Star to Alaska Review 5/21 to 5/28 AKA: The Amway/Blue Coat Cruise

[Amadawn1]

spatterns,

 

Thanks so much, and I hope you have a wonderful cruise!

[Andy Reno]

Amanda Not only we we on the same cruise We were behind you/in front on the bus tour in Skagway We took M&M tours up to Carribou Crossing and Back We have an almost Identical Photo of the roadside Bear

I will post our review later

[rosey1946]

Thanks so much for the great review. We will be on the Star Aug 6 and can't wait. This will be our second cruise to Alaska-did the last one 2002 on the Sun. Regarding the discussion on rude passengers, I didn't find this racial at all. And I am so sick of people calling others racist for anything they don't agree with. We have had our own experiences with rude passengers especially in Europe. And it is very disturbing when you are having an experience that should be wonderful and due to people being oblivious to others, having it ruined.

Thanks for taking the time to give us all this great information.

[Epic_Bear]

Just got off the 5/28-6/4 Star cruise. We also had 900 Amway people...Yes, pictures of everything. The last night we went to Second City Improv, and they had a whole bit on Amway.

[Amadawn1]

Amanda Not only we we on the same cruise We were behind you/in front on the bus tour in Skagway We took M&M tours up to Carribou Crossing and Back We have an almost Identical Photo of the roadside Bear

I will post our review later

 

Andy Reno,

 

That is so funny that our tours were that close together in Skagway! I wish we had gotten to Caribou crossing, but we just did the quick turnaround with a ride back down on the train. I do have the longer Yukon Bus & Rail Excursion booked with Chilkoot again for my cruise with my Mom in September. This time we will make it to Caribou Crossing. Kind of a long excursion though (7 1/2 hours!). But I am sure the scenery (and wildlife :)) will be worth it! BTW, I meant to tell you how sorry I was to hear about your family's experience in the Stardust Theater. That is really shameful.

 

I am really looking forward to your review, and hopefully more of your pix! Thanks!

[Amadawn1]

Thanks so much for the great review. We will be on the Star Aug 6 and can't wait. This will be our second cruise to Alaska-did the last one 2002 on the Sun. Regarding the discussion on rude passengers, I didn't find this racial at all. And I am so sick of people calling others racist for anything they don't agree with. We have had our own experiences with rude passengers especially in Europe. And it is very disturbing when you are having an experience that should be wonderful and due to people being oblivious to others, having it ruined.

Thanks for taking the time to give us all this great information.

 

rosy1946,

 

Thank you for the kind words, and I hope you have a great cruise on the Star! We really did enjoy ourselves, and I am looking forward to having the opportunity to go back to Alaska in September as well. Happy cruising!

[Amadawn1]

Just got off the 5/28-6/4 Star cruise. We also had 900 Amway people...Yes, pictures of everything. The last night we went to Second City Improv, and they had a whole bit on Amway.

 

All I can say is WOW wcsmells! They put almost 2000 Amway folks on the same ship over a two week period? It sure does seem that it would have been better if Amway had just chartered the whole ship for one of those two weeks instead. I do believe that NCL would likely have lost revenue overall if Amway had chartered that cruise, though. I never encountered any of the Amway folks on any of my NCL sponsored excursions, in any of the bars, in the casino, and with the exception of the Ginza/Teppan Table restaurant any of the restaurants I dined in that required a cover charge.

 

I really wish I had seen the Second City Improv, too! That was one of the two shows I was sorry I had missed. Good to see Second City had fun with it!

[Epic_Bear]

Second City asked for a business, someone shouted out Amway, and the whole room erupted. They asked if there were any Amway people in the room before they continued. I wonder if there are more this week? Our trip was fantastic, but we're going to be talking about Amway for years, LOL.

[Amadawn1]

I will definitely catch Second City next time around on NCL!

