Norwegian Breakaway Review
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I signed up for this cruise to Bermuda only because other family members chose it to celebrate their anniversary. From the very beginning I thought the $2757 (including tax) price for a cramped inside stateroom for my wife and I was beyond reasonable. Four days at sea and only one stop in Bermuda? I have cruised about 7 times over the years with Costa lines at about a third of the price and enjoyed every one. Each one was 7 days and stopped at at least three or four ports, leaving the "at sea" time for the evenings. Based on recent cruise offers, I could have had a 7 day Mediterranean cruise for about $500 more including airfare, with stops at Spain, Italy and Greece. Don't get me wrong, your ship was fine sailing and the food was excellent, but bigger doesn't make it better or worth more.
NCL bombarded me with emails highly recommending we make advanced reservations for dinners, shows and excursions ahead of time, leaving the impression if we didn't we would be shut out of certain shows or restaurants. Never having experienced this on any other cruise, my wife and I spent much time trying to match up dinner and show times. The truth is it was not necessary at all. As a matter of fact it caused us a problem changing reservations from one paid restaurant to another because the family was going to another. Others in the family who did not make advance reservations had no problem going to any of the premium restaurants or shows by making reservations on board. In the meantime, I paid $120 for advanced reservations months ahead.
One last point, the option to debark by carrying your own luggage seemed like a good idea, until you get to the gangway and find out a large number of the 4600 passengers had the same idea. The PA instructions suggested arriving there at 7:30 AM to beat the crowds. No such luck. Passengers trying to get to the end of the line were crowding past lines going in the opposite direction. When you finally got mid ships, there really was no defined line, people were mulling together trying to figure out which way to go. There were no ship's personnel to be found organizing and directing passengers in that area. Not good.
Cabin Review
The cabin was extremely small, with very little room for anything. No drawers whatsoever. The cabin has a drop down loft bed on the wall above the bed for a third person. I can't imagine three people managing in that tiny space. I would definitely not recommend it.