Breeze 5-day, short review

[TexasBrit]

Embarkation was efficient with many agents available. We arrived about 10 mins before our actual time slot, (12:30) and were directed to the line. About 5 mins moving through then 1st stop at the health checks to show vaccination cards and test results as well as boarding passes and passports. Then on to security and up to final check-in. Again plenty of agents so no waiting at all. Just showing cruise docs again, and then directly onto the ship with no waiting in the lounge for a group number to be called. It is quite a good walk through several sloping ramps, and people with weight and mobility issues seemed to have some difficulty here.

 

Once on the ship, you first go directly to your muster station where the lifejacket demo is shown to about 10-12 people at a time as you arrive. . No waiting in a huge group all at the same time as before. This is much better now. Then you watch a short video in your cabin and it is done!

We were told cabins would be available at 1:30, so just time for a quick drink at one of the LIdo deck bars, and then about 1:15 the waiters told us that the cabins were ready. Luggage was already there when we found our cabin. We immediately checked all of of the plumbing which was in good working order. We had a balcony cabin on deck 8 although we never actually used the balcony. The cabin steward was very efficient as usual and kept the cabin and bathroom in excellent condition and well stocked with clean towels. We chose service in the morning after 10 am which worked very well.

 

Food was good overall. Service in the MDR was excellent. Tables are requested with the HUB app and usually assigned within 5-10 minutes. There does seem to be fewer choices than before for dinner in the MDR. We ate at Cucina one night which was excellent, and at the Steakhouse. My meal was very good, but her steak was tough. She tried to work through it, but gave up. The Chef came out after we mentioned it to the server and offered another selection, but it was too late. The rest of the meal was fine. The Art at the Table dessert was unique and interesting but a bit of a gimmick.

Guy's Burgers was variable. Some were great as usual, others not quite so good. The lobster roll at the SeaFood Shack was very good but not really worth the nearly $15 (including tip and tax) upcharge. You get two hotdog buns filled with the lobster concoction and a few crinkly cut fries. Prepared to order with about 15 minute wait. Pizza was not bad, but nothing spectacular. Cooked on request but we just happened to get there as some were ready, so no waiting.

We had breakfast at the buffet once, which had the usual offerings and variety, and in the Blush dining room twice. Again, fairly standard service, selection and quality.

 

The entertainment has definitely come down a notch or two. The main theatre shows had just four men and four women, singing and dancing to recorded music from  Motown, Movies and Piano men songs (Elton John, Jerry Lee Lewis, Barry Manilow etc). Entertainment in the other venues was mainly a solo singer with guitar, and a violin trio in the Atrium. In the Ocean Plaza there used to be a good band that played a variety of dance music and many people would be dancing, but this time it was a 2-man latin/salsa band and only one or two couples danced a few times. Not many people stayed there in contrast to previous cruises. The piano bar singer was okay and this venue was usually full. The most popular events were the comedy shows which quickly filled up. People were standing in line for almost an hour before it started to be sure to get in. We didn't bother with it. We also didn't go to the nightclub so can't comment on that. The main casino was usually quite full but not as smokey as it used to be as there are some smoking restrictions. However there is now a non-smoking smaller casino annex on the 4th deck which was nice and had many players.

 

There also seemed to be fewer daily activities consisting mostly of various trivia games, sometimes for hours on end with a variety of general and specialist topics and a few arts & crafts and dance classes. The trivia sometimes got a bit heated with guests arguing with the host about the answers. Many sessions were won by the same person who took home several SOAS. A psychologist could write a very interesting article about the dynamics of these games! There were a few bingo sessions and the new Deal or No Deal game that we didn't attend as it conflicted with our mealtime. There were the usual contests on the Lido deck and being Halloween week there was a costume contest with some really amazing costumes.

There were movies on the big screen and on the room TVs. Baseball fans were pleased that the World Series games were shown on the TVs in the Casino bar and Red Frog pub with the sound on! There were also some college football and European club soccer games being shown.

