Breakaway Review - June 15th sailing

[BwayProducer]

NCL Breakaway review.

 

This review will kind of bounce around a bit. You can see our past cruise experience in my signature below. You will see that we have sailed NCL a lot over the years.. We are, indeed, NCL fans as they are one of our favorites. This review is long and detailed. I will not cover anything regarding Bermuda itself, as we have been there many times and it is always wonderful. Instead, we will concentrate on the Breakaway itself.

 

We drove and arrived at the pier at 8:30am as we wanted to be in the first group in order to attempt to get into Vibe and get a cabana. Security and check in was very smooth. NCL runs a very tight and organized check in. We were in boarding group 2. They started boarding at 11:15am. Once our group was called I left my wife in the dust and bolted down the pier, up the gangway and onto the ship. We boarded deck 7 forward. I ran past everyone, down the stairs and into the atrium to see only one couple at the guest services desk. They had gotten a ticket for Cabana 1 in Vibe. We were able to secure Cabana 2. Mission complete! Now we could relax and enjoy the rest of our cruise.. I can tell you the Cabanas were sold out. Don't know how quickly they did, however. Seemed as if the Vibe, itself, was not as there never seemed to be more then 20-30 people there at one time, at the most.

 

First impressions of the ship.. We really loved the whole "feel" of the Breakaway. Decor is more "classic" than NCL's usual bright colors. Lots of wood, etc. less bright and gaudy (like the Dawn) and more subdued and modern. I'm usually pretty good at locking in the layout of ships in my head. However, I did find this ship a bit more difficult to figure it all out. Once I did, all was fine. The main difference is that this ship has a single main corridor down the center with the restaurants, lounges, etc on either side. We ate lunch at savor and then proceeded to explore the ship. Also, as mentioned before, you can indeed drop of carry ons in your cabin upon boarding, even though they are not "officially" ready until 1pm.

 

Cabin: we had an AFT stateroom 11910. A really good size balcony. The stateroom is your average cruise ship stateroom. A bit too small for two adults. I cannot imagine more than 2 people in these staterooms, although they say they hold up to 3. We personally found it to have a lack of good storage. Plenty of shelves, but no drawers at all. The closet could be about 1 inch deeper as once you hang up your shirts, jackets and such, the doors will not close unless you push your cloths in first.. Bathroom was a nice size and laid out very well. Shower was a good size. However, the shower head and pressure was not the best.. Difficult to rinse shampoo out of your hair. Honestly, the sprayer on our kitchen sink at home has more pressure. In the future, we will definitely get at least a mini suite. If for no other reason than the slightly larger cabin and upgraded shower. The coffee maker is a nice touch and the decor is very nice. However, the best part (and advantage of AFT cabins) is the larger balcony. We did see many of the balconies for the side-of-ship staterooms. And as previously mentioned, they are indeed VERY small. 2 chairs (sideways) and a small table. No other room. Our balcony had 2 chairs, 2 chase lounges, a small table and still plenty of room to walk around. Overall, it was a nice cabin, just a bit tight.. One MAJOR problem with the AFT cabins is the noise from Spice H2O! Whenever they had deck parties up there, forget about getting any sleep before 12:30-1:00am. We were 5 decks below and the bass and noise was nothing short of obnoxious. Frankly, I see no reason to have the volume of music pumped up so loud. More on this later.

 

We spent sail away sitting outdoors on deck 7 at Shakers on the Water Front. A more peaceful place to spend sail away. Far less crowded, far fewer people and far less noisy. More about the Water Front later.

 

We got the Unlimited Dining Plan and had read previously that the food in the Cirque show was not the best. However, with the plan the first night was free (or included) with the plan. With that said, we chose the latter seating and opted to have an earlier dinner at Cagney's. We ate on the Water Front. Cagney's is always good and sitting outside was delightful.

 

Cirque Show: there are several design flaws with the Breakaway and this is one of them.. The concept and show is very good. However, all the tables are on one level. Unless you get there early enough to sit at a front row table, it is VERY difficult to see the whole show. There are a lot of acts that take place on the floor, these acts are almost completely missed if you're not sitting in the front row of tables.. We were in the second row back and missed a lot. The Arial acts were wonderful as we could see and appreciate them.. If only NCL had elevated each row slightly (just one or two steps up for each row) it would have made it more enjoyable. Or, made the stage higher in the center. The costumes, lighting and performers were wonderful and worked very hard, you just couldn't see everything..

 

On a side not. My background is in theatre. I make a living in professional performing arts as a producer, director and manager. With that said, the show is just a tad long at 90 minutes. A lot of the same type of thing or acts over and over. Perhaps if they had split up the acts a bit. As an example, instead of serving the meal "during" the show, split it up. Salad first, then some acts, serve main course, then some acts, serve desert, then finish the show. This way the show would be a tad shorter and one could appreciate it more without having to "eat" while the acts were taking place. As a director and producer I am a stickler for "pace". I would love to get my hands on this show and just tweak it slightly to make the whole event move just a tad faster and smoother. Overall, it was enjoyable for "free". I wouldn't spend extra money for it, however. It's a great concept, it just needs a bit of tweaking..

