Breeze Review 5/25, Premier & Cove Balcony

[Cruisegirl6]

Hello, we were on the Breeze sailing date of 5/25.   We had two cabins, ours was 2441 and my father in law 2439.  We booked these cabins because it was a last minute decision and the cove balconies were the only balcony cabins available.

 

Embarkation:

 

I am platinum and my father in law is gold, we were unable to get him the FTTF as we booked this cruise last minute, but they allowed him to stay with us when we arrived in the terminal.  We sat in Platinum group and got right on board right after the wedding party at 10:50.  My cabin was ready with our keys at the mailbox outside our cabin and my father in laws was not as he did not have FTTF.  We placed our carry on bags inside and went up to the buffet for lunch as we did not eat breakfast.

 

Stateroom:

 

NEVER AGAIN will we have a cove balcony!!!!  Every night from 3am we would hear what sounded like pipes hitting the floor or logs hitting a metal floor, real loud and this did not stop during the night/early am.  There were other types of loud noses grinding noises, doors slamming hard as well as noises I can't explain but all loud.  Our cabins were right at the aft beginning of the galley, we expected this but didn't expect it all night long and as loud as it was. My other half who generally sleeps through everything was woken up so many times each night also.  My elderly father in law who was next door of us could not sleep all night, he would have to go back to his room during the daytime to sleep.  We were not able to use the balcony, on embarkation day because it was being painted as well the next day, on day 3 and four we still couldn't sit on the balcony as everything was wet and had oil based paint smell outside which at times we would smell inside our cabins.  I gather the humidity was part of the issue.  Paying for these balcony cabins was a total waste of money, our chairs had paint splattered on them too.  

The stateroom is the typical stateroom with plenty of closet space and hangers, there was a closet with shelves and the safe was above the desk/vanity area so we had an extra shelf space in the closet.  Our luggage fit perfectly under the bed, the vanity light was too dim (but there is a make up mirror in the bathroom) and there was a stool at the vanity which was nice.  We had pool towels in our cabin and received some goodies from the casino because this was a premier cruise.  Our cabin steward was excellent, I needed extra pillows and wanted a couple of extra bath towels and these came right away.  

AC was the best out of all my other 90 cruises I ever been on, in fact, the entire ship was on the cool side, something which we rarely get on other ships.  I kept the thermostat on the lowest setting with 80% of the curtains drawn each day, it always kept cool and we slept well because of that but not well with all the noise above our cabins.  Normally, I can't sleep with any noise but I was surprised because I would wake up at least 70 times during the night hearing these loud noises but always went right back to sleep.  (maybe something to do with going to bed at 2am each night lol)

 

Food:

 

Lunch Buffet- On the first day they had a meat carving, turkey which was very good but the remaining 6 days there was no meat carving at all!!   People were asking where it was also.  I have to say, they cut back on the hot foods in the buffet for lunch, very limited choices, salad bar was cut in half from what we had on the Elation this past February.  Ice Cream was always available and good.  I found the lunch buffet to be just ok in my book (you can't starve) but tried the deli once, I ordered the turkey on pretzel roll, opened up the sandwich when I got it because it appeared very soggy, the bun was saturated with sauce/butter so bad you couldn't eat it and there were only two tiny pieces of turkey on it, the tomatoes were soggy but lettuce was fine as so was the avocado.  Unfortunately, there is alot of waste of food and I couldn't help it myself, although I take a tablespoon to try it and if I like it I can go back for more which only happened the one day they actually had a hot vegetable, collard greens, they really need to add a vegetable to the buffet each day.  I did try guys burgers and I have to say usually I can't eat it as its full of grease, but this time it was very good actually.  There wasn't much food that appealed to me on the lunch buffet but I tell you what I had instead....I don't eat sweets/cake except for holidays, but I was eating three small slices of cake everyday!  Their cakes are the best out of any other cruise line, so yummy!!  That basically was my lunch, but on the last day I found where you can get a better salad and a turkey wrap right in the Ocean Plaza and it was very good.  The BBQ was only opened for three days, it was ok and many people enjoyed that.

