Sunday, September 1, 2013

Norwegian Breakaway Aqua Park Water Slides Review



Part of Norwegian Cruise's newest fleets, the Norwegian Breakaway is one of the latest and most unique cruise ships ever built. Having first set sail in May of 2013, the Norwegian Breakaway has been making many voyages in and out of New York City to destinations such as Bermuda, Orlando, Nassau, and multiple private islands. The ship itself is decked out to give the appeal and atmosphere of New York City itself, with many shows, restaurants, bars, clubs, and other areas of the ship themed to the big apple.

Aquapark and Ropes Course from off of the ship Water Slides Overview
Ship Name Water Slides At Night

There's plenty for guests to do once on the ship, but one of the most unique things one could ever do above the Atlantic Ocean is trying out the ship's signature water slides. With five very impressive WhiteWater West brand water slides sitting above decks 16 through 18, the Aqua Park aboard the ship is one of the most unique you could find on any vessel out there! Ranging from the average small sized flume for those not ready to take on bigger slides yet, to the fast spiral of The Whip, to the thrilling first of its kind on a ship, Free Fall dual aqualoop water slides.

First, the family slide is the smallest water slide on the ship, and consists of an open flume figure 8-like layout before coming to the shutdown lane on deck 16. The slide is nothing special, though if one slides down it correctly, they can reach some impressive speeds and come flying high on the curves! This slide has the lowest height requirement, so little kids can enjoy it the most, while many of those who are tall enough can brave the more thrilling slides.
Family Slide Overview Family Slide At Night

The next couple of slides start many stories above deck 17 and has a very quick spiral all the way down. The Whip slides are two dual yellow and purple tunneled body slides that consist of a few left helixes downward, starting from opposite ends and meeting in the same area side-by-side with their own shutdown lanes. The turn on both slides become tighter the further down the slider goes, giving the illusion that one is significantly increasing speeds, but the feeling of pulling more g's. This is especially noticeable in the purple flume due to it having a slightly longer course and the tightest radius near the bottom, allowing very impressive g's to be reached for those that go down fast enough!
The Whip and other slides The Whip Shutdown Lane Night

The last of the slides is one of the tallest, fastest, most intense, and most spectacular on a ship. Free Fall are two dual aqualoop water slides, the first of its kind ever built on any cruise ship. The slide consists of a trap door beginning, where a countdown is given by a speaker in the capsule before the floor gives way and allows the sliders to come to a freefall start in the tunnel and reach very fast speeds, before rocketing up an upward incline (an angled loop) and coming to an end in the splashdown lane. These very fast water slides are definitely the most spectacular to ride, but also to watch due to the translucent tunnels that allow people on and off the ship to see riders go up the "loop" portion.
FreeFall FreeFall
FreeFall FreeFall
FreeFall
Oftentimes, people would valley on the slide (not make it all the way through the inclined loop) due to reasons that range from being too light, to wearing certain clothes, like shirts, that slow down the rider. (I, myself, have valleyed once on one of them) Luckily, the escape hatch at the bottom of the drop is left open so the slider can climb out and wait for an operator to come and get them from a platform before resetting the slide.

Along with the slides, there are two bars, multiple jacuzzis, and two pools for people to enjoy, plus an area for the very small children to play in with a small slide and large Spongebob Squarepants figures placed around.

Aquapark Slides Mix
The Aqua Park on the Norwegian Breakaway definitely has one of the most unique water park complexes ever built, especially considering the fact that it was placed on the top of a cruise ship. The best part is that plenty of fun can be had on it by not only kids, but teens and adults seeking something to satisfy their taste for extreme and thrilling. The Norwegian Breakaway is one of the only few ships that can offer this kind of experience in addition to sailing to the multiple ports offered.

Family Slide: 7/10
Free Fall: 9/10
The Whip: 8/10

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