 

One of the things I personally really like about the Breakaway was the fact that the Garden Cafe is actually kind of out of the way of things. Many cruise ships are designed where you have to walk thru the buffet area to get to other areas of the ship. Not the Breakaway. The buffet is tucked AFT in its own area. We are not "buffet" people, so we tend to avoid the buffet.. So we had breakfast in Savor most mornings.

 

My impressions of the top deck. Lots to do.. Water parks, water slides, pools, hot tubs, etc. However, it makes for an EXTREMELY crowded top deck. Not due to all the passengers up there. Just too much being crammed into a small area. This makes for very bad flow. It is next to impossible for joggers to make it around the jogging track nonstop. This is due to how jammed everything is. It was virtually impossible to get to the Vibe entrance, which is located top deck port side. Every square inch of empty deck space is filled with deck chairs. The only way to get into Vibe was by literally climbing over deck chairs. One would think there would be an isle of some sort left empty to allow access into the area. There was not. Again, just an example of how overcrowded the top deck is on sea days.

 

We really enjoyed Vibe and having our own private cabana. And we understand that it is a "crap shoot" as far as what type of fellow passages you will have on any one sailing. We were a bit concerned as we did have a rather large group of loud, smoking fellow Vibe guests.. I was a bit surprised they allowed smoking in the Vibe since it is located on the starboard side of the ship (smoking is on port side only for most ships). And, doubly surprised that if they did allow smoking, that there was not a separate section for that. The result was cigarette smoke wafting into the cabana. Being a non-smoker, this was EXTREMELY irritating. Especially after paying $300 for the week. So, the Vibe and cabana was not the peaceful, quite area we had hoped. The cabana itself is very nice, private, roomy, comfortable with lots of storage. We left our things there when we went to lunch, etc. My recommendation to NCL would be to turn down the music volume and police the fellow Vibe guests asking them to "keep it down just a bit" if they became loud, as the Vibe should be a respite from the rest of the top deck with all the loud music, screaming and yelling children, etc. In addition, not allow smoking within the area. For those who want to smoke, they could easily step just outside of the Vibe area and smoke since the entrance is port side anyway.

 

More on smoking.. We quickly noticed that unlike most ships that restrict smoking to one side of the ship or the other, smoking was allowed anywhere outside. This became terribly irritating on the Ocean Front deck. This is an area that really sold us on booking the Breakaway. I thought the whole concept was great and we were really looking forward to spending our early evenings having pre-dinner cocktails outside at one of the outdoor Ocean Front lounges. However, there were smokers at every single lounge, in every single sitting/relaxing area throughout the entire Ocean Front deck. This was really disappointing to us as it was virtually impossible to escape the wafting smoke. The Ocean Front is such a beautiful area of the ship. GREAT concept to be able to sit outside and enjoy cocktails and/or dinner. However, the smoke can be bad. I would STRONGLY suggest to NCL to limit smoking to just the port side of the Ocean Front deck so non-smokers can enjoy the area without having to deal with smoke. This is also a huge problem inside the atrium area. The center atrium (3 decks high) is all open with the casino being in the center deck. The heavy smoking in there just wafts up and down that area causing a big stench in areas such as Le Bistro. It makes it very smelly sitting outside of Le Bistro. So, just make sure you request an inside table if you are a non-smoker.

 

Entertainment: Again, being in the entertainment field I can honestly say that the entertainment on the Breakaway is some of the best we have seen at sea! Lots of choices and ALL good.

 

Fire and Ice: this act performed in the atrium each afternoon and evening, singing 80's hits, Motown, tribute to Michael Jackson, etc. However, her Tina Turner (performed the last night in the theatre) was tremendous. This young lady gives it her all and is VERY entertaining!

 

Howl at the Moon dueling pianos: we felt that these 3 performers were the best musical act on the ship. They played several evenings and were a lot of fun. Taking requests, joking around, crazy, funny, and extremely entertaining, off-color after 11pm, lots of fun!. But most of all, incredible musicians! These 3 performers are a true asset to NCL and the Breakaway and are not to be missed!

 

Rock of Ages: Very enjoyable! A cut-down, trimmed version of the Broadway show. Very good cast, talented, high energy. Good actors, singers, dancers. Thoroughly enjoyed this show and worth the 105 minutes.

 

Burn the Floor: We did not see the whole show. I did peak in, however, and thought what I did see was very exciting and enjoyable.

 

Restaurants: We had the unlimited dining plan. So, we ate in most of the Specialty Dining places. Never ate a main meal in the main restaurants. Also, be aware that we always eat later in the evenings on cruises. Usually around 8:30 - 9:00 to avoid the crowds and families with small children.

 

Cagney's: Ate here twice. First night sat outside and enjoyed it very much. The second time around, later in the week, we couldn't get a seat outside, so we sat inside. This second night was very frustrating to us as we sat across the room from a large family (2 adult males and 2 adult females) with several small children who were allowed to scream, yell and very unruly. Several patrons complained to the host, who did speak with the family to no-avail. Just a rude family who did not care about their fellow passengers and would not discipline their children. The waitress did apologize to me and mentioned how she, too, was a mother and was embarrassed with the way these children were allowed to act by their parents. We ended up racing through dinner just to get out of there and away from the noise.

 

Le Bistro: Ate here twice. Thoroughly enjoyed both meals. Be sure to eat inside, not out in the atrium. A nice leisurely meal, not rushed in any way and very tasty.

