Star to Alaska returnees - please put me out of my misery

[legalcruiser]

My fellow CCers - I realize that you all have lives to get back to, laundry to clean, loved ones and pets to hug, and post-cruise depression to recover from, but please, please hurry and fill us in on your cruise to Alaska!

[sjbdtz]

My fellow CCers - I realize that you all have lives to get back to, laundry to clean, loved ones and pets to hug, and post-cruise depression to recover from, but please, please hurry and fill us in on your cruise to Alaska!

 

LOL....this isn't a flame, but I do love the play on words in your title for the thread....

 

..."please help alleviate my misery" might help ward off any Jack the Rippers (or Kelly) that may be wandering in from other threads.

 

:)

[Hikini]

I'm anxious to hear as well. I'd like to know who the CD was? How were the menus and did they like the food? How was the entertainment, etc. I know they HAD to have had a nice cruise - how could they not?!

 

Hikini:D

[marcyjane]

I can't wait to hear all about Alaska and the Star as well, I leave Friday 19th for our May 21st Star cruise from Seattle.

Hope everyone had a wonderful cruise and enjoyed Alaska.

Marcy

[marcyjane]

Just checking, I'm sure everyone is on there way home and tired.

So those us going next week will be patience and wait for your reviews. We are anxious to here.

Thanks,

Marcy

[mousecrazy]

bump

[marcyjane]

For those of you checking here look on the Roll call Board for the star May 7th there is a review posted.

Marcy

[vacationfool]

Hello, just thought I would share a few notes on our trip to Alaska onboard the NCL STAR last Sept.05. We sailed out of Seattle. We had a wonderful time in all ports. We chose the White Pass railroad trip in Skagway, and did a Salmon bake in Juneau and rented a car in Ketichan port. The ship...well what can I say...it was wonderful ! The food was super and the crew very helpful and friendly. We had one day of drizzly rain and wore our rain jackets, the temps were in the 50's, not bad for Sept. weather. We found tons of bargins in all of the stores as they were closing for the season. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. We also did the totem pole park and Juneau tram. The STAR also sailed closely to the glaciers!

Unbelievable scenary--( must takes-- binoculars and gloves) :) it is so much fun! we will return this year!

[TG2005]

Hello, just thought I would share a few notes on our trip to Alaska onboard the NCL STAR last Sept.05. We sailed out of Seattle. We had a wonderful time in all ports. We chose the White Pass railroad trip in Skagway, and did a Salmon bake in Juneau and rented a car in Ketichan port. The ship...well what can I say...it was wonderful ! The food was super and the crew very helpful and friendly. We had one day of drizzly rain and wore our rain jackets, the temps were in the 50's, not bad for Sept. weather. We found tons of bargins in all of the stores as they were closing for the season. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. We also did the totem pole park and Juneau tram. The STAR also sailed closely to the glaciers!

Unbelievable scenary--( must takes-- binoculars and gloves) :) it is so much fun! we will return this year!

 

I was on the same cruise, I concur.

[sailthesea]

After my experience on this cruise(5/7/06), I will not sail with NCL again. Embarkation was an absolute disaster and there's no excuse for being so ill prepared. Our cruise documents stated that boarding would begin at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, so my husband, 15 month old son, and I waited at the Sheraton until that time. We hired a cab to take us to the pier, but when we got into the car, the driver told us that he could not drop passengers off at the pier and that all cruise passengers had to go to the convention center. When we walked into the convention center, we were faced with throngs of confused, angry people - many of whom had been waiting there for hours after their flights arrived. They had been told by NCL that refreshments and entertainment would be provided, but there was only coffee and water. After talking to a few people, we found out that we needed to get a number in order to board a bus that would take us to the pier. We were given number 38 and were not able to get on a bus until 11:00 p.m. By that time, we were all frantic. Thank God we had eaten dinner before we left the Sheraton. My son was exhausted by the time we got on the ship and we all spent most of the first cruise day sleeping.

