Review: First ever cruise, Star, Mexican Riviera, Deluxe Owners Suite, Toddler

[cadien]

Towel animals.

 

 

 

 

DH insists this is a cobra. Like just the head.

 

 

 

 

The eyes are green grapes from the fruit bowl.

 

 

[cadien]

DS loved the glass elevators and the view of the atrium of course.

 

 

We never encountered children pressing all the buttons.

 

Fifty-something couples shoving their way to the front of the queue, however...

 

 

We mostly took the stairs. Until I crunched my toe, at least. We did have to dodge teens leaping down entire flights.

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I found it mean that this was waiting for us on the second to last night instead of the last one.

 

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The library, from either end. It usually had a fair number of people in it.

 

 

 

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Final handout.

 

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'Our' stairs mural. It did come in handy.

 

Some floors had three-dimensional metal murals.

 

 

 

When going up and down multiple flights, I had an unfortunate tendency to interpret the number over the elevator as the floor we were on rather than the floor the elevator was on.

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General experiences, impressions, etc.

 

 

We didn’t do any shopping, in port or on the ship. I probably would have picked up a ship magnet or ornament if I’d thought of it, but I never happened across the gift shop. Or remembered to look for it. The experience was really a dress rehearsal or a rough draft in a lot of ways. A three or four day itinerary, being even shorter, would have been really frustrating as an introduction.

 

One thing I'd looked forward to from the deck plans on the NCL website was the juice and smoothie bar in the gym. We go through a lot of Bolthouse and Naked juices in our house, as well as homemade yogurt smoothies. DS actually loves the green juice blends. But it was not to be found. I didn't ask because I couldn't find a staff member in the gym but assume it was a drydock remodel thing. There did turn out to be a fresh juice station in the buffet. I learned sadly too late that it also did sangria in the evenings. In the morning, you could also get bloody mary's, screwdrivers, etc. We had just fresh juice one morning. About 10 ounces, super pulpy, for $4.95. Prices are only posted for the cocktails, so I had to slide (those floors!) back to the table for my card after ordering. I also eventually found 'smoothies' at the pool bar but they were totally artificial so we didn't bother.

 

One confusing thing about the pool deck bar was that there are signs all over the deck saying no glass allowed but they hand everyone glass bottles of beer. Also, I never saw a waiter.

 

DH and I had looked forward to doing some trivia, but the opportunities were few and the schedule never worked out. They did a Harry Potter one once. We wouldn't have done well but I expect it was popular with the teens. The assistant cruise director was in costume for it.

 

The only show we attended was a Russian couple doing ballet and acrobatics. DS loves both. We were about the only people in the suite-only section of the balcony. Slippery long curving benches (banquettes?) but not uncomfortable. It was very Russian. Some of the framing for the routines was cheesy, and I wondered about some parents objecting to the cabaret costumes based on past Cruise Critic threads, but the acrobatics were impressive. Many high-up death-defying stunts that I had to close my eyes through.

 

Speaking of entertainment, we weren't impressed by any of the live music. The recurring entertainer in Gatsby's, also audible from three restaurants, was an okay performer but pretty bad at patter. We weren't thrilled that one meal was nothing but Billy Joel and Elton John, including the 80s. We did 'miss' Neil Diamond night. DH (a musician himself) says the pool deck band was actually talented; you just couldn't tell over the singer. Although it does take some chutzpah to caterwaul Killing Me Softly.

 

We never visited the spa, casino, art auction, bier garten, Spinnaker Lounge, or coffee shop.

 

We’d meant to go to Gatsby’s because the NCL website claims they have things like caviar, foie gras, and pate but no one has ever seemed to post a menu. But that just got away from us too.

 

DILs and DH used the gym most days and were satisfied with it. You can play Angry Birds on the treadmill.

 

We’d intended to try a wine or martini tasting but just never had a chance.

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The selling side of things wasn't obnoxious. We could tell there were regular brief announcements but were usually somewhere we couldn't tell what was being said. We did receive art auction invitations every day. There were tables of gold by the inch etc in the atrium at least twice.

 

I’m pretty sure the cruise director was Ben Kitchen but they said it was his last cruise on the Star anyway. He seemed energetic. Comfortable with getting zany in front of people. That’s probably standard for a cruise director though.

 

We successfully used iConcierge. Well, for messaging each other. I couldn’t get the restaurant and excursion sections to work. We also really appreciated having the portable phones for staying in contact with DILs when everyone was out and about around the ship. You can also check your balance with iConcierge, although apparently you can do that on your television as well. One afternoon I pulled up that feature to show it to MIL (she didn’t have iConcierge) and there’s this long list of arcade charges! DH got sucked into a Tetris-like game with bluetooth speakers as a prize.

 

And I did the impossible: I underpacked. I would have really liked one more outfit each for DS and myself. I wasn’t expecting to need to change so many times on a port day, for one thing. And for some reason I was less willing than usual to repeat outfits. I happily repeated every outfit on our honeymoon, which was carry-on only. But it’s so much easier to keep track of photos when you look different each day, especially when the setting doesn’t change very much. I discovered when unpacking on board that all my tops and all my dresses were a single brand. I meant to take a photo and tweet it to them but got distracted and forgot. I did have enough shoes.

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We were fine with Freestyle. Of course, we’ve never tried anything else. But the traditional dinner format doesn’t appeal to either of us, and even less so with a child along. The more casual dress code was nice too. We usually went a little above and beyond, but it was nice that it was so easy to do so. And still be comfortable. Those two elements are also why DILs don’t seriously consider any other line.

