Live from the Star Legend by a brand new to Windstar sailor. Menus, wine lists, bar menus included. Istanbul to Athens Oct

[texasstar]

Thank you so much for posting this exuberant review!  This was our first Windstar cruise in 2010 on the WindStar.  Like you, we were sold on Windstar also.  You will love Tahiti!  

[HaveDogWillTravel]

I had poor cell service on the ship this morning so will try to post my notes this evening. We are in santorini now. I will try and post pictures from Oia. Windstar tour is around 20 or do folks and we left the ship at 8 am. We were only the second bus to get to Oia. It was not crowded at first but by the time we left at 11 am it was a madhouse. Hopefully my photos will post. We are on our way to the winery now. 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

[HaveDogWillTravel]

Rude tourists. Poor guy was just trying to enjoy his back deck. 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

[HaveDogWillTravel]

Marisol our fabulous Star Bar bartender is our Windstar person with us on our Santorini Wineries tour. 

Edited October 17, 2023 by HaveDogWillTravel

[oakridger]

If Santorini/Oia was that jam packed on a day in October, I can't imagine what it's like in July!!!  It's a good thing your group got there early to enjoy it.

 

~Nancy

[HaveDogWillTravel]

My notes from this morning. The cell service is poor on the ship so I’ll just post these comments and call it done. Tomorrow is a sea day so no service. 
 

10/17/2023

 

The weather on this trip has been perfect. It was 66-73 in Istanbul with one day of drizzling rain.  Since setting sail it’s been 73-79. Yesterday at the winery was the warmest at 79. The seas have been like sailing on a lake. Which for me has been a bit boring. Much to my delight I woke up at 4 am to a wonderfully rocky sea. It lulled me right back to sleep. 

 

Adam was saying that the Culinary Experience did not meet his expectations and after talking it out I realized that we really didn’t get what we signed up for. I had such a nice time I did not notice!  There were supposed to be only 10 of us and we were expecting to actually learn how to cook the foods. Instead there were 19 of us from Windstar and Chef met us at the market with 10 more. 29 shopping with Chef is a far different experience than 10.  Once at the winery we only did things like shell beans & peel eggplants with little knives that were so dull they were dangerous in my opinion.  We were given sliced phyllo and prepared fillings to wrap.  Chef had a pot that she would tell us what was in it, but we did not really see.  All cooking was done inside out of sight so I still have no idea how to actually cook these Turkish foods. We were shown a card on the bus ride back that we could take a picture of so we could watch her cooking these online.  When I looked at it thru Adam’s lens I understood his disappointment. But he did say he would try this type of experience again on a future trip in the hopes of learning how to cook regional foods. 

 

I know I have been going on and on about the food. I have to admit now that I finally have had things served that were less then. Of course food is subjective so take this with a grain of salt.  The 2 fails were my Belgian waffles and the Korean ribs at Star grill.  The waffles were not made with a yeast batter so they were too dense.  My serving of ribs were mostly fat and gristle.  The meat I did get off was tough. So there you have it Windstar is not perfect!  Lol. 

We’ve had great experiences with room service breakfast. We phone a little before 6 am to place our order and it comes by 6:30 or so. Others have said they’ve been using the door hangers to order a 7:30 breakfast and did not actually get it. Maybe at that hour there’s orders than they can handle. 
 

 

We still have not been to Amphora.  It doesn’t open until 7 pm (like Star Grill) but by then my social battery has run pretty low and I’m not up for that much interaction. I love that we can order that food for room service though!  

 

 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

Maricel ( I spelled her name wrong earlier) made us the most magnificent Manhattan. The quality of alcohol available on this ship has been above and beyond. Great wine list at reasonable prices and actually in stock. Woodford reserve Bourbon and Antiqua sweet vermouth….like really? …..my jaw dropped.  Oceania had Martini and Rossi vermouth which is garbage and High Ten bourbon which is worse than garbage on our March 2023 sailing on Riviera. 

It is made with 1.5 ounces of bourbon and 3/4 ounce of vermouth. I know someone asked about the size of pours earlier. It cost $34.22 for two with tip. It is not covered under any drink plan. If you have a package you’d still pay that price. Which is one more reason I don’t buy a package. I don’t need or want to drink all day to “get my monies worth”. What I REALLY appreciate is having access to quality drinks. At $17 including tip I’m super happy. 

Edited October 17, 2023 by HaveDogWillTravel

[HaveDogWillTravel]

One last note before heading up to the deck BBQ. The laundry package is brilliant. Seriously I always have all my laundry done by the ship on every single sailing across all lines.  This is by far the best. Send it in with evening turndown and it’s back by 3 the next day. Perfectly done. Every time 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

I’ve heard about the deck BBQ. I had no idea exactly what it really was.  Ok…. Now we both know. Just the best time ever. And absolutely 180 different!  The photos should tell the story!  Wish I had the bandwidth to post the videos. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 17, 2023 by HaveDogWillTravel

[Cruise Raider]

That BBQ looks amazing.  It was a really long time back but NCL used to have amazing deck BBQs.  That’s one thing I really miss while cruising!  So happy you are having such a great time. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

I see a lot of similarities between Windstar and Azamara:  unique evening events, deck BBQ, personalized service.  We have sailed three times on Azamara, and have our first Windstar scheduled for Jan. 2025 – looking forward to it!

[HaveDogWillTravel]

19 hours ago, oakridger said:

If Santorini/Oia was that jam packed on a day in October, I can't imagine what it's like in July!!!  It's a good thing your group got there early to enjoy it.

