Star Review 4-23 through 4-30

[fightpiter]

Ok, so this is my first attempt at a review. Hope that everyone doesn't hate it. My kids and I took this cruise in February and DW issed it due to work. This was her "make up" cruise. I did make a couple comparisons in here. If there are any questions please feel free to ask.

 

On Saturday we arrived at the cruise port in San Pedro. We have only sailed out of here and Seattle but I have to say that I much prefer Seattle. That being said we were through registration, had met with Patrick the concierge and were on the ship in less than forty minutes. Not too much to complain about.

 

Once we were on we went to Cagneys for lunch as the staterooms were not yet ready. I had the NY strip medium rare which was quite good along with the asparagus with prosciutto. It was just as good as the steak.

 

When we were finished it was about one so we went to see about our room. The doors were still closed blocking off the passageway. I found one of the crew and asked about checking if it was done so we could drop off our carry ons. He said that would be fine so we did and it was ready.

 

As were cruising without our kids for the first time we chose a smaller suite than we had previously been in. it was 10726, one of the Romance Suites. This suite has a queen bed, dining table with 4 chairs, a couch, coffee table, and a sitting chair. The bathroom has a tub/shower combo. This was what I expected but wasn’t sure until we got here. The others that we have stayed in have had separate shower and bath. It comes with the Elemis products in the bathroom as well as the shower gel and shampoo dispenser in the shower. There is only one TV and it is in the main room. A little small by todays standards but it was probably 28 inch or so. Also a DVD player. We had brought a couple movies but there is also a DVD library that guests can access through the butler.

 

Day 1 was Saturdad, we went to the show and then had our dinner at Blue Lagoon. We played for a while in the casino and then went back to out room.

 

Day 2 Sunday we had breakfast at Cagneys. I had the omelet with bacon and potatoes. It was very good. We then bummed around for a while and eventually found our way to the casino. We were there for a couple hours and unfortunately lost track of time and missed the CC meet and greet. On the bright side we left up a few dollars. After this we went to Cagneys where I had the NY strip again. After lunch we joined the scavenger hunt. It was fun but we didn’t do very well. We went to the pool area after this for a while and enjoyed the day. For dinner I had sushi and the wife had something from the fusion menu. She said it was very good and for the most part so was the sushi. The show that night was band on the run. While not my favorite, this was still an enjoyable show. Dancing and 70s music. Later we ordered in room service for dessert and went to bed.

 

Day 3 Monday we were in Cabo at noon. We ordered breakfast from Cagneys and Henri, the butler, delivered it for us. Using our priority tender tickets we were able to get off the ship quickly and to town. We had no excursions booked so we looked around and did some shopping. The prices definitely were not as good as in February when I was here with the kids. We stopped at Alexanders for fish tacos for lunch. After this we hired a glass bottom boat for a tour at ten dollars each. They took us around to the Pacific side and we checked out the beaches. For some reason they were not able to stop though. When we got back we hopped a tender back to the ship. The wife wanted to try out the dining room for dinner so we did. Turns out it was lobster night. In the past I have not been really impressed with the main dining room lobster. This was different. The tails were small but were cooked nicely. They were not at all over cooked and were tender. The snapper, while small, tasted great. I asked for an extra tail when I ordered and I was glad that I did. After this we went to the casino for a bit where we proceeded to lose what we were up along with a few more dollars. After this we went to the show which was Extreme Vegas. I had seen this show in February and enjoyed it very much; it was almost as good the second time. As we were running short on cash I went to the casino to get a little more and to play some. They are now charging 3 percent to put cash on your account. Kind of irritating, like they aren’t making enough on the casino as is. We played for another couple hours and lost an additional 50 bucks. We then went back to the room. There was a pool party that lasted for several hours but DW wasn’t feeling well so we skipped it.

 

Day 4, Tuesday. Today we are again in Cabo. I am now feeling a little rough. Not sure if it is allergies or the start of a cold. DW wanted to stay on the ship so I could rest but there was no way I was going for that. We went off and hired a water taxi to take us to the beach. We were able to walk around and get some great pictures of the arch and the caves. Had a great time. For the twenty dollars for the taxi it was well worth it. Then back to the ship for lunch at Cagneys. I had the sea scallops with risotto and was not disappointed. DW had the cheeseburger and fries. Not much can be said about that. A cheeseburger is a cheeseburger. Later we went out and enjoyed the day. For dinner we ordered in from the MDR for me and Blue Lagoon for DW. My steak with mashed potatoes and caesar salad was great.

