Old friend and I had enough of a miserable Northeast winter and decided we had to get away so booked a last-minute cruise on Breakaway. Leaving hubbies at home we set out for what we hoped was a wonderful true vacation although I was a bit apprehensive after reading more than a few poor reviews. Well, I don't know what ship those people were sailing on but it couldn't have been Breakaway. We loved this ship, crew, food, activities---you name it! BTW, I am not a newbie cruiser and have sailed on Holland, Celebrity, Royal and Carnival as well as several cruises on Norwegian. Breakaway isn't perfect but then what ship ever is? But taken as a whole, she is a wonderful girl with a wonderful crew.

Embarkation: We came down from Rhode Island via direct shuttle bus which was so easy and convenient. We arrived at Pier 88 around 11 o'clock, our bags were grabbed and in we went to a terminal which can be described as organized chaos but, being Latitudes members, we waited no more than a couple of minutes to check in. After getting our boarding number we again waited only a few minutes and then we were on Breakaway. There is no "wow" effect on boarding (no welcome champagne or crew greeting or indeed spectacular atrium) but one can see right away what a handsome and sophisticated ship it is. We went right to Savor for an excellent and peaceful lunch, avoiding the stampede to the buffet. In fact, we avoided the buffet all week, except for our daily ice cream fix. There are so many options to eat on board that I just can't see the need to fight for my food and then wander around looking for a place to sit and eat it. Sailing out of NY harbor is fabulous---we were on the starboard side so we could get a close-up view of Lady Liberty. She's gorgeous. Going under the Verrazano is a riot----it appears that the ship JUST BARELY squeezes underneath and everyone screams.

Cabin: We had a balcony cabin which was very small but more than adequate with plenty of storage for two women. I always bring a power strip for our phones and readers and also a "dummy" card for the power slot, which I had read about in reviews. If you take a card out of the slot the power goes off and items aren't charged and fridge warms a bit, if you are keeping anything in it. The bathroom was VERY nice with a pretty spacious glass enclosed shower. The balcony was teeny tiny, more like a ledge, with just enough room for two chairs and a tiny table but we used it a lot and enjoyed the warm outdoor air despite the lack of room. Our steward (who we never met) kept the room immaculate and provided plenty of fresh towels (even when we hadn't indicated we needed them) and of course the adorable towel animals every night. Very comfortable beds and beautiful bed linen. Read more