J18ktleo

1 minute ago, oakridger said:

@J18ktleo If you haven't already, I suggest you look on the Ports of Call forum for Iceland and Greenland to get lots of information about this ever more popular destination.  You will get targeted responses to your Iceland questions from a larger reader group than just the Windstar cruisers.

 

Iceland and Greenland - Cruise Critic Community

 

Have a wonderful trip!

 

~Nancy

Thank you!

I do subscribe to a couple of threads about Iceland however many people talk about renting cars which is not possible with short port times, just thought maybe I could glean info from prior Windstar cruisers?

I'll keep searching!

I have a small group doing Iceland the end of Aug, 2025.

I've been watching the posts on the main Windstar threads about Iceland and now that the season is over don't expect to read much until next year's season starts but wondering who would like to share info about what to do at the different ports and pre-cruise with a couple days in Reykjavik?

I prefer to do tours off the ship however have read there are weather challenges which can make this difficult.

Anything you would like to share for us to use in planning next year?

TYIA

We will be boarding when you disembark, Puerto Caldera to Puerto Vallarta!  So excited to try this new ship and what a cool itinerary!

We did the Canary Islands this past June and used Viator and Tours by Locals.

In Madeira we did a WONDERFUL walking food tour with Madeira Flavors and in Lanzarote

we used Tours by Locals...all the tours were wonderful and comprehensive!

6 hours ago, happy cruzin said:

YES - When we booked our Signature Suite in May 2023 we booked Plus, as recommended by our TA. Then, as the ship rolled out and started sailings we started looking at Premier. 

 

In April we received the “you've been upgraded to the sanctuary collection” notifications and thought for a minute that we had been upgraded to Premier.  But no 🥺

 

That's when we decided to to Premier anyway and asked our TA to upgrade us. 

 

Now….there is a different Premier package being sold. It’s all so confusing and sadly I fully expect it to be a mess on board as the crew tries to manage who has what pagakahe and what they are entitled to receive. 

We did a cruise last year, I upgraded the Premier to the NEW Premium but when we boarded we were told it wasn't the NEWEST Premier so we were still missing benefits 😡

Interesting how they're handling this new change in cabin catagories and perks?

We have suites that we booked last Jan for Jan 2026 that have Premier but it's the 'last' rendition of Premier so I'm assuming that down the road we will decide whether or not to upgrade to the 'new' Premier?

I really wish they'd designate it so we'd know (Premier 2.0, 3.0, 4.0! 🤣)

2 hours ago, mybichon said:

I have a reserve mini suite booked for November which has been upgraded to a Sanctuary class mini suite. I have been getting these pop up notifications as well, even though I know I won’t have Lounge access.

Sanctuary mini's do not have access to the Sanctuary Lounge though.

I have Sanctuary mini next November 2025 , just did a reprice and it lowered my price PLUS included the new Premier pkg!!!

However I have a Sanctuary Suite on Star Jan 2026 with the old Premier pkg...

Excited I got a price drop plus the upgrade!

Interesting...the Mini Suite and Suite pics and sq footage are exactly the same!

I am,personally and with my group cruises, now steering away from Celebrity for these reasons.  The 'all included' which is NOT all included is no longer enough to justify the price.

And we can go to other lines, enjoy their suite class with REAL all included, dining, for a much lower price point and many more perks.

We will be in Retreat on Ascent in two months that was booked before they 'raided' the perks and I could justify the pricing but with the new model enacted when Ms. Hodges came onboard, it cannot be justified.

So many other choices in this price point that give so much more!

On 7/9/2024 at 12:31 PM, Nillah said:

The beverage packages and prices have since changed. https://theboutiquecruiser.com/windstar-cruises-beverage-guide/ 

If anyone can help, what is the current pricing for Wifi?

