Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Reviews - Reviews

I had never cruised with Norwegian before (prior cruises were on Disney and Royal Caribbean). I had heard that Norwegian wasn't quite on par with these, and while it wasn't in some ways, it was in others.

The Pros:  Love the freestyle dining option - not having a set time/place to eat; the food was also, generally, just as good as Disney or RC; the Thermal Suite--well worth the extra money ($199 for the week) to have a quiet adult-only place to relax and recharge after the hustle and bustle of much of the ship--plus, you can take a shower in a decent-sized shower instead of the ones in the cabin, and dry your hair and put on makeup in the ladies' locker room; the Unlimited Beverage Package is well worth it if you drink more than a few drinks a day--no hassle and no sticker shock at the end of the cruise.  My 13 year old loved the teen club (although it took her a few days and a new friend's recommendation to try it).  Also, the Norwegian iConcierge app (and unlimited onboard texting for $8 for the week) is great if you want to communicate with others on the ship. Rock of Ages was a great show (but when they say mature themes, they mean it), and the Dueling Pianos/Howling at the Moon was a lot of fun.

The Not so Pros (not really Cons): The ship is not quite as upscale/nicely decorated as RC or Disney--it's clean, but just a step below in terms of quality; The cabins & balconies are really small, and the showers are tiny (hence my use of the Spa's locker room showers!). The upcharges for the specialty restaurants seem excessive--I heard that Cagney's (steakhouse) was good, but it wasn't worth the extra money to me to try it.  Service varied tremendously:  Some staff were pleasant, friendly, and helpful--others not so much. The size of the ship can be overwhelming--even after 7 days, I wasn't always sure where things were/kept needing to refer to the signs. They need more onboard shopping--only one real boutique with clothes. 

Would I go on this ship and/or Norwegian again?  Yes.  Is it the best ship/line I've ever been on?  No.  However, it was a great value (got 1/2 off the 2nd person in my cabin, free Unlimited Beverage Package), and for someone in Massachusetts, sailing out of NY is easy and much less expensive/less of a hassle than flying to FL.

We had a fantastic time. The weather was beautiful the whole week. The ship, the Norwegian Breakaway was amazing. There were so many free dining choices we did not go to any of the specialty dining restaurants; although I'm sure they are fantastic as well. The shows were top notch. The excursions were great. Cruise Only was very easy and helpful to work with. 

Just wanted to let you know how disappointed we were on our April 12th cruise to Florida and The Bahamas on The Breakaway. We were looking forward to a great vacation on your new ship as we have cruised with Norwegian before but this was our first cruise on The Breakaway.    Menus in both Savor and The Taste are exactly the same.  There was no variety. On the breakfast menu I selected substitute egg omelet while my husband ordered reg. eggs.  One half hour later we still had not been served breakfast.  When I asked our waitress what was holding up our order, she told me it was because I ordered substitute eggs and that takes a long time.  Unbelievable.  Most of our breakfast orders in these two restaurants took a long time before we were served and when we finally were served, breakfast was cold both food and tea.   On the days that we were at sea, the casino was so crowded you couldn't get a slot machine to play if your life depended on it.  Then if you were lucky enough to find one, the smoke that filled the casino made you sick.   The restrooms were not clean.  Especially the ones near the bars.  My husband couldn't even use the restroom near one of the bars because there was urine on the floor, on the walls, and the toilets were stopped up.  We thought perhaps this was an oversight or men who were drunk for that particular night.  So the next night he went back to the same restroom and found it dirtier than the previous night.  Housekeepers need to be stationed in these restrooms to keep them clean.   The adult pool was too small for the 4400 or so passengers on the ship.  Parents were bringing their children in the adult pool instead of letting them use the kiddie pool.  We couldn't even get in the pool.  So for the 7 days we were cruising, we didn't get to go into the pool.  Chairs (lounges) were always taken either with bags or towels on them indicating that they were taken. There should have been more than one pool on board for adults.   Elevators were always loaded with passengers.  So, everyone needed to wait.   On our tour excursion to The Bahamas, we had to walk from the pier where The Breakaway docked to where the tour guides were waiting.  This walk was about a mile in very hot weather.  Seniors were struggling, as well as my husband and I as we are seniors also.  We met a lot of cruisers who were complaining about this also.    As I indicated before, we cruised last year on The Norwegian Gem and we had a fabulous time.  We cannot say the same about our cruise on The Breakaway.      

I wish that Florida wasn't apart of the stop. More time at the beautiful islands would have been nice. The ship was so clean never a dirty place in sight even the bathroom to the public were nice. Very friendly service. My other complaint would he there should be a teen pool. As a parent I felt bad for my son and his friends that they had to swim with little ones and he at 13 would be kicked out of the adult pool.

Found a lot of the entertainment wasnt free. Had to bookd quite a few of the shows through the box office at additional charge. Food ion the main dining rooms lacked variety and offered little seafood selections. Recommend the cruise ship because of its size and its amenities. Rooms were clean as well as all areas of the ship. Both getting on and off the ship was great this time compared to other cruises.

