Breakaway 7/21-7/28/13

[judithdooley]

Just got off the Breakaway yesterday with my 25 year old daughter....I'm 54. We had an aft facing balcony on the 9th deck. The balcony was huge and absolutely wonderful. After reading so many negative reviews we went on the cruise determined to have a terrible time. However....we couldn't even when we tried! We ate at Cagneys, Le Bistro, Teppanyaki, the Noodle Bar, the Buffet, Uptown Grill, Savor, the Ocean Front Grill and we did the Chef's Table. Everything was delicious. Didn't like the room service pizza. Chef's Table was a wonderful experience.....however I think several of us are now banned from the Haven.

 

Has anyone mentioned how small that pool area is!!!!! We went one day while in port and got two chairs right next to the pool. The Moon Palace in Mexico......now there's a pool area! We spent most of the sea days at Spice H2O.....never had a problem getting chairs and they have a lovely little waterfall area with panoramic oceanview......quiet and peaceful.

 

We had a drink at every bar.....except that damn crowded pool bar...lol...loved the waterfront.....and ended most nights sitting outside listening to Slam Allen outside of Fat Cats....got the CD.

 

They must have changed the staff because these people were FRIENDLY!!!! Everyone talked to us and greeted us. We even got to know a cabin steward down the hall. I know how people were complaining that there wasn't anyone welcoming them onto the ship so there was a bunch of staff and balloons to greet us this time....yelling and carrying on....it was a little funny.....the washy washy people are also back......also funny. I also saw some not so nice passengers yelling at crew members.......I mean really yelling!

 

Went to Burn the Floor and Rock of Ages. Really enjoyed Burn the Floor. Rock of Ages was good but too long. Do not like this whole reservations thing for the shows.

 

Went to every wine tasting they had...

 

Went to the Ice Bar....got some great pictures but please do not waste your money.....almost like being in a meat refrigerator at the supermarket......hey NCL put some nice little ice barstools in there or something okay....music.....give us some warm boots

 

The ship is beautiful, I love my daughter, I love Bermuda, I had a great time.......the staff on that boat treated me great......I will be back

[cruiseshark5]

Thanks for posting your thoughts!!! I am going in Nov and also staying on deck 9 aft balcony!!!! Did you have lounge chairs on balcony??

[butterflys]

Thanks for posting your review. It brings joy to me to know the NCL's welcome crew and the washy-washy people are back. I could only exclaim YAY!! when I read those words. Now I am all smiles. :)

[1witchydiva]

Thanks for posting your review. It brings joy to me to know the NCL's welcome crew and the washy-washy people are back. I could only exclaim YAY!! when I read those words. Now I am all smiles. :)

 

Great review. I am so happy you had such a great time. :)

 

I had read that there was no washy washy or welcome crew. I was very surprised and happy to see them on our cruise. They were also lined up to say goodbye, thank you etc. I didn't want to leave. I overhead my dd say to dh. " daddy , is mommy going to handcuff herself to the balcony so we don't have to leave???? " I guess my love of the ship and that room was obvious. Lol. :).

 

I agree with you about the ice bar. I was freezing. It didnt help that I was not dressed for the artic. I am not a drinker, not even socially. Hubby would not leave until I finished my drinks. He loved it in there. Lol. Needless to say, I downed them in two gulps due to the fact that I could not feel my toes. Then I was told I started singing Barney songs. Yikes. I think I'll stop there. Lol :)

[elron]

Niiiicccceeee!!!!!!!!

[Sundiego]

 

The ship is beautiful, I love my daughter, I love Bermuda, I had a great time.......the staff on that boat treated me great......I will be back

 

Wow. That's a really nice thing to post :) Glad you enoyed your cruise and thanks for your review! We sail in September.

 

~Denise

[Starry Eyes]

That sounds like a terrific cruise.

My turn in a few weeks!

[Medtech2]

Glad to know you had a wonderful time!

 

Lately there have been more positive reviews so I am just psyched for September.

 

I just love travelling with DD. We are almost the same ages--I am almost 53 and my DD is 25.

 

This cruise will be with DH and our first trip to both New York and Bermuda. Hope we have as good a time as you. I bought Slam's CD while he was on the Epic, wonderful!

[islandhoppingfool]

Thank you for your review. I agree with the above poster...it seems that all of the reviews for the past two weeks are exceptional and the total opposite of the prior sailings.

 

So much looking forward to our September cruise....we were even upgraded, at no cost. Icing on the cake...:o

[Momofcandk]

Thanks for posting your thoughts!!! I am going in Nov and also staying on deck 9 aft balcony!!!! Did you have lounge chairs on balcony??

 

We were in 9918 on July 7 sailing. One of the first things I did was ask room steward for two lounge chairs n bath robes. Great room.

[cindasilk]

Thanks so much for your review. We have been on one NCL The Star in May 2012. We are booked on a B2B on the Breakaway in April-May 2014. I love reading all about the ship. We are booked in a baloney cabin on deck 11. Would love to see some pictures of these rooms. I love Bermuda and can't wait to go back!!!! Thanks again.

[NYGirl1002]

Thanks for the great review. I am looking forward to mine in 3-1/2 weeks.

[Fins2theleft]

Glad you had a good time. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[cruiseshark5]

We were in 9918 on July 7 sailing. One of the first things I did was ask room steward for two lounge chairs n bath robes. Great room.

 

We will b directly opposite I think it's 9318 cocci so excited!! How was noise from waterfront??

