Is the NCL Joy really that bad for Americans??

iPhones in China not a problem we spent a month there and most of our guides had the newest version. Check what email addresses work, gmail was blocked for most of our tour so worth creating an account which is not I think yahoo worked but this was a couple of years ago.

 

Other tips - when ashore take tissues and hand wipes for the bathrooms some can be quite memorable.

A small town in China is 4 million people so personal space is not something most people have any concept of.

Chinese Chinese food is nothing like US or British Chinese food.

Did not see anyone spitting or anything else gross.

Ask the ship to write you a message in Chinese characters which says “if found lost and confused please phone this number (insert ship/port agent number)” we were on a land tour and tour and twice people gave a local the card supplied and they phoned for help. Locals are really helpful even if they don’t speak English.

 

China remains one of our most amazing trips but it is not a vacation!

Thank you so much for the information and advice!

I will definitely look into downloading those apps ... Google’s Project Fi ... use our iPhones while in China ... with their great firewall not everything is going to be accessible.

If you use Gmail and/or other Android apps, chances are that you have a Google account and it is very easy to give Project Fi a good run before leaving the U.S.

Setup a free Google Voice number to use along with email, behind your regular/main cellular or mobile # - to ring it, call forward, etc. (without necessary "porting" your current number - no contracts, cancel at any time with no penalty) Our line with unlimited calling, texting and 1 GB of data is just $35 a month, including taxes/fees - plus, we have free extra data only sim card lines (2 of them) that is based on actual use only - for what we need (when free WiFi isn't available) on both Androids & iOS devices (that's the beauty/secret ... to use it with an 4G/LTE iPad/mini and/or iPhone) The only hardware required is a Fi-compatible smartphone - at a fraction of the cost for the newest iPhone.

iPhones of various models are popular and in use everywhere in China, and easiest for the local vender/sellers of nano sim cards to help you set up, if you go the prepaid local sim route. Instead of using "Google" to search online, the default search "engine" is to "Baidu" it. Common sense should govern what you "need" to lookup online while overseas in a "foreign" country ... just avoid sensitive topics and subjects that can be a red flag.

There's more than enough caution and comments about this cruise being more than atypical ... expect to the shocked and surprised ... I can think of going to other parts of the world, where matters could be just as bad, if not worst. A few days on the mainland should set the pace for the transition.

We are Australian and just come back from a trip to China. Whilst we enjoyed the trip immensely, the pushing , shoving and rude behaviour we encountered was hard to take. In the end we learned to do some pushing and shoving of our own. If you are prepared to do this, you may enjoy it. If not, steer clear!

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I will definitely look into ...

Just FYI and don't scream either ... pulled some strings on my end to asked our oversea sources. It turned out, that Gentling's newest mega ship, the "World Dream" docked yesterday in Hong Kong, its permanent home port (the "Dream" was delivered in 2016) and will be alternating its weekly sailings to Vietnam vs. Manila.

All of the mass cruise lines are deploying their newest and biggest ships in the emerging Asia-China market, this is most definitely changing the dynamics of this market.

According to this article written in local Chinese newspaper (translated) - Gentling is banking on HK's expanding & integration of HST services from mainland China for filling 20% share of the capacity from the feed.

Link (just in case folks questioned the source) -

http://std.stheadline.com/daily/news-content.php?id=1699869&target=2

This is the latest video on its departure out of Singapore -

World Dream coming into HK's deep Victoria Harbour - noticed the fireboat doing the inaugural welcoming

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NJ5lHpL_Qo

Dream Cruise Line is the dedicated online booking site for the World Dream - very interesting, fares for the same booking for "local" residents from the region is about $800 USD less (based on residency or travel documents/passports ??) on a deluxe balcony for 2 on an identical sailing. The same for someone from the U.S. and booking it is close to 6 days/5 nights over Christmas is $2,998 in total ... not clear if DSC (tipping, gratitudes, or whatever we are used to calling it) are included or not, optional or add-on extras.)

https: // www . dreamcruiseline . com / en-us/

Now, if I can only track down an online booking site to see if NCL Asia is offering discounts, specials or what not for the Joy's sailings ... should be very interesting. Prices do vary just on the basis of currency exchange rates and what's included or not, etc.

Footnote - above URL links could be blocked / blanked per CC policies, manually type those without the blank space & it should work. Same for those YT video links - search for them on their site & it should come up easily.

