Breakaway 6/2-6/9 with pics

[graphicguy]

BERMUDA....pics speak for themselves (remember, I found these on my own without going on a paid excursion...using only a free map, and bus/water taxi and/or a scooter....

 

 

 

 

 

And....a Celebrity ship who joined us for 3 days. I actually hung out with quite a few Celebrity passengers, since I kept running into them. Had fun with them, too.....

[graphicguy]

Bermuda is about beaches.....some of the best in the world. Got to these via bus....

 

 

[david_sobe]

Loving your review

Interesting take you think the Breakaway is a step down from Epic since you noticed so many cheaper things or cost cutting, etc.

 

One thing that I dont like about Breakaway is the Haven area has no bar with a view. On Epic, the suite guest have a sailaway party at Posh and a cocktail party in the Epic club lounge. Each bar area comes with a great view. I think I will miss this stuff on Getaway ;(

[SissasMomE]

Loving your review

Interesting take you think the Breakaway is a step down from Epic since you noticed so many cheaper things or cost cutting, etc.

 

One thing that I dont like about Breakaway is the Haven area has no bar with a view. On Epic, the suite guest have a sailaway party at Posh and a cocktail party in the Epic club lounge. Each bar area comes with a great view. I think I will miss this stuff on Getaway ;(

 

I'm taking my parents on the Getaway in April. It's their first time on NCL, and it took me this long to get them to go on NCL!! I'm seriously wondering if I should switch us to the Epic. I love that ship, and I'd hate for them to have a bad (cost cutting) experience for their first NCL cruise :(

[david_sobe]

I'm taking my parents on the Getaway in April. It's their first time on NCL, and it took me this long to get them to go on NCL!! I'm seriously wondering if I should switch us to the Epic. I love that ship, and I'd hate for them to have a bad (cost cutting) experience for their first NCL cruise :(

Personally, I would still go with a new ship. Breakaway/Getaway have some perks like the Waterfront, etc. But the ship seems like a chopped up Epic with a few more venues but everything is smaller. Having said that, once you try the new ship, chances are there wont be that WOW factor to lure you back and you can try Epic again. By that time, Breakaway plus will be out and we will be waiting to try that one :)

 

I was surprised (as others were too) how similiar Breakaway and Epic are. The chandalier area and casino, etc. I was hoping for a radical new design. Not because I dont like Epic but I like to try new ships.

 

I would love to see that waterfall in Spice also in the Haven adult only area on top of the ship (like a Posh). I think a New York Pizza place would have worked well on the Waterfront too. I would have loved to have seen a different atrium than Epic too. Something interesting or crazy. I also would have liked to have seen a lap pool in the Haven. There is room but they still went with a smaller dip pool.

Edited June 22, 2013 by david_sobe

[bluesea777]

BERMUDA....hard to believe, I've been writing about the ship, the food, the entertainment, and haven't even touched upon the deistination.....BERMUDA.

 

This was kind of unusual for me. Ordinarily, I cruise....few days at sea...dock somewhere...rush around to do things where the ship docks...hurry to get back on board....sail to the next place...repeat.

 

Docking at Bermuda for nearly 3 days was sort of different. First, you ship serves to be your hotel. You don't have to leave the ship at a certain time, you don't have to be on board a certain time (except the day you leave).

 

Hmmmmm....what to do, what to do.

 

I'm not a ship arranged excursion kind of guy. I like to more or less do my own thing, regardless of whether I'm alone, or not.

 

So, first order of business, I needed to find transport to some of the places I might want to visit.

 

I'll let the pics speak for themselves.

 

My scooter parked in downtown Hamilton...

 

 

 

 

Hi, which bike were you trying to tell others that was yours? :cool::p:cool::p:rolleyes:

[Kenosha Cruiser]

 

Thought I'd post a picture of Slam Allen. We went every night to see him and his jazz/blue band play in the "Fat Cats Lounge". Sam is a incredible musician, he can make his guitar sing. Anyone going soon on the Breakaway, make time to see him as graphicguy will tell you.

 

Cheers - Ken & Darlene

[Kenosha Cruiser]

[Kenosha Cruiser]

 

Here's another picture of the "Fire & Ice" gal doing a Tina Turner tribute on the Breakaway one night. What a show!

[graphicguy]

Absolutely LOVE having others adding their photos to this. Keep it up. Thanks so much!

[graphicguy]

Blue...that's the parking area for the scooters on the Hamilton waterfront. Actually, there are quite a few of those. There are also parking areas on the street, in fron of the stores.

 

A note about the Bermunda people.....I have never experienced nicer people, given that their "home" is innundated with tourists every day. They're willing to help, even giving directions or answering questions that they've probably been asked 100X before. It's not an insincere type of helpfulness, either.

