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

[Dorhead1230]

28 minutes ago, Maleficent's Dad said:

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!

So it does still exist! I just missed it, I guess. We ended up with 5 out of 7 nights in specialties this time, which has never happened before, so I must have missed it. Not sure why I care. Like you said, sometimes they do come out not melty at all—when I buy Trader Joe’s or ShopRite ones and microwave them, that doesn’t happen lol. I think there are going to be hash brown riots soon, though!

[mking8288]

8 hours ago, Dorhead1230 said:

A brief, sad interlude:

I'm sorry to report that I think hash browns and lava cakes may be a thing of the past ... The menus just say “breakfast potatoes,” which are the cut up potato pieces with onions ... 

 

Wow.  Thanks for that "heads up" OMG - imagine the "horror."  Me think, NCL has 😬 our healthy heart & enhanced diet 😮 in mind, for our convenience 😤 too; of course - going back to the dated "Cooking Lite" menu of years gone by 😉  It's not a deal breaker by itself and not going to ruin our upcoming cruises on NCL (too late, hahaha - final payment made & insurance isn't CFAR either and "Covid" isn't a valid claim to cancel and get reimbursed in the form of FCC) - just gonna deal with it as always, always room for humor along with patience & tolerance.  

 

We'll "miss" those crispy hash browns but not going to hassle the crew and F&B manager, etc. - but ... maybe it's just a one-time logistical issue.  Disappointed, not going to sweat it, not until it reach a thousand cuts.  As for the lava cake, DW always said it's too sweet for her taste, besides - she has no plans to risk elevating her A1C beyond borderline and I'm not going to risk going higher than 5.5, went up by 0.1 on the last CBC workup to 5.4.  

 

Otherwise, it was a great cruise, huh.  Thanks for an excellent report - maybe, we'll return to the Joy after her 2024 dry dock to see the changes. 

Edited July 19, 2023 by mking8288

[cruiseny4life]

11 hours ago, Dorhead1230 said:

So it does still exist! I just missed it, I guess. We ended up with 5 out of 7 nights in specialties this time, which has never happened before, so I must have missed it. Not sure why I care. Like you said, sometimes they do come out not melty at all—when I buy Trader Joe’s or ShopRite ones and microwave them, that doesn’t happen lol. I think there are going to be hash brown riots soon, though!

You know who had a great lava cake? Applebee's! Back in the day...when they had strip steaks. So, like 2009. Every week I had an Applebee's date with myself for a strip steak and sometimes ordered the lava cake. Who hasn't been in Applebee's in a decade? Yep, this guy! Those couple years right after college were lovely though. 

 

Hash brown riots? I'll pout to my server for about five seconds....I'm an entitled Haven cruiser after all! One must act in such a way when cruising Haven. Then I'll be over it, but not really. It's at least ten of the 1,000 cuts @mking8288 referenced. 🦀

[brookie848]

When we sailed back in February, we definitely had a different MDR lunch menu (we were only there the one time). I got chicken parm and my husband got some sort of roasted chicken, which he really liked.

 

We had the hashbrown coins on our cruise. I don't always eat them, but I would miss having them as an option.

[Dorhead1230]

12 hours ago, mking8288 said:

We'll "miss" those crispy hash browns but not going to hassle the crew and F&B manager, etc. - but ... maybe it's just a one-time logistical issue.  Disappointed, not going to sweat it, not until it reach a thousand cuts. 

Yes, at the end of the day, they were tasty, but not at all needed when you’re already eating more fat, sugar, and salt than usual onboard. I can accomplish nice, crispy hash brown patties in my air fryer with no oil, so no biggie. Based on a few threads I’ve seen on here in the past, though, I’m sure there will be some pounding of chests and gnashing of teeth. 😂 I’m really not an NCL apologist or cheerleader, but I think maybe I am more forgiving of a lot of these minor issues because service in everything and everywhere has declined since Covid. No reason to expect cruising to be any different than everything else. And, if anything, I found the crew to still be working so hard, especially this time but even in February which was probably the worst cruise we’ve had, that cruising still beats pretty much any other vacation we might do!
 

