Breakaway 12/15-12/22 Review: Noob Tips, Myths, Etc

[Juvesgirl]

Keep it coming! Loving your posts!!!

[GGBNJ130]

Good evening All!

Just wanted to address this really quickly:

 

 

It's true that our disembarkation was delayed. I think the self-disembark folks didn't get off until 8:45AM or something. Joker and I didn't walk off the ship until 10:45AM, and then had a huge line at customs. While in line, we heard some people complaining about being awoken at 7:30AM with knocks on the door and dogs. Someone on our roll call posted that one or two persons may have been raped (they kept saying kids, but no verification about the ages). Rumor was that someone also went missing and that there was a police presence on the ship. Emphasis on the word RUMOR. The Cruise Director didn't mention anything like this (of course), and was vague about why disembarkation was held up; just apologized for the inconvenience. To this day, I have no idea what happened... followed the boards for a few days to see if there was any mention (I didn't expect there to be a news report or anything about it). I hope that this was a terrible rumor... if it wasn't, what an awful ordeal for the family. Since you were on the cruise right after us, maybe you can confirm whether there was an increase in security measures? I am only interested in the occurrence because we should know if there was any way to prevent what occurred and keep people safe. It was sad to end the cruise on such a sour note :(

 

I saw 1 security guard the entire cruise for a few seconds while I was walking by the guest services desk, that was the one and only time I saw someone w/ a uniform that said Security...Other then that, it was an uneventful cruise...I also saw on your cruise the first day at sea, an 80 something yo lady was air lifted by us coast guard off the NC Coast...Theirs YouTube video of that.

[cruisebear84]

I saw 1 security guard the entire cruise for a few seconds while I was walking by the guest services desk, that was the one and only time I saw someone w/ a uniform that said Security...Other then that, it was an uneventful cruise...I also saw on your cruise the first day at sea, an 80 something yo lady was air lifted by us coast guard off the NC Coast...Theirs YouTube video of that.

 

Hahaha you really know your stuff! I forgot about that, it happened during the cabin crawl. We saw the helicopter leaving as we were touring one of the balconies. Hopefully she was okay, because I thought it was a really long time before the helicopter showed, at least 30min from the first announcement that we had to stay off deck 17.

[parasailor]

Thanks Cruisebear!

 

I think that a rape of a passenger, much less two, on a ship out of NYC would have received enormous publicity, especially since the media has covered cruise horror stories (Costa; Carnival; the missing bridgeroom) so extensively.

[gizmo911]

Excellent review so far.

 

The Breakaway is my second favorite ship next to the Epic. I love sailing on the Breakaway and leaving from NYC.

 

Agreed with you, I thought the balcony was very spacious. I wasn't trying to have a picinic party so it was all I needed for the little time I spent.

 

I would have had a panic attack if I got to the pier at 11:45am LOL..I would be at the pier at 7am if I could. LOL :D:rolleyes:

Enjoying the read! Thanks for posting!

 

What time did you get to pier. We are coming from upstate NY and trying to figure out when we should be on the road based on arrival time. I was thinking about getting to pier by 10am. This is my first time on such a large ship and a little nervous.

[striking7]

Hi Everyone!

I have been telling myself I am going to write this review for over a week, but between Christmas and vacation-mode laziness, I never got around to it. So I figure if I at least get the thread going, I will have no choice but to complete it in the next few days!

 

This review is perfect for my friends and I that are going on the cruise! Even though your comments on my post were very helpful, this is even better!!!

 

Great job! Thank you!

[cruisebear84]

Wrapping it up once and for all, folks! Thanks for sticking around for the ride!

 

PORTS OF CALL

The Breakaway goes to Port Canaveral, Great Stirrup Cay, and Nassau, Bahamas in the winter. I was actually looking forward to three days in Bermuda over the summer; the 6-8 hours in port thing was something of a drawback to cruising, in my opinion. I’m not crazy about not being able to really spend time in a place and exploring, or feeling rushed to run back to the ship. I will have you newbies know that this works out just fine. You can approach it like going on a field trip—you’re not going to explore the whole island… just focus on one or two things.

