gizmo911

I hope you guys are enjoying the review, and that I'm not boring you with so much details. I just want to ensure you get the full experience. Please feel free to ask questions. I want to make sure I answer all of your questions about the experience.

 

--

Zay

Wondering if there was any shade on private island at front or Lagoon as I can't be in sun too long.

Zay, it was great meeting you at our M&M. We also had a very good time on the Breakaway.

 

Couple of things that came to mind based on your review so far:

 

This was my first time free-style cruising. I really liked it! And, I loved the variety of restaurants on board. Overall, we had a very good experience with the food and the servers in all the venues we used.

 

The lunch menu in Savor on the embarkation day was the first time that menu was used. Just introduced on the Breakaway. If they get good feedback, it will be introduced fleetwide. I liked it. Had lunch there 2 days.

 

For sailaway, we went to SpiceH2O. It's top deck aft. Best way to get there is from the aft elevators. Terrific location. Can see from starboard to aft to port, so a great view. It was especially nice due to our fabulous weather!

 

I wonder if the family with twins you mentioned were the same ones I met in the elevator one night. It was dad and the twins. They were on the way to the "circus". They were so excited. When I told them they had to look up to see the circus, they just couldn't believe it. I wish I had run into them later to see how they liked it.

 

Please don't mention the pot pie in O'Sheehans again. Most everyone in my group had it at some time, and really liked it. It was on my to do list, and I never managed to have it. I feel so left out that I didn't have one!

 

You also mentioned the polish sausage in EPCOT. We were at the Food and Wine last year, and this was something we had to go back for a second time! In our area, it's called kielbasi, and we love it! Maybe it's something you have to grow up with.

 

Keep up the good work. You are helping me relive the great week we had on the Breakaway.

I will be traveling with a friend using a scooter, will we be able to get to SPice H20 area you are talking about for sail away?

I will be on Breakaway in March 2014 and I think that I would like to have a beach day at the Sheraton. Maybe this was already discussed but I wanted to know how much is it for the day pass and what that includes. Also, do you have to make a reservation or do they take walk ins. I am traveling with a few others and I am not sure if they are interested in going to the beach so I don't want to make plans ahead of time. Thanks.

Well you do have to walk up the stairs to this area (although we noticed a chair climber attached to the rail). It's on the same deck as vibe. In fact, you head toward Vibe, but instead of turning right into Vibe, you just keep going toward the front of the ship. There are tons of regular blue loungers and across the front of the ship there are 5 clamshells.

 

Thank you I am def going to be looking for this area.

Thank you for putting that summary together, I am def taking notes. Hope we get some more tips to add to it.

Uptown Bar & Grill on 16 is a great breakfast spot. They have pre-made egg mcmuffin type sandwiches, but also bagels, fruit, croissants and they do eggs/omelette's to order. It's never crowded and has a great view. Just go up one flight from the Garden Café on 16 aft

 

On Deck 17 all the way forward is a nice public sundeck. Pass Vibe and keep going and there's clamshells and loungers. Bar servers walking around.

 

In that same area, when you come to the top of the stairs, it's a great place to watch the fireworks.

 

O'Sheehans dartboards are FUN!! (I actually wish I knew the tip of the bigger menu on the other side - never realized the O'S bar menu was different than the restaurant menu)

 

If you get the Ultimate Beverage Package, wait until you're at sea so you don't pay tax. You won't be charged for drinks before you actually bought the package. You can buy it on day 1 and 2.

Can you give me a little more detail my friend has mobility issues and can't be in the sun. So this public sundeck sounds great with claim shells and loungers. I thought only Vibe had that accommodation. Is this on the same deck as Vibe?

Although it was a full cruise, things went very well. Spice H2O was a great place for adults only. Enjoyed lounging with a beautiful ocean view. We like the Manhattan Room a lot. Food was great and enjoyed the music during dinner. Howl at the Moon was great, as was Fire and Ice. The singer Rosie was fantastic. Just enjoy the ship and your vacation!:)

Did you try any of the other MDR (Savor/Taste).

I organized a "food crawl" for our Roll Call where we all went around together sampling and sharing food. So we all split a lobster roll and had half, and had a piece of sushi which was plenty of food for lunch!. It comes with deep friend potato chips nothing else. We never got around to the hot dog :D. The roll is toasted and buttered, and the lobster is a tossed in type of butter sauce and very rich. It's different than a Maine Lobster Roll which is served two ways 1) Tossed with mayo like a slaw or 2) "Naked" drizzled with drawn butter.

