NCL Encore or Joy for spring break? Or Celebrity Apex or Royal Caribbean Wonder?

[Sigyn]

I'm looking at the Encore or Joy for spring break in April. There are three of us - my husband, 15-year-old son and myself. I am trying to decide between the two NCL cruises, or two that are more expensive on Royal Caribbean (the new Wonder of the Seas ship) and the Celebrity Apex.

 

All balcony or infinite veranda (Celebrity) rooms:

NCL Encore is $3,205 - free drinks, bar gratuities and $130 of Wi-Fi and $160 of specialty dining (those are things that matter and we'd pay for)

NCL Joy is $3,860 - free drinks, bar gratuities and $130 of Wi-Fi and $160 of specialty dining

Celebrity Apex is $5,881 - free drinks, bar gratuities and basic Wi-Fi (about the same as NCL)

RC Wonder is $6,059 - no drinks or Wi-Fi

 

RC's ship is brand new and very tempting but crazy expensive without drinks or anything else added and we would be paying for those on top of everything else. But, it looks like we wouldn't be nickel and dimed like you get on NCL with all of the fees for go-karts, laser tag, etc., which would add up super fast (I saw where it's something like $199 for unlimited for each of those per cruise!) 

 

The itineraries are fairly similar - ports that we'd enjoy in the Caribbean, so those aren't a big consideration. I picked these cruises already based on the dates that work for us and ports that we would want to visit. My big question here is which of these ships would be best for a family of three with an outgoing, athletic 15-year-old boy for spring break. I could spring for the $6,000 Royal Caribbean cruise, but it is pricey and if either the $3,200 or $3,800 NCL are a good choice, I'd rather spend less because those look like a better value. But if all of the extras on board start adding up too fast, then I want to be aware. I read somewhere that on NCL there is a "pack of teenagers" that roam because they end up with nothing to do since everything costs extra. I'd pay for my son to have things to do, but I don't like the idea of bored packs of teenagers with nothing to do on a ship. 

 

Of course, if it was just my husband and I, the Celebrity seems like the way to go - but would a teenager be bored on a Celebrity ship? It seems to skew older with less fun stuff for kids. 

 

Any thoughts here? I've never sailed on NCL or any of these lines I'm considering, only Carnival, because I've sailed with friends in the past that were Platinum and Diamond Carnival members, but I'm not tied to that line by any means. My husband and I love to stay at high-end hotels and eat at high-end restaurants when we travel, so we like fancy when we find it. But we're not snobs, so Carnival is a fun line for our teenager, and we're traveling on it for a holiday cruise again in December. I'm trying to learn all I can about the other lines so that I can figure out what will be the best one for us this time as we experience a different cruise line. Thanks in advance for any advice!

[palpieha]

5 minutes ago, njsmom said:

I read somewhere that on NCL there is a "pack of teenagers" that roam because they end up with nothing to do since everything costs extra. I'd pay for my son to have things to do, but I don't like the idea of bored packs of teenagers with nothing to do on a ship. 

I don't know how it is on Celebrity or Royal Caribbean, but on NCL, teenagers have Entourage. This doesn't cost extra, and they have video games, ping pong, foosball, a disco area, and some guided programming (like all going to the basketball court for a game together, etc).

 

Teenagers being teenagers, they might be too cool for what is provided, but Entourage is pretty successful with drawing them in.

[deweytrader]

I would pick the Encore, plenty of things for a teen to do and the price is right with all the perks!

[Sigyn]

1 hour ago, palpieha said:

I don't know how it is on Celebrity or Royal Caribbean, but on NCL, teenagers have Entourage. This doesn't cost extra, and they have video games, ping pong, foosball, a disco area, and some guided programming (like all going to the basketball court for a game together, etc).

 

Teenagers being teenagers, they might be too cool for what is provided, but Entourage is pretty successful with drawing them in.

 

As long as you get my son near a few teenagers, he's fine. So if there are any interesting teens at Entourage, he'll be friends with them within two minutes after meeting and then hang out with them the rest of the cruise! (Of course, leading up to those first two minutes, he's convinced he'll never meet anyone and never make any friends.)

 

30 minutes ago, deweytrader said:

I would pick the Encore, plenty of things for a teen to do and the price is right with all the perks!

Have you been on the Encore? It looks like a great ship. I was wondering how all of the extras work out. I'll pay for them, it's still way cheaper than Royal Caribbean! 

 

Edited September 28, 2022 by njsmom

[palpieha]

1 hour ago, njsmom said:

My husband and I love to stay at high-end hotels and eat at high-end restaurants when we travel, so we like fancy when we find it. 

 

Have you priced out the Haven on the Encore or Joy for your trip? You would then not need the additional specialty meals, as the Haven restaurant is the best on the ship. Plus you get the Haven bar and pool deck.

