Norwegian Breakaway Cruise Reviews - Reviews

this was our sixth cruise, second on NCL and my wife and I would have loved to return the ship to Nassau. Freestyle dining is the best arrangement we have found. Staff was super and the food was excellent.

I've been on several cruises. Most of them on NCL. I have really enjoyed all of them except for this one. The Breakaway is poorly designed for the amount of people they stuff on that ship. 4000 passengers and only one pool area. It was almost impossible to get a lounge chair in the pool area. I brought my 15 year old son and he couldn't even enjoy a pool. Had to use the kiddy pool witch was only waist high on him since he is 6 feet tall. The hot tubs were only lukewarm. Lacking elevators in the middle of the ship because of that circus tent that most people don't even enjoy since it is extra money to go see that show. I will say we never had to search for a seat for the buffet. I didn't like having to reserve a time to go see the shows either. Better luck next time.

I can't begin to tell you how much my wife & I enjoyed the cruise, The crew was as excellent,as the ship & the accommodations, The dining was excellent , with so many choices, We thoroughly enjoyed the Spa, including the The Thermal Spa & acupuncture treatments.The entertainment was 1st class. We would love to thank the person responsible for hiring FIRE & ICE. We think ROSIE HUNTE is A STAR. Can't say enough about her strong voice and TINA TURNER Tribute ,was the best of the cruise! We've only cruised 2 times. My wife suffers with C.O.P.D ,so wheel chair use is a must. I must say the ship accommodates this very well. Help with the entry and exit off the ship was fabulous. We have decided to take advantage of your CRUISE REWARD PROGRAM with 4 deposits for more cruises. We are retired & on fixed income but have decided that NCL CRUISES match our desires & needs for vacations. Keep up that family spirit on your cruise ships & we will see you soon. THANKS AGAIN,  RONALD & BETH THOMAS

We booked a Penthouse Suite in the Haven and now we're not sure we can ever go back to anything less.  It was well worth the little extra it cost.  The service was beyond belief.  There was simply no request that the staff in the Haven was unable to fulfill.

Our only complaint (and it's not really a complaint) about the ship is its size.  The ship is huge and even after 7 days, we did not see the entire ship.  The shows were fantastic, especially Rock of Ages and Burn the Floor.  And the Brazillian Steakhouse was to die for.

We highly recommend this cruise.

There was not any lobster or seafood at the Seafood Buffet.  The steak and prime ribs was inferior.

the mini suite was mini not much bigger than the standard room.  The room was over the Fat Cats and

not suitable for seniors. We should have been upgraded to a suite!

The he Garden was very loud, even for breakfast and there was a problem getting a table.

Port 

This was an awesome cruise.  There was lots to do on the ship and the shows were top notch.  The water slides and rope course were great.  The food was excellent and the crew staff were great.  I would highly recommend booking a cruise on the Breakaway.  To sail out of New York and not have to worry about flights and the extra expense of traveling was a plus.

Ship is new. Complementary  restaurants have good service. "Burn The Floor" performance was excellent. Waterfront area is enjoyable. 

Manager and staff in jewelry department on Deck 8 are very professional and patient. 

We are experienced cruisers (34th cruise) and really enjoyed the new innovations on breakaway.  Liked the informality of dining and smaller eating venues.  Waterfront eating was a great addition!  Entertainment was very good. Particularly enjoyed Rock of ages and the circus dinner theater.  Shopping on the ship was great. Liked expanded lines of merchandise.

What can I say ! This is one of the best trips I have been on. Not only was I surprised by the over all experience , but was blown away by the great food in the main dining rooms , the entertainment and the hospitality of this crew. I have always been scared of cruises because of the stories I have heard from other reviews but this ship ( Norwegian Breakaway) gets it right. They even welcome  you back after a day trip. Pure excellence ! This cruise keeps you comfortable , never bored and fills everyday with events to join in. I strongly suggest if you are looking for a cruise line then pick Norwegian. And yes , I am not rich , this was very affordable and an excellent bang for the buck ! We are even considering a trans-Atlantic or Hawaiian  trip next time.

The ship is huge. Walking from one end to the other will definitely help calorie-wise. Everything is new, food is wonderful, balcony was fabulous.  we spent time at the casino and the blues bar, both were enjoyable. The only constructive criticism I have is the chairs.  They all look good but I found very few to be comfortable. I even was in the spa quiet room to wait for my appointment. It looked relaxing but the lounge chairs were not comfortable.  The ship is so big that the weather on the last night did not deter us from going out dancing. The ship was rocking a little. Some people were not feeling well.  I had a great overall experience and would recommend it to anyone. 

