LIVE SBS Suite Life Review: Sky 7/11/22 & Breakaway 7/17/22

[HBCcruiser]

It’s hot out!! I’m glad Vibe has the cooling shower. 

[HBCcruiser]

Haven upper deck. 

 

 

[HBCcruiser]

Snacks. I’ve never seen the brownies. 😍

[HBCcruiser]

Time to pack. I love my packing cubes! I use them every trip. They help keep me organized. I just throw them on the shelves, hang up the clothes that require hanging and I’m good to go. They also make repacking easy. 

[LATTELOVE]

1 minute ago, HBCcruiser said:

Snacks. I’ve never seen the brownies. 😍

Umm, yumm!!

[HBCcruiser]

2 hours ago, LATTELOVE said:

Umm, yumm!!

💯% YES!! Soooo good. I must ask for those next NCL cruise!😋

[HBCcruiser]

My new fav. Purple Rain. 
 

 

[HBCcruiser]

We were disappointed in the food and service at O’Sheehans. Again, very understaffed. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

[HBCcruiser]

My favorite thing to do: Chill with the ocean and a glass of wine. 

[luvcruzing]

Did you see this?

 

 

[HBCcruiser]

3 hours ago, luvcruzing said:

Did you see this?

 

 

Actually I did hear some younger guests talking about being offered 2 Haven suites due to cabin issues but they also said they declined moving. Perhaps that was them? Hard to say because I only heard part of the conversation. Everyone else I spoke to really enjoyed their cruise and staff. I never heard any complaints. 

[luvcruzing]

Weird since the OP said it affected 30 suites and staterooms. Guess you are one of the lucky ones.

[Sailing12Away]

We usually love O'Sheehans for a simple no-muss, no-fuss meal. Last trip the food all came out cold after we sat there 20+ mins waiting. It wasn't packed, but with the restaurant on one side of the ship and our table on the other I guess they just kept forgetting about us.

 

Hoping our next trip has a better experience.

[HBCcruiser]

12 hours ago, luvcruzing said:

Weird since the OP said it affected 30 suites and staterooms. Guess you are one of the lucky ones.

Nope we had zero issues and never heard anyone in the Haven Proper complain about it, or anything for that matter.

[HBCcruiser]

It was an easy disembarkation today. We met the concierge at 9:30 and were escorted right off the ship. Our luggage was easy to find, and grabbed a porter who led us past the lines right to the cab pick up spot. Easy. Right now we are relaxing at the Airport Marriot waiting for our late afternoon flights. Great free WiFi here! 

[HBCcruiser]

Final Haven Breakfast;

 

[2boyzmom]

On 7/23/2022 at 8:50 AM, HBCcruiser said:

I agree. The space is very tight for all of that furniture. They are using those tables as an extension of the restaurant. The Haven is packed. In fact, it was sold out for this cruise. I agree that it has not been the same level of Haven experience that we had pre-Covid. I also feel that they are short staffed for the number of passengers onboard. I am tipping well because I really feel sorry for the crew who are working so hard to please and do a good job. My guess is that NCL is trying to earn back lost revenue. 

I bet now with all the "bidding", the Haven will sell out for each cruise ...

[LATTELOVE]

Thank you for taking your time to do this.

The photos and posts were fantastic.

We really enjoyed it.

Safe travels home.

[HBCcruiser]

39 minutes ago, LATTELOVE said:

Thank you for taking your time to do this.

The photos and posts were fantastic.

We really enjoyed it.

Safe travels home.

Thank you for following along. Happy cruising! 

[luvcruzing]

Thank you for the review.   Very nice of you to share your cruises with us.  It was fun following along.  

[HBCcruiser]

24 minutes ago, luvcruzing said:

Thank you for the review.   Very nice of you to share your cruises with us.  It was fun following along.  

Thank you! Enjoy your next cruise.

[HBCcruiser]

So a few reflections on our summer '22 cruises:

 

1. Make sure you fly in at least one day prior to embarkation, and try to book morning flights. There are way too many flight delays and cancellations these days. Also, if you have a layover make sure the layover is at least 2 hours in length. On our return fight we missed our connecting flight (1 hour 20 minute layover) due to delays. Luckily I knew that there were 2 other flights that we could get on, but it caused us to lose our better seats. It also made for a very long day. 

