Striking Out to New Turf – A Joy(ful) Live – 3/18 – 3/25, Western Caribbean

[NikiPinkston]

Love the photo! Is that you? The river looks COLD!

Edited April 13, 2023 by NikiPinkston

[cruiseny4life]

Warning - a very, probably too long, venting session ahead.

 

Preface: I am absurdly bored. I've sat here for the last two hours doing nothing, but flipping through NY Times, CNN, Huff Post, and Cruise Critic. I did respond to a couple of work emails in that time. 

 

So, here goes! I am reflecting on a few of the critiques I had of this cruise. Let me just state for the record, folks, that I had an excellent time on the cruise. We enjoyed ourselves immensely. So, these are just small issues. 

 

1. The handrails in the stairwell. I think we used the elevators, maybe five times, while onboard. We had a whole lot of stairwell time and I appreciate handrails. I know others that don't use them, but I do. Most of the time. This is the first cruise where I could feel the grubbiness of others sweat, oil, and goo on the handrails. It was honestly gross. Sometimes I think there were boogers on the undersides. I didn't see staff wiping the handrails down one time. Not once! I'm sure they did?!?!?! But I sure didn't observe them doing it. 

 

I'm sure this is a reflection of NCL cutting staff, so there aren't enough handrail washers to go around. But, it was gross and I'm not really grossed out by much. Remember, I have four dogs, a cat, and used to work in a K-8 school. I've seen my share of every human substance you can imagine! The last year, the main office was right next to the kindergarten bathrooms. I saw a lot that year! I cleaned up a lot. I do not fondly remember the (more than one) kindergarteners that ran out of the bathroom naked. Like, fully naked. Or, decided to get naked and pretend to be a snake on the floor. I so don't miss my old job. NCL CLEAN THE DAMN HANDRAILS!!!!

 

2. The Haven Restaurant staff. I believe I've mentioned this before, but I'm going to say it again. I was so disappointed in not forming a good bond with the servers, hosts, and maitre d. I remember a few names of the team, Sheila (host), Roma, Rosa, Mary Jean, Maryelle (servers), but I can't recall where any of them are from, what contract they're on, or any other personal details. They seemed rushed and not able to stop to talk with us. And we were generally in the restaurant when few other customers were present. 

 

We did have a group dinner on the last evening of our cruise. The server was very good. I don't recall his name, but he had Harry Potter glasses. He did a great job, but the wait time was very long. Maybe they wanted us to enjoy each other's company, which we did. We were with two other couples that we met in the Haven Lounge before embarking. During the trip we just kept finding them, we would oftentimes have the same sundeck cabana. It was a good time getting to know them. 

 

That's a long way of saying, I just didn't feel as valued of a customer on this trip. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure our service was better than what folks in the main dining room experienced. And, no one was rude or impolite. All servers were professional. But, the personable service we always experienced on Getaway just wasn't there. Oh well. First world problems. 

 

3. Room cleaning. Our steward was very polite, attended to our needs, and ensured our room was tidy. The problem is there were several days our room wasn't made up until 3 or 4 PM. If we were in the room that evening, we declined turn down service as he came around between 7 and (one time) 9 PM, but typically 7 to 8. That's too late! We did receive turn down service a couple times when we weren't in the room. We were at an early show or a late (for us) dinner. 

 

We don't need twice a day service and thankfully we were only paying $20/day/person daily service charge. We did provide Royal (steward's name) an additional tip. It's expected. I'm not so sure we would have done so if we were paying the current $25/day/person tips. I also might have reduced this amount a bit. I can live with $40/day. I'm not so sure I can live with $50/day. That seems excessive for the limited service we received. 

 

One thing I wondered was if we would see Royal throughout the cruise as others reported not seeing their stewards at all. Well, we did see Royal. Typically once or twice a day. Not as often as we're used to seeing our steward, but he was still present. I wonder if this was because he serviced Haven rooms. We were in a row of HJ's on deck 14 and I'm pretty sure, though not certain, he only serviced those HJ rooms. You know, the cheapest of the Haven rooms! What can I say? We're cheap. 

