Breakaway (Family cruise with 15 month old) review 10-2-2016 sailing

[Wordshark]

Just back from the NCL Breakaway and just wanted to share a few thoughts - it was a fantastic cruise, shared with my wife, 15-month-old daughter, my mom and my sister (extra babysitters, hooray!).

 

THE SPECS

-We had two adjacent balcony rooms, mid-ship.

-My wife and I had the UBP, my mom and sister the UDP.

-We've sailed NCL four times before (Gem x2, Epic x2) as well as Carnival twice (Miracle, Splendor).

 

THE GOOD

-The balcony rooms were much nicer than we expected, having read the reviews. The balcony itself was wide enough for two adults sharing coffee or breakfast or whatever, and the bathroom/shower combo was by far the biggest we've ever experienced in a non-suite cabin on any other ship. It was very easy bathing our daughter using our inflatable bathtub (space was not a concern).

-The crew was wonderful and made the entire family, especially our daughter, feel special the entire cruise. Every time we went to the buffet, Manhattan Room, or any other public space, a crew member or officer took time to stop by and make sure the family was doing well. It was truly appreciated, and my daughter (though little) had a wonderful time and almost never fussed, I think as a result of the special treatment.

-The mix of UBP & UDP worked REALLY well. I was able to buy my mom and sister free drinks throughout the cruise using my UBP, and the specialty restaurant staff (especially La Cucina) was super accommodating about letting my mom and sister buy extra appetizers (and even entrees!) off the UDP to save us some money, overall.

-Made $500 playing blackjack in the casino. Covered most of our onboard expenses! :-) (Your mileage may vary.)

-Maybe this was lower expectations at the outset, combined with being on a "different" schedule since our daughter goes to bed like clockwork at 7:30 every night (and wakes up at 6), but the ship wasn't entirely as busy as I expected. I had an easier time finding loungers in the sun on sea days than I ever did on the Epic, for instance. I suppose some aspect of this involves having dinner at 5:30 pm every night, which is not our typical cruise style, but we made concessions to keep the little one on her "land" schedule...

-Bermuda in general was wonderful. To me, it's cleaner, more accommodating, and more interesting than any other Caribbean island we've ever visited. We explored the Dockyard area on Day 1, then went to Horseshoe Bay Beach and Hamilton on Day 2. The ferry system to Hamilton was great, and we had a number of opportunities to chat with locals "off the beaten path". Each interaction was awesome.

-Food was the greatest we experienced on any previous cruise. The specialty dining was really great, but frankly, the complimentary stuff was quite good as well. I think one of us had a bad meal one time, and that was it. My daughter expanded her food horizons, eating ratatouille, lamb rigatoni, and other stuff we typically don't make for her at home.

-Overall, this was the best cruise experience we ever had - including having booked Penthouse Suites before. Seeing the smiles on my family's faces was an incredible experience that I'll never forget.

 

 

THE NOT-SO-GREAT

-While the ship was less crowded than I expected, it was quite crowded. There were more waits than I had ever experienced at restaurants onboard, and the buffet was a bit of a traffic jam at times.

-It's ridiculous that there are only two elevator bays on board, and we had to wait for 2-3 elevators too many times to count. Not a huge deal, but annoying nonetheless.

-Someone needs to tell this particular Captain to be more succinct in his onboard messaging; they sometimes droned on for minutes for no good reason.

 

THE KID-SPECIFIC STUFF

-We were really worried about bringing a 15-month-old on board a cruise ship for a week, but from reading the forums in advance, we were able to plan pretty well. We brought an inflatable bathtub, plenty of diapers and wipes, and blackout curtains from home we could tape up around the pack-and-play so we could have the TV on while she slept in the darkened cabin.

-We asked for a crib in our stateroom, but ended up with a pack-and-play instead. It was comfortable enough and it worked pretty well, as the pack-and-play folded nicely so our daughter could scamper about the cabin.

-She's a good eater and sleeper, the eating went better than expected on the cruise but the sleeping wasn't as great as on land. She did nap in her stroller during the day, but spent parts of most nights in bed with us (vacation-only treat, haha). The minor sleep deprivation was worth her fun.