 

The Taste/Savor main dining rooms are more intimate. The Manhattan is larger with a dance floor and band stand. All three serve the same dinner menu. Half of the dinner menu changes every day, the other half stays the same. They post the dinner menu in the afternoon and I usually see if anything entices me before I decide whether or not to go to a specialty restaurant.

 

 

 

Here some pictures of

Taste/Savor http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1834773&page=5#94

Manhattan http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1834773&page=13#256

Thank you for the links. I also enjoyed your review with pictures. We have a balcony cabin and I am so excited.

Food Food Food!

...Main dining rooms (Taste/Savor) and O'Sheehans is open is for lunch on embarkation day... You don't have to go to the buffet if you don't want to but that's good too.

...A Sabrette hotdog that's pink and snappy (not a grey dirty water dog like NYC) - Both on the waterfront during the day, and indoors at night (included)

...Lobster night (second night) in the Garden Cafe buffet (included)

...Lunch at O'Sheehans - Corn Beef Cabbage Soup amazing! Buffalo Wings, Burger, Corn Beef sammich Yum! (included)

...All the specialty restaurants (Cagney's, Le Bistro, Moderno favorites) (varying cover charge, with discount/wine on first night only)

...Lobster Tail from Carlo's Famous Bake shop YUM! (a la carte)

...Lobster Roll from Ocean Blue on the Waterfront for lunch WOW! ($10)

...Steak Tartar and Dover Sole in Ocean Blue for dinner AMAZING! ($49)

...Dragon Roll and Godzilla Rolls from Wasabi very good (a la carte)

 

Activities and entertainment

...Walking the Waterfront in the early morning, relaxing on a lounger.

...The entire Sports Complex - Water slides, ropes course with zip line and walk the plank, mini-golf, etc.

...Burn the Floor (excellent), Rock of Ages (very good show, excellent band, mature themes). Reservations recommended but you can also try to go in on standby minutes before the show.

...Any performances in the Atrium, Headliners, and Fat Cats, go early because of limited seating. Fire & Ice, and Fat Cats excellent.

• Can you describe lobster roll at Ocean Blue and does it come with anything else at lunch time? I guess I am wondering If this would be enough for two if just wanted a snack.
  
• Which MDR is better or are they about the same. We will only be going to one specialty and the rest of the time eating in MDR.
  

Does anyone have dallies for Breakaway?

I read that the ship has an actual hot dog stand like you would find in NYC. Are they complementary with all of the fixings?

You can take money off of your room card to play slots too with your players card! I learned that this last cruise!

 

They usually hand out dailies at the terminal first day.

Is there a charge for taking money off of your room card?

This is excellent timing, as I'm on the 10/20 sailing and starting to pack. What are the current evening theme parties? I've lost track of white hot/80s/neon/etc...

Don't forget to bring us back some info, tips, etc.

This is all great info -- we are sailing in less than 3 weeks. I think I'm going to go for that pot pie for sure!

 

I was wondering what is the best restaurant to go to when you first board. We prefer table service -- mom is in a scooter and it's difficult to navigate the buffet. Looking for a nice relaxing lunch before sailaway.

Don't forget to post some secrets, best things to do and try when you get back. Have a wonderful time.

There is a wonderful thread All things Epic and I was hoping that we can do the same to help those of us cruising on the Breakaway for the first time.

Please share things from special things you did, places/areas of the ship you perhaps stumbled upon, which main restaurant was best to have dinner and what you tried, what are some must dos, see, and haves. Best onboard entertainments other than shows, what did you experience that you would like to try again, where do you get good coffee, etc. You can comment on Entertainment, Cabins, Restaurants, Common places, Nightlife....

Come on please share everything.......

I am planning to take a friend of mine who has MS and uses a walker on a cruise in March. I called NCL today and the cost for HD balcony cabin is too expensive for me ( I just got back from Gem). She would not do well in regular public pool area due to limited energy and tolerance to heat/sun. I wanted to make sure that she could at least sit outside and enjoy the ocean view and return to cabin as needed. Can anyone who has sailed the Breakaway suggest a balcony cabin that was comfortable and sizable so she could have a lounger and get in and out with a walker. Thanks

Note: I posted on NCL thread but thought it would be a good idea to also post here.

