!!! BREAKAWAY !!! To Bermuda ^_^ Our Ultimate Review and Complete Pictorial Guide!

[cabincop]

lol I know Kings County is Brooklyn but I just thought they should have had Brooklyn is more recognizable, and props for brooklyn

[mikenpatti]

Hi Gambee....question from the back row. :)

 

Have not heard much mention of the CD Julie. What was your first impression?

 

Thank you for sharing so much info!

[NYFirstTimeCruiser]

With all the pictures showing $$$. Looks like we'll be spending more on this cruise than we originally budgeted for. We were lucky enough to snag a hump cabin on 12. Any thoughts on the hump cabins? Any cc'ers book a hump cabin on 12? Thanks!

[Beth C]

I can't believe i'm already 26 pages late to the party :( Jet lag killed me this trip - plus getting back into the swing of things (seriously... I have to make my bed and cook my own food after 2 weeks of cruising... not fair!) and trying err failing miserably at catching up on 2.5 weeks of work has done me in so far this week! Going to start from the beginning and work my way through and hopefully catch up before this trip is over :D

Edited May 30, 2013 by Beth C

[Cruisin2Sun]

Gambee, your pictures are fantastic, especially the chandelier and the food. Gotta love the food porn!

 

Gambee, the last picture in post # 407 with the huge ottoman-looking thing-- where you say this place is so cute.....where is that?

 

Thanks!

[ctop59]

Gambee, I am usually just a lurker, but have to finally comment. I have followed your reviews since the Allure and have really enjoyed your photos, and your reviews get better each time. You really should be a writer or photographer! Your photos enticed me out of my normal point & shoot cameras and I picked up my Sony NEX F3 yesterday. I tried it out today & just Love it! Thanks for all your hard work!

[swim13]

Gambee, I am usually just a lurker, but have to finally comment. I have followed your reviews since the Allure and have really enjoyed your photos, and your reviews get better each time. You really should be a writer or photographer! Your photos enticed me out of my normal point & shoot cameras and I picked up my Sony NEX F3 yesterday. I tried it out today & just Love it! Thanks for all your hard work!

 

Wow Gambee, someone gave you their first post! He also pursuaded me to get the Sony NEX F3!!! It should be here Friday, can't wait to play with it! :)

 

Somehow I managed to get half of my research paper done today in spite of Day 1 being finished! :D

[Ojaian]

Thanks Gambee this is awesome. We are sailing on 6/16 and this has been very helpful.

[OnTheGoMom921]

Wonderful review! Getting psyched for my upcoming Breakaway cruise. Hope your review gets finished before my sail date! Loving all the photos.

PS, I was also at that street fair in NYC. Walked around Times Square as well. Both were very crowded considering the weather was awful that day. I remember feeling bad for you BA cruisers as the weather couldn't cooperate for you all that day. BTW, We had several warm, lovely days during the week you all were in Bermuda. Just a shame that wasn't in sync with your sailaway from NYC.

[Gershep]

Gambee,

 

I thought you and your followers would be interested in knowing this. So I am now 45 days out and I call NCL to book my shows. Based on your recommendation even thou I haven't read your review on the seating at Cirque I decided to book standard seating. GUESS WHAT? There is no longer standard and premium seating. All seats are now $39.99 and are on a first come first serve basis. This really irks me because I know someone who is on the same cruise but was able to book 55 days out and got standard seating for $29.99. Even thou I had no intention of booking a spa pass that price has now been increased to $199 for the week. NCL is really trying to nickel and dime everyone. More increases to come!!!

[MONTICELLO]

Thanks so much for your help. Can't wait to try everything.

[English101]

Awesome review so far!!! I've been following you since the "Everything" thread. I still have a bit of a wait until I experience Breakaway, but am enjoying all the info and pics of this beauty :)

I have two questions. DO you happen to remember if there were any Wii U's in the 3-5 category (turtles I believe)?? My 5yr old told me he would die if he didn't get a chance to play while aboard (I know, dramatic..lol). Also, do the specialty restaurants have a kids menu, or somewhat kid friendly food??

