With a new year always comes change, and NCL has recently announced quite a few. If you’re finding it difficult to keep track, we detail the five big changes coming to Norwegian Cruise Line in 2025 and what they mean for your upcoming cruise. This way, you can plan appropriately.
Changes Coming to Norwegian Cruise Line in 2025
No More Free at Sea
If you’ve cruised with NCL before then you are probably familiar with the popular Free at Sea promotion. This promotion basically gave cruisers a number of “free” perks when booking based on their cabin category and length of sailing. These perks often included a drink package, specialty dining, WiFi, and shore excursion credit.
Well, one of the Norwegian Cruise Line changes coming in 2025 is the elimination of Free at Sea. Don’t worry though, it’s being replaced with the very similar More at Sea. Norwegian’s More at Sea applies to all cruises booked on or after 10/1/2024 for sailings January 1, 2025 and beyond.
More at Sea still includes an unlimited open bar, specialty dining, WiFi, shore excursion credit, free 3rd and 4th guest, and free airfare for 2nd guest on select sailings. But, there are a few differences between the two packages. These differences mainly apply to the open bar, specialty dining, and WiFi perks.
With the open bar, guests can now get more premium spirits as there is no longer a $15 drink limit. In terms of the specialty dining, guests may actually get more credits depending on the length of their sailing. And, all guests in the stateroom now receive WiFi minutes as opposed to just guest 1 & 2.
However, it will cost you more as well! Instead of paying the 20% service charge on these packages, guests will now pay a flat fee.
For the free open bar, the fees are as follows:
- $30 per person, per day for 1-7 nights
- $27 per person, per day for 8-11 nights
- $23 per person, per day for 12+ nights
For the specialty dining credits, the fees are as follows for Studio, Inside, and Oceanview staterooms:
- 3-7 nights – 1 meal, plus $20 fee
- 8-11 nights – 2 meals, plus $40 fee
- 12+ nights – 3 meals, plus $60 fee
The fees for Balcony and above staterooms are as follows:
- 3 nights – 1 meal, plus $20 fee
- 4-6 nights – 2 meals, plus $40 fee
- 7 nights – 3 meals, plus $60 fee
- 8-11 nights – 4 meals, plus $80 fee
- 12+ nights – 5 meals, plus $100 fee
Get a FULL breakdown of Norwegian’s More at Sea in our complete guide!
Changes to Drink Packages
Another one of the big Norwegian Cruise Line changes coming in 2025 has to do with drink packages. And we’re not too happy about this one!
It is true that the Premium drink package, or the unlimited open bar that comes with More at Sea, has been enhanced. NCL boasts that it will include 45% more premium brands, and there is also no more $15 beverage cap. Guests will also receive 20% off bottles of champagne and wine, Wine and Spirit Experiences, tastings or Flights purchased on board, along with unlimited soft drinks and juices.
However, bottled water and specialty coffee are still NOT part of this package. And the worst part is that guests no longer have the option to upgrade. Norwegian Cruise Line is eliminating its Premium Plus beverage package and its Free at Sea Plus upgrade option.
With the popular Free at Sea Plus, guests could upgrade their free perks to a more premium level for $49 per person, per day. This included unlimited WiFi, a Premium Plus beverage package, additional specialty dining, and additional shore excursion credit. This is the option we always chose because we drink a lot of bottled water and specialty coffee. Plus, the free WiFi minutes don’t go very far.
In 2025, guests will have to purchase separate WiFi plans, Starbucks packages, and/or bottled water delivered to their staterooms when cruising with NCL. Honestly, we’ve never understood why Norwegian Cruise Line is the ONLY cruise line that doesn’t include bottled water in its drink packages.
No More Specialty Dining Packages
Not only are there changes coming to drink packages in 2025, there are also changes to Norwegian Cruise Line’s specialty dining packages. In fact, the cruise line is doing away with dining packages completely!