Hi..I just got back from my Bahamas cruise on the Carnival Glory and I wanted to give my opinion of my "people to people" experience.

 

We learned of the program on these boards and filled out the application on the Bahamas website under the People to People tab. We began receiving emails from Bridgette, a representative of the Ministry of Tourism, about 2 weeks prior to our sailing. She in turn gave us the email address and telephone number of Barbara, the ambassador assigned to us. Barbara touched base with us 2 or 3 times prior to our arrival to get an idea of the things we were interested in doing while we were in Nassau. We explained that we had been to Nassau a half a dozen times and visited the "touristy" area and loved it, but this time we wanted to go further inland and see the true way of life in the Bahamas and their culture..pretty much day to day living. We also wanted to have a dinner at a local place for true bahamian eats...wherever they would normally eat. She said she would have no problem arranging that for us.

 

We arrived at the Ministry of Tourism, which is within walking distance from the dock, at about noon time and met with Bridgette first. She was a very pleasant young lady and immediately made us feel very welcome. She then introduced us to our guide Barbara and Barbara's friend Brielle who she had brought along for the guided tour. Barbara said that Brielle had a larger vehicle than she did and Brielle's vehicle could better accomodate all of us since we had a party of 4. Our party included myself, my friend Kathleen, my daughter McKenzie (15) and my granddaughter Aniya (5), making it a grand total of 6. She had a trailblazer sort of vehicle that could accomodate 5 , so Aniya had to ride on McKenzie's lap...I wasn't entirely happy about that.

 

After leaving the ministry we went directly to a gas station and waited a few minutes for the attendant to arrive to put gas in the vehicle. Then we drove a few blocks to a convenience store and there was an attendant there who put air in all the tires..LOL..seriously. FINALLY, we rode over the bridge to Paradise Island and drove around there for about 45 minutes where they pointed out different areas of interest. Along the ride Kathleen quizzed them on their lives and on the people to people program..she does that alot..quizzes people..lol. Anyway, it turns out that this was their first people to people guided tour :eek:. We kinda figured that because after a few minutes of driving it was apparant that there was not really a set plan or schedule. The People to People Program itself is very new for the Bahamas as well.

 

We did learn a little in the 45 minutes of driving around Paradise Island about their lives, where they used to work before their retirement and about their family life. It was all pretty interesting actually. I think they caught on to the fact that we weren't interested in Atlantis or its surrounding area so they drove back over to town to the Queen's Staircase (another area attraction).

 

During all of our talking we learned that Brielle was a retired cook and worked for Atlantis for a number of years. Most all of her family were also cooks in some fashion. Brielle agreed to take us through the area where she and her family grew up. We made a stop at her son's home and met a few of her family members. I loved that part of our tour...this was what I was really interested in. It turns out that Brielle's sister ran a restaurant locally and she agreed to take us over there for lunch. When we first pulled up it looked like an old run down 2 story cement house in the inner city. There was only a 2 car parking spot in front of the place. It sort of looked like the inner city homes that were sort of run down and unkept. The surrounding homes were in poor shape as well. The patrons usually just walk up to the restaurant/home. The front door was locked on the inside and you had to wait for it to be opened first before you went in..I know, I know, your thinking "what the hell?!"...Well, I LOVED this place right off!..LOL. Once you went inside the place was older yes, but VERY clean and had a small bar area and about 5 or 6 tables with linens and candles in the center and 2 large flat screen televisions on the walls.

 

Now, about the food...it was AWESOME!...did I say AWESOME??..lol..really it was. We asked her sister to surprise us...and she did. She brought our plates out mounded with food!. I had fried conch, rice, coleslaw and fried plantains. I have had fried conch before, but none tasted as good as this. The rice was absolutely delicious!...Now, I have never been a fan of fried plantain and the ones I've had were usually smothered in some sort of sauce that is gross...not the case here! They did have a seasoning of sorts on them and I don't even care what it was cuz it was damn good!! :p. My friend Kathleen, who loves fish, had a loaded up plate of fresh, fried grouper and the same sides as I did. Her food was out of this world also! The 2 children both had fried chicken wings and french fries. The chicken wings were a bit spicy for them but I thought they were perfect. This was by far the best food I've had in a long time....just goes to show, never judge a book by its cover!! This stop was EXACTLY what I was looking for.

