SpongeBob SquarePants is headed back to Bikini Bottom. Norwegian Cruise Line has announced that they will not be renewing their partnership agreement with Nickelodeon that expires at the end of 2015.
Norwegian’s next mega cruise ship that is scheduled to go into service this fall, Norwegian Escape, will not have the Nickelodeon characters. The cruise line plans to phase out the ships that do in the next 6-9 months. Norwegian Epic will lose Nickelodeon on September 26, and Norwegian Breakaway, Norwegian Getaway, Norwegian Jewel, and Norwegian Gem will lose the characters by January 3, 2016.
The cruise line did not give a reason why the agreement was not renewed. However, they did say that they will continue to invest in the quality of their family programming and will continue to “raise the bar on family entertainment at sea”.
Nickelodeon characters found on Norwegian cruise ships included SpongeBob SquarePants and Dora the Explorer. When Norwegian Cruise Line does announce future plans for their children’s areas, Cruise Fever will have all updates. Other cruise lines that have partnerships with characters include Royal Caribbean with Dreamworks, Carnival Cruise Lines with Dr. Seuss, and Disney Cruise Line with the beloved Disney characters.
OMG!! You just ruined my 2016 cruise vacation! My grandkids age 3, 4, and 5 have to see Dora and Spongebob! I am sooooo disappointed!!! Who is going to replace them on the Breakaway??
Read it more clearly.
NOBODY is replacing them