Super Star Virgo

[techie99]

Thank you very much for your thoughts Kuldalai, really appreciate it. I will open the star cruiser card and not bother upgrading from the jr suite on deck 9. The question on bar credit, is this the 400$ dining credit you are refering to or something else? My TA didn't know anything more about it.

 

Any thoughts on where to dine for the gala dinner, i ws leaning towards the noble house, i think because of our suite and being on honeymoon we would get an invite to the captains table, which dining area is the captains table normally at?

 

Also is the dining credit given to us or subtracted from our final bill? Should I be getting this from the TA?

 

Regards,

techie99

[boeckli]

Thank you very much for your thoughts Kuldalai, really appreciate it. I will open the star cruiser card and not bother upgrading from the jr suite on deck 9. The question on bar credit, is this the 400$ dining credit you are refering to or something else? My TA didn't know anything more about it.

 

Any thoughts on where to dine for the gala dinner, i ws leaning towards the noble house, i think because of our suite and being on honeymoon we would get an invite to the captains table, which dining area is the captains table normally at?

 

Also is the dining credit given to us or subtracted from our final bill? Should I be getting this from the TA?

 

Regards,

techie99

 

The S$400 F&B credit appears as a credit on your account at the beginning of your cruise. We have always kept a running tally of what we have used for food and drink expenses, so we could make the most of it (I would then check with the reception desk on say day 4 just to make sure my sums were similar to theirs). That way, if you have some left over before the last day you can maybe have something special to use it up (on one cruise we 'splurged' on a bottle of French champagne on the last evening to use up our credit).

This F&B credit is only for food and drink and what you haven't used, is forfeited. ;)

 

As honeymooners and in a suite you may get an invitation to the captain's (or one of the other senior officer's) table and we have always had those in the Bella Vista restaurant. Very nice experience which we have been lucky to enjoy a few times. It may be a good idea to bring something a bit dressy for gala night in that case (no need for a tux but you will feel more comfortable that way - JMHO :) )

Otherwise Noble House for Gala Dinner would be nice but you have to be quick for a reservation, as it's very popular and there are not many seats.

Hope you have a wonderful time - please make sure to report on your return.

[smoses]

we are sailing on the ss virgo in February. do we need to buy power point adapters to use with our Australian appliances or can we rent them on board.

Also where is the best point to exchange our money, on board or on the shore, how many different money exchanges will we need

[kuldalai]

On the SS VIRGO placement trips SIN - HXG (March) or HXG - SIN (October) the $ 2000HK (approx $ 300 Aus) per cabin food and beverage credit should apply to all cabins BC category and higher of which Junior Suite is higher.

Get your TA to follow up with whoever they booked the cruise through . Its use it or lose it . At account settlement time if you have not spent $ 2000HK on food and grog then any un-used portion is forfeited , so check how your'e going at reception a day or two before arriving at destination .

 

Captains table will be at Bella Vista . When you check in you look for ADMIRAL CLASS check-in and you will receive priority check-in and they will fix the booking for Captains Gala dinner there for you along with a lot of other things. Then you will be personally escorted to your suite by a senior member of the ships crew . Make sure you get your Star Booking reservation number from your TA then e-mail starcare@starcruise.com.my and tell them your date of sailing name, suite type on deck 9 and you are honeymooners and they will take care of something special to welcome you I am sure .

 

SS VIRGO has power both 110 and 220v AC sockets . Adaptors if required are available free from housekeeping on board . The smart traveller will carry a set of universal KORJO adaptors which are available on the KORJO travel accessories stand in all good TA's in Aus. No heating elements or travel irons are allowed to be bought on board. All cabins have hair dryers in bathroom.

 

Currency exchange you can do it on board but first your tender is converted to ships currency, then to what you want so costs a bit more . Best to take Aus or US $ travellers Cheques, do your largescale currency transactions before or after you get on the ship . Only cash accepted on board is at the Casino (there they take anything !!) . All other on board purchases charged to your cabin card. Settlement by cash or credit card prior to dis-embarkation .

[TurtleMania]

Thanks very much for information provided kuldalai. I take it the $2K HK credit is for food and beverage and not just drinks? Any other info you think may be helpful would be great. Interesting reading tips provided to others.

thanks again.

 

:D

[kuldalai]

This credit may be used for drinks (alcoholic) , soft drinks, specialty coffee at selected outlets, as well as food charges associated with dining in any of the specialty restaurants on SS VIRGO .

[Jamin]

Hi all:D

been a while since I have checked in on the thread and am enthused to see it going strongly.

2008 looks to be an exciting year for Star and SSV in particular!

Alas - October seems so far away.

Bella Vista is the best atmosphere for the Gala Dinner IMHO but Noble House is the most sought after.

I look forward to viewing reports on Sanya / Xianen / Halong Bay and all the great destinations Virgo is visiting this year.

Cruise Safe

 

Simon:)

[techie99]

Thanks for all your expert comments, I feel more prepared and ready to honeymoon on the SSV. I'm already counting down the days. I'll email star cruises with the suite number and also open my cruiser card. Thanks for the 400$ credit tip about checking the balance on the 4th day.

