Is anyone currently on the Star?

[bestdogever]

Hi All!

 

Have been looking at the reviews and comments for the Star and noticing quite a few mentions of ceiling water leaks and visible mold.  Has this been your experience?  Anything you can offer on your recent Star experience would be much appreciated.  Thank you.

[CherylFP]

I’ve been reading bad reviews also and really want to book on the Star Princess on 28 September. Would appreciate any comments. Many thanks. 

[satxdiver]

I was on the Star in November in D632 and did not have any problems with the cabin.  No water leaks or mold was seen in both the cabin and common areas.  There was some rust as per usual on the balcony but nothing large or limiting our enjoyment.  They repainted the balcony wood railing during the cruise.  It is scheduled for drydock April 15-29 this year and should be in better condition.  The ship was last in drydock in December 2017.

 

https://sites.google.com/site/princesscruisesfaq/ships/star-princess

 

The Star has been reported as transitioning to P&O Australia in November 2021 where it will be retrofitted and named the Pacific Encounter.  

[rocklinmom]

Wondering as well since we will be on her in June. Is the April drydock just for adding the MedallionNet wifi or will they hopefully do what sound like necessary plumbing repairs? 

[polmcs]

I was on the Star twice last year (May and Nov) and didn’t experience any of the issues mentioned. I’ll be on her again this November.

[CherylFP]

Thank you for your replies. We have four teenagers and assume there is a teen centre and activities. I’m not bothered with a bit of rust!  Some of the reviews have been terrible so really appreciate feedback. 

[tawlaw1526]

I was on the Star twice in 2019.    12 days in May and 15 days in December.    The ship was just fine and we had fabulous cruises.   The ship clearly is not new but I think it looks very good for its age.   Yes, there is a little rust here and there and I did see the ceiling drip water in a couple spots on the ship but it was in no way a major leak or causing any kind of water damage.   I saw absolutely no mold.   I wouldn’t hesitate to book a cruise on the Star again.    Yes, there is a teen center on board as well.    Everyone who has a cruise booked in the future on the Star, you’re going to have a wonderful time on a nice ship!!   Bon Voyage!!!!

[Tucker in Texas]

I just got off the Star last week and have to agree with tawlaw's observation along with some of the  others.  Little frayed around the edges due to age but nothing serious like mold.  The major problem I had was with the elevators.  Hard to ascertain which ones were "open" as the lights you could see from the "lobby" sticking out did not work sometimes and it was hard to hear the "dings" (one for up, two for down).  By the time you figured out which ones was taking customers, it was gone.  I found the best way was to watch the call buttons and if the ones went out going the direction you wanted to go was to know one was there somewhere and hope to spot it before it left (lol).

 

I was o.k. with no chair in the cabin.  Our travel companions requested one for their cabin from the steward and got one so, if it is important to you, ask as soon as you meet the steward. We took the little round table still there and put it in the closet--one less thing to trip over and not anything we really would need to use.   We had one drawer in the vanity that was "off its rocker" but other than making sure it wasn't falling out unnoticed that you might trip on, no other issues.  We had a balcony and there was no bar of soap but I knew that and brought one from home rather than depend on the "detergent" in the shower.  

 

The production shows were outstanding.  Live and not prerecorded lip syncing or prerecorded music like on other ships..  A cast of 12 or so fairly talented young people plus a six or seven piece orchestra.  My only "problem" there was they did not bring up the house lights following the show meaning you had to sit through five or ten minutes listening to the CD giving his spiel which you may not care about or had heard earlier in the evening.  The comics were not that good.  

 

No library, it is now the computer room.  A lot of positives to mention.

 

I may get around to writing a review.   

[RMMariner]

Been on the Star three times. There is absolutely nothing wrong with the ship. Some rust, some wear, but that is the reality of an older ship. 

 

Go in with the right attitude. Expect good, but not perfect and you will have a fantastic cruise.

 

We are on the Star again on May 5. 

[TNhome]

Tucker in Texas, please get around to giving us the positives on this cruise.  So many do not hesitate to talk about all the bad things on their cruise and forget to tell us what a wonderful time they had nor do they share those positives.  It would be much appreciated.  Thank you for your post.  Can't wait to other good things about the ship!  We always enjoy the shows so thanks for the heads up.

[Tucker in Texas]

Here are some of the positives: 

 

Embarkation was really good.  I am mobility challenged and need a wheel chair.  I was greeted quickly with one and a pusher who got me to the waiting area to board in good fashion.  There was a wait there for pushers but I still got on the ship before my "group" (assigned when I checked in) was called for general boarding.  I had the crew member take me directly to the dining room where I had a nice sit down lunch and, by the time I was done, the cabins were open.  I heard no complaints from our travel companions who did the regular boarding so I think it went just as well for them. 

