Our Breakaway Diary

[NCLbigfan]

The wife and I arrived home today after spending a week on the Norwegian Breakaway doing the Florida and Bahamas run of February 16 to February 23. What I hope to do here is give a little review of what happened during the week, along with some comments. I didn’t take any notes but I have somewhat of a good memory. I’d like to post a little at a time so there might be just one update a day or maybe two a day or maybe one every few days. This way you guys won’t get bored and I could try to remember as much as possible.

 

So to begin, a little background…. This was our thirteenth cruise on Norwegian so we are platinum latitude members. We’ve been on the Gem, Jewel, Dawn, and Spirit, as well as the Majesty, the Crown and the Southward. We’ve done this Florida and Bahamas run four times now but was kind of forced to do it again when my boss told me a few weeks ago that I had to take my vacation during this particular week. After trying to find decent airfare during the President’s week and failing miserably, I decided to book this run again. At least we would be on the Breakaway.

 

Normally the difference in prices between ocean view cabins and balcony cabins is hundreds of dollars. But I discovered that the price difference this time was only $80.00 for the two of us. And Norwegian was offering a free upgrade from a category BD balcony to a category BA balcony so I jumped at that opportunity. The wife was very happy. I chose cabin number 11182 because I read on Cruise Critic that this was a “bumpout” balcony, meaning it was the last standard balcony cabin before the next category of a larger balcony cabin right next door. This resulted in the balcony being an odd shape and much larger than the standard balcony size.

 

We booked online in the middle of January but for some reason whenever I book on the NCL web site my wife is given another latitudes number despite me entering the correct number for each reservation. This was the third time it happened and I had to call and get it corrected. This brings to mind that if I wanted to call them I would have booked that way in the first place. Anyway, I diverse.

 

The wife and I have many rituals when it comes to cruising and I’m sure I’ll mention many of them in this report. For one thing, we like to pre-book our excursions online but were annoyed to find out that we now have to pay for them in advance also. I just spent over $2,000 on the cruise and was hesitant to pre-pay our excursions until our monthly cutoff on our credit card had passed. We actually waited until two days before the cruise to do this, which, I think, is the cutoff time and was actually, February 14 (Valentine’s day). We were only able to book two of the three excursions that we wanted as one was sold out. More on that later.

 

In the meantime we made friends with the people on our role call here on Cruise Critic and the wife did her ritual thing which was to pack…and pack…and pack some more, which led up to her night before ritual which is to unpack some of her stuff since she had packed too much.

 

The week before the cruise was full of snow and cold weather and we couldn’t wait to get to Florida and the Bahamas. The Saturday night before the cruise (February 15) we couldn’t sleep. I even joked about leaving for the cruise terminal at midnight but we were somehow able to get to sleep. I did wake at 6:30 on Sunday morning and immediately went to the computer to watch the Breakaway either enter the harbor or the dock from the two web cams that are available online. However, the ship was already docked by that time.

 

A short time later I woke the wife, announcing that the Norwegian Breakaway was waiting for us and that we had to go. Eventually we left our home and caught the 11am train into New York City. This got us into Grand Central Terminal by 11:30. A taxi ride got us to the cruise terminal shortly before noon but it would take us over an hour, standing outside on a very long line, until we could hand off our luggage and get into the cruise terminal as there were so many people. Waiting in the outside line was frustrating. We could see the ship and we knew it would eventually get warm for us but the digital billboard across the street telling us about the $400 million dollar Powerball jackpot was also telling us it was 26 degrees. There was also another billboard across the street promoting NCL as their two newest ships were pictured with a slogan like “Norwegians like twin sisters”.

 

Once we got rid of our luggage we went through the metal detectors and proceeded to get on another line before checking in. Luckily that line moved fast and the check-in process was equally fast. We gave our credit card, filled out the medical questionnaire, took our security picture and received our key cards. Next was the customary “Welcome Aboard” picture. In the past we were asked to stand in front of a green screen but this time there were two different pictures of the Norwegian Breakaway that we could stand in front of. One was a standard picture of the Breakaway and the other one was the picture that had the skyscrapers on it. Taking these photos is important to us as this is usually the only picture that we purchase. The wife chose the screen with the skyscrapers on the ship. After taking the pictures the photographer asked us which cabin we were in and then pressed the numbers onto a side of the camera. Well, that never happened before.

