RC vs NCL Breakaway

[Love2CruiseRCI]

Any Loyal Royals been on NCL Breakaway? Trying to compare to RC since we have never been on NCL.

[SECdawg]

I have never been on NCL but I just read that the NCL Epic was coming to Port Canaveral next fall. We might have to give her a try.

[Clarea]

Any Loyal Royals been on NCL Breakaway? Trying to compare to RC since we have never been on NCL.

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[mac622]

We were on the Breakaway July 2014 to Bermuda. This year we were on the INDY to the Eastern Caribbean. Royal Caribbean outshines the Breakaway. We had one of our best cruises this year. I was not happy with the Breakaway. We had a balcony cabin. The balcony was so small, the room was also much smaller then Royal Caribbean. The shows were much better on Royal Caribbean. I was not happy at all with the Breakaway. Stick with Royal Caribbean!!

[mets07]

We mostly cruise RCCL, but certainly enjoyed the Breakaway. Our favorite parts.... the beautiful new ship, the Waterfront (outdoor bars and eating areas), the flexibility to pretty much dine wherever/whenever - we did not have waits, the slides. Sailing out of NYC is always a fantastic experience, even for a NY/NJ person. :)

 

Whatever you do, enjoy.

[joge107]

We were on the Breakaway July 2014 to Bermuda. This year we were on the INDY to the Eastern Caribbean. Royal Caribbean outshines the Breakaway. We had one of our best cruises this year. I was not happy with the Breakaway. We had a balcony cabin. The balcony was so small, the room was also much smaller then Royal Caribbean. The shows were much better on Royal Caribbean. I was not happy at all with the Breakaway. Stick with Royal Caribbean!!

 

We, too, were on the Independence July 5th, and on the Breakaway July 2013

The IOS was a nice ship, typical RCL, but the crowd was disappointing. Rude, crude, troublemakers. The Breakaway was a nice ship, the Vibe is a great adult area. The food is better on Breakaway. As to the shows, we saw Broadway quality ROCK OF AGES on Breakaway; on RCL, average production shows.

[riclop]

RCL is better than NCL any day.

[JasonV1]

The NCL Haven concept is what is likely what drove a Royal to make the changes to Oasis class to provide more suite perks. I stayed in a Haven suite on Getaway and thought the courtyard and private bar/restaurant were awesome.

 

The issue I have with The Breakaway class is the design, which is significant if you don't have access to the Haven. The ships have no Solarium (sorry vibe doesn't count, you can't even buy those passes unless you board very early as they'll be gone), and not enough pool space (due to all the water slides/rope course/etc). I wouldn't return to anything but the Haven, and I'll never get the deal I got that made it possible in the first place. Some of this applies to Epic too, but it's been so long since I sailed on that one I can't remember specifics.

 

Additionally, on Breakaway class the Casino wraps around one of the floors of 678 place which means smoke travels (more of an issue than others than myself, but noticeable at peak times). Plus the doors to the waterfront let in a ton of wind (when windy, duh) which can really ruin the mood of some areas (like the mojito bar).

 

Not saying you can't have a good time, just that I feel Royal/Celebrity have better ship designs (but NCL Haven suites beat Royal in terms of perks).

[yj2cute]

I was on Breakaway and while she's a beautiful ship, it was one of my least favorite cruises. The food was pretty bad, even in specialty dining. The Italian restaurant was awful. Also I hated their use of the atrium area. Loud events and movies all day made a visit to guest services or OSheeans pub uncomfortable. And they held popular events there like the Live and Marriage show which meant very little seating. I really have no desire to go back on that ship which is disappointing. Although I love Royal it would have been nice to have another new ship option sailing from the Northeast.

[jd1966]

We've done 21 of our 27 cruises on Celebrity and RCL so I am not what you would call an NCL cheerleader. Having said that, we didn't cruise NCL for a long while because we read these types of reviews and listened to others opinion of NCL. That was a big mistake! Try it yourself. If you don't like it, then you know for sure. We have taken three NCL cruises and really enjoyed them. Now we have another option for cruising!

[Love2CruiseRCI]

I was on Breakaway and while she's a beautiful ship, it was one of my least favorite cruises. The food was pretty bad, even in specialty dining. The Italian restaurant was awful. Also I hated their use of the atrium area. Loud events and movies all day made a visit to guest services or OSheeans pub uncomfortable. And they held popular events there like the Live and Marriage show which meant very little seating. I really have no desire to go back on that ship which is disappointing. Although I love Royal it would have been nice to have another new ship option sailing from the Northeast.

 

 

We love Royal as well but living in the mid-Atlantic it's nice to have some other ship options that are less expensive than the new Quantum class ships. We went on Grandeur last year and enjoyed it but we can only do the Bahamas itinerary so much and when we can only go for a week that doesn't leave many options!

[Love2CruiseRCI]

We've done 21 of our 27 cruises on Celebrity and RCL so I am not what you would call an NCL cheerleader. Having said that, we didn't cruise NCL for a long while because we read these types of reviews and listened to others opinion of NCL. That was a big mistake! Try it yourself. If you don't like it, then you know for sure. We have taken three NCL cruises and really enjoyed them. Now we have another option for cruising!

 

 

I know everyone has their own opinions and preferences when it comes to cruising and we are so used to RCs service that reading reviews of the Breakaway kind of scare us! We really want to try NCL for their freestyle cruising and The Waterfront looks neat. I agree that the only way to know for sure is to try for ourselves and see!

[yj2cute]

I know everyone has their own opinions and preferences when it comes to cruising and we are so used to RCs service that reading reviews of the Breakaway kind of scare us! We really want to try NCL for their freestyle cruising and The Waterfront looks neat. I agree that the only way to know for sure is to try for ourselves and see!