 

Port Canaveral—we were least looking forward to this. I did do my due diligence on the Ports of Call board, but didn’t learn much about Port Canaveral, except that it is practically impossible to do anything (tours or whatever) on your own on foot. The most interesting things are the beach nearby and Kennedy Space Center—Joker and I weren’t interested in either. There are no shuttle buses running around. You either get a car or you take ship excursion. Again, that’s what I learned from the Ports of Call board. Port Canaveral doesn’t come up in too many conversations. Please check it out for yourself before you’re off. We decided to rent a car and drive down to Downtown Disney, as (a) we’ve already done Disney World and Universal Studios before, and (b) $100 per person for the ship excursion is way too expensive for the 6hrs you will actually spend at WDW. There is also a ship transfer straight to Downtown Disney at about $60pp—we rented a car from Hertz for $52 plus filling up the tank on the way back. There are cheaper rental cars, but they had mixed reviews, so we played it safe. There are free shuttle buses to and from the port from the rental car places; they close at 5PM-6PM so we took a cab back. Parking at Downtown Disney is free. We enjoyed lunch at Ragland Road, did some Christmas and souvenir shopping, and hit the road at 6PM to be back by 7:15PM.

 

GSC—the conspiracy of the trip… at some point while we were at WDW, the Captain announced that due to a high winds/seas forecast, we were skipping this island. This did not go over well with the passengers, especially since it had to be 77 degrees and clear skies the whole next day. I was definitely looking forward to my beach day, Joker was fine because of course, he had no expectations. Ignorance is bliss! Over the next few days, the people we met grumbled, and we even heard some accusations that NCL corporate was forcing the ship to skip the isle :rolleyes: . I’m no captain, so I took his word for it. Breakaway has been skipping GSC a lot, but winter seas are rougher.

 

Nassau, Bahamas—We were there overnight, as we skipped GSC, and did some light souvenir shopping in the dark before I begged Joker to go back to the ship… once you are off the street right by the pier, it’s a little too desolate for me! After much discussion, we decided to go for broke and go to Atlantis Aquaventure through the ship’s excursion, the only one we booked. We had THE BEST TIME. If you did water slides and water parks and can afford to spend a bit, go for it! Apparently, it is off-season so the tix were “only” $99pp (usual rate is something like $125pp) and includes transportation, towels, access to the casino, aquarium, and Paradise Island beach. We loved the “lazy river” which was really more of a waves and rapids ride, and the slide where you’re in the enclosed tunnel with the sharks swimming around you. There’s no free wifi there… shoot, there’s no free ANYTHING there. I believe the casino is the only place you can walk into without a wristband. We spent 45 minutes on the beach and saw a shark in the water—this pretty much solidified an awesome trip for us, as Joker had been dying to see a shark in the ocean since we boarded the ship, lol. No worries, nobody was hurt and we were all saw it practically from the shore… just a dark shadow in the water that apparently wasn’t interested in anyone there and swam away. We left at 3PM, took the bus back to the port, did some more souvenir shopping. I also got my passport book stamped at the government building nearby. I read before we left that there was no wifi available at the pier when actually there is. It is really, really slowwww, but we were able to check some emails and text our parents. We bought some really strong rum punch and were back on the ship by 5:15PM. The one drawback to Atlantis was the service—the first few people we met were terrible, not speaking loud enough for the group to hear and giving terrible directions (a pain, because the property is huge and terrible to navigate). The next few people we met were much more helpful; it’s a shame that they were soured by the first experiences. Other than that, it was a really great day!

 

Noob Tips

*If you do end up at Atlantis, bring a credit card—most things are card only. Also, they charge an arm and a leg for everything… $10 cheeseburger! $4 for an average-sized cookie! Sneak some pre-packaged snacks off the ship (I had Oreos that I had brought from NYC).

*Worth repeating to check out the Ports of Call board… I’d be interested in anyone who went to Brevard Zoo for the tree top adventure zipline. We decided to play it safe this trip and go somewhere cheap and easy. Joker advises you to do your research, even though he did none. Ha, ha, ha :rolleyes:

*A cab to Atlantis on your own is $4pp. You can get a day pass, but I had no idea how to go about it. I think it’s through a hotel. Our decision to book it was on the ship, so can’t help beyond knowing it is possible.

