We were able to relax and enjoy ourselves

Item: Norwegian Breakaway
Rating: 3.9
Author: larmzr

Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Review to Caribbean - Bahamas

larmzr

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 57

Overall rating:

3.9 out of 5

7 Night Bahamas & Florida (New York Roundtrip)

Sail date: February 25, 2018

Ship: Norwegian Breakaway

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 11423

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

After this trip on the Breakaway, my entire view of NCL and its prestige has changed - they are just giving mediocre service to all and if you want the prestige well you have to pay for it now, like really pay. Pay to have a ‘Haven Suite’, pay to have a decent meal, pay to have a pool without crowds and pay to have spa usage just for the general areas.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Not sure what everyone has been complaining about Check in was a breeze we had a 10:30 check in but arrived to the pier around 9:30 - it truly was painless .. and VIP’s should head straight to the back of the port for check in or if you have a haven room

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

DINNING ROOM Breakfast Savor or Taste – again service was great and the menu was sufficient – I feel the buffet may have had a better choice for this … Dinner In regards to the Manhattan first evening for dinner it was amazing considering how busy these can be on the first evening - sure you may need to wait a little but it didn't seem painfully long either - my husband and I had time to visit each other’s company again We ate at Savor and Taste as well and it appears that these (3) share the same menu and didn’t really differ. Dinner service by the 4th night did get a little slower – also the Shebert flavor was always a mystery none of the waiters ever seemed to know what the real flavor was for the evening. They would tell you Kiwi and bring out Coconut without even asking if you still wanted it since it wasn’t Kiwi – very strange Buffet Didn’t eat here much but when we did the food seemed to be okay – however the fruit seemed to be the biggest disappointment especially the watermelon, while it looked the delicious and a good source of water it had no taste as did the rest of the fruit from oranges to apples no taste We did not eat at any of the specialty restaurants – we did eat a Wasabi and paid normal Sushi prices Note Make you dinner reservations ahead of time before you get on your cruise and I am talking like the minute you are able to do so book those restaurants because even though NCL has freestyle you should make reservations which helps you have a schedule and gets the dining rooms booked well in advanced!!! UNLIMITED BEVERAGE PACKAGE Purchasing the unlimited drink package (UBP) was a great choice for us. We enjoyed not having the worry of what our bill would be throughout the cruise – however I feel this is also something that has allowed NCL to be more like a booze cruise than it was in the 90’s – the class they use to have as an average customer seems to have gone away and you have to PAY (haven area) in order to have that special treatment Note When you are in an United States port area you will be charged tax on the beverages you purchase while on the ship - I was confused as to why we had small charges since we paid the tax in the UBP prior to cruising

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Not many really and if you wanted to attend any of them have fun finding a space - the ship's design is awful and none of the areas seem to be suited for the amount of people of the ship

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

I enjoyed their casino - I did NOT like it's location - and I feel too many kids were in the area as well - the ship just has a bad design feeling for me. I also am not sure how they are in regards to Comps but I guess I will find out - lol

Aqua Park

5 out of 5

WOW these slides are fast!! We did them all on the day we were in Florida - and they did not disappoint!

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Breakaway Casino

4 out of 5

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Better than Carnival - Enjoy Princess more - good quality we call them like high school musicals - definitely entertaining. Just make sure to make all you reservations ahead of time Burn the floor was a good performance – make sure to make reservations ahead of time; if you are in the haven suites you have seats already reserved for you. I felt the theatre was sufficient enough however I can see where they probably should of planned better and made it larger for a ship with 3800 guest it is a small theatre. Note – people seemed to save seats in this theatre which was truly annoying .. the staff should prevent this from happening

Children's Programs

do not have children

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

We never seem to have a problem with anyone - they were all able to assist us and helps us when we needed it.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5

The design well I think it is awful for the amount of people this ship holds PUBLIC RESTROOM AREAS Sure the public restrooms might be a little smelly but don’t forget you have roughly 4000 guest and I am sure the majority of them are filthy and don’t clean up after themselves on a normal basis – however I felt the staff kept them clean throughout our journey, even when the seas were rough and vomit began to appear everywhere I am not sure why there was always such an order by certain restrooms but there was – they kept them clean though, I think people are just filthy

