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Norwegian Jade vs Norwegian Encore
The Norwegian Jade was built in 2006. It was renovated in 2017. It's 13 years older than the Encore, which was built in 2019 and renovated in 2024.
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 Jade is considered a small size ship. Coming in at 965 feet long and 125 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 2.7 football fields, as wide as 2.4 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 11-story building. Compared to the Norwegian Encore, the Jade is 44% smaller in terms of overall tons.
Number of Passengers
Norwegian Jade holds 40% fewer passengers than the Encore 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 Jade has less space per person compared to the Encore.
| Norwegian Jade | Norwegian Encore | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Jewel | Breakaway Plus |
| Gross Tonnage | 93,558 | 167,800 |
| Length | 965 | 1,094 |
| Beam/Width | 125 | 136 |
| Passenger Decks | 11 | 15 |
| Passengers (double occupancy) | 2,402 | 3,998 |
| Crew | 1,307 | 1,735 |
| Passenger to Crew Ratio | 1.8 | 2.3 |
| Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 39 | 42 |
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 Jade has fourteen different dining options like Main Dining Room, Teppanyaki, and La Cucina Italian. Of those options, eleven are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other eight options have an additional fee.
The Encore has one more dining venues. Some of its popular venues are American Diner, Teppanyaki, and Palomar. ten of these restaurants are complementary and the other thirteen have an additional fee.
The Norwegian Jade has about the same number of dining options as the Norwegian Encore.
If you're looking to avoid extra money while on board, the Jade might be a better choice then the Encore. More of the dining options are included in the base cruise fare, potentially saving you money.
Restaurants on Norwegian Jade & Encore
| Restaurant | Norwegian Jade |
Norwegian Encore |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Included | |||
| American Diner | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Garden Cafe | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Jasmine Garden | ✓ | ✗ | |
| Main Dining Room | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
| O'Sheehan's Neighborhood Bar & Grill | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
| The Great Outdoors | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
| The Local | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| The Pit Stop | ✓ | ✗ | |
| Topsiders Bar & Grill | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
| A la carte | |||
| Atrium Cafe | ✓ | ✗ | |
| Dolce Gelato | ✗ | ✓ | |
| Starbucks | ✗ | ✓ | |
| The Bake Shop | ✗ | ✓ | |
| Flat fee | |||
| Cagney's Steakhouse | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Food Republic | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| La Cucina Italian | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
| Le Bistro French | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Moderno Churrascaria | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
| Onda by Scarpetta | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Palomar | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Q Texas Smokehouse | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Sushi Bar | ✓ | ✗ | Learn More |
| Teppanyaki | ✓ | ✓ | Learn More |
| Exclusive (open to select guests only) | |||
| The Haven | ✗ | ✓ | Learn More |
Bars and Drinks
The Norwegian Jade has 4 fewer bars than the Norwegian Encore.
| Norwegian Jade | Norwegian Encore | |
|---|---|---|
| A-List Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Atrium Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Bliss Ultra Lounge | ✓ | ✗ |
| Casino Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Cellars Wine Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| District Brew House | ✗ | ✓ |
| Great Outdoors Cafe | ✓ | ✗ |
| Java Cafe | ✓ | ✗ |
| Magnum's Champagne & Wine Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Maltings Beer & Whiskey Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Mixers Martini & Cocktail Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Mixx Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Observation Lounge Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Sake Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Skyline Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| Social Comedy & Night Club | ✗ | ✓ |
| Spinnaker Lounge | ✓ | ✗ |
| Starbucks | ✗ | ✓ |
| Sugarcane Mojito Bar | ✓ | ✓ |
| Tankards Beer & Whiskey Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| The Cavern Club | ✗ | ✓ |
| The Haven Bar* | ✗ | ✓ |
| The Local Bar | ✗ | ✓ |
| The Pit Stop | ✓ | ✗ |
| Topside Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Vibe Beach Club Bar* | ✗ | ✓ |
| Waves Pool 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.
You can check out recent the bar menus for the Jade and the Encore 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 Jade has a total of 3 pools and 5 hot tubs. 1 of the pools and 1 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.
The Norwegian Encore has the same number of pools as the Jade and more hot tubs. There are more exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Encore. If you don't mind paying for exclusive access to areas in order to have less crowds, this might be a better choice.
Tired of loud kids and splashing? One of the pools are adults only on Jade.| Norwegian Jade | Norwegian Encore | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Pools | 3 | 3 |
| Pools - General Access | 1 | 1 |
| Pools - Adults Only | 1 | 1 |
| Pools - Exclusive | 1 | 1 |
| Total Hot Tubs | 5 | 9 |
| Hot Tubs - General Access | 4 | 4 |
| Hot Tubs - Adults Only | 0 | |
| Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 1 | 5 |
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. On the Jade, 60% of the activities below are included in the cruise fare. On the Encore, only 57% of the activities are included, meaning you might spend more money while on board.
| Norwegian Jade | Norwegian Encore | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Only Relaxation Area (extra fee) | ✗ | ✓ |
| Adult Only Relaxation Area (free) | ✗ | ✓ |
| Arcade | ✓ | ✗ |
| Basketball | ✓ | ✗ |
| Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cigar Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Comedy Club | ✗ | ✓ |
| Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
| Jogging Track | ✓ | ✗ |
| Observation Lounge | ✗ | ✓ |
| Race Track | ✗ | ✓ |
| Shows - Broadway play | ✗ | ✓ |
| Shows - musical review | ✓ | ✓ |
| Spa | ✓ | ✓ |
| Splash park | ✗ | ✓ |
| Thermal Suites | ✓ | ✓ |
| Virtual Arcade | ✗ | ✓ |
| Water slides | ✓ | ✓ |
| Learn more | Learn more |
Cruise Costs
Norwegian is a mainstream cruise line. 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 Jade will likely be cheaper than on Norwegian Encore.
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 understand what you might spend onboard a Norwegian ship.
| Norwegian | |
|---|---|
| Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day) | $20.00 |
| Tip added to drinks & services | 20% |
| Soda Price | $3.50 |
| Domestic Beer Price | $7.50 See drink menus |
| Drink Package Price | 106 Learn more |
| Internet Plan | $29.99 - $39.99 per cabin per day, with $5 for each extra device |
| *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.
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