Jump RCI ship for Norwegian?

[bandjwayne]

My husband and I have cruised on ~10 cruises, with the majority being RCI and a few being Carnival. On this next cruise we've decided to leave the kids home so it will be just us adults. We're planning on taking advantage of the drink package. The itinerary isn't a big deal to us as we've been a lot of places and instead we want to enjoy the boat more this time. We enjoy the adventurous things on the ship just as rock wall climbing, flow rider, mini golf etc, but also enjoy just sitting in the hot tub with a drink.

 

So now to the question, we're trying to decide between RCI Allure and Norwegian Getaway.

 

Allure - we've never been on this class of ships so the ship itself would be new to us. We also love RCI. The drink package would definitely add more to the cost. The Serenity adults only area looks relaxing.

 

Getaway - We can get a price w/drinks pkgs plus a few specialty dining restaurants included. A spa balcony room is just a little more than what I figured the Allure would be w/the drink pkg included. From what I understand there is no adults only area (like Serenity), but the spa area would be adults only. I'm not sure about how we feel about the freestyle dining as we really like the regular dining on RCI, however since it's just my husband & I this time we'd most likely get seated at dinner w/strangers & I'm not sure how I feel about that. I've heard that the ship can seem really crowded compared to Allure.

 

Anyway, long story short. The costs and itineraries are about the same. SO...can anyone offer their takes on these 2 ships/companies and your pros/cons? I'm nervous about switching to Norwegian.

[Clarea]

Some similar threads:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2459959

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2534949

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2476419

[mcrcruiser]

We would never sail Norwegian . Yes they really pack them in & check out the cabin sizes compared to a RCCL ship of equal size & year built . Additionally ,when taking more & more Royal Caribbean cruises your loyalty level increases & you earn more perks . Also that loyalty level is transferable between their other cruise lines lines ;which are Celebrity & Azamara :D:D:D

[djvincent]

My wife, boys and I have been on about 10 cruise as well with the majority on carnival and Royal. We went on one Norwegian Cruise about 8 years ago (Norwegian pearl). Not sure if it was a one off but it was bad enough that we have not and will not sail Norwegian again. We were on Allure for thanksgiving 2015 and it was probably one of our favorite ships. Just my 2 cents on that subject! Hope you enjoy whichever ship you choose, happy sailing!

[cb at sea]

We enjoy tablemates, but with "freestyle" you'll have to ask to be seated with others, and then someone else has to agree to be seated with YOU!

 

Unless we're with a group of our own, we really enjoy having others to eat with! Most folks are fun and nice...maybe it's just us, but we tend to get along with almost everyone. Hubby and I eat together all day, everyday...so having different folks to talk with is nice! Remember, after you introduce yourselves, you're no longer "strangers"!

[xcell]

We tried NCL and liked it for the "freestyle" aspect. I'd spend my time in the specialty restaurants as the MDR sucks (IMHO).

 

If you go to NCL try the bidding for the Haven Suites.

[Snit13]

Was on NCL Epic Thanksgiving week. If you like to stand in line at all restaurants for your dinner, go with NCL. Out of about 34 cruises, by far the worst. Lines everywhere.

Cabin was great and we had OBC that came with the booking thus had breakfast and lunch in cabin most days of the cruise to avoid the crowds. Food for the most part was ok,but nothing to write home about. Their OBC could not be used to pay gratuities thus on last night of cruise we had to use remaining to buy booze to bring home. We each had enough OBC for a bottle of good bourbon.

 

Also long, long waits to disembark even for those walking off. I personally would stick with RCL and the Allure.

[traceytd]

I was on the Getaway, Epic and Escape... NCL has some of the best, entertainment I've ever had. (We have 15 cruises, Carnival, Royal, MSC, Princess and NCL). For the shows the Escape were amazing. Yes the rooms are a little smaller but not sure bout the spa rooms. I was on the Allure last month and also had a great cruise. My favourite restaurant of all my cruises is on NCL, Moderno, their Brazilian Steak house. By far the best ever. I did however not like the Windjammer on the Allure. It only had 3 or 4 station open everyday and only one side of the ship was open. It was very busy.

I would do both again. I think I would pick the one I have more points with to increase my loyalty

 

 

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[S.S.Oceanlover]

I like them both and don't think you can go wrong with either.

