Anyone sailed RCCL FOS (89% rating) or Allure (87%) & Breakaway (62%)& can ease mind?

[bingo3]

The ratings for Breakaway are pretty low, 62% compared to other lines' similar or larger sized ships. I have sailed FOS and loved it. Has anyone sailed FOS AND Breakaway and had good experience? Just wondering if Breakaway is really that bad compared to FOS. Hoping not! Breakaway is costing me considerably more than FOS did and I want a good experience. I know a cruise is what you make of it, etc., but people are writing reviews for all lines and I am sure they are just as critical for other lines. I wouldn't think that all the "negative" people just sail NCL. The low rating is disconcerting and also makes me nervous......

 

Just looking for some affirmation from someone who has sailed FOS or even Allure/Oasis, also with higher ratings.

 

Thanks!!

[Single Cruiser]

I've sailed Independence (Freedoms sister) and Breakaway.

 

Both have distinct pros and cons. A lot of the negative reviews on Breakaway are not about the ship but more they are sailing Breakaway as their first NCL sailing and haven't understood or researched NCL freestyle cruising.

 

Lots of " I normally sail RCCL but tried Breakaway and they didn't have a formal night :eek: " or they didn't have a different nightly theatre show :eek:

 

If you've sailed Norwegian (and any new ships like Epic) before then you'll be fine. If it's your first NCL cruise then please research and understand it is not a traditional type of cruise..

Edited March 29, 2014 by Single Cruiser

[SissasMomE]

The ratings for Breakaway are pretty low, 62% compared to other lines' similar or larger sized ships. I have sailed FOS and loved it. Has anyone sailed FOS AND Breakaway and had good experience? Just wondering if Breakaway is really that bad compared to FOS. Hoping not! Breakaway is costing me considerably more than FOS did and I want a good experience. I know a cruise is what you make of it, etc., but people are writing reviews for all lines and I am sure they are just as critical for other lines. I wouldn't think that all the "negative" people just sail NCL. The low rating is disconcerting and also makes me nervous......

 

Just looking for some affirmation from someone who has sailed FOS or even Allure/Oasis, also with higher ratings.

 

Thanks!!

 

Definitely has nothing to do with NCL - look at the positive ratings that the Getaway has.

[sprint180]

Where do you find these ratings?

 

does NCL not have different nightly shows? Are they all the same?

[bingo3]

Thank you,

I have researched (am very anal, hence the misgivings.... sometimes too much research is harmful!) and actually did my time/anytime dining on FOS & on Carnival, prefer that and NO formal nights. :D

deb

[Single Cruiser]

Where do you find these ratings?

 

does NCL not have different nightly shows? Are they all the same?

 

And that second question is exactly why they get negative reviews.

 

The theatre hosts two main productions, Rock of Ages which would be on about 6-7 performances (3,5 days) and burn the floor (3.5 days). Same show but to allow everyone else to see it due to the small theatre size.

 

All new NCL ships have lots of smaller venues, comedy/duel pianos in one location. jazz/blue bands in another, ents in the atrium, two nightclub venues etc.. Cirque dreams, ice bar, shakers piano bar ..

Edited March 29, 2014 by Single Cruiser

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

 

I have been on all 3 of those ships (FOS twice) & wasn't that impressed with Breakaway only because I'd heard so much hype about it building up to my inaugural Bermuda sailing. I also had been on Epic 3 times so was comparing the 2 with Breakaway coming in 2nd.

 

It still was a lovely cruise, loved sailing away from NYC & going to Bermuda. The food was good, entertainment great & the cabin/ship lovely.

 

I'm going on Getaway in May & really looking forward to that, sure hope it compares to my Epic experiences.;)

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[Red-Sol]

Thank you,

I have researched (am very anal, hence the misgivings.... sometimes too much research is harmful!) and actually did my time/anytime dining on FOS & on Carnival, prefer that and NO formal nights. :D

deb

 

Hi Deb,

 

I have no idea why the Breakaway reviews are as low as they are...however some of the most negative ones almost sound "made up" and I often wonder if they are even real.

 

I have sailed on Breakaway, Allure, and Oasis and to me you can't beat the Freestyle from Norwegian. The Oasis and Allure had quite a "wow" factor to them as far as aesthetics go...but I had a better time on the Breakaway.

 

Freestyle is way better than my time or any time dining...so you will definitely like that.

 

Don't let those reviews get you worried...you will have a great time on the Breakaway!

[Single Cruiser]

Hi all!

 

I have been on all 3 of those ships (FOS twice) & wasn't that impressed with Breakaway only because I'd heard so much hype about it building up to my inaugural Bermuda sailing. I also had been on Epic 3 times so was comparing the 2 with Breakaway coming in 2nd.

 

It still was a lovely cruise, loved sailing away from NYC & going to Bermuda. The food was good, entertainment great & the cabin/ship lovely.

