Our Week on the Gem (cont.) 3/15-3/22

[momtothree]

More about our week on the Gem

Enjoying your review. I'm sure when you're "momtothree" you don't have much spare time.

 

So when you have a chance' date=' let's have some more![/quote[/b']

 

You are so right - I am mom to three, wife to one, and a job, and taking classes for my Master's Degree - doesn't leave me with much spare time!!!!! I really needed that week away!

 

Anyway . . . as far as the ports were concerned, we had a great time at each stop. At Cape Canaveral we did the fun and sun day excursion from NCL. I believe it was about $39 per person for adults and $29 for children. A very nice bus picked us up right at the port and took us to Cocoa Beach - it was only about a 10-15 minute ride. Once there, we had the use of the Holiday Inn Resort's amenities including a pool, hot tubs, private beach area. However, it you wanted chairs and an umbrella, there was a $20 fee for two chairs and an umbrella. Make sure the "beach guy" only charges you $20 because it is a special price for NCL guests; otherwise, the price is higher. We were back and forth between the beach and the pool. There is also a restaurant right on the beach - can't remember the name right now - but it gives NCL people a 10% discount and the prices were really reasonable, even without the discount. You can start returning to the ship any time from 2:30 until 5:30. A bus comes every half hour between those times. You may also opt to stop at Ron Jon's Surf shop and they'll pick you up. My husband and kids took advantage of this and said it was great! I was anxious to get back to the ship - I had a little too much sun that day.

 

Great Stirrup Cay - The seas were too rough for the tenders to take us to the island so we went on to the Nassau and spent the night there as well as the next day. We were a little disappointed, but a lot of people seemed to get off in Nassau and we decided to stay on the ship the first day and the pools and hot tubs were not crowded at all.

 

Nassau - My ten year old daughter and I did the Dolphin Encounter and it was great. She absolutely loved it. You get to dance with, kiss, touch, and interact with the dolphins. You spend about 30 minutes in the water with the dolphins. First they take in one group or family at a time for several activities and pictures, then they take in several groups for the rest of the activities. The dolphins are so well-trained. It was really great. I couldn't resist the $16.00 picture of my daughter hugging one of the dolphins. They also have souvenirs - shirts, hats, etc. which are very reasonably priced. My daughter got a baseball style hat that was very well made for $10.99. There is a good deal of walking involved though to get to the encounter area. When you get off the ship, you must walk along the pier and into town for about 10-15 minutes. That walk isn't so bad because it is along paved roadway. The boat ride is about 30 minutes each way to the island. It's a fairly large boat and the ride was nice. However, when you get to the island, you must walk on a very uneven, unpaved path to the encounter area. The worst part is walking a distance on sand - not wet packed sand, but very deep fluffy sand that is difficult to walk on. Once you're over that part, the rest is smooth sailing. They do, however, have two golf carts at the dock for people who may have trouble navigating the terrain.

 

My husband and two older children did the underwater scooter snorkeling but it was cut short by about 1/2 hour becaue of rough seas. They said it was kind of difficult to stay on the scooter because the seas were so rough. I think they did have fun though.

 

My parents were going to do the Glass Bottom Boat tour but it was cancelled due to rough seas. I guess my daughter an I got the best of the excursions that day!

 

Grand Bahama Island (Freeport) - We decided to stay on the ship that day. The pools were not crowded and neither were the restaurants, hot tubs, etc. We did get off the ship for a short walk to the straw market which is right across the pier from the ship. The kids got some cute t-shirts for 3/$10.00 and my mom got a straw bag for about $12.00. We were only there until 2:30 so we decided not to do any excursions or the beach at that stop.

 

Embarkation and disembarking went very smoothly. We were on the ship within minutes after they started boarding. We got to the cruise terminal early - about 11:30 and were number 21 to board the ship. Everyone headed to the Garden Cafe for lunch so we were glad to be some of the first on the ship before it got really packed. Leaving the ship was smooth as well. You choose what time you want to leave and get corresponding color luggage tags. I think we were scheduled to disembark at 11:45 and we were off by 11:30 or so. It did take a while to get through Customs, but there was a very organized line and it went smoothly.

 

Some tips: Don't get too much sun (like I did) on your day in Florida. I ended up with sun poisoning on both of my legs and my legs, ankles, feet, and toes were swollen and very uncomfortable until Friday! I couldn't get any shoes on my feet other than an old pair of flip flops. My mother insisted I see the ship's doctor because she was afraid it was from my blood pressure rising. Be warned - the cost to see the doctor is $78.00; however, you can submit it to your insurance when you get home.

 

Take advantage of that first day at sea to learn the layout of the ship. I do not have a very good sense of direction and found myself at "dead ends" frequently. My ten year old had to steer me in the right direction more than once!

 

If eating in the Garden Cafe, try not to eat at prime times, it does get a little crowded. A great place to always find a table is at the Great Outdoors at the back of the ship. It is on an open deck but we never had trouble finding a seat there and the temp. was always comfortable, except when we were close to New York. It is a little bit of a walk from the main buffet, but they also have a small buffet set up there.

 

The shows were enjoyable as well. There was a comedian who was great and the group Second City was hilarious as well. My kids loved karaoke. My ten year old sang EVERY night. Andre, who leads karaoke, is also great!

 

The rock climbing wall was fun for the kids too. It has very limited hours though - about 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon. There are several spotters there to help you. We never found to be too crowded. The bowling alley was ALWAYS busy. My husband and kids did play two games, but had to wait about half an hour to get a lane. There are only four lanes we you just have to be patient.

 

The decor on the ship is a little "funky." Lots of pink and black and zebra prints, etc. I walked through one of the lounges (I forget which one) and it sort of reminded me of a brothel. Oh well, I wasn't there for the decor.

 

The casino was fun for a little diversion. I got lucky on the 5 cent slots and won $278.00 starting with just $5.00. Don't get greedy though - at one point I had it up to about $400.00! I stayed away after that!

 

Gotta go now - if you have any questions, feel free to ask. All in all , we had a great time!

 

Julie

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Cruisin' Family of Five ;) :D :) :rolleyes: :)

[spanky]

Sailing on the Gem on 4/5 - sounds like a nice ship...it's a shame the seas were rough - too bad they didn't skip Freeport instead of Great Stirrup Cay. Having been to Freeport twice already...bleh!

 

dave