Breakaway in August - how crowded is it really?

Hi - I'm looking to book the Breakaway to Bermuda, Aug 17 sailing. It will just be my 10 yr old daughter and me. We cruise together often and always have fun. We did the NCL Spirit to the Bahamas years ago and loved it. But our last few cruises have been Carnival and we also loved them.

Neither of us are foodies so we wont spend extra for specialty restaurants, we save our money for fun excursions. So my questions:

- reviewers seem to all complain about the pools (crowded, too small), does this mean we cant enjoy them at all on sea days? I dont mind crowds if its not disgusting and unsafe.

- everyone says long lines for slides, does this mean more than 10 mins wait?

- can we eat whenever we want in non-paying restaurants, will there be long waits there too?

I cant see spending the extra money for NCL to have long waits, crowds, the whole week.

All comments welcome ;)

Thanks in advance!

Lori & Andie

I sailed on the Breakaway last July and thought that the main pool deck seemed to be very crowded anytime I walked through. I never tried (or wanted to ) use the main pool area, but I actually got anxious walking through it due to the crowds.

As far as the slides, a number of my party of 8 used the slides during the cruise and had no wait. The ropes course was available and with nearly no wait on the last sea day for 5 of us.

Sorry I can't speak about the non-paying restaurants...except the Uptown grill...

We loved the Uptown grill! And the waterfront was wonderfully empty every time I was there.

I was impressed with the lack of crowding overall...except for the main pool area.

I hope you have a great cruise! :)

Thank you for the reply, tymike! Sounds encouraging that lines werent bad at slides. When I read some reviews from last summer, it sounded like we might not even get to use some of the great amenities the ship has to offer.

Anyone else have thoughts?

Still havent booked but I really like the Bermuda itinerary/3 days in port.

Thanks!

Thank you for the reply, tymike! Sounds encouraging that lines werent bad at slides. When I read some reviews from last summer, it sounded like we might not even get to use some of the great amenities the ship has to offer.

Anyone else have thoughts?

Still havent booked but I really like the Bermuda itinerary/3 days in port.

Thanks!

Hi, Lori & Andie! My family and I have been on two NCL cruises, one in June and one in July. You'll find that the main pools are extremely crowded, so crowded that we've never even been able to get a lounger anywhere near the pool. My daughter gets anxious when people are on top of her in the pool, so we haven't really utilized the pool too much. :( This year, we are going on the Breakaway to Bermuda and have paid extra for a Haven two-bedroom suite. The Haven pool is extremely small, but my theory is that's fine because it's not for over 3,000 people.

Hi acharris -

So that is what is discouraging me - with lots of sea days and it being August, we will be upset if we cant enjoy the pool. I dont even care about a lounger, just like to sit on the side of the pool while my daughter swims around.

I will look into the Haven, I didnt even see that come up as an option on ncl, maybe it is sold out for the cruise I am looking at.

Thank you for the response!

Pool area very very small and crowded. Last June, you were lucky if you could find a spot to dip your toes in. Loungers lined up so close to each other they were touching, and you had to climb onto them from the foot end. The pool not that important to us, so we were fine. Most venues on the Breakaway are smaller than on other ships, therefore you feel crowded most of the time, but being from NYC it didn't bother us. Never used slides/ropes, but always saw lines.

Thr Breakaway is a beautiful new shiip with many positive points, as well as some negative ones ( We miss the great outdoors, beautiful window seats, party atmosphere at Bliss and spinniker)

Safe sailing

Yeah, it is very discouraging. My daughter all geared up for hang out at the pool all day, so she was pretty bummed when it wasn't as awesome as she imagined. Also, since we never got a chair or a lounger, we had to kind of keep our stuff with us to sit alongside the pool, which was a bit awkward since we had shoes, room keys, etc. We tried the next time without shoes so we wouldn't have to babysit them, but the deck was soooooooo hot. The Haven is a lot more expensive, but I have high hopes that it's worth it. On the Breakaway, the Haven courtyard is like three doors down from our room, so we'll be able to pop in and out at our leisure.

