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10 hours ago, JJGOLD said:

I just checked and they do not have any glasses in lost and found.

 

Thank you for checking!!!

Enjoy your trip! Our July 10th cruise was awesome, though i wish we were able to have a beach day on Pigeon Island! Does anyone know if there's a lost and found on the ship? I might have left my eyeglasses on board. I will call Windstar tomorrow.

Thanks to the Cruise Critic community for getting me through the weeks leading up to this cruise. The updated ship is beautiful and the staff is accommodating as ever. I was a bit shocked hearing about the new itinerary as we waited for the results of the ship’s antigen test, especially since we did half this itinerary already on Windsurf a few years ago. And after carefully selecting the excursion but better safe than sorry!

Not all restaurants are open all the time due to the number of passengers. When you board the ship and have lunch at the Veranda, you will be greeted by Ipong (sp?) and have the chance to make your reservations. He will tell you which restaurants are open when. Foe example 2 nights ago we didn’t have reservations anywhere and the Amphora wasn’t open so we at at the Star Grill, the outdoor area on deck 8 in front of the Star Bar (and the Yacht Club where you can get your specialty coffees). Last night we ate at Cuadro 44 and it was great! If there’s 2 of you, sift in front of the chefs! 
 

Which reminded me we have a tour of that kitchen at 5 and then then the BBQ! Gotta run!

Be careful when filling out the EHAS form. I mistakenly checked Antigen test (vs PCR, which i got) and my application was rejected. The denial letter said that my antigen test wasn't within 48 hours which is how i knew i made a mistake. The application i completed for partner was accepted right away. I was able to reapply and was very quickly accepted. Very relieved though the letter says 

"Your EHAS application has been pre-approved. This doesn’t guarantee admission to Sint Maarten. The immigration authorities at the port of entry will have the final determination."

So i'm relieved but I'll feel much better once i'm on that ship on Saturday. Good luck everyone!

I noticed that Verizon now has a $20 International plan for cruises!

Verizon offers a new $20 International Monthly Plan for travelers interested in using data on select cruise ships and airplanes. Should service be available aboard, customers will receive a SMS offer for a 50 MB allowance. After that, you’ll just need to respond “yes” to get started. Please note that this a non-recurring plan.

Windstar is one of the select cruise lines...hopefully this works! Seems like a great option.

We are not getting an All In plan for our cruise but i'm debating adding a Wifi plan to be able to check email. In the past, we used free wifi in the ports but since we won't be able to get off the ship without an excursion, I'm wondering if i should add the basic Email wifi plan. We have 4 excursions booked but I don't know what to expect in terms of free time and free wifi. Has anyone gotten the basic Wifi package and is it enough to check emails?

Are they dropping anchor anywhere to utilized the water sports platform?

July 10th! Yup hope it gets worked out! I can't imagine all these cruises will be free! The article made it seem like they were going to stop in some ports. 

Confusing because this is still under COVID-19 TEST REQUIREMENTS

For travelers from the USA, US territories and Canada the time frame remains 120 hrs. prior to departure. This will remain in effect as long as the national health authorities of the USA and Canada do not require differently for their traveling citizens.

FYI even though i booked my excursions over a month ago, when I called Windstar to add the COVID test to my account, the said that one of my excursions was being removed because it was oversold and we'd be waitlisted. I booked too many anyway so it's fine. Hopefully things will change in a month...for the better!

So if we're flying in the same day as the cruise we select Air Cruise? I wrote to EHAS for clarification since we're not technically staying in St Martin but I haven''t heard back yet.

Lots of chatter about this on the Celebrity board. Here's an article from a woman on board.

https://thepointsguy.com/news/celebrity-millennium-cruise-ship-covid/

I'm thinking about doing both tests, depending on the result. From what i heard from my doctor, the antigen test is less sensitive than the PCR test. Meaning that you can have the dead virus in your nostrils, dead cells that won't infect anyone, but test positive for the virus. I wish St Maarten would have just changed their rules yesterday! It would have been the best birthday present for me!

