Recent Joy Cruisers in Aft Cabins

[vacation44]

Last month there were a lot of complaints regarding the Joy aft cabins with vibration issues.  Wondering if anyone has any recent experience with these cabins.   With the newest price drop for our sailing, I can upgrade our Haven Penthouse to an Aft for $200. 

[bkrickles1]

12 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

Last month there were a lot of complaints regarding the Joy aft cabins with vibration issues.  Wondering if anyone has any recent experience with these cabins.   With the newest price drop for our sailing, I can upgrade our Haven Penthouse to an Aft for $200. 

That's a once in a lifetime deal.

I think I'd jump on it.

I'd bet on the fact that the vibration is probably similar to how it is on most ships, but I have no first hand knowledge.

I'm sailing Joy January 15th and my aunt and uncle have an aft balcony, which is what they choose on every sailing, and they're not concerned at all.

We're more concerned with actually making it onboard. Lmao!

Hope you have a great trip!

[cruising sister]

I would search for posts about the vibrations. We were on the Joy end of November and the vibrations we felt walking Aft on deck 8 were horrible. Reading posts since then confirms that many people had to move due to the vibrations. Hopefully they will come back here to answer your questions. 

[lkj1301]

        We were on the Joy 12/11 - 12/18 Haven corner aft 13958.  The worst days were the 1st 2 nights

(travel down to Roatan) and the night we left Cozumel on the way back to Miami.  I was told Captain was traveling at a higher rate of speed than the cruise say from Belize to Costa Maya or Costa Maya to Cozumel.  Also, we were going against the current.  The1st night we weren't able to sleep at all.  The 2nd night they gave us a different cabin to sleep in for the rest of the week if needed since the Haven was "sold out."  The 2nd to last night was "livable" but I still would not have wanted the noise/vibration for the entire trip.

I have read on these boards (sorry can't remember where), that this problem was a known problem.

Why they haven't fixed it or changed the itinerary so we wouldn't have to speed down to Roatan is beyond me.  

Sorry if this doesn't help or not what you were hoping to hear.

I will say the concierge, Armando in particular did everything in his power to resolve the situation.

The room and balcony, other than noise and vibration were really nice. And our butler Loy and room steward Mohammed were great also.

DH will probably never let me book another aft cabin again on the Joy even if the problem is resolved.

[Oxo]

2 hours ago, lkj1301 said:

        We were on the Joy 12/11 - 12/18 Haven corner aft 13958.  The worst days were the 1st 2 nights

(travel down to Roatan) and the night we left Cozumel on the way back to Miami.  I was told Captain was traveling at a higher rate of speed than the cruise say from Belize to Costa Maya or Costa Maya to Cozumel.  Also, we were going against the current.  The1st night we weren't able to sleep at all.  The 2nd night they gave us a different cabin to sleep in for the rest of the week if needed since the Haven was "sold out."  The 2nd to last night was "livable" but I still would not have wanted the noise/vibration for the entire trip.

I have read on these boards (sorry can't remember where), that this problem was a known problem.

Why they haven't fixed it or changed the itinerary so we wouldn't have to speed down to Roatan is beyond me.  

Sorry if this doesn't help or not what you were hoping to hear.

I will say the concierge, Armando in particular did everything in his power to resolve the situation.

The room and balcony, other than noise and vibration were really nice. And our butler Loy and room steward Mohammed were great also.

DH will probably never let me book another aft cabin again on the Joy even if the problem is resolved.

We were on the Joy 11/20 in 1580. Lot of movement, noise and long walk to elevator.

Then on 11/27 moved to 13200. MID ship. Excellent! 

Never felt movement in any Specialty Restaurants and we ate in them 13 out of 14 days.

Stay Safe! 

[aubreyc1988]

hmmm thanks for this thread. Was thinking about upgrading to the Haven aft facing penthouse from my forward facing one. A lot to consider, esp since that balcony on the aft facing one looks amazing

[Sand and Seas]

I.m looking  at Joy again and we love the aft balconies.  (We had 2 Joy cruise cancellations)

 

Has anybody been in deck 9 or 12 Aft?

[vacation44]

4 hours ago, cruising sister said:

 Reading posts since then confirms that many people had to move due to the vibrations. Hopefully they will come back here to answer your questions. 

This is what is concerning me.  My husband will not be too happy having to move in the middle of the night.   Thank you for your input.

3 hours ago, lkj1301 said:

        We were on the Joy 12/11 - 12/18 Haven corner aft 13958.  The worst days were the 1st 2 nights

(travel down to Roatan) and the night we left Cozumel on the way back to Miami.  I was told Captain was traveling at a higher rate of speed than the cruise say from Belize to Costa Maya or Costa Maya to Cozumel.  Also, we were going against the current.  The1st night we weren't able to sleep at all.  The 2nd night they gave us a different cabin to sleep in for the rest of the week if needed since the Haven was "sold out."  The 2nd to last night was "livable" but I still would not have wanted the noise/vibration for the entire trip.

I have read on these boards (sorry can't remember where), that this problem was a known problem.

