Break it down for the Breakaway

[iluvcruises]

I have cruised many times but it has been a few years since I sailed on NCL. We will be sailing on the Breakaway and I have been doing a little reading but I would love if someone can give me a breakdown of things I need to do before or things I need to know before sailing. It seems cruising now a days is a lot more planning and I would hate to miss out on anything. thanks for all your help!

[Alliezona09]

I'll be sailing on the Breakaway in June, first time on such a big ship~ so I've been reading this thread~ has tons of info, a great place to start!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1928724

[Barb Nahoumi]

I have never sailed on a mega ship yet, but from what I can gather, you might need to make reservations for the shows. The theater can only seat so many at once.

[LizG12]

that's true, but about 10 minutes beforehand, they open up the doors to anyone, so if you're not committed to a date/time, you don't need to reserve the shows. (Not sure if that's true for Circque too, since it's a dinner & fee)

 

to the OP - whenever NCL opens up the cruise for pre-planning (45 days prior?) reserve your shows, any speciality restaurants (although you can do those on board too), and any tours you're interested in.

[Tiggertastic]

45 days prior to sailing - log onto your booking and book for the main shows - they are free but they only have enough seats for everyone to go once

 

other than not, it's no different to sailing any other ship

[antsnanny]

I have never sailed on a mega ship yet, but from what I can gather, you might need to make reservations for the shows. The theater can only seat so many at once.

 

 

We made reservations and found we really didn't have to. That said, if you like to be up front in the theater you should because they let the people with reservations in first and then it opens up to anyone. I would make them for Cirque Dinner show.

[tymike]

Any unused seats initially roped off for Haven guests are released ten minutes before the show. The seats are pretty good, and I saw quite a 'given up' for the two shows I went to on the Breakaway last summer!

[antsnanny]

Any unused seats initially roped off for Haven guests are released ten minutes before the show. The seats are pretty good, and I saw quite a 'given up' for the two shows I went to on the Breakaway last summer!

 

Very good point, thats exactly my plan next time I sail on the Breakaway.

[iluvcruises]

ok, thanks for this info. Are the Main dining rooms "Anytime Dining" or are there set times?

[champagne123]

No set times for the main dining rooms. Just the specialty restaurants.

[Bluewake]

You can make reservations at any of the three main dining rooms (Manhattan, Savor, Taste) on a daily basis or even for the same time and table for the entire cruise, which means you will have the same wait staff each night. While reservations aren't necessary, whether to do that or not depends on when you prefer to dine. We tend to prefer to eat about 6 pm and found there was often a line at that time so we decided to make a reservation each day we dined there. I also think it depends a lot on the makeup of the passengers. On our Breakaway cruise, there happened to be a great many older passengers. We noticed that the families with kids and the older cruisers seemed to prefer to eat earlier and the adult passengers without small children seemed to come a bit later. Just an observation, of course...I'm sure there are many exceptions.

[HowardK]

Be sure to check out the various Hot Dog carts on the ship!!!

 

-On a more serious note; certain areas I liked a lot- outside space on the Waterfront near Fat Cats.

Also, during the day the Uptown Grill has very good deli type sandwhiches custom made as well as small pot pies. I would eat there sometimes around 4pm and not be that hungry for dinner.

 

Spice H20 has a nice waterfall, also they have those cushioned chairs along the edge of the ship- when it was empty you could put 2 of them together and be far more comfortable than on a regular lounger.

 

If you plan on doing Cirque- I would do it towards the end of the week and perhaps the early sitting on the last night. The food is so-so, I actually ended up going to the MDR right after.

I would not depend on it for a complete meal. The show is a nice way to wind down the cruise.

If Fire and Ice (musical duo) is playing, grab an early seat at the Atrium or upstairs at OShennans.

Certain MDR items stood out- a Chocolate Moouse, and a corn and cheese soup. wonderful.

[bob brown]

One tip...on our 12 day cruise on the Breakaway to the Caribbean, they gave a 25% discount on the first night for the 'Cirque' dinner-show.

Even if you had prepaid for it prior to the cruise, they gave you back the difference as additional On Board Credit, a nice surprise. I found the 'surf and turf' (steak and coconut shrimp) entree very tasty...

[iluvcruises]

Thanks everyone! Any more info would be appreciated!

[limeyalchemist]

Few tips.

 

The spa pass is priced around $119 pp for a seven day trip, but I was told that you can buy a couples pass for the same trip for $199.

I managed to get into the spa early last weekend on the CTN when it was closed to check it out, and it was beautiful. I have heard that it tends to be crowded during colder sea days such as early and later in the week.

 

Take the stairs whenever you can. The eight elevators for'd and aft get very full.

 

Avoid the buffet at peak times. O'Sheehans is proving to be very popular. On deck 7 mid-ship. Half of it is a bar overlooking the atrium entertainment, and half is a restaurant open 24 hours. Great bar food, all complimentary. I also treated myself to a milkshake for $3 and it was amazing. They even gave me the metal cup to finish it all. Great wings, chicken pot pie and fish and chips. They also serve mozzarella sticks, spinach dip, tuna sandwich, corned beef on rye, etc.

 

There are two hot tubs at the rear of deck 16 in Spice H2O. They aren't always open, but on warm days open at 6 am. During the day this area is for adults only.

 

On deck 17 all the way front are clamshells and hammocks in a very quiet area and you can peek into the Haven deck area.

 

The free restaurants can be very slow. Allow two hours for any meal, even breakfast. The food is great in my opinion.

 

If you want to try something special, go to Moderno Churrascarria. $20 pp and an amazing meal. 11 different kinds of meat and an amazing salad bar. This includes seafood ceviche which is phenomenal.

 

Have a great trip.