NCL Star Review: 1/10 - 1/17

[Mpls35]

Intro: DH (43) and myself (36) and our son (7) live in Minnesota. This was our second cruise, my son’s first. We have only cruised once prior on Royal Caribbean Adventure of the Seas, which is a very similar sized ship and from the same year. We chose NCL strictly based on cost and itinerary- it was a great deal with kid’s free. We were not blessed with the UBP; we had only the $50 excursion credit. Which is per stateroom, not per adult, fwiw.

 

Saturday- Minneapolis to Tampa

We arrived early to the airport and DH frantically realized he had forgotten his passport. There wasn’t time to go home and get it. I reassured him that since it was a closed loop cruise, we didn’t need it. He agreed, and we forged on, oblivious to the fact that while you didn’t need a passport, you did need a certified copy of a birth certificate.

 

We arrived in Tampa and made our way to the Le Meridian. It was a lovely hotel. Not close enough to the port to walk, but it was just a $5 Uber ride. That evening we had dinner at Hattrick’s sports bar. That’s when I had a feeling of dread. I consulted Google and concluded we needed a certified birth certificate and had made a grave error. DH had no passport, and no readily available birth certificate. He called NCL and they confirmed- we were screwed. Long story short- many frantic phone calls to neighbors, Fed Ex (doesn’t deliver Sundays) UPS (ditto) DHL (not open), until on Cruise Critic someone mentioned the use of Delta Cargo. Our wonderful neighbors got our passport to the MPS airport and on a morning flight to Tampa. Cost about $80. A bargain when you consider the alternative would have been DH waiting in Tampa and joining us in Cozumel.

 

Sunday- Embarkation Day

We divided and conquered. DH went to the airport to anxiously await his passport. The flight was to arrive at 11:00 and they said it would take an hour to get it transferred to Cargo. When he arrived he pled his case to the warehouse workers who were very sympathetic and even went so far as to call up the airline employees and ask them to speed along his package. He had his passport about 15 minutes after the plane landed!

 

DS and I went to the port to check in and plead our case. There was no line at 10:45 and we walked straight up to the agent. They made a note of DH’s issues and let the Captain’s Security Officer know. We went and sat in the port area to wait to embark until DH arrived. I don’t know why people complain about the port employees- everything was extremely smooth and employees cheerful.

 

DH arrived at about 12:15. By this time there was a sizeable line, but he still made it through in just about 25 minutes. We snapped a photo with DH proudly displaying his passport, and climbed aboard the ship! Whew!

 

First impressions of the ship: it was immaculately clean and well kept. Carpets looked brand new. Pool area was small, as expected. DS was anxious to try out the hot tubs but it was tough finding ones not full of adults. There were very few children on board. On average there were about 15-20 kids total near the pool, and they were usually just on the slides. The slides were freezing and a let down, but the kids seemed to have fun trying different ways to get down them faster!

 

We each grabbed a hamburger at the pool and they were pretty good. We got our first drink at the Biergarten which overlooks the pool on deck 13. There was a small line (5-6 people), but it only took a few minutes. There was occasionally a server who came around, but everyone on the pool deck had to rely on Topsiders or Biergarten for drinks, and it appeared they went and got them themselves. My husband’s Sam Adam’s was 8.95 plus a myriad of fees.

 

Around 1:45 they announced our rooms were ready so we went off to find interior room 12013. It was the perfect location for us- we had neighbors who didn’t make a peep and very little traffic because we were on a “dead end” hallway with few rooms. The library was nearby, and being on the same deck as the pool was handy. Our room felt dated to me, but I could be wrong. The carpets were ugly but clean. I was astonished by the amount of storage- we had 3 full sized suitcases and everything fit with room to spare! The bathroom was spacious enough for two to brush teeth at the same time. Never had issues with plumbing or leaking showers.

 

Our room steward was very pleasant and genuine. She delivered ice twice a day which we appreciated.

