Norwegian Joy reviews

Norwegian Joy: San Francisco to Miami via the Panama Canal, October 2025 Our first cruise aboard a larger ship - 4000 passengers - and we didn't find it as busy as we expected - getting a table at the buffet or in one of the three included restaurants was not normally a problem. We usually managed to get a bed on the Sun Deck (16), which had just two small pools, one with a water depth of 6 ft 10 in, the other had a slightly shallower end that I (5 ft 10 in) could just about stand up in! We had a forward facing outside cabin on deck 12, which was brilliant for viewing the ship progressing through the canal locks, but a long way from the stairs and lifts - Joy has only two banks of lifts. Cabin 12100 was fine, with plenty of cupboard space, but no sofa. Some of the public areas were disappointing: the atrium on deck 6 was always very busy as it had a big screen used for game shows, as well as the guest services desks. "The Local" on deck 7 was meant to be a pub-like space, but resembled a works canteen. Service was very good, from both our steward and the bar, buffet and restaurant staff. Meals in the buffet and the included restaurants were fine, although some of the dishes in the restaurant menus were repeated towards the end of the 18 night cruise. We found the in-house theatre entertainment disappointing - 45 minutes of continual high-energy singing and dancing, with a constantly changing electronic backdrop. The flown-in theatre acts were fine, as were the comedians. The music in the bars and lounges was OK. There were two speakers for lectures relevant to the cruise itinerary.

Fabulous ship. Plenty of space and places to get food and drink from. Good service throughout.

A lovely big ship, very clean with friendly polite & helpful staff. Great itinerary & would recommend highly to friends & family.

Cruise was excellent. Friendly staff. Clean ship, Food very good. Embarkment was poor & disembarkment was a bit chaotic,The morning we disembarked there was protesters at the port which made it very difficult to get off the ship & guests were worried about being late for their taxi',s & flights. Overall the Norwegian Joy is a beautiful ship & we would cruise with them again.

Got a very good deal on a suite in the Haven. This really made this trip extra special. Suite was super. Service was excellent. Drinks were included, which was a huge bonus. Food was good but we had private dining with the Haven suite, and my only complaint was that the menu didn't change at all. My partner is a steak and sea food person so choices were great for him. I'm chicken and pasta, little choice for me other than salad. We had the choice to eat elsewhere but the Haven dining room was very nice and my partner loved it. If we got a deal on a Haven suite again, we would definitely go as it really made the trip.

A lovely ship with lots of different amenities.

One destination (Victoria) was cancelled and we were given $50 credit in recompense but this was not set against the service charge which was pretty mean. We found the service charge excessive as were drink costs - especially since we were not allowed to buy 1 drinks package and my wife does not drink alcohol! This cruising industry needs to be more transparent.