Breakaway - Quick Review

[Marleycruiser]

Finally catching up on work after nearly a week back from our trip on the Breakaway to Bermuda. We have gone on the ship when it first came out and after getting an insanely last minute deal for $500 a person, we could not pass up the opportunity. This will be brief, but if you have any specific questions feel free to shoot away.

 

Embarkation - Super easy. Got to the dock around 11 and got onto the boat by 11:30. Very smooth A+ NCL.

 

Bermuda - Amazing island and I was pleasantly surprised at how warm it was this time of year. We went to Horsehoe Bay, shopped in town and went and saw some caves. Island is absolutely one of the cleanest islands, with friendly people and breathtaking views.

 

Food - Highly subjective, but I would say food in the specialty restaurant was B+ to an A while the main dining room just wasn't that great at all. Service horrifically slow, food barely warm, and most dishes lacked any true flavor. The buffet on the other hand we thought was very good with a tremendous amount of variety.

 

Ship - We initially did not like the "cookie cutter" design of the ship as there was no flow to allow the large number of guests throughout the ship. This time, we felt the very same thing. Lines for shows, congestion in most public areas and the worst part of congestion issues was best viewed at the pool. One "large" pool for 4,000 people just does not provide enough pool for all of those people.

 

Summary - Although I doubt I will sail the Breakaway class ships in the future, we still had a GOOD TIME. We only paid $1,000 for a week long trip. Ship was very clean, staff very friendly, and it was a good way to spend a week. At that kind of price, my expectations were low and were absolutely met, but if I had to pay top dollar for this trip (4-5000 for the two of us like we did when the ship first came out), I would not be so "pleased."

 

Staff you can fix, food you can fix, but ship design you cannot and that is why we do not see ourselves sailing the Breakaway ships any time soon just because the ship felt far too crowded. We have been on the Oasis of the Seas which has more people and it did not feel crowded one bit. The open concept and having neighborhoods was an ingenious idea and I hope NCL takes note.

 

Will we sail NCL in the future, yes, possibly but only if it is on an older ship or the new Bliss coming out. Let me know if anyone has any questions, hope this is helpful. PS we are taking another Bermuda trip in July on the Summit so we shall see (and that trip was almost 4X the price of what we paid on the Breakaway but we are in a Aqua Class) room.

[kiminey65]

A great price! But now I am curious what your category was, and if it was without any perks? Was $500/pp before all your port fees & taxes? I just can't believe that price is all. I live in Northern NY so maybe better keep a good eye on unsold sailings last minute.

[Clarea]

Interesting feedback, thanks.

[easyboy]

Thank you for your review.

 

 

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[Two Wheels Only]

One "large" pool for 4,000 people just does not provide enough pool for all of those people.

Which one of the 2 pools on deck 15 do you mean?

[uneamie]

Thank you for your review. As for the pools, we've never been "ship pool" people so that's no biggy for us. We have a pool at home so we don't go on vacations to swim in pools full of people....That said, any ship, big or small, has always had a very crowded pool area that we've experienced. The only time we enjoyed a "ship pool" was on Disney Wonder when everyone got off the ship at a port and we stayed on. We had the hot tub and pool all to ourselves. LOL In light of all that....the only time we will not like the 4000 people on board is trying to get an early tender and perhaps waiting for our meals at the main dinning rooms.

[Moby0215]

Finally catching up on work after nearly a week back from our trip on the Breakaway to Bermuda. We have gone on the ship when it first came out and after getting an insanely last minute deal for $500 a person, we could not pass up the opportunity. This will be brief, but if you have any specific questions feel free to shoot away.

 

 

 

Embarkation - Super easy. Got to the dock around 11 and got onto the boat by 11:30. Very smooth A+ NCL.

 

 

 

Bermuda - Amazing island and I was pleasantly surprised at how warm it was this time of year. We went to Horsehoe Bay, shopped in town and went and saw some caves. Island is absolutely one of the cleanest islands, with friendly people and breathtaking views.

 

 

 

Food - Highly subjective, but I would say food in the specialty restaurant was B+ to an A while the main dining room just wasn't that great at all. Service horrifically slow, food barely warm, and most dishes lacked any true flavor. The buffet on the other hand we thought was very good with a tremendous amount of variety.