 

The first day at sea was pleasant. We ate lunch and dinner in the Versailles dining room and enjoyed walking around the ship. In Juneau, our extended family (6 people) hired a van to drive us around the city and to Mendenhall Glacier. The following day, we rode the White Pass railroad in Skagway and really enjoyed it. Everything went well until Wednesday evening after dinner when my son began vomiting and having diarrhea, followed by my husband, and then me. We all went to the medical center the next morning when it opened at 8:30. We were seen promptly by the doctor, given medicine, and told to stay in our cabin for 24 hours. It was a miserable time. My husband and I each gave a blood sample to try to determine the cause of the illness, but nothing is conclusive. I've never been so happy to get back home after a cruise.

 

Although my lack of enthusiasm for this cruise can be partly attributed to my illness, there are other factors, including the embarkation fiasco, that will make me look at other cruise lines in the future. NCL does not pay attention to the little details that make a vacation enjoyable. For example, when we ordered room service, we had to specifically request sweetener with our tea and coffee, condiments for our sandwiches, etc.

NCL's level of service is not intuitive. If you need something during your cruise, you have to specifically ask for it. I was very disappointed in this trip and I had been looking forward to it for a very long time.

 

By the way, Alaska is just beautiful, but I wish that I had gone with another cruise line for this trip.

[sjbdtz]

NCL's level of service is not intuitive.

 

By the way, Alaska is just beautiful, but I wish that I had gone with another cruise line for this trip.

 

 

Just curious...which cruise line do you wish you had gone with, and why? You say this is the 2nd time you've sailed on the Star...if their service is sub-par, why the 2nd trip?

 

Have you found a cruiseline which is immune to the stomach flu?

 

 

It sucks that you didn't enjoy your trip...but the to-do with buses from a convention centre to the pier likely had NOTHING to do with NCL....if it was an NCL-specific thing, the taxi driver wouldn't have known so much about it.

 

It sounds as though the Port Authority there has to get organized, and develop an efficient flow of traffic from the staging area (convention centre), to the processing area (pier).

 

How this came to be blamed on NCL, I'm not sure.

 

Glad to hear you're well now, luckily the stomach flu typically lasts about 24 hours, and then clears up. By being confined to your room for 24 hours, you probably saved the vacations of 2000 other people.

 

Well done. That's something you can feel proud of.

[AVShockey]

I was hoping that someone just off the Star could post the dinner menus. That way I would know ahead of time what night to eat in the specialty restaurants. I know that I can look at the menus once on board but I like to plan everything!!

Thanks for your help.

[sailthesea]

My first cruise on the Star was a repositioning cruise that sailed from Vancouver to Los Angeles, with stops in Victoria, Astoria, Oregon, San Francisco, and Monterey. I chose that cruise for the ports.

 

I chose to sail NCL to Alaska for its Freestyle dining. Traveling with a child, I didn't want formality. If I had been traveling without my son, I probably would have sailed with Princess or Celebrity.

 

I know that no cruise line is immune from the flu and I think the medical staff on the ship did a fine job of treating us. I'm not 100% sure that it was the flu, though - it could have been something that we ate. Staff did mention that there were others who had become ill and they were trying to determine the cause. We gave a blood sample to determine if it was viral or some other cause.

 

I'm not sure who was to blame for the disastrous embarkation, but I do know that it needs to be fixed. I've never had such a poor experience boarding a ship.

[Nilla]

Yes I can see how you woudl have been frustrated with the Embarkation issues but if I am not wrong my friend was on the Star that ended that morning in Vancouver. When I talked to her she told me of soem bad weather that out them into Vancouver later then expected. I know they did not make it to Seattle on time due to this mix up. If you think they are the only line that had such an issue you are mistaken. My Parents where on a repositioning cruise at abotu the same time and they were on HAL and they did not get off the ship till dinner time when they were to be off before breakfast. My Step mother siad the storm was so bad they were not allowed outside!

[legalcruiser]

Thank you for posting your thoughts and feelings re your cruise. I am so sorry about your embarkation experience - I am sure that I would have been frustrated as well. Regardless of where and with whom the fault should lie, I imagine that such an experience could/would color one's vacation experience from the beginning.

 

Aside from embarkation and your illness, can you (or anyone else) please comment on the rest of the aspects of the cruise - food, entertainment, etc.