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

ROOM Type – Interior Floor – 11 1st time interior room - We were truly amazed at this interior room and the amount of space and storage considering the reviews we read were destroying them. There are a lot of nooks and crannies for storage. We also brought along a sweater bin which helped as well for socks and undergarments and shorts and stuff. - both our suitcases fit under the bed - we didn’t need our over the door shoe storage for our accessories and such the bathroom had a cabinet under the sink Our cabin steward removed all items from the mini bar per our request - I have a CPAP and the distilled water was brought to the room Note – this was our first time ever having an interior room and we LOVED it – you truly have no concept of time and can truly relax. The only down side was when we were on lock down so to speak with the bad weather we didn’t have a balcony for just a little bit of fresh air. However I think we will honestly do an inside room again with any cruise line

Ship tip

RESERVATIONS It would appear that some people have not done any homework when you read some of these reviews where they clearly have stated you should make reservations prior to your Embarkation day. NCL online allows you to make reservations for dinning, entertainment, spa and other items prior to yoru embarkation day. My recommendation is DO THEM especially for dinning and entertainment. While NCL might be free style unless you plan on eating at the buffet every night you will want a dinner reservation – so make it prior to sailing! If you want to see any shows make the reservations you can before you get on board. If you read you have to make the reservation once on board – then do that as soon as you board – all the shows and reservations appeared to fill up on the Breakaway so I would do this with any other NCL ship prior to leaving (that is if I ever go on them again, which is highly NOT likely – NCL is NOT what it used to be in the 90’s at all!!)

Thumbs up

Ports of call

New York, New York

4 out of 5

did not do any excursions enjoyed going by the statue of liberty

Thumbs Up 5

Port Canaveral, Florida Did not visit port

stayed on the boat - have been there before

Thumbs Up 0

Great Stirrup Cay (Cruise Line Private Island), Bahamas

3 out of 5

STIRRUP CAY Well we were able to tender over to the stirrup cay (NCL) ISLAND had a blast - because we enjoy beaches ... However not sure why but as beautiful as this beach is now there seem to be a LOT OF ROCKS and coral in the water where you had to walk – back in the 90’s it was just gorgeous and no rocks - You have only a small amount of time to eat and to get beverages .. we enjoyed the soft tacos they offered beef chicken or fish - we had chicken and beef and they were good! They also had burger and a hotdog areas; and a buffet offered hotdogs assortment of couscous salad, corn bean salad and others - the watermelon actually had flavor today and pineapple was good. The bartenders are the island were amazing by keeping the lines moving The tender on the way back was so over crowded there was nowhere to sit ...

Thumbs Up 9

Nassau, Bahamas Did not visit port

Weather - they canceled this stop

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

Hint - once off the ship - take the escalator - do not wait in line for the elevator unless you absolutely have to

Traveler Photos

5 Comments

kathlaub 6 years ago

NCL is not a prestige cruise line but one which offers a pleasant cruise experience at a modest price. You get what you pay for. We have always had an enjoyable time. Just don't expect to sit down with the captains of industry.

Thumbs Up 2

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Cindykins1 6 years ago

We were on the Breakaway last year this time. There are indeed lots of extra charges. We were able to still have a great time without falling to their nickel and dimeing. We are going on the Escape this summer, and we now know what to expect. Great cruise, great food. We just stayed within our budgets.

Thumbs Up 3

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mzcherjens 6 years ago

I found my trip on Breakaway to be everything I was looking for in a vacation.. I compared what I had with NCL with other cruise lines and found I had the better bargin with NCL.. for one.. they offered a drink package when we booked plus a free third and fourth guest but the biggest reason we went with NCL was the casual cruising.. no fancy clothes to bother with unless we wanted.. this will be my third cruise with them and I look forward to future cruises with NCL.. when people ask me where our ship is headed.. I tell them that I honestly don't care.. I am being pampered.. and entertained.. it always is a great time!

Thumbs Up 12

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lisakaye26 6 years ago

We are booked on the Breakaway. It was a good deal with a good itinerary, but this exact thing has been my fear. That kind of thing will really annoy me.

Thumbs Up 0

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IkeDeb 6 years ago

I understand what you are saying. We would love to sail on NCL. But in order to sail plenty, we have to go more economical.🤔

Thumbs Up 1

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Other reviews of this sailing

Awesome time in the Bahamas

Despite the Storm

Disappointed