Another Breakaway Review (Sept 1-8, 2013)

[qvenedandan]

Greetings everyone!

 

First of all, my apology if the review is not well organized (having post cruise dizziness while typing :rolleyes:). I would rather to recap as much details as possible before my short-term memory problem kicks in.

 

In a nutshell, my family had a great time on this cruise. When we disembarked this morning and walked a block away from the pier, my kids already said "Let's get back onto the ship for another week!"

 

Basic background: We are family of 4 (DH, myself and two tweens). So far we have cruised exclusively with NCL - i.e., I won't be able to do any comparison between NCL and other cruise lines.

 

Embarkation and First Surprise -

We took public transportation (NYC Subway), got off at 50th Street station @ 8th Avenue, and walked 4 blocks west to Pier 88 (located on 48th Street and 12th Avenue). We were so excited when we saw the beautiful Breakaway at the corner of 10th Avenue (yes, it's that huge that you can see from afar!).

 

The check-in process went smoothly. We arrived Pier 88 around 10:45am, received boarding number 7. We reviewed the Freestyle Daily while waiting, and noticed of 25% off promotion for Cirque Dream Jungle Fantasy shows the first night! We did the advance booking 45 days prior to sailing, and reserved for the second night at regular price! :eek:

 

Our number was called by 11:30am to walk up to the gangway. We entered Deck 7 Forward. Guess what? We saw the Box Office as soon as we stepped onto the ship. So we went up to the Box Office counter and requested to switch our reservation for the first night so that we can get the 25% off promotion. The staff members were efficient in switching our reservation and we got the $40 refund as on-board credit (sorry, can't do the direct credit to the credit card).

 

(I will continue my review - breaking it into several posts under this thread...)

 

Best regards,

Mandy

[bellabaloo]

Yay! Looking forward to your review! I'd say welcome back, but that is probably bitter sweet for you ;)

[bmlovell]

Yeah! Keep it coming we have 13 days before our turn :)

[qvenedandan]

Cabin

We had an Inside Cabin on Deck 13 mid-ship (facing internal corridor). The stateroom itself was tiny as expected, while the bathroom was bigger than what I would imagine :rolleyes:.

 

The stateroom's ready for us to leave our luggage by 12:30pm.

 

Thanks to the passengers who stayed in the same room for prior trip, we got a dozen of extra hangers (plastic ones) in the closet. Those plastic hangers were extremely useful to hang dry swimsuits in the bathroom. There is a string high up across the shower area, but its length would let us hang 3 pieces of swimsuit max. So the plastic hangers would let you to hang much more pieces ;).

 

Underneath each lower beds, there's space (about half of the bed's length - the other half is occupied by life jackets) for us to push in our luggage.

 

As per good advices I received from Cruise Critic forums, we brought in post-it notes and a night light. We also said hi to our cabin stewards with a "hello tip."

 

 

First Lunch at Savor

We then went down to Deck 6 Aft for our first lunch. The selection was fair (salad, soup, sandwiches, fish N chip, strip steak, and such). Wished they would offer fish entree for lunch though. Just a quick note, the lunch menu for main dining rooms was relatively static throughout the 7-day trip.

 

Sail-away Party (our own way)

After the mandatory safety drill at 3:30pm (kinda confusing because they no longer printed the emergency location on your card), everyone headed up to the open decks (15/16/17) for the Sail-away Party. We had over 4,000 passengers on this cruise, so the decks were packed. As New Yorkers (and my office is right at the south tip of Manhattan, facing Statue of Liberty), we decided to avoid the crowd and explored the ship.

 

(to be continued)

 

Regards,

Mandy

*thinking to continue typing till mid-night???*

[Treacher1]

What time was the Cirque show on the first night of the cruse - thank you!!

[qvenedandan]

Cirque Dream Jungle Fantasy

We switched our reservation (for 25% off promotion) and went to the very first show starting at 5:45pm. We were told to arrive earlier (at least 30 minutes) in order to get a table closer to the center stage. We arrived at 5:15pm, didn't see anyone at the front door of the Spiegel Tent... :eek:

 

Then a staff member asked us if we had reservation, then directed us to the side corridor... And there were 30+ fellow cruisers waiting in line! So by the time we walked into the Spiegel Tent, all the front tables were taken. We were lucky enough to be seated right next to the aisle (where the performers walked back and fro throughout the show). The performers did a good job trying to interact with the viewers, and I personally got several "roars" by the performers... :p

 

Food wise it's so-so, as I am not a steak person. They served set dinner (mozzarella cheese and tomato salad, steak and deep-fried shrimps, 3 bite-size desserts). A bit challenging to eat in the dark while watch the performance at the same time... My family did enjoy the show though. Nice decors and good choreography.

