Does anyone else feel like RCL does ships way better than NCL?

[hallux]

37 minutes ago, AL3XCruise said:

I do feel the Atrium is not well suited to the events they have in there.  Not enough seating for popular shows, and the crowds of people watching block a major thoroughfare on the ship.  I wish they moved the most popular events to the theater or another large venue.

 

The Atrium was one of my biggest complaints about the Bliss.  It was adequate for the games/trivia/etc, but when it came time to have the Officer's Q&A the CD was easily heard but the officers were barely audible.  The noise from the bar, people moving through or people sitting in chairs not even paying attention having conversations with the person next to them was drowning out the interesting info.

[The Fun Researcher]

 The whole Haven idea is a dealbreaker for me with NCL. I don’t like the idea of paying extra for access to large areas of ship.   ( and getting larger with newer ships so it seems ). The problem is I see more cruise lines going this direction.  

 

Dan

[AlohaLivin]

We love both lines (little beats the NCL Haven, for us the Royal class is a bit over the top, but the Haven is just right). Each line has poorly designed ships (Epic definitely would not be close to a fair sample of NCL) and pros and cons. We are about mid level status on both (next RCL cruise in Nov we will be Diamond). Our experience is that they average put to about the same once we experienced multiple sailings on each line with a variety of their ships. We just jump back and forth between the two now  🙂

[tomservo]

13 hours ago, The Fun Researcher said:

 The whole Haven idea is a dealbreaker for me with NCL. I don’t like the idea of paying extra for access to large areas of ship.   ( and getting larger with newer ships so it seems ). The problem is I see more cruise lines going this direction.  

 

Dan

 

How is this that much different from Royal's suite class? Is the Haven sundeck that much bigger than Royal?

 

Haven areas

Sundeck

Courtyard

Lounge

Restaurant

 

Royal Suite areas (at least on Oasis-class)

Sundeck

Lounge

Restaurant

[coaster]

I recall that NCL spent as much for the flawed Epic as the Oasis. The cost was increased when NCL had to pay a fee to the shipyard to cancel a sister to Epic. A smart move in the long run I believe. NCL's elimination of traditional dining has made NCL not even an option for us in over 15 years. 

[rimmit]

40 minutes ago, tomservo said:

 

How is this that much different from Royal's suite class? Is the Haven sundeck that much bigger than Royal?

 

Haven areas

Sundeck

Courtyard

Lounge

Restaurant

 

Royal Suite areas (at least on Oasis-class)

Sundeck

Lounge

Restaurant

 

The Haven has the only indoor pool and hot tubs.  The solarium on royal ships is open to all.  On a cold weather cruise that

is a massive blow to the “coach” class passengers.  There is no place to just layout in the cold weather on the newer NCL ships unless you are in a suite.

[The Fun Researcher]

1 hour ago, tomservo said:

 

How is this that much different from Royal's suite class? Is the Haven sundeck that much bigger than Royal?

 

Haven areas

Sundeck

Courtyard

Lounge

Restaurant

 

Royal Suite areas (at least on Oasis-class)

Sundeck

Lounge

Restaurant

 

First, Oasis class ships have WAY more space to begin with.  You could strip all suite areas away and I'm sure you would still have far more public space than in any NCL ship (even including the Haven)  The impact of the suite class is very limited on Royal Caribbean.  It's hardly even noticeable.  

 

On the Freedom and Voyager classes there are hardly ANY spaces that are off limits to all guests, maybe one lounge for suite guests and a small area of loungers by the mail pool?...  and on the older classes I thinks it's even more limited.

 

Dan

[vacationlover_mn]

We’ve done a couple of trips on NCL, and they were ok.  On the 2nd ones, we invited my in-laws, for their first cruise.  They loved NCL, and booked it annually, until they had a horrible trip on Epic. They hated everything about it!!  They then went with us on Allure, and fell in love with RCI.  It’s the only line they do now.

 

DH and I love royal, and will likely continue doing it exclusively until retirement, when we can cruise more 🙂

Edited October 2, 2019 by vacationlover_mn

[jean87510]

We usually do the smaller ships. We've sailed with carnival, celebrity, rccl and this past April with Norwegian. All the ships were not the mega ships. I really liked Norwegian for the variety with the specialty restaurants, the $50 deposit, the free air up and back, 4 free dinners (11 day cruise on the pearl from Tampa to nyc) plus the thermal suite with the thalossotherapy pool. I thought for what we paid, we had a better value than rccl. Overall I have enjoyed all my cruises. 

