NCL FANS-sell me on the Star-new to NCL

[Lizzybell]

Hello...I have never sailed w/NCL however I am booked on NCL Star repo cruise w/DM on 9/25-Vancouver to LA. The price was so great we booked it months ago & cruise time is almost here. I have sailed w/Princess and was very happy w/ all aspects of the cruises. Please share w/me your experiences and differences between the 2 lines. Any tips/pointers on the Star are greatly appreciated!! Thanks, Liz

[Don Haynes]

There is another similar thread Princess vs Norwegian which will probably answer many of your questions. I'm of the opinion if you like Princess you'll like Norwegian too, as they are my two favorite cruise lines. The Star is a new ship designed for freestyle cruising, the first of its class, and is only three years old. She has a number of restaurants to choose from, if you wish a different restaurant every night....

[cliffd64]

Hello...I have never sailed w/NCL however I am booked on NCL Star repo cruise w/DM on 9/25-Vancouver to LA. The price was so great we booked it months ago & cruise time is almost here. I have sailed w/Princess and was very happy w/ all aspects of the cruises. Please share w/me your experiences and differences between the 2 lines. Any tips/pointers on the Star are greatly appreciated!! Thanks, Liz

 

 

Here's a link to my detailed review of our trip on the Star back in March :) we had a fabulous time!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=150680

[Lizzybell]

Thanks Don and Cliff-Cliff-what a great review of the Star-informative & helpful-sounds like you guys had a fantastic time. i am looking forward to trying

NCL-glad to know the inside cabins arent too small & have lots of storage. Can anyone share w/me their favorite deck areas as we love to just kick back and watch the ocean go by. Thanks much, Liz

[cliffd64]

The helicopter pad on the back of the ship was a great uncrowded place to grab a deck chair and hang out :) Can be a bit breezy, but it was always available and never over-crowded :) You can see very far off the back of the ship :) The area near the kids pool area also in the back (but a deck or two lower) was also quiet (not many kids when we went) and could be a relaxing place at times.

[Sailaway...Sailaway]

Please read my recent review of the NCL Star, as well as some comparisons in the various Princess vs NCL threads. Bottom line for me: Princess wins. :D

 

 

 

Hello...I have never sailed w/NCL however I am booked on NCL Star repo cruise w/DM on 9/25-Vancouver to LA. The price was so great we booked it months ago & cruise time is almost here. I have sailed w/Princess and was very happy w/ all aspects of the cruises. Please share w/me your experiences and differences between the 2 lines. Any tips/pointers on the Star are greatly appreciated!! Thanks, Liz

[Sailaway...Sailaway]

I thought she "was made in 2001". Or is she not quite 4 yet? :)

 

The Star is a new ship designed for freestyle cruising, the first of its class, and is only three years old. ....

[KeystoneCruiser]

The Star is my favorite ship! I was just on her last month for an Alaskan cruise. Also sailed on her in Hawaii. Here is a link to my review:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=210059

 

The question is, do you understand the Freestyle concept, which is the big difference between NCL and other lines. (no set dining times, availability of specialty restaurants, don't have to dress up for dinner, etc.) If not, then that is a place to start with differences. Let us know.

[Happy ks]

We have only cruised NCL once and it was on the Star. We were warned ahead of time it wasn't as nice as other cruise lines, but we were pleasantly surprised. I have only 2 suggestions to make.

 

1. On deck 13, all the way forward is a hot tub with loungers in the area, it was almost always empty. There is a wind guard, so it may be a place to see the ocean with no crowds. I would take a warm jacket or windbreaker just in case.

 

2. Take advantage of the specialty restaurants, the food is fantastic in all of them. We were a bit underwhelmed with the food and service in the main dining rooms. We are booked on the May 06 LA to Vancouver Repo and plan to eat in the specialty rooms every night.

 

Okay, a third that I wasn't planning on originally. If at all possible, go early to Vancouver, at least a day, preferrably more. (all this is moot if you are from there or have visited there before, but I thought I would add it). One of the best reasons for us going on this little cruise is to get back up to Vancouver for another visit!

[Happy ks]

Lizzybell, I saw another of your posts that says you are from Orange County. What town do you live in? I'm in Mission Viejo.

[cadmille]

Cliff, on your Mexican cruise do you remember which night is the formal night, we are during that cruise in Oct and was just wondering.

[Hikini]

We sailed on the Star in June, 2004 and LOVED it! A beautiful ship with a wonderful crew. I hope for your sake that Shawn Farquhar is on board. He is a 2 time world champion magician and a comedian in his own right. He is amazing to say the least!

 

On our cruise, Kieron Buffery was the cruise director and what an excellent CD he is! He and Shawn together make a hilarious pair. If you have the chance to attend the Liars Club - don't miss it! (On our cruise it took place in the Spinnaker Lounge.)

 

The food was great in all of the restaurants we tried. We didn't go to any of the specialty restaurants, but did go to Versailles (gorgeous) Aqua, Blue Lagoon and the buffet, as well as one of the on-deck bbq's. Don't miss the Blue Lagoon. It is a small, family type cafe that has the same menu all the time, is open 24 hours a day and the food is good. Olde English style fish and chips that are excellent! The service there can be a bit slow, but it's worth the wait. AND, at night when you want a little something extra, they have pound cake and milk - open the cases and help yourself. Coffee too.