My husband and I returned a week ago from this trip. Our expectation's were more than meet.

We love to travel, road trips, resort and cruises. Out of all  we like cruises the best. We love being out on the ocean and seeing different places. We have been on seven cruises. We have been on Princess, Royal Caribbean  and Norwegian.

Princess and Royal Caribbean have set dining times, more pampering, excellent food such as lobster in the main dining, great entertainment and formal night is fancy.

Norwegian is freestyle dining, good service, entertainment and food good, formal night casual. We had been on a Norwegian cruise many years ago and were not that impressed with the ship. This cruise changed our minds.

We were reluctant to go during spring break. We had done a spring break on another cruise line, it was so crowed with kids and teens everywhere. We thought we would experience that again especially with such a large number of people on the ship. It was the only time we could go so we did.

The ship has so many choices of what you could do and where you could be for any age,   They had areas for children, teenagers and adults. There was never the sense of being crowed with so many people.

The buffet usually had quite a few people but the line moved quickly and we always found a place to sit. There was never much of a wait for the main dining rooms even with out a reservation. The food and service were  good. We did try one of the specialty restaurants, Le Bistro, the food was excellent. If you want seafood or an expensive steak you do need to go to a specialty restaurant. We were satisfied with the main dining rooms. We really liked the freestyle dining, which helps when it was a shore day.

The service was really good. The difference we found in the cruise lines is that with NCL you had to get your own beverages (buffet), there was no one to fill your coffee cup. However,the empty plates were cleared off constantly. There were other differences too, such as no chocolates on your bed, we had to get our own luggage tags. NCL and Royal Caribbean have the towel animals on the bed at night. Princess cruise lines does not do that.

Entertainment was good but not as many choices as the  other cruise lines. Princess had the best entertainment.

We found that this cruise was exactly what we wanted. After being on six previous cruises all we wanted to do is relax. There was plenty to do on board if you wanted and there was plenty of places to relax and get away from the crowd. That is what we did.

We did go ashore on all the stops. Our first stop was Cocoa Beach. We just wanted to do a short excursion and then enjoy the ship while most were off. Cocoa Beach was nice but the waves are high.

Great Stirrup Cay is absolutely beautiful. The water calm and clear, The beach and water are rocky so you need to wear shoes.

We went to the Atlantis in Nassau. Atlantis is beautiful but very expensive, The dig and predator tank are really nice.

The ship was well designed and beautiful. We would recommend this trip!

Excellent experience for someone who has never been on a cruise.  I took a last minute vacation with my tween daughter and we had a very relaxing time.  I would recommend this ship in a heart beat.  The activities were endless and the entertainment was just as good.  It was only the two of us, and she would have had a better time if she had her twin brother with her, or a friend.  I think she would have taken advantage of the various activities on the ship.  Overall we had a good time.  If I had to do it all over again, I would not get off of the ship in Florida.  I think our time would have been better spent on the ship than on Coco Beach.  The food options on the ship are endless.  There is no need to eat at the buffet every night.  There are three or four nice restaurants that are complementary each evening, where you can order off of the menu, which changes every night.  The buffet is great for breakfast and lunch, or if you have very small children.  Children are welcome in all of the restaurants.  The porters clean the rooms twice a day/replace towels, if you like.  Also, the porters drop off an itinerary every night to your room.  This allows you to see what activities are going on, hour by hour, and where.  Extremely helpful.

There are several restaurants that are an additional cost, but honestly there are so many different options each night, that you don't need to upgrade.  I had lamb chops one night in the complimentary restaurant, went to the French Bistro because I was given a voucher, and the lamb was better in the regular restaurant.  There is a steak house, but I had filet mignon in the complimentary and it was excellent.  Really read all the info in that itinerary and you then know how to work the ship and get a bang for your buck.

Not impressed with the "NEW" ship. The ships pool area is very small and the area where the stage is had no "dancing room". We prefer a smaller ship with less people. Service was ok. Disappointed when we found out the Lobster tail dinner and Chocolate buffet were no longer available. The Atrium area where entertainment was going on did not have enough seating, lack of couches and chairs to relax in. They placed high back chairs in the front row, making it difficult for others to see, especially short people. Too many wooden bar stool chairs, they had them in Headliners and upper level of the Atrium, in O'Sheehan's, again not comfortable especially for short people.

The theater chairs were very uncomfortable. Your tailbone sat on the frame of the chair. Had to slouch in order to get comfortable. Poorly designed.

Our Stateroom was narrow and balcony was small. We could hear our neighbors t.v

Every time I went out on my balcony the person below me was smoking.  There is NO SMOKING on the balcony, but rule did not apply to them.  Many times I was unable to sit and relax. This ship is very accommodating to smokers. Smoking areas at all the bars, and a special smoking room near the pool. Of course the smoke billows out of the room. Annoying. We are non smokers. You can smell the smoke from the Casino throughout the Atrium.