[ileys]

Having cruised both lines, I would definitely like to see something like the Waterfront on NCL in place on the Oasis class ships.  Royal has great ships, but they tend to separate you from the water, while the Waterfront allows that connection, and it is so nice to have a drink outside and in such proximity to the ocean.

 

Carnival has copied this on their newer ships, and I would not be surprised to see Royal follow suit.

[Jimnbigd]

I've done 4 NCL cruises, but not since 2003 (Hawaii). My ships have been the SS Norway, Norwegian Sea (twice) and the Norwegian Star. The flow was fine on these. It sounds like NCL messed up on their new ships, but I can't speak directly about these ship. My wife and I don't like the freestyle dining -- we prefer fixed time because we like the shows, and shows are scheduled around fixed dining times. Plus my wife has MS and flying is difficult for her (more so lately). So usually we sail from Galveston. We definitely prefer RCI over Carnival, so we sail RCI.

[Jimnbigd]

6 minutes ago, ileys said:

Having cruised both lines, I would definitely like to see something like the Waterfront on NCL in place on the Oasis class ships.  Royal has great ships, but they tend to separate you from the water, while the Waterfront allows that connection, and it is so nice to have a drink outside and in such proximity to the ocean.

 

Carnival has copied this on their newer ships, and I would not be surprised to see Royal follow suit.

Not sure what the waterfront is, but deck 4 on the voyager and freedom class has nice outside areas to see the water.

Edited October 2, 2019 by Jimnbigd

[Jimnbigd]

I just viewed a video of the Watefront on NCL. It looks nice, but I wonder if it is windy when the ship is moving. Deck 4 on RCI can get very windy when the ship is moving. Still, with proper wind screens, maybe something could be done on deck 4 on the voyager and freedom class ships.

[hallux]

1 hour ago, Jimnbigd said:

I just viewed a video of the Watefront on NCL. It looks nice, but I wonder if it is windy when the ship is moving.

There are wind breaks.  It wasn't windy in the seating areas.

[sunkey1]

15 hours ago, Jimnbigd said:

I just viewed a video of the Watefront on NCL. It looks nice, but I wonder if it is windy when the ship is moving. 

Had dinner outside on the Waterfront three nights on the Escape and no problem with wind at all. It was heavenly.

[vickiw0318]

My D+ daughter cruised on the Bliss' first Alaskan cruise and loved it!  She's now on her third Norwegian cruise - this time on the Epic.   She set sail yesterday.  Looking forward to hearing her comments upon her return.  She definitely had concerns about the bathrooms.

[F27TW]

Not me.    

 

First off, RC ship categories (like any other line)  are of multiple designs .. so passenger flow varies widely in each category. 

 

We took our first NCL  cruise just last month (Norwegian Escape NYC-Bermuda).   Prior 8 were all RCCL a few different categories of ship and I can tell you that we were blown away by the Norwegian Escape.   The layout was fantastic ..easy to learn and plenty of ways around the outside decks of the ship.    Never felt crowded (other than at disembarkation .. and all lines suck there).

 

I will say (and this is probably a discussion for another thread), that NCL blew RCCL away in other areas too -- like our  cabin .. like numerous bars and never a wait .. specialty restaurants and other venues with outside deck areas for dining .. the food and service (particularly noticeable in the free MDRs) far better than RCCL .. much happier crew than what we have found on RCCL especially the past couple of cruises ..  and NO pressure from any staff anywhere for high ratings like the almost panicked begging you get from RCCL staff in MDR for perfect scores.   

 

Granted, we've only done one NCL cruise, but we will be back on them again next.  They impressed us that much.  We have seen a steady decline in RCCL and were so ready to try a new line.   And so glad we did!

Edited October 3, 2019 by F27TW

[mizLORInj]

Have cruised many times on NCL, mostly out of NYC at various times of the year, and can't say I've had a bad cruise yet.  I would say my favorites are the NCL Gem and the Breakaway.  I like the differences.  I'm glad NCL pioneered no set time for dining, and we have done the flexible timing on all cruises since 2009--our first NCL experience.   I'd rather be unscheduled on vacation.  However, I do not like that I cannot bring my own water or soda on NCL anymore.   That's just ridiculous. 

 

We have not had a bad cruise yet on any ship or line and we've tried out many of the mainstream lines.   They have their differences, but many more similarities.  I'm interested to check out MSC next.  yes, there are good and bad reviews but I'd rather go to see it for myself and form my own opinion. 

 

Happy cruising everyone--on whatever line or ship you're on.    I'm on a favorite next--Anthem of the Seas!