Loved the balcony. Only problem was we had requested a non-smoking cabin, which we got, but our next-door neighbors were smoking on their balcony just forward of us and the smoke was coming into our cabin. We had to shut the door, which we didn't want to do. We wanted the ocean air and to hear the waves lapping at the side of the ship .I would suggest that the non-smoking rooms be all on one side of the ship where there's a balcony to avoid that problem. This was my 31st cruise and these same neighbors were arguing the first night. The 2nd night there were two men on their balcony talking until 4:30 a.m. I got no sleep until after that. They also put their balcony light on so that our room was all lit up. We again had to close the door and drapes. The 4th night the couple was fighting again with the "f" word flying around, and I didn't get to sleep until 3:00 a.m. and had to get up at 6;15 a.m. to go on a 5-hr. tour of the island. Upon return, I was exhausted and wanted to take a nap since I only had 3 hrs. sleep on 2 of the last 3 nights, I was almost asleep when they came in and started arguing again. I finally lost it and banged on the wall and screamed Stop it. Stop it. Stop it!!! I reported it to the customer service desk in person and they said I should call 00 and they would send security up to deal with it. I knew I was pushed to the limit and would myself make a scene so that everybody would be awake if it wasn't taken care of. After that, I heard nothing. It was wonderful. I regret I didn't do something sooner. That was the first time this ever happened to me in my 31 cruises, including 13 transatlantic ones.

I thought the food was great. I liked all three included restaurants (and I loved eating there so much more than the buffet. I ate less and enjoyed it  more). It's so hectic at the buffet. Always avoiding bumping into someone, trying to find what's there,. and when I was looking for just a hot dog, I couldn't find it. After I filled my plate with other items and ate, then I came across it. Maybe some signs up higher could direct people to the kind of food they are looking for. It was such a relief to eat dinner in the restaurants. I also tried the Italian restaurant for $15. extra and that was wonderful too. The restaurants are so much more civilized. Everyone on the staff was cordial, upbeat and helpful and appeared quite happy. Entertainment was good. Too much smoke sometimes at the casino. (I lost).

I like playing Bingo on other ships more. You get 5 games for $20 instead of 3 for $49. And they still end up with the cover-all each time and then again the last day.

Overall, I had fun, I would do it again hoping the few negative things wouldn't happen again and would use the restaurants for dinner right from the start.

I have cruised with Norwegian 4 times prior to this past cruise (09.28.2014-10.05.2014) on the Breakaway and had no complaints with any of them. It seems to me that they tried hard to cut corners any way possible designing the Breakaway. For a cruise that accommodates 3000 guests the theater was much to small, the seats were the most uncomfortable I have felt on any other cruise, the stateroom walls must have been paper thin as I heard the partying going on each and every night, or shall I say wee hours of the morning for 6 nights from the next door cabin. The hallways in the cabin were almost un passable   if 2 couples were walking in opposite directions, and when the stewards cleaning cart was in the hallway it was impossible. But worst of all, they couldn't have choose a worse floor surface around the pool area where I witnessed passengers slipping constantly, yours truly included!

Excellent in almost every category:

   Service, Food, Cleanliness, Beauty, Relaxation, Quietness with 4000 people, Cabin space, View, Communication, Activities, etc.  We plan to go again next year!

The wait to board the ship was the only downfall of the week!  Set in smooth but waited over 3 hours to board--why??

My husband and I have been taking cruises the past three years, this was our second Norwegian cruise.  We loved it!  We celebrate our wedding anniversary and the cruise makes it so special.  We are recognized for our anniversary and had such a great time.  We did a lot more on this cruise than in the past.  Trivia, as well as napkin folding, great experience.   Your Employees are great!  so happy to be there for you.  Can't wait to take our next cruise!   When we got back to New York it was a good experience leaving the ship.  Last year we went on went on another cruise line, I do not like being told I had to eat at late hour and was seated w/ 8 others.  We were celebrating our Anniversary we did not want to sit with others.  We just wanted it to be us.  Turned off completely.  And leaving ship felt like we were cattle being herded off ship.  Norwegian knew what they were doing.  Great job!

  Thanks

The attraction of this cruise is the entertainment. 

The evening shows are definitely a cut above the other cruise lines.  Beautiful ship and very enthusiastic cruise director and staff.  The parties on deck at night are also well done.  The food at the specialty restaurants, while good, still left something to be desired.  Premium steaks were not so premium.  Lobster dishes did not contain much lobster.  Water slides and ropes course are an attraction for the pre-teen and teen age groups.   Overall however a very good cruise.  Bermuda is a very nice place to visit.  Would recommend to all ages.

This was our second cruise and we had a great time.

The ship is absolutely beautiful. The design by Peter Max itself makes it even more desirable. My husband and I chose this ship after we went to Bahamas earlier this year with the Norwegian Gem, which was also incredible.

The Norwegian Breakaway cost us about $1000 a person. We chose a room with balcony, which was in a good size. 

Navigating the ship took some time, between the casinos, restaurants, clubs, gym and other amenities, there was a lot to learn. However, thanks to the updated technology on the ship there were interactive screens that gave you step-by-step directions to point you in the right direction. Wow factor. These screens were also used for booking shows, excursions and to view the daily schedule. Even more awesome.