 

Breakfast Buffet- this was a HUGE problem with us and pretty much everybody that attended the buffet breakfast.  The problem is the bacon which was the last thing they serve to you on the buffet.  What they do is cook the bacon in the back and they had a guy serving it and all you can get is two slices of bacon, but there is a larger problem, they only put out enough bacon to give to 8-9 people then the bacon pan was empty again, and you have to wait another 15-12 minutes for them to put out more and this kept going on and on and this is what held up the buffet breakfast lines.  On sea days you would literally wait 20-25 minutes to get your breakfast!!  On port days they still had the problem with the lack of bacon but there are less people so it wasn't too bad but you never can get bacon and if you can you be lucky to get your two slices.  The omelet station for some odd reason only had about 7 people ahead of us and they always prepared the omelets fine.  A few times on the cruise we heard people saying "no bacon cruise" lol.

 

MDR Dinner-  We went here twice.  It was obvious both our waiters were all overworked and had too many tables to take care of but they both did great under the circumstances.  In the past when you ordered two appetizers they serve you one and take away your dish when your done and hand you the other, what they do now, is give you all your appetizers on the table at once and the same goes for the entrees.  Considering the amount of people eating here at once the food was fine and I would go back again.  We had my time dining and arrived both times around 7:30 and were seated promptly.

 

Steakhouse-  We went here four times and it was overall excellent!!   I had the cowboy, the prime rib, the strip steak as well as two lobster tails, all very very good.  I was disappointed with the desserts, so only chose ice cream once and espresso the remaining nights.

 

Cucina del Capitano-  We went here once for dinner,  it was ok, nothing special, wouldn't go here again for dinner.

 

Bonsai Sushi-  Only opened for dinner time, we wanted to go there on our last evening, but thought since it was the last day and they using up what they had we chose to not go here.

 

Shows/Comedy-  We didn't do any of these, but the guy in the piano bar everybody on the ship was talking how bad he was and it was very bad (every time we past by we would cringe and give each other the look like, its bad

 

Bands-  We always loved the bands on the Carnival ships this main band was our least liked.  They had a single guy singing in the Red Frog which was good, they had two duo's which were good but the nightly band in the Ocean Plaza really wasen't  that good, the guy was off beat on so many songs and well they just didn't play music that people wanted to hear....you ask me why I know this, they didn't have a crowd and really nobody was dancing, but on the last evening they got their act together and everybody had a great time.  

 

BREEZE ADDITIONAL PROS:

 

The entire staff everywhere extremely friendly (Carnival always was)

Alchemy Bar the Best and the bartenders overly accomodating and entertaining especially Nicola!!  Vera was very nice too.

On the Elation I had the Cheers and was unable to specify particular alcohol brands to their "signature drinks" but this ship accommodated me each time to what I asked for

Photography didn't bother us at all, in fact, my other half was saying no but asked them to pose and took their photo and said they find it on deck 3, they always laughed

Cheers package worked extremely well for us, we also had bottled water, perrier, lattes/espresso/coffee. (we had the drinks on us card as it was a premier cruise but wanted the Cheers)

The cakes on board this ship so yummy!!

Embarkation and debarkation the best we ever had in all my 91 cruises

Bartenders came around the pool area and never hassle you and they always showed up asking us if we needed anything else as we had drinks out there each day

 

BREEZE ADDITIONAL NEGATIVES:

 

Thrill theatre only was open during evening hours, this is a premier cruise so we were in the casino after dinner each night so didn't get the chance trying this, wished they were open in the day

No movie was shown in the afternoon 

This casino was the most SMOKEY out of all my 90 other cruises, real bad issue, no ventilation that worked well, very bad.

