My husband has wanted to cruise on a larger than life ship and since we're from the immediate area wth the Breakaway staring at us every week, we decided to give it a go. Getting onto the vessel was convenient enough but as the waiting area became so over crowded we began to wonder what we had gotten ourselves into. The timing of this cruise also played a role as well-Thanksgiving break from schools-obviously more children on board, with kids running around, crying toddlers and parents already pulling their hair out.

We found the pool areas to be small and the hot tubs constantly filled with children, from babies to preteens...taking over the area. Because of this, the adult area pool was full all the time with no breathing room, so we were not happy with that situation. The buffet was repetitive with food dishes so that by day number three you knew the entire menu for the remainder of the cruise. Our aft facing balcony was a saving grace so we did enjoy our time there for the most part particularly when cruising. The casino was crowded during peak times of 7 pm to 2 am, so we took advantage of enjoying ourselves either before or after those times. Announcements made were never quite clear in our cabin or on any exterior areas of the ship not due to mechanical or electronic problems but because the announcer spoke so close to the microphone that all you heard were garbles of sound....and that thought takes me back to the beginning of the vacation when the muster drill took place. We were settled into a dining area and while you knew what was going to take place if you had ever cruised before, if you were new to cruising this drill was the most ineffective instruction we had ever witnessed; even the crew members did not know how to put on the life jackets in order to demonstrate.

All in all while it was nice to be away in the warmer weather during what can be some cold November days we won't be cruising on this ship again mostly due to the large crowds packed into an area that can hold them while they sleep yet cannot afford them any area to stretch out and relax when awake.