Compare Norwegian to Carnival Cruise Line
Which cruise line do I prefer, and why?
In this comparison, I am going to compare the Norwegian Joy to the Carnival Horizon since they’re the closest ships in each fleet in terms of age and size. We have sailed with Royal Caribbean and are platinum cruisers with Carnival, so it’s easier for me to compare Carnival than Royal. Plus I have not been on a comparable Royal ship to the Joy. Once I do, I will update this page.
The Ships
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Carnival Horizon
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NCL Joy
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|---|---|---|
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Class
|
Vista
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Breakaway Plus
|
|
Gross Tonnage
|
134,000
|
168,000
|
|
Length
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1,055'
|
1,094'
|
|
Beam Width
|
122'
|
136'
|
|
Passenger decks
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14
|
20
|
|
Passengers (double occupancy)
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4,997
|
3,804
|
|
Crew
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1,821
|
1,450
|
|
Passengers to Crew Ratio
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3:1
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3:1
|
|
Space Ratio (tons per passenger)
|
1:33.8
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1:48.6
|
When comparing the ships themselves without taking anything else into consideration, I think I would lean toward the Horizon. The layout is much easier on the Horizon than the Joy. Things seem broken up on the Joy, and they have some of their jewelry counters in the middle of the isles. Plus even though the Joy is a larger ship than the Horizon, it seems much smaller. It reminds me of a Sunshine Class ship with Carnival. So based on layout alone, I prefer the Horizon. However, the Joy is much more elegantly designed and decorated. Carnival has the “fun vibe” and Norwegian has the “elegant vibe”. If you prefer fun, then Carnival is your answer in terms of the 2 ships comparisons, whereas if you prefer elegant, then Norwegian is your best route. For me, Carnival wins this battle.
The Cabins
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|
Carnival Horizon
|
NCL Joy
|
|---|---|---|
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Cabin Square Footage
|
185 sqft
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172 sqft
|
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Balcony size
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35 sqft
|
44 sqft
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Number of cabins
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700
|
1926
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Cabin capacity
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4
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4
|
The cabins on both the Horizon and Joy are very similar. They both have cabins with a king size bed (or 2 twin beds), a sofa, and an upper-pullman. The beds themselves on the Joy are very similar to Royal Caribbean in terms that they are rock hard. I prefer the soft, cloudlike mattresses that Carnival uses. The ones on NCL are VERY firm. The bedding itself on the Joy is fine but nowhere near as soft as Carnival.
When it comes to storage, the Joy wins this battle by a long shot. There’s so many more places to store things on the Joy than the Horizon. Norwegian really made good use of the space to store things. There’s only 1 closet on the Joy compared to 3 on Carnival, but there are more storage spaces on the counter area.
As far as the bathroom, Norwegian wins this battle also. Again, there’s more places to put your things in the bathroom. One thing that really stood out is that Norwegian has liquid handsoap dispensers in the bathroom. Carnival doesn’t have this. It’s nice to have liquid soap to wash your hands with in the bathroom. Also on the Joy there are glass shower doors which is nice. Carnival still has the curtains which suck. Though Carnival does have the glass doors on the Excel class ships. The bathrooms are by far nicer on the Joy though.
Now on to the TVs…. The TV on the Joy is tiny, though it does offer movie channels. It also has the major news outlets such as Fox News, CNN, BBC, etc. This is nice because I like to watch Fox News at nights. The Horizon has much larger TVs with free on-demand movies. Though they don’t offer much more as far as live TV. They do loop a CBS stream but that’s it. Norwegian wins on the programming but Carnival wins on the TVs themselves.
The balconies are hard to compare because on the Joy we had a regular balcony. Over the railing of our balcony was about a 5ft walkway. You can’t look over your balcony. On the Horizon we get cove balconies, which are low and you look over your railing and see water. Both balconies have a sliding glass door.
As far as the cabins themselves, when you need something on the Horizon you use a door hanger. On the Joy, there are switches you can turn on to turn on a light outside of your cabin to alert your steward to make up your cabin or not disturb you. I really like this!
On the Horizon, there’s a fridge you can use to store your sodas. On the Joy, our fridge was locked. For the cabins, the Joy wins the battle!
The Entertainment
The entertainment on the Joy was lacking, bad. This falls in line with their “elegant” vibe. There were only 2 main shows. One was Elements which was fantastic, and the other was a Beatles tribute. The Beatles tribute was very lackluster and amateurish. They had both shows twice. There were no other main shows in the main theater. They did have bingo and Wheel of Fortune but those are for profit games for passengers. Both ships have Deal or No Deal. On the Horizon there is something every night going on in the main theater. We often were bored on the Joy due to the lack of entertainment going on. Also both ships have their own version of “Love & Marriage”. It’s very watered down and in the Atrium on the Joy, and it’s in the main theater and is 18+ on the Horizon. Also there are comedy shows several times a night on the Horizon, both family friendly and 18+. There is a comedian on the Joy and it requires reservations. We did not make it there. In terms of entertainment, Norwegian is far behind Carnival and Royal Caribbean. Norwegian is somewhere you go to relax and watch the water, not see shows.