4 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

Hash brown riots? I'll pout to my server for about five seconds....I'm an entitled Haven cruiser after all! One must act in such a way when cruising Haven. Then I'll be over it, but not really. It's at least ten of the 1,000 cuts @mking8288 referenced. 🦀

Maybe they’ll still have a secret stash for the Haven denizens 😜. Definitely not worth a riot in my book, but with the way people on here get riled up about stuff, if this is a fleetwide/permanent change, I’ll expect a lot of “I’m done with NCL forever” proclamations soon lol.

[Dorhead1230]

1 hour ago, brookie848 said:

When we sailed back in February, we definitely had a different MDR lunch menu (we were only there the one time). I got chicken parm and my husband got some sort of roasted chicken, which he really liked.

 

We had the hashbrown coins on our cruise. I don't always eat them, but I would miss having them as an option.

Yes, it also appears they got rid of the bay scallops gratin, which I know people liked. In February on Getaway, I had potato skins topped with chili that were very good and also chicken taquitos—those are also gone. Plus several other items I know used to be on there. So I guess they did overhaul the lunch menu quite a bit. Unless there is actually a rotation now? We usually only do 1 or 2 lunches there each cruise as well, so I wouldn’t know if it rotated.

[KKB]

@Dorhead1230 Thanks for this review!

And thanks for the Vibe pic--it was MUCH nicer on the Getaway & loungers spaced out nicely. This looks no better than regular decks (OK...they are padded & I'm assuming no problem getting a lounger).

We booked it for Nov but with 4 port days & poker to play, we plan to cancel since we won't get $500 use out of it. (plus if we stay onboard on a port day, that is a great day to hang by the pool!)

[Sand and Seas]

2 hours ago, Dorhead1230 said:

Yes, it also appears they got rid of the bay scallops gratin, which I know people liked. In February on Getaway, I had potato skins topped with chili that were very good and also chicken taquitos—those are also gone. Plus several other items I know used to be on there. So I guess they did overhaul the lunch menu quite a bit. Unless there is actually a rotation now? We usually only do 1 or 2 lunches there each cruise as well, so I wouldn’t know if it rotated.

On our recent 11 day  April cruise on Joy, I think there were three different lunch menus.  Sorry, I didn't take photos.   

[Dorhead1230]

4 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

On our recent 11 day  April cruise on Joy, I think there were three different lunch menus.  Sorry, I didn't take photos.   

That’s interesting! That would actually be a nice change if there’s a bit of a lunch rotation now with a little more variety.

Edited July 20, 2023 by Dorhead1230

[Dorhead1230]

6 hours ago, KKB said:

@Dorhead1230 Thanks for this review!

And thanks for the Vibe pic--it was MUCH nicer on the Getaway & loungers spaced out nicely. This looks no better than regular decks (OK...they are padded & I'm assuming no problem getting a lounger).

We booked it for Nov but with 4 port days & poker to play, we plan to cancel since we won't get $500 use out of it. (plus if we stay onboard on a port day, that is a great day to hang by the pool!)

Someone on another social media site’s group for this cruise was complaining about Vibe after we got back. I think saying there weren’t enough umbrellas. I find it hard to believe they wouldn’t have come up with an umbrella for someone who paid for Vibe and asked for one, but who knows? Maybe they didn’t ask. Other people in the group raved about it. I guess everything is subjective!

However, I completely agree that on a sailing with 4 port days and you planning to play poker, it’s probably a waste. I bet the ship won’t be as crowded in November anyway, and I’m 100% sure there will be a fraction of the children onboard that there were now. And if there’s a port you’ve seen before/don’t like/don’t have big plans for, that is a perfect time to hang on the ship! I love Bermuda so so much, but even I was tempted to just not get off at all one day because the empty ship was absolutely blissful lol.

[mking8288]

With regards to what @Sand and Seas was referring to ... when we're on our Epic TA with numerous sea (7 or 😎 days, as otherwise ... the MDR aren't likely to be open for lunch, we did realized that a slightly different lunch menu were presented, with enough variations but not completely changed.  Will go thru DW's Goo Photos to see ... never got around to finish sorting or post some of the ones that I've missed (was going to put together a slide "show" of food items only ...) 

 

Going to be looking for these - bay scallops gratin onboard NCL again, in a few weeks.  😉 😋 🤔 

Meanwhile, other lines are enhancing the onboard experience, including complimentary dining & late night snacks ... while making changes & "managing" their costs ... NCL #cough #cough might need to do a bit of catching up, no longer "always" leading the pack.  

