star leaves a lot to be desired

[Pam in CA]

I can see many people being upset about this, especially if they already went out and spent the credit that Princess had given them.

I can see people being upset by this, too, but as Frank says, they knew how much their total port charges were so why didn't they question it rather than spend it as soon as it hit their accounts? I bet if they got a $20,000 refund from the IRS when they were expecting $200, they'd run out to buy a new car rather than wait to see if the amount is correct. And whose fault would that be? I see so many examples of people not taking responsibility for their actions and blaming someone or something else. :(

 

Hopefully, Princess will waive the onboard spending up to the incorrect refund amount between the time of the refund and when it was corrected. That would be more than fair.

[wilfros]

The real question is how many of the people posting here are just trolling, waiting with baited breath to attack this person once they do come on and identify what they were not happy with.

 

In spite of this site being called Cruise Critic if you don't have nothing but nice things to say YOU WILL GET FLAMED big time. This in spite of the fact that sometimes things don't go perfectly.

 

I tried to identify a deficiency in the operation of one ship and " ALL H*** Broke loose". Perhaps the OP has the best approach, tell everything is not perfect and leave it to you to speculate. At least the flaming is at a minimum.

Edited February 1, 2014 by wilfros

[AE_Collector]

. Anyway, in a later post she said this:

 

"Let's start with the drama of the day: Princess took away the $214.16 credit they had made to our accounts, and replaced it with a $2.00 credit. They cited an error by a bookkeeper. Oh yeah? Many of us had spent part of the credit already. I bought $79.96 worth of photographs. I had never bought a photo on board before. Some bought make-up which they immediately used so can not return. Some bought lots of drinks which they have already consumed. There's not a lot of happy campers for this stunt."

 

I am sorry but that whole statement (I know it wasn't you saying it Jaserdo, you just repeated it here from another post) just shows how cheap and dishonest many people can be. Obviously it was an error and to say that you ran out and blew the money like it was a lottery winning is just taking advantage.

 

Last cruise while I was waiting in a short line to turn in a $20 bill to Lost & Found that I had found 20 feet from the main hotel desk (I know, that was borderline silly because there was no chance the owner would wind up with it but still, for $20 I felt I did the right thing) I overheard two conversations while waiting:

 

First a lady who apparently had her bathing suit vanish in the ships laundry. They agreed to reimburse her and asked what it cost. 200 Euro's was her reply. Really? I know it is likely possible to spend that but my first thought was "liar".

 

Next conversation was a couple requesting to have their gratuities removed from their bill. It sounded like a well rehearsed statement. Service isn't good, not good at all. No it was awful. This was 6 or 7 days into a 15 day cruise, no mention of docking one employee for a day or the whole trip, just remove all gratuities. In my mind service had been wonderful for us and we made a point of giving all the regulars a little extra over and above for their incredible service. All I could think was "you cheap $&@&'s"

 

Terry

Edited February 2, 2014 by AE_Collector
Long lost art of cleaning up wording and spelling corrections

[Jasperdo]

 

Hopefully, Princess will waive the onboard spending up to the incorrect refund amount between the time of the refund and when it was corrected. That would be more than fair.

That's what I was thinking would be the best solution to this as well. Any spending done between receipt of the two letters should be waved, up to the $214 of course. I'm sure there were a lot of people who didn't think the first letter was incorrect. Not everyone on that cruise was as knowledgeable of how things operate as most of us on CC are. They got an official letter from Princess saying they added $214 to their OBC, and didn't suspect there was an error with that. I don't think that most of the people that went out and spent the money right away did it thinking they were getting away with something. They got the letter and said "cool", and then went shopping.

 

I also want to add that I don't even know if this was the complaint the OP had. I just happened to see it on the "live" post and offered it here as a possible reason.

[MsSoCalCruiser]

That's what I was thinking would be the best solution to this as well. Any spending done between receipt of the two letters should be waved, up to the $214 of course. I'm sure there were a lot of people who didn't think the first letter was incorrect. Not everyone on that cruise was as knowledgeable of how things operate as most of us on CC are. They got an official letter from Princess saying they added $214 to their OBC, and didn't suspect there was an error with that. I don't think that most of the people that went out and spent the money right away did it thinking they were getting away with something. They got the letter and said "cool", and then went shopping.

 

I also want to add that I don't even know if this was the complaint the OP had. I just happened to see it on the "live" post and offered it here as a possible reason.

I could see this happening. I would have just thought, Thank you Princess. I would have bought a Future Cruise Credit to start with...

[Cruisin' Chick]

I am sorry but that whole statement (I know it wasn't you saying it Jaserdo, you just repeated it here from another post) just shows how cheap and dishonest many people can be. Obviously it was an error and to say that you ran out and blew the money like it was a lottery winning is just taking advantage.

 

Last cruise while I was waiting in a short line to turn in a $20 bill to Lost & Found that I had found 20 feet from the main hotel desk (I know, that was borderline silly because there was no chance the owner would wind up with it but still, for $20 I felt I did the right thing) I overheard two conversations while waiting:

 

First a lady who apparently had her bathing suit vanish in the ships laundry. They agreed to reimburse her and asked what it cost. 200 Euro's was her reply. Really? I know it is likely possible to spend that but my first thought was "liar".