Just FYI and don't scream either ... pulled some strings on my end to asked our oversea sources. It turned out, that Gentling's newest mega ship, the "World Dream" docked yesterday in Hong Kong, its permanent home port (the "Dream" was delivered in 2016) and will be alternating its weekly sailings to Vietnam vs. Manila.

 

All of the mass cruise lines are deploying their newest and biggest ships in the emerging Asia-China market, this is most definitely changing the dynamics of this market.

 

According to this article written in local Chinese newspaper (translated) - Gentling is banking on HK's expanding & integration of HST services from mainland China for filling 20% share of the capacity from the feed.

Link (just in case folks questioned the source) -

http://std.stheadline.com/daily/news-content.php?id=1699869&target=2

This is the latest video on its departure out of Singapore -

World Dream coming into HK's deep Victoria Harbour - noticed the fireboat doing the inaugural welcoming

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NJ5lHpL_Qo

 

Dream Cruise Line is the dedicated online booking site for the World Dream - very interesting, fares for the same booking for "local" residents from the region is about $800 USD less (based on residency or travel documents/passports ??) on a deluxe balcony for 2 on an identical sailing. The same for someone from the U.S. and booking it is close to 6 days/5 nights over Christmas is $2,998 in total ... not clear if DSC (tipping, gratitudes, or whatever we are used to calling it) are included or not, optional or add-on extras.)

https: // www . dreamcruiseline . com / en-us/

 

Now, if I can only track down an online booking site to see if NCL Asia is offering discounts, specials or what not for the Joy's sailings ... should be very interesting. Prices do vary just on the basis of currency exchange rates and what's included or not, etc.

 

Footnote - above URL links could be blocked / blanked per CC policies, manually type those without the blank space & it should work. Same for those YT video links - search for them on their site & it should come up easily.

Glad you found out about Dream Cruises. There is another thread in CC under Other cruise lines and you will find the Getting Dream thread there. You will probably find their sailing from HK and SG less stressful and more to your liking. If I can described it as sanitised China cruises. However the parent company is a casino company and like JOY it is using the cruise ships to cash in on their casino business.

If you use Gmail and/or other Android apps, chances are that you have a Google account and it is very easy to give Project Fi a good run before leaving the U.S.

 

Setup a free Google Voice number to use along with email, behind your regular/main cellular or mobile # - to ring it, call forward, etc. (without necessary "porting" your current number - no contracts, cancel at any time with no penalty) Our line with unlimited calling, texting and 1 GB of data is just $35 a month, including taxes/fees - plus, we have free extra data only sim card lines (2 of them) that is based on actual use only - for what we need (when free WiFi isn't available) on both Androids & iOS devices (that's the beauty/secret ... to use it with an 4G/LTE iPad/mini and/or iPhone) The only hardware required is a Fi-compatible smartphone - at a fraction of the cost for the newest iPhone.

 

iPhones of various models are popular and in use everywhere in China, and easiest for the local vender/sellers of nano sim cards to help you set up, if you go the prepaid local sim route. Instead of using "Google" to search online, the default search "engine" is to "Baidu" it. Common sense should govern what you "need" to lookup online while overseas in a "foreign" country ... just avoid sensitive topics and subjects that can be a red flag.

 

There's more than enough caution and comments about this cruise being more than atypical ... expect to the shocked and surprised ... I can think of going to other parts of the world, where matters could be just as bad, if not worst. A few days on the mainland should set the pace for the transition.

Thank you so much for all the advice/information!

As someone who lived in China for 3.5 years, my advice would be to go but to stand your ground. If people start pushing in front say "pie doo-ay" or line up. I have used this on many occasions in many different countries when people who are speaking Chinese push to the front of a line. They will probably look embarrassed and go to the back of the line. Other important phrases like "shay-shay" or thank you, and "boo shing" not okay may come in handy.

I have talked to many different crew members over my 3 sailings this year, the Chinese staff want to go to the JOY, and the other staff does not. I can say that I like the idea of going on the Joy, but the idea of spending a week on a ship with the majority of the people being Chinese doesn't overly excite me. It is a very different culture but I would assume that NCL is prepared for it. It will be a memorable experience for you and your family.

I would not advise anything google based if traveling in China. Google is blocked. I would, however, advise a VPN. This will allow you to get over the great firewall of China to see the real news and access things like facebook. Also, a good dictionary pleco which is an app.

China is an amazing country filled with many different people. If you get a chance to experience its wonders you should do so.