Breakfast buffet no longer had assortments of rolls, English muffins, people asked for bran or blueberry muffins these are done away with, but they did have chocolate muffins

The pools on this ship are the SMALLEST I ever seen on any ship, what were they thinking!  It looked like a can of sardines, people all crowded among eachother

The crust on the bottom of the pizza is so thin so when you pick up a slice it bends and the cheese runs off

The butter in the breakfast buffet no longer has the butter packets, they have a huge tub so many people forgot to get the butter or didn't see it and had to go back and couldn't help asking the person there if they can get some, which held up the line more and the same goes for the syrup....they really need to place these items on a separate area so they can stop adding to the hold ups of the buffet line

This ship was VERY CROWDED and we found ourselves in traffic jams in so many places.  They added the railings around the Ocean Plaza and Alchemy bar to mention two places which caused less space for the people to walk back and fourth and caused us feeling the ship had too many people.  Even at the buffets felt the same way.

We did smell "sewage smell" on our deck 2 as well as places on deck 3 the last two days

When you enter any of the ladies rooms in the public areas the stalls are too tight/small, I have black and blues on the front of my left thigh due to the door always hitting me, while literally cramming myself inside next to the wall to get the door closed and open (I am 5'6" and 151 pounds, certainly not over weight)

Many times the ladies room at the aft was flooded and closed.

MDR difficult to get that second drink as the waiters/servers are so busy and overworked with too many tables to take care for at one time

Miss the tasting bar, they did not offer this

 

OTHER CHANGES

They don't give you straws but if you ask for one they gladly give it to you and there are no longer the umbrellas in the drinks they did away with these.  They no longer leave a pen in the room but a small pencil and some paper which is fine.

 

PREMIER CRUISE-  My other half came back with over 3k and I only lost $400 which is nothing since we spent most of our nights in the casino and sea day afternoons.  Upon first getting our stateroom there was a bag that contained two drinks on us cards, 2 lanyards, 2 decks of cards.  We also received towels each, gourmet cookies, a bottle of wine of our choice (they give you a coupon stating which types and kinds of wine we can choose and we can get it at dinner), a $75 credit to seafood shack which we did not use, 2 huge bottles of water (yes water).  The casino had raffles and such but we did not win a thing.  This casino host I never seen, nor did my other half see either.  He was not noticeable in the casino as other cruise casino offers we had in the past.  The bar staff always came up to me asking if I wanted a drink.  In the past the roulette table stakes were always higher but it remained at a $5 minimum which was very nice.  

 

If you have any questions, I try to answer them.  We did not get off at any of the ports, due to my needing a knee replacement and wore a knee brace.  The ship overall is extremely clean and constantly you will see workers cleaning day and night.

 

A special thank you to our new friends, Executive Chef Santos and Chef Nikon who made sure we got some special treatment and goodies in the specialty restaurants, thank you and you made us feel very special, it was nice hanging out with you a couple of evenings Chef Santosh!  I have to tell everybody here one thing, my other half said to Chef Santosh you need to have your own cooking show and you know what his answer was "That would not be good, I want to be here and make people happy".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RoperDK]

Thanks for your review.  We were on the Breeze a few months ago.  I have to give a shout out to the bar waiter Nicola!!!!  He was a hoot and really put on a show in the Ocean Plaza when the band played.  BTW,  our cruise had Five o'clock Dock and they were one of the best bands we have heard.  We get premier cruise offers, but are kinda over them.  Too crowded.  Enjoyed the casino on the Breeze.  Came back with a few extra $$ in my pocket.  A definite win!         

[Cruisegirl6]

Just so you know, I am unable to say exactly what I know but Nicola will be going places!  They had a special management team on the Breeze this sailing and I was speaking to her, and they are very aware of Nicola (hint hint)!  🙂. 

Unfortunately we did not have that band.  We took a premier cruise I think it was three years ago or so, and swore we never do it again but the week that we needed ended up being a premier cruise, was not bad at all.  Glad you also came back with $$!

[shibby sails]

I am confused was it your 90th or 91st cruise?

