Canary Island cruise questions

I am interested in cruising the Canary Islands and see Windstar scheduled this route in the month of November as a lead in to a transatlantic crossing. Has anyone sailed the Canary Islands on Wind Star and if so what was it like? Another question.....as the cruise terminated in Tenerife, how did the flights work out.......back to Lisbon or Madrid?

Thanks

We have a stopover in Madrid since there were no direct flights back to NY

We booked The Star Legend for this same cruise. We have opted to stay a day in Tenerife and fly back to the states the next day connecting thru Madrid. All fights I found had a connection back thru Europe mainland.

We are staying in Tenerife for 2 nights after the cruise.

We did this cruise last November And it was lovely. We opted to stay on For 3 nights before heading home via a connection in Madrid. We stayed 2 nights in Garachico, the quieter side of the island to explore the national park and surrounds. Our last night was near the airport for an early morning car drop off and flight. We really enjoyed our time on the island and a would highly recommend it. The views were stunning, lots to explore and see and driving was inexpensive and easy.

Did you rent a car or hire a driver in Tenerife?

We rented a car from Cicar. They have an office at the cruise terminal. It was €137 for 3 day rental. It was nice having that freedom to explore. Only caution I would say is if your flight is early morning, stay near the airport as island rush hour can be a problem.

Just curious: what was the weather like in November?

Lovely! I brought a light jacket and we had one day of drizzle rain, leaving Casablanca I believe. The Canary Island were short sleeve weather.

Lovely! I brought a light jacket and we had one day of drizzle rain, leaving Casablanca I believe. The Canary Island were short sleeve weather.

Good to know. Thanks!

We are on the Star Breeze out of Tenerife in April and going in a few days early.

Looking for hotel recommendations.

I sail the Wind Surf on Dec 12 (less than three weeks away).....if I find WS to be as good as I hope it will be I will look to book the Canary Island cruise in 2017. If that does come about, the only question will be whether to sail the Wind Surf or which ever motor yacht is scheduled. Does the itinerary dictate the type of vessel...sail or motor yacht?

Hey RMS,

just got off Windsurf from the Canaries. You can check out my review which is coming up in the next few days. After the cruise we spent 3 day on Tenerife. It's a lovely island with the best and quieter hotels in CALETA or ADEJE. Check out the Sheraton or RIU Palace. We loved it! Flights are no problem at all.

Cheers, P

Thanks for the response....I look forward to your review of the cruise. In the meantime could you tell me your thoughts on the level of service by the crew. I board the Surf 2 weeks from this Saturday and am hoping for a friendly crew and some really nice service.

All the best

Ciao

Tom

The service by everybody in the crew (maybe with one exception, one of the coffee bar girls hates her job) was cheerful, extremely friendly and they never said no. Even with the grumpy passengers they tried to do their best. But our cruise was only 2/3 full. Don't know how it is on a full boat. However, you could really talk to anyone and they will talk to you: captain, hotman, reception, etc etc. Really one of the friendliest, proactive crews I have ever had !

Hey Tom,

the review is online now. Just let me know if you need more information about the Canaries and/or the Canarios ;-)

Cheers, P

Thanks for the review....interesting. Based on your cruise history (ships sailed) I can understand your comments and observations.

To hear the ship needs work does not surprise me; I only hope it is clean.

As for lack of activities at night, I can live with this. I prefer to have my after dinner drinks outside and do some star gazing or sit and speak with fellow guests about their previous cruise experiences.

Nothing like an Amaretto on the rocks after dinner.....followed by a Baileys up right before bed to end a perfect day.

I will truly consider this cruise (Canary Islands) for late 2017 unless I opt for the Costa Rica itinerary.

If Wind Star has nice service and good food.....and hot water I will be a happy sailor.

One last question....in the spa what is the sauna and or steam room set up? Are the facilities COED or separate for men and ladies? I ask this because I found out the hard way on the Deutchsland...thinking it was men only till a group of ladies walked in. When they found I was an American they asked me if I wanted them to cover up.....I said no...my German heritage kicked in and I wasn't bothered in the least.

I look forward to the Surf next week......if only my Dachshund could come along.......sigh.

Thanks again

Tom

Hey Tom,

being a good European I of course walk into the saunas bar-naked. But in Germany we at least SIT on towels in there. Explain that to a fin guy... ;)

Because of the reasons I explained in my review I didn't even bother to use the spa on Windsurf even though I'm a big spa fan. I guess since there is only one sauna room (no steam room!) that it is a shared space.

I attached pictures of the spa facilities rooms onboard TUI Cruises (Mein Schiff), Europa2 and Oceania... Just keep these pictures in mind when you see the "spa" on the Windsurf. :D

Enjoy! P

Love the collection of ships you have sailed on! The Europa 2 is on my to do list and have been speaking with the US Hapag Lloyd representative. To get me on board will require finding one of their voyages with a reduced single supplement; if not it is too expensive for me to consider. I think the Europa 2 is the most stunning vessel out there......