 

 

 

[Dorhead1230]

It only took me almost the whole week, but…

 

Day 7, final sea day:

We had our final The Local breakfast to start the day. We had begun our cruise with the most delightful server from South Africa, Sanelle, and were fortunate enough to have him again for this meal. If you visit The Local on Joy and encounter him, you’re lucky indeed! Two random comments about breakfast—first, whoever was cutting the fruit for The Local fruit salads is an absolute machine. It would always be in these very small cubes and so completely uniform lol. Second, each time we ordered toast, they brought marmalade, strawberry preserves, and apple jelly. I finally tried the apple jelly on Day 7 and it’s not half bad. Is that a European or British thing? Because I’ve never had it before. Traveling to PA often enough in my life, I’ve had apple butter plenty of times, but never jelly. Anyway, let me tell you my life is not exciting without saying my life is not exciting.

 

posted previously, but, the fruit salad and toast with accompaniments at The Local:

 

We only did a couple activities that day, as we were gradually getting organized and packing over the course of the day. Prior to breakfast, I made a final attempt to win LM a giant glitter duck from a crane game in The Local’s arcade area. I finally emerged victorious. I can’t imagine what DH and I spent over the course of the cruise on a duck that probably costs a buck lol. But you’d think the kid never had a toy before, he was so excited.

 

First after breakfast was mini golf. I enjoy this feature on the ships that have it. While there are no big bells and whistles, it’s a perfectly nice, occasionally challenging mini golf course with the best view you could hope for. LM had never played before and he enjoyed himself. We then took him for his final arcade visit (except for DH taking him back later to cash in his ticket receipts for prizes).

part of the mini golf course

beautiful views from the mini golf

watched this crazy slide for a few minutes; I probably would have done it when I was younger and more fun…now it just looks like plastic tube to bake in lol. If you’re thinking of doing it, be aware that the crew member there does not play—she was checking everyone for metal on bathing suits, any jewelry whatsoever, and having people weigh themselves (for both minimum and maximum weight).

 

I already covered our MDR lunch in a post above.

 

I had really wanted to see a Beatles show all week, but had not managed to squeeze one in. I did not intend to try to watch from inside the Cavern Club. I knew I wouldn’t get there early enough for that and I don’t like being packed in, as I knew I would be if I tried to stay inside. I ended up missing probably about the first 20 minutes of the show (which was 45-50 minutes long). I walked straight through the inside part of the Cavern Club and right out to the Waterfront. I could tell it was super crowded inside even though I didn’t really look around. I didn’t even bother to try to sit at the outside bar to see the TV monitor (they’re not actually The Beatles and I don’t feel compelled to pretend lol); I just wanted to hear the good music. So, I relaxed at a table on the waterfront where a nice server brought me a Bahama Mama (I try not to OD on the sugary drinks the whole cruise, but this was so good!) and listened to the very talented band for the rest of their show. This was the Abbey Road show, which are some of my favorite Beatles songs, anyway, so I was very happy! If you don’t need the “full” experience of being inside the venue, I highly recommend sitting outside. You can hear perfectly (see, too, if you watch at the bar) with no crowd and the ocean going by, and it’s so easy to get a drink out there!

 

We still had one Platinum voucher for 2 and when we went to Cagney’s, we did not cash in a FAS meal for LM because he doesn’t eat anything on that menu. So, we still had a specialty dinner for 3 to use up. We decided to wait until a little on the later side to see if La Cucina had any no-shows, as obviously everything was showing up fully booked for the night. I think perhaps people make reservations on different nights for more meals than they actually have. Because everything was pretty much booked solid shortly after embarking, but there were empty tables everywhere each night (except when we were at Cagney’s, which was quite full the whole time we were there). If La Cucina didn’t work out, we were just going to return to Food Republic. We didn’t plan to try at Ocean Blue or Le Bistro without knowing if we could get in. It sounds dumb, but unless he’s really in the mood to wear pants, I don’t want to force DH to wear pants on vacation because he has to wear a uniform every other day of his life. If we had planned to go there, it would be different, but without knowing, I didn’t want to make him bother.