 

~Nancy

In July it would be 100 degrees or more with high humidity we were told by our local guide. The crowds would be immense. Idk why anyone would come that time of year!  
 

we are sailing just south of the Peloponnese peninsula and actually have 2 bars of LTE for me and 2 bars of 5G for Adam (his phone is newer). 

[hamrag]

11 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I see a lot of similarities between Windstar and Azamara:  unique evening events, deck BBQ, personalized service.  We have sailed three times on Azamara, and have our first Windstar scheduled for Jan. 2025 – looking forward to it!

That was exactly my thought when reading HDWTs' account of the deck barbecue, and the destination discoveries event in Ephesus. Because we have a transatlantic Azamara cruise to Barbados, and 'meet' the Star Pride there for our November cruise, there certainly wont be a destination event. Guess there may be a White Night (similar to WS deck barbecue) a couple of days from Barbados if the weather is good!

 

We too are excitedly anticipating WS, particularly their food offerings which do seem to be a notch above Azamara. 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

I absolutely love the entirely smoke free interior of the ship. The cooking demonstration by our executive chef Joseph today was entertaining and educational. We could see everything he did and he would answer questions as he cooked. 
The beer trivia on the upper decks at noon  was a lot of fun. And we ate the Greek foods  Joseph demonstrated for lunch. 
 

if you need production shows, karaoke and a casino Windstar may not be a good fit for you. 
 

The house band and the Singing Duo provide all the entertainment we need. 
 

Just thought I’d post a few more notes as we finish our ice cream at the Ice Cream Social with our HGM Wilhelm. The reception is good at the moment. 
 

 

Edited October 18, 2023 by HaveDogWillTravel

[ssawjo]

10 hours ago, hamrag said:

That was exactly my thought when reading HDWTs' account of the deck barbecue, and the destination discoveries event in Ephesus. Because we have a transatlantic Azamara cruise to Barbados, and 'meet' the Star Pride there for our November cruise, there certainly wont be a destination event. Guess there may be a White Night (similar to WS deck barbecue) a couple of days from Barbados if the weather is good!

 

We too are excitedly anticipating WS, particularly their food offerings which do seem to be a notch above Azamara. 

Hamrag, are you referring to a White Night on Azamara or on the Star Pride?  Asking because we are also on a November cruise on the Pride.  Wouldn't want to attend in a different color!  Bill

[hamrag]

42 minutes ago, ssawjo said:

Hamrag, are you referring to a White Night on Azamara or on the Star Pride?  Asking because we are also on a November cruise on the Pride.  Wouldn't want to attend in a different color!  Bill

Azamara, responding to Jazzbeau, suggesting WS will be even better! 😊

Jazz is a host on  both Az and WS.....and very good at that!

Edited October 18, 2023 by hamrag

[ssawjo]

1 hour ago, hamrag said:

Azamara, responding to Jazzbeau, suggesting WS will be even better! 😊

Jazz is a host on  both Az and WS.....and very good at that!

Thanks. So no White Night on Pride. Good. See you soon.

 

Sorry HTWD for butting in on your posts.

[HaveDogWillTravel]

A follow up to a couple of things I’ve posted. 
we did report the loose outlet by the bed and they did fix it. 
 

We did let our destination manager know that the culinary experience differed from what was advertised. He was actually surprised that the brochure still said “maximum of10 people”. We emphasized that we had a wonderful time! 
Quite unexpectedly we found a letter informing us of a 20% refund. This was not required at all but appreciated. 
 

Last night’s sunset 

 

I love the high quality acrylic glassware used at the star bar. Notice the thin lip snd how clear the acrylic is…. Not cloudy 

 

that curtain separating the two spaces in our room is really useful. 

 

Todays tour. Since it’s the only game in town and we have a short day in Itea (8-1pm) before heading thru the Corinth canal there will be a lot more passengers on this one with us. So far all our WS excursions have had 20 or so. 

 

The room service chicken quesadilla. It has the most flavorful fajita style filling and there is a lot of spice to it. Yummy breakfast. 

 

it’s a bit overcast in Itea today. 

Edited October 19, 2023 by HaveDogWillTravel

[hamrag]

10 hours ago, ssawjo said:

Thanks. So no White Night on Pride. Good. See you soon....

Not as such, but the whole point of my posting was that the WS deck BBQ looks similar to the Az White Night!

 

Are you on the 18 Nov sailing from Barbados?

Edited October 19, 2023 by hamrag

[HaveDogWillTravel]

1 hour ago, hamrag said:

Not as such, but the whole point of my posting was that the WS deck BBQ looks similar to the Az White Night!

 

Are you on the 18 Nov sailing from Barbados?

I think at this point you should exchange emails to have a private conversation. Thanks in advance 😌

[HaveDogWillTravel]

The Delphi tour by WS was again very well run with an excellent guide and driver. Our group had around 30 this time. 
I would not hesitate to book WS tours on future cruises. 
 

I’ve heard about the WS signature sail away ceremony but had not seen it until today. I know. Our last day on the ship and our last sail away. I figured I needed to do it. Hopefully the video will post.
 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

No video today. Maybe from Hydra. We fare taking an early debarkation and walking to pier E8 to catch the Hellenic Seaways ferry to Hydra tomorrow morning. We booked tickets online and were able to download our tickets to our apple wallet. We used the Ferryhopper website which was a great resource. It should be a half hour walk to E8 and I’ll let you know how it goes. We each have a rolling medium bag with a carryon that attaches. 
 

I signed up for STEP before leaving home so it’s been great to get notices regarding protests in Istanbul and other cities we have been and are going to. 
 

 

[HaveDogWillTravel]

Delphi today. The landscape is simply stunning. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 19, 2023 by HaveDogWillTravel