Our Joy experience. Dec 18-23

[20165]

Overall, we had a good cruise.  It would have been great, but the testing and new mask policy did detract from it a bit.  Below is more detail on that.

Embarkation – We arrived about 1130 and got in the line to test.  It wasn’t horrible but took about an hour.  Once we got though that process, we had a separate Haven area to check in and board from which was wonderful.  We were escorted to our muster station to check in and then to the Haven to introduce us to our concierge and butler.  Awesome experience.  We were then escorted to our rooms.

Butler and concierge – This really made the cruise for us.  Ronaldo our butler was wonderful and our concierge rearranged our schedule several times which we really appreciated.  Renaldo escorted us to all our dinners and shows.  Basically, walked right in and sat us down.  No waiting and we used the crew elevators to get to the venues and restaurants.  Very unique experience.

Cabins – We had 2 HG, Forward facing penthouse with balcony cabins on the 9^th and 10^th floor and they were wonderful.  Our boys really enjoyed theirs given the space.  Separate sitting area, very large bathroom, etc.  They allowed us to keep the boys registered in their cabin which I thought for sure they would change when we checked in given we were on different floors after our upgrades were accepted.  They didn’t and it make things a lot easier not having to do the cruise card shuffle.

Haven – Wow, what an experience.  As mentioned above the butler and concierge were awesome, however, having access to that private area, pools, etc was huge, especially during these times.  Everyone had their own area either with a cabana, clamshell, lounger, etc and we weren’t all on top of each other. The main pool area wasn’t as crowded as a full capacity cruise, but still pretty packed. Ill post a pic we took if I can figure that out.  Overall, I don’t think we can sail NCL again without the Haven.  Such a unique experience.

Ship – Good design, relatively easy to get around.  Water slides and go karts were awesome.  Go Karts were pretty fast.  We thought it was just a gimmicky thing, but they were actually a lot of fun.  I will say the pool area was a little odd.  There is a very large open area in the middle which feels like there should be a pool there, instead, its just a big open floor area.  Not sure what the thought there was given the small pool they did have was always packed.  Again, not an issue for us given the haven pool rarely had anyone in them.  We did notice some vibration as mentioned in other posts, especially in the back.  We only felt it in our cabin when we were docking or leaving port, however, when we had dinner at the French and steak restaurants, we did feel it quite a bit so if you had a cabin the rear of the ship, it may be annoying.  We did hear one passenger changed cabins which is no issue right now given the limited capacity but may become one in the future when they are back to full capacity.  Again, not an issue for us, but did exist.

Shore excursions – We did the snorkeling excursion in Belize and scuba in Costa Maya.  The Belize snorkeling was booked through the ship and was good, visibility wasn’t great, but nothing to do with the tour operator.  It was about a 15 minute boat trip to an island where we snorkeled about about an hour.  Good overall tour.  In Costa maya, we had to book our own because they didn’t offer any scuba on the ship.  We used Maradentro diving and they were awesome.  Our sons are not certified and they were given the instruction before the dive.  We then did about a 40 foot dive that was about a 5 minute boat ride out to the site.  Awesome visibility, awesome dive master.  Cant say enough good things about this experience.  We were a little nervous about booking outside of the ship, but had no problems and the dive shop is maybe a 5 minute cab ride from the port. 

Masks – Ok here we go…  I would say compliance was 50-75% depending on the time of day and where you were on the ship.  Most restaurants enforced them and would give you one if you didn’t have one.  Especially the buffet.  It wasn’t the end of the world, but did take a bit from the experience because we would forget our masks and have to go to the cabin to get another one or find a crew member that had a box of them. Also if you are prone to sea sickness, its not fun wearing a mask.  It was pretty rough when we left costa maya and the mask just made my seasickness worse.  Also, we were told about the mask mandate a day before the cruise so there were some very unhappy passengers.  I did feel bad for the cruise staff because they were put in an uncomfortable situation of trying to enforce it and not upset anyone.  I was asked by one of the officers what I thought and I told him its not the end of the world, but the no mask policy is one of the main reasons we booked NCL so we were somewhat disappointed. 

