Ever the innovator, Norwegian is staying state-of-the-art in cruising, this time with interactive signs to make the cruising experience even more modern and potentially more satisfying.
It's called staying with the times.
We have a 16-month-old granddaughter who knows, even before her second birthday, that the way to make things happen on Grandma's iPhone is to swipe the screen…and she knows 
what to expect when you swipe. The point is that in the modern age, interactivity is everything, whether it's reading a book on a phone or phoning a book-ie…okay, a relative…from the car.
Interactivity is giving a whole new meaning to touchy-feely. Nowhere is that more prevalent on cruise ships than the ones with those loud decorative works of art on their hulls.
Norwegian has a history of innovations, and if touch-screens in the public areas isn't one of them, being able to do everything from order dinner to book entertainment or shore excursions is.
The head honcho, Kevin Sheehan, puts it this way:
"All of our guests can take advantage of this exciting technology. With the introduction of these screens, Freestyle Cruising is taken to a whole new level, allowing guests to further 
customize their vacation on their time. It’s all about freedom and flexibility.”
Freestyle is a Norwegian signature and, co-incidentally, Freestyle Cruising brought us back to cruising after a 16-year absence (Norwegian Star)…but that's another story. We can't imagine this freestyle option would be that dramatic but having 30 to 50 static screens on a ship so that you can do things that would otherwise have to be done on the phone is just another way to help bring our demographic into the 21st century.
And, dare we mention, to attract younger customers.
That's what Norwegian's new ships, first the Breakaway and next February the Getaway, are designed to do. The touch screens that are part of it were introduced on Breakaway and now will be floated out to the other 11 ships in the Norwegian fleet.
So far, they've resisted saying it enables customers to keep in touch.
Celebrity Solstice
12 nights
November 4, 2013
Sydney, Melbourne, Doubtful Sound, Dusky Sound, Milford Sound, Dunedin, Akaroa, Wellington, Tauranga, Auckland
Inside: $1,499
Cost per day: $124
www.celebritycruises.com