I also want to try Viking Ocean cruises; hoping one of their multiple new builds will stay on this side of the pond.

Finally there is Aida Prima.......very interesting.

Concerning Oceania, wasn't impressed with the Insignia but would consider the Marina or Riviera.

Being of German descent, I find anything German to my liking.....and need to learn the language. Loved Hamburg, loved the Dream Schiff Deutchsland......so would like to sail other German ships. Maybe its the sausage served on board........I can live on it:D:D:D

As for saunas......I prefer the steam rooms......great after a hour or more in the gym and also cleans out the cocktails consumed :D

By the way, what reputation does MSC have over there? I tried the Davina and thought it to be all flash and little substance. I do have the MSC Meriviglia booked for Sept 2017 and am currently looking for a substitution.

Well way off topic, better end here.

Hey Tom,

I finally found the time to respond to your posting.

Well, I guess that Europa 2 is definately the most modern luxury product out there with a focus on fine details. There is a Youtuber who does lots of cruise ship testing. Matthias Morr with his „Schiffstester“ site. He did a 1hour video walk around on Europa 2 which is very interesting. The video is in German but the pictures tell the story.

He’s got extra videos on the suites, on the food (food porn!) and all. Check it out. For me, the Europa 2 is on my list. However, I still think that the prizing is still a bit over the top when you think that not even soft drinks are included in the fare (still, minibar is included and many free drinks, ice tea and juices are provided all over the ship). I really like the design of the public spaces though, esp. the spa.

Oceania is at the moment my favourite product. The ships I sailed on were the best kept and best designed ships I have ever seen. The cabins & suites are HUGE and the staff is excellent. If you don’t need entertainment ,Oceania must be the choice.

Your question about MSC: I wouldn’t want to be seen dead on one of their ships. They are full of Italian families with thousands of screaming children, the quality is probably on a par with Costa Cruises. MSC are considered very low key in Europe. The cheap prizing tells a lot.

And about AIDA: AIDA used to be good a couple of years ago, but is very mass market nowadays, lots of nickle and diming and very focused on a German speaking clientele, mainly families or retirees. I don’t like that the food onboard is only buffet style. If you want service you have to pay. The crews work too many hours to be able to smile (see crew-pax ratio!!!) Entertainment, gym and spa however, has always been their strong side. This is probably why the Germans love it. Would I cruise on AIDA again? Probably not!

The much, much better and more expensive product for the German speaking market is TUI Cruises. Check out the MEIN SCHIFF (1,2,3,4,5) fleet if you get the chance. It’s all inclusive cruising, very creative ship design with a very good onboard service

If you have any more questions let me know.

Cheers, P

Hey Tom,

how was your trip on Wind Surf ?

P

Thanks for the review....interesting. Based on your cruise history (ships sailed) I can understand your comments and observations.

To hear the ship needs work does not surprise me; I only hope it is clean.

As for lack of activities at night, I can live with this. I prefer to have my after dinner drinks outside and do some star gazing or sit and speak with fellow guests about their previous cruise experiences.

Nothing like an Amaretto on the rocks after dinner.....followed by a Baileys up right before bed to end a perfect day.

I will truly consider this cruise (Canary Islands) for late 2017 unless I opt for the Costa Rica itinerary.

If Wind Star has nice service and good food.....and hot water I will be a happy sailor.

One last question....in the spa what is the sauna and or steam room set up? Are the facilities COED or separate for men and ladies? I ask this because I found out the hard way on the Deutchsland...thinking it was men only till a group of ladies walked in. When they found I was an American they asked me if I wanted them to cover up.....I said no...my German heritage kicked in and I wasn't bothered in the least.

I look forward to the Surf next week......if only my Dachshund could come along.......sigh.

Thanks again

Tom

My experience on Wind Surf was wonderful. I found the ship to be lovely, very much the yacht atmosphere. I would say for her age the Surf looked pretty good with everything in working order.

My cabin, great! I loved the cabin number which I would select in the future....cabin number 123. The crew smiled and remembered my cabin number the very first day.

Hotel manager...always visible, always interacting with the passengers. Bar staff......very professional and always ready to answer the call for a second round of drinks.

Food......I think was wonderful, especially in the Amphora dining room. Breakfast out on deck was truly a luxury experience for me.....rather than dining in a lido buffet on a big ship.

The passenger mix was a big plus. Although we had only 250 passengers, everyone was extremely friendly and social. No rudeness, never any attitude.

Even the night of the on deck cookout, everyone was orderly, not pushy unlike the big mega ships.

Would I sail this vessel again....yes. I will consider her to the Canary Islands or maybe try one of the motor yachts to Costa Rica.

In the meantime I have a Caribbean cruise on NCL's Escape in May followed by HAL's new Koningsdam to Norway in late August. Traveling on a big ship after Wind Stars Surf should prove to be interesting.

Perhaps we will meet someday on a cruise...and can compare ship experiences.

Thanks for the followup question.

Tom