 

Myths

*I think Atlantis gets a bad rep. I don’t think it is for everyone, though, but is a lot of fun for kids and people who don’t just want to lie down on a beach all day. I kept reading that it was in need of serious repair, but it wasn’t any worse than Six Flags Great Adventures, and I do that every year happily :)

 

 

ENTERTAINMENT

Like I said in the beginning, we definitely hung out in our room A LOT and enjoyed relaxing in each other’s company. I didn’t sleep well the first couple of nights, so I missed some evening activities in the beginning because I fell asleep at 10PM or so. I did make sure I booked my entertainment before I boarded the ship, so I can say some things about it:

 

Welcome Aboard Show—this gives you a taste of what some of the shows were like, and who the cruise staff is, and the funny dance you’re supposed to do when you hear “Heyyyyyy, heyyy baby!” Based off this show, we decided we were definitely not interested in Michael Finney, comedy magician. He seemed a little off his game that night (we caught the second showing), and not really that funny. I enjoyed the glimpse of Burn the Floor.

 

Burn the Floor—if you love ballroom dancing, or at least watching good-looking people dance, definitely go see this! I thought it was really great, and the cast was very talented!

 

Second City Comedy Show—we caught the first showing of this, which is apparently dialed down for the kids. Very hit or miss in all their antics. I wondered if the second showing was funnier since it was less censored. Meh.

Rock of Ages—for a Broadway show not being performed on Broadway, I thought the production value of this was amazing. We’ve already seen it on Broadway, so this version does not really compare, except that the audience was less engaged (on Broadway, half the audience sang along to all the numbers). We also saw lots of kids there even though it is explicitly announced that it is NOT for kids. IT REALLY ISN’T, GUYS. Don’t do it! We personally only liked one performer’s voice, but all the dance numbers were great, and the Joker loves his 80s rock music, so we would definitely go just for that.

 

Party Time!—We did go to the Glow Party on Day 4, which is just the White Hot Party with glowsticks. That was a lot of fun, and the emcees did a great job of engaging the crowd and having dances that we could join along. Joker made a valiant attempt, but got bored after an hour of watching me dance, so we didn’t stay until the end. We also went to the 80s night and fireworks show on Day 5, which was more fun for Joker. The fireworks were really short and had some technical difficulties I think, because it didn’t seem to be in time with the music. Both of the parties were held at Spice, which is windy and loud and so great because you don’t work up a sweat dancing with the fresh breeze :) I tried to go to a party the last night, but Bliss was practically empty at 11PM, so we took it as a bad omen.

 

Joker also insisted on spending $10 on one of those coin machines at the casino. The smoke smell is not a myth—you could smell it as soon as you entered the casino vicinity. So gross, but you get used to it if you spend any time there. Smelled pretty much like Atlantic City to me. I’m not a gambler, so I can’t comment on anything else except that it was really busy that last night at sea! I guess people are trying to cash out before we dock!

 

Noob Tips

*You don’t need to book your reservations before you board, but it makes life a lot easier if you do, as it’s one less thing to worry about. There are always standby seats; every show we went to, we sat in a row towards the front on the left that was half empty, so there are definitely people who don’t show up.

*We don’t have kids, but some CC friends complained about the Kids Clubs closing from 12-2 and 5-7, which made planning difficult for them because they didn’t know. Just in case you’re reading and you have kids.

*Definitely recommend going to the Welcome Aboard show (or whatever they call it) the first night, to vet out whether you would enjoy some of the entertainment.

 

Myths

None here! Entertainment is entirely too subjective… enjoy exploring!!

 

DISEMBARKATION

As already mentioned at the start, the disembarkation process was delayed for unconfirmed reasons. We already decided we wanted to take our time getting off the ship, so we signed up for the last slot to be called at 10AM. They asked that we leave our rooms by 8:30AM, so we had breakfast at the Garden Café. Since it was unseasonably warm in NYC (around 60 degrees), we took up some loungers by the pool and napped while we waited to be called. We did not get called until 10:45AM and then had a long line at customs to get through. We were out of there by 11:35AM. We went across the street where my dad snuck into the taxi line, and we got in during a red light (not recommended!). We were at my parents' house by 12:15PM.

 

Noob Tips

*The rule of thumb is not to book any flights out before 12PM on disembarkation day. After our experience, I would push that to 1PM. You just never know!

*Entering the pier is upstairs, but exiting is downstairs on the street level. Didn't know that, sorry Dad! He had to make a U-turn and meet us on the northbound side. Figure out a place for pick-ups, or figure out how to get upstairs. We were too tired to deal with it, from getting corralled around the port.

 

Myths

None here, except that it was not as easy as it was described by the more experienced. Probably a once-off thing due to whatever happened to delay us.

