This was my 3rd cruise ever, and the first in the post-pandemic era. I have only done NCL (Sky in 2016 and the Bliss in 2019), and I had very positive experiences on both. The Joy was no exception. That said, not everything NCL does is perfect or without criticism. The embarkation was about what I expected, but disembarking at the end took a little longer than expected. I had a balcony on the 13th deck, which was a $110 upgrade from an inside (definitely worth it since it was just me), and the room was well-appointed. Plenty of storage space for my needs and plenty of room for just an individual. I can definitely see it being a little cramped for more than two, however. Food was excellent, and I didn't even have any of the specialty dining (though I would like to try at least one in the future). The Local is always a nice option for a quick bite or even a dinner if the main dining room didn't appeal. The buffet served its purpose, and there was plenty of seating. I really like the rotating menu every night, but with NCL changing this philosophy for a fixed daily menu throughout its fleet in 2023, I am of the belief, like others have stated on here, that it is an effort to push the specialty dining on more people, which explains why the Prima class ships have more specialty dining and "signature" dishes that carry a fee. I am going on the Encore in April, and I hope they have not made the adjustment to the fixed menu by then. While it sounds rather trivial, I always liked the idea of seeing what different dishes were offered each night. Having been on the Bliss before, the layout of the Joy was similar, easy to follow, and it was no problem finding one's way around. Since the Joy was redone for the Western market, the top deck was a little awkward in that the pools were fairly small for a ship of this size, and while other ships seem to have an inadequate amount of sundeck space, the Joy probably has too much.

The waterpark attractions are excellent, and I almost never had to wait for them. Some of the events were very well done, especially the 80s night at the Spice H20 bar. The 90s night should've been held there, too, instead of in a lower-deck dance area that lacked a bar (the Bliss had a bar in there). Service was excellent, prompt, and friendly across the board. The ship is absolutely loaded with activities and events, and there is enough on board to keep almost anyone occupied. However, NCL's penchant for nickel-and-diming is well-known, and it is a little annoying that the (admittedly) amazing features like the go-karts, laser tag, and VR carry more-than-nominal costs. You could argue for the "pay-as-you-go" approach, but NCL makes it very difficult to budget for all of the wonderful things it has to offer.

At the end of the day, I had a wonderful time on board a ship that was absolutely beautiful, the excursions were well done at the ports we stopped at (we bypassed the expendable Costa Maya due to high winds), and while I would like to stay loyal to NCL thanks to three very pleasant experiences, I would probably prefer the main dining room setup of a rotating feature menu to stay put and nearly everyone would probably pay a little more in base cruise fare to have all of the activities included rather than an a la carte approach. I would go on the Joy again in the future, but probably would like to experience some of NCL's other ships (and perhaps Royal and Carnival as well) before repeating ships I have been on previously.