NCL Breakaway or Regal Princess

[KKB]

BTW regarding service/product...

NCL can be a bit louder & busy for sure. So perhaps you could call Princess a bit more "refined"

But service--EVERY cruise we have taken has been EXCEPTIONAL service. (Encore was a one off--they just seemed short staffed. They were trying but overwhelmed).

Oh there are occasional frustrated, staid crew member over the years. 

But even on my MSC cruises (which I didn't love), the crew was fantastic!

[tonyfall1]

Any issues with long wait times for dinner or the buffet being overcrowded on the Breakaway?

[schmoopie17]

3 hours ago, Lady Arwen said:

If you choose Princess then all you need to do is call and ask to be assigned to one of their Cruise Vacation Professionals (aka CVP).  I have a CVP who does all the leg work when booking a cruise, making changes such as refaring, or just asking general questions.  No wait on hold.  If I get her voicemail, she calls back within 30 minutes.  It’s a no brainer and completely free of charge!

NCL has the same thing, except they call them Personal Cruise Consultants (PCC).

Our PCC has his own direct line, voicemail, etc., and when I call him he answers by saying "Hi, Schmoopie" (except he calls me by my real name, since he also has caller id which shows my name when I call.) If I leave a message he always calls back within 30 minutes. And yes...there is no charge for this service.

[BettyCruiser]

All the NE US has a school break the week of President's Day, I know this effects the population of kids on cruises out of Florida, not sure if it effects those out of NOLA and TX. 

 

We always book the Vibe for the extra fee on NCL. Our room was still serviced twice a day on our last NCL cruise in January, next time will be only once a day, not looking forward to that.

 

The Regal Princess has a nice adult only pool, Retreat Pool, no extra charge. 

[brovol]

2 hours ago, tetleytea said:

 

Similar to what I said to Tony, if you had asked me 2 years ago I would agree with you, but IMHO times change.  I think the Breakaway-PLUS ships are more upscale than Princess (which, admittedly, the Norwegian Breakaway is not), and our sailings on NCL since Covid left us with an impression of NCL that is brighter, more youthful, and vibrant (and by that I don't just mean the ship--I mean the cruise directors, the programming, the activities, etc.).  Princess was still good (as long as you didn't need to call the corporate phone line), but just seemed to get in a rut.  It seems Norwegian's been really trying to change their image, and at least for us they were successful.  I would have said Princess Medallion is technologically ahead of Norwegian, except that everywhere I look people are struggling to get Medallion to work.  At one point I saw Princess assigning their dance instructors to helping passengers fix their Medallion app.  It's that rut I was talking about:  Princess deployed Medallion, but over time the IT support has just atrophied.

 

Funnily, I think we actually like International Cafe (on Princess) better than O-Malleys.  That's our go-to after a long port call, and we saved our stomachs for the ship.  They both can get pretty busy.  I think maybe O'Malleys might be "better", but International is a better fit for us because we can just walk right up, whereas O'Malleys you have to wait.  Funny that our impressions of Princess vs. NCL are mirror-image opposites.

 

We book both lines, because we like both.  And both have pros and cons.  But in our assessment, Princess is more upscale, refined, and a higher quality.  Different strokes for different folks.  -We like Princess Plus over the NCL program.  Princess internet is ten times faster than NCL.  And I agree that International Cafe is fantastic.  Little distinctions between lines, and my wife and I are both in our 50's, so we would rather have less kids on ships than when we had our own children with us on cruises. Princess and HAL have both jumped over NCL with us for those reasons, and we are sailing Celebrity Apex in the spring, which we expect will be similar.

 

I still like NCL, but between the two, Ill take Princess ten times out of ten.

 

 

[brovol]

1 hour ago, KKB said:

 

Have done 11 Princess in 20 years; 6 in the last 15 mos. Enjoyed them all.

Have done 5 NCL cruises in the last 5 years; 4 in the last year. Encore in Dec. was "meh" others great.

Sailed the Breakaway last month. 

 

OK...itineraries are irrelevant.

 

Feb is NOT big kid season--most kiddos have spring break in Mar-Apr (retired teacher here).

But there will likely be more kiddos on NCL at any time.

 

The Breakaway pool are is MUCH too small for the size of ship, kids or not. 

(there is a "kids" pool & an another pool; plus one for Haven guests)

It DOES have Spice H2O area--doesn't fill as fast as the pool area, tho still be there by 8:30-9 on sea days. ADULTS only (supposed to be). No pool, but it has a waterfall/splash pool.

Tho you have 4 port days. You can get your beach on those days, OR enjoy a quiet pool deck! 