Have a group going in Jan and we have quite a bit of onboard credit...wondering if it's worth it to also buy the all included but then we have to use the on board credit for...shopping!!!  lol

TYIA

Just now, Mahogany said:

Well, in Las Vegas, you don't have to set your alarm for midnight, cocktail time for you?

lol

actually for those that live here, it's just like living everywhere else when we're home in the 'burbs' just that world class entertainment and dining is only a 10 minute drive away! 😁

12 minutes ago, gnome12 said:

Dining reservations open up 120 days before sailing, at midnight GMT. 

Thank you!

I've read on another line that people set their alarms to get up at midnite to book dining, is that the case here as well?  😗

Question, looking to book first time on Silversea for Dec in Australia.

Are dining reservations open after deposit or final payment?

And how frenzied are they?

For first time passenger, will we be able to get what we desire?

Also, agents at Silversea were NOT able to answer, which restaurants (if any) are an upcharge on Nova?

TYIA

So I have a group on Star Jan 2026.

I had everyone book suites for the exclusivity of the experience since I loved the suite experience on Celebrity and the new Princess ships sounded like a similar experience.

Now, with these changes, it sounds crowded, over booked and the areas created for 80 suites will be servicing an additional 135 cabins, which is not exclusive, doubling the capacity 😰

Our pricing, since we booked at first offering, is less for the suites than what the mini's are going for now with the Sanctuary experience, which is a positive.

Wondering if the delay of the Star is so they can adjust some of the areas for better capacity and to offer their clients the experience that is so prominently promoted in all the advertisements?

Would be appropriate to deliver what they offer/promote?

1 hour ago, ngetway said:

You are so right!  Unfortunately we have a suite booked in October (category S9).  The only reason we booked this room over a Reserve mini suite was for the suite perks, which now we would have gotten with the mini suite.  I paid to have the exclusivity and to avoid some of the crowds.  Now I won't get this.  I'm very disappointed.

We are booked in Suites on the Star Jan 2026.  I booked this because I LOVE the suite class on Celebrity and was excited to try this on the new Princess ships.

We booked in Feb and now what we're paying for suites is the same price as what is being charged for Sanctuary mini's so I guess we got a deal although I'm not excited about the potential of over twice the number of people in these areas.

Oh well, we'll try and see. 🫤

37 minutes ago, cr2000 said:

 

It's basically theft on the part of Princess. Making false promises and having people pay up. The worst part is that a new ship rollout doesn't have to be this way. Look at RC Icon of the Seas. They hit a homerun with that ships rollout. Princess should have recognized they had numerous issues, put a pause on all guest sailings, and used their employees as "guests" for a few weeks to work out all the kinks. Instead paying customers are getting the shaft. Pulling Kotor (which I knew they would do) was the last straw for me. Princess knew they couldn't sail into that port when they cancelled it the first time but instead they strung people along for a few more weeks and substituted Bar which is basically a cargo port. Shameful.

I have sailed Celebrity multiple times within 3 months of a brand new ship being deployed, doing one of the first 'sample' cruises on the Edge class and again a month later, then this past Jan on the 2 month old Ascent and it was PERFECT!  Everything was open, everything was operational, no staffing challenges or issues.

What I'm reading on Princess is ridiculous!  And we are booked on the Star Jan 2026, 5 months after she comes out, in suites hoping Princess comes to their senses and pays attention to what's going on with the changes to suite class that we're all paying for!

Hard to imagine after all this time that Princess is having so many issues with the 'newness' of the Sphere class ship, and that they'd let it go until the very last minute to cancel inaugurals?

So sad and difficult to understand thought process behind all this!

5 hours ago, capriccio said:

 

Those of us who already have reservations in the Signature Suites are already paying for the Sanctuary (actually the formerly named Sun Deck that is now part of the Sanctuary Club).

 

Here's the difference for my S9 cabin between my

 

• booking made in January for two with the Plus package web price: Signature category S9 (deck 15): $2629 plus $153 taxes and fees per person (total = $5564)  (My TA charged $5164)
• booking for two today with the Premier package web price: Signature category S9 (deck 15):  $3979 plus $153 taxes and fees per person (total = $8264)

 

A difference of $2700 with the only additional benefit being $20 per day/per person ($280) for the Premier package is highway robbery.  Especially when it seems the Sanctuary and Restaurants may be much more crowded than originally planned.