 

Our room was clean. We never worried about finding hair or dirt in the room. The bed was made up. He quickly provided us with the second blanket we requested. Every day he made the bed with the duvet and second blanket. The bathroom was always cleaned appropriately. Glasses were removed. Coffee cups were returned. We can't complain about the cleanliness of the room. Just that the room wasn't cleaned until late in the day on several days. To be fair, there were a couple days the room was cleaned around 9 or 10 AM. 

 

4. Internet, Cruise Critic specifically. For the first time we did not opt for unlimited WiFi. We each used our 150 minutes, well almost. I conserved seven minutes on the last night in case we absolutely needed WiFi before arriving in Miami. Yes, I'm a worrier. It drives my lovely husband insane the amount I worry. For instance, the other day he texted me that he was "surrounded by cops." I was at a work dinner, so didn't really want to excuse myself. But, I immediately texted to find out if he was ok. My first thought when cops are involved is...well, let's just say I would prefer to spend money on mental health. Anyway, he was fine and just had several cops nearby. I chided him later for worrying the living hell out of me! 

 

So, back to the internet. The free access to Cruise Critic's website is an absolute joke. It just simply did not work. When accessing Cruise Critic, using my minutes, I'd waste five of them to get one thread to load. Hence this review is still running, almost a month after my cruise started. I know, I'm annoying and am trying to wrap it up. Hopefully this weekend! But the weather is nice and the dogs want a hike, plus our land needs a lot of work. 

 

Social media kind of worked. It took a lot of time to load Facebook and Insta. My Gmail took about a minute to load new messages. It was very easy to use the minutes just waiting for the buffering to end. So, Joy's internet in the Western Caribbean is bad. I've already made the pronouncement that on our next cruise we will be purchasing unlimited streaming WiFi. Even if it's crap, at least we'll be able to do things by waiting a hot minute.

 

5. Coffee in the Horizon Lounge. There is a lovely machine in the Haven Horizon Lounge that promises to whip up macchiatos, lattes, cappuccinos, foamed milk, and other lovely Starbucks drinks. The issue? It breaks every five minutes and the staff don't seem to know how to fix it. I think every server in the lounge needs to be given a tutorial on how to fix each error code on the machine. I broke the machine twice trying to make an espresso. Nothing fancy. I just pushed the touchscreen buttons and voila! Error! Ugh....

 

6. Air conditioning, or lack thereof. NCL Joy is one hot ship! I don't think NCL knows what air conditioning is. Our room was hot even after three trips by maintenance to fix the A/C. We are experienced enough to know the little snowflake is a false flag. It won't actually do anything, but increase the temperature, because the little jump in A/C it provides lasts about one minute before flicking over to no A/C. Our room was incredibly hot! Even if we had wanted to make every chief engineer's life miserable, we couldn't open the balcony door as it was hot and humid outside. That's why A/C exists! To cool the inside air. I'm not sure NCL knows this. 

 

All the public spaces, even in the Haven were hot. I was a nonstop sweat machine! I think Food Republic was the worst. I dripped sweat the entire time we were there and our server couldn't keep up with my requests for more water! I am 100% sure this is a cost cutting measure of NCL's. And it's one that could keep me from cruising. My house is a nice, chilly 64 degrees in the winter and a combination of our tree cover/A/C keeps the house at 60 degrees in the summer. Burn that fuel NCL! People can put on sweaters. I don't think you want me wearing a Speedo all over the ship! 

 

7. Drink Service. NCL has always sucked in their Haven drink service. Every cruise we have been on has required us to wait a long time for a drink. This cruise was nothing new. I just noticed how overworked (and, I'm sure, underpaid) the bartenders are. NCL, this isn't fair. You need to hire more bartenders. For every bar, but especially the Haven bar. We pay a premium to be there and waiting five to ten minutes for a drink (a regular Coke or a Vodka with club soda) is ridiculous. On Getaway we had learned to go to the bar and get a double-fisted drink before going to the Haven Restaurant. On Joy that was not an option. Too many bar flies. Get rid of the stools at the bar if you're not going to hire more bartenders. There's plenty of comfy seats for folks to take up. They don't need to make it obnoxious to get a drink. 