The “night club” at the back of the ship is called Spice H2O bar. We went to the GLOW party there for some dancing, but other than that we didn’t make it back until the fireworks show upon leaving Bermuda. Every night the events were recorded and shown again on the TVs in everyone’s rooms. Some of these events at Spice H2O looked boring.

P.S. We liked the Norwegian Gem's white party more then any party in the Spice H2O or even their fireworks show.

The ICE BAR was one of our favorite places on the ship. The $20 per person entry free gives you 2 free drink coupons and a jacket and gloves to borrow and keep you warm. This was fun for us and we are recommending it to every one.

The entertainment was INCREDIBLE. We loved the ROCK of AGES and  BURN THE FLOOR and Cirque Dreams and Dinner Jungle Fantasy.

We had three days to do stuff in Bermuda. We woke up early to see the ship dock around 7 am, then went back to sleep. The first day we went to Horse Shoe Beach. It was the most beautiful beach I have ever seen.

TIP!!!! It's better if you buy all day passes for the public transport which for 2 people would cost $30 instead of paying $30 per person with the ship excursions.

The second and the third day we spend on the small beach close to the ship. It cost us $10 per person. We went on scuba diving for beginners and that was the most interesting thing we did in Bermuda. 

Overall we liked the ship and we didn't spend a lot of money for this vacation.

A tip to the cruise director Julie - We wish that we could watched more shows in the Breakaway Theater and the food in the buffet to be more varied particularly for breakfast time. 

Leaving from New York was a spectacular experience.  Room was nice. Our cabin steward was very efficient.  Bermuda is a very beautiful island.  Had perfect weather for entire cruise.

The comman areas were too small for such a big ship.  Always had a difficult time getting a deck chair by the pool.  Even some of the entertainment venues was a battle for seats.  Casino was too big.  Almost an entire floor and one always had to walk through the casino - smoky!  Free style dining is not for everyone.  First time on such a huge ship, would not do that again.  We were on the Star last summer and liked that ship better.

My experience on the Breakaway was to say the least disappointing.  There was never enough seating at most of the different venues, had to stand through most of the different activities. The service in the 24 hour dining was not only slow but also very rude, when severs were told an order was incorrect they argued instead of just correcting the order, they seemed under staffed.   Pool was way too small and not enough to handle amount of patrons on board.  My wife and I rented the vibe seating for 79.98 per person  the  week and were never informed it could be purchased on a day to day basis, the 3 days in Bermuda were a waste because we spent them on shore and did not use the facility at all. The absolute worst experience of the trip was disembarking the ship, It took literally two and a half hours. It was totally unorganized  through the whole process, it was a mass exit that was not only exhausting but also very dangerous. Tempers became heated and fights almost started between passengers, Norwegian Cruise Line dropped the ball. It was truly sad that we left the ship on such a bad note      

My husband and I had an absolutely fabulous vacation on the Breakaway. We had a forward facing Haven suite that was beautiful. The bathroom was huge and our attendant, Nyoman, kept the rooms spotless. Anoop was the concierge, very personable, and went above and beyond to ensure we had a great stay. We especially enjoyed the entertainment; from the Cirque dinner show, to Burn the Floor, Rock of Ages, Fireworks, Angel the guitarist and our favorite, the dueling pianos in Headliners. Brandon, Rhonda, and the other pianist were so much fun. I would recommend this cruise to anyone. If you are bothered by motion sickness, try to get a cabin in the middle of the ship and consider medication. It was quite 'rocky' the first day, and I did have some trouble sleeping the first night but fortunately did not get sick. Another Haven guest told us they requested dramamine which helped. The food and service in O'Sheehans was much improved from the Epic. I do not care for most of the desserts on NCL, which is a good thing, however, the scones and homemade whipped cream served in the afternoon were excellent. The gym was adequate and the ropes course was a fun challenge, note to others-the goal is to do the course without holding on to your harness! I was surprised to find many venues smaller than the Epic and did not realize the Breakaway is smaller. There are quiet, intimate spaces, you just have to look for them...outside on the waterfront, the front of the boat, the library, etc. Loved the Rockette memorabilia, wish I could have made one of the 7am Rockettes 'stretch' class-perhaps offer one or two later in the day.

the Breakaway is a beautiful ship with a lot of choices ,good restaurants great  entertainment  a lot of activities 

    We both like staying in port for extended periods of time ( more then one day) so Bermuda fit that need  we honestly didn't like the disinbarkment in NY  about 3 hours and extremely unorganized minimal staff (if this had been a true Emergency it would have been a true nightmare ) there are not enough areas to  exit the ship at port!! MORE EXIT POINTS AT  PORT would help  TREMENDUSLY that in combination with a helpful guiding staff    and leaving the ship would be a lot more pleasant