Bringing the JOY with as live-ish a review as the lousy wi-fi will allow: Bermuda 7/9-7/16!

[CDR Benson]

Ma'am, I want to thank you for such a comprehensive report of your cruise on Norwegian Joy.  Usually, I don't gravitate towards such "family-friendly" reviews.  But you have an engaging tone in your writing and, more pertinent, put detail in your description.

 

Our last cruise was on Joy, and the Good Mrs. Benson loved it so much that she insisted we sail on her, again.  So, I booked the same suite on Joy for next year.  You've not only kept us up to date, but you've whetted our anticipation.  Much obliged!

 

[Dorhead1230]

2 hours ago, CDR Benson said:

Ma'am, I want to thank you for such a comprehensive report of your cruise on Norwegian Joy.  Usually, I don't gravitate towards such "family-friendly" reviews.  But you have an engaging tone in your writing and, more pertinent, put detail in your description.

 

Our last cruise was on Joy, and the Good Mrs. Benson loved it so much that she insisted we sail on her, again.  So, I booked the same suite on Joy for next year.  You've not only kept us up to date, but you've whetted our anticipation.  Much obliged!

 

Thanks! Very kind of you to say that 😊. I still have to finish up with days 6 and 7, but alas, things get crazy again as soon as we get home (mainly that LM started his swim lessons today and I have 100 lb. of laundry because I’m so persnickety about laundry we didn’t use the Platinum service—may be time to rethink that next time lol).

 

My 40th birthday is at the end of this year, and due to our work/vacation schedules, we probably won’t do the “big” celebration until next summer. I’m angling for a longer cruise than usual; I enjoyed this one on the Joy so much I’m giving some serious consideration to just asking DH if we can do our 1st B2B next summer on her!

[bkrickles1]

23 minutes ago, Dorhead1230 said:

Thanks! Very kind of you to say that 😊. I still have to finish up with days 6 and 7, but alas, things get crazy again as soon as we get home (mainly that LM started his swim lessons today and I have 100 lb. of laundry because I’m so persnickety about laundry we didn’t use the Platinum service—may be time to rethink that next time lol).

 

My 40th birthday is at the end of this year, and due to our work/vacation schedules, we probably won’t do the “big” celebration until next summer. I’m angling for a longer cruise than usual; I enjoyed this one on the Joy so much I’m giving some serious consideration to just asking DH if we can do our 1st B2B next summer on her!

I've never done a B2B but that's definitely something for the future and sounds like so much fun!

I've done a few 9 day sailings and they were better than the 7 day sailings. Lmao!

I do understand about the laundry. My wife is a laundry snob, but I will utilize the free bag we get on board for gym clothes, underwear and bathing suits, if necessary.

We're leaving on Joy in 6 days so thank you again for your very informative review.

You guys liking it so much has made us much more optimistic that Joy should be the same great experience that we had last summer.

 

[Dorhead1230]

Until I get a few extra minutes to write up our Days 6 and 7 activities, I’ll just write my final casino report right now for those who are interested.

 

All in all, DH and I had fun on our nightly casino visits. There’s a decent game selection in the Joy casino (again, heavily skewed toward newer games). Make sure you really walk around if you’re looking for particular machines, because some are kind of strewn about here and there (for instance, different Buffalo machines). I appreciated the separation of the smoking room; although obviously some smoke gets out when the door opens and closes, it does stay fairly well contained. For most of our cruise, the tables seemed much busier than the slots, but I’m sure that just depends on the individual sailing.

 

I did not win a darn thing. Small hits of a couple hundred here and there, but ultimately I just donated. I’m a lower-end Diamond player at Caesars (I do rank well enough for a host) and always the lowest tier at Mohegan (mainly because they reevaluate tiers every 6 months rather than every year). I definitely bet a little more aggressively on land than the ships, though, because I don’t feel my returns in terms of comps and offers through CAS warrant the kind of play I do on land. DH is the much bigger player. He’s Diamond Plus at Caesars (occasionally Elite) and is also designated VIP at Caesars because of the way he plays (high limits), and Ascend at Mohegan. He left the ship with what he came on with (maybe even up a few bucks? I lost track by the end lol).
 