 

8. The buffet. Oh. My. Gosh. Let's just say this was a topic of us haughty Havener's! Several of us walked through the buffet just to see what it was like. It was a freaking circus! Just to walk through takes ten minutes. I can't imagine eating there...well to be fair, I did try the macaroni and cheese and a slice of pizza. Let's just say neither were finished. But the crowds! NO. NO. NO. Ridiculous! Absolutely insane. There were lines for burgers. For salad. For pizza. For the carving station. For omelets (like 15 people deep). I know I'm supremely spoiled sailing the Haven and probably should just keep my privileged white mouth shut, but it is abhorrent what NCL does to folks who choose the buffet. No! Thank! You! 

 

9. The pool deck. What a mass of humanity. The only place worse is the buffet. Every single lounger was taken by a person or towel. The hot tubs were crammed with ten to fifteen people, depending on how many little ones were in there. The pool was just as crammed. The smell of sunscreen, booze, and sweat was enough to make one retch. 

 

Ok, the last two were a little bit more critical than I meant. I just can't imagine being in those areas for long. Well, those are my whinings of this cruise. Well, I think. Again, I want to repeat, I did have a joyous time on board Joy! But, with every cruise, and especially with cruises in the cutback service, increase prices, NCL is just becoming more annoying and ridiculous. It's too bad. The product NCL offers is good. The staff work hard as hell. The executives just ensure passengers are annoyed. 

Edited April 13, 2023 by cruiseny4life

[cruiseny4life]

38 minutes ago, NikiPinkston said:

Love the photo! Is that you? The river looks COLD!

Haha, no! It is a phenomenal idea. The dude shoveled a path during the winter for his dogs. Then the thaw came so he turned it into a lazy river. I have enough land to do this. I just might work on it next winter!!! 

[evanskl4]

41 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

 

Remember, I have four dogs, a cat, and used to work in a K-8 school. I've seen my share of every human substance you can imagine! The last year, the main office was right next to the kindergarten bathrooms. I saw a lot that year! I cleaned up a lot. I do not fondly remember the (more than one) kindergarteners that ran out of the bathroom naked. Like, fully naked. Or, decided to get naked and pretend to be a snake on the floor. I so don't miss my old job. NCL CLEAN THE DAMN HANDRAILS!!!!

 

As the parent of 2 elementary school-aged children, this made me LOL.

 

I really hope NCL improves these issues that are continuously brought up. I'm sailing on the Joy in November (with aforementioned kids) in a non-Haven room so I will have to tough it out with the rest of the riff-raff. And that's fine, as long as I can have a drink in my hand at all times! 

[laudergayle]

5 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

I want to. I really want to! Unfortunately, the vacation time isn't accumulating quickly enough and the husband is the HR Manager at a theme park which means summer is kinda, sorta busy for him. Like, they're putting him up in housing so he doesn't need to go home busy. Not sure how I feel about that one! I do know they have a lazy river and I get free tickets, because he works there. That means I'll be sitting my butt in a tube on that lazy river on the weekends watching him work when I'm not taking the dogs for a hike! 

 

Yup, this will be me!

 

Source: https://www.wrex.com/news/the-northern-wisconsin-dells-barron-man-creates-lazy-river-in-his-backyard/article_ba991616-2f7b-5722-9fe4-a308356e46ea.html

 

We've got the CN, plus some FCC to burn through! Alas, I think you'll have to wait just a minute before the next cruise. 

