Anyone Else Booked Joy via NCL Website?

Our original holiday plans have fallen through so we decided to book a 6-day cruise on Joy out of Shanghai on December 25. Current booking options are balcony and mini-suite cabins only and except for Family Balconies are guarantee-only. So, we picked a Family Balcony (BA) with one of the bigger angled balconies @ $869 pp, a fare we think is decent. No incentives are available (e.g., booze/dining) but we're assured we'll receive our P+ benefits which gets us free laundry and a couple of meals.

We've received our confirmation, but there is zero online content available on NCL's site for this booking. See attached for what we see online for our booking. Although not obsessive, I do like to pre-plan a few dinners and know what shore excursions will be offered and at what price. This is evidently not an option.

I'm wondering if anybody else has booked Joy via NCL's site and if anybody has any insight for what to expect onboard? We recognize that we will be among a small handful of English-speaking westerners on board and that the experience will be "interesting." I don't even know what currency is used on board. I'm wondering if we're just walking into a mistake. FYI, there are zero roll calls for Joy on CC.

Joy.pdf

Here are a couple of other threads, not sure there are any answers to your question

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2497489&highlight=joy

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2259895&highlight=joy&page=41

Our original holiday plans have fallen through so we decided to book a 6-day cruise on Joy out of Shanghai on December 25. Current booking options are balcony and mini-suite cabins only and except for Family Balconies are guarantee-only. So, we picked a Family Balcony (BA) with one of the bigger angled balconies @ $869 pp, a fare we think is decent. No incentives are available (e.g., booze/dining) but we're assured we'll receive our P+ benefits which gets us free laundry and a couple of meals.

 

We've received our confirmation, but there is zero online content available on NCL's site for this booking. See attached for what we see online for our booking. Although not obsessive, I do like to pre-plan a few dinners and know what shore excursions will be offered and at what price. This is evidently not an option.

 

I'm wondering if anybody else has booked Joy via NCL's site and if anybody has any insight for what to expect onboard? We recognize that we will be among a small handful of English-speaking westerners on board and that the experience will be "interesting." I don't even know what currency is used on board. I'm wondering if we're just walking into a mistake. FYI, there are zero roll calls for Joy on CC.

There is a good reason that NCL are not marketing the ship outside of China - it will be a different product and do not expect the usual cruise. The marketing budget for Joy in the UK is NIL

As to roll calls the Chinese would not even know what they are!

Personally, I wouldn't even consider booking the Joy. There is zero information out about it. I'd suspect all the entertainment will be in mandarin too. Maybe for those of you brave souls willing to risk it, you'll be kind enough to report back. Unless I read good things about westerners enjoying the cruise, I won't risk our vacation dollars for it.

Thanks for weighing in and thanks @Bird for the links. We have until late August for final payment and will wait and see. There would probably be some challenges but we're not particularly fussy and have never not enjoyed any cruise!

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Thanks for weighing in and thanks @Bird for the links. We have until late August for final payment and will wait and see. There would probably be some challenges but we're not particularly fussy and have never not enjoyed any cruise!

 

 

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This will be unlike any cruise you have been on before. If you haven't been around a lot of Chinese tourists before you are in for quite an experience, and that's the nicest way I can put it.;)

This will be unlike any cruise you have been on before. If you haven't been around a lot of Chinese tourists before you are in for quite an experience, and that's the nicest way I can put it.;)

Nice and diplomatic me thinks. That is why they will not market it outside of China. Never mind about being fussy ask yourself why do NCL not really want to sell this ship outside of China - Good luck! As we say in the UK programme Dragon Den "I am out"

Here's a link to the NCL Joy website - again - in simplified Chinese - which was probably posted before. Use Translate Google to get a reasonable web page version in English to read for yourself.

http://goncl.cn/experience

It stated, among other things, that 60% or 560 of the crew hired for the Joy are fluent / speak Mandarin (official mainland Chinese dialect) and aimed to please its market - China's audience.

We're on the Gem 2 weeks ago and was told that a # of the crew hired for the Joy were being trained onboard ... and, it wasn't difficult for us to tell who they're ... generally much younger than the other 60 nationalities onboard, many from South Asia & experienced in the cruise sector. Undoubtly, some of them are expected to be in supervisory positions and coach others .. and, IMO, quite a long way to go, in how they presented themselves and their confidence level, along with their linguistics.

It was also obvious, unlike our past cruises on NCL, there're a noticeable presence of mainland China passengers in tour groups onboard the Gem ... almost each & every one of them walked around all day & everywhere with their hot water bottle with tea. One middle age men in a suit & tie, his arm out-stretched holding his "classic" ceramic tea cup with the lid, strolling the buffet in his own slippers (not supplied by the ship) ... duh ! Thankfully, the line at the hot water & beverage station wasn't too long ... I did not care to see how & what they are using to fill their thermos & bottles, no crew members around either.

Back to these cruises now released & open to the U.S. market ... it's not clear what's included or not, but the literature and info in Chinese stated that all the fees, service charges (and, DSC ??) are inclusive and already included in the payment charged ... the shore excursion are escorted by ship/land-based tour guides; and, Chinese passport holders are covered by group visas in "foreign" ports. The rest joining these sailings - you are on your own & responsible for any visas needed.

This is a link to a Chinese online TV website "QQ" - with a short clip of one of the Joy's theater productions ... called "Elements" or Midnight Spectacular - best view on Firefox or Edge browser, Chrome might not play correctly - as Vegas level performance, look similar to Luxor's "O" a few years ago, I think. The other show on the NCL's CN page is "Paradis" ... a clown of "Showgirls" the musical ??

https://v.qq.com/x/page/y0380m9l9l2.html

For non-Chinese passengers cruising on the Joy, one is going to feel like a small minority and probably need to get used to a "foreign" langugage being the primary announcement and mode for communications - the culture difference & any barriers would be a "challenge".

We / I remained doubtful that we wanted to book and sail on the Joy, even if it is highly discounted for last minute booking - direct & indirect expenses in flying to/from Shanghai & Tianjin - pre/post cruise, hotel & ground transportation, visa fees, etc. can really add up. If we are expats working & living in Hong Kong or Macau, and an "easy" overnight HST (High Speed Train) ride or a day away - holding mainland HRP (Home Return Permits) ... then, maybe this is a deal breaker to consider. Just an opinion of ours, of course.

P.S. We are actively exploring our options in 2018 to do an Asia coastal, probably a one-way, either northbound or southbound - itineraries and packages offered by RCI and Princess, even Carnival ... are looking much better & stronger.

I would be tempted to book the Joy, but no one I know wants to come with me :D

I think that as a long time NCL customer, you will have an easy time connecting with crew members (those that were transferred to the Joy from the rest of the fleet, and will probably be nostalgic for the kinds of passengers they used to deal with…)

My advice, take some Mandarin lessons between now and Christmas! Start with: dyo-lyen ("you should be ashamed of yourself!"), dzo-kaai ("go away!"), gwoon ("get out of my face!").

Smoking in China is prevalent, as the People's Republic of China is the world's largest consumer and producer of tobacco: there are 350 million Chinese smokers, and China produces 42% of the world's cigarettes

You will probably find that a LOT of people on board the Joy are smokers.

Thanks for weighing in and thanks @Bird for the links. We have until late August for final payment and will wait and see. There would probably be some challenges but we're not particularly fussy and have never not enjoyed any cruise!

First and foremost, be very careful about the visa and entry requirements to get to the ship. Understand the cost and time to get a tourist visa, your passport needs to be valid for 6 months, you have to have 2 blank pages in your passport, etc.