Activities
Both ships have fun things to do, but the Horizon has much more to offer. The Joy has the go-carts which is fun, and 2 tiny pools. They also have a kids splash area, and 2 or 3 good slides. They did have a laser tag arena but removed it for, you guessed it, more sitting area. The Horizon has the kids splash area, 2 or 3 good slides, the ropes course, a basketball court, plenty of sports games on the Sports Square, and Sky Ride. Carnival also has a MUCH nicer putt-putt area. The putt-putt area on the Joy is VERY plain. The Horizon also has the IMAX theater to watch movies. Both ships have an arcade though the one on the Joy is very small. The Joy just doesn’t have much to offer in terms of activities. Carnival wins this one by a landslide.
The Food
The food experience is very different between both lines. Both have a main dining room, buffet and specialty dining. On the Joy, the main dining room is broken up in 3 parts; the Manhattan Room, Savor and Taste. It’s the same menu in all 3 each night. In the MDR on the Joy, the service was horrible in the Manhattan room but good in Savor and Taste. The service has always been great on the Horizon in the MDR for us. As far as the buffets, they’re both similar, though the Horizon seems to have a larger buffet. For the food quality itself, the Joy wins by far. Especially comparing steakhouses, Cagneys on the Joy is MUCH better than anything on Carnival or Royal Caribbean. The food quality in the MDR is better on the Joy as well. The only downside, is the menu doesn’t offer much or rotate much on the Joy. There is also no shrimp cocktails or a wide selection of different desserts each night on the Joy. The service is better on Carnival but the food quality is better on the Joy.
Also on the Joy, there’s no late night food unless you eat at Local Bar & Grill, which has the same menu each night. With Carnival there’s the midnight buffet and pizza all night. Plus you can have pizza delivered to you anywhere on the ship. There are a lot more food options on Carnival. I would give this battle to Norwegian for quality, though give it to Carnival in terms of options. This results in a toss-up.
One thing I will add, is that Norwegian boasts “nobody dines like Norwegian” and prides themselves on “freestyle dining”. I will say, this is no different than Carnivals “Anytime Dining”. You can eat when you want, where you want, and wear what you want. It’s the same on both lines. NCL does nothing different than Carnival.
The Casino
The casino on the Joy is split up in several sections which is weird to me. Everything is together on the Horizon. I do like that the smoking is segregated on the Joy where everyone can smoke on the Horizon. I cannot stand the gross smell of cigarettes. As far as winnings, I had good luck on the Joy so I can’t complain about the casino there. I’ve hit good numbers on both ships.
Staff in general
The staff in general is a night and day difference between the 2 lines. From embarkation, debarkation and on the ship, it’s black and white differences. On the ship itself, there are plenty of workers. However, they seem like they do not want to be there. Nobody remembers your name, nobody smiles, they will cut you off if you’re walking, they just aren’t great. You feel like you’re at a store and they’re just workers walking around. With Carnival, you feel like you’re family. Everyone knows your name, everyone smiles, it’s a whole different vibe. You just don’t feel like you’re wanted on the Joy. On the Horizon, they treat you like they’re glad you are there with them. On the Joy our cabin steward never even knew our names. Carnival wins this battle.
Embarkation / Debarkation
Embarkation with the Joy from New York reminds me of embarkation from Port Everglades back in the early 2000’s. You begin at a security checkpoint, then you have to go to a check-in desk which you answer questions, and get your card. Then from there you get a laminated paper that has a boarding group, which you then go sit and wait. There was a woman controlling the flow here, who had no clue what she was doing. She wasn’t giving the cards like she was supposed to and she didn’t know which line was which. She was totally lost. With Carnival, you enter, scan your boarding pass, go through security, then go wait. Then you board when your group is called. No having to go to a desk and all of that. Your sail & sign card is at your cabin when they’re ready.
Also with the Joy, cabins weren’t ready until almost 4pm, even with priority. With Carnival, the cabins are ready at 1:30, and immediately upon embarkation for priority guests. The embarkation day was really rough with NCL but is smooth as a baby’s butt with Carnival. As far as debarkation, it’s about the same with both.
Conclusion
The Joy is a pretty ship, though very basic. It’s very elegantly decorated and you can have fun. If you want to go on a cruise to just lay around and relax, then Norwegian is definitely the way to go. However if you want to go on a ship to have fun, feel appreciated and have neverending activities, then Carnival would be your best bet. Carnival and Royal Carribean are very much alike, and Norwegian is different. They give an upscale vibe, without being upscale. Also the price, Norwegian is a lot more expensive than Carnival or Royal. For our 7 day cruise on the Joy for 3 people, we paid $4,235.43. That was for their “Free at Sea” package which included 150 minutes of Internet, unlimited open bar (same as Cheers with Carnival), 2 specialty dining restaurants and a $50 shore excursion credit which we didn’t use since we won’t do cruise line excursions. For a 7 day cruise on the Horizon for the same number of people was $2,409.60 That’s a $1,825.83 difference for the same cruise, to the same port. The only difference with Carnival we didn’t get a $50 excursion credit or 2 specialty dining dinners. Which 2 specialty dining dinners do not total $1825.83. That’s almost another cruise with Carnival. Also to throw Royal Caribbean into the mix, we sailed 4 people on the same duration cruise, for $1715.32. That’s a $2520.11 difference. Norwegian definitely isn’t comparable to Royal Caribbean or Carnival in terms of price. We would definitely sail with Norwegian again if the price and ports were right, but for now we will stick with Carnival, where we are family.
