8 Vessels on order

[PhillyTravelBug]

Looks like we are getting four more Prima plus ships through 2028, which includes Aqua. 
 

Four more 200,000 gross ton ships are on order with 5,000 guests for 2030,

2032, 2034, and 2036.  

Multi pier development at great stirrup cay is to begin this year as well.

 

 

I own some RCL stock, but it looks like NCL has a strong future ahead of them.

Edited April 8 by PhillyTravelBug

[njhorseman]

This article details the new ship orders for NCL as well as new ships for corporate siblings Oceania and Regent Seven Seas. For each of the three cruise lines the new ships will be larger than any ship currently in the cruise line's fleet.

Also a two berth pier for Great Stirrup Cay is expected to be completed by late 2025.

 

https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/shipbuilding-equipment/nclh-orders-8-cruise-ships-3-brands-all-new-classes-and-bigger?utm_campaign=SC_News_Seatrade Cruise Breaking Headlines_NL_04082024&utm_emailname=SC_News_Seatrade Cruise Breaking Headlines_NL_04082024&utm_medium=email&utm_source=eloqua&utm_MDMContactID=c8c117dd-7af6-4db7-8ea1-42696b12bc8f&utm_campaigntype=Newsletter&eM=ecf536797064e298bd322735a0d9b82ff629116b3acbccb77ccd7d08c9672359&eventSeriesCode=ES_SEATRDCRSCTNT&eventEditionCode=MTM00SCC&sessionCode=S_STRDCRSNEWS&sp_eh=ecf536797064e298bd322735a0d9b82ff629116b3acbccb77ccd7d08c9672359&fbclid=IwAR05MxU-EzXRfUnE_Fyn_OLU1Cv4N9nUUTRM0zBh99_y3PYpe4jPwrdAaV4_aem_AdLlFNiJSjMcWAOep1KcKiomTkMrnGymaBxOy_eGnUecJvOkTZnCQeDX2I1lPFK6Us1YRos5wIPxjFBJvBvfH8yW

[Biffire]

I am happy about the pier at GSC. The tendering was often slow and sometimes the weather is not conducive to a safe tender experience. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

30 minutes ago, njhorseman said:

This article details the new ship orders for NCL as well as new ships for corporate siblings Oceania and Regent Seven Seas. For each of the three cruise lines the new ships will be larger than any ship currently in the cruise line's fleet.

Also a two berth pier for Great Stirrup Cay is expected to be completed by late 2025.

 

https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/shipbuilding-equipment/nclh-orders-8-cruise-ships-3-brands-all-new-classes-and-bigger?utm_campaign=SC_News_Seatrade Cruise Breaking Headlines_NL_04082024&utm_emailname=SC_News_Seatrade Cruise Breaking Headlines_NL_04082024&utm_medium=email&utm_source=eloqua&utm_MDMContactID=c8c117dd-7af6-4db7-8ea1-42696b12bc8f&utm_campaigntype=Newsletter&eM=ecf536797064e298bd322735a0d9b82ff629116b3acbccb77ccd7d08c9672359&eventSeriesCode=ES_SEATRDCRSCTNT&eventEditionCode=MTM00SCC&sessionCode=S_STRDCRSNEWS&sp_eh=ecf536797064e298bd322735a0d9b82ff629116b3acbccb77ccd7d08c9672359&fbclid=IwAR05MxU-EzXRfUnE_Fyn_OLU1Cv4N9nUUTRM0zBh99_y3PYpe4jPwrdAaV4_aem_AdLlFNiJSjMcWAOep1KcKiomTkMrnGymaBxOy_eGnUecJvOkTZnCQeDX2I1lPFK6Us1YRos5wIPxjFBJvBvfH8yW

Thanks for posting a link.  This is cool.  We're currently booked on the Aqua in early 2026 and it sounds like the GSC pier is expected to be ready by then.

Edited April 8 by ChiefMateJRK

[ChiefMateJRK]

9 minutes ago, Biffire said:

I am happy about the pier at GSC.

I am delighted.  Tendering (and the risk of missing it altogether) were the only two things I didn't like about GSC.  Otherwise, it is fantastic to have ready access to a safe beach with free food and drink in abundance.  I especially like that we should be able to go back and forth to the ship during the day.  I would gladly skip Tortolla if the ship could overnight at GSC.  Hmmm....

[Turtles06]

Ugh, 5,000-guest ships… No thank you. 

Such a horrible trend in the cruise industry.

[shof515]

28 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

Ugh, 5,000-guest ships… No thank you. 

Such a horrible trend in the cruise industry.

i wonder where these mega monsters ships can go. They will be too big for ports that need to under a bridge like NYC and some ports is starting to come out with passenger caps like Bar Harbor, Juneau and other European ports

 

Unfortunately it seems like Norwegian wants to complete with Royal Icon class ships 

[zqvol]

If NCL retires its smaller ships like Dawn, Gem, etc. I’ll be on a different line. Been on those big ships and hate them. 