I booked my group in February.  S9's for $3300 and Penthouses (S4's) for $3500pp all with Premier.  They are now over $2200/2 more.

This also happened when I booked Celebrity's newest ship in Suites, within weeks. 

The reason we booked the suites was for the 'dedicated dining, lounge and pool area'.  Now that is being sold to the mini's and Deluxe Balconies and an area that was designed for 80 suites now has 135 more cabins included which means crowds at the pool and for dining.

Yes, there are some of us that like the benefits of a larger ship but also like some 'less crowded' time not amongst the masses and are willing to pay a bit more for it.

For Princess to change these aspects of this class of cabins, basically to sell access on a bit by bit basis depletes the benefits to all.

Not sure who's brilliant idea this was ('hey, let's open up the exclusive suite benefits to twice as many cabins, it'll be FINE')?

3 minutes ago, keldaria said:

Premier hasn’t changed (at least to my knowledge) the only thing that’s changed is it would be included in sanctuary class bookings going forward. If you booked before the change it was an optional upgrade.

 

So if you originally booked with premier (like I did) you paid for it and will still have it. If you booked without it, you can still upgrade (and pay for it) if you want it. The price of the new bookings with it included is excessively more expensive.

 

otherwise the benefit is still the same and I’ve not seen anything to indicate otherwise.

In 2023 Princess changed the Premier pkg and it required an additional charge which offered more perks that are now standard.  It was very confusing and many, who didn't pay the upcharge, boarded thinking they had the entire pkg but they didn't since the name hadn't changed but, again, Princess 'adjusted' the program perks and there was really no way for passengers to know they did or didn't have the upgrade dpackage (since the name was the same🤪).

I just looked at my group booking and we all have Premier which was included in our booking back in February for the suites, whew, thankfully that's good!  But I don't recall there being an option to book a suite without the Premier pkg.

I strongly suggest if you have concerns about the new policies you let Princess know.  These lines redo programs alot and if no one says anything they just move along but have seen them 'walk back' their decisions when it negatively impacts a large group that make themselves heard!

Princess is holding a workshop for TA's tomorrow on this subject, if you can attend you should.  and I encourage everyone to find a way to message Princess about your concerns...many of the lines have been known to 'walk back' their decisions when they hear enough from their clientele... always worth a shot!

I am so confused and hoping to get some answers.

I love the Retreat experience on Celebrity, did the Beyond in November and it was wonderful and exclusive and worth the money we paid.

I have a group of 6 cabins that I have convinced and booked on Star in Jan 2026 in either Signature Suites or Penthouse (which now appear to be Vista?) hoping for a somewhat similar

experience.

Today, many of us received the email which is totally misleading as we already booked suites that should include all the benefits?

So why are we being 'congratulated' on being 'upgraded' to what we booked to begin with?  And if they now allow other classes of cabins access to the perks that were promoted for suites, what's the point?

Princess seems to be comfortable with changing their programs but not the names to totally confuse their clients.

This was evidenced by them changing the Premier package benefits and pricing but leaving the name the same so those of us who had booked Premier had to either 1. be told we weren't eligible for some of the perks or 2. pay to upgrade to a 'new' Premier

Why don't they add to the name (i.e. Premier 2.0) or SOMETHING to denote the change is being included?????

😡

On 3/8/2024 at 10:30 AM, Sox Fan Cruiser said:

All good questions so far.  Occasionally, I will post the full list of questions so far.  If I "like" you post that confirms that i saw it and added to my list.

 

I will definitely be doing an overall comparison to the suite experience on other Princess ships (which is lacking at best) and the suite experience on Celebrity (which I love!).  I have very high expectations for the suite experience on the Sun to rival X and be much better than my Princess suite experience to date.  I'll let you know.

