Speed of NCL Ships

[Carnival AZIPOD]

Does anyknow know why Norwegian Ships generally have a higher-cruising speed compared to typical cruise ships from other lines?

 

For example, the Norwegian Star/Dawn I believe has a cruising speed of 24-25 kts, which is far higher than the typical 21 kts we see from other cruise liners.

 

The other other ships that are capable of matching or exceeding the Star/Dawn's cruise speed would be Celebrity GTS or Cunard GTS ships, which are powered by turbine motors, and are considered ships in a class of their own.

 

Ideas?

[bonvoyagie]

I remember when the Dawn was new she was one of the few ships able to make NYC to the Bahamas and back in 7 days.

[Hikini]

I don't know - I am certainly not mechanically inclined. My only guess would be that they need to cruise faster in order to make their round trip destinations (from Seattle to Alaska for example) in just 7 days. But that doesn't answer your question. Sorry.

 

Last year on the Star we had left Seattle and a few hours later it was after dark and we were cruising at full speed towards Alaska. Then this vibration started. I happened to be in an elevator when it started and it felt like a washing machine where the load is off center - the elevator was knocking/rocking back and forth. A little worrisome, truth be told.

 

We were staying in a suite on the 12th floor and when DH & I got back to the suite my 85 year old father (lifelong farmer and therefore a mechanic) said, "Something is wrong with the propellor!" This vibration would go for just a minute or two and then it would stop. It happened about 3 different times. Dad said, "It only stops when we slow down." I couldn't tell if we had slowed down or sped up but he just knew somewhow.

 

Sure enough - the next morning there was an announcement from the captain that there was a problem feared with the propellor and we'd had to slow down after leaving Seattle to 20-21 knots. Therefore, we would be a couple hours late getting into our first port the next day as well as missing a port on the way back. (We would have to skip the port in order to make it back to Seattle on time - oh shucks!) But when we did go into our first port, Ketchikan, some divers went under the ship and found no damage. They did find evidence that something had wrapped itself around the propellor but was no longer there. They did a bunch of tests and everything passed so we were able to gain full speed once we left Ketchikan and we didn't miss the port that we had thought we were going to miss. It was an interesting set of developements and turned out ok.

[ColinIllinois]

Maybe they use premium gas instead of regular unleaded? :D

[Bars7816]

Can't think of anything funny to say. But there just has to be some really good jokes here! :D:D:D

[mitsugirly]

To be able to outrun all of the hurricanes during hurricane season and show the other lines the safer ship to be on. :D

[shof515]

MONEY!!!

 

The faster the ship goes, the more fuel it burns. To keep costs down, ships sail at a speed that does not consume that much fuel per hour. Also, there is less wear/tear on the engine at a lower speed then running them full speed all the time.

[RickB56]

They are of German manufacture...need I say more???

[snake114]

A few years back we were on the Dawn coming back from the Bahamas to NY. We were trying to beat a forcasted blizzard for NY and get into port before it was to be closed. According to the Navigation channel on the ship tv, we were doing 29 knots at one point! We were probably getting a boost from the Gulf Stream in this area off of the Outer Banks....

 

Later that night seas were running 30-35 feet- quite an adventure. We got into port just before it was shut down. Thankfully we had 4WD or we never would have gotten our truck out of the snow drifts at the pier side parking!

[Ask4Jay]

No naval architect here, just a sailor.

In very simple terms, ships of similar size (length) should have the same speed. The longer the ship the faster it should be able to travel. Of course, there are other factors as well, the shape of underwater ship, how blunt the bow is, the weight of the ship, and the power plant/engine. I hope some experts will chime in with more accurate info.

From an operational consideration, it would be the distance between ports that determines the cruising speed. On a repositioning cruise to Europe, do you push the ship to cross the Atlantic in x days or cruise leisurely on x+1 days, thereby saving fuel, but losing one cruising day that could have brought in extra revenue during that season?

[Single Cruiser]

Basically the NCL ships have traditional propulsion so will have a theoretical top speed greater than the newer RCL ships with Azipods, they are more manoeuvrable but tend to have single fixed and two pivoted.

 

The other consideration is the bulbous bow. The liners such as Queen x have pointed bows which allow them over 30 knots as it cuts through the waves, the others have the jutting out oval bit below the water line to help deflect water aound the otherwise less streamline bulk width of a modern cruise ship.

