NCL Joy -- Origins of No Thermal Spa?

[egurbi]

I have always wondered why the NCL Joy was built without a thermal spa. A fellow cruisegoer once told me because the ship was designed for the Asia market, but I'm not following why that matters.  Is it the only Breakaway Plus Class that lacks one?  It seems when you overlay the deck plans with Bliss and Encore, for example, the ship was designed substantially differently on Decks 16 and 17, and is the only one that splits the fitness center and spa on two different decks. I guess it may also be the only one that still has a Spice H2O. Can anyone shed any light on these questions and has NCL announced any long term plans to add one at any point in the last year?  Thanks.

[kwokpot]

6 minutes ago, egurbi said:

I have always wondered why the NCL Joy was built without a thermal spa. A fellow cruisegoer once told me because the ship was designed for the Asia market, but I'm not following why that matters.  Is it the only Breakaway Plus Class that lacks one?  It seems when you overlay the deck plans with Bliss and Encore, for example, the ship was designed substantially differently on Decks 16 and 17, and is the only one that splits the fitness center and spa on two different decks. I guess it may also be the only one that still has a Spice H2O. Can anyone shed any light on these questions and has NCL announced any long term plans to add one at any point in the last year?  Thanks.

Your friend is correct. The Chinese don't use co-ed spas the same way Westerners do. While they may use a steam or sauna it would be in single sex facilities, almost never co-ed. Also lounging around on a sunbed in the lounge is not how Chinese people would use the facilities. For those reasons the standard NCL Co-ed Thermal Spa would be a waste of space for the Chinese market.

[timf2001]

7 hours ago, egurbi said:

I have always wondered why the NCL Joy was built without a thermal spa. A fellow cruisegoer once told me because the ship was designed for the Asia market, but I'm not following why that matters.  Is it the only Breakaway Plus Class that lacks one?  It seems when you overlay the deck plans with Bliss and Encore, for example, the ship was designed substantially differently on Decks 16 and 17, and is the only one that splits the fitness center and spa on two different decks. I guess it may also be the only one that still has a Spice H2O. Can anyone shed any light on these questions and has NCL announced any long term plans to add one at any point in the last year?  Thanks.

 

Both Bliss and Joy have Spice H2O.  Joy originally had a really tiny fitness center adjacent to the spa, but it needed to expand for the western market . Since there was no room for it on Deck 16, they repurposed the restaurant space on Deck 17 for the fitness center then used the former space on Deck 16 for more spa treatment space.  There are no announced plans to add a thermal spa, nor would I expect any major work to be done anytime in the near future due to the current situation.

[david_sobe]

Having no spa would keep me from sailing the Joy especially in Alaska. I would have to get a great deal to book the Joy.  Besides no spa, NCL seems to not know what to do with the "concierge cabins."   Speculation is that NCL has put them under the Haven.  If this happens, it just would ruin the Haven completely IMHO.  Too many cabins.  Too many kids.  NCL is constantly busy always trying to ruin a good thing.

[BirdTravels]

12 hours ago, egurbi said:

I have always wondered why the NCL Joy was built without a thermal spa. A fellow cruisegoer once told me because the ship was designed for the Asia market, but I'm not following why that matters.  Is it the only Breakaway Plus Class that lacks one?  It seems when you overlay the deck plans with Bliss and Encore, for example, the ship was designed substantially differently on Decks 16 and 17, and is the only one that splits the fitness center and spa on two different decks. I guess it may also be the only one that still has a Spice H2O. Can anyone shed any light on these questions and has NCL announced any long term plans to add one at any point in the last year?  Thanks.

Yes, it was designed for China where a thermal suite would have low usage. It is the only large ship (breakaway class and epic class) that does not have a thermal suite. The Escape, Bliss, Joy, Breakaway, Getaway all have Spice H20s. The Encore is the only ship (for now) that does have one. Remember, the Joy didn't really have a pool deck either, it was a garden space. NCL just spent $50M last year to rebuild the Joy for the American market. They removed rooms and built an observation lounge in place of the small concierge lounge. They removed the tea rooms and sea food buffet and replace them with more familiar restaurants and bars. The 2-story casino and Haven casinos were changed to be more aligned with the Bliss (e.g., the VIP high roller room with $5000 minimum bets became the Social and most of the tables (favored by the Chinese) were removed and replaced with slots). NCL is not going to invest any more in the Joy right now. 

[chengkp75]

19 hours ago, egurbi said:

A fellow cruisegoer once told me because the ship was designed for the Asia market, but I'm not following why that matters.

It is not that the ship was designed for the Asian market for a Western demographic, it was designed for the Asian demographic, which as noted above, have different cultural mores and so the ship needed to be designed differently to cater to those.

[Georgia_Peaches]

No thermal suite = No Go for us.

[kwokpot]

13 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

No thermal suite = No Go for us.

I agree. NCL ships have really got the thermal suite design nailed down. I think the key is to have a large relaxation area with loungers which allows one to literally cc spend a whole afternoon in the spa. Without a place to sit/lay down in in-between using the steam/sauna areas there only so much time you can spend in the spa. The other key amenity is a large hottub and/or theralassotherapy pool.

[hunter68]

Is this really true?  We are booked on the Joy to Bermuda in August 2021. I will be canceling. 

[egurbi]

It is true.  Thanks for all the responses.  Very educational.  Hopefully in happier times NCL will add one if/when it gains financial footing.

[mrt32487]

I was on the Joy this past December for the Mexican Riviera assuming the Thermal Suite was on the ship. Two weeks before leaving (I booked it cheaply at the last minute only a month before departure) that is when I found out. Luckily I was able to get a Vibe Pass to salvage (I need exclusive hot tub space, I can't do the pool deck). Do not do the Joy in Alaska or Bermuda.