My last trip to China was for Christmas last year and I stayed in Pudong. However, if you are staying in the city take the train. It is much cheaper and you are less likely to get ripped off. You could try to didi which is the local form of uber but if you have no Chinese and can't give directions to where you are it can be difficult. Alipay is good to set up if you can prior to going to China as everywhere accepts Alipay. I don't know if you need a Chinese account to use it tho.

In Shanghai and Beijing you can always find people who speak English. I have had quite a few taxi drivers in Beijing who spoke English they had to learn for the Olympics. I stayed at a cheap hotel last winter when I went to shanghai and all of the staff spoke English. Also, you can find restaurants that you are familiar with if you are having trouble with the food. I ate at The Cheesecake Factory in Shanghai twice last year. ( I may be overstating English as where I live very few people speak English and I know a decent amount of Chinese so if someone defaults into Chinese I have no problem understanding them.)

I would like to go too.

I am very open to different cultures and these kind of norms wouldn't shock me as I have experienced them before in spades.

As someone who lived in China for 3.5 years, my advice would be to go but to stand your ground. If people start pushing in front say "pie doo-ay" or line up. I have used this on many occasions in many different countries when people who are speaking Chinese push to the front of a line. They will probably look embarrassed and go to the back of the line. Other important phrases like "shay-shay" or thank you, and "boo shing" not okay may come in handy.

 

I have talked to many different crew members over my 3 sailings this year, the Chinese staff want to go to the JOY, and the other staff does not. I can say that I like the idea of going on the Joy, but the idea of spending a week on a ship with the majority of the people being Chinese doesn't overly excite me. It is a very different culture but I would assume that NCL is prepared for it. It will be a memorable experience for you and your family.

 

I would not advise anything google based if traveling in China. Google is blocked. I would, however, advise a VPN. This will allow you to get over the great firewall of China to see the real news and access things like facebook. Also, a good dictionary pleco which is an app.

 

China is an amazing country filled with many different people. If you get a chance to experience its wonders you should do so.

Thank you so much for the suggestions! Also, thank you for the phrases. I know the basics but I didn’t know how to say lineup

My 2 cents again. Just know that the local can only go on the ships in large groups. The need a government permit for that which are only issue to large government sanctioned TA. So they would move on the ships in large swarms. WJ and the elevators becomes a nightmare. However on shore in Shanghai or Beijing you find the individuals are as polite and courtiers as in any worldwide cities.

Thank You Mom2CrazyKids for your OP. While my mindset is much like yours I was able to read through many other ideals. I have picked up a few tips that I did not consider.

I am traveling on the week before you. I would love to share findings, if there is a way to do that. If not upon return I will look for your review and am considering one of my own.

I am glad to have found this thread if only to see that our experiences were what some others experienced. I spent three weeks on an RCL ship where there were large groups of Asians. To be frank, the desire to go to most Asian countries (Japan excluded) has been greatly diminished to the point of not even considering one.

First, it was the most segregated cruise experience we have ever had. The Aussies, Americans and other nationalities mixed easily, but the Asians did not. The lack of queuing and coldness/sternness was what first struck me. They tend to look out for one another, reserving large areas just for their large groups. One situation was pretty shocking. The ship offered barbecued ribs and the Asian men worked together to hand the tongs only to one another. They did not leave them on the table/plate for the next person.

Off shore, on excursions, large Asian groups tend to take over areas in order to get the large number of pictures each wants to take, blocking others out until they are finished. You are forced to play "let's get there early to beat the crowds on the Asian tour buses."

The spitting and poor hygiene was perhaps the most startling. We were on a third world island, much poorer than China or South Korea, and the restroom experience was shocking. It seems that the poor locals had to go through great efforts to educate the Asian tourists to avoid squatting on top of a toilet seat and to actually put their toilet paper in the toilet, not in the can next to them. There was a large sign on the inside of the stall with clear visual diagrams about what not to do. Still, the cans were overflowing with soiled (ewwww) toilet paper. I wish that I had taken a photo of that sign, but I was in such a hurry to get out of that disgusting toilet. It occurred to me that it was pretty sad that a third world country had to educate these tourists.

We have met and entertained many Chinese university students for over twenty years and have never seen these problems with them. They are polite, well mannered and very clean. It seems that the problem is with the generation that is more middle-aged to elderly.

Task ahead, if not done - your challenge is to figure out ground transportation to/from PVG airport & city hotel, and to the cruise port ... local equivalent of Uber is popular for on-demand services but Chinese language-based. Like for-hired taxi, they use Alipay (not ApplePay or Android Pay) for payment of fares - cash always cheerfully accepted in RMB - have them available for transactions & small purchases.

