Norwegian OR Royal Caribbean Cruises?

Question

which one do you prefer? and why? trying to decide between the two. norwegian offers freestyle but i want a cruise that is fun, has good food and customer service.

Answer 1

Royal Caribbean is by far the better choice over NCL... We went to Hawaii on NCL, the ship was dirty, smelly, the food was not good, the room smelled bad and the bathroom smelled like urine and had black mold on the shower curtain and the service was lousy. Seriously, check out what others say here:
http://content.cruisereport.com/report_summary.asp

The "free style" is no style. You will wait in line for at least an hour to eat and it'll take you 2 - 3 hours to eat after you are seated. Free style is not a good idea.

Please go check out NCL Pride of Aloha and see for yourself how terrible the ship is by going here:
http://content.cruisereport.com/report_list.asp?sr_type=&co=517&ship=742&dest=0
It has a rating of 32 out of 100. Out of a 5 star rating there are 2 reviews with 4 stars, 2 with 3 stars, 1 with 2 stars and the rest are 1 star ratings. The worst ship on the seas...

DO NOT TAKE NCL!!! (Norwegian Cruise LInes)

Answer 2

I have been on many Norwegian and Royal Caribbean cruises and ships. I prefer Royal Caribbean because I just don't like the "freestyle" cruising. There is one main difference between freestyle and cruising on any other cruise line. On NCL you do not have to specify a dining option for the dinner meal. Freestyle applies to the dinner meal only. You just go to the main dining room, or other restaurants when you are ready to eat. You are requested to make a reservation, otherwise you will have to wait for a table. The drawback to freestyle alternative restaurants is that you must pay a "fee or gratuity" of $10 to $20 per person to eat in these other restaurants on NCL ships. And, when you go to the main dining room, especially on "at sea" days, you will likely have to wait for a table. This has happened to us a couple times on NCL freestyle ships and that's not what I want on my vacation.

On Royal Caribbean ( and most other cruise lines) you specify an early dinner seating, or a late seating. But you can still go to all of your other meals whenever you wish. And, you can also go to alternative restaurants where a fee or gratuity must be paid, just like on NCL. Princess Cruise line offers an option called "personal Choice" cruising which allows you to either specify a dinner dining time or just go when you want.

Now aside from the freestyle, NCL and RC are the same in terms of the food activities, entertainment and your enjoyment on the cruise. The major difference will be differences in ships' features, like the RC rock climbing walls, and the itinerary and port stops. In my opinion RC has some newer and better ships and therefore more improved facilities.

I highly recommend the new RC Freedom of the Seas (and its sister ship which will start sailing in MAy) the Liberty of the Seas. I went on the Freedom last November and found that it has some of the best cabins and facilities of any ship I have been on. Things like pillow top beds, flat panel TV's in the cabin, improved shower stalls, an ice skating rink (and a show in there that was great), a separate pool area for kids called the H2o Zone, and adults only pool and hot tub area, a full sized basketball court, and the new Flow Rider where you can surf on the ship.

Answer 3

Both ships will be nice, so I wouldn't worry about deciding between the two. I would be more concerned with the price and find a deal with a cabin on the bottom floor with a window. Two weeks before you set sail, call the cruise line directly and ask if there are any free upgrades. There's a real good chance you'll get bumped up for free, but if you end on the bottom floor, no big deal, they're really all the same.

For me, I'd rather spend my days on an island so I'd be looking for a cruise that doesn't have a lot of days at sea. Like the cruises out of San Juan. Plus those cruises go to better islands. I bit more money, but it's worth it since you'll get plenty of time on board the ship at night.

Plus, Norwegian with the free style dining would be my choice too, becuase you won't have to get off an island to be ready for dinner. If you do get a cruise that you need to specify the dinner time, early or late, choose the late dinner so you won't have to be off the island by say...two p.m. I like spending my time snorkeling the entire time on an island and I bring my own gear to make it cheaper. I also hop in a taxi and ask the driver to bring us to the best beach for snorkeling and give him a time to pick us up. he'll be there...he needs the tip money. I give them a little extra...they really need every penny they can get.

I usually find a good cruise on iBtraveling.com which posts some great deals from a bunch of different travel companies.

Wish you lots of fun!

Answer 4

Most people love Royal Caribbean and dont like Norwegian as much as they ahve had some bad experiences with them. I would highly recommend RCCL over NCL as the ships are bigger and their are more to do and the money is better spent then on NCL as their rates are outrageous and ammenties arent that great. I would also go with the newer ship as they have more to do but I would just read the reviews on cruise critic about the particular ship.

Answer 5

I've been on both, and enjoyed them both very much. Norwegian was a tad fancier, and the food was a little nicer, but I'm not much of a gourmet. Norwegian was slightly better about committing to the highest level of customer service... but I just went on a Royal Caribbean cruise and never had more fun in my life.
Really, you can't go wrong.

Answer 6

I prefer NCL (Norwegian Cruise Line) over Royal. It's the freestyle cruising that gets me. I hate the idea of someone telling when to eat, how to dress when I eat, and where I must sit while I eat. NCL is fun! I have sailed with them 3 times and had fun on every trip.

Answer 7

I've been on both. I much prefer Royal Caribbean for the service.

The "freestyle" on Norwegian can mean that you have to wait in line for a table, and your wait staff doesn't know you and doesn't care. We had wait staff standing around talking while we waited for our meal.

On Royal Caribbean, your wait staff gets to know you and can bring you your preferences for beverage, bread, desserts before you even have to ask. They know you by name, and you can get to know all the exotic countries that they come from.

The activities on both cruise lines are comparable, and both have beautiful ships with well-appointed cabins.