NCL Getaway vs RCCL Harmony for Families and Foodies

[YourWineLady]

We are considering a cruise in June with our two kids (ages 5 and 8). Our original choice was RCCL Harmony of the Seas, but are now considering NCL Getaway, simply because of the significant price difference. My husband and I are also HUGE foodies and winos. Which of the two ships do you think would best meet our needs of having top-notch activities/programs for our children, as well as superior dining/wine options for us?

[Son of a son of a ...]

We are considering a cruise in June with our two kids (ages 5 and 8). Our original choice was RCCL Harmony of the Seas, but are now considering NCL Getaway, simply because of the significant price difference. My husband and I are also HUGE foodies and winos. Which of the two ships do you think would best meet our needs of having top-notch activities/programs for our children, as well as superior dining/wine options for us?

 

Disney

[YourWineLady]

Thank you, but Disney is not an option, since its cost is significantly higher than both of the NCL and RCCL options that we are considering.

[CruisingNole]

If you want top notch activities, Harmony is going to win, hands down. Just read the cruise critic editor reviews and look at the pictures. You get what you pay for.

[FLAHAM]

I like cruising and I like the NCL experience. At the moment, I have a transatlantic and a caribbean cruise booked. That said, I find the food to vary from minimally acceptable to quite good. It is simply not "foodie" material. However, there certainly is a lot of food! I live in a small (175,000) midwestern city (Dayton) and I can easily find restaurants and dishes here that are superior to anything I can order shipboard.

 

Nevertheless, the food is usually decent and sometimes surprisingly good. If having dinner in an MDR, I like to ask the host to seat me at a sharing table for eight. That way I get to meet new people, discuss the cruise day with them, and look over seven other dishes to see what might be interesting for next time.

 

My RCCL experience is limited to Oasis of the Seas. I found the food to be roughly similar to NCL. However, I like NCL's greater choice of venues.

[SuzyQwaveWatcher]

Hey there, We haven't been on the RC mega ships yet, but have cruised RC. IMO, the specialty dining on NCL is better than RC. Also, if you get the pick 2 free promotion at NCL you can get all the wine you would like and the specialty dining. Fun stuff for kids on both cruise lines. I like the value of NCL! Good luck

[babynurse06]

I’m not sure you’re going to find what you’re looking for on a cruise. Harmony certainly offers “more” of just about everything due to sheer size. Getaway is also a great ship with tons of activities though. In fact, it’s probably my favorite ship. As far as food, I think the MDR’s on NCL and RCCL are pretty comparable. I may even give RCCL a slight edge. NCL’s specialty venues are much better though, and from the sound of your post, you’d be much happier in specialty restaurants, so for food quality, I would probably go with NCL. As far as wine, the offerings on ships tend to be pretty abysmal. Especially the ones that are included in the beverage packages. You can get some better ones by the bottle, but they’re pricey. If you’re planning to get the UBP, you do get 20% off of bottles. But there’s also an 18% gratuity, so it basically evens out. If QUALITY wine is super important to you, I would probably be prepared to bring my own and pay the corkage fee. Or, know that you can get some decent ones on board, but be prepared to overpay for it. I love to cruise for a variety of different reasons, but I’ve also cruised a lot, and I know where to set my expectations. And I would never expect true fine dining experience on any mainstream cruise line. If you can go with that mindset and enjoy it for what it is, you’ll have a great time.

[babynurse06]

This may help

https://www.ncl.com/sites/default/files/WineList_Fleetwide_07092015.pdf

[CruisingNole]

On Harmony you can bring 2 bottles onboard with no corkage fee. There's decent wine on board but it varies venue to venue.

 

Vintages wine bar:

 

https://eatsleepcruise.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC01876-Copy.jpg

 

https://eatsleepcruise.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC01875-Copy.jpg

[sarlin]

We have sailed on both-Between the 2 I would choose the Getaway-It's more our taste-To us the food really was comparable-We have been on the Getaway twice and would book it again in a second-The specialty restaurants are perfect for foodies-We were in a suite on Harmony and got to try all of the specialy restaurants on there-For us Getaway leads by just a bit. You can't go wrong with either choice-We did find Harmony a tad more formal but Getaway can be as formal as you want it to be-We love the buffet on Getaway-

 

Enjoy your cruise whatever you choose!!

[cynbar]

Based on your requirements, I would go with NCL and plan to eat most nights in their specialty restaurants. Both RCCL and NCL have pretty average food in their MDRs, similar to banquet food at home. There are lines that concentrate more on food, but they don't offer as much for your kids. We like the variety of specialties on NCL, and just include the cost as part of our budget. You'll find better food quality and service there than you get in the MDR. But keep your expectations realistic, a family oriented cruise line doesn't offer a real "foodie" experience.

[MissJessicaB]

Based on your requirements, I would go with NCL and plan to eat most nights in their specialty restaurants. Both RCCL and NCL have pretty average food in their MDRs, similar to banquet food at home. There are lines that concentrate more on food, but they don't offer as much for your kids. We like the variety of specialties on NCL, and just include the cost as part of our budget. You'll find better food quality and service there than you get in the MDR. But keep your expectations realistic, a family oriented cruise line doesn't offer a real "foodie" experience.

THIS ^

 

In all honesty, MDR cruise food is generally just meh from an objective point of view. Sure there are people who love it, but if you're the type of people who describe themselves as foodies, MDR food isn't really going to tickle that itch. We're foodies too, and while we don't eat at Michelin Star restaurants every night (maybe 1-3 times per year), we like to think we have good taste in affordable food (of the $15-25 entree price variety mostly).

 

The above post is accurate - For us, the best way to get good food on an affordable cruise is to go NCL and get a specialty dining package that gives you as many nights as you can swing in their specialty restaurants.

[mjkacmom]

On Harmony you can bring 2 bottles onboard with no corkage fee. There's decent wine on board but it varies venue to venue.

 

Vintages wine bar:

 

https://eatsleepcruise.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC01876-Copy.jpg

 

https://eatsleepcruise.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/DSC01875-Copy.jpg

But on NCL you have no limit, just have to pay the $15 fee per bottle.