 

There is a beautiful restaurant on the Star called Endless Summer. There is no extra charge but you need to make reservations. Don't miss this one either. It is Tex-Mex style food and the menu stays the same. The food is good and the service we had there was beyond excellent. Our waiter was one of the only people we tipped extra but he certainly went way beyond what would be expected of him. Not to mention he was cute as a button and had a nice little sense of humor.

 

I could go on and on, but I think I'll let this do for now. I can't recommend the Star enough - I know you will like it too!

 

Hikini:D

[cruisingfromMN]

Hello...I have never sailed w/NCL however I am booked on NCL Star repo cruise w/DM on 9/25-Vancouver to LA. The price was so great we booked it months ago & cruise time is almost here. I have sailed w/Princess and was very happy w/ all aspects of the cruises. Please share w/me your experiences and differences between the 2 lines. Any tips/pointers on the Star are greatly appreciated!! Thanks, Liz

 

We've sailed the Star three times. We love the crew of the Star... excellent!

[Lizzybell]

Thank you to everyone - I read all the reviews mentioned & i really appreciate the tips on the best deck areas(will utilize this trip as we have an inside cabin-no balcony) & favorite restaurants-the feedback from these boards is invaluable. We are going into Vancouver 1 day early-i have never been-cant wait to see the city. The itenerary is the main reason we decided to do this repo cruise-Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle, Astoria and home to LA-I didnt think our finanaces would allow a cruise this summer, but this has been the most affordable vacation i have ever planned and I was able to do so with everyones help & advice on these boards(& thanks NCL for pricing your repositioning cruises so reasonably-cant wait:). One $ saving tip-we just bought an Entertainment 2005(expries 10/05)-has the 2/1 coupons tours for Vancouver that we had planned on doing, plus some restuarants. You can purchase them for any city in US/Candaa & since they are expiring-they are all on sale now-the book pays for itself after 1 inexpensive lunch. Thanks again. Liz

[janmojo]

Lizzybell, do you know when you come into Astoria? That is where I live and I want to be sure to check out the STAR while you guys are here (I'll be able to see it from our front window, but want to go down to the port and get a close up look). :) We are booked on the STAR for our first cruise in January. So it will be fun to see the ship close up at home before we go. I hope it isn't raining when you come in to Astoria!!

[rocket55]

I''m going to astoria on the sun in sept it looks like a great town best bets for eating I like places that have been there for a long time with great food! let me know I'm interested how your town got them to come to Astoria I'm sure it is great for business I've never been to Oregon but I am really interested to see that part of the northwest. I went on the Star to mexico last september a great ship I love Le' Bistro but the best was the Teppanyaki try and get there but it fills up fast because I think there is only 2 seatings great food and the cooks are amazing.

[Lizzybell]

Janmojo-according to the itinerary we are in Astoria 9/28/05 8am-2pm- do you suggestions as what we should do or see while in Astoria. I would appreciate any feedback from a resident! Thanks, Liz

[janmojo]

Well it sounds like we will have at least 2 cruise ships in Astoria during Sept! Last year we had 3 at once and this small town (10,000 people) was a zoo but great for businesses. I'm not sure what you might be interested in or what excursions they are offering you but I heard last year there were city tours of Astoria, trips to the ocean (Cannon Beach and Seaside) and a trip to Mt. Saint Helens. Since this was the last stop on the Lewis and Clark Trail there are alot of historical sites in the area. We have an old trolley that runs along the water front that is kind of fun and lots of shops and a few museums (including a pretty good Maritime Museum) to walk to, and lots of little shops and art galleries. As far as places to eat, there are several places on the waterfront (Baked Alaska, Pier 11, Ships Inn). Depending upon what you like to eat, a local favorite is the Pig n' Pancake which serves breakfast all day and home cooking style food (nothing really special but you know you will get a good meal for a good price).

We are a very scandinavian community and used to have alot of fish canneries; most are gone now. Alot of people call us "little San Francisco" since we are built on steep hills and lots of old victorian homes. You'll see as you come across the bar into the mouth of the river, if it is clear when you come in it will be a real nice sight!

We have had several movies filmed here- The Goonies, Kindergarten Cop, Short Circuit etc. so we get alot of tourists looking for those things--especially the Goonie House!

Liz- I'm going to mark my calander and be sure to go down to the port to look at the STAR up close!

Rocket- any suggestions about things to do on the Mexican Riviera ports would be welcomed.

I love to have people see our little town!:D

[cliffd64]

Cliff, on your Mexican cruise do you remember which night is the formal night, we are during that cruise in Oct and was just wondering.

 

The second night, after the day at sea after leaving LA was a formal night... as I recall...

[Turnip]

I was a previous Princess only cruiser and really enjoyed my cruise on the NCL Star in late July. Some aspects of NCL I liked better, while some aspects of Princess I liked better. Here is a link to my review which had my thoughts regarding comparison of the NCL Star to my previous cruises on Princess.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=215523