Norwegian Sky
Former name: Costa Olympia
Cruise line
Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Sky current position
Norwegian Sky current location is at North West Atlantic Ocean (coordinates 48.34792 N / -70.87137 W) cruising en route to LES ESCOUMINS, PILOT. The AIS position was reported 2 hours ago.
All Itineraries Current PositionCurrent itinerary of Norwegian Sky
Norwegian Sky current cruise is 11 days, one-way from Baltimore to Quebec City. Prices start from USD 549 (double occupancy rates). The itinerary starts on 21 Sep, 2023 and ends on 02 Oct, 2023.
Date / Time | Port |
---|---|
21 Sep 17:00 | Departing from Baltimore, Maryland hotels |
23 Sep 07:00 - 16:00 | Martha's Vineyard Island, Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts |
24 Sep 10:30 - 20:00 | Boston, Massachusetts |
25 Sep 07:00 - 17:00 | Portland ME, Maine |
27 Sep 08:00 - 18:00 | Sydney NS, Nova Scotia Canada |
28 Sep 09:00 - 17:00 | Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, Canada |
30 Sep 08:00 - 19:00 | Baie-Comeau, Quebec Canada |
01 Oct 08:00 - 19:00 | Saguenay, Quebec Canada |
02 Oct 07:00 | Arriving in Quebec City, Canada hotels |
Specifications of Norwegian Sky
Year of build | 1999 / Age: 24 |
Flag state | Bahamas |
Builder | Bremer Vulkan (Bremen, Germany) & Lloyd Werft (Bremerhaven, Germany) |
Class | NCL SKY |
Building cost | USD 360 million |
Speed | 23 kn / 43 km/h / 26 mph |
Length (LOA) | 258 m / 846 ft |
Beam (width) | 32 m / 105 ft |
Gross Tonnage | 77104 gt |
Passengers | 2004 - 2405 |
Crew | 899 |
Passengers-to-space ratio | 32 |
Decks | 12 |
Cabins | 1002 |
Decks with cabins | 7 |
Last Refurbishment | 2022 |
Sister-ships | Norwegian Sun, Costa Victoria |
Former names | Costa Olympia |
Christened by | Margaret Awamura Inouye |
Owner | Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd |
Norwegian Sky Itineraries
Date | Itinerary | Departure Port | Price from |
---|---|---|---|
2023 Sep 21 | 11 days, one-way from Baltimore to Quebec City | Baltimore | $549 |
2023 Oct 02 | 11 days, one-way from Quebec City to Baltimore | Quebec City | $549 |
2023 Oct 16 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $749 |
2023 Oct 25 | 5 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Cozumel | Miami | $668 |
2023 Oct 30 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $719 |
2023 Nov 08 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $699 |
2023 Nov 17 | 10 days, round-trip Caribbean Dominican Republic St. Thomas | Miami | $749 |
2023 Nov 27 | 4 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Nassau | Miami | $469 |
2023 Dec 01 | 10 days, round-trip Caribbean Dominican Republic St. Thomas | Miami | $699 |
2023 Dec 11 | 10 days, round-trip Caribbean Dominican Republic Antigua | Miami | $630 |
2023 Dec 21 | 15 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $1399 |
2024 Jan 21 | 5 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Cozumel | Miami | $429 |
2024 Jan 26 | 3 days, one-way from Miami to La Romana | Miami | $249 |
2024 Jan 29 | 14 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $1149 |
2024 Feb 12 | 14 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $1099 |
2024 Feb 26 | 14 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $999 |
2024 Mar 11 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $799 |
2024 Mar 20 | 12 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $879 |
2024 Apr 01 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $779 |
2024 Apr 10 | 10 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $799 |
2024 Apr 20 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Barbados, Curacao Aruba | La Romana | $779 |
2024 Apr 29 | 3 days, one-way from La Romana to Miami | La Romana | $229 |
2024 May 02 | 3 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Nassau | Miami | $399 |