 

2. The Premium Plus beverage package is well worth it if you enjoy drinking bottles of higher-end wines and higher-end brands of liquor. Also, you can ask for bottled water and Starbucks as well. It made life soooo much easier for us. We were able to enjoy bottles of good Chardonnay, Cabernet and Champagne during lunch and dinner. We were also able to order glasses of Veuve at breakfast if we wanted to. What I learned is that even though the menu may state that Veuve is NOT available by the bottle, glasses are, and if you tip your wait staff well and develop a rapport with them they will basically give you a bottle (4-5 glasses). When I spoke to the Haven head bartender he told me that they prefer to "sell" the entire bottle so it does not go bad. This makes a lot of sense. I think they learned early on that we were not going to waste any wine! 😜

 

3. Book your reservations ahead of time. The restaurants book up, so do the shows. The shows (right now) can only be booked once you are on board. Do it as soon as you board, though. This makes the Freestyle form of cruising no longer freestyle, but if you really want to see a certain show or eat at a certain restaurant, then book early.

 

4. Show your appreciation and respect to the staff . They are working very hard, under stressful conditions (shortage of staff), to make your cruise special. I honestly do not know how they put up with some of the stuff they put up with. Tip them well. I realize NCL is trying to earn back lost revenue, but I think they need to consider staffing levels when filling ships with passengers. 

 

THE SKY: 

The owner's suite was very nice, especially the hot tub on the balcony!  It did have a few quirks, though. The bathrooms are a little tight compared to suites on other ships. We also discovered that the arcade is right below the suite, and we could hear the games playing All. Night. Long. If you are a light sleeper, beware. Our Concierge and Butler went out of their way to fix the problem for us, though. I give them both A++! In fact, all of the staff on the Sky were wonderful. 

 

The ship, though small, never felt crowded. 

 

The Sky seems very broken up. You can tell they added many of the restaurants and other venues after-the-fact. They seem to be squeezed into odd places. It is sometimes hard to get from one place to the next in a straight line. You have to either go up or down a level to get to certain venues. The Bistro is definitely tricky to find! 

 

The itinerary was great and we really enjoyed the excursions we went on. I highly recommend the GSC Lagoon Villas. The one we had was fantastic! It was so nice to be able to shower before heading back to the ship. The one thing I think they need to add is a pool. Hopefully NCL already has plans to do so.

 

THE BREAKAWAY:

There is nothing like the Haven. It made our cruise. The ship did seem crowded in many areas except the Vibe and Haven. The pools on this ship are way too small and limited for the number of passengers. I think they redesigned future ships with this in mind. The Vibe is worth it if you want a quiet, adult-only venue to drink, lounge and enjoy a hot tub. Order Vibe Passes ahead of time (NEW) either online or by calling NCL. 

 

We loved the Ice Bar! Do it at least once. Make reservations early, though, they book up fast.

 

The shows and entertainment were great! A+. especially SIX. We also enjoyed Howl and the Moon and Sid Norman's Pour House. Make reservations early and get to venues early in order to get good seats.  

 

The food and service in the Haven was spectacular.  It is always fun to see the wait staff at the specialty restaurants. They really take good care of you. Of course, we do tip well. An added bonus was having the Haven restaurant, bar and courtyard close to our suite. 

 

The Haven courtyard can be overrun by children and teens - especially during the holidays. It was during our cruise, but I expected it, and booked the Vibe as an alternative. We would have been at the Vibe more, but it was very hot and humid out with little wind at times. Often we just relaxed at the Haven bar or in our cabin. 

 

Cabin 16714 - 2-bedroom Haven suite:

This is a great suite if you have 3 adults or 2 adults and children. The master bed does not separate, but it is a king size bed so that worked out ok with us. The second bedroom has an uncomfortable fold out double bed. Ask for a mattress topper to make it more comfortable. It is a very small room so keep that in mind. It would be uncomfortable for 2 adults, unless one does not mind sleeping in the pullman twin bed. We did not use the living room couch as a bed. We had done that on a previous cruise and refused to do that again! Too uncomfortable. They use the cushion as the mattress. It is very hard and small. 