-They have a "Guppies playroom" on Deck 16, fwd, which is pretty small (three kids + parents is about all that fits) but they have lots of toys for babies to play with. There are also scheduled Guppies activities (1-2/day), but we never went to them so can't comment on that.

-Thankfully with extra babysitters, we alternated babysitting duties at night so some adults could go out after the kiddo went to bed each night. It would have been way more difficult without the extra babysitters, to be honest. Being stuck in the stateroom after 7 pm each night would have been difficult and we didn't really feel comfortable using the in-room babysitting service offered by NCL.

-Overall, I'd say you have to make some concessions when cruising with a little one, but it was worth it to see her be such a great traveler and have such a great time.

[boopsahoy]

Just back from the NCL Breakaway and just wanted to share a few thoughts - it was a fantastic cruise, shared with my wife, 15-month-old daughter, my mom and my sister (extra babysitters, hooray!).

 

THE SPECS

-We had two adjacent balcony rooms, mid-ship.

-My wife and I had the UBP, my mom and sister the UDP.

-We've sailed NCL four times before (Gem x2, Epic x2) as well as Carnival twice (Miracle, Splendor).

 

THE GOOD

-The balcony rooms were much nicer than we expected, having read the reviews. The balcony itself was wide enough for two adults sharing coffee or breakfast or whatever, and the bathroom/shower combo was by far the biggest we've ever experienced in a non-suite cabin on any other ship. It was very easy bathing our daughter using our inflatable bathtub (space was not a concern).

-The crew was wonderful and made the entire family, especially our daughter, feel special the entire cruise. Every time we went to the buffet, Manhattan Room, or any other public space, a crew member or officer took time to stop by and make sure the family was doing well. It was truly appreciated, and my daughter (though little) had a wonderful time and almost never fussed, I think as a result of the special treatment.

-The mix of UBP & UDP worked REALLY well. I was able to buy my mom and sister free drinks throughout the cruise using my UBP, and the specialty restaurant staff (especially La Cucina) was super accommodating about letting my mom and sister buy extra appetizers (and even entrees!) off the UDP to save us some money, overall.

-Made $500 playing blackjack in the casino. Covered most of our onboard expenses! :-) (Your mileage may vary.)

-Maybe this was lower expectations at the outset, combined with being on a "different" schedule since our daughter goes to bed like clockwork at 7:30 every night (and wakes up at 6), but the ship wasn't entirely as busy as I expected. I had an easier time finding loungers in the sun on sea days than I ever did on the Epic, for instance. I suppose some aspect of this involves having dinner at 5:30 pm every night, which is not our typical cruise style, but we made concessions to keep the little one on her "land" schedule...

-Bermuda in general was wonderful. To me, it's cleaner, more accommodating, and more interesting than any other Caribbean island we've ever visited. We explored the Dockyard area on Day 1, then went to Horseshoe Bay Beach and Hamilton on Day 2. The ferry system to Hamilton was great, and we had a number of opportunities to chat with locals "off the beaten path". Each interaction was awesome.

-Food was the greatest we experienced on any previous cruise. The specialty dining was really great, but frankly, the complimentary stuff was quite good as well. I think one of us had a bad meal one time, and that was it. My daughter expanded her food horizons, eating ratatouille, lamb rigatoni, and other stuff we typically don't make for her at home.

-Overall, this was the best cruise experience we ever had - including having booked Penthouse Suites before. Seeing the smiles on my family's faces was an incredible experience that I'll never forget.

 

 

THE NOT-SO-GREAT

-While the ship was less crowded than I expected, it was quite crowded. There were more waits than I had ever experienced at restaurants onboard, and the buffet was a bit of a traffic jam at times.

-It's ridiculous that there are only two elevator bays on board, and we had to wait for 2-3 elevators too many times to count. Not a huge deal, but annoying nonetheless.

-Someone needs to tell this particular Captain to be more succinct in his onboard messaging; they sometimes droned on for minutes for no good reason.

