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Norwegian Prima vs Carnival Encounter
The Norwegian Prima was built in 2022. The Prima is the first of six in a brand-new class of ship. It's 20 years newer than the Encounter, which was built in 2002 and renovated in 2025. The Carnival Encounter is a rebranded ship, previously sailing as Star Princess with Princess Cruises and the Pacific Encounter for P&O Australia. It has been brought into the Carnival family and they added things like the HUB app and Camp Ocean, but it missing several key Carnival elements. For example, they charge for pizza outside of lunch hours and there is no complimentary soft serve ice cream or burgers.
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
- See Our Detailed Cruise Blog
Ship Size
The Prima is considered a medium size ship. Coming in at 965 feet long and 133 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 2.7 football fields, as wide as 2.5 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 15-story building. Compared to the Carnival Encounter, the Prima is 32% larger in terms of overall tons.
Number of Passengers
Norwegian Prima holds 18% more passengers than the Encounter based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you compare the total tonnage of the ship to the number of passengers, or what we call the "Space Ratio," the Prima has more space per person compared to the Encounter. This means that you might have a bit more space to yourself on the ship, although there still could be some crowded areas like buffets, pools, etc.
| Norwegian Prima | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Prima | Adventure |
| Gross Tonnage | 143,535 | 108,865 |
| Length | 965 | 951 |
| Beam/Width | 133 | 118 |
| Passenger Decks | 15 | 14 |
| Passengers (double occupancy) | 3,099 | 2,636 |
| Crew | 1,506 | 1,100 |
| Passenger to Crew Ratio | 2.1 | 2.4 |
| Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 46 | 41 |
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 Prima has seventeen different dining options like Hasuki, Surfside Cafe, and Indulge Food Hall. Of those options, six are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other twelve options have an additional fee.
The Encounter has seven fewer dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Dragon Lady, Waterfront Restaurant, and Angelo's. six of these restaurants are complementary and the other five have an additional fee.
If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Prima might be a better choice. It has 70% more dining options than the Encounter.
If you're looking to avoid extra money while on board, the Encounter might be a better choice then the Prima. More of the dining options are included in the base cruise fare, potentially saving you money.
| Norwegian Prima | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Dining Options | 17 | 10 |
| Complimentary Dining Options: | 6 | 6 |
| Additional Fee Dining Options: | 12 | 5 |
| % of Included Options | 29% | 50% |
| See the options | See the options |
In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. The Prima 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 Encounter serves the Pepsi family of products. That means Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Starry, Mug Root Beer, and Mountain Dew.
There are also plenty of bars available on these ships. You can check out recent the bar menus for the Prima and the Encounter 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 Prima has a total of 4 pools and 6 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.
The Carnival Encounter has the same number of pools as the Prima and more hot tubs. There are fewer exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Encounter. If you like ships without extra charges or exclusive areas, this might be a better choice since everyone will have access to these areas.
| Norwegian Prima | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Pools | 4 | 4 |
| Pools - General Access | 3 | 2 |
| Pools - Adults Only | 1 | |
| Pools - Exclusive | 1 | 1 |
| Total Hot Tubs | 6 | 8 |
| Hot Tubs - General Access | 2 | 6 |
| Hot Tubs - Adults Only | ||
| Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 4 | 2 |
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 Prima. Only 47% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare. On the Encounter, 60% of the activities are included at no additional cost.
| Norwegian Prima | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Only Relaxation Area | ✗ | ✓ |
| Adult Only Relaxation Area (extra fee) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Arcade | ✗ | ✓ |
| Basketball | ✗ | ✓ |
| Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cigar Lounge | ✓ | ✗ |
| Comedy Club | ✓ | ✓ |
| Dart Lounge | ✓ | ✗ |
| Dr Seuss Breakfast | ✗ | ✓ |
| Edge Adventure Park | ✗ | ✓ |
| Escape Room | ✓ | ✗ |
| Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
| Golf Simulator | ✓ | ✗ |
| Mini golf | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pool-side Movies | ✗ | ✓ |
| Race Track | ✓ | ✗ |
| Shows - musical review | ✓ | ✗ |
| Spa | ✓ | ✗ |
| Splash park | ✓ | ✗ |
| Thermal Suites | ✓ | ✗ |
| Thrill Slide | ✓ | ✗ |
| Virtual Arcade | ✓ | ✗ |
| Water slides | ✓ | ✓ |
| Learn more | Learn more |
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 Prima will likely be more expensive than on Carnival Encounter.
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 Prima | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Base Daily Gratuities* (Per Person Per Day) | $20.00 | $16.00 |
| Tip added to drinks & services | 20% | 18% |
| Soda Price | $3.50 | $3.00 |
| Domestic Beer Price | $7.50 See drink menus | $8.75 See drink menus |
| Drink Package Price | 106 Learn more | $83 - $88 Learn more |
| Internet Plan | $29.99 - $39.99 per cabin per day, with $5 for each extra device | $18.70 to $23.80 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.
We sailed aboard the Norwegian Prima
Follow along on our sailing on the Norwegian Prima. We take you through every aspect of our sailing, from getting to the port to debarking the ship. See the schedule of events, menus, what excursions we did, and what we really thought about the ship.
Norwegian Prima - Cruise Blog - Day 1 - NYC
Norwegian Prima - Cruise Blog - Day 2 - Sea Day
Norwegian Prima - Cruise Blog - Day 3 - Halifax
Norwegian Prima - Cruise Blog - Day 4 - Final Sea Day
5 Hits and Misses on the Norwegian Prima
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