Misty Morning

Yes bridge is open when out to sea. Not when in port and also not when entering and exiting those ports

Based on pictures, the anchor is one deck down and about midway between the actual cabin and the bow. Even if it's not as close as you thought, it will still definitely wake you up in the morning

Dear LAFFNVEGAS, We were on the Wind Surf in January and had dinner with Hotel Manager JD. I totally understand why you would want to meet him again. Such an interesting individual with an atypical background. It was a really a pleasant evening. Watch out for his white chocolate wasabi Kit Kat bars he brings from Japan. Delicious. Enjoy your first cruise on Windstar. We were Celebrity cruisers until we sailed Windstar in 2013. We have never looked back. The casual and unpretentious atmosphere, the amazing staff and the small ports is what brings us back, like a second home. We are sailing on the smaller Wind Spirit in late April in the Med. It will be our first cruise with them in Europe as we have only sailed with Windstar in the Caribbean. Should be interesting to see the differences.

You can pick up snorkel gear when you board, keep it in your room all week and bring it back on the last day

I meant west to Panama

Jazzbeau, While we have not been on that cruise, I can provide some comments some ports. Mayreau and San Blas are Beach BBQ days with loungers and umbrellas (enough for everyone) set up on beach, bar and food brought onshore plus local band, a very nice and relaxing day (the Veranda and the watersports platform are not open during the day/lunch on those days). Great stop in Soufrière, the restaurant looks fantastic, rated one of the best in the Caribbean and the world. Also you can do the Tet Paul nature trail which is easy and has beautiful vistas of the Pitons. Never been to Tobago but it looks unspoiled and the forest (Main Ridge Forest), from what I hear and read, is one of the oldest in the hemisphere. Argyle Falls also look nice and you can swim in the lagoon. Reminds me of Dominica. Beware however, while the stop is scheduled in Charlotteville (Man O' War Bay), because of northeasterly winds and swells in the Bay, the ship will often divert to Scarborough in the southern part of the island. This is a much more commercial port and is an hour by car from Charlotteville (similar to Antigua when ship diverts from Falmouth/English Harbour to not so great St. John's). Given you will be docked, the watersports platform will also not be open. Turnaround day: Doesn't look like they have much scheduled. Turnaround days are nice on the ship because there is no one on it and all services are available. Transfers: Windstar offers transfers but much cheaper to just cab it Sorry I cannot comment on the other ports as this is one of the cruises we are looking to do in 2025 just like you. I also recommend, like you have done, that this cruise be done from Bridgetown to Panama and not the other way around given the strong easterly trade winds at your back when going east to Panama (it can be very windy when going east especially from Panama to Aruba). I am sure others will chime in

Let me know if you need more info on the ship or the stops as we have done all these islands several times on the Surf, Legend, Pride and Star.

We were on the Surf in January and while we did not go, we spoke to people that had been on it and they were raving as they had encountered several dozen whales including one that went right underneath their boat. We saw the pictures. Wish we had gone

You are correct, the gap of March 9th to April 23rd 2025 is when the Spirit goes in for a full refurb drydock (unlike the Wind Star and Wind Surf which are being refurbished over 2 drydocks each. Wind Star went through its first drydock in November 2023 and Wind Surf is expected to go in November 2024)

Captain will advise next port 24hrs ahead and depending on the port, guests can book excursions, which will be offered concurrently with the announcement or decide if they want to do independently

April weather should be anywhere from 18 to 24C (65-75F) and although it's only April, if you look at cruise schedule for Santorini, it's already getting busy by mid April with a caveat that most of the ships in April are smaller ones

It’s not yet but it’s the 2nd leg of the 16-day Star Collector cruise that departs Athens on April 11th. The 8-day cruise itself is not showing yet but if you click on the cruise above, you will see in the itinerary section that the 2nd leg is all sea days while the map still shows the previous Cyprus and Israel itinerary.

They are closer to King than Queen

This cruise is on April 19th, so crowds should not be as bad as May. This being said, the destination manager quoted in the article mentioned that they would all be new ports (a few in Crete would be nice as Windstar hasn't done that island much) so I don't think crowds are going to be an issue on this cruise

Good article attached. This cruise replaces one that went to Cyprus and Israel. They say most of the ports will be new ports and will be known only 24 hours ahead to allow people to book excursions. This will also be a President's cruise with Prelog onboard and in the dark on the ports like everybody else. Should be interesting. https://www.travelpulse.com/news/cruise/travelers-won-t-know-where-they-re-going-on-this-new-mystery-voyage-from-windstar-cruises

What's your initial reaction to the Star Legend so far?

As an FYI, Wind Spirit is no longer in French Polynesia as Star Breeze took over the FP routes from the Spirit on Feb 4th. Wind Spirit was to be the last one to have Star Link installed given it was in FP and as Nearpost345 said, StarLink is unavailable in FP. Now that it will be sailing in Europe and Caribbean, it makes sense to install it, I just hope they do it by the time we sail on it at he end of April. Looks like the Transatlantic back to Europe is a wet dock (it is not shown as an available cruise), so maybe it's part of that update.

The problem in Virgin Gorda is you can get a taxi in port only when the ship stops in Spanish Town, which was the case for a few years after Hurricane Maria, but now that they are back in the North Sound/Prickly Pear, only guests that have a booked excursion to the Baths can take the tender to Gun Creek. Independent guests can only take the tender to go the beach BBQ on Prickly Pear Island.

Also Veranda is part of 2nd dry dock. Pool area, Compass Rose, Lounge, Reception, Yacht Club, Spa in 1st drydock, Rooms and Restaurants, 2nd

I believe all the public areas except for Amphora will be redone during first dry dock. Rooms and Amphora during 2nd dry dock in 2026

We had the AC issue on SP in November 2022 and got $350 in OBC for the inconvenience (they also brought in a fan which did help)

Actually, sales rep told me we would not get laundry nor wifi at that rate but when invoice came in, both were there. The OBC's were not given the heavily discounted rate and that's fine. We also got the 10% discount on Drink packages and 15% on excursions. Everyone is happy

We just came back from the Wind Surf 2 weeks ago and the had paddle boards, kayaks, floating devices as well as a small Hobie Cat sail boat (although I did not see it get used). In the past, also have seen people waterski.

LOL!!

We are 4 Star YC members and I was looking to book a one week cruise in Europe in May under Last Minute cruise deal and because is is under a "flash" fare, not only do you not get the 5% Loyalty Discount and 5% Come Home discount (these I can understand due to the low pricing proposed) but they are telling me that I do will not get the $100 OBC, the free laundry nor the free wifi, wow. First I have heard of this, has anyone experienced this?