 

Lido:  Service was great with constant attention from the crew getting drinks for you, cleaning tables, asking if everything was o.k..  I liked they had sinks at the entrances to wash your hands so it was convenient and quick.  If you didn't stop and do it, the whole world knew (lol).  They had hand sanitize rs at the entrances to the food.  Two minor things I liked--crispy bacon (although they had a sign saying you could request it if you wanted.  If it was anymore crispy most of the time, it would be burnt (lol) and you could get a splash of milk in a glass for your cereal.  I always felt bad taking a 1/2 pint when all I wanted was just a little bit to wet the cereal.  Note that all the crew members had white athletic shoes that looked like they had never been worn!

 

Cabin:  Bed was comfortable, large flat screen TV.  Plenty of storage space but I did take wire hangers from home as I liked to hang everything I can including t-shirts.  Plenty of wooden ones though.  Refrigerator was empty so you didn't have to deal with asking to have it emptied if you didn't want mini-bar stuff.  The ice bucket was plastic and, when kept in the refrigerator, kept the ice cold all day long.  

 

Food:  It was geared more towards the Hawaiian itinerary with lots of fish which, unfortunately, I don't like.  DH is meat and taters man and he could usually find something to eat.  The Alfredo is good on the every day menu.  They even put shrimp on it for me.  However, the last time I was on the ship the waiter said he couldn't do it--only chicken.  So i asked for a shrimp cocktail with no sauce and had my shrimp for the Alfredo (lol).  We never ate in the pay for dining so I can't comment on that.  We did eat at the two pub lunches they had and they were good.  Do not be discouraged by the long line to get in as it moves very quickly.  It is a limited menu (posted outside the door) and I think they have the dishes prepared and ready to go in the kitchen so service is very quick making turnover quick.   As for the quality, if I don't have to buy it, cook it, serve it, and clean up after it, I am a happy camper.   Not five star but certainly o.k. for me.

 

Internet:  I had 250 free minutes and didn't use them all.  Mainly because I didn't know I had them coming with my Platinum status and wasn't prepared with passwords for a lot of things but I knew the important ones like for my mail, facebook. .  There was an attendant who had the patience of Job with me getting me set up.  I didn't find the speed that slow, not like some of the other ships.  Never had to wait to get a computer even the last day when people were getting boarding passes. 

 

Production shows:  Outstanding and this is from someone with 50+ cruises who usually doesn't go to them anymore.  They were live--no lip syncing, live orchestra.  My only "complaint" was they didn't turn the house lights up immediately following the show so that you had to sit through the CD talk even if you had already heard it.  Comics were not so good, though.  We always went to the 9:00 show and never had a problem getting a seat.  I think it was a little different at the early 7:00 show, though.

 

Trivia:  We are big trivia fans.  They posted the questions on a screen most of the time.  However, the hosts all spoke good English so, when they couldn't post them for some reason, you could understand the questions. They would "roam" the room looking for those who may be not playing fair googling or with notebooks of previous questions.   There were people who had been on previous cruises and one group routinely aced it out having probably heard some of the questions before but I'm not discounting they were really smart. Towards the end, they declined the prizes and said give them to the second place people.  That was us a couple of times (lol)  We go to learn and have fun and not for the trinkets they give so we had a good time.

 

Art Auction.  Not our cup of tea but we were really glad that they kept it "low key."  No ads in the Patters, no multiple announcements, no cluttering up the public walkways with it.  All in all a welcome relief from other cruises.

 

Same with the photographers.  They weren't in your face every time you turned around.   They came into the dining room one time on formal night.  Other times they set up shop so if you wanted a picture, you had to go to them rather than constantly tell them you weren't interested.

 

Being mobility challenged, I did not take any excursions and only got off the ship once when we tendered in Cabo.  I knew they would leave us in town so I wouldn't have to walk far and I got my $4 margarita (lol).  So I really can't address any of that but I did not hear complaints but, then, not listening for them either.

 

The best part?  The crew.  They were fantastic.  Always acknowledging you, always wanting (and offering) to help you if you asked.  We went to the front desk a couple of times and they were very good in addressing our "dumb" questions and helping us out.  

 

I will be glad to address any specific questions you have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Fairfield Nana]

Very nice and thorough review- thank you! Sounds like you had a wonderful cruise, shrimp and all.

[RMMariner]

Attitude colors everything. I am glad you had a great cruise, but with the attitude you display how could you not?

[snoozecrooze]

Hey @Tucker in Texas! Thanks for writing your great review of Star on what I presume is the Sea of Cortez itinerary? May I ask what you thought of the sailing conditions? More specifically, I've heard that it's like sailing on glass in the actual Sea of Cortez but as a whole, did you think the overall itinerary sailing to this area at this time of the year was really nice? Also, did you ever stop by Skywalkers? Heard it's always been a nice day spot and I can't wait to try it out once. Lastly, what was the name of the cruise director? Not sure who the man was based on your description, but would be good to know. Thanks a bunch!

