Baltic Cruise - August/September 2016

We booked an ocean view room, which for this cruise was adequate.  We normally do a balcony room, but there was little to see outside of the ports, so it was not necessary.  The dining experience in the Aqua Dining Room was very good.  The chef and maitre d discovered my fondness for Indian food, and we were invited every night to the "extended" dining room which featured Indian families who also enjoyed "off menu" items.  Food was delicious and plentiful.

I did not like the Norwegian Star's general buffet set up - it was like the old fashioned cafeteria style rather than having separate stations for salads, meats, vegetables like every other ship we've been on.  The water and ice dispensers were electronic (no touch) and were inconsistent in delivery.

The shows were probably the best we've experienced lately.  The ship's entertainment crew (about 16 singers/dancers plus band) were excellent and the shows were very well done and choreographed with excellence.  The Russian acrobats Dimitri and Maria were also excellent.  

Since this was a cruise in Scandinavia, I would would have loved to see an ABBA show - I'm surprised they did not feature on since this is where the group comes from!

Our room was directly under part of the kitchen and working areas of the Aqua lounge - very noisy late at night for several nights until we realized where the noise was coming from; we went to Guest Services about the matter, and we had no further issues.

We did not experience the gym, spa area or pools, so I have no review other than it seemed everyone enjoyed themselves.

The music featured in the main lounge (a trio from Manila) was very low-key and low-energy for such a bustling part of the ship.  On the other hand, the piano man who played the Spinnaker lounge was much to loud and "busy" for such a small venue which also shared space with the sushi restaurant.

We loved the Irish pub - great menu and good food, although service was sketchy from time to time.

Overall - we loved this cruise, would recommend it to friends.  One of the best features was the 2-day stay in St. Petersburg, Russia.