Capacity – Ronaldo said we were at about 3k passengers and the norm was 4500-5000.  Where you really felt the lower capacity was in the hallways.  We rarely passed anyone walking to the elevators.  The rest of the ship did feel somewhat less crowded, but it did bunch up in the high traffic areas. Pool, Shopping area, etc

Overall, this would have probably been one of the best cruises we have taken to date ,but it did have that pandemic black cloud over it.  Would we do it again which still in this pandemic state? Maybe. We spent quite a bit of money for those two cabins so I would have to weigh that against the negatives of the masks, testing, etc.  I will say, less people of the ship was a nice perk. 

Happy to answer questions.

Thx

 

[BirdTravels]

Thanks so much for sharing your experience. 3K is one of the higher numbers I have seen. Our cruises have been a lot less. We have a 2 BR Haven booked early next year and can’t wait. 

[Sixtytwo]

Sounds like a worthwhile cruise for your family! Doubt we will ever be Haven guests but sure enjoyed reading your experience and apparent excitement!

[gatorchinsky]

We were on the same sailing.  We had a great time even with the mask situation.  I would have never guessed there were roughly 3k passengers.  We never felt the ship was crowded.  We are also use to sailing during Thanksgiving week when the ships are at max capacity.  There were always crew cleaning, cleaning and cleaning.  Every crew member we encountered were so friendly and went above and beyond to be helpful.

[Sthrngary]

Glad to hear you had a good time.  My family and I were on the Joy November 27.  We also had a great time.  I am sorry that the mask thing happened and I know it would have been better without it.  

 

As you experienced, we also really enjoyed the Haven and made some friends with the crew.  I think we are all so fortunate to have cruised at a lower capacity.  Once in a lifetime opportunity.  I really appreciate you being transparent and open.  It really helps all of us when making choices for future cruise. 

 

A Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yours.  

 

Cruise well.

[BermudaBound2014]

Thank you for the lovely report. I must admit that I never even thought about mask-wearing effecting sea sickness. I do get queasy at times, so it is great to be prepared. Happiest of holidays to you!

[JCDCA]

The mask wearing is really not a big burden.  Outside, no mask.  Eating/drinking, no mask.  Essentially when heading from venue to venue.  I’m also not sure how people constantly forget them - it’s a routine.  Leave the cabin, have a mask.  

[Lou33]

11 hours ago, 20165 said:

Happy to answer questions.

 

Do you remember the name of the dance/party band that was on the ship?  Were they from the Philippines?  Was it possibly "Kenosis" or "Next Stage".  Thanks.

[debnjoe1438]

Thanks for the review. Looking forward to my cruise in 35 days. Regarding the testing, was there just one general line, or a line for those with a bar code and one for those without? 

 

[bkrickles1]

Just wondering for anyone who's been on Joy. One of my favorite daytime areas is the public sundeck on deck 19 with the bar and hot tub. On Escape the lounge chairs were the same as what was around the pool area. I seem to have seen somewhere the lounge chairs on Joy being more luxurious with padding in that area. 

Anybody know? 

 

[brobin111]

We were on the same cruise, also in the Haven along with family mambers in 4 other Haven suites.  Our travel agent checked with NCL the day before the cruise to see if they were simply asking or requiring that masks be worn and he was told they were just asking and NOT requiring masks. The only place they insisted on a mask was on entering the Joy Theater where most took them off when seated.  

 The covid testing was poorly organized and took almost two hours.  Those who had the barcodes were moved forward in the line and I was glad we had them.  Once in the building it was a superspreader event if I ever saw one.  Hundreds of people lined up 4 abreast.  Once we were sent to a testing station they didn't even scan the bar code but entered everything manually defeating the whole purpose of having them and slowing the process further.  Once issued a covid wrist band and released from that hell we made our way to the Haven check-in where, again, the boarding bar codes were ignored.  

 Once onboard things were fine and at no time, except for the theater, were we required to have a mask.