 

After we finished eating we said goodbye to our new friends, left a big tip and headed out to the car where we shooed a few dingos out from under the vehicle! Seriously, those poor dogs looked like they came straight off the discovery channel! Anyway, after lunch we took a drive around the area to check the neighborhoods out. We passed a few schools, hospitals and a college. I thoroughly enjoyed our tour through here. On our way back to Bay Street we rode through a local beach area where they built a new bathhouse and a playground for the local kids; which cost an astounding quarter million dollars and they were pretty basic facilities. Our ladies were not happy about!...the price that is..(we all came to the conclusion that the contractor must have been related to the mayor or something!) :eek:

 

Our awesome Bahamian Ambassadors dropped us off back on Bay Street after our wonderful 4 hour tour of the inner area of Nassau...which we absolutely loved and would do again in a heartbeat! Although there is no charge for this excursion through the Ministry of Tourism, it's obvious the Ambassadors need to be tipped. Therefore, we treated them to their lunch (they had the fried conch platter like myself with a standard style salad) and left them with a hefty tip as well!

 

It's important to keep in mind that each tour is unique to each group!

I don't know if I would be contacted in time before cruise (in 2 weeks). I still plan to do some less touristy stuff. Do you remember the name of the place you had lunch?

I booked last minute cruise for Sept. 7th and registered online this Saturday to participate. This would only be a two week window but I am hoping that they will accommodate me. I have been to Nassau (land and sea) many, many times and think this would be the absolute best experience. I signed up on the website. Is there anyone I can call or e-mail to see if I can be accommodated.

For those that have done this can you please share what some of your activities have been and for those that are participating, what activities have your chosen to participate in. Also, what gift are you presenting to your host.

Thank you for sharing and I just wanted to bump this back up.

I am really enjoying this review and can't wait for you to continue. I have a few question about jet skiing because it is on my to try list for my upcoming cruise.

• How challenging it is.
  
• Do you have to keep it balanced (like riding a bike).
  
• Do you have to ride with someone else or can you ride alone.
  
• Is there any skill needed.
  

Hey GAPearl,

I went on priceline.com and bid a 31/2 star for $40 and did not get, but I will keep trying. My question is did you get the insurance for the extra $5? Was wondering if worth it for such a inexpensive room.

I really don't mind coming in day before, but would like to get home day of arrival, I will just have to make sure everything is in order and look into shuttles leaving that early. Thanks for the feedback and keep posting, I love them.

Ok, I am officially a fan. It take a lot to impress me but you have done that and more. I am in my mid-fifties and I have cruised the last 5 cruises solo. I realize that while I do have a good time, I can certainty have an even better time. I hesitate to sometimes go to venues that I have previously felt a bit out of place like the bars as I don't drink and the disco which I seem to only sit and watch (no one ask to dance). One of the things I realize is that I need to take advantage of the excursions. My next one for sure is Grand Cayman - horseback riding. It looked a little scary but I am going to do it.

Being in the industry I would like you opinion. My cruise is in November out of Miami. I live in Albany.NY and the least expensive flight (and can take more bags) is with Southwest which get me to FLL 12pm. Do you think I should come in day before? Same with return. Other than flying at late at night (because of double the price) the flight that I would want to take is at 11:45 and I know I would not be able to make it from MIA to FLL in time.

1. Would you suggest renting a car at FLL airport and returning to MIA airport the next day. I recall in one of your post you renting a car. Do they charge extra for one way and do they have free shuttle service from airport or would I need to use transportation available to me (shuttles). And then doing the same on the return.
    
   If I need to stay over before and after, any recommendations on reasonable hotel (cheap but clean)
   

Hi everyone,

I will be on the NCL Pearl. This will be my 4th cruise solo. I am in my mid 50's. The first time I felt very uncomfortable but after that I started to reach out and make it work and now I absolutely enjoy it. The only thing I don't like is eating alone, but that does not happen too often because I ways get to join great people.

Great review and pics. What's up with the person in your pics that is being blocked out each time?

Great thread. Ive got some real good info re: Dawn. Wondering if anyone has Dawn dallies to share, I will be cruising on Dawn Nov. 25th and can't wait......sooo excited.