 

From there it was a matter of minutes before we were on the ship. It was after 1pm and since our cabin was ready we went straight there. We had all of our platinum latitude perks waiting for us: a bottle of wine, chocolate covered strawberries, a box of Godiva chocolate, certificates for two free dinners in each of two paid restaurants that cost $20.00 or less, and a certificate to join a behind the scenes tour, which coincidently, was to be held at the same time of our Cruise Critic meet and greet. I think that was all. Oh yes, I had told the web site that we were celebrating an anniversary so we also received a certificate that would be brought to any restaurant so that we could celebrate. However, I was disappointed that there was no “Freestyle Daily” in the room because we love to figure out what we are doing ahead of time and there were no lapel pins. We went down to reception and got the Daily but would have to wait to get the pin when the Latitudes desk was open.

 

We walked around the ship for a short time before heading to the buffet for a quick lunch. You want to talk about a quick lunch? We had gotten there by 2pm and the crew was already removing all the food in anticipation of the muster drill at 2:30. Passengers were grabbing anything they could for fear that there would be no food to be eaten. I even saw one crew member grab a plate of dessert out of a woman’s hand. It was really a shame the way the crew reacted. Couldn’t the crew just wait and not replenish the food? Sooner or later the food would have been gone anyway.

 

At 2:30 the bells sounded the start of the muster drill. We didn’t need our life jackets so we headed straight to the area that we had to go. There were hundreds of people in our area and as I went to check in with my team leader I heard the cries of my wife’s name being called out by two different women. I ignored them and checked in but upon looking back I saw that they were the mother and sister of a former business associate that we had become friends with but whom we had recently lost touch with. It was then that I saw my former business associate. What a small world.

 

Up next: The most disappointing start to a cruise that we ever had.

[Stillfloatin']

Great start. Keep it coming!

[TVLady3]

Good start! Keep it coming. I leave next Sunday.:D

[jdvmd]

Keep it coming! Thanks for sharing your comments!

[ncklhaus]

Thank you for doing this review. I am subscribing!

[KweezyCruiser]

Great cliffhanger!

 

I was on this cruise, too. Looking forward to reading the rest of your review.

[McDebbie]

Waiting to hear more!

[xcell]

love the suspense!!!

[ilovewdw]

I was on this cruise, too. Looking forward to your review. I had an AMAZING time!!!! Well, except for the fact that I was chosen for Deal or No Deal and the internet crashed in the middle of the game. :eek: :)

Edited February 24, 2014 by ilovewdw

[Luv2Cruise1980]

Waiting in anticipation! Keep it coming!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[NCLbigfan]

I was on this cruise, too. Looking forward to your review. I had an AMAZING time!!!! Well, except for the fact that I was chosen for Deal or No Deal and the internet crashed in the middle of the game. :eek: :)

 

I was standing right behind your family. I hope you demanded a lot of money for that problem as you still had a few big amounts left over.

[blitzjb]

Hello neighbor. We were in 11134. This was an excellent cruise. Easiest in and off of any ship we have been on. We left are house in Suffolk county at 10:15, we were on the boat and eating lunch by 12:30. Rooms were ready and luggage was in room before 2:30. We had an interesting "problem" on Friday night. We had a 7:45 reservation at Le Bistro. We ordered and received salads. We then noticed all the suits scramble to the kitchen. The electricity was not working in this and other specialty restaurants on this side of the ship. They escorted us to the mdr with bottle of wine and drinks in hand. They bought us drinks and specialty coffees in the mdr. They then asked what else they can do to make it up. We had eaten in La Cucina earlier in the week and we asked for a reservation for Saturday eve. We had a table for 7 with a bottle of wine waiting. Now the best part. We were not charged for either restsurant including all the alcohol. They even brought us fondue from Le Bistro for desert to La Cucina. I was also able to have tiramisu brought to taste from La Cucina a few nights prior. The waiter even sent desert to our rooms as the kids were to impatient to wait for it. Overall an excellent cruise.

[meatball_nyc]

Sounds like everyone had a good cruise!

 

Waiting patiently for OP to resume their review :)

 

 

 

 

~Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

[NJ Johnny]

Me. too. Please tell us more.

