Star Review for April 7-14 cruise

[newbe dave]

My wife and I and another couple of good friends just returned from our 4th NCL cruise (Sun,Star, Jewel,Star) and one cruise on Carnival (Breeze). We had a fantastic time and really loved the ship and the crew. We drive to New Orleans (13 hours each way) and got to spend Saturday evening downtown. A little time on Bourbon Street and the rest of the French Quarter. Then a night at the Marriott Convention Center. We parked at the Julian Street lot and it worked out perfectly. It is only 1 block from the Whale lot and cheaper. Plus the free shuttle is nice.

 

We relaxed a little Sunday morning enjoying mass at St. Louis Basilica and then, of course, some beignets. I must say that the city was a lot more beautiful in the daylight.

 

Embarkation was really easy. We got there about noon and we avoided the initial rush. There were no people in line and we slipped through with ease. The crew was welcoming us with so much energy. They really set the mood perfectly (as they would do all cruise long). We relaxed all day touring the ship and enjoying good weather, good company and a great ship. Lunch at the buffet was what you expect for the buffet. We just wanted a quick bite. Dinner at Versailles was excellent. And the show was good too. Basically a perfect day.

 

I do want to say that I brought on 5 bottles of wine. It was the first time I did that and it was a very simple process. As happened our entire cruise, the NCL crew make it easy and simple. He wrote up a voucher for $15 x 5 and put stickers on the bottom of the bottles. Be careful as the stickers fall off easily. I put the wine in one dresser drawer and the next day had two stickers on the bottom of the drawer. And based on reports here, I gave the stickers for bottles I drank in my room to bar staff that helped me the most.

 

Monday - a day at sea - We were in an inside room. We usually book a balcony but this was our second cruise this year so we dropped down to inside rooms to save money. The day was relaxing and a real treat. Not really much to report. I did the wine tasting and enjoyed Blue Lagoon (you will notice a trend here). They have a coffee machine that I used every morning for my addiction. And the seats just outside Blue Lagoon are perfect for reading in the mornings. Anyway, the day was relaxing and ended with dinner at Versailles and the show again. Both excellent.

 

Tuesday - Costa Maya - Blue Lagoon for Breakfast. Then a beach day at Costa Maya. We just took a taxi to the beach. We bought it at the port with beach chairs and water/soda. Nice beach and it was good to get plenty of water in us. We just relaxed for future ports. Then we shopped at the port. On the ship, we had a snack at Blue Lagoon (wings!!!!), then some wine and dinner at Versailles. Then the show. I cannot even remember what show was which night. We enjoyed all of them.

 

Wednesday - Belize - We sleep late. Then coffee and breakfast at Blue Lagoon (see a pattern). Our ship excursion (High Speed Catamaran snorkel) left at 1PM. It was a great excursion where we snorkel at the reef. Lots of fish. The problem was the weather. Winds were moving in and the waves kept increasing causing the snorkeling to be rough. The staff on the boat were understanding but there was not much they could do. I snorkeled for about 45 minutes then enjoyed rum punch. We went to the beach at Bannister Island. It was nothing special so don't book this excursion for the beach. But all in all, it was a fun day. The day ended with dinner at Versailles and the show. Dinner was rough (not the food, the ship. Lots of rocking due to waves and the storm we had). And the show was amazing. It was the acrobat couple. They would have been amazing on land but to do that show on a rocking ship in a storm, unbelievable.

 

Thursday - Roatan - This was our favorite day by far. In fact, it may have been our best day on any cruise. I started it, yup, Blue Lagoon for coffee. But the buffet for what we thought would be a quicker breakfast (wrong). Then we left the ship right at 8AM when it docked to start our Zip-n-Dip with Victor Boden tours. We met our driver, William, at were leaving the port area by 8:30. Not bad for a tour starting at 9AM. We got to Victor's location and got strapped up for our zip line. A word about me - I am 6'4" and lets just say that I fill a chair. Everyone says I carry my weight well but the fact is I am "grande" (my nickname this day). Victor gave me to stats for his harness and I figured I had a few inches to spare. Turns out it fit perfectly and I was finally able to zip line (I have been turned away before).

 

The zip line was unbelievable. 12 runs with a couple over 500 feet. The four helpers for the four of us, we always were safe and very well taken care of. I cannot find the words to say how great the zip line at Victor's was. Just know it was the best excursion I have ever taken. Plus the photos were great. Then we enjoyed the monkey farm (toucans too). It was a great way to end the zip part of our excursion. William took us to Bananarama on West End Beach. Wonderful. We were well taken care of and really enjoyed the great weather. We also got to visit with many of the entertainment staff from the Star. Reluctantly, we had to leave and William took us back to the ship. We stopped at Blue Lagoon for a snack (wings!!!!). Wine in the room and then we tried dinner at Aqua.The dinner was fine but I just do not like the room as well. And the show was excellent as always.