 

We went off to Splash Academy to register our son. I had heard such good reviews that I was hopeful my son would love it and want to spend some evenings there so we could take in a show or a long dinner. DS is 7 and has high functioning autism and ADHD. He requires a little more work than your average kid, but he is also more compliant and rule-abiding so teachers usually love him. The woman checking us in clearly wasn’t well versed in special needs. She asked (in front of him) if he was “mild or severe.” DS looked at me warily. I told her he was “mild” and refrained from educating her on why they don’t use those terms to describe ASD. They advertised Wii play and movies at the Splash Academy and I asked about them. She immediately got cold and said crisply that “your son will not be allowed to play Wii all day.” I assured her I didn’t think that would be the case, but in the event he was bored, could he play them? She simply repeated herself. There may have been some language barrier issues. I knew then that DS wasn’t going to be spending much time at Splash Academy. She said he had to wear a bracelet all week and DS was dismayed- he has sensory issues and hates bracelets etc. I told him rules were rules and he put it on. He was concerned it would come off in the ocean; she assured us that if it came off to make sure we kept it if we found it and bring it back and they’d give him another without charge. (more on that later..)

 

We didn’t get our bags until after dinner so we headed to Aqua for dinner. It was good food, small portions (which we liked). The kids menu was the same on the whole ship and pretty boring, but adequate for my son. My husband’s steak was pretty good, my shrimp also good. No lobster without a $20 upcharge.

 

Bags delivered when we got back to our room and we unpacked. Since we didn’t have the UBP we brought rum runners which were delivered without problems. Drinks on the boat were terribly expensive. I ordered a gin and tonic at Aqua and with all the taxes and gratuities it was $15.

 

We crashed early in our room. We brought a travel DVD player and DVDs and hooked it up to our flat screen in room TV and watched a movie each night since there wasn’t really any activities that were kid friendly.

 

MONDAY- AT SEA

Our area of the ship was so quiet we were able to sleep in until 9 am! The bed was pretty comfortable too, kindof like a futon. DS loved his bunk bed. Our room steward took care of taking it down and putting it away each day.

We went to find breakfast and picked up some items from the mini buffet at the pool. We could have stepped inside the main Buffet but it was pretty chaotic and gross in there. Very cafeteria style, and the smells bothered all of us. At least outside we could take in the sea views and air. The breakfast buffet was fine, and didn’t vary day to day. I didn’t care for the eggs but DH and DS did. Juice was found inside the buffet so that was a pain to go back and forth. The coffee was inedible. Seriously the worst coffee I’ve ever tasted. I can only assume they were trying to encourage people to purchase coffee in the grand atrium.

 

It was chilly on our first day at sea so we didn’t do a whole lot. Wandered around the ship. Played some chess, swung some golf clubs. Checked out the Kid’s Pool area in the aft; it was a little warmer than the main pool. Had burgers again at the pool area. Took a nap. Because of the chilly day there didn’t appear to be a problem finding chairs. We didn’t like sitting around the chaotic pool area anyway so would go to the quieter front portion of the ship or towards the back on the helicopter pad.

 

For dinner we convinced DS to go to the Splash Academy so DH and I could try out Ginza, the free asian restaurant. Dropped him off and it looked promising- staff was friendly. There were only about 10 kids there. They automatically gave us a pager, which I later found out isn’t the case with everyone- you have to ask.

 

Went to Ginza and it was nice. Portions were small again, but we liked that we could have a multiple course meal and not walk out over-stuffed. I had a shrimp meal and it was good, I think DH had chicken.

 

We were gone about 1.5 hours and went back to get DS. There were kids ranging in age from 4-12 or so and they were playing a trivia game that didn’t look like it was going too well. It’s hard to find programming to fit the needs of kids with that wide of an age gap.

 

Back to our room for a movie and bedtime.

