Tell me about breakaway, the good and the....

[Kaboochi]

We are sailing The Breakaway in Oct. There are very few reviews, mostly negative and very few posts about her on the boards.

 

If you have sailed from NY I would like to read your posts about the ship. We will be In a spa suite so I am especially interested to read comments about the cabin and thermal spa area. Thank you.

[kylenyc]

If you didn't know, there is a dedicated Breakaway sub-forum

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=873

I didn't even know it was there until I recently.

 

If you like lots of photos, I'm in the middle of a blog of the maiden transatlantic but nothing on the spa or suites.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1834773

 

Some of the regular "member reviews" are ridiculous (I mean 1-star ones... not the ones in this discussion forum). You're no stranger to NCL cruises. If you've enjoyed them in the past, I think you'll enjoy the Breakaway. Bon Voyage.

[Kaboochi]

If you didn't know, there is a dedicated Breakaway sub-forum

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=873

I didn't even know it was there until I recently.

 

If you like lots of photos, I'm in the middle of a blog of the maiden transatlantic but nothing on the spa or suites.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1834773

 

Some of the regular "member reviews" are ridiculous (I mean 1-star ones... not the ones in this discussion forum). You're no stranger to NCL cruises. If you've enjoyed them in the past, I think you'll enjoy the Breakaway. Bon Voyage.

 

You are a sweetheart. Thank you so much for the information. I am so excited for our cruise and I know all of the "new ship" wrinkles will be ironed out way before we set sail. NCL will see to it. I am going to go to your blog right now. Thanks again:)

[xenite2525]

Embarkation was very easy. We spoke on the drive to NYC of all of our past experiences which were all exceptional and we were so excited! We boarded the Breakaway loving all the hoopla, taking in all grandeur of the magnificent ship. After dropping our carry on's off in our individual cabins, we broke apart our little group to do individual exploring. My DH and I raced to the spa because we have always purchased spa packages because we enjoy the less crowded Jacuzzi's and sauna. After purchasing our package we were given a tour of the facility which was awesome. Love the salt room and the area was just spectacular. I reserved a massage and we continued to explore. Hungry, we checked out the Garden Café. This turned out to be our salvation for this cruise. I embraced the buffet for the first time ever on a cruise and enjoyed people watching as well as it's variety of food options. During these first hours on the ship, I viewed everything like a kid with a new toy.

During the walk around, I really took in some first impressions. The Breakaway is extremely easy to navigate (much easier than the Dawn-LOL). It is clearly marked and the touch screen menus are located in various, easily accessible areas that will navigate you from where you are standing to where you want to go. Prior to this cruise, I had downloaded Iconcierge on my iphone and was unable to use it on the Dawn. Now, I was able to use most of it's features after getting some help from the IT manager. Second impression is that for such a larger ship, many of the venues and areas were much, much smaller. The auditorium is small and without a balcony. The pool area has also been downsized (this might be the breakup of adult vs child areas and the addition of water slides). There is still 4 Jacuzzis but a much smaller salt water lap pool. The dining rooms are smaller (except Cagney's), Garden Café is the same size. The casino is also much larger. I do not smoke and I, personally did not smell the casino until I was near it.

On the first night we made reservations and ate at Moderno. This began a slow downfall in regards to our restaurant experiences. It began well, we ordered drinks and then we waited and waited. I finally grabbed another waiter and asked if anyone was going to serve us food as we continued to watch skewers of meat passing our table with no one offering. I actually grabbed one with a skewer and asked for us to have some. He looked at our table without plates and we all emptied our bread plates and said we were hungry and to just please put meat on the plates. We finally got the sides but we never were given the pork option. That was our first encounter with restaurants. The next morning my DH and I ate breakfast at Savor, one of the main DR's. We waited and waited and finally received breakfast. DH's eggs were cold and my waffle was actually still frozen. We got one refill of coffee and decided to go to Garden Café to get our own. The buffet was wonderful throughout the entire cruise both in selection and quality. The second night we ate at O'Sheehans and that was okay. Service again was slow so I had to dismiss the waitress when she brought out dessert because we were missing events we wanted to participate in. We ate at Manhattan (upscale main dining room) one night and, unfortunately again, had a dismal experience with dry Mahi Mahi and overcooked meat. We did eat at the raw bar one night as our companions were pushing us to eating outside our comfort zone. That was an amazing meal with amazing service. Our companions were able to secure reservations ( by calling each day and checking for cancellations) at OceanBlue and raved about both the food and the service. We tried Taste (main dining room across from Savor and it's twin) one night and had a pleasant meal with timely service. On our last night at sea we finally ate at my very favorite restaurant Cagneys. I have raved for years about our experiences here and was so excited - until I read the menu. The prime rib, which I have been waiting one year for, is now gone. So bummed. I had shrimp cocktail for appetizer and received 3 large cocktail shrimp and for dinner had the ribeye that was perfectly cooked medium rare. Desserts were also very good. Service was not good and our waitress even seemed irritated at the end of our meal. Cagneys is much larger on this ship, larger and much noisier. I have always eaten at Cagneys on the last night because I enjoy an intimate dinner before returning to life as we know it. That was not possible here.

Other areas of interest was the much hyped Ice Bar. We experienced this on our first night for $20 per person. As we were gowned with parkas and gloves, we were herded like cattle into a meat locker that was skimply decorated with ice sculptures. We were given en masse, two drinks each served in a ice glass. It was so crowded with people - including children- it was not enjoyable at all.