[Cushing985]

Thanks for the well-balanced review!  Personally, we love the coves but stay away from the cabins anywhere near the galley.  We typically sign up for cruises about a year out so always have a good choice.  We're on the Horizon in December and this time we're under the Dining Room.  Should be quiet

[13cheermom]

Must say from reading your review above, it seems your cruise was overall pretty nice.  I'm confused at all the negativity that you stated in your other thread (about cutbacks/cancelling Mardi Gras).  Maybe it's easier to focus on all the bad when you first return home and think about it, but over time you can rationally see it was a pretty decent cruise.  The room locations were your choice as well as you spending the time in the smokey casino, also your choice.  We sailed on the Breeze last year for 2 weeks for a Journeys cruise and had the best cruise ever, and plan to do it once again this November for another Journey cruise.  We also have booked the Mardi Gras next year for it's first sailing out of PC, and I definitely look forward to a new ship.  Will it be perfect, probably not, however it's life and I would rather be cruising than working. 😉

[Cruisegirl6]

Shabby Sails- 91st

 

Cushing985-  I would consider getting another cove balcony but as you stated, not under the galley.  The balcony I feel was roomier and it was nice not getting that hot sun, although we were unable to use the balcony due to the maintenance all week.  I have had a room under the dining room, we heard carts rolling and things dropping during the night, you may want to reconsider.

 

13cheermom-  Yes, we had a nice cruise, wasn't perfect like our RC cruises but was enjoyable and the staff is so friendly, that alone made it very enjoyable.  The problem was we had negatives, where on RC Oasis class ships the three of us only can think of one negative, we don't care for the bionic bar, other than that we see no issues with RC.  When we get off a cruise we have a tendency of comparing RC to Carnival.  You hit the nail on the head, yes we had a nice cruise.

The room location was not our choice, it was a last minute cruise, we booked up three weeks in advance from the sailing and needed two cabins (my father in law is elderly and likes to be next door to us) so the only choice we had were two oceanview cabins all forward on deck 2 or two cove balconies right next door to one another so there was no choice for us.  But this cruise is better than no cruise so the cove was fine.  

You don't just have to be in the casino to smell the smoke, it lead out all the way to the Ocean Plaza area.

We feel with the court situation Carnival is going to get hit hard again, and we feel, only us the people will suffer, they probably have bigger cutbacks due to all the monies they have to pay in fees/fines and the fact, looking at the layout of the Mardi Gras and considering how many passengers will be on it, it appears it will feel very crowded as there is only three decks in the center that appertains where everybody is going to be and it is not spread out in different areas of the ship, I think it be very crowded, but we decided to go and we will see for ourselves, the fact is, we be with family so that is what matters.  But we are going with alot of family and its all about being with family, we will be on the same October 16th sailing as you, first one out of Port Canaveral should be special.  It be nice we be the first ones to experience this new ship.

 

 

[momof4girls]

I was also on this cruise. I’m not sure if it was this cruise specifically, or if it’s just cruising in general, but we’ve decided to try a land vacation (all inclusive) for our next one. I think it’s mostly because all the girls want to do is swim at the beach and pool and eat. 😂

 

I would agree with most of what you said about the food. We only ate the buffet for breakfast twice (first and last morning) and the rest of the time we had breakfast burritos from the Blue Iguana. We tried the buffet once for dinner. Huge disappointment. I’d walk by every night and it definitely seemed like the same foods, and the hot food area is VERY small. The salad bar area was 2x as big as the hot food area. I actually really enjoyed the deli but it’s because I had the grilled ham and cheese and the BLT. 

 

We saw two different comedians this cruise (a first for us as we never go) and Azeem was absolutely hilarious! Never laughed that hard at live comedy. The other comedian (a woman) was just ok. She wasn’t getting a lot of laughs, unfortunately. 

 

Not sure if it was just the times we walked by/in, but the Red Frog Pub was severely underused. Sad...

 

We also had a cove balcony, but ours was in a perfect location. There was no lifeboat above us, and it was super quiet except for neighbor door slamming. 

