Norwegian Cruise Line vs Marella Cruises
A detailed side-by-side comparison of Norwegian Cruise Line and Marella Cruises covering ratings, fleet size, food quality, entertainment, value for money, and available sailings from UK ports. Updated for 2026.
The head-to-head
Ratings are based on aggregated passenger reviews, editorial analysis, and expert scoring. The cobalt outline marks the stronger line for each attribute.
Who should choose which?
Every cruise line has its strengths and weaknesses. Here is an honest look at who each line is best suited for, based on passenger feedback and our editorial assessment.
Choose Norwegian Cruise Line if you want…
- Flexible, no-rules cruising
- Solo travellers (studio cabins)
- Broadway entertainment
- Modern ship design
Norwegian Cruise Line may not suit you if…
- Those wanting traditional cruise formality
- Budget travellers
- UK-departure-only preference
Choose Marella Cruises if you want…
- All-inclusive simplicity
- First-time cruisers
- Budget-conscious families
- Regional UK airport departures
Marella Cruises may not suit you if…
- Luxury seekers
- Food enthusiasts
- Those wanting UK port departures (fly-cruise only)
Ships at a glance
A quick comparison of each line's fleet including passenger capacity, tonnage, and year of launch.
Norwegian Cruise Line Fleet (19 ships)
Norwegian Prima
Built 2022 · 3,215 guests
Norwegian Viva
Built 2023 · 3,215 guests
Marella Cruises Fleet (5 ships)
Marella Explorer
Built 2018 · 1,924 guests
Marella Explorer 2
Built 2019 · 1,814 guests
Available cruises
Current sailings from both cruise lines. Prices shown are per person based on two sharing the lowest-grade cabin available.
Norwegian Cruise Line Sailings
9 NIGHTS4-night Orlando & 5-night Caribbean & Great Stirrup Cay
Ports: Caribbean · Great Stirrup Cay
Save 3%13 NIGHTS2-night Lisbon & 11-night Canaries, Madeira, Oporto voyage to Southampton
Ports: Lisbon · Las Palmas · Santa Cruz De Tenerife · Santa Cruz de la Palma · Funchal · Oporto (Leixoes)
11 NIGHTS1-night Lisbon & 11-night Canaries, Madeira, Oporto Voyage to Southampton
Hot deal15 NIGHTSAsia Voyage with Tokyo & Seoul Stay
Ports: Yokohama · Shimizu · Nagoya · Kobe · Kochi · Hiroshima
11 NIGHTS7-night Universal Orlando & 4-night Great Stirrup Cay & Nassau
12 NIGHTS7-night Universal Studios & 5-night Caribbean & Great Stirrup Cay
9 NIGHTS2-night Los Angeles & 7-night Mexican Riviera
12 NIGHTS7-night Universal Studios & 5-night Caribbean & Great Stirrup Cay
19 NIGHTSNew Year Thailand & Philippines fr. Hong Kong to Singapore with Stay
17 NIGHTSSingapore, Thailand & Vietnam to Hong Kong with Stays
11 NIGHTS7-night Universal Studios & 4-night Bahamas Getaway
15 NIGHTSPanama Canal with Miami Beach Stay
Ports: Miami Beach · Miami · Great Stirrup Cay · Cabo Rojo, Dominican Republic · Willemstad, Curacao · Oranjestad, Aruba
Save 10%15 NIGHTS7-night Waikiki Beach Honolulu Stay with Tours & 7-night Inter-Island Cruise of Hawaii
Ports: Honolulu, Oahu · Kahului, Maui · Hilo, Hawaii · Kona, Hawaii · Nawiliwili, Kauai
15 NIGHTSCaribbean Round-Trip from New York with Stay
Ports: New York · Puerto Plata · San Juan · Charlotte Amalie · Road Town · Basseterre
8 NIGHTS8-Day Bahamas Round-Trip Philadelphia: Nassau & Jacksonville
Ports: Philadelphia · Nassau · Bahama Islands · Orlando · Jacksonville
7 NIGHTS7-Day Caribbean Round-Trip Orlando: Great Stirrup Cay & Dominican Republic
Ports: Orlando · Puerto Plata/Dominican Republic · St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) · Tortola · Great Stirrup Cay
5 NIGHTS5-Day Caribbean Round-Trip Orlando: Cozumel
