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Turning 70 At Sea: Review of a Family Adventure on the Breakaway (08.10.2014 Sailing)


puddles99
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In a departure from my more typical day by day detailed reviews, this narrative will be focused on the mission of this cruise - ensuring my patient, adoring, fantastic father-in-law (FIL) had the most amazing 70th birthday possible. The way I figure it, anyone who has lived that long and survived both a tour of Vietnam and 43 years of marriage to my mother-in-law (MIL) deserves the vacation of a lifetime.

 

He had very few specific requests as I began planning on behalf of the family:

1) A cruise (something he had always dreamed of doing)

2) Golfing with his sons on his birthday

3) Deep sea fishing

4) Time with his granddaughters

 

Three outta four ain't bad, right? More on that in a minute.

 

It all began a year ago when we booked the Breakaway and I created a calendar (using Shutterfly) that had a different picture of the ship, Bermuda, or New York for each month. I added in key milestones over the year - marking family birthdays, anniversaries, etc. And over the last year, my FIL has diligently placed a sticker on each day as it passed - giddily bringing me the "completed" calendar on departure day :D

 

Everyone - a total of seven people - gathered at my house the night before the cruise and I had prearranged for car service through KAR Limousine to port on Sunday morning. The trip in was completely painless & we arrived at Pier 88 around 10:30 Sunday morning. We were whisked through security, Haven check-in, and snacked in the lounge for about an hour before being escorted on board. Easy-peesy.

 

My FIL immediately fell in love with the ship while my MIL was intimidated by the shear size of it. We spent a bit of time exploring the ship, signing the girls up for Splash Academy (even though they barely went at all), and deciding what types of activities we wanted to partake in over the week ahead.

 

I had pre-reserved Burn the Floor for Monday evening and Rock of Ages for Tuesday but after enjoying the (slightly loud) Welcome Aboard show, the group decided they weren't interested in seeing Burn the Floor. The adults in our group (my daughters did not attend) really enjoyed the RoA show but lamented about how uncomfortable the theatre seats are with an oddly placed bar under the back of the seat.

 

After doing quite a bit of research here, on TripAdvisor, through my Travel Agent, and elsewhere, I had arranged the following activities for the "crew" once in Bermuda: On Wednesday, I reserved a Deep Sea Marlin fishing trip with Wound Up Charters for FIL, DH, BIL, & my 2 DDs and Winsome Transport Deluxe Island Tour for MIL & myself. For Thursday, I booked (and pre-paid) for the guys to golf at Port Royal through NCL while the rest of us planned to hit the water slides and enjoy the shops in the Dockyard. Once the guys returned, we planned to visit the National Museum of Bermuda as a group. For Friday, I rented (again, paying in advance) a pontoon boat through Fantasea which we could pick up right in the dockyard.

 

We arrived in Bermuda on a rainy Wednesday morning and immediately knew that our plans were at risk. After debarking, we made our way to the area where we would meet our tours and quickly found Ralph Richardson of Winsome tours who was a pleasure to spend the day with. I felt bad leaving the rest of the crew behind to find Captain James Robertson for the fishing trip, but DH insisted I head out and not worry about them.

 

MIL & I had a great day touring the island, being regaled with Ralph's tales, seeing the reenactment of the Dunking of the Wench, eating in St. George's square at a lovely hole in the wall called simply, "The Restuarant" (I recommend the Wahoo Sandwich & a Rum Swizzle), and enjoying amazing views from Gibbs Hill Lighthouse and Scaur Fort.

 

The rest of the crew did not make out so well. Due to the less than fantastic weather, Captain Robertson suggested that the family may not want to risk fishing for two reasons - 1) the trip would be rough & 2) the fishing had been poor the past few days. So here is where we failed a bit. FIL sincerely said he was fine with the change of plans, but my oldest DD was pretty candid about her disappointment. Oh well - she's got many years ahead to go chase marlins!

