Norwegian Jewel Cruise Review

This was our fourth cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL): we had sailed on the Norwegian Wind in 1998 to the Caribbean; on the Norwegian Dream in 2002 to South America through the Magellan Straits; and again in 2002 to Hawaii and Fanning Island, Kiribati on the Norwegian Star. We found that the Norwegian Jewel is very similar to its sister ship the N. Star in many ways. The extensive use of fine woods and the implementation of bold primary colors is also evident on the Jewel. There is nothing old fashioned or pastel about her, no mauves or pinks here, but rather striking jewel tones like emerald green interspersed with fuchsias and royal purples.

The Freestyle manner of cruising allows passengers to create their own daily schedules, and it seems to be very popular with cruisers. No more are there one or two formal nights --- rather each passenger may have a formal night any night, or just skip the whole rigmarole and go casual for the entire cruise. On NCL we are all free to cruise the way we prefer.

Norwegian Jewel Embarkation
Miami on Sunday is the best day to sail, if not traffic can be horrendous. We arrived in port at noon and dropped off our luggage with no trouble. We went straight to the check-in counter for suites, which was quick. We then had to wait twenty minutes for a steward to push the wheelchair on board. It was good we waited, since the distance from check-in was almost the length of the ship over a noisy metal ramp. Once in our mini suite, we realized the first difference between NCL and other lines is we can skip a visit to the Maitre D' since there is no need to choose a table for every night in the dining room. Our boat drill assembly station was the Tango's Restaurant, Deck 8 midship, so we also had the opportunity to make a week's worth of dinner reservations at the onset of our cruise. Reserve early and choice of times and venues across the ship will be yours. (More on dining later under Food & Service).

Norwegian Jewel Tour
The Norwegian Jewel is just over one year old. She entered service August 2005 and made her maiden voyage on Aug. 10, 2005. She is 965 feet long and beam is 106 feet, which makes her Panamax. Her draft is 28 feet and gross tonnage is 93,502. She is powered by Diesel Electric Generators, propelled by Bow Thrusters, fixed propellers and 2 ABB Azipods, which give a great maneuverability to the ship. There are 12 guest decks and guest capacity is 2,376 double occupancy with a crew of 1,185. This is a very good passenger to crew ratio of about 2:1. The ship's cruise speed is 25 knots. This trip we spent some of our most uncomfortable days on the Atlantic Ocean ever, due to high seas (7 to 12 ft.). First night on -- Mary was ill, and the next day we missed the Loyalty party for Latitudes members. The Jewel has cell phone service and Freestyle dining, which promotes open seating; thus, there is no longer early or late seating, but rather anytime seating for meals.

The following is a quick overview of the ship; unfortunately details of artists and their decorative works were not available to us, but several specific items are so beautiful they should not be missed, so we will mention them here.

Decks 1 through 3 are not public.

Deck 4 has the Medical Center and staterooms. This ship is very health conscious with sanitizing equipment (balls with antibacterial solutions for disinfecting hands) placed everywhere: at the entrance to elevators, restaurants, the theatre, public rest rooms and anywhere passengers congregate.

Deck 5 has staterooms and forward the Stardust Theatre --- a lovely opera style room with balconies on Deck 6 & 7. Deck 5 has wheelchair reserved seats in the rear, but we preferred Deck 7 in the rear, near the exit.

Deck 6 is all public areas --- forward is the Stardust, going toward midship is the Jewel Club Casino --- by far one of the roomiest casinos afloat, no crowded tight areas here. Next is the Corona Cigar Club, which accommodates up to 11 people --- hand rolled cigars, fine cognacs and liquors. Then, there is Le Bistro French Restaurant. This room is a mini art gallery with copies of works by Renoir, Degas, Matisse etc. There is a life size bronze statue of a French woman leading the people to victory, inspired by a famous painting of the French Revolution. Behind our table was a celebration picture of crowds marching down the Champs Elysee: a veritable explosion of the tricolor: red, white and blue!

Next is Magnum's Champagne & Wine Bar (with tiny bubbles changing colors.) The rest of Bar Row is Shakers for cocktails and malts with a huge copper still. Mid ship is the Azura Restaurant and aft is the most beautiful room on board, the Tzar's Palace Main Restaurant. This room is reminiscent of the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, Russia. The green Malachite Columns, the white and gold walls and a portrait series of long gone Tzars and Tzarinas all culminate in a lovely atmosphere. The finials on the balustrade are Faberge eggs and add charm. But, of course in Quarenghi's reconstruction of the Malachite Room at the Hermitage in the 1790's, all the real malachite was gone, except for the magnificent fireplace and it huge vases and the grand pedestal malachite bowl in the center of the room. Thus, the Jewel's green columns are fine replicas of the ones now in the Hermitage.

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