Wonderful ports of call, things you need to know before you travel Norwegian

Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Review to Europe - Northern Europe

sstegenga62

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 52

Overall rating:

4.6 out of 5

Verified Review

9 Night Scandinavia & Russia (Copenhagen Roundtrip)

Sail date: September 14, 2018

Ship: Norwegian Breakaway

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 13254

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

We had an amazing time because we researched our stops, and tours. The weather was beautiful except for one day of rain and it was still an amazing port (Tallin). I have mentioned some of this several times but it bears repeating: 1. The cruise ship is huge 2. The specialty restaurants are delicious 3. Most of the staff is very friendly and helpful (Nicole 3 card poker table dealer had no personality and did not make losing our money even remotely fun). Vern??? she was amazing. 4. Eat, drink, BINGO, Shows REPEAT Three days at sea due to a missed port was AWFUL and sorry I was bored took my husband until Saturday to feel this way, I was over it Friday morning. 5. NORWEGIAN needs to get it together, if you have a ship and you have trouble docking it have a backup plan or port we paid a lot of money to be stuck on your ship. Longer port calls would also be nicer. Will think twice before sailing you again I am afraid I do not trust you will dock as promised. I will stick to smaller ships and better cruise lines next time, loved Holland America and Royal Caribbean.

Embarkation

4 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Children's Programs

Service and Staff

4 out of 5

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Ship tip

This ship is affected by small amounts of weather. We missed Stockholm because we had 8 foot waves and slight winds. I appreciate them keeping us safe but their communication was horrendous and their decisions to not port affected a lot of passengers. When we arrived at Copenhagen ALL guests were told they had to disembark via a letter in their stateroom, no announcement. I felt so bad for people trying to change travel and hotel arrangements or looking for transfers to Warmunde Germany where they were supposed to disembark. It was an experience that will make me think twice before sailing with Norwegian again. I suggest they improve their customer service when these decisions are made.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Copenhagen, Denmark

5 out of 5

We arrived early and stayed her Nyhaven and loved the area on our own. Did the Hop on and hop off canal cruise.

Thumbs Up 0

Warnemunde (Berlin), Germany

5 out of 5

We did the Friends of Dave Tour, highly recommend this.

Thumbs Up 1

Tallinn, Estonia

5 out of 5

Lovely stop, it rained the entire time but we still had fun exploring it. We warned about pick pockets, they have signs painted on the walkways, just need to be smart.

Thumbs Up 0

St. Petersburg, Russian Federation

5 out of 5

Took a Viator tour, small group and had a fantastic group for this port. Never thought we would go to Russia, the history and the castles are spectacular.

Thumbs Up 3

Helsinki, Finland

5 out of 5

Did this on our own, next time I would do the Hop on and Hop off first then walk to spots. We walked everywhere but really had limited information about each spot. Had some gorgeous pictures with amazing views. Looks like an area that has a lot to offer, not my favorite port but we still enjoyed it.

Thumbs Up 1

Nynashamn (Stockholm), Sweden Did not visit port

The Norwegian Breakaway did not dock and we missed this day and unfortunately ended up with another day at sea instead of going to a different port. They did not port here the week before either, clearly there are issues they need to figure out and not at the guests expense. Baltic Sea is a once in a lifetime trip I feel, we will not do this itinerary again VERY DISAPPOINTED IN NORWEGIAN'S decisions and communication

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

4 out of 5

7 Comments

jltanner56 6 years ago

Can’t control the weather.

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IkeDeb 6 years ago

Great

Thumbs Up 0

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IkeDeb 6 years ago

Great

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nurselife 6 years ago

NCL isn't the only cruise line that gave the same port times. No cruise line will promise they will dock where they say, things happen that are out of our control, like the weather. Safety comes 1st. The cruise lines state that there may be a change in itinerary. So many people like to criticize one particular cruise line when they are all the same.

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doddser 6 years ago

So how come 4 1/2 stars if it wasn’t your cup of tea ?

Thumbs Up 1

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doddser 6 years ago

Prefer smaller ships full stop. RC is the exact same as NCL in my opinion.

Thumbs Up 0

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wl1962 6 years ago

what was the problem with getting to port? if it was a safety issue, get over it. no cruiseline will put their vessel os guests in peril. the breakaway is huge and im sure you knew that when booking. we also hated the ship but dont blame them for out of control problems

Thumbs Up 4

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Other reviews of this sailing

Interesting but have had better NCL Cruises

The Good and the Bad

Very nice