[Andy Reno]

Dam limeys Rob Sugar assistant cruise Director is from Portsmouth I think He was a little bit (maybe a lot) like a nine bob note. I am not sure whats worse 900 amway or 90 limeys. I can get away with this slur as I am from Luton

Have a great trip

[willguy8]

Where do you find info on the NCL sponsored excursions? Is it on the ship itself or on their website? We are going this week.

[Amadawn1]

Where do you find info on the NCL sponsored excursions? Is it on the ship itself or on their website? We are going this week.

 

You can find out and book on the NCL website. You can also book the excursions (many are still available) on the ship after you board. On the Star, the shore excursions office/desk is adjacent to the Grand Atrium on the Deck 7 Promenade deck.

[ladyjane]

We were on this same cruise. We were told right away that there were 900 Amway folks on board. They were all from Thailand and VERY friendly. We loved how they were always looking for whales and when they saw one would ooh and ahh. We didn't have to look because we knew when they were doing it for us. We just always had our camera ready! We found the Thai's to be extremely friendly - much more so than the american who elbowed me to get in line in front of me! There was also a group of 100 brits on board. We got to know quite a few of these folks as well. This was only our second cruise, but I was concerned about crowding on all of the decks as on our previous cruise we could never find a place to sit. This was NEVER a problem. There was also some place to sit both inside and outside no matter where we wanted to go. We had very warm weather and it was wonderful to be able to use the hot tub and pool without having to fight for a spot.

[Amadawn1]

We were on this same cruise. We were told right away that there were 900 Amway folks on board. They were all from Thailand and VERY friendly. We loved how they were always looking for whales and when they saw one would ooh and ahh. We didn't have to look because we knew when they were doing it for us. We just always had our camera ready! We found the Thai's to be extremely friendly - much more so than the american who elbowed me to get in line in front of me! There was also a group of 100 brits on board. We got to know quite a few of these folks as well. This was only our second cruise, but I was concerned about crowding on all of the decks as on our previous cruise we could never find a place to sit. This was NEVER a problem. There was also some place to sit both inside and outside no matter where we wanted to go. We had very warm weather and it was wonderful to be able to use the hot tub and pool without having to fight for a spot.

 

ladyjane,

 

I am glad to hear you had a great cruise, and met so many friendly people! Being able to meet all 900 of the Amway cruisers on a 7 day cruise was quite a fete as well! Perhaps it may have been 892. There were 8 at the Teppanyaki table on the second night of the cruise that were not friendly and exhibited poor manners. In my travels I have met or encountered folks from many countries. Some are friendly, others are not.

 

By the way, I spell American with a capital A.

[Alvarado]

I was also on this cruise and the person who posted the review was right on the money about the cruise. The Thai people on the cruise were amway distributors who had won the cruise. They were of all ages and on the whole very polite and pleasant. They are picture addicts, I was even grabbed and included in several photos just because I was there. We were in Le Bistro with the same experience of photo taking going on, and our meal was very different from the LeBistro's usual high quality because the restaurant was so full. We were offered a refund on our meal even though we barely complained. NCL went out of its way to smooth things over. I don't think it was a matter of rudeness just different cultures with different ideas of what is considered appropriate behavior.

[NewPennCruiser]

After some shopping, we went on a ship sponsored excursion, Lighthouse, Totems & Eagles. It was very enjoyable, and we had a great time on the boat with Capt. Rob, his crew and his dog Princess.

 

 

Thank you for bringing back a great memory....we cruised Alaska in 2009 on the Sapphire Princess and did the Lighthouse, Totems and Eagles tour as well. We knew we were in for a nice day when it seemed like we were personally greeted by the Captain's dog Princess as we got off the bus. It was a great tour and its nice to see the Captain and his dog are still doing fine. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

 

Dave

[Amadawn1]

Thank you for bringing back a great memory....we cruised Alaska in 2009 on the Sapphire Princess and did the Lighthouse, Totems and Eagles tour as well. We knew we were in for a nice day when it seemed like we were personally greeted by the Captain's dog Princess as we got off the bus. It was a great tour and its nice to see the Captain and his dog are still doing fine. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

 

Dave

 

I am really glad you enjoyed the Lighthouse, Totems and Eagles excursion while on your cruise as well! It was a very enjoyable day for us, and the Captain and Princess were doing great. They both greeted our group at the bus too, and there was excellent weather that day. Captain Rob really does seem to enjoy presenting the excursion and piloting at the same time! You get a genuine sense that he has a great appreciation of Alaska, Ketchikan, the area's history and wildlife conservation.

