The cruise industry news website World of Cruising is reporting the unfortunate news that Norwegian Cruise Line has announced that NCL and Nickelodeon will be ending their agreement at the end of 2015, with Nickelodeon branding phased out fleet-wide by January 2016.
Under the agreement with the number-one entertainment brand for kids and families, Nickelodeon-themed entertainment was offered on-board selected cruise ships in the Norwegian fleet. Activities on offer included: The Nickelodeon Aqua Park;Slime Time Live, Nickelodeon's signature messy game show; interactive games by the pool during Nick Live Poolside; Nickelodeon's Pajama Jam; dancing and singing during Dora's Music Party; character breakfasts with channel favourites including SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer; and more.
Branding shall be removed from Norwegian Epic during a brief spell in dry-dock in September 2015, while branding will be phased out on Norwegian Gem, Norwegian Jewel, Norwegian Breakaway and Norwegian Getaway in January 2016. Nickelodeon-themed entertainment planned for Norwegian Escape, currently under construction at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, will no longer appear at launch in October 2015.
The cruise line has not explained why the agreement was not renewed. However, they did state that since redeveloping their range of children's programs in 2012 they have seen a 20 percent improvement in guest satisfaction of Splash Academy for children and Entourage for teenagers. Andy Stuart, President and Chief Operating Officer of Norwegian Cruise Line, has said that the cruise line will continue to make significant investments to its programming and entertainment on-board its fleet of family-friendly cruise ships. Reference was made to Norwegian Escape which will feature the first Guppies Nursery, a nursery with separate areas for play and napping designed specifically for infants and toddlers aged between six months and two years old.
Norwegian Cruise Line was one of a handful of family-friendly cruise lines that had partnerships with major entertainment brands. Other lines with similar agreements include Royal Caribbean International and DreamWorks, Carnival Cruise Lines and Dr. Seuss, and Disney Cruise Line with its Disney characters.
Nickelodeon is also expanding their recreation program globally, with Nickelodeon Lost Lagoon planned to open in Malaysia imminently, Nickelodeon Land set to open at Sea World Australia later this year, and new Nickelodeon Hotels by Karisma Hotels & Resorts set to open in the Dominican Republic and Mexico from late-2016, allowing more fans around the globe to experience the world of Nickelodeon than ever before!
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