A Different Kind of Breakaway Report 07/31-08/07 Review

[mcsb11]

I get the point that you were displeased that the CD was mia however why does that have anything to do with the cruise staff being mostly Filipino? That first sentence or two about the ethnicity card didn't make sense to me.

 

Sure, I'll expand on this. The cruise director is the deaf actor face of the ship, the head of entertainment, etc. DD being phillipino made it difficult for him to be seen and/or easily noticed due to the majority of the ship being from the same ethnicity. I'll be the first to admit that it's a slightly ignorant comment on my part, but it's a reality.

 

His English also wasn't the clearest. As a "comedian" like cruise director you need to be understood for the intended effect. Often times it was a bunch of words that people couldn't understand, a pause, then his Hahahaahah laugh. His laugh was kinda funny in and of itself.

 

To the others who hated Julie and like dd. I get it. My whole thing with Julie was that it she was everywhere. Atrium, theatre, dining room,p... Heck, I'd come out of the bathroom and sued have towel for me that's how it felt.

 

I'd love a comedian CD who had Julie's presence.

[DeeT]

Thank you for all very useful info. I've made several notes for my BA

cruise next week:)

[mcsb11]

Have fun deet

[coppola908]

"There's a great outdoor lounge area at the front of the ship on 16 that hardly anyone knows about."

 

Hi. Can you be more specific on the location? I think the whole front of the ship on deck 16 is Haven. I've been on the Breakaway 3 times, once in the Haven and I can't remember anything like that.

 

Thanks for the unique review!

[luckyinpa]

"There's a great outdoor lounge area at the front of the ship on 16 that hardly anyone knows about."

 

Hi. Can you be more specific on the location? I think the whole front of the ship on deck 16 is Haven. I've been on the Breakaway 3 times, once in the Haven and I can't remember anything like that.

 

Thanks for the unique review!

 

do they mean deck 17 or 18 perhaps?

 

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/breakaway/deck-plans#dsr5

[luv2cruise523]

Julie was the CD 2 yrs ago when we sailed the Breakaway. We still talk about her presence around the ship and hiw she would stop and talk when you asked her a question, and was completely engaged. Best CD we have ever experienced. Where is she now??

[gmazz]

Julie was the CD 2 yrs ago when we sailed the Breakaway. We still talk about her presence around the ship and hiw she would stop and talk when you asked her a question, and was completely engaged. Best CD we have ever experienced. Where is she now??

 

We had Julie last June (2015) and loved her! We went this June (19th) and we had Dan Dan's temporary replacement (cannot remember his name) and he was great. We saw him everywhere and got to speak with him at the Haven Captain's Party as well and enjoyed the conversation.

 

But at the 80's party me and hubby were sitting at a table on the left side along the back drinking and enjoying the music and I looked over in the middle closer to the stairs going to the right side I see this lady and I say to my husband that she could be a dead ringer for Julie. She was dancing and singing pretty much by herself and my husband looks over and says to me that he thinks it is her. Well he was right, the next thing I see is this teenager going up to her and giving her a hug and a few others come over and join in. We did see her around the boat a few more times at some of the activities. Not sure if she was on vacation to be on vacation or to come and spy on her replacement. :p

[mcsb11]

do they mean deck 17 or 18 perhaps?

 

https://www.ncl.com/cruise-ship/breakaway/deck-plans#dsr5

 

Yes that's correct. The front of the ship on 17. There's nice lounge chairs out there and its a relaxing spot. Late night, it seemed to get overrun by teens, but earlier in the day it was a great spot! It's right next to the Haven private sundeck.

[cincychad]

Great review. You should have called it "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly". Other than the great steak at Cagney's did you have any other great meals at the specialty restaurants? Was Bistro good? Did you dine at Ocean Blue?

[Mandy412]

Sure, I'll expand on this. The cruise director is the deaf actor face of the ship, the head of entertainment, etc. DD being phillipino made it difficult for him to be seen and/or easily noticed due to the majority of the ship being from the same ethnicity. I'll be the first to admit that it's a slightly ignorant comment on my part, but it's a reality.

 

His English also wasn't the clearest. As a "comedian" like cruise director you need to be understood for the intended effect. Often times it was a bunch of words that people couldn't understand, a pause, then his Hahahaahah laugh. His laugh was kinda funny in and of itself.

 

To the others who hated Julie and like dd. I get it. My whole thing with Julie was that it she was everywhere. Atrium, theatre, dining room,p... Heck, I'd come out of the bathroom and sued have towel for me that's how it felt.

 

I'd love a comedian CD who had Julie's presence.

 

Oh wow, thanks for the clarification.

[Diane123boys]

Yes that's correct. The front of the ship on 17. There's nice lounge chairs out there and its a relaxing spot. Late night, it seemed to get overrun by teens, but earlier in the day it was a great spot! It's right next to the Haven private sundeck.

 

on the website cruisedeckplans it shows pictures and some of that area showed hammocks... are they still there? I guess its called the sundeck

Edited August 17, 2016 by Diane123boys

[Nyc2tropics]

Nice review, thank you for the tips. I agree that the pool area gets way too crowded.

[luckyinpa]

Yes that's correct. The front of the ship on 17. There's nice lounge chairs out there and its a relaxing spot. Late night, it seemed to get overrun by teens, but earlier in the day it was a great spot! It's right next to the Haven private sundeck.

 

does the haven sundeck close at nite?