 

Tuesday- Cozumel, Passion Island

We booked our only ship excursion for Cozumel to Passion Island. We’ve never been to Cozumel and it was a hard decision; we figured we could get both a catamaran ride and a beautiful beach out of this excursion. It was a nice ride over, about 30 minutes. We had 3 hours on the island. The staff made sure you were comfortable and got back on the boat in time. The beach was nice, although smaller than I expected. I tried to wander around the island a little but ran into dead ends. There was a big palapa with the free food and drinks. Drinks were only premixed variety- margarita’s, etc. Nothing frozen, no gin and tonics. There was pop for the kids. Food was okay, we had tacos.

 

The water out front was churned up, which didn’t bother us as we didn’t expect snorkling. But it was pretty deep. DH wanted to try the big floating trampolines and such, and even with him in a life jacket it was challenging. It was over my head out there, and I had a hard time getting up and helping him up. He ended up swallowing a lot of sea water and didn’t want to swim at all after that. There was a nice little kid’s area with land-based trampoline, basketball nets, playgrounds, and even a “nanny”. But DS was the only kid there so it was pretty deserted.

 

After a nice time, it was back to the catamaran and back to port. We had a little time to scope out the shops before getting back on the ship.

 

I think that night we tried Versaille for dinner. We went early, at 6, and it was very quiet. Service was good, but they made a major faux pas, imho. The server station was right near our table and they all congregated to complain about the guests. They were going into detail about which guests had complained the night before. I’m sure I’d complain too about many of the guests on the ship- but do so out of earshot of customers!

 

Movie and bedtime.

 

Wednesday- Costa Maya

We had reserved, and paid for, Maya Chan this day. While in Cozumel I was able to get on wifi and received an email from them saying that the Princess ship would be in port unexpectedly and they were planning on hiring more staff to accommodate. They gave us the option to cancel with full refund. We decided to take them up on the offer. DS swore he didn’t want to swim at all after his bad experience on Passion Island. We didn’t want to be 30-40 minutes away from port and pay all that money if he wasn’t having a good time. Also, the captain had warned us that the weather looked terrible for the deal and it would “more likely than not” rain most of the day.

 

I had low expectations of Costa Maya. It seemed like, from the reviews, that it was a big tourist trap. It kindof is- but it’s a really NICE tourist trap! The port facilities are beautiful, and look brand new. There was more shopping than any port we had been to. The pool was huge and even when we came back in the afternoon it wasn’t crowded. The locals are very proud of this area of Mexico, and they would love to have more tourists come. It’s hard, though, since it is 6 hours from the nearest airport.

 

It was a little confusing getting out of the port- we wanted to hunt down Maya Chan staff and let them know we weren’t coming. Some tour guides from another company let us know where to go. We never experienced any pushy locals outside of that one experience in Cozumel; everyone was friendly and helpful.

 

We let down the folks at Maya Chan and set off to hop on the tram. The sky was sunny and the weather warm so we decided to go to Blue Kay, down the malecon, even if only for a couple hours while the weather was good. It was our first stop. This is a unique place! It’s very “hippy”, and made more for hostelers. We loved it. The staff didn’t speak much english- just a couple servers did. But we managed to procure a couple (free) chairs by a beautiful, calm, shallow beach. There was snorkeling near the shore. Drinks were cheap ($5-6). Food was amazing and cheap (We paid about $27 for three big plates of nachos, shrimp tacos, and quesadilla’s). Our son loved the calm water and says this was his favorite day of the whole cruise!

 

The weather ended up being glorious all day. We stayed a few hours at Blue Kay and then headed back to port and on the ship.

 

We talked DS into going to Splash Academy again this night so we could gave a longer dinner at Aqua. We dropped him off at 7 and went to Aqua where there was a 40-50 minute wait. We agreed to wait and they gave us a pager and a coupon for free champagne at Gatsby’s. Just as we got settled there, our pager went off (about 10 minutes). This is where sometimes their customer services isn’t great. The hostess was basically hoping we’d go away by telling us it would be 40-50 minutes. She wasn’t friendly. When we agreed to wait, she seemed reluctant. And then we were seated 10 minutes later. Weird.

