REVIEW - Star to Alaska June 2011 - LONG

[tkq]

We returned from the Star to Alaska yesterday and had a great time. We are a family of 4 with 2 children ages 13 and 9. We have sailed 3 times prior (once with the kids) all on Princess. I will try and touch on the different aspects of our cruise and will do a separate review of the ports on the Alaska boards.

 

Overall – We enjoyed NCL and the Star, but not quite as much as Princess. This didn’t make for a bad cruise, but at the end of this review I will touch base on a few comparisons. The Star was in great shape – yes there are a few signs of wear and tear, but what do you expect with over 2,300 passengers on board each week. The layout of the ship is great with things spread out enough to keep the congestion down (with the exception of the shopping area – but I am sure that is by design). There was very little smoke smell with the exception of the casino. There is a smoking area near the pool and the crew made sure no one lit up in the non-smoking areas.

 

Embarkation – We arrived Friday evening and stayed at the Hyatt Town Place near the Space Needle - great location and hotel with a free shuttle to the pier. We arrived at pier around 11:30 and things where just starting to get busy. We were staying in a suite and had VIP check-in. Things really appeared unorganized until we were informed that there was an inspection taking place and no one would board the ship until 12:30. At that point we walked down the pier for a snack and returned shortly after 12:00 and were escorted personally through security to the VIP room. We filled out our paperwork, had photos taken for our ID cards and then were escorted to Cagney’s for lunch. 20 minutes tops after our return and we were on board.

 

Cabin – we were in a family suite on deck 12. The room is the size of 2 cabins which was very nice with the 4 of us. The bathroom is large with 2 sinks and a separate tub and shower. There is plenty of storage space in the closets and drawers. We loved the big windows, particularly for Alaska and did not miss having a balcony. There is a flat screen TV, a fancy coffee maker and mini-fridge. The blow dryer was a little weak – so the long hair took a while to get ready in the mornings. We had an awesome room steward who took care of everything we asked for promptly (emptying the mini-bar for our own sodas, etc.) He was friendly and always greeted us.

 

Butler & Concierge – The concierge Virginia met us in the VIP lounge and was very helpful with reservations for dinner each night. No matter how full the bookings were, she could always manage to get us something. While we didn’t see her a whole lot we would call her each morning with our dinner request. At the end of the cruise she was there to escort us off the ship (and around all the lines). Our butler Lucky was a different story – he served our breakfast every morning when ordered and delivered afternoon snacks. Most other requests were met with “that is house keepings job”. Never once did he ask if we ever needed anything, but did eventually pull off what we requested. Not that we really needed him waiting on us hand and foot but the hype around the butler had us expecting a bit more.

 

Food – There have been a lot of comments around the food on the Star. Overall I would say the food was good, but not great. Only one thing I found inedible – the pumpkin ginger crab bisque soup with Maryland crab – pretty sure the crab was imitation. Other than that some things were a little bland but most things were very tasty. We ate at the Sushi bar for lunch and enjoyed it. We also ate at LeBistro for dinner and had a great meal. We tried Cagney’s for lunch a couple of times and were not disappointed. The buffet was good – some things very good, others we passed on. Ate lots of free ice cream in the buffet and at the ice cream bar (if it is closed you can still get ice cream inside the fitness center at the juice bar – leave it to the 9 year old how to figure out how to get ice cream). Ate snacks and a few breakfasts at the buffet and the food was ok. I think NCL is perplexed with how to staff and serve their dining rooms and buffets because they really, really want you to spend money in the paid restaurants so we found odd hours at the buffet, etc.

Entertainment – The magician the first night was horrible – spent the entire performance yelling into the microphone and the routine had no flow. After that we were hesitant for other performance but found the hypnotist, Second City and Elements all fantastic. Don’t miss Elements even though the grand finale is a little cheesy, it is still a great show. There was lots of music around the ship in the multiple bars. I actually won a little money at the Blackjack table.

 

Staff - We found the staff to be very friendly and always greeted us. They appeared hard working and focused on their jobs.

 

Disembarkation – We walked off with our own bags and when we were ready the concierge met us on deck 7 and escorted us to the gangway. Customs took less than one minute and we were on the street and in a cab for a post-cruise stay in Seattle.

