Norwegian Pride of America vs Carnival Legend

The Norwegian Pride of America was built in 2005. It was renovated in 2016. It's 3 years newer than the Legend, which was built in 2002 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 Pride of America is considered a small size ship. Coming in at 920 feet long and 120 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 2.6 football fields, as wide as 2.3 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 10-story building. Compared to the Carnival Legend, the Pride of America is 9% smaller in terms of overall tons.

Number of Passengers

Norwegian Pride of America holds about the same number of passengers as the Legend 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 Pride of America has less space per person compared to the Legend.

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 Pride of America has twenty different dining options like La Cucina Italian, Teppanyaki, and Sushi Bar. Of those options, nine are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other ten options have an additional fee.

The Legend has four fewer dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Blue Iguana Cantina, Guy's Burger Joint, and Pizza Pirate. twelve of these restaurants are complementary and the other four have an additional fee.

If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Pride of America might be a better choice. It has 25% more dining options than the Legend.

If you're looking to avoid extra money while on board, the Legend might be a better choice then the Pride of America. More of the dining options are included in the base cruise fare, potentially saving you money.

Bars and Drinks

The Norwegian Pride of America has 2 fewer bars than the Carnival Legend. The Pride of America has 9 bars like John Adams Coffee Bar, Ocean Drive Bar and Pink's Champagne Bar. On Pride of America, you can grab a drink at 11 different bars such as Atrium Bar, Legends' Cafe and Odyssey Lounge.

In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. The Pride of America serves Coca Cola branded products. That includes drinks like Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite and Barqs Root Beer, although the selection can vary by ship. The Legend serves the Pepsi family of products. That means Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Starry, Mug Root Beer, and Mountain Dew.

You can check out recent the bar menus for the Pride of America and the Legend 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 Pride of America has a total of 2 pools and 4 hot tubs.

Carnival Legend has more pools than the Pride of America and fewer hot tubs.

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 Pride of America. Only 57% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Legend, 69% of the activities are included at no additional cost.

Cruise Costs

Norwegian and Carnival 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 Pride of America will likely be more expensive than on Carnival Legend.

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 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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