Cruise Spotlight
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Norwegian Escape vs Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas
The Norwegian Escape was built in 2015. It was renovated in 2019. It's 9 years older than the Icon of the Seas, which was built in 2024. Icon of the Seas is the first in a whole new class of ships by Royal Caribbean that's designed to provide the "ultimate family vacation." It is currently the largest cruise ship in the world.
Comparison Overview
- Ship Size
- Number of Passengers
- Food and Restaurants
- Bars and Drinks
- Pools and Hot Tubs
- Ship Features and Activities
- Cruise Costs
- Onboard Costs
Ship Size
The Escape is considered a large size ship. Coming in at 1,069 feet long and 179 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 3 football fields, as wide as 3.4 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 15-story building. Compared to the Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas, the Escape is 34% smaller in terms of overall tons.
Number of Passengers
Norwegian Escape holds 24% fewer passengers than the Icon of the Seas based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you look at the "Space Ratio," or the total tonnage of a ship compared to the number of passengers, the Escape has less space per person compared to the Icon of the Seas.
The Icon of the Seas uses a neighborhood layout to break up large crowds across the ship, often making it feel less crowded.
| Norwegian Escape | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Breakaway Plus | Icon |
| Gross Tonnage | 165,157 | 250,800 |
| Length | 1,069 | 1,198 |
| Beam/Width | 179 | 216 |
| Passenger Decks | 15 | 18 |
| Passengers (double occupancy) | 4,266 | 5,610 |
| Crew | 1,733 | 2,350 |
| Passenger to Crew Ratio | 2.5 | 2.4 |
| Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 39 | 45 |
Food and Restaurants
Food is a big part of any cruise, and the ship you choose can make a huge difference in your food experience.
The Escape has nineteen different dining options like Main Dining Room, Food Republic, and Garden Cafe. Of those options, ten are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other sixteen options have an additional fee.
The Icon of the Seas has four more dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Pearl Cafe, Izumi in the Park, and Basecamp. fifteen of these restaurants are complementary and the other fourteen have an additional fee.
If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Icon of the Seas might be a better choice. It has 21% more dining options than the Escape.
If you're looking to avoid extra money while on board, the Icon of the Seas might be a better choice then the Escape. More of the dining options are included in the base cruise fare, potentially saving you money.
| Norwegian Escape | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Dining Options | 19 | 23 |
| Complimentary Dining Options: | 10 | 15 |
| Additional Fee Dining Options: | 16 | 14 |
| % of Included Options | 16% | 39% |
| See the options | See the options |
Bars and Drinks
The Norwegian Escape has 10 fewer bars than the Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas. The Escape has 16 bars like Mixx Bar, O'Sheehan's Bar & Grill and Waves Pool Bar. On Escape, you can grab a drink at 26 different bars such as Basecamp Bar, Desserted Milkshake Bar and The Lime & Coconut: Frozen.
| Norwegian Escape | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas |
|---|---|
| •Atrium Bar • Cellars Wine Bar • District Brew House • Headliners Comedy Club • Mixx Bar • O'Sheehan's Bar & Grill • Pincho Tapas Bar • Pour House • Prime Meridian Bar • Skyline Bar • Spice H2O • Sugarcane Mojito Bar • The Haven Bar • Tobacco Road • Vibe Beach Club Bar • Waves Pool Bar | •1400 Lobby Bar • Basecamp Bar • Boleros • Bubbles • Cantina Fresca • Casino Bar • Desserted Milkshake Bar • Dueling Pianos • English Pub • Giovanni's Wine Bar • Lou's Jazz 'N Blues • Music Hall • Playmakers • Rye & Bean • Schooner Bar • Spotlight Karaoke • Swim & Tonic • The Attic • The Grove Bar • The Hideaway Bar • The Lemon Post • The Lime & Coconut • The Lime & Coconut: Frozen • The Overlook • Trellis Bar • Windjammer Bar |
In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. Both ships serve the Coca-cola family of products. That means Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barqs Root Beer, although the selection can vary by ship. Most Royal Caribbean ships also have Coke Freestyle machines where you can make 100 different flavor combinations.
You can check out recent the bar menus for the Escape and the Icon of the Seas below.
Pools and Hot Tubs
Nothing beats relaxing by a pool with a nice drink in hand as you feel the fresh sea breeze pass by you. The Norwegian Escape has a total of 4 pools and 10 hot tubs. 1 of the pools and 4 of the hot tubs are exclusive access, which means there's either an extra charge to access them or you need to book a certain class of cabin to have access to them.
Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas has more pools than the Escape and fewer hot tubs. There are fewer exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Icon of the Seas. If you like ships without extra charges or exclusive areas, this might be a better choice since everyone will have access to these areas.
Tired of loud kids and splashing? One of the pools and two of the hot tubs are adults only on Escape.| Norwegian Escape | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Pools | 4 | 7 |
| Pools - General Access | 2 | 5 |
| Pools - Adults Only | 1 | 1 |
| Pools - Exclusive | 1 | 1 |
| Total Hot Tubs | 10 | 9 |
| Hot Tubs - General Access | 4 | 7 |
| Hot Tubs - Adults Only | 2 | 1 |
| Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 4 | 1 |
Ship Features and Activities
Both ships have lots of activities to keep you busy throughout your cruise. Below you'll see a list of some of the major features on these ships. You might up paying more while on board the Escape. Only 60% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Icon of the Seas, 80% of the activities are included at no additional cost.
| Norwegian Escape | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Only Relaxation Area | ✗ | ✓ |
| Adult Only Relaxation Area (extra fee) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Adult Only Relaxation Area (free) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Aquatheater | ✗ | ✓ |
| Arcade | ✓ | ✓ |
| Basketball | ✗ | ✓ |
| Carousel | ✗ | ✓ |
| Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
| Climbing Wall | ✗ | ✓ |
| Comedy Club | ✓ | ✓ |
| Escape Room | ✓ | ✓ |
| Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
| FlowRider | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ice Skating | ✗ | ✓ |
| Laser Tag | ✗ | ✓ |
| Mini golf | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ropes course | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shows - Broadway play | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shows - musical review | ✓ | ✓ |
| Spa | ✓ | ✓ |
| Splash park | ✗ | ✓ |
| Sports Square | ✓ | ✗ |
| Thermal Suites | ✓ | ✗ |
| Water slides | ✓ | ✗ |
| Waterpark | ✗ | ✓ |
| Learn more | Learn more |
Cruise Costs
Norwegian and Royal Caribbean are both considered "Mainstream" cruise lines. Mainstream cruise lines cater to a variety of guests, hoping to provide something for everyone. These typically cost about $100 - $350 per person per day.
Cruise pricing is dynamic and varies for each specific sailing based on factors such as departure point, ports of call, and time of year. Typically newer ships cost more, so a cruise on Norwegian Escape will likely be cheaper than on Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas.
Onboard Costs
Another way to gauge the cost of a cruise is to consider how much you'll spend on board. Even though a lot is included in the base cruise fare, you may still spend money on things like spa treatments, specialty dining, drinks, and excursions. In addition, guests can also have to pay for things like gratuities and tips.
Typically guests can expect to spend about 25 - 40% of the cost of the cruise on onboard expenses. In other words, if the cruise fare is $1,000 per person, you might spend between $250 and $400 on extra expenses.
The table below will help you compare onboard prices to see if you might spend more on a specific ship.
| Norwegian Escape | Royal Caribbean Icon of the Seas | |
|---|---|---|
| Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day) | $20.00 | $18.50 |
| Tip added to drinks & services | 20% | 18% |
| Soda Price | $3.50 | $3.50 |
| Domestic Beer Price | $7.50 See drink menus | $8.25 See drink menus |
| Drink Package Price | 106 Learn more | $77 - $118 Learn more |
| Internet Plan | $29.99 - $39.99 per cabin per day, with $5 for each extra device | $19 to $30 per device per day |
| *Daily gratuities for a standard cabin. Suites or specialty rooms may have higher rates. | ||
Norwegian Cruise Line offers a More at Sea fare. Through this program, guests receive open bar, a discount on excursions, some free internet, and some meals at specialty restaurants. If you book using this promotion, you'll be responsible for the gratuities on the dining and drink package. If you won't be using these options, booking a "sail away" rate that doesn't include the More at Sea benefits is considerably cheaper. Also, most of these benefits are the base packages; you can spend more to upgrade to better alcoholic drinks or faster/more wifi.
Royal Caribbean uses dynamic pricing, which means the pricing for many things will vary per sailing. The daily gratuities and tip are consistent across the fleet, but the pricing for the drink package, internet, and excursions will change. The only way to know your price is to consult the Royal Caribbean cruise planner once you're booked.
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