Norwegian Spirit vs Norwegian Jewel

The Norwegian Spirit was built in 1998. It was renovated in 2022. It's 7 years older than the Jewel, which was built in 2005 and renovated in 2022.

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 Spirit is considered a small size ship. Coming in at 880 feet long and 126 feet wide, it's roughly the length of 2.4 football fields, as wide as 2.4 tractor-trailers and the same height as a 9-story building. Compared to the Norwegian Jewel, the Spirit is 19% smaller in terms of overall tons.

Number of Passengers

Norwegian Spirit holds 13% fewer passengers than the Jewel 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 Spirit has less space per person compared to the Jewel.

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 Spirit has 18 different dining options like Onda by Scarpetta, Teppanyaki, and Cagney's Steakhouse. Of those options, 10 are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other 7 options have an additional fee.

The Jewel has the same number of dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Main Dining Room, Topsiders Bar & Grill, and Le Bistro French. 10 of these restaurants are complementary and the other 7 have an additional fee.

The Norwegian Spirit has about the same number of dining options as the Norwegian Jewel.

Both ships have a similar number of paid versus included dining options.

Restaurants on Norwegian Spirit & Jewel

Bars and Drinks

The Norwegian Spirit has 3 fewer bars than the Norwegian Jewel.

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 Spirit and the Jewel 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 problem is that with thousands of people on a ship, there's not always room. If you want to spend all day for 7 days in a pool, a cruise isn't for you. You would have a much better bet choosing a resort with a huge pool complex. That being said, a quick dip in the pool can be nice on a hot day.

The Norwegian Spirit has a total of 2 pools and 4 hot tubs.

Norwegian Jewel has more pools than the Spirit and more hot tubs. There are more exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Jewel. If you don't mind paying for exclusive access to areas in order to have less crowds, this might be a better choice.

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 both ships, 60% of the activities below are included in your cruise fare.

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 Spirit will likely be cheaper than on Norwegian Jewel.

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 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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