[willory549]

As noted in some of the other posts the embarkation process was a total mess--from the moment we landed @ 2p.m. until we finally got into our cabin around 11:30 pm no one seemed to have a clue what was going on. Luckily for us we were physically able to venture out into the city and "fend" for ourselves--really felt bad for the many older people who were either unable or not quite savvy enough to venture out. For us it was just the fact no one had a clue:confused:

 

Checking in process was a breeze--our room (ocean view balcony 11016) was more than what we had hoped for and was a great save for us the entire week. We are NOT into bingo, casino and constant sale pitch (tanzinite, jewelry etc.) and really enjoyed being away from home and our three young children (9,7 5) by escaping to our balcony or simply watching the nice selection of movies via the tv. Lack of creamer was a big disappointment--finally met our steward Monday night and mentioned we needed some (he still forgot it a couple of times during the week):eek:

 

Ate in Versailles for breakfast only once (coffee was COLD--service ok and the same food was basically being served in what we termed the "trough"--Market Cafe--really not bad--hot food and easy access for the Cafe. Not much atmosphere but ok. Ate a dinner there one night--better service and hotter food--good taste.

 

We did Le Bistro--good--Cagneys--EXCEPTIONAL--BEST ONBOARD EXPERIENCE OF THE WEEK. Not happy with Ginza's "all you can eat" sushi--not spicy tuna, salmon etc.--not what we term a good selection--ate two rolls a la carte--very good--service here was poor. Endless Summer was suprisingly very good--great bargain with no cover charge.

 

We did the Soda cards which were a savior for us but still not what we expected as we were charged for 7 days and only got one drink out of it Sunday night (7th) and were not able to present it at all on Sunday (14th) and we were on ship until 9:30 am waiting to disembark.--We felt the bar tenders and waiters etc. did not present service with a smile when you gave them the card--no tip? Always took A LONG time to get cokes. Blue Lagoon was good--very nice in a pinch.

 

Excursions ended up being good--they cancelled two of our planned ones (one in Juneau b/c of late arrival) and one in Skagway due to logistical issues--money was returned no problem but notice was really late--had to hustle to get a new one in Skagway--Gold pan/Salmon Bake in Jun was good--get Klondike for your guide; Yukon Railway was spect. in Skagway; as was Misty Fjords in Ketchikan--Ale and Pub in Victoria was smashing--

 

Did the Murder Mystery dinner--guess what the staff told us wrong time to show back up for answer--no one from staff there--really upsetting--they had come at wrong time and told the few who happened to be there early....

 

Getting on and off ship for excursions was very disorganized--but oh well weather was great--views were great and we rested....just walked away feeling like we were lucky to get to all the ports and amazing that we didn't lose any luggage etc.:)

[mimi01]

Just curious...which cruise line do you wish you had gone with, and why? You say this is the 2nd time you've sailed on the Star...if their service is sub-par, why the 2nd trip?

 

Have you found a cruiseline which is immune to the stomach flu?

 

 

It sucks that you didn't enjoy your trip...but the to-do with buses from a convention centre to the pier likely had NOTHING to do with NCL....if it was an NCL-specific thing, the taxi driver wouldn't have known so much about it.

 

It sounds as though the Port Authority there has to get organized, and develop an efficient flow of traffic from the staging area (convention centre), to the processing area (pier).

 

How this came to be blamed on NCL, I'm not sure.

 

Glad to hear you're well now, luckily the stomach flu typically lasts about 24 hours, and then clears up. By being confined to your room for 24 hours, you probably saved the vacations of 2000 other people.

 

Well done. That's something you can feel proud of.

 

I did a review on the roll call board that may answer some of your questions. I enjoyed the cruise but will never forget the embarkation process that I witnessed. NCL did a very poor job with that part.

