Anyone NOT like the Breakaway?

[mommyto3nj]

The post about the Epic being awful has me concerned. I am really looking forward to our cruise on the BA. And I'm pretty sure even if the ship itself is awful, we will have a blast! I have read so many positive reviews about the BA but don't want to wear rose colored glasses and be disappointed! Anyone NOT like the BA? Why not?

[rogue 35]

There are plenty of bad reviews for Breakaway:

 

"it's too big"

"needs more elevators"

"staff was rude"

"it was crowded"

"the food was cold"

 

I'm sure there are a bunch more I am missing.

 

I went on the breakaway in November and loved it (already booked again this November) but there were plenty of people I heard on the same cruise that made it sound like the worse week of their life. Not everything was perfect for me and not everything was as bad as the Debbie Downers say.

 

Go in with an open mind and I think everything will turn out just fine.

[barnacle_boy]

If it's the Epic post you're worried about, it's not an issue. Most of the common complaints against Epic were fixed for Breakaway. Some here might think differently, which is fine, but Breakaway is a much better ship in my opinion.

Edited February 17, 2015 by barnacle_boy

[Kattus]

My only issue with the BA is the elevators. Not enough for number of pax, and super, SUPER slow. It was impossible to get a lounger by the pool, but that's an issue with any ship, and there are plenty of spots to lay out in the sun. You'll have a great time, don't listen to the Debbie Downers!

[aquarianne11]

In the review section of cruise critic, I saw a lot of negative reviews about the Breakaway and the Getaway.

 

Before we cruised, I was a little bit worried that the Breakaway will be too big for us. It turned out to be the BEST ship that we have ever been on! Just too many things do to and truly amazing for families!

[JohnIreland]

Yes, but all those people are wrong.

[Psychobueller]

No ship is perfect and crew staff are human. That said, we loved the Breakaway. It was my first ship, my my wife has been on CCL and RCL. We had a blast, made good friends, ate well, we're entertained, and enjoyed the whole experience.

[DGP1111]

. . . I have read so many positive reviews about the BA but don't want to wear rose colored glasses and be disappointed! Anyone NOT like the BA?

 

Hand in the air . . . while standing in a chair and stretching my arm. :(

 

Love loved loved Bermuda, and would go back in a hearbeat with no reservations whatsoever. Also loved my pre-cruise days in The Big Apple.

 

I was not a fan of the Norwegian Breakaway onboard experience, and hope I never repeat that, and doubt I ever will. I think it was a "one off" that should have never happened.

 

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[mizLORInj]

Try it out for yourself to form your own opinion. :D

 

I haven't had a bad cruise yet! :cool:

[AOII Panda]

I've been on Breakaway twice and loved it, I'm thinking of going on the Getaway next.

 

I'm wondering what some people's inflated expectations must be that they can have their cruise ruined by a rude person or a bad meal. To me, any day away from meetings and work spent looking at blue water with a drink in my hand is a WIN!

[spidybabe]

We totally enjoyed our cruises on the BA, very modern with some great new updates(love the touchscreens around the ship) but the ship does have some downsides ( mostly when being compared to the Gem/Jewel) It's like comparing a city to a village

Elevators very slow and crowded

Pool area tiny tiny--way too small for the amount of people onboard

Theater is also way too small

Buffet very crowded (food only OK). Main dining rooms much better

Ship always feels crowded (especially at events in the atrium-people wind up sitting on the floor)

Only two (free) main shows Rock of Ages(great show) and Burn the Floor

Events need to be booked in advance(dilutes the freestyle aspect)

Lines for everything

Lacking windows to see the outside

Staff is great, but too busy to be personable

If you go understanding that there are ALOT of people on this ship you will be ok. As I stated we had a great time on all our cruises onthe BA, but we do prefer the Gem/Jewel ships better. You can't go bad with any NCL ship!! Relax and enjoy

[amydandrea]

I've been on Breakaway and Epic and I don't have a single complaint. Frankly, being away on a ship, being served, enjoying the sun, and shows, I can't say a bad thing. Honestly I have encountered more rude guests than anything..and I don't let them bother me, have a great time. BA is beautiful and big, surging with fun and excitement, something for EVERYONE..enjoy!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

2015 Epic

2014 Breakaway

2013 Epic

2012 Gem

2011 Gem

2008 Explorer of the Seas

[mommyto3nj]

Hand in the air . . . while standing in a chair and stretching my arm. :(

 

Love loved loved Bermuda, and would go back in a hearbeat with no reservations whatsoever. Also loved my pre-cruise days in The Big Apple.