 

Anyone recommend any good offshore excursions? Are any of these free to admiral class travellers? if not then what are the must do excursions? Malacca seems to be a 2 hr stop should we bother getting of? any recommendations on Port Klang?

 

Thanks again,

[kuldalai]

All pax pay for Shore Excursions irrespective of suite occupied. . You can check them out on Star website.

We did Pedicab tour in Penang which was good, and went full day to James Bond Island in Phuket which was just brilliant .

[Deck10 007]

Thanks for all your expert comments, I feel more prepared and ready to honeymoon on the SSV. I'm already counting down the days. I'll email star cruises with the suite number and also open my cruiser card. Thanks for the 400$ credit tip about checking the balance on the 4th day.

 

Anyone recommend any good offshore excursions? Are any of these free to admiral class travellers? if not then what are the must do excursions? Malacca seems to be a 2 hr stop should we bother getting of? any recommendations on Port Klang?

 

Thanks again,

 

 

Just want to let you know that the 2 hours Malacca stop is just to let the pax off to tour Malacca and then KL and other places and reboarding the ship at Port Klang.

It depends on you. How much you have seen Malaysia already or want to see Malaysia and what your interest is.

[sheridan318]

Hi we are off on march 28 singapore to hong kong, can anyone give us advice on ho chi min for tours, is it better to go through the ship?:rolleyes: as its the only real port of call we will be quite happy to spend money on a tour as we are really getting quite excited now:D

[kuldalai]

SS VIRGO being a bigger vessel cannot get up the Saigon River as far as the smaller SS GEMINI. As such SS VIRGO berths at Lotus Port which is some 30 minutes from central Ho Chi Minh City . Your Star tour options are shown indicatively here :

http://www.starcruises.com/newweb/destinations/vietnam_hcm.aspx

[Jamin]

Hi all,:D

Penang has a couple of excellent "lunch included" day tours which are great value. Be sure to take the one with the tri shaw ride which gives a memorable view of little India albeit with some scary traffic.:eek:

Techie99 - please ensure you book into Palazzo ( pic attached ) whilst on board as it offers a very romantic atmosphere with brilliant Italian food - their desserts are amazing!;)

You will need to book as it is generally high demand with limited seating due to its intimate nature.

There is also a great display of some pretty expensive artworks - one of which is quite revealing.:o

 

Regards

Simon

[Jamin]

Hi again

Techie99 - sorry:o - forgot to provide a recommendation for accommodation in Singapore.

I would highly recommend the Mandarin Oriental ( I think they just call it The Oriental nowadays ) - it has the most amazing breakfast I have ever come across.

p.s. incl the breakfast in your room rate.

Everything you can imagine!!!

Rooms are well proportioned and it is quite affordable when compared to other quality hotels.

If you inform them of your honeymoon they will most likely upgrade your room also.;)

We have been upgraded every time we have stayed over 1 night.:D

The hotel has been around for some time - but is highly regarded with good views and accessibility.

The gym and pool are also excellent with a level of service that truly pampers.

 

Regards

Simon:)

[deck 9 001]

Hi all,

 

Is anyone having problems accessing Star Cruises homepage website?

 

Mike

[kuldalai]

This is a joke . Half the links do not work . Itineraries largely list history , and yet forward itinerary details are scant albeit the TA sites go as far forward as early 2009 . The on line registration does not work at all . It just staggers me that for a company that has such superb product and consistency of product delivery that their marketing iefforts are so weak and website is just an historical apology and really is pretty pathetic .

[boeckli]

Hi all,

 

Is anyone having problems accessing Star Cruises homepage website?

 

Mike

 

Hi Mike - don't think we have heard from you in quite a while.

Just had a quick go at the Star Cruises website and it came up no problem - including 3 long blasts of a ship's horn and an animated cruise ship traveling across the screen as well as confetti and fireworks simulation. It also now comes up as the new-look website, wheres recently there seemed to be 2 different versions, the old and the new one - maybe they have just merged the two and that's why you could not access :)

[deck 9 001]

Hi boeckli, good to hear from you and thanks for your reply.

Happy cruising, whenever and wherever.

 

Mike

[techie99]

Hi guys, Thanks for all your comments again. We decided to book the shangri-la for 5 nights (Simon, the mandarin oriental was sold out) after the 5 night cruise. I've also emailed starcare regarding our honeymoon and gave them the jr. suite number and the reservation number. Lets hope they do something special.

I've done the star cruiser application online but haven't heard anything back. I wonder if they will mail the card out to residence in New York. I can always make another card at checkin incase i don't receive mine in time, right?

 

I've decided to do the Bella Vista for the gala dinner and reserve the palazzo and noble house for our dinners on the other days.

 

has anyone tried the spa onboard for a massage, is it normally priced? what about the salon? also can't seem to get a pricing on the offshore excursions anywhere? We are reaching at 7am the morning of the cruise and don't know if we can check in our bags earlier or at least drop our bags someplace so we can pass our time till check in. Any thoughts?

The star website sucks, half the links like the shore excursions don't work currently.

As always thank you all for your inputs, eagerly awaiting my cruise date in march. Will write my report when i get back.