Thanks so much! Looking forward to reading the rest of your review :D

 

I don't know if this has been addressed yet....not sure if there's a wii u in the splash academy for 3-5 yo BUT,according to the dailies that have been posted, they do open wii u play on the HUGE screen in the atrium!

 

I also read that if kids eat off the menu n specialty restaurants, you pay 1/2 price. If they eat something from the main dining room, there's no additional charge! I was excited to see this....if my husband and I want to eat at ocean blue, I know my girls will only want chicken fingers (or something else off children's menu)! Lol so no charge....and when we eat at their favorite: teppenyaki, we'll pay 1/2 for them.

Edited May 30, 2013 by English101

[VickiD59]

All seats are now $39.99 and are on a first come first serve basis.

Sorry to break-in... I've been reading everything I can on the Breakaway as our family is planning a cruise for next year. This will be the first NCL cruise for any of us. I've only been on two cruises and as you can see in my signature, they've both been on the Miracle - I need to get out more :rolleyes:

Anyway... not to sound too ignorant, but ... you have to PAY for the SHOWS?

 

PS - LOVE this review Gambee.. I catch up during my lunch hour and first thing each morning :D

[hpecorari]

NCL is really trying to nickel and dime everyone. More increases to come!!!

 

 

Do you think this has anything to do with the lost revenue due to the Casino and stores being closed while in Bermuda for 3 days?

[English101]

Wow Gambee, someone gave you their first post! He also pursuaded me to get the Sony NEX F3!!! It should be here Friday, can't wait to play with it! :)

 

Somehow I managed to get half of my research paper done today in spite of Day 1 being finished! :D

 

Gambee definitely needs to be receiving commission! Cruises (even upgrades to aft rooms...AND suites since he shares pictures of those rooms as well!), cameras, suitcases, fedoras, Carlos' bake shop items, specialty restaurants, we could go on and on...

Edited May 30, 2013 by English101

[ibcnusoon]

Gambee,

 

I thought you and your followers would be interested in knowing this. So I am now 45 days out and I call NCL to book my shows. Based on your recommendation even thou I haven't read your review on the seating at Cirque I decided to book standard seating. GUESS WHAT? There is no longer standard and premium seating. All seats are now $39.99 and are on a first come first serve basis. This really irks me because I know someone who is on the same cruise but was able to book 55 days out and got standard seating for $29.99. Even thou I had no intention of booking a spa pass that price has now been increased to $199 for the week. NCL is really trying to nickel and dime everyone. More increases to come!!!

 

That's wrong! If it were up to me, I wouldn't even bother with Cirque, I don't see the draw, saw the version in DisneyWorld and thought it was overpriced. Since it was going to be on the ship, and everyone hypes about Cirque, I was going to take my parents but now I'm thinking twice. Really annoyed that RCL is telling me I have to spend ANOTHER $200 AND stand on line for how many hours before just to get a decent view. I'm boycotting Cirque on Breakaway if that's the case.

[gambee]

FriendlyPA: Thank you :)

 

Ctrinh225: I did walk from the hotel to the pier, about 1 block of walking. I thought the area was pretty safe, a lot of residential condos there. I saw plenty of young families walking around that area, there are schools there as well. To times square we also walked, even at night. its about 5-6 blocks, not bad.

 

cruzinlady: I still feel really bad that your cruise was canceled, at the very least you're here enjoying the review. I am glad that I can keep you entertained =)

 

Les Bill: I hope you have a great time aboard this wonderful ship. NCL is slightly different from other lines, but they offer a good product.

 

B&Z's Mom: I have a few more menus, I just have to look for them.

 

Metboy: Glad you're loving the review =)

 

topanga49er: I use lightroom to compress and add that watermark to each picture, it is actually very simple. If you ever get lightroom and want to learn how to do this, hit me up by email and I will teach you. I heard about the prices here and there, from what I heard they are reasonable. The problem is that if i do Quantum I would love to do Bermuda and for that I will have to wait a little.

