How much do we love a great cruise?! We sailed the blue seas over to Alaska in August 2009 and kept our eyes open for any other cruising opportunities as we traveled – before you could say ‘ahoy matey’ we were booked to cruise the Greek Isles!
If you have never cruised before, let’s just say that 80% of you will be hooked after Day 1 – it’s just a perfect time and place to get together with family and friends and just relax – everything is taken care of for you! Just be prepared to gain a few pounds while on board and don’t forget your sunscreen.
We really enjoyed the ‘freestyle’ aspect of Norwegian Cruise Lines where we could eat and do whatever, whenever! Perfect schedule for tired, worn out backpackers, not used to an established routine – we were in heaven! We signed up for the unlimited spa pass and sauna’ed our way into the deep blue of the Mediterranean! Though not detailed here, you can see more details regarding our ports of call in Venice, Split and the Islands of Greece.
The NCL Gem had extremely updated, efficient and state of the art cabins, we still can’t believe they can have over 5000 guests and crew on board. The shows and entertainment were a little cheesy, but with the casino as a redeemer we didn’t complain. Be sure to get your bonus buck coupons the first time you visit!
The premium steak and sushi restaurant was well worth the small cover charge and was nice for a change to avoid the usual cafeteria style buffet masses.
Despite the art auctions, comedy shows, cabaret dancers and numerous activities on board – what was really going through our jaded backpacker minds? Unlimited food, no more packing and unpacking for a whole week, no noisy neighbors and English TV channels!
We ate our weight in ice-cream sundaes, lounged by the pool and individual spa tubs and lunched with some wonderful people – shout out to old friends Dru & Nicky in Atlanta, GA and new friends Dick and Tut from Columbia, SC!
Lovely post. I love me some cruising too! I went on the NCL Gem this February from New York, and it was great!
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