Ship review: NCL’s Norwegian Viva

Sustainable cocktails and a Speedway racetrack are to be expected on any fun-filled cruise on the new Norwegian Viva, finds Lucy Huxley

The tagline for Norwegian Cruise Line’s newest ship, Norwegian Viva, is Live it up! My teenage daughter and I certainly gave it a good go as we sailed for three nights from Barcelona to Rome on board the second vessel in the line’s new Prima class.

Overview of Norwegian Viva

At 142,500 tonnes and with capacity for 3,099 guests, it’s not the biggest in Norwegian’s fleet, but the line claims the ship has the highest crew-to-guest ratio, the most spacious accommodation and more experiences to connect guests to the ocean. These include infinity pools, Norwegian’s legendary three-deck Speedway race track overlooking the sea and its Ocean Boulevard promenade deck (complete with quirky art installations).

Cabins

Our balcony cabin was light and airy, with a soft coastal palette, floor-to-ceiling glass doors, ample storage and plenty of charging points. The beds were heavenly and the rainfall shower a real bonus. For guests wanting a more luxurious experience, Norwegian’s Haven complex with private lifts offers the line’s largest suites ever, including the first three-bedroom suite in 15 years.

Food & drink on Norwegian Viva

My daughter loved the self-serve ice-cream stations, but we were also impressed by the Indulge Food Hall, serving everything from Indian and Thai to tapas and steak.

You order using iPads at the table and service is quick – a great alternative to the regular Surfside Café buffet. Top of my list, however, were the speciality restaurants Hasuki for teppanyaki, with all the visual drama courtesy of our chef JC, and Mexican Los Lobos, where fresh guacamole was prepared on a trolley brought to our table.

Ice-cold cocktails on tap around the ship or Sustainable Cocktails (made from the leftover fruit each day in the Metropolitan Bar), were also worth trying. Oh, and there’s a full Starbucks on board.

Facilities 

Kids (and big kids) won’t be bored, with The Drop, the world’s first freefall dry slide at sea, plummeting you 10 floors; The Wave, a water slide ridden in an inflatable ring; the Tee Time high-tech crazy golf; and the VR mega-arcade Galaxy Pavilion.

For the less adrenaline-driven, the Mandara Spa, offering every treatment imaginable, is stunning and serene. At night, we watched a brilliant magic and comedy show and saw the theatre transform into a cool nightclub.

I love go-karting and was sceptical about how good Norwegian’s Speedway racetrack would be. But it was brilliantly done. We also got a sneak preview of the first half of Beetlejuice, the new Broadway musical to join the Norwegian fleet. It will undoubtedly be a huge draw.

Book it: A seven-day Caribbean: Barbados, Antigua and Saint Lucia cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico, starts at £1,048 per person, based on two sharing a Balcony Stateroom, departing December 15 (excluding flights). The price includes the ‘Free at Sea’ all-inclusive drinks, dining and excursion package.

PICTURE: Christian Santiago

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