Boston to Bermuda Cruise 2026: The Honest Norwegian Breakaway Review

We recently returned from our Boston to Bermuda Cruise on the Norwegian Cruise Line Breakaway. I was accompanying a group of friends and family celebrating birthdays and first cruise vacationers. Would I do this itinerary again? Yes! Would I do this cruise line again. Yes! Would I go again in April on school vacation week? Probably not. I will try to explain in the following paragraphs so keep on reading.

This was our first time cruising on Norwegian Cruise Line and it was also the first time cruise for 1 family who had joined us. The Breakaway is a beautiful ship. It can accommodate up to 4,800 guests at full capacity and has a crew of about 1,600. It has a very “fun” vibe to it with the Irish Pub Feel, Darts, Prom’s, and even a Cigar Lounge to step away and relax when you need that “me” time.

At times this ship did feel that crowded, however we were also sailing during Massachusetts School Vacation Week. With Norwegian’s Freestyle Cruising, I feel this was a major reason why the ship felt congested. Dinner times could be a little chaotic when looking to have lunch or dinner at venues like Tase, Savor of The Manhattan Room. So lines were long, but service was still personable and efficient.

You also felt the crowd when you would try to visit venues like Syd Norman’s or O ‘Sheehan’s as they are a popular spot and Syd’s is especially small. If you are looking for fun things like cover bands and karaoke night, then Syd Norman’s is the place for you.

Also keep in mind that Bermuda was a hour ahead of us in Ship Time. So remember to pack a wrist watch to ensure you are on the proper time when out and about off the ship. Do not rely on your phone have a backup plan in place!

When you are a teacher, your time off needs to be planned to fit certain dates. Unlike the rest of us in the corporate world, teachers do not have the flexibility to take time during the year with simple scheduled time off. Saying all that, April was not the ideal time we would have picked to visit Bermuda, but as I was escorting a group we took the chance and took it.

Embarkation was from the Flynn Cruise Terminal. This site has a long way to go if you are used to cruising out of world class terminals like Port Canaveral or PortMiami. Then again Boston does not have the cruise traffic like they do. The departing temperature was Cold and Rainy. Soggy in local terms and when we left the house is was about 38°F on a Sunday Morning.

Our itinerary called for 2 full sea days and not getting to Bermuda until Wednesday, so this meant that the cold weather would follow us for at least a full, day. Which it did. The thing I learned was that it was not so much the temp but the wind! By Tuesday we were in the Spice H20 Adult area as the sun was out and the skies were blue but the wind made it a but cold. This DID NOT stop kids from the pools and water slides though, they loved it.

Bermuda – Windy but it was 70°F very comfortable weather for walking the Dockyard and even all over St. George. The water temp was cool but people were swimming in Snorkel Park and they did enjoy it.

Why does all this matter? Even after research I expected the weather to be a bit less cool once we left Boston and more on the warmer side and that did not happen. So we lost some deck time on the pool but we managed. I enjoyed the comfortable and cool weather to explore this beautiful island but I also think, when we go back, I would push it out to late May in hopes of some nicer cruise weather.

We were delayed entry into the Royal Navy Dockyard as Norwegian had the Norwegian Aqua in port when we arrived. They were late to depart and also the Celebrity Ascent was in port as well. So we needed to wait for the Aqua to leave so we can slide in.

Our plan from the beginning of the trip was simple.

• Day / Night 1 – Explore the Royal Navy Dockyard. (Overnight Stay)
• Day 2 – National Museum of Bermuda / Dolphin Quest. After this was completed take the NCL Free Ferry over to St. George and visit the Crystal Caves and the Swizzle Inn for the famous Rum Swizzle. Head back to the ship than to Hamilton for the nightlife.
• Day 3 – Only here for a few hours so we would shop the Clocktower Mall and just relax.

This all looked good on paper but when we were on site we realized this was not going to work well. The only major issue was we were too enthusiastic about trying to see St. George and Hamilton all in the same day. Once we were done at Dolphin Quest we spent more time walking the grounds of the National Museum that it delated our departure to St. George. This delayed our arrival time, which caused us to arrive at the Crystal Caves to a major line.

If possible buy your tickets in advance to the Caves and save yourself the time sitting around waiting. The website was down the week were were there so we could not pre-purchase. Also if you take a taxi to the caves from St. George pier ( $7pp one-way ) when your done with the Cave tour walk through the grounds, out the back, and it leaves you at the Ice Cream shop and the Swizzle Inn. From here we flagged a taxi down when we were done and the ride back was only $23 for 6 of us! So keep this in mind.

This was quite the experience. The kids loved this excursion and they did not rush you in and out of the pool. Depending on your purchase, you got to spend quite some time with the animals in and our of the water. The trainers explained the workings of the Dolphin reserve and the stars of the show loved to show off.