 

The master bathroom is really large and nice!

The balcony is rather small.

 

There is plenty of storage throughout the suite so no need to worry about that. Having the separate living room was great especially when my DD wanted to sleep. I could have my coffee and relax in the morning without bothering anyone. 

 

Itinerary

Meh at best. I give it a 2 out of 10. When we originally booked this cruise the itinerary was fantastic! We really wound up having only 2 ports, one was rained out and one was the GSC which we had been to previously. I did not count PR because we were there too late to really enjoy it. Interesting that NCL did not refund the missed port fees. Princess does. 

 

OTHER:

Upon return the FB pages and CC was reporting that several paxs did not have working toilets for a few days. This was caused by knuckle heads flushing things they were not supposed to down the toilets. Common sense people! Thank goodness ours worked fine. I also have seen FB posts regarding paxs testing positive for Covid upon their return home. This could have been from flying or the cruise, who knows. We are all fine, but we all had Covid within the past few months. 

 

Feel free to ask any questions. Our next cruise will be in October on the new Discovery Princess. We snagged the Sky Suite so that should be interesting and fun. Our next NCL cruise will be on the new Prima in April. I am looking forward to that one too! Until then....Happy Cruising and Thanks for Tuning in! 

 

[Crowbait]

Thanks for the fabulous review! We are getting on the Breakaway on Sunday, also with the crappy changed itinerary 😢. I was expecting they would provide a credit for the lack of a port day. Surprised they didn’t!  But, it’s a getaway, right?  We took have a Prima sailing booked for February. Cannot wait!!

[HBCcruiser]

1 hour ago, Crowbait said:

Thanks for the fabulous review! We are getting on the Breakaway on Sunday, also with the crappy changed itinerary 😢. I was expecting they would provide a credit for the lack of a port day. Surprised they didn’t!  But, it’s a getaway, right?  We took have a Prima sailing booked for February. Cannot wait!!

I wish you have a great cruise with nice weather. 🤞I like the Breakaway and its venues. Enjoy! 

[LATTELOVE]

2 hours ago, HBCcruiser said:

So a few reflections on our summer '22 cruises:

 

1. Make sure you fly in at least one day prior to embarkation, and try to book morning flights. There are way too many flight delays and cancellations these days. Also, if you have a layover make sure the layover is at least 2 hours in length. On our return fight we missed our connecting flight (1 hour 20 minute layover) due to delays. Luckily I knew that there were 2 other flights that we could get on, but it caused us to lose our better seats. It also made for a very long day. 

 

2. The Premium Plus beverage package is well worth it if you enjoy drinking bottles of higher-end wines and higher-end brands of liquor. Also, you can ask for bottled water and Starbucks as well. It made life soooo much easier for us. We were able to enjoy bottles of good Chardonnay, Cabernet and Champagne during lunch and dinner. We were also able to order glasses of Veuve at breakfast if we wanted to. What I learned is that even though the menu may state that Veuve is NOT available by the bottle, glasses are, and if you tip your wait staff well and develop a rapport with them they will basically give you a bottle (4-5 glasses). When I spoke to the Haven head bartender he told me that they prefer to "sell" the entire bottle so it does not go bad. This makes a lot of sense. I think they learned early on that we were not going to waste any wine! 😜

 

3. Book your reservations ahead of time. The restaurants book up, so do the shows. The shows (right now) can only be booked once you are on board. Do it as soon as you board, though. This makes the Freestyle form of cruising no longer freestyle, but if you really want to see a certain show or eat at a certain restaurant, then book early.

 

4. Show your appreciation and respect to the staff . They are working very hard, under stressful conditions (shortage of staff), to make your cruise special. I honestly do not know how they put up with some of the stuff they put up with. Tip them well. I realize NCL is trying to earn back lost revenue, but I think they need to consider staffing levels when filling ships with passengers. 

