NCL Star Propulsion Problems

[wajowander2011]

Was also on this cruise....NOT a Suite person! Was our 12th NCL cruise (Platinum). The WORST service in 22 total cruises! Food ran the gamut from OK to superb. Service slow.

 

I'll also add that the 5 O'Clock Somewhere Bar ran out of margarita mix; ALL bars (top to bottom - think 7 or 8 total??? All are not open at the same times) ran out of Bud Lite!!!! Huh? Also ran out of Bloody Mary mix!!! Magically, some of the above would appear at the same bars later in the evening or the next (early) day, & then disappear again! Bartenders (alleged) didn't know how to make drinks without the "mix!"

 

Agree also w/cabin stewards....ours was NEVER there prior to 1:30 PM or so. So, think about it....u take a shower, go ashore (w/your "pool towel") and come back & room isn't clean....so, no new towels (with sweat, sunscreen, etc.) NO PERSONNEL in the hallway! People would go end-to-end & several decks above/below & take towels from unattended carts in order to take a shower! Happened EVERY DAY!

 

All I heard was excuses..sorry, I spent 20+ in the military & was not impressed. For all of u who were NOT there, please give us who WERE there a break. Thanx!

[Brandon Girl]

I was also on this cruise and my husband says he will NEVER sail on NCL again after this cruise. I will start another thread on it since this is mostly about the propulsion issue but that was by far the least of the issues.

I have NEVER written a negative word on cruise critic and love cruising but this was beyond awful.

This was our first Suite experience and it was not the "sweet life" we were looking forward to.

Thanks for posting! :)

[Brandon Girl]

Brandon Girl Thank you for your expression on this cruise Yes this was a propulsion issue to start this thread. However I tried to express our total dissatisfaction with the entire cruise not focusing on just the pool deck and long long lines but the total lack of service in every part of the cruise. Even the major officers of the ship complaints from us and other fell on deaf ears, almost to the point that they just did not care. Yes you should look into Royal for your next cruise, after the many cruises we have been on you would not be unhappy with the service and attention to detail you will receive from Royal. We were told last night (Saturday) by a person in the jewelry store the ship was understaffed by 75 to 100 people. Its to bad that our 1st cruise on NCL will be our last, but our history with Royal far out shines our 1st cruise with NCL. The cruise just totally SUCKED start to finish even the disorganized way they had people leaving the ship this morning

Thanks for posting!

[Brandon Girl]

Was also on this cruise....NOT a Suite person! Was our 12th NCL cruise (Platinum). The WORST service in 22 total cruises! Food ran the gamut from OK to superb. Service slow.

 

I'll also add that the 5 O'Clock Somewhere Bar ran out of margarita mix; ALL bars (top to bottom - think 7 or 8 total??? All are not open at the same times) ran out of Bud Lite!!!! Huh? Also ran out of Bloody Mary mix!!! Magically, some of the above would appear at the same bars later in the evening or the next (early) day, & then disappear again! Bartenders (alleged) didn't know how to make drinks without the "mix!"

 

Agree also w/cabin stewards....ours was NEVER there prior to 1:30 PM or so. So, think about it....u take a shower, go ashore (w/your "pool towel") and come back & room isn't clean....so, no new towels (with sweat, sunscreen, etc.) NO PERSONNEL in the hallway! People would go end-to-end & several decks above/below & take towels from unattended carts in order to take a shower! Happened EVERY DAY!

 

All I heard was excuses..sorry, I spent 20+ in the military & was not impressed. For all of u who were NOT there, please give us who WERE there a break. Thanx!

Thanks for posting this! :)

[Loucat]

OMG. After so many negative posts I am now really worried.

We are past last payment on Star for Christmas. This would be our first Christmas cruise and even suite guests are complaining. YIKES!

[minaco]

I am sailing on the Star next month and will let you know if these issues are still occurring then.

[Loucat]

I am sailing on the Star next month and will let you know if these issues are still occurring then.

 

Thanks so much! There are many waiting to hear about your experience and we cannot change but want to know how to make this the best Christmas cruise despite NCL challenges

I will look for your review post your cruise and hope it is so much better than what is described by recent Star cruisers.

[Ron_L]

Thanks so much! There are many waiting to hear about your experience and we cannot change but want to know how to make this the best Christmas cruise despite NCL challenges

I will look for your review post your cruise and hope it is so much better than what is described by recent Star cruisers.