[Jamin]

Hi all,:)

My partner had a "hot rock" massage :eek:which she really enjoyed and commented that the staff were very good. As I recall the massage was at a reduced price due to being Admiral Class.

Techie99 - the Shangri La should be fantastic and it will be great to gain some feedback when you have stayed there.

Simon:D

[Widya]

Hello, I am a newcomer in this forum…

Been going thru d web to find out more abt SSV cos will be goin in 2wks time…

4days Penang Phuket. :D

I am at a lost n need some help. Please do take some time to ans my queries.

I really wanted to book a balcony class but since I was too late, was given a port hole room. I did not know cruises are a popular holiday choice. Booked early Jan but already all fully booked and left with only 2 rooms; 1 port-hole and 1 no hole :(

Maybe I picked the wrong month to go since it is the CNY week.

Very disappointing but have to accept it since my hub was so enthusiastic on goin on a cruise this month. Maybe after tis trip I am more prepared to booked earlier. So excited to go!!!:D

• • How stuffy can it be in the port hole room? Can I request for another bed for my baby?
    
  • What are the inclusive restaurants we are able to have our meals without charging? Is it big enough in case lots of people want to eat for free? Is it true that I cant bring my 19mths baby to eat with us?
    
  • How formal is the dress code for the restaurant?
    
  • What is the price ranges of the rest of the restaurant charges?
    
  • Will there be any activities for toddlers?
    
  • For the Shorex what do u suggest in Penang & Phuket? Also suitable with a toddler along.
    
  • On my confirmation slip states that check-in time starts from 1200hr so what time do we really need to be there? Since I am a world-cruiser, I can anticipate a long queue!!!
    
  • Any other tips for me to know before I go onboard SSV? :p

[diverbabe151]

Hi my husband and i have just returned from a 5 day cruise on the superstar virgo for my 50th birthday.

We had a fabulous time. The ship was spotlessly clean from the decks to the cabins.

We had a window cabin and found there was ample room.

For breakfast and evenig meals we ate mostly in the Bella Vista restaraunt Diana the lady who gave us our tables was most helpful.

We ate once in the meditteranean restaraunt but found it to be very busy.

THis being our first cruise we were impressed, we were also fortunate enough to be given an invitation to sit on the the captains table on gala night which we were so excited about felt like royalty hahaha.

As for the dressing up i found that most people dressed for gala night but on the whole people wore smart casual clothes.

Lots of activities going on all day for adults and children.

excursions were very well organized. The ship docked at 2pm and we had a flight to catch at 4.20 we went to reception and was given express checkout which was fab got to airport to check in and still had half hour to spare.

To sum up we could not fault anything on this ship she was beautiful.

[boeckli]

Hi my husband and i have just returned from a 5 day cruise on the superstar virgo for my 50th birthday.

We had a fabulous time. The ship was spotlessly clean from the decks to the cabins.

We had a window cabin and found there was ample room.

For breakfast and evenig meals we ate mostly in the Bella Vista restaraunt Diana the lady who gave us our tables was most helpful.

We ate once in the meditteranean restaraunt but found it to be very busy.

THis being our first cruise we were impressed, we were also fortunate enough to be given an invitation to sit on the the captains table on gala night which we were so excited about felt like royalty hahaha.

As for the dressing up i found that most people dressed for gala night but on the whole people wore smart casual clothes.

Lots of activities going on all day for adults and children.

excursions were very well organized. The ship docked at 2pm and we had a flight to catch at 4.20 we went to reception and was given express checkout which was fab got to airport to check in and still had half hour to spare.

To sum up we could not fault anything on this ship she was beautiful.

 

Hi diverbabe151 - Happy 50th Birthday !

Glad to hear you had a fab time aboard the great Superstar Virgo :) We have always enjoyed cruising on her.

I'm sure you were excited about sitting at the captain's table at gala dinner - we have had that pleasure as well so I know how you felt :D

Your flight planning sure was tight and you were lucky to make it - don't think I would have chanced that :eek:

So did you enjoy it enough to go cruising again? (we were hooked after the first Virgo cruise ...)

[techie99]

Hi guys, Can anyone tell me how to contact starcare for my upcoming honeymoon ssv cruise? I emailed starcare@starcruises.com.my but it keeps bouncing back? any other email address or way to contact them?

 

thanks in advance!

[boeckli]

Hi guys, Can anyone tell me how to contact starcare for my upcoming honeymoon ssv cruise? I emailed starcare@starcruises.com.my but it keeps bouncing back? any other email address or way to contact them?

 

thanks in advance!

 

The only other way I can come up with at present is to go to their website, at the very top (in the wide orange band) on the RHS there is a button "Contact Us" - that leads you to a message form which you can complete and then submit by pressing the necessary button at the bottom - alternatively try to contact their Singapore office (details from their website below)

 

SINGAPORE Singapore Office No.9, Penang Road,

#11-08, Park Mall,

Singapore 238459.

Tel : +(65) 6223 0002 (Hotline)

........+(65) 6226 1168

Fax : +(65) 6220 6993

 

Good Luck :)