 

The next morning, the boys hit the greens at Port Royal (which they claim was fun, but the course wasn't in great shape) while the rest of us hung out on board. I actually finished reading a book! But enough about me . . . once the guys got back on board and grabbed a bite to eat, we headed out again to visit the National Museum. It was hot. But for FIL, it was absolutely perfect. At one point he wandered off and we lost him for a while, but we found him in the bowels of the Commissioner's House intently watching a movie about the Bermuda military.

 

On our last day in Bermuda, I chartered a pontoon boat through Fantasea. Since DH is confident driving a boat - and I needed a way to appease his itch and keep him from buying one of his own anytime soon - we chose to drive ourselves vs. pay per hour for a professional. This was a great decision for us. We really could design our own adventure.

 

DH and I picked up the boat & some snacks at Pier 41 - just outside the Clocktower Mall. We were provided with a safety briefing, map, & a quick overview of what it would cost if we damaged the boat (which resulted in some uncharacteristically conservative driving on DH's part). We then sailed around and picked up the rest of the family right by the Breakaway so no one else had to make the walk around the Dockyard. Over the next few hours, we dropped anchor and snorkeled / swam around in several different spots. The water was a little cloudy due to the recent weather, but FIL had the time of his life and we may never wipe the smile off his face!

 

The only downside of the day was when DD#1 stepped on piece of coral or rock wading back off a beach to swim back to the boat. She gashed the bottom of her foot pretty badly. We patched her up as best we could using the contents of the First Aid kit on board (kudos to Fantasea here for a well equipped boat!) and headed back to the ship. When we arrived at the on-board clinic, the medical team was impressed by how clean the wound was & how well it was wrapped (score one for Mom!). A few steri-strips, some liquid bandage, a roll of gauze, a next-day return trip to inspect for infection, and a few Motrin and she's almost as good as new. No need for amputation, so we'll just chalk that up as part of the adventure!

 

On our final sea day, FIL took to the air on the ropes course & also had his first ever massage. I think by the age of 70 everyone should experience a great massage and he came to dinner looking so relaxed I thought he might nap at the table. He came into this cruise looking to truly live - to celebrate turning 70 by filling in the blanks on a lifetime of experiences he had not yet had and by golly he did it. He cruised, snorkeled, walked the plank, had a drink (he swore off gambling & drinking 40 years ago because he wanted to be a good role model and father to his boys), got a massage, tried new foods, and literally had the time of his life.

 

I'd like to give a quick public shout out (Vacation Hero cards were filled out for each while on board) to a few Breakaway crew members who were key in making this week so special for us -- Dharma (server in Moderno), Adrian (Concierge), Lanie (Butler), Cecilio (Steward), Lorna (server in Haven Restaurant), and Malvin (Asst. Maître'D in the Haven Restaurant).

 

You really only do live once and for FIL - last week was full of life!

 

 

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Debbie what a great review! I'm so glad for your FIL. You worked so hard to plan! Awesome!!!

 

 

The adults in our group (my daughters did not attend) really enjoyed the RoA show but lamented about how uncomfortable the theatre seats are with an oddly placed bar under the back of the seat.

 

THANK YOU! I never ever see this mentioned and this was a BIG problem for us on Breakaway. That metal bar was the most uncomfortable thing and I couldn't believe a brand new theatre had such uncomfortable seats! I wondered if it was all of them, or we happened to sit in a bad batch or some broken ones. This confirms I didn't. Hated those darn seats and I'm worried about the ones on Getaway!!

 

Sorry about the deep sea fishing but it truly sounds like you had a great vacation! Enjoy the rest of your week :)

 

MB

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Nice review!

Glad you and your family had a great time on Breakaway and in Bermuda.

Thanks for coming back and sharing with us.

I know how excited you were about this cruise and the year long wait sometimes seems like it takes forever.

Hope your daughter's foot is better.

Safe Sailing!

P.S. Love Breakaway !!!!

 

~Robin

Every Day at Sea is a Great Day

Edited by meatball_nyc
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Thanks all! It really was a great week. If anyone has any specific questions, I'd be glad to answer. Of course I know there are a gazillion other reviews this summer so most topics are already covered!

 

 

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