 

We're on the Star on Nov. 15th so I'll post our review as well. With most ships there is a chunk of the crew that turns over after a TA, so I am hoping that the issues that these folks experienced will be resolved soon.

[taylor1293]

So disappointed to hear of the problems on the Star. We are scheduled to sail her in a few months. Hope they are able to get these issues resolved.

[jewliana]

Thanks so much! There are many waiting to hear about your experience and we cannot change but want to know how to make this the best Christmas cruise despite NCL challenges

I will look for your review post your cruise and hope it is so much better than what is described by recent Star cruisers.

 

 

I just wanted to let you know that I started another thread for my review of this sailing. In this thread I do have some words of encouragement. I really think most of the issues were due to the ship just coming back from a translantic voyage. having issues with time with health inspection, having a severe shortage of employees, new employees and jam ups in the system first time back in port. So, I am going to follow the other thread I started and see if its indeed possible that the first ships out on a return from Europe can experience some chaos and hopefully will not have the same effect on the rest of the cruises. I am hoping for a very wonderful experience for you. I really think they can and will get things cleared up. It was just unfortunate for those of us on this particular cruise.

[wajowander2011]

Agree - hopefully, this was just a "repo" issue. Will keep checking back to (hopefully) see some progress.

[cruiselvr1]

I was also on this cruise and my husband says he will NEVER sail on NCL again after this cruise. I will start another thread on it since this is mostly about the propulsion issue but that was by far the least of the issues.

I have NEVER written a negative word on cruise critic and love cruising but this was beyond awful.

This was our first Suite experience and it was not the "sweet life" we were looking forward to.

I read this thread from the beginning, and read about all the concerns if this cruise was going. The highs on finally going, to the lows not enjoying the cruise. I think we will stick with Princess.

[eringer1]

We're on the Star on Nov. 15th so I'll post our review as well. With most ships there is a chunk of the crew that turns over after a TA, so I am hoping that the issues that these folks experienced will be resolved soon.

 

We are also on the Star Nov. 15th... I've also heard that there is a lot of turnover during repositioning and I hope that's what is occurring here. I feel bad for all who had to deal with it though.

[gpb11]

OMG. After so many negative posts I am now really worried.

We are past last payment on Star for Christmas. This would be our first Christmas cruise and even suite guests are complaining. YIKES!

 

Whether you should worry or not really depends on your own personality. While this was by no means our first cruise, it was our first experience with NCL. While I won't claim to know the validity of others perceptions, remember first that the unhappy tend to complain publicly while the satisfied tend to go on about their business quietly. My thoughts below:

 

Going into this I expected some hiccups. As mentioned, you get substantial staff turnover after a transatlantic, so I figured a bunch would be new. First full day was scheduled to be a sea-day, one of the more difficult days to deal with since everyone stays aboard all day long. Then add in the so very common UBP and you have a recipe for a mess.

 

We saw our room steward frequently, and usually our room was serviced before we'd returned from breakfast. He wasn't perfect, but he did a decent job. The bar lines the first day were very long at times and the pool servers were few. Other days were substantially better.

 

Apart from that first day of pool bar chaos, we seldom had any lines to contend with, no more so than we've seen on other lines of this tier. I saw long lines at peak times at some places such as guest services, shore-ex, or future cruise, but most times there were two or three folks ahead of us. We did all the complimentary dining options and the only time we had any notable wait was embarkation day lunch at O'Sheehans when it took a while (and a polite request to the hostess) for someone to take our order.

 

Self-disembarkation was typical. Go to a room and wait, move a bit and wait a bit more. We were off the ship, through customs, and standing at the curb outside calling our park-and-ride hotel shuttle at 8:33am, then in our car and rolling by just past 9am.

 

Was it perfect? No. There were definite areas where they could improve. We'll certainly sail NCL again though.

 

BTW, back to the thread topic, the same trailer and divers seemed to be set up near the stern again when we disembarked. I didn't see any activity, and perhaps they were just there to check the status of the repairs.

[wajowander2011]

I agree with GPB for the most part. This was our first cruise that came after a Repo....we should have researched more! And, cruising is so oriented toward individual perceptions. Wish we'd had your Cabin steward!

