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Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Review

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 4
Helpful Votes: 162

Overall rating:

4 out of 5
Norwegian Breakaway

7 Night Western Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: November 23, 2019

Ship: Norwegian Breakaway

Cabin type: Suite

Cabin number: 9196

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

I really enjoyed this cruise. The Breakaway has probably been one of my favorite ships so far. The food was excellent and we had a great time. Can’t wait to try another NCL ship!

Embarkation

4 out of 5
We had purchased Priority Access Boarding and arrived at the cruise terminal around 11. People were already in their rooms. We then got held up because my son’s picture didn’t take the first time and his key card didn’t work as we were going to board the ship, so that slowed us down by another 15 minutes or so. We would have gone through the whole check in and embarkation process in no time, but the hiccup with my son’s picture made the priority access pointless, because no one was having to wait.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
Food and drink in the MDR’s was phenomenal. I am not a huge fan of buffets, but I enjoy that this ship offers Margaritaville as an option for a complimentary breakfast buffet which is smaller, but less crowded. On sea days, you could also go to Moderno for a complimentary breakfast or lunch. We did not do specialty dining on this particular cruise. Service between courses was a little slower than on other ships for them to be not very crowded at the times we went, but we still made our shows. The bar staff was great and very entertaining.

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5
We never used the pool because it was always quite full, but the slides were fun. We used them on the GSC day before tendering. My son enjoyed the ropes course and zip line. There was always something to do.

Entertainment

5 out of 5
We enjoyed all of the shows, musicians, DJ’s and performers. We saw Six, Burn the Floor and Velvet. All were great!

Service and Staff

3 out of 5
We were not impressed with our room steward. He was not very accommodating and we have had much better steward in the past. Other than that, most of the other service on the ship was ok. Some were not as friendly as on other ships.

Ship Quality

4 out of 5
Some of the public bathrooms were not clean, but the ship was very clean. I love the layout of this ship. It is very easy to Navigate. I don’t like the smoking area being so close to the pool and wish you didn’t have to walk through the casinos sometimes to get to where you are going. The smell of smoke is sometimes overwhelming.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Ship tip

This is a beautiful ship with excellent dining and entertainment. I would suggest booking your dining and entertainment early and make sure you make it to the activities like the game shows in the Atrium or poolside games. The Glow Party and 80’s parties are also a lot of fun. We found on the last day that the Waterfront is a quiet place that you can just relax or read a book and I wish I had found it earlier.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Cozumel, Mexico

4 out of 5
We have done Cozumel several times and it is one of my favorite ports. We did the Passion Island Beach Break excursion through NCL. At first I was skeptical because we were running so late. They promised us 3 full hours on the Island. We got a notification that the trampoline in the water was broken. Also the kayaks were only in lagoon. We still opted to go. We were slowed down by the ferry ride which was supposed to be 40 minutes but was more like an hour. We then were forced to take 2 pictures and then had to be assembled to be given a “talk” about where to go and what to do and not to do. The food was buffet style and not bad but not great either. Drinks were limited and I stuck to drinking the only beer option which was Dos Equis (and I doubt it was that). The water was murky and you couldn’t see what was below (coral, beer cans, etc...). But after a few beers we started to have a great time. The guides, Miguel and Angel made sure you were always having fun and we started dancing and playing games. The Island is beautiful and there were plenty of chairs and room to sit. It wasn’t crowded at all.
Thumbs Up

George Town, Grand Cayman

4 out of 5
We have done snorkeling and Stingray City here before, so we opted to take a taxi which cost about 40 dollars round trip for the three of us. In retrospect, I should have just bought an excursion of some sort using my NCL credit and got my 50 dollars back and probably would have come out better, but you live and you learn. The beach was a free entry and extremely crowded. You could rent chairs an umbrella for 20 dollars but we just wanted to drink a few beers, grab a snack, swim a little and head out. The water is clear and gorgeous. The conch fritters were delicious and spicy! I didn’t care for the beer they sold in the buckets. The Caybrew had a funky taste. There is a shopping area back with clean bathrooms and the vendors do not hassle you. GC is one of my favorite ports in the Caribbean.
Thumbs Up

Great Stirrup Cay (Cruise Line Private Island), Bahamas

4 out of 5
Been here before and the tender over is a little annoying and slow. There isn’t much to do here. I don’t like the texture of the sand and the food doesn’t impress me. Lines are long at the bar and I would rather just stay on the ship and use the amenities there where it is less crowded. The plus side is that we have been fortunate enough to actually make it there the two times our itinerary was supposed to go there. It is absolutely beautiful there and you get gorgeous pictures of the ship. It’s pretty much one of those places I can take or leave now that I’ve been there, but definitely go if you get the chance. My friend says the taco bar is worth hitting up because food and drinks are included if you have the beverage package.
Thumbs Up

Ocho Rios, Jamaica

1 out of 5
Tried to do Bamboo Beach and Aqua Tubing through NCL, but it was so crowded at the port and pouring rain. They finally got us on the van and the tour guide and driver began arguing after the driver said “I’m not going to the beach”. The tour guide said there had been a change of plans and we needed to get off the van. She understood if we wanted to cancel and we asked if we could get a refund and she said she didn’t know. I figured it was through NCL and we could so I found a representative and we were refunded. It didn’t make sense to go sit on the beach in the rain.
Thumbs Up

Disembarkation

3 out of 5
Once again I had purchased the Priority Access Boarding which included disembarkation. We were told to wait in a holding space but were just put in line with everyone else. Actually people were cutting in line in front of us who they were allowing to get off the elevators. It was pretty much pointless to have.
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4 Comments

laclapps    5 years ago

I love the everything about the Breakaway! I can not wait to go on that ship again. ⚓️
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LStyle    5 years ago

We went to Calico Jacks on Grand Cayman. We took a round trip taxi which was about 40 bucks for all three of us. It was a restaurant/free beach access. The driver would have dropped us off at other locations, but we chose there because it was free. He said because it was Thanksgiving, anywhere was going to be crowded.
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willwork4cruz    5 years ago

Thanks for the review. Where did you go on Cayman island? Thanks for the tips especially that the priority boarding/debarkation doesn't necessarily mean it's faster. Always funny to me how we want to get aboard faster and then want to get off faster.
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Harvest02    5 years ago

Thanks for the review! Our first cruise is on the Breakaway in 132 days! Can't wait!!!!
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