Recent Legend cruisers, is it worth even booking shore activities in advance?

Given the recent Legend reviews talking about tender issues, and the high cancellation rate of WS shore-ex for lack of sign-ups, is it even worth booking any shore activities in advance? Whether independently or through WS.

Or should we just make a list of things to see/do via taxi, if we can actually make it ashore? (Which we tend to make anyway in case of weather issues.) And maybe check each morning for WS excursions that are actually going and have space?

Please, only recent Legend cruisers reply. Thanks.

I guess if you have really low expectations, you won't be disappointed.

I am hopeful that the Legend Tender scenario was a "one off" and the problems are solved. It was a stern drive part failure on 1 of the tenders that caused the issues on our Dec 5th sailing and I believe they have that fixed.

Not sure which itinerary you have but a couple of excursions on our sailing did sell out - Cat cruise in St Barths and the small boat rentals in Jost, so if that is of interest to you maybe go ahead and book. You can always turn it back in the day before and get your credit.

On your own, starting from the pier, would be fine in Culebra, St Martin, St Barts and Jost. Montserrat you would probably want to secure a tour through the ship or at least in advance with a guide that can get you into Zone 5 for the best experience.

Hope that helps. We have just rebooked for the March 19th sailing on the Windsurf and are looking forward to sailing again soon.

Cheers

Mark

We had no problem with the tenders on our 1/2-1/9 cruise. We paid in advance for 2 excursions and did the rest on our own. Montserrat "buried city" tour was great, but some people just hired a taxi with a guide when they got there and saw a lot as well. The snorkel on Virgin Gorda was a disappointment. Not at all what is described in the brochure - only 1 snorkel spot (not good) and no chance to go up to the Baths as promised. Expensive boat ride and rum punch for $158 per couple!!

Did our own thing in the other ports - other passengers said their best snorkel was in Culebra which we didn't do because of illness. You can get a cab at the pier, but make sure to agree on a time for him to return. We heard that Tamarindo beach was the best.

Thanks! Good to hear the tenders are working.

We will book a few WS excursions, but have back-up plans. Won't book any pre-paid third party excursions. Max flexibility this way.

And there is always the bar :D

Just returned two days ago after a wonderful cruise on the Star Legend. We've been to many of the ports in the past so did none of the Windstar shore excursions. In Culebra we rented a six person golf cart for $70, a good deal since there were 6 of us traveling together. Spent a few hours at Flamenco Beach (beautiful) and saw much of the rest of the little island including a few great views of the boat. We never made it to St. Bart's due to high seas but our plan had been to walk to Shell Beach and then shop. In Montserrat we arranged our own tour of the island for $40 pp with Montserrat Island Tours but were unable to get into Zone V. It was still a great tour. Again, high seas prevented us from reaching St. Martin. In Jost Van Dyke we just stayed on the boat but a few in our party hiked the island. The beach experience in Prickly Pear the last day was the best I've ever attended in terms of comfort, available sporting activities, and food. Any more questions, don't hesitate to ask.

We are on the Legend starting 1/23. Really looking forward to this itinerary. I've been to the Caribbean many times and never had problems with high seas this time of year. Missing two stops would be very disappointing. Was there ANYTHING to do onboard to make up for it? I assume the sports platform would also,be inoperable at that time....anything? Trivia? Movies? That is the only thing I don't like about small ships....the lack of alternatives when things go south.

But yes, there is always the bar :D

The seas last week were apparently very unusual in terms of mph and, more importantly, direction - they were onshore creating some very large swells as they funneled into the harbors. We docked in St. Thomas instead of St. Bart's and also docked in Tortola instead of St. Martin so the days were not lost. Our trek to Tortola was longer so the staff did offer cooking demonstrations along with napkin and towel folding. We were happy to be up on deck reading. Hope that helps.

BTW, several years ago we did a SeaDream cruise along the coast of Mexico and ended up spending 2 or 3 days in Cozumel which was not on the itinerary at all. Again the direction of the seas was unusual and the Captain thought hiding in the lee of the island was a better idea than getting everyone sick (half the boat missed dinner the night before he made that decision).

We are on the Legend starting 1/23. Really looking forward to this itinerary. I've been to the Caribbean many times and never had problems with high seas this time of year. Missing two stops would be very disappointing. Was there ANYTHING to do onboard to make up for it? I assume the sports platform would also,be inoperable at that time....anything? Trivia? Movies? That is the only thing I don't like about small ships....the lack of alternatives when things go south.

 

But yes, there is always the bar :D

We missed St Barths due to an unusual (7 foot) swell, tricky to say the least for tenders, but Captain Griffiths knew in advance and we had the day in St. Thomas.

Marigot was different because ordinarily there's no swell; of course this day there was, and the pier there is not so good (we've boarded there) and is some distance from Marigot itself. So off we went and had the afternoon and evening in Road Town, B.V.I.