[Kattus]

Boarding her in 3 weeks....dying to read more! :D

[Winston Wolf]

Hello neighbor. We were in 11134. This was an excellent cruise. Easiest in and off of any ship we have been on. We left are house in Suffolk county at 10:15, we were on the boat and eating lunch by 12:30. Rooms were ready and luggage was in room before 2:30. We had an interesting "problem" on Friday night. We had a 7:45 reservation at Le Bistro. We ordered and received salads. We then noticed all the suits scramble to the kitchen. The electricity was not working in this and other specialty restaurants on this side of the ship. They escorted us to the mdr with bottle of wine and drinks in hand. They bought us drinks and specialty coffees in the mdr. They then asked what else they can do to make it up. We had eaten in La Cucina earlier in the week and we asked for a reservation for Saturday eve. We had a table for 7 with a bottle of wine waiting. Now the best part. We were not charged for either restsurant including all the alcohol. They even brought us fondue from Le Bistro for desert to La Cucina. I was also able to have tiramisu brought to taste from La Cucina a few nights prior. The waiter even sent desert to our rooms as the kids were to impatient to wait for it. Overall an excellent cruise.

 

Now that's good service!

[amyben40]

We'll be on the Breakaway in 4 week. Can't wait to hear more. THANKS!:)

[CasinoCruzGirl]

Waiting. Tick toc lol

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[robinleslie]

We are considering this ship May 11 to Bermuda.

[NCLbigfan]

We had an interesting "problem" on Friday night. We had a 7:45 reservation at Le Bistro. We ordered and received salads. We then noticed all the suits scramble to the kitchen. The electricity was not working in this and other specialty restaurants on this side of the ship. They escorted us to the mdr with bottle of wine and drinks in hand. They bought us drinks and specialty coffees in the mdr. They then asked what else they can do to make it up. We had eaten in La Cucina earlier in the week and we asked for a reservation for Saturday eve. We had a table for 7 with a bottle of wine waiting. Now the best part. We were not charged for either restsurant including all the alcohol. They even brought us fondue from Le Bistro for desert to La Cucina. I was also able to have tiramisu brought to taste from La Cucina a few nights prior. The waiter even sent desert to our rooms as the kids were to impatient to wait for it. Overall an excellent cruise.

 

Sorry for no update tonight. I had a very bad day at work today. I guess that is what happens when you come back from vacation and no one that you work with can handle your job.

 

The wife and I ate with the one of those suits that night, the Electrical Engineer (name escapes me now) after we won a raffle for eating with the ship's officers. He spent very little time with us as he told us he had to attend to a problem but wouldn't specify. He got back in time for dessert.

[meatball_nyc]

No worries. I know how it can be.

 

 

 

~Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

[Willowmina]

Great review so far!

[NCLbigfan]

For us, one of the most exciting things to do at the start of a cruise is to gather around the pool for the sailaway. Normally a live band performs and the cruise ship hosts encourage people to join them in dancing. My wife loves to dance and loves to interact with the cruise ship hosts. We have come to know several of them after appearing with them on many cruises. We always wonder if we will meet any of the hosts that we know from previous cruises. My wife loves to volunteer for just about everything on a cruise so the cruise ship hosts, and even the cruise director, get to know my wife by her first name. In the meantime I like to do a lot of videotaping and usually record the wife interacting with the cruise ship hosts during the sailaway and throughout the cruise.

 

Unfortunately, there was no sailaway party on this cruise. Granted, it was twenty some-odd degrees outside and I wouldn’t want to be standing out there either but I felt that there should have been some kind of sailaway party inside the ship with a live band. There was nothing.

 

Instead there were such “exciting” things listed in the Freestyle Daily between 3pm (sailaway time) and 6pm as the splash academy registration (the kids program), entourage registration (teen program), free facial rejuvenation consultations, free acupuncture consultations, a spa raffle, guess the price of the Picasso, a walking in comfort seminar and a friends of Bill meeting; none of which appealed to me, or concerned me. There were some outdoor activities listed in the FD as opening during this time period such as the rock climbing wall, and the slide spider mountain (whatever that is) but they were listed with two stars next to them, meaning ‘weather permitting’. I don’t know for a fact but I’m sure they weren’t open or if they were, probably weren’t being utilized greatly. For the first three hours there was nothing interesting happening. As someone who likes to plan everything out, I just stood in the atrium wondering what the hell to do next. This was my most disappointing sailaway ever.

 

I have sailed out of New York many times and the high points are sailing past the Statue of Liberty with Lee *********’s song, “God Bless The USA” and Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” blasting on the loud speakers, and then sailing under the Verrazano Bridge with the cruise ship hosts yelling that we are officially on vacation. Not being able to see this or do this because of the weather was very disappointing.