Ports: Orlando · Cozumel · Puerto Costa Maya
9 NIGHTS9-Day Caribbean Round-Trip Tampa: Dominican Republic & Key West
Ports: Tampa · Key West · Great Stirrup Cay · Falmouth · George Town
8 NIGHTSNASCAR Daytona 500 and Bahamas from Port Canaveral
Ports: Port Canaveral · Nassau · Great Stirrup Cay
Save 1%17 NIGHTSHong Kong, Nagasaki, Hiroshima & Osaka to Tokyo with Stays
Ports: Hong Kong · Kaohsiung · Taipei · Ishigaki · Nagasaki · Kagoshima
14 NIGHTSTokyo Stay, Mt. Fuji, Osaka, Hiroshima & Nagasaki to Seoul
Save 2%15 NIGHTSTokyo, Osaka, Hiroshima & Nagasaki to Seoul with Stays
Ports: Tokyo · Shimizu · Nagoya · Osaka · Kochi · Hiroshima
Save 2%7 NIGHTSCaribbean: Harvest Caye, Cozumel & Roatan
Ports: Galveston · Cozumel · Roatán Island · Harvest Caye · Costa Maya · Galveston
Save 2%7 NIGHTSCaribbean: Curacao & Aruba
Ports: San Juan (Puerto Rico) · Road Town · Saint Thomas · Oranjestad · Willemstad
13 NIGHTSPanama Canal from Miami with 1-night Stay
Ports: Miami · Miami Downtown · Falmouth · Cartagena, Colombia · Panama Canal · Colon
15 NIGHTSMusic Cities of the Deep South with Tours & Caribbean Cruise from Miami
Ports: Miami · Roatan Island · Harvest Caye · Puerto Costa Maya · Cozumel
10 NIGHTSCaribbean & Great Stirrup Cay with Miami Beach Stay
Ports: Miami · Puerto Plata · Charlotte Amalie · Road Town · Great Stirrup Cay
17 NIGHTSCaribbean from New Orleans to Boston with Stay
Ports: New Orleans · George Town, Grand Cayman · Oranjestad, Aruba · Willemstad, Curacao · Kralendijk, Bonaire · St. George's, Grenada
6 NIGHTS3-night Los Angeles & 6-night Pacific Coast to Vancouver
10 NIGHTSHalifax & Bermuda from Boston with Stay
Ports: Boston · Halifax · Royal Naval Dockyard (King's Wharf)
11 NIGHTSPorto, Lively Lisbon & Med Melody
Save 3%14 NIGHTSChicago, U.S Rockies By Rail & Alaska with Dawes Glacier from Seattle
Ports: Seattle · Sitka · Holkham Bay Glacier · Juneau · Icy Strait Point · Ketchikan
10 NIGHTSAlaska with Dawes Glacier from Seattle with Stay
Ports: Seattle · Sitka · Holkham Bay Glacier · Juneau · Icy Strait Point · Ketchikan
Save 7%10 NIGHTSAlaska with Glacier Bay from Seattle with Stay
Ports: Seattle · Juneau · Skagway · Glacier Bay · Ketchikan · Victoria, British Columbia
17 NIGHTSSouth Pacific with Papeete and Waikiki Beach Stays
Ports: Papeete, Tahiti · Moorea · Raiatea · Bora Bora · Kona, Hawaii · Nawiliwili, Kauai
9 NIGHTSNorthern Europe from Helsinki with Stay
Ports: Helsinki · Tallinn · Stockholm (Nynashamn) · Riga · Warnemunde · Kiel
17 NIGHTSSouth Pacific from Papeete with Stay
Ports: Papeete, Tahiti · Moorea · Bora Bora · Raiatea · Kona, Hawaii · Hilo, Hawaii
13 NIGHTSNorway, Iceland & Belgium from Reykjavik to Southampton with Golden Circle & Blue Lagoon Experience
Ports: Reykjavik · Isafjordur · Akureyri · Alesund · Flam · Kristiansand, Norway
13 NIGHTSGreek Isles with Istanbul and Rome Stays
9 NIGHTSNorthern Europe from Helsinki with Stay
Ports: Helsinki · Tallinn · Stockholm (Nynashamn) · Riga · Warnemunde · Kiel
13 NIGHTSNorway, Iceland & Belgium from Reykjavik to Southampton with Golden Circle & Blue Lagoon Experience
Ports: Reykjavik · Isafjordur · Akureyri · Alesund · Flam · Kristiansand, Norway
9 NIGHTSNorthern Europe from Helsinki with Stay
Ports: Helsinki · Tallinn · Stockholm (Nynashamn) · Riga · Warnemunde · Kiel
Save 15%13 NIGHTSNorway, Iceland & Belgium from Southampton to Reykjavik with Stay and Golden Circle & Blue Lagoon Experience
Ports: Southampton · Zeebrugge (tours to Bruges) · Ijmuiden (tours to Amsterdam) · Bergen · Geiranger, Norway · Alesund