 

Itinerary – we chose the Star primarily for the itinerary and the family suite. We loved sailing the inside passage – especially leaving Seattle. Most ships head straight for open water but the Star stays on the inside on Vancouver Island. When we woke up on Sunday morning and watched the shoreline go by it was breath taking. We loved Sawyer glacier – the fjord you travel for 20+ miles to reach the glacier is magnificent. We were able to get fairly close to the glacier face – not sure how it compares to Glacier Bay, but we were not disappointed.

 

Now, let me draw a comparison to Princess. Here is what I would say about the cruise overall – the Star was just a step off of potentially being great. I know all the food is prepared in mass for the dining rooms, but it is on the other ships too. On lobster night we watched the table next to us order the steak and ask for a lobster tail with the steak. What came out are two complete meals, because that is how the galley prepared it. Only 3 courses are served instead of 4 – so if you want an appetizer and salad both, they arrive at the same time. Service was always brisk but never personal. Servers would deliver half the food and then get side tracked taking an order while the rest of the party waited. Dishes not cleared very fast, crumbs never swept from the table, etc. You do feel nickeled and dimed on this cruise – raffle tickets, paid dinning, etc. Little things on the upkeep of the ship could improve too – dining room windows were dirty on the inside – looks like someone sprayed cleaner on them and never wiped them down. Now none of this ruined the cruise for us, but I think if the Star staff (maybe NCL in general) could work to improve simple things like this the experience would reach a whole new level. Ok, enough of the soap box.

 

I am happy to answer any questions I can.

[boaterette]

Thank you for the review. Alaska is beautiful.

[Kisigi]

Thank you very much for what I view as a balanced review. We're booked on the Star in a family suite this August 6th.

 

What was your impression of the family suite? Did you use the murphy bed?

 

Did you have breakfast or dinner in Cagney's?

 

How were the ports and did you do any excursions?

[AussieKathy]

thanks for taking the time to write a review. I'm glad you enjoyed your trip.

 

How did you find the weather how much did you have to rug up? We leave on 2 July.

 

Also did you do the boat excursion into Sawyer glacier or were you just talking about what you could see from the Star? Just weighing up whether to do the excursion into the glacier. I saw another review that they said it was fanastic.

[Hikini]

Glad you had a good time. Aren't those family suites on 12 great? We were in 12022 last time and will be in it again soon.

 

You didn't mention Cagney's. Did you not eat there?

 

We love the Star and NCL.

[Army/Police Vet]

I totally agree with you regarding the service in the MDR. With freestyle cruising the waiters never get a chance to know you and develop a relationship. Service is generally painfully slow and the waitstaff is so busy (?) you can often feel neglected. I find the waitstaff in the upcharge restaurants to be much more accomodating. I am to the point now that we just do not ever eat dinner in an MDR.

 

One option you may not have been aware of is that you could have your dinners delivered to your room by Lucky. While this can create some problems it also eliminates others.

 

Lucky just sounds like an inexperienced (bad?) butler. They are not all like that.

[Ron the Rev]

Many thanks for your review, we were getting a bit apprehensive about the Star with all the negative reports on CC; but then we always have our glass half full (in both senses) so what the heck.:D

[AussieKathy]

Many thanks for your review, we were getting a bit apprehensive about the Star with all the negative reports on CC; but then we always have our glass half full (in both senses) so what the heck.:D

 

Don't worry we are going to have a fab time. Don't sweat the small stuff besides we will be to busy looking at the scenery!

[jakenashleysmom]

Thank you for a balanced review! I feel that there are too many posters with negative views that are not specific enough, or have really nit-picky problems with the Star (or any ship for that matter)....so much so that there seems to be a lot of negativity towards this ship. I am booked on the Star for April 2012, and will have a fab time regardless of worn carpeting or briskly served dinners, but it is refreshing to hear both sides of the story!

[JGetCRUSING]

Thank you so much for the review. we are staying in that same suite on the 7/9 sailing. i had some of the same questions as Kisigi so I'll wait for you responses to them.

 

Did you go on any excursions? if so which once and did you enjoy them?

 

do you have pictures of the suite?

 

Ive been on 2 caribbean cruises and had to wear the ear patches for sea sickness, were there any rough waters on your sailing?

 

thanks in advance and so happy to hear you had a good cruise!

[dow cruiser]

We loved our Star experience and the way I feel - if you look for negative then you will find negative, if you look for positive then you will have a positive time. If there is a bad experience don't let it ruin your whole time.