This is where my griping comes in, though. Although the general casino staff (servers and slot attendants) were the best of any of the mega-ships we’ve sailed, the hosts are absolutely useless. They sit behind their desk and do nothing whatsoever to interact with and check on higher-end players. And, no, I’m not pulling a “don’t you know who my husband is?” Lol. DH earned over 12,000 points this sailing. For those uninitiated into the ranks of degenerate gamblers, that’s equivalent to cycling over $60K through the machines over the course of the week. He regularly plays in the range of $10-50 per spin on slots. There’s not many people on a given sailing who play like that. And nothing. Not a how-do-you-do, do you need anything, not even more than chocolates sent to the room one time. Truly pathetic. And, no, we’re not the types to ask for anything really, either. We’ve been scolded by our AC host on multiple occasions for doing things ourselves she could do for us haha. We’ve honestly never come across good hosts on large NCL ships (the only great ones have been on the Dawn and the Gem), but this cruise was also the most aggressively DH has played onboard (he was hitting enough small-to-medium jackpots to keep him going on the higher-limit games) and still nothing. He plays those games because that’s what he enjoys, but it would still be nice to just be acknowledged and told let us know if you need anything. Maybe we’re just too used to our land experiences 🤷🏻‍♀️.

 

Also, in terms of hand-pays, I saw none besides DH and one other man who I saw hit $1375 on a $48 bet. I’m sure they happened, and we didn’t spend time there during the day because we were doing things with LM, but it definitely looked like not many hits were happening if you weren’t betting big, which is also a little lousy. But that will also obviously vary widely—that’s why it’s gambling!

[Dorhead1230]

3 minutes ago, bkrickles1 said:

I've never done a B2B but that's definitely something for the future and sounds like so much fun!

I've done a few 9 day sailings and they were better than the 7 day sailings. Lmao!

I do understand about the laundry. My wife is a laundry snob, but I will utilize the free bag we get on board for gym clothes, underwear and bathing suits, if necessary.

We're leaving on Joy in 6 days so thank you again for your very informative review.

You guys liking it so much has made us much more optimistic that Joy should be the same great experience that we had last summer.

 

You’re going to have a great time! We’ve done one 9-day, which was fantastic, and this past February was an 8-day, which was not great for various reasons (mostly us all getting sick by the end), but extra days onboard are generally better! 😎

[bkrickles1]

16 minutes ago, Dorhead1230 said:

You’re going to have a great time! We’ve done one 9-day, which was fantastic, and this past February was an 8-day, which was not great for various reasons (mostly us all getting sick by the end), but extra days onboard are generally better! 😎

We used to do a new ship every time we sailed and it always seemed to take about 3 days to get the ships layout down and get into the groove of the cruise. And, before you knew it, you  were waking up on day 6 and had to start packing/preparing to go home.

With the 9 day you have a nice stretch of days where everything slows down and you get to really enjoy your  time on board.

[swimmer9]

@Dorhead1230 we're going on our first cruise with our kids (3 yr old twins!) and in my planning, I came across your post!  so i've been sitting here for the last 2 hours 😆 reading all 9 pages, and I'm sure I'll go back and pore through it again, but I have some questions for you if you have a chance!  (we don't sail until aug 20)

So, I got to your post because I was looking for things to do in Bermuda with kids.  We've only been to Bermuda once before pre-kids (a day at church bay park, an NCL sunset cruise, took the ferry to st george's and walked to fort st catherine). 

In one of your dinner pics, I noticed LM had a tablet (no judgement for us, both my girls have one!) did he need it during dinner every night?  Other times?  Did you pack crayons, books, snacks?  

We're from northern NJ so we drive into the city - how late did you guys get there?  I won't be platinum until I get off this cruise (booo) so we'll have to wait in the long lines.  In the past, I'd say we usually get there by 10:30 (we also like to eat in the MDR for lunch!)  Becoming a mom has also made me paranoid and I just keep thinking, what if the parking lot at the pier is full before we get there??

I want to go to horsehoe bay, but not sure which day... the Joy is the only ship in bermuda the first day, but we don't get there til noon - not sure if it'll already be crowded, or if that's a good day for other stuff (aquarium, sight-seeing).  RCCL will be there the next day at 1pm, possibly late enough that we could go for the morning and do something else in the afternoon?
Not specifically a *you* question, but not being a first time cruiser, I haven't done a lot of planning for this, but I'm seeing people make reservations for the MDR now??  What was your experience getting in?  We usually do savor or taste, and part of the reason I love NCL is the freestyle cruising!