Pro Tip: Do not book this through the cruise line. You can easily visit the Dolphin quest – Bermuda website and pre-purchase your swim tickets. This was cheaper than the cruise line and you can also purchase cancel protection in case of delays with a full refund. Also if you are not swimming, you can purchase your Museum entrance ticket at the gate for $20pp so you can spectate and take pictures!

This was a cool experience. There are 2 caves you can explore. Crystal and Fantasy Caves. With our late arrival we were only allowed to purchase tickets for Crystal Cave. This is also the easier of the 2 to navigate but rumor mill was it is not as big as Fantasy. Here is a short clip of walking into the cave with our tour guide Darius who was super knowledgeable and funny.

@disconnectvacations

Pretty wild to see these. They were really cool in more ways then one. Nice cool temperature and views. Our tour guide Darius was super funny and informative. #cruisetok #cruises #norwegiancruise #norwegianbreakaway #bermuda

♬ Fantasy in an Immersive World – Ernesto P. Neto

Honestly I am OK with us just doing 1 of the caves. I felt that the second cave would be quite the same and may have been just a waste. I would have loved to take a swim in this water though.

DO NOT FORGET THE FISH SANDWHICH! As the locals say order Raisin Bread, Cheese, Coleslaw and Hot Sauce! It did not disappoint. You can view some photos

Boston to Bermuda Photo Gallery

This will be an unpopular opinion for sure but we could have skipped this and not cared. The hype was all that. Just hype. This was pretty much a pub with sub-par food and the rum swizzle everyone has raved about was kind of a let down. A “JUG” was no where near a jug of drink and TBH their food was no where near as good as say The Bearded Clam in Nassau. I compare the 2 as the decor and appetizers were the same when we visited.

Moongate Brewery is located right at the ferry dock in St. George. I read about this place online and had to try it. My wife and I LOVE visiting breweries and matter of fact have our own Instagram Page that covers our Adventures. Check it out. Ditch the Rum Swizzle and stop here for a Dark and Stormy and some great tasting brews! As most taprooms, you can also bring your own food and snacks.

We had to catch the last ferry back and this is when we realized we were a but naive in planning. In hindsight I think night one should have been checking out Hamilton, if possible, and then keep with the plan of St. George and shopping the last day at the Dockyard as we departed early. Ferry service does not run late night so we would have had to rely on Taxis ( $$$ ) or Public Transport ( S ) but our knowledge of the bus schedule stopped us.

I must say I really enjoyed the food on the Norwegian Breakaway. We made sure to eat at Cagney’s, Teppanyaki, Taste, Savor, Buffet and our Favorite, as mentioned earlier, was the Manhattan room. I will be writing a whole separate post on the food as will include pictures in the photo gallery I linked to above.

As promised though, here is the picture of the Fish Sandwich from the Crystal Caves. I wen ahead with the Wahoo Fish, on cinnamon raisin bread, hot sauce and cheese. It was delicious! Also make sure to grab some of their chicken fingers.

Yes. I would do this cruise again for sure but as mentioned I think I would shy away from doing so on a school vacation. I would want the weather to be a little better and that is something you cannot control from a cruise line.

We are at the age where we do not go to the standard pool deck to sit and swim. We would utilize the Adults Only Sections. Saying that, there is no Adult Only pool in the H20 area but there are 2 hot tubs. What was nice is that that were being used and by all adults. As this area tended to get a bit busy, the drink service flexed between efficient and slow but in the end it was fine.

If you have the drink package like most folks end up going with. you can order 2 drinks at a time or a double. So if yo are a beer drinker, when the wait staff comes by ask for 2 Miller Lite. If your a Old Fashioned Drinker like myself, get 2 or double it up. Saves you some time and keeps you hydrated.

• Cabin Steward: ⭐⭐⭐⭐He was there everyday, he was all business and kept the room clean and organized. Not much of a personality and no towel animals. Yes at 50 I like towel animals!
• Food Buffet: ⭐⭐⭐It was a buffet. I was not a fan of the setup having dishes at 2 ends of the same station. This caused some tension with people being cut in line. The food was a typical buffet, the Omelets station was the best for breakfast and the pizza was nowhere near as good as Carnival’s Pizza or Princess.
• Dining Rooms: ⭐⭐⭐⭐The food was SOLID in each of the rooms we ate in. Taste, Savor and The Manhattan Room. The latter felt more like a traditional cruise line setting. Large room, live music playing in the background and passengers ballroom dancing. Taste and Savor were more cozy and setup for people who want to sit and eat and leave.
• Specialty Dining: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Fantastic meals and service in each of the restaurants we ate at. Cagney’s served up a delicious surf and turf and Chef Richard in Teppanyaki made us a ton of food and made some of the best friend rice I ever had.
• Norwegian Breakaway: ⭐⭐⭐⭐My wife will probably argue this one but I loved the ship. I loved the options of having so many places to ear, loved the 24hour O ‘Sheehan’s, The Humidor Cigar Bar and Lounge, Spice H20 and so much more.

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