 

We both had the steak tenderloin that night and it was really good. I didn’t have anything at the restaurants that I hated, or even disliked. Some of it was just so/so. The worst thing was DH’s prime rib the last night; it was kindof gray and tasteless. I think it was overdone.

 

Picked up DS and he had a genuinely fun time at Splash Academy. Our only complaint: when we arrived we had to hand the staff DS’s bracelet. He had pulled it off during the night because it was bothering him. We found it on the floor and kept it with us. We gave it to them and the staff immediately admonished DS and told us we would be charged for a replacement. Uh, what? I quickly informed her that we were explicitly told that there would not be a charge. She rolled her eyes and asked whom had told me that. I didn’t remember the woman’s name and didn’t see her around then. The staff person gave him a new bracelet begrudgingly. I wasn’t impressed with her demeanor and didn’t appreciate being treated like I was trying to get away with something.

 

Movie and bedtime.

 

Thursday- Belize- Cave tubing.bzThursday was cloudy and drizzling. We couldn’t see land from where the boat anchored to catch the tenders. The tender process went fine. We were on the second boat out. We got to port and saw the golden “Cave-tubing.bz” shirts right away. They herded us all up and made us wait until more people came. Then they brought us out of the port to the large coach bus where we boarded and had to wait some more for a couple late individuals. Finally we were on our way. We had a really nice time listening to the history of Belize, and seeing the sights on the 60 minute drive to the caves. Belize City isn’t a touristy city at all. It was neat to experience something a little more authentic. We passed little schools in the countryside with kids happily playing; I was glad my son could see all of that.

 

We arrived first at Vitalino’s headquarters where we paid (they prefer cash but will take CC with a 15% charge) and rented water shoes for $3. Also used their restroom. Climbed back aboard and proceeded to the caves. This all took a little time, and then waiting to get helmets, life jackets, and for people to change their clothes at the caves. Then we finally set off on our hike. It was really pretty and a neat experience. It wasn’t mind blowing. We didn’t see any animals or spiders, although the guides were trying, hard, to show us as much as possible and gave us lessons about the plant life. It was about a 25 minute hike.

 

We arrived where you pick up your tubes and then hop into the water. It wasn’t nearly as chilly as I feared. They hooked up all the rafts together, so you weren’t really free floating down the river. The guides basically had to haul us down the river because the current was weak. The insides of the caves were really neat. The scenery was neat. All in all, a good time. I think we tubed for about 30 minutes. Got to the end and had to wait for everyone to change clothes. Then we went on down the road back to Vitalino’s for lunch.

 

The women were all waiting for us and were very sweet, making sure we had enough to eat. The lunch was really good! My son ate the chicken and an entire Belizian Coca Cola. After lunch we had time to check in on their wifi, purchase some souvenirs, and then we got back on the bus for the hour ride home. There was no tour guide on this portion. My son ended up throwing up all the Coke and chicken on the bus! I think it was the Coke that did it, I don’t think it was the chicken. Anyway my husband bore the brunt of that one.

We were back to the boat with plenty of time to spare.

 

All in all, it was a fun excursion, but not one I would do twice. I enjoyed seeing the “authentic” Belize. If the weather would have been better, I probably would have enjoyed seeing Caye Caulkner or Abergris. There was a lot of waiting around and being herded up that was a little annoying on this tour. However, Vitalino’s crew were nothing short of a class act, and I’m happy we could experience that.

 

That evening we ate at O’Sheehans. I wasn’t expecting this pub to be so big; it’s like an Applebees restaurant. We had a lovely booth overlooking floor to ceiling windows. Very cool. The food was pretty good- wings were as good as any I have at home, burgers good, chicken sandwich good. The servers here did seem a little inept. Not unfriendly, just clueless. They screwed up every order we put in (e.g. forgetting the salad I ordered, giving us the wrong type of wings). But we didn’t complain because it wasn’t a big deal.

Movie and bedtime.