[ladyjane]

Glad you had a good time. We were on this same sailing 2 weeks ago and had a wonderful trip. You can find my review on the member review page or on my travel blog at http://www.minnesotacamping.blogspot.com/

[tkq]

Thank you very much for what I view as a balanced review. We're booked on the Star in a family suite this August 6th.

 

What was your impression of the family suite? Did you use the murphy bed?

 

Did you have breakfast or dinner in Cagney's?

 

How were the ports and did you do any excursions?

 

 

We loved the family suite. We had the kids sleep on the murphy bed which they left down all week long. This left us the sitting area so when we got up in the monring we could leave the kids sleeping. The curtains are great and basically divide the room into 4. I have pictures I will try and post in the next day or two. I would recommend taking some string or cords to tie the curtains. They are very bulk and can kinda get in the way during the day.

 

We at lunch at Cagney's 3 times and the food and service were very good.

 

Ports included Ketchican, Juneau, Skagway and Prince Rupert. Not much to see in PR so the kids swam after a quick walk. We did whale watching in Juneau and saw humpbacks and orcas - great excursion. We did ziplining in Skagway and that was a blast - even for a guy who is afraid of heights.

[tkq]

thanks for taking the time to write a review. I'm glad you enjoyed your trip.

 

How did you find the weather how much did you have to rug up? We leave on 2 July.

 

Also did you do the boat excursion into Sawyer glacier or were you just talking about what you could see from the Star? Just weighing up whether to do the excursion into the glacier. I saw another review that they said it was fanastic.

 

Weather was really rainy in Juneau, otherwise a sweatshirt was plenty as it was mid 50's. Had some rain on sea days.

 

We did not do the boat excursion to Sawyer, jsut the cruise ship. Not sure how close the tour got compared to us as we got much closer than I expected. I would guess we were maybe a mile off the face and the tour boat was maybe a half mile since there was a lot of ice packed in close. Just guessing on the tour boat as they had already come back to meet us.

[tkq]

Glad you had a good time. Aren't those family suites on 12 great? We were in 12022 last time and will be in it again soon.

 

You didn't mention Cagney's. Did you not eat there?

 

We love the Star and NCL.

 

We werer in 12020! I was a little nervous as this suite is right across from the elevators but I have to say the suites are very quiet. Only heard hall noise when standing in the dressing area. Occassionally hear noise from above when kids were running (had 400+ on our sailing) but nothing that was disruptive.

[tkq]

Thank you so much for the review. we are staying in that same suite on the 7/9 sailing. i had some of the same questions as Kisigi so I'll wait for you responses to them.

 

Did you go on any excursions? if so which once and did you enjoy them?

 

do you have pictures of the suite?

 

Ive been on 2 caribbean cruises and had to wear the ear patches for sea sickness, were there any rough waters on your sailing?

 

thanks in advance and so happy to hear you had a good cruise!

 

We only had rough seas on the last day when we hit open waters to come aroudn the west side of Vancouver Island. The seas were only 1.5 - 4 ft., which is not real big but I suspect the currents really tug on the ship as we were rocking pretty good. Most of the time on the inside passage you had to look outside to see if you were moving.

[kdny]

We were on this same cruise , Deck 9 owners suite. We were so lucky with our butler Andrew. He was fantastic. Very experienced, very intuitive and always a step ahead of anything we needed. He really made the suite experience a great one for us. I'm sorry your butler wasn't as good. It does make a difference.

 

:)

[AussieKathy]

Glad you had a good time. We were on this same sailing 2 weeks ago and had a wonderful trip. You can find my review on the member review page or on my travel blog at http://www.minnesotacamping.blogspot.com/

 

thanks for posting your review looks like you had beautiful weather! I hope the weather improves for our cruise on 2 July

[AussieKathy]

Weather was really rainy in Juneau, otherwise a sweatshirt was plenty as it was mid 50's. Had some rain on sea days.

 

We did not do the boat excursion to Sawyer, jsut the cruise ship. Not sure how close the tour got compared to us as we got much closer than I expected. I would guess we were maybe a mile off the face and the tour boat was maybe a half mile since there was a lot of ice packed in close. Just guessing on the tour boat as they had already come back to meet us.

thanks tkq

[fkwok]

Much appreciated!