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Norwegian Star vs Carnival Encounter
The Norwegian Star was built in 2001. It was renovated in 2024. It's 1 year older 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
Ship Size
The Star 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 12-story building. Compared to the Carnival Encounter, the Star is 16% smaller in terms of overall tons.
Number of Passengers
Norwegian Star holds 11% fewer passengers than the Encounter 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 Star has less space per person compared to the Encounter.
| Norwegian Star | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Dawn | Adventure |
| Gross Tonnage | 91,740 | 108,865 |
| Length | 965 | 951 |
| Beam/Width | 125 | 118 |
| Passenger Decks | 12 | 14 |
| Passengers (double occupancy) | 2,348 | 2,636 |
| Crew | 1,031 | 1,100 |
| Passenger to Crew Ratio | 2.3 | 2.4 |
| Space Ratio (tons of ship per passenger) | 39 | 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 Star has twelve different dining options like Sushi Bar, Teppanyaki, and La Cucina Italian. Of those options, nine are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other eight options have an additional fee.
The Encounter has two fewer dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Angelo's, Waterfront Restaurant, and Dragon Lady. 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 Star might be a better choice. It has 20% 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 Star. More of the dining options are included in the base cruise fare, potentially saving you money.
| Norwegian Star | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Dining Options | 12 | 10 |
| Complimentary Dining Options: | 9 | 6 |
| Additional Fee Dining Options: | 8 | 5 |
| % of Included Options | 33% | 50% |
| See the options | See the options |
In terms of drinks and cocktails, you have a variety of choices. The Star 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 Star 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 Star has a total of 2 pools and 5 hot tubs. 1 of the pools 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.
Carnival Encounter has more pools than the Star and more hot tubs. There are more exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Encounter. If you don't mind paying for exclusive access to areas in order to have less crowds, this might be a better choice.
| Norwegian Star | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Pools | 2 | 4 |
| Pools - General Access | 1 | 2 |
| Pools - Adults Only | 1 | |
| Pools - Exclusive | 1 | 1 |
| Total Hot Tubs | 5 | 8 |
| Hot Tubs - General Access | 5 | 6 |
| Hot Tubs - Adults Only | ||
| Hot Tubs - Exclusive | 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. On the Star, 64% of the activities below are included in the cruise fare. On the Encounter, only 60% of the activities are included, meaning you might spend more money while on board.
| Norwegian Star | Carnival Encounter | |
|---|---|---|
| Adult Only Relaxation Area | ✗ | ✓ |
| Adult Only Relaxation Area (free) | ✓ | ✗ |
| Arcade | ✓ | ✓ |
| Basketball | ✓ | ✓ |
| Casino | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cigar Bar | ✓ | ✗ |
| Comedy Club | ✗ | ✓ |
| Dr Seuss Breakfast | ✗ | ✓ |
| Edge Adventure Park | ✗ | ✓ |
| Fitness Center | ✓ | ✓ |
| Jogging Track | ✓ | ✗ |
| Pool-side Movies | ✗ | ✓ |
| Shows - musical review | ✓ | ✗ |
| Spa | ✓ | ✗ |
| Splash park | ✓ | ✗ |
| Thermal Suites | ✓ | ✗ |
| 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.
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 Star | 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.
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