 

I was not a fan of the Norwegian Breakaway onboard experience, and hope I never repeat that, and doubt I ever will. I think it was a "one off" that should have never happened.

 

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Can you be a little more specific?

[antsnanny]

We like the Breakaway very much, never met a rude staff member and I felt the food was very good all three times I sailed on her. I have sailed with groups of friends ranging from 18 to 8 and all but one couple liked the ship a lot. The one couple who didn't is not a fan of Freestyle, they like smaller ships and the same dining room and time each night. I like that too but I also like Freestyle.

I feel she could use another bank of elevators and the balconies are small but other than that, no complaints what so ever.

[Jenorama]

We were on the Breakaway for her second trip to Bermuda in 2013, so things were VERY new. We had an aft balcony on deck 9. This has turned us into aft balcony people.

 

Our experience on the Breakaway was great, but when it comes right down to it, I think she's too big of a ship for us. I do not recall dissatisfaction with the elevator situation and I did not find it especially crowded with the exception of embarkation day. EVERYONE was roaming around the ship at once and it seemed like we were always running into the guided tour group. Both of use noted the plethora of public chill-out areas all over the ship.

 

We didn't do much in the pool area on sea days as it was indeed pretty crowded. We don't have kids and spent most of our outdoor time in the Spice H20 area. Getting a lounger to lay out in the sun there is pretty tricky, but they have very comfortable padded chairs by the railing and that was the most perfect spot to sit and read and enjoy the ocean.

 

The last day docked at Bermuda we were pretty tired from roaming the island, so that was our onboard pool day and it was awesome. Not crowded, great music and entertainment. For lunch we usually did the outdoor grill. We did Moderno and Cagney's and both were super great.

 

My husband has a milk allergy and he didn't have a problem communicating this with the maitre'd and his meals were always handled well. We didn't see a whole lot of our steward which was fine with us because the steward we had on the Star, while very sweet, was kind of always there. The room was always clean and kept nicely. None of the other staff we encountered were rude.

 

On the way back, we had the Cirque show booked and the seas were too high to do the entire show, but they did what they could, which was still amazing and comped all of us.

 

So, the Breakaway was a wonderful experience, but overall I think just too large. We're doing Alaska on the Sun and I'm looking forward to a more intimate ship.

 

Jen

[mking8288]

Mrs. M's only "complaint" about the BA last year was that, why do we have to pack and leave this ship ... I am just getting familiar with the layout and how to get around, LOL. Consequently, we are sailing her again in a month, going from an Inside to an Oceanview, and, bonus - GTY upgraded to a Balcony.

Seriously, the BA is sailing full and 4,000+ people going each time and maybe a handful aren't "happy" or satisfied ... and, it doesn't bother me that there are sour grapes among them & questioned about the discontinued lobster tail, etc.

Go with an open mind and enjoy the time onboard - dollar for dollar, it's a best buy and getting the most bangs for your bucks.

[mommyto3nj]

Mrs. M's only "complaint" about the BA last year was that, why do we have to pack and leave this ship ... I am just getting familiar with the layout and how to get around, LOL. Consequently, we are sailing her again in a month, going from an Inside to an Oceanview, and, bonus - GTY upgraded to a Balcony.

Seriously, the BA is sailing full and 4,000+ people going each time and maybe a handful aren't "happy" or satisfied ... and, it doesn't bother me that there are sour grapes among them & questioned about the discontinued lobster tail, etc.

Go with an open mind and enjoy the time onboard - dollar for dollar, it's a best buy and getting the most bangs for your bucks.

 

I see you did the Splendor AND the Breakaway. Which did you like better? Why? We sailed the Splendor in April 2013. And curious of the differences/similarities

[meatball_nyc]

Last year as we were disembarking, I asked the last crew member we saw if they needed anyone to wash dishes or scrub pots, and they laughed.

I did not want to leave that bad!!!

