All the service staff were very professional and kind

Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Review to Caribbean - Bahamas

Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 54

Overall rating:

3 out of 5
Verified Review
Norwegian Breakaway

7 Night Bahamas & Florida (New York Roundtrip)

Sail date: February 26, 2017

Ship: Norwegian Breakaway

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 12124

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

The service personnel (waiters, house keeping, guest services, shore excursion staff, etc.) were all very professional and kind.  Really enjoyed the people on board as everyone was nice.  The complimentary food was plentiful (waiters never made you feel guilty if you ordered more food, but we waited a long time to get the food) and had a decent variety; only thing I never saw complimentary was the lobster.  It would be nice if the Shanghai Chinese restaurant was available for lunch as it only opened for dinner, which limits lunch to buffet or the normal sit down restaurant.  Sometimes I just want dim sum or fast Chinese food, but it wasn't available.  Many activities on the ship were often outdoors, so was limited by weather.  Even though the itinerary said the pool, slides, rock climbing and rope course were open, they were not for the two days we were returning because it was too cold or too windy or too something.  Other cruise companies have some of these in an optional enclosure if weather was poor, but not this ship; everything just stops operating.  However, I do have to say that this ship has some unique activities such as the Free Fall slide and rock climbing even though we hardly had the chance to use them.  As for shows, there were only two complimentary shows, and two available for purchase while other cruiselines offer free shows every night.  I do like the movies at night, but they had old movies half the time and the few newer movies repeated. What was nice though was the 3D Star Wars movie in the theatre.  That one was so overcrowded that they should have repeated, but did not.  So, entertainment on this ship just isn't well thought out.  My friend went to the solo travelers' meeting that was listed on the itinerary, but when she got there, the lounge that it was held in was closed and another passenger stood with her in the hall wondering why it wasn't available.  They got all dressed up to meet other single travelers for nothing.  Lots of disappointments in terms of following the day's itinerary as there are no backup plans.  As I said, the best are the staff.  I fell down the stairs on one of the excursions and when I reported it, the staff offered me to see the medical doctor for free and sent a tray of fruits and wine while following up with me later.  As per the bad, the casino hardly paid out, so expect to lose your money there.  As per the good, the liquor store on board had great prices and are must buys if you enjoy owning some spirits.  This ship has lots to improve on, but I enjoyed the people, especially my friends as we had four rooms booked on the ship.  We created our own activities such as our own scavenger hunt, etc.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
Nice variety. Good cultural ones: Chinese, Indian, Caribbean, Latin, etc. However, no lobster in complimentary sit-downs and there were long waits every night at the sit-downs to get the food. However, waiters were super nice about us ordering extra food.

Onboard Activities

1 out of 5
Onboard activities did not always follow itinerary. There were no back up plans for outdoor activities if weather was too cold or windy. Operations just closed with little option for alternatives. Solo meets never happened as lounge was closed when it was supposed to be open for meets. Sometimes nothing was scheduled when weather prevents the outdoor activities from operating. More indoor activities should have been scheduled in case weather restricts outdoor activities.

Entertainment

1 out of 5
Of 7 nights there were only 2 complimentary performances/shows. The comedians were not funny and were the same ones for 7 nights. Other cruiselines offer free shows every night and change up their comedians.

Children's Programs

5 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5
The staff and service was the best part of the ship. Nice people.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5
Overall the ship appeared very clean. Only issue I had was some of the public bathrooms did not flush when I pressed the button. Sometimes it worked if I pressed really hard multiple times. Also, the automatic soap dispensers did not always dispense.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
House keeper was a very nice guy. He cleaned the room twice a day and opened the additional bed in the evening. The room was a bit tight compared to other ships, but it was workable.

Ship tip

For performance shows or movies, get to the theatre 20-30 minutes early if you want a nice seat in the middle. Do the outdoor Onboard activities the moment they are open (days heading south) as they may not be available on most days when there is inclement weather (days heading north).

Ports of call

New York, New York

5 out of 5
The entrance to the port is not at 55th Street as the NCL website tells you. The pier is actually closer to 48th Street

Port Canaveral, Florida

5 out of 5
Some friends planned ahead of time and called for car rental, personal excursion, etc. If you don't want to spend a lot of money, buy the bus shuttle to the Cocoa Beach or Mall.

Great Stirrup Cay (Cruise Line Private Island), Bahamas

5 out of 5
Plan to do a lot of eating and spending time on the beach, but to find a shaded area, you have to find the gazebo by walking further than the bathroom, bar, food court. There are limited trees, so best shade is the gazebo. So far, they only built one on top of the hill. They should build more. As per paddle board rentals, do them early as they book up fast and closes early. Bring your own snorkels if you have them as we saw a sting ray immediately below us while standing in 3 feet water. Nice place to see sea creatures as the water is super clear.

Nassau, Bahamas

5 out of 5
Take the coupon booklets they give you on the ship to collect free stuff at the stores on shore. Always negotiate price when you purchase items in Nassau. The price the seller offer is never the final price. Go down a few dollars and see what they say. If you do excursions, find a cheap one as the expensive ones don't offer much more time or fun.

Traveler Photos

Some of us on this trip. Look at the sign and the NCL Breakaway behind us.
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4 Comments

Gwbigdog    1 year ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise.

ts02111    7 years ago

What 2 shows did they charge for?

twangster    7 years ago

Yikes, hope you are ok after falling.

esm54687    7 years ago

Great and fair review!! Thank you.

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