If you are taking a bus transfer be sure your driver knows his route so that he gets you to the pier promptly. We had a very traumatic experience and came very close to not making departure.

Entertainment was excellent, that was one thing they had going for them. Also, the bathroom was a good size and the shower stall was the biggest I have experienced.

My husband and I will not do this cruise again. We tried it and found out it is just not our thing.

There was a variety of musical genres, which suited my interest. I did not have time to soak them all in, but what I experienced was thrilling. 

I also liked the freestyle option.

My entire family loved it, great service, I would suggest everyone to do at least once this cruise. my kids were very satisfied and happy, very safe, great food, great activities.

I had a good time on this ship. The ship is huge and the rooms are nice. The staff is nice and the ship is nice and clean. I enjoyed the port of calls. The private island was excellent and the weather was beautiful. the speciality restaurants are excellent. I would reccommend this trip. I also like that it left from New York.

This cruise would have been better if the information that NCL provided was correct. I asked about the drink package only to be told something that did not exist. I was unfortunately already on the cruise making my experience unforgettable. I asked at guest services only to be shunned away. This is not only my experience but my friend who was on the cruise and a few more passengers when they heard me compalining. The crusie line took my money and did nothing.

Beautiful Ship:-) Good food. Not enough time to enjoy the Excursions. I had a stateroom balcony. We had 2 adults & a child it was A little tight. The balcony was a little small, it had 2 chairs a small table. I was able to sit and enjoy my morning coffee and the view was amazing.

The ship was super clean. The staff would spray your hands with hand sanitizer wherever you returned to ship, and at the buffet restaurants, there is hand sanitizer in front of the restaurants, they take this very seriously. At one point, someone threw up, and they were right on it, they put up barriers, put on masks, and cleaned and sanitized everything around. I think it was someone who was sea sick, but they took no chances!!!!  There was ALWAYS something to do, every night you got a schedule of events for the following day, so that you could plan everything you wanted to do. The staff were all so nice and pleasant. The only bad thing I could say, is that the video arcade for the kids was kind of expensive. $1.00 - $2.50 per game, and the prizes were not that great. The fitness center was clean and big. Never got to the spa, we were way too busy. The food was excellent. I would recommend that you sit down with the schedule the night before, and plan the following day, and keep the schedule with you all day so that you don't miss anything. Make reservations for the shows before your vacation, or do it as soon as you get on the ship, we didn't and the shows we wanted to see were sold out for the whole week. I booked all my shore excursions before leaving, took the stress out of it, and didn't have to wait in the long lines. There is a pool for kids and also one for adults only(salt water pools).  I would highly recommend this ship to anyone, young or old.

The staterooms were nice and larger then the other staterooms I have stayed in however the common areas and children's pool were very compact. I found sinage and communication was very confusing. for example for example there is no main lounge and the area they hold their parties in the spice h2o has a sign at the main entrance stating adults only 18 and over for this reason we missed all the parties assuming the children were not allowed in. The splash academy Kids Club was also not large enough to accommodate all of the children so the children had to be walked down 5 flights of steps 3 times a day to A Lounge located in the Casino causing the children to be exposed to cigarette smoke. because the policy was to sign your kids out for meals basically I felt llke my entire vacation running back and forth to the Kids Club. they were only allowed to stay 3 hours and then had to be picked up for 2 hours. The so if yo got the at 5 when they closed by the time you got them back you were late for the 7:00 show in the theater. If we tried to make the 9:30 show we would be late to get the kids at 10:15 so we missed most of the shows in the he theater as well. The do d in the diningroom was excellent however the buffet was quite boring and often cold. The crew were quite nice and very attentive. Over all I'm not sure I would book on the breakaway again. I do however like NCL and might consider the jewel or the Gem again.

I have cruised other cruise lines and I have to say this was the worse one to date. I was surprised by how many things were a cover charge and or a surcharge for the service. I have never felt that way on any others.  To many people ship not impressive. Overall was not a great experience.

Great family vacation. We all had a great time on ship and at our stops.

would do it again.  Kids already missing the ship and the fun in the sun

Great food, service, and overall experience.

Too much to do--multiple things for all family members.  Waterpark, Sports Deck, Gourmet restaurants, Broadway Show.....all at sea!

Great food and service staff.

Bring cruise vacation up another notch!

Ship is wonderful for warm weather cruising.  Would be even better if the pools were covered during cooler or rainy weather.

Food was very good, never any problem getting into dining rooms.  The buffet had repeating stations throughout which made it very convenient to find items no matter where you were seated.

The entertainment was first class!   The production of Rock Of Ages was really good.  The comedy shows were some of the best comedy I ever heard.  Donna Vivino sang some broadway songs and she was really good!  The food was plentiful and of decent quality.  If you drink alcohol, prepare for the sticker shock of your bar tab at the end of the cruise!   With over 4,000 people on board the cruise, it is difficult to find a chair by the pool.  The literature states that guests are not allowed to reserve chairs with their towels, but there was no enforcement of this rule and all they available chairs were covered with towels.