Tell Me About Star Princess

[sonnenschein]

We were recently in E728 (aft mini on Emerald deck) on the Star. It is above the stage of the Vista Lounge. Some of the shows were so loud that the floor and walls of the cabin vibrated. We could not go to sleep until the shows were over at night. Naps in the afternoon were not possible some days. I would never want this cabin again, very unpleasant!

 

Rick

 

You booked the wrong side, the minis on Emerald deck get booked very fast by cruisers in the know, they are covered and not far from the aft elevators. Always look at the deck planes before booking your cabin, you would have noticed that the cabins on port site are over the Vista lounge stage which has music and shows. Next time try the starboard side, these cabins are very quite and enjoyable. We used E719,723 and 725, even so these cabins are also over the Vista lounge, they are on the quite side of the lounge.:p

[Luv2escape]

We are just off the Star Princess 7 day California Coastal. We also sailed on

the Star in 2002 when she was brand new. Twelve years later, she is beautiful, well maintained and upgraded with all the Princess signature features.

IMHO the best thing about the Star is Captain Todd and his excellent crew.

They make it their business to provide a wonderful cruise vacation.

We have experienced great times on several other Princess ships, but the Star

is at the top of our list!

Enjoy

Dot & Paul:)

[richsea]

OP here; so glad to see this thread revived! We are less than a week away from our sailing, & it's good to keep reading Star pointers. Lunch in the MDR on embarkation day sounds great. After studying the deck plans in more depth, I realize that the Star is more like the previous Princess ships we've sailed, Crown & Emerald, than I thought. Really psyched about our cruise. I hope that the shrimp served on the Star are as good as those on our last Princess cruise on Emerald, because they were the best I've ever had! :D:D

Edited October 28, 2014 by richsea

[cflutist]

If you arrive before 1:30pm or so... you can have lunch in one of the main dining rooms. It's generally very peaceful there. You could also go to the International Cafe in the Piazza. There's quiet seating in the Vines wine bar next door.

 

Several posters have reported that they were NOT allowed to eat in the MDR on Embarkation Day due to the BVE. There is someone on the Star right now who reported this. My girlfriend recently returned from a Panama Canal cruise on the Star and told me that she had to argue with them in order to be seated. It is clearly stated in the Cruise Answer Book but I have not been able to get a definitive answer from my Princess Cruise Vacation Planner or the Princess Customer Relations Dept (I have filed a complaint with them as the customer experience should be the same across the fleet).

[Guest USC Traveler]

i'm looking forward to my second cruise on the Star however, after sailing the Grand to Alaska last year and learned to eat at Alfredos every other day, i'm really disappointed they didn't include an Alfredos in the last drydock! oh well, the pizza at the pool deck is still the best pizza on the ocean!

 

by the way, i always book the last mini-suite on emerald deck, either e729 or e731. would never book the port side due to the noise. never had a noise issue in those two cabins but i do book at least two years in advance to get them!

[helenb]

The upcoming drydock is too short to make an Alfredo's out of Vines, but I am hoping that maybe during that time they will teach the chefs at Sabbatini's to make Alfredo's pizzas, so they can serve it at lunch, like they do on the Island and the Coral!

[JimmyVWine]

Princess does some pastas quite well. We've had a couple of klunkers though, like the gnocchi.

 

Same here. We have generally enjoyed the pasta on board, but a while back my wife and I took a gnocchi making class and we enjoy making all kinds. Potato. Pumpkin. Sweet Potato. Flour. We are by no means experts, but we are getting pretty decent at it. On our last cruise we decided to try the Princess gnocchi to see "how the pros do it." Ugh! They were like lead. On the final sea day we went to the cooking demonstration in the theater to see the head chef make one of his "specialties". Turns out it was the gnocchi! We got a good laugh out of that. (Tip.....run your potatoes through a food mill. It really does make a difference. )

Edited October 28, 2014 by JimmyVWine

[shredie]

We just got back from a short cruise on the Golden with the grandsons (both 8.) They were with us on the Star last summer, and they declared that the Star is a better ship than the Golden. They had several reasons, but the most important was that the kids' club on Star is bigger and aft (which is apparently important to kids. LOL.) So the Star gets my grandsons' seal of approval.