 

Kenosha Cruiser: I hope you have a wonderful cruise =), she is a thing of beauty!

 

Topanga49er: Actually being docked for 3 days was one of my biggest fears, and to tell you the truth, I think it is what I liked the most! The casino and stores are closed, but restaurants are open. I know a few people who stayed on board and went to eat and used the slides, they all told me they had a great time.

 

Gershep: You know I am not sure, our server told us one app and one entree. I was wondering that myself, maybe they consider the pizza as an entree. I think you're going to have to ask once you get there.

 

beachbuddy: I am very interested in Quantum. However I don't interest in the 7 day southern and the 12 day is just too long and too expensive for me. I would love to go to bermuda again aboard Quantum, but those prices have not been released yet.

 

Mitchthebeech: I think the ship will be amazing, but I just don't want to fly from Florida to then cruise back down to Florida and I cannot afford the 12 night one. I will wait for the Bermuda ones to open up and then decide from there.

 

opusbloom: You're very welcome, glad you're enjoying.

 

toothdocsx2: Glad you love it, thanks for being a part of this =)

 

mikenpatti: Julie, lol. I will talk about her on day 2. There are a few things that I want to say about her, so that is why I have waited until day two, the day that I met her.

 

NYfisttimeCruiser: I actually have pictures of that hump balcony, it was much nicer than the regular ones. Wait a minute, are we taking about the slanted ones? or just a regular hump. Well in any case I will post the pics on day two.

 

Beth C: Well hello there Beth, I was wondering were you where, very nice to see that you made it. I was going to contact you on FB to see if everything was ok. Welcome aboard.

 

Cruisin2Sun: If my memory serves me right, it is on deck 6 aft, by the elevator, but I could be wrong.

 

ctop59: Thank you very much for your first post, I hope you enjoy the camera. She really does take some amazing pictures :). I hope you continue to enjoy the review.

 

swim13: I think you should be able to finish the other half today. I am not sure that I will be able to post much today.

 

Ojaian: You're very welcome.

 

OnTheGoMom921: I know the taxi driver told me that the weather had gone from winter to summer in that one week. Well at the very least the weather in Bermuda was much better :).

 

Gershep: Thank you so much for this info, I thin NCL will do a lot of adjusting in the month to come. I just hope that they don't shoot themselves in the foot by increasing to much the prices. Once Quantum comes out it will be a delicate game of rivalry.

 

MONTECELLO: You're very welcome.

 

VickiD59: All the shows are free with the exception of the Cirque dinner show for $39 and the Lunch comedy show for $20.

 

hpecorari: But they knew this already, they built the ship to go to Bermuda. NCL really needs to watch their back, RCCL will deploy quantum soon and if they keep this game they will fall behind!

 

English: you crack me up :D

[ibcnusoon]

Sorry to break-in... I've been reading everything I can on the Breakaway as our family is planning a cruise for next year. This will be the first NCL cruise for any of us. I've only been on two cruises and as you can see in my signature, they've both been on the Miracle - I need to get out more :rolleyes:

Anyway... not to sound too ignorant, but ... you have to PAY for the SHOWS?

 

PS - LOVE this review Gambee.. I catch up during my lunch hour and first thing each morning :D

 

Hi, I'm new to NCL so I'll try and help. The Cirque show is a fee because it involves a special dinner. It's not mandatory to go to Cirque, you can find FREE fine dining in the MDRs on the ship. If you want a specialty restaurant, then you'll also have to pay extra, anywhere from $15-$49 pp. As far as I know, all other shows on the ship is free.