This is one of the things I'll go back and look at your posts again, but what do you do for Bahamas with your son?  We usually hit the local beach down from the pier, probably planning to do the same with our girls?

I realize I'm probably just talking to an echo chamber for this, but I'm not a crazy person for bringing 2 3-yr olds on a 10 day cruise, right?? lol

[Susandt]

What free restaurants are open the 1st day for lunch?

[Dorhead1230]

@swimmer9 I’m going to answer your questions later! 🙂

[Dorhead1230]

1 hour ago, Susandt said:

What free restaurants are open the 1st day for lunch?

Garden Cafe (buffet), The Local, and Taste/Savor (only seat from 12-1:30).

[Dorhead1230]

I was just grocery shopping and “Footloose” started playing. They found me rocking back and forth in the dairy aisle, muttering that I’ll be a good girl from now on if they make it stop. I’ve recovered now.

 

 

 

 

😜

[ellenw]

1 hour ago, Susandt said:

What free restaurants are open the 1st day for lunch?

All NCL ships have one of their main restaurants open for lunch on embarkation day. It will be either Savor or Taste. It is a great way to start your cruise!

[Dorhead1230]

4 hours ago, swimmer9 said:

@Dorhead1230 we're going on our first cruise with our kids (3 yr old twins!) and in my planning, I came across your post!  so i've been sitting here for the last 2 hours 😆 reading all 9 pages, and I'm sure I'll go back and pore through it again, but I have some questions for you if you have a chance!  (we don't sail until aug 20)

So, I got to your post because I was looking for things to do in Bermuda with kids.  We've only been to Bermuda once before pre-kids (a day at church bay park, an NCL sunset cruise, took the ferry to st george's and walked to fort st catherine).  They will probably love the aquarium, museum, and zoo (BAMZ). It’s not huge, which is probably better with littles, but it’s nice. It may be a little bit of a schlep with two 3yos, but it isn’t difficult. You just take the ferry to Hamilton and then the bus to BAMZ. It’s maybe a 10-minute walk to the main bus stop from the ferry and some is uphill, so depending on what you think your girls can handle, you could also probably get a taxi from the ferry to the bus stop. Hog Penny was a nice place to eat with the LM. They had a kids’ menu that was reasonably priced ($9.95 for his food and drink) and they were really nice to him. Obviously beach days are great, too! One thing I wouldn’t do with littles are the caves. They’re awesome, but I won’t take LM until he’s a little bigger—it’s a lot of pretty steep steps and I’d be nervous about him falling. Also, you never know what will scare them at this age and I wouldn’t want him to freak out down there.

In one of your dinner pics, I noticed LM had a tablet (no judgement for us, both my girls have one!) did he need it during dinner every night?  Other times?  Did you pack crayons, books, snacks? We have a designated travel Fire tablet that has its entire storage devoted to 2 puzzle games he likes plus as much stuff as I can download for him before we go on vacation. At home, no devices and no TV during dinner. But then, he can only terrorize us if he’s being difficult, loud, wandering around the kitchen, etc. lol. I won’t take the chance that he ruins other people’s dinners, and he sits really well if he just watches a show or two at dinner. Actually, the nicest lady approached us at Cagney’s and said she never saw a little boy so well-behaved in a restaurant. We all started laughing hysterically without meaning to (this was the evening of the day when we delayed the beach because he was being nuts all morning lol). He didn’t really look for it other times, except right before bed because he usually gets a few minutes at home to watch a show before bed, but other meals were faster than dinner. I didn’t pack crayons this time (he packed toys he wanted for the cabin) but I kept a couple of the ones they gave him at restaurants in my bag so he’d have extra colors (they only keep 4 colors on the ship and they give them 2 with the kids’ menu they can color on). I did also pack a couple card games he likes (matching and I spy) and a $ Tree Colorforms Candyland), but those weren’t for restaurants obviously. I brought a few individual bags of Goldfish, a few Chewy bars, and a tiny bag each of Kisses and PB cups. The first full day I also grabbed a few of the small cereal boxes they put out at breakfast for the cabin. He’s usually perfectly happy snacking on dry cereal. The food was much easier this time because he eats so much more variety now that he’s a little bit bigger. I didn’t take a picture of the kids’ menu on the ship but LM insisted I keep some that he colored lol, so I’ll post a pic for you later.

