Royal Caribbean or Norwegian - which is better?

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

We have cruised with Holland America, Princess, Celebrity, Carnival and cunard and wanted to know how these other two cruise lines measure up. Has anyone experienced cruises on either? Thanks!:)

[CruiserBruce]

"Better" is strictly in the eyes of the beholder.

[mrsfuzzmo]

I love them both very much.

[cruzeluver]

Better for whom and in terms of what? It depends on what you are looking for and what you individual priorities. Depending on the person, I would recommend either.

[A2Mich]

We were wondering the same thing. We have heard and read good and bad about both, but seem to hear more negative about NCL than RCI. We were also concerned about the perceived nickel and diming of NCL, especially with their alternative restaurants. Looking at the EPIC, there were I believe 3 options that were included in your fare, and the other 15 or so were extra-cost. While there's nothing wrong with that per se, we don't like going on vacation to feel nickel and dimed to death over everything. The alcohol, soda, and spa are generally accepted extra-cost options on most every cruise line. With the complaints we had heard about NCL's MDR, we decided to not try NCL at this point in time, and will be booking our first Royal Caribbean cruise when the sailing list opens up. We have only cruised once on Princess and several times on Carnival and are looking for something "better" or "different." Mind you, we've never had a bad cruise on Carnival, and would happily sail them again, but are looking for something maybe a bit nicer, overall. That being said, I would say that Carnival is a good cruise line, but with a different atmosphere and ambiance than some of the others.

[trish1c]

You are asking us to tell you whether you will like vanilla or chocolate ice cream better. It can't be done.

Both lines have their fans & their detractors

[cb at sea]

I think it really depends on the type of cabin you want. On NCL, if you book a suite, you do get the royal treatment. On RCI, you get a few perks, but not like on NCL.

 

But, RCI has (on their newer ships, anyway), lots of "bells and whistles"...rock walls, ice rinks, flowrider, zip-line and Merry-go-round (on Oasis/Allure)..stuff you won't find on other lines.

 

If those things are important to you, then choose accordingly. If it's the ports you're looking at, either line will get you there, and you'll have a great time!

[Starry Eyes]

Royal Caribbean is probably more like he other lines you have sailed. NCL is more casual with no required formal nights and all open dining. better or worse is, as others noted, an individual opinion.

[cruzinaway]

We've sailed both lines and had a wonderful time on each and every cruise. When I sail with my Mom, we go with Royal. She likes the set dining times and tablemates. When I sail with my husband, we go with NCL. He likes being able to choose a new restaurant every night and the more casual atmosphere.

 

Both lines offer beautiful ships, great service and fun itineraries. You really can't go wrong.

 

Have fun. :)

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

The reason I was asking my Cruise Critic friends is my husband wants to go with NCL and I want to go with RCL. We have heard a lot of good things about RCL but NCL hasn't had as many good things. Thanks to everyone for their positive input.

[youngestof9]

I have sailed both and find them more similar than not. NCL doesn't have assigned dinner times and you can dress more casual, where on Royal it's more main or late dining and you have to dress a little nicer.

 

I have constantly heard "nickel and dimed" on NCL. Honestly, I have no idea why. The gratuity structure is the same, although it is done as a $12/day per person on NCL and it's still the envelope system on RCL (and if you look at their guidelines, it's 35 cents cheaper - so I'd say that's a wash). They both add gratuities to drinks. They both have a soda plan. So I did not spend more on extras on NCL than RC. I would say the same. Again, no idea why NCL gets the stigma of nickel and diming.

 

NCL does have more specialty restaurants, but you can still have really nice meals without spending a dime. On the Gem for example, there were 2 main dining rooms, a casual 24 hour restaurant and a huge buffet. On the Epic, there was the same. They do offer a ton of specialty (for a fee) restaurants. The ones we chose were excellent. But you don't have to use them. I liked the variety of specialties a lot.

 

I've never sailed in a suite on Royal, but the suites on NCL were unbelievable. Service was over the top and the room was phenomenal. Our room on Serenade of the Seas was perfect for us, it was a hump cabin.

 

I found the service excellent on both ships - we did get 'extra' attention on our 2 NCL sailings, but we had a butler and concierge because we sailed in a suite. However, the staff on the rest of the ship was excellent and have no idea what kind of room we were in.

 

So I put it down to price/itinerary. I do find sailing with our kids easier on NCL because of the no special time for dinner.

[DonnaK]

Just want to add that Royal Caribbean does have a My Time Dining option, so you do not have to have traditional dinner times unless you want to.