 

If going for non-Haven, one thing to consider is that the Joy has Spice H2O and the Encore doesn't (instead there's laser tag there). If you like to lounge/hot tub with drink in hand away from the craziness of the main pool, it's nice to have Spice H2O. After your son finds his friends, since under 18 are not allowed in Spice.

[Sigyn]

Update: It's $4,108 for the Encore. I had forgot to put in the third person for the cruise. I was wondering why a newer ship was cheaper than the Joy. Silly me. Anyway...just for reference purposes. 

[Sigyn]

15 minutes ago, palpieha said:

 

Have you priced out the Haven on the Encore or Joy for your trip? You would then not need the additional specialty meals, as the Haven restaurant is the best on the ship. Plus you get the Haven bar and pool deck.

 

If going for non-Haven, one thing to consider is that the Joy has Spice H2O and the Encore doesn't (instead there's laser tag there). If you like to lounge/hot tub with drink in hand away from the craziness of the main pool, it's nice to have Spice H2O. After your son finds his friends, since under 18 are not allowed in Spice.

The Haven is $10,747. Nice thought, but completely out of reach budget wise. We're doing another, bigger vacation in July, sending one kid to a fancy summer camp while we tour California and wine country, so this is a mini-vacation in the spring as a bonus trip.

Edited September 28, 2022 by njsmom

[palpieha]

I haven't been on the Joy, so others might disagree. But with the Joy being cheaper, and since the Encore doesn't have Spice H20, I would go for the Joy.

[jmh87]

I was on the Joy over July 4th this year. My 15 and 17 year old had a great time. They keep asking when we will do it again. Plenty to do on board keeping them busy.

[Crazy planning mom]

3 hours ago, njsmom said:

I'm looking at the Encore or Joy for spring break in April. There are three of us - my husband, 15-year-old son and myself. I am trying to decide between the two NCL cruises, or two that are more expensive on Royal Caribbean (the new Wonder of the Seas ship) and the Celebrity Apex.

 

All balcony or infinite veranda (Celebrity) rooms:

NCL Encore is $3,205 - free drinks, bar gratuities and $130 of Wi-Fi and $160 of specialty dining (those are things that matter and we'd pay for)

NCL Joy is $3,860 - free drinks, bar gratuities and $130 of Wi-Fi and $160 of specialty dining

Celebrity Apex is $5,881 - free drinks, bar gratuities and basic Wi-Fi (about the same as NCL)

RC Wonder is $6,059 - no drinks or Wi-Fi

 

RC's ship is brand new and very tempting but crazy expensive without drinks or anything else added and we would be paying for those on top of everything else. But, it looks like we wouldn't be nickel and dimed like you get on NCL with all of the fees for go-karts, laser tag, etc., which would add up super fast (I saw where it's something like $199 for unlimited for each of those per cruise!) 

 

The itineraries are fairly similar - ports that we'd enjoy in the Caribbean, so those aren't a big consideration. I picked these cruises already based on the dates that work for us and ports that we would want to visit. My big question here is which of these ships would be best for a family of three with an outgoing, athletic 15-year-old boy for spring break. I could spring for the $6,000 Royal Caribbean cruise, but it is pricey and if either the $3,200 or $3,800 NCL are a good choice, I'd rather spend less because those look like a better value. But if all of the extras on board start adding up too fast, then I want to be aware. I read somewhere that on NCL there is a "pack of teenagers" that roam because they end up with nothing to do since everything costs extra. I'd pay for my son to have things to do, but I don't like the idea of bored packs of teenagers with nothing to do on a ship. 

 

Of course, if it was just my husband and I, the Celebrity seems like the way to go - but would a teenager be bored on a Celebrity ship? It seems to skew older with less fun stuff for kids. 

 

Any thoughts here? I've never sailed on NCL or any of these lines I'm considering, only Carnival, because I've sailed with friends in the past that were Platinum and Diamond Carnival members, but I'm not tied to that line by any means. My husband and I love to stay at high-end hotels and eat at high-end restaurants when we travel, so we like fancy when we find it. But we're not snobs, so Carnival is a fun line for our teenager, and we're traveling on it for a holiday cruise again in December. I'm trying to learn all I can about the other lines so that I can figure out what will be the best one for us this time as we experience a different cruise line. Thanks in advance for any advice!

The Encore and Joy don't have sports courts, do they?

[scooter6139]

2 hours ago, njsmom said:

The Haven is $10,747. Nice thought, but completely out of reach budget wise. We're doing another, bigger vacation in July, sending one kid to a fancy summer camp while we tour California and wine country, so this is a mini-vacation in the spring as a bonus trip.

 

The Joy also has regular Suites that are not Haven (ergo no haven access).  There are two that I recall, SC Penthouse Suites and inside SP Concierge Interior 2 Bedroom.  They can be a bit pricey but not quite Haven pricey.