 

Friday - Cozumel - We did another ship excursion (clear bottom kayak and snorkel). It was a lot of fun. We spent about an hour in the kayak. We could see some fish but it was more just using the two person kayak. Then we snorkeled for about an hour. The water was so clear and there were no waves. So it was a great experience and some good exercise too. The only down side was we really did not have time to enjoy the beach or chairs. And the beach we went to really was just rocks leading to the water. Back on the ship, I snacked, wined and the dined at Versailles. Another great meal. Then we went to the show (Shark Bite I think). Whatever it was, we really enjoyed it.

 

Saturday - Sea day. Honestly, I did not do much at all. Just relaxed and finished my book. Oops. I forgot to say that, yes I started my day at Blue Lagoon for coffee and breakfast. Not really much to mention about the day until dinner at Versailles and the show (Elements). Again, both were excellent.

 

Sunday - we walked off the ship with ease. There were a lot of people that used the walk off program. I really enjoyed hearing all of the complaining in the Lamplighter Lounge about the line. Hey, if you don't want the line to walk yourself off the ship then use the traditional style. Otherwise, just enjoy getting off the ship earlier along with about a thousand other people.

 

Grades for this cruise:

Dinner at Versailles - A. Really good. The Red Snapper was the best. But all meals were very good. I have nothing to complain about.

Stateroom: B (I hated the trundle bed under my bed. I stubbed my toe multiple times but they could not remove the bed)

Food: A - Two words - Blue Lagoon

Entertainment: A Really good shows. The only bad part is the seats in the theater. They need replaced. So many are broken.

Staff: A It is unbelievable how many times we saw officers. Every staff member was so happy and helpful.

 

If you have any questions, just post them. I tried to stay brief. Summary is we love NCL, the Star, the crew is great and most of the time, the ship is great too. And Victor Boden Tours was a highlight in Roatan.

[QuattroRomeo]

Thanks for the review! Sounds like you had the perfect blend of activities and relaxation, and really enjoyed your vacation! Glad you had a chance to zipline, and enjoy yourself despite the sometimes rocky waves. We are looking forward to our cruise and the great NCL service you described!

[jdvmd]

Thanks for your comments. Interesting to note where your "Corkage Paid" stickers were affixed. I have never seen it done that way. Always near the neck of the bottle.

[Tideone]

We were also on this cruise and you are right on about the crew... they are totally awesome... they were always asking if there was anything they could do for me.

We only had one bad experience and that was in costa maya at the senor frogs-carlos and charley's restaurants and bars.

We had been to the restaurant before when it wasn't under the new ownership and we really liked it... good food at reasonable prices.

Not anymore... we had two shrimp tacos, nachos, two diet cokes and a shirley temple and the bill was $87.00

On top of that, some ugly, old woman kept coming up and pawing on me, wanting me to have a sex on the beach shot...

But other than this incident, we had a blast...

[thixson]

That is funny that you loved Blue Lagoon so much. I was on the cruise the week before you and we got food from Blue Lagoon - artichoke dip, chicken wings, and chicken fingers and I am not kidding when I say it wasn't edible. It is NASTY!!!!! Wow, what a difference you had...

[must2cruz]

We were on this cruise mid-February. The staff is excellent. It was not unusual to see the Captain out during the cruise and he said goodbye to everyone as we left. We will book with NCL again.

[camz]

Thanks for your review! We are fans of the Star and her very friendly crew. Glad to hear that the Star is still pleasing her passengers. :D

[trouble1964]

We were on the cruise too. I have never been on a cruise before where I have seen a provided sign language interpreter. I asked her if she did every cruise and she said that she only did the ones where she was requested in advance.

 

We had a balcony room and it was DIVINE!! Our first balcony and now we are spoiled. I did not like the single ply toilet paper in the bathroom though.

 

This was also our first "beach" cruise. Is it common for cruise lines to provide cold towels when you come back to the ship from a port? That was a really nice touch I thought!

 

2 of our 3 excursions got cancelled due to the choppy water. We had booked Bodden tours for Roatan and it was a wonderful day!

[Sequim88]

Thanks for the review - especially the ship parts. I'm always reading Star reviews for ship info since our TA next year will have 11 sea days. In some ways on a TA the ship is as much a destination as the ports.