Is Star Princess That Bad?

[I object 2]

We booked a 15 day Hawaiian cruise this fall for our 50th wedding anniversary on the Star Princess.  Recent passenger reviews indicate the Star to be a worn. tired ship that needs refurbishing (leaking ceiling in some areas, uncomfortable mattresses, musty smell in the cabin, etc).  We're in an aft suite and will probably spend a lot of time in the suite enjoying the extra room, amenities, and large balcony.  If you've sailed on the Star, please chime in and share your opinion on whether we should consider a different ship or not.   Thanks!

    

[jennybenny]

Don't focus on the bad reviews. We have another Star cruised booked in the near future. Many ships can have leaks, rust, and issues. The Grand has been our home port ship for years and we love the Grand and especially the staff. If you encounter issues on your cruise, please express concerns with the appropriate personnel on board, don't wait until after your cruise. There were tons of concerns I read about with the Island, but when we did that cruise, we loved it. So much is your perception before you cruise. 

[RMMariner]

Star is fine. Some people just look for problems. Go with the idea that you will enjoy yourself and you will.

[Ombud]

I love Star! Especially Skywalkers and Crooners. Super comfortable beds. When were those who hate the beds on her? (I was on her 3/14/19-3/30/19)

Edited March 2, 2020 by Ombud

[DennisNV]

Sailed on her in January and had a fine time. Star Princess doesn't have some features of the newer ships and is a bit worn in some places but the crew is wonderful! You'd have to be super negative and grumpy not to enjoy your cruise.

[EDDY0827]

Star is  going in for dry docking in April 2020.

[vampiress]

i really wonder what people expect, ships are constantly being repaired and painting and sometimes things need to be closed for maintenance.  people seem to think that if they ever experience any maintenance at all, the ship is "showing her age"  i think the star is fine and most of the people who write these bad reviews have unreasonable expectations.  on every single cruise i have been on i have seen the crew painting or repairing something.  it is a fact of dealing with salt water. 

Edited March 2, 2020 by vampiress

[mtnesterz]

12 hours ago, I object 2 said:

...Recent passenger reviews indicate the Star to be a worn. tired ship that needs refurbishing (leaking ceiling in some areas, uncomfortable mattresses, musty smell in the cabin, etc).  We're in an aft suite and will probably spend a lot of time in the suite enjoying the extra room, amenities, and large balcony...

    

We have sailed twice on the Star.  While it is coming up on 20 years old, Princess kept up the ship well for our sailings. Musty smell? Open your suite's patio door. We've slept on the new Luxury Bed, which you will likely have.  Very comfortable the moment you lie down, but like any foam or partly foam mattress, they sleep hot overnight. Perhaps that was the reviewers concern. I agree with above posters, unreasonable expectation of some reviewers.

[JF - retired RRT]

32 minutes ago, mtnesterz said:

Musty smell?

Open your suite's patio door. 

 

Not recommended. According to posts on CC, if you open the balcony door for fresh air, you mess with the A/C for your entire section.

If there's a "musty" smell, tell your steward and ask for a fix.

[5:00_Somewhere]

We have a cruise on the Star at the end of this month, and I am very much looking forward to it.  She's one of our very favorite designs. We understand she may be a little dated but, as much as I love the shiny new decor on the newer ships, I'm also a little nostalgic for those older aesthetica (seafoam green, anyone?)  😉  And any ship will need a bit of sprucing up here and there (which we understand she will be getting right after our cruise, in mid-April).  Personally, I wouldn't worry and just enjoy. 👍

[konatyme]

We cruised on the Star in January & really liked her.  Comfortable bed, didn't notice any musty smell even though we had an inside cabin. Staff was great.