We used Google's Project Fi (data only sim on iPhone) for our int'l travel

As Sauer-Kraut pointed out, these "Chinese" people = people from the "communist" mainland People's Republic of China. People of Chinese descent from other Asian places (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, etc) take great offense to being lumped in with the mainlanders and are highly offended by the mainlanders' behavior as well. And it's not "Asians" you're complaining about. It's mainland China people, although Indians can do a lot of offensive (to a Westerner) behaviors too, although I'd argue the mainland Chinese are still the worst. When you say "Asian" to describe these people, you're highly offending the Koreans, Japanese, Thai, etc as well.

And many mainlanders will lie as to their country of origin when abroad.

And not all mainlanders behave badly, but the ones acting in a way that would make a Westerner's jaw drop almost certainly is from the mainland.

As for the OP's question, I don't think an American would have a problem unless they're the "bad American" stereotype who thinks everyone should speak English and serve hamburgers all the time. If you understand that the ship is in China, and will serve mostly a Chinese menu and that things will likely be very different from American and you can roll with it, there's no reason you won't find it fun and fascinating. It wouldn't be much different than taking a land vacation in mainland China.

Putting soiled toilet paper is learned from not having plumbing capable of handling a ton of tissue thrown down it. When you put used toilet tissue in a trash can, it's easier for the utilities to treat the sewage and deal with the trash. It's just different from what you're used to in the West, but it's not necessarily worse.

Tiny showers, tiny beds, tiny cabins.... Enjoy!

:') You must have had the same 300 we did on our Alaska cruise. They weren't really rude, they just did not have any manners most Americans would consider normal....if that makes any sense. The spitting on the floor was just gross

I also heard that they chose to defecate where and when they wanted.:o:eek::o

I also heard that they chose to defecate where and when they wanted.:o:eek::o

It's more that they don't bother making the children wait and try and find a restroom. It's a "little prince" (although even the girls get the special treatment) syndrome. They let the kids get away with anything and won't bother waiting at all. You just notice it more when it involves bodily functions. On vacation, the mainland Chinese tend to be wealthier so if you see a pile of poop in the middle of the floor somewhere, it's probably from a kid (not just a baby, but any kid). In China, well, all bets are off then. :o

That said, there are plenty of Westerners who change diapers at restaurant tables and on airplane tray tables. That's better, but not a ton better.

Putting soiled toilet paper is learned from not having plumbing capable of handling a ton of tissue thrown down it. When you put used toilet tissue in a trash can, it's easier for the utilities to treat the sewage and deal with the trash. It's just different from what you're used to in the West, but it's not necessarily worse.

I'm aware of that, but they had pictures that they did NOT want people to do that. They wanted it FLUSHED. The can was overflowing and gross.

So what is the local equivalent of Uber?:cool: ... Is it possible to get a data only Fi sim? I thought you had to sign up for voice and text.

For mainland China, it's known as 滴滴 去行 (4 words) or, DiDi Chuxing - partnering with Apple as it expanded markets beyond Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, with real-time integration supporting communications/translations between English & Chinese and credit cards from 12 countries including the USA are accepted for payment. Uber in China couldn't do that and unless you have a local credit card and/or Alipay (Paypal's equivalent) along with a local mobile number, the Uber platform simply not good.

https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/8/15579938/didi-chuxing-english-version-app-bilingual-china-uber

Alibaba is continuing to expand its global platform & reach, pretty safe to assume that they will soon come up with a competitive solution to address those gaps. Then, there are local taxi apps, but unless one has basic Chinese language competency (Mandarin dialect) - communicating with the drivers remained challenged ... hopefully, will be resolved & dealt with in less than 5 years.

Google's Project Fi unlimited voice/text & pay for data usage plans do require a minimal plan on a growing list of approved Android device, for as little as $25 a month including taxes/fees, as long as one can and will be using mostly free WiFi services, with minimal use of mobile or cellular data. DW is still using her 3 years old Nexus 6, running Nougat & see no reasons to upgrade to a Pixel/XL, but getting nice offers to upgrade - even at full price, much cheaper than the newest iPhone 8+. Her monthly bill is around $35, using around 1 GB worth of 4G/LTE data, maybe $40 when we cruise/travel that month.

