Norwegian Breakaway Review
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Western Caribbean 10-day cruise aboard the Breakaway. If we're sailing NCL, it's go Haven or stay home. We stayed in the Haven on the Jade about 5 or 6 years ago, and our courtyard butler then was our room butler this time - nice to reconnect with Mr. Roberto, he works very hard and always with a smile and "happy to see you." Ronaldo, our room steward, had to make up the couch every night and break it down every morning, and he did it with a smile and "let me know what else I can do for you." Rogilio (sp?), the Haven sundeck steward, also works very hard, back and forth all day, setting up sun loungers, making sure everyone is taken care of. And our concierge, Bowen, and his team can seemingly solve every problem thrown their way, and make sure we Haveners are well taken care of with escorts to the double-secret elevators for disembarkation, etc. The bartenders, wait staff and Miss Katerina, the maitre d', and her assistant (forgetting names now) are also very friendly, efficient and accommodating. It's a well oiled team.
The Breakaway Haven differs in that it has its own restaurant and bar. We really never had to leave the Haven, although we did. Four stars only because we found the food and service lacking in a couple of the specialty restaurants. Service in Moderno was hit or miss, and the food in La Cucina and Le Bistro was definitely not up to the standard of the Haven restaurant.
And one knock on the Haven and in fact the entire ship -- the portions of food are TOO BIG. You can always ask for more, but we hated to waste food. Even when I specified "two sausage links" in the Haven, I was served four. I think I only cleaned my plate at one meal. And we were served snacks in our room every afternoon, but with all the other food at our disposal, not to mention eating three squares a day (I seldom eat a full breakfast at home), again, a lot of food went to waste. Too bad. I made two meals out of a nicoise salad because I hated to waste the second piece of seared tuna.
Cabin Review
The Haven Owner's Suite with Large Balcony
Honestly, this cabin was smaller than the two-bedroom family cabin we had on the Jade - living/dining area with half bath, smallish bedroom with spacious closet/changing area (TONS of storage throughout the whole cabin, we never even came close to filling it all, and I stuffed my empty suitcase into one of the large drawers in the changing area), and huge bathroom. The ship designers could have cheated the bathroom and changing area to make a larger bedroom, but I did love that huge shower, with no risk of banging my elbows against the walls. Even the king size pullout sofa was very comfortable. With an egg crate topper, I never felt the bars digging into my back.
Port Reviews
Harvest Caye
Not much to do here unless you want to get on a ferry to the mainland (frankly, now I wish we'd done that). Hang out at the beach for a couple of hours, drink a beer, walk around the animal enclosures, poke in a couple of shops, go back to the ship for lunch. The people who were ziplining really seemed to enjoy it, but it's not my cuppa.
New Orleans
Stayed at the Ritz on Canal St for two nights prior to the cruise, thanks to Marriott Rewards points. When we checked in, they offered us a promo - $100 per night for a club level room, with club privileges. Why not - three meals a day plus drinks. The list of good NOLA restaurants I had made went right out the window. We did the WW2 museum for a few hours - got tiresome after a while, I'm not a big fan of war or war movies - then rode the St. Charles streetcar out to the end and back. Had some time on disembark day before our flight, so took the streetcar to the French Market - just a lot of booths of people selling the same stuff, like in the ports - then had lunch on Bourbon St and headed to our flight.
Costa Maya
Again, not much to do unless you take a bus one hour south so see Mayan ruins, or take a bus one hour north to see Mayan ruins. We walked around the shops a bit, utilized the free wifi, then back to the ship for lunch.