Highboy90

Garden Cafe: Ate here many times for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Never disappointing though with buffets, depending on the time, can be trying dealing with fellow passengers. Did see "Washy Washy" girls and guys in the early morning. Think every day in fact. For some reason, later in the day and evening, I don't recall this to be the case. At least not every time I was there. Others may have experienced a different scenario.

Most selections were good. We always saw a carving station serving the evenings special each night we were there. Was nice compared to my last NCL cruise to see more choices for drinks such as Lemonade, Tropical Mango, Strawberry Kiwi and Iced Tea. There was coffee, water available. Also milk which could be found next to the coffee aside the cream dispenser. Had apple juice one morning in the Uptown Grill and Grill. There was also orange juice. Not sure about other choices.

Moderno Churasscaria: Dined at Moderno while in Bermuda on day two for my birthday. Price is $20:00 per person. Had a reservation. Seated with little wait. They had just opened and there were a few parties waiting ahead of us. Service was very good. Food was very good as well. Only item I didn't care for was one of the two different types of sausage. I didn't find any of the food to be overwhelming or too salty. When it was time for desert, our waitress brought a small cake for two and with others, sang Happy Birthday.

Muster Drill: Ours was held in the Manhattan Dining Room. Enjoyed a short chat with a couple staying on the same deck 2 cabins from ours. Drill was short and sweet as usual though I really would hate to have an actual emergency being some folks really don't seem to take this seriously. Then again, most were excited as we were I would imagine.

On Monday, our first day at sea, there was a Cruise Critic Meet and Greet scheduled for 11:00 AM in Cagney's. We were on the pool deck and almost forgot. (I had missed a previous one on the Jewel sailing.) After a mad dash back to the cabin with about 10 minutes to spare for a quick change, arrived at Cagney's and got our name tags. Met "fabnfortysomething" and her family who put this all together. Was nice to meet a few members and put faces to many as they passed the mic around the room while folks introduced themselves. Thank you Lyn for doing this.

Dining: Always dined early between 5:30 - 6:00 to prevent crowds or waits as were complaints in the past. No reservations except for the Moderno. Did see some small lines later in the evening many times but nothing not unseen on land. We are not foodies but do know a good meal when we have it. As we all know, this is a very subjective but I will briefly state was we observed during this particular cruise.

O’Sheehan’s Neighborhood Bar & Grill: Had dinner her one time. It was Prime Rib Night and O'Sheehan's was also serving the meal. We were immediately seated and service was the best we had anywhere. Very good waiter. Checked in a few times to see how everything was. If the meal came with a baked potato, it would have been better but every thing was fine. Enjoyed the meal. Finished with a brownie sundae. Yummy!

Taste Restaurant: Promptly seated. Waitress was very polite and efficient. Chatted with us a little. Overall, enjoyed the meal and window view. Being a party of two, we always got a window view table which was nice.

Savor Restaurant: Same as the Taste. Opposite side of the ship. Same deck. Similar in many ways. Same menu. Food was good once again. Waiter however was not. Worse one during our entire cruise. Polite to a point. A little hard to understand. Even though it was early and they weren't busy at the time, he would walk away quickly. Had to ask twice for some ice tea as we only had water. Did finally get the ice tea. A couple sitting next to us waiting for quite awhile had nothing appear during our meal. Was wondering why this would be. As we were leaving, the same waiter was asking to clarify what they had ordered. Not good.

Manhattan Room: Did not eat here. Really do not like sitting on top of other tables or next to a table with one or two feet of spacing. Thus, the Taste and Savor was a better choice for us. Also hearing the Manhattan was loud at times steered us towards the other avenues.

Found a pair of shoes under the bed from a previous guest. How long they were they there? Who knows.

It's obvious no one vacuumed under the bed after each cruise as the shoes were not mid way under the bed. Actually slightly under the skirt. There was also lots of finger prints on the closet doors and such indicating a less than thorough cleaning prior to our cruise.

Nice new ship and some blemishes already.

Noticed some trim or sealer if you will hanging off the shower door. Shame it was left that way and that a new ship is already showing signs of wear, poor craftsmanship and/or design. I put the trim back in place where it remained for the duration. We did see a few other examples around the Breakaway which I will show you later.

The balcony had two loungers, a table and one chair. Booked an AFT balcony on my first cruise and was hooked. This time was no different. Was a nice size deck and the view was great. Not as "private" as on the NCL Jewel (deck 8) when leaning on the railing but knew this before hand not that it mattered. Balcony was dirty and looked like it was not cleaned after the previous cruise.

Neighbors balcony cabin number 11310

Other neighbors balcony cabin number 11314 which also had a chair not shown.

Side view showing privacy.