 

I'm going on Getaway in May & really looking forward to that, sure hope it compares to my Epic experiences.;)

 

~ Jo ~ :)

 

I'm intrigued as if you weren't impressed with Breakaway why you think Getaway would be different? Ok so the main theatre show is a different musical and you have the Illusionarium rather than cirque dreams but other than that it's the same. When I was on Getaway I kept thinking it was Breakaway. Menus etc are all identical.

[cruisemom2010]

Hi Deb,

 

I have no idea why the Breakaway reviews are as low as they are...however some of the most negative ones almost sound "made up" and I often wonder if they are even real.

 

I have sailed on Breakaway, Allure, and Oasis and to me you can't beat the Freestyle from Norwegian. The Oasis and Allure had quite a "wow" factor to them as far as aesthetics go...but I had a better time on the Breakaway.

 

Freestyle is way better than my time or any time dining...so you will definitely like that.

 

Don't let those reviews get you worried...you will have a great time on the Breakaway!

 

What is the difference between Freestyle and my time dining? I have been on the Allure and loved it! Now we've booked The Breakaway because I thought it would be a similar experience but out of New York. I've never sailed on NCL before so I am curious about what is so different about Freestyle dining.

[bingo3]

With NCL there are no traditional dining assigned times AT ALL. RCCL and Carnival still offer the choice of either traditional with assigned times or the anytime/my time dining. I have done the anytime/my time, but this will be my first NCL cruise, so not sure how theirs differs. Since you pretty much choose your own dining time either way, not sure how it can differ??

 

I too looked at Epic reviews which are a slightly better (71%), still not in the range of the RCCL mega ships. Not real sure why NCL built the Breakaway class with so many deficits (less pool space, less public space, less entertainment venue space, smaller balconies, smoke permeating the floors)compared to the Epic. Wish the Epic was going to Bermuda!! At least I do research and know all this in advance, so hopefully, will already have lower expectations when I board, making the cruise OK for me. Unfortunately, if I do not have a good experience, even if other NCL ships are better, I doubt I will take a chance and book with them again. One bad apple can spoil the whole bunch..... :(

 

For the person who asked, when you go to the review section, if you look at Cruise Critic's overall ship review (not the member reviews) it gives a percentage rating based on all the member reviews to date. You can pull up any ship and see the rating.

 

Thank you Red Sol, hoping for a great cruise! If you enjoyed Breakaway having sailed Allure and Oasis, I take your word for it!

 

thanks to all for your input!

deb

[sdmike]

Do you guys remember the initial Epic reviews in summer of 2010. You would have thought it was the Titanic. People didn't like the look of her from the outside, the bathroom layout, the curved cabins, the lack of a different show each night, etc. Once people understood things and the info got out about the ship and experience, the reviews have been very good. I think it's lack of research and setting expectations is the problem. We find "freestyle" to be our cup of tea, the crew to be outstanding, and the ships to be immaculate. We love the food, and even better, the fact that someone else is cooking and cleaning! I can go to a jazz club, see comedy, visit a piano bar, or see a vegas show...all depending on what I'm in the mood for. It's how I like to cruise

 

I even had a good time on an old Carnival ship that stopped in Ensenada on a 3 day trip. I can't imagine NOT having fun on a cruise ship

Edited March 30, 2014 by sdmike

[Red-Sol]

What is the difference between Freestyle and my time dining? I have been on the Allure and loved it! Now we've booked The Breakaway because I thought it would be a similar experience but out of New York. I've never sailed on NCL before so I am curious about what is so different about Freestyle dining.

 

One of the differences is that with My Time Dining you may or may not be able to have that as an option (at least it was that way) I don't recall how it was determined but they needed to book so many under traditional dining and so many could book under my time dining. There are also no formal nights. (There is a dress up or not night and some folks like to put on tuxes or gowns...but aren't forced to) ON NCL everyone is free to dine where and when and with whom they want. From Buffet to MDR's to Specialties...and generally speaking there are usually a greater number of venues for eating.

 

The sail-away views out of NYC are fabulous!

[sdmike]

The "My Time Dining" on Carnival was ugly. Most of the dining room space was traditional dining, so the number of tables available for MTD was pretty small. Combine that with people showing up at the same time there were some very long lines for seating. On NCL, since all venues are freestyle, the crowds seems to spread out much better and the venues are able to absorb the waves without many issues.

 

When on the Jewel, several times our group of 14 showed up at the front dining room only to find a wait, but were escorted back to Tsars by the hostess and seated immediately. When you have a smaller space dedicated to MTD you can't do this

[Valen9]

Most NCL ships have displays of the wait times at all the different venues, so that when you decide to dine you have an idea of what the wait times are everywhere without running all over the ship. Does RCCL do anything like that?