 

Moderno: Ate here one evening. Sat outside and enjoyed the setting sun. Our server was not the best here and seemed to care less. The salad bar is VERY good and enjoyed a large selection. the meats were very tasty, tender and enjoyable. had the steak, lamb, ribs and chicken. Overall a nice meal, but probably would not go here again.

 

La Cucina: Ate here twice and sat outside (same table) both times. Probably, and surprisingly, our favorite place. Good food, leisurely service, were not rushed in any way, great views of the ocean and setting sun. Really enjoyed this place.

 

O'Sheehans: Sports pub. Had lunch here several times. Really enjoyed the fish and chips and atmosphere of the place. Perfect for lunch.

 

Savor and Taste: Had breakfast in one of these two places just about every morning. A nice sit down breakfast without having to deal with the crowds on the buffet. Had eggs, eggs Benedict, pancakes (syrup was not as bad as some reviews talk about. it's a slightly vanilla tasting syrup. Not maple in any way).

 

Up-Town Grill: Had breakfast here one morning and a few late day snacks. A hidden gem that never seemed crowded.

 

Noise: This is another problem with us. For some reason, on the Breakaway the music throughout seemed to be turned up just too loud. As an example, one deck party while in Bermuda was horribly loud! So much so that we certainly couldn't enjoy our own balcony this evening. So, we got off the ship and walked around the dock yard. We walked all the way to the other side of Kings Warf and could STILL "feel" the bass from the Breakaway. Now, if it was too loud for us across Kings Warf, how horribly loud (and damaging) must it have been for the people at that party. Not to mention those poor passengers on the Celebrity Summit whose AFT balconies were facing the Breakaway's. This was an ongoing issue each night there was a party at Spice H2O. My strong recommendation to NCL would be to just turn down the volume a bit. Really, there is no need to have it that loud. And, especially since the deck parties were attended by a very small percentage of the overall ship. If you are considering an AFT balcony on the Breakaway, I would reconsider unless you stay up late at night.

 

In closing, the thing that seemed to bother us about the Breakaway (between the crowded deck, loud music, smoking all around, etc) is that it had the "feel" of a Carnival ship. We dislike Carnival for all those reasons and never found this to be the case before with NCL. This really disappointed us as we are indeed NCL fans. Overall, we did enjoy our cruise. Any cruise is better than no cruise. We did like the Breakaway, but found the issues above very annoying and disappointing. For this reason, I don't think we would sail the Breakaway again unless NCL made some changes.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I will answer them the best I can.

[wasiii]

NCL Breakaway review.

 

This review will kind of bounce around a bit. You can see our past cruise experience in my signature below. You will see that we have sailed NCL a lot over the years.. We are, indeed, NCL fans as they are one of our favorites. This review is long and detailed. I will not cover anything regarding Bermuda itself, as we have been there many times and it is always wonderful. Instead, we will concentrate on the Breakaway itself.

 

We drove and arrived at the pier at 8:30am as we wanted to be in the first group in order to attempt to get into Vibe and get a cabana. Security and check in was very smooth. NCL runs a very tight and organized check in. We were in boarding group 2. They started boarding at 11:15am. Once our group was called I left my wife in the dust and bolted down the pier, up the gangway and onto the ship. We boarded deck 7 forward. I ran past everyone, down the stairs and into the atrium to see only one couple at the guest services desk. They had gotten a ticket for Cabana 1 in Vibe. We were able to secure Cabana 2. Mission complete! Now we could relax and enjoy the rest of our cruise.. I can tell you the Cabanas were sold out. Don't know how quickly they did, however. Seemed as if the Vibe, itself, was not as there never seemed to be more then 20-30 people there at one time, at the most.

 

First impressions of the ship.. We really loved the whole "feel" of the Breakaway. Decor is more "classic" than NCL's usual bright colors. Lots of wood, etc. less bright and gaudy (like the Dawn) and more subdued and modern. I'm usually pretty good at locking in the layout of ships in my head. However, I did find this ship a bit more difficult to figure it all out. Once I did, all was fine. The main difference is that this ship has a single main corridor down the center with the restaurants, lounges, etc on either side. We ate lunch at savor and then proceeded to explore the ship. Also, as mentioned before, you can indeed drop of carry ons in your cabin upon boarding, even though they are not "officially" ready until 1pm.

 

Cabin: we had an AFT stateroom 11910. A really good size balcony. The stateroom is your average cruise ship stateroom. A bit too small for two adults. I cannot imagine more than 2 people in these staterooms, although they say they hold up to 3. We personally found it to have a lack of good storage. Plenty of shelves, but no drawers at all. The closet could be about 1 inch deeper as once you hang up your shirts, jackets and such, the doors will not close unless you push your cloths in first.. Bathroom was a nice size and laid out very well. Shower was a good size. However, the shower head and pressure was not the best.. Difficult to rinse shampoo out of your hair. Honestly, the sprayer on our kitchen sink at home has more pressure. In the future, we will definitely get at least a mini suite. If for no other reason than the slightly larger cabin and upgraded shower. The coffee maker is a nice touch and the decor is very nice. However, the best part (and advantage of AFT cabins) is the larger balcony. We did see many of the balconies for the side-of-ship staterooms. And as previously mentioned, they are indeed VERY small. 2 chairs (sideways) and a small table. No other room. Our balcony had 2 chairs, 2 chase lounges, a small table and still plenty of room to walk around. Overall, it was a nice cabin, just a bit tight.. One MAJOR problem with the AFT cabins is the noise from Spice H2O! Whenever they had deck parties up there, forget about getting any sleep before 12:30-1:00am. We were 5 decks below and the bass and noise was nothing short of obnoxious. Frankly, I see no reason to have the volume of music pumped up so loud. More on this later.