 

I usually carry a small pad & pen to jot down names, etc., almost always of "above and beyond" service and did so on this cruise. Have 8 individual names & several groups/venues that we thought were great! Will definitely include them on the survey we get. And, we WILL sail w/NCL again.

 

Looking back, it's amazing how just one (or a few) "Aw S**t"s can wipe out a LOT of "Atta Boy/Girl"s.

[mousecrazy]

Thanks gpb11 and wajowander2011 for posting your balanced, thoughtful comments. I continue to look forward to our Star cruise with excitement and blissful anticipation. After all, I will not have to cook for a week! woohoo And I will be enjoying the beautiful Caribbean views. That's more than enough for me. I'm sorry that others feel they wasted their money, but I, too, believe that the success of my vacation is my responsibility...not others. I am reminded that we are very fortunate to be able to cruise!

[kirsty_r]

I imagine another thing to think about is the drink behaviour after a season in Europe is completely different at the American side of the atlantic to the Balkans. I imagine more iced drinks are getting drunk now compared to warming spirits in northern Europe! Perhaps due to the repairs the ship for some reason might not have been stocked correctly, or perhaps just a poor order.

[gpb11]

Most of bartenders I observed were doing their darnedest to keep up given the onslaught. There was one at OSheehans that was pretty worthless, but most seemed (to me) to be trying their best given the chaos. It wasn't until mid-week that I saw a blender placed at OSheehans.

 

I don't think the repairs affected loading/stocking; either the officer in charge of that part screwed up the order or there was a logistical problem getting the materials to the port. With a port (and dock) side balcony near the aft I had a great view of the repairs and nothing I could see would have interfered with loading materials.

[wajowander2011]

gpb: agree totally w/you re: OSheehans (wife mentioned the blender several times & u had to wait a LONG time for service, to eat.)

 

Also agree w/you re: logistical problems. Bars would run out of stuff & then have it the next day. Obviously, the "stuff" was located somewhere! Also saw the forklifts running constantly before we sailed. Also agree it was whoever was in charge....they either need a LOT of training or move to another position!

 

Again, it was still a cruise - food was good to superb - shore excursions were good/great.

 

I simply dislike hearing excuses from the crew....tell me the facts!

[jpcdds6]

Any word on how it's going on the Star this week?

[kldock67]

ok, I need to add my .02! :p

This was our first ever cruise, we had no idea what to expect. We had an early arrival time 10-10:30, which the line seemed long (about 3/4 down the building) but we got inside to a MUCH longer and slower line. It took quite a while to check in, they had several new people that really didn't know what they were doing. The lady told us it was her first day! I can't imagine doing that!! There was a small issue with them not knowing if I could check in using my married name because my birth certificate had a different name! LOL This was a last minute gift and we didn't have time to get passports. I did have my marriage license, so after about 20 minutes and several different people looking at it, they decided it would be ok! This whole time, the people were very nice and apologetic about the chaos!

 

We waited in line quite a while to board...when we got on board, we went to O'Sheehans. The waitress was very nice, took our drink orders, then our food orders. After probably 15 minutes she came back and apologized and told us that the USCG was doing an inspection and not all of the staff was done yet. They had not unlocked the liquor, so it was only beer available. Finally got a drink, but they kept bringing out food, asking every table if they had this...we were offered everything but our order! My husbands order of wings took almost 45 minutes. The staff was nice but VERY confused! We finally finished eating and checked into our room, which was supposed to be an Aft facing balcony. It was aft, but faced starboard. BIG disappointment! The room was nice, but the bed was like sleeping on a ROCK! UGH...not good for me with arthritis.

 

We rarely saw our cabin steward, but our room was always clean. So, really no complaints.

 

We then went to the Sail Away party...which was funny because at 4pm we were still in dock. The captain came on and said it was delayed until 10pm. No explanation.

 

The Sail Away party was amazing. We met the best people...5 other couples that we spent the entire week with. We have lovingly been named the "Dirty Dozen" They made the cruise unforgettable!!

 

I woke up at 3am to rocking and the ship going under the Skyway Bridge. No announcement had ever been made about our once again delayed departure.

 

The food in the restaurants was good, the buffet was edible.

 

The lines at the bars were horrendous! The bartenders had NO personality, and acted like you were bothering them. I ordered a daiquiri at 5 O'Clock Somewhere and was tossed a small menu and told, "this is what you can order". Yikes!!