 

THE KID-SPECIFIC STUFF

-We were really worried about bringing a 15-month-old on board a cruise ship for a week, but from reading the forums in advance, we were able to plan pretty well. We brought an inflatable bathtub, plenty of diapers and wipes, and blackout curtains from home we could tape up around the pack-and-play so we could have the TV on while she slept in the darkened cabin.

-We asked for a crib in our stateroom, but ended up with a pack-and-play instead. It was comfortable enough and it worked pretty well, as the pack-and-play folded nicely so our daughter could scamper about the cabin.

-She's a good eater and sleeper, the eating went better than expected on the cruise but the sleeping wasn't as great as on land. She did nap in her stroller during the day, but spent parts of most nights in bed with us (vacation-only treat, haha). The minor sleep deprivation was worth her fun.

-They have a "Guppies playroom" on Deck 16, fwd, which is pretty small (three kids + parents is about all that fits) but they have lots of toys for babies to play with. There are also scheduled Guppies activities (1-2/day), but we never went to them so can't comment on that.

-Thankfully with extra babysitters, we alternated babysitting duties at night so some adults could go out after the kiddo went to bed each night. It would have been way more difficult without the extra babysitters, to be honest. Being stuck in the stateroom after 7 pm each night would have been difficult and we didn't really feel comfortable using the in-room babysitting service offered by NCL.

-Overall, I'd say you have to make some concessions when cruising with a little one, but it was worth it to see her be such a great traveler and have such a great time.

Glad you had a great trip:D

We booked the Breakway (1st time) to Bermuda (first time). I was worried about the crowding and the need for reservations. We love the Gem but when we want to go its an itinerary we have done too many times (we only cruise out of NY). Glad to hear the balcony cabin was roomy. We usually cruise in the PH on Gem but on Breakaway its in the Haven and too expensive. We have been in balconies on Carnival and it was fine.

 

Did you find you needed reservations for everything? Did you use the casino at all? Was it open on Bermuda nights at 9pm?

 

Thanks for your review:)

[Kwaj girl]

So...you used YOUR UBP to "buy THEM free drinks"?

[luv2cruise523]

So...you used YOUR UBP to "buy THEM free drinks"?

 

That didn't take long, CC Police never disappoint!

[JAMESCC]

That didn't take long, CC Police never disappoint!

 

It's unbelievable to me how quickly they come out. Let the games begin. :eek:

[cincicruisers]

Thanks for sharing your review with us. Glad your little one had fun.

 

Not happy to hear you were sharing your drink package. It is meant to be per person.

Edited October 9, 2016 by cincicruisers

[Two Wheels Only]

So...you used YOUR UBP to "buy THEM free drinks"?

 

 

....and people wonder why the 18% has been added to the "free" promo.

[Wordshark]

I maximize my itemized tax deductions as much as possible (never been audited), and I also routinely drive 80 mph in 65 mph highway zones (never received a speeding ticket, though). Anything else you want to get me for?

 

If you have a problem with the cruise line staff allowing people to put multiple drinks on a single UBP card, or multiple entrees or appetizers on a UDP card, that's a problem with NCL's system (and the staff who allow it), not those who take advantage of a market inefficiency.

[Kwaj girl]

What a great example you will be setting for your child when old enough to understand....and learn right from wrong.

Edited October 9, 2016 by Kwaj girl

[Wordshark]

What a great example you will be setting for your child when old enough to understand....and learn right from wrong.

 

Meh.

[2bthere]

What a great example you will be setting for your child when old enough to understand....and learn right from wrong.

 

I'm pretty sure that if the 19 month old wanted to see what their parents did on this particular cruise that CC would have it archived in which would need a GPS and a backhoe to recover.

 

OP, It was nice to see a TR on how to travel with one so young. You made it work and still enjoyed yourselves which is the most important point. I will say that Bermuda is the best since you are docked and can come and go as you please. We took our "baby" (who happens to be 29 + his GF) to Bermuda and we all loved it. We hope that this sets up the next vacation be it cruising or land based; we hope it cruising!