 

Next conversation was a couple requesting to have their gratuities removed from their bill. It sounded like a well rehearsed statement. Service isn't good, not good at all. No it was awful. This was 6 or 7 days into a 15 day cruise, no mention of docking one employee for a day or the whole trip, just remove all gratuities. In my mind service had been wonderful for us and we made a point of giving all the regulars a little extra over and above for their incredible service. All I could think was "you cheap $&@&'s"

 

Terry

 

That couple was certainly disingenuous. As many of us say in this forum, if you are truly having a problem with the service, report it immediately and it can usually be resolved. In this case, it was undoubtedly a flat out lie.:mad:

[riclop]

pretty disappointed....more when we get home...hope it improves for the rest of you....hopefully our comments will help out the rest of you..Seventh Princess cruise all were wonderfuly except the star

Everyone sees things differently.

[satxdiver]

Looking forward as are others to OP's opinion of the Star. I hope it is factual and not just some general whining. The Star joined the Princess fleet in 2002, a grand class ship with the lounge up over the stern. It was last in a long term drydock at the end of 2011 so it has been two years.

 

There was a fire on board started in a pax cabin by a smoldering cigarette that destroyed 79 cabins. It was repaired in Germany and had many upgrades like non-combustable furniture and balcony dividers as well as addition of a sprinkler system on balconies. Thank heavens Princess has banned smoking in cabins and balconies as this has cause problems on other ships.

 

We will be sailing on the Star later this year.

[LoveThisCruisingThing]

pretty disappointed....more when we get home...hope it improves for the rest of you....hopefully our comments will help out the rest of you..Seventh Princess cruise all were wonderfuly except the star

 

Obviously you can't complain about internet connection since you used precious minutes to post this and it seems to be working just fine.

[Cauzneffct]

That's what I was thinking would be the best solution to this as well. Any spending done between receipt of the two letters should be waved, up to the $214 of course. I'm sure there were a lot of people who didn't think the first letter was incorrect. Not everyone on that cruise was as knowledgeable of how things operate as most of us on CC are. They got an official letter from Princess saying they added $214 to their OBC, and didn't suspect there was an error with that. I don't think that most of the people that went out and spent the money right away did it thinking they were getting away with something. They got the letter and said "cool", and then went shopping.

 

I also want to add that I don't even know if this was the complaint the OP had. I just happened to see it on the "live" post and offered it here as a possible reason.

 

That's my take as well. If there's a letter explaining it, Im going to believe what it tells me.

[Working 2 Cruise]

At this point, OP has not bothered returning and explaining anything...

 

We can only speculate...

 

Can we have this thread deleted?

[ldubs]

I am sorry but that whole statement (I know it wasn't you saying it Jaserdo, you just repeated it here from another post) just shows how cheap and dishonest many people can be. Obviously it was an error and to say that you ran out and blew the money like it was a lottery winning is just taking advantage.

 

Last cruise while I was waiting in a short line to turn in a $20 bill to Lost & Found that I had found 20 feet from the main hotel desk (I know, that was borderline silly because there was no chance the owner would wind up with it but still, for $20 I felt I did the right thing) I overheard two conversations while waiting:

 

First a lady who apparently had her bathing suit vanish in the ships laundry. They agreed to reimburse her and asked what it cost. 200 Euro's was her reply. Really? I know it is likely possible to spend that but my first thought was "liar".

 

Next conversation was a couple requesting to have their gratuities removed from their bill. It sounded like a well rehearsed statement. Service isn't good, not good at all. No it was awful. This was 6 or 7 days into a 15 day cruise, no mention of docking one employee for a day or the whole trip, just remove all gratuities. In my mind service had been wonderful for us and we made a point of giving all the regulars a little extra over and above for their incredible service. All I could think was "you cheap $&@&'s"

 

Terry

 

Couple of cruises ago, my sister-in-law lost $60 in cash ( 3 twenties). She went to lost & found just on the off chance and sure enough some honest passenger had turned it in and an honest cruise employee had put it in the lost & found.

[KruzPrincess]

Obviously you can't complain about internet connection since you used precious minutes to post this and it seems to be working just fine.

 

One thing I'll add to my previous post about my cruise on the Star in December is that internet was very difficult on this ship. Often you had to wait for a terminal in the internet café. Of course, that is compounded by all the people with their own devices. Internet was very, very slow.

 

That said, I still had a really fun and nice cruise. I don't see how there could be that much difference in a month, but everyone has different expectations and experiences. Hopefully, the OP will come back and explain. They said they would come back after they got home.

[Working 2 Cruise]

It usually doesn't take 3 days to get home... OP had time to get out that post... But no follow up?

 

Just to be fair, things could have happened but odds are...

[skoi13]

Hope to hear more. We're booked on our first Princess cruise on the Star this May. We chose the ship after reading reviews and looking at pictures, etc. Not that we're changing it now, but--

[cr8tiv1]

[quote name='Working 2 Cruise']It usually doesn't take 3 days to get home... OP had time to get out that post... But no follow up?