[luckyinpa]

glad to find this NCL thread. ive been on BA and just this christmas haven bliss. you definitely wanna do the haven on a holiday to escape the madness and you do need it on all the cold weather cruises. on the BA theres  not much to do on a cold winter day. there is no indoor seating in public areas on the BA. the observations decks on bliss are THE savior there. great additions

 

im considering a crown loft oasis suite and i know i wont have the butler bringing me goodies every night but i also see there's the suite lounge with free bottled water and soda and the occasional booze. this is a nice plus for me personally as im not a heavy drinker and dont need the free NCL booze pack nor spend the money on royal. the sheer size of oasis and the unique CLS cabin is what is drawing me here out of NYC. i dont fly to cruises so was surprised to see this ship up north. even with 2000 more people on board it seems oasis will be less densely packed and with the reserved seating you wont need 45 min before a show to get a seat. 

 

if anyone has other comparisons to ncl id appreciate it. it appears you can only use one MDR for anytime dining. i cannot do traditional as i wont sit with strangers. 

[CJDepew]

On 10/1/2019 at 11:37 AM, MightyMike said:

A while ago we almost booked the Norwegian Epic. This video changed our minds:

 

 

Was on the Epic in 2017 in a balcony cabin. Did not mind the split bathroom at all, but the bed was crazy short, and we're not tall people. We had a large group and some of the men who were approaching six feet tall slept on the couches because their legs were hanging off the beds.

The ship has no atrium and feels very enclosed inside. The pool deck was a zoo. Just overcrowded all the time. A couple in our group were smokers and the entire smoking area for 4k people was approximately 12x20. About the only positive I can think of was there was rarely a wait for the MDR, and the food was better than the buffet.

[LMaxwell]

RCI ship pool decks, generally, are beautiful and feel spacious.  Each NCL ship I have been on this has been an area that they lacked in.  The Escape main pool was like for a prison

[20165]

We ventured over to NCL a couple years ago when we felt the RCL pricing was getting a little out of hand and learned you get what you pay for.  Our Epic cruise was the last straw not because of the odd cabin or ship layout, but the service was just awful.  I did a pretty colorful review on it a couple years ago and basically, they were short staffed which equaled extremity poor service.  So we are back on RCL Harmony this year and im sure i will complain about the price which i think have already done on this board, but at least it will be a great cruise...

 

[Biker19]

The issue discussed in this thread may change with a new class of ship:

 

 

For the first in its new six-ship series, Norwegian Cruise Line is going upscale with Norwegian Prima.

 

 

Prima, which means 'first' in Italian, will have the brand's most outdoor deck space, most spacious accommodations and an Ocean Boulevard (enlarged from The Waterfront concept on prior ships) packed with indoor-outdoor dining choices.

Frank Del Rio-guided design

This is the first NCL newbuild under Frank Del Rio's design guidance, and the man is known for Oceania Cruises' sumptuous Marina and Riviera and Regent Seven Seas Cruises' extravagant Seven Seas Explorer and Seven Seas Splendor.

 

It's also the first NCL ship by Fincantieri, and will be built at the Marghera yard.

'Norwegian Prima personifies everything our guests love about NCL and raises the bar,' President and CEO Harry Sommer said. 'This will absolutely rival anything in this part of the market in terms of service, space, beauty, amenities, entertainment ... NCL's going upscale.'

The 142,500gt ship has double-occupancy capacity for 3,215 passengers.

Standing up to Celebrity

This makes it smaller than the latest Breakaway Plus newbuilds at 167,800gt and 4,200 lower berths and slightly larger and more spacious than the enlarged Celebrity Beyond at 140,600gt and 3,260 lower berths.

 

'I think these ships will stand up well to Celebrity ships,' Sommer said. 'Our space ratio is a little better than theirs, our service ratio is a little better than theirs. We have far more dining choices than theirs ... I think these ships exceed Celebrity's in many respects and certainly will compete well with them.'

 

That said, NCL will be be staying squarely in the family market. Norwegian Prima will have activities that appeal to younger clientele, to be announced over the summer. Sommer quipped that he 'can't confirm or deny a go-kart track.'

Artists and designers     

 

Norwegian Prima will have mind-bending hull artwork designed by Italian graffiti artist Manuel Di Rita, known as 'Peeta.' For the first time on an NCL ship, this decoration extends to the forward superstructure.

 

Interior designers include Piero Lissoni, Rockwell Group, SMC Design, Tillberg Design of Sweden, YSA Design and Studio DADO.

