Ok, so here goes. This was my 12 th cruise, 8 with Carnival, 3 with RCCL and first time with NCL. I have to say because of all the negativity of the Breakaway on cruise critic, I was really nervous about trying it. But my husband and I are easy going, easy to please and we like to go during Thanksgiving Week without flying out of NY, so we were limited, so we booked the Breakaway. We also had a friend and her son(age 12) and she had a friend and her son (17) meet us for the cruise.

EMBARKATION: Smoothest of all 12 cruises, HANDS DOWN! My brother dropped us off at 1000 exactly, we dropped our bags, checked in and were sitting in waiting area to board by 1015! The staff were very friendly and efficient. They announced early boarding at 1120 and we were on the ship by 1140.

ROOM: We had Cabin 9208, Mini Suite, don't be fooled by "suite" lol only means bigger bathroom with dual sinks and jets in shower, which I must say was REALLY nice! :) There was more than enough storage and yes, balcony was smaller than used to, but who cares..we both fit comfortably..I mean how much room do you need to sit and enjoy the beautiful ocean? Our room steward the first 2 days was Renato, who was amazing! He left us in FL to go home. Then we had Fidelis, who had big shoes to fill and did! We had towel animals, every night, extra towels when asked for and we slept in most days and I know he had to work late because of us! I must mention, something terrible did happen that has never happened before...they "lost" my toiletries bag! I was in a complete panic when we received all our bags by 5pm and missing the one small bag with all my hair things, glasses, extra contacts, etc etc. At 8 pm and MULTIPLE trips between guest services, and lost luggage area, I had to file a lost baggage report. The solution? Handed me a NCL T Shirt, toothbrush and toothpaste!!! I was flabbergasted and upset! But I decided no not lose my cool yet as they were going to investigate what happened. Well, around 930pm, Renato informed me that my bag was one of the last 3 on the ship to be sent to the room!! Thank goodness..ok...NOW, we could relax and get on with our vacation! :) Read more