[Northern wanderlust]

Full disclosure, my first NCL cruise is coming up in a couple of weeks and I have only been on RC once and it was nearly 20 years ago so things may have changed but my experience was that RC absolutely nickel and dimed also.  

[deweytrader]

4 hours ago, njsmom said:

Update: It's $4,108 for the Encore. I had forgot to put in the third person for the cruise. I was wondering why a newer ship was cheaper than the Joy. Silly me. Anyway...just for reference purposes. 

I will switch my vote to the Joy, I have been on all the Breakaway/Breakaway+ classes of ships except the Encore - they are all very similar.  Joy is great if you will not miss the Thermal Spa, plenty of things for teens to do on all these classes of ships.  Cost of extras not bad $10 laser Tag and you can usually get a race car bundle +/- 50 bucks.  I usually have onboard credit that I let me kids use up on extras...

[CruiseDoc79]

I think you would have a wonderful time on all of those ships, but as someone who has sailed on both Apex and Bliss (similar to Encore) I would put my vote towards Apex.  They do have several kids and teen clubs on board with video games etc. and other activities.  Definitely not as many bells and whistles in terms of not having a go-cart track or water slides but the Apex is the most beautiful ship we have ever sailed on and the food and entertainment were fantastic.  

[Sigyn]

I appreciate everyone's help. I liked the itinerary for Encore more than the Joy, so I went with Encore. And then there was an option for a guaranteed stateroom for a club balcony suite that was only $100 more than choosing our own balcony room, so I thought that was worth it to see what cabin they give us, and we get the bigger bathroom with two sinks in this mini "suite" room. 

Edited September 30, 2022 by njsmom

[weltek]

If you already booked, this might be moot, but compare the pools if you are pool people. Given this is spring break, ships will be sailing at higher capacity and with a younger crowd=more people at pool. The Encore has consistently been chided for lack of pool lounger space. Not sure about the Joy. But with the Breakaway Plus class ships, NCL has been downsizing pool lounging areas in favor of big amusement features. I don't follow what other lines are doing in this regard, but if your family will be spending a lot of time at the pool, this might be a factor for you.

[KAYKAY121]

On 9/29/2022 at 9:42 PM, njsmom said:

I appreciate everyone's help. I liked the itinerary for Encore more than the Joy, so I went with Encore. And then there was an option for a guaranteed stateroom for a club balcony suite that was only $100 more than choosing our own balcony room, so I thought that was worth it to see what cabin they give us, and we get the bigger bathroom with two sinks in this mini "suite" room. 

You don't get any FAS with a guaranteed cabin. the only difference it a balcony and the mini suite is the bathroom. The FAS is a far better value. Check me on the guarantee by checking your account online to see if FAS is on there. 

[graphicguy]

Midst of Spring Break season…cruise fares will be high.  I love me some Celebrity but there will be more for a teen to do on either Royal or NCL.

 

If either line is going to their private island, that would be a plus for a teen.

 

 

[Sigyn]

Okay, I'm very fickle. I cancelled our spring break cruise. My friend who worked for the cruise lines told me she'd never do a spring break cruise. She said there are too many drunk college kids on every ship, and she's found poop in the hallways more times than she likes to recall. I'm out. I am waiting and doing an Alaskan cruise in July instead. No poop hallways there. I hope. 

Edited October 13, 2022 by njsmom

[Crazy planning mom]

17 hours ago, njsmom said:

Okay, I'm very fickle. I cancelled our spring break cruise. My friend who worked for the cruise lines told me she'd never do a spring break cruise. She said there are too many drunk college kids on every ship, and she's found poop in the hallways more times than she likes to recall. I'm out. I am waiting and doing an Alaskan cruise in July instead. No poop hallways there. I hope. 

Well, Alaska is great.  We did a 7 night spring break cruise on the Harmony and didn't have a problem.

[PTC DAWG]

I enjoy Celebrity myself…but for a 15 year old, I would say no.  We enjoy NCL when the younger folks in our family are going…my Son is 30. 

[Lupush]

I was on Encore last week with my wife and 9 year old.  The ship has absolutely everything a kid or teenager could want.  My son loved the Laser Tag, Speedway, and VR Games.  Every young person I saw around the ship looked like they were having a great time.  Highly recommended.

[aubreyc1988]

On 9/28/2022 at 8:50 AM, palpieha said:

I haven't been on the Joy, so others might disagree. But with the Joy being cheaper, and since the Encore doesn't have Spice H20, I would go for the Joy.

Having been on both, I'd also agree with this, go with the Joy

[coralskygirl]

I’ve been on a few spring break cruises; different cruise lines.  I’ve never observed any obnoxious drunk people or anything similar to what you mentioned. It just seemed a bit busier for food, pool area,  shows etc..  Thank god!

[TeresaJ]

I don't think it's worth it to spend $2,000 or more for Royal or Celebrity! I would go with NCL. You won't be disappointed.