You could also spring for the Vibe pass--about $250 each for the week. No issue getting seats, great service, but NO POOL, tho it does have hot tubs. Not sure it is worth it with 4 port days.

Regal has 4 pools & they are bigger.

Breakaway carried 500 more passengers.

 

Food--honestly we enjoy MDR on both; NCL specialty dining is better than Princess IMO. 

Generally a tie for me.

 

I do appreciate that Princess drink package includes water & coffee. Edge to them.

 

Internet--both fine but NCL is minutes & Princess is unlimited so edge to them.

 

Activities--things like game shows, trivia, musicians, are fairly similar.

NCL offers the sports complex & water slides; nothing like that on the Regal.

 

Breakaway is a step above in shows--Six (tho sadly it will be ending in Jan), dueling pianos, Syd Normans.

Princess production shows are "meh" & offer no dueling pianos.

I am a Syd Norman's groupie & honestly choose my NCL ships ONLY if they have it.

(the only ones we sailed that didn't have it we won)

Syd's is a show that feels like a fun 70s-80s cover band. 

If that's your jam, you will love this. ('84 grad here...right up my alley)

4 different shows/week PLUS a 5th show: the Rumours album from top to bottom with the stories for every song. (done 2x one night)

Line up EARLY (like 45 min-1 hr)--small popular venue.

I don't wait in line for much...but it's worth it. Bring a drink.😉

 

Another thing Breakaway has is Waterfront--EVERY ship should have this.

It is the Promenade Deck 2.0.

Nice seating runs along both sides PLUS a bar on each side! 

AND they pipe Syd's music out there during shows (Starboard side) so it's great if you didn't get a seat inside.

We spend LOTS of time out here...reading, napping, drinking, socializing.

It is covered enough that even rain is rarely an issue.

 

Both are great options.

After our Encore cruise in Dec, I was worried NCL was cutting costs & affecting product, but we didn't find that last month on the Breakaway.

Other than the Encore, we find service in mainstream cruiselines nearly identical.

 

My choice would be BREAKAWAY.

 

(PS I like the Prima option--we are trying her in Jan; but I TOTALLY understand the confinements of an educator's schedule...the joys of retirement now!!)

Sid Normans is FANTASTIC, and the Rumors show is the absolute best cruise entertainment I have seen cruising.  I still prefer Princess overall, but NCL entertainment at night is outstanding.

[KKB]

1 hour ago, tonyfall1 said:

Any issues with long wait times for dinner or the buffet being overcrowded on the Breakaway?

We are early diners, so by 6PM typically no.

We ate at the Manhatten room as we like the entertainment; the night Burn the Floor performed there at 6PM, there was a bit of a line at 5:30. We managed to get good seats by 5:45.

Food was quite good. I think DD's steaks were the only thing she felt was just OK.

 

We only ate at the buffet once or twice, usually on off peak hours. We find that if you go to the back there are nearly always seats.

We ate at O'Sheehans a number of times & never waited to get in & service is very quick. Food was better there than on Getaway last August.

[KKB]

39 minutes ago, BettyCruiser said:

All the NE US has a school break the week of President's Day, I know this effects the population of kids on cruises out of Florida, not sure if it effects those out of NOLA and TX. 

 

Betting it impacts FL more, but you are right, certainly will be more that week than others in Feb.

 

33 minutes ago, brovol said:

We book both lines, because we like both.  And both have pros and cons.  But in our assessment, Princess is more upscale, refined, and a higher quality.  Different strokes for different folks.  -We like Princess Plus over the NCL program.  Princess internet is ten times faster than NCL.  And I agree that International Cafe is fantastic.  Little distinctions between lines, and my wife and I are both in our 50's, so we would rather have less kids on ships than when we had our own children with us on cruises. Princess and HAL have both jumped over NCL with us for those reasons, and we are sailing Celebrity Apex in the spring, which we expect will be similar.

 

I still like NCL, but between the two, Ill take Princess ten times out of ten.

 

 

NCL is now Starlink. It was fantastic last month--I could even watch videos. 

Could not say that on Princess.

 

BE CAREFUL--Celebrity Eclass is a step above other mainstream lines imo.

I'm an Eclass groupie much like I am a Syds groupie😉

 

But we truly find mainstream lines more alike than different (except MSC...I don't recommend)

When we sailed Celebrity for the 1st 10 years  ago we found food & service a touch above other lines. (had sailed Princess, RCCL & DCL up to that point).

Eclass is a step above itself, imo.

Now people said we would hate Carnival. Sailed 14 day Hawaii cruise in January & LOVED it.