 

Instead we walked aimlessly around the ship waiting for the casino and gift shops to open. Since we didn’t get to eat much lunch at the buffet earlier in the afternoon we made another attempt to eat there. However, we walked in during the ‘snack’ stage where most of the buffet was closed but a smaller section was serving a limited number of items. We ‘snacked’ a little and got ready for the night’s main event.

 

At 7pm the “Welcome Aboard Show” was held for the only showing of the evening. This was held in the Breakaway theatre and once I walked in I noticed how small the theatre was. With a capacity of 5000 people on the ship I felt the theatre should have been built bigger. It definitely seemed smaller than theatres on other NCL ships. There were constant requests from a voice to move to the center of the aisle so that as many people could be accommodated as possible. Then it dawned on me. With only several different shows being held in this theatre (Rock of Ages and Burn the Floor), it’s no wonder these shows have to be played 4 to 6 times a cruise to accommodate everyone who wants to see the shows.

 

Eventually the show began and the voice introduced the cruise director, Dan “The Man” Olssen. He encouraged us to watch the video monitors. We then saw a one or two minute video which featured some of the cruise ship staff pledging to make our vacation great. They were saying things like “I want to make this your best vacation ever.” “If there is a problem I want to solve it.” “If there is anything that I can do for you please let me know,” as well as other such nice things. I must admit I got goose bumps when I saw the video.

 

Then Dan started to arouse the crowd by saying that for the next seven days we wouldn’t have to cook which made the audience cheer. Then he said that we wouldn’t have to clean either for the next seven days. Again the crowd cheered. But he got the loudest cheer when he said that we wouldn’t have to shovel snow for the next seven days. I was beginning to get excited for this vacation.

 

We were then introduced to the ACD, Simon Jukes and the six cruise ship hosts. Never before had we waited until the evening to meet the cruise ship hosts but this happened because of the cold weather situation and no official sailaway party. We did not know any of these hosts. There was also a push for Bingo the next day and a shout out to the couple that was married for the longest time in the audience (57 years). There was a performance by the house band, “Impac” and a performance by the cast of “Burn The Floor”.

 

Afterwards it was time for a real dinner. Since we weren’t having much luck at the buffet we ate in one of the small dining rooms, either Taste or Savor. The name really doesn’t matter because both venues were the same size and shape, stretching along the outer sides of deck six, aft. Most nights we would eat in either Taste or Savor as I liked the smaller, quieter atmosphere of these venues.

 

The wife and I are not what you would call ‘foodies’. If we enjoy something we tend to eat it all the time. Of the five nights that we ate in Taste or Savor, or even in the main dining room, the Manhattan Room, we ate the same striploin steak. It came with both french fries and onion rings and the steak was seasoned with a cajun butter which wasn’t spicy at all. However, the first night we ordered it medium well and it was tough so the next times we ordered it medium rare and it was even better.

 

The final event that we attended at night was the Bliss breakout party at 10pm in the Bliss lounge. We were hoping a live band would be playing there but it was just a disc jockey spinning many dance hits.

 

The first day of our cruise was a little disappointing for us because of the lack of any sailaway party. There was nothing to celebrate the fact that we were on this great ship for the next seven days. However, things would get better the next day.

 

Coming Up: The best Cruise Critic meeting I’ve ever been a part of!

[Birdnutty]

Waiting for the next chapter....

[Stuffy8]

For us, one of the most exciting things to do at the start of a cruise is to gather around the pool for the sailaway. Normally a live band performs and the cruise ship hosts encourage people to join them in dancing. My wife loves to dance and loves to interact with the cruise ship hosts. We have come to know several of them after appearing with them on many cruises. We always wonder if we will meet any of the hosts that we know from previous cruises. My wife loves to volunteer for just about everything on a cruise so the cruise ship hosts, and even the cruise director, get to know my wife by her first name. In the meantime I like to do a lot of videotaping and usually record the wife interacting with the cruise ship hosts during the sailaway and throughout the cruise.

 

Unfortunately, there was no sailaway party on this cruise. Granted, it was twenty some-odd degrees outside and I wouldn’t want to be standing out there either but I felt that there should have been some kind of sailaway party inside the ship with a live band. There was nothing.