Let’s first start by saying that there have been some enhancements made to the specialty dining inclusion with More at Sea. For example, guests sailing in a balcony or above stateroom now get three specialty dining meals on 7-night cruises vs. two with Free at Sea. Guests can also order up to three appetizers and desserts for no additional fees. Extra entree charges will still apply.
And, there are several complimentary dining options that are already part of the Norwegian cruise fare.
However, guests will no longer be able to purchase additional specialty dining nights to supplement those meals received with More at Sea.
Guests who would like to dine at specialty restaurants beyond the number of dining nights included with the More at Sea (or guests who are not taking advantage of More At Sea) can eat at specialty restaurants by paying the cover charge at the respective restaurants.
Pricing Changes at Specialty Restaurants
The good (and bad) news is that the pricing at specialty restaurants is another one of the Norwegian Cruise Line changes coming in 2025.
Norwegian Cruise Line is reverting back to flat fee cover charges instead of its current a la carte pricing at specialty restaurants. For most guests and restaurants, this is probably an advantage. More in line with other cruise lines, guests will now pay a set fee for appetizers, one entree, and desserts instead of worrying about racking up a huge bill.
On the flip side, guests will no longer be able to “snack” at more casual restaurants like Food Republic, Los Lobos, or Q Texas Smokehouse as they’ll need to pay the same cover charge per person regardless of how much they order.
The new cover charges for NCL specialty restaurants starting in 2025 are as follows:
- Steak, Teppanyaki, French, and Seafood have a $60 cover charge.
- Brazil, Asian, Food Republic, and Sushi have a $50 cover charge.
- Italian, BBQ, Pincho, and Mexican have a $40 cover charge.
Launch of Norwegian Aqua With New-to-Fleet Features
While we may not be happy about some of the other NCL changes in 2025, new cruise ships are always a good thing!
NCL is adding another ship to its fleet in the new year, Norwegian Aqua, debuting in April 2025. This 156K gross ton ship is the first in NCL’s Prima Plus class, with sister ships Norwegian Prima, Norwegian Viva, and Norwegian Luna (2026). Norwegian Aqua will feature an enhanced pool deck, a more spacious Vibe Beach Club, the largest Haven complex at sea, and so much more.
Norwegian Aqua will be home to some firsts at sea as well as some relocated and redesigned spaces. Perhaps the most exciting new addition to Norwegian Aqua is the world’s first hybrid rollercoaster and waterslide, the Aqua Slidecoaster. The Aqua Slidecoaster will be the longest and fastest slides at sea.
The ship will also feature a new Glow Court and Game Zone, now complimentary Bull’s Eye dart games alongside a new bar, a 2-level Tee Time mini golf course, an expanded Stadium and pickleball court, and The Drop slide.
When it comes to dining, Norwegian Aqua will feature a few new-to-fleet venues. Sukhothai is NCL’s first-ever Thai specialty restaurant, and Planterie will make its debut in the Indulge Food Hall. All of the other popular specialty restaurants will also return to Norwegian Aqua, with some in new locations though.
The sustainable Metropolitan Bar has also been redesigned to accommodate a piano and live musical performances. Further, the Whiskey Bar and Belvedere Bar will swap locations. Moving from Deck 8 in the Penrose Atrium, the Whiskey Bar will shift down to a more out-of-the-way location on Deck 6. This will allow the bar to focus on delivering refined spirits.
To round out its offerings, Norwegian Aqua will debut some brand-new entertainment too. Revolution: A Celebration of Prince is a concert-like experience celebrating the music of this iconic artist. The second signature production reimagined for Norwegian Aqua is Elements: The World Expanded. There will also be parties, The Price is Right LIVE on NCL game show, and Syd Norman’s Presents: Rumours in the theater, and an expanded comedy club to name to few.
To learn more about Norwegian Aqua , see our first look live from the shipyard!
Comments
What do you think of the Norwegian Cruise Line changes coming in 2025? Do you think these changes are for the better or worse? Drop us an anchor below to share your thoughts.
