Star Pride Trip

[Spanky My]

We have returned from our 10 day  Panama/Costa Rica cruise. The ship while had  a few blemishes was in good shape despite some folks view negatively.The food was excellent ,the Ports good and the service was excellent. 

 

If you have any questions I would be happy to attempt to answer them.

[AliceandRalph]

We would love to hear about your trip as we are on the Jan.11 Star Pride sailing.   Good to know that the food was great, we were on Windstar a few years back before the change in management and the food was OK, we had a great trip, met some fun people and the crew was amazing but are hoping that food service has improved with the James Beard affiliation. 

As far as ports, do have any feedback on Isla Parida as far as the hike or snorkelling?  Did they have the marina out at all on your trip? Puerto Jimenez?

thanks for any info!

[Spanky My]

The crew was very good as was service. Our first stop after doing the panama canal was Balboa panama. We did not do any Windstar tours and booked everything ourselves ahead of time. In Balboa we took a taxi to the Older section called  Casco Viejo and then went to the Bio museum which was fairly close to the dock.

 

 Then we went to Isla Parida which has a nice beach for swimming and they had the Beach Barbeque there which was nice, They had  kayaks, paddle Boards and snorkel gear available to use. I heard the snorkeling was not particularly good there but the water was warm and had a sandy beach.

 

Then we went to Puerto Jimenez and took a tour with ficus tours which is a guide who took just me and my wife  bird watching. He was very good and we saw many species of birds and a sloth or two.

 

Then off to Bahia drake where we went to a place called NAGULA JUNGLE LODGE. We hiked to a very nice waterfall and swam for about an hour in crystal clear water and then went back to the lodge for an local lunch plate.

 

 

 

Our next stop was Quepos and we had yet another tour with a company called Epic Adventures into Their national park. This guide was excellent and we saw sloths,lots of monkeys,birds anteater and a  crocodile and many other things

 

Then we went to Bahia Herradura and took a nice tour called the best of Jaco.. it lasted about 5 hours and we saw a lot of the area ,had a very good lunch and the guide was very good explaining the area as we drove in a well kept van.

 

If you have more specific question I would be happy to help if I can. Enjoy your cruise.

[Cruisingbilly]

Thanks Spanky for sharing your experience on Star Pride!

 

We are doing the April 10, 2020 cruise, from Lisbon to Barcelona, on the Pride. First time on Windstar  I've already started a Roll Call for this sailing. If anyone else is on this cruise, please drop in, there are some good tour-sharing opportunities.

 

Here's my questions:

 

Glad you found the food to be excellent. Were there any particular items that you thought were extraordinary? Across the whole spectrum - starters, entrees, desserts, etc.....

Any that you found disappointing?

 

Specific food question - is there an omelet station at breakfast?

 

Mundane bathroom question - is there bar soap or just liquid dispensers?

 

You mention some blemishes. What were they?

 

Thanks again for sharing your experiences!

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

[ridethetide]

13 minutes ago, Cruisingbilly said:

Thanks Spanky for sharing your experience on Star Pride!

 

We are doing the April 10, 2020 cruise, from Lisbon to Barcelona, on the Pride. First time on Windstar  I've already started a Roll Call for this sailing. If anyone else is on this cruise, please drop in, there are some good tour-sharing opportunities.

 

Here's my questions:

 

Glad you found the food to be excellent. Were there any particular items that you thought were extraordinary? Across the whole spectrum - starters, entrees, desserts, etc.....

Any that you found disappointing?

 

Specific food question - is there an omelet station at breakfast?

 

Mundane bathroom question - is there bar soap or just liquid dispensers?

 

You mention some blemishes. What were they?

 

Thanks again for sharing your experiences!

 

Bill

 

 

 

 

Yes, there is an omelette station at breakfast.  In the suites, there are bar soap and shower gel.  Public rest rooms, of course, only have liquid soap.  You are going to absolutely love the Pride and her staff.

[Spanky My]

To your questions...

 

Specific food question - is there an omelet station at breakfast?        Yes there is .

 

Mundane bathroom question - is there bar soap or just liquid dispensers?  It is Bar soap and very good quality shampoo, Lotion etc.

 

You mention some blemishes. What were they? Just a stain here in there in a couple areas nothing concerning .

 

As too the food, We did not have any meal that was disappointing. The portions were small but you can order another entree if you want. There was a wide selection of starters and desserts as well. All we had were good and I am a fairly picky eater.

 

  Sign up for an evening at candles when you first get on board . They have a completely different menu than the regular dining room. You can sign up once per trip  I had the filet mignon and it was very good.  Just a more intimate dining experience on the back of the boat on a nice evening..