 

We spent sail away sitting outdoors on deck 7 at Shakers on the Water Front. A more peaceful place to spend sail away. Far less crowded, far fewer people and far less noisy. More about the Water Front later.

 

We got the Unlimited Dining Plan and had read previously that the food in the Cirque show was not the best. However, with the plan the first night was free (or included) with the plan. With that said, we chose the latter seating and opted to have an earlier dinner at Cagney's. We ate on the Water Front. Cagney's is always good and sitting outside was delightful.

 

Cirque Show: there are several design flaws with the Breakaway and this is one of them.. The concept and show is very good. However, all the tables are on one level. Unless you get there early enough to sit at a front row table, it is VERY difficult to see the whole show. There are a lot of acts that take place on the floor, these acts are almost completely missed if you're not sitting in the front row of tables.. We were in the second row back and missed a lot. The Arial acts were wonderful as we could see and appreciate them.. If only NCL had elevated each row slightly (just one or two steps up for each row) it would have made it more enjoyable. Or, made the stage higher in the center. The costumes, lighting and performers were wonderful and worked very hard, you just couldn't see everything..

 

On a side not. My background is in theatre. I make a living in professional performing arts as a producer, director and manager. With that said, the show is just a tad long at 90 minutes. A lot of the same type of thing or acts over and over. Perhaps if they had split up the acts a bit. As an example, instead of serving the meal "during" the show, split it up. Salad first, then some acts, serve main course, then some acts, serve desert, then finish the show. This way the show would be a tad shorter and one could appreciate it more without having to "eat" while the acts were taking place. As a director and producer I am a stickler for "pace". I would love to get my hands on this show and just tweak it slightly to make the whole event move just a tad faster and smoother. Overall, it was enjoyable for "free". I wouldn't spend extra money for it, however. It's a great concept, it just needs a bit of tweaking..

 

One of the things I personally really like about the Breakaway was the fact that the Garden Cafe is actually kind of out of the way of things. Many cruise ships are designed where you have to walk thru the buffet area to get to other areas of the ship. Not the Breakaway. The buffet is tucked AFT in its own area. We are not "buffet" people, so we tend to avoid the buffet.. So we had breakfast in Savor most mornings.

 

My impressions of the top deck. Lots to do.. Water parks, water slides, pools, hot tubs, etc. However, it makes for an EXTREMELY crowded top deck. Not due to all the passengers up there. Just too much being crammed into a small area. This makes for very bad flow. It is next to impossible for joggers to make it around the jogging track nonstop. This is due to how jammed everything is. It was virtually impossible to get to the Vibe entrance, which is located top deck port side. Every square inch of empty deck space is filled with deck chairs. The only way to get into Vibe was by literally climbing over deck chairs. One would think there would be an isle of some sort left empty to allow access into the area. There was not. Again, just an example of how overcrowded the top deck is on sea days.

 

We really enjoyed Vibe and having our own private cabana. And we understand that it is a "crap shoot" as far as what type of fellow passages you will have on any one sailing. We were a bit concerned as we did have a rather large group of loud, smoking fellow Vibe guests.. I was a bit surprised they allowed smoking in the Vibe since it is located on the starboard side of the ship (smoking is on port side only for most ships). And, doubly surprised that if they did allow smoking, that there was not a separate section for that. The result was cigarette smoke wafting into the cabana. Being a non-smoker, this was EXTREMELY irritating. Especially after paying $300 for the week. So, the Vibe and cabana was not the peaceful, quite area we had hoped. The cabana itself is very nice, private, roomy, comfortable with lots of storage. We left our things there when we went to lunch, etc. My recommendation to NCL would be to turn down the music volume and police the fellow Vibe guests asking them to "keep it down just a bit" if they became loud, as the Vibe should be a respite from the rest of the top deck with all the loud music, screaming and yelling children, etc. In addition, not allow smoking within the area. For those who want to smoke, they could easily step just outside of the Vibe area and smoke since the entrance is port side anyway.

 

More on smoking.. We quickly noticed that unlike most ships that restrict smoking to one side of the ship or the other, smoking was allowed anywhere outside. This became terribly irritating on the Ocean Front deck. This is an area that really sold us on booking the Breakaway. I thought the whole concept was great and we were really looking forward to spending our early evenings having pre-dinner cocktails outside at one of the outdoor Ocean Front lounges. However, there were smokers at every single lounge, in every single sitting/relaxing area throughout the entire Ocean Front deck. This was really disappointing to us as it was virtually impossible to escape the wafting smoke. The Ocean Front is such a beautiful area of the ship. GREAT concept to be able to sit outside and enjoy cocktails and/or dinner. However, the smoke can be bad. I would STRONGLY suggest to NCL to limit smoking to just the port side of the Ocean Front deck so non-smokers can enjoy the area without having to deal with smoke. This is also a huge problem inside the atrium area. The center atrium (3 decks high) is all open with the casino being in the center deck. The heavy smoking in there just wafts up and down that area causing a big stench in areas such as Le Bistro. It makes it very smelly sitting outside of Le Bistro. So, just make sure you request an inside table if you are a non-smoker.