 

Friday- Roatan- Little French Key

I had been looking forward to this port the whole week! Arrived in Roatan and it was beautiful. Much, much prettier looking than any other port we had come into. The LFK guys were hard to find! You have to follow their instructions carefully- they really are way outside the port. We eventually asked a taxi driver and he was very helpful in pointing out where Dave and Larry stand. It was down the street from where the taxi’s congregate.

 

Roatan is a legit little Caribbean/Central American community. We thought it was the neatest by far of any of the ports. Dave couldn’t put us on a van immediately and asked us to shop around the little area until someone else came. Fortunately they came quickly, within 5minutes are so. He put is in a local taxi van and off we went. The taxi driver provided a couple details of the area, but not much. It was a very nice scenic ride.

 

We arrived at Frenchy’s 44 where we paid the basic entrance, no food. Hopped on the little vessel that gets you out there- and it was just as beautiful as the pictures and videos had shown! So pretty! When we got on the island there was a gentleman wandering around the island. When he saw us he said “this place is amazing!” I heard someone say he was in the NCL Star show the night prior. We got a quick tour and were let go. The island is like a theme park of tropical islands. There was all kinds of things to explore. From the animals (they said they were getting two tigers the day after we were there!), two different high dive platforms, hammocks, tree houses, horses, and many different areas to snorkel off the shore. This was the only place I saw lots of fish! There were so many swimming around me they were knocking into me!

 

The island was immaculate. The entire island is hard packed sand that was perfectly raked clean. There is some grass in the middle.

 

We got a couple drinks at the bar. The drinks weren’t terribly good because the pop (which came from 2 liter bottles) was obviously flat. My son was positive he hadn’t been given Sprite; it was so flat. The ice came from big coolers. Just a heads up that this isn’t a big restaurant like Frenchy’s 44, this is more of a quaint little hut. The only food on the menu was plantain chips/salsa; enchiladas ($15) and the combo platter ($22). We were a little hungry, but decided to wait and eat once we were back on the ship.

 

Once we had our fill of beautiful views and lovely warm Caribbean waters, we asked to be taken back. Dave arranged for a cab and off we went. I’d do this excursion again, for sure. I also liked that is far away from the touristy side of the island. We saw local grocery stores, real homes, and had a nice chat with our friendly cab driver on the way back.

 

I think we ate at O’Sheehans again this night...

 

Movie and, well, you get it.

 

Saturday- Sea Day

For our last sea day I wanted to make sure we hit up all the fun activities. We spent time hitting golf balls, playing cards in the Grand Atrium, playing Wii in the 5’oclock somewhere bar, playing chess outside. The main pool area was packed so we headed back to the kids pool area where I hauled a chair out and found some sun while DS played. We ate lunch for the first time in a restaurant, Versaille. The food was much better than by the pool, and the place was empty.

 

For dinner we sent DS to the kid’s club one last time. The staff was a bit snippy this time. As we left DS was asking a bunch of questions about what they were going to do and as soon as we turned the corner she snapped at him “would you go find something to do please?!” We ate quickly at Aqua and went to collect him. He was disappointed because he had been promised a huge pillow fight which apparently didn’t happen until much later.

One more movie, lots of packing, and we were ready for bed!

 

Sunday- Disembark

We walked off with our luggage when we were ready, no hassle whatsoever. Customs was quick.

 

Final Thoughts

 

We found our own fun on this boat. We didn’t attend any of the shows or events, but that was our choice and we had fun just relaxing and doing our own thing. We do prefer the “freestyle” nature of NCL. We will cruise them again assuming the price is right. If RC is cheaper, we’ll do them. The ports are what interest us. Our cozy room was just perfect for a good nights sleep.

 

I wonder if the UBP will be on the way out. At the muster drill the asst. cruise director had to plead with everyone to put their drinks down. She said “I know you have the UBP. We’ve seen it all. We’ve seen too much. Please, for the next 10 minutes, try to put your drink down.” The bartenders were not rude. But they were busy. Example: at the Biergarten on a sea day they were particularly busy. There were maybe 7 people in line. There was a young man seated at the bar who called out, “Gimme something with banana.” As he shoved aside his current drink which he had barely sipped. The bartender rolled his eyes and quickly made him another drink. Please and thank you go a long way. I felt like we were a minority not having the UBP. We spent almost $200 on drinks and I don’t think we had more than 2-3 drinks a day. Beverage service at the restaurants was a bit rough. Your server doesn’t take your beverage order, there is another guy (usually the same bartender from the Biergarten). He only came by once because he was so busy.