My sister and her gang on sailing on the Breakaway this June which will her first time cruising ever. I myself have not sailed on the Breakaway so I can not answer all her questions.

Is it best to make reservations for the complimentary restaurants, and also for the shows?

Are there any other water features besides the crowed pools and slide. Ex: wading pools, fountains you can sit under, etc.

When docked in bermuda, what besides the casino is closed?

Thx

The BA is a great ship, but they really dropped the ball on the pool area. We went early last September and it was mobbed every sea day. Slides were anywhere from walk up and go to 8-10 minute wait. Thank god we had bought Vibe passes!!!

DW, DS and I were on a 12 nigter on the BA in January that was listed as sold out. There were not a lot of youngsters on board so I'm sure sold out meant virtually all cabins were filled but not to capacity with 3rd and 4th children.

Needless to say the first few days out and back the pool was a non issue, but as we reached warmer climates, it was noticably crowded and that's without all the children of the summer months. While in port the ship is relatively empty so I'm sure you will be able to enjoy the pool area.

To be honest, if there were another 800 or so kids on the ship as confirmed by many of the workers, the BA would be extemely crowded to the point of maybe being unenjoyable on sea days.

There is a "kiddy" pool, but the main pool is small, and it only takes 40 or so people to make it ridiculously unenjoyable.

The funny thing is, we had an oppertunity to talk to the captain for a good 20 minutes and he seemed genuinely interested in feed back, both good and bad, regarding the breakaway. We talked about all of the good and bad complaints such as balcony size, pool size and pending head to head competition with RCCL's Quantum of the seas. The one thing he was completely unwilling to yield as being a bad design was the pool size.

He insisted NCL research confirms that today's cruisers are not interested in the pool, rather they want slides and bathing areas, but not a large pools. Personally, I think he was just defending the company, but as he put it NCL has no intentions of increasing the pool sizes on any of their upcoming new ships.

Oh, and by the way, he said NCL monitors cruise critic all the time, himself included.

Lori & Andie,

I was on the Breakaway to Bermuda in August last year. Yes, the pools are crowded. Doubt ANY ship of similar class could handle all the guest to the point you'd feel like you were at a motel pool. Lines for the water slides weren't that bad. 5-10 mins though that was for the "adult" slides.

That being said, you are going to Bermuda! 3 days! Lots of beaches! Sure you'll hit the water at some point.

As for non-paying restaurants, I had no problems when I went though did dine early.

Would not hesitate to take the same ship/cruise again. Enjoy!

Hi Lori and Andie!

We will be sailing Breakaway this July for my youngest son's 18th birthday.

What we plan to do (and have done on previous cruises and have found to be quite pleasant) is to find loungers one deck up from the pool deck.

It's only one flight down to take a swim to cool off.

We also plan on relaxing in H2O which has a fountain water feature.

We are so excited for our trip on Breakaway. Cannot wait to sail to Bermuda and enjoy the warm weather.

We want to enjoy the Waterfront as well.

Happy Cruising!

~Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

I went on the "Breakaway" last October and of course was not crowded with children as the Summer was done! I went one deck up from the pool~~I do not swim in the pool and the H20 area was very nice. Of course the beaches in Bermuda are to die for. I even did a private beach day, but made the reservations through them~~had to take the ferry and taxi there~~but so worth the day! Happy sailing!:) The Reefs was the name of the resort!

I am booked for August. I know it will be much more crowded then my first cruise on the Breakaway with only 2200 passengers. At least I will be able to enjoy the outdoor spaces. First cruise was the transatlantic and pools and Waterfront were deserted. I may not even leave the ship in Bermuda to enjoy the peace and quiet. :D

Thanks all for the very informative responses, I feel like I'm getting a better idea of what reviewers mean by "crowded". Its all their perspective. :)Meatball_nyc (Robin), I love that you mention grabbing a lounger 1 deck up from the pool, that is fine for me too. And Bjlaac, I didnt realize that there is a kiddie pool separate from the "main" pool, my daughter would enjoy that area to cool off in. I'm surprised that the captain feels that pool size isnt important, I'm not looking to swim laps and I do realize that we will soon be on beautiful Bermuda beaches but as someone who spends all year in a "fluorescently" lit office, as soon as I get on the ship, I like to start enjoying the sun/outdoors. I could just fly to Bermuda and spend 3 hours getting there instead of 3 days. My ship time is a big part of vacation.