 

Another note be prepared for really hot and humid conditions . Or at least that is what it was when we were there . Have Fun  🙂

 

 

[Del Rio]

Within the last 3 years, we have now been on the Star Pride (in Europe) and the Star Legend (in Alaska). Headed to the Wind Spirit in less than 3 weeks.  Our first time on one of the sailing ships in over 20 years. 

 

I wanted to comment briefly on breakfast and overall dining questions here.  The omelet station is an outstanding part of the breakfast selection.  My wife, an egg lover, has been very pleased with the style and construction  those offering, every morning.  I on the other hand have changed my breakfast choice on Windstar, because every morning there is a different French Toast offering.  I start thinking about the French Toast, months before the cruise, because I seldom have it at home.  The selection is often stuffed with a cheese (like mascarpone).  It has become my Windstar daily breakfast at sea.

 

We have been delighted with the dining improvements over the last few years.  Even before the Beard Foundation relationship, Windstar was moving toward a better overall dining experience.  I would consider the overall food service at Windstar to be well above the expected level for a cruise line at their price point.  Regarding portion size; I would consider this to be realistic for most people.  Restaurants over portion so no one thinks they got cheated.  On Windstar, as on most better cruise lines, this is about overall presentation.  Not gluttony.  I have never had a bad meal on Windstar and always had room for dessert.

[Spanky My]

Agree with most of your comments Del Rio. I have never chosen  my food consumption strictly on presentation . I choose my food on choice and prefer to get a decent portion. To me that is not gluttony that is reasonable expectation. But each to their own  🙂

[Strenz]

Del Rio, I agree with you. I have been on the WS 25 times since 1999. I am interested in food, ingrédients, presentation, the culture,  the science etc., i am a very good cook and I love food markets can not stand most  grocery stores. I do not eat breakfast except on the WS  i eat on the first morning and the last the Eggs Benedict with extra Hollandaise ( the real sauce ) sauce and the I have in between two French toasts. I dream if these two breakfast items.

 

Spanky, I love the squeezed orange juice. I love the dinners and find the portions ,  small but generous, great ingredients, inventive, and the presentations beautiful. We do not need large portions but need delicious, well presented food. I hate buffets, really dislike them, so for lunch the salad bar is perfect always fresh. You can also order off a menu. My least favorite meal is the ship barbecue, but I love being outside, I love the creative food  carvings and  the sangria. Candles and their rack of lamb is my favorite. Pick your night carefully outside so you get beautiful views: we saw Stromboli at night smoking as we sailed by, sailing through Oslo's fiords, sailing at night by Santorini, sailing out of Venice and in the Caribbean once we were asked if we wanted a night as we were leaving a harbor later and saw the large ships leaving all lit up, the goings on in a  harbor at  night,  simply beautiful. Great bath products L'occitane, my husband loves  the bath lotion. I love the mild scents. Wonderful bath robes and plush towels. We do not see blemishes, we are of the opinion nothing is perfect but for us WS is about as perfect as we will ever get so we are perfecty happy time and again. Our favorite ship The Surf we live the sails. We have been on the motor yacht once and loved it but truly our hearts are in the sails. 

We wish you happy sailing. 

[Del Rio]

Spanky My, I did not want to imply you were a glutton.  And I am sorry if you felt that.  I agree with you. I have just heard so many people imply that a fuller plate in any dining room is better.

 

Strenz, WS 25 times in 20 years.  A life to be rejoicing about.  You see Windstar in the same light I do, just with way more opportunity to attend the event.  Thanks for reminding us why we all come to this party.

[Spanky My]

Strenx.

 

I agree nothing is perfect just trying to be upfront about what we saw I.E. some blemishes   . As stated nothing major but not as bad as some have posted in our view<

 

I think  Windstar is a very nice line and we would recommend it .

 

No worries Del Rio, I think overall we are both thinking Windstar puts on a very good cruise and product.

[Strenz]

Thank you both, we are very grateful people. We are not complainers, we like WS it fits us for traveling and vacations,  we feel they are two different beasts. We love being on the water, we are also go backers, we  find  things we like, we go back. We are not wealthy , we worked hard ( teacher, child psychologist) and simply put we found WS in 1999 and have  liked it since, perhaps we are boring! Life is to short to moan. Injustice makes us furious and simultaneously sad.  We only try to embrace. Happy Sailing. 

[milepig]

We should note that the James Beard affiliation only affects certain cruises that are marked as such, but that having been said the food just gets better and better. Even the coffee, long their Achilles heal, is much improved. 
 