 

Entertainment: Again, being in the entertainment field I can honestly say that the entertainment on the Breakaway is some of the best we have seen at sea! Lots of choices and ALL good.

 

Fire and Ice: this act performed in the atrium each afternoon and evening, singing 80's hits, Motown, tribute to Michael Jackson, etc. However, her Tina Turner (performed the last night in the theatre) was tremendous. This young lady gives it her all and is VERY entertaining!

 

Howl at the Moon dueling pianos: we felt that these 3 performers were the best musical act on the ship. They played several evenings and were a lot of fun. Taking requests, joking around, crazy, funny, and extremely entertaining, off-color after 11pm, lots of fun!. But most of all, incredible musicians! These 3 performers are a true asset to NCL and the Breakaway and are not to be missed!

 

Rock of Ages: Very enjoyable! A cut-down, trimmed version of the Broadway show. Very good cast, talented, high energy. Good actors, singers, dancers. Thoroughly enjoyed this show and worth the 105 minutes.

 

Burn the Floor: We did not see the whole show. I did peak in, however, and thought what I did see was very exciting and enjoyable.

 

Restaurants: We had the unlimited dining plan. So, we ate in most of the Specialty Dining places. Never ate a main meal in the main restaurants. Also, be aware that we always eat later in the evenings on cruises. Usually around 8:30 - 9:00 to avoid the crowds and families with small children.

 

Cagney's: Ate here twice. First night sat outside and enjoyed it very much. The second time around, later in the week, we couldn't get a seat outside, so we sat inside. This second night was very frustrating to us as we sat across the room from a large family (2 adult males and 2 adult females) with several small children who were allowed to scream, yell and very unruly. Several patrons complained to the host, who did speak with the family to no-avail. Just a rude family who did not care about their fellow passengers and would not discipline their children. The waitress did apologize to me and mentioned how she, too, was a mother and was embarrassed with the way these children were allowed to act by their parents. We ended up racing through dinner just to get out of there and away from the noise.

 

Le Bistro: Ate here twice. Thoroughly enjoyed both meals. Be sure to eat inside, not out in the atrium. A nice leisurely meal, not rushed in any way and very tasty.

 

Moderno: Ate here one evening. Sat outside and enjoyed the setting sun. Our server was not the best here and seemed to care less. The salad bar is VERY good and enjoyed a large selection. the meats were very tasty, tender and enjoyable. had the steak, lamb, ribs and chicken. Overall a nice meal, but probably would not go here again.

 

La Cucina: Ate here twice and sat outside (same table) both times. Probably, and surprisingly, our favorite place. Good food, leisurely service, were not rushed in any way, great views of the ocean and setting sun. Really enjoyed this place.

 

O'Sheehans: Sports pub. Had lunch here several times. Really enjoyed the fish and chips and atmosphere of the place. Perfect for lunch.

 

Savor and Taste: Had breakfast in one of these two places just about every morning. A nice sit down breakfast without having to deal with the crowds on the buffet. Had eggs, eggs Benedict, pancakes (syrup was not as bad as some reviews talk about. it's a slightly vanilla tasting syrup. Not maple in any way).

 

Up-Town Grill: Had breakfast here one morning and a few late day snacks. A hidden gem that never seemed crowded.

 

Noise: This is another problem with us. For some reason, on the Breakaway the music throughout seemed to be turned up just too loud. As an example, one deck party while in Bermuda was horribly loud! So much so that we certainly couldn't enjoy our own balcony this evening. So, we got off the ship and walked around the dock yard. We walked all the way to the other side of Kings Warf and could STILL "feel" the bass from the Breakaway. Now, if it was too loud for us across Kings Warf, how horribly loud (and damaging) must it have been for the people at that party. Not to mention those poor passengers on the Celebrity Summit whose AFT balconies were facing the Breakaway's. This was an ongoing issue each night there was a party at Spice H2O. My strong recommendation to NCL would be to just turn down the volume a bit. Really, there is no need to have it that loud. And, especially since the deck parties were attended by a very small percentage of the overall ship. If you are considering an AFT balcony on the Breakaway, I would reconsider unless you stay up late at night.

 

In closing, the thing that seemed to bother us about the Breakaway (between the crowded deck, loud music, smoking all around, etc) is that it had the "feel" of a Carnival ship. We dislike Carnival for all those reasons and never found this to be the case before with NCL. This really disappointed us as we are indeed NCL fans. Overall, we did enjoy our cruise. Any cruise is better than no cruise. We did like the Breakaway, but found the issues above very annoying and disappointing. For this reason, I don't think we would sail the Breakaway again unless NCL made some changes.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I will answer them the best I can.

 

.....I sailed on the Breakaway last year and agreed with a whole bunch of what you said.

 

The one thing I completely disagreed with you about was your reference to the Breakaway being like a Carnival ship. As you can tell by my signature that I have done my share of Carnival cruises. In the week I was on the ship last year, that thought never once crossed my mind.

