Star Cruise 07/07/07-07/14/07 -long

[milolii]

:)

I want to thank everyone on these boards; both Alaska and NCL, for all their great advice and wisdom. What great fun reading all your comments! We have previously sailed on Disney, with the entire family, and on other shorter cruises in the Bahamas/Florida Keys. This was our first rip to Alaska. This cruise was just the two of us.

 

When we decided to travel to Alaska, I cashed in all my chips and went for the gold. I knew the back of any ship was the best place to escape the wind. So after studying the deck plans of many cruise lines, I chose the Norwegian Star, booking an aft cabin with that wrap around balcony. I had not yet discovered CC.

 

Embarkation: We flew into Seattle the morning of the departure, as it was only a two-hour flight. I spent that time on the plane and in the airport reviewing the Star dallies sent to me by a CC member in May. We arrived at Pier 66 by 9AM, so we checked our luggage and went to Pikes Market for breakfast and shopping. It was extremely crowded on this Saturday morning. We bought Roger, (my husband) a 12 pack of Pepsi from Roley’s Grocery, as NCL only serves Coke products. We returned about 10:45. We checked in immediately. Although we were staying in a suite, it seemed that all embarkation was going smoothly. I had brought along a nametag holder I had gotten at a convention (actually looks like a small wallet). It was perfect for carrying my driver’s license and room card key wrapped around my neck. You need that card everywhere! We locked all other cards, Passports, ect, in the safe in the room.

 

We boarded about 11:30. It was a gorgeous day in Seattle. I had packed a swimsuit and went directly to the hot tub. As the ship began to fill up we moved to the empty hot tub in the front of the ship. This tub was almost always empty or only had one other couple. I could see that on a warm climate cruise (Mexico) this area would really be “a buzz” with activity. About 1:15 rooms were ready. We met Jonathan, our cabin steward, a personable guy. Our luggage arrived around 3pm. At 4pm we were “North to Alaska”!

 

The Ship: The Star is a beautiful ship. If you visit the NCL web site, you can get an excellent idea of the layouts of the decks. Much to the amusement of my husband, I already knew where most things were. Our cabin was located in the back of the ship on deck nine so we had easy access to most activities via the aft stairs. The exceptions were the pool and the theater, which were at the bow of the ship. The ship is very clean and when I was up early, I would see crewmembers cleaning. For the most part the passengers did their share of “picking up” after themselves, although occasionally you saw someone had left a plate or two in a public area, outside the elevators. Crew quickly cleaned this up.

 

The Smoke in the casino was particularly evident. In fact, smoking throughout the ship was bad. It drifted out of the bars and into the corridors exposing all to second hand smoke, even children. Some crew told us that this was the last cruise where smoking would be widespread. They stated starting July 14, it would be limited to the casino only. I hope so. I have read on the NCL forum that this is indeed true. Good for NCL if this is true. Even so, the casino had very poor air exchange. I guess it seems strange that smoking was allowed in public places.

 

Crew: The crew was international and all were great. They appeared to work very hard and were having a good time. They truly seemed part of a family. I have mentioned three of them in my review, but all were excellent. We loved the freestyle cruising concept.

 

Dinning: We experienced almost immediate seating in Versailles and Aqua every time. Reservations are necessary (24 hour notice) for the pay restaurants, as well as, Endless Summer and La Trattoria. The food in the restaurants was good. The food at the buffets looked OK, but we did not eat there. I had read about the Norovirus on the May cruise, and I do not trust all people wash their hands. NCL staff was very diligent about the sanitizing process in all the public rooms. What we did do was, visit the Blue Lagoon where Jiggs, a great guy would whip up stir-fry, hamburgers, hot dogs, and awesome potato skins. If the Lagoon was busy, which it frequently was, I would put in an order and visit the shops, returning in about 10 minutes to pick up the order. I did notice a lot of people ate in the buffet. We had fresh fruit in our room, and snacks every afternoon, delivered by Andrew, our butler, so did not see much of the need to go to the buffet. We also ate at both Cagney’s and Le Bristo. I can see why those who enjoy wine would bring a bottle. The least expensive glass was about $9.00. On Saturday, 07/07/07, the sign on the cruise ship terminal, Pier 66, stated: “NCL Star, no corkage fee”, but I cannot say that is the policy, as we did not try to bring a bottle on board.