 

The staff was very nice and accommodating. A couple expections: a few times at Splash Academy when I felt some attitude, and once at the coffee bar in the Grand Atrium. My son, who is learning independence, approached them to ask for a treat from the display. I was monitoring from afar. He got nervous and basically just approached her and pointed at a treat. She got it for him and glared at him saying “THANK YOU” really angrily. He got scared, not knowing what her sarcasm meant, and looked perplexed. I rushed in and glared back at her, “Oh no, thank YOU!” She immediately put on this whole “Ohyouaresowelcome!!!” fake nice attitude. Yuck. Definitely left a bad taste in my mouth.

 

Some of the guests were real pieces of work too. My son hated the washy washy folks. We had to pass through the buffet a number of times because our room was on the same level. We told him he had to “washy washy” before meals but not when we were just passing through the buffet to get to the other side. Once he darted around the washy washy lady and a guest yells out at him, “Hey you a$$hole kid!” I had to restrain my husband from clocking him.

 

Let me know if you have any questions- I will attach photos once I can figure out how to do so from my mobile device!

[Mpls35]

 

Long lines at the terminal, but still took less than a half hour.

 

 

Wide angle view of our interior room

 

 

Spacious bathroom

 

 

Passion Island

 

 

Passion Island kids area

[Mpls35]

 

Blue Key

 

 

Food at Blue Key

 

 

Swimming at Costa Maya port

 

 

Dinner menu at Aqua

 

 

Cornish game hen at Aqua

[Mpls35]

 

En route to cave tubing in Belize

 

 

Crossing rivers in Belize

 

 

Getting in!

 

 

Coming out of the caves

 

 

 

Photo op in the port

[Mpls35]

 

O'sheehans menu (didn't change)

 

 

 

[Lialovestotravel]

Thank you for taking time to review your cruise! We have a family suite reserved right near the library for April on the Star and are trying to decide on "what to do and where" so your opinions are appreciated. Shame about the staff in the children's programs not being kinder to both you and your son. I don't know that my daughters will use it much anyway, neither are particularly joiners, lol. Thanks!

[Mpls35]

 

Roatan port

 

 

Little French Key

 

 

View from the treehouse LFK

 

 

Viewing the animals- there were plenty still there despite the raid.

 

My son enjoying the hammocks in the shade

 

[Mpls35]

 

Drug a chair overlooking the kids area to enjoy some sun on the quiet helicopter pad.

 

 

Beef carpaccio at Aqua

 

 

Mahi mahi at Aqua

 

 

Lots of good books in the library, for kids and adults

 

 

One more game of chess!

[Linda the Book Lover]

Thanks for your review and so happy with passsport in hand it was a nice cruise.

[hunterjackson]

any idea why y'all sailed the itinerary backwards? When did they let you know?

 

Thanks!

[Mpls35]

any idea why y'all sailed the itinerary backwards? When did they let you know?

 

 

 

Thanks!

 

 

We knew when we booked last summer. There was a reason.. I think a local event that disrupted things or something. So it wasn't a surprise to us.

[hunterjackson]

We knew when we booked last summer. There was a reason.. I think a local event that disrupted things or something. So it wasn't a surprise to us.

 

Good deal. I got really nervous as we will be on in a few weeks and have a different itinerary. Thanks!!

 

Also, I hate to hear about the kids club. I will be functioning with a "severe(can't believe they said that ))! autistic son. He did great, as did the staff, on the Jewel in June of 2015.

 

We don't take him often, but like to keep him in his school routine so typically let him go for about an hour every morning. On the Jewel, he never wanted to leave and the kids club girls even invited him over for lunch while we were in port in Victoria...and they were off duty!

