NCL Jade - 14 day Europe (13 June) - Brief review

[firsttimers78]

Just wanted to give my quick review of our first ever cruise which was for our honeymoon. Some of you may know we had a bit of trouble with our cabin being switched on us at the last minute (this was sorted by our TA) - but the cruise overall was absolutely brilliant - safe to say our best holiday ever. Anyhow, here goes!

 

(I don't know how to get reviews to show up under reviews so I'm just posting this as a forum post - maybe someone else can enlighten me).

 

Booking

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We live in the UK but always eager to find a bargain I booked through a large online TA in the US - and found the price ended up nearly half that of the UK - so we could afford our minisuite. The UK prices are quite frankly a joke. If booking through the US you don't get free car parking or free honeymooners package, but that totaled around £130 value so you are definitely still worth booking in the US. The price difference is still there for next years itineraries - us Brits really get ripped off!

 

Embarkation

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I got the feeling they were late letting people on the boat (I think they were giving some UK travel agents a guided tour). This did mean that our room was almost ready when we arrived. Our bags arrived piece by piece - which was a bit worrying - but were all there by 6pm. The printed edocs luggage tags were rubbish - our coach driver tore ours - maybe one step too far in saving the planet.

 

Cabin

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We had booked 11014 - a minisuite - but it got switched last minute to one under the gym (11516). Luckily we ended up with our TA managing to get us switched into 11548 before we cruised - and were in that cabin all cruise.

 

11548 is directly under the pool deck, and you can hear the odd kid run across the deck. You couldn't hear the staff cleaning the deck late at night. On stepping onto the balcoy you realise actually probably the most noise you will hear will be from your neighbours - ours were fine. You can't really control that!

 

The cabins were great, lots of storage / shelves / etc. Balcony was nice. We could just pick up the wireless internet signal on our balcony (I guess from the pool deck) which was handy. The room was kept spotless by our cabin guys, who had clearly memorised our names based on the people who were originally in our cabin! They soon learnt our real names though, and were very pleasant and chatty, often saying hi all the way down the hallway to us. We got towel creatures on 3 nights (a big loveheart pair of swans, a frog and something else).

 

We only got mints on our pillow for the first 6 or so nights - I get the feeling they didn't get deliveries of everything they expected at

Barcelona as the Heinz ketchup ran out halfway through the cruise in the buffet and it was mostly some Spanish ketchup brand after that.

 

The bathtub in the minisuite was brilliant, as was the water for the shower. The bathroom was nice as you could have 3 people doing 3 functions as there are sliding doors on both the tub and the toilet. The toilet was turbo-charged - much like on an aircraft!

 

Room service breakfast was great - nice selection of continental fayre and delivered on time / a little early - usually with a quick phone call to let you know it was on the way. Outside of that, room service was rubbish - both times we phoned up the food didn't arrive (after around 45 minutes) we called back and eventually we got what we ordered.

 

The bed was very confortable. The TV was a small CRT set, running two movie channels 24-7 and some other channels / NCL programs. Movies also in Spanish.

 

Balcony was lovely too - very calming to have the sea noise and air. The airconditioning was very effective too.

 

Food & Drink

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We got the soft drink card without checking the price of sodas (d'oh) - and then realised it wasn't brilliant value. Luckily we were only charged one soft drink card but ended up with stickers on both our cards - well I think even then we just about broken even. The card is $6.25 / per person / day, plus gratuity. Fountain soda was only $1.25 + tip, so actually you need to have 5 sodas to break even. The fountain stuff tasted OK but not great - I would have rather paid $1.75 + tip for the cans of soda instead.

 

Alcohol was OK in price - we weren't drinking much. I really enjoyed the Sangria which was very economical and pretty boozy - $6 for a very big glass. I could see people getting some pretty huge bar bills though!

 

Blue Lagoon (comfort) - ate there twice - food was OK but service pretty bad. I waited around 40 minutes for my breakfast one day.

 

Paniolos (mexican / tapas) - ate there twice - nice mexican food - I really enjoyed the Il poppo special for two people, nice tasting meats selection. My wife liked the lobster tacos too. Service OK. Quite busy (as it is one of the few Speciality restaurants with no cover charge)

 

Cagneys - Superb steak - well worth the cover charge. We had two brilliant meals. My wife really enjoyed the lobster & crab cakes. I loved the steaks - to my mind the rib eye was better than the new york, but I'm a big rib eye fan. Cagney's fries were delicious, asparagus dreamy. Onion rings were the only slight let down - it would have been nice if they were a little "home made". The ahi tuna carpaccio and tomato salad were also great. People from the UK - splash out here - this is the best steak I've had outside of the US, and certainly better than you'll get back home.

 

The bistro - We had a nice meal there - worth the charge. I really enjoyed their onion soup. The cheese tray was pretty good too.

 

Alizar / grand pacific dining rooms - we had a few nice meals here - food was always good with a reasonable selection on the menu - 4 dishes the same every day, and then 5 changing dishes each day too - so around 9 main courses to choose from.

