Cruise ships, at least the biggest ones operated by Royal Caribbean Group (RCL), Carnival Cruise Line (CCL), and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH), have become destinations rather than a means of getting to a destination.
In the classic cruise era of the 1970s, '80s, and even into the '90s, cruise ships were sort of floating hotels. They offered bars, restaurants, and entertainment, but the ships were simply the transport to the next ports. Sure, they were outfitted with pools and hot tubs, but hotels have those as well.
In more recent years, the big three U.S. cruise lines have focused on making their ships destinations by adding water slides, rock-climbing walls, and new features that just a few years earlier you would never have imagined finding on a ship.
Royal Caribbean, for example, on many ships offers ice-skating rinks and FlowRider surf simulators as well as rock-climbing walls. Minigolf courses have become standard, and features like escape rooms, racing simulators, and even indoor skydiving have become common.
Now, readers of the popular cruise news site Cruise Hive have voted on the most popular cruise-ship feature of 2022. Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, and Carnival took the top three spots, but the feature that won may surprise you.
Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival's Bold New Ride Takes the Crown
Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian have all brought things to sea that nobody had ever imagined seeing on a ship.
Royal Caribbean has its RipCord by iFly indoor skydiving and Norwegian was the first cruise line to add bumper cars to a ship.
Carnival, however, has one-upped them both with its onboard roller-coaster, which debuted on Carnival Mardi Gras and is now found on its sister ship, Carnival Celebration.
Bolt isn't a virtual ride; it's a roller-coaster on an elevated track. It was named the Best Cruise Ship Feature by Cruise Hive readers last year and it has taken that award once again in 2022.
"The thrill ride that lets guests soar 187 feet above the sea and reaches speeds of 40 mph netted 41.16% of votes, coming in ahead of second-place winner Royal Caribbean’s Ultimate Abyss and Norwegian Cruise Line’s Go-Karts," Cruise Hive shared.
"Readers were able to type in their own feature if their favorite was not listed, to make sure the entire industry was covered."
Voters got one vote in each of eight categories.
The second-place finisher, Royal Caribbean's "Ultimate Abyss," can be found on Wonder of the Seas, Symphony of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, and Oasis of the Seas. It's a free-to-ride dry slide that starts on deck 16 and ends at the boardwalk neighborhood eight floors down.
Carnival's Bolt costs $15 per ride while Norwegian's bumper cars, which are offered on Norwegian Prima, Norwegian Joy, Norwegian Bliss and Norwegian Encore, cost $15 for 10 laps around the track. Royal Caribbean has bumper cars on Odyssey of the Seas and Quantum of the Seas free of charge.
Royal Caribbean May Take the Prize in 2024; MSC Might Challenge in 2023
Royal Caribbean in 2024 will introduces a new class of ship with Icon of the Seas. That ship will offer the largest at-sea water park and could challenge for the Cruise Hive crown when it debuts. The company described some highlights in a news release highlighting a "neighborhood" it's calling "Thrill Island."
This lost island adventure is home to highlights like Category 6, the largest water park at sea, with six record-breaking slides: Pressure Drop and its 66-degree incline make it the industry’s first open free-fall slide; the 46-foot-tall Frightening Bolt, the tallest drop slide at sea; Storm Surge and Hurricane Hunter, the first family raft slides at sea with four riders per raft; and Storm Chasers, cruising’s first mat-racing duo. Living on the edge takes new meaning with Crown’s Edge. Part skywalk, part ropes course and part thrill ride, it culminates in a surprising, shocking moment that will see travelers swing 154 feet above the ocean.
MSC, a cruise line trying to win market share from the big three, will have a new take on a roller coaster on MSC Seascape, its newest U.S. flagship, which started sailing in December.
That ship features "Robotron," a "thrilling amusement ride coming to the seas for the first time and combining the breath-taking rush of a roller-coaster with personalized music and lighting."
Basically, Robotron is a roller-coaster car on a robot arm in front of a screen. It's a simulator with roller-coaster-like movement -- a concept many amusement parks use but is a first for a cruise ship.
"The adrenaline-pumping experience gives riders an unobstructed 360° view of the horizon as they hang over the edge of the deck, flip upside down, and move in all directions," the company said in a news release.
Robotron riders will also have the ability to customize their rides by thrill level and with custom music and colored lights.
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