Jewel 1/12/08 some random notes

[39august]

Both embarkation and debarkation were painless. Debarkation was delayed until just after 9 AM due to immigration, but went very swiftly and smoothly once started. Yes, Virginia, there is lobster. In fact, this was probably the best lobster I have had on a cruise, cooked perfectly. I enjoyed both comedians, especially Gary Mule Deer. I remeber him from many Johnny Carson shows. Neither production show held my interest. We had an Elton John impersonator who was just good enough for me to sit thur' his show. Nothing outstanding. We had one of our very best waitstaff teams and cabin stewards ever. Liviu from Romania and his assistant Boz from Sebia were responsible for serving the captain's table, so you know they had to be outstanding! Both are leaving for a 2 month vacation. The Concierge Lounge was available to all suite and Diamond guests, and the Hollywood Odyssey was utilized for all eligible guests for the 5-8:30 PM cocktails, none served in the Lounge itself. The pizza in the dining room, Solarium cafe, and from room service was excellent with crispy crust. I ate way too much of it. I enjoyed Portofino's more than our Chops experience on a previous cruise. My husband said his fillet was just as good as in Chops. And I loved the eggplant roulade appetizer and the seafood skewer. The tiramisu with a shot of Baily's is to die for. Most of the food in the dining room that we had was very good. Sometimes, the selections were a bit limited to me. But I like seafood, and was pleased with several of those dishes. The Jewel is just as beautiful as she was a year ago. I so so enjoy the wonderful views, the open air dining at the aft in WJ, and the decor. Several bars were non-smoking, a real boon. Among them were the Lobby bar, the Schooner bar, and the Champagne bar. Unfortunatley, the most beautiful bar, the Safari Club is smoking and I pretty much had to stay out as it reeked both times I ventured in. This was a wonderful cruise, with great weather in all ports. I was a bit disappointed in the ship tour to The Baths on Virgin Gorda. They took us to a lovely beach first for snorkeling. By the time we arrived at the Baths, they were already getting crowded. And a Princess tour arrived just after we did making the beach very crowded. Also the accessible area of the Baths is much smaller than I had imagined. I have Compasses so I will do my best to answer any questions. And, yes, we took our wine and whiskey on board with no problem.

[MrsKnuts2]

Glad you had a nice cruise.

 

SOOOO excited about the non-smoking bars :D :D :D

[Beachcombers]

Thanks Mrssully for pointing me to this thread.

39 August...we're boarding the Jewel Feb. 3 for a back to back...can't wait...never been on her. The Superbowl is Feb. 3rd and we're travelling with a Patriats fan...so have to see the game....which bar or area of the ship do you think would be best to see the game on tv or big screen....certainly NOT the smoking bar....guess the Schooner Bar would be the larger bar....glad to hear it's non smoking...2 years ago on the Brilliance it WAS smoking....we have asthma so try to avoid the smoke if we can.

Also...any way you can give me what nights are casual, smart casual and formal...we'd like to book Portofino's on a smart casual night, and wondered what the dress code would be for Feb. 14th....we're in Tortola that day so guessing it WON'T be formal. If you have your Compasses this shouldn't be too much trouble for you...thanks a lot....also...did I hear there was a show with impersonators of the Temptations....sounds like fun.. Any help appreciated....thanks so much.

Loie and Peter

[steve20832]

Beachcombers

The Pit Stop is the sports bar on the ship and has about 50 TV's in there. They had the playoff games back there a couple weeks ago when I was on it and the bar was packed with people. If you want a good seat, get there early because it will be very crowded.

[lablvr2]

Thanks for your post. We board her this Saturday!

[39august]

Sorry, the Pit Stop sports bar is a smoking bar. If you are lucky, the game may be on your cabin TV. Tortola was our smart casual night. It was also the Crown & Anchor dinner menu which we do not like. That was the night we ate in Portofino's. The first and last sea days are formal nights.

[Tigers2]

Could you scan the Compass for the week? I enjoy looking at the day to day activities!

 

When is Caribbean Night?

 

Thanks!

 

Chuck

[Beachcombers]

Thanks for the info everyone.....

Yes...we'd love to see the Compass if you can.....thank you.