 We had driven to the port and parked in the garage adjacent to the NCL terminal.  We were parked on the 6th floor and it took exactly 1 hour to exit the garage.  With everybody leaving at the same time they had one booth open for payment and all the pre-payment maching were out of order.  NCL doesn't operate the garage but you'd think they'd exert some influence.  So two hours wasted before boarding and another wasted hour leaving makes an otherwise enjoyable cruise not worth the effort.  Never again!

[jeremybe]

We were on the same cruise as well - I'll post a formal review later but a few key points:

 

Covid Testing: We arrived at 10:45 and was in our cabin by 11:45 - Was glad I had my barcode - I didn't feel it was badly organized, but totally agree with the comment above re: Superspreader event

 

Masks:  It was rare to see someone with a mask - Maybe 10% - When a crew member actually saw you wearing a mask, they thanked you - I heard a number of angry comments from passengers that the reason they booked NCL was because of their mask free policy and that they planned on skipping masks - As stated above, only time masks were required was in main theatre, which honestly made little sense - The Cavern which was much more packed due to a great Beatles cover band did not require masks

 

The Positives: Phenomenal Crew, some of the best entertainment I have ever seen on a ship - From the music to the shows in the main theatre all were executed extremely well and were thoroughly enjoyable - The food was surprisingly good as well - Not something I would usually say about NCL

 

THE STRONG NEGATIVE: VIBRATION IN AFT OF SHIP - I had a Haven Aft balcony cabin -  After leaving Miami on the first night we were woken up to the most intense vibration I have ever felt in my life  - The room was unusable - Between the vibration, the noise from everything rattling etc it was the worst cruise experience of my life (I've been on 30 or more cruises) - 3:30 in the morning I was at Guest Services were I was given a second "sleeping room" - On day 2 we complained to the Concierge about the tiny room we were given and we were then moved to a Haven Balcony room to sleep in - SO we had two rooms for the cruise - Unfortunately the 2 bathroom 1 1/2 Bedroom suite we paid for was unusable - Speaking to our Cabin Steward, she told us that most passengers in the aft of the ship had moved out of the aft - She also mentioned that this had been going on with ALL cruises since the Joy entered service. In addition, she said that in all of her years of cruising she has never felt anything like this.

 

At this point in time, if you are booking a cruise on the JOY - I would avoid at least the last 10 aft cabins on the ship on all decks - Also know that if you plan on going to the specialty restaurants in the aft of the ship it will potentially be uncomfortable due to vibration
 

I plan on contacting NCL on Monday to discuss the issues I had - The cabins on the aft of this ship should not be sold - The JOY has an issue - A Bad propeller, stabilizer - Who knows - But it definitely ruined what would have been a great vacation

[vacation44]

11 hours ago, jeremybe said:

We were on the same cruise as well - I'll post a formal review later but a few key points:

 

Covid Testing: We arrived at 10:45 and was in our cabin by 11:45 - Was glad I had my barcode - I didn't feel it was badly organized, but totally agree with the comment above re: Superspreader event

 

Masks:  It was rare to see someone with a mask - Maybe 10% - When a crew member actually saw you wearing a mask, they thanked you - I heard a number of angry comments from passengers that the reason they booked NCL was because of their mask free policy and that they planned on skipping masks - As stated above, only time masks were required was in main theatre, which honestly made little sense - The Cavern which was much more packed due to a great Beatles cover band did not require masks

 

The Positives: Phe

 

THE STRONG NEGATIVE: VIBRATION IN AFT OF SHIP - I had a Haven Aft balcony cabin -  After leaving Miami on the first night we were woken up to the most intense vibration I have ever felt in my life  - The room was unusable - Between the vibration, the noise from everything rattling etc it was the worst cruise experience of my life (I've been on 30 or more cruises) - 3:30 in the morning I was at Guest Services were I was given a second "sleeping room" - On day 2 we complained to the Concierge about the tiny room we were given and we were then moved to a Haven Balcony room to sleep in - SO we had two rooms for the cruise - Unfortunately the 2 bathroom 1 1/2 Bedroom suite we paid for was unusable - Speaking to our Cabin Steward, she told us that most passengers in the aft of the ship had moved out of the aft - She also mentioned that this had been going on with ALL cruises since the Joy entered service. In addition, she said that in all of her years of cruising she has never felt anything like this.

