Breakaway Sailing 09/15/13 Thoughts from an NCL Cheerleader

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

Boarding was very quick and easy. We got #21 and were on by 11:15. We didn't want a Vibe pass, so started exploring the ship. I didn't see a priority line, they had two sections for odd and even decks.

 

The ship did not seem as big as I expected it to feel. There are two elevator banks and you pretty much stay between the two, unless you are up on deck 15 and 16. The ship was very clean and organized. I liked how there was the one atrium area with the glass staircase. Although a non-smoker, I didn't really notice the smoke, other than when in the casino. Which took about $100 away from us before it would let us out.

 

The Meet and Greet was very nice and organized. Thank you Medtech for that.

 

As for the shows, the first night we saw Burn the Floor. This was a great show, although I wish it had a story behind it. Our Second City show that was booked for the second night was bumped by a change in the schedules so we saw Michael Finney the second night. Thought he was very funny. We were going to reschedule the Second City but decided not to.

 

The third night we went to Rock of Ages. This, in our opinion, was a horrible show. It was the first night for this particular group of actors, so maybe that is why? It had nothing to do with the show itself, we just felt that the performance was more like a bad middle school talent show. Many people were walking out, I kind of felt sorry for them. We actually waited outside of the theater to see how many more people walked out, which was quite a few. Hopefully they will improve with time.

 

Fire and Ice - Awesome. A not to miss show. Dueling Pianos - OK, we are use to a more, lets say, raunchy, dueling pianos. But I understand probably not possible on a ship with families. Peeked in at the guy who took over for Slam Allen. Sorry, didn't get his name. He was very good also.

 

We found the perfect spot for the fireworks. Go to the kids pool area and sit on the wood on the side of the water area, behind the the Sponge Bob guy in the car. We were the only ones in the area and had a great show. You don't need to be on the top deck to see them.

 

The food on the ship was very good, especially O'Sheehans. Spent a lot of time there. Taste and Savor food and service excellent. Manhattan Room excellent. Definitely get the crab cakes. Best Iv'e had. Gained 5 pounds on this cruise! The buffet had a lot of choices and the Uptown Grill was great for snacks. Don't even get me started on the cupcakes at Carlo's Bakery, YUM!

 

The staff was absolutely awesome. Did not run into one grouchy staff member. I do miss the "Washy Washy" people though. There was a "Wakey Wakey" lady serving coffee in the buffet for breakfast though. That was nice!

 

Bermuda was, at this point anyway, my favorite place. Granted, I have not been to that many places, but Bermuda was gorgeous! Not enough time to see it all. We took the ferry to St. George the first day. Enjoyed seeing the sights and then took the bus to Hamilton. We checked out that area for a little bit. Ate at the Swizzle Inn, YUM again! and then took the ferry back to the ship. The second day we took the ferry to Hamilton and saw the sights there, and again took the bus back to the ship. This was the only way we could figure out the get a feel for all of the areas in such a short time. We can't wait to go back. The last day we explored the Dockyard which is very cool! There is hardly enough time for this either! It is very easy to get around. The ship was selling 2 day bus/ferry passes for the same price that you can get them for in Bermuda, so I would get it on the ship if you can. That way you have them before you dock and can keep your cash.

 

As far the ship as a whole, we probably wouldn't sail a big ship again, unless it was the only one to chose from. It just felt strange to not have what we love about the other smaller ships. The promenade deck you can walk all the way around. The big theater with the balconies. Not having to schedule shows. Our ship was about 1000 people shy of being full, so it never felt crowded. It actually felt deserted at times.

 

My DH had planned to do the slides, ropes, plank, etc. Unfortunately he had surgery on his hand before the cruise and a splint prevented him from any of that. I have a fear of heights, so I had no plans for it. We don't do public pools, so the stories of the fully packed pool would not have bothered us. But since we weren't a full sailing, it seemed deserted also. Never saw more than five people in the pool.

 

We had a balcony room on the 10th floor overlooking the shuffleboard area. It was a great area and a great room. My only complaint was that almost every time that I went out on the balcony, there was this guy down there that was smoking a pipe. That is not what bothered me, we couldn't smell it up that high. What did bother me was the fact that he would smoke it, look both ways to make sure no one was around or actually looking at him, and he would dump the burned ashes, or whatever is in a pipe, over the side! I thought I was seeing things! Until the next time, and then next time. That time I got some great photos of him and went down to the customer service desk, they said they would make a note of it in the computer and call down next time I see him so they could send security right out. Called down when I saw him again as instructed, was basically blown off. Security never showed. Then I called the assistant hotel manager for lack of who else to call. He told me he would take care of it. Later that day a security guard came to our cabin like he was going to arrest my husband for smoking cigarettes in our cabin (we don't smoke). This was kind of funny. Clearly the message got mixed up! I showed him the pictures of the guy and he seemed shocked (I did say SEEMED shocked). He said they have cameras all over the ship (duh) and they would have to check them and they would get back to me by the next morning at the latest. I never saw them again, but I did see the pipe smoker again, dumping again. I gave up. Very disappointing. Sorry, that turned in to a longer rant than I expected!

 

The last day of the cruise we were just sitting in the atrium and they were passing out fresh, hot cookies and little frozen coffee drinks. It was a nice touch, we really enjoyed that. Nothing was lacking in food and beverage customer service on this cruise.

