Norwegian Star vs Norwegian Gem

The Norwegian Star was built in 2001. It was renovated in 2024. It's 6 years older than the Gem, which was built in 2007 and renovated in 2015.

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 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. It's about the same size as the Norwegian Gem.

Number of Passengers

Norwegian Star holds about the same number of passengers as the Gem based on double occupancy (two people per room). When you look at the "Space Ratio," or tons of ship compared to number of passengers, the Star has the same amount of space per person as the Gem.

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 Teppanyaki, Sushi Bar, and Moderno Churrascaria. Of those options, nine are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other eight options have an additional fee.

The Gem has two more dining venues. Some of its popular venues are The Great Outdoors, Topsiders Bar & Grill, and Moderno Churrascaria. twelve of these restaurants are complementary and the other eight have an additional fee.

If you like having a variety of places to eat, the Gem might be a better choice. It has 17% more dining options than the Star.

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

Restaurants on Norwegian Star & Gem

Bars and Drinks

The Norwegian Star has 6 fewer bars than the Norwegian Gem.

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 Star and the Gem 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.

Norwegian Gem has more pools than the Star and the same number of hot tubs. There are more exclusive pools and hot tubs on the Gem. 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, 64% 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 Star will likely be cheaper than on Norwegian Gem.

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.

We sailed aboard the Norwegian Star

Follow along on our sailing on the Norwegian Star. 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.

Celebrity Apex – Cruise Blog - Day 7 – Sea Day

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