We're from northern NJ so we drive into the city - how late did you guys get there?  I won't be platinum until I get off this cruise (booo) so we'll have to wait in the long lines.  In the past, I'd say we usually get there by 10:30 (we also like to eat in the MDR for lunch!)  Becoming a mom has also made me paranoid and I just keep thinking, what if the parking lot at the pier is full before we get there?? I think 10-10:30 should be good to avoid waiting too long inside. It’s hard to keep them contained if you have to sit in the terminal for hours. I want to say we got there more like 11-11:15 and we got one of the last spots available at Pier 88. After that, they just direct you to the pier next door. That’s what happened to us in February. The elevator to the entrance level was broken at the other pier in February so we had to hoof it with all our stuff along the road to Pier 88. It was horrible. This time DH insisted we drop the checked bags with a porter and then circle back around to park and take only our carry-ons with us. It added maybe 5-10 minutes to exit the terminal and circle back around, but I was cool with it. It was zero stress, plus we had to use the escalator, not the elevator, and so we didn’t need to try to grab a porter on the parking level, etc. Most people probably wouldn’t do what we did, but for the few minutes and a trip around the block, it worked. You shouldn’t encounter lines like there were for our cruise. While there can be lines, this was crazy because of the terminal wi-fi going down. I certainly hope that wouldn’t happen to you next month!

I want to go to horsehoe bay, but not sure which day... the Joy is the only ship in bermuda the first day, but we don't get there til noon - not sure if it'll already be crowded, or if that's a good day for other stuff (aquarium, sight-seeing).  RCCL will be there the next day at 1pm, possibly late enough that we could go for the morning and do something else in the afternoon? I’m not sure how long you guys are capable of surviving at the beach, but in that heat we don’t make it more than a few hours 🥵. If RCCL arrives 1PM, I’d say those cruisers won’t make it to the beach until 1:30-2. If you headed to the beach in the morning, my guess is you’d be done and ready to head back by then, anyway!
Not specifically a *you* question, but not being a first time cruiser, I haven't done a lot of planning for this, but I'm seeing people make reservations for the MDR now??  What was your experience getting in?  We usually do savor or taste, and part of the reason I love NCL is the freestyle cruising! This cruise, we only did MDR two times, but we had no wait either time (I think 5 minutes one of the times). I feel like the only reservation times I’ve seen for the MDR are 5:30 or 8:30 (maybe I’ve just never looked when other times are available?) and neither of those work for us (we’re usually 7ish dinner people on vacation). But our last two cruises were very full and we had no issues with Savor or Taste! We never try Manhattan, which I do think can get longer waits, but it’s too big, loud, and crowded for me anyway.

This is one of the things I'll go back and look at your posts again, but what do you do for Bahamas with your son?  We usually hit the local beach down from the pier, probably planning to do the same with our girls? We only had a Bahamas stop with him in February, and it was just to GSC, which is amazing and fun and I love it. DH and I have been to Nassau before we had LM and we really don’t like it. The second time we stopped there, we stayed onboard and enjoyed the empty ship. I think the beach that’s right there would be a good option, though, as I’m not sure there’s much there worth traveling farther away with littles! Unless you wanted to pick a ship excursion (but they’re so expensive!).

I realize I'm probably just talking to an echo chamber for this, but I'm not a crazy person for bringing 2 3-yr olds on a 10 day cruise, right?? lol No, not at all! We’re lucky my mom comes with us so we have a nighttime babysitter, but even if she didn’t want to come on one, we’d still take him and just adjust how we do things at night. You’ll have so much fun!

Answers to your questions are above in red 😊

[Dorhead1230]

@swimmer9 here’s the kids’ menu! They can get this stuff at any restaurant, including the specialties. In the MDRs and The Local, they could also get whatever they want off the regular menus if they’re more adventurous eaters.

Edited July 18, 2023 by Dorhead1230

[Pitzel]

7 hours ago, swimmer9 said:

This is one of the things I'll go back and look at your posts again, but what do you do for Bahamas with your son?  We usually hit the local beach down from the pier, probably planning to do the same with our girls?

 

Check out Blue Lagoon Island in Nassau. You have to book through the cruise line, unfortunately, but it makes for a great family beach day with little ones. Lots to do there -- lots of shallow areas for swimming, dolphins and other sea animals to see, hands-on tide pools and more. Plus lunch is included. When we went, it felt very clean and safe there.