 

 

********

FINAL THOUGHTS

So, would we go on a cruise again? Let me put it this way—by day 3, Joker was asking where we were taking our next cruise to… we were enjoying ourselves THAT much. From eating all day (gained 3lbs!), to going to shows, to relaxing with the ocean breezes, to seeing dolphins from our balcony in Florida, and sunrise after sunset, and waking up at 3:30AM to see a gorgeous moon over the waters…. Joker and I both agreed this was our best vacation ever. I’m glad we started on a big ship with so much to do, because I think we needed all the options. I would definitely cruise NCL again, although I don’t know if I will for the next one. I am interested in checking out Quantum of the Seas on RCL, although I have a feeling that freestyle is the way to go for us.

 

After using up a bit of OBC and promotions, DSC, excursions, and a few souvenirs on the ship, we each ended up with about $200 on our invoice. That’s a lot less than I would have spent on a land vacation for a week. I spent more on souvenirs in the Bahamas and Orlando than I did on the ship, so it is possible to have a cost-effective vacation, depending on what you want to spend your money on. We did not feel “nickel and dimed”, as I have seen from some CCers. You pay for what you want to pay for, and that’s it.

 

Factors in our success: Being laid-back, being prepared (small drugstore in my suitcase!), rolling with the punches, having few expectations (Joker), great weather (just lucky I guess), smiling at everyone, being open to the experience.

 

I also want to encourage especially newbies to go to your Roll Call! We actually showed up 10 minutes late to the Meet and Greet and basically missed meeting the staff, but participated in the gift exchange and talked to some cool folks. I actually volunteered to organize the cabin crawl, and it was really cool to see the different kinds of cabins and hanging out, even though the cost of an OS is like five vacations for me! Maybe someday!! Most of all, especially for me and my shy self, it was great seeing CCers around the ship and saying hello. In fact, on our last night at Teppanyaki, who should join us at the table but the Foleys! They are such a fun group, and I was grateful to have met them.

 

Above all, the best piece of advice I got from these boards is to forget everything you’ve read and see for yourself! Be determined in only one thing—to have a great vacation, no matter what happens. I definitely did!!

 

By the way, I did save all my Freestyle Dailies, but there are so many copies on the boards, I did not want to upload them unnecessarily. If anyone would like to see a copy, let me know!

 

Happy travels everyone! Joker and I are already jealous of everyone who gets to set sail on this beautiful ship! Looks like we are just another set of hooked cruisers :D

[Teesa1021]

Cruisebear, if you do have the freestyle dailies that would be great? I want to book som how's online but I don't want to overlap them with any game shows or trivias. Do you know if they had something called quest? I've seen it on other ships where groups are formed and you have to find items that the host calls out. It's usually pretty funny and R rated

[meatball_nyc]

Cruisebear, thanks so much for the great review of your Breakaway cruise!! I appreciate you taking the time to post your experiences.

 

Happy Cruising to all!!

 

 

 

 

~robin and brian~

Norwegian Breakaway 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

Every Day at Sea is a Great Day

[Medtech2]

Cruisebear, if you do have the freestyle dailies that would be great? I want to book som how's online but I don't want to overlap them with any game shows or trivias. Do you know if they had something called quest? I've seen it on other ships where groups are formed and you have to find items that the host calls out. It's usually pretty funny and R rated

They do have Quest and on our sailing it was at midnight so you definitely won't overlap. I was asleep by then but DH went...

[Medtech2]

 

SPORTS AND POOL DECKS

Not going to lie—we didn’t spend too much time at the pool on this sailing. The weather was fantastic by day 3, but we were told we had a full sailing and it showed as soon as the sun came up. Definitely the pools are too small for such a large ship. The hot tubs were always packed in the mornings. We only went into the pool in the late afternoon/early evening (after 2PM until about 5PM); by then, both had much fewer people and more loungers available. The main pool has a neat wave feature every few minutes, which was fun. It is a little over 6ft deep. I did not go into the kids’ pool.