 

(Oh my... still writing about the first day? OK, let's start the second day in next post! Let me know of any questions you may have and I will try my best to answer.)

 

Regards,

Mandy

[qvenedandan]

What time was the Cirque show on the first night of the cruse - thank you!!

 

5:45pm and 9:00pm for the first night.

[qvenedandan]

Pulse Fitness

I didn't go to any class denotes a fee. There was a "Rockettes Style Stretch Class" everyday at 7:30am. Glad that I went and waited 15 minutes prior for the first class (Day 2 - First day at sea). By 7:30am, there were too many people and the instructor had to turn people away.

 

Note: I went to the stretch class twice, Day 2 and Day 4. Not as many people showed up at Day 4, mainly due to the fact that majority of fellow passengers were getting ready to get off to Bermuda).

 

About the class, it lasted approximately 20 minutes, with various movements to stretch from neck to calf. Nothing about burning calories for sure, but at least a gentle way to start the day.

 

 

Pools, Hot Tubs and Lounge Chairs

Heated, salt water in both the adult and family pools. The adult pool is 6-foot deep, and I saw many people doing their lap swimming between 7-8am before the pool deck got busy. I got into hot tubs (those surrounding the adult pool, I didn't get to the ones in H2O Spice) every other morning before having my breakfast.

 

I encountered an unpleasant incidence in related to lounge chairs. On one sea day around noon time, I briefly left the chairs with my DD to grab ice-cream in the Garden Cafe while my DS was waiting. Of course our towels were still on the chairs. We returned within 10 minutes and found out an elder lady sitting on one of the chair. I politely told her that I need my chair back (while asking my DS why he didn't say anything when the lady sat down....) The elder lady claimed that she was on her chair for over 15 minutes (whoa?) and said I had no right to hog the chair (but my DS was there, with my "neighbors" rolling their eyes behind her back after hearing what she said). It's up to a very uncomfortable situation... Then the lady's companion showed up and "escorted" her away.

[qvenedandan]

Cruise Critic Meet & Greet

The M&G took place at Cagney's in Day 2, with a great turn out. Thanks Mark for organizing the event. During the meeting, Dan (Cruise Director) gave us a brief introduction of officers, and we were given "At Your Service" card listing out the direct extensions of the officers. Dan also had a quick Q&A (with a fellow CC'er asked about the location of his stateroom... ;)) I also got the chance to chat with several CC'ers, trying to connect their faces with the screen names.

 

I have to say that the officers are well aware of Cruise Critic's presence. After the M&G, we received a complimentary chocolate treat from the Hotel Director that evening. Also, when I stopped by the Guest Services desk for a specific question, I first got a "No" response. Then I persisted and stated politely that they would be able to assist based on what I learned from Cruise Critic. Problem solved!

 

 

Aqua Park, Rope Course and Bounce

As expected, there were waits (like 10-15 minutes) during Sea Days. It's more challenging to do the rope course with the wind gust (and that's why the "plank" section was not opened during Sea Days). I did the Free Fall slide 4 times (checked), walked the plank 3 times while the ship was at port (checked), and did the back flip 3 times on the Bounce (checked) :D.

[qvenedandan]

Complimentary Dining Rooms

We ate more frequent than expected in the Garden Cafe, mainly due to convenience. The Garden Cafe had Prime Rib night (Day 1) and Seafood night (Day 2).

 

We also tried the 3 main dining rooms. The Manhattan Room had a "grand" feel - but I missed the classic staircase from the older ships. Savor and Taste shared the same layout. Their menus were nearly the same, with the exception of the "chef's specials" - not printed on the menus, gotta asked before walking in. In general, I found the steaks in good quality (even a bit salty in my liking). My family (I don't eat lamb due to its gaming taste) loved their lamb dishes. Personally I thought Taste offered stronger coffee. ;)

 

If you want to have egg benedict with smoked salmon or spinach, you need to have sit-down breakfast in either Savor or Taste. I couldn't find that from Garden Cafe (it used offer that while we were on Dawn or Gem...)