Great service, activities, comdedians, food. (production shows, meh)

[Treasure Hunter]

New York has winter break the week that includes Presidents Day. We try to sail from NY but this winter will be on the NCL Encore from Miami. Last winter on the Breakaway there were 1800 kids. 

[tonyfall1]

19 minutes ago, Treasure Hunter said:

New York has winter break the week that includes Presidents Day. We try to sail from NY but this winter will be on the NCL Encore from Miami. Last winter on the Breakaway there were 1800 kids. 

That's what I was afraid of:(

[deliver42]

If you like a lot of kids and noise, opt for NCL. If you want to relax, go Princess.

[beshears]

Since the Regal was mentioned in the question, I am going to ask a question from one of you that might have an answer. We are to do the Regal in February next year. Since we are coming in from MO (normally cold/bad weather that time of the year) the day before. Do you know of any hotels that have a shuttle service to the ship, and if so, what is the name/s?

[tonyfall1]

I finally made the decision to book on the Breakaway. Thursday evening I had put a hold on both cruises and planned on putting a deposit on the Breakaway today. After putting them on hold both companies called me and left me VME's. They also emailed me. I had a few questions and the email from the NCL PCC said not to finish booking until I talked to him. I have emailed and called both of my consultants and the Princess consultant is very fast and getting back with me. I even called Princess customer assistance center they said I can leave my number and they will call me back. They called me back immediately. I have emailed my NCL PCC 1 time and called him twice since Friday and he has never called me back and he told me not to book until I talk to him. The hold expires today. His VME says he works 11-4 on both Saturday and Sunday yet crickets from NCL. I am disappointed because I had decided on NCL but if they won't even call me back to finish the sale, I am worried about what kind of assistance will I get once they have my money. So bottom line is Princess's service has impressed me and NCL has been non-existent ugh.

[Albinroo]

1 hour ago, tonyfall1 said:

I finally made the decision to book on the Breakaway. Thursday evening I had put a hold on both cruises and planned on putting a deposit on the Breakaway today. After putting them on hold both companies called me and left me VME's. They also emailed me. I had a few questions and the email from the NCL PCC said not to finish booking until I talked to him. I have emailed and called both of my consultants and the Princess consultant is very fast and getting back with me. I even called Princess customer assistance center they said I can leave my number and they will call me back. They called me back immediately. I have emailed my NCL PCC 1 time and called him twice since Friday and he has never called me back and he told me not to book until I talk to him. The hold expires today. His VME says he works 11-4 on both Saturday and Sunday yet crickets from NCL. I am disappointed because I had decided on NCL but if they won't even call me back to finish the sale, I am worried about what kind of assistance will I get once they have my money. So bottom line is Princess's service has impressed me and NCL has been non-existent ugh.

I have also had a bit of trouble getting hold of my NCL PCC at times, but she usually does get back to me eventually. But I am definitely considering trying to get another pcc or ta because she's not always the most helpful either. 

Anyway, we have traveled on NCL Joy and NCL Getaway, and we travel with kids but prefer when there aren't many kids on-board. I would say we never really had a problem with lots of kids running around on these ships, they tend to be at the kids club and by the kids pool, so wasn't a problem for us even though one of the cruises was in July during school holidays. It was the Baltics though, so maybe not the most kids on those itineraries. I think the Breakaway seems great, always the waterfront deck to escape to when some relaxation is needed! Enjoy your cruise!

[tonyfall1]

12 minutes ago, Albinroo said:

I have also had a bit of trouble getting hold of my NCL PCC at times, but she usually does get back to me eventually. But I am definitely considering trying to get another pcc or ta because she's not always the most helpful either. 

Anyway, we have traveled on NCL Joy and NCL Getaway, and we travel with kids but prefer when there aren't many kids on-board. I would say we never really had a problem with lots of kids running around on these ships, they tend to be at the kids club and by the kids pool, so wasn't a problem for us even though one of the cruises was in July during school holidays. It was the Baltics though, so maybe not the most kids on those itineraries. I think the Breakaway seems great, always the waterfront deck to escape to when some relaxation is needed! Enjoy your cruise!

Yeah the Princess one is very good.. almost makes me want to switch to them.

[tonyfall1]

3 hours ago, tonyfall1 said:

Yeah the Princess one is very good.. almost makes me want to switch to them.

Ok I take it back the NCL rep just called me and saved me a fair amount of cash.. LOL.

[dockman]

NCL breakaway has 20 restaurants....six of them are no extra fee. My experience was the no fee restaurants were jammed packed to the point that a lot of people gave up and ended up going to a fee restaurant.  Not my idea of a stress free cruise to be more or less forced to go to extra fee restaurants or wait in long lines to eat included restaurants.

 

Princess would be my choice.