[keywest09]

Hello all!!

 

First time cruiser here. We will be on the Star May 30, 2015 leaving from Vancouver and sailing to Anchorage. Our room is BB322....is this good? quiet? I didn't want a mini suite because it looks like all the balconies are not covered ( people above can look down and see what you are doing) Am i right about this?

 

The info on this site is fantastic and it makes the wife and I very excited! thanks for all the insight!

[Nancyquilts]

Hello all!!

 

First time cruiser here. We will be on the Star May 30, 2015 leaving from Vancouver and sailing to Anchorage. Our room is BB322....is this good? quiet? I didn't want a mini suite because it looks like all the balconies are not covered ( people above can look down and see what you are doing) Am i right about this?

 

The info on this site is fantastic and it makes the wife and I very excited! thanks for all the insight!

 

Balconies on B deck should be quiet. As you hang around Cruise Critic, you'll find that lots of us prefer the Caribe deck because the balconies are about twice the size and half covered. So far as the minisuite balconies being open, unless you're doing something really interesting, I doubt that anyone above you will notice.

[ParadiseSue]

Thanks for the suggestion Rick.

Do you have any information on the 'Sanctuary"? Is it open to passengers or do you purchase a membership for the SPA?

Thank you

[tml1230]

OP here; so glad to see this thread revived! We are less than a week away from our sailing, & it's good to keep reading Star pointers. Lunch in the MDR on embarkation day sounds great. After studying the deck plans in more depth, I realize that the Star is more like the previous Princess ships we've sailed, Crown & Emerald, than I thought. Really psyched about our cruise. I hope that the shrimp served on the Star are as good as those on our last Princess cruise on Emerald, because they were the best I've ever had! :D:D

 

Rich, if you get a chance please once on board can you share your thoughts with us…we will be on board later this November…

 

we can't wait! have a safe journey, terry

[Sheaboys]

Hello all!!

 

First time cruiser here. We will be on the Star May 30, 2015 leaving from Vancouver and sailing to Anchorage. Our room is BB322....is this good? quiet? I didn't want a mini suite because it looks like all the balconies are not covered ( people above can look down and see what you are doing) Am i right about this?

 

The info on this site is fantastic and it makes the wife and I very excited! thanks for all the insight!

 

We will be on the same cruise, on Dolphin- MD D627. Hoping this is good location.

[bigenna]

We were recently in E728 (aft mini on Emerald deck) on the Star. It is above the stage of the Vista Lounge. Some of the shows were so loud that the floor and walls of the cabin vibrated. We could not go to sleep until the shows were over at night. Naps in the afternoon were not possible some days. I would never want this cabin again, very unpleasant!

 

Rick

 

A little off topic perhaps, as referring to the Grand Princess, but same class as Star : last month we were in aft mini E726 and had same problems with same reaction as TusconRick.

Each night we waited until the last show was over, usually around 11:30 before trying to sleep, which we could handle, although annoying.

What really bothered us was every few nights, after a period of quiet ithe noise would start up again. Calls to front desk produced a response of "Vista Lounge is closed, don't know where noise is coming from". When we investigated ourselves we found them doing sound checks for next day's shows. This was after midnight.

It will be our last time in that area of one of the Grand class ships too.

 

However, last year we were in a Vista suite, same deck, other side, on the Golden with no noise problems at all.

[bigenna]

Just read this thread again. Guess we picked the wrong side.:rolleyes:

[iceleven]

The Star is a happy ship, crew wise, and it is down to the excellent Captain. He is so supportive and respectful of his crew. After any tender day he came on the intercom and thanked the crew for their efficiency and speed. He always took opportunities to talk about how great the crew are he was very visible around the ship. It certainly trickles down and our excellent steward, Eduardo, told us that his praise is sincere and the crew all like him very much.

 

Captain Todd gets my vote as the best Captain we have sailed with!