 

Joker and I love water slides, so you know we went to those! They were pretty fun. Even though we did these fairly early (11:30AM), we never thought the lines were too long. The longest we waited was for The Plunge, which was about 20 minutes. I remember during the initial summer sailings of the Breakaway, I read about 45 minute waits, so I considered us lucky. Part of the issue with that slide is that you need some sort of vest to get on it. When you are done, you are actually expected to go back up the stairs and return the vest. I guess that works if you plan on riding it over and over again, but the reason we waited so long is that apparently the last few people who went down the slide didn’t bother to return the vests. With no one at the bottom of the slide to make sure that happens, the vests could easily disappear. Indeed, when we did leave, we saw one or two vests just lying on the ground on the deck. The slides are fun, but we were over it after going on them once or twice. Kids will love going on them over and over, but we are used to more hardcore slides, and you just can’t get those at sea!

 

We did the ropes course three times, and it was so much fun! That line can definitely be a long wait—we waited max 30 minutes. The plank is a lot scarier than it looks, but we skipped it the first time because it was so cold and windy up there! You can stay as long as you like, but don’t! Be considerate of the other people who are waiting to try below. How many pictures do you really need to take on the plank? We all know you’re not going buy 50 of them! The zip line is short but fun; it is not always open, so don’t take your chances by waiting for the last sea day.

 

The basketball court was always full of boys playing basketball. No chance to try it out, but I hate basketball anyway. Mini golf was always full of tiny tots and their parents. This is a place that NCL should really regulate play on—There are only so many balls and clubs, and we just saw kids running around all over the place, not playing golf, but not giving up the equipment either. We waited ten minutes and decided it was more worth it to wait for the ropes course again. The climbing wall opened at 2PM and there was a line 20 deep almost immediately every time. Plus, they only up one or two sections of the wall at a time, even though it looked like there were at least 3 levels of difficulty. Only one staff member manning it when we took a peek.

 

 

Unless things have changed you do not need to use a vest for the slides. It was optional. You also do not need to walk it back up. There should be a spot where you exit the slides to leave it. If someone wants to use one they should go by the exit to pick one up before climbing up to the entrance. It would be nice if they had some sort of pulley system so that the crew could return the vests to the starting point!

[cruisebear84]

Unless things have changed you do not need to use a vest for the slides. It was optional. You also do not need to walk it back up. There should be a spot where you exit the slides to leave it. If someone wants to use one they should go by the exit to pick one up before climbing up to the entrance. It would be nice if they had some sort of pulley system so that the crew could return the vests to the starting point!

 

Sorry, should have been clearer-- you did not need a vest for ALL the slides, just the Plunge (the two speed slides). And it's not a life vest I'm talking about. It's this weird kind of vest that covers your back and straps across your chest. You definitely needed one of those in our sailing, as we were held up on line because there weren't any at the top! It was silly that people had to come back to return; on the last sea day, there were some extra already up there, but we still had to go back and return ours once we were done.... They definitely need a better system for that! But for the other three slides, you did not need a vest. None of the slides emptied out into a full pool, just a runway out of water that emptied out.

[DrNora]

Cruisebear84-

 

This was one of the most entertaining and informative reviews that I have seen in a while! We are not even going on "Breakaway" yet I couldn't wait for your next installment...

Got lots of insight in to what "Getaway" may be like.

 

Not a noob but love your noob tips.

 

 

May you and Joker have an amazing 2014.

 

Nora

[Godiva830]

Love reading your review!! I was on the Aug 25 sailing. If you can swing the BA during the Bermuda sailings I highly suggest it!! I did the Fla/Bah sailing on the Jewel last Feb and I had a great time but I LOVED Bermuda! I loved it so much I have the BA booked for the same week again this coming Aug lol being docked in port for 3 days is very relaxing and knowing you don't have to rush back to the ship is a great feeling. :D

[Aubreysmom09]

Your review was very informative. We are not going on Breakaway, but will be going on the Getaway in October. Since it is new their are no reviews (I'm not even sure it has been on it's maiden voyage yet.) I patiently await. Like you we aren't big drinkers, or party animals also in our lower 30's. We have a 4 year old though. This will not be my first cruise, but it will be for my DH. I enjoyed reading your review to him. I would be one missing all the baseball, and hockey. Do you think the little balcony will accommodate 2 adults and a 4 year old?? I've never splurged on a balcony before :D

[Dave85]

Cruisebear, sounds like you're hooked now like the rest of us! Thanks for an outstanding review. My wife and I (late 20s) are experienced cruisers but Breakaway will be our first on NCL so it was really valuable to read the perspective of a fellow new-NCLer around our age!

I know you mentioned trying the Quantum -- DO IT! RCI is our favorite line and, based in what I read, it sounds like you guys would have a great time on RCI! Thanks again for the great review.

