Alaska Great - Ship OK

Norwegian Star Cruise Review to Alaska - Inside Passage

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 42

Overall rating:

3 out of 5
Verified Review
Norwegian Star

7 Night Alaska & Glacier Bay (Seattle Roundtrip)

Sail date: July 09, 2006

Ship: Norwegian Star

Cabin type: Oceanview

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 14 years ago

Review summary

The ship was in excellent condition. We booked an outside stateroom on deck 4 for 4 people (two adults, two large teens). The stateroom was a bit cramped at times. Since we were only in the room to sleep, change clothes, and shower, the cramped condition was not a big issue. Overall, there was plenty of room to unpack clothes and store your lugage out of site. One surprise with the stateroom is - the room was listed with a capacity of 4. I expected two bunks. Instead there was only one bunk and the other was a roll away bed under one of the twin beds. When the roll away bed was set up. It was placed between the two twin beds, so you would have a wall to wall bed for 3 people. During the day the roll away bed was stowed away under the twin bed. It would have made more sense, it there was two bunks, which would have given more room to move around in the late evening and early morning. The food was average. The menu choices in the dinning rooms seemed to be less appealing as the cruise progressed. There did not seem to be enough activities on board. The onboard movie theater only showed the movie of the day twice. The times of the showings were inconsistent from day to day. Also, the move times were not always at convenient times. The ships band only played at pool side 2-3 times and for not more than 90 minutes. There were two bands. I don't recall the name of one of the bands, but the band Freedom was much better. The cruise director was a great. He seemed to be cracking jokes all the time. He hosted the onboard Newlywed game. I wish they ran this game every night on the ship. It made great entertainment. I liked the Freestyle cruising dining options, but I wish, shorts would be part of the casual atmosphere in the dining rooms in the evening. I thought it was a hassle to change clothes every time for dinner. I was extremely satisfied with the Alaskan ports of call. A little disappointed with Victoria. However, it is a beautiful city. As for the ship, it was just an average experience.

Ports of call

Juneau, Alaska

5 out of 5
We did the Mendenhall River float and had a blast. The guide needed to row the boat across the lake into the river. This is hard work on any given day, but to make matters worse is the wind. The warmer the day, the more wind that comes off the glacier, thus harder to row. Plus there are 8-12 bodies in the boat. Don't forget to tip your guide. The bus driver was an absolute riot. He should have been on the ship as a comedy act. Wish we had more time in this port to explore the city.
Don't Miss: Stop by the Red Dog Saloon for a brew. It is worth just seeing the inside of this place. Add your business card to the wall.

Victoria, British Columbia

3 out of 5
Should have more time in this port and earlier in the day. We were hoping to book an excursion on the dock in this port to save some bucks over the ship offered excursions. When we got to the dock, there really was no local tour operator as was in the Alaskan ports. There were limo drivers available to give you a tour of the city for about $80 an hour. Their tour would last for 3 hours.
Don't Miss: The inner harbor is beautiful to see. Along Government Street, there are many bears with different designer paint jobs. Interesting.

Skagway, Alaska

5 out of 5
If you like to shop, this is the place to go. Was impressed with the boardwalk side walks. The Skagway Museum had some interesting displays. Beautiful views of the surrounding mountains.

Ketchikan, Alaska

5 out of 5
If you get away from the first couple of streets which are really geared towards the cruise ships, you get to see the real Ketchikan. Theere is a good local candy store near the cruise docks called Ketchi Candies. They make their own candy onsite.
Don't Miss: Go see Creek Street, even if you don't want to shop.

Juneau, Alaska

5 out of 5
We did the Mendenhall River float and had a blast. The guide needed to row the boat across the lake into the river. This is hard work on any given day, but to make matters worse is the wind. The warmer the day, the more wind that comes off the glacier, thus harder to row. Plus there are 8-12 bodies in the boat. Don't forget to tip your guide. The bus driver was an absolute riot. He should have been on the ship as a comedy act. Wish we had more time in this port to explore the city.
Don't Miss: Stop by the Red Dog Saloon for a brew. It is worth just seeing the inside of this place. Add your business card to the wall.

Victoria, British Columbia

3 out of 5
Should have more time in this port and earlier in the day. We were hoping to book an excursion on the dock in this port to save some bucks over the ship offered excursions. When we got to the dock, there really was no local tour operator as was in the Alaskan ports. There were limo drivers available to give you a tour of the city for about $80 an hour. Their tour would last for 3 hours.
Don't Miss: The inner harbor is beautiful to see. Along Government Street, there are many bears with different designer paint jobs. Interesting.

Ketchikan, Alaska

5 out of 5
If you get away from the first couple of streets which are really geared towards the cruise ships, you get to see the real Ketchikan. Theere is a good local candy store near the cruise docks called Ketchi Candies. They make their own candy onsite.
Don't Miss: Go see Creek Street, even if you don't want to shop.

Skagway, Alaska

5 out of 5
If you like to shop, this is the place to go. Was impressed with the boardwalk side walks. The Skagway Museum had some interesting displays. Beautiful views of the surrounding mountains.

Pros: The scenery was absolutely magnificent.

Cons: The food and activities.

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