 

Laurel

 

We really have to agree with you on this. What a gentleman!

 

To add a separate point, I really wish they would add Alfredos by replacing the area that is being used by Vines and that wine gift shop. It always seems empty and a total waste of space. I miss having the best pizza on the sea that I had become accustomed to on the Grand.

[iceleven]

OP here; so glad to see this thread revived! We are less than a week away from our sailing, & it's good to keep reading Star pointers. Lunch in the MDR on embarkation day sounds great. After studying the deck plans in more depth, I realize that the Star is more like the previous Princess ships we've sailed, Crown & Emerald, than I thought. Really psyched about our cruise. I hope that the shrimp served on the Star are as good as those on our last Princess cruise on Emerald, because they were the best I've ever had! :D:D

 

We were on the Star just a couple of weeks ago and there is NO GUARANTEE that lunch will be offered to guests on embarkation day. I say this because it was closed on our embarkation day with the excuse it was open ONLY for those doing the BVE luncheon. I would say you should give it a try, and if they turn you away, head on up to the buffet.

[cvpends]

We were on the Star just a couple of weeks ago and there is NO GUARANTEE that lunch will be offered to guests on embarkation day. I say this because it was closed on our embarkation day with the excuse it was open ONLY for those doing the BVE luncheon. I would say you should give it a try, and if they turn you away, head on up to the buffet.

 

The dining room was absolutely not open for embarkation lunch when we were on the Star in May -- which was a giant surprise to us since we love our embarkation lunches in the dining room. But the buffet was good and the views of Vancouver were amazing from the Lido, so it all worked out perfectly. It would be REALLY difficult to go hungry on a Princess ship :D

[Auntiejo]

Can someone tell me if the Thermal Suite on the Star is the same size and has the same amentities as the TS on the Emerald and Ruby? I see it on the deck plans but I'm curious if it's as extensive as the TS on the newer Grand Class ships. 5 heated stone beds, multiple steam rooms, etc. We love getting the pass for the whole cruise and we utilize it multiple times each day, so if the Star doesn't have what we are accustomed to, we might consider other cruises.

[cvpends]

Can someone tell me if the Thermal Suite on the Star is the same size and has the same amentities as the TS on the Emerald and Ruby? I see it on the deck plans but I'm curious if it's as extensive as the TS on the newer Grand Class ships. 5 heated stone beds, multiple steam rooms, etc. We love getting the pass for the whole cruise and we utilize it multiple times each day, so if the Star doesn't have what we are accustomed to, we might consider other cruises.

 

 

I have used the thermal suites on Star, Sapphire and Crown. I am pretty sure crown is like a Ruby. Layout is different but features are the same, including five heated stone beds .

[s1amblue]

Looking to book 1st Princess cruise on Star with brother's family.. Lots of questions - sorry!

Can balcony dividers be opened to expand space adjacent cabins?

Is Starboard forward side better to avoid smoke drift from allowed areas?

Are all caribe balcony's larger or just some - if so, which ones?

Is Terrace pool area still allowing smoking & if so has it been a problem for non- smokers enjoying it?

If I booked a balcony cabin near there has smoke smell been an issue?

Looking at cabins Caribe deck C227 & C331 any experiences?

Thanks so much!

Sherri

[ParadiseSue]

DH loves the stone beds. Any idea of the price for a 10 day cruise?

Thank you

[cvpends]

The dining room was absolutely not open for embarkation lunch when we were on the Star in May -- which was a giant surprise to us since we love our embarkation lunches in the dining room. But the buffet was good and the views of Vancouver were amazing from the Lido, so it all worked out perfectly. It would be REALLY difficult to go hungry on a Princess ship :D

MDR was open on Sunday on Golden for embarkation. So far, it has been only Star where I have found it was not.

[Auntiejo]

DH loves the stone beds. Any idea of the price for a 10 day cruise?

Thank you

 

If memory serves me right, it was either $129 or $139 per person on our last 10 day cruise. You got a bit of a discount by signing up the first day. I think after that it was $159 or so.