Edited May 30, 2013 by ibcnusoon

[tiffygirl]

Gambee,

 

I thought you and your followers would be interested in knowing this. So I am now 45 days out and I call NCL to book my shows. Based on your recommendation even thou I haven't read your review on the seating at Cirque I decided to book standard seating. GUESS WHAT? There is no longer standard and premium seating. All seats are now $39.99 and are on a first come first serve basis. This really irks me because I know someone who is on the same cruise but was able to book 55 days out and got standard seating for $29.99. Even thou I had no intention of booking a spa pass that price has now been increased to $199 for the week. NCL is really trying to nickel and dime everyone. More increases to come!!![/QUOTE]

 

its all about choices, they are not forcing you to spend the money. Its available for a higher fee IF you want to see it. If its too much $$$ you dont want to see the show then don't go. Since all these increases, I have now marked Ocean Blue, Spa pass, and probably Cirque(still on the fence) from my list to do. (just out of principal) They increase, I decrease...No worries :) I will still have a FABULOUS cruise.

Edited May 30, 2013 by tiffygirl

[topanga49er]

Thanks John for the info! Excited for more Gambee!

[dcollette]

the infamous Manhattan with the last "a' replaced.

 

BUT - they still have it wrong. What is marked Manhattan is really New Jersey and the sliver of unmarked area should be marked Manhattan!

 

lol.

 

LOL, they should have at least put an arrow to show where it is supposed to be! And they never corrected the Nag harbor, either. Oh well, guess the foreign painters are as bad at geography as they are here in the US! lol.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

...

 

Do you think this has anything to do with the lost revenue due to the Casino and stores being closed while in Bermuda for 3 days?

 

I doubt it. I think that the extra cost options (what some refer to as "nickel and diming") are appearing on more and more ships/lines. It's just a sign of the times... ways to generate additional revenue.

 

I, for one, like to have such options. :)

 

Tom

[gambee]

Day 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

[gambee]

Day 2

 

Ok, lets see Day 2. First let me start by talking about a few things that I forgot to mention in day one. One of the things we noticed when we entered the room was that our balcony light was broken. On day one we also talked to several people about this problem so it could get fixed, unfortunately by the end of day 1 the problem had not been addressed. It was very frustrating as I really enjoy to sit on the balcony and work on my pictures while I have a drink at night. But in any case I still did it, I just left the curtain open so a little light would reach the balcony.

 

That morning we woke up at around 6:45, I slept pretty good. But I do recall having some pretty nasty nightmares and all ship emergency related. Ughhhh, what can I tell you, dreams can be very disturbing at times. Mom also mentioned to me that the toilet was broken, as I remember Slice also telling me something similar about hers. But then I noticed that you have to press the bottom really hard in order for it to work. My mom was having trouble with that, they really shouldn't have made this like that. I imagine it will be almost impossible for young children to flush.

 

So anyway, the ship was traveling at about 11 knots, I started playing with the TV and noticed that they did not have the bridge channel. I am sure many inside and studio rooms really miss that. The TV programing is also very weak, they have a bunch of news channels, a bunch of NCL selling channels, a few ship related one and one favorite show channel and a favorite movie channel. I think by the end of the cruise I had seen most of the favorite shows available. And the movies were not that good, ill say that one of the movies was Mary Poppins, really? how old is this movie? Celebrity and RCCL both have much better TV programing. The tv shows were more current, but again not enough of them. Someone doing a TA or B2B, would be in trouble. But then again I think I just watch too much TV for my own good :D.

 

So anyway my mom made a call to see if they would come this time and get the light fixed. They said that they would be there very soon. By the way that phone call lasted about 10 seconds, I think they actually hung up on her, little rude she told me. If you're wondering they never showed up. We had to go to customer service again, more on that later.

 

So anyway, then the aerobics class started at around 8am and you could hear the music from H2O. Nothing horrible, but you could definitely hear it, I think I was sitting in the balcony enjoying the breeze and working on my pictures.

 

 

 

The water is changing colors. :)

 

[gambee]

For Breakfast we went to Savor, we sat down at 8:45. When we sat down the table next to us was complaining that his french toast were cold. So they brought him another one. We ordered very quickly, but then the waiting game started.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They bring you some coffee.