We love NCL. We have two more cruises booked for 2023. The only issues we had with this sailing were logistical. The onboard crew was as amazing as ever. They always go above and beyond to deliver a wonderful, memorable experience for every guest. The Panama Canal Transit is definitely a do not miss experience!
Embarkation
1 out of 5
All aspects of getting to embarkation port were seamless. NCL booked flights and transfers were great. Upon arrival at Port Canaveral progress halted. Due to a "connectivity issue", staff were unable to check anyone in. Regardless of priority boarding status, Haven booking, special needs considerations, no check-in was occurring. After several hours in a packed terminal (we were at 75% capacity for this sailing), the issue was resolved and the check-in process started. The boarding delays resulted in delayed sail away.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Main Dining Rooms: Manhattan Room, Taste and Savor. Our preference was Taste on Joy. Menus are the same, we just preferred the ambiance Taste offered.
Specialty Dining: We visited La Cucina (2x); Q's; Le Bistro; and Cagney's. Our first time for LA Cucina and Q's. LA Cucina was delightful. Q's was large quantities of average food. Probably won't repeat Q's.
Buffet: Garden Cafe was the best buffet we have experienced on a cruise. Not just NCL, but any cruise line. Large selection, food temperature was appropriate, not overdone or dry like we have experienced at other buffets.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
This sailing was at about 75% capacity but there were very few children onboard. Usually pool decks are crowded with families. We pre-purchased passes for Vibe Beach Club to ensure a comfortable deck chair, with umbrella, in an adults only area. We have children and grandchildren but this trip was just us and we wanted an adult experience. Vibe was great - friendly staff, refreshing snacks, cool towels, smoothies, fruit-infused water, and cocktails delivered to your chaise lounge.
Husband visited the fitness center. He felt is was well appointed for being on a cruise ship.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Footloose was rescheduled but we were still able to see it. It was entertaining but not the best NCL show we have seen. Priscilla: Queen of the Desert and Six were far better.
Elements was canceled on the final sea day so we weren't able to see it. We were looking forward to it as we had enjoyed it on another NCL ship. That was disappointing as there was no time to reschedule for another day.
Comedian Dylan Mendelson's 18+ comedy show was entertaining. We didn't find Comedian Larry Omaha to be all that funny. We left a few minutes into that show.
Children's Programs
No children traveled with us.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
When we boarded, the room steward assigned to our stateroom was ill. A "floater" attended to our room for the first few days of our trip. We were very happy with him. We were not happy with the steward that returned to work about 4 days into the cruise. Rommel (Housekeeping Supervisor) was very responsive and assigned our original steward (floater that covered during illness) to our room for rhe remainder of the cruise.
Assistant Maitre Ds: Sheila and Ronny were amazing and seemed to be everywhere at once. We would see them at 9:00pm and again at 7:00am.
Waiters: Ahmad and Gwen were fabulous at La Cucina. We saw them in the main dining rooms too.
Restaurant Hostess: Melba was wonderful. She learned our names and cabin number quickly and greeted us by name before we could even give her our info.
Bartenders: Chris and Happy at Vibe Beach Club were very friendly and made for a great experience.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Joy is a beautiful ship and always spotless. Crew works tirelessly to maintain all areas of the ship. We even tipped the lovely young woman that was always stationed at the Deck 10 Foward elevator bank. She was always cleaning and calling elevator for guests.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Cabin was very nice. I'm not sure if it was deck level or forward/starboard location but the balcony door rattled often. It was more of a nuisance that a problem but worth noting. I would not book this cabin again as I am a light sleeper and the crew access door is close to this cabin. Rolling carts and vacuums and such, rolling in and out was noisy at night. It didn't bother my husband but I would avoid in future.
Ship tip
Joy has had some mechanical issues. Several instances of propulsion problems. She had to be towed into port in November after Azipod failed. On the cruise after ours, she was delayed in leaving port at Cabo San Lucas as they were unable to raise the anchor. Be patient and go with the flow.
Late sail away delayed arrival at Cartagena. Our excursion was canceled. We visited the port facility and returned to ship. Can't really rate port and we weren't able to experience it.
AMAZING!! This is a bucket list experience. Joy is a mega ship so we went through the new (2016) locks. It was so informative and historical I will definitely do this itinerary on a smaller ship through the old locks in the future.
We booked the Highlights of Panama City excursion. The excursion itself was decent but we had an awful guide. Olda was our guide. She began by telling us how corrupt her country was, told us about her education in tourism industry and that she was married to a Dutch man. Very little information about Panama history, couldn't answer specific questions about the area, skipped portions of the tour other guides were covering (we listened in on another group to learn about colonial Panama), Olda took a group of nearly 40 people on foot to a museum that refused entry due to a mask requirement. She didn't advise of any requirement, didn't provide masks, and then rushed on to make sure she covered the obligatory number of historical sites within the excursion time. Didn't give much time to enjoy any of the sites.
We booked the Antigua On Your Own excursion through NCL. Mirko was our guide on the bus. He was very knowledgeable and escorted us to the Jade Factory in Antigua before turning us loose to explore. This is a beautiful, historical city. A lot to see. We were there on Sunday, December 11th, and saw the locals celebration of the Virgin Mary with a procession. Children dressed as angels, performers on stilts etc. Museo Nacional de Arte de Guatemala (MUNAG) was very cool.
We did the Cliff Divers Express excursion in Acapulco. Short bus ride to site, make your way down the steps to a good vantage point. Our guide suggested the upper terrace. Better for people with mobility issues as the steps are steep and uneven. Very cool to watch different age groups perform dives. Shopping in an adjacent shop and then back to port.
We did the Marietas Islands Eco Adventure. Walked from ship to catamaran. A couple hours to islands, a couple hours snorkeling and kayaking (only two, 2-person kayaks onboard), lunch and drinks while you travel back to ship. We intended to kayak but upon learning there were not individual kayaks nor enough to go around, we skipped it and stayed on the catamaran. It was beautiful scenery and an enjoyable day on the water but not what we expected.
We did the NCL booked Pacific Beach Horseback Ride excursion in Cabo San Lucas. A 30-40 minute bus ride to Cactus Tours (funcabo.com/cactus-tours). A lot of fun. This adventure company offers camel and horseback riding on the beach, mountain bike, ATV, side by side, and AWD electric bike tours.
Disembarkation was not better than embarkation for this cruise. We were delayed leaving the ship by an hour after our expected time. Two hours standing in line in a huge quonset hut at Port of Los Angeles (San Pedro). Approximately 3,500 passengers with only about 8 customs officers to process us through. Followed by an hour and a half on a transfer shuttle bus to airport. Trip was on about 20 miles/30 minutes travel. Rest of the time was waiting for luggage to be loaded. No air conditioning in the rear of a full bus.
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