 

7:00 was the boarding time I had on my documents. I stayed across the street from the pier at the Marriott to make it easier. When we went to the Port to board as instructed by NCL we were put on buses that went to the Convention center. We went inside to register for the ship. We were greeted by passengers all over the place in every room laying on the floors, across chairs and standing in lines. Imagine everyone on the cruise ship gathered in a convention center. Some where there for hours. We stood in one of the lines and got registered and were given a number (45) which they said they would call in a couple of hours to board buses back to the port. This was not what any passenger expected. If I were told this in advance I would have planned better. We did not stay there waiting. We went out and enjoyed the early evening and made our way to the ship on our own. We did manage go get on earlier than our number suggested. Not because of anything NCL did, the port workers let us on. Others were not so lucky. I think the ones with our number got on around midnight. This was a terrible experience for excited cruisers to begin their trip with and it didn't seem that NCL did anything special to make this up to everyone. We met lots of people that would never give this company another chance. It's unfortunate that this happened and left so many feeling bad. The seniors and families that I saw looked so dissapointed and frustrated. I don't know how some endured it. It was very disturbing.

 

Putting all that aside, we enjoyed the cruise and the ship. Alaska is magnificent. I enjoyed the freestyle dining. I will return to Alaska again. I went on the Volendam last year and enjoyed that too. I am not sure what cruise line I will try next time.

 

Mimi

[SueBeeCruising]

My husband and I were on this cruise, also. The embarkation was indeed a nightmare. It was not run well at all. It is understandable that there was a problem, and the Seattle Convention Center was large enough to hold everyone, but the main problem to us seemed to be the lack of information. No one knew what was going on, and no one in authority had any answers for the passengers. Also, we never saw a sandwich, or a drink, and in fact, we went out of the convention center to find a cup of coffee and some snacks to eat. The Subway sandwich store in the convention center, and most other amenities in the building, were closed because it was Sunday.

 

With that said, let me say, we did not let that spoil our cruise, and we had a wonderful time. The first day at sea was a bit choppy with rough seas, but it didn't bother us much. It was formal night, and there was lobster on the menu, which was delicious. We ate at Aqua, and it was so good. My husband had the chateaubriand of beef and the lobster, and he loved it.

 

On Tuesday, we pulled into Juneau at 5:00 p.m. on schedule, and we did a walking tour on our own, since we had taken excursions on a previous cruise to Mendenhall Glacier and a whale watching tour. We were able to tour the Russian Orthodox church, as well as other sites. It was a very pleasant evening with a few sprinkles of rain. The mountains had snow on them, a contrast to the last cruise, which was in September.

 

On Wednesday, we were in Skagway, and the excursion we had signed up for was cancelled (due to lack of interest!!! LOL), so we opted to go on the "Real Alaskan Wildlife Experience" in Haines. We took the fast ferry over. On the way we saw whales, eagles, Dall's sheep, harbor seals, stellar sea lions, puffins, and other birds. It was amazing. There were a lot of waterfalls on the mountainside, and lots of snow on the mountains. When we arrived at Haines, we got a tour on a bus of the first army base there, and that was okay, but the time at the Eagle center was very interesting. The man who founded it, and spoke about the animals,was very passionate about wildlife, and I could have listened to him for hours.

 

We were given a decent sack lunch on the bus, and then headed towards Steve Kroeschel's Wildlife Center. The ride was along the river where the eagle festival is held every fall, where thousands of eagles congregate. We saw quite a few eagles because some fish called hooligans were running, and the eagles like to eat them.

 

The time spent at the wildlife center was amazing. We were so pleasantly surprised at how great it turned out to be. Steve and his partner Mario, were very knowledgeable, and had rehabilitated many animals. They are living in the wild there, and we saw wolves, foxes, wolverines, lynx, minks, lemmings, caribou, pine martens, coyotes, etc. He said that he is first on the list to get bears, or moose, that might be abandoned soon, as the season for them to be born is real soon. One of the highlights for me was that I got to hold a baby wolf whose eyes were blue, because they had only been open for three days. Also petting the porcupine and lemming and foxes was really cool. My husband and I, as well as others on this excursion, were just amazed at how much better this was than we had expected it might be. Since it was the first trip of the season, there were not many people on it, and no children this time, but we thought what a fantastic trip it would be for kids. Steve and Mario are so knowledgeable and entertaining, as well as passionate about what they are doing, that it made this excursion the best one we have taken, on either of the Alaskan cruises that we have done. Another highlight was that we got to see some moose on the way back to Haines, and the bus driver actually turned around, so that we could get a better look.