Why they haven't fixed it or changed the itinerary so we wouldn't have to speed down to Roatan is beyond me.  

Sorry if this doesn't help or not what you were hoping to hear.

I will say the concierge, Armando in particular did everything in his power to resolve the situation.

The room and balcony, other than noise and vibration were really nice. And our butler Loy and room steward Mohammed were great also.

DH will probably never let me book another aft cabin again on the Joy even if the problem is resolved.

Thank you!   This is exactly the kind of information I was looking for.    Would rather hear the truth than not be forewarned.    

46 minutes ago, aubreyc1988 said:

hmmm thanks for this thread. Was thinking about upgrading to the Haven aft facing penthouse from my forward facing one. A lot to consider, esp since that balcony on the aft facing one looks amazing

You are welcome.   The Joy Aft Haven cabins do look amazing, but I am not sure I am going to take the chance just yet.    My husband does not even know we changed our cabin to a Haven Penthouse so he would be fine.  But, our 25th wedding anniversary will be on this cruise and it will be the first vacation without our two young adult children so I thought the Aft Haven would be just perfect.     I think I will wait it out another week.

4 hours ago, bkrickles1 said:

I'm sailing Joy January 15th and my aunt and uncle have an aft balcony, which is what they choose on every sailing, and they're not concerned at all.

We're more concerned with actually making it onboard. Lmao!

Hope you have a great trip!

Thank you and you too my fellow Long Islander.   Please report back their experience with their Aft cabin.  

[gilbey112]

57 minutes ago, aubreyc1988 said:

hmmm thanks for this thread. Was thinking about upgrading to the Haven aft facing penthouse from my forward facing one. A lot to consider, esp since that balcony on the aft facing one looks amazing

We were on the Joy for the Nov. 27th cruise and I will say the vibrations were horrible in the aft suite 11966. We usually take an aft suite and have never felt anything like this. !st, 2nd and 4th nights were so bad we couldn't sleep. I'd recommend staying forward till they fix whatever it is. We were told they were running against the tide faster than normal-- we've been on this same itinerary multiple times and never had an issue on any other ship. Aft suites are usually wonderful. Good luck!

[vacation44]

9 minutes ago, gilbey112 said:

We were on the Joy for the Nov. 27th cruise and I will say the vibrations were horrible in the aft suite 11966. We usually take an aft suite and have never felt anything like this. !st, 2nd and 4th nights were so bad we couldn't sleep. I'd recommend staying forward till they fix whatever it is. We were told they were running against the tide faster than normal-- we've been on this same itinerary multiple times and never had an issue on any other ship. Aft suites are usually wonderful. Good luck!

Thank you for sharing your experience.    

[lkj1301]

4 hours ago, vacation44 said:

 The Joy Aft Haven cabins do look amazing, but I am not sure I am going to take the chance just yet.    My husband does not even know we changed our cabin to a Haven Penthouse so he would be fine.  But, our 25th wedding anniversary will be on this cruise and it will be the first vacation without our two young adult children so I thought the Aft Haven would be just perfect.     I think I will wait it out another week.

 

The views from the aft suite are amazing, but until the "fix" the problem or change the itinerary, I'd stay away from the aft cabins.

 

You'll have a wonderful cruise in the Haven Penthouse especially with no children.

Happy anniversary, enjoy the cruise.

Lorie

[vacation44]

12 hours ago, lkj1301 said:

The views from the aft suite are amazing, but until the "fix" the problem or change the itinerary, I'd stay away from the aft cabins.

 

You'll have a wonderful cruise in the Haven Penthouse especially with no children.

Happy anniversary, enjoy the cruise.

Lorie

Thank you.  We always stay in the mini suites with large balcony so the Haven Penthouse should be amazing too.  It is such a shame about the aft vibration issue.

[CWMixer]

We've been in Haven Aft twice on Bliss, sister ship to Joy: no problems with vibration, etc., so I'm curious why there's a different experience (especially as we have a Haven Aft on Joy booked for '23)?

 

The Haven Aft has become our favorite room: separate bedroom, 2 baths, big balcony with great views, and the distance to the Haven isn't an issue to us: below is Bliss #13306:

 

Hopefully the Joy problem(s) get fixed!

 

[vacation44]

31 minutes ago, CWMixer said:

We've been in Haven Aft twice on Bliss, sister ship to Joy: no problems with vibration, etc., so I'm curious why there's a different experience (especially as we have a Haven Aft on Joy booked for '23)?

 

The Haven Aft has become our favorite room: separate bedroom, 2 baths, big balcony with great views, and the distance to the Haven isn't an issue to us: below is Bliss #13306:

 

Hopefully the Joy problem(s) get fixed!

 

Thank you for your input and the beautiful picture.  From what I have read, it seems to be a Joy issue.   Very bad vibration during some nights.   I have read four recent accounts of it so far so it is concerning to me.    The amazing balcony might not make up for not being able to sleep some nights.  

[Karaboudjan]

15 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

Thank you for your input and the beautiful picture.  From what I have read, it seems to be a Joy issue.   Very bad vibration during some nights.   I have read four recent accounts of it so far so it is concerning to me.    The amazing balcony might not make up for not being able to sleep some nights.  