[mcsb11]

Great review. You should have called it "The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly". Other than the great steak at Cagney's did you have any other great meals at the specialty restaurants? Was Bistro good? Did you dine at Ocean Blue?

 

Lol... I Should have called it that.

 

Here's my thoughts on all of the meals on the ship.

Cagney's - Clearcut best place on the ship

 

Teppanyaki - Amazing hibachi show. My filet mignon was good. I joked around w the chef saying he should throw another filet on there and to my surprise, he did. He also gave half the table 2 to 3 extra bowls of rice.

 

Le Bistro - My steak was blue it was so rare. I almost always order med-rare. I was too lazy to send it back. It was tasty though. the French onion soup was great, as was the fried goat cheese salad.

 

Noodle Bar - great food, wish they still opened for lunch.

 

Moderno - It took some time for them to get going with the meat, but it was good. Please note that if you dislike a heavy salt hand, or seasoning on meat, you will HATE this place. Be forewarned. I enjoyed it, but I've had better rodizio in the Ironbound or at Fogo.

 

La Cucina - Went here two years ok. It was an ok meal... nothing really wowed us. If youre from the NYC area and know good Italian, you can clearly pass this up.

 

Wasabi - why anyone would get sushi on a cruise is beyond me. But... if you enjoy Costco or grocery store sushi, you MAY enjoy this. It's not for me.

 

Ocean Blue - Never made it

Raw Bar - Never made it

 

Dessert from The Bake Shop, formerly the cake boss. First off, the cake boss is crap. Straight garbage. It's all mass produced with a corners cut everywhere. Buddy sold himself out and sadly couldn't even keep one iota of the quality his father had. Anyway... the new bake shop is just as bad. The cupcakes and macarons are flavorless

 

Gelato - expensive, but enjoyable. The hours are really bizarre. I got tired of ice cream from the buffet one day and trekked down to 8 only to find them closed...

 

Manhattan Room, Savor & Taste - Skip Savor & Taste and just go to the MR! It's a much better dining experience. Same so-so food, but it was a better experience. Just don't order the steak frites... It's crap

 

In reality, other than Cagney's who uses CAB (which isn't too big of a quality barometer, but at least it's choice) every other restaurant uses piss-poor quality beef.

 

For example, I saved this picture from a behind the scenes tour that TheDougOut went on.

 

Look closely on the cryovac'd piece of ribeye and you'll see why the meet is often devoid of flavor - USDA Select!

While the above image isn't the best, it shows you where USDA Select lies....

[mcsb11]

on the website cruisedeckplans it shows pictures and some of that area showed hammocks... are they still there? I guess its called the sundeck

 

I didn't see hammocks... I saw lounge chairs & circular lounge chairs

[CUontheC]

What a great review!

 

We have been on a few NCL cruises and are considering going back to Tortola, Nassau, St. Thomas on the Escape or going to Bermuda (never been to) on the Breakaway. I just have a question for you about what there is to do in Bermuda. Is there any beaches you can walk to off the ship that you don't pay for? Is there any other free things to go see and do or are most people taking an excursion? You mentioned about skipping day 1 to get off the boat. If it is that crowded I wonder if it is worth doing the Bermuda trip and going back on the Escape. Plus we love when the boat leaves the port and we head to dinner at that time and watch it pull away if we are by the window. Just trying to figure out what there is to do in Bermuda.

 

Thank you again for the informative review!

 

Mary

[mcsb11]

What a great review!

 

We have been on a few NCL cruises and are considering going back to Tortola, Nassau, St. Thomas on the Escape or going to Bermuda (never been to) on the Breakaway. I just have a question for you about what there is to do in Bermuda. Is there any beaches you can walk to off the ship that you don't pay for? Is there any other free things to go see and do or are most people taking an excursion? You mentioned about skipping day 1 to get off the boat. If it is that crowded I wonder if it is worth doing the Bermuda trip and going back on the Escape. Plus we love when the boat leaves the port and we head to dinner at that time and watch it pull away if we are by the window. Just trying to figure out what there is to do in Bermuda.

 

Thank you again for the informative review!

 

Mary

 

There's plenty to do!

 

I didn't mean skipping day 1 entirely. I meant skipping public transportation day 1. Your lines going to/fro the popular areas, Horseshoe, Night festival in Hamilton will be looooong. Go somewhere off the beaten path day 1, like Elbow.

 

In all honesty, just take the minibuses anywhere out of the pier.

 

As far as beaches nearby, you have snorkel beach, which is a bit fugazi in my opinion. It's a manmade beach they charge you to get onto.

 

There's a bunch of beaches a cab ride away just south of the pier. Unfort., I don't know how'd you would hail a cab back.

 

The ebst way to see the island is by scooter, but that's not for everyone.

[CUontheC]

There's plenty to do!

 

I didn't mean skipping day 1 entirely. I meant skipping public transportation day 1. Your lines going to/fro the popular areas, Horseshoe, Night festival in Hamilton will be looooong. Go somewhere off the beaten path day 1, like Elbow.

 

In all honesty, just take the minibuses anywhere out of the pier.

 

As far as beaches nearby, you have snorkel beach, which is a bit fugazi in my opinion. It's a manmade beach they charge you to get onto.

 

There's a bunch of beaches a cab ride away just south of the pier. Unfort., I don't know how'd you would hail a cab back.

 

The ebst way to see the island is by scooter, but that's not for everyone.

 

Thank you for your help...very much appreciated. Have a nice evening!

 

Mary