 

After returning to Skagway, we walked around town a bit, and did a bit of shopping. That was enjoyable. There is a Starbucks there now, so if anyone needs a coffee fix, it is available, if a bit more expensive than in the lower 48.

 

Thursday was Glacier Bay, and it was gorgeous. The mountains, again, were capped with snow, and the glaciers were cool. The captain got the ship real close, and Marjorie Glacier even calved a couple of times. We did not see the actual calving, but heard it, and saw the waves after.

 

Thursday evening we ate at Soho, and we had the rack of lamb,and it was very good. It was a very pleasant meal, and the service was fantastic.

 

Friday was Ketchikan. We went to the lumberjack show, and it was really cute and entertaining. It also would be a good family event. We did another walking tour. We went through the small museum at the library. The entrance fee was $2.00, and we felt that we got our money's worth. (LOL) There were some artifacts, and quite a few pictures that gave a general overview of Ketchikan's history.

 

Saturday on the ship was low key. At 6:00 P.M. we pulled into Victoria. We walked into town. It was a bit further away than we antipicated, so if you are not up for a good walk, I recommend getting a taxi, or using the shuttle. It is such a beautiful harbor, and there were a lot of entertainers on the street. We walked around, and visited a few shops; the Rogers Chocolate store, a cigar store (my husband had to get a Cuban to smoke later on in the evening in the cigar lounge on the ship), as well as many other shops; also another Starbucks for those coffee fixes.

 

On the ship we thought the service from the staff was wonderful. Our room steward was awesome. Jennifer S. in Aqua is fantastic, as was Christopher in Versailles. The Andrew Lloyd Webber show by the Jean Ann Ryan company was awesome. We did not make it to the Fame show, but we did to the Cirque Pacific, and the Chinese acrobats were really good. We experienced a variety of the shows, and watched "Flight Plan" and "The Family Stone" in the cinema. We enjoyed the food most of the time, although we both agreed that it was better on our previous cruise on the Sun. I'm not a big buffet fan, but seemed a "bit" better this time on the Star.

 

Disembarkation went a thousand times better than embarkation, and we were off of the ship about 20 minutes sooner than the schedule stated. We had parked our truck in the Bell Street Parking, and we were on our way home by 10:00 A.M. Going through customs was incredibly fast.

 

Overall, we enjoyed our cruise very much. Listening to some of the other passengers, it seemed as if they let the whole embarkation fiasco color their whole feelings for the trip, and I do understand their frustrations. We sat there for over 8 hours, and did not board the ship until after 11:00 P.M. We determined not to let it ruin the whole experience, and I am glad that we did. We will probably give NCL another chance, but I definitely do not think that we will ever be taking the first cruise of the season. I truly hope that embarkation went better for those sailing yesterday, on the 14th. If anyone has any questions, I will be happy to answer them, if I can.

 

Sue

[legalcruiser]

Wow! Thanks for all the posts. I am glad to hear that other than the embarkation nightmare, the cruise itself and the Alaskan ports were generally enjoyed.

 

Suebee, or anyone else who can answer, do you recall whether the asian bistro section of ginza was open on sea days? I have read that the sushi part was open, but on the Dawn last year, the sushi, bistro, and tepanyaki were all available on sea days.

[GrapevineTx_Cruiser]

it was an excellent cruise. Yes, the embarkation could have been handled better (I think we were the last ones in line at the teminal, boarded shortly after midnight, and I never understood why our luggage had to be transferred to the conv. ctr. instead of staying at the terminal) but we didn't let it affect the rest of the trip. We played by the rules and boarded when our number was called. I think quite a few were line jumpers.

 

Simon Murray was the CD and was very entertaining. The newlywed/not so newlywed game show in the Spinnaker Lounge was very entertaining. We went to three of the stage shows and enjoyed them.