Though there was the two meter swell at least one night and we were up at the "pointy end" in one of the two foremost suites (02 "Cannes"), we didn't feel bothered by the ocean motion. For those who might be, take some candied ginger; Reception has an open box of Meclizine, and of course you can check with your health professional about the Scopolamine patch.

IMO the Star Legend with the refurbs to pools, star deck etc. is more nicely laid out than the S'Pride (though it's getting the other refurbishments in Panamá whilst it's in dry dock for the repairs) so we merely shifted gears and rolled with it. Still a lovely cruise on a nice ship, attentive service, and good all around.

(The pool on the S'Pride was not used by many because it was so closed in, and it leaked - closed often for maintenance. Now, there's a courtyard-like extension to the Verandah there, and the actual pool space underneath is the newly expanded shop. The twin whirlpools amidships now are one, with a current pool, amplified by the whirlpool and sun deck forward on deck 5. The narrow star deck above the pools and sun space were widened by perhaps four feet, allowing some cozy topside chaises and a more expansive deck space. Glad to see the S'Pride will get these as well, by the time it's back in service.)

We did sign up for two shorex - one was cancelled for lack of other participants, so we "limed" during our time on Jost Van Dyke, using the open air $5.00 taxi to visit White Bay beach and the infamous Soggy Dollar and later walk to Foxy's (both have decent free WiFi). The other shorex was the Montserrat Buried City tour, well worth it - the driver and guide had gone through the volcanic activity and our guide was both well informed and a good communicator. (There are police checkpoints at the Exclusion Zone border - only tour groups with previously arranged permits are allowed through to the remains of the Montserrat Springs Hotel and Plymouth.) The cancelled tour was credited to our final invoice, and I'm glad we pre booked the Montserrat tour because it was popular.

Note that the restaurant service is attentive and friendly, but typically crew hire for nine month contracts with no days off; they are from Indonesia (bar staff from the Philippines) and the line has recently doubled in size. Some may not know what we do - our breakfast server had no clue what "whole wheat" meant for the breakfast crepes, and we had to slow down and clarify a couple of times. Help them help us, basically.

Suggestions include booking Candles, the "seafood and steak" restaurant, the first day. I'd recommend booking it on a day you're late in port, such as St. Barths or Jost Van Dyke, to assure it will be calm on the outdoor Verandah. (Marigot, St. Marten, is the setting for the deck barbecue - though I'd not be surprised if they move dicking to Phillipsburg in Sint Maarten; the island's pretty small and one can still get up to Grand Casse etc. easily, adding on fifteen minutes for the congested road to the dock at Phillipsburg.)

My in laws on the Dec 5 cruise didn't, and when they got around to it it was fully booked. For a more private whirlpool and deck, go all the way forward on deck 5. Don't overlook the light lunch and Continental brekkies in the lovely Yacht Club, or perhaps an after dinner drink in the Compass Rose.

There are two evening venues for after dinner - the Lounge has a duo that's livelier (Splash, on our cruise), and an acoustic and song duo (Double Malt) in the more relaxed Compass Rose. Some prefer one, some the other - it's nice to have both. We love the more relaxed ambiance of Windstar Cruises; I hope you do as well. (We're very much looking forward to our Lisbon-Barcelona-Rome back to back cruises in the latter half of April, and our Iceland cruise July 9 - coincidentally, all on the Star Legend.)

Oh, the Seattle office, well they're quite preoccupied trying to sort out the cancelled Star Pride bookings - so though you may have information the ship will be at Muelle (pier) 1, it might actually be at #3. Check en route - it's likely if you're in from the airport or Carolina / Isla Verde you'll drive by #3 first, so keep your eyes peeled. (If you're at the ideal hotel for this trip, the Sheraton, waterside in San Juan, you'll be able to see - and walk to - both piers.)

Thanks for all the useful information about the Star Legend.We'll be on her for the Tenerife to Lisbon cruise in early April. So you will be boarding later that day after we are off.It will be our first time on one of the motor yachts and we are looking forward to seeing how it compares to the sailing ships.

We'll make sure to book Candles early on and try for an evening when there is a late sail away.

Thanks for all the useful information about the Star Legend.We'll be on her for the Tenerife to Lisbon cruise in early April. So you will be boarding later that day after we are off.It will be our first time on one of the motor yachts and we are looking forward to seeing how it compares to the sailing ships.

We'll make sure to book Candles early on and try for an evening when there is a late sail away.

That should be a great cruise!

I'd only pre book excursions for one that I'd really feel strongly about and not want to miss. (What we do pre book is the laundry package - we prefer to travel light so there's no checked baggage to impede endorsing our tickets or changing flights during OSO - Off Schedule Operations- conditions.)

Enjoy!

Just returned from Star Legend and witnessed a couple of times people coming down to lounge and getting on a shore excursion same day. The staff just radio and asked if there was availablity and they were allowed to join that morning. They also posted at shore excursion desk the minimum number they needed for an excursion not to be canceled. My husband wanted to dive at Virgin Gorda but they needed at least two divers which they told him in advance. Fortunately two more people ended up joining the excursion.