Edited April 9, 2012 by DonnaK

[janetz]

After cruises on Celebrity, Carnival and Princess we sailed on the Oasis which was our first RC cruise and right after, the NCL Dawn, our first NCL cruise. Loved both for different reasons. As far as nickeled and dimed all the cruiseline's do it to some extent. We loved RC's My Time Dining and NCL Freestyle concept. We are so over formal nights. We would sail on both lines again in a heartbeat. Booked the Breakaway for next year from NY and are looking at the FOS...:)

[GORDONCHICK]

We just got back from our 1st RCCL and have sailed NCL 2 times. We liked the MDR food better on NCL - much more selection IMO. The RCCL ship (Mariner) had more glitz and glam than either NCL Spirit or NCL Pearl, but all were just fine with us. I had to sail on RCCL so I could ice skate on a cruise ship. But I got to bowl on one on the Pearl. I also think NCL had better variety of food on the buffet (& I'm not a buffet fan). I found the crew to be friendlier on NCL & their officers show up to the M&G. They love to talk to CCers. If you book suites - NCL has the best suite perks afloat.

 

Another poster said it, and it bears repeating - all the mainstreamed lines do what many call nickle & dime (in dept stores, it's called upselling). I've been on 6 lines, and they all do it. I didn't find any line more pushy than the other, and a simple no thank you always sufficed. Also, as far as specialty restaurants go, simply don't go. I've only been to one in all of our 8 cruises and it was gifted to us.

[Aquahound]

We have cruised with Holland America, Princess, Celebrity, Carnival and cunard and wanted to know how these other two cruise lines measure up. Has anyone experienced cruises on either? Thanks!:)

 

To be honest, I don't think anyone can answer this question as you asked it. Truth is cruise lines like RCI and NCL have a variety of ships that can be very different than the others. For example, a cruise on N. Epic is not like a cruise on the Spirit, and a cruise on the RCI Oasis is not like a cruise on the Vision.

 

In other words, to better answer your question, what specific ships are you considering?

[Woobstr112G]

We have cruised with Holland America, Princess, Celebrity, Carnival and cunard and wanted to know how these other two cruise lines measure up. Has anyone experienced cruises on either? Thanks!:)

 

Choosing between the two is subjective just like food on a cruise ship. Depends on what you want.....:):):)

 

Bob

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

We have booked our NCL cruise in Oct 2013 to Bermuda. Thanks for all the info. It helped us make our choice. :)

[SMerritt]

After cruises on Celebrity, Carnival and Princess we sailed on the Oasis which was our first RC cruise and right after, the NCL Dawn, our first NCL cruise. Loved both for different reasons. As far as nickeled and dimed all the cruiseline's do it to some extent. We loved RC's My Time Dining and NCL Freestyle concept. We are so over formal nights. We would sail on both lines again in a heartbeat. Booked the Breakaway for next year from NY and are looking at the FOS...:)

 

trish1c wrote: You are asking us to tell you whether you will like vanilla or chocolate ice cream better. It can't be done. Both lines have their fans & their detractors

 

janetz - your cruise history sounds a little like ours - we just booked the Breakaway for next September and I am more EXCITED than any other cruise! Bermuda was amazing last month, the ship (NCL) was fun, along with all of the sea and in port days.

 

As above, opinions vary - We are Epic fans but are doing Princess in January..........

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

We have booked our NCL cruise in Oct 2013 to Bermuda. Thanks for all the info. It helped us make our choice. :)

 

We had to change our booking to Sept for Bermuda! See some of you on the ship! Breakaway, here we come!

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

There was one of the Oasis ships in port when we were in the Eastern Caribbean in Jan and they had a lot of Spanish people there with those irritating two way radios, yelling at each other through them even though they were only one table away at a small restaurant. Please tell me they don't issue those on board! lol - Is the ship that big?

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

We just got back from our 1st RCCL and have sailed NCL 2 times. We liked the MDR food better on NCL - much more selection IMO. The RCCL ship (Mariner) had more glitz and glam than either NCL Spirit or NCL Pearl, but all were just fine with us. I had to sail on RCCL so I could ice skate on a cruise ship. But I got to bowl on one on the Pearl. I also think NCL had better variety of food on the buffet (& I'm not a buffet fan). I found the crew to be friendlier on NCL & their officers show up to the M&G. They love to talk to CCers. If you book suites - NCL has the best suite perks afloat.

 

Another poster said it, and it bears repeating - all the mainstreamed lines do what many call nickle & dime (in dept stores, it's called upselling). I've been on 6 lines, and they all do it. I didn't find any line more pushy than the other, and a simple no thank you always sufficed. Also, as far as specialty restaurants go, simply don't go. I've only been to one in all of our 8 cruises and it was gifted to us.

thanks for the info Carmen. We are now booked with NCL on the new Breakaway.

[Guest debbiejohncruise]

I have sailed both and find them more similar than not. NCL doesn't have assigned dinner times and you can dress more casual, where on Royal it's more main or late dining and you have to dress a little nicer.

