Ncl star review 04/18-04/26

[pool girl]

We very much enjoyed this cruise. Freestyle is definetly for us. :) We stayed in Long Beach for two days before the cruise at the Hyatt Regency it was a very beautiful hotel. The food was great. I would recommend this hotel to everyone. The service was even better than the food. One thing that stands out in my mind is the transportation system in long beach. It is no charge and will take you anywhere you would like to go on their route. Also it is very handicap friendly. The drivers are very friendly and helpful also. Now on to the cruise.

 

Embarkment day was a breeze. We showed our ID and the next thing I know someone asks for my credit card and we are on the ship. Very well run and smooth. We made it to our cabin by 12:00pm-12:30pm with no problems. When we saw our cabin we couldn't believe how well organized it was. There were three of us and we had no problem with space all week long. Now I have read on this forum about the closets being a problem. They worked out fine for us. Thanks to advice we knew about the light and I was able to fit my DD huge suitcase in it. The rest we put under the beds. My husband didn't need to use his wheelchair on the cruise and it fit nicely folded up beside the vanity table. No problem.

 

We met our room stewards right away and they introduced themselves to us and remember our names throughout the whole cruise. They were incredible. Our room was kept spotless. They are Venacio and Jeneth. One night my DD had a migrane and Venacio made her a snoopy dog out of towels and that just made her night. They really do go over and above they duties. The other thing I got out of it is that they really care about the people they are taking care of. That meant alot since it was our first family vacation and I wasn't sure how my husband was going to feel.

 

Our neighbors on both sides of the cabin were awesome. We would say good morning and good night to each other and point our dolphins and other things swimming by. My daughter finally after three attempts was able to see the dolphins because of our neighbors. I did not find the ship noisy at all. But as I said we had great neighbors.

 

Now the important stuff THE FOOD!:) :) We mostly ate at the Market Cafe because we are buffet style people rather than resturant people. Every day for breakfast, lunch, we would eat different things that we have never had before. For instance maui maui fish. I have never heard of that before and my husband said it was delicious. The roast chicken was very tasty. I don't think we had a bad meal there. But we are not very choosy. We did eat at the Teppanyki, now I have done this style of eating on land so I knew what to expect, but my husband had never done this. The food and presentation was very well done. Now it is very authentic so instead of chicken broth soup with green onions like I am use to we had miso soup which is fish broth with tofu. (I think) I wasn't a big fan. Everything else was excellent. It was $10pp you receive first soup, salad,rice,vegtables, then your choice of meat.Then dessert(green tea ice cream). I had the filet mignon and my husband had the strip sirlon. It was excellent. We also ate at Aqua. This was a very nice place to eat. The food was very good but as I said before we buffet kind of people. The service was excellent.

 

The shows on the cruise were excellent. We missed the first one but saw the rest. Very well done. Jean Ryan company works very hard to put on a good show and they succeed at it. The magician show with the Fallons was very good too. He brings the children into it which makes it all the better. The one show that disappointed me a bit was the talent show at the end. Don't get me wrong I give credit to everyone who had the guts to get up on stage and perform and they were wonderful. Except for the lady who did adlib comedy. I am sure she was trying very hard and it was scary but I found some of her comments offensive. Maybe I didn't understand what she said but I thought she was making fun of the staff member who do not speak english very well. If that was not her intention then I can live with that. If it was then it was in very poor taste. But for those of you who listened to the gentlemen who played the piano that was wonderful. I am so glad he won the talent contest. He deserved it.

 

We went on 3 excursions. First Acapolco. The excursion itself was great except the city scared me a little. The traffic is really fast and I guess I am not use to having people be pushy when they try to sell thing. But the cliff divers were amazing and the staff at the venue were very helpful and friendly. We didn't do ixtapia because we were pretty tired from

our City sites with cliff divers tour. It went a little long but worth every penny. Then we did Peurto Vallarta city sights. This one involved a little walking but it was beautiful. Our tour guide was wonderful. His name was Marco. He explained not just the normal stuff you hear on the tour but more I guess personal stuff about his country. This is the tour where you learn about tequila. How it is made. Now I am going to warn you they offer free teaquila. In thimbel sized glass. I found they offer this everywhere we went. Even in cabo.

 

Now disembakement was easy also but with one little hitch for us. My DD left her purse on the ship. Now I contacted NCL as soon as I got to LAX and they are looking. I also have my travel agent contacting them to see if it is found. If there is a slim chance that someone saw a Black purse with pinstrips on it and pink inside also there are pink skeletons on the outside of it could you please contact me. I know that the chances are slim someone on this forum can help me but I would really apprieciate it the purse has senitmental value to my DD.

 

If you have any questions I can answer please ask. I would be happy to answer any questions. By the way Shoreguy do you have any connenctions that could help find a lost purse? Just thought I would ask.:) :) We will absolutely cruise with NCL again because it was a very enjoyable cruise.

[viva01]

We met our room stewards right away and they introduced themselves to us and remember our names throughout the whole cruise. They were incredible. Our room was kept spotless. They are Venacio and Jeneth.

.

 

Welcom Back...Great Review!

 

We sailed The STAR in Feb. Our room stewards were Ven and Jeneth also. They are two wonderful people. They did a great job and it was a pleasure to meet them!

[melika091900]

glad you had a great time !! yes freestyle is the way to go for sure...

we loved the star in jan so much we booked it again for nov....

 

happy cruising

 

melissa

[tvwebguy]

Pool Girl,

 

Glad you had a great time. We had a blast as well. Let me say, I have to agree with you about the talent show. The comic lady was terrible. I was cringing in my seat...:eek: The gentleman that played the piano was awesome. He definantly deserved to win.

[pool girl]

I did have a wonderful time. I haven't heard about my daughter's purse yet though. I hope we find it. If anyone on the present cruise sees this post could you see at the reception desk if a purse was found on the 4/18/06 cruise. I would really appreciate it. I think she left in our cabin but maybe by a chair in the atrium. On a brighter note we have decided that we wil probably cruise to Hawaii in Dec 07. Has anyone every done a cruise to Hawaii if so I would like to know how you liked it.

[judyf]

Nice review and welcome back! Hope you find the purse.

[pool girl]

Thank-you Judy: I really hope you have the same experience I had with the staff on the star. They really went over and above the call of duty. And the food was fabulous. My belly is a little bigger but it was worth it. I have two years to eat less and get skinny before we go to Hawaii where I will be glad to fatten up again. Have fun!! P.S. Have some bread pudding and vanilla sauce for me. It was delicious.

[judyf]

poor girl I was on the sailing before you on 4/10, and yes we had great service. I filled out a comment card each time we ate just to make sure the service they gave was documented to someone.

[Hikini]

Glad you had a good time. Freestyle is definitely for us as well.

 

Good luck with the purse issue.

 

Hikini:D

[pool girl]

I am keeping my fingers crossed. My travel agent contacted NCL today and they received a box of lost goods from my cruise. I am hoping my daughter's purse is in it. It won't be hard to identify because it is really unique. I should find out tommorow. If not apparently insurance covers such thing. But if anyone else left anything behind on the ship contact NCL because they might have it and can send it back to you.