yj2cute

We sailed the Breakaway over New Years this past year. It was not a good experience. While we really liked the cabin itself, the layout of the ship was not designed for the capacity of the ship. The Atrium was way too small for the events that were held there. We skipped the theater shows because the seats were so uncomfortable (we did the Welcome Aboard show and left because of the seats and the entertainment was TERRIBLE). We did enjoy Second City and Howl at the Moon. Food was pretty lackluster, but the fireworks were a nice touch.

 

In the future, we will stick with Royal. The only reason my parents booked NCL was because it was so much cheaper than Quantum.

Your experience is almost identical to mine. I'll add that the fireworks didn't even go off for our sailing due to technical difficulties. I also missed actual stand up comedy. Second City was OK, but I like a good stand up comic. I did enjoy Rock of Ages, however and the blues band. It's such a disappointment because the price is good compared to the Anthem and even the Grandeur out of Bmore.

I know everyone has their own opinions and preferences when it comes to cruising and we are so used to RCs service that reading reviews of the Breakaway kind of scare us! We really want to try NCL for their freestyle cruising and The Waterfront looks neat. I agree that the only way to know for sure is to try for ourselves and see!

I agree. You should definitely go and see how you enjoy it. YMMV. That's why I did it. I was hoping for another no-fly option. The good thing is, I am willing to fly so if I have to, I will.

I was on Breakaway and while she's a beautiful ship, it was one of my least favorite cruises. The food was pretty bad, even in specialty dining. The Italian restaurant was awful. Also I hated their use of the atrium area. Loud events and movies all day made a visit to guest services or OSheeans pub uncomfortable. And they held popular events there like the Live and Marriage show which meant very little seating. I really have no desire to go back on that ship which is disappointing. Although I love Royal it would have been nice to have another new ship option sailing from the Northeast.

Sadly, someone on our cruise suffered a bad accident at Maho Beach

 

New article:

 

http://www.thedailyherald.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=57132:flying-hat-lands-cruiser-in-hospital&catid=1:islands-news&Itemid=54

Why do people insist on ignoring the BIG sign stating that it's dangerous and to stay away from the fence? :confused: This is the 2nd story I've read recently where someone was seriously injured doing this? Smh..

Found the review, Ken! Great start. Love the pics.

Hopefully our cruise paths will cross again and we'll have another grand cabin crawl like the one on Quantum.

 

Jonathan

Hi, Jonathan. I sailed with you and Ken on the Quantum as well and really enjoyed the cabin crawl. I'm sailing on the Liberty to Bermuda as well. Too bad I'll miss you. As you said, hopefully we'll cross paths again, and with Ken! :)

Yael

I recently went on my first Disney cruise, sans kid. While the quality is evident, I don't recommend for those without kids. I felt bored a lot of the time as the evening adult activities are sparse and poorly attended. Bars empty in the evening and "adult" comedy PG 13 at best. I can see how those with kids would love it but since I'm past that stage of my life, RCCL is definitely a better fit.

Thanks Yael! Have fun reading this one!

 

 

 

Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed the review.

Kim, great review as always! Now I'm reading your blog because I'll be visiting Cartagena on a cruise next year. I'm glad to have some info from someone I

"know". ;) Thanks again.

Hi, Kim!

Just found this review! Only watched the video so far but I can't wait to read the rest. I know you had a fab time. Thanks as always for sharing your travels with us!

Yael

Hi travelers, thanks for all the great info.

 

I new to this forum and cruising. I just booked on Star Princess from Anchorage to Vancouver for 7 days, leaving Aug. 29. I got inside cabin which was advertised for $399. After single supplement and fees were added in it came to $973. I'm not sure if that's a good deal or not. I wasn't sure about the dining options, I signed up for anytime...what are the advantages of traditional?

 

Steve from Austin

I think the advantages of traditional dining is that you know you'll have a group of people to dine with. And if it's a good match up you may have some nice folks you can pal around with if you choose. Anytime may leave you dining alone if none of the other diners opt to share a table.

OP, I have to agree with you as well. Carnival is not my first choice of line but I will sail them under the right circumstances. As you said, right now they are not really persuading me to choose them over other lines. I will only sail Carnival's newer ships. You won't catch me on an "ation" ship, and now with Breeze moving to Galveston they really don't have too much to offer me.

I've cruised both ships and IMO Splendor is not a comparable replacement for Breeze. If I were booked on one of the affected sailings I'd definitely cancel. I'm glad I got a chance to try Breeze before she moved. I'm also very surprised to see so many ships in Galveston.

