Back from Baltics Cruise on Jewel

[Kraftsinc]

Hi everyone,

Just returned from a 12-day Baltic Cruise aboard the beautiful Norwegian Jewel. We had a few extra days in London pre and post cruise. The weather was very cooperative -- just a little damp and cool near the end of the cruise.

The ship was beautiful, the food was great and the entertainment was great. They have a magician couple from Russia that just amaze and astound for the entire performance.

We took some ship sponsored excursions and explored some ports on our own. Hop on/off bus tours or canal cruises are easy to do at most ports on your own. The beauty of the cobbled streets do wear a little thin after walking on them for extended periods of time.

We were told there were over 40 different nationalities on board. Embarking and Debarking at Dover was very easy. The train system in England is just amazing.

We even had a tour of the bridge thanks to a meet and greet set up by another cruise forum where the captain invited us to join him a couple days later. He spoke at length of the mechanical things about the ship -- he is clearly a big fan and has been her captain since she was built (well, one of two captains that switch on and off from what I gather). He then let us ask questions and take pictures.

I'd certainly recommend this ship and/or the itinerary.
Judy

[Sandy]

Welcome back, Judy, and thanks for the review. Sounds like you had a great time.

Where are you going on your next cruise?

[LisaP]

Thank you for the review, and welcome home! We were also in Dover, only a few weeks ago, and agree that disembarkation was a breeze. (We embarked elsewhere.) Which tours did you do through NCL, and what did you think of them?

[Kraftsinc]

Our next cruise may be the Gem out of New York in March.

We did a Hermitage tour - great tour guide and we saw a lot -- and a Panoramic St. Petersburg tour both through NCL. In Stockholm, we did a City tour and the Vasa Museum with NCL. It was also very good.

We met our travel agent - coincidentally on another cruise but in Talinn, Estonia on the same port day -- and we did a walking tour with her and her mother -- great old buildings to see and also the Museum of the Occupation.

In Helsinki we did a hop on/off bus tour by ourselves.

In Warnemunde, Germany and also in Copenhagen, we walked around the towns on our own and took a canal cruise also on our own.

The ports were just great and even getting off the ship in St. Petersburg isn't quite as difficult as we heard it was earlier in the season.
Judy

[penny3333]

Welcome back Judy, I know you'd much rather still be on board! Sounds like a fantastic cruise! Thank you so much for taking time to share. Will the Gem be going to Bermuda or is the northeast route? Either one, I know it will be great.

[Kraftsinc]

Hi Penny,

The Gem cruise I'm looking at is actually a Florida/Bahamas itinerary. I'm locked into the "March Break" timetable due to teaching and we've already done the eastern and the western caribbean in the past couple of years at that time out of Miami, so we're thinking this might be a little different.

I've just been going through the pictures that I took on this Baltics cruise and I'm just loving every minute of reliving it over and over.

Thanks for all your comments
Judy

[billybuzzy]

Kraftsinc - Many thanks for your review of the NCL Jewel. It has convinced me to add the Jewel to one of my future cruise itineraries. As a result I have booked to cruise on her for Feb. 2011. Thank You!

BillyBuzzy

[Cruise Fanatic]

Baltic cruisers may be disappointed to find Copenhagen's Little Mermaid missing from the harbor in May 2010. She will be on loan for eight months to Shanghai, China for the Expo China.

[Kraftsinc]

Way to go billybuzzy. I hope you have a great time on the Jewel. If you're lucky enough to get the "only non-scandinavian captain in the whole fleet" - he's a Greek Captain and I'd tell you his name if I could spell it -- you'll just get a big grin yourself when you hear him talking so proudly about "his" ship. To him, the name is not the Norwegian Jewel -- but "The beautiful Norwegian Jewel". He's like a proud papa.
Judy