 

Next Bermuda trip will be on the Dawn, and hopefully soon. Nothing bad about the ship, just didn't feel right to us. If I think of anything else, I will post it.

 

Thanks for reading my very first somewhat of a cruise review (with rant included).

[dwpolicelli]

Finally someone said that Rock of Ages was terrible. I am amazed at how many people like this show on cruise critic. It is exactly like a middle school play. And the script is not funny. The jokes are terrible. And the sexual references are unnecessary. Thanks for posting this

[Dspcentury]

Finally someone said that Rock of Ages was terrible. I am amazed at how many people like this show on cruise critic. It is exactly like a middle school play. And the script is not funny. The jokes are terrible. And the sexual references are unnecessary. Thanks for posting this

I was on the same cruise and I agree!! People said that it gets better at the end but I was not impressed with the show and walked out...

[moey142]

I enjoyed your review. We are thinking of the breakaway next spring. I want to try a new and bigger ship. It seems the reviews are getting more positive.

can you tell me a little about your cabin? We will book a balcony also, probably mid ship. What was on the decks above and below you? Was it quiet at night?

also, how do you book the shows? Do you get tickets. thanks for any info

[TravlGrl]

I'm one that LOVED Rock of Ages! The movie was terrible, but the musical version on Breakaway was fantastic in our opinions, and we didn't see anyone walk out. To each his/her own, and thankfully there are options for everyone to enjoy.

 

What DID really annoy us though is that the Rock of Ages cast took over karaoke in Bliss one evening. We went to karaoke 3 of the 7 nights, and on one of those nights, with an hour left to spare, we walked in but saw the Rock of Ages cast singing and performing. None of us felt like karaoke after seeing professional singers get on that stage. Our hope was that they settled down after being the new cast on the ship, and maybe would skip karaoke on future sailings after they'd gotten accustomed to the ship. Who knows...:confused:

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

I enjoyed your review. We are thinking of the breakaway next spring. I want to try a new and bigger ship. It seems the reviews are getting more positive.

can you tell me a little about your cabin? We will book a balcony also, probably mid ship. What was on the decks above and below you? Was it quiet at night?

also, how do you book the shows? Do you get tickets. thanks for any info

 

Thank you. We had wanted to try a big ship also. It is really a nice ship, just not for us. But now we know. I certainly do not regret sailing it and would never tell anyone not to try it. We did have a great cruise.

 

Our cabin was terrific. We were on deck 11, cabin 11746. It was great to look down over the walkway. We had cabins above and below us. Very quiet area also. I would definitely book this area again. My brother's cabin was more mid-ship overlooking the waterfront roof and lifeboats on deck 10, cabin 10222. He was disappointed that it was very loud at night and using the balcony was not very peaceful.

 

As for the shows, you can book them at the NCL website beginning 45 days before sailing. No tickets, they just scan your key card as you enter the show. If there is a time or date change they send a letter to your cabin. It really is a nice set up.

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

I'm one that LOVED Rock of Ages! The movie was terrible, but the musical version on Breakaway was fantastic in our opinions, and we didn't see anyone walk out. To each his/her own, and thankfully there are options for everyone to enjoy.

 

What DID really annoy us though is that the Rock of Ages cast took over karaoke in Bliss one evening. We went to karaoke 3 of the 7 nights, and on one of those nights, with an hour left to spare, we walked in but saw the Rock of Ages cast singing and performing. None of us felt like karaoke after seeing professional singers get on that stage. Our hope was that they settled down after being the new cast on the ship, and maybe would skip karaoke on future sailings after they'd gotten accustomed to the ship. Who knows...:confused:

 

Hi Tara! I missed you at the Meet and Greet but there were so many of us!

We were at their very first performance, maybe that was it? A bunch of people were talking about it at the elevators after we had left about how surprising it was that it was so bad. It was kind of funny because one of the dancers from Burn the Floor was standing there with us and said he was glad he wasn't in it.

[TravlGrl]

Hi Tara! I missed you at the Meet and Greet but there were so many of us!

We were at their very first performance, maybe that was it? A bunch of people were talking about it at the elevators after we had left about how surprising it was that it was so bad. It was kind of funny because one of the dancers from Burn the Floor was standing there with us and said he was glad he wasn't in it.

Ok, now that is really bad! :D

 

We had SUCH a great turnout, didn't we? But like others have said on our roll call, it was tough to meet everyone when we got rushed out for the group photo. I think I only met Don and Karen (I sailed with Karen -- MedTech -- previously). Then, at the cabin crawl, we were all so focused on the cabins that we really didn't introduce ourselves (at least, I didn't). It was such a friendly group, albeit enormous, so a bit of a shame we couldn't connect a little better. :o

[jackson bernard]

To each his own. We were on the same sailing and thought burn the floor was quite boring, and Rock of Ages was one of the best shows we ever saw at sea. I think some people may not have read the disclaimer that the show was adult in nature.

 

 

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[S&S Cruisers 1983]

To each his own. We were on the same sailing and thought burn the floor was quite boring, and Rock of Ages was one of the best shows we ever saw at sea. I think some people may not have read the disclaimer that the show was adult in nature.

 

 

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We read all about the show before we cruised. It had nothing at all to do with the adult nature of the show, it was just bad. But you are right, to each his own.