Breakaway Review- 11-10-13 Loved it!

[tchrsbnz]

My husband and I are in our 40s. We cruise twice a year because we love being on the water. We have no children, but did travel with two other couples. With all of the less than great reviews, I was expecting the worst. However, our cruise exceeded any of our expectations!

 

Hotel: We stayed at the Ink 48. We tend to splurge just a little on hotels, as this is part of our "vacation experience". We always love Kimpton Hotels for the amazing service they provide. The Ink hosted an evening wine reception and offered $15.00 to use towards the minibar. There was a rooftop bar with the most amazing views of the city. This hotels was not in Manhattan, but we easily walked to the city with no problem at all. The morning of departure, we were so excited to see the Breakaway arrive outside of the window of our hotel room. With the ship so close, we were able to see the people departing. Because we were so excited, we couldn't wait any longer, and walked to the port about 9:00am.

 

Departure: We were able to roll our luggage very easily from the hotel to the port. We were latitude members and didn't have to wait in line to check in. We did have to wait until eleven to board the ship, but found that the time passed by quickly. There wasn't a lot of seating, so I suggest that you arrive early. You have to wait somewhere, right? We were in the first group to board. Super easy!

Ship: The ship was beautiful and elegant. It reminded me of the nicer hotels. Not tacky, or flashy....just lovely. Although such a large ship, it was easy for us to find our way around. We loved the touch screens that helped you find the locations of different places. We didn't have a problem finding a lounger on the ship. To me, it was too chilly to use the pool. I can imagine that it would be too small in warmer weather. I would probably opt for Vibe passes if I were to go during that time.

 

Activities: We couldn't possibly do all of the things that appealed to us. There simply wasn't enough time! We did see Fire and Ice. The talent amazed me. I didn't see anything that offensive. Unfortunately, the seating was so comfortable, that I fell asleep before it . I was just too relaxed from a day of fun! As we were traveling with other couples, we opted to spend evenings sipping wine on our balconies instead of seeing shows. We did venture to Fat Cats one night. We enjoyed listening to the jazz and blues entertainers. On our cruise, the weather was cool, so rather than getting the Vibe passes as we had planned, we purchased spa passes. We went in the mornings for a couple of hours and then again before getting ready for late dinners. We saw the most beautiful sunsets while relaxing in the spa's hot tub! Money well spent! My husband just loved Sam, the spa manager. She listened to all of his jokes and put up with his shenanigans. We participated in the margarita tasting and the martini tastings. We had much fun! The bartenders were awesome! We even got extra shots of tequila in our drinks. The tastings were crowded, so arrive early.

 

Service: The service, throughout the entire ship was top-notch. The staff went out of their way to make sure we were happy. We tipped everyone that treated us well and received free bottles of wine for our party of six every single night. We treated our servers with thoughtfulness and respect and we received it back, doubled. We even had wine delivered to our room a couple of nights, unexpectedly. By the time we left, we felt as if the staff were our family. We particularly liked Alex, who managed O'Sheehan's. We even looked him up on Facebook to stay in touch.

 

Cabin: We booked a mini suite. It was bigger than the balcony rooms I have been in on other ships, so I was very satisfied. The balcony was small, but very adequate for the two of us. We used our balcony a lot! I had no problem finding enough storage space and I packed enough for a family of four. The safe was small, but I felt comfortable leaving my ipad out. No one bothered a thing! The only one complaint about our room was that there was no outlet in the bathroom. I prefer not to have to dry and style my hair in the same area with my snacks and drinks. But, we managed. I understand that the rooms can't accommodate many outlets. I packed an outlet extender and an extension cord. I requested a bathrobe and ice. My requests were all met with a smile.

 

Dining: I didn't frequent the buffet often. I had a breakfast of fruit and coffee (beware...the coffee is STRONG) delivered to the room so that I could eat on my balcony. We either ate at O'Sheehans or the Uptown Grill for lunch. A couple of times, before dinner, we ordered the international cheese tray. Delicious! We found that we loved the Manhattan dining room because of the more formal atmosphere. The food was excellent. We could have eaten there every night had we chosen not to pay extra for the other restaurants. We peeked into Taste and saw that it was more family oriented, although we didn't dine there. We did dine in Cagney's and in La Cucina. Both were fabulous. My least favorite (but still excellent) was Tappanyaki. It was just too noisy for my taste. I really enjoyed the selection of flavored hot teas and flavored waters.

 

Excursions: We ventured out when we arrived at Nassau. We'd been there many times. We browsed at the Straw Market. That place scares me! We walked to John Watlings Distillery where we sampled rum. We plan to go back in January. So much fun! We had a couple of cocktails on the balcony while we were there. On the way back we sampled chocolate at the chocolate factory. We found a brochure on an interesting food tour that we might try next time.

 

Disembarkation: We carried our luggage off of the ship at 7:15. The elevators were crowded, but we were patient. Once we left the ship, going through customs was a breeze.

 

We found the people in New York to be very pleasant and friendly. In an entire week, we didn't find a single person that was not friendly and helpful. We can't wait to book this cruise again when it goes to Bermuda. I do think that the secret to a successful cruise is a positive, grateful attitude. A bad day on a ship is much better than a good day at work! You are on vacation! Another secret is cruising during the off season. November is a little cool for me, so next time, I will cruise in late September or early October. I give this cruise a "10"!

[meatball_nyc]

Thank you so much for your wonderful review!

Sounds like a great time. Your vacation is what you make of it and your positive attitude and respect is what made it great.

My son (18) and I will be sailing on her in July and we are so excited to be on the Breakaway!

 

Happy sailing!!!!

 

 

 

~robin and brian

 

Norwegian Breakaway 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2008