 

I agree, also, about how clean the ship appeared. I always saw workers wiping stuff down, cleaning this, cleaning that. The workers on this cruise were very, very nice. 

 

It was definitely a packed ship, and that was most noticeable on the first sea day. 😳

[Cruisegirl6]

Momof4girls-  Hello, Every year, we go to Aruba for two weeks in mid July, we been doing this as a family of 13-19 each year.  An all inclusive is very expensive but worth it in so many ways, any idea which island you like to go to?  

I also was quite surprised the hot food area in the lunch as well to be less variety/selection, kind of made us compare our Royal Caribbean Oasis class cruises which blows any of Carnivals ships out, maybe you need to give them a try next time you think you want to cruise, its night and day!  Ok, some people here will flag me for saying that as they are loyal to Carnival, or they don't like me comparing on this board, but the Breeze has been my 91st cruise and happens to be next to the worst cruises we ever been on (Breakaway).

We didn't go to the dinner buffet and hearing the salad buffet was 2x the size of the hot foods, I can only say this ship surely has huge cut backs for sure (again, watch somebody knock what I say here) but at least you and I been on this cruise and know what one another is talking about.

I wished I had gone to the comedy but really didn't feel like going myself, but so glad you had a great time there!  I seen the Red Frog Pub a few afternoons quite busy and I walked in there from the alchemy bar to the rest room to the aft and there was no seats one of the days.  I guess it just was the time you went there but it had alot of people again mainly in mid to late afternoon.

Our cove balcony also didn't have any lifeboats above us, so glad you lucked out now under the galley like we had with all that loud noise everynight.  

I thought out of all my cruises, I seen the most workers on this one cleaning and I thought maybe they were getting ready for a cdc inspection, but its good seeing things are being kept up well.  I agree, again, the most "crowded" ship I ever been on next to the Breakaway.  

Thank you for writing to me here.  

 

Try looking for Aruba, I guarantee you, you go there you find yourself keep going back year after year, everybody does!  There are no haggling/vendors bothering you its against the law there, the food is the best, the people the nicest people I ever encountered in all my travels, the beach gorgeous, lots of fun activities for everybody of all ages and most of all you can go there in summer months and not sweat, the Tradewinds are 18-29mph all the time!

[Sparky2]

On 6/4/2019 at 6:33 PM, momof4girls said:

I was also on this cruise. I’m not sure if it was this cruise specifically, or if it’s just cruising in general, but we’ve decided to try a land vacation (all inclusive) for our next one. I think it’s mostly because all the girls want to do is swim at the beach and pool and eat. 😂

 

I would agree with most of what you said about the food. We only ate the buffet for breakfast twice (first and last morning) and the rest of the time we had breakfast burritos from the Blue Iguana. We tried the buffet once for dinner. Huge disappointment. I’d walk by every night and it definitely seemed like the same foods, and the hot food area is VERY small. The salad bar area was 2x as big as the hot food area. I actually really enjoyed the deli but it’s because I had the grilled ham and cheese and the BLT. 

 

We saw two different comedians this cruise (a first for us as we never go) and Azeem was absolutely hilarious! Never laughed that hard at live comedy. The other comedian (a woman) was just ok. She wasn’t getting a lot of laughs, unfortunately. 

 

Not sure if it was just the times we walked by/in, but the Red Frog Pub was severely underused. Sad...

 

We also had a cove balcony, but ours was in a perfect location. There was no lifeboat above us, and it was super quiet except for neighbor door slamming. 

 

I agree, also, about how clean the ship appeared. I always saw workers wiping stuff down, cleaning this, cleaning that. The workers on this cruise were very, very nice. 

 

It was definitely a packed ship, and that was most noticeable on the first sea day. 😳

 

Do you remember the # of your cove balcony?

[momof4girls]

On 6/28/2019 at 11:49 AM, Sparky2 said:

 

Do you remember the # of your cove balcony?

 

It was 2284 :)

[Sparky2]

11 minutes ago, momof4girls said:

 

It was 2284 🙂

 

Thanks.  We'll have 2302.