Norwegian Breakaway Review
Rating by category
Additional details
This is my 2nd cruise. My first one was on RC. Cruise reviews are very important to me, and I wanted to be sure to review this cruise for others to see. We chose this one because it was a 2 hour drive to NYC. Parking was easy because we used Valet Anywhere, who picked up and dropped off our vehicle directly across from the cruise terminal entrance, which was simple and convenient and a good deal. We arrived by 8:30 am, but we weren't allowed to board the ship until 12:30. I was in a party of 7; we booked 3 balcony rooms.
ROOM: We had a balcony port side forward cabin. (This is not the side that passes the Statue of Liberty on the way out of NYC, but I did get a very nice view of the city and the Freedom Tower--both can be seen up on deck at sail away time.) The cabin was nice, but we did not get a good room steward. We usually did not have enough wash cloths and towels, and he was never around. Whereas the room steward for the rooms near mine, was ALWAYS around and happy to see me and helped me on many occasions. (I had an excellent room steward on my previous RC cruise, who was always checking in on us to see if we needed anything and to see if we were happy--so we knew what to expect in a good cabin steward, and having that good room steward on Royal Caribbean actually added to the enjoyment of my cruise.)
DINING: I traveled with a group of 7. The first day, service was super slow for lunch and dinner, but then it did improve as the week went on. I was very happy with the staff in the dining areas and most of the food. The buffet staff was always nice and friendly. Our group ate at just about every location--complimentary and specialty. This ship is geared toward small parties of people, which meant that we never sat at a table with people that we did not know--like on most traditional cruise ships.
Cabin Review
Balcony Stateroom
The room was very nice. I liked the location. We did not hear any noise. The bathroom was a good size. I slept on the couch, which was also a bed. It wasn't as nice as sleeping in a bed, but it was very very firm. Lots of storage. Wish that we had a better room steward who was around.
Port Reviews
New York (Manhattan)
We drove to there from southern New Jersey. We used Valet Anywhere for parking our vehicle. They pick up your vehicle right across the street from the terminal entrance, which was super convenient and easy and a good deal. The terminal seemed fine.
Port Canaveral (Orlando)
Not too exciting as a port. We just ended up taking a cab to Cocoa Beach, which is very similar to New Jersey beaches. (By the way, to get a flat rate cab, you have to walk out of the terminal over to where the stores are because they only allow one company to actually offer cab rides directly at the terminal. There was a long line and we would have had to pay more money, so we took the simple walk to the side of the terminal and grabbed a flat rate cab and saved 20 bucks.)
Nassau
Nice! Took a $4 per person cab to Atlantis. Walked the resort. Went to Cabbage Beach, which was beautiful, but way too rough to swim! Great for pictures and sitting on the beach! Then went to Junkanoo Beach, which was not as pretty, but the water was calm. You can see the cruise ships from there. Good deals on booze there, too.
Great Stirrup Cay
Did not get to go. Could not tender. So so so so so so sad. :-( I am giving it an average rating (because they are making me rate it) and because it is a port that looks very nice, but it is difficult to tender to it many times. Maybe a dock or some other way of getting to the island would be helpful to make this a better port.