 

Jasmine garden chinese restaurant - was our most disappointing meal of the cruise. I worked out what was wrong with it when I got off the boat - nothing had that typical "charred" wok taste (I assume because they aren't cooking with high heat flames). Food was pleasant just not what I had hoped for. The ribs were more like a slightly spicy American barbecue rib than the more fragrant anise-flavoured ones we get in the UK.

 

Garden cafe buffet - we ate here a few times. The curries were brilliant, and the salad station great. I picked up a piece of pizza off the floor that a kid had dropped and gave it to the guy behind the counter who glared at me - it bothered me for a moment but I didn't make anything of it - I guess we all have bad days.

 

Ports

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I won't describe all the ports as others do that much better. We were shocked by the prices of the excursions so instead invested in some internet time and planned our own ways around. I'm sure we probably saw a little less than the people getting bussed around - but we also got to do everything more at our own pace.

 

Our favourite port was Vigo - lovely town center with great fish restaurants just in front of the port building.

 

Favourite day out Florence, by train from Livorno. Only 12euros by train 90minutes instead of the $100 or so by NCL - bargain. However if I was a conspiracy thorist I would say the people running the shuttle are in cahoots with the taxi drivers - the shuttle was no-where to be seen for around 30 minutes after we were able to get off the boat. The taxi drivers waiting around were OK, and we managed to get to Livorno train station with 5 others for 4 euros each.

 

By far the worst was Gibraltar - I would describe it as a tacky &@*hole. I guess poeple like if for cheap jewelery??? but nothing else is particularly cheap there. I don't know why NCL stop here. It was nice to see dolphins from the balcony, but that was the only good thing about it.

 

Entertainment

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Second City (improvisational comedy) were brilliant - well worth seeing.

 

The shows in the main theatre were fine, entertaining, nice dancing, good magic (how did she change dresses so quickly?!) good voices, enjoyable. The MC was fun, and the gameshows were very entertaining. It isn't broadway but then again it isn't $50 a night.

 

We went to Tony and Tina's wedding at the Spinnaker lounge (a show where you are wedding guests at an American-Italian wedding). That was $25 a ticket including a paper plate pasta dinner, and was pretty entertaining.

 

Pool

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The pool was really nice, if a little small when everyone decided to get in! One day it was very cold, most of the time it was very pleasant. The pool was salt water - nicer than chlorine - and great for floating in. There were always chairs available somewhere on the decks - however quite a lot of people would grab chairs early putting their towels out. I was disappointed to not see NCL staff doing as their posters say and freeing up these "saved" chairs after the published 30 minutes. The hot tubs were very hot! and nice and bubbly.

 

Disembarkation

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Very good - we walked off with our own bags at 6am.

 

Overall a great cruise and we would do it again (I'd even consider the same itinerary). One thing spoilt it a bit was all the fellow Brits queuing on the last day to get their service charges refunded - though I guess if they'd booked in the UK they had already paid hugely inflated prices. I got the feeling some of them were just "trying it on" as others had got refunded, but I also heard some hadn't been explained about the charges by their UK TA's - something NCL need to make sure is much clearer I guess.

 

We felt that the cruise was great value for what we paid. If we booked in the UK we would have probably been disappointed value-for-money wise.

 

Any questions feel free to ask!!!

 

James

[IDKaren]

Did you find the buffets quite crowded or was it pretty easy to get a table? We normally eat at off hours compared to most so perhaps it won't be aproblem.

 

Gibraltor--could you expound a bit on it? I haven't seen a whole lot written about it. We just usually do our own thing and wander around. Did you go up to "the rock"?

 

Thanks for the great review .You sound like people who ignore the small things and make the most of the time you have.!

[firsttimers78]

If you hit the buffet at lunch time they were quite busy, but I don't think we were never unable to find a seat. At lunch we usually went in to get our buffet plate of salad, and then took it back and ate by the pool, which was very nice (and convenient, the buffet is on the same floor as the pool on Jade). The evening seemed a little less busy.

 

If you are eating your breakfast, it is worth filling your plate in the main buffet and then going to the back of the ship and enjoying the Great Outdoors table area. Why? The selection at the Great Outdoors was much much worse. It is at the back of the buffet area so it's not like you have to walk through the whole ship.

 

We didn't go up the rock I must admit - maybe that is the one good thing to see on the rock but I didn't fancy the thieving monkeys! :) The town center in Gibraltar is pretty awful (cheesy electronics shops mostly selling yesterday's models expensive, etc), and the walk from the port to the town centre would be nice if the place wasn't a building site. Also, if you don't have British pounds don't pay in Euros in the shops - the exchange rate they "give" you is close to robbery. Instead change some euros to pounds at one of the change bureaus. I very much felt it was a place for Brits who wanted sunshine but didn't want to try and learn a foreign language or integrate with local people. Maybe I'm being harsh but they could have stopped almost anywhere in Spain again and you would have a nicer time I think.

