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In short, the best Norwegian cruise ship for you will depend on a bunch of factors, and which ship is best for a trip with your family might not be your top pick for a couple's cruise or girlfriends' getaway. That said, given the complexity of booking a cruise (there are a lot of decisions to make during the booking process — trust us) we recommend you use a seasoned travel agent who specializes in cruises. If you're sure you know what sort of cabin you want, on which ship, on which itinerary — and about a dozen other things — you can head over to ncl.com to make a booking directly.
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While the menu was expansive, nothing really left me wowed at the end of the day. I even tried multiple dishes from the menu because our time was limited, as I wanted to be sure I had a variety of entrees, appetizers and desserts before disembarking. However, I had only sailed on Pride of America, which is only four years newer than Norwegian Sun. The two ships are nearly identical in size, weighing right around 80,000 gross tons. Norwegian Sun had a lot of similarities to what I remember from Pride of America onboard the ship. As we made our way onboard, we were greeted by very friendly crew members who offered us cooling towels.
The ultimate guide to Norwegian Cruise Line ships and itineraries
As such, the buffet in usually a large venue to accommodate most passengers for multiple meals each day. Getaway scores huge points for entertainment options with 20 restaurants, more than a dozen bars, Broadway-caliber theater and a large sports complex that boasts a ropes course, climbing wall and zip line. Passengers on the Norwegian Getaway cruise ship would have to go out of their way to squeeze in everything. Highlights include musical "Million Dollar Quartet"; dinner theater production The Illusionarium; and five multistory waterslides, including the scream-inducing Free Fall. Notably, the public areas that include these restaurants feel more spacious than many of the other ships in the Norwegian fleet. Norwegian Prima and Norwegian Viva were built with a higher ratio of space to passengers than earlier Norwegian vessels, which itself is an upscale touch.
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This certainly wasn’t a traditional cruise and felt more like we came super late to the party, like when a party is almost over and everyone’s getting ready to go home. I’d love to sail on a newer Norwegian ship so I could experience one of their full-length Broadway musicals and larger scale production shows. The smaller and older ships tend to be used for port-intensive itineraries that are more destination focused. Hayley and I both felt the buffet was poorly designed and created a lot of congestion. She said newer Norwegian ships normally have a large buffet with multiple stations for getting food and plenty of seating. Within 10 minutes, we were walking up the gangway to Norwegian Sun.
Norwegian Epic Review
I started asking questions and researching and found that the majority of employees work 12 plus hours a day, 7 days a week, with no days off for 8 months straight! The reason the cruise line hires crew from poor countires is to avoid labor laws so they can work the crew like animals and pay them very little. I will no longer be supporting a franchise that exploits people. The experiment began on Norwegian Breakaway in 2012 with The Waterfront, an outdoor promenade space that connects to several of the vessel's restaurants for alfresco dining. The concept carries over to Prima Class ships in the form of Oceanwalk, a promenade that fully rings Deck 8. As passengers stroll by, they'll find pools, loungers, art installations, dining alcoves and a bar overlooking the wake.
Choose from oysters, grilled jumbo prawns, grilled octopus and several salads for appetizers. Mains include sea scallops, sea bass, filet mignon, New York strip and a whole grilled lobster, with sides such as potatoes, jasmine rice and carrots. I opted for sole (again), preceded by a golden beet salad with cheese and accompanied by asparagus. Instead, they have been replaced by more neutral carpeting with triangles that point the way. It's a minor change, but it's still disappointing because it was a whimsical way in which NCL set itself apart from other cruise lines. Entourage, the teen club, has no specific home on Norwegian Viva.
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The virtual reality Galaxy Pavilion on Deck 17 forward is an attraction carried over from NCL's Breakaway Plus Class ships. It's home to a selection of video games, VR experiences and two escape rooms. Games can be played a la carte, and the escape rooms, which cost $15 per person, put groups of up to six people into a locked room for 45 minutes or until they solve clues needed to allow for their escape. NCL is notorious for charging extra for everything from dining to activities, and Norwegian Viva is no exception. Although nightly entertainment is free, many of the best daytime activities come with an additional price tag.
I tested the Cucumber Cool — vodka, elderflower liqueur, lime juice and cucumber pulp cordial — and loved it. On the wall across from the bar is a cool electronic art installation that senses when people pass by. Food Republic is a street food restaurant that leans heavily Asian.
How much does it cost to go on Norwegian Breakaway?
Both of the spaces are built around three massive crystal chandeliers costing nearly $100,000 that hang down to the floor — a showstopper of a design element. In general, Norwegian's newer ships including Norwegian Viva, Norwegian Prima and the Breakaway-class and Breakaway Plus-class vessels will be more expensive than the line's older, smaller ships. However, there are many factors that go into pricing for any given cruise, including the popularity of the specific itinerary, the time of year when the cruise is taking place and changing demand trends. What you'll find on the top decks of Norwegian ships will vary quite a bit depending on the vessel. The line's smaller ships will have at least one or two pools, sunning areas and usually a sports court area — but not all that much else.
Norwegian touts its Freestyle Dining as a way to have freedom and flexibility about where and when you eat. There are no set dining times, and while that sounds great, you can’t just walk up and go wherever you want. Cabin service is once a day, which means no turndown service or towel animals, but you can call the cabin steward if you need anything. Each evening, the steward delivers the Freestyle Daily, which is a printed copy of the next day’s activities and offers. If they drop, you can sometimes take advantage of a better deal by modifying the booking.
As it turns out, one of the port stops we were looking forward to was changed. A few weeks before the cruise, NCL replaced a stop in Porto, Portugal, with one in Vigo, Spain. Earn 20,000 WorldPoints, which is good for a $200 onboard credit or discount toward a future cruise, if you spend $1,000 or more in the first 90 days the account is open. Instead, you would earn benefits on future cruises related to your particular elite tier.
Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services. Check out of fact sheets of Carnival, and Princess Cruise Lines to see what other options are awaiting you. There was no set sail party on the first night and there was no main headliner show either. During our first night at dinner, we overheard the lady next to us saying she couldn’t wait to get off the ship and get back home.
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