 

Loved those girls on the Jewel, hopefully they get the kids club crew in shape on the Star...

[murcor]

Thanks for your review. I have a couple questions.

Did you book passion island through NCL?

Was the food, drinks & inflatables complimentary?

[Mpls35]

Thanks for your review. I have a couple questions.

Did you book passion island through NCL?

Was the food, drinks & inflatables complimentary?

 

 

We did book through NCL- I believe it can only be booked through a ship. There were other ship passengers that showed up throughout the day but it didn't feel crowded.

 

Everything was included except this water trike thing. Kayaks, inflatables, etc all included. There were massages for extra too, and I forgot to mention some small huts selling souvenirs. I forgot to recount our single negative experience with vendors here: when we got off the catamaran we were warned of the folks in red shirts who want to take your picture. If you don't want it, you simply say no thanks and move on. Well, they yelled and shouted at us like we were doing something wrong by not lining up for their photo. Really aggressive and mean.

[PyrHeaven]

Thanks for your review! We will be on the Star the first week in March.

 

I'm disappointed to hear about your experience with Splash Academy. My son is 5, and has always loved the kids club. I sure hope they get their attitudes in check the next few weeks :eek: I'm surprised at the small number of kids on the ship too! Must be that time of year.

 

Very interested in Blue Kay! I'm looking for a beach day since we are no longer visiting Harvest Caye. I'm not sure if I should change Roatan to beach day or save that for Costa Maya (originally staying on the ship in Costa Maya). Your experience has definitely been different tHan mine at that port. I've been there twice and it's always been waaay too crowded. So thanks for your review on your ports/excursions too!!

 

Glad you enjoyed your cruise!!

[spidybabe]

any idea why y'all sailed the itinerary backwards? When did they let you know?

 

Thanks!

 

Just off the Jan 10th sailing also. We knew when we booked that the ports were reversed, but never knew why. Onboard the captain informed us that it was because some ports were very busy and overloaded. Non of our stops were very busy with other ships.

We highly recommend Parking Doctors if parking is needed in Tampa,

Victor Bodden tours - fun and sun in Roatan, and Native Choice ruin tour in Costa Maya. All wonderful companies. I'll try to answer any questions

Safe sailings

[Coolwhip82]

Thank you for taking time to review your cruise! We have a family suite reserved right near the library for April on the Star and are trying to decide on "what to do and where" so your opinions are appreciated. Shame about the staff in the children's programs not being kinder to both you and your son. I don't know that my daughters will use it much anyway, neither are particularly joiners, lol. Thanks!

 

Us too! What sail date? we are on 4/3.

[carmi0018]

I appreciate the time and effort you put into your review. I'm hoping you would not mind a short answer to my questions (I'll take an answer from any other readers as well). When mentioning Costa Maya, you said you basically cxld your tour and took a Tram to. Particular beach. What tram are you talking about, how long was the ride to this hippie ish beach,and was there a fee for the tram and another for the beach?

Last year I was in Costa Maya, and from what I read you had to drive 20+ minutes to the closest decent beach and them pay $20 to get on the beach. My family was too tired to get off the boat (it was Carnivals exact itinerary,but in reverse of th star's) so I just went to buy some trinkets .saw that dolphin pool . Was your photo of the free beach next to the shops, and dolphin pool? That didn't look so bad to me.

Lastly, when we sailed.to Roatan ,Carnival has thier own man made,built up beach,restaurants etc... 5.minutes from where they dock. I'd rather not pay $20-40pp (were a family of.four) for an organized trip to a place like little french key. Although it has more than just a beach, I'm good with a taxi to a local free or minimal charge pp beach. How much did French key and the trip there cost?

I'm most grateful to anyone who wants to chime in as well.

Thanks!!!

[Clarea]

Thanks for this, excellent photos!

[Keith1010]

Outstanding review.

Keith

[wildtky101]

Wonderful review, thanks.

[marathonrunner123]

This is great. Thanks for doing this.