 

THE SKY: 

The owner's suite was very nice, especially the hot tub on the balcony!  It did have a few quirks, though. The bathrooms are a little tight compared to suites on other ships. We also discovered that the arcade is right below the suite, and we could hear the games playing All. Night. Long. If you are a light sleeper, beware. Our Concierge and Butler went out of their way to fix the problem for us, though. I give them both A++! In fact, all of the staff on the Sky were wonderful. 

 

The ship, though small, never felt crowded. 

 

The Sky seems very broken up. You can tell they added many of the restaurants and other venues after-the-fact. They seem to be squeezed into odd places. It is sometimes hard to get from one place to the next in a straight line. You have to either go up or down a level to get to certain venues. The Bistro is definitely tricky to find! 

 

The itinerary was great and we really enjoyed the excursions we went on. I highly recommend the GSC Lagoon Villas. The one we had was fantastic! It was so nice to be able to shower before heading back to the ship. The one thing I think they need to add is a pool. Hopefully NCL already has plans to do so.

 

THE BREAKAWAY:

There is nothing like the Haven. It made our cruise. The ship did seem crowded in many areas except the Vibe and Haven. The pools on this ship are way too small and limited for the number of passengers. I think they redesigned future ships with this in mind. The Vibe is worth it if you want a quiet, adult-only venue to drink, lounge and enjoy a hot tub. Order Vibe Passes ahead of time (NEW) either online or by calling NCL. 

 

We loved the Ice Bar! Do it at least once. Make reservations early, though, they book up fast.

 

The shows and entertainment were great! A+. especially SIX. We also enjoyed Howl and the Moon and Sid Norman's Pour House. Make reservations early and get to venues early in order to get good seats.  

 

The food and service in the Haven was spectacular.  It is always fun to see the wait staff at the specialty restaurants. They really take good care of you. Of course, we do tip well. An added bonus was having the Haven restaurant, bar and courtyard close to our suite. 

 

The Haven courtyard can be overrun by children and teens - especially during the holidays. It was during our cruise, but I expected it, and booked the Vibe as an alternative. We would have been at the Vibe more, but it was very hot and humid out with little wind at times. Often we just relaxed at the Haven bar or in our cabin. 

 

Cabin 16714 - 2-bedroom Haven suite:

This is a great suite if you have 3 adults or 2 adults and children. The master bed does not separate, but it is a king size bed so that worked out ok with us. The second bedroom has an uncomfortable fold out double bed. Ask for a mattress topper to make it more comfortable. It is a very small room so keep that in mind. It would be uncomfortable for 2 adults, unless one does not mind sleeping in the pullman twin bed. We did not use the living room couch as a bed. We had done that on a previous cruise and refused to do that again! Too uncomfortable. They use the cushion as the mattress. It is very hard and small. 

 

The master bathroom is really large and nice!

The balcony is rather small.

 

There is plenty of storage throughout the suite so no need to worry about that. Having the separate living room was great especially when my DD wanted to sleep. I could have my coffee and relax in the morning without bothering anyone. 

 

Itinerary

Meh at best. I give it a 2 out of 10. When we originally booked this cruise the itinerary was fantastic! We really wound up having only 2 ports, one was rained out and one was the GSC which we had been to previously. I did not count PR because we were there too late to really enjoy it. Interesting that NCL did not refund the missed port fees. Princess does. 

 

OTHER:

Upon return the FB pages and CC was reporting that several paxs did not have working toilets for a few days. This was caused by knuckle heads flushing things they were not supposed to down the toilets. Common sense people! Thank goodness ours worked fine. I also have seen FB posts regarding paxs testing positive for Covid upon their return home. This could have been from flying or the cruise, who knows. We are all fine, but we all had Covid within the past few months. 

 

Feel free to ask any questions. Our next cruise will be in October on the new Discovery Princess. We snagged the Sky Suite so that should be interesting and fun. Our next NCL cruise will be on the new Prima in April. I am looking forward to that one too! Until then....Happy Cruising and Thanks for Tuning in! 

 

Wonderful reviews and photos, thanks again. Looking forward

to your next reviews.

Enjoy the rest of your summer!