful information. I really appreciate it 

[Muckyduckway]

You are very welcome. Looking forward to your review, I hope you like the Gem as much as we did. Those seats at the Great Outdoors are soooo comfortable and the food at the buffet seemed better than the Jade (subjective, I know).  If B12 are still on board, don't miss their rock session (if that's your thang). They were good at other styles too but those weren't as close to our taste.

[Muckyduckway]

Hope you revive enough to enjoy Venice tomorrow. We also had those sandwiches in Trieste, the shape must be a regional thing, it was the first time we have encountered them. 

[BennyBrun]

1 hour ago, Muckyduckway said:

Hope you revive enough to enjoy Venice tomorrow. We also had those sandwiches in Trieste, the shape must be a regional thing, it was the first time we have encountered them. 

I like the No crust!

[BennyBrun]

1 hour ago, Muckyduckway said:

Hope you revive enough to enjoy Venice tomorrow. We also had those sandwiches in Trieste, the shape must be a regional thing, it was the first time we have encountered them. 

It’s hard to keep track with the time difference but I made it to Venice today Friday after I slept for 10 hours last night 😂 

[BennyBrun]

So I bought the 2 day pass that covered bus / tram and water taxi in advance for $30.00 E and it is worth every penny.  You can’t get any where in Venice without water taxi coming from the airport or Mestre.  I took the water taxi from the bus station to Hilton.  You do have to walk a bit but it is very economical!

[BennyBrun]

Hilton Stucky Venice

[LouChamp]

We love Venice after of course Honolulu lol. We stay at the Cipriani but have heard great things about the Hilton.  Enjoy your stay and have smooth sailing.  We look forward to your reports and food pictures of course!