 

Day 5, Wednesday. Today was the Puerto Vallarta day. We had breakfast at Cagneys and then left the ship. We got a cab for 3 dollars each to downtown. Did a bunch of shopping and walked along the waterfront. DW got pictures of many of the sculptures and the sandcastles. After this we went to Cheeky Monkey for Coronas and tacos. DW had a tequila sunrise but didn’t drink it all as it was too strong. We went back to the ship after this and then to dinner at Le Bistro. Had the filet, DW had the burgundy chicken and loved it. Well worth the 20 dollar per person upcharge. Later I ordered room service ice cream in for dessert.

 

Day 6, Thursday. Today and tomorrow are both sea days. We had our breakfast at Cagneys and then played for a while at the casino. When we were done we went back to the room for a while and got ready to go to the murder mystery lunch. This is held at La Cucina and features the 2nd City cast. We skipped their regular show on Tuesday as we have seen them several times. This show involves the audience and was fun. The menu was a salad, stuffed chicken breast, and petite éclairs. We will be going to the chocolate buffet later this evening. Mostly we will be taking pictures as we have learned that the offerings typically look better than they taste in our opinions. After that it’s Cagneys for dinner.

 

What a great dinner it was. I chose the rib eye while DW had the prime rib. I thought that the rib eye was delicious. It was just a hair overcooked but still very tasty. The wife said that my prime rib was better than what she had but she did order it medium well. After our dinner we had dessert. I went with the ice cream and she had the cheesecake. She wasn’t very fond of the cheesecake over the course of the whole trip and this was no exception. The ice cream was good though.

 

Tonight’s show was Angels and it was very good. Jamie the CD commented that the two people who were featured most prominently during the show were leaving after this cruise so I don’t know if this show will still be running.

 

Almost forgot, we had photos done this evening as well. They came out nicely and we purchased 4 with the 5th one free.

 

Day 7, Friday. Today I slept rather late as my cold has really taken hold. We did get breakfast from Cagneys courtesy of Henry, the butler. I had my old standby, the omelet. Afterwards we played for a little in the casino and just enjoyed each other’s company until it was lunch time. We had booked the Best of All lunch at La Cucina for one pm. While the lunch was ok I have to say that this was my one dining disappointment of the trip. When I went to this in February with my kids there were many more selections and I thought that things tasted just a little better than they did this time. DW told me that she wasn’t very impressed either.

 

After lunch we played for a bit in the casino and then went back to the room for a bit. I had picked up a cigar in Puerto Vallarta and was looking forward to it, so while my DW napped I had my cigar. When she woke from her nap I started feeling rough and layed down for a little while. I ended up getting up as I didn’t want her to miss the last show, Elements. She loved the show. Afterwards we went and played in the casino until around midnight at which point we went up to order room service and then go to bed. Of course, we forgot that room service doesn’t work on the last night of the cruise and ended up getting Blue Lagoon to go.

 

Back in the suite we finished what little packing we had to do and got our cases out for pickup.

 

Saturday, Disembarkation. We got ready to go and went for breakfast. I was a little disappointed to find that Cagneys had closed early this morning. We went back and gathered our carry offs, said our goodbyes to Allan the steward and Henry the butler, and headed for Stardust Theatre. This was the meet location for priority disembarkation. Fortunately Patrick was there as we had an envelope for him and then we were led off of the ship. Then we had to go through the mess that customs has in LA. It seems that there must be a better way to do things. After speaking with the porters it seems that they just changed the way that they line people up and it is causing big delays. Oh well, we were off the ship and through customs in about 35 minutes, maybe a little less.

 

So, in a nutshell, we had a great time. The food by and large was good, the only disappointment for me was the Best of All lunch. The weather was very nice in the 70s and 80s. The casino was tight, and finally we had a great time.

 

Our steward, Allan, was great; he left a nice variety of animals on our bed which DW tried to copy. Our room was always kept clean and he always had something nice to say.

 

Henry, the butler, was very good as well. If there was an issue he handled it promptly. Also, as I was feeling under the weather, we ate in our room a couple times. Henry got our orders delivered in a very timely manner.

 

Finally, I want to thank Patrick, the Concierge, for going above and beyond for us. He really helped to make our trip.

We of course purchased the cruise rewards certificate and are already discussing our next vacation with NCL.

[Chipster2]

Thanks for taking the time to post you review. It was nice to hear that you had a good time on the Star, one of our favorite ships.

 

We will be heading off to LA tomorrow morning to catch the Star as she relocates north for the Alaska season.

 

BTW, I think you did a great job with your first review.

[rotodoao]

Great trip report! We just booked our 1st cruise on the Star for December! We are very excited...thanks for amping it up!:)