[tidecat]

7 minutes ago, zqvol said:

If NCL retires its smaller ships like Dawn, Gem, etc. I’ll be on a different line. Been on those big ships and hate them. 

It's probably going to happen at some point during this contract, and it may even start before the first ship on this order enters service in 2030, as there are still four ships left on the current order. Spirit entered service in 1998, Sky in 1999, and both Sun and Star in 2001. Ships over 30 years old are much more difficult to maintain. Norwegian might even retire two ships each nearly simultaneously in 2030 and 2032 as each of the newbuilds has a capacity that is more than double that of their four smallest ships.

[ChiefMateJRK]

16 minutes ago, tidecat said:

Norwegian might even retire two ships each nearly simultaneously in 2030 and 2032 as each of the newbuilds has a capacity that is more than double that of their four smallest ships.

Don't you think that they want to grow their business?

[omahabob]

2 hours ago, njhorseman said:

This article details the new ship orders for NCL as well as new ships for corporate siblings Oceania and Regent Seven Seas. For each of the three cruise lines the new ships will be larger than any ship currently in the cruise line's fleet.

Also a two berth pier for Great Stirrup Cay is expected to be completed by late 2025.

 

https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/shipbuilding-equipment/nclh-orders-8-cruise-ships-3-brands-all-new-classes-and-bigger?utm_campaign=SC_News_Seatrade Cruise Breaking Headlines_NL_04082024&utm_emailname=SC_News_Seatrade Cruise Breaking Headlines_NL_04082024&utm_medium=email&utm_source=eloqua&utm_MDMContactID=c8c117dd-7af6-4db7-8ea1-42696b12bc8f&utm_campaigntype=Newsletter&eM=ecf536797064e298bd322735a0d9b82ff629116b3acbccb77ccd7d08c9672359&eventSeriesCode=ES_SEATRDCRSCTNT&eventEditionCode=MTM00SCC&sessionCode=S_STRDCRSNEWS&sp_eh=ecf536797064e298bd322735a0d9b82ff629116b3acbccb77ccd7d08c9672359&fbclid=IwAR05MxU-EzXRfUnE_Fyn_OLU1Cv4N9nUUTRM0zBh99_y3PYpe4jPwrdAaV4_aem_AdLlFNiJSjMcWAOep1KcKiomTkMrnGymaBxOy_eGnUecJvOkTZnCQeDX2I1lPFK6Us1YRos5wIPxjFBJvBvfH8yW

A much shorter version of the link:

https://www.seatrade-cruise.com/shipbuilding-equipment/nclh-orders-8-cruise-ships-3-brands-all-new-classes-and-bigger

[Alegeeter]

Given they just pumped $100 million into the Spirit I can't see them retiring it so soon 

[BirdTravels]

44 minutes ago, shof515 said:

i wonder where these mega monsters ships can go. They will be too big for ports that need to under a bridge like NYC and some ports is starting to come out with passenger caps like Bar Harbor, Juneau and other European ports

 

Unfortunately it seems like Norwegian wants to complete with Royal Icon class ships 

More like Oasis class ships. RCCL is launching the Utopia this summer (we're already booked). And RCCL has no problem keeping all of their Oasis class ships full and busy

[njhorseman]

49 minutes ago, shof515 said:

i wonder where these mega monsters ships can go. They will be too big for ports that need to under a bridge like NYC and some ports is starting to come out with passenger caps like Bar Harbor, Juneau and other European ports

 

Unfortunately it seems like Norwegian wants to complete with Royal Icon class ships 

They should be able to sail from NY. Royal Caribbean has the 5500 passenger (double occupancy), 228,000 GT Symphony of the Seas homeporting in Cape Liberty. It depends on the air draft of the ship of course.

[tidecat]

3 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Don't you think that they want to grow their business?

They do, but look at the growth from s standpoint of passenger capacity, not the number of vessels. A 5,000 passenger ship can replace two ships with ~2,000 passengers each, and there is still an increase of 1,000 passengers per sailing.

 

Remember that Norwegian will have four ships due between now and 2029 and then four more between 2030 and 2036. If capacity grows too quickly, prices fall and they don't make as much money.

 

Carnival was able to do something similar coming out of the shutdown:

 

Mardi Gras (5,300) > Fantasy (2,100) + Fascination (2,100)

Venezia (4,200) = Imagination (2,100) + Inspiration (2,100)

Celebration (5,300) > Ecstasy (2,100) + Sensation (2,100)

 

That gave Carnival about 2,200 more lower berths with 3 fewer vessels. That's not even counting the additions of Luminosa (2,200), Jubilee (5,300), or Firenze (4,200).

 

Norwegian may be faced with a similar consolidation as older ships near end-of-life status.