[Addictedtwo]

Umm nice review but honeymoon! 3 people hmm! lol

[Hebersgyll]

Yes, as newbie cruisers we immediately noticed how much more expensive it is to book the same cruise in the UK compared with booking (via the internet) with an American-based cruise booking agent... with one possible exception. If the cruise is an inclusive fly to the port destination then cruise kind of itinerary, the price differential can be much less and it may even be cheaper to book in the UK? Presumably, this is because travel agents can negotiate much cheaper air fares than we can obtain as individulals? Its a pest to have to keep such a close eye on this but you have to or will be ripped off.

 

Sorry to hear about Brits trying it on re service charges. The NCL policy & practice is clear but sometimes could be expressed in writing more clearly. For example, NCL should state that they will not entertain requests for reductions in daily service gratuities unless the guest has previously complained about the poor service and obtained a record of that complaint? That ought to deter those who are trying it on just because their spend has exceeded their planned budget.

[firsttimers78]

Yes, as newbie cruisers we immediately noticed how much more expensive it is to book the same cruise in the UK compared with booking (via the internet) with an American-based cruise booking agent... with one possible exception. If the cruise is an inclusive fly to the port destination then cruise kind of itinerary, the price differential can be much less and it may even be cheaper to book in the UK? Presumably, this is because travel agents can negotiate much cheaper air fares than we can obtain as individulals? Its a pest to have to keep such a close eye on this but you have to or will be ripped off.

 

Sorry to hear about Brits trying it on re service charges. The NCL policy & practice is clear but sometimes could be expressed in writing more clearly. For example, NCL should state that they will not entertain requests for reductions in daily service gratuities unless the guest has previously complained about the poor service and obtained a record of that complaint? That ought to deter those who are trying it on just because their spend has exceeded their planned budget.

 

You are right - I get the feeling that we get a particularly good deal on cruises out of Southampton... Not only are the US rates a bit lower, but they must factor in the fact that Americans need to get a flight too. We on the other hand get away with just a 4 hour drive :)

 

I'm not sure wholly what was going on with all the service charge stuff, but the queue of people (and they were mostly Brits - I think I clocked one American) was something to be seen - it wet from the reception desk to the duty free shop. Quite annoying as I only had a quick query I needed sorting out. It was quite bizarre - it went like a rash up the queue with more people joining in to complain. I felt quite sorry for the counter staff who were getting some pretty bad attitudes.

[firsttimers78]

Umm nice review but honeymoon! 3 people hmm! lol

 

hahaha :)

[bmwman]

As regartds service charges NCL are well aware of us Brits and refunds,

 

It appears that all service charges are now going to be added to the cruise price.

 

This is not new though as far back as 2005 Jewel this was a problem. Also do bear in mind when booking through UK prices you have the benefit of UK consumer law as against US which is far more effective. (BTW I am not a TA!!!)

[VoyageVirgin]

Did you find the buffets quite crowded or was it pretty easy to get a table? We normally eat at off hours compared to most so perhaps it won't be aproblem.

 

Gibraltor--could you expound a bit on it? I haven't seen a whole lot written about it. We just usually do our own thing and wander around. Did you go up to "the rock"?

 

Thanks for the great review .You sound like people who ignore the small things and make the most of the time you have.!

 

 

Gibraltar - We went on the ships tour (bus) to the St Mikes Caves - which is where the apes are. We found the tour to be really great - just don't look out the window when heading up the "Rock" :eek: It can get quite crowded up there but it really is worth the trip (not much else to do in Gibraltar - other than count ships in port) The buses stop at the Trinity Lighthouse as well as the caves and the driver/tour guides are great with enlightening you on the points of interest & history of Gibraltar. There is a small kiosk in the terminal building that sells postcards/postage and a few nick nacks - when we returned from the tour there was other vendors set up inside the terminal as well. We had arrived on a holiday so most of the stores were closed other than the shopping mall. The bus driver stopped to let a few off after the tour - but then they had to make their own way back to the ship.

Truely enjoyed watching the apes behaviour - just remember not to feed them (500 GBP fine!!) and do not bring any food snacks etc in backpacks as they will try to get it out whether you're wearing it or not. :D There is a spot where you can interact with the apes - through the guides. Just remember - apes don't use toliet paper. Saw quite a few people allowing them to climb all over them (supervised) and their bums were not up to health standards LOL. The history of St Mikes caves is very interesting.

 

In the long run - we loved Gibraltar - but then we went on an excursion - which really did make all the difference.

Enjoy the Jade

[4 cruisers]

We met so many lovely Brits, it made our trip even more interesting!

 

The "naughty Brits" who were removing the tips from their bills reminded me of when we'd travel with our kids who were very well behaved....a few bad kids give the good kids a bad reputation sometimes!!!! The good ones go on to prove that there ARE lots of good ones too!;)

 

I do hope NCL just puts the tips in the fare.

 

I too wanted to check on one charge and just gave it up when I saw the line (that lasted for 1 1/2 days!!!).:eek: What a mess.

 

To all the great Brits we met....Cheers!:D