Norwegian Star Cruise Reviews - Reviews

From the very start this was a poor experience. The check in process was not good. Then we left late due to the propulsion system being messed up. I researched to find the cruise line knew this was an issue prior to us getting on board. That's awful and really tricky. I will not do business with Norwegian again. The food was horrendous except for Ginza. That was good and we ate there nearly every night. The rooms were well maintained I have to say. The service was the worst part about the whole trip. The staff was rude and had zero customer service skills. There were two people on the ship that did well. Doreen in 5 o clock somewhere bar and Elena at the coffee place. Unfortunately this is a direct reflection on your company. As far as cheap cruises goes, they were not spectacular either. We could have booked directly with Norwegian and gotten a balcony room for about $75 for both my fiancé and I. That was a facade. I also tried getting my rebate when I got home and ran into issues. I called in and spoke to Nissana. This agent was rude, condescending, and had no understanding of empathy over the situation. I was told originally the credit would automatically apply only to find out that wasn't the case. I spoke to an agent while on the ship who also misinformed me. This led to Nissana who didn't care about what I'd already gone through. I escalated and spoke to Dianond who treated the situation more than adequately. She ensured I received the rebate/credit.

Overall, the experience was less than desirable and I'm not sure I will ever cruise again for fear it would be similar to this one. 

There The cruise was very enjoyable.  The food was good, the shows were good, and the other people were enjoyable.  The did not stop at Miami; but, there were problems with the propeller.   

Having taken this cruise, recently we have to say it was a pleasant experience for us both, good points very good value for money, food, drinks, shows, all excellent, Bad points, ship was returning to Florida and was doing a lot of maintenance on its way to Florida the pool was out of use for over six days, and then the ship had an engine problem and was unable to proceed to Miami and had to go to Tampa with the loss of a day on board, and extra expense to stay in Tampa, they have offered us 15% off our next cruise that we find totally ridicules for the in convince caused and would have expected a lot better for NCL, The staff over all were very good, especially the cabin crew, and  restaurant/bar, but when on vacation we need to see more staff smiling and this was not the case, some were very good and some not so good this people need to take a customer care course and then maybe we will see them smile it makes a lot of difference,  will we go again yes,       

as just stated above, such a nice ship and great food both at buffets and indoor dining rooms. however, I had major problems with gift shop clerk who overcharged me $30 for cigarettes and she got so huffy when I pointed out her mistake. she stomped off to get manager..........etc.....took 3 days to get my account settled..and same thing happened at topsiders bar..........was overcharged 50% on drink of the day.....again the bartender was so rude that a nice pinoy waitress took over for her........I never saw the bartender again....... the live shows were awesome, not only ships show crew, but a 4 seasons tribute group, an electronic strings group, a fantastic juggler and comedian and a wonderful  acrobatic duo.  .we caught the southern fringes of hurricane jaoquin with 35 foot seas and equal winds  but the captain slowed the ship down to make the ride more comfortable. due to thruster problems we could not dock in Miami, instead we went straight to tampa one day early. however, we could not stay on the ship and were taken to a wonderful Marriott hotel with $100 food vouchers.... and one night cruise refund and 15% discount on future cruise.....again, a very poor example of how a crew handled the situation but they compensated by taking us to a nice hotel..........it would have been great if the migration from ship to hotel had been handled more professionally........otherwise, it was a great 13 night cruise and I realize people will always be people.........I have always cruised RCL and this was my first NCL cruise but I think I would be willing to give them another chance!!

This cruise was quite an experience with the itinerary being as wonderful as it gets with the cruise starting in Copenhagen,Denmark with stops in Netherlands,England,Scotland & Ireland.There was so much history witnessed during our 12 day cruise.

Late to ports, tours shortened but the price not changed, missed port, disorganized launch access, food not changed in breakfast buffet line.  We should be Gold level members but Norwegian has lost 5 of the 8 cruises we have taken with them so we were denied the Gold member rewards.  We complained onboard and were told we had to prove we took those 5 cruises but gave no suggestions as to how to do that!

been on princess twice to mexico, holland america once to alaska, but norwegian star worst ship we've been on. inferior crew (steward was good, several dining room wait staff were good) overall - discourteous and unfriendly. worst of all, food was poor in comparison with princess and holland america. never again.