 

Coincidentally, I will be heading back to Alaska on the Sapphire for my first Princess cruise in September, and can't wait! It will be interesting to get a comparison of the two different lines on almost the same itinerary.

 

Happy cruising!

[Andy Reno]

Amanda As promised I will try to get my review/homework done by this week under new thread. Just as a teaser into the wild and twisted mind of of this 1st time cruiser I submit the following photos

[willguy8]

You can find out and book on the NCL website. You can also book the excursions (many are still available) on the ship after you board. On the Star, the shore excursions office/desk is adjacent to the Grand Atrium on the Deck 7 Promenade deck.

 

So, what you meant by NCL sponsored excursions are those that you have to pay for, not free excursions "sponsored" by NCL?

[willguy8]

You can find out and book on the NCL website. You can also book the excursions (many are still available) on the ship after you board. On the Star, the shore excursions office/desk is adjacent to the Grand Atrium on the Deck 7 Promenade deck.

 

So, what you meant by NCL sponsored excursions are those that you have to pay for, not free excursions "sponsored" by NCL?

[terrymtex01]

OP.. thanks for sharing your vacation with us. It brought back a lot of good memories.

 

I was also on this cruise and the person who posted the review was right on the money about the cruise. The Thai people on the cruise were amway distributors who had won the cruise. They were of all ages and on the whole very polite and pleasant. They are picture addicts, I was even grabbed and included in several photos just because I was there. We were in Le Bistro with the same experience of photo taking going on, and our meal was very different from the LeBistro's usual high quality because the restaurant was so full. We were offered a refund on our meal even though we barely complained. NCL went out of its way to smooth things over. I don't think it was a matter of rudeness just different cultures with different ideas of what is considered appropriate behavior.

 

OH WOW.. I didn't realize that when you took the Tracy Arm excursion that you went instead to Dawes. In my opinion, having done both, Tracy Arm and Dawes, Dawes is the better of the two. Both are beautiful, but I loved loved loved the time we took the excursion and went to Dawes. IMHO, you REALLY lucked out.. 8-) Can't wait to compare notes on the Spirit this Nov. When I saw the OP's title of this thread, I had to read the review because I knew you were on this cruise as well.. 8-)

[ladyjane]

ladyjane,

 

I am glad to hear you had a great cruise, and met so many friendly people! Being able to meet all 900 of the Amway cruisers on a 7 day cruise was quite a fete as well! Perhaps it may have been 892. There were 8 at the Teppanyaki table on the second night of the cruise that were not friendly and exhibited poor manners. In my travels I have met or encountered folks from many countries. Some are friendly, others are not.

 

By the way, I spell American with a capital A.

 

Wow! Sounds like you have a bit of a chip on your shoulder. Obviously we didn't meet all 900 Amway folks, but the people we encountered were all very friendly.

[housepeepers]

Loved your flower picture from Pike Place Market ( I assume). Aren't the flowers there just fabulous and so inexpensive. Our youngest son lived in Seattle for 3 years and we did the Star/Alaska cruise during that time. Unfortunately we saw NO wildlife and it rained everyday, but the scenery was still incredible.

 

Janet

[Amadawn1]

Amanda As promised I will try to get my review/homework done by this week under new thread. Just as a teaser into the wild and twisted mind of of this 1st time cruiser I submit the following photos

 

Those are great pictures! I look forward to getting to opportunity to read your review and seeing more! Thanks!

[Amadawn1]

So, what you meant by NCL sponsored excursions are those that you have to pay for, not free excursions "sponsored" by NCL?

 

Unfortunately, yes! I don't know of any free excursions, but if you hear of any please let me know!