If water slides are a big part of your cruise, choosing the right ship can make a huge difference.
Some cruise ships have just one standout slide, while others now have full waterparks packed with free-fall drops, racing slides, giant raft rides and even a hybrid rollercoaster-waterslide.
I’ve tried plenty of cruise ship slides myself, and some are far more intense than they look from the pool deck!
This list rounds up the best cruise ships for water slides, including options for thrill seekers, younger children and families who just want the biggest choice.
And with newer ships like Legend of the Seas now sailing, plus even more extreme attractions already announced for Hero of the Seas in 2027, the competition is getting seriously impressive.
Navigator of the Seas
Cruise ship with the longest water slide
The longest water slide on a cruise ship is The Blaster, which you’ll find on board Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas. This whopping 800-foot-long slide was added to the ship as part of an £88 million refurbishment in February 2019.
To ride The Blaster, you’ll use an inflatable raft, either alone or with a friend. This is a really fun slide with twists and turns through different coloured sections. Some parts of the slide are enclosed and others are open, there’s even an uphill section and a clear part that extends over the side of the ship!
As if that wasn’t enough, Navigator of the Seas also has another amazing slide. Right next to The Blaster, you’ll find The Riptide. This multi-coloured tube slide is a head-first mat racer waterslide – the first of its kind at sea. This slide is lots of fun – as long as you don’t mind getting your face wet!
Restrictions for Royal Caribean’s Blaster slide:
- Minimum height – 47 inches
- Minimum weight – 110lbs for one rider
- Maximum weight – 400lbs for two riders
Restrictions for Royal Caribean’s Riptide slide:
- Minimum height – 42 inches
- Maximum weight – 300lbs
Norwegian Breakaway, Norwegian Getaway and Norwegian Escape
Cruise ship with the fastest water slide
The fastest water slide on a cruise ship is the Free Fall slide which can be found on three of Norwegian Cruise Line’s ships – Norwegian Breakaway, Norwegian Getaway and Norwegian Escape.
This slide looks cool as it’s shaped like a big loop – you drop down it and whizz upwards again. Once you ride the Free Fall, you’ll know why it’s shaped like that – the uphill part of the loop is to slow you down!
The ride starts when you step into a chamber and stand with your arms crossed as a voice counts down from three. Then, suddenly, the floor drops away and you free fall down the slide, experiencing a g-force of 4 gs. (To help you understand g-force, zero gravity is no g-force, normal gravity is 1g and 5 gs will cause some people to pass out.)
The Free Fall is made up of two identical side by side slides, just in case you need moral support but can’t agree who will go down first!
Restrictions for NCL’s Free Fall slide:
- Minimum height – 48 inches
- Minimum weight – 99lbs
- Maximum weight – 300lbs
Disney Wish, Disney Treasure and Disney Destiny
The best cruise ship water slide for younger kids
Not everyone likes to get splashed in the face or to feel like they might die when they ride a water slide. If you’d prefer a gentler ride, or your children aren’t tall enough for some of the bigger and faster slides at sea, then Disney Cruise Line’s AquaMouse is just perfect.
The AquaMouse is considered the first proper Disney Attraction at Sea – meaning it has all the immersive entertainment you’d expect from one of the rides at the Disney theme parks.
The AquaMouse can be found on Disney Wish, Disney Treasure and Disney Destiny, with different stories depending on the ship. Disney Destiny even has its own exclusive villains-themed adventure, Sing a Silly Song, featuring some familiar Disney villains.
This slide is not much shy of being the longest waterslide on a cruise ship, with a length of 760 feet. Riding solo or in a pair, riders use an inflatable raft to coast along, down dips and over uphill blasts whilst enjoying lights, sounds and a story.
Restrictions for the Disney’s AquaMouse slide:
- Minimum height – 42 inches
- Minimum height to ride alone – 54 inches
You can read more about how the waterslides compare on each Disney cruise ship here: Disney Cruise Water Slides.
Norwegian Epic
The most fun water slide on a cruise ship
One more water slide that I couldn’t possibly leave out of this article about the best water slides on cruise ships is Norwegian Cruise Line’s Epic Plunge.
Epic Plunge, which can be found only on NCL’s Norwegian Epic cruise ship, is unique in that it has a large bowl where you whizz round and round before plopping out the bottom.
