Big Ships or Little (Smaller) Ships?

[LAWTONCRUISE]

Do you prefer the new bigger ships or the little ships (Star, Jewel etc). I know the big ships have a lot to offer but they seem to be just a tad crowded to me. I'll stay with the smaller ships. What are your thoughts.

[montecarloss]

1st ever cruise was on the Star. 2nd was on the Epic. Yow. Went on the Pearl for our third and will be going on the Sun our next cruise. Bigger ain't always better. We will stick to the smaller ships, thank you very much.

[TrumpyNor]

Personally I prefer the "medium sized" NCL ships, the so-called Jewel class. From personal experience I find the Sun and the Spirit too small (but have cruises with them both several times because of interesting itineraries), and I find the Epic too big.

 

It all comes down to personal preferences - personally I really dislike the Epic (I have been on two Epic cruises, the second time to see if maybe I just had some "bad luck" the first time) and many others really love the Epic. I prefer the Sun over the Spirit any time, but many others really love the Spirit because she is different from the rest of the fleet.

 

To me the Jewel class ships have everything I like, and the size is large enough to not get "bored" and "small" enough to get a personal connection with crew and officers on board.

[LAWTONCRUISE]

Spirit was our first so it is one of our favorites, I guess the Star is our next favorite. Looking forward to the Jewel.

[Fishbait17]

A lot of it depends upon the itinerary, which is the first thing I look at.. For exploring new areas on other continents, ship doesn't matter to me at all. For much-needed sunshine out of NYC, i go for the longest sailing and I pick date (and ship if itineraries are close) by what suites are available (since I get most of my warmth and sun on my balcony). For a week only out of NYC just to get away (off season), the Breakaway offers a lot to do indoors. I really love the Jewel-class ships and the Sun, but the mega-ships can be fun once in a while.

 

Robin

[Johnny Bananas]

Spirit was my favorite.

Like the Jewel class

Hoping to love the Sun :D

[NH Cruisers]

Remember when ships at 90,000 tons were mega-ships? Not but 20 years ago.

[DMH15]

I like smaller. Love the Sun.

[shelly11]

I've only been on the Sky and the Dawn so far. I do want to try the bigger ships and plan on it, but I do love the smaller ones.

[slowhand]

We just sailed the Pearl followed two days later by a week on the Epic. I found the food on the Pearl's Garden Buffet to be much superior in variety. There were actually times when my I had a hard time filling my plate on the Epic while on Pearl it usually overflowed with goodness. Pearl desserts also left the Epic in the dust, so many more to choose from.

 

We did very much like the balcony stateroom on the Epic, other than the bed being a bit short. Our balcony was huge compared to the Pearl balcony, room for our traveling mates to join us without feeling at all cramped.

 

Entertainment was superior on the Epic. Blue Man Group was an amazing experience, loved Howl at the Moon. Quite disappointed in the theatre offerings on the Pearl, not nearly as good as they were when Jean Anne Ryan Productions were in charge.

 

Pearl has the Great Outdoors aft on 12, a quiet and beautiful place to eat, drink or just relax. We love it back there.

 

Overall, I found the medium sized Pearl to be more my cup of tea. The food and Great Outdoors tip the balance for me.

[mtwingcpa]

So far the Pearl is my favorite ship. Love the buffet and the Great Outdoors. I wouldn't want to cruise on anything larger.

 

In fact, I'd like to try HAL's smaller "R" and "S" class ships (if I've got that right) but their smoking policy drives me away (as does NCL's at this point). :-(

[TifffanyD]

So far - the bigger the better. More options

 

 

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[Traveller20074]

I will never do a smaller ship. Way too much motion for me. (I tried a smaller ship, and it was rockin' all over the place.

 

The Pearl is perfect :)

[sdmike]

loved both the Jewel and the Epic. Didn't like the smaller CCL ship I was on, so unlikely to sail on NCL's smaller, older ships. Not enough places to go or things to do. Cramped spaces, etc.

[Laszlo]

Been on the Gem, Breakaway and Dawn. We are pretty excited about the Sun!

[pex]

I've been on four NCL ships. In order of appeal: Gem, Jade, Star (they would have been nearly equal, until the Spinnaker was consigned to a cave in the Star). Trailing far behind is the Breakaway.

 

Been on the Gem, Breakaway and Dawn. We are pretty excited about the Sun!

[Corgidog]

I went on the RCCL Allure and while I'm not going to sit here and complain about it (it was a cruise after all :)), compared to the smaller ships, I sometimes felt like I was at the mall. For me, there was too much inside space, and not enough access to the ocean. That said, my kids loved it because there was so much to do, but even they get what I mean about this.

 

 

 

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[kcwingwalker]

For now I prefer the smaller ships. DD wants to do a mega ship out of Miami................who knows I might just love it!

[sonicbuffalo]

We cruised on the Sun last year with a tremendously great itinerary and we met the most enjoyable couples we've ever met. We still stay in touch and we did all of our excursions together with them. We absolutely had the best time we've ever had on a cruise last year on the smallest ship we've ever been on. We loved the Sun.

[skeeter195]

The Breakaway(October) was great for things to do, day and night. The shows on the Breakaway were the best we had ever seen on a ship. We then did the Gem(February) and it had less to do, and the shows were way below the Breakaways, but we had a better time. I think the main thing is the cluster and lines on the Breakaway. The Gem was more relaxed and "easier". We love to party and close down clubs at times, but I would trade some fun for a less crowded ship. Lastly, forget about it when the weather is bad on a sea day on the Breakaway, there is just not enough indoor space for all the people.

[Tminish]

I've cruised Sky, Pearl, Dawn, and Getaway in October.

By far the Pearl has been my favorite. The Dawn my least. Maybe the fact of it not leaving out of Miami done the trick for me? Not sure. But I will not be sad if I never get on the Dawn again. Now, with that being said, the Pearl is the bomb.com! Sky is a great cruise for beginners as it was mine, or maybe just a cruise for a little time away!

I'm anxious to board the Getaway. First big ship. I'm hoping it's not too crowded. What I'm worried about is the size of the pool compared to the amount of passengers that it holds.

So, after November 1st(When I'll be returning) I'll be able to answer your question! =)

[weltek]

Size isn't important to me, but variety is. I was getting bored with such similar layouts and offerings on NCL until Epic, Breakaway and Getaway came along. Mixed things up a bit!

 

The ease of getting around a smaller ship is notable for many.