Princess versus Norwegian

[hockey1963]

Convince me to try Princess when we are avid Norwegian cruisers ;-)

Edited January 15, 2015 by hockey1963

[Kamloops50]

Convince me to try Princess when we are avid Norwegian cruisers ;-)

 

1 - Princess has traditional fixed dining NCL - no

2 - Princess has two formal nights during a 7 day cruise NCL - none

3 - Princess a little more subdued and traditional type ships

 

You have to try to really know the difference.

Edited January 15, 2015 by Kamloops50

[jagsfan]

Princess is a real "ship" experience. NCL and RCI are floating resorts.

 

 

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[Msail]

First of all destinations second not nearly as chaotic much quieter and more relaxing

 

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[Roatanfans]

I like both but I think the MDR food on Princess is much better, however the buffet and room service menus on NCL are better. NCL seems to attract a younger, more family oriented crowd, Princess seems to be more of the active senior crowd. Entertainment and production shows much better on NCL, but for daytime activities like enrichment lectures Princess wins. Princess does have anytime dinning also if you don't care for traditional. I usually pick by itinerary and price (for us San Francisco departures are very handy so Princess works better for us now). If you are happy with NCL chances are you'll probably like Princess as well, unless some of the differences are really important to you (for instance- if you love NCL's buffet and hate the idea of a formal night and big production shows are important to you , you'll be happier to stay at NCL). Hope that helps!

[stormynow]

Been on 20 some NCL cruises and liked very much. Recently did first Princess on the Ruby. WOW what we have missed all these years. Try Princess, you will love it. Stormy

[luv2cruz62]

I am, by no means, a seasoned cruiser (booked #6 last week) and I have been on 2 NCL and this upcoming cruise will be my 2nd Princess. I liked Princess a bit better, although that could have been the difference between a ship that is a bit more 'run down' and older than another. Our cabin on the NCL Star was very worn and tired looking.

Princess wasn't that tired looking (on the Golden 3 years ago...) and I loved the deck plans. The aft pool was my favourite place during a 2 week Hawaiian cruise....and not too many people went there.:eek:

 

now I know price and itinerary are a big thing, and this is something so minor....:p

but I LOVED the MUTS (Movies Under the Stars):p I am not a party going type, and that was a perfect way to end a busy day! Watching a movie, cozy under a warm blanket, having popcorn, and then getting served cookies and milk! (did I mention I'm not a party animal....zzzzzzz)

Anyway, I don't think you can go wrong on either, but at least try Princess so you can see for yourself!!

[5waldos]

In Alaska- Princess has onboard naturalists, NCL does not.

[skynight]

Convince me to try Princess when we are avid Norwegian cruisers ;-)

Where are you going? Alaska? Princess was one of the first there and have the best infrastructure and excellent cruise tours. If "free style" dress is the most important thing to you stay with NCL. Both Traditional and ATD on Princess have the same menus. No need to search around to where you will eat. Free dining has excellent menu selections. Depending on the ship there are lots of other excellent free dining choices, and no real need to visit any of the surcharge dining restaurants. Most ships have 3 surcharge dining restaurants, Crown Grill & Sabatini's both $25pp and Crab Shack served in a blocked off section of the buffet, $20pp. Production shows on Princess are just average, but on the Royal & Regal they have been greatly improved. Besides production shows there will be lots of other evening entertainment options from guest entertainers, live music, game shows, theme nights in various lounges and venues.

[logan25]

I must be sailing on the "wrong" Princess ships because I have never been served milk and cookies while watching MUTS or at any time sitting around the pool deck.

[-Lew-]

 

I must be sailing on the "wrong" Princess ships because I have never been served milk and cookies while watching MUTS or at any time sitting around the pool deck.

Must be... We have enjoyed cookies and milk at MUTS many times on a variety of ships.

 

Lew

[skynight]

I must be sailing on the "wrong" Princess ships because I have never been served milk and cookies while watching MUTS or at any time sitting around the pool deck.

I have seen it. Also have seen the cookies available by the popcorn service cart.

[lolane1]

Convince me to try Princess when we are avid Norwegian cruisers ;-)

 

I don't think I would Princess would win the comparison if you are really avid NCL lovers. The lines are definitively different. If we knew what you loved about NCL we could make better comparisons. Better yet, why not try a Princess cruise or two and decide for yourself. Most people on cruise critic have crossed lines (pardon the pun) a lot.

[Woobstr112G]

Must be... We have enjoyed cookies and milk at MUTS many times on a variety of ships.

 

Lew

 

Same here as well.....:):):)

 

Bob

[FraudBroad]

Convince me to try Princess when we are avid Norwegian cruisers ;-)

 

Here's my two cents :)

 

I am platinum with Norwegian and will be platinum with Princess after my cruse in February on the Royal.

 

I tend to sail Norwegian more when traveling with my kids. Typically I find it to be a bit younger crowd with more kids...works better for me teenagers.

 

Things I like about Norwegian: Very laid back...don't have to dress up as much...there is always, and I do mean always, something to do on the ship. Not a moment goes by that the cruise director's staff isn't hosting something entertaining to do. I really enjoy the entertainment on NCL a bit more than I do on Princess.

 

Things I like about Princess: There seems to be a level of service on Princess that I haven't seen consistently on NCL. The food in the main dinning rooms on Princess is MUCH better than the food in the main dinning rooms on NCL.