 

We are on the Oasis in April and the NCL Dawn next December.

 

Bill

[amyc21186]

My husband and I have cruised on ~10 cruises, with the majority being RCI and a few being Carnival. On this next cruise we've decided to leave the kids home so it will be just us adults. We're planning on taking advantage of the drink package. The itinerary isn't a big deal to us as we've been a lot of places and instead we want to enjoy the boat more this time. We enjoy the adventurous things on the ship just as rock wall climbing, flow rider, mini golf etc, but also enjoy just sitting in the hot tub with a drink.

 

 

 

So now to the question, we're trying to decide between RCI Allure and Norwegian Getaway.

 

 

 

Allure - we've never been on this class of ships so the ship itself would be new to us. We also love RCI. The drink package would definitely add more to the cost. The Serenity adults only area looks relaxing.

 

 

 

Getaway - We can get a price w/drinks pkgs plus a few specialty dining restaurants included. A spa balcony room is just a little more than what I figured the Allure would be w/the drink pkg included. From what I understand there is no adults only area (like Serenity), but the spa area would be adults only. I'm not sure about how we feel about the freestyle dining as we really like the regular dining on RCI, however since it's just my husband & I this time we'd most likely get seated at dinner w/strangers & I'm not sure how I feel about that. I've heard that the ship can seem really crowded compared to Allure.

 

 

 

Anyway, long story short. The costs and itineraries are about the same. SO...can anyone offer their takes on these 2 ships/companies and your pros/cons? I'm nervous about switching to Norwegian.

 

 

 

We have been on both the allure, Oasis (soon to be twice) and Norwegian Breakaway (getaway's sister, twice).

 

For us, the we appreciate the Breakaway because it's home port is nearby and enjoy the buffet that is open late. However, nothing compares to the Oasis/allure in terms of things to do on board and the many different areas on the ships. The rooms are bigger and I feel the dining options are better.

 

Norwegian ships (we've also been on the gem) aren't nearly as clean as Royal.

 

Royal Oasis class ships are big upsell ships also. Everything is an upsell!

 

 

 

 

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[Yorkvillain]

I like them both and don't think you can go wrong with either.

 

 

Agreed. I love them both.

[CruiseGal999]

2 youtube tours of each ship. Each is about 20 mins.

 

 

[Turtle05]

I've only been on one NCL cruis, and the money I saved going with a cheaper line ended up going towards specialty restaurants. I did not think the food was as good as RC. I abolustely LOVED the Allure by the way.

[Loujul]

You will be disappointed. If you want to be on a floating hotel instead of a cruise ship, you will be right at home on the Getaway.

[samiam0403]

With costs being similar, I wouldn’t hesitate to sail on Getaway. Especially since I’ve sailed on it once and loved it. ;) With the inclusive alcohol package and spa, you can’t go wrong. I booked my first spa pass on Epic earlier this year, and wondered why I had never booked it before. I spent hours in the (kid-free) spa and it made my sailing on the Epic (which I’d heard horrible things about) one of my favorite sailings ever.

 

NCL has the best entertainment I’ve ever seen at sea, and that includes the main theater productions and evening bands and singers. Getaway was the first ‘megaship’ I’ve sailed on, and she was delightful. If you do the specialty dining, you can’t go wrong with Teppanyaki and Le Bistro. The MDR dining on NCL has improved exponentially the last few years as well. Either way, I don’t think you can go wrong with either ship. Good luck deciding! :)

[Shayhooper]

Getaway has been my favorite ships out of all the ones I have sailed on.

[Bigbluegal]

We have been on the RC Allure and Freedom and most recently NW Escape. Both ships were great. Allure, we stayed in a Royal Family Suite so we had the suite perks. On the Escape we stayed in a 2 bedroom in the Haven Area. There are things we loved about both but for the most part we are loyal to Royal. We only ended up on NCL after our Adventure cruise on Royal out of San Juan was cancelled due to the hurricane. If you do decide on NCL, I highly recommend the Haven area.....butler, private pool area, private restaurant, keycard only access to the area.....and much more. We are planning another cruise with them summer 2019 on the Bliss to Alaska.