The spa was exceptional and I loved every single moment I spent there, and I spent a lot of time there. The salt room is amazing and the pools and Jacuzzis equally so. It was relaxing and comfortable.

Now, let's talk Bingo. Ever since I was exposed to a Bingo game on my very first cruise on the Majesty, I have been a cruise Bingo nut. I love the game. NCL has totally dropped the ball on this experience on this ship. Bingo was either held in the Manhattan room which was a mass of tables and chairs and difficult to see the one main screen or it was held in a small cramped Comedy Club that had no room for people. The Bingo staff had technical difficulties with each Bingo game and several staff members had no idea on charging or products. The last Bingo game with the cruise giveaway was a complete disaster and it was held in the small cramped club. Really- the biggest draw of the cruise and they held it in a venue that could only comfortably hold 1/4 of the people that came. I felt so sorry for the older patrons that were forced to stand for 15 - 20 minutes waiting in line in order to hopefully get a seat.

The biggest let down for me was the staff. We had an awesome steward that met everyone of my expectations. He was communicative and conversant and always smiling, unlike most of the other staff I encountered. Staff would smile if you smiled at them but in performing their daily duties and watching from afar, there was no smile. I was also privy to a Officer (uniformed staff member) publicly berating a staff member in the Garden Cafe. That was the first time I had ever seen that on any cruise. I don't know if I had unrealistic expectations because I have had awesome cruises on the NCL Dawn and that we have grown accustomed to happy staff.

I know many people are thinking, well why didn't you tell them. Here's the kicker. For the first time ever, I filled out one of the notes to the manager and I very nicely explained the good, the not so good and ways I thought they could improve on customer service. I left my Name and Cabin number for them to contact me. I heard nothing from them! I am so upset about this. On my last cruise, people we were traveling with had some concerns and were contacted immediately. So this is my review. I still love NCL and will probably return to the Dawn. Please don't flay me too much, it is just my opinion and my experience. Many people enjoyed themselves tremendously and others like myself did not have Breakaway hit the mark.

[roses_rem]

I just wrote a little bit on the thread from those of us that just got off the breakaway if you would like to read it....

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

I just got off Breakaway on Sunday & must say I enjoyed the cruise & found the staff friendly, food & entertainment good.

 

I must agree about the Bingo! It never started on time & one night when it was to start at 4:15 at Headliners I left at 4:40 without getting near the front of the line to purchase a card. I was afraid to miss my Cirque show at 5:45. I mentionned this to Julie, the CD & she said they can't hold it in the theatre because of the Rock of Ages set. The prices were also quite high compared to my Carnival cruise last month.

 

One thing I dislike about Free Style cruising is that you can't eat when you want as you have to wait in line often for dinner in the MDRs.

 

Something I learned is to check the board outside the theatre as people were standing in the call for line for the magic/comedy show when there were actually spaces available according to the touch screen.

 

I liked the set up for Cirque better on Epic with the balcony. We purchased

superior seats but I think the cheaper ones were better. We were seated at a long table so had to bob & weave to see the action. They tried to seat us behind a pole but we refused that.

 

I have to agree also about the Ice Bar it was pretty bare looking.

 

As far as I could tell there were only 4 quarter machines in the casino!:eek:

 

The embarkation went great (I'm gold) but the disembark left a lot to be desired! Blue was supposed to leave at 8:15 but still hadn't been called when we slipped into the yellow line. As it was we were 45 mins late for our shuttle at 9:00 so were charged $49 more for waiting!

 

I'm glad I tried the Breakaway & sailing from New York but prefer Epic.

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[Kaboochi]

Denote,

 

Thank you for your informative post. Honestly, we have never had a great meal in any of the speciality restaurants. We now just eat in the dining room. We have repeatedly had slow service and have too left before dessert due to other venues we would miss. I think NCL and all other lines with specialty dining need to polish their service,: wait staff and food quality

.

Tank you again for your post.

[Highboy90]

On the first night we made reservations and ate at Moderno. This began a slow downfall in regards to our restaurant experiences. It began well, we ordered drinks and then we waited and waited. I finally grabbed another waiter and asked if anyone was going to serve us food as we continued to watch skewers of meat passing our table with no one offering. I actually grabbed one with a skewer and asked for us to have some. He looked at our table without plates and we all emptied our bread plates and said we were hungry and to just please put meat on the plates. We finally got the sides but we never were given the pork option. That was our first encounter with restaurants.

It really irks me when I read comments like this. Folks are paying good money for the cruise, then pay extra for a higher level of service and get this?

 

 

The next morning my DH and I ate breakfast at Savor, one of the main DR's. We waited and waited and finally received breakfast. DH's eggs were cold and my waffle was actually still frozen. We got one refill of coffee and decided to go to Garden Café to get our own. The buffet was wonderful throughout the entire cruise both in selection and quality.

I experienced similar on the Jewel last year. MDR service was slow/poor even when hardly busy. The cafe was better as long as it wasn't during peak hours mainly due to seating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was also privy to a Officer (uniformed staff member) publicly berating a staff member in the Garden Cafe. That was the first time I had ever seen that on any cruise.

NO EXCUSE for this! :(

 

So this is my review. I still love NCL and will probably return to the Dawn. Please don't flay me too much, it is just my opinion and my experience. Many people enjoyed themselves tremendously and others like myself did not have Breakaway hit the mark.

THANK YOU for saying it the way you experienced the ship and cruise. I'm still considering canceling my August cruise on the Breakaway. Not that I want to but I have plenty of vacation choices for the coin this cruise will be costing me. Waiting for a few more reviews to come in.