Norwegian vs. Royal Caribbean...

[BirdTravels]

In the past year, we have been on 3 NCL cruises and 2 RCCL cruises. Our preference is still strongly NCL.

 

On our RCCL cruise last month, the crew seemed to be very unhappy and unfriendly. From senior officers down to the buffet bus boys. Yup, being the hand sanitizer person is probably one of the worst job on the ship, but they are the first faces you see as you board and the first person you interact with in the morning. They were consistently unpleasant.

 

On RCCL, We had a problem with shore excursion and we were made to feel like we were at fault and questioned like we were trying to “pull something over” on the cruise line. The ship’s overall response to our issue was totally underwhelming.

 

On RCCL in September, one of our shows was cancelled and rescheduled 5 times due to technical problems and slightly choppy seas. In the Q&A with the performers, they say the stage shows must go on and they adapt to the sea conditions, not our experience.

 

After two marginal RCCL cruises, my spouse commented that it’s time to go back to NCL where they love us. So, we booked an upcoming cruise on the Escape.

[Tatka]

We also noticed that while all ship excursions are overpriced, NCL prices are beyond ridiculous. Even Free at sea credit doesn't help much.

 

NCL Free at sea drink perk is a nice perk, but package itself is much more expensive than RCCL.

[Tatka]

In the past year, we have been on 3 NCL cruises and 2 RCCL cruises. Our preference is still strongly NCL.

 

On our RCCL cruise last month, the crew seemed to be very unhappy and unfriendly. From senior officers down to the buffet bus boys. Yup, being the hand sanitizer person is probably one of the worst job on the ship, but they are the first faces you see as you board and the first person you interact with in the morning. They were consistently unpleasant.

 

On RCCL, We had a problem with shore excursion and we were made to feel like we were at fault and questioned like we were trying to “pull something over” on the cruise line. The ship’s overall response to our issue was totally underwhelming.

 

On RCCL in September, one of our shows was cancelled and rescheduled 5 times due to technical problems and slightly choppy seas. In the Q&A with the performers, they say the stage shows must go on and they adapt to the sea conditions, not our experience.

 

After two marginal RCCL cruises, my spouse commented that it’s time to go back to NCL where they love us. So, we booked an upcoming cruise on the Escape.

Show cancellation aren't standard. We haven't experienced this in 10 cruises with them. 5 in the last 3 years.

[tmknies]

Love Royal but the past several cruises they have just been priced out of reach. I like the newer ships and the perks NCL offers.

[ksmcdonald]

"Did you know that there is a search function? If you typed your title into the little search box for the forum, you'd get a BUNCH of reviews/threads that will answer your question."

 

 

Ignore some of the obnoxious posters on here who seem to get annoyed when someone starts a thread on a topic that they feel has been discussed enough. What's the big deal that there's one more thread added to the list?! So What? Ignore it & move on rather than make a snarky comment. Geez.

 

I think you need to take your own advice:

 

And why would you not just ignore it & move on rather than make a snarky comment. Geez.

 

 

No reason at all for you to make this "snarkey" comment either. Geez!

[Cruiseswithfamilyornot]

We have been on 6 Oasis class cruises. Twice on oasis, three times on Allure and once on Harmony. This is my families favorite cruise ship. Even though I love Crystal, a luxury adult cruise line, I love Oasis too. I cannot compare it to Norwegian mega ships, but I can tell you that once you're on the ship, outside of a muster drill, you don't really feel the crowds. There is SO much to do on these ships. Some people don't like it as it's more of a floating hotel, but those who like many different activities and incredible entertainment(broadway show, ice show, incredible special effects show and a diving show on the boardwalk that is incredible) will love it. I've stayed in every room on this ship except the inside rooms, and it's all great IMHO. Their restaurant Wonderland is pretty spectacular too.

[BNBR]

We have been on 6 Oasis class cruises. Twice on oasis, three times on Allure and once on Harmony. This is my families favorite cruise ship. Even though I love Crystal, a luxury adult cruise line, I love Oasis too. I cannot compare it to Norwegian mega ships, but I can tell you that once you're on the ship, outside of a muster drill, you don't really feel the crowds. There is SO much to do on these ships. Some people don't like it as it's more of a floating hotel, but those who like many different activities and incredible entertainment(broadway show, ice show, incredible special effects show and a diving show on the boardwalk that is incredible) will love it. I've stayed in every room on this ship except the inside rooms, and it's all great IMHO. Their restaurant Wonderland is pretty spectacular too.