[DaisyL]

We have been on 25+ cruises with most on NCL ships and the last on Breakaway in 2014, at their highest loyalty level. Even getting the NCL benefits, we much prefer RCI cruises which has been our last 6 (and only) cruises including Anthem twice.

 

We absolutely hated NCL BA. Passengers complain about the crowds on Anthem but no comparison to those on BA.

 

Lines and crowds of people everywhere..the whole pool area not just around the pool, but the pool itself- think of a community pool on a hot summer's day with wall to wall people, long lines to get into the 'free' dining rooms, main dining room for dinner with music blaring and kids running around screaming, on a cruise taken the first week of December when school is in session, unable to get a table at all in the buffet during lunch whereas we always found a place to sit in Anthem's buffet even during crowded times, needed to wait at least 1/2 hour to eat at their only off time eatery where Anthem has availability in Cafe Promenade and the pizzeria, almost missing our excursion and catching the bus as it started to pull away because the hallways and stairways were so jammed we couldn't get off the ship, total chaos during debarking because again the halls and stairways jammed, lines and unorganized mobs to get on the ship although we had priority boarding. So if you like large crowds, disorganization and spend all your time in your cabin, this is the ship for you.

 

Meal quality better with RCI at all 'free' venues compared to any ship with NCL so it's really necessary to eat in a specialty restaurant but in turn very difficult to make a reservation during a time you prefer because they are booked early, way before cruise time. Have they heard of 'Freestyle' which they developed and promote? But when you do get seated in a dining room the meals are very quick, because they are rushing you through. The waiters are very stressed because they rush you and come off unfriendly because of it and never get the same servers so you never build a rapport with them. This is a highlight for us on a RCL cruise.

 

The bars are small and crowded so it's very difficult to get a drink and relax or again get to know the bar staff who are very understaffed and overworked . The piano bar/show is very good but because of the crowds, wooden folding chairs were cramped together in all the otherwise free space. Really! No large venue like the Music Hall on Anthem so all additional entertainment is held in the atrium which is too small for a ship this size and overly loud and annoying in an open area of the ship.

 

I must admit the live music and production shows are better on NCL, but not all are 'free'. They add dinner to some shows so they can charge a fee. And if you want an excellent and relaxing meal you must go to a specialty restaurant and pay more on NCL. Never felt the need on a RCI cruise but maybe try one next time, just for fun.

 

Having said all that, we are going on the Escape out of NY with dear friends next year. Since we wanted to go on a 7 day cruise to Bermuda, which RCI does not offer, we chose NCL. Adding in all the included perks, but at a higher fare, the cost is comparable with a different 7 day cruise on Anthem. The added fee for the deluxe drink package is a 'wash', we get 3 specialty dining meals with the package and 2 with loyalty so 5 out of 7 dinners will be good, but we'll need to make reservations well ahead of the cruise.

 

I refuse to pay extra for entertainment out of principle. We'll have breakfast/lunch in the dining room if the buffet is too crowded. Plus last time, BA had lunch offered in the steakhouse for high loyalty and suite members right off the promenade deck, where we plan to hang out again on sea days. If it gets too crowded there, which I suspect it will, we have a balcony cabin. We won't look to go into the pool or hot tub until late evening or after dinner. We won't need to deal with long lines to get off the ship or unorganized tender tickets, which again are horrendous, because we'll be docked in Bermuda for 3 days. Unfortunately, we can't avoid the mess of embarkment even with high priority, so we plan to go into our 'zen' mode (or plan on taking drugs...lol) and hope for the best. For disembarking, we plan on leaving the ship last, when we get kicked off and let all the other crazies fight it out before us.

 

Although I am regretting booking this cruise on NCL Escape, I plan on making the most out of it. So look for my review June 2018 on the NCL board to read my honest but objective (who wants to spend $3500 on a cruise and have a bad time) viewpoint maybe titled, 'The Good, The Bad and The Ugly' and comparing to our experiences on Anthem. But it won't be 'live' because the Internet is too expensive on NCL.

 

Bottom line, If I was booking it today, I would book any RCI cruise than a cruise on NCLs latest and greatest, even at higher rates, a less desirable itinerary, and high level loyalty benefits on NCL compared to below Diamond on RCI. Oh, that's right, our 2 future cruises booked last month are with RCI.

 

 

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Edited December 3, 2017 by DaisyL

[touringbee]

Agreed. I love them both.