2024 May 05 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $829 |
2024 May 14 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $829 |
2024 May 23 | 5 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Cozumel | Miami | $619 |
2024 May 28 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $849 |
2024 Jun 06 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $899 |
2024 Jun 15 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $899 |
2024 Jun 24 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $899 |
2024 Jul 03 | 4 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Nassau | Miami | $649 |
2024 Jul 07 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $1149 |
2024 Jul 16 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $1099 |
2024 Jul 25 | 4 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Nassau | Miami | $649 |
2024 Jul 29 | 4 days, round-trip Great Stirrup Cay Key West | Miami | $649 |
2024 Aug 02 | 3 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Key West | Miami | $499 |
2024 Aug 05 | 4 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Nassau | Miami | $649 |
2024 Aug 09 | 3 days, round-trip Bahamas Great Stirrup Cay Nassau | Miami | $499 |
2024 Aug 12 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $929 |
2024 Aug 21 | 9 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Dominican Republic | Miami | $949 |
2024 Aug 30 | 5 days, round-trip Caribbean Great Stirrup Cay Cozumel | Miami | $599 |
2024 Sep 07 | 11 days, one-way from Baltimore to Quebec City | Baltimore | $749 |
2024 Sep 18 | 10 days, one-way from Quebec City to New York | Quebec City | $699 |
2024 Sep 28 | 11 days, one-way from New York to Quebec City | New York | $779 |
2024 Oct 09 | 10 days, one-way from Quebec City to Baltimore | Quebec City | $699 |
2024 Oct 21 | 14 days, one-way from New York to Barcelona | New York | $1049 |
2024 Dec 04 | 16 days, one-way from Dubai to Port Louis | Dubai | $2149 |
2024 Dec 20 | 17 days, one-way from Port Louis to Singapore | Port Louis | $3699 |
2025 Jan 06 | 11 days, one-way from Singapore to Manila | Singapore | $2199 |
2025 Jan 17 | 10 days, one-way from Manila to Keelung | Manila | $1549 |
2025 Jan 27 | 12 days, one-way from Keelung to Singapore | Keelung | $1499 |
2025 Feb 08 | 13 days, one-way from Singapore to Keelung | Singapore | $1779 |
2025 Feb 21 | 10 days, one-way from Keelung to Tokyo | Keelung | $1669 |
2025 Mar 03 | 10 days, one-way from Tokyo to Incheon | Tokyo | $1849 |
Norwegian Sky Review
Review of Norwegian Sky
The 1999-built Norwegian Sky cruise ship is NCL's first Sky-class vessel, with sisterships Norwegian Sun and Costa Victoria (1996-2021).
The vessel (IMO number 9128532) is currently Bahamas-flagged (MMSI 308865000) and registered in Nassau.
History - construction and ownership
Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is a subsidiary company of the shipping corporation Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (NCLH). NCL was founded in 1966, headquartered in Miami (Florida USA) and publicly traded (NASDAQ) company listed on NYSE (NYC). NCLH's major shareholders are the corporations Apollo Global Management (American), Genting Group (Malaysian) and TPG Capital (American). In 2017, the brand NCL had a worldwide cruise market share 8,7% (passengers) and 8,4% (revenue). NCLH (shipowner) owns the brands NCL, Oceania and RSSC-Regent.
The 2000-passenger ship Norwegian Sky started operations on August 9, 1999, with the inaugural 4-day roundtrip from Dover to Norway's Fjords. The cruise ship was refurbished and changed her name several times. She is designed in beautiful tropical colors. NCL Sky was originally ordered by Costa Cruises as Costa Olympia, but later the company refused the vessel. In the period 2004-2008, it was operated by NCL America and sailed as "Pride of Aloha" - USA-flagged, but owned by GHK-Genting Hong Kong.