Wish our next trip was a lot sooner but it's good to have it booked and the planning part is what helps me get through the frigid snowy winter.

Happy Sailing!

 

 

~Robin

Every Day at Sea is a Great Day

[mking8288]

I see you did the Splendor AND the Breakaway. Which did you like better? Why? We sailed the Splendor in April 2013. And curious of the differences/similarities

Every ship has its personality, including the Splendor (which is bigger than the Jewel/Dawn class ships in NCL's fleet) which is a much bigger ship with modified fixed/flex-time dining; and, we like it better than RCI - the cabins are bigger in each category. Please see the review linked under our SIGnature on the details, if you wish.

The BA is one monster sized mega-ship and wasn't sure if we liked it with all the "gripes" about lines, reservations & so forth, but everything worked out for us - so, "our" cabin was smaller - but with just 2 of us, no problem at all & plenty of storage (packing tube of our own = missing drawers) and the beds themselves are the same size, that's really all that matter in getting a good night sleep.

We actually give CCL's buffet a somewhat better "evaluation" score than NCL's current setup, recognizing all lines are trimming costs to hold the prices down - nobody leave the ship "hungry" - the more you sailed different ships & different lines, the more you realized that the mass products are pretty much the same with minor "tweaks" and everyone is "copying" other's success and "innovating" all the time on the same basic mouse trap.

Thus, we are sailing the BA next month because it worked out for us and if the Splendor has the sailing schedule that's good for us - we'll book her again too (and, take advantage of some of that shareholder's perk ... better than NCL's)

[tlreze]

I hated the pool area on BA...way to small. If you enjoy being out sunning and/or jacuzzi's then definetely get the VIBE pass. We bought one of the clam shell things and I wouldn't do that again but would get the VIBE pass. The clam shell got to hot as no wind got in them. The nice thing about VIBE is they have 2 jacuzzi's and no kids :)

[blitheone]

I'd love to have our Breakaway aft on a Jewel class ship. Our Deck 9 suite was outstanding (a separate bedroom, a living area and two bathrooms) and the balcony was large enough to comfortably hold 20 people from our Meet'n'Greet (the ones who wanted to do a gift exchange). Plus, we had a great time at the Ice Bar. The crew was friendly and attentive, as we've come to expect with NCL.

 

That said, the Breakaway was wayyyyyy too big for us and I disliked having to reserve times for so many activities; I've always appreciated Norwegian for being the less structured cruise line.

 

I was disappointed that the smoke escaped the casino to the extent that we didn't enjoy our delicious and professionally serviced LeBistro meal as much as we could've.

 

And I was surprised at how much I missed the balcony in the theater.

 

Been there, done that and really do have the T shirt. I'd only sail on the BA again if we booked the same aft accommodations. Maybe.

[zqvol]

The post about the Epic being awful has me concerned. I am really looking forward to our cruise on the BA. And I'm pretty sure even if the ship itself is awful, we will have a blast! I have read so many positive reviews about the BA but don't want to wear rose colored glasses and be disappointed! Anyone NOT like the BA? Why not?

 

 

You couldn't give me enough money to get on it. It is way too back as are the Getaway and the Epic.

[SJ]

I think Breakaway is fine first time but that's about all it's good for especially if you're traveling with kids. I have no reason to go back as there's very little for families to do together in the evening after dinner.

 

This is just my opinion because I value the nightly shows at the theater and breakaway class ships just can't offer that. Theatre seats 700 for a ship that carries over 4000 passengers. The math does not work. What it has abundance of are bars and very little space where you can go to get away from the crowd. Having to show up at least 30 minutes to every event to maybe get a seat makes for a stressful experience. Atrium is not ideal for holding all those game shows and other events.

 

I do like the cabins better than jewel class ships. And I will use it as transportation to Bermuda if the price is right. Otherwise, the Breakaway class holds no interest for me especially since ncl is offering burn the floor on all breakaway class ships. How about some variety ncl?

[spidybabe]

Ditto

Totally agree. Well put

[xenagurl]

My parents, specifically my mother doesn't. In her words "It feels like a cattle car". I like it, it has a lot more activities and the layout is nice. However my favorite class is the Jewel. Particularly because you can walk around the whole ship easily on deck 7.

Edited February 18, 2015 by xenagurl