[carsaw]

I read your review and it was wonderful. We are going on our first NCL (Breakaway) next month after many cruises on other lines. Royal Caribbean is one of our favorite cruise lines (especially the Allure) and I recommend that cruise to many people. We have already booked the Quantum from Cape Liberty but hope we love the Breakaway since already have another one booked for later in the year :D

[roxys655]

Cruisebear - thank you for your informative and funny review. I hope my husband and I have as great a time as you did.

[tmcrew]

Hello Cruisebear84! Your posts and review of the Breakaway have been great and very informative for those looking for more specific details. I have loved reading your opinions and thoughts on the events and amenities. :)

We, my husband Tim and I, met you and Joker at the Meet and Greet, and then during the cabin crawl. We had the S4, Haven Aft Rear-Facing Penthouse Suite and you were both able to check out our awesome room and balcony. It was really nice to meet you and see your excitement for your first cruise. I could definately tell that you "did your homework" and did tons of research. It was awesome that you volunteered to organize the cabin crawl. As I told you, we had never participated in one before too and really enjoyed seeing all the different types of accommodations. In our previous 6 cruises, we had never even had a balcony but when the chance to upgrade to an S4 came up, we jumped at the chance and loved getting to show it off. One of the best parts of this cabin crawl was being able to see Bob's Owners Suite! Holy cow! That suite was awesome and how often can you say you spent time in the best cabin on the whole cruise ship!

I'm glad you and Joker had a great experience overall and are looking into your next one. We always start thinking about our next one as soon as one trip ends! :) Not sure where or when for our next one just yet, but the search is always fun and we love doing our research too! Take care! :D

[Medtech2]

[quote name='cruisebear84']Sorry, should have been clearer-- you did not need a vest for ALL the slides, just the Plunge (the two speed slides). And it's not a life vest I'm talking about. It's this weird kind of vest that covers your back and straps across your chest. You definitely needed one of those in our sailing, as we were held up on line because there weren't any at the top! It was silly that people had to come back to return; on the last sea day, there were some extra already up there, but we still had to go back and return ours once we were done.... They definitely need a better system for that! But for the other three slides, you did not need a vest. None of the slides emptied out into a full pool, just a runway out of water that emptied out.[/QUOTE]
I was just using your terminology but yes, it was just a backboard. And no, on my sailing you didn't need it for any of the slides, including the plunge.

If they have instituted a new policy it sounds like they definitely need to fine tune it!

[cruisebear84]

[quote name='Teesa1021']Cruisebear, if you do have the freestyle dailies that would be great? I want to book som how's online but I don't want to overlap them with any game shows or trivias. Do you know if they had something called quest? I've seen it on other ships where groups are formed and you have to find items that the host calls out. It's usually pretty funny and R rated[/QUOTE]

Hi Teesa!
I just "scanned" my dailies using an app on my phone, so my apologies if they did not come out so well! Hopefully you will be able to read; if not, I can scan them on a real scanner at work on Monday! You can see some of the activities we considered during a few of the days :p

I scanned the dailies really quick, but I didn't see anything called Quest, nor do I remember them ever announcing it.

[cruisebear84]

[quote name='cruisebear84']Hi Teesa!
I just "scanned" my dailies using an app on my phone, so my apologies if they did not come out so well! Hopefully you will be able to read; if not, I can scan them on a real scanner at work on Monday! You can see some of the activities we considered during a few of the days :p

I scanned the dailies really quick, but I didn't see anything called Quest, nor do I remember them ever announcing it.[/QUOTE]


Okayyyyyy CC is REALLY frustrating me right now, not letting me upload my documents :mad::mad: Let me know if this link works: [URL="https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B5j2s1EdrX1Uejk3YUo1WUNWLW8&usp=sharing"]https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B5j2s1EdrX1Uejk3YUo1WUNWLW8&usp=sharing[/URL]

[cruisebear84]

[quote name='tmcrew']Hello Cruisebear84! Your posts and review of the Breakaway have been great and very informative for those looking for more specific details. I have loved reading your opinions and thoughts on the events and amenities. :)

We, my husband Tim and I, met you and Joker at the Meet and Greet, and then during the cabin crawl. We had the S4, Haven Aft Rear-Facing Penthouse Suite and you were both able to check out our awesome room and balcony. It was really nice to meet you and see your excitement for your first cruise. I could definately tell that you "did your homework" and did tons of research. It was awesome that you volunteered to organize the cabin crawl. As I told you, we had never participated in one before too and really enjoyed seeing all the different types of accommodations. In our previous 6 cruises, we had never even had a balcony but when the chance to upgrade to an S4 came up, we jumped at the chance and loved getting to show it off. One of the best parts of this cabin crawl was being able to see Bob's Owners Suite! Holy cow! That suite was awesome and how often can you say you spent time in the best cabin on the whole cruise ship!

