Norwegian Joy Review
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The specialty dining restaurants were uniformly amazing! On day 1, the Q Tex-Mex place provided some of the best barbecue I've ever had. The portion sizes were appropriate for a big but manageable meal. I felt like I got a good taste of all the sides without going overboard. Le Bistro was beautiful and the Lobster Thermador was to die for! La Cucina was excellent, and there was so much food! Cagney's gave me an excellently-cooked porterhouse, and on the last night, we were treated to dinner and a show at Teppanyaki. I'll always recommend Teppanyaki to anybody. Even without the food (which was terrific), the show of preparing food that they do... outstanding.
The main dining rooms are delightful as well. Most mornings I had breakfast at "Taste." By the second day there, our server not only knew our names, she knew the beverages we were going to order! The menu was generally consistent, but there were always a couple rotating items. Taste and Savor weren't open for lunch very often... only on sea days. The food was excellent, and they don't mind you ordering multiple appetizers. I'd highly recommend the bay scallops, and the Monte Cristo is delightful. The one time we went to the main dining room for dinner, they had some good food there, too. The Local always had a lovely all hours menu, and more than once I popped into there late at night after hitting the clubs. I only went to the buffet once and can't say too much about it, but the number of choices was overwhelming! The food quality wasn't up to the level of the specialty dining rooms, or even the main dining rooms, but for a buffet, I was impressed.
The entertainment was excellent. There were two good comics onboard that gave several shows. Footloose was a lot of fun. Elements was like a combination of Cirque de Soleil and a standard ballet. Beyond the big shows, the Beatles tribute band was quite good, the karaoke was a blast, and there was always live music to be found. They had events like trivia competitions, game shows (including a Newlyweds type game that might be risqué for kids to watch but was hilarious for adults!)
Cabin Review
Mid-ship Balcony Stateroom
The cabin is small but functional. There was plenty of storage space and it never felt cramped. The balcony was small but easily let two people sit comfortably.
Port Reviews
Cabo San Lucas
The tender experience was a little rough, and I kind of hated the Haven folks that got to skip the line a little, but the Baja Highlights tour was excellent and the views were beautiful.
Puerto Vallarta
The city was amazing, the boardwalk was fun, and the excursion to a tequila distillery was both informative and delicious.
Mazatlan
I know there are some concerns about safety now, but I highly enjoyed my time in Mazatlan. I did a Shrimp Fest excursion, and while I probably wouldn't do that exact tour again, I'd love to try some others there.
Ensenada
Unfortunately Ensenada was too cool for the beach, but it was still a great day to walk around! We walked all around the port and downtown area, had some good food, and saw some interesting sights.
Los Angeles
We had a late-night plane, so we spent the day doing a tour of Rodeo Drive and Hollywood. It was starting to rain by the end, which made Rodeo Drive a bit of a drag, but our informative tour guide made it an excellent experience.