Western Caribbean
Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western
Contributor Level:
Second Mate
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 5
Helpful Votes: 146
7 Night Western Caribbean (Miami Roundtrip)
Sail date: October 13, 2019
Ship: Norwegian Breakaway
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 10738
Traveled as: Family (older children)
Reviewed: 5 years ago
Review summary
NCL Breakaway is a very nice ship, we had a great time but we prefer a more traditional cruise experience.Embarkation
US Coast Guard decided to pick our embarkation day to do a no notice inspection. Boarding was delayed and we were all herded into waiting rooms. Everyone seemed to take the delay in stride. Once the ship was cleared we were called by number groups to check in. That went pretty smoothly and we were onboard around 130p.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We had never sailed on NCL before and were not familiar with "freestyle dining". NCL obviously has perfected it. One thing we did not like at all is the constant pushing to book the specialty venues. We talked with other passengers who had mixed views on the food and service in them. The main dining room food was "meh". The three main dining rooms all serve from the same menu each evening, the atmosphere and decor in each is different. The turkey medallions were dry, and while the steak was cooked as requested it had a lot of gristle in it. On an up note the mozzarella ravioli with lobster sauce was very good. O'Sheehan's was very good. Always crowded but the food offerings are good. Note: Make reservations before you cruise or soon after boarding, ALL the venues that require reservations book up fast. Expecting to show up without a reservation at any of the restaurants and get a table is iffy at best, especially for Shanghai's and Cagny's. The buffet was always busy, it seemed to have a good variety of offerings. Margaritaville was a great place to grab breakfast without a crowd of people. It offered a basic buffet breakfast of fruit, bacon, scrambled eggs, etc. and had an omelet station. The burgers were good but not worth the $15.
Onboard Activities
NCL has done a very good job with activities. The water slides were always busy. The rock climbing wall seemed to be pretty available. The miniature golf course could use some repair. The kids pool/splash zone is excellent. The main pool is small, was very overcrowded with the 20 somethings taking up just about every open space around the pool. As usual there was an abundance of "saved" deck chairs. Personally observed four loungers with towels attached with cute clips, book or two and some other personal items on them completely unused for over 3 hours. Pool staff turned a blind eye to "saved" chairs. Pool issues aside the activities are very good. We don't "shop" onboard ships very much but we did notice limited shopping in logo wear.
Entertainment
The entertainment on the Breakaway was excellent. Some of the best we've seen on a cruise. We especially enjoyed Rock of Ages and Burn the Floor.
Children's Programs
This is not applicable to the younger kids clubs. This is only our experience for the teen club, Entourage. We enrolled our 14 year grandson in the club but he never went. Twice he asked to have us walk up with him and we encountered teens dashing through the halls, loud and on at least one occasion saw some very inappropriate behavior. This all took place right outside the door of the club, not one staff member came out to calm things down. There were more kids in the hallway than in the club. Deciding it wasn't for him he avoided it. They had pool party one night and as we walked by the staff was loudly reprimanding a couple of boys who must have found the "rules" unacceptable, they continued to do cannonballs into the pool after being told not to. Staff threatened to cancel the party. Not sure what transpired after that as we had moved on.
Service and Staff
This one is hard to rate. Our cabin steward was exceptional! Can't say enough good things about her. The waiters varied by venue. In O'Sheehan's the servers were friendly but service was slow. The first night in The Manhattan Room our servers were efficient but hardly talked to us except to ask what we wanted. We ate breakfast in Taste one morning and the service in there was excellent.
Ship Quality
NCL Breakaway is a beautiful ship. She is well appointed, clean and well maintained. Staff were very visible cleaning. One take away we had was that the heart of the ship is Decks 6 and 7 in the center of the ship. Seating is limited in the Atrium area for game shows and music. The overflow radiated to passengers leaning over the railing outside O'Sheehan's. This resulted in blocked passage ways for both passengers and crew trying serve patrons in the restaurant. Senior staff was used a lot to keep a pathway open.
Cabin / Stateroom
Basic balcony cabin. Bed was right next to the closet so only one person at a time could be there. Maybe about 12" of space between the bed and closet. Balcony had two chairs and a small square table. Bathroom had plenty of space, shower was roomy. Note: There two drawers, both under the sofa. Sufficient for our grandson. There are no drawers on the vanity. There is shelving in the closet and a couple of cabinets with very narrow shelves.
Ship tip
Make restaurant reservations early!
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
We flew into Fort Lauderdale, took a shuttle to our pre-cruise hotel in Miami. We stayed at the Doubletree Biscayne Bay. They offered a shuttle to the Miami Cruise Port for $7 per person. Post cruise we took a shuttle from the pier to Fort Lauderdale and stayed at the Courtyard on Fort Lauderdale Beach for one night. The beach is right across the street from the hotel. Both hotels offered a variety of dining options and activities.
Coxen Hole, Roatan, Bay Islands, Honduras
This port is an NCL private beach resort. It was fun. Lots of beach, beach chairs, etc. The only drawback is that all drinks and food must be purchased. NCL does not have any complimentary venues on shore here. Drink packages do not apply. Cash (US dollar) and credit cards accepted. There is a nice port shopping area to pick up a souvenir or two.
Been to this port a few times. Vendors calling out to you to come in their store, mostly jewelry vendors. Watching the pole flyers is always fun. Excellent port to take an excursion to a beach for snorkling or to ruins.
Cozumel is always a favorite port. Ignore the all the vendors calling out and enjoy the fun, vibrant area. We booked a day at Mr. Sanchos, a private beach club. Did the all-inclusive package, enjoyed first class service on all you can eat and drink. You are assigned a table with your personal server. They see to your every need. The waves were high and crashing close to shore but it was a very fun day!! Taxis are readily available. We were just three in the cab going out, it cost us $18US total. Coming back in the afternoon we did a ride share and it cost us a total of $15 for the 3 of us. It's about a 15-20 minute ride. Note: you have to make reservations, they admit a limited number of guests. Another option of a similar beach resort is Nachi Cocom. We booked this privately through the Mr. Sanchos website.
Disembarkation
I'm sure it was organized but I have never had to do so much winding around the ships decks to get off a ship.