Shore excursions need to be better organized; we were often late for our excursions.  Worst yet, if the excursion was scheduled for 9 a.m or later and we were late by almost an hour, we would be traveling with an empty stomach for most of the tour.  A good system is to have shore excursion participants assembled in an assigned area then send them ashore as a group.  For example: when we had to have our passport stamped, we should have people lined up according to the time of their tour; the same applies to tendering.  

We liked the Freestyle dining options with no requirements to dress formally, as we like to travel light and don't want to be dragging around gowns and suits. We took the ship's shore excursions in St Petrsburg, Russia, in lieu of doing it ourselves and obtaining our own Russian visa. The first all day tour was ok, but rushed with no oportunities to take good photos. The second day excursion stopped at souvenir shops instead of giving us opprtunity to take photos of the Hermitage and Winter Palace. The stop in Stockholm was very short, from 10 am-3:30 pm only. We did the shore tours ourselves on most of the stops and saw a lot more and saved money.

Excellent experience. The staff in Norwegian Star made the difference, specially in O'Shannon Bar abd Grill. They were always ahead in service making us feel very welcome.

Ampliamente recomendable el crucero por el báltico. Las ciudades en donde paramos son fantásticos. Copenhagge, Tallin, Helsinki, Estocolmo y watermund. Son lugares que valen mucho la pena conocer y abordo de un crucero como el norwegian star, la experiencia se hace mas interesante. El crucero no es muy moderno, pero esta en excelentes condiciones y tiene muchas actividades y zonas de esparcimiento. El freestyle te permite manejar los tiempos a nuestra conveniencia y comer en distintos restaurantes de especialidades. 

Greatly enjoyed the ports of call but the cruise line left a lot to be desired.  Food was just alright nothing great and the entertainment was just alright nothing outstanding.  Loved all the cities and the shore excursions.  Would not cruise with Norwegian again

We are swimmers, but swimming pool is small and was always filled with kids diving/jumping (not allowed) without a monitor. No adult-only swimming area. We found food to be less enticing than on a previous NCL cruise. Disembarking in ports was disorganized. Excursion/Customer service people were rude and unhelpful to passengers who had booked non-NCL tours. 

We had an exceptional cabin steward, who made up for the numerous negatives we excerienced.

we loved every moment .the staff the  food the etertiment was excelent we will recomend it to all our friends

we wish we would have more time in Stockholm 5 hours is not enough to see this beatiful city

Overall, a great cruise.  Ports were excellent.  Love the Free Style Dining.  Gave the cruise a 4, due to our "suite," which i would only have given 1 star.  We paid to upgrade to the mini-suite, which was nice enough.  However, our room was immediately below the "teen club" which made a tremendous amount of noise, both day and night.  We could hear kids screaming, jumping up and down and it sounded like they were pounding with hammers on the floor.  Prevented sleep on several nights.  I complained, and the noise level increased.   Someone should warn customers about rooms like this. 

we are cruise lovers and have had many good experiences travelling in this way. This was our first Norwegian cruise and really loved it. Besides beautiful cities visited, the ship was very entertaining, food was DELICIOUS, in all restaurants.  Totally recommendable 

The Norwegian is an absolutely beautifully decorated ship, loved the French decor in the dining room.  The staff was terrific, friendly, great speaking English and kept the entire ship spotless.  The entertainment was definitely comparable to Royal Caribbean, loved all of it.  The other activites were so much fun, educational and for any age group.  Food, desserts and drinks was fantastic!  Our devoted cabinman was Sang who was wonderful, he even surprised my husband David with a towel alligator on his 70th birthday, which everyone in our area saw and loved.  The pictures of that are the best!  Only wish debarking in Russia had been smoother, it was crushing and terrible.  Perhaps let off excursion people according to the time.  We were 1 hour late for ours, and the Russian custom people seemed slow.  Otherwise, we have recommended this vacation to everyone.  Good job!!!!

I had a fantastic time on this trip. This was my second time sailing with NCL (prior was a Mediterranean cruise on Jade) and I really enjoy the freestyle. I am the type of traveler that uses the cruise more as a vessel, banking on the excursions. Overall- if taking this tour, I would take it earlier in August or during the second week in August. I did the second week and at every one of the ports was told how lucky we were because typically it rains and gets cooler. The ship itself is okay; I think it's starting to show some wear and tear and needs some updating. For example, we had to call maintenance twice: 1) our room safe was broken on arrival, 2) the AC was not functioning. We had a knock on our door mistakenly, but it was maintenance asking about our shower head. 