 

At this point in time, if you are booking a cruise on the JOY - I would avoid at least the last 10 aft cabins on the ship on all decks - Also know that if you plan on going to the specialty restaurants in the aft of the ship it will potentially be uncomfortable due to vibration
 

Wow.   To me, unacceptable after spending so much money.   Thank you for writing about it as I was thinking of trying to bid for an aft cabin.   I will definitely now stay in the Haven Penthouse Suite ( or whatever it is called) which we currently have booked .

[jeremybe]

21 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

Wow.   To me, unacceptable after spending so much money.   Thank you for writing about it as I was thinking of trying to bid for an aft cabin.   I will definitely now stay in the Haven Penthouse Suite ( or whatever it is called) which we currently have booked .

 

Glad to help - We still had a great time but feel ripped off by NCL for the cabin - I will be asking for compensation from NCL - I'll also add, I'm a Travel Agent and plan to let the NCL reps as well as all other agents within my company know about this issue to protect our customers

[duckey.l]

I love aft balconies and have one booked for our Feb cruise. Not sure what I can do about it now since I have already paid in full.

[jeremybe]

6 minutes ago, duckey.l said:

I love aft balconies and have one booked for our Feb cruise. Not sure what I can do about it now since I have already paid in full.

 

I would call NCL and try to change cabins - YOU WILL NOT ENJOY this AFT cabin - We typically book Aft cabins as well and this is the only time we have ever had an issue

[Sthrngary]

19 hours ago, bkrickles1 said:

Just wondering for anyone who's been on Joy. One of my favorite daytime areas is the public sundeck on deck 19 with the bar and hot tub. On Escape the lounge chairs were the same as what was around the pool area. I seem to have seen somewhere the lounge chairs on Joy being more luxurious with padding in that area. 

Anybody know? 

 

I think that is only in the Vibe Beach Club and the Haven Sundeck area if my recent memory is correct.

 

Cruise well.

[coffeebean]

18 hours ago, jeremybe said:

THE STRONG NEGATIVE: VIBRATION IN AFT OF SHIP - I had a Haven Aft balcony cabin -  After leaving Miami on the first night we were woken up to the most intense vibration I have ever felt in my life  - The room was unusable - Between the vibration, the noise from everything rattling etc it was the worst cruise experience of my life (I've been on 30 or more cruises) - 3:30 in the morning I was at Guest Services were I was given a second "sleeping room" - On day 2 we complained to the Concierge about the tiny room we were given and we were then moved to a Haven Balcony room to sleep in - SO we had two rooms for the cruise - Unfortunately the 2 bathroom 1 1/2 Bedroom suite we paid for was unusable - Speaking to our Cabin Steward, she told us that most passengers in the aft of the ship had moved out of the aft - She also mentioned that this had been going on with ALL cruises since the Joy entered service. In addition, she said that in all of her years of cruising she has never felt anything like this.

 

At this point in time, if you are booking a cruise on the JOY - I would avoid at least the last 10 aft cabins on the ship on all decks - Also know that if you plan on going to the specialty restaurants in the aft of the ship it will potentially be uncomfortable due to vibration
 

I plan on contacting NCL on Monday to discuss the issues I had - The cabins on the aft of this ship should not be sold - The JOY has an issue - A Bad propeller, stabilizer - Who knows - But it definitely ruined what would have been a great vacation

Your experience in an aft cabin is exactly what we experienced. Hubby and I had an aft facing balcony cabin on deck 14, embarked December 11, 2021. That gorgeous view was not worth the amount of vibration, shuttering and creaking we experienced in the cabin. Just as you did, we wound up at customer service at 1:00 in the morning requesting a cabin just to sleep in for the night. We had tried to sleep for two hours but to no avail.

 

As an aside......three weeks prior to our NCL Joy cruise, we cruised on Royal's Serenade OTS in an aft facing balcony cabin. That entire four day cruise was smooth as silk so we were gob smacked with what we experienced on the Joy.

