new_cruiser

5 hours ago, Misty Morning said:

They are extremely romantic but have smaller rooms (188 sq ft)

Generally true of the sail ships, but Wind Surf also has 18 suites that are twice that size. So far, we're happy enough with the regular cabins and haven't chosen to pay extra for the suites, but it's an option.

5 hours ago, Sun Lover said:

. I would need to find out the hours the ship is in each port and how much time is actually on the ship. We like to keep busy so the lack of entertainment is a concern,

You can find port times on the itinerary on the Windstar site. We have found plenty to keep us busy on the ships. There is usually a late afternoon or evening when the bring on local entertainers for some local culture. Sometimes there is a lecturer on board. One night will be the crew show, another line dancing after the deck BBQ. A couple of evenings will have a show with the entertainment director and the band. 

Sea days will have things like a cooking demo, cocktail making demo, lectures if the cruise has a speaker on board. 

I have only been on big ships a couple of times; I've over 150 nights on Windstar including crossing the Pacific, the Atlantic and Tasmanian Seas. From what experience I've had, I find the Windstar ships stability not particularly different from bigger ships. They may be small ships but they have stabilizers, good hull shape and don't, unlike the mega-ship floating hotels, don't have huge above water flat areas catching wind. 

One difference to be aware of depending on your mobility. The two smaller sail ships, Wind Spirit and Wind Star, don't have elevators. They only have 4 passenger decks (plus a small flying bridge area on a fifth).

We were on Wind Surf in Europe last fall and pre-COVID were on for 31 days in the Caribbean.

I'm happy on any of the Windstar ships.

Usually, they tender because they are going to a very small port that doesn't have docking facility or when at a busy port (e.g some Alaska ports) where large ships have all the docks tied up. Or occasionally because there is an advantage to tendering. We were scheduled to tender in Dubrovnik where we would have tendered straight into the old town and have a view of the town walls for the deck BBQ, but due to rough weather that might interfere with tendering, docked instead which meant a shuttle bus ride into town. All those apply equally to the Wind and the Star ships.

Others have already pointed out that there are sail ships (names start with Wind) and motor yachts (names start with Star).

The three Star ships are virtually identical. They have all recently had a major overhaul. All cabins are suites (separate sitting area and bed area). 312 passenger capacity. Rooms have a large window or a French Balcony except those on deck 2 which have portholes.

Wind Star and Wind Spirit are twins. They are smaller ships, ~140 passengers. They have no elevators, but only have 4 floors, so that's not a hardship for most people. The staterooms are smaller than the Star ships and have portholes. One is never far from being on deck so that's where you go to enjoy the view.

Their cousin, Wind Surf, is larger. Most rooms are similar to those on it's Wind cousins. There are some suites which are double size rooms (they have 2 bathrooms). Wind Surf has the best deck space; not that the other ships are lacking deck space but I particularly like the space on Wind Surf.

I'll happily travel on any of the ships, but if the cruise is longer than 2 weeks, I prefer the Star ships for their all suite configuration and windows. If we occasionally want a quiet evening, we can get room service watching the view slide by as we dine. 

On 4/30/2024 at 6:51 AM, topaz123 said:

Are there other excursions available for ports NOT thru carnival. Found a few sites that offer some better iteneraries that work best for us, but did not want to go with someone less reliable.   DO you know of an alternative tour site for our stops?

We have often found reliable guides or excursions for a port by reading the board for the port here under Ports of Call. That works well for the frequently visited ports. There are also posts where people describe what they did on their own in a port. 

If it's an unusual port (we often travel on a small ship line where some of the ports aren't visited by bigger ships) sometimes we get responses by starting your on post on the relevant Port of Call or by asking on the board For that cruise line.

3 hours ago, Mary229 said:

I looked this up this week.  DH is approaching 70 and his travel deferment was set to after his 70th.   His summons was voided.  Here some of the exemptions are 70, sole caretaker with lots of caveats, mental illness.  Federal courts are also 70

 

https://www.uscourts.gov/services-forms/jury-service/juror-qualifications-exemptions-and-excuses

That page doesn't say that all federal district courts will exempt over 70. It says "most district courts" offer permanent exemptions to some groups and lists over 70 as one example of a group that may be excluded. It sounds like it is up to the district court to decide which groups to allow permanent exemptions. I expect it is commonly offered, but that page doesn't say it always is. 

For our local courts in California, it isn't a blanket exemption for those over 70, but being excused due to serving being a physical or mental hardship doesn't require documentation if you are over 70. 

On 4/24/2024 at 3:48 AM, BruceMuzz said:

And it is also possible that Windstar will send these ice hull ships to Alaska, where there are many icebergs floating around.

When they did the first Alaska sailings, they used Star Legend and said that they chose that ship because it has an ice rated hull. Later when Star Legend was not available, they sent another Star ship - obviously the ice rated hull wasn't necessary there but when convenient they might as well send the better equipped ship. 