 

I was pleasantly surprised with O'Sheehan's. Their buffalo wings were really good (fingers licking)! I also enjoyed the Chicken Pot Pie. So by later part of the trip, we went more often to O'Sheehan's.

 

We only ate at Uptown Grill once for afternoon snacks, and their waffle fries were good.

 

 

Restaurants with Cover Charge Applies

Le Bistro was the only charged restaurant we reserved (we loved escargots!)

We used to have escargots at least for one night in the main dining rooms, but no more! When we did the advance reservation, we were charged as 4 adults (even my booking show two tweens under 12). So by the time we ate, we thought of not able to get half price because my kids didn't order from "specialty restaurant menus" (i.e., they ordered from the same menus as us, and they had "adult portion" - two orders of appetizers, and lamb rack as entree). So to our surprise, the waiter approached us by the end of our meal and re-confirmed about my kids' ages, then said that we will have $20 refund (again, as on-board credit) as they will be charged half price. We didn't expect that at all! In return, we put in additional tip.

 

Oh! I bought a Lobster Tail from Carlo's Bake Shop... Yum! :D

[qvenedandan]

Burn the Floor and Rock of Ages

I found it just OK with Burn the Floor, maybe it's because I am not a fan of dance shows in general (e.g., I don't follow Dancing with the Stars). Maybe it would be better to shorten the show to 45mins? (Currently it's 60mins)

 

I enjoyed Rock of Ages, it followed the Broadway format, just a shorter version (105mins with no intermission). I didn't let my tweens watch this show due to the contents, but I did see small kids in the theater though.

 

 

Bermuda

First time visiting Bermuda, so we visited the "tourists' attractions" - Horseshoe Bay (Day 4), St. George's and Tobacco Bay (Day 5) and City of Hamilton (Day 6). We went on our own, and the bus/ferry schedules were easy to follow. Since we didn't hop to multiple locations per day, we didn't buy day passes. Instead, we bought booklet of tickets. (15 tickets for $30 - adults / lower price for kids). One ticket per bus or ferry ride, even the ride to St. George's. We found the tickets cheaper than tokens ($4 each). My tweens learned how to snorkel during this trip, yippee!

[S&S Cruisers 1983]

Very much enjoying your review. Thank you for posting it so quickly. We sail in one week!

[qvenedandan]

Thanks Sharon - I guess I will stop for tonight. Will try to think of other things worth mentioning tomorrow. :) Please let me know of any last-minute questions you may have. You must be excited for your upcoming cruise! You will enjoy the Breakaway for sure!

 

Regards,

Mandy

[qvenedandan]

Good morning everyone!

 

Got a so-so sleep last night, but at least the post cruise dizziness is nearly gone. Kids are back to school this morning, and they can't wait to tell their classmates about the cruise. :D

 

 

Splash Academy

We registered our tweens to Splash Academy mainly due to the Rock of Ages reservation. The show was on Day 3 at 6:30pm. Usually the center is opened at 7pm, but they will open early (like 6pm) for those with Rock of Ages reservations. We received a voice mail that morning telling us the early opening.

 

About Splash Academy, they now ask for a password (in addition to the room card of designated adult) when you try to pick up the kids. Also, they need to swipe the kid's room card as part of the check-in/check-out process. Triple layers of security I guess... :rolleyes:

 

 

Photos

I really miss the old times when NCL offered Photo Frenzy (i.e., pay a fix price for all photos you take throughout the cruise). Guess they want to have a more manageable break-even of cost. Unfortunately all the printed photos not purchased will be wasted (or recycled) under this new policy.

 

8x10" photos are $19.99 each, while 5x7" photos are $12.99 each. They had "specials" per day, like getting free 8x10" ship photo if you buy a folio in Day 1 and Day 7 (another $19.99 for the folio alone, then $19.99 for a 8x10" photo of your choice at left panel, with the free ship photo at right panel, totaling $39.98).

 

Other specials included 20% off for each photo purchased on Day 3; Free 5x7" duplicate for any picture purchased on Day 5.

 

If you are seriously thinking of buying lot of photos, you should check out the Photo Gallery at night on either Day 5 or 6 (sorry that I forgot the exact date because this specific bulk sale is not printed on the dailies). This sale has a tiered pricing:

 

Up to 10 photos: 10% off

11 - 20 photos: 20% off

21 - 30 photos: 30% off

31 - 40 photos: 40% off

41 - 50 photos: 50% off

51 photos and up: 60% off

 

Some photographers were more patient and willing to take various poses for your party (group, individual, different pairing, etc.) My favorite photographer is Alex.