[KXZ1498]

10 hours ago, Dorhead1230 said:

Until I get a few extra minutes to write up our Days 6 and 7 activities, I’ll just write my final casino report right now for those who are interested.

 

All in all, DH and I had fun on our nightly casino visits. There’s a decent game selection in the Joy casino (again, heavily skewed toward newer games). Make sure you really walk around if you’re looking for particular machines, because some are kind of strewn about here and there (for instance, different Buffalo machines). I appreciated the separation of the smoking room; although obviously some smoke gets out when the door opens and closes, it does stay fairly well contained. For most of our cruise, the tables seemed much busier than the slots, but I’m sure that just depends on the individual sailing.

 

I did not win a darn thing. Small hits of a couple hundred here and there, but ultimately I just donated. I’m a lower-end Diamond player at Caesars (I do rank well enough for a host) and always the lowest tier at Mohegan (mainly because they reevaluate tiers every 6 months rather than every year). I definitely bet a little more aggressively on land than the ships, though, because I don’t feel my returns in terms of comps and offers through CAS warrant the kind of play I do on land. DH is the much bigger player. He’s Diamond Plus at Caesars (occasionally Elite) and is also designated VIP at Caesars because of the way he plays (high limits), and Ascend at Mohegan. He left the ship with what he came on with (maybe even up a few bucks? I lost track by the end lol).
 

This is where my griping comes in, though. Although the general casino staff (servers and slot attendants) were the best of any of the mega-ships we’ve sailed, the hosts are absolutely useless. They sit behind their desk and do nothing whatsoever to interact with and check on higher-end players. And, no, I’m not pulling a “don’t you know who my husband is?” Lol. DH earned over 12,000 points this sailing. For those uninitiated into the ranks of degenerate gamblers, that’s equivalent to cycling over $60K through the machines over the course of the week. He regularly plays in the range of $10-50 per spin on slots. There’s not many people on a given sailing who play like that. And nothing. Not a how-do-you-do, do you need anything, not even more than chocolates sent to the room one time. Truly pathetic. And, no, we’re not the types to ask for anything really, either. We’ve been scolded by our AC host on multiple occasions for doing things ourselves she could do for us haha. We’ve honestly never come across good hosts on large NCL ships (the only great ones have been on the Dawn and the Gem), but this cruise was also the most aggressively DH has played onboard (he was hitting enough small-to-medium jackpots to keep him going on the higher-limit games) and still nothing. He plays those games because that’s what he enjoys, but it would still be nice to just be acknowledged and told let us know if you need anything. Maybe we’re just too used to our land experiences 🤷🏻‍♀️.

 

Also, in terms of hand-pays, I saw none besides DH and one other man who I saw hit $1375 on a $48 bet. I’m sure they happened, and we didn’t spend time there during the day because we were doing things with LM, but it definitely looked like not many hits were happening if you weren’t betting big, which is also a little lousy. But that will also obviously vary widely—that’s why it’s gambling!

 

I was a high roller at the tables, making about 21k points this trip. They did nothing except give me money at the end. This is weird cause they are around 4-5 hosts from what I see. Maybe they did something for the high-limit bacc group. 

[bkrickles1]

17 hours ago, Dorhead1230 said:

You’re going to have a great time! We’ve done one 9-day, which was fantastic, and this past February was an 8-day, which was not great for various reasons (mostly us all getting sick by the end), but extra days onboard are generally better! 😎

Did you guys take off from Manhattan at 6pm?

Others have mentioned leaving at that time and my itinerary for this Sunday just changed to a 6pm departure.

Not really a big deal, although I'd prefer to leave at 4pm like we always have in the past.

[Dorhead1230]

8 hours ago, KXZ1498 said:

 

I was a high roller at the tables, making about 21k points this trip. They did nothing except give me money at the end. This is weird cause they are around 4-5 hosts from what I see. Maybe they did something for the high-limit bacc group. 

That’s crazy! There couldn’t be many people playing like you…I mean, what do they do?! Lol. I’m sure you’re treated excellently at your land casinos, too. I hope the dealers and servers onboard were kind to you, at least. We found that staff great!

 

They did also wipe all non-DSC, non-gaming, non-Cruise Next charges from the bill on DH’s cabin (but it was less than $200).

