FlyGal25

I have done a lot of research on Joy and the Haven before I posted today. Since I am still sitting on the fence, this was my attempt to try and see if someone could push me over to one side. LOL 😉 Agree about vibe and clientele, it can impact your experience - but that can wildly vary with spring break sailings. (A Caribbean spring break cruise on X is vastly different than say an X European cruise.) I only have started to scratch the surface with MSC and Seascape. It looks nice, but not sure about how I feel about it yet. Too early to tell. But it isn't off the table. I really liked a lot of the spaces on the ship, especially for my daughter. Just need to read more about the food as it seems from a non Yacht Club standpoint the free options are lackluster. I also watched a video about the entertainment and from the looks it is not on par with similar mega ships. So here I am, still sitting on the fence.

Thank you for your review. I know I can leave the Haven and with specialty dining included I know I will, but I really enjoyed Luminae on previous sailings. I saw the roof was retractable but it’s still not the open airy feeling. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Still very happy to read you enjoyed the Haven on Joy.

Yes, Beyond April 9-16

I have watched several YouTube videos on the Joy. For most, the Joy's biggest Haven bonus is the observation lounge, and drawback is no thermal spa. Personally, our pro is that I can book a suite that is very large for a good price. And one of the stops is new to us (Roatan). Two cons for the Joy for us are: fixed menu in Haven, indoor pool for Caribbean sailing. But the differences in price is staggering. $4K more for Beyond. I can't do it. I would pay more for a product I know and love, but not that much more. Insanity to me. Especially when they have so many suites that are still open. Come on, they have to know they are pricing themselves out. 😠

Appreciate the honest review. I know it is all personal opinion but I love reading both sides. Can you tell me what ship you were on in the Haven?

George C, I am already researching! LOL (I think the meh reviews were from years ago and they definitely were not about yacht club. Yacht Club is fairly new to me. I have read about it on boards, but I haven't taken the time to look into it until now.) I found their newest ship Seascape is over our vacation time. Hmmm....decisions, decisions.

She is 15, and loves getting virgin drinks on a cruise. (virgin mojito is her favorite, lol)

I do not know much about MSC, other than it is an Italian based line. I have heard mixed reviews, but that was years ago and for European sailings.

Preface: X is my go to cruise line. However, the Beyond Retreat is pricing me out. So, I checked around and found a deal on NCL's ship Joy in the Haven that is A LOT cheaper. It has Free at Sea, but it looks like NCL doesn't include it for my daughter (we are a party of 3). And I am not sure how Free At Sea works. I would like unlimited wifi, can I upgrade? I have only been on NCL once, and I cannot compare it because it was Pride of America in 2007 with all American crew. You cannot judge regular NCL based on that experience -- and was it ever dreadful. With all that said, anyone lucky enough to sail NCL Joy in the Haven and compare it to X's Beyond Retreat? Or even NCL's Breakaway Plus to X's Edge class ships? I have googled and read comparisons but those seem to be on Celebrity's older class Solstice/Millennium ships and I know those are not like Edge class Retreat. Would love feedback from someone who has experienced both.

X is my cruise line. My go to. However, the Beyond Retreat is pricing me out. I have patiently waited for a inkling of a price drop to no avail ... it is after all spring break. (however, there are still over 90+ suites still unoccupied on that sailing) So, I checked around and found a deal on NCL's ship Joy in the Haven that is insanely cheaper. It has perks, but it seems more convoluted than X's four wifi, obc, drinks, tips. And to top it off looks like NCL doesn't include it for my daughter (we are a party of 3). Of course NCL is a better deal, but at what cost? Am I going to be ogling Beyond on our same stops to Cozumel and Costa Maya regretting my decision? Or am I going to be looking at it saying I am so glad I tried NCL? I have only been on NCL once, and I cannot compare it because it was Pride of America in 2007 with all American crew. You cannot judge regular NCL based on that experience -- and was it ever dreadful. With all that said, anyone lucky enough to sail Beyond in the Retreat and NCL Joy in the Haven? Or even X's Edge class and NCL's Breakaway +? I have googled and read comparisons but those seem to be on older class Solstice/Millennium ships and I know those are not like Edge class Retreat. Would love feedback from someone who has experienced both.

