Star vs Pearl

[deb63]

I posted this question on the NCL board yesterday, but got to thinking someone on this board may be able to answer better.

 

I have been reading up on cruises, wanting to take my family to Alaska. I had pretty much made my mind up for the Star. I liked the Saturday to Saturday itinery and the fact you get to Juneau earlier. Also I felt we'd use the theater for movies more often than the rockwall/bowling alley - as well as the Star being less $ - which equals more $ for excursions.

 

However, I bought a book on Alaska cruises. It rates the different aspects of the ships. For the kid's clubs Pearl scored 5 stars, but the Star only got 3.5 stars. The book sighted the Pearl had a better play area with jungle gym, etc.

 

Has anyone cruised on both, or even just the Star with children. I just want to know if there is really that big a difference. My DDs will be 7 when we go. My desire is for them to have fun in a kids club while DH and I have some adult time together.

 

Thank you for any insight.

[epixx]

We sail aboard Star (twice) around Hawaii when kids were 7 and 3 and again when they were 9 and 5. They LOVED the kids program on the ship. I agree that 7 year olds would spend more time in movie theater than bowling and rock climbing, but I've never sailed on the Pearl. My guess is that if you prefer the Star timing/itinerary/price, you'd be better off with that one, as the kids program on the Star was very nice.

[CeleBrat]

We sailed the Star as well and the kids LOVED the Kids Club. Granted, our kids were 2 and 4 at the time, so they were in the youngest age group for Club activities. There is a jungle gym/ball pit in the Club, and an outdoor pool/playground area for kids.

 

We also recently sailed the Norwegian Gem with the kids (now 6 and 8), and could NOT use the rock-climbing wall because they were too short. Something to consider...

 

We did, however, have a great time with the bowling alley onboard the Gem.

 

So--either way, you can't go wrong. I would probably chose the ship with the better price.

 

Have fun!

 

CeleBrat

[deb63]

We sailed the Star as well and the kids LOVED the Kids Club. Granted, our kids were 2 and 4 at the time, so they were in the youngest age group for Club activities. There is a jungle gym/ball pit in the Club, and an outdoor pool/playground area for kids.

 

We also recently sailed the Norwegian Gem with the kids (now 6 and 8), and could NOT use the rock-climbing wall because they were too short. Something to consider...

 

We did, however, have a great time with the bowling alley onboard the Gem.

 

So--either way, you can't go wrong. I would probably chose the ship with the better price.

 

Have fun!

 

CeleBrat

 

There is a gym/ball pit in the Star? That is good to know. I bought a book on Alaska Cruises 2009 - and it rated the Star lower than the Pearl. However, one thing it noted was the Pearl having the gym/ball pit and that the Star did not.

 

My DDs would be 7, so they would most likely be too short for rock climbing. Bowling might be fun, but it is also something we can do at home. The Star was about $900 cheaper for the 4 of us. In the scheme of things $900 wouldn't break the bank either way - but it would be nicer to spend it on excursions. What I liked best about the Star was the Saturday - Saturday timing & getting to Juneau in the morning and not the afternoon.

 

I want a fun kids club area - as being Alaska I don't know how much use they would get from the pool. So I want to go with the assumption they won't be able to swim - and if they can great, but if not there are other fun options for them.

 

Thank you both for sharing. It's amazing how much there is to consider. I tried bouncing off DH and his response was "just tell when and where to be". :)

[crusinmama06]

I tried bouncing off DH and his response was "just tell when and where to be". :)

 

I think you are married to MY husband cause that's the same exact response I get from mine as well. ;) "Tell me when and where, I'll be there" Yeahhhh thanks honey for your opinion. :rolleyes:

 

Can I just throw one more thing out there - about Star verses Pearl - I thought they had 2 different itineraries....with Pearl having the "Prime Alaskan itinerary" of cruising through glacier bay?

[CeleBrat]

Here's a pic of that ball pit. I *think* it may just be for the 2-5 yr old group.

 

 

CeleBrat

[deb63]

I think you are married to MY husband cause that's the same exact response I get from mine as well. ;) "Tell me when and where, I'll be there" Yeahhhh thanks honey for your opinion. :rolleyes:

 

Can I just throw one more thing out there - about Star verses Pearl - I thought they had 2 different itineraries....with Pearl having the "Prime Alaskan itinerary" of cruising through glacier bay?

 

They do have different itineraries. The Pearl does go through Glacier Bay. The Star does not. I know on the Alaska port board more people tend to favor the Glacier Bay to other viewings. I've not decided for us what is most important in that aspect. Right now my Dh is just concerned with getting to fish and my DDs want to pan for gold - both cruises have those options.

 

I was leaning toward the Star as I saw us getting more use out of a theater showing current movies than the rock wall/bowling alley. Also, the Star arrives at Juneau in the morning, the Pearl not until 2:00 pm - so it seemed kind of late to start doing things you want to do. I guess I need to consider how long daylight is though before brushing the Pearl off due to that.

 

Lastly the Star goes Saturday - Saturday. My DH gets far less vacation time than I do - so there is a good chance he'll want to go back to work on Monday. The Pearl goes Sunday - Sunday.

 

But if the Glacier Bay is really worth the difference, I'm all for letting him go to work grouchy or take another day off. Afterall, he says he doesn't care how we do it, as long as he gets to fish. ;)

 

We've never been. So for me, it's all books and reviews - no actual opinions of my own at this time.

[CanadianTwosome]

There are no longer ball pits on the Star or Pearl. I don't actually know if there ever was a ball pit on the Pearl, but I know that the Star's was removed about a month before we boarded in January 2008. Considering what the studies have shown about ball pits - that no doubt led to their removal - it's a good thing.

 

As I said over on the NCL board, it's much less about the facilities and more about the people. The Star's facilities are more than adequate for kids to have a good time, and it's been my daughter's favourite of the three ships she's been on so far. She was 9 at the time.

 

We have had nothing but great experiences with the Kid's Crews on the ships we've sailed. One inept counsellor or one rotten kid can have a big impact, but those are the things that are impossible to predict. We have never encountered either on NCL, and I don't think there's any reason to anticipate either. I think you should make your choice based on itinerary and cost - $900 IS a nice amount to put towards excursions... I have no idea which itinerary is better, though, having not been there (yet) myself.

[bbcruiser]

We've been on both ships. My son was 3 y.o. on the Star and now is 6 y.o., my DD was 6 months, and now 3 y.o.

 

My son enjoyed the kids crew on both ships, but talked more about it this last cruise (but, he was a late talker). The kids love the jungle gym on the Pearl (it's their favorite part of our entire cruise). From what I remember, the kids area is bigger on the Pearl.

 

The Pearl does not have a theater, instead they show the movies in the atrium. The Star does have a movie theater.

 

Having been on both ships, we actually prefer the Star to the Pearl (even though the Pearl is rated higher overall). The Pearl is a bigger ship, but it seemed there wasn't much more public areas, so it felt more crowded to us. We also preferred the MDR on the Star to the Pearl (atmosphere wise). If the menus haven't changed, we thought the chilled soups on the Star were much more interesting and better tasting.

 

We have only done the Glacier Bay itinerary, so can't compare Tracy Arm to Glacier Bay. You might want to check the Princess boards, because I've noticed that their itinerary from Seattle cruise Tracy Arm.

 

You'll probably have a great time on either ship. A balcony would be a plus because the scenery even on sea days is beautiful.