[Dorhead1230]

1 hour ago, bkrickles1 said:

Did you guys take off from Manhattan at 6pm?

Others have mentioned leaving at that time and my itinerary for this Sunday just changed to a 6pm departure.

Not really a big deal, although I'd prefer to leave at 4pm like we always have in the past.

Yes, that’s when we left, but our itinerary did say that from the beginning.

[cruiseny4life]

10 hours ago, Pitzel said:

Check out Blue Lagoon Island in Nassau. You have to book through the cruise line, unfortunately, but it makes for a great family beach day with little ones. Lots to do there -- lots of shallow areas for swimming, dolphins and other sea animals to see, hands-on tide pools and more. Plus lunch is included. When we went, it felt very clean and safe there.

We don't have kids, unless you count our pups and cat. We went to Blue Lagoon and it is a really good experience. I can't say great as I wanted waves. You don't get that there, but that's probably perfect if you're going with little kids. My husband and I enjoyed ourselves and would even consider going back. It was a quick boat ride from the cruise dock (so not too far a walk from the ship). I'd highly recommend Blue Lagoon for a family with smaller kids. 

[Dorhead1230]

Day 6, Bermuda Day 3:

We never leave the Dockyard area on the final day. You’ll never see us among the pier runners! After visiting The Local for breakfast (we really did like this option; the menu isn’t super extensive but it does the trick. It’s calmer than the buffets and open late for breakfast for those of us who can’t make it to the MDR 🤭), we decided to take it easy and just do a little shopping. We passed through Makin’ Waves, but didn’t buy anything there. We walked around Clocktower Mall, where we bought a few things at Davison’s (this is where we usually end up making purchases in Bermuda), and then I bought LM a small pink Bermuda bus that he wanted to display in his room (I can’t remember which store that was; it’s the one that’s absolutely crammed with fun junk that I go in every time). My mom also bought herself a fabric purse/bag with a nice beachy/nautical pattern on it. We stopped at Dockyard Pharmacy on the way back to the ship so I could get my Cadbury chocolate bars that are almost impossible to find at home (Flake and Crunchie).

Inside the Clocktower Mall; sorry for the weird angles—I always try to avoid getting clear shots of unsuspecting strangers.

There are usually some chickens wandering the Dockyard. LM was pretty psyched to see the baby chickens.

 

When we reboarded the ship, we went to the Atrium for origami. We took LM to origami on Getaway and he loved it. This one was not run well. When we went on Getaway, there were printouts of the instructions, plus the CD crew member had it step by step on slides on the screen, and she demonstrated each step. This time, the CD crew member just stood up front and showed the folds (way too fast). I ended up logging in to the internet, finding origami butterfly instructions, screenshooting them, and logging out, after which DH figured out how to do it lol. LM doesn’t really know the difference—he just wanted to fold paper, but they really did a crummy job giving instructions for it. I took LM to the bathroom at one point and when we returned, I noticed that everyone who was there trying to do the origami was then gathered around the table with the crew member showing them up-close again how to do it.

 

After this, we returned to The Local because it was far too late for a MDR lunch and we did try to avoid the buffet whenever possible (we were mostly successful with this). This was the only time things got kind of messed up. The server was nice, but I guess she just misunderstood some of the order or made mistakes because it was busy. I asked for a completely plain hot dog and fries for LM. A little while later, a runner came by with wings and fries. We all said it wasn’t ours; then a minute later the server came and said it was our plain wings. She had misunderstood that I asked for a hot dog. DM and I also both ordered spinach dip and only one came. This ended up being fine on two levels—one, DM didn’t like it (it’s actually delicious, just not for her), so DH and I ate that one; and two, we ended up with surprise chicken wings so I ate a few of those. Maybe they’re better plain because these weren’t too squishy and icky like they’ve been lately. DH and I also waited a long time before asking a second time for margaritas we had ordered and, when they came, mine had salt although I asked for none. None of these things are huge problems; this was just the only server we had this cruise who wasn’t totally on the ball, so it made it stand out even more that she made all these mistakes. Items that we ordered this meal that were new to us: the carbonara (DM ordered it; said it was fine but blah), I had the blue cheese burger which was good (I was a little worried that the tomato chutney would be unpleasant because I don’t care for chunky tomatoes, but I took a chance and it was a tasty, smooth spread), and DH and DM tried the brownie-raspberry cheesecake, which they were both very surprised they enjoyed. The brownie base is super hard to cut through, though—I think it gets too dense/hard in the fridge.