 

The food was good to excellent. We ate most of our lunches in Versailles. The service was excellent for the most part, with only one encounter with a less than enthusiastic waiter. Cagney's was the best, then Le Bistro. Usually only ate at Market Cafe for breakfast, or else ordered room service if we didn't want to get up early. Endless Summer was good, but don't expect true Tex-Mex. La Trattoria was very good. Blue Lagoon Cafe was OK. I think we managed to hit every restaurant except Ginza, SoHo and Aqua.

 

We did the whale watching excursion in Juneau with Allen Marine. Was very good, had well informed guides. The bus driver said we were lucky. We were the only bus load (approx. 30 people) on the tour. He said later in the season, they cram 3 busloads on the boats, so viewing things wasn't a problem.

 

Didn't do an excursion in Skagway, just shopped. Apparently some ladies got too into their shopping and missed the boat. They hired a boat to chase dowen the Star, but were denied boarding. They will leave you behind if you're not on a cruise sponsored excursion. I think the same thing happened after we left Ketchikan, because I heard them paging passengers after we left there too. We did the lighthouse, totems and eagles excursion in Ketchikan. It was very good. I was skeptical ar first when we got to the boat, but it turned out to be good. In Victoria, we did the Orca whale watching tour and wasn't too impressed.

 

The only service glitch we encounterd on the ship was at the honeymooner/anniversary reception in the Star Bar. None of the cruise staff was sure who was supposed to be hosting it.

 

All in all a good cruise

[goldstar]

We were on the Star 5/7 also. The beauty of Alaska will remain with me till we go back next year. Not sure if we will use NCL again or not. Our boarding number was 32 got to board at 11 or so. We sat in convention center 8 hours. We went and picked up dinner at the Fox Grill for our group, their food is wonderful by the way. As for the line jumpers, there are rude and inconsiderate people everywhere we did not enjoy sitting there either but made the best of it. 2 of the 6 in our group had lost luggage caught up with us in Juneau. So even after lost tickets, the embarkation nightmare, lost luggage, one member in bed sick till Tueday we where still determined to enjoy our cruise. And we did. I alone have 16 rolls of film to prove it!! Words can not describe the beauty of Alaska or the Star. There is plenty to do, abundance of food, or just sitting on your balcony enjoying the scenary. The ports where great enjoyed the Salmon Bake, White Pass RR trip and just exploring the towns. I have the freestyle dailys will try to post later. The reception staff was great dealing with any problem that arose. As for our invisable cabin steward not sure I did not see him till Sat. morning out in the hallway then. All in all enjoyed my cruise not sure about NCL. Goldstar

[SueBeeCruising]

Suebee, or anyone else who can answer, do you recall whether the asian bistro section of ginza was open on sea days? I have read that the sushi part was open, but on the Dawn last year, the sushi, bistro, and tepanyaki were all available on sea days.

 

LegalCruiser,

 

I am sorry, but I don't really know. It seemed like there were people eating there, but I don't know which part, or what they were eating. I sure hope someone can help you with this. I do know that you could watch the chefs making the sushi at lunch, or dinner.

 

Sue

[hotspur]

NCL's level of service is not intuitive. If you need something during your cruise, you have to specifically ask for it.

 

Enjoy the other cruise line. I hope they live up to your expectation that they will be able to read your mind.

 

One wonders how many times cruisersince87 will post his story.

[newmexicoNita]

Enjoy the other cruise line. I hope they live up to your expectation that they will be able to read your mind.

 

One wonders how many times cruisersince87 will post his story.

As many times as he can: yes, if you want something do not hesitate to ask. The crew are not mind readers as DH always tells me when I tell him "he should have known what I wanted" LOL

 

BTW, for those who do not even meet their room steward, I know how it feels, we had this experience on the Jewel and have a couple of other times: it is so much nicer to know the person and know who you are greeting in the hallways, but to us, the most important thing is a clean cabin and good service. Whether we have little animals on our bed at night or know our steward really doesn't make that much difference. NMNita

[kroberst]

SueBeeCruising, Thank you so much for the review on the Alaskan Wildlife Adventure, hubby and I are signed up for that on the Sun 6/10 and I hadn't been able to find out anything about it. Holding the wolf will be the highlight for me (I really hope I get to do that).

 

K