 

Back to customer service...........we were given a balcony cabin on deck 14 just forward of the aft elevators. There was still a considerable vibration in that cabin so.......off to customer service we went. We did, however, walk deck 14 all the way forward to see if there was vibration there. The further forward we walked, the vibration was less and less. We requested a cabin as far forward as possible and we were given a cabin several cabins forward of the forward elevators. Needless to say, that cabin was smooth as silk. So.....by 3:00 am we were settled for the night and got some sleep

 

The next morning, we took a walk from our smooth as silk cabin to the vibrating aft facing cabin we had all our belongings in. I told my husband I will not spend one more night in that aft facing cabin. So........... we spoke to a manager about changing our cabin permanently. We were given a mini suite on a lower deck but very far forward which was fine with us. It was a "wash" that our cabin was upgraded but we lost the aft facing view. We were happy campers with what NCL did for us.

 

Agree, there is certainly something wrong with Joy for the aft to have such severe vibration. Yes, we did experience the vibration in Cagney's and Le Bistro but we didn't have to sleep there. LOL.

 

Edited December 26, 2021 by coffeebean

[bkrickles1]

I was wondering if there has been any missed ports or canceled shows on Joy on her recent or current sailings? 

[Niffernay]

On 12/24/2021 at 2:19 PM, 20165 said:

Overall, I don’t think we can sail NCL again without the Haven.  Such a unique experience.

We did it for the first time three cruises ago and we will NEVER go back.  We are so spoiled.  {now off to get a second job to pay for it 🤣}

[20165]

Couple of answers / observations to the questions above.  

In regards to vibration, we did experience it in the la bistro and Cagney's at the rear of the ship.  Wasnt horrible, but definitely felt it, especially leaving miami for some reason.  Luckily our cabin was in the very front of the ship so no issues in our cabin.

No ports were missed.

In regards to the comments about the testing situation when getting on the ship, i will agree they packed us in there too tightly waiting on our results.  Pretty much shoulder to shoulder when waiting for the results.  

Also, We are part of a facebook group for this cruise and it looks like over 20 people have tested positive so for for covid after leaving the ship.  The group is made up of about 120 people.   Granted, they could have gotten it from the plane, hotel, etc, but that seems like a pretty high percentage.

[jeremybe]

59 minutes ago, 20165 said:

Couple of answers / observations to the questions above.  

In regards to vibration, we did experience it in the la bistro and Cagney's at the rear of the ship.  Wasnt horrible, but definitely felt it, especially leaving miami for some reason.  Luckily our cabin was in the very front of the ship so no issues in our cabin.

No ports were missed.

In regards to the comments about the testing situation when getting on the ship, i will agree they packed us in there too tightly waiting on our results.  Pretty much shoulder to shoulder when waiting for the results.  

Also, We are part of a facebook group for this cruise and it looks like over 20 people have tested positive so for for covid after leaving the ship.  The group is made up of about 120 people.   Granted, they could have gotten it from the plane, hotel, etc, but that seems like a pretty high percentage.

 

Considering nobody wore masks and nobody spaced at all on the ship I am not surprised at all - The main deck was always busy with no social distancing at all ...

[vacation44]

Any information on Vibe?

[20165]

1 hour ago, jeremybe said:

 

Considering nobody wore masks and nobody spaced at all on the ship I am not surprised at all - The main deck was always busy with no social distancing at all ...

I wouldnt 100% agree that nobody wore masks.  I think it was 50/50 and i base that on how many people i saw on the elevators wearing masks.  We tried to wear them indoors and sometimes when walking around the pool area. 

The main pool area was crowded, especially during sea days, but we didnt really spend any time there.

[20165]

22 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

Any information on Vibe?

it wasnt too crowded.  I saw some open chairs during the sea days and the jacuzzi had maybe 5-10 people in it which wasnt too bad give it was really big.  People were pretty spaced out in there. Bar area was also not very crowded.  Now we didnt spend any time in there, just in and out to check it out so maybe we hit it at a non crowded time.