 

I never say one peice of stray trash on the street either.

 

The people who live there are quite proud of their "paradise" (heard that word usedby more than one Bermudan). They're the first to admit that it's extremely expensive to live in Bermuda.....but, that it's all worth it.

 

This is a part of the world that I would want to just travel to and visit, and to stay a little longer.

Edited June 23, 2013 by graphicguy

[graphicguy]

SissasMom....Epic or Breakaway? Epic would be my choice. That's the ship that brought so many NCL innovations all together in a really nice package. As mentioned, Breakaway is quite similar to Epic, just with some undesireable cost cutting that's obvious throughout the ship.

 

I like the newer, bigger ships.....Conquest and Freedom on Carnival, Liberty and Allure on RCCL, Epic and Breakaway on NCL. Those ships usually offer the best the particular cruise line is putting forth.

 

So, the differences are apparent to me since I've had the good fortune to sail all of those ships, and experience the differences.

 

If your Mother hasn't sailed on any of these ships, she might be perfectly fine with it.

 

As David points out, Epic and Breakaway are very similar. Breakaway, aside from the entertainment differences from Epic, is supposed to be the NCL flagship (pun intended). I feel it's a step backwards.

 

I'm also of the mind that "I'm on a cruise. What can possibly be bad?". That was true of the Breakaway. Unless I'm stuck on a ship that caught on fire, with sewage running down the halls, there's never a bad cruise.

 

I'd take whichever ship is less expensive if you have no preference to the itinerary.

[bluesea777]

Blue...that's the parking area for the scooters on the Hamilton waterfront. Actually, there are quite a few of those. There are also parking areas on the street, in fron of the stores.

 

 

What I was saying your bike was not in the picture ;).

 

Tourist bikes have red number plate, and the bike in photo has green ....

 

I agree, the folks in Bermuda are friendly. So glad you enjoyed your stay in Bermuda.

[sapphire2810]

Hello....it's taken me a bit to bring myself to post my impressions of my Breakaway adventure, but finally blocked out some time to do so.

 

This started as a plan for the GF and I to sail after having such a wonderful Epic cruise. We had a Celebrity Solstice and RCCL Alure of the Seas in between, but were excited about the Breakaway.

 

In a certain sense, Breakaway was an appropos name for the cruise for me given that the GF and I split up before final payment of the cruise was due. At first, I was just going to cancel. But, given it was happening over my birthday week also, I seemed destined to cruise the Breakaway. So, an aft balcony cabin was traded in for a Studio Cabin.

 

Since I have no particular aversion to sail with any cruise line or any ship, and since I have sailed what I consider some of the best ships at sea currently, I'll do some compare and contrast along the way.

 

All that said...let's get this rolling......

 

 

Thanks for taking the time to write this review. Looking forward to hearing about your first solo cruise/vacation experience. Will be doing my first solo cruise 8/4/13 will be in studio cabin. Friends changed their mind about cruising. Like you decided to go for it.

 

Any tips you can offer, for dinning and shows.

[graphicguy]

blue....I see what you're saying now. What I attempted to show was how a lot of people get around Bermuda, including tourists. They use scooters. Wish I could do the same at home (although I do have a motorcycle, yet can only use it 6 months out of the year).

 

Sapphire.....if you scroll through the posts in this thread, you'll get a good idea of what I did and didn't like.

 

In brief.....I liked Savor and Taste MDRs. The Garden Cafe was good, too.

 

Cagneys was great, as was LaCuccina.....LE BISTRO's service was good. My food wasn't so good.

 

O'Sheehans is great for breakfast and late night snacks. The Burgers are good, as was the chicken pot pie.

 

Shanghai was a great place......service was good, and they treated me like royalty. Food was great and inexpensive.

 

"Burn the Floor" and "Rock of Ages" were both worthy of being on Broadway or as a headline act in Vegas. 2nd City was fun. "Fire and Ice" was always worth catching in the Atrium. If you're a blues fan, you can't do better than Slam Allen in Fat Cats. It's fun catching a movie on the big screen in the Atrium, too.

 

There you have it.

 

Got more pics to come..

[graphicguy]

Sailboat race I saw while taking the water taxi in Bermuda....

 

 

I overheard someone say (assuming they lived in Bermuda) that the least expensive home on Bermuda cost in the neighborhood of $800,000. And, the average home cost exceeded $1M.

 

Given that the exchange between the Bermudan dollar was 1:1 with the U.S. dollar, it is indeed expensive.

 

 

Also heard that Michael Douglas and H. Ross Perrot live in Bermuda. Can't remember the name of the street, but someone told me I probably passed Douglas' home while on my scooter one day. No one invited me in, and if I did pass by, the gate was locked.;)

[graphicguy]

First ship to hit Bermuda....