 

This. Nothing compares to Oasis providing you like the larger ships. If you are going to sail the larger ships like the -Away class, then Royal pretty much slaughters NCL in almost every aspect of it. If you are sailing the mid sized and smaller ships, you can practically flip a coin. NCL's smaller ships may very well be more enjoyable. But they haven't come close to ship design on their "mega" ships to compete with Royal, neither has Carnival. But when sailing smaller ships, I actually prefer Carnival over Royal and as much as I disliked Escape, I'd consider NCL's smaller ships but would never do an -Away class again.

[Destaw71835]

We’ve taken 2 cruises on NCL and 2 on Royal with a 3rd booked for August.

 

Here’s my take:

 

Pros NCL:

 

Friendly crew

MDR

Buffet

NCL customer service

 

Pros Royal:

 

Ship layouts/size

Cabin size

Entertainment

 

 

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[graphicguy]

Revisiting this thread. Posted last year, and my feelings haven’t changed much. Everyone will have different experiences based on their wants/needs/expectations.

 

Having sailed RCCLs largest and NCL’s largest, all of them are wonderful ships.

 

All of them are beautiful and contemporary, and couldn’t say one or the other is better from between Oasis Class (RCCL) and “Away/Escape” class (NCL).

 

The cruise lines approach things a little differently, perhaps! RCCL likes pushing passengers “inward”, where it’s a bit more difficult to see/experience the water you’re sailing on.

 

NCL is just the opposite, particularly with their largest ships. They have many wide open areas where the water is “right there”. They have bars and dining areas (even speciality dining) where you can actually drink and dine outside in several different venues.

 

If you’re a solo cruiser, I do like RCCL’s solo cabins better than NCL’s. But, balcony and up cabins, I prefer NCL.

 

If you go full suite, NCL wins, hands down, and they’re usually significantly less expensive than RCCL’s full suites. NCL’s Haven ups the service level even more.

 

The shows on RCCL, while quite good, aren’t as good as the ones I’ve experienced on NCL.

 

Plus, the drink and specialty dining packages NCL has been kicking in as incentives really have sealed the deal for me for my next cruise (a couple of weeks away). I haven’t sailed NCL in a couple of years, so looking forward to it.

 

That’s not to say RCCL doesn’t have great cruises. They do. That’s why I keep looking at their offerings whenever I’m looking to cruise. They seem to keep pricing themselves closer to their sister, Celebrity, which is arguably a more upscale experience.

[Cruiseswithfamilyornot]

The drink packages on NCL are not comparable to RCCL. I think when you're properly comparing the two while NCL may seem less, when you add on things that are included in Royal they get a lot closer. I forgot to mention that. I found there was a lot more nickel and diming on NCL. For instance, not only was the drink package more money($20 or 30 more per person), but even the "free unlimited drinks" I had to pay a few hundred dollars for tips even though it was a free "perk". Plus their package didn't include juices or bottled water. The "free internet" was just 250 minutes. On royal it is unlimited. The list goes on with some of those things so I would say to properly evaluate you have to take that all into consideration.

[IrieBajan54]

Ehhh, I remember long time ago. They have much more now. When that steak was discussed back then NCL food (in included restaurants) was even weaker. Both have improved in this regard

 

 

I do find that while RCCL buffets aren’t great, NCL ones are even weaker. Did they reinstate serving smoked salmon for breakfast on NCL?

 

No smoked salmon at the buffet for breakfast. However, smoked salmon is definitely available in the sit down dining room. I always get it instead of bacon. One advantage of NCL removing it from the buffet is that I now eat breakfast only in the dining room.

Edited April 10, 2018 by IrieBajan54
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[graphicguy]

Unless something has changed since I last sailed RCCL last summer, NCL is offering UDP for what I have seen as just about every cabin category. Gratuity/Service charges on the UDP, or about $18/day. That’s not even remotely close to what I paid on my HOS cruise 7-8 months ago.

 

I’m taking the NCL Gem to the Bahamas in a couple of weeks. A smaller ship by NCL or RCCL biggest ship standards. But, i understand the Jewel Class ships are quite nice in their own right. I booked an aft suite which included the SDP, UDP, internet plan, some cash for excursions, and OBC. Got that for about the cost of what a Superior Balcony Cabin would cost on RCCL.

 

Both lines have very nice ships. They’re both innovative. If you like one over the other, keep sailing them. You won’t be disappointed.

 

Don’t get me wrong, I like RCCL. I sail them still. But, to say they are head and shoulders above NCL (or CCL, or MSC, etc) has not been remotely my experience.