 

 

 

Ship - We initially did not like the "cookie cutter" design of the ship as there was no flow to allow the large number of guests throughout the ship. This time, we felt the very same thing. Lines for shows, congestion in most public areas and the worst part of congestion issues was best viewed at the pool. One "large" pool for 4,000 people just does not provide enough pool for all of those people.

 

 

 

Summary - Although I doubt I will sail the Breakaway class ships in the future, we still had a GOOD TIME. We only paid $1,000 for a week long trip. Ship was very clean, staff very friendly, and it was a good way to spend a week. At that kind of price, my expectations were low and were absolutely met, but if I had to pay top dollar for this trip (4-5000 for the two of us like we did when the ship first came out), I would not be so "pleased."

 

 

 

Staff you can fix, food you can fix, but ship design you cannot and that is why we do not see ourselves sailing the Breakaway ships any time soon just because the ship felt far too crowded. We have been on the Oasis of the Seas which has more people and it did not feel crowded one bit. The open concept and having neighborhoods was an ingenious idea and I hope NCL takes note.

 

 

 

Will we sail NCL in the future, yes, possibly but only if it is on an older ship or the new Bliss coming out. Let me know if anyone has any questions, hope this is helpful. PS we are taking another Bermuda trip in July on the Summit so we shall see (and that trip was almost 4X the price of what we paid on the Breakaway but we are in a Aqua Class) room.

 

 

 

The Bliss will be a breakaway plus class ship. Even bigger than the breakaway. You will probably want to stay away from that.

 

 

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[Marleycruiser]

A couple of answers to some questionable posted.

 

1)yes 500pp was all in with taxes and fees on an interior cabin

 

2) that price did NOT include any perks

 

3) the main adult pool is what I was referring to as it just seemed far too overcrowded;however, I think you could have two very different experiences on this boat if you were to stay in he haven. You get a pool similar to the main pool but with a lot less guests. We looked at the haven but that was 4000 per person :eek::eek: so we opted not to splurge given we have another Bermuda cruise in two months.

 

Disappointed about Bliss :(..... the couple we sometimes cruise with are avid nick cruisers and raved about the dawn but commented they stay away from the breakaway so we need to give the older ships a try. - Boston here we come!

[dexddd]

A couple of answers to some questionable posted.

 

1)yes 500pp was all in with taxes and fees on an interior cabin

 

2) that price did NOT include any perks

 

3) the main adult pool is what I was referring to as it just seemed far too overcrowded;however, I think you could have two very different experiences on this boat if you were to stay in he haven. You get a pool similar to the main pool but with a lot less guests. We looked at the haven but that was 4000 per person :eek::eek: so we opted not to splurge given we have another Bermuda cruise in two months.

 

Disappointed about Bliss :(..... the couple we sometimes cruise with are avid nick cruisers and raved about the dawn but commented they stay away from the breakaway so we need to give the older ships a try. - Boston here we come!

 

Our thoughts match most of what you say about the BA and we have no interest going on it again. That said, we are trying Escape next year well knowing it is a BA+ class ship.

 

As far as Haven pool on BA, it is really small. Just under 4' of water and if you had 10 people standing in it the pool would be full.

[Dina7]

Thanks for your mini review! How great for you that you were able to take advantage of such an awesome price!!

[Marleycruiser]

Yes, a great price and cheapest price I have ever paid for a cruise.......

 

Hence I can see why some people may get upset/give bad reviews to the Breakaway but it gave us an opportunity to recharge our batteries. Its kind of difficult to have a "bad" cruise (at least from my limited experience); however, I would not pay a premium for NCL Breakaway unlike some other ships (such as the Oasis of the Seas of Anthem of the Seas)..... Guess key takeaway, different strokes for different folks.

 

We shall see how the older Celebrity Summit ranks against the Breakaway. When we first were on the Breakaway and then again more recently, EVERYONE we spoke to raved about the Summit so we are very exciting.

[flyingandcruising]

Had embarkation already started when you got there at 11?

[Marleycruiser]

I want to say around 11/1130..... When we got back to NY there were several battleships in town, and I want to say we got in maybe around 530/6am ......So realistically between 6 and 11 sounds about right to get people off, clean the ship, and get the next cruise on....

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.