So now that I'm understanding that there are other places to get wet and cool down while still enjoying the sun, I am really excited to take this cruise.

Thanks again for the advice! Happy sailing!

You're very welcome!

I'm a sun-lover, too :) and love to be outside so I can see the ocean.

Have a great cruise!

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Carnival Miracle 2010

Carnival Legend 2006

Every Day at Sea is a Great Day

I sailed on the Breakaway last August. It was crowded! My sailing was over capacity and had about 1300 kids. Including the crew onboard we were close to 7,000 people onboard. I was in the Haven so I never had to deal with any of the crowds by the pool area and dining venues. I did do all the water slides and ropes course but I did it while the ship was docked in Bermuda and there was no lines at all. I'm sailing again on the Breakaway this August.

I'll be getting on the day you get off

:)

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

The funny thing is, we had an oppertunity to talk to the captain for a good 20 minutes and he seemed genuinely interested in feed back, both good and bad, regarding the breakaway. We talked about all of the good and bad complaints such as balcony size, pool size and pending head to head competition with RCCL's Quantum of the seas. The one thing he was completely unwilling to yield as being a bad design was the pool size.

 

He insisted NCL research confirms that today's cruisers are not interested in the pool, rather they want slides and bathing areas, but not a large pools. Personally, I think he was just defending the company, but as he put it NCL has no intentions of increasing the pool sizes on any of their upcoming new ships.

 

Oh, and by the way, he said NCL monitors cruise critic all the time, himself included.

Thanks for sharing this tidbit. I'm sailing Breakaway in 14 months and I'm a little anxious about our June sailing. The pool area is the center of my universe when I'm on a cruise. That said, I like the hot tub more than the pool. I just cool off in the pool in between hot tub sessions. I'm expecting to spend most of my pool time on Breakaway in Spice H20, and I think I'll be perfectly happy with hot tubs and the water feature. It will allow me to complete the hot/cold cycle without a proper pool. And if that's what the captain means: hot tubs and water features rather than pools with large surface areas, then I get it. But, lots of people like me go on cruises because they want a pool experience. They need to be careful not to take too much water out of the equation.

Thanks for sharing this tidbit. I'm sailing Breakaway in 14 months and I'm a little anxious about our June sailing. The pool area is the center of my universe when I'm on a cruise. That said, I like the hot tub more than the pool. I just cool off in the pool in between hot tub sessions. I'm expecting to spend most of my pool time on Breakaway in Spice H20, and I think I'll be perfectly happy with hot tubs and the water feature. It will allow me to complete the hot/cold cycle without a proper pool. And if that's what the captain means: hot tubs and water features rather than pools with large surface areas, then I get it. But, lots of people like me go on cruises because they want a pool experience. They need to be careful not to take too much water out of the equation.

If H20 had a pool it would be paradise. Instead, they have some fountains that are slippery and stink, and you sweat your brains out trying to stay cool. The main pool area is too small and the crowded feeling is disturbing. Ship has many nice features, pool areas and sunning areas missed the mark. Ship is great if your 12 years old.

Never again for us, I'll sail the Gem any day over Breakaway.

My sister and her gang on sailing on the Breakaway this June which will her first time cruising ever. I myself have not sailed on the Breakaway so I can not answer all her questions.

 

Is it best to make reservations for the complimentary restaurants, and also for the shows?

 

Are there any other water features besides the crowed pools and slide. Ex: wading pools, fountains you can sit under, etc.

 

When docked in bermuda, what besides the casino is closed?

 

Thx

Actually the casino is supposed to be open at night starting this year in Bermuda.