 

Shore Excursions: I booked all shore excursions online before cruising. The web site does a good job of explaining the tours. The booking was easy and I received confirmation from NCL. When we checked into the room, the tickets were on the desk and NCL had them all correct. I spent time on CC asking questions before I chose my excursions. Thanks to Ute fan for good explanation and pictures of the Catamaran glacier tour. Some excursions sell out in advance. Any excursion that has limited space such as a plane/helicopter tour sells out soon. Many plane/helicopter tours are non refundable, so be careful. I chose to go with the cruise line as the times in port are short and wasting time looking for a tour operator or risk missing the boat was not worth the aggravation. Also, I did not want to spend time on the ship waiting in line. I do not do that very well. The White Pass Rail in Skagway is NCL’s third top excursion, world wide, so if you want to book that, do so in advance. You can cancel excursions (except those with a no cancellation policy) up to 24 hours in advance of the port arrival time. After that, you are committed. Always check you tickets!

 

Cabin: Were in an aft AE suite. It had ample room. We could hear and feel the vibration at the back of the ship, but we loved it. It put us to sleep every night. The blackout curtain worked well. This was wonderful as it began to get light by 03:30. The TV was a good size, I would say, about 27 inches with a DVD player. The DVD library had about 200 movies. We had brought some DVDs of our own, mostly about Alaska. The cabin has a dining area and a huge wrap around balcony. We felt it was worth the price for a weeklong cruise. We knew we would not be in the middle of nonstop activity on the ship, but would spend time in the room and on the balcony. The added bonus was Andrew, our butler, who brought us breakfast several times and any menu item for the main restaurants at any time we asked. The aft balcony allowed us to be outside more often as there was virtually no wind. Indeed, I spent time out there admiring the views and reading. Brunolvr has posted excellent pictures of this type cabin, of which there are, only four. Although the pictures are a year old, not much has changed. I will say the cabin is in great shape. These cabins are substantially larger and nicer than the outside cabins.

 

Camera: All I can say if you think you have enough chip memory, you are wrong. Go buy another chip or you will end up downloading your chip into your laptop or at the photo shop. We: exhausted the chips, downloaded them twice, exhausted the Camcorder memory, and ended up buying a disposable camera. I am not very knowledgably on types of lenses ect, so I will leave that to the many experts on CC.

 

Shopping: Shopping on board consisted of a large store at the rear of the ship that carried everything from souvenirs to jewelry, liquor and those cigarettes. Prices were more favorable in the ports, but the shop had sales on certain days where you could find quite the bargains. If you forget something, however, as you might guess, you will pay a premium for it. Shopping was dockside in Ketchikan and Prince Rupert. Juneau involved a quick bus ride. Skagway was a 5-minute walk or you can catch a van for $1.50. If you got off the main streets however, you would meet local vendors. Most of the shops on the main streets were very commercial and were staffed by employees from the lower 48s. Of course, there was Loralee, the perky shopping consultant, who was everywhere.

 

Gym: The gym had all the popular equipment and TVs for viewing CNN. The spa looked great, but we did not get a chance to go there.

 

Entertainment: There was plenty of entertainment; we missed some of it, as we were very busy with our shore activities. The comedy acts and educational presentations we attended were great. I would have liked to see more informational programs on Alaska.

 

OK on to the cruise:

 

Saturday: We soaked in that nearly empty hot tub until after we sailed from Seattle. I must say the city has done a good job of producing a very pretty skyline with all the new building activity. We had diner in the Versailles and turned in early.

 

Sunday: Sea Day: We awoke the next morning cruising inside Vancouver Island. It was beautiful. We watched our Canadian neighbors going about their business on the sea and the land. Many people were out fishing and the scenery was breathtaking.

 

My husband signed up for, and was eliminated from, a Texas Holden tournament, but he had a good time, so that is what matters. We saw many schools of Dolphins that day. They liked sailing with the Star, too. We return to the room after lunch where I started an easy reading novel, Murder at Five Fingers Light by Sue Henry. Sunday was dress up night, which we did, but most did not. The lobster was good.

 

Monday: Ketchikan: We awoke early, finding rain. Andrew delivered breakfast at 06:30, so we finished and were off the ship shortly after 7AM. We put on our ponchos and went off to explore the town on our own. We visited Creek Street seeing Dolly’s House, (admission $5.00) the Tongrass Museum, (admission $3.00). We rode the tram down ($1.00) after hiking up Married man’s trail, a fairly easy hike. We also visited the fish latter but did not see any fish.

 

We then met up for our snorkeling adventure. Boy was it ever adventurous! The wind and rain made for rough seas. This adventure, on this day, involved strenuous swimming. The starfish were large and colorful, as well as, the sea urchins. The staff also brought up sea cucumbers. The dry suites were warm, but took some time and effort to put on. Overall a great time, but if you have rain or wind, you may want to think twice. I do not think it sells out, so you can wait to book. We were so exhausted; we did not attend the Captain’s cocktail party. We had Andrew deliver dinner to the room.