[mugtech]

My favorites are the NCL Jewel class ships. I was on the BA and found the Royal Anthem to be superior in many ways. Usually NCL has the better entertainment, but the best I ever saw was on the Anthem. Similar ships on the 2 lines seem to find NCL a few dollars cheaper, and since we don't drink or care about internet the difference is minimal, so we book on itinerary. I just saw a TP posted on RCI on the Ovation in April, 2020, 18 days for $1,691 inside cabin per person, but the balconies are less than $200 more. Glad I can book this in 2020 now while Can't get any TP on NCL after October, 2018. Then again in the last year RCI has cancelled a TA and a TP , got my money back more than a year before they were scheduled. The website for RCI is terrible, has been for weeks, gotta call to get results.

[Tatka]

mugtech, I thought I’ve written your post... about Jewel class and Anthem over BA.

BA has one (1!!!) advantage though over Anthem. It’s a Waterfront and keeping traditional outside Promenade.

[Mom2B&Z]

mugtech, I thought I’ve written your post... about Jewel class and Anthem over BA.

BA has one (1!!!) advantage though over Anthem. It’s a Waterfront and keeping traditional outside Promenade.

 

 

 

IMHO it has two...the suites are way more reasonably priced on Breakaway than Anthem.

 

 

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[Tatka]

Well.. We aren't "suite" people.

For us though parking in NJ is twice cheaper than in Manhattan at $40 per day. We factor it in overall cruise cost when compare fares.

[Shynook11]

We absolutely prefer NCL. Much better food, can't beat the free specialty dining offers. We have tween/teens and find the pool atmosphere way to laid back and boring on RCCL. We like entertainment and music. We also found RCCL to be more subdued in the things to do on the ship dept....much down time, aside from many spa seminars. We were not on a mega ship on either line. We will be going on the Escape in June so I have no idea how RCCL compares to NCL on the larger ships. We have been on the Pearl and IOTS.

Edited April 11, 2018 by Shynook11

[BNBR]

We will be going on the Escape in June so I have no idea how RCCL compares to NCL on the larger ships. We have been on the Pearl and IOTS.

 

You'll enjoy Escape I'm sure, but NCL doesn't compete Royal on the mega ships. Escape isn't really a "mega ship" anyways. You should consider an Oasis-class sailing sometime in the future to see what makes them so different and popular.

[Tatka]

We absolutely prefer NCL. Much better food, can't beat the free specialty dining offers. We have tween/teens and find the pool atmosphere way to laid back and boring on RCCL. We like entertainment and music. We also found RCCL to be more subdued in the things to do on the ship dept....much down time, aside from many spa seminars. We were not on a mega ship on either line. We will be going on the Escape in June so I have no idea how RCCL compares to NCL on the larger ships. We have been on the Pearl and IOTS.

Which ship, when and to what destination you sailed on RCCL?

[doones2]

We absolutely prefer NCL. Much better food, can't beat the free specialty dining offers. We have tween/teens and find the pool atmosphere way to laid back and boring on RCCL. We like entertainment and music. We also found RCCL to be more subdued in the things to do on the ship dept....much down time, aside from many spa seminars. We were not on a mega ship on either line. We will be going on the Escape in June so I have no idea how RCCL compares to NCL on the larger ships. We have been on the Pearl and IOTS.

I love both cruise lines but for different reasons. Not sure how you can say RCCL does not have enough to do. Even if you don’t go on the mega ships, there is ice skating, rock climbing, mini golf, surfing to name a few. NCL has the freestyle cruising and more complimentary dining options

[BNBR]

NCL has the freestyle cruising and more complimentary dining options

 

NCL has the MDR, O'Sheehans, and Buffet. Royals has 10+ venues on their large ships.

[Tatka]

Exactly. Park Cafe, Sorrentos pizzeria exist even on their "midsize" ships... and on Oasis class there are even more

[ksmcdonald]

This.

 

But when sailing smaller ships, I actually prefer Carnival over Royal and as much as I disliked Escape, I'd consider NCL's smaller ships but would never do an -Away class again.

 

 

 

Funny how we all have different likes/dislikes! I was searching for an NCL Cruise yesterday and used the filter to only show me the “Away class” ships! Would never even consider going on a small NCL ship.

 

 

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[IrieBajan54]

Funny how we all have different likes/dislikes! I was searching for an NCL Cruise yesterday and used the filter to only show me the “Away class” ships! Would never even consider going on a small NCL ship.

 

 

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You are absolutely correct. I have done one cruise on RCL. Don't care for them. Have been on many NCL cruises but mostly book the 4 Jewel Class ships. Just love the Great Outdoors and the full wraparound promenade deck.

[Cuizer2]

Escape isn't really a "mega ship" anyways.

 

What? The Escape is about the same size as Royal Caribbean's Quantum class, which is Royal Caribbean's second largest class. A ship doesn't have to be over 200,000 GT to be a mega ship.