Hello. Sailing on Celebrity Apex this summer with a stop in Haugesund. We are not in love with Celebrity's tours, so I am trying to find a fun excursion for my family (2 adults, 15 year old daughter). We are in search of more adventurous tours -- FWIW, we are doing a RIB tour in Kristiansand, kayaking in Geiranger, and hiking in Alesund. I saw that several other cruise lines offer helicopter tours in Haugesund. I google searched to find the helicopter company or even where they fly out of in Haugesund to no avail. (I found some generic worldwide helicopter charter ... which gave zero insight so no need to post that website.) Anyone have any insight to the company that does helicopter tours in Haugesund? And if you have gone with another cruise line, was it worth it? If anyone has other adventurous tours in this port (other than RIB tour) please feel free to share. Thanks!

Agree, I normally wouldn't even think about that week being discounted! But out of curiosity I went and looked at all the available rooms ... A LOT! Way more that I would ever expect for spring break. So, here I am ... holding out hope. lol

Oh come on, X, drop the Beyond on 4/9.🤞 I looked this morning and they still had 40 Sky Suites available. The current rate is just too high for me, but if they lowered that like they did other sailings I would jump right on it!

Well I tried it on FireFox and it went straight to EXIT 😠 However, I went to Safari, and made sure I allowed pop ups which it really isn't a true pop up as it shows when I have restrictions on, but when I logged on as my husband and not me it gave the courtesy hold. Don't ask me what voodoo magic my husband's login has, but it didn't like mine when I got to that page. Maybe I didn't clear my history in between my logging on to get that dumb courtesy hold. I have no idea. But whatever it is, venting on here made it work! Ha ha ha. Thank you @NorthStarStateCruiser for making sure I was on the right page. FWIW, I will tell everyone to clear your history as well and log in to get that courtesy hold. Paying for a 24 hour hold is just wrong on so many levels. I have rolled with and accepted (some reluctantly) to a lot of their changes, but that one is 100% bologna to me.

So I am almost ready to take the plunge and book the Apex for this June. I am still finagling some flights and double checking my teenage daughter's sports summer schedule. With all that said, I noticed there is a very small number of cabins left in the category I want. So I tried relentlessly on phone, laptop, and computer to get the magic courtesy hold to pop up. No luck. I tried everything on every stage of booking and to no avail. Only EXIT BOOKING or CONTINUE BOOKING. No hold 😢 Next step, chat online to place hold. Was told I have to place a deposit for a 24 hour hold. What?! That's so odd and a complete and total pain because you cannot cancel the hold online, you have to call. My irritation grows. 😒 Anyone else have this happen? Did I just get a misinformed chat agent? Any secret code to get that ever illusive courtesy hold to pop up on any type of electronic? lol

I started on Celebrity Cruises when I was in my mid 20's. I am now in my late 40's and Celebrity is still the cruise line I prefer. Yes, the age demographic tends to skew a little older, but I have never felt like I was on a senior citizen cruise. There are plenty of young people as well. Even my daughter who is a teenager prefers Celebrity over Royal Caribbean. That is saying something when you have a teen, they are notoriously hard to please!! LOL 🤣 If you prefer laid back and 5-star then I think you'll be happy with X.

Was on Equinox 6/12 sailing that stopped in Grand Cayman. No testing needed to be done other than your pre-cruise Covid test. The daily planner said masks were required indoors and outdoors, but we walked all around and only saw a few people wearing them. The stores did not have a mask mandate to enter either. We did wear them on the tender, but I want to say 30% took them off when they sat down and nobody said a thing about it. Hope that helps! 😄

Thank you for your daily recaps! So fun to read, and I have to write down some new drinks to try on our same Equinox cruise on 6/12! And now I have to play that Inca machine. 🤣 No doubt, you are getting me more excited for our upcoming trip. 😄 You may not have paid attention, but still inquiring. Have you seen teens onboard? I have a 14 year old and I have noticed our sailing has a lot of open cabins still. Hoping she will have a few teens onboard to connect with as that is a big part of her her fun with cruising.