 

Tuesday: Juneau: We had breakfast in the room again. A large bald eagle circled off our balcony! Maybe he wanted some of our breakfast! Once the bald eagle decided to fly up Gastineau Channel, we were off ship. We took the $6.00 bus to Mendehall Glacier. Wow! We had a very colorful driver who spotted bald eagles everywhere. Once there, we went down to the shore and picked up a bergie bit (a small iceberg) Wow! Water was very cold! This is a National Park so if you have any type of annual pass don’t forget to bring it. We had left ours at home. Don’t leave home without it! Otherwise it is a few bucks each to get into the visitors center. Then we went back to town and visited the Red Dog Saloon. It was colorful, but did have an odor.

 

We returned to the ship in time to board our cataramaran trip to the glacier. This excursion departs Juneau ahead of the Star on its way to, on this day, Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier. The naturalist on board was very knowledgably. Nautical charts are on the walls so you can track were you are going. This excursion is about six hours. There is a limited menu on board and you do pay for those items, so eat before you go. Remember do not attempt to bring fruits or vegetables on board. It was foggy and rainy, but we felt it added to the mystique. We had several whale and seal sightings. The couple sitting next to us jokingly stated they should ask for their money back from their AM whale watching tour.

 

It was indeed very cold at the glaciers. I thought it might snow! It was very impressive to see the captain navigate the craft between those icebergs. We got very close to the glacier and we had excellent views. The water is a light milky green due to the glacier run off. We also saw calving. How Magnificent! However, I could see once we returned to the Star, that the other 2,300 passengers probably didn’t see much. It was amazing to see the two vessels meet up and how we were all transferred back to the ship. Everyone was out on his or her balconies watching us. We took pictures of them taking pictures of us! The Captain himself took charge of this maneuver, which you would think is very “tricky” as he called it. He did a great job. Kelly, the shore excursion director, personally counted each passenger as we returned to the ship. This tour sells out before your sailing date, so book online if you want to go. Again, thanks to Ute fan for the review! We had dinner that night in Le Bristo, very elegant and tasty.

 

Wednesday: Skagway: We once again had breakfast delivered to the room. We boarded the 08:15 White Pass Railroad for a lovely historic trip up the mountain. We sat on the left hand side on the way up to view the canyon below. We enjoyed amazing scenery and great history. We did the 3.5-hour tour, as we also wanted to visit the town. On our trip the rail car made a loop at Frazier, BC. When the train started down the mountain passengers on the right were now getting the view. On the way down we stood on the outside platform and then this became somewhat of an amusement park ride, but not a thrill ride. One other point…..some of the passengers must have been confused as to how to operate the toilet, so if I were you, go before you get on, and drink little while on board. No food, just water on board.

 

The White Pass Railroad has a great gift shop in town if you like train memorabilia. We toured the town. There is a post office right on Broadway, so nice place to mail those post cards. We did not attempt to enter the Red Onion Saloon, as it was standing room only with folks lined up outside the door. Instead, we stopped at an outside garden at the Skagway Inn, a pleasant little oasis, as the town was flooded with cruise ship passengers this Wednesday afternoon. I took a picture of this garden and wondered how I could possibly recreate it in my back yard.

 

Thursday: We were at sea with an arrival in Prince Rupert in the afternoon. The weather was pleasant so I was able to sit on the balcony, watch the scenery and finish my book, Murder at Five Finger Light by Sue Henry. For those who enjoy reading, this easy to read novel has a plot that centers on a mystery at the Five Finger Lighthouse in Stephens Passage just north of Petersburg. Traveling the Inside Passage while reading the novel and looking at the scenery added to the enjoyment of the trip. Just try and guess who did it!

 

Prince Rupert was beautiful. It only has a few shops near the pier, but offers those same nature excursions, as the Alaskan towns do, only not as many. So, if you missed one of those excursions in the other towns, here is the place to do it. We felt this was a pleasant alternative as we have been to Victoria a few times.

 

That night was the Chocoholic Buffet, which was absolutely fabulous. I have never seen so much chocolate! The white chocolate Rice Krispies were awesome. After the buffet, as we were about to turn in for the night, we saw from our aft cabin through the mysterious fog, a pilot ship approaching the ship. We joked; I wonder if this is the person who the Star had been paging continuously before we left Prince Rupert. Sure enough, we found out the next day that the pilot boat was ferrying a passenger who had “missed the boat”. I thought to myself: 1. How much did that cost? 2.Wait until his wife gets a hold of him! 3. At least it was not on National TV!

 

Friday was a sea day. We enjoyed many of the lectures and a few shows during the day. We attend the disembarkation lecture; it is very informative and entertaining. At the end, Michael, the cruise director presents the 10 most frequently questions asked by passengers. It is a spin off on David Letterman’s top tens. It was hilarious. Questions included: “Does the crew sleep on board?” “Will this elevator take me to the front of the ship?” “Does the ship generate its own electricity?” Michael replied to this one, “No we have an extension cord that goes all the way to Seattle”. We enjoyed dinner at Cagneys; it was great, very elegant.