The only change is the date got moved up by 2 days. We stop at the same ports, just 2 days earlier each port. The only downside is we now arrive in Miami on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, meaning flights home will be more costly than when we arrived on Tuesday.

Rob, that may be a valid issue for me. My GF sailed on a Thanksgiving sailing last year and the airfate, on Southwest even, was astronomical. Since it was a family of 3 they opted to drive all the way from FL to MD as opposed to paying the high airfare. So what are the new sailing dates?

Oh that explains why I can't access any November Vista cruises online. I'd like to book the repo. Looking forward to seeing what the changes are.

Chris, I thought Jimmy Rhodes would be back from his vacation by now. He was the original CD for Quantum.

The prices went up Yael. Those martinis were 15 a piece.

 

The cabanas can only be reserved on board now I guess they did away with advance reservations

 

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Note 4 using Tapatalk

Thanks for the info, Chris. $15 for a choc martini? Royal has lost their natural mind! :eek:

Chris, so how are the drink prices so far? How much were those chocolate martinis?

Also, you mentioned having to go to shore excursions to book Labadee cabanas. Are we unable to book them in advance now?

I'm just joining in, Chris. Can't wait to read your wonderful review! I'm sure I'll feel just like I'm there!

Yael

I love Allure so I understand the dilemma. I guess I'd figure out how much the travel costs would be if you drove and then see how much the difference is. If it's less than $400 I'd probably still choose Anthem just for the convenience of not having to fly or drive such a long distance. Also you get to explore a brand new class of ship. And when the cruise is over it's a quick drive home, not a 24 hour drive home!

I'd definitely do it for only $280! I loved our cove balcony.

Thank you for your summary. In your list of entertainment you noted they had the Adult Quest. I had heard they would not be doing the Quest on this show. What venue did they use for Quest?

I find this incredibly surprising. Build 3 Quantum Class ships, commit 2 to China before the first one even begins sailing there?! I say "commit" on the assumption that Ovation will be built to order with the modifications necessary for the Chinese market. In any event, that's an awfully bold move by Royal Caribbean...

Wow, 2 brand new Quantum class ships to China? I'm surprised like you, Dave. So basically, those in the US will have to travel to NJ if they want to experience this class of ship.

So, will we not have Quantum or Anthem in the US - sorry been busy w/ work to keep up w/ all the discussions

Yes, Anthem will be sailing out of Cape Liberty, NJ all year round. I'm booked for Nov. 10, 2015! :D

Are these shows similar to the ones on Quantum? I hope so. I enjoyed Starwater and didn't get a chance to see Sonic Odyssey.

I only had 2 nights on the Quantum and based on that I would say I definitely prefer Oasis class over Quantum. That said, I did enjoy DD and the shows I saw. Sonic Odyssey wasn't playing yet on my sailing. I really enjoyed Starwater and liked Mama Mia. Preferred the Aquatheater and shows on Oasis class a bit more.

However I agree with the PP. The activities and entertainment were sorely lacking for our 2 nights. Rock and Salsa are not my favorites music types and there seemed to be few other options. We were actually BORED on our 2 evenings. With there being no dedicated night club playing popular dance music and not wanting to hear rock cover bands we pretty much went back to our room. However, I've booked Anthem for a 12 night sailing and am hoping for a better experience. I love the idea of the newest Royal ship sailing 15 minutes away from me, and am excited about the itinerary. I am glad they introduced the Classic dining option and will most likely opt for that. I really hope they expand the daytime and night time activities otherwise I probably wouldn't sail again.

This has been one of my biggest gripes since Day 1. There is NO need for families/kids to use the deck 9 forward elevators on the Magic and Wonder and then walk thru the adult areas. Then can either go up to deck 10 to walk across to midship OR walk on the floor where they live or are hanging out and take the midship elevators up.

 

But DCL has never chosen to enforce deck 9 forward as "adult only." They have always tolerated kids "just passing thru." At one point' date=' they made the "walk thru" area on the starboard side and the parents had a fit...because that's the smoking side. Yup, if you want your kids to walk thru where they have no business being...why not just tell them to not walk thru the adult area????

 

The set up is different on the new ships and concierge guests really have very few options but to traipse thru the adult only spaces.[/quote']

 

There were several instances of screaming kids "passing through" the adults area. Well, that kind of defeats the purpose of the "quiet" cove that we were seeking. Even the Route 66 area wasn't adults only most of the time. And even when certain areas and events were designated 18+ I often would see kids hanging just outside of the door to the venue. Bottom line, nowhere on the ship is totally adults only.