Loie

[39august]

The Caribbean menu is gone from all ships now, so the "Caribbean" designation is dress suggestion only. Now I can't find my Compasses! Sorry, but I don't know how to scan anyway. Be sure to check your Compasses for open times for both the Seaview Cafe and the Solarium cafe, as these vary from day to day. And I do strongly suggest you eat at least one meal and/or snack in the Seaview Cafe. Food is freshly prepared when you order and there is no extra charge except for drinks. There are delicious sandwiches, burgers, fries, onion rings,(YUM), soups, nachos, salads, and desserts.

[fun_one]

Thanks for posting! Glad to hear you had such a great time. We are leaving on the 8 night on Feb 23rd and can't wait.

 

Few questions for you:

1. You said you brought wine and whiskey on without a problem. Did you pack in plastic or use bubble wrap? We are wine drinkers and hate to pack glass if we can avoid it.

 

2. If you were on the 8 night, which night would you suggest is a good night to try a specialty restaurant? We were thinking the night we were in San Juan but didn't know which other night was the best to skip in the main dining room.

 

Did you think security was tight? My parents went on a Princess out of FLL a few weeks ago and checked an entire case of wine/chamagne on without any issues but with all I've ready lately, I don't really want to risk that.

 

Believe me, no matter what, we still have a LARGE BAR BILL!

THanks!

Barbara

[snowmouse]

Could you tell me what time the shows are? We have late dinner seating, and are trying to figure out some of our scheduling details with getting back on board, changing, hair appts, and so on. I know....it's an overplanning illness, but I just can't help myself!! Besides it passes some of the time while I am hibernating in the 'frozen north' until we sail!!!

[robbinsca]

We were on the Jewel over New Years and want to agree with virtually everything that has been said before.

 

My Son and Daughter brought Rum from San Juan back on board with no problem.

 

The Schooner Bar is probably the best location for watching the Super Bowl, but Pit Stop is another option. I don't remember it being smoking or non-smoking.

 

The Baths were fine, as we got there fairly early. It really was geting crowded by the time we were slated to leave. It is a natural wonder, and is not subject to human management so you take what you can get. It was a good offset to sitting and eating all day on board ship.

 

My biggest complaint about the ship was the quality of breakfast.......lunch and dinner were fine but whether you had breakfast in the Windjammer or Tides dining room the breakfast was sub-par.

[39august]

Shows for late dining were at 7 PM and for main dinng at 9 PM. Simply go to the specialty restaurant of your choice and ask to look at the 8 nights menus to pick the night to dine in the restaurant. We pack our box of wine (yes, there are some good ones avaiable) and my husband's whisky which comes in a plastic bottle in our checked luggage. I thought breakfast in the Wj was outstanding! I love the "egg harbour" where you can get omelets made to order or fried eggs to order. You can also get egg white or egg beater omelets there. There is virtually everything you can imagine as breakfast food every morning. They even had "baked beans" , a Brit breakfast fav.

[sully_mn]

Beachcombers

The Pit Stop is the sports bar on the ship and has about 50 TV's in there. They had the playoff games back there a couple weeks ago when I was on it and the bar was packed with people. If you want a good seat, get there early because it will be very crowded.

 

Les say some geek wanted to catch a college hockey game (it would be on Fox Sports North) would they be able to pull it in a the Pit Stop? Will they 'take requests'?

My wife......er.....the geeks wife would probably kill him if he did this but if I could catch a period or two.....:) :D

Thanks.

[Shanafan]

Les say some geek wanted to catch a college hockey game (it would be on Fox Sports North) would they be able to pull it in a the Pit Stop? Will they 'take requests'?

My wife......er.....the geeks wife would probably kill him if he did this but if I could catch a period or two.....:) :D

Thanks.

Doubt it. My hubby is a Big 10 college football fan.......and when we were on the Jewel in November he could not watch the Michigan/Ohio State game. He even went to the front desk and they could not do it. You may get lucky, but they only get a certain few channels......so I would say the chances are slim.

[sully_mn]

Doubt it. My hubby is a Big 10 college football fan.......and when we were on the Jewel in November he could not watch the Michigan/Ohio State game. He even went to the front desk and they could not do it. You may get lucky, but they only get a certain few channels......so I would say the chances are slim.

 

Thank you.....this is probably not a bad thing. :D