 

We were able to be seated at La Cucina, but it just needed to be in the section that’s closer to the corridor outside the restaurant proper. Fine by me, as it was quieter and fewer people! I ordered a completely different meal this time to change it up, but I did end up eating the gnocchi again as my mom ordered it and then didn’t care for the pesto, so I gave her my carbonara instead. Interestingly, this time the gnocchi had some toasted pine nuts sprinkled on top. I’m not sure if this was an oversight last time, or if it was that the first server informed the kitchen of DH’s pine nut allergy and this one didn’t (he has to ingest them to have a reaction, so it’s no big deal if they’re on someone else’s plate). DH had the fettuccine Alfredo appetizer portion. All the pastas were pretty good. We had started with salads that were also fresh and tasty. I’m normally not a pear person, but I tried the salad with the pear, Gorgonzola and walnuts and it was very good. I think everyone enjoyed their entrees more the first visit than this one. There was nothing wrong with any of them, just personal preferences were all more in favor of what we got the first time. DM ordered the margarita pizza, which wasn’t bad but they were a little heavy-handed on the oregano, which she doesn’t much care for. DH had the beef tenderloin and while there was nothing wrong with the meat, he said there was “too much going on,” and he felt the beef was getting a little overwhelmed by the peppercorn sauce and the blue cheese, which for him was not a super enjoyable combination. I tried the pork scallopine (it doesn’t say on the menu, but it comes with roasted potatoes and sautéed spinach). Oh my, was it salty. I’m a little sensitive to salt so sometimes I’m not the best judge, but I truly believe most people would have found this over-salted. Also, there was too much coarse-ground pepper as well, so it was kind of killing what would otherwise have been a tasty Marsala sauce. LM wanted pizza with a side of mac and cheese. I asked for a small portion of the mac and cheese and it was maybe a tad smaller, but still a lot. He put a decent dent in all of it, though. (Pointless aside: yesterday, I had to bribe the kid to finish about 1/3 slice of pizza and a single garlic knot, so he really was getting his cruise eating on for the week lol.) Dessert was cannolis all around, brownies for LM. DH tried to order the chocolate tart, but the waiter came and said it wasn’t “stable,” so I assume the tart filling hadn’t set. Nice of them to say instead of serving something subpar, though. The cannoli taste completely fine there, but the filling should be thicker. Cannoli filling shouldn’t leak out when you bite the cannoli!

pear and Gorgonzola saladgnocchi pesto, this time with pine nuts 

carbonarabeef tenderloin with blue cheese ravioli

pork scaloppine

margarita pizza

cannoli trio

kids’ brownies

 

After LM went to bed, DH and I had our last hurrah in the casino, and wrapped it up when they gave the 30-minute warning for closing as we approached American waters.

Final Thoughts:

I already discussed disembarkation, which was smooth, easy, and ahead of schedule. If you have nowhere to be and don’t have a long trip home, I think it’s nice not to rush off the ship, let the lines die down a bit, let a lot of bags be collected/claimed, etc. We were far from the last people off, but waiting a while worked out well!

 

I would definitely do this cruise (or probably almost any itinerary on the Joy) again in a heartbeat. DH has another vacation next month, but it doesn’t include another Sunday-Sunday week as it starts on a Wednesday and ends the following Friday (annoying NYPD schedules). If the days would have worked out, I think I could have talked him into us calling CAS to see what they’d have given us for next month to go again. The ship is beautiful (yes, there are spots where you can tell she’s a little worn, but people are inconsiderate and gross and mess things up over time) and kept so clean by the crew. I walked out of the cabin one morning to Joel washing the walls in the hallway and doorways. The walls! I was constantly running into the housekeeping ladies with the carts going in and out of the public restrooms. The few times we were in the buffet, the servers were so on top of clearing stuff you practically had to smack their hands if you weren’t done 😝.

 

The crew as a whole was friendly, efficient, accommodating, helpful, and kind. After LM got his T-Rex from the arcade claw machine, he was walking around with it constantly for at least a day. At least 4 separate random crew members all pretended to be scared at different times when he held it up and made little dinosaur roars. That’s how sweet these people are.