[sfaaa]

19 hours ago, Tucker in Texas said:

.

 

Same with the photographers.  They weren't in your face every time you turned around.   They came into the dining room one time on formal night.  Other times they set up shop so if you wanted a picture, you had to go to them rather than constantly tell them you weren't interested.

 

 

This seems to be the new normal with most cruise lines these days. No more high pressure and in your face photographer trying to take your picture. A polite No Thank You would usually be enough to encourage them to move on.

[Tucker in Texas]

7 hours ago, snoozecrooze said:

Hey @Tucker in Texas! Thanks for writing your great review of Star on what I presume is the Sea of Cortez itinerary? May I ask what you thought of the sailing conditions? More specifically, I've heard that it's like sailing on glass in the actual Sea of Cortez but as a whole, did you think the overall itinerary sailing to this area at this time of the year was really nice? Also, did you ever stop by Skywalkers? Heard it's always been a nice day spot and I can't wait to try it out once. Lastly, what was the name of the cruise director? Not sure who the man was based on your description, but would be good to know. Thanks a bunch!

The weather was on the cool side and very windy occasionally closing down some of the outside decks..  I judged this was unusual.  Still, take a jacket which DH did and I didn't and lived to regret it with only a sweater.  As for the conditions, I did not hear of any sea sickness and the barf bags never went out on the railings.  I do not suffer from motion sickness but my SIL who was on the ship does sometimes and she didn't say anything.  I always take ginger tea bags or ginger tablets with me as proactive #1 if I feel queasy.  Proactive #2 is green apples and saltines.  If those don't work, I have Bonine which is probably way out of date since I've had it so long and never used it (lol).  

 

I only went to Skywalkers during Happy Hour as a Platinum.  They have an "appetizer of the day" plus some cheese and crackers and veggies and dip.  A list of five "umbrella drinks" that never changed for $6.50.  They didn't have anything scheduled up there during the day that the "public" was invited to so I can see where it might be a good place to find some peace and quiet if there is not a special group event booked like Meet and Greet or a private group function.

 

The cruise director was Gary Golding

[NavArch64]

Does anyone know what the starting time is for the Platinum/Elite Lounge in Skywalkers?

[Tucker in Texas]

Starts at 4:30, ends at 6:30

[diane.in.ny]

On 1/20/2020 at 7:11 PM, Tucker in Texas said:

 

 

No library, it is now the computer room.  

 

 

 

what! No place to get and leave books?

 

[Deesquared]

8 hours ago, diane.in.ny said:

 

what! No place to get and leave books?

 

I was on the Star in October, and at that time there was still a Library. It was combined with the computer lounge which was on Deck 5, behind the Piazza. Just head in, and the books are on shelves at the back of the room.

[diane.in.ny]

5 minutes ago, Deesquared said:

I was on the Star in October, and at that time there was still a Library. It was combined with the computer lounge which was on Deck 5, behind the Piazza. Just head in, and the books are on shelves at the back of the room.

 

Phew! Thank you :)

[Qcruise]

All stories of problems can happen to anyone......we sailed her last September and saw / experienced leaks, toilet problems in our cabin, had neighbors cabin leaking, our friends were moved to different floor....my wife is done with the Star.  Now others could have had a wonderful experience so one never knows.

[yogi_6977]

Wow trying to decide,  the Ruby or Star for Nov cruise to Hawaii. Been on Ruby twice love the ship never on the Star . Like  the Stars  depart date home port better  but the reviews of the ship make me wonder.TIA

[Papa Yoda]

10 hours ago, yogi_6977 said:

Wow trying to decide,  the Ruby or Star for Nov cruise to Hawaii. Been on Ruby twice love the ship never on the Star . Like  the Stars  depart date home port better  but the reviews of the ship make me wonder.TIA

 

We have 4 cruises on each over the last 5 years

I'd vote for the Star Princess.  

One less deck so 500 less folks competing for space.  Still has Skywalker's in the "handle", still has Sabatini's. 

Has a covered pool for the cooler days - near the California coast on the way in and out.

I would discount bad reviews over things like food, crew and entertainment as those are so variable sailing to sailing.  The ships are 11 and 17 years old so expect maintenance issues on both.  As noted, 'problems can happen to anyone'.

 

 

[KL Smith]

On 2/27/2020 at 12:25 PM, Deesquared said:

I was on the Star in October, and at that time there was still a Library. It was combined with the computer lounge which was on Deck 5, behind the Piazza. Just head in, and the books are on shelves at the back of the room.

There is a library of sorts. I has a VERY small selection, but we did find a couple of books to keep us occupied - and yes it is in the computer room.

 

HTH