With a basic plan in place, the extra data only sims are free, on a pay-as-you-go basis, run up charges when we travel out of the US roaming on other networkss, when free WiFi aren't available to help save - cellular calls are 20 cents a minute back to the US (free on WiFi) and we typically spend about $5 USD for 500 MB of 3G or 4G data roaming overseas ... that's done easily on an iPad/mini or iPhone. I have a 2nd. dual-sim Android smartphone with a "Fi" data only nano sim, acting as a hotspot or MiFi device, to share data or use it as is, on a phabet (oversized smartphone, like a tablet)

It's possible to get free T-Mobile global data but only at the expense of slower speed, and, I don't like speed to be throttled to between 2G and 3G only.

Downside to these, including the big 3 U.S. carrier's global and/or travel plan are: data mostly exclude & don't work on cruise ships at sea, only voice & SMS/text messaging (again, read those fine prints on what is NOT covered & extra $$$) - with Project Fi & 2 other lines, one on T-Mobile USA (5GB monthly data, which we tether or share among devices if needed) and one oversea voice/text plan for emergency (as it roam on AT&T and T-Mo) - we just live without "ideal" access while on a cruise ship, metering any "free" satellite WiFi data onboard, until ships is at the berth/docked in the ports.

I read through all these threads and I guess the answer to people who are wonder whether to go is probably based on their coping skills in large groups(having shopped at Macy's Herald Square on Christmas Eve I am pretty good at that) and also their squeamishness with lack of hygiene. As one who gets nauseated when family members blow their noses (into handkerchiefs) at the dinner table I have a feeling this cultural exchange type of experience unfortunately I will have to skip not based on crowds but hygiene issues. LOL

As Sauer-Kraut pointed out, these "Chinese" people = people from the "communist" mainland People's Republic of China. People of Chinese descent from other Asian places (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, etc) take great offense to being lumped in with the mainlanders and are highly offended by the mainlanders' behavior as well. And it's not "Asians" you're complaining about. It's mainland China people, although Indians can do a lot of offensive (to a Westerner) behaviors too, although I'd argue the mainland Chinese are still the worst. When you say "Asian" to describe these people, you're highly offending the Koreans, Japanese, Thai, etc as well.

 

And many mainlanders will lie as to their country of origin when abroad.

 

And not all mainlanders behave badly, but the ones acting in a way that would make a Westerner's jaw drop almost certainly is from the mainland.

 

As for the OP's question, I don't think an American would have a problem unless they're the "bad American" stereotype who thinks everyone should speak English and serve hamburgers all the time. If you understand that the ship is in China, and will serve mostly a Chinese menu and that things will likely be very different from American and you can roll with it, there's no reason you won't find it fun and fascinating. It wouldn't be much different than taking a land vacation in mainland China.

 

Putting soiled toilet paper is learned from not having plumbing capable of handling a ton of tissue thrown down it. When you put used toilet tissue in a trash can, it's easier for the utilities to treat the sewage and deal with the trash. It's just different from what you're used to in the West, but it's not necessarily worse.

Perfect example of political correctness run amok. Posters were afraid to not use the term Asian so they just used it to describe the mainland communist Chinese and their behaviors. I knew this behavior was referring to mainlanders because I understand demographics and cultural nuances.

It's really time everyone learned that's it's ok to understand this stuff

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Thank You Mom2CrazyKids for your OP. While my mindset is much like yours I was able to read through many other ideals. I have picked up a few tips that I did not consider.

I am traveling on the week before you. I would love to share findings, if there is a way to do that. If not upon return I will look for your review and am considering one of my own.

Hi cruznchoos! I am sorry that I didn't see your post until now. I am very curious to hear how your cruise goes. If there is something that you would like share and can find away to do it, I would love to hear about it here. I am not sure if you are planning on buying an internet package and if you want to waste some of it posting here but I would love for you to do so (especially if you have any tips). I am SO curious to see how all of this goes. It is weird to not do an online check in or be able to purchase excursions in advance. I hope everything goes smoothly once onboard! Enjoy your cruise!!

We would love to go to Tokyo at some point if we don't do it this trip.

Tokyo is wonderful. And the underground has signs in English. Didn't see a lot of English on street signs, but friendly and helpful people everywhere.

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Thank you for reminding me about having something written in Chinese characters. I have read that several times before while I was researching this trip but it’s definitely a good reminder. I have read that you have to show them in Chinese characters as opposed to pinyin.

 

 

 

 

 

I am definitely getting really excited for this trip!

Anytime I've been loose in Europe or Asia I've carried a hotel card with English and the local language so I can show it to a taxi driver and get back to my room. When leaving the hotel I ask for a card with my destination on it, especially in Asia.

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