Well for you the weekend getaways and the lazy River will be like a vacay…how fun!!  We use to have a cabin on the lake we escaped to every Friday…it’s what got us through the hellish work week and the awful traffic. I‘ll just slow my roll while I wait for the @cruiseny4lifeJoy(ful) sequel.  😊

[laudergayle]

Based on your review, as well as others who have sailed recently during spring break…I vow now to never never ever cruise during peak times. It will be off-peak and shoulder season for us.  I sure hope NCL brings in more help soon.  Happy employees make for satisfied customers.  And, right now it looks like NCL is failing.  
Enjoy your summer on the lazy River!

[GALSews]

45 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

Based on your review, as well as others who have sailed recently during spring break…I vow now to never never ever cruise during peak times. It will be off-peak and shoulder season for us.  I sure hope NCL brings in more help soon.  Happy employees make for satisfied customers.  And, right now it looks like NCL is failing.  
Enjoy your summer on the lazy River!

One way to avoid the crowds, even if not staying in the Haven, is to purchase the thermal spa online. No crowd and quiet. 

[laudergayle]

30 minutes ago, GALSews said:

One way to avoid the crowds, even if not staying in the Haven, is to purchase the thermal spa online. No crowd and quiet. 

Thanks for the tip…we’ll have to try it sometime.  Unfortunately we like to do every the crowds like to do.

[cruiseny4life]

16 hours ago, laudergayle said:

Well for you the weekend getaways and the lazy River will be like a vacay…how fun!!  We use to have a cabin on the lake we escaped to every Friday…it’s what got us through the hellish work week and the awful traffic. I‘ll just slow my roll while I wait for the @cruiseny4lifeJoy(ful) sequel.  😊

Oh that sounds lovely! Someday we'll get that vacation home....unless we keep springing for Haven cruises. You must be referring to the lovely Atlanta traffic? My aunt lives in Newnan and commuted to the airport every day. She constantly whined about the traffic. Every time I've driven through (except once) it's been a breeze. I'm not sure why y'all are so negative about the traffic (kidding, I know). 

 

We only have two downsides to the whole house and property thing - while we have ten acres, there's no stream and no real "forest." We have trees. Lots of trees and a big field. Our field is pondlike in the spring as we are across the railroad tracks from a large (somewhat famous in CNY lore) swamp. But, we'd love to have an actual water source running through our property.

 

We almost went on a (be)jeweled cruise to Alaska. Those coupons are damned enticing! The aforementioned mister's work schedule doesn't allow for Alaska though. We do have to take a cruise before September, 2024, so you'll get the sequel before you know it!

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

16 hours ago, laudergayle said:

Based on your review, as well as others who have sailed recently during spring break…I vow now to never never ever cruise during peak times. It will be off-peak and shoulder season for us.  I sure hope NCL brings in more help soon.  Happy employees make for satisfied customers.  And, right now it looks like NCL is failing.  
Enjoy your summer on the lazy River!

Yup. We're masters at booking crowded cruises. Honestly, the Haven makes it feel fine. I know it's so costly, bougie, and pomposity, but gosh it's so worth it to have an uncrowded (even at full Haven capacity) area. We're really not pretentious people and some of the Haven experience makes us (or, at least me) shudder that I'm in that place. 

Our September cruise was delightful! We were at 35% capacity on Getaway. We had the cruise ship to ourselves! We're definitely going to look for a last minute late Sept/October deal. I know they'll still be out there to score and hopefully the ship won't be near capacity. Maybe we'll see you onboard! 

[cruiseny4life]

15 hours ago, GALSews said:

One way to avoid the crowds, even if not staying in the Haven, is to purchase the thermal spa online. No crowd and quiet. 

Joy doesn't have a thermal suite. 😞 

15 hours ago, laudergayle said:

Thanks for the tip…we’ll have to try it sometime.  Unfortunately we like to do every the crowds like to do.

You must! The thermal suite is so relaxing and jellyfing of muscles ....just go there early/late. The middle of the day can be quite crowded and loud. 

[justhappy]

Thanks for your honest and helpful review. I am curious how things will go for my upcoming cruise on the Getaway. I’ve sailed in the Haven 4 times before, but I’m not one of those who say it has to be in the Haven. This will be my 15th cruise on NCL but only the fifth in the Haven.