Save 1%10 NIGHTSCanada & New England from Boston with Stay
Ports: Boston · Portland, Maine · Saint John, Bay Of Fundy, Canada · Sydney, Nova Scotia · Halifax
12 NIGHTSBaltic Cities from Southampton
Ports: Southampton · Gothenburg · Stockholm · Tallinn · Helsinki · Copenhagen
17 NIGHTSSouth Pacific from Papeete with Stay
Ports: Papeete, Tahiti · Moorea · Bora Bora · Raiatea · Kona, Hawaii · Hilo, Hawaii
19 NIGHTSTransatlantic with Barcelona & Universal Orlando Resort Stays
Ports: Barcelona · Cadiz · Funchal, Madeira · Great Stirrup Cay · Orlando (Port Canaveral)
11 NIGHTSBahamas from New York with Stay
Ports: New York · Port Canaveral · Great Stirrup Cay · Nassau
7 NIGHTS7-Day Caribbean Round-Trip Galveston: Harvest Caye, Cozumel & Roatan
Ports: Galveston · Cozumel · Roatan · Belize · Puerto Costa Maya
23 NIGHTSSouth America & Antarctica from Santiago to Buenos Aires & Iguazu Falls with Stays
Marella Cruises Sailings
Save 10%11 NIGHTSTransatlantic Passage to Paradise from Malaga to Barbados
Ports: Malaga · St. John's, Antigua · Roseau · Bridgetown, Barbados
14 NIGHTSEscape to the Caribbean from Malaga
Ports: Malaga · Tangier · St. John's · Basseterre · Roseau · Castries
Save 2%7 NIGHTSCanary Islands Explorer
Save 2%14 NIGHTSParadise Islands & A Christmas in the Tropics from Barbados
Ports: Bridgetown, Barbados · St. John's, Antigua · Road Town, Tortola · Philipsburg, St. Maarten · Basseterre, St. Kitts · Roseau
7 NIGHTSCanarian Flavours
Ports: Tenerife · Gran Canaria · Lanzarote · Agadir · Funchal · La Palma
7 NIGHTSAtlantic Islands from Tenerife
14 NIGHTSA Taste of the Tropics & Paradise Islands from Barbados
Ports: Bridgetown, Barbados · Castries, St. Lucia · Pointe-à-Pitre · St. George's, Grenada · Scarborough, Tobago · Kingstown, St. Vincent & Grenadines
7 NIGHTSCanarian Flavours
Ports: Tenerife · Gran Canaria · Lanzarote · Agadir · Funchal · La Palma
14 NIGHTSParadise Islands & A Christmas in the Tropics from Barbados
Norwegian Cruise Line vs Marella Cruises: the bottom line
Choosing between Norwegian Cruise Line and Marella Cruises ultimately comes down to what kind of holiday you are looking for. Both are well-established cruise lines with loyal followings, but they cater to different preferences and budgets.
Norwegian Cruise Line, founded in 1966 and headquartered in Miami, USA, operates a fleet of 19 ships. It is categorised as a contemporary cruise line and scores 4.4/5 overall based on 13,800 reviews. The line is particularly strong for flexible, no-rules cruising and solo travellers (studio cabins), making it a natural choice for cruisers who value those attributes.
Marella Cruises, established in 1995 from Luton, UK, has a fleet of 5 ships. As a value line rated 4.1/5 from 7,800 reviews, it excels at all-inclusive simplicity and first-time cruisers. If those are your priorities, Marella Cruises deserves serious consideration.
On food, Norwegian Cruise Line scores 7/10 compared to Marella Cruises's 5/10. For entertainment, Norwegian Cruise Line comes in at 8/10 versus Marella Cruises's 6/10. Value for money favours Marella Cruises with a score of 9/10.
Our recommendation: browse the available sailings above and compare itineraries, dates, and total cost including what is bundled in the fare. The best cruise line is the one that matches your specific needs, budget, and travel dates. Use the scores as a guide, but remember that individual ship and itinerary matter just as much as the cruise line brand.
Norwegian Cruise Line vs Marella Cruises — FAQ
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