Review of Norwegian Breakaway

TravelMole associate editor Linsey McNeill chose Norwegian Breakaway’s seven-night voyage from New York to Florida and the Bahamas for her first family cruise.

"One of my main concerns about taking my two children, aged 15 and 12, on a cruise was that there wouldn’t be many other children for them to hang out with and they might get bored, especially as more days at sea than on land on this seven-night trip to the Caribbean.

The Breakaway sails for a day and a half before reaching its first stop, Port Canaveral in Florida, then stops only at Great Stirrup Cay and Nassau in the Bahamas before taking two days to get back to New York. What on earth would we do onboard?

I needn’t have worried, especially not about my daughter. Within a few hours of boarding the ship she’d found Entourage, the teen lounge, and we hardly saw her again for the rest of the cruise.

Occasionally I’d spot her wandering around on deck in a huddle of mainly American teenagers (with one or two Brits amongst them) or eating burger and chips in the Uptown Grill or more healthier options in the Garden Café; once they all dressed up smart and went together to The Manhattan, the ship’s largest restaurant, but usually they just hung out in the lounge where they had a Wii, comfy sofas, a dance floor and young, friendly supervisors to organise quizzes. It was open until 1am.

My son was gutted to be told he was just 27 days too young for Entourage, which had a very strict 13 and over policy. I tried, unsuccessfully, to lure him to the Splash Academy kids club, which had a section specifically for 10 to 12-year-olds, but he dismissed it as "too babyish". It did, however, seem very popular with the many younger children onboard.

I’m sure that if he’d been prepared to give it a go my son would have enjoyed the many games they organised, such as dodge ball in the outdoor basketball court, but every time we popped in to see what was going on they were face painting or playing childish games which sent my son scurrying back to his cabin.

His frustration was heightened when he found out he was 10lbs too light to be allowed down the two largest slides on the ship’s waterpark, but there was plenty of other kid-friendly entertainment.  Less than an hour after boarding he was scrambling around the ship’s high rope course and inching his way out along The Plank, which jutted out 16 decks above the ocean. He also reached the top of the climbing wall.

He and his dad played table tennis and shuffleboard for hours. The amusement arcade, where games cost extra, also had air hockey tables and video games, and there was a ten-pin bowling alley.

As for me, I was quite content to sit quietly on deck, once we’d sailed far enough south for the weather to turn quite warm.  I lay in the sun, having exhausted myself just reading the long list of available activities each day. Even with 4,000 passengers on board, it was possible to find several empty loungers. Most people seemed to congregate around the adult pool, listening to the live band or drinking beer in the hot tubs; it was much quieter – peaceful even – on the sun decks at the top and at the front of the ship.

For real peace and quiet, you can pay extra for access to The Vibe, an outdoor space with its own bar, hot tub and steamer-style lounges, or book a cabin in The Haven, an exclusive area that occupies part of the top two decks of the ship, with its own small restaurant, lounge and, best of all, plunge pools and outdoor sun deck with cabanas and sun lounges.

This home-made (slightly wobbly) video gives a tour of the decks on a sunny day, and hopefully gives a sense of the quietude in some areas, which contrasts with the liveliness around the entertainment areas.

Our days started with pancakes or eggs Benedict in the Haven, followed by a walk around the deck, lunch in the bright and spacious Garden Café (think of a floating 1950s diner with more modern décor), which had an excellent buffet (and the kids loved popping in during the day for chips and ice cream) and a spot of sunbathing. It was really very relaxing.

I could all have easier piled on the pounds if it hadn’t been for the running machines in the gym. I preferred that to the running track on deck having seeing a few joggers getting tangled up with guests who didn’t pay attention to where they were walking!

In addition to the Garden Café and the Uptown Bar & Grill, Breakaway has four other complementary restaurants, my favourite of which was The Manhattan Room, designed like a New York supper club with a double height ceiling over the dance floor. The a la carte menu was excellent, the service super-friendly if a little slow, and the food surprisingly good for such a large restaurant.

The ship’s Freestyle cruising policy means the atmosphere onboard is relaxed; you can dress up if you want to, but it’s by no means obligatory. There are no fixed meal times, you can book ahead if you want to but we never bothered and we only had to wait once for a table, although we also had the option of dining in the Haven a la restaurant as an alternative.

The ship also has 10 other restaurants, in an area called The Waterfront, with some outdoor tables, which I gather is rare on a cruise ship.

In the evenings there were complimentary shows, such as Burn the Floor, a dance show, an energetic Tina Turner tribute act and particularly loud Rock of Ages show with 80s music, plus quite a good comedy sketch show from The Second City.

If we’d fancied a flutter, there was a large and very popular casino, with tables and slot machines. We thought we’d save our cash for the excursions. Read about them on TravelMole tomorrow."