1 hour ago, new_cruiser said:

I think the person who gave you that answer may have been confused. It's the deck barbecue that's usually on the longest day/overnight in port. That's because it is nice to be anchored in the evening during the deck bbq though they may sometimes do it while sailing. The beach bbq has to be at a port where there is a beach near the ship that works for it so it's based more on whether the local facilities work for it. 

I thought so and I said that to the representative, but they weren't getting it. I guess I'll find out onboard. I booked excursions for all but 2 days so unless it's the first day, I can cancel. The beach BBQ is a great day. 

I asked about the beach barbecue and I was told that it was up to the Capitan but it's usually on the longest day/overnight in port. I thinking it will be in Virgin Gorda. 

There was one sailboat on the Wind Surf. It looked like a Sunfish. There were 4 SUP and 3-4 kayaks. The watersports platform was open every day we were tendered but there were some days that they didn't take out the kayaks, SUP and boats because of the currents. Also, the hours in the daily program might not be accurate. They closed a full hour earlier one day saying the program was mistaken. It was a blast! Enjoy!

thanks everyone for your responses. Anyone know about bringing wine onto the cruise?

I brought 2 bottles of wine on board (and was given another on by guest services due to a cabin switch). We enjoyed a drink in our room but we did bring 2 bottles to the dining room and we weren't charged a corking fee.

I was surprised how generous they were with the alcohol. This was only our 2nd WS cruise but from the drink when you board, to the captain's welcome, there was a lot of free drinks! Also, on NYE in the Lounge, the champagne was free and flowing!

Not sure where the leak was happening but it may have to do with the A/C unit. The maintenance men were in the hallway outside those cabins trying to repair something.

We have been allocated 102 next month for 2 weeks. Anything we should know?

 

Because of our fare type we usually get the least popular cabins on most ships.

 

Our first time on Windstar though. Its going to be interesting!

Bring a power strip or extra outlet. There's only one US outlet on the desk and another in the bathroom. Nothing near the bed.

Is the watersports platform typically made available at all anchored/tendered ports? Weather permitting of course....thanks!

It was open on all of the tendered ports, but when the sea was choppy, the kayaks, SUP, etc were not available. Also, check the opening and closing times at the watersports platform/marina. Don't rely on the daily program because sometimes it's not accurate.

128 had a leak on the 12/23/17 cruise and was being repaired on the 12/30/17 one. Those folks in 128 were moved to 126 where they experienced a leak and their AC didn't work. I would avoid those 2 cabins for the time being.

I'm just back from the Wind Surf and i will write a review in a few days but I'll answer some of my questions. Snorkel equipment is handed out the first day. I wish i remembered that crepes are only available for breakfast on the first morning. Not much is open on Sundays in Martinique and even less on Dec 31st. Taxis are readily available in each port with Castries being the most aggressive. Keep walking. The prices are much lower in town. We ended up in cabin 102 because of a leak in 126/128 so i would avoid those 2 cabins. The people who were moved from 128 to 126 said that the AC didn't work. That's all i can think of for now. I'll be happy to answer all of your questions.

Love to hear more! I'll be on Wind Surf in 2 days, same itinerary. We were on Star Breeze last year, Venice to Athens. We're looking forward to our first Caribbean Windstar cruise. Here are a few questions. How often was the sports deck open? Do they have snorkels for use? Which evening was the BBQ? What did you do that was memorable in each port? Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks!

Thanks for the info. In reading about wine in Venice I've come across vino sfuso which is local "loose wine" sold by filling up your own bottle, plastic or glass. Do you think I will have an issue bringing this type of wine on the ship? There seems to be an excellent shop near the port, Vinaria Nave de Oro.

Hello I'm sailing on Star Breeze at the end of Sept, boarding in Venice on a Friday and spending Friday night and all day Saturday in Venice. I'd like to purchase wine in Venice but in order to drink it on the ship, do we need to purchase it before we board for the first time? I'd rather not be hauling my luggage through Venice in search of a wine shop. I think there's an enotecca near San Basilio, and i'd rather find it without luggage.

Thanks!