Just to be fair, things could have happened but odds are...[/QUOTE]

I am also waiting for an update to OP's post. The ship is in Ensenada today and disembarks in San Pedro tomorrow. Doesn't explain why he/she hasn't checked back via the ship's internet. We will all have to just wait and see. There are many who are interested.

I was on the Star in November. Everyone encounters a glitch here and there. Overall, i found her to be a good ship. How can you go wrong with CD Dave and Elua.

Hawaii this time of the year can be iffy. I am here now and have had rain, VOG, high surf, and wind. It is "winter" here. The sunny days are just gorgeous!

[satxdiver]

The ship internet access is through satellite obviously and it takes time plus the ship is moving which can lead to signal disruptions. Anyone who has satellite TV can tell you about storms and heavy cloud cover. For a signal to go up to the satellite and then down to an earth station to be connected to the internet takes about 1/4 second more or less depending on many factors. This is time not introduced in a land based connection. Add to this a large number of ship pax now bringing their own internet capable devices (mostly iPads) and you have major conjestion. Patience is the key and tryig to operate when everyone else is not on the ship internet.

[lukesgrammie]

we are on our way home and almost out of minutes....service left a lot to be desired...this is my seventh princess cruise and never had a complaint until this one. Not the only ones complaining either. Food not up to par except for formal night. Captain is wonderful..staff seems to be in training. missed maui but not the fault of princess...rough weather but still made our own fun with our friends. Just not up to the usual princess standards...if it were my first princess cruise I wouldn't be back. more to follow. Keep in mind there is no BAD cruise...this one was just not up to par staff overworked in our opinion....mold in bathroom. like I mentioned..princess reads these comments and I am sure your experience will be much better(:

[cr8tiv1]

[COLOR="DarkRed"]Thank you "lukesgrammie". I was composing my post and you beat me to the punch. Appreciate your short (running out of minutes) post.[/COLOR]

[quote name='satxdiver']The ship internet access is through satellite obviously and it takes time plus the ship is moving which can lead to signal disruptions. Anyone who has satellite TV can tell you about storms and heavy cloud cover. For a signal to go up to the satellite and then down to an earth station to be connected to the internet takes about 1/4 second more or less depending on many factors. This is time not introduced in a land based connection. Add to this a large number of ship pax now bringing their own internet capable devices (mostly iPads) and you have major conjestion. Patience is the key and tryig to operate when everyone else is not on the ship internet.[/QUOTE]

Yes, I do know how slow the ship internet service is, but he/she made the original post on Friday, January 31 and has not checked back in (with a post). In the meantime, 41 posts have been made/3pages). We can only hope that the poster gets back to this shortly after he/she returns home on Monday.

OP: please let us know us know why you were unhappy with your voyage. Edited February 3, 2014 by cr8tiv1

[san diego sue]

The OP is back(Lukesgrammie) just posted before your post.

[gcvt]

Thanks for the update lukesgrammie!

How was the service in the MDR? That was our only complaint last time we were on Star. The staff seemed very rushed and appeared to be more concerned with joking around amongst themselves than serving dinner to their guests :o

[notentirelynormal]

delete Edited February 3, 2014 by notentirelynormal

[MTJSR]

I sailed the Star to Hawaii and to be honest, there were times the food failed for me. However, the other hundred good things are my memory of what was a spectacular cruise.

I hope you had only a small blip and the rest of your cruise made up for it. Looking reading your review.

[wizard-of-roz]

[COLOR="Indigo"][B]I was on the Star [first time]out of our 15 Princess cruises and I found the staff to be very "busy", very "disconnected", just "bored" with the ships guests, in general.

One of my most favorite things about Princess is the way in which the cruise staff responds to the guests. I have always felt that they go over the top when it comes to service, care and concern, not this time. I felt as if they wanted to avoid contact at all. They seemed "tired!"

Now, my first reaction is to want to avoid the ship I'm on another time. I do realize that the crew does change but I can't help but remember the ship that I'm on when I'm having a bad experience. I NEVER blame the ship when it comes to an encounter with a badly behaving guest, they're on all ships but this time it was the crew, in general.

At least that was my experience, that time onboard the Star, it does taint my overview of the Star Princess. I'll be on the Crown in April and I'm looking forward to having a wonderful time.[/B][/COLOR] Edited February 3, 2014 by wizard-of-roz

[fud2468]

Sorry to hear this since we're booked on Star for an Alaska cruise in May.
Actually we had a bad experience with Star to Hawaii 2 years ago. Fruit in buffet was fermenting on second to last day, and rotten on the last day--they had served the same bad batch two days in a row!. This sounds trivial but was something that could've been easily avoided--don't serve rotten food!
We were unhappy enough with this that we have not cruised since, despite our having attaining platinum status on that cruise.
However we couldn't resist the Alaska offer this year and had somehow ignored that it was Star again, hoping things would be better. Oh well, too late now...
Ray Mac