 

I have constantly heard "nickel and dimed" on NCL. Honestly, I have no idea why. The gratuity structure is the same, although it is done as a $12/day per person on NCL and it's still the envelope system on RCL (and if you look at their guidelines, it's 35 cents cheaper - so I'd say that's a wash). They both add gratuities to drinks. They both have a soda plan. So I did not spend more on extras on NCL than RC. I would say the same. Again, no idea why NCL gets the stigma of nickel and diming.

 

NCL does have more specialty restaurants, but you can still have really nice meals without spending a dime. On the Gem for example, there were 2 main dining rooms, a casual 24 hour restaurant and a huge buffet. On the Epic, there was the same. They do offer a ton of specialty (for a fee) restaurants. The ones we chose were excellent. But you don't have to use them. I liked the variety of specialties a lot.

 

I've never sailed in a suite on Royal, but the suites on NCL were unbelievable. Service was over the top and the room was phenomenal. Our room on Serenade of the Seas was perfect for us, it was a hump cabin.

 

I found the service excellent on both ships - we did get 'extra' attention on our 2 NCL sailings, but we had a butler and concierge because we sailed in a suite. However, the staff on the rest of the ship was excellent and have no idea what kind of room we were in.

 

So I put it down to price/itinerary. I do find sailing with our kids easier on NCL because of the no special time for dinner.

Great info. Thanks so much.

[miljkelly]

Just came back from cruising on NCL for first time aboard the Getaway. I was not impressed - ship was not as clean as expected, cabin service stunk, food was very mediocre (especially at the rather expensive a la carte La Cuccina), their 15 texting app did not work, and there were no shows to appeal to all audiences (only adults). 10 year old daughter hated the kids clud but my 17 year old son was thrilled to sneak into the adult dance club undetected. Royal wins hands down (and Disney off course is tops).

[Markanddonna]

I have sailed both and find them more similar than not. NCL doesn't have assigned dinner times and you can dress more casual, where on Royal it's more main or late dining and you have to dress a little nicer.

 

I have constantly heard "nickel and dimed" on NCL. Honestly, I have no idea why. The gratuity structure is the same, although it is done as a $12/day per person on NCL and it's still the envelope system on RCL (and if you look at their guidelines, it's 35 cents cheaper - so I'd say that's a wash). They both add gratuities to drinks. They both have a soda plan. So I did not spend more on extras on NCL than RC. I would say the same. Again, no idea why NCL gets the stigma of nickel and diming.

 

NCL does have more specialty restaurants, but you can still have really nice meals without spending a dime. On the Gem for example, there were 2 main dining rooms, a casual 24 hour restaurant and a huge buffet. On the Epic, there was the same. They do offer a ton of specialty (for a fee) restaurants. The ones we chose were excellent. But you don't have to use them. I liked the variety of specialties a lot.

 

 

I've never sailed in a suite on Royal, but the suites on NCL were unbelievable. Service was over the top and the room was phenomenal. Our room on Serenade of the Seas was perfect for us, it was a hump cabin.

 

I found the service excellent on both ships - we did get 'extra' attention on our 2 NCL sailings, but we had a butler and concierge because we sailed in a suite. However, the staff on the rest of the ship was excellent and have no idea what kind of room we were in.

 

So I put it down to price/itinerary. I do find sailing with our kids easier on NCL because of the no special time for dinner.

 

I agree with these statements. They are both more similar than different. Now that we have 15 cruises on 4 different lines under our belt, I see that the type of itinerary has a lot to do with the experience. You can't compare a 3-4 night Bahamas cruise to a 19 night Panama Canal or Transatlantic/Pacific cruise. The older ships versus the mega ships are another huge issue. A cruise that we took 15 years ago is vastly different than what we now experience. Seniors vs. families vs young couples: they all want different things. I do my homework, mostly with the help of others on Cruise Critic.

[PROCRUISE]

I agree with these statements. They are both more similar than different. Now that we have 15 cruises on 4 different lines under our belt, I see that the type of itinerary has a lot to do with the experience. You can't compare a 3-4 night Bahamas cruise to a 19 night Panama Canal or Transatlantic/Pacific cruise. The older ships versus the mega ships are another huge issue. A cruise that we took 15 years ago is vastly different than what we now experience. Seniors vs. families vs young couples: they all want different things. I do my homework, mostly with the help of others on Cruise Critic.

 

Mark/Donna summed it up very nicely. Everyone probably has a favorite cruise line, mine is Celebrity, and everyone has probably had some little disappointment of some kind on any given ship.

I have only cruised on the NCL Star and Sun. The difference was like day and night and I found the NCL Sun to be nearly perfect, as opposed to the Star. RCL, I've only sailed in Allure of the Seas and thought I'd dislike it because of size and crowds. I really enjoyed the cruise and was amazed at how well organized the entire ship was and friendly crew.

As mentioned, do your homework, decide on a desired itinerary, and then decide on which cruise line. More and more, I think, the mainline cruise lines are becoming the same unless you strike out in a different direction.. I'm doing that in August and next January by cruising on the WindStar Spirit and Viking Sea!