Norwegian Viva vs Norwegian Prima

The Norwegian Viva is a fairly new ship, being built in 2023. It's 1 year newer than the Prima, which was built in 2022. The Prima is the first of six in a brand-new class of ship.

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 Viva 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. The Viva and the Prima are in the same class, which means they're sister ships. For the most part, they're similar in terms of size and layout; although they may have different features and attractions on board.

Number of Passengers

Norwegian Viva holds about the same number of passengers as the Prima 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 Viva has the same amount of space per person as the Prima.

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 Viva has sixteen different dining options like Le Bistro French, Hasuki, and Indulge Food Hall. Of those options, six are complementary, or included with your cruise fare. The other eleven options have an additional fee.

The Prima has one more dining venues. Some of its popular venues are Hudsons, Los Lobos, and Palomar. six of these restaurants are complementary and the other twelve have an additional fee.

The Norwegian Viva has about the same number of dining options as the Norwegian Prima.

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

Restaurants on Norwegian Viva & Prima

Bars and Drinks

The Norwegian Viva has 1 fewer bar than the Norwegian Prima.

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 Viva and the Prima 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 Viva 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 Norwegian Prima has the same number of pools as the Viva and the same number of 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. On the Viva, 53% of the activities below are included in the cruise fare. On the Prima, only 47% of the activities are included, meaning you might spend more money while on board.

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.

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 Viva and Norwegian Prima

We sailed aboard both of these ships. Follow along on our sailings at the links below. 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 ships.

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Pre-cruise – Athens

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 1 – Athens

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 2 – Santorini

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 3 – Kusadasi

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 4 – Istanbul

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 5 – Mykonos

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 6 – Sea Day

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 7 – Messina

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 8 – Naples

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 9 – Florence

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 10 – Nice

Norwegian Viva – Cruise Blog - Day 11 – Rome

5 Hits and Misses on Norwegian Viva

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

Norwegian Prima Bar Menus

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