 

[Anubi]

Take any reviews with a very large grain of salt.  I've read some scathing reviews of cruises I've been on and I wonder where my head was at  because I didn't see or experience any of what the poster was complaining about.  I'm not saying things are perfect but if you don't know the person who is posting you can't really judge where their perspective is.  And of course, there are those people who make a career out of complaining; you know the type, they complain because they got red wine in a white wine glass and demand refunds!!  I think we've all met one of them.  I find them rather entertaining.  🙂  

 

Have a great cruise!!!  

[jrcruisealong]

Was on Star at the beginning of Feb and it was great. It was my first time on Princess and I was a little worried after reading some of the reviews but I didn't really see much of these problems. She is not a new ship and is showing her age for sure, as others have said, but it certainly didn't stop me from having a great time.

 

2 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

 

Not recommended. According to posts on CC, if you open the balcony door for fresh air, you mess with the A/C for your entire section.

If there's a "musty" smell, tell your steward and ask for a fix.

I know people opened their balcony doors and it did NOT mess with my air conditioning at all but I did notice a faint musty smell every once and a while but it didn't really bother me much. And I'm very sensitive to smells. If it had persisted, I would have certainly mentioned it to my steward.

 

I didn't have any plumbing issues but my step-father did and I heard others did as well but I have been on much newer ships and had plumbing issues too so I can't fault the Star for that.

 

I say, go, relax, enjoy! Have a great cruise.

[XBGuy]

I will add my encouragement to the OP.

 

We took the 15-day Hawaii cruise on the Star Princess this past January.  At the end of it, I told myself that this was the best cruise I've ever taken.  Like the OP, we were in a suite (C749).  I can't say that I noticed any musty odors, but, then, again, I have a much less than average olfactory sense.  Mrs. XBGuy, however, has a super sense of smell.  Believe me, if she detected a musty odor, I would have heard about it.  Also, towards the end of the cruise, the same Mrs. XBGuy, told me that she found the bed to be so cozy that she wished we could take it with her.

 

I did see a leak dripping into a bucket in the men's room just outside the buffet.  About the 30th time I've seen a leak on a cruise ship.  It was addressed, pretty quickly, and the bucket was gone when I subsequently visited that men's room.  No big deal.

 

There was on fairly annoying inconvenience that, I must emphsize, had nothing to do with the age or maintenance level of the Star Princess.  The toilet in our cabin was non working for about 12 hours.  In a hallway conversation with our room steward I learned that the toilets of about 30 neighboring cabins were also not working.  The reason, he said, was that the plumbing lines in our area were clogged because some passenger was (or passengers were) dropping personal wipes in their cabin's toilet.  Apparently, people choose to believe the claim on these products that they are "disposable" and choose to ignore the note in their cabin that says the only thing to flush down the cabin toilet is the ship-provided toilet paper.  After the toilets were restored, we received another reminder in the form of a tent note on our bathroom sink counter, reminding us anything but toilet paper should be flushed.  Highlighted among the no-nos was "Personal Wipes."

 

Have a great cruise, OP,  and congratulations on your milestone anniversary.

[I object 2]

Thanks for your posts, everyone.  Your positive responses have eased my doubts booking the Star.  We chose an aft suite - D737.  I'm a sucker for aft views.  😊 We've sailed on Royal Class ships the past several years, so it will be nice change to sail on one of the grand ladies.     

[Tucker in Texas]

We took the Star in January and I wrote a mini-review on this site.  My only "complaint" was the elevators which is true on a lot of other cruise lines not just that ship.  Not because there were crowded or slow coming, it was because the light that sticks out to indicate the direction it was going did not work sometimes.  Hence, you would hear a ding (going up) or ding ding (going down) but by the time you figured out which one it was by looking at the lights flush to the wall or an open door, it was gone.  I learned to watch the call buttons and if all the "call" buttons going your direction went out, it meant an elevator was there somewhere and to hope you could locate it before it left.  Smoking locations were not very good but that probably doesn't bother you or 99% of the other passengers (lol)

 

Other than that, I thought the ship was just fine and had a great time.  Crew was especially good.  Shows outstanding.  Yes, it is a little frayed around the edges but due for dry dock so you can't blame them for giving some things a "band aid" treatment if it needs major attention until then.  

