Star/Spirit & The Inside Passage ????

[GummyBear]

We’re planning to book the Star for Seattle R/T in early September and have heard some disturbing news. The itinerary on NCL’s site clearly shows the Star sailing both northbound and southbound through British Columbia’s Inside Passage. According to posters on this board this is not actually the case. Instead the Star is sailing west on Vancouver Island in both directions missing the passage entirely. According to one poster, they didn’t even see land until 3 PM on second day of the cruise.

Is this the normal course for the Star or have they recently changed their itinerary?

Is this also true for the Spirit?

 

[Joyce and Tim]

I just read about this on the Alaska boards. If anyone knows the answer, I'd like to know if it's true also about the Dream, as we're on it next month. Thanks.

[Cruizer_J]

The Star sailed West of Vancouver Island on our May 2004 sailing and I believe that it did on other sailings last year. The NCL site displayed the same incorrect itinerary map then as it does now; this has been a point of confusion since the Star began sailing to Alaska. Personally, I can somewhat accept that NCL uses the "inside passage" term loosely since the Star does sail there when at the Alaska ports of call, but they should have corrected the map by now.

[GeeJayUK]

We were on the Star June 5th - 12th and sailed west of Vancouver Island in both directions, which is unfortunate as the Pacific produced more of a swell than the Inside Passage.

[GummyBear]

If it were only the map I could understand, but the itinerary clearly states that Monday is spent “Cruising the Inside Passage.” I would hate to accuse NCL of misrepresentation but as of yet I have not heard form anyone that the ship has actually followed the published itinerary this season. I understand that all itineraries are subject to change for any number of reasons and without notice. Catalogs once printed and distributed cannot be changed but IMHO there is no excuse for their web site to be displaying incorrect information to their customers.

 

With that said I will now get off my soap box and begin planning to thoroughly enjoy my cruise on the Star and plan to curl up with a good book for Monday.

[Candymanjim]

Just back from the Spirit. On the way up we went all the way up on the inside passage, picking up the pilot just off Victoria. On the way back we were on the west side. The seas were 4-6 feet and it was probably only 10 mile visibility the whole way down in fog/low clouds.

 

Jim

[GummyBear]

Jim,

 

How was the rest of the cruise??

[Candymanjim]

Here was my full review and high res scan of the daily's

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=196969

 

Jim

[dgund]

We are booked on the Star for July 2006. I was also under the impression that we would be sailing the inside passage both ways. Why do they continue to give this itenerary if that is not what they are sailing?