I'm glad you and Joker had a great experience overall and are looking into your next one. We always start thinking about our next one as soon as one trip ends! :) Not sure where or when for our next one just yet, but the search is always fun and we love doing our research too! Take care! :D[/QUOTE]

Hey, of course I remember you guys! Thanks again for letting us tour your cabin and coming along. I was jealous of the Haven Access, it was so exclusive in there! I confess, I became a little obsessed with Bob during the week, in that fancy Owner's Suite all to himself! I'd turn to Joker randomly at some point and say, "Hey, where's Bob? Is he at the Glow Party with us now, do you think? Or throwing his own party in his giant mega-suite??" LOL have fun planning your next adventure :)


[quote name='Medtech2']I was just using your terminology but yes, it was just a backboard. And no, on my sailing you didn't need it for any of the slides, including the plunge.

If they have instituted a new policy it sounds like they definitely need to fine tune it![/QUOTE]

That's so strange! The man in charge insisted we would "get stuck" without the boards. I'd be interested to hear if that changed for anyone....

[cruisebear84]

[quote name='Dave85']Cruisebear, sounds like you're hooked now like the rest of us! Thanks for an outstanding review. My wife and I (late 20s) are experienced cruisers but Breakaway will be our first on NCL so it was really valuable to read the perspective of a fellow new-NCLer around our age!

I know you mentioned trying the Quantum -- DO IT! RCI is our favorite line and, based in what I read, it sounds like you guys would have a great time on RCI! Thanks again for the great review.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for reading! I'm very tempted by QoS, just waiting to see if it will fit our budget. I am going to start reading RCI boards and get a better understanding of what those cruises are like...

[quote name='roxys655']Cruisebear - thank you for your informative and funny review. I hope my husband and I have as great a time as you did.[/QUOTE]
YOU WILL! Thanks for reading!

[quote name='carsaw']I read your review and it was wonderful. We are going on our first NCL (Breakaway) next month after many cruises on other lines. Royal Caribbean is one of our favorite cruise lines (especially the Allure) and I recommend that cruise to many people. We have already booked the Quantum from Cape Liberty but hope we love the Breakaway since already have another one booked for later in the year :D[/QUOTE]
Thank you guys for reading! I am thinking of Oasis or Allure as well, but am not crazy about flying to Florida, unless I spend more and make a longer vacation of it. Will have to wait and see.... You're going to have an excellent time on the Breakaway :D

[cruisebear84]

[quote name='DrNora']Cruisebear84-

This was one of the most entertaining and informative reviews that I have seen in a while! We are not even going on "Breakaway" yet I couldn't wait for your next installment...
Got lots of insight in to what "Getaway" may be like.

Not a noob but love your noob tips.


May you and Joker have an amazing 2014.

Nora[/QUOTE]

Thank you Nora! Enjoy the Getaway and the whole Miami vibe :)


[quote name='Aubreysmom09']Your review was very informative. We are not going on Breakaway, but will be going on the Getaway in October. Since it is new their are no reviews (I'm not even sure it has been on it's maiden voyage yet.) I patiently await. Like you we aren't big drinkers, or party animals also in our lower 30's. We have a 4 year old though. This will not be my first cruise, but it will be for my DH. I enjoyed reading your review to him. I would be one missing all the baseball, and hockey. Do you think the little balcony will accommodate 2 adults and a 4 year old?? I've never splurged on a balcony before :D[/QUOTE]

That's a good question. I would say yes, but there are only two chairs there! Your little one can sit on a lap, I suppose, or on the tiny table (it really is too small to do more than hold some glasses), or on that stool that is the room by the mini-fridge. We brought the stool out and used it as an extra table when we had breakfast out there. I added two pictures to the link I shared earlier. If anything, I bet you could ask your cabin steward to bring an extra chair. The balcony is so worth the splurge, in my opinion... and I am not a person who splurges lightly!!