 

 

 

I agree too. Both have negatives & positives. I've had issues with both and with other lines I've gone on. None are perfect. Some things don't bother me, but may irk the hell out of you. Lol. It depends on you. Good luck...

 

 

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[samiam0403]

The different takes here on cruising NCL are certainly interesting! OP, if you enjoyed your Royal cruises and your Carnival cruises, there is no reason you won’t enjoy a Norwegian cruise. I was skeptical initially as well, but fell in love with not being tied to a dining time, the thermal suites (aka spa), the Haven, the entertainment, and the crew. Honestly, the major cruise lines are more similar than different these days. Lord knows if my first cruise on Royal Caribbean was my first ever cruise, I’d never have cruised again. It was that bad. But here I am, sailing again next week because I know that one bad sailing doesn’t a cruise line make. :)

[Princess@Sea]

Since both ships are new to you, pick the one with the better sale. At the same price I'd give the edge to Allure. But if you get a tremendous price for Getaway, go for it.

 

One thing about Getaway class, it doesn't handle crowd as well. If you are going in holiday weeks or summer, I'd avoid still go with Allure.

[bcarney]

Having said all that, we are going on the Escape out of NY with dear friends next year. Since we wanted to go on a 7 day cruise to Bermuda, which RCI does not offer, we chose NCL.

 

FYI Royal has a number of 7 night sailings out of New England to Bermuda, on Anthem, Serenade, and Grandeur.

[JillK]

I have cruised with NCL, RCI, Carnival, Disney, Princess and Celebrity. I can easily compare RCI and NCL as they were my last two cruises (Oasis and Escape).

 

Quick take: We found the food in the main dining room on Oasis to be better to that of the Escape but the buffet and specialty restaurants were significantly superior on Escape to Oasis. Entertainment was also significantly better on NCL, as others have mentioned.

 

I find those two lines are so similar that I don't prefer one over the other. In fact, I am sitting on two NCL CruiseNext vouchers I bought on the Escape and have gone ahead and booked two cruises - one with RCI and the other with Carnival! RCI's itinerary and price point for the British Isles cruise was so much better that I couldn't consider NCL and for the Carnival cruise, the decision was itinerary based (NCL should really cruise the ABC's more regularly).

 

If price and itinerary aren't factors, then your motivating factors should be line/ship based experience, food and entertainment.

 

I wouldn't hesitate to book another NCL cruise. Their beverage package is usually included with booking (has been on promo for several years) and it's really nice not to have to worry about how much the cocktail or pop is costing you. The staterooms are tight but well appointed and very comfortable. The food in their specialty restaurants is excellent and IMO no other cruise line can touch their buffets. There are many excellent entertainment options with them as well.

 

That being said, you seem reluctant to book NCL so you should stick with your gut instinct and go RCI.

 

Whatever you decide, enjoy your kid-free cruise! It's a great way to spend some quality time with your husband!

[LMaxwell]

FYI Royal has a number of 7 night sailings out of New England to Bermuda, on Anthem, Serenade, and Grandeur.

 

The majority of Grandeur and Anthem sailings are 5 night sailings. The only 7 night Anthem sailings are way "off season" (early April or November). Serenade is the only one w the 3 day stops in Bermuda on the 7 nighters but Escape offers significantly more features and amenities. Not sure if NY vs Boston makes any difference in the case since they only said New England.

 

I think the Waterfront concept is a winner on NCL and something majorly lacking from Oasis-class; the ships are not focused on dramatic views of the sea like older classes were.

 

I don't think you would make a wrong choice either way. See what the bottom line is.

[papaflamingo]

The itinerary isn't a big deal to us as we've been a lot of places and instead we want to enjoy the boat more this time. We enjoy the adventurous things on the ship just as rock wall climbing, flow rider, mini golf etc, but also enjoy just sitting in the hot tub with a drink.

 

The costs and itineraries are about the same.

 

Since the cost is "about the same," and you want to "enjoy the boat more" than the itinerary, and since you like Royal Caribbean, want all the "bells and whistles," (flow rider, rock climbing, etc), and you've never been on Allure, I would recommend Allure. Oasis Class are designed where the "ship is the destination." Seems that's what you're looking for. If so, you'll love Allure.