 

But as someone has mentioned, very rarely due to fuel costs do they get near that. Epic around the Med barely broke 15knots all week!

[Laszlo]

Their are many factors that make up a ships speed. Hull Design, Pod propulsion vs. straight shaft. Ever boat - ship has a sweet spot. My Boston Whaler can run wide open at 46 mph but will burn 17 gallons per hour. Her sweet spot is 26 mph burning 5 gph. I got a chance last month to briefly talk to one of the engineers on the Gem. She has a top speed of about 25 knots in Zero wind, 2-4 foot seas and is most economical around 21. It was interesting to see on the ship viewing room at one point she was running 14.3 knots while her props were turning 78 RPM. Her propulsion is electric pods that run off of generators. 3 engines will push her to 21 knots burning X amount of fuel. Using the 4 gen will push her to 25 knots burning XXX amount of fuel. On the Bermuda run the fastest I ever saw was 21 knots

[shof515]

Epic around the Med barely broke 15knots all week!

 

the slower the ship, the less movement you feel and the less seasick you will get

[Sauer-kraut]

Their are many factors that make up a ships speed. Hull Design, Pod propulsion vs. straight shaft. Ever boat - ship has a sweet spot. My Boston Whaler can run wide open at 46 mph but will burn 17 gallons per hour. Her sweet spot is 26 mph burning 5 gph. I got a chance last month to briefly talk to one of the engineers on the Gem. She has a top speed of about 25 knots in Zero wind, 2-4 foot seas and is most economical around 21. It was interesting to see on the ship viewing room at one point she was running 14.3 knots while her props were turning 78 RPM. Her propulsion is electric pods that run off of generators. 3 engines will push her to 21 knots burning X amount of fuel. Using the 4 gen will push her to 25 knots burning XXX amount of fuel. On the Bermuda run the fastest I ever saw was 21 knots

 

This is why the QM2 takes 7 days to cross the Atlantic than the 6 she used to do its all about fuel consumption. She is really able to cross in 5 days and indeed did make that speed on her maiden crossing, and then was reined in on every crossing since then.

[njhorseman]

Basically the NCL ships have traditional propulsion so will have a theoretical top speed greater than the newer RCL ships with Azipods, they are more manoeuvrable but tend to have single fixed and two pivoted.

 

The other consideration is the bulbous bow. The liners such as Queen x have pointed bows which allow them over 30 knots as it cuts through the waves, the others have the jutting out oval bit below the water line to help deflect water aound the otherwise less streamline bulk width of a modern cruise ship.

 

But as someone has mentioned, very rarely due to fuel costs do they get near that. Epic around the Med barely broke 15knots all week!

 

A couple of NCL ships had to be dry docked last year for azipod repairs, so your assumption that all NCL ships don't have azipods is incorrect.

[mitsugirly]

It's too bad that they don't use all that speed to get from one island to the other. I remember back in the 80's when we docked at some place we would be there until late at night and have plenty time in port. Now it seems like all they do is rush you off and rush you back on in time to leave. :(

[njhorseman]

It's too bad that they don't use all that speed to get from one island to the other. I remember back in the 80's when we docked at some place we would be there until late at night and have plenty time in port. Now it seems like all they do is rush you off and rush you back on in time to leave. :(

 

The longer you dock in a port, the more it costs in docking fees, and the longer you dock, the longer the casino and shops have to remain closed. Remember, the mass market cruise lines don't turn a profit from your cruise fare...it's the drinks, shops, casinos, spa, photos, bingo, art auctions and shore excursions that put a cruise in the black.

[mitsugirly]

The longer you dock in a port, the more it costs in docking fees, and the longer you dock, the longer the casino and shops have to remain closed. Remember, the mass market cruise lines don't turn a profit from your cruise fare...it's the drinks, shops, casinos, spa, photos, bingo, art auctions and shore excursions that put a cruise in the black.