 

 

Site of a re-enactment of a "dunking" of a woman (yes, she sits on the edge of the pole and is literally "dunked" in the harbor several times because of her insubordination). Interesting that someone would volunteer for that duty. Also interesting that the early English-Bermudan settlers actually had condoned this activity. Further, I was amazed at how the crowd took great delight in this re-enactment.

 

Then again, perhaps I'm too "stuffy" and it was all in good fun.

 

Edited June 24, 2013 by graphicguy

[graphicguy]

Loving your review

Interesting take you think the Breakaway is a step down from Epic since you noticed so many cheaper things or cost cutting, etc.

 

One thing that I dont like about Breakaway is the Haven area has no bar with a view. On Epic, the suite guest have a sailaway party at Posh and a cocktail party in the Epic club lounge. Each bar area comes with a great view. I think I will miss this stuff on Getaway ;(

 

David...NCL could have gone in a different direction with Breakaway and upped the ante. They didn't do that, though. They didn't improve in any way over the Epic (or any other "super" ship at sea, like the Allure/Oasis twins). I'm not loyal to any cruise line. And, certainly Allure had its own foibles to deal with. Certainly, cost cutting wasn't one of them.

 

I guess I come in with the belief that no company has ever been successful for very long by focusing on "cheapening" their product. Add to that, NCL raised prices, not only for the cruise, but for some of the eateries on board. I don't buy that the prices are driven by demand. Ocean Blue was never crowded.....matter of fact, it was pretty sparse.

 

If this is the direction NCL is going to go for the foreseeable future.....I really don't know how they'll be able to sustain their pricing structure on any of these new ships.

 

Again, it's not that I didn't have a good cruise. I had a wonderful cruise.

 

I'm already planning my next one. I'm not looking at NCL at all, however.

[graphicguy]

Actually looking at the Breakaway from my water taxi...

 

 

Well worth the $10 entrance fee, plus a great walk through Bermuda's history is Fort Hamilton. Take 2-3 hours and wander on your own. It's within walking distance of the ship, too.

 

 

 

I enjoyed Bermuda immensely. It's impossible to list all the interesting things to see and do. I've barely touched the surface of how beatutiful the setting is, how wonderful the people are, and how the entire "vibe" is so addicting once you spend some time there. I certainly didn't want to sail away from Bermuda. And, it's crystal clear to me why the people who live there wouldn't dream of living anywhere else on earth.

 

If for no other reason than to see this scene every night....

 

[graphicguy]

Being docked in the same place for nearly 3 days affords the opportunity to really get to know a place, the people there and the flavor of what it's like to live there. I'm enriched as a person as a result.

 

I would seriously consider coming back to Bermuda and stay for a much longer period of time as a result.

 

But, we had to leave at some point.

 

Cruise Director Julie wecoming us back the last day in Bermuda (told you she showed up everywhere:D)...

 

 

....and, a nice "welcome back" sign for good measure...

 

[graphicguy]

So, with our one and only port now behind us, it's time to focus on having fun on the ship. The interesting part is I always had fun on the ship, without having to worry about embarkation/debarkation times while we were in port.

 

I got off when I wanted. Stayed in Bermuda as long as I wanted (I think one night I met up with some of my Celebrity neighbors until 3:00 a.m.). And didn't worry about schedules. So, that made this cruise have its own unique flavor.

 

I probably missed quite a few meals on board, as I was still doing something on land.

 

But, we casted off and I was back on the ship, doing what we all do on the ship, explore and find adventures....

 

 

 

 

 

 

My favorite bartender, OKA, readying to open....

[graphicguy]

 

Eventually, you'll find yourself here, as you review your bill at the end of the cruise, and inevitably find a snafu....

 

 

It was as wonderful reliving my cruise adventure with all of you, as it was experienceing the cruise. I thank you for all the kind words and encouragement. And, will answer as many questions as I have answers for.

 

I'll be hanging around, preparing my next cruise. So, I hope to see all of you moseying around the threads.

 

I hope you never find yourself caught in anyone else's wake...

 

 

My version of a hand wave...

 

Again, thanks!

Edited June 24, 2013 by graphicguy

[roe2ship]

I really enjoyed following your review. Nicely done with great pictures. I love all the hoopla NCL does when ready to leave port. Seems like a very nice touch.

 

I have one another question, please.....Did you find O'Sheehans at breakfast to be crowded? What times were you usually there? Thanks!:)

[www3traveler]

When is your next cruise? It would be fun to be a cruise with you. My next cruise is in January for the Maiden Voyage of the Getaway. Your pictures and review have helped me prepare for it. Thank You very much. I know that it takes a lot of time and effort to post it all. I am glad you had a wonderful vacation.

[Gershep]

Great review! Thank you! The picture above Maltings what deck is that, is it the back of the ship?