 

Although food is incredibly subjective, overall I was happy with it. I have been sailing NCL long enough to be fully aware of the cutbacks and ways of penny-pinching on the food offerings. And yet, I don’t have to plan it, shop for it, cook it, or clean up after it, so it’s all good. For the most part, there was decent variety, the food was fresh, and a majority of what I ate tasted good. You can go anywhere and order something that turns out to not be great; the wonderful thing on a cruise is that if that happens, they’ll happily bring you something else, so I can’t complain! Here’s a random picky beverage service gripe…we’re talking serious first-world problem here. As I mentioned, I try not to drink too much sugar, but I’ll generally let myself do one frozen or fruity drink per day. My favorite is a Miami Vice. When I would get them, it didn’t matter from which bar, they just weren’t frozen enough. Is it because the piña colada part is coming out of machines premade now? I don’t know, but they were so liquidy. If I’m getting a frozen drink, I better need to suck hard enough for my cheeks to hurt lol. The one frozen drink that was better was when I asked at the OL bar for a strawberry daiquiri made with Malibu. That one was nice and thick. Maybe I’m just a crazy person and most people prefer frozen drinks less thick and frosty 🤷🏻‍♀️.

 

As far as entertainment, there were more options than I could possibly have fit in. There were multiple very good musical acts around the ship every night, plus the theater entertainment, Cavern Club, and comedy shows. I did skip all the comedy shows. If something has to give, for me it’s that. I usually get a few good chuckles out of them, but never quite find them hilarious, so I’m okay with skipping them.

 

Most likely, it’s going to be next summer before we’ll cruise again. We will never make the mistake of doing February break again, and I’m not sure my April vacation dates would work out with DH’s vacation options and the cruise schedules. Planning will be fun, though, as next summer I’m going to push for either two cruises, a back to back, or a longer itinerary. So, thanks so much for following along with the continuing adventures of Little Man and crew! I’m happy to try to answer any remaining questions anyone has!

 

To sign off, probably my favorite of the many versions of this chandelier:

[js]

Thank you SO much! We sail on August 13 and I printed your Dailies!

I really appreciate your taking the time to post on your vacation and read every single word!

 

On a side note, my dh is retired NYPD from the 1st Pct for almost 20 years. Served us very well but we had my ds turn it down since it has changed very much.

 

Thank you again and you made me even more excited for our trip in almost 3 weeks!

 

 

 

 

[mshaines]

Thanks again for doing this.  So fun to read and so helpful.  Also thanks so much for the tip on the cavern club!  Looking forward to that.  

[swimmer9]

On 7/17/2023 at 9:21 PM, Dorhead1230 said:

Answers to your questions are above in red 😊

You are a doll!  Thank you so much for all of your answers - super helpful!

I didn't realize our sailing is a random 10 day after all of the week-long trips, I just assumed you guys hit Bahamas too 🤪

[swimmer9]

On 7/17/2023 at 11:57 PM, 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.

Good to know!  I was skipping over most of the NCL shore excursions bc it's hard to justify the cost for my 3 yr olds, but for this one, the kids would be free! 😎😈

[umpisoccer]

I'm sorry if this has already been asked but I could not find any info on the search.

Can you still book the main shows when you get on board? Do they save a number of the seat reservations for when people board? We booked the July 30th cruise recently and there are limited reservations available.  Thank you.

[Maleficent's Dad]

23 minutes ago, umpisoccer said:

I'm sorry if this has already been asked but I could not find any info on the search.

Can you still book the main shows when you get on board? Do they save a number of the seat reservations for when people board? We booked the July 30th cruise recently and there are limited reservations available.  Thank you.

We sailed the Joy on the July 1 cruise.  Go to the Social.  That’s where entertainment is booked.

[umpisoccer]

Thank you.

[Dorhead1230]

On 7/24/2023 at 12:06 PM, swimmer9 said:

You are a doll!  Thank you so much for all of your answers - super helpful!

I didn't realize our sailing is a random 10 day after all of the week-long trips, I just assumed you guys hit Bahamas too 🤪

No problem! Happy to help! Yes, you’re lucky and get 10 days on Joy 😊. Have a great cruise!

[Dorhead1230]

20 hours ago, umpisoccer said:

Thank you.

Besides The Social, you can also book onboard at the Box Office outside the theater. Hours will be listed in the Daily.