[sacooper34]

L

 

 

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[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

Single Cruiser ~ I think the Getaway will be better as it has a Miami vibe so different food & shows. Sure the ship will pretty much be the same as Breakaway but the experience will be different as I'll be in a studio vs a balcony with a travel companion.

 

I did Oasis then Epic & liked Epic better. I just did Allure (after Breeze) to see if I would like it better than Oasis & I did. The dining/show options suited me better. I'm going back on Breeze in 5 weeks but can't see myself going back on Allure or Oasis. I do hope to try Quantum with it's solo cabins tho'. No rhyme or reason to my thoughts eh?:o

 

I think the main problem with the Breakaway for me was being on the inaugural trip to Bermuda. Anyhow I'll see how I like Getaway & if I like it might take it again when it has a new itinerary.

[Dave85]

Here's my theory as an experienced cruiser sailing on Breakaway (and NCL) for the first time later in the year:

 

Breakaway has spurred many cruisers who have never sailed NCL before, myself being an example, to try NCL. Lots of us have sailed on Carnival and Royal many times, including out of the NYC market. Some of those people will end up not liking NCL's very unique cruising concept, and will thus review negatively. Since Breakaway is such a gateway ship for NCL, its reviews will suffer.

 

That's just my theory. I'm a total cruise nerd so I've done my research and then some about what to expect on the Breakaway and concluded that it's something my wife and I would enjoy overall with perhaps a few drawbacks, but I'm sure there are plenty of people who haven't done that research and come back surprised and disappointed.

[pex]

This is not a complex issue.

 

Ask any long-term employee in the hospitality industry whether New Yorkers are more or less difficult to please than customers from other areas of the country. (If you want specificity, add more, less, or much less).

[10july86]

Now I'm confused. We have always taken Celebrity and love them. I was checking the prices for NCL Breakaway and I can get a mini-suite for way less than a normal cabin on Celebrity. Have any of you taken Celebrity? I don't get why NCL ISO much cheaper. Service, food???

[Dave85]

This is not a complex issue.

 

Ask any long-term employee in the hospitality industry whether New Yorkers are more or less difficult to please than customers from other areas of the country. (If you want specificity, add more, less, or much less).

 

That argument is a fallacy unless you can then explain how Explorer of the Seas, which has sailed out of the NYC market year round for YEARS now, maintains an 82% rating, which isn't amazing but is still pretty solid, versus Breakaway's 62%. Yes, Explorer sails from across the river in Bayonne, but it's the same passenger base.

 

Unless you're going to argue that Explorer of the Seas is a far superior ship to the Breakaway, which I would NOT say is true, there must be some other factor at play.

[Single Cruiser]

Here's my theory as an experienced cruiser sailing on Breakaway (and NCL) for the first time later in the year:

 

Breakaway has spurred many cruisers who have never sailed NCL before, myself being an example, to try NCL. Lots of us have sailed on Carnival and Royal many times, including out of the NYC market. Some of those people will end up not liking NCL's very unique cruising concept, and will thus review negatively. Since Breakaway is such a gateway ship for NCL, its reviews will suffer.

 

That's just my theory. I'm a total cruise nerd so I've done my research and then some about what to expect on the Breakaway and concluded that it's something my wife and I would enjoy overall with perhaps a few drawbacks, but I'm sure there are plenty of people who haven't done that research and come back surprised and disappointed.

 

Yep, same as the point I raised earlier and agree. For many who have cruised only other lines and are traditional cruises and not researched NCL, try the new ship, don't like it and rate accordingly..

[reney313]

Most NCL ships have displays of the wait times at all the different venues, so that when you decide to dine you have an idea of what the wait times are everywhere without running all over the ship. Does RCCL do anything like that?

 

Most RCI ships do not have this yet...Allure and Oasis does provide a screen that shows how full the different dining venues are. I would expect with the new ships this will continue. That said, I did find they may show a venue as "RED" and FULL, but I still had no issue getting a table.

 

My guess is since NCL has had the freestyle concept for several years now that they are light years ahead of RCI with this type of display.

[Dave85]

Yep, same as the point I raised earlier and agree. For many who have cruised only other lines and are traditional cruises and not researched NCL, try the new ship, don't like it and rate accordingly..

 

Haha sorry, didn't mean to steal your point :)

[retiring soon]

HI again!

 

I have taken a couple of Celebrity cruises & think their food is better.

NCL's is fine, don't get me wrong but X's is a step above. You don't get welcomed aboard a NCL ship with a glass of Champagne or Mimosa either.

 

One thing that I found about free style dining is that supposedly you can eat when you want but on Dawn there was often a wait. I thought then if I was on RCL/CCL a line with set dining I'd be eating by now. On Epic this only happened once & we were given a voucher for a drink . I can't remember it happening on Breakaway tho'.

 

~ Jo ~ :)