 My last cruise was in late January before the once a day room cleaning started. We could already tell the shortage of crew vs passengers was a problem. The ship was at 100% occupancy. But I’ll have to say the crew was lovely.

I do agree that the Haven bar service is slow and the bar hogs make it impossible at times to get a drink. I’m with you that they should remove the bar stools.

 I’m actually glad you are still posting about the cruise. I’m either bored or I just want to escape the news and I love living vicariously through the live and not so live trip reports. Actually hoping you’ll be cruising again soon so we have something to look forward to.

 

[laudergayle]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

We're really not pretentious people and some of the Haven experience makes us (or, at least me) shudder that I'm in that place. 

And, that is probably the reason we will likely not spring for the Haven experience. It’s not an environment we are comfortable in…but that’s just us.  My hubby use to say if we won the lotto he would get a butler…I laughed and told him I thought that’s what I am🤣

 

 

[Sailing12Away]

For the cabin service, did you guys remember to use the little lights to let them know when you were out of the room? We were in an HH on deck 15, so similar to you outside of the 'proper' Haven area. But had no issues at all with servicing of the room. Only saw our cabin steward Jovi a few times throughout the trip, but that's how I prefer it. In/out like secret ninjas where you don't see them, but when you come back to the room it's nice and clean and ready for you.

 

[Dorhead1230]

Finally caught up! Thanks for the review and all the details. I’m glad to see that you guys had a great time, even if there were some hiccups (aren’t there always?). I feel like you would have written about this if you spent time there, and I’m thinking there may not be reason for Havenites to go there, but did you visit the observation lounge on 15 at all? DH and I are very excited for it as we’ve never been on a ship with it before, but I am worried it may just be too crowded all the time to get seats and enjoy. I have watched videos of it and looked at pictures and it looks like there’s a lot of seating, but I was curious what your take  on it was if you guys checked it out.

[cruiseny4life]

My final port installment. I keep thinking it's Tulum, but we actually ported in Cozumel. We never stepped foot on the island as our excursion ticket listed a 7:10 AM meet time on the pier. The ship finished docking and we were let off the ship at 7 AM. Good morning from Cozumel's pier! The closest we ever got to being on the island. Luckily, I have no issues with big waves and fast boats. A lot of folks around us did. Barf bags were handed out and used all around us. I just looked at the ride as a 45 minute roller coaster. It was fun to me! Until the guy next to us got a barf bag. Then I realized he might actually puke all over us. Eeeeeeeek! But, his aim was true and in the tidy little green bag.

 

 

 

On the flip side, when we came back, the ship was scheduled to leave at 6 PM. Well, we were rushed onto the ferry. The guides didn't let us go anywhere else. To be fair, it was the last ferry to Cozumel that we could have caught without being stranded! So, we took the rush as just part of the game. We wanted back on Joy, after all. We wound up taking our ferry ride and getting back on the ship around 5:15 PM. The ship left promptly at 6 PM, so I'm glad we made that ferry! So, we didn't even have time to hit the ground in Cozumel upon our return. Well, I suppose we could have, but why? We spent the whole day in Mexico!

 

We left the ferry in Playa del Carmen where we met up with our guide. He put us in one, single-file line. My husband held our place in line, while I raced through ferry security, men/women with guns, drug sniffing dogs to pee! I was just behind a mom and her kid who were equally in need of a restroom. We all raced up the escalators, around the corner, down the hallway, where finally, blessed relief! On my return, the guide led us past more men/women with guns and out into the street. I'm not sure the mom and child made it.

 

 

So, Tulum! Originally, we were heading to Costa Maya, but that port was canceled a few months before the cruise due to "port congestion." That's ok. I enjoy my sea days and we were lucky to get another! I do enjoy exploring new places, so next time Costa Maya. Next time! Anyway, we debated between a beach day, Chichen Itza, and Tulum. Thankfully, Tulum won out. For folks that don't know, Chichen Itza is three hour, one way trip. That means six of your eight to nine hour tour is on a bus. Tulum was only an hour, one way. Still far, but not six hours far!