 

Saturday: We chose the Seattle tour as part of our transportation to the airport. This tour sold out by 2pm on Friday. We met in the theater and went off the ship about 9AM, through customs, and on to the bus very easily. It seems NCL makes an effort to get people off in stages so the whole process went smoothly. We have to remember, it is not easy to get 2,490 folks off one ship at one time.

 

All in all, a great cruise. We will probably book the Star again to go to Mexico if the change in the smoking policy is indeed true. We will also book the same aft cabin with Andrew, our butler and Jonathan, our cabin steward. I have all the Freestyle dallies. However, I do not think there is much different than the ones sent out by another cruise critic member in May. I also have the menus from: Cagneys, Le Bistro, Ginza and Soho’s. I will also post this review on the Alaska board so you can reply with your e-mail address and I will send any documents. Give me a few days to get them scanned, as it is a lot of paperwork. Happy cruising!

 

In closing, the CC web site gives you the opportunity to gain valuable knowledge before you cruise and a wonderful opportunity to give back once you return home. I gained invaluable knowledge from those who cruised earlier in the season. I will read with excitement the reviews of those who cruise after me. What I did not realize until completing this review is that I now have a lasting journal of our trip. That is, however, as it should be. If you give, you receive back ten fold. Mahalo! to all cruise critic members and to Cruisecretic.com.

[bmacri]

Milolli,

Thank you so much for your detailed and refreshing account of your Star cruise to Alaska. We are doing the same cruise the end of August. It will be my husbands first cruise and I want him to like it so we can go to the Mediterranean next!

 

Your review is the best one I've read in a long time.

Now I'm REALLY excited.

 

Belinda from Wa. State

[newmexicoNita]

What a wonderful review. You let us share in your daily activities thus I am sure others, like me, feel we were with you.

 

Happy cruisin,

 

nita

[SweetpeaOne]

Thanks for sharing your review. Sounds like you had a great time...

[thequotegal]

Whew...so glad to hear some positives about this ship! We're doing her over Thanksgiving! Can you send me whatever menus you do have? Can you also answer the question of (as I see you were in a suite) if regular cabins had trouble booking reservations in the specialty dining rooms? I'm worrying about that a little too much, I guess. Did you have any experience or glimpses of the Kid's Club? Thanks again and here is my email

 

thequotegal@yahoo.com

[milolii]

Thank-you for your comments.

 

Speciality dinning:

 

I think the key is earlier. Make the call at 7AM the day before you want to eat. We asked the butler to make reserations for the same night and even he could not get them. Lobster night is Sunday. I will scan those menus tomorrow and send to you. I think somone? Flying Pirate? has posted the main restruant menus. We walked into LeBristo and had a seat in 15 minutes. It was about 8:30. It semed Sohos and Ginza were empty alot.

 

Thanksgiving....... Menu will be differnt.

 

Not many kids on our cruise. There was activity around the kid zone. I also saw adults playing pingpong ect. Wii is very popular.

[thequotegal]

Thanks again for the wonderful review and quick answers. I cannot get to Flying Pirates links, unfortunately. No signature ever shows up for me to click on. Oh well. Whatever you send will be wonderful. I'm particularly interested in dessert menus! It might be a deciding factor on which restaurant we pick! LOL! Anyhow, is there extra charge for "WII?"

 

Take care

ps. Do you mean to say you walked into Le Bistro WITHOUT reservations and had a seat within 15 minutes? Also, in Le Bistro or Cagneys...can you order more than one thing (i.e. more than one appetizer?) Or do you have to just pick one item per category? Same question for the main dining rooms, like Aqua and Versaiile?

[ReadyToCruiseAgain]

Excellent job

[milolii]

Here it is:

 

Flying Pirate was kind enough to scan and post menus to share. Try this link and look at the thread for NCL Beverage Menus. It may give you an idea:)!

 

http://community.webshots.com/user/sggggggg100yES

 

Yes, walked up and got in 15 minutes. It was about 8:30. We both ordered different things and shared. I have seen people in the main dinning rooms ordering more than one thing. The portions are small. That makes sense as many throw food away. No one ever said anything. Wii Play free. Kids will like Blue Lagoon.

[milolii]

Thank you all for your kind comments. I have scanned the NCL Daillies and Special rest menus from the 07/07/07 cruise. Please e-mail me or list your e-mail address in your reply if you want copies.

 

jeanneault.roger@comcast.net.

[rebeljohn]

Nice, very detailed review. Thanks for posting!!