 

Some people think because it is  "biodegradable" it will be o.k.to flush  or they are just plain "rules don't apply to me" and I won't put very much down the toilet but I don't like that paper thin toilet paper.  I've often said that the only good thing coming off a cruise and getting home is 2-ply toilet paper (lol).   I have had to tell more than one client that their 2-ply biodegradable toilet paper they want to take and use will cause major problems not only for them but for many cabins around them..  The ship isn't worried about about being green, they know that even Kleenex will cause a problem.    

[KeepCalmBearOn]

We just got off the Star last Thursday. The ship was fine in terms of maintenance, no musty smells, the beds were quite nice and I loved the crew. My quibbles would be design ones that have been changed on newer ships. I'd go on her again in a heartbeat if she was going to the ports I wanted to go to.

[aussiecruiser275]

Isn't the Star Princess supposed to be exiting the fleet at the end of 2021 as planned - transferring across to P&O Australia? 

[KeepCalmBearOn]

7 minutes ago, aussiecruiser275 said:

Isn't the Star Princess supposed to be exiting the fleet at the end of 2021 as planned - transferring across to P&O Australia? 

 

I haven't heard that it isn't. All the reports I've read say that Star & Grand are going to P&O Australia.

[Cool_Dude]

As with all internet based reviews of anything, be cautious. You have no idea why someone says what they do. 

Now, having said that look for actual information. For instance, when was the ship built and/or when was it last refurbished. (In the case of the Star, it was refurbed in Dec 2017.) And what were the changes. 

Seriously, when I was checking out the Royal Princess I found this review and pic on CruiseCritic.com:

 

Edited March 3, 2020 by Cool_Dude

[I object 2]

11 hours ago, Cool_Dude said:

As with all internet based reviews of anything, be cautious. You have no idea why someone says what they do. 

Now, having said that look for actual information. For instance, when was the ship built and/or when was it last refurbished. (In the case of the Star, it was refurbed in Dec 2017.) And what were the changes. 

Seriously, when I was checking out the Royal Princess I found this review and pic on CruiseCritic.com:

 

 

LOL....thanks for the photo, Cool_Dude.  You made my day. 😄

 

[Qcruise]

You do need to be aware and ready for problems RE the Star.  We were aboard her last September and experienced the following......our cabin had multiple toilet issues never resolved throughout the week making certain times very inconvienient having to go elsewhere for a bathroom.  Cabin next to us had dripping water from ceiling in their doorway all of the cruise.  Places in public areas with leaking ceilings and buckets catching water outside the casino.  Our friends were moved to different deck/cabin and many of their neighbors due to issues.  My wife won't return to this ship.  But some folks have never known of any issues.....it's luck of the draw.

[Cruiserkenn]

Had a great time on the Star last September, B2B, Alaska and Coastal.

Cabin, buffet, pizza, shows, were all fantastic!

 

Hakuna matata!  🙂⛴⚓️🌈🐬🐋🌠🌅🌝🌝

[WVHillbilly]

6 hours ago, Qcruise said:

You do need to be aware and ready for problems RE the Star.  We were aboard her last September and experienced the following......our cabin had multiple toilet issues never resolved throughout the week making certain times very inconvienient having to go elsewhere for a bathroom.  Cabin next to us had dripping water from ceiling in their doorway all of the cruise.  Places in public areas with leaking ceilings and buckets catching water outside the casino.  Our friends were moved to different deck/cabin and many of their neighbors due to issues.  My wife won't return to this ship.  But some folks have never known of any issues.....it's luck of the draw.

 

If I may ask what deck/cabin were you in?

[Qcruise]

2 minutes ago, WVHillbilly said:

 

If I may ask what deck/cabin were you in?

We were on Caribe deck port side but can't remember the cabin #......sorry.