 

We made LM take a short nap because we had signed up for Laser Tag at 6PM. LM had been so disappointed that he is far too small for the go karts and was begging to do laser tag ever since we stupidly brought it up several weeks before the cruise. We figured we’d let him try, because the only restriction is being able to hold the laser gun. He was more or less able to do it. It got heavy for him after a while. And he’s kind of big for his age—he’s already nearly 43 inches tall—so I think for more average or smaller-sized 4 or even 5-year-olds it might not work out. The crew member was very sweet, though. She showed him how to hold up the laser gun so he could support it and she adjusted the strap for him to help him hold it up. I’m also very grateful that we played with really nice people who didn’t get impatient or frustrated that they had to play with a little guy. On our team was a very kind couple; the lady told LM he had to protect her in there lol. The other team was a family of 6 and the 4 kids were all older teens. DH was a little nervous about that, but no one has more faith in teenagers than a HS teacher, so I knew it would be fine. They were careful to avoid trampling LM the whole time, even if they were taking lots of shots at the easy target 😂. The only downside is you lose the life in your laser gun very quickly (maybe after getting shot only 1-2 times?) so you have to go back to the base a lot to regenerate…at least if you suck as badly as LM and me! He had so much fun, though, and I’m glad he got to do one of the “extras” on the ship.

a couple shots of Vibe I got from the laser tag area

a place I’ll probably never go 🤣

 

Dinner was at the MDR (I think Savor this time). The service was once again great, and I felt bad because usually LM likes fettuccine alfredo, so I ordered it for him plain off the regular menu (without the shrimp and mushrooms). They doused it in chopped parsley though. I tried to push a lot of it off and bury the rest, but he was saying he did not like it and I think that was why. So, I had to ask the server to get him a kids’ pizza instead. I wasn’t super enthusiastic about that evening’s entree choices, so I had the classic fettuccine alfredo with the shrimp and mushrooms. It was fine, nothing special; I definitely make it better 🤗, and I’m a mushroom person, but it was overkill. With the shrimp, I think broccoli, asparagus, or peas would go better anyway. The cream of asparagus soup was really good, though, and had a little chopped hazelnuts in it that gave it some texture. The Caesar was fine as usual.  DH also tried the matzo ball soup. He ate it, but said it was very salty (coming from him, that means it was SALTY) and the matzo balls were pretty dense. He had the lamb shank for his entree. He doesn’t even normally like lamb that much so I have no idea why he ordered it, but he said it was quite good, so it must have been great. DM got the chicken again, this time with roasted carrots that she said were very good. DH had the éclairs for dessert and said they were fine, nothing special. DM had the no sugar added lemon cream cake (not because it was no sugar added, just because it was the only thing she liked); she said it wasn’t bad. I had the hot mess of deliciousness called Snickers pound cake. I’ve always though that although a lot of NCL desserts are lousy, they do make good pound cakes. This was really good, even though there was a lot going on. There was a lot of Snickers in the cake, and even though it seems weird to put strawberries on it, it worked—like chocolate PB&J.

matzo ball soup

asparagus soup 

caesar salad 

fettuccine Alfredo with shrimp and mushrooms 

lamb shank—smart-ass DH took a bad photo and then got distracted and forgot to fix it

eclairs

no sugar added lemon cake

Snickers pound cake

 

We had gotten to dinner a little late because of laser tag, and it took a little extra time because of LM needing a replacement entree, so we were way late for the 9:30 Elements. It was standing room only at the back. We spent maybe 10-15 minutes passing LM back and forth so he could see a little, but it was getting to be too much, so DH took him to the mini arcade by The Local for a few minutes while I watched the grand finale of the show and waited for the crew members to walk in during the “You are Norwegian Now” thing (always gets me right in the feels). The little bit of Elements we saw was great. I’ll definitely go again if I have the opportunity on a future cruise. Just the whole thing was cool—the sets, the lighting, the use of projection on the walls, the costumes, the acrobats—all were engaging and interesting to watch.

 

After LM went to bed, DH and I passed the rest of the night in our usual location.

