December 27, 2025. Well......I felt the need for a post Holiday cruise. I called Norwegian Cruise Line and was almost immediately connected with Katrina, an agent with NCL. inquired about availability on the Norwegian GEM departing out of Jacksonville, FL on January 16, 2026 for four nights to the Bahamas. The Norwegian Gem is a Jewel Class vessel launched in 2007, with refurbishments in 2022. With a passenger capacity of 2,344 and crew of 1,070 the ship is 965 feet in length. The Gem is one of four vessels of the Jewel Class. The Norwegian Jewel (2005), Norwegian Jade (2006) and Norwegian Pearl (2006). Katrina was very efficient in providing me with the information requested. At this late date, there were no 'solo' staterooms available. I accepted an ocean view stateroom on Deck 4 somewhat forward of midship. NCL was running a special that included the beverage package and travel insurance. I opted out of both and it reduced my fare (more about insurance later).
I will be flying into Jacksonville, FL from Phoenix, AZ where I had spent the holidays. I flew into Jacksonville the night before and stayed at a hotel located about 20 minutes from the Port. The airport in Jacksonville, FL is one of those still 'easy in, easy out' airports compared to the airports of Atlanta and Dallas that are much larger in size. At this time during the booking process, I was able to make my specialty dining reservation with Katrina (one specialty dining meal included in the special pricing). * I received a confirmation email straight away with guidance as to how to proceed with my booking.
The Gem started cruising from Jacksonville in November of 2025. Jacksonville, up until that time, had a Carnival Cruise Line vessel as a home port. Cruise lines seem to be expanding up the east coast from Miami, Fort Lauderdale, the fast growing Port Canaveral and now Jacksonville. I certainly hope that all goes well for NCL in Jacksonville. Something about Jacksonville, FL. I am not aware of any plans for further development in this cruise port. Hotels and restaurants are about a twenty minute ride from the port. However, I see no specific on-site amenities or attractions as you might find at say, Port Canaveral, where you have access to on-site port hotels and restaurants. And, in proximity to such attractions as the Kennedy Space Center. My thoughts are that cruising out of Jacksonville, would be mostly from the local community residents. There may also be those who have created pre-cruise and post-cruise plans that may include areas such as Amelia Island, St. Simon Island and Jekyll Island to the north.
I received my welcome email and was close enough to the cruise date, that I could 'check-in'. I entered the required information, watched the safety video and just waited for the email that would indicate when my Docs would be available (approximately 24 from when the check-in process is completed). Other email from NCL I received included an invitation to upgrade my stateroom category by way of a bidding program. Also, as part of the booking process, I was asked when I preferred to board the ship. In my case I chose noon. I did so, knowing that typical check-out time of a hotel is 11:00 AM, figuring rideshare time and boarding time. Of course, as noted in other posts, this practice is good in theory, but in reality, you will still find yourself in a queue.
*Regarding the specialty dining program. You should not be thrown off by making reservations over the phone with your agent that are not to your particular preference. You can, when onboard (depending of course on the cruise line) have an opportunity to review and possibly change to times more preferable to you and your party. On my cruise aboard the Norwegian Joy, their "specialty dining' staff were set up in the Teriyaki Specialty Dining room where my original reservations were easily changed to those more convenient for me. Onboard the Gem, this was also performed in a designated area where I was successful in getting restaurants, day and times convenient for me. It is an easy process. Just ask when you get onboard, 'is there a specialty dining reservation room set up'?
When the Docs were available, I had the option of receiving them digitally as a bar code or downloading the documents and printing them out if you have a printer available. If using a printer, you are also able to print out your luggage tag. If you are using a digital download, porters are available at the dock to provide/attach luggage tags for you. A 'tip' to the porter is customary for this service.
My arrival to the dock was a twenty minute rideshare from the hotel. As mentioned, there is no avoiding a queue. (see attached photo of musical chairs). The actual security and check-in process was efficient and there appeared to be no bottlenecks. However, I have to say, I benefited from my Rewards status with NCL which had a special line for check-in S00000, sign-up!! The program is called Latitudes. Membership also allows much of the online check-in information to be pre-filled. In my case, all I presented was my Passport. Having said that, I have to note, the Gem has a passenger capacity of about 2500 versus some of the mega ships that have capacities of greater than 4,000 passengers that will obviously require more time and patience.
My stateroom is on deck four, ocean view. It is on the same deck as the Medical Centre. See my notes (photo) and in the ESSENTIALS pages regarding Travel Insurance in my *Booking to Boarding' pdf download on my website "seasthedayandcruise.com'. The download is YOUR GUIDE to a pleasant, organized adventure. Buy now!!
CONCLUSION: Yes! The Gem is a Jewel!!
Update: I have not to this point provided information relative to my onboard experience because of my specialized knowledge of cruise ships from both the passenger and crew side. Having said that, I will share an experience that could be relative to your cruising experience. On the fourth day of my cruise, we went directly to the Port of Jacksonville as we had a medical emergency onboard. Although rare, these unexpected situations reinforce my recommendation for Travel Insurance that includes health and emergency transportation. With regard to my cruise, we went to sea until the following morning.