[qvenedandan]

Martini Tasting

First time ever for DH and myself to attend one of the NCL "U" Tastings. We did that on Day 2 at Shakers Bar. There were many people (I believe over 40 people), so the 3 bartenders were very busy mixing the drinks. They gave you a "Blue Dot" label to identify yourself as participant.

 

We tasted 4 samples (i.e., half glass) - Manhattan, Forbidden Fruitini, Cosmopolitan and Creme Martini (aka Dessert Martini). Personally I enjoyed Forbidden Fruitini and Creme Martini the most.

 

The lead bartender tried to give us some history of martini, but since there were too many participants, I felt sorry that he had to "yell" while presenting.

 

 

Other Alcoholic Beverages

We didn't go for unlimited package. Instead, we ordered glasses of wine/cocktails/draft beer during 3 of our dinners. I enjoyed French 75 (form Le Bistro - their signature champagne cocktail) the most while DH got Heineken draft from O'Sheehan's twice.

 

 

Lemonade for Kids

Kids didn't get unlimited soda passes for the week. We brought two 2-liter soda with us and put them in the fridge (and we kindly asked our cabin steward to clear out all mini-bar items on Day 1). Both DS and DD are not fan of unsweetened iced tea, and they were fine sticking with the "lemonade" - a bit more watery than what I thought lemonade should be, but my kids didn't complain, so it worked for me.

[qvenedandan]

Team Nick

We had 900+ kids on board. Honestly I didn't feel like I was on zoo cruise at all.

 

There were several encounters with Team Nick:

1. Several characters danced on stage at Poolside for a song as part of Sail Away Celebration.

 

2. Family Sunset Carnival at Poolside on Day 5, which was really nice for families - ring throwing, balloon animal making, and the raffle winner got slime-ed (the girl opted to have her dad getting slime-ed).

 

3. Team Nick Art & Craft in Headliner on Day 7, kids were given white t-shirts with SpongeBob on it, and got markers to color their shirts for a mini runway show at the end of the event.

 

I didn't feel anything like kids ran wild, attacked by Nick characters, etc. I would say that the Team Nick staff did a great job.

 

 

Shopping at Tradewinds

Interesting to say, things got crazy at Tradewinds during those special sales on Day 7.

 

Charm Bracelets sales in the morning, and people elbowed into the counter, grabbed as many boxes, walked out of the counter, settled at the sides of hallway, filtered out their picks, then dumped the remaining back to the counter. Similar scene for the watches sales in the afternoon.

 

Usually I saw crew members with smiles throughout the ship, but for one poor sale girl working at the Tradewinds, I literately saw horror expressions on her face witnessing the mob and how the passengers pushed all the boxes in front of her for purchases.

[bingo3]

Thanks for your review!

 

I have never quite understood the exorbitant photo prices when you see all the photos left at the end of the cruise that go in the trash... More people would buy if the prices were more reasonable. They'd sell more and waste less and most likely, make more money. I'm at an age, I don't need or want any more 8 x 10 or even a bunch of 5 x 7 photos. Thankfully, my digital camera takes great pics and there are great prices reproducing the 4x6's too! Oh well, their loss.....just don't get upset with us when we bypass the photo lines, we already know we're not buying them, so don't want to waste time taking them....

debbie

[qvenedandan]

Thanks for your review!

 

I have never quite understood the exorbitant photo prices when you see all the photos left at the end of the cruise that go in the trash... More people would buy if the prices were more reasonable. They'd sell more and waste less and most likely, make more money. I'm at an age, I don't need or want any more 8 x 10 or even a bunch of 5 x 7 photos. Thankfully, my digital camera takes great pics and there are great prices reproducing the 4x6's too! Oh well, their loss.....just don't get upset with us when we bypass the photo lines, we already know we're not buying them, so don't want to waste time taking them....

debbie

 

Hi Debbie!

 

Thanks for your compliment! It's my first time to do a relatively long review, so I am not sure if this writing style is accepted for fellow CC'ers. :o Thinking that I have learned so much (and many good tips) from the forum, I should contribute back...