 

A few months before the cruise we signed up for the Tulum, Cave & Cenote Swim Excursion. An excursion we actually kept!! Here's the link to our tour in case you're interested: https://www.ncl.com/shore-excursions/CZM_53/Tulum-Cave-Cenote-Swim. And, a brief description from NCL's website:

 

 

We found the excursion to be just as advertised. A cattle bus took us to and from. The guides meandered us through gift shops, allowed us to wait half an hour for a pee break, for the group, but then (this was awesome) allowed us an hour on our own! An hour to explore the ruins, go shopping, eat. All we did was explore the ruins and coastline. Here's one of our guides, looking a bit wild as he explained the Mayan calendar to us before getting to Tulum. Cool guy though!

 

 

Here's what I gained from the tour (let's just say, I'm a visual learner, not an audio learner). Tulum was a Mayan city. I already knew this. According to the description I posted above, it's from the 11th century. There were 200 - 300 people that lived in the walled-in section of Tulum. I don't know how many people lived outside the city. You know, the riff-raff. That's where I would have been. Well outside the walls. The walls were built, not for protection, but to create a distinction between the well-to-do Tulumites (I made that up) and the average Tulumites (again, me, if I lived there). The riff-raff probably built the walls. The guide might have told us. I don't remember and am just projecting 2023 American values on the Mayans. Maybe they were all egalitarian and such, with the wealthy doing the stone work. Hahahaha, who am I kidding?

 

Here's our lineup as we started to wander through the shopping area. The guides instructed us to go two-by-two. Our group never did learn what two-by-two means. On the right appears to be an Elvis statute. I doubt it is, but I sure don't remember what it was.

 

 

Before getting into the historical zone, we passed by this odd plant. The guides told us what it was. I don't remember. If I had to guess, which I do, I'd say some sort of insect colony.

 

 

Ancient Mayan artwork!!! Ain't it spiffy?

 

 

The wall that kept us normal people out.

 

 

 

But, they made a little tunnel so we could sneak in. The butt is not from ancient times. It just wouldn't get out of my way.

 

 

And now, a bunch of photos from Tulum. I don't remember most of what we were told. I'll add any comments if I remember anything. Look! For once, I won't be verbose.

 

 

 

 

 

The structure with three windows is the main temple. I think the guide said the sun lines up with the three windows at some point during the year. There was an excited hush among the crowd as he described this. I was wandering around taking photos, so don't know what he said even with the little weird audio device in my ear. I was also bored out of my mind by this point and didn't care. I'm an explorer, not a history guy.

 

 

 

Some of the carvings (see a somewhat better closeup below), have something to do with sex. Stand in front of the figure/god/whatever it is, and a lady will bare children.Something like that.

 

 

 

Backside of the main temple.

 

Apparently they frown upon climbing the walls.

 

 

 

Same tunnel. Almost buttless.

 

 

There is a miraculous coastal area with amazing views of the Gulf. Why didn't the guide take us here? I would have spent the entire day on the coast. Did I mention my husband was the one interested in the Mayan ruins?

 

 

 

I'm not exactly a Tulum, Maya expert, but I'm glad we went.

 

Our guides brought us our pre-ordered tacos on the bus as we didn't have time to go to the restaurant for lunch. I'm sure they receive a kickback. We kind of wanted to forget we ordered food as after being in the heat, we weren't hungry. But, they found us! We tried the shrimp and beef tacos. Don't order beef. They're tasteless unless you douse them in the very spicy (yum) pico de gallo. Also, don't waste calories on the rice and beans.

 

 

 

So, we managed to down the tacos on the cattle bus as we made our way to the cenotes! Right from the start, the cool water made for a perfect experience after our hot touring of Tulum's Mayan ruins. Like. Perfection!

