Karen13

Can anyone help me with this please?

I need to know whether Star Breeze docks at Cristobal or Colon 2000 apparently for the taxi company we have booked a transfer with. We are sailing in January 2019.

Thanks for any help.

We have done three Windstar cruises and have booked a fourth. Would highly recommend the laundry package, particularly if you have any pre-cruise days. Very quick and personal service from your room steward.

We also,got the laundry package on a cruise with Holland America but all our clothes came back with annoying laundry stickers on them and some clothes a bit damaged. Not the same level of service.

Thanks for all the extra advice! Yes our transit is definitely daylight. We have booked Las Clementinas in Panama, as we would like to experience local life, and it looks lovely. Thanks for the recommendation. We will look at some of the excursions recommended.

I don’t understand the reference to not getting the 5% alumni discount. We are due to take our fourth Windstar cruise and have always been given this, even when booking heavily discounted fares. We have also been given the 5% early booking discount, when you book a cruise shortly after returning from one, and the OBC for recommending a friend. This was even though our friends were only due to pay their final payment (when the OBC becomes payable) DURING our cruise. Again, if the price dropped before our final payment, when we asked, our price was reduced.

We have never had a problem with Windstar not honouring what it promised. We have cruised on many other lines, shore excursions are always more expensive when booked with them. In Alaska with Holland America we paid £300 for two of us on some excursions. The fact they are exclusive to Windstar guests is a fair point.

Thanks everyone for such useful advice!

we have just booked our fourth Windstar cruise on the Star Breeze from Puerto Caldera to Colon, with a few days in San Jose and Panama either side.

Can anyone help with the following:

Hotel recommendations for either city?

Things to do while there?

Should we book hotels through Windstar or independently?

Ditto transfers?

What excursions do people recommend at each port?

I think the beach barbecue is on Isla Parida. Which night is the deck barbecue?

Many thanks for any advice!

Thanks for the advice.

We have sailed with Windstar three times before, and have always been very happy with the line. Have always booked direct. We are now looking at the Panama Canal and Costa Rica cruise for January 2019.

We are are from the UK. I regularly see TAs offering OBC etc on other lines, but few deal with Windstar. Can anyone advise me whether we would get a better deal if we tried to book though a TA rather than direct?

Thanks for any advice!

I am very concerned to read this. Many of the posters here are long time and loyal Windstar customers. We have done three cruises after many years cruising on large ships and love the line, which we recommend to others.

We were looking to book our fourth cruise but will now hold off as the published prices are high.

If Windstar management are monitoring this website, please take note, this is bad for business. Loyal customers booking in advance do not expect to be treated less well than people booking after 120 days but not last minute, which I accept deserve a generous discount due to the cost of airfare.

We did not do many ships excursions, as it is easy to walk around most ports and explore on your own if you choose. We also loved the Dubrovnik signature event. We did do a tour to Pompeii from Amalfi which was very good. (that was a diversion from Capri, so I am not sure if the cruise goes there regularly now)

I also recommend the market tour with the chef in Kotor. This was very interesting and we got to sample lots of cheeses, olives and meats which he was purchasing. The tour is free, you just have to sign up for it. Only about ten of us went, so it is quite intimate.

We walked the walls in Dubrovnik which offered lovely views. It was quite crowded however even in October.

We had the benefit of this promotion on our Alaska cruise this year. Does anyone have any idea whether it will be offered again by HAL anytime soon?

Any thoughts on whether this will be offered again soon?

We thought it was really good value on our HAL Alaska cruise this year,

I know it is hard to predict, but is it likely that HAL will be running the Explore4 promotion again anytime soon?

Hello Everyone,

We are due to take our galapagos cruise on 16th February with Silversea, Western itinerary.

Would really appreciate any more advice or reviews on the trip or tips in what to do in Quito pre cruise

We have never had the package as a perk, but it would be unlikely that you do not pay a gratuity on it, just as you cannot use OBC to pay gratuities. They are for the staff, not the company.

When we have paid for it, they have just added 15% of the package price to our account at the end of the cruise.

After the first day the bar staff will know you are on the package and will never ask you to sign. They will also quickly know your usual drink at any particular time of day. The bar staff are superb.

We have a return flight from Baltra to Guayaquil and onward to Manchester, UK early next year. Our Silversea rep is vague about the layover time but it could be up to eight hours. We have asked if they provide a dayroom, as the information we have been given is conflicting. He is 'getting back to us'.

My question is, if there is no dayroom provided, any advice on how to pass eight hours? Should we arrange our own dayroom at our expense, or is there an airport lounge (airside is no good as we cannot check in until three hours before), or store luggage and go somewhere?

Thanks for any suggestions or information.

When we were on the Legend recently we dined with the captain, who mentioned Asia, but also Antarctica as a possible itinerary for the Legend, as it is ice class. He explained this would be an expedition type cruise with zodiac landings via the sports deck.

We did such a cruise ten years ago on the Swan Hellenic Minerva (at the time named Explorer II) We still remember it as the most amazing holiday experience we have had. Totally unlike any other, and not be be compared with a 'drive-by' cruise on a large ship.

On our recent cruise we missed Capri because the seas were too choppy, and the captain felt the local tenders would not be safe. We diverted to Amalfi which was beautiful, and enabled us to take a tour to Pompeii.

The ships tenders and crew did a wonderful job of getting everyone ashore safely in very difficult choppy conditions.

The captain later told us because of the problems with the local tenders they had had to miss Capri several times this year, and as a result Windstar will not include this port in it's irineries next year. Amalfi would be a very acceptable alternative, the town and coastline were beautiful, and the excursions interesting.

We have recently been in the Legend. The tender service and tender crew were also excellent. Very little waiting for tenders. In most ports the service was practically continuous with two tenders constantly running.

Occasionally priority can be given to people on a ships tour if they need to get off first as they have a long day with a tight schedule, but this causes less of a problem than on the larger ships as the number of passengers is so small.

Yes I appreciate the brochure says there is laundry service. But is it just by the piece or is unlimited laundry available like on many other cruise lines?

And any idea of the price?

Many thanks

Can anyone tell me what laundry options are available on the Silver Galapagos?

Thanks for any advice.

i also posted a review of our cruise on the legend a week ago which has yet to appear. Not as quick as tripadvisor!

We were on the Windstar in November 2015 under the old management and loved it. We were on it again in December 2016 under the new management and it was even better.

Great personal, small ship service. Comfortable cabins and great food.

The officers and staff are very friendly, and could not do enough for us.

And also the alcohol package if signed up for onboard, or I assume your bar bill.

But be careful - its inboard credit, so if you book and pay for the laundry or excursions online in advance you cannot use it.

It can only be credited against purchases or services bought onboard. The laundry is not a problem, you just sign up for it in your cabin on the first day. Would highly recommend it!