 

This time around, I only purchased two family photos. Got the impulses to buy more though as I liked couple individual pics of my kids (and I fought so hard to walk away, even I did visit the Photo Gallery every evening, wishing to see the "golden ticket" in my binder). You are absolutely right about the waste *shaking head*

 

Regards,

Mandy

[bmlovell]

Loving your review it keeps you coming back for more. I always seem to miss the martini tasting but have always wanted to do it hope to get it done this time . :)

[qvenedandan]

Good evening all!

 

From now on I would post random thoughts (as they pop in my mind)... Please don't hesitate to ask any questions, and I will try my best to answer.

 

Comedy Magician Michael Finney

We watched the show on Day 6 at 9:30pm. Not action-packed or showering you with tons of tricks for sure, but Mr. Finney had good rapports with audience. The stage was set up with various magic props, but he didn't use all of them for the show.

 

Being an immigrant, I couldn't get some of his jokes, like "I feel sad that you have to stuck with your name - Melvin." Would someone enlighten me so I understand what's wrong with the name Melvin? :confused:

 

 

Fireworks

Since we stayed a bit longer in the Breakaway Theater to purchase a magic wand, the Fireworks Display has already started by the time we arrived Deck 15 Forward. Actually the view was not bad at all (and less crowded). I was wrong to assume that the display would be in small scale with simple patterns - Impressive colors (with many sparkling ones) and decent size. So glad that we didn't miss the display! :)

 

 

Thanks and best regards,

Mandy

[qvenedandan]

Loving your review it keeps you coming back for more. I always seem to miss the martini tasting but have always wanted to do it hope to get it done this time . :)

 

Hi Bridget!

 

I bet you are getting excited on the upcoming cruise!

 

About the NCL "U" Tastings, they have many sessions, mostly during Sea Days (for obvious reason). It also depends on your preference on wine/beer/cocktail. Below was the line-up for my week:

 

Day 2: Wine, Margarita, Martini

Day 3: International Wine, Margarita, International Beer, Martini

Day 6: Martini

Day 7: Wine, Mojito

 

I overheard that there were 5 sample Margaritas for tasting, while we got 4 sample Martinis in our tasting session. :rolleyes:

 

Have fun and enjoy the beautiful Breakaway.

 

Regards,

Mandy

[sunshine55]

Thanks for your review!

 

I have never quite understood the exorbitant photo prices when you see all the photos left at the end of the cruise that go in the trash... More people would buy if the prices were more reasonable. They'd sell more and waste less and most likely, make more money. I'm at an age, I don't need or want any more 8 x 10 or even a bunch of 5 x 7 photos. Thankfully, my digital camera takes great pics and there are great prices reproducing the 4x6's too! Oh well, their loss.....just don't get upset with us when we bypass the photo lines, we already know we're not buying them, so don't want to waste time taking them....

debbie

 

NCL has a new system to order photos. They are not printed til you order. You slide your card through a slot and all pictures taken will appear on the screen. You then have a chance to order.

[qvenedandan]

NCL has a new system to order photos. They are not printed til you order. You slide your card through a slot and all pictures taken will appear on the screen. You then have a chance to order.

 

Yes, they do have touch-screen TV's where you can see the pictures, yet they still print out all photos and put them into your binder, awaiting for you to purchase. At least that's what I saw last week.

 

On your room card, there is a Photo Binder number assigned. In the Photo Gallery, there are several "towers" storing Photo Binders (one binder per stateroom I believe). When the photographer took a picture of you, he/she would ask for your room card to swipe (or manually keyed in your room number), then by next day, the printed photos would be included in your designated Photo Binder.

[qvenedandan]

Oh, I forgot to mention that they add NCL watermarks on top of the pictures appeared on the screen, as a preventive measure to stop passengers taking photos from the TV's.

[bmlovell]

Hi Bridget!

 

I bet you are getting excited on the upcoming cruise!

 

About the NCL "U" Tastings, they have many sessions, mostly during Sea Days (for obvious reason). It also depends on your preference on wine/beer/cocktail. Below was the line-up for my week:

 

Day 2: Wine, Margarita, Martini

Day 3: International Wine, Margarita, International Beer, Martini

Day 6: Martini

Day 7: Wine, Mojito

 

I overheard that there were 5 sample Margaritas for tasting, while we got 4 sample Martinis in our tasting session. :rolleyes:

 

Have fun and enjoy the beautiful Breakaway.

:)

Regards,

Mandy

 

Thank you or the times of tastings I'm not going to miss it this time . And yes we are sooo excited !!!! Glad you had a nice trip take care mandy:)