 

 

Yea I know :( just saying... it would be nice. I miss the "good ole days" (along with the midnight buffets they use to have and the flaming baked Alaskan show and....) :)

[sdmike]

I remember when the Epic did sea trials they had her up to 26kts. Coming across the Atlantic south of NF she was moving at about 21kts when the Queen Elizabeth blew past her at about 28

[mitsugirly]

I remember when the Epic did sea trials they had her up to 26kts. Coming across the Atlantic south of NF she was moving at about 21kts when the Queen Elizabeth blew past her at about 28

 

Yep, yep, the queen was there with ya. :D

[sdmike]

Yep, yep, the queen was there with ya. :D

 

good times, good times :D

[Single Cruiser]

the slower the ship, the less movement you feel and the less seasick you will get

 

But that's part of the fun, feeling some rock and roll.. The gentle vibration to rock you off to sleep at night! ;)

[Carnival AZIPOD]

Hey everyone. Thanks for the replies.

 

I see a lot of people referencing the Queen X ships. However, these ships are not your typical diesel-electric powered ships. They have the typical diesel-electric motors but also have a turbine motor so they can go 25+ knots (while burning a lot of fuel!!)

 

My question was strictly for the Norwegian ships. The Star and the Dawn have a "cruising" speed of 24-25 kts. All other diesel-electric propulsion ships get 20-21 knots. I suspect, as a few of you had already mentioned, that it may be the hull design or perhaps they make a bit more power?

 

It's quite interesting being on a ship that can cruise normally at 25 knots. I was once on the the Norwegian Star and we were down at Cabo with another Princess ship. We were both going to go back to Los Angeles but the Princess ship had to leave the port 2-3 hours earlier because it cruised at a slower speed. After we finally left, it was pretty awesome watching us pass her up slowly over the course of a few hours.

[electricron]

There's many variables that effect top speed, I suppose the most important variable is power output (KW or hp) of the ship's propulsion plant in relation to its size.

 

Specifically, for NCL's Star, Dawn, Jewel, Jade, Pearl, and Gem....

Electric power generation is provided by four MAN B&W type 14V48/60 diesel generators with a 14 MW output each (56 MW). The ship is propelled by two 20 MW Azipod thrusters (40 MW total).

Therefore, at around 92,000 gross weight tons, that's a propulsion power of 0.43 kW per ton with a maximum speed of 25 knots.

 

Comparing to similar sized ships (meaning Panama Canal size)

 

RCCL's Radiance, Jewel, Brilliance, and Serenade of the Seas

Electric power generation is from a combined gas/steam turbine system (based on two GE 25 MW gas turbines and a Fincantieri 7.8 MW steam turbine) totaling 57.8 MW. The ship is propelled by two 20 MW Azipod thrusters (40 MW total).

Therefore, at around 90,000 gross weight tons, that's a propulsion power of 0.44 kW per ton with a max speed of 25 knots.

 

Carnival's Spirit, Pride, Legend, & Miracle, and Costa's Atlantica & Mediterranea have six Wärtsilä 9L46D diesel engines with a total power of 62.37 MW (~10.4 MW each). The ship is propelled by two 17.6 MW Azipod thrusters (35.2 MW total).

Therefore, at around 88,000 gross weight tons, that's a propulsion power of 0.40 kW per ton with a max speed of 24 knots.

 

Note: Older model azipods have been derated 0.5 MW each by the manufacturer, therefore Spirit, Radiance, and Star class ships only have 39 MW of propulsion power vs the 40 MW initially. I'm not sure how many, if any, Jewel class ship azipods have been derated or not.

 

A very good website to find propulsion data for various ships is at

http://www.ship-technology.com/projects/

 

Few cruise ships operate at maximum speed after successfully completing builder trials. The publicly listed top cruising speeds for the ships are:

NCL Star & Jewel classes > 24 knots

RCCL Radiance class > 24 knots

Carnival's Spirit class > 22 knots

 

Additionally, a variable often overlooked, ships can lose 1 knot of speed per year after drydock to barnacles growing on the hull. The same ship sailing immediately after drydock with a clean hull can be one to two knots faster than just before.

[e.durban]

The early NCL ships were faster than traditional cruise ships because NCL's (then sole) parent company Star Cruises is Asian-based and the ships were designed for Pacific service (remember when Norwegian Spirit was Superstar Leo?). Distances between ports are greater on those runs and Star wanted ships that could cover the distances without ridiculous numbers of seadays. As many have pointed out, however, fuel is money and high speeds burn more fuel at a faster rate than slow speeds. Nowadays, the NCL ships take their time: those new NCL 12 day itineraries out of NYC include extra sea days the ships don't need to make port, they are (as others have mentioned) solely designed to slow fuel consumption and maximize on-board revenue.

 

David