Ships are so complicated that no two will ever be identical.  I'm sure this vibration is not intentional but it is probably hard to diagnose and/or fix without taking the ship out of service.

[aubreyc1988]

found this video, thanks to the creator. 

[aubreyc1988]

At this point, if the prices go down and I can upgrade at little to no cost I will probably do it (I am partially deaf so sound doesn't bother me like other people) but I probably will not put in a bid to upgrade to this cabin category (they want min bid 300pp right now)

[vacation44]

8 minutes ago, aubreyc1988 said:

At this point, if the prices go down and I can upgrade at little to no cost I will probably do it (I am partially deaf so sound doesn't bother me like other people) but I probably will not put in a bid to upgrade to this cabin category (they want min bid 300pp right now)

For me, as I mentioned above, it would cost me $200!   

 

If it was just me, I would chance it.  However, knowing my husband as well as I do, I do not think I can take the chance.   A few months back we were in a hotel and the battery in the smoke detector started chirping in the middle of the night and we had to have it changed out at 2:00 a.m. because the chirping was driving him crazy.    Me, I can sleep through anything.  Not him.

 

Please report back your experience if you do decide to go for it and I hope you end up having no issues and an amazing sailing.   

[aubreyc1988]

Just now, vacation44 said:

For me, as I mentioned above, it would cost me $200!   

 

If it was just me, I would chance it.  However, knowing my husband as well as I do, I do not think I can take the chance.   A few months back we were in a hotel and the battery in the smoke detector started chirping in the middle of the night and we had to have it changed out at 2:00 a.m. because the chirping was driving him crazy.    Me, I can sleep through anything.  Not him.

 

Please report back your experience if you do decide to go for it and I hope you end up having no issues and an amazing sailing.   

I plan to do semi live review to watch out for it 😄  On my last cruise that I on went with a friend, the Bliss had some sort of malfunction and started playing latin music super loud at 3am for about 45 min duration. I slept through it. My friend was amazed, I told her this is why I need someone in my room in case of an emergency lol

[vacation44]

3 minutes ago, aubreyc1988 said:

I plan to do semi live review to watch out for it 😄  On my last cruise that I on went with a friend, the Bliss had some sort of malfunction and started playing latin music super loud at 3am for about 45 min duration. I slept through it. My friend was amazed, I told her this is why I need someone in my room in case of an emergency lol

Will certainly follow along and it still gives me a few weeks to upgrade!  Right now, there are three left.  

[Two Wheels Only]

21 hours ago, gilbey112 said:

We were on the Joy for the Nov. 27th cruise and I will say the vibrations were horrible in the aft suite 11966. We usually take an aft suite and have never felt anything like this. !st, 2nd and 4th nights were so bad we couldn't sleep. I'd recommend staying forward till they fix whatever it is. We were told they were running against the tide faster than normal-- we've been on this same itinerary multiple times and never had an issue on any other ship. Aft suites are usually wonderful. Good luck!

 

There was an issue a few years ago on Breakaway that may have matched what you describe on Joy. The issue was either a propeller or azipod that needed to be fixed (I don't remember). After Breakaway's dry dock, I haven't seen anyone complain that the issue was still there. Joy might need a similar adjustment. 

 

A minor shimmy is normal. The violent shaking that many describe is not normal. 

 

 

3 hours ago, CWMixer said:

The Haven Aft has become our favorite room: separate bedroom, 2 baths, big balcony with great views, and the distance to the Haven isn't an issue to us: below is Bliss #13306

 

Deck 13 has the smallest aft-facing balconies for both the BA and BA Plus ships. 

[Brian V]

After reading this (and other threads) I am glad they bumped us up to a midship club balcony from our aft standard balcony for our Feb 12 sailing.

Perhaps this is the reason why - to pre-empt complaints?

Not aware of anyone else getting moved though so...

[vacation44]

9 minutes ago, Brian V said:

After reading this (and other threads) I am glad they bumped us up to a midship club balcony from our aft standard balcony for our Feb 12 sailing.

Perhaps this is the reason why - to pre-empt complaints?

Not aware of anyone else getting moved though so...

Very interesting and thank you for sharing.   So they moved you weeks before sailing for a better cabin at no additional cost?   What cabin were you suppose to be in?  

[Brian V]

Were originally booked in 11336 so what, 10 cabins from fully aft, got moved to between the elevator banks still on deck 11.

Was quite surprised to get this, we did not request or pay for it.

At first we were worried they had bumped us to a higher category, but not really better cabin (worse location or something) but was pleasantly surprised 🙂

As long as we actually get to cruise, I would have been happy either way!

[CWMixer]

1 hour ago, Two Wheels Only said:

Deck 13 has the smallest aft-facing balconies for both the BA and BA Plus ships. 

 

That was our first time in an Aft Balcony: 13th floor were the only ones left.  We had no idea they had the smallest balconies or some had the bathroom at the balcony.

I later found your posts on the relative balcony sizes and room arrangements, and keep a summary for reference when booking: very helpful! (we prefer the bedroom at the balcony).