I have a group booked in suites on the Star as we LOVED suite class on Celebrity Edge class, hoping for a similar experience! Princesses price point and perks with Premium pkg are better however we're interested in the suite dining room and pool areas...hoping they're not open to more classes than suites as this is what we're booking for.

12 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

@J18ktleo your face looks familiar.  If you generally sail Celebrity (we haven't been on Windstar yet) the possibilities would be Summit in Jan-Feb 2012, Eclipse in Mar 2015, Expedition in May 2015, Constellation in May-Jun 2016, and Edge in January 2019.  Unlike you, we hated Edge so won't sail Celebrity again.

 

We are currently on our first Silversea cruise, on Whisper (sister to Shadow).  Not sure you would find the demographic dramatically different from Azamara but the atmosphere is a bit livelier.  Trivia is handled in the same laid-back manner, shows are similar [small ships can't support large casts], limited number of specialty restaurants.  There is a casino but it has been empty when we have walked past.  The included shore excursions are a real plus.

 

I was very put off by the dress code, but (a) DW says she doesn't mind dressing up a bit (no gowns in her wardrobe) and having packed the suit I don't mind wearing it, and more importantly (b) there is a strong rumor that Silversea will be easing the dress code sometime this year (probably bringing all ships to the dress code presently on Nova and promised for Ray):

• Elegant Casual: On casual evenings, ladies may opt for trousers, blouses, skirts, or casual dresses, while gentlemen can wear open-collar shirts and slacks. A jacket is optional.
• Formal Optional: Guests may choose a more formal attire, such as an evening gown or cocktail dress for ladies and a tuxedo, dinner jacket, or dark suit with a tie for gentlemen.

What I can tell you is that the documents for this Whisper cruise had said that we would have 3 Formal nights, 8 Informal Nights and 5 Casual nights – but on boarding it had been relaxed to 3 Formal, 5 Informal and 8 Casual.  So the process has already started.  And while some ladies were wearing elegant formal gowns on the first formal night, most were wearing short dresses or pants and sparkly tops [sorry for the lack of specificity:  I'm a man...]

I think it might've been Azamara Panama Canal Mar 2015?

Anyways, we just finished Beyond in Suite class and Ascent and they were both awesome!

I wanted to try luxury and love the itinerary with Silver Seas however I'm looking at Jan 2026 and they have a non refundable deposit for port to port which we can't do, this far out, as I have a group of 12 and that's a big commitment this far in advance.

Thank you all for the info , good to know as I have a client doing Silver Nova this summer in Alaska!

Hi everyone!

Looking for advice, every year I have a group of girls (all mature over 50) doing a Caribbean cruise.  We've done Windstar and Celebrity, some of us are Elite + on Celebrity and we've really enjoyed the new Suite Class/Retreat on the newer ships.

However I'm really tired of the same old ports, even with Windstar we're so repetitive and I am the one planning all the tours everywhere we go so it gets challenging.

I'm looking at Silver Shadow for Jan 2026 with an awesome itinerary and I like the all included excursions plus Celebrity has started upcharging for wines that should be/used to be part of Premium pkg and they've degraded the Suite Class perks so we're looking elsewhere.

I'm a little 'put off' by the comments of dressy dress code, especially for Caribbean, is that true?

Wonding if those of you who are 'loyalists' think this might be a good experience for us?

I've looked at Oceania, fact that you have to call at midnite to book dining reservations scares me, especially with 12 people!

And Azamara wasn't our thing, felt too old for my group.

Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Thank you!

p.s. Jazzbeau, we met somewhere years ago, no idea but HI!!!!

18 hours ago, Luvtennis6060 said:

You do not need to take a water taxi to town. Get off the ship and follow the crowd and you will be in town in 15 minutes.

Thank you, that's exactly what I thought!

7 minutes ago, CHEZMARYLOU said:

Celebrity had Luggage Valet on Equinox in September. It started sometime in August.

bummer...that is such an easy and great service!

Thank you!