 

To each his own...and as with everything else in life it's all what you make of it. I've had great experiences on both lines and I can't say that I've ever had a terrible experience on either!!

 

Good luck with whatever choice you make!

[stormynow]

I must be sailing on the "wrong" Princess ships because I have never been served milk and cookies while watching MUTS or at any time sitting around the pool deck.

While at a bar on the lido deck, server with a cart of cookies, milk and coffee came by in the afternoon. On a cool day, hot chocolate was served at a lido deck bar. This was on the Ruby last Nov. Very impressive. Stormy

[flcruiser3]

I have sailed on NCL twice. The first time was 4.5 years ago and I just got off the Epic last week. In between the 2 NCL cruises I sailed with Princess 4 times. While I enjoyed all of my cruises; my husband, 2 college age kids and I all preferred Princess. We felt the MDR food and service was even better than all of the specialty restaurants on the a Epic. We liked the public spaces better on Princess, particularly the atrium, international cafe and crooners bar. I felt the public spaces on the Epic were noisy and had a lot of traffic walking through them. Princess does not have the great slides like NCL but I felt the pool areas were much more relaxed and had more loungers available.

 

We did prefer a few things on NCL. Howl at the moon was a fun place to hang out with very talented performers. We also felt in general the elevators were more plentiful and quicker. Most differences are personal preference and I am pretty sure that if you enjoy NCL you also enjoy Princess.

 

 

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[love2relax]

If I plan to sail in a suite, I will pick NCL over Princess, due to all of the added amenities that are not available in Princess suites (butler, fancy coffee machine in cabin, and concierge.)

I also like all of the specialty restaurant options that NCL has to offer.

 

If I go to Alaska, I will pick Princess over NCL. Although the Sun also does my favorite one way itinerary like some of the Princess ships; it is an older ship. I liked the Sun because I had a suite, but in a regular cabin; I would go for Princess.

 

If I plan to spend time relaxing in the cabin and watching Movies Under the Stars, Princess has more television channels available, and usually a few movies in the evening that will interest me (no cookies, only popcorn served on my cruises...and they charged for hot chocolate).

 

I actually prefer the production shows on Princess, with the exception of the Epic. I loved all of the entertainment on that ship.

 

The coffee bar at the International Café on Princess is awesome. I LOVE my vanilla lattes.

 

If you are a gambler, it seems to me that overall, NCL has bigger casinos.

 

Give Princess a try. I think you will like it.

Edited January 17, 2015 by love2relax

[Bubba54]

Here's my two cents :)

 

I am platinum with Norwegian and will be platinum with Princess after my cruse in February on the Royal.

 

I tend to sail Norwegian more when traveling with my kids. Typically I find it to be a bit younger crowd with more kids...works better for me teenagers.

 

Things I like about Norwegian: Very laid back...don't have to dress up as much...there is always, and I do mean always, something to do on the ship. Not a moment goes by that the cruise director's staff isn't hosting something entertaining to do. I really enjoy the entertainment on NCL a bit more than I do on Princess.

 

Things I like about Princess: There seems to be a level of service on Princess that I haven't seen consistently on NCL. The food in the main dinning rooms on Princess is MUCH better than the food in the main dinning rooms on NCL.

 

To each his own...and as with everything else in life it's all what you make of it. I've had great experiences on both lines and I can't say that I've ever had a terrible experience on either!!

 

Good luck with whatever choice you make!

I agree completely. :cool:

[mnjcruiser]

Sailed on Crown Princess and NCL Breakaway. Loved both cruises, however preferred Princess a little more. I found Princess has better customer service and a calm relaxing feel. I found NCL to be more a party type ship with a lot to do, especially for kids.

[greenbank1958]

Convince me to try Princess when we are avid Norwegian cruisers ;-)

 

We have sailed on several cruise lines. carnival,ncl,p&0 rccl and finally princess.

i will add having only sailed on each cruise line once they all have good

and bad.

I dont have any loyality and like to try differant things.

having talked to loyal returning customers on these cruise lines

sometimes any small complaints do not go down very well.

 

Iwill add i use cruising as a floating hotel because basicly thats what they are.

[Happy2Crews]

We have sailed twice on NCL and twice on Princess. Hubby and I are both in our mid 50's and while we love both cruise lines I think we lean a bit more toward Princess for their overall refinement and what seems to be a little older crowd with not as many young children. Princess does seem to be priced a little higher on some fares but not by much. While we love Princess I can see us sailing again on NCL depending on the sailing itinerary. I don't think you could go wrong with any of these two companies. Good Luck and Happy Cruising.

[blyle]

We have sailed multiple lines for 39 cruises. A few years ago we tried Princess and said "why didn't we sail them sooner?" For us who are "young "seniors it has the right blend of music, entertainment and food! We've loved all our 39 cruises but there are definite differences among cruise lines. Unfortunately we are trying now to get enough cruises in to reach the higher captains circle level.

[Loonbeam]

I'm in the process of doing a comparison on another thread which may help:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2153272

 

That said, I always say itinerary first, budget second, line third. The most basic question is does Princess go somewhere you want to go?

[blyle]

Haha, we don't care where we go because we've been to so many places! So now we just cruise to cruise!