[Panhandle Couple]

10 minutes ago, shof515 said:

i wonder where these mega monsters ships can go. They will be too big for ports that need to under a bridge like NYC and some ports is starting to come out with passenger caps like Bar Harbor, Juneau and other European ports

 

Unfortunately it seems like Norwegian wants to complete with Royal Icon class ships 

Interesting to see if they can fit in the new locks for PC, AND under the bridges, even at low tide 

I could see one always on west Coast, 1 Caribbean, and 1 in Europe.

[Panhandle Couple]

25 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Don't you think that they want to grow their business?

Small ships are easier to lease out for specialty cruises .

 

[BirdTravels]

24 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Don't you think that they want to grow their business?

They need to make their business more profitable. Operating the smaller ships has a much higher cost per passenger than the newer ships. Think about it as the efficiency of your 8 cylinder car versus newer cars. Although, they did replace the engines on the Epic during dry dock... which involved cutting a big hole in the hull so that they could get the old engines out and the new engines in. After which they had to bondo the hole closed. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

3 minutes ago, tidecat said:

They do, but look at the growth from s standpoint of passenger capacity, not the number of vessels. A 5,000 passenger ship can replace two ships with ~2,000 passengers each, and there is still an increase of 1,000 passengers per sailing.

 

Remember that Norwegian will have four ships due between now and 2029 and then four more between 2030 and 2036. If capacity grows too quickly, prices fall and they don't make as much money.

 

Carnival was able to do something similar coming out of the shutdown:

 

Mardi Gras (5,300) > Fantasy (2,100) + Fascination (2,100)

Venezia (4,200) = Imagination (2,100) + Inspiration (2,100)

Celebration (5,300) > Ecstasy (2,100) + Sensation (2,100)

 

That gave Carnival about 2,200 more lower berths with 3 fewer vessels. That's not even counting the additions of Luminosa (2,200), Jubilee (5,300), or Firenze (4,200).

 

Norwegian may be faced with a similar consolidation as older ships near end-of-life status.

We'll see.  I sailed on both Sun and Sky last year, and they were in great shape.  I've heard even better about Spirit, which I'll be on later this year.  I believe that the smaller ships can also visit more ports, so that it may be more complicated than 1 + 1 = 2.  Also, some itineraries may be more profitable at 2000 capacity than 4000 capacity, if they struggle to fill the 4000.  I'm sure NCL has thought about all of this and have a strategy that they've put a lot of work into.

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 minute ago, BirdTravels said:

Operating the smaller ships has a much higher cost per passenger than the newer ships.

Much higher cost?  Are you including depreciation?  Fuel?

2 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Think about it as the efficiency of your 8 cylinder car versus newer cars.

I drive a Toyota with a nice V6 and have zero interest in one of those new 4 cylinder, Turbo things.

2 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Although, they did replace the engines on the Epic during dry dock... which involved cutting a big hole in the hull so that they could get the old engines out and the new engines in. After which they had to bondo the hole closed.

Probably cheaper than buying a whole new ship!

 

Remember when the airlines figured out that widebodies were going to bankrupt them (again), and went back to smaller airplanes that could land anywhere and they could always fill up?  Deja Vu baby.

 

("bondo" 🤣)

 

disclaimer: bondo is a necessity and adds value when used and applied correctly

[Two Wheels Only]

1 hour ago, Turtles06 said:

Ugh, 5,000-guest ships… No thank you. 

Such a horrible trend in the cruise industry.

 

I posted years ago that NCL needed to join the +200GT club and so many people on the forum disagreed with me.

 

Personally, I look forward to the larger ships....as long as there is a Haven, Yacht Club, Retreat, or Suite Neighborhood to go along with them.

 

 

[Yesimapirate]

Kinda hard for the fan boys to keep defending the cuts in service with their war cry of covid debt when there's such a spending spree on news ships.

[Middleager]

Didn't many people say NCL was going bankrupt, no way to climb out of the huge debt.

[Panhandle Couple]

4 minutes ago, Yesimapirate said:

Kinda hard for the fan boys to keep defending the cuts in service with their war cry of covid debt when there's such a spending spree on news ships.

Recommend you review NCLH debt schedule, and finance terms for new ship builds.

[BrianLo]

I'm a bit surprised and actually kind of impressed that their roadmap is so laid out now. I really thought we'd hear about a Celebrity new class order well before NCL, or even RCL.

 

These four new ships are probably going to be Caribbean focused only. I don't terribly mind them having a large sized class, considering they've otherwise kept things on the smaller end.

 

Though I'd be a big fan of them going to the Spirit overhaul maneuver for Dawn/Star, Sky/Sun. That buys those ships another 10 years... but we're already talking about ten years from now with this order.

 

What they do need though is a long term replacement goal for the exotic sailings that their small ships do... Prima class should have been that, but the inability to use tenders and the warm weather focus is a major inherent flaw.