 

NCL asserted Norwegian Prima will offer the highest staffing levels and space ratio of any new ship in the contemporary and premium sectors. There will be 13 suite categories, the largest three-bedroom suites of any new ship and NCL's largest standard staterooms and largest bathrooms and showers for standard categories.

Roomy accommodations

Inside, ocean-view and balcony accommodations will be up to 50% larger, with inside rooms ranging from 160 square feet to 254 square feet, ocean-view from 186 square feet to 370 square feet and balcony rooms from 231 square feet to 358 square feet.

 

NCL also claimed Norwegian Prima will have the most outdoor deck space of any new ship including the most total pool deck space of its fleet, multiple infinity pools and vast outdoor walkways.

The Haven, elevated

The Haven by Norwegian will offer NCL's most exclusive and centralized suite complex, all styled by Piero Lissoni, one of Italy's preeminent designers. Spanning eight decks of suites and public areas, this keycard-access ship-within-a-ship locates all 107 Haven suites aft, within close proximity of private elevators.

 

The Haven will be more open to the sea than in the past, with every public space offering views. The Haven Courtyard was transformed into a sun deck with an infinity pool overlooking the ship's wake and a new outdoor spa with a glass-walled sauna and cold room.

Ocean Boulevard and Indulge Food Hall

NCL reimagined The Waterfront by doubling the space and adding a greater variety of experiences and dining options, creating the new Ocean Boulevard. This 44,000-square-foot walkway wraps around all of Deck 8. 

 

Indulge Food Hall on Ocean Boulevard gives a variety of venues and indoor-outdoor seating. The 11 venues include returning favorites Coco’s for sweet treats, Q Texas Smokehouse and Starbucks.

 

New venues are Seaside Rotisserie for an array of rotisserie-cooked dishes; Nudls, an emporium serving noodle dishes from around the world, Italian to Thai; and Tamara, for classic Indian dishes and multiple vegetarian choices. The Latin Quarter serves classic Latin food with a twist, and Tapas Food Truck provides elevated Spanish-inspired street food. At Garden Kitchen, diners can order customized salads. Just Desserts features classic desserts like pies and cakes and Just Ice Cream serves all guest favorite ice cream flavors and decadent creations.

Hybrid dining

Three additional dining venues on Ocean Boulevard offer indoor and outdoor seating. They are Onda By Scarpetta, which debuted on Norwegian Encore, Los Lobos and The Local Bar & Grill.

Studio Dado created an elegant atmosphere, modern design and expansive views for Onda by Scarpetta, and a contemporary atmosphere for Los Lobos, NCL's premium Mexican restaurant.

The revamped Local Bar & Grill is set in an upscale beach club atmosphere that will showcase live music to accompany cocktails and classic American cuisine.

The Concourse, Infinity Beach, Oceanwalk and La Terraza

Other firsts for Norwegian Prima include The Concourse, an outdoor sculpture garden with an art wall by David Harber and six installations by Alexander Krivosheiw. Valued at more than $2m, the seven sculptures have stunning effects that change as the sun sets, making them ideal for photos and social media posts.

 

Travelers can relax at Infinity Beach with its two infinity pools, one on each side of the ship and close to the sea. Two Oceanwalk glass bridges, also new to NCL, give breathtaking views over the water. La Terraza, an open-air lounge, provides a retreat for forward-facing sea views. 

Norwegian Prima is scheduled to debut in August 2022 with NCL's widest inaugural showcase ever, stretching from Northern Europe to Bermuda, the Caribbean, Galveston and Miami before settling for a season at Port Canaveral.

 

NCL goes upscale with first of new class Norwegian Prima (seatrade-cruise.com)

[Dawniepoo]

On 10/1/2019 at 10:16 PM, The Fun Researcher said:

 The whole Haven idea is a dealbreaker for me with NCL. I don’t like the idea of paying extra for access to large areas of ship.   ( and getting larger with newer ships so it seems ). The problem is I see more cruise lines going this direction.  

 

Dan

I agree with you on this. I absolutely hate the ship within a ship concept. That’s one reason I will most likely never sail NCL again and their newest ship coming out is full of amenities that most people won’t have access to. I suffer big time from FOMO 😬

[Crazy planning mom]

16 minutes ago, Dawniepoo said:

I agree with you on this. I absolutely hate the ship within a ship concept. That’s one reason I will most likely never sail NCL again and their newest ship coming out is full of amenities that most people won’t have access to. I suffer big time from FOMO 😬

Isn't Royal planning something similar starting with the Wonder of the Seas?  Also, it looks like alot of the amenities on Prima are available to regular guests.