Decks and Cabins
Norwegian Sky staterooms (1002 total, in 27 grades) include 15x Suites, 245x Balcony, 319x Oceanview and 423x Inside cabins. Most staterooms are sized 120-150 ft2 (11-14 m2). The largest accommodations are the Owners Suites (350 ft2 / 32 m2, with terrace sized 300 ft2 / 28 m2).
The boat has 12 decks, of which 9 are passenger-accessible and 7 with cabins.
Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks
Just as Norwegian Sky has changed since her launch, so has Freestyle Cruising. The program is simply considered as the choice to dine where you want, when you want, and take part only in those activities that interest you. Cruisers can have a good time with freestyle dining onboard Norwegian Sky and a lot of options to choose from. They can try gourmet cuisine or go to Le Bistro to taste innovative dishes. Norwegian Sky offers two main dining rooms for the passengers seeking traditional dining experience: Crossings and Palace, both very flexible. Guests can make reservations for the same time each night, or choose different times, based on their schedule. Both MDRs are open nightly for dinner. Each day, one of the two provides open-seating breakfast and lunch. Compared to the cuisine and service in the specialty restaurants, the dining rooms experience doesn't lag. Service in Crossings and Palace is better than that of bigger cruise ships.
Follows the complete list of Norwegian Sky restaurants and food bars.
- Palace Restaurant (forward Dining Room, complimentary, with Your Time dining)
- Le Bistro (French dinner-only specialty restaurant; reservations-only; US$20 cover charge)
- La Cucina (classic Italian fare)
- The Crossings Restaurant (aft-location Dining Room; complimentary; Freestyle dining)
- Il Adagio (Italian specialty restaurant; cover charge US$15, reservations-only)
- Great Outdoor Cafe (complimentary lido buffet restaurant)
- Cagney’s Steakhouse (specialty dinner restaurant for prime steaks and gourmet seafood; reservations-only, US$30 cover charge per person and free Kids Menu)
- The Local Bar & Grill (pub-style eatery)
- Pinnacle Lounge and Sushi Bar
- Garden Cafe (complimentary buffet restaurant with various cuisine stations); Kid's Cafe.
Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport
Norwegian Sky's guests will each be able to find their own way to relax: drink a favorite cocktail at the pool; indulge in luxurious body procedures at the spa or enjoy a challenging workout in the fitness center while kids are being entertained by activities at their private area. When the night comes, passengers can go to the Star Dust Lounge or try their luck at the casino. Expect to hear music everywhere. You'll be able to listen to Frank Sinatra tunes and island steel drums, hearty soul and piano classics, lots of salsa and rock and roll. Guitar and piano, as well as a Caribbean group, are staples in the variety of lounges. Entertainment options also include the NCL's FIREWORKS show (on each voyage), "Rock of Ages", "Cirque Dreams", "Illusionarium" (magicians show).
Additional amenities include: Complimentary 24-hour Room-Service, Supervised Kids Program ("NCL Kids"), Internet/WiFi Access, Laundry. NCL Sky tipping/gratuities (US$12 pp per day). Norwegian Sky cruise ship weddings are held in the onboard chapel.
Follows the complete list of Norwegian Sky lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues for kids, teens and adults.
- Stardust Theatre (1000-seat; features Broadway-style musical productions; two grand shows per night)
- Captain Cook’s Cigar Bar; Plantation Club; Champs Bar; full-service Starbucks licensed store
- Dazzles Disco & Nightclub; Outrigger Lounge & Disco
- Java Cafe; Breakers Bar; Longboard Bar; Sugarcane Mojito Bar; Topsiders (pool bar)
- Sky Atrium (midship hub area with a big-size LED screen, dance area and live entertainment)
- Atrium Cafe & Bar (specialty tea & coffee bar); The Coffee Bar
- Internet Cafe (24-hour); Art Gallery; Photo Gallery & Shop
- Sky Club Casino
- Spinnaker Lounge and Bliss Ultra Lounge late-night venues
- Galleria Shops (tax and duty-free shops); Colombian Emeralds International (precious stones, jewelry, watches)
- Body Waves Spa & Fitness Centre (Spa treatment rooms, sauna, herbal steam room, thalassotherapy pool, Beauty Salon; Body Waves Fitness Centre); 2 swimming pools, 5 Whirlpools, tennis tables
- Kid’s Corner Club; Splashes (kids pool); The Zone Teen Club & Disco; Video Games Arcade
- Combined sports court; Jogging Track; Golf Nets.