 

If you are just staying on the main deck at the pool, then I can understand you saying this because you could probably say it about any cruise line. But the Breakaway is the furthest thing from a Carnival ship in my opinion.

 

:confused:

 

wasiii

[bragstarr]

Thanks for your review. I don't sail until January and I'm hoping Fire and Ice are still there (or gone and back!). Loved them on my last Gem cruise. Seems a lot of what you are saying holds true in every review; the same things hit and miss. I was really looking forward to Cirque Dreams because I know DH would love it, but now I wonder if it will be worth it (no UDP, I figured I'd go the first night). Just how much earlier does one have to get there to get seated up front???

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report!

[PathfinderEss]

Sorry you were disappointed in your cruise.

[Keith1010]

Thanks for sharing your report.

Keith

[BwayProducer]

Please don't get me wrong. I didn't feel the "ship" was like a Carnival ship. The "ship" is beautiful.. I am talking more about things like all the smoking all around the ship, the overly loud volume of the music at Spice H2O and on the pool deck during the day, etc. In the past I always felt NCL was just a tad more refine than Carnival. I feel the Breakaway was more like a "party ship", much like Carnival. The ship itself is beautiful, service good, etc. It's just the smoking and volume was WAY too much, all over the ship. For the Cirque show, I would be there at least 15 minutes before they open the doors if you want a front table.

[VickiD59]

We have three aft balconies, also on deck 11 for our cruise in a few weeks. I know I read a few times about being able to hear the music at the H2O parties - it ranged from we couldn't sleep (usually deck 14) to mild bass thump (deck 12 I think).. I figured by deck 11 maybe we wouldn't really notice. We'll probably be up there with the party, or at least pooped out zzzzz so maybe we won't hear it...much. But I know the sound you mean... and it can be annoying.

Maybe we'll just have to get a good nap in during the day, so we can party on our balcony until after the music stops :cool:

Edited June 24, 2014 by VickiD59

[cyndepet]

Just how much earlier does one have to get there to get seated up front???

 

They escort Haven guests in first who are directed to the front seats of the tables closest to the stage. So even if you are first in the general line, you won't be guaranteed a front seat if there are a larger number of Haven guests booked for the show.

[lennyaxeman]

How does the waterfront seating work? Can you request it when booking reservation? Also, Can a family of 7 sit on the waterfront or are there only small tables. Thanks in advance!

[judipa]

NCL Breakaway review.

 

This review will kind of bounce around a bit. You can see our past cruise experience in my signature below. You will see that we have sailed NCL a lot over the years.. We are, indeed, NCL fans as they are one of our favorites. This review is long and detailed. I will not cover anything regarding Bermuda itself, as we have been there many times and it is always wonderful. Instead, we will concentrate on the Breakaway itself.

 

We drove and arrived at the pier at 8:30am as we wanted to be in the first group in order to attempt to get into Vibe and get a cabana. Security and check in was very smooth. NCL runs a very tight and organized check in. We were in boarding group 2. They started boarding at 11:15am. Once our group was called I left my wife in the dust and bolted down the pier, up the gangway and onto the ship. We boarded deck 7 forward. I ran past everyone, down the stairs and into the atrium to see only one couple at the guest services desk. They had gotten a ticket for Cabana 1 in Vibe. We were able to secure Cabana 2. Mission complete! Now we could relax and enjoy the rest of our cruise.. I can tell you the Cabanas were sold out. Don't know how quickly they did, however. Seemed as if the Vibe, itself, was not as there never seemed to be more then 20-30 people there at one time, at the most.

 

First impressions of the ship.. We really loved the whole "feel" of the Breakaway. Decor is more "classic" than NCL's usual bright colors. Lots of wood, etc. less bright and gaudy (like the Dawn) and more subdued and modern. I'm usually pretty good at locking in the layout of ships in my head. However, I did find this ship a bit more difficult to figure it all out. Once I did, all was fine. The main difference is that this ship has a single main corridor down the center with the restaurants, lounges, etc on either side. We ate lunch at savor and then proceeded to explore the ship. Also, as mentioned before, you can indeed drop of carry ons in your cabin upon boarding, even though they are not "officially" ready until 1pm.

 

Cabin: we had an AFT stateroom 11910. A really good size balcony. The stateroom is your average cruise ship stateroom. A bit too small for two adults. I cannot imagine more than 2 people in these staterooms, although they say they hold up to 3. We personally found it to have a lack of good storage. Plenty of shelves, but no drawers at all. The closet could be about 1 inch deeper as once you hang up your shirts, jackets and such, the doors will not close unless you push your cloths in first.. Bathroom was a nice size and laid out very well. Shower was a good size. However, the shower head and pressure was not the best.. Difficult to rinse shampoo out of your hair. Honestly, the sprayer on our kitchen sink at home has more pressure. In the future, we will definitely get at least a mini suite. If for no other reason than the slightly larger cabin and upgraded shower. The coffee maker is a nice touch and the decor is very nice. However, the best part (and advantage of AFT cabins) is the larger balcony. We did see many of the balconies for the side-of-ship staterooms. And as previously mentioned, they are indeed VERY small. 2 chairs (sideways) and a small table. No other room. Our balcony had 2 chairs, 2 chase lounges, a small table and still plenty of room to walk around. Overall, it was a nice cabin, just a bit tight.. One MAJOR problem with the AFT cabins is the noise from Spice H2O! Whenever they had deck parties up there, forget about getting any sleep before 12:30-1:00am. We were 5 decks below and the bass and noise was nothing short of obnoxious. Frankly, I see no reason to have the volume of music pumped up so loud. More on this later.