[Dorhead1230]

A brief, sad interlude:

 

I'm sorry to report that I think hash browns and lava cakes may be a thing of the past. Obviously, it’s possible that it was just this sailing and items did not make it to the ship. But the thing is, they were not on the printed menus 😭. I never got a chance to ask about the hash browns. They were not at the buffet, and on both The Local breakfast menu and the MDR breakfast menu, they’re not listed as an option anywhere. The menus just say “breakfast potatoes,” which are the cut up potato pieces with onions.

 

I waited all week to have lunch in the MDR since we missed it Day 1, because they had previously moved my

beloved lava cake to the lunch menu. DH, LM, and I finally went for lunch on Day 7 and no lava cake. This menu was also not the same as the February lunch menu, so I’m not sure if they overhauled it again or if they are rotating lunch menus now? I know I can get lava cakes at the grocery store, but I want my NCL one with the stracciatella ice cream and strawberry sauce, dammit!

 

I will finish writing up Day 7 later, but here’s the lunch report. Aside from ruining my life with lack of lava cake 😜, lunch was very nice. The manager on duty was oddly attentive. She must have checked on us 3-4 times while we were there.

The chicken quesadilla is listed under “handhelds,” which may lead you to believe it is an adequate entree. It is not lol. I ordered it as an app, assuming it would be small, and I was correct. DH ordered it as his entree and he had eaten more at breakfast so he didn’t really mind, but he was surprised it didn’t come with anything.

fish and chips; very good and, when I asked, the server did bring me malt vinegar 😋

kids’ chicken fingers—massive fingers, like cutlet-sized

 

 

DH also had the orange-chocolate mousse, which I didn’t take a picture of. The orange component is Jello, just so you’re aware. None of these desserts appeal to me, so LM and I both just had chocolate ice cream.

[cruiseny4life]

5 minutes ago, Dorhead1230 said:

I never got a chance to ask about the hash browns. They were not at the buffet, and on both The Local breakfast menu and the MDR breakfast menu, they’re not listed as an option anywhere. The menus just say “breakfast potatoes,” which are the cut up potato pieces with onions.

No more NCL if that is the case for this one! Don't worry, I'll forget this in five minutes....but really? Say it ain't so NCL! I went through withdrawal back in September when hash browns disappeared. I need my yummy fried potato goodness. Raise that sugar to astronomical levels, please! 

 

Anyway...I'm hoping for some fake news from you regarding this! (For real, I will actually be disappointed if there aren't hash browns anymore, but I definitely want to see about 1,000,000 more people say this before I believe it). 

[Dorhead1230]

4 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

No more NCL if that is the case for this one! Don't worry, I'll forget this in five minutes....but really? Say it ain't so NCL! I went through withdrawal back in September when hash browns disappeared. I need my yummy fried potato goodness. Raise that sugar to astronomical levels, please! 

 

Anyway...I'm hoping for some fake news from you regarding this! (For real, I will actually be disappointed if there aren't hash browns anymore, but I definitely want to see about 1,000,000 more people say this before I believe it). 

Trust me, I hope I’m wrong, too! I liked the layout of the Joy buffet because it was so spread out, but because it was so spread out, maybe we missed something. I tend to walk around the buffet with blinders on because ick…people. Lol. However, I did kind of notice that I didn’t see them and looked for them briefly. Also, DH said something to me about it, and I think he did walk around and look more. Maybe it was just Joy, maybe it was just this sailing? But the absence of a hash brown option on the printed menus definitely gave me pause. I actually said to myself onboard, though—wouldn’t this be all over CC if the hash browns disappeared?

 

As far as the lava cakes, I was already miffed when they moved them from every night at dinner to lunch (and I think they had them Day 1 at dinner in February). If they got rid of them completely now, then that’s just 😤

[Maleficent's Dad]

16 minutes ago, Dorhead1230 said:

Trust me, I hope I’m wrong, too! I liked the layout of the Joy buffet because it was so spread out, but because it was so spread out, maybe we missed something.

......

As far as the lava cakes, I was already miffed when they moved them from every night at dinner to lunch (and I think they had them Day 1 at dinner in February). If they got rid of them completely now, then that’s just 😤

We looked for the hash browns everywhere - got off the day you got on - and they were no where to be found,

 

Interesting about the lava cake - DS ordered this twice.  First time at Manhattan room, and this came out like cake - NO lava - nothing moist and runny inside.  The second time, again, Manhattan room was perfection.  Nice molten chocolate lava!