This is my favourite kind of water slide – it’s just so much fun. To make this slide even more interesting, guests can choose whether they want to ride with or without an inflatable ring. MSC Virtuosa also has a similar slide but without the option of the ring.
This slide is 200 feet long but feels much longer as you’re never quite sure how many times you’ll spin around the bowl before slowing down and falling through the middle.
Restrictions for NCL’s Epic Plunge slide:
- Minimum height is 42 inches
Icon of the Seas, Star of the Seas and Legend of the Seas
Cruise Ship with the Best Waterpark
If you want as many water slides as possible, Royal Caribbean’s Icon-class ships are hard to beat.
Icon of the Seas, Star of the Seas and Legend of the Seas all have Category 6, which Royal Caribbean calls the largest waterpark at sea. There are six slides in total, ranging from terrifying solo drops to raft rides that the family can tackle together.
The slides include:
- Frightening Bolt – the tallest drop waterslide at sea
- Pressure Drop – the first open free-fall waterslide at sea
- Storm Chasers – a pair of head-first mat-racing slides
- Hurricane Hunter – the first family raft slide at sea
- Storm Surge – the first suspended family raft slide at sea
Storm Chasers counts as two slides, which brings the total to six.
If you’re travelling with younger children who aren’t quite ready for these, there’s also Splashaway Bay, with smaller slides and water features designed for kids.
With so many different slides in one place, I’d say Icon, Star and Legend are currently the best all-round cruise ships for water slide fans.
Sound exciting? Read more with my guide to Icon of the Seas waterslides.
Norwegian Aqua and Norwegian Luna
Best cruise ship for the most unusual waterslide
Is it a waterslide or a rollercoaster? On Norwegian Aqua, it’s actually a bit of both.
The Aqua Slidecoaster is the world’s first hybrid rollercoaster and waterslide at sea, and it’s very different from the traditional slides you’ll find on most cruise ships.
Rather than simply climbing to the top and letting gravity do the work, riders sit together in a two-person raft before being launched around the ship’s funnel. There are two different courses, so you can even race alongside another raft.
The ride covers three storeys of twists and turns, combining the speed and excitement of a rollercoaster with plenty of splashing along the way.
If you’ve already tried plenty of cruise ship waterslides and want something completely different, this is the one I’d be heading for.
Even Better Cruise Ship Waterparks Are Coming in 2027
The competition for the best cruise ship waterpark isn’t slowing down. Two new ships launching in 2027 have already revealed some seriously impressive plans.
Hero of the Seas
Royal Caribbean’s fourth Icon-class ship, Hero of the Seas, is due to launch in August 2027, and it won’t simply copy the waterpark found on Icon, Star and Legend.
Category 6 will still have six waterslides, but there are some big changes. Hero will introduce two new family raft slides, including the first funnel raft slide at sea.
The Storm Chasers racing slides are getting an upgrade too, with new tailspins, switchbacks and open-air sections.
So while Icon, Star and Legend currently share the same Category 6 experience, Hero of the Seas will give water slide fans something new to try when she arrives.
Carnival Festivale
Carnival is getting much more serious about cruise ship waterparks too.
When Carnival Festivale launches in 2027, she’ll introduce Carnival WaterWorks Ultra, which Carnival says will be its biggest waterpark yet.
There will be six waterslides, including two family raft rides called Turning Tides and SunSoaker, racing slides, a spiral slide and smaller slides for children.
There will also be splash areas, including one designed specifically for babies.
With both Hero of the Seas and Carnival Festivale arriving in 2027, this list could look quite different again next year!
Which Cruise Ship Water Slide Would You Try?
Cruise ship water slides have come a long way. You can race a friend, plunge through a trapdoor, spin around a giant bowl or even try a waterslide that’s part rollercoaster.
If I had to pick, the bowl-style slides are still some of my favourites. Although if you’ve tried NCL’s Free Fall, I’d love to know whether you found it as terrifying as I did!
Have you tried any of these cruise ship water slides? Let me know your favourite in the comments below.
And if you’re choosing a cruise specifically for the waterpark, make sure you check the individual ship rather than just the cruise line. Water slides can vary hugely from one ship to another.
With Hero of the Seas and Carnival Festivale bringing even more impressive waterparks in 2027, I suspect this list will need updating again very soon!
Get Help Booking Your Family Cruise
Cruise Family are the only UK specialists in cruises for families of 5+ (and smaller ones too!)
Let them find your perfect trip…