Cabin: At some point, it was announced that cabins were ready so we proceed to our B1 AFT Balcony cabin number 11312. Bed is located by the sliding door so access to the closet was not an issue. Lattitudes letter and pins were on the counter.

All was good except for a missing seat cushion on the two seater coach. A little later, our cabin steward knocked on the door and told us that the cushion was being cleaned. If finally appeared later in the evening.

Cruise Date: August 25 - September 01, 2013

Ship: Norwegian Breakaway. During the winter months, many on Cruise Critic and I watched Norwegian's newest ship, the Breakaway come to life. Looking at the snow outside and pictures that slowly were released or leaked, I bit the bullet and booked a Bermuda cruise. Would this be regretted? Read and see for yourself.

Itinerary: Bermuda! 7-day cruise. Three nights out. Two nights in Bermuda. Two nights back to New York.

Background: One previous cruise which was on the NCL Jewel back in 2011 to the Bahamas. This was my "5-55" cruise. Five years sober and were celebrating my 55th birthday which was on the second day in Bermuda. August 29.

Embarkation: Live in New York so the car ride was about 1.5 hours. Crossed over the NYS Thruway heading towards Bear Mountain and took the Palisades Parkway down to the George Washington Bridge. Crossed her and arrived around 10:15 AM and parked at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal. Two hundred forty five dollars for 7-days. Passed the dog sniff test and parked the car taking noting not to park under a lamp post knowing that birds would be near. Unloaded and locked the car. Wheeled luggage to the terminal elevator. Went down to the lower level. Walked outside and handed the baggage to a handler with a small tip and proceeded inside where we walked through customs and were immediately directed to the NCL check-in counter. With passports and cruise tickets in hand, process was quick and painless. Moved ahead and had a photo taken. Were given a boarding number 21 and sat down to relax and watch the people show for about an hour.

Announcement was made and passengers started to board the ship about 11:30. Wasn't long before our number was called. Were on the ship by 12 o'clock if I am correct. Walked around with a carry on bag and then decided to see how busy the buffet lounge was. It wasn't bad (yet) so we decided to grab a bite to eat there. My first meal...

Oh and I get engaged on this trip so that always adds an extra perk of happiness. :)

Thank you for the review. I was on the same cruise with you and are working on one right now.

Should you rent a scooter in Bermuda???

 

 

 

QUESTION 3: I’ve never had a motorcycle but I want to rent a scooter, what do you think?

ANSWER: This is a REALLY BAD idea and I don’t suggest it. Riding a scooter or a motorcycle on the street takes a LONG TIME to get use to and lots of skill. Adding this into a new city, new driving conditions and new terrain you don’t know all adds up to a bad idea.

After renting a scooter in Bermuda last week and one who has owned/rode several motorcycles including heavy Harley-Davidson touring bikes, I will agree 110% with the OP.

I had no problems but one easily could. If you think it would be "cute" or "fun" to rent/ride a scooter around Bermuda and have no experience with scooters or motorcycles, think about other activities or options. ;)

Curtis - how was the cabin?

Great pictures and review. There is so much to see that 1 visit to Bermuda does not work. So.... have to plan another cruise in the near future. :D

$15 per device for 72 hours...not $5 as stated in the previous post.

$5 per day per device for 72 hours. Purchase at the dockyard.

http://www.telebermuda.com/residential/wifi/

Sorry to hear about your dog Gambee. We truly understand as we had to put our own Mini Pin down less than 2 weeks ago due to age and breathing issues which became chronic. They say time heals but you will always have a spot in your heart that is empty. I still get tearful when thinking about "Rocky" and sure you will also for some time.

Thank you for the Disney review. Enjoying it as we do all your reviews. Think we'll have to go to Florida someday for a cruise perhaps. Look forward to reading more when you find the time. Thanks!

Bandwidth alert. No pics displaying.:(

Enjoying the review and look forward to reading more. Thank you!

Did you see cabin 11910 pics Vicki?

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=39232696&postcount=12

Quote from a recent review...

We were in cabin 11314 which is an aft balcony. The cabin was of typical size 175 sq ft. The bed was comfortable. There was plenty of storage space. There are 2 large drawers under the couch as well as many shelves. Plenty of hangers in the closet. Bathroom was very spacious for a ship. Our balcony was awesome! At 105 sq ft, There was plenty of room for 2 lounge chairs, 2 regular chairs and a small table. We had no issues with noise for above or below and our neighbors were very nice (quiet too!) This was our first aft room and my husband and I both agree that it is well worth the extra $$$. The views are just amazing!

Very helpful. Thanks! :)

Thank you! :)

Great job! Answers many questions folks have. Thank you. :)

Yes right near the aft corner of ship. Super convenient!

Sweet! :)

How close to the ships can one park?

Looking forward to the next installment. :)

41 days to go Vicki. :cool:

Good move John. Welcome back.