In the Alaska cruise season typical routes (Gulf of Alaska and the Inside Passage), the only floating ice I've seen is pretty small stuff very close to the glaciers - we got closer to that in the kayaks and zodiacs than the ship did. No need for ice class unless they are planning on going much farther North.

BTW, saying a ship is ice rated doesn't tell you much. There are different classes of ice ratings specified by various countries and other bodies. The lowest classes are for operation in light ice conditions. 

9 hours ago, RMS Olympic said:

I was thinking the bow needed to be modified to look like the existing motor yachts. So happy this May actually happen.

As for the purchase….my thoughts are: ships available as Atlas may be struggling. These two ships are the right size, designed to be environmentally clean and with one still under construction easy to modify.

As for not planned for expeditions, the expedition market is full, WS demographics might not support cold itineraries beyond Iceland.

I'm wondering if the new engines are clean enough to meet the coming strict requirements for Norwegian fjords. I was booked on a Windstar cruise there that got canceled due to COVID and haven't managed to fit another into my schedule. 

Two additional ships might also give flexibility to go back to Asia or try some South American itineraries.

Do you prefer the Star suite configuration, bed by the window? All 3 are that configuration. 
I prefer the original sitting area by the window placement. Are none of the original Oceanview Suites available? 

Of the 3 you mention, I would prefer 440. It's over Amphora, but Amphora is usually used only for dinner and even then, I don't think the noise would carry up. Also, it is closer to midship than the other 2. 545 wouldn't be a bad choice either, cabins above and below so there shouldn't be any big noise issues. I like deck 5 for being in the middle so you are 2 decks or less from all public spaces other than Yacht Club and Star Grill.

Oh no! What an awful trip. 

"Bilateral", does that mean both legs? 

If the ship is next going to small Greek ports, you could be far from serious medical care for a week which doesn't sound like a good thing in the situation. Can insurance arrange for you to go to a hotel in Rome with some kind of aid/carer while they get transport home set up? Or even some kind of nursing or convalescent facility?

13 hours ago, Petoonya said:

Thanks!

Off to dentist in an hour.

I the dental visit went well for you. Are you on the mend and back on the ship or heading back home? 

And all aboard is usually 5 PM. You should receive an email with a boarding document that has the all aboard time. 

When we did it, we used a private transfer from Panama City with a half day of sight seeing along the way. We went to Portobelo to see the Caribbean end of the Spanish Gold Route across Panama. The driver also took us to see the Gatun Dam which was interesting. 

Most of the stops are nature related (or Canal history/technology related). There is a lot of bio diversity in Panama and Costa Rica because of climate and because of the isthmus mingling North and South American species.

The Windstar tours are usually not crowded and usually have quite good guides, but as a party of 6, you probably can do well booking your own tours. 

8 minutes ago, Petoonya said:

As an old nurse believe It's crucial to have an advocate available just like at home.

Travel insurance probably covers someone flying out to support you if needed. I think that's a pretty standard provision if you have someone able to do that. 

I expect you didn't know you were going to need a root canal when you booked your trip. Pre-existing exclusion usually applies to a condition that arose or changed within some number of days (e.g. 120 days) before you bought the insurance. Not something that happened after buying insurance. So, assuming bought the insurance some time ago, that shouldn't apply. 

As a matter of principle, I never buy insurance from a company I'm traveling with. I want the insurance to be independent of my travel carrier (airline, cruiseline, etc.). 

I had travel insurance when I had the broken arm, but they got off lightly. Kaiser covers emergency care internationally so I submitted my bills to them and they reimbursed all but the hospital copay I would have had for same treatment at home. United waived the change fee and fare difference. They even gave me the upgrade that was wait listed for my original flight.

8 minutes ago, Petoonya said:

meanwhile I'll fuss- meekly.

If I've added up the times correctly, you are around 6 days post root canal with pain and swelling that is getting worse and worse. I think the time for meek is over. If your cruise is 7 days, it will be almost half over by Marseille and you likely won't feel better right away. It's time to get medical attention on shore even if that means debarking early. If your cruise is longer than 7 days, you can catch back up to it when you feel better. 

I'm sorry to hear that you are experiencing this. Is there any possibility of an earlier stop where you could visit an endodontist or even other medical help on land? I think I would worry more about the possible damage that may be going on from an unchecked infection. Possibly intervention other than a new antibiotic and pain medication is called for such as draining the infection. If it is much worse after 36 hours on the new antibiotic, it seems like that isn't doing the trick. Do you have trip insurance? It may be time to prepare to leave the ship to get medical intervention.

I broke my arm on an excursion on the penultimate day of a solo cruise (on Star Clipper, not Windstar). These decisions are difficult. We didn't know it was broken and visited a clinic that wrapped it up and I reboarded, but looking back on it, I realize there were indications that it was broken. I debarked the next day and went to a hospital that the ship had arranged. Because it was a compound fracture, I ended up having to get immediate surgery and then stay in the hospital for 3 days for IV antibiotic before heading home. 

I hope you get seen soon for effective treatment.