 

I will say most of the staff were super friendly, always asking if we needed anything, but there was a lot of apologizing done by the staff. Not the officers, but they waiters, etc.

 

With that said....We had the most amazing time! Having a good time is totally up to you! We were blessed to meet the greatest friends (that have become lifelong friends) and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves...laughing at the situations (having our sail away party in the port) lol

 

We will cruise NCL again, but want to try other cruise lines.

 

Had the communication been better, the bars stocked better, the crew trained better...people wouldn't have had anything to complain about.

 

Yes, there were bumps, but choosing to laugh and enjoy and not sweat the small stuff was the best way to do things! I just kept thinking, I'm not in Indiana where it's cold, there are no palm trees, no ocean, no beaches...and there is work!

 

Thanks to CC for bringing the Dirty Dozen together (love you guys!)

[gpb11]

The lady told us it was her first day! I can't imagine doing that!!

 

Very refreshing attitude and report. FYI this sailing was the first NCL sailing of this season, so they had lots of newbies working check-in. Not an excuse for any lack of training issues, but more just an information tidbit.

 

You mentioned the crew seeming confused. I made a similar comment to my wife about our steward. He was very nice, but always seemed just a little bit confused.

[wlhug]

I was on the Norwegian Star repositioning cruise that left Dover on the 6th of October to Tampa and travelled as a single person. I have travelled on many many cruise liners and gone to most parts of the world via cruising. The whole time on the ship I found to be totally relaxing the staff were amazing considering they were working 7 days a week. The ship was kept spotless the shows were amazing with first class talent clearly no cost was spared with the entertainment. Versailles restaurant I found to be good however I did find the selection of choice of food to be very repetitive and choose to rather eat in the now complimentary Ginza restaurant where the food was AMAZING. The Irish Pub restaurant provided true pub food with was served hot and very tasty and always with a smile on their faces. As I was on the unlimited beverage package I utilised the various bars throughout the cruise and found the service to be very good. As you can imagine they were busy like in any pub or bar and you had to wait your turn to be served. We never waited for longer than 5 minutes to be served which is not really a hardship when you really have no where to go. I never came across a time when they ran out of any drinks and were always friendly. The only gripe I did have was that the cocktails at times were very weak however that was quickly resolved when I complained. As for the problems with the ship steering we were kept informed all the time by NCL as to the problems at no time was any information kept from us. Free Internet and telephone lines service was provided to enable passengers to change flights, travel arrangements etc and when I needed to utilise the service to change my travel arrangements I was amazed at other passengers assumption to what "Free meant" ie going onto Facebook to update their status and shopping online for christmas presents and phoning home to enquire how the wedding went and who was around for lunch. The total inconsideration of some fellow travellers amazed me. Yes we missed Miami but it was one of those things out of our control. I watched in amazement as the staff at reception who were only trying to do their job were verbally shouted at by rude passengers because they could not get their way or failed to allow the staff to explain what was happening. I felt that NCL could have provided a better system by answering Q&A of passengers in a more informative way by holding Q&A sessions during the day where small questions would answered. The disembarkation and transfer to the hotel was 5 star and there was NCL staff at the hotel to answer all questions for the whole time that passengers were staying at the hotel. Would I travel NCL again YES would I travel NCL Star Again YES.

[gatour]

Back in college, I worked at a resort. There was a central stores area, where all incoming items were stored. Then once or sometimes twice a day a "pull" order would come in for each restaurant/bar on property. Those items would then be delivered to each individual restaurant/bar.

 

Based on number of people staying and time of year, you could make an educated guess on the amount to order. However sometimes you would have an unexpected "run" on a particular item. You then were out until the next day. No special orders could be delivered, because the delivery people were not available.

 

Cruise ships also have central stores and probably operate the same way for the bars etc.

 

gpb: agree totally w/you re: OSheehans (wife mentioned the blender several times & u had to wait a LONG time for service, to eat.)

 

Also agree w/you re: logistical problems. Bars would run out of stuff & then have it the next day. Obviously, the "stuff" was located somewhere! Also saw the forklifts running constantly before we sailed. Also agree it was whoever was in charge....they either need a LOT of training or move to another position!

 

Again, it was still a cruise - food was good to superb - shore excursions were good/great.

 

I simply dislike hearing excuses from the crew....tell me the facts!

Edited October 28, 2015 by gatour