My 3/1 Star Review... a little long

[kato92]

I know alot has been written about this cruise already, so I will try and hit areas that haven't been covered.

I will start from the beginning. We took a Southwest flight from Philadelphia. Non-stop. Great price. But.......6 hours and no movie, no music. Bring your own entertainment. Also, make sure to get your boarding pass online the day before to insure getting the "A" boarding pass. You want to be in the first group to get on to get a decent seat.

After arriving, we found our prearranged shuttle with Prime Time was waiting and got us to the dock with no problem.

Arrived at about 2:30 and onboard within 30 minutes.

Thanks to this board, we did an upsell 1 week before the cruise to an AD Romance suite. Many thanks to you all. The AD suite was fabulous. I totally agree that once you go aft you won't want anything else. The aft balcony was big. 2 comfortable teak loungers and a teak deck. No wind problems. Nice sound of the wake to sleep to. Unfortunately never saw any dolphins or whales playing in wake.

Juremar, our butler was excellant. The snacks in the afternoon and treats at night alone were worth the upsell price.

The ship was beautiful. Mainly used the specialty restaurants. Cagneys and LeBistro were the best. SoHo was the worst. I think the passangers agreed as the restaurant was empty the night we ate there. Ginza and Teppenyaki were worth the price.Endless Summer was also good but is located in an area that an upscale restaurant deserves. There is a bar in there that no one knows is there. The Blue lagoon consistently had great food.

Speaking of bars...With the exception of Dave in Red Lion, I don't think any of the bars offered any real entertainment. While there was music at Star and Gatsbys, it was more of background than entertainment. Our group actually called the Star bar the "library" because it was so boring. The Martini bar secluded behind the Carousel was also always empty. Maybe it was the age of the cruisers, but there was never any real "action" at the bars with the exception of the Red Lion.

The pool area also lacked action. Not beacause of lack of activity, although that was a problem. It was more because the recorded music was dreadful. It was appropriate for the spa to put you to sleep. Not the pool area. The bands brought it up a notch, but they didn't start til 3:00. The mariachis were pretty bad.

PORTS

In case anyone is going to Manzanillo.....don't. Not worth it. Shopping area is for locals...not tourists. The beach at L'Audencia was nice.

Puerto Vallarta, we did city and tequilia tour. Good tour , worth the price and GOOD tequilia. City area is really nice for walking , shopping, eating and drinking.

Mazatlan...Girls did Randi's horses and loved it. Guys did golfing at Estrella Del Mar...excellent course right on ocean.

Cabo...did whale watching and saw many whales. Unfortunately this left little time to explore the town.

SHOWS

Only show we saw was Dave Heenan, the comedian. We all thought he was funny. We had met him on the first day in the Blue Lagoon...very personable.

PRICES

Drinks....not terribly overpriced, but definately higher than other cruise lines I have been on(Carnival and RCCL).This didn't stop us from filling our drink cards and getting our free bottle of liquor at the end.

Bingo...way overpriced and it appears money taken in not going into pots being won. But we still played!

 

Overall the trip was great. Can't wait to get back on a cruise whether is NCL or another line. We enjoyed freestyle, dining where and when we wanted. Athough reservations are recommended. We were shut out of 7:30 times twice on the day of...so make reservations ahead of time.

I would be glad to answer any questions.

[dwrist]

Thank you for the review. We were on the Star 2/5, suite 9002, forward. Which suite did you have? Did you notice any "soot" in the mornings? My husband is worried about the "soot" on the loungers. We booked suite 10228 for August.

[kato92]

Thank you for the review. We were on the Star 2/5, 9002. Which suite did you have? Did you notice any "soot" in the mornings? My husband is worried about the "soot" on the loungers. We booked suite 10228 for August.

 

We were in 10728. Did not notice any soot. However, each morning the deck and chairs were wet. Apparently from washing windows above.

[dwrist]

Thank you for the quick reply. The same in the forward suites. We also had the painters painting every couple of days.

[legalcruiser]

Thanks for the review. I would also be interested in knowing which suite you are in. We have booked 10726 for an upcoming cruise.

[legalcruiser]

Oops. Apparently I was typing my question when you posted your response!

[Chipster2]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. We will be on the Star this October and just can't seem to get enough information.:D

[judyf]

Thanks for the review. We did notice the lack of evening activities on NCL compared to CCL. There was a few evenings on the Dawn that we went to our cabin around midnight only cause there wasn't nothuing going on. But that being said, we booked the Star due to freestyle. It out weighs the negatives at least for this cruise.

 

Did you use prime time going back to the airport? We're thinking of using them or super shuttle any suggestions or tips?

[kato92]

yes, we did use Prime Time going back to LAX. They called my cell phone that morning to confirm pick-up and again called as we were walking out of terminal to tell us they were there. I would recommend them

I can tell you, I saw super shuttle in airport on arrival and at port on disembarking. So, I am sure they are fine also. Just check the prices.

[judyf]

Thanks. I will not have a cell phone with me. Mine is provided to me through my employer and I leave that home. I guess they will just be there when we get off the ship.

[allisonm]

Kato92 - we are booked in AD 10728 leaving next week - do you happen to have pictures of the suite?

[Postman1963]

Hi neighbor we are in 10228 leaving on the 17th.

[kato92]

Kato92 - we are booked in AD 10728 leaving next week - do you happen to have pictures of the suite?

 

Sorry...an photos from back then would have been printed and deleted. I don't have online albums.

It was awesome tho....Have fun

[allisonm]

Hey Postman! How weird is it actually know your neighbor before you board! Have you been able to find photos - i just am just curious!!!