I’d expect the Pride and Legend to be well kept but a bit worn at this point as they are soon going in for their beautification. I can say that we were on one of the last itins on the pre stretch Breeze and they were still painting and polishing every day. Some people will always find something to complain about. 

 

 

 

[ducklite]

I'm glad to hear the coffee has gotten better--that was one major disappointment when we sailed on the Surf in 2012.  I drank tea for two weeks, because the coffee should have been sent to the brig for crimes against humanity.

[sb44]

4 hours ago, ducklite said:

I'm glad to hear the coffee has gotten better--that was one major disappointment when we sailed on the Surf in 2012.  I drank tea for two weeks, because the coffee should have been sent to the brig for crimes against humanity.

The key to the coffee is getting it from the yacht club. The coffee in the dining room is better than it was but the yacht club coffee is always the best.

[Misty Morning]

1 hour ago, sb44 said:

The key to the coffee is getting it from the yacht club. The coffee in the dining room is better than it was but the yacht club coffee is always the best.

Totally right sb44,  the key is Yacht Club.  6 of us on Star Legend in November were unanimous.  While coffee was good in the dining room, it was perfect in the Yacht Club.  Yogi was our barrista and was superb.  Would pick it up around 8am just before going to Veranda for breakfast.

[Spanky My]

Would it be great if COFFEE was the only issue with Windstar?   🙂

[Del Rio]

On 12/18/2019 at 6:17 PM, milepig said:

We should note that the James Beard affiliation only affects certain cruises that are marked as such, but that having been said the food just gets better and better.

We found this summer on the Legend, there were always a couple of dinner selections showcasing a James Beard award winning chef.  While we have always been happy with the food on WS, I feel the whole arrangement with the Beard Foundation, now has the chef on every ship looking at how they showcase their own talents.  The old adage still applies: "A raising sea raises all ships".

 

We can give you all a "second opinion" after we return from a week on the Wind Spirit, in January.  We are expecting a joyous experience.

[sb44]

Food has been seriously good for last 2 years. My only complaint, which I wrote to Seattle about a couple of years ago, was some temperatures were not safe. Interesting that right after that the next 4 o 5 cruises food steaming hot. So proof that they do listen. Enjoy the Spirit.  It was our first ship!

[Cruisingbilly]

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences on the Pride!

What, if anything, were the entertainment options on board, in the evenings?

This (Spanish Serenade, April 10, 2020) will be our first Windstar cruise. I'm aware that WS has nothing like the big productions on the mainstream larger ships. 

Just curious what is offered?

How about trivia?

 

Thanks!

 

Bill

 

[Ski Mom 2]

Typically there will be two different singers/groups. One will play in the lounge and one in the Compass Rose. There will be a crew talent show one evening that’s not to be missed. You will have an on board evening bbq with one of the groups playing and there will be dancing including line dancing the crew will participate in. You may have a local group come on board one night with Singing/dancing but not always. You make your own fun and entertainment. We have met some really fun people and closed down the dining room and then Compass Rose. That’s it.

 

But to be honest, most of their itineraries are so port intensive you won’t be staying up too late so you can get a jump on tomorrow’s activities. We sailed a similar cruise on Wind Surf last fall and enjoyed it immensely. 

[new_cruiser]

When we did Spanish Serenade, a flamenco dance group came on one late afternoon or early evening so you will might have that as the local group. The local group normally leaves the ship before it leaves port so it is either on an evening when the ship leaves port late or it is in the afternoon. 

[txfitnessgirl]

Spanky - How long did it take you to get to Nagula Jungle Lodge?  Did you have a private tour or thru a group?

[Spanky My]

Well we had to walk about 10 minutes to meet the driver from our landing sot and about a 20 minute drive to the lodge driveway. Then we had to get a ride on a quad down to the lodge as the road was too muddy for a vehicle. It was a Private tour just the two of us. The Walk was up the river/creek and not all  that easy walking but to us worth it to the falls. After that it was a BIG local lunch plate. They have hammocks to rest in and they will take you back to the pickup area whenever you are ready. Nice people at this remote lodge. 

 

Hope that helps..

[DadainTN]

On 12/13/2019 at 5:41 PM, AliceandRalph said:

We would love to hear about your trip as we are on the Jan.11 Star Pride sailing.   Good to know that the food was great, we were on Windstar a few years back before the change in management and the food was OK, we had a great trip, met some fun people and the crew was amazing but are hoping that food service has improved with the James Beard affiliation. 

As far as ports, do have any feedback on Isla Parida as far as the hike or snorkelling?  Did they have the marina out at all on your trip? Puerto Jimenez?

thanks for any info!