Itineraries
Norwegian Sky itinerary program is based on 3- and 4-day short Bahamas cruises from Miami Florida. Feature port destinations include Nassau and NCL's private island Great Stirrup Cay Bahamas.
- NCL Sky's 2017-2018 itinerary program offered 4-night voyages from Miami to Cuba with Havana overnights (May through December 2017). The itinerary also visited Great Stirrup Cay.
- With Norwegian Sky, NCL's first-ever ship call at Havana was on May 2, 2017 (overnight). NCL Sky's Cuban cruise prices started from USD 700 per person (inclusive of unlimited drinks).
- In 2018, NCL expanded the Cuba program to a total of 63 itineraries, most of which with Havana overnights. The season (4-day Miami roundtrips) started on March 26, 2018. The number of previously scheduled 2018 NCL Cuba cruises was 30 (through December 2017).
- NCL's Cuban cruise program was based on two Florida-homeported liners - Norwegian Sky (from Miami) and Norwegian Sun (from Port Canaveral). Following the US Gov's June 2019-issued ban on group travel to Cuba from the USA, NCL revised all its scheduled itineraries visiting Cuban seaports. All planned departures beyond September 2 (2019) were auto-canceled. Cuba-visiting itineraries prior to September 2nd were modified to exclude Havana and visit other Caribbean ports - including in Bahamas (Great Stirrup Cay Island, Freeport, Nassau) and Florida (Key West Florida).
Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the NCL Sky ship was paused for 2 years (March 2020 thru 2022), restarting on March 2nd with 3-4-5-day roundtrips from Miami to the Bahamas.
The ship's 2023 schedule (September-October) has a mini-season based on homeporting in Baltimore MD (at Cruise Maryland Terminal). The program includes 10-11-day Canada and New England itineraries between USA and Canada (Baltimore and Quebec City) visiting Halifax, Bar Harbor, Shelburne Harbour, Oak Bluffs Marina, Baie-Comeau.
Norwegian Sky - user reviews and comments
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Norwegian Sky Wiki
Norwegian Sky is of the Sky-Class NCL liners, with sisterships NCL Sun and Costa Victoria. Vessel's construction started as an order from Costa Cruises (Costa Crociere) placed to Bremer Vulkan AG (1893-1997 / bankruptcy, a shipbuilding company, Bremen Germany) as the 2nd in a pair of Costa newbuilds. The ship name in this order was "Costa Olympia". Due to Vulkan's financial problems at that time, Costa Olympia's construction was suspended with only ~1/3 of the vessel completed. On October 5, 1996, Olympia's incomplete hull was floated out from drydock.
Costa didn't pay for the incomplete vessel, so it was laid up until December 1997, when NCL purchased it and re-designed it as "Norwegian Sky" (using the services of Tillberg Design, Sweden). NCL Sky's construction was continued at Lloyd Werft's shipyard in Bremerhaven (another major German shipbuilder) to where the hull was towed on March 8, 1998. The ship was officially acquired by NCL on July 29, 1999. The Inaugural Cruise (Maiden Voyage) was on August 9, 1999 (Norway Fjords from Dover England), also featuring 20th century's last total solar eclipse. Ship's inaugural USA season started from homeport Boston MA to Canada-New England (Sept 18, 1999) and from homeport Miami FL to Caribbean (Nov 14, 1999).