 

We spent sail away sitting outdoors on deck 7 at Shakers on the Water Front. A more peaceful place to spend sail away. Far less crowded, far fewer people and far less noisy. More about the Water Front later.

 

We got the Unlimited Dining Plan and had read previously that the food in the Cirque show was not the best. However, with the plan the first night was free (or included) with the plan. With that said, we chose the latter seating and opted to have an earlier dinner at Cagney's. We ate on the Water Front. Cagney's is always good and sitting outside was delightful.

 

Cirque Show: there are several design flaws with the Breakaway and this is one of them.. The concept and show is very good. However, all the tables are on one level. Unless you get there early enough to sit at a front row table, it is VERY difficult to see the whole show. There are a lot of acts that take place on the floor, these acts are almost completely missed if you're not sitting in the front row of tables.. We were in the second row back and missed a lot. The Arial acts were wonderful as we could see and appreciate them.. If only NCL had elevated each row slightly (just one or two steps up for each row) it would have made it more enjoyable. Or, made the stage higher in the center. The costumes, lighting and performers were wonderful and worked very hard, you just couldn't see everything..

 

On a side not. My background is in theatre. I make a living in professional performing arts as a producer, director and manager. With that said, the show is just a tad long at 90 minutes. A lot of the same type of thing or acts over and over. Perhaps if they had split up the acts a bit. As an example, instead of serving the meal "during" the show, split it up. Salad first, then some acts, serve main course, then some acts, serve desert, then finish the show. This way the show would be a tad shorter and one could appreciate it more without having to "eat" while the acts were taking place. As a director and producer I am a stickler for "pace". I would love to get my hands on this show and just tweak it slightly to make the whole event move just a tad faster and smoother. Overall, it was enjoyable for "free". I wouldn't spend extra money for it, however. It's a great concept, it just needs a bit of tweaking..

 

One of the things I personally really like about the Breakaway was the fact that the Garden Cafe is actually kind of out of the way of things. Many cruise ships are designed where you have to walk thru the buffet area to get to other areas of the ship. Not the Breakaway. The buffet is tucked AFT in its own area. We are not "buffet" people, so we tend to avoid the buffet.. So we had breakfast in Savor most mornings.

 

My impressions of the top deck. Lots to do.. Water parks, water slides, pools, hot tubs, etc. However, it makes for an EXTREMELY crowded top deck. Not due to all the passengers up there. Just too much being crammed into a small area. This makes for very bad flow. It is next to impossible for joggers to make it around the jogging track nonstop. This is due to how jammed everything is. It was virtually impossible to get to the Vibe entrance, which is located top deck port side. Every square inch of empty deck space is filled with deck chairs. The only way to get into Vibe was by literally climbing over deck chairs. One would think there would be an isle of some sort left empty to allow access into the area. There was not. Again, just an example of how overcrowded the top deck is on sea days.

 

We really enjoyed Vibe and having our own private cabana. And we understand that it is a "crap shoot" as far as what type of fellow passages you will have on any one sailing. We were a bit concerned as we did have a rather large group of loud, smoking fellow Vibe guests.. I was a bit surprised they allowed smoking in the Vibe since it is located on the starboard side of the ship (smoking is on port side only for most ships). And, doubly surprised that if they did allow smoking, that there was not a separate section for that. The result was cigarette smoke wafting into the cabana. Being a non-smoker, this was EXTREMELY irritating. Especially after paying $300 for the week. So, the Vibe and cabana was not the peaceful, quite area we had hoped. The cabana itself is very nice, private, roomy, comfortable with lots of storage. We left our things there when we went to lunch, etc. My recommendation to NCL would be to turn down the music volume and police the fellow Vibe guests asking them to "keep it down just a bit" if they became loud, as the Vibe should be a respite from the rest of the top deck with all the loud music, screaming and yelling children, etc. In addition, not allow smoking within the area. For those who want to smoke, they could easily step just outside of the Vibe area and smoke since the entrance is port side anyway.

 

More on smoking.. We quickly noticed that unlike most ships that restrict smoking to one side of the ship or the other, smoking was allowed anywhere outside. This became terribly irritating on the Ocean Front deck. This is an area that really sold us on booking the Breakaway. I thought the whole concept was great and we were really looking forward to spending our early evenings having pre-dinner cocktails outside at one of the outdoor Ocean Front lounges. However, there were smokers at every single lounge, in every single sitting/relaxing area throughout the entire Ocean Front deck. This was really disappointing to us as it was virtually impossible to escape the wafting smoke. The Ocean Front is such a beautiful area of the ship. GREAT concept to be able to sit outside and enjoy cocktails and/or dinner. However, the smoke can be bad. I would STRONGLY suggest to NCL to limit smoking to just the port side of the Ocean Front deck so non-smokers can enjoy the area without having to deal with smoke. This is also a huge problem inside the atrium area. The center atrium (3 decks high) is all open with the casino being in the center deck. The heavy smoking in there just wafts up and down that area causing a big stench in areas such as Le Bistro. It makes it very smelly sitting outside of Le Bistro. So, just make sure you request an inside table if you are a non-smoker.