We also were lucky to have the ultimate dining package. That allowed us to really experience the various restaurants on ship. We dined a couple of times at the French and Italian places. We HATED the Brazilian; I was so disappointed. I am a meat lover and the quality of the meat was awful. I would take one bite and set it away. The steak restaurant has the same kitchen, so I was very hesitant (but already had the reservation and did not know they shared), but it was okay. For the cover charge (unless you get it free!), it's not worth it. The teppanyaki was sub-par. Fun for a little different atmosphere, but if you've been to other places, you'll be disappointed. You don't really get the same tricks and whistles. The main dining room was lovely and worked just as well, when you could find a good opening for a table (then the service varied). 

For the ports:

Berlin- We did the Potsdam/Berlin tour. It is about a 2.5-3 hr train ride each way to get to Berlin. You do get to see the countryside and Berlin is a modern city. Much was damaged in WW2, so there isn't much to see. It's seeing various areas where remnants of the wall remain, 60-stylish buildings, Checkpoint Charlie, and the Holocaust memorial. Potsdam gave you a brief (very brief) 40 min-1 hr seeing the outside of a palace and lunch. If you read the descriptions of the visits, note that you only get brief moments outside before you're on the bus to the next stop. We didn't have opportunities to shop. A lot of people just took shorter tours and had a lot of shopping. (If that's what you're looking for). 

Estonia- We did the Medieval/Best. I would honestly say that because the port is so close to the city, skip the excursion. We wasted time (2 hrs) seeing city sights (deteriorated Olympic 1980s buildings) before seeing the medieval city. I would have rather taken a taxi or walked to the city and spent more time there. The city itself was very quaint. 

St Petersburg- our tour guide (Irene) was awful. We signed up for the Best (2-day and also the ballet night tour) and Bus #7 was AWFUL! I would hope that Irene is fired because she ruined the excursion. She was a drill sergeant and didn't care about her job. She liked art, but knew none of the history of the places. We actually hung back in our group to listen to other tour guides wherever we went to get a better tour. Many people book this tour, I would just see if you can go on another bus if you get Irene. By the way- if you want to see St Petersburg, you have to book an excursion- it's your visa and you go through customs each time you leave the ship.

Finland- Loved it! We did the Medieval/Best of tour. It took us northbound to a medieval city which was fantastic. I wish we had more time to walk around, but we did have some free time to do so. There's an excellent chocolate shop there and the guide was wonderful in directing us in what to try, what was unique. The countryside is beautiful and everyone was so incredibly friendly. 

Sweden- My favorite! But definitely way too short of a trip. We only had 6 hours there. I was so sad about that. We did the Ice Bar, Old Town, Vasa excursion. The Ice Bar was fun for the experience, but it's Vasa that makes the trip. Vasa is an old 16th c ship preserved- it's incredible to see. Old Town is also really neat- as is the rest of the city. I only wish we had more time. The ship ports in the city, so an excursion isn't necessarily needed, but I really enjoyed mine. You also save on time.... I really wish we had more time there. 

We also spent 3 days in Copenhagen before the cruise began. I would say that was enough time to really see the country. We spent one day going outside the city and visiting palaces (i.e. Hamlet, Fredricksborg), and the remaining 2 in the city walking around and seeing the many sights. I highly recommend. I LOVED Copenhagen. It's an easy walking city- much like Boston, where it has many different "parts" and all quaint in themselves. 

Overall, I thought the cruise was very good. The service really varied. I would say that you saw some incredibly hard working people, then incredibly lazy. The hard workers tried to compensate; you didn't really have any in between. The service was actually worse than what I experienced on the Jade. So, since I was using this trip as a vessel, this wasn't my primary concern (but detracts from excellent level)- but if you're a regular cruiser, this might not bode well for you.  

We tried both main restaurants and didn't good service at either.

The first one we were served cold food every time we used. The second the food was warm and better but the service was not.

The cruise was well worth time and money spent. The ship and onboard activities exceeded our expectations. The Captain was excellent, friendly and shared a wealth of information on history and his experience with all the ports of debarkation. We were docked at St Petersburg for two days; the weather was stunning as was the city itself. The other ports were great as well but Russia was the jewel! In Sweden we utilized the hop on hop off buses to explore the city. Oh, if you arrive in Copenhagen a couple of days early, even with luggage taking the train from the airport to our hotel was easy.