mcmomny

We are also taking this cruise, the 4 day one this summer with son, daughter in law and grandkids in two connecting regular cabins so very interested in following your review! Excited about the private Island!

Good morning Birdie16! I was born and raised in Tucson! Still have family there and return several times a year to check on my mom! With the 'Free at Sea" program everyone gets specialty dining now so making reservations prior to sailing is very important! Depending on your status depends on when you can do this, typically 120 days before sailing. You can even make reservations for the MDR's on line! There will be shows, not sure what they are on the Breakaway, should be shown on your pending cruises on your NCL page or app. Here you will also find dress codes, ports of call, excursions almost everything you need to know! The Breakaway is huge ship and the first one NCL designed with the outdoor water front which we love unless the weather is bad than the ship can feel very crowded inside. As for dress up night, it's not required anymore. There is a dress code for all sit down dining but I have seen everything from glitter and heals on women to cut offs and tank tops. Sometimes it is enforced and others not so much. We always follow the rules of attire but others don't. Not sure where the port is in Cozumel, hopefully someone else can answer that for you. Funny, we were just looking at Canada and The Breakaway for this fall!

Last March I made the mistake of booking a cruise to the Caribbean and boy was the ship full of families and College Spring breakers. Ship was at full capacity and loud! No room at the pool or loungers and the buffet was always packed. Many incidents of kids not being able to hold their liquor! But we still had a great time! You will need to make reservations for dinner ahead of time or you won't get in and you will have to contend with the buffet and crowds. Yes with your group size you need to call NCL and have them help you as they can also help with making dinner reservations for your large group and help with keeping cabins near each other. With he Free at Seas program cruising has become a more affordable options for college kids

Still one of our favorite cruises! Sounds like you had a great time!

I think they meant me as grandma! But were also bringing their mom and dad and we all have passports so we should be good!

Thank you! Same experience we have had with NCL, quick and efficient with no problems getting to MCO for 1:55 pm flight but we are new to MSC so we aren't too sure about how their process works. Sounds like we should be safe with our plans! Thanks again and looking forward to our first MSC experience and our first time cruising with the Grandkids!

sthrncrusr May I ask you about dis-embarkment please? What time was your flight from MCO and what time did you get off the Seashore to be able to make it to MCO? We are booked on this same cruise in October and were looking at a 1:55 pm flight out of MCO and was wondering if that will work Thank you!

I just got off The Jade in August from Greece and loved her! Much older ship but recently redone, very clean and easy to explore. I have not sailed any other lines so can not compare for you but I have been on several NCL cruises from small to huge ships and we were concerned we would be bored after being on several larger ships recently but we were not and we had a wonderful time getting to know the staff and exploring the ship. Depending on the dates of your cruise will depend on lots of kids or not, sailing Greece in the summer we had lots of kids from all Nationalities. We really enjoyed The Whiskey bar and their bartenders, La Cucina and Le Bistro were excellent meals and service.

Depending on the ship the location can be great or bad, The Jewel Class ships they are under the buffet and pool areas so noise can be a problem. On The Escape and Encore they are on several different decks so you can choose a quieter location. We enjoy the Club Balcony and it's perks but I won't book them if they are in noisy areas.

FYI the specialty coffee is Starbucks! In the atrium. If you have the coffee package no cost, they will serve the Starbucks coffee and specialty drinks to you in the MDR or specialty dining options. No package than they will serve and bill you. We did the "free at seas" plus package, we enjoy better quality drinks and wines, this also included Starbucks, better wifi and an extra $50 per port excursion. Many don't feel it's worth it but we did, my husband got to try some very expensive scotches nightly and also had Starbucks several times a day. And several of the NCL excursions we booked were almost covered by the $50 plus the extra $50.

I hope you enjoy The Jade as much as we did!

Yes, your account will know this and not charge you.. Now about the app, I have only booked via online and have not booked via the app.

Now that everyone gets "free at sea" I find it necessary to pre booked specialty dining in advance on the website, just to make sure we get the time and place we want. This can always be changed once on board without any difficulty but if you make a reservation for a specialty restaurant and don't show up they will still deduct your free meal and you won't be able to use it elsewhere. FYI Yes Cagney's is the most popular but we have been 3 times and all 3 times we were not impressed, just our experiences. We prefer Moderno Churrascaria Loved La Cucina, we had the place to ourselves and the staff were amazing! And for the first time I convinced my husband to try Le Bristro and he loved it! Our favorite bar was Tankards Beer and Whiskey Bar, great bartenders and excellent selection of Scotch and wines. Jasmines along with the MDR's are included but there was always a wait for Jasmines but it was worth it! Our favorite place on The Jewel class ships is "The Great Outdoors" for all sail aways!

We were only on The Jade for a week in Greece this past summer and had no complaints at all! Matter of fact I am looking at her again for The Panama Canal for 2026 and I prefer to not sail the same ship twice, to try new ones but we really enjoyed The Jade. Having been on larger ships the last few times we were afraid we would be bored on this smaller ship but we were not and we loved seeing the same crew everyday and getting to know them. I never felt crowded, even at the pool Our Free at Seas was great, but we have had 3 bad experiences with Cagney's so won't waste our time there again.

PistolPete13 Thank you for your informative review, we too are long time NCL fans and are booked on our first MSC cruise this fall and have read many negative reviews and a few nice and informative ones like you and @Jamielogical which help us to understand the differences and I know we will have a great time!

No need, NCL has blue beach towels they will let you use on ship or off! Enjoy the POA, still one of our favorite cruises!

My Grandchildren will love these "hockey pucks!"

Our coffee makers on NCL have always been the pouches/pad type. I think Haven has a different type of coffee maker but not sure as I have never been in the Haven 😞

Also check out Trip advisor for each port of call, lots of info there too. We booked all of our excursions on our own and not thru the cruise line, plus we rented cars at each port of call. Still one of our most favorite cruises!

Our first trip to GSC was about 30 years ago and yes than we needed water shoes, this past March we did not need water shoes and we had a great time playing in the water! Flip flops yes as the paths and sand can get pretty hot!

youtube has lots of videos about these excursions

What itinerary are you looking at?

We always travel with a deck of cards or small travel games, spent a lot of time at District Brew House playing cards on The Escape this past March.

Same thing has happened to my husband each time we have booked an NCL cruise. It's annoying but I just call and they fix it right away

Depending on the ship the location may not be ideal, for example several of the smaller ships the club balconies are directly under the buffet or sun deck so noise level will be higher. Having stayed in both the basic and the club balconies before all I missed was the extra space and the free laundry. From NCL web site "Club Balcony Suites provide additional amenities and privileges at no additional cost. Amenities include the option to pre-book onboard entertainment as early as 21 days and dining as early as 125 days prior to sail date, complimentary treats delivered to your stateroom, a complimentary bottle of sparkling wine, and a choice of one valet laundry or pressing service" Exclusive Club Balcony Suite Amenities Distinctive Purple Keycard Pre-book onboard dining as early as 125 days prior to sailing Pre-book entertainment as early as 21 days prior to sailing 1 complimentary valet laundry 1 bottle of sparkling wine upon embarkation Treats delivered to your stateroom twice per week. Bliss Collection by Norwegian™ featuring fine linens and pillows Lemongrass bathroom products Bathrobes TV, refrigerator, safe, and hair dryer Sitting area Lower beds arranged as a queen-size bed. Coffee maker & ice bucket available upon request. 24-hour standard room service menu Continental breakfast menu