 

Entertainment: Again, being in the entertainment field I can honestly say that the entertainment on the Breakaway is some of the best we have seen at sea! Lots of choices and ALL good.

 

Fire and Ice: this act performed in the atrium each afternoon and evening, singing 80's hits, Motown, tribute to Michael Jackson, etc. However, her Tina Turner (performed the last night in the theatre) was tremendous. This young lady gives it her all and is VERY entertaining!

 

Howl at the Moon dueling pianos: we felt that these 3 performers were the best musical act on the ship. They played several evenings and were a lot of fun. Taking requests, joking around, crazy, funny, and extremely entertaining, off-color after 11pm, lots of fun!. But most of all, incredible musicians! These 3 performers are a true asset to NCL and the Breakaway and are not to be missed!

 

Rock of Ages: Very enjoyable! A cut-down, trimmed version of the Broadway show. Very good cast, talented, high energy. Good actors, singers, dancers. Thoroughly enjoyed this show and worth the 105 minutes.

 

Burn the Floor: We did not see the whole show. I did peak in, however, and thought what I did see was very exciting and enjoyable.

 

Restaurants: We had the unlimited dining plan. So, we ate in most of the Specialty Dining places. Never ate a main meal in the main restaurants. Also, be aware that we always eat later in the evenings on cruises. Usually around 8:30 - 9:00 to avoid the crowds and families with small children.

 

Cagney's: Ate here twice. First night sat outside and enjoyed it very much. The second time around, later in the week, we couldn't get a seat outside, so we sat inside. This second night was very frustrating to us as we sat across the room from a large family (2 adult males and 2 adult females) with several small children who were allowed to scream, yell and very unruly. Several patrons complained to the host, who did speak with the family to no-avail. Just a rude family who did not care about their fellow passengers and would not discipline their children. The waitress did apologize to me and mentioned how she, too, was a mother and was embarrassed with the way these children were allowed to act by their parents. We ended up racing through dinner just to get out of there and away from the noise.

 

Le Bistro: Ate here twice. Thoroughly enjoyed both meals. Be sure to eat inside, not out in the atrium. A nice leisurely meal, not rushed in any way and very tasty.

 

Moderno: Ate here one evening. Sat outside and enjoyed the setting sun. Our server was not the best here and seemed to care less. The salad bar is VERY good and enjoyed a large selection. the meats were very tasty, tender and enjoyable. had the steak, lamb, ribs and chicken. Overall a nice meal, but probably would not go here again.

 

La Cucina: Ate here twice and sat outside (same table) both times. Probably, and surprisingly, our favorite place. Good food, leisurely service, were not rushed in any way, great views of the ocean and setting sun. Really enjoyed this place.

 

O'Sheehans: Sports pub. Had lunch here several times. Really enjoyed the fish and chips and atmosphere of the place. Perfect for lunch.

 

Savor and Taste: Had breakfast in one of these two places just about every morning. A nice sit down breakfast without having to deal with the crowds on the buffet. Had eggs, eggs Benedict, pancakes (syrup was not as bad as some reviews talk about. it's a slightly vanilla tasting syrup. Not maple in any way).

 

Up-Town Grill: Had breakfast here one morning and a few late day snacks. A hidden gem that never seemed crowded.

 

Noise: This is another problem with us. For some reason, on the Breakaway the music throughout seemed to be turned up just too loud. As an example, one deck party while in Bermuda was horribly loud! So much so that we certainly couldn't enjoy our own balcony this evening. So, we got off the ship and walked around the dock yard. We walked all the way to the other side of Kings Warf and could STILL "feel" the bass from the Breakaway. Now, if it was too loud for us across Kings Warf, how horribly loud (and damaging) must it have been for the people at that party. Not to mention those poor passengers on the Celebrity Summit whose AFT balconies were facing the Breakaway's. This was an ongoing issue each night there was a party at Spice H2O. My strong recommendation to NCL would be to just turn down the volume a bit. Really, there is no need to have it that loud. And, especially since the deck parties were attended by a very small percentage of the overall ship. If you are considering an AFT balcony on the Breakaway, I would reconsider unless you stay up late at night.

 

In closing, the thing that seemed to bother us about the Breakaway (between the crowded deck, loud music, smoking all around, etc) is that it had the "feel" of a Carnival ship. We dislike Carnival for all those reasons and never found this to be the case before with NCL. This really disappointed us as we are indeed NCL fans. Overall, we did enjoy our cruise. Any cruise is better than no cruise. We did like the Breakaway, but found the issues above very annoying and disappointing. For this reason, I don't think we would sail the Breakaway again unless NCL made some changes.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I will answer them the best I can.

 

 

I was on the same week and did not find the deck too crowded or the noise too loud although my balcony was on the side and not aft. I also could not find drawers until I peeked into a room being made up and saw a drawer open under the front of the sofa. I discovered there were two very large drawers in the front of the sofa in my regular balcony cabin. I do agree that the water pressure could be better in the shower. I loved the Breakaway and would sail on it again in a minute!