 

First up, the open air cenote. There were several jumping rocks and platforms spread around. PFD's were optional in this pool. I noticed this silly sign. It's not 1995. I don't want 1995 to come back either. I like internet. Even though we were swimming (phoneless), we didn't talk to anyone. If you're a stranger, why do I want to talk to you?

 

 

 

 

We were allowed to swim in a cave. I understand there are loads of crowds, but don't go expecting cave exploration. I've actually gone caving. This was not like that. It was cool. Just don't go into with huge expectations. We swam in a circle. The entire time underground was about ten minutes. I was able to find a bat and roots of a tree that stretched deep underground. Imagine a vine seeking water that is about 15 feet long. No photos in the cave. Just after, of the entrance/exit.

 

Here is humanity bobbing around in the required PFD.

 

 

Some more bobbers, about to exit.

 

And, that's a wrap on the Tulum excursion. I'm glad we went. I would do it again. It is probably the best NCL excursion we have ever done. Oh wait. It's the only one we've ever done aside from a beach day at Blue Lagoon in Nassau.

 

A few parting shots.

 

This is all NCL provides in terms of sustenance. A nasty granola bar (and bottle of water). I've had my share of granola bars and this was about the worst I've ever had the pleasure of trying.

 

 

Some sort of art (?).

 

 

Really?

 

 

More guns to greet us as we arrive at the ferry terminal. The guns don't bother me. The camo does. Like, who calls that stylish anymore?

 

 

And, our ferry, loading up to return to Cozumel.

 

 

That's a wrap on our day in Mexico. A perfect, beautiful day spent exploring 1,000 year old towns and even older caves. Just wait until I post all the lizards.

Edited April 16, 2023 by cruiseny4life

[cruiseny4life]

 As promised, the lizards of Tulum! But first, some random prettiness.

 

 

 

 

What a cool tree to call home.

 

 

The tree is also in a cool, shady spot that is blessed relief on a humid 90 degree Mexican day. This was at the point I got really bored and left the tour group, because...well, I can only take so much tour grouping.

 

They camouflage themselves really well.

 

 

 

 

Let's talk about a perfect, beach side home. Until you remember thousands of annoying people walk past you every day.

 

 

 

And, just some nature shots that don't fit in elsewhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

21 hours ago, Sailing12Away said:

For the cabin service, did you guys remember to use the little lights to let them know when you were out of the room? We were in an HH on deck 15, so similar to you outside of the 'proper' Haven area. But had no issues at all with servicing of the room. Only saw our cabin steward Jovi a few times throughout the trip, but that's how I prefer it. In/out like secret ninjas where you don't see them, but when you come back to the room it's nice and clean and ready for you.

 

We sure did! We're very used to turning the little green light on so we avoid awkward encounters with our steward. I like being able to talk with our steward and on our previous trips we were constantly saying hi. This time, not so much. Didn't ruin our trip, just a difference. I'm just a needy &!$&h. 🙂

[cruiseny4life]

10 hours ago, Dorhead1230 said:

Finally caught up! Thanks for the review and all the details. I’m glad to see that you guys had a great time, even if there were some hiccups (aren’t there always?). I feel like you would have written about this if you spent time there, and I’m thinking there may not be reason for Havenites to go there, but did you visit the observation lounge on 15 at all? DH and I are very excited for it as we’ve never been on a ship with it before, but I am worried it may just be too crowded all the time to get seats and enjoy. I have watched videos of it and looked at pictures and it looks like there’s a lot of seating, but I was curious what your take  on it was if you guys checked it out.

Hey there! We did wander through a few times. Mainly, I wanted to check out what snacks they had. I feel the Observation Lounge had better snacks than the Horizon Lounge. As for seating, the very forward seats tended to fill up, but there were plenty (like a lot) of available seats along the side of the ship as you made your way back toward midship. You may not get that prime real estate, but you'll totally have space available to you. And, of course early morning/evening, you'll be able to sit anywhere you'd like without needing to hover for an available prime seat.

 

Joy is a fantastic ship. You're really going to enjoy sailing her!