 

Disembarkation was the quickest ever. We had a leisurely breakfast in the Blush DR as we were in the last group but we had barely finished when our number was called and we were off by 9:30. No lines at immigration, just the facial recognition system which was quick. We were back to the parking lot and in the car by 10 am. Overall this is a terrific improvement but no doubt helped by the lower guest numbers on this cruise that we heard was about 50-60% capacity.

 

Overall it was nice to get away and be back on board. Just about everyone wore masks when it was required, in the inside locations. There were crew members at the entrances to the buffet who reminded people to put their masks on and provided one if they had forgot theirs.  Thankfully there were no tantrums and outbursts about mask wearing. Masks were not required when out on the decks. All crew wore masks 100% of the time, inside or outside.

 

The cruise was enjoyable and certainly for the prices paid there can be no complaints. Maybe they will be able to get back to normal programming once the ships are filling up. This wasn't our best cruise ever but much better than no cruise and we were happy that we could go.

[Bevv]

Thanks for the review. We will be on the Breeze in a few weeks and good to know things went smoothly for you. Our arrival time is also 12:30 and it looks like the timing will be perfect for us, since we will be dragging a 24 pack of Diet Coke for my Hubby and that gets to be a pain after a while.

[HarborHermit]

Thanks for the review. I am booked on the Breeze for next month.

[DPTexas]

TexasBrit, thank you for your review.  My daughter and I were on the Breeze in September and had pretty much the same experience as you.   It was a very enjoyable cruise, great service, best room steward ever, and wonderful food.  We enjoyed the piano bar, Dive in Movie, and also the smoke-free casino.  We stayed on board during the Cozumel port because we have been many other times and it was a very hot day!   Embarkation and debarkation were "a breeze" (sorry, couldn't help myself). The lines were very short and because of the proximity of our stateroom, we did not use the elevators as much, but there seemed to be less queuing at them and the MDR.  A factor could have also been because of the reduced capacity.  Most people wore masks and they had extras at the entertainment venues and MDR for people who forgot theirs.  The T-spa was busier than we have experienced before, so we did not have as many trips to the T-pool and loungers as usual.  The staff were friendly and obviously very glad to be working again. We purposely picked a shorter cruise to 'test the waters" and this was our first cruise after so many cancellations and re-bookings.  Our only complaint is that it was too short, but it also gave us the confidence to book additional cruises, so it achieved its purpose. 

We are so happy to be back cruising.

[txgal08]

Just to tag on, I was on the ship right after you. Just the four night cruise to Cozumel. I really enjoyed the food overall but I did not enjoy the lobster roll, as I felt like it had no flavor. I thought there was plenty to choose from activity wise. I spent most of my time in the red frog pub and they have great bartenders there Who knew me by name, not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing 🙂 I was very disappointed in the spa pass and the shampoo and style I paid for. I don’t recommend either of these to anyone. I requested that the cabin Stewart not address my room throughout the cruise and I was just fine with towels etc.  

[Rudyard]

Nice review. We were on Breeze last month and our experience was very similar to yours. 

[mexicobob]

Good review. Thank you for taking the time to post.

[webzila]

Got on the Breeze today and the check-in wasn't as great as your experience. We parked and walked to the terminal at 12:15. Our time slot was 12-12:30. The line outside was long. It was nearly 1 PM before we got inside and the line there was even longer with everyone packed in. That part is for them to check your vaccine and test status then go through security. That part took about 1 hr and then you go to the actual boarding check-in. By the time we got on the ship it was 2:15 so about 2 hrs of lines / check in

[Bevv]

On 11/13/2021 at 9:55 PM, webzila said:

Got on the Breeze today and the check-in wasn't as great as your experience. We parked and walked to the terminal at 12:15. Our time slot was 12-12:30. The line outside was long. It was nearly 1 PM before we got inside and the line there was even longer with everyone packed in. That part is for them to check your vaccine and test status then go through security. That part took about 1 hr and then you go to the actual boarding check-in. By the time we got on the ship it was 2:15 so about 2 hrs of lines / check in

We were in the line 1/2 hour after your check in time and it still was 2 hours.