 

I agree. You should definitely go and see how you enjoy it. YMMV. That's why I did it. I was hoping for another no-fly option. The good thing is, I am willing to fly so if I have to, I will.

[LeDemonBlond]

Was on the Breakaway in May of 2014. We enjoyed the ship. My kids really liked the ropes course and the slides. We all enjoyed the Second City improv club. The Main area of the ship where people conjugated for concerts and other activities can get noisy and be overwhelmed with people but I thought overall was a great venue. The entertainment on the ship was typical but we enjoyed it.

We had booked a couple of the specialty restaurants but because the main dining room was very good, we only went to 1 specialty restaurant. We went to the Brazilian restaurant which I would say was not great. We always had good service in the MDR. The longest wait we had for my time dining was 5 minutes. They have a place called the uptown grill which service hamburgers, hot dogs, etc. There is no extra charge to use. That was really good, I remember going there for lunch most times. Overall, the food was good to very good from what I remember.

 

The rooms are smaller ( especially the balcony ) for sure but ours were still comfortable and storage space was plentiful. Very good service from our attendant.

 

Have been on the Mariner twice and Indy once and I would agree that the layout of those ships was more for my liking than Breakaway.

 

However, based on the very good experience we had on the Breakaway, I would recommend the ship.

Edited August 4, 2015 by BobbyOrr

[Hotel CA]

The NCL Haven concept is what is likely what drove a Royal to make the changes to Oasis class to provide more suite perks. I stayed in a Haven suite on Getaway and thought the courtyard and private bar/restaurant were awesome.

 

The issue I have with The Breakaway class is the design, which is significant if you don't have access to the Haven. The ships have no Solarium (sorry vibe doesn't count, you can't even buy those passes unless you board very early as they'll be gone), and not enough pool space (due to all the water slides/rope course/etc). I wouldn't return to anything but the Haven, and I'll never get the deal I got that made it possible in the first place. Some of this applies to Epic too, but it's been so long since I sailed on that one I can't remember specifics.

 

Additionally, on Breakaway class the Casino wraps around one of the floors of 678 place which means smoke travels (more of an issue than others than myself, but noticeable at peak times). Plus the doors to the waterfront let in a ton of wind (when windy, duh) which can really ruin the mood of some areas (like the mojito bar).

 

Not saying you can't have a good time, just that I feel Royal/Celebrity have better ship designs (but NCL Haven suites beat Royal in terms of perks).

 

Thanks for a well written, thoughtful post JasonV1-- well done and very helpfull

[330searay]

I guess it would probably depend on what RC ship? I will say this: Friends of ours, Actually half of our former cruise group,switched to NCL because of the price difference and also because of the free-style thing. However They sailed the break away this past march and they gave it very poor review. For one the weather was not good (Not NCL fault) but they said that since the weather was bad the ship seemed overly crowded. They also said the ships lay-out was terrible. Lack of public areas(Bars etc) Made it boring while stuck inside. They said they will be cruising The Dawn,Jewel from here on out. Dan

[jenfromjersey]

We sailed the Breakaway over New Years this past year. It was not a good experience. While we really liked the cabin itself, the layout of the ship was not designed for the capacity of the ship. The Atrium was way too small for the events that were held there. We skipped the theater shows because the seats were so uncomfortable (we did the Welcome Aboard show and left because of the seats and the entertainment was TERRIBLE). We did enjoy Second City and Howl at the Moon. Food was pretty lackluster, but the fireworks were a nice touch.

 

In the future, we will stick with Royal. The only reason my parents booked NCL was because it was so much cheaper than Quantum.

[yj2cute]

We sailed the Breakaway over New Years this past year. It was not a good experience. While we really liked the cabin itself, the layout of the ship was not designed for the capacity of the ship. The Atrium was way too small for the events that were held there. We skipped the theater shows because the seats were so uncomfortable (we did the Welcome Aboard show and left because of the seats and the entertainment was TERRIBLE). We did enjoy Second City and Howl at the Moon. Food was pretty lackluster, but the fireworks were a nice touch.

 

In the future, we will stick with Royal. The only reason my parents booked NCL was because it was so much cheaper than Quantum.

 

Your experience is almost identical to mine. I'll add that the fireworks didn't even go off for our sailing due to technical difficulties. I also missed actual stand up comedy. Second City was OK, but I like a good stand up comic. I did enjoy Rock of Ages, however and the blues band. It's such a disappointment because the price is good compared to the Anthem and even the Grandeur out of Bmore.

[melody-s]

I have mostly been on RCI and was on NCL Epic once. Will be on Getaway in a few months.

 

The NCL cabins are much smaller. It would be OK with two people, but we had three in a balcony cabin and it felt cramped. The entertainment was better on NCL. Howl at the Moon was such fun and the shows were quite entertaining. The food was simply different. I think RCI main dining room is better and NCL has some interesting options. We loved O'Sheehan and the variety of choices was nice. NCL is much more casual. Whether you like that or not is a matter of personal opinion. The NCL thermal spa is much better than the RCI thermal spa. I loved every minute spent there and highly recommend it. The waterslides on NCL are fun and there is more of a party vibe on NCL. I think the service is somewhat better on RCI.

 

Overall I give the slight edge to RCI. Given the right ship, itinerary, and cost I am quite willing to go on NCL again and I am looking forward to my cruise on the Getaway.

[Redcat]

A cruise is what you make of it I enjoy NCL and Carnival only had 1 cruise on RCL but have another in 39 days so fat least favorite RCL but it was just attitide of crew for me they were just not happy other than a few who enjoyed their job. Try everthing as its all exciting in its own way. My bucklist is try as many different cruise lines as I can.