Norwegian Aura dining changes are already turning heads. We love Norwegian’s Prima-class. In fact, we’ve sailed Prima, Aqua, and Luna, with Viva next on our list. That means we’ve got plenty of experience to unpack these latest changes.
When Norwegian made the latest round of announcements for Aura, we studied the deck plans closely. She’s about 10% bigger than Aqua and Luna. That extra space is triggering a wave of dining changes.
This is part one of our Aura series. Today we’re covering everything changing about food and restaurants. And stay tuned to our YouTube channel for the full video where we’ll be looking at every charge coming to Norwegian Aura.
The Buffet Gets Much Bigger
Let’s start with the biggest change of all. The buffet is getting dramatically bigger.
One of the most common complaints about the Prima-class has been buffet size. Norwegian shrank the traditional buffet on these ships and added the Indulge Food Hall. The thought was that it would spread out crowds, however, many cruisers feel the opposite happened. The buffet is small, cramped, and is the biggest gripe we here about the class.
Norwegian appears to be listening. On Norwegian Aura, the buffet area is expanding significantly!
The newest ship will see Palomar and Sukhothai/Food Republic axed from their current spots. That space now becomes part of the buffet. Those areas were already used as overflow seating for the small Surfside Café buffet, so the move makes sense.
Expect more food stations, more seating, and better passenger flow. For anyone who’s struggled with the Prima-class buffet, this will be a HUGE improvement.
But a bigger buffet creates a domino effect across the ship. Several restaurants have to move which we’ll talk about next.
Palomar Moves to the Atrium
Seafood fans, you don’t have to worry on Aura. Palomar isn’t disappearing. It’s moving into the atrium space where Onda sits on the sister ships. This gives Palomar a much more prominent spot in the atrium and adds outdoor seating for the venue.
Onda isn’t going away either. In fact, it’s staying in the atrium, too! The new Onda will have a smaller footprint as it takes over some atrium retail space instead. We’re having a hard time picturing how it all fits, but Aura is a bigger ship.
We’re curious, what do you think about Palomar and Onda being neighbors in the Penrose Atrium?
Sukhothai Moves to Deck 7
Another change the larger buffet creates: Sukhothai is relocating, too. The specialty restaurant moves to the space that currently houses Le Bistro on Aqua and Luna.
Cruisers will now have one more temptation to pass as they make their way to Hudson’s Main Dining Room at the aft of Deck 7. We’re betting the aroma of Thai curries will definitely pull some folks away from the standard fair in the MDR.
In addition to the change of location, we love the new design in the renderings! Nama stays put across from Sukhothai, however the restaurant has been updated with a fresher, more vibrant look.
Le Bistro Moves to the Old Starbucks Space
This might be the strangest move on the whole ship. Le Bistro is moving into the Penrose Atrium, into the space currently occupied by Starbucks on Deck 7, outside the theater.
Yes, you read that right. Le Bistro will sit on the port side, where Starbucks currently is. We love that this French-themed restaurant gets a much more prominent location on board.
Based on the renderings, this might be our favorite restaurant redesign on Aura.
Stay tuned for our next article that looks at Norwegian Bars & Entertainment to find out where Starbucks is moving to.
Los Lobos Is Replaced by Tamara
One of our favorite Norwegian restaurants is going away. Los Lobos is being removed.
In its place: Tamara, the Indian concept Norwegian introduced inside Indulge Food Hall. We love Tamara and eat there almost every day on the Prima-class. Norwegian seems to have heard the praise and has turned the concept into a sit-down specialty restaurant.
Aura will get the first dedicated Tamara restaurant, taking over the old Los Lobos space on Deck 8. The open question now is what replaces Tamara inside Indulge Food Hall?
Commodore Room Becomes the Panorama Room
The Commodore Main Dining Room is also changing, at least as we currently know it.
In its place: a new high-tech dining room called the Panorama Room. It appears to be surrounded by LED screens for a more interactive experience. The entrance looks significantly reconfigured too.
One note: the deck plans still label this space “Commodore Room” as of this writing. We’re watching this one closely as it looks like it will truly transform the main dining room experience on board.
More Restaurant Redesigns
Several other restaurants are getting design refreshes. Another favorite updated space is the new Cagney’s Steakhouse. The brand returns to dark woods and rich accents, fitting for a steakhouse. In addition to moving, Sukhothai gets a redesign as well. And the new Hasuki is much lighter after refresh.
Hudson’s Main Dining Room is also getting a redesign. The current crystal and gold lighting looks like it’s being replaced with a more economical design. Whether that’s an upgrade is subjective, but it’s another sign of how much is changing visually on Aura.
All of these moves show just how big the buffet expansion’s ripple effect really is. Be sure to visit our YouTube channel where we’ll have a full breakdown of each of these changes!
Next up in our series: everything changing about bars (coming soon!), entertainment, and the Penrose Atrium.