[cruiseny4life]

On 4/14/2023 at 11:25 AM, laudergayle said:

And, that is probably the reason we will likely not spring for the Haven experience. It’s not an environment we are comfortable in…but that’s just us.  My hubby use to say if we won the lotto he would get a butler…I laughed and told him I thought that’s what I am🤣

 

 

Oh my! I don't know what I'd do with a full-on live in butler. I suppose I'd transfer the pet cleanup duties to the butler. Does anyone really want to get paid to pick up...waste? There are definitely times in the Haven where I'm thinking, "well, that's over the top." Like, when a server insists on cutting the lobster meat out of the tail. I'm just thinking, why don't you serve it sans tail? Or, I mean, I have two hands. I can cut it out. Oh! I can also put my napkin on my lap, thank you. Haha...but hosts have definitely made it known they aren't doing their job if they don't lay out my napkin so I let them do it.

 

I was truly, truly welcomed home this weekend as I spent three hours cleaning up the dog's full winter allotment. We finally had a week of dry, so the yard, and unwelcome accoutrements, were ready for springtime cleanup.

Today? Walking our dead end road that no one drives on to clean up the trash that somehow accumulates on the side of the road.

[cruiseny4life]

On 4/14/2023 at 9:53 AM, justhappy said:

I’m actually glad you are still posting about the cruise. I’m either bored or I just want to escape the news and I love living vicariously through the live and not so live trip reports. Actually hoping you’ll be cruising again soon so we have something to look forward to.

Other's live's are the best part of this site! That sounds so weird...but yep, I'm living vicariously through a lot of folks. You can only skip through the news so often before....ya know, it gets boring as heck!

 

I hope to see a review/live of your trip!! I absolutely love Getaway and the Haven crew!! They are the best!

[CDR Benson]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

Oh my! I don't know what I'd do with a full-on live in butler. I suppose I'd transfer the pet cleanup duties to the butler. Does anyone really want to get paid to pick up...waste? There are definitely times in the Haven where I'm thinking, "well, that's over the top." Like, when a server insists on cutting the lobster meat out of the tail. I'm just thinking, why don't you serve it sans tail? Or, I mean, I have two hands. I can cut it out. Oh! I can also put my napkin on my lap, thank you. Haha...but hosts have definitely made it known they aren't doing their job if they don't lay out my napkin so I let them do it.

 

I was truly, truly welcomed home this weekend as I spent three hours cleaning up the dog's full winter allotment. We finally had a week of dry, so the yard, and unwelcome accoutrements, were ready for springtime cleanup.

Today? Walking our dead end road that no one drives on to clean up the trash that somehow accumulates on the side of the road.

 

As much as we enjoyed having a butler on our Haven cruise, the Good Mrs. Benson and I realised that the occasion when we really wished we'd had him was to unpack for us after we got back home.

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

5 hours ago, CDR Benson said:

 

As much as we enjoyed having a butler on our Haven cruise, the Good Mrs. Benson and I realised that the occasion when we really wished we'd had him was to unpack for us after we got back home.

 

 

Oh my gosh! Yessssss! Do the laundry too. After this cruise, we actually unpacked and did laundry same day, but that's such a drag. 

[brookie848]

57 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Oh my gosh! Yessssss! Do the laundry too. After this cruise, we actually unpacked and did laundry same day, but that's such a drag. 

I want them to come to the house and pack everything and make sure I don't forget something.

 

We are so good at forgetting things that any hotel I book pre-cruise it chosen by how close it is to a CVS or other such store. I've not booked really awesome looking hotels that fit our budget simply because the nearest place to buy what we forgot is too far away.

[justhappy]

10 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Other's live's are the best part of this site! That sounds so weird...but yep, I'm living vicariously through a lot of folks. You can only skip through the news so often before....ya know, it gets boring as heck!

 

I hope to see a review/live of your trip!! I absolutely love Getaway and the Haven crew!! They are the best!

Well then I guess I’ll have to do a trip report, I owe you😉

Edited April 16, 2023 by justhappy