 

Neither of us cared for how much the ship reminded us of a hotel in Vegas. (We spent a week there last year. Business trip that ended up combined with family. Both sets of grandparents joined us because they could drive. Much easier than going to North Dakota. Not our kind of place at all although DS loved it.) But the decor, the casino, the glitzy stores, the entertainment, the passenger behavior… We did have fun with the fact that zultanite (a jewel they kept pushing) totally sounds like a Star Trek villain.

 

MIL had helpful insights on traveling vs vacationing. One thing that’s apparently handy about cruising is that it can work for a family with members of each preference. It provides both opportunities. I have always been a traveler. I don’t vacation. I visit the cathedrals and museums and restaurants. I don’t do beaches or any other kind of lounging. I actually recharge by being *more* active than I am at home and at work. But I did consciously attempt to just vacation on this trip. It fit the itinerary and the fact a small child was along. It certainly reduced the margin of error and it added flexibility.

 

I cannot say I ever really relaxed, but part of that was also the fact it was our first vacation with the in-laws. Nothing against them and we certainly get along but it’s still a big unknown and a little nerve-wracking. We’ve all had first trips with close friends or partners go horribly wrong as previously undiscovered incompatibilities arise. Fortunately that didn’t happen here. Another reason I look forward to a second opportunity.

 

The next possibility is 2017, probably Alaska. A lot depends on the schedule, which isn’t out yet. Definitely nothing sooner than that. We have two land trips in 2016 and DILs are already doing a 32-day cruise that year. (Of course, MIL said that this cruise would be their last until the long one and two weeks later they were on the Pearl to Alaska. I do see how it gets addictive.)

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DH and I agreed that a truly appealing part of cruising is the traveling hotel idea. We enjoy hitting several places on a trip rather than going in-depth on just one so it's wonderful to not waste time packing and unpacking, let alone daytime transit from one city to the next. And we agree that we would almost certainly love a river cruise, except for being half of everyone else’s age. The trade-off is that you're only somewhere half a day rather than the two full days that we prefer, but it's a sampler. Later in life we'll be able to take our time and enjoy the countryside. But at this stage of our lives, I get two weeks paid vacation and DH actually gets none.

 

And living far from family, including those with health issues, means that obviously over half of our travel time is spent visiting them, for holidays and other significant events. A week every other year is all we're comfortable sparing for something totally new and different. (But don't feel bad for DS. Visiting family means visiting Anaheim, Arizona, and Alaska. He gets all kinds of adventure.)

 

Also, it's at least $500 per person for us to fly anywhere. Big downside to our area. The nearest major airport is an 8-hour drive. Most people don't pay that much for their cruise fare.

 

The meals were nice too. Not the greatest food but the fact that it was generally included in your fare and there was variety. We usually travel on a budget that includes hitting a grocery store to fill hotel mini fridge with non-cook breakfast items. Lunch at Subway or similar pricing. So all these restaurant meals felt so decadent. And DH really loves eating out, just in general. We didn’t have to look at the prices. Or choose between appetizers and dessert. And a week without cleaning up. Also, I spend way too much time researching restaurants and then end up underwhelmed about a third of the time, so it was another area where it was restful to have the decision (and the blame) more out of my hands. And then specific to spending time with DILs on the ship rather than at their home, no cleaning up.

 

I’ve already alluded to how much the different tiers of service bothered populist DH. More to the point, how conspicuous it is. Every breakfast/lunch in Cagney’s, he had visions of unsuspecting passengers being brusquely turned away at the door. I don’t know how we’ll work around that. And the idea of a ship with an actual Haven makes him absolutely twitch. But in the end, he looks forward to going again.

 

Paradoxically, we agree that a little more pre-planning and daily structure will actually make it easier to relax. It will help next time to have a better idea of what's on board and how it all works and a chance to experience all the things we missed the first time.

 

(The End)

Edited June 23, 2015 by cadien

[Jantoo]

I loved your (and DH's) insights on cruising in a suite. I've had many of the same thoughts. On our last cruise, we visited someone

in the Haven. We left thinking it was very nice but not a good fit for us. Many thanks for such a thoughtful review.

[marelind]

Cruise addicted MIL here ;)

 

I absolutely loved your whole review! I got to relive our time together and remember how wonderful and special it was. You have written a comprehensive, balanced and very thoughtful review. Thanks for taking the time to do it. (I've gained a few insights into what we might do next time. :) )

[Craving A Cruise]

Great review! Loved all the details.

 

Thanks for sharing :)

 

~Kare

[wilmingtech]

Thanks for taking the time to write this review. I enjoyed reading it. We just got off a week long cruise in the Norwegian Fjords on the Star (early June) and enjoyed it more for the ports and views rather than the ship. Not that we had any problems with the ship as the crew was superb and food and entertainment was great, just not always superb (we ate specialty every night).

 

We have a Mexican Riveria cruise booked next February on the Jewel and though its a different ship than the Star its so nice that you posted the daily schedules as I am sure it will be similar.

 

We quickly became addicted to cruising as we have 4 kids and its nice to take a vacation without having to think about where to eat or what to cook or snacks to bring every 4 hours.

 

I can't imagine being on a spring break cruise with 1000 kids! I think that would ruin it for us.

 

Thanks again for posting.

 

-Sean

[anandaindonesia]

Thank you! I just find your review and read it all in one go. Good, good, good!