Ship's godparents were its entire crew. The liner was christened during the August 9 cruise (1999). As "Norwegian Sky", it was operated between 1999-2004. On July 4, 2004, the vessel left drydock in San Francisco CA as "Pride of Aloha".
Pride of Aloha ship's godmother was Margaret Awamura Inouye - wife of US Senator Daniel Inouye (Hawaii). The liner operated exclusively Hawaiian Islands cruises in 2004-2008. During that period, it was US-flagged and operated by the "NCL America" brand (NCLH's subsidiary). In NCL America's fleet, Aloha was joined in 2006 by the sistership Pride of Hawaii (now Norwegian Jade).
NCL originally planned to sell the vessel to Star Cruises (GHK-owned company). Later a decision was announced to sell it to Pullmantur (RCL-Royal Caribbean brand in Spain). In May 2008, NCL announced that the ship stays in the fleet. After being re-flagged to the Bahamas, it re-entered service as "Norwegian Sky". The second "Maiden Voyage" (now as NCL Sky) was on July 14, 2008.
In early-2009, NCL Sky was sold to GHK (Genting Hong Kong). NCL operated the vessel under one-year charter, with the options to extend the charter, but also to buy the vessel during the charter period. On June 1, 2012, NCL exercised the option and bought the ship for ~USD 260 million.
Norwegian Sky was the first ever passenger liner with an Internet Cafe (via satellite connection). At that time, this venue had 9 PC terminals for going online at sea. List of services (available 24 hours a day, at US$20 per hour or 33 cents per min) included emailing, PC games, photo imaging, Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint apps, printing. Sky is also NCL's first ever ship equipped with "Bridge Cam" (digital camera offering 24-hour real-time views from the bow / updated every 15 min).
Since January 2016, all NCL Sky passengers leaving from Miami FL enjoy free unlimited drinks (including alcohol - beers, wines, premium spirits). All onboard beverages (normally priced up to USD 11) are included in cruise fares. The list includes cocktails, premium spirits, bottled beers, draft beers, wines by the glass. Passengers 3 to 20 years of age also enjoy unlimited drinks - soda and juices. Being the oldest in the fleet, Norwegian Sky operates on short cruises (3- and 4-day Miami roundtrips) to the Bahamas - the whole year-round. The all-inclusive cruising experience includes unlimited beverages also on NCL's private island Great Stirrup Cay, which is paired in the itinerary together with Nassau.
In 2017, Sky became NCL's first liner with itineraries visiting Cuba. The Cuban cruise program (May through December 2017) offered 4-day roundtrips from PortMiami (Monday departures) with Havana overnights. The itinerary also visited NCL's private island Great Stirrup Cay. Bookings on NCL's Cuban cruises opened on February 21, 2017.
The next table shows NCL Sky's first cruise to Cuba (itinerary May 1-5) with the port times.
Date / Time | Port |
---|---|
01 May | Departing from Miami |
02 May 08:00 - 17:00 | Havana, Cuba |
04 May 11:00 - 18:00 | Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas |
05 May | Arriving in Miami |
The 4-day roundtrip Miami cruise prices started from USD 950 pp (double occupancy inside cabin rates).
During drydock refurbishment 2017, the ship was retrofitted with new "scrubbers" (exhaust gas cleaning systems). The new scrubber technology reduces the equivalent of approx 1500 tons of the poisonous gas Sulfur Oxide. Norwegian Cruise Line was the first cruise company retrofitting with a scrubber hybrid system vessels while in service. The new in-line scrubbers (5 units) are lightweight and able to operate in a dry mode, as well as in open and closed loops.
During drydock 2019 (Jan 25 - Feb 6, done at Grand Bahama Shipyard in Freeport Bahamas), renovations were made to the pool deck and some lounges, also the Starbucks Coffee Bar was added.
Drydock 2022 (Jan 5 - Feb 7) was conducted in France, at Damen Shiprepair Brest.