[Father Ted]

I was on the cruise last week as well, group of 15 of us(family) ranging from young teenagers to grandpa and grandma in their 70's. We all had a great time, food and drinks were good, staff were exceptionally nice, entertainment was wonderful, Bermuda was beautiful and fun. I have 2 gripes -

 

- It was a little too crowd at the swimming pools on sea days and getting a chair or two there was difficult. A lot of people hog their chairs from early morning e.g. there was this one lady near us on deck 16 who was holding 18 chairs for her group one day and never gave one up. At no point were all 18 chairs occupied.

 

- Would have liked to have spent 1 less day at sea going to Bermuda. 2.5 days to get there, 1.5 to come back. I understand cruise companies want people on their ships to spend $$$ but it was nicer when in Bermuda, the pool etc, was much less busy.

 

Other than that, it was a really fun trip.

[Momofcandk]

We will b directly opposite I think it's 9318 cocci so excited!! How was noise from waterfront??

 

We never had any noise issues from waterfront or from anywhere. This is such a perfect location for a room. On your way back to ny after trip set your tv on so that u can see when approaching home so u can c sunrise, Statue of Liberty, Verrazano bridge n freedom tower (3am??). Also all the hoopla from security escorting ship back. Amazing scene. U still have plenty of time to go back to sleep. Beautiful view from AFT balcony. Make sure u get on early if u want VIBE passes. Ask room steward for lounge chairs n bathrobes ASAP.

[LaPrincesa]

How did several of you get banned from The Haven?

 

 

~ La Princesa

[boopsahoy]

How did several of you get banned from The Haven?

 

 

~ La Princesa

 

I want to know too!:o

[Ms.Eva]

I went on the Breakaway the fourth of July week and I had a great time too. There were plenty of people welcoming us onto the ship with balloons and music and everything. I too didn't like the reservations for entertainment and I also think they need more shows. Don't like the freestyle for shows at all.

 

But, I have to say that my mom and I got off the ship faster than we've ever gotten off the ship before, I was in my apartment BEFORE 8am (we did the self checkout).

 

BTW, I LOVED King's Wharf; I had the best time in Bermuda EVER, and we've been there three times. However, I think there were just too many people on the ship for my taste, I prefer smaller ships.

[judithdooley]

How did several of you get banned from The Haven?

 

 

~ La Princesa

 

I was just being funny. We just had a really good time and were a bit loud and were carrying on quite a bit afterwards at the bar there. The couples that were staying in the Haven and were at the Chef's table said that the Haven hadn't seen that much fun all week.

[judithdooley]

We will b directly opposite I think it's 9318 cocci so excited!! How was noise from waterfront??

 

No noise from the waterfront at all. Only noises I really heard was cabin doors slamming. We had two lounge chairs and two regular chairs on our balcony. I peaked at the balcony next to ours and they only had two regular chairs so I guess you might have to ask if you want the loungers and they're not there. Those aft facing balconies on deck 9 are well worth the little bit of extra money. My daughter and I spent some afternoons laying out there with our bed pillows when there was a nice cool breeze and we were done with the sun....nice and shaded.

[cindasilk]

I did not know that the washy washy guys had been gone. Glad to hear that they are back. They always made me smile when we were on the Star!!!:)

[DvsDave]

I went on the Breakaway the fourth of July week and I had a great time too. There were plenty of people welcoming us onto the ship with balloons and music and everything. I too didn't like the reservations for entertainment and I also think they need more shows. Don't like the freestyle for shows at all.

 

But, I have to say that my mom and I got off the ship faster than we've ever gotten off the ship before, I was in my apartment BEFORE 8am (we did the self checkout).

 

BTW, I LOVED King's Wharf; I had the best time in Bermuda EVER, and we've been there three times. However, I think there were just too many people on the ship for my taste, I prefer smaller ships.

 

 

I went on this cruise... there was no one welcoming us. I will say on port days the crew was very welcoming.

[Starry Eyes]

I was on the cruise last week as well, group of 15 of us(family) ranging from young teenagers to grandpa and grandma in their 70's. We all had a great time, food and drinks were good, staff were exceptionally nice, entertainment was wonderful, Bermuda was beautiful and fun. I have 2 gripes -

- It was a little too crowd at the swimming pools on sea days and getting a chair or two there was difficult. A lot of people hog their chairs from early morning e.g. there was this one lady near us on deck 16 who was holding 18 chairs for her group one day and never gave one up. At no point were all 18 chairs occupied.

- Would have liked to have spent 1 less day at sea going to Bermuda. 2.5 days to get there, 1.5 to come back. I understand cruise companies want people on their ships to spend $$$ but it was nicer when in Bermuda, the pool etc, was much less busy.

Other than that, it was a really fun trip.

That sounds like a great family cruise. I do not spend much time by the pool, but even I hate the chair hogs. sorry you experienced that.

I have the impression that Bermuda has limited dock space and plenty of cruise ship demand. Rather than on board spending, I suspect that dock space is the reason the ship is not in Bermuda as long as you'd like. i believe NCL Dawn is docked there Sunday am though Tuesday pm. Then Breakaway pulls in on Wednesday and stay until Friday, when need to depart to make NYC on Sunday. Royal Caribbean's Explorer and Grandeur and Celebrity's Summit vie for other dock space.

So on Saturday Bermuda probably has dock space, because ships generally disembark/embark in the US on the weekend.

[jdvmd]

Sounds like you had a great time! Thanks for sharing!