 

Instead there were such “exciting” things listed in the Freestyle Daily between 3pm (sailaway time) and 6pm as the splash academy registration (the kids program), entourage registration (teen program), free facial rejuvenation consultations, free acupuncture consultations, a spa raffle, guess the price of the Picasso, a walking in comfort seminar and a friends of Bill meeting; none of which appealed to me, or concerned me. There were some outdoor activities listed in the FD as opening during this time period such as the rock climbing wall, and the slide spider mountain (whatever that is) but they were listed with two stars next to them, meaning ‘weather permitting’. I don’t know for a fact but I’m sure they weren’t open or if they were, probably weren’t being utilized greatly. For the first three hours there was nothing interesting happening. As someone who likes to plan everything out, I just stood in the atrium wondering what the hell to do next. This was my most disappointing sailaway ever.

 

I have sailed out of New York many times and the high points are sailing past the Statue of Liberty with Lee *********’s song, “God Bless The USA” and Frank Sinatra’s “New York, New York” blasting on the loud speakers, and then sailing under the Verrazano Bridge with the cruise ship hosts yelling that we are officially on vacation. Not being able to see this or do this because of the weather was very disappointing.

 

Instead we walked aimlessly around the ship waiting for the casino and gift shops to open. Since we didn’t get to eat much lunch at the buffet earlier in the afternoon we made another attempt to eat there. However, we walked in during the ‘snack’ stage where most of the buffet was closed but a smaller section was serving a limited number of items. We ‘snacked’ a little and got ready for the night’s main event.

 

At 7pm the “Welcome Aboard Show” was held for the only showing of the evening. This was held in the Breakaway theatre and once I walked in I noticed how small the theatre was. With a capacity of 5000 people on the ship I felt the theatre should have been built bigger. It definitely seemed smaller than theatres on other NCL ships. There were constant requests from a voice to move to the center of the aisle so that as many people could be accommodated as possible. Then it dawned on me. With only several different shows being held in this theatre (Rock of Ages and Burn the Floor), it’s no wonder these shows have to be played 4 to 6 times a cruise to accommodate everyone who wants to see the shows.

 

Eventually the show began and the voice introduced the cruise director, Dan “The Man” Olssen. He encouraged us to watch the video monitors. We then saw a one or two minute video which featured some of the cruise ship staff pledging to make our vacation great. They were saying things like “I want to make this your best vacation ever.” “If there is a problem I want to solve it.” “If there is anything that I can do for you please let me know,” as well as other such nice things. I must admit I got goose bumps when I saw the video.

 

Then Dan started to arouse the crowd by saying that for the next seven days we wouldn’t have to cook which made the audience cheer. Then he said that we wouldn’t have to clean either for the next seven days. Again the crowd cheered. But he got the loudest cheer when he said that we wouldn’t have to shovel snow for the next seven days. I was beginning to get excited for this vacation.

 

We were then introduced to the ACD, Simon Jukes and the six cruise ship hosts. Never before had we waited until the evening to meet the cruise ship hosts but this happened because of the cold weather situation and no official sailaway party. We did not know any of these hosts. There was also a push for Bingo the next day and a shout out to the couple that was married for the longest time in the audience (57 years). There was a performance by the house band, “Impac” and a performance by the cast of “Burn The Floor”.

 

Afterwards it was time for a real dinner. Since we weren’t having much luck at the buffet we ate in one of the small dining rooms, either Taste or Savor. The name really doesn’t matter because both venues were the same size and shape, stretching along the outer sides of deck six, aft. Most nights we would eat in either Taste or Savor as I liked the smaller, quieter atmosphere of these venues.

 

The wife and I are not what you would call ‘foodies’. If we enjoy something we tend to eat it all the time. Of the five nights that we ate in Taste or Savor, or even in the main dining room, the Manhattan Room, we ate the same striploin steak. It came with both french fries and onion rings and the steak was seasoned with a cajun butter which wasn’t spicy at all. However, the first night we ordered it medium well and it was tough so the next times we ordered it medium rare and it was even better.

 

The final event that we attended at night was the Bliss breakout party at 10pm in the Bliss lounge. We were hoping a live band would be playing there but it was just a disc jockey spinning many dance hits.

 

The first day of our cruise was a little disappointing for us because of the lack of any sailaway party. There was nothing to celebrate the fact that we were on this great ship for the next seven days. However, things would get better the next day.

 

Coming Up: The best Cruise Critic meeting I’ve ever been a part of!

 

Looking forward to hearing all about it...