12 hours ago, Nearpost345 said:

just back from the windsurf. People do nearly always respect the dress code. Unfortunately the exceptions stick out like sore thumbs. Candles the other night had a diner in swim shorts, another fella with his cowboy hat on, and a third diner, big guy, in a singlet. I wasn’t impressed.

That's unusual in my experience. Perhaps it helps that our most recent cruises have been cool weather ones: an unseasonably cool summer New Zealand/Australia and a fall Venice to Rome. Someone in a singlet or shorts would have been pretty cold. 

22 hours ago, Redtravel said:

Get the laundry package.  Often you get same day service.  The best part is you can send out laundry every day.  On the last day, I pack clean clothes. Once home, the only laundry to be done ate the clothes we wore flying home. 

For our Venice to Rome cruise last fall, we spent 5 days in Venice before boarding and 5 more days in Rome after the cruise. Arrive on board with most clothes needing laundry and debark with most clothes clean ready for the rest of the adventure.

They collect passports on most cruises. For my Japan to Alaska cruise they didn't collect them until after the last Japan port because Japan requires you to take the passport ashore (though mine was never checked at those port stops.

10 minutes ago, schmidlapp said:

Next winter we're booked on the Surf. One of our ports is Tortola BVI. Our plan is to take the ferry , (very short ride) to St John USVI for a few hours. This will require us to have our passports for the day. Wondering how they will handle this?

If they don't give passports back as a matter of course to all passengers because some might want to do this, you can let reception know your plans and pick the passports up from them the evening before or that morning. 

You can get a laundry package for $19 per day per double occupancy cabin ($9.50 if solo). It has to be bought for the full cruise. Star Collectors or cruises 14 days and longer include the package without charge. 

3 hours ago, MandL said:

People say Windstar is casual. Is this really true?

There is a range for dinner. No t-shirts and no shorts. Nice jeans are allowed (not ripped ones). After more than 30 years in the tech industry, we are pretty casual - mostly polos and slacks for dinner for both of us; sometimes nice jeans on a cooler weather cruise. But plenty of people dress up more than that (perhaps more women than men). So if you would be more comfortable being around the average dressiness of others, you might go a step up from that.

Depending on season and location, you might want to bring something warmer for dining on deck (BBQ, Candles and, for the Star ships, the Grill).

11 minutes ago, MandL said:

So do you trust Windstar with your delicates?  They don't offer dry cleaning.

They did fine with my silk masks when cruises resumed after COVID and my bras have come out fine. Those are the most delicate things I travel with. I did send the masks in in a separate bag with a note on the laundry tag that they were silk.

I don't understand the comments saying the tender stairs are rickety. I find them solid enough. They are metal stairs that can be collapsed and stowed when not in use but they are sturdy. I was on Wind Surf last October/November and we tendered at a couple of ports. 

On 3/12/2024 at 3:41 PM, Misty Morning said:

Tendering is always a tricky operation.  On our last cruise we have a few ports with higher swells and the tendering took longer as it took people a bit of time to get the OK to get into the tender.  The tenders have been renovated and hold approx 45 guests each.  On longer tenders ports (Virgin Gorda, St Barths, Falmouth,), they sometimes run 3 tenders at the beginning.

Yes, they always do there best to make tendering efficient, but it gets challenging when the sea is a bit rougher. On our last cruise, there was one port where they kept having to pause loading or unloading because of the swell - late October in the Mediterranean. Most of the time it has been smoother than that so it's not common but it happens.

On 3/9/2024 at 7:32 PM, Host Jazzbeau said:

(3) We are booked on our first Windstar cruise next January (Star Pride).  Looking at their itineraries I see that Wind Surf and Star Pride seem to share the Caribbean.  Have you sailed on Star Pride, and if so how do you compare it to Wind Surf?  [I'm thinking we would need a Suite on Surf, because the Staterooms (188sf) look very cramped.  We are in a Balcony on Pride (277sf)]

What I like best about Wind Surf is the excellent deck space. That's an advantage over the Star ships which have good deck space but not as much as on Wind Surf. Of course, when it goes under sail with no motors, that's magical - though on many cruises it doesn't have the right conditions to do that. 

I don't find the cabins on Wind Surf cramped. My husband and I weren't having difficulty running into each other while getting ready to go out. But for a long cruise, it is nice having the sitting area in the room that the Star ships have. So, for 15 days or longer, I'd lean more heavily toward a Star ship. A suite on Wind Surf would also do that, but you still have port holes instead of a window. 

I slightly prefer the Ocean View rooms on the Star ships over the Balcony rooms, especially since the refit. The balcony windows have frames around the doors that get in the way of the view. I think the old door frames weren't as thick. I like the nice uninterrupted view from the Ocean View windows. 

The Bon Voyage email has a subject like:

Fwd: Bon Voyage! Here are your travel documents for your upcoming Windstar Cruises trip, Booking <booking number>

It has a pdf of the boarding document titled GTB Ticket.pdf

You could search your email for it. You don't need it to board, but info in it can be convenient to have because it has the departure terminal in case you are sailing from a city with multiple cruise terminals.