Norwegian Star Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Staff-excellent

Cabin attendant- exceptional

Food -excellent

entertainment-excellent

check in-disorganized

departure-good

cabin appearance-tired

Common areas appearance-attractive

overall ship cleanliness-good

The feature that irritated us was the disconnect between NCL on line policy regarding passengers bringing on wine with a corkage charge and the actual implementation of that policy. We placed 2 bottles of wine in our luggage which resulted in confiscation and a lenghty delay in  the delivery of luggage to our cabin. I complained to the customer service desk who told me this was NCL policy and we would get the wine back at the end of the voyage. Recommend that your online information to passengers state that all wine must be in hand carry luggage at  check in to avoid future pissed off passengers like we were.

La experiencia de conocer paises y lugares que por el precio que paga uno es muy economico el pasar por el canal de Panama es una experiencia muy bonita conoser Coatarica el clima su gente muy amable y conoser mas de la cultura y biografia de esos lugares Huatulco mexico un paraiso y tambien Cabo San Lucas Mexico muy bonito.

The sailing experience was relaxing and enjoyable.  We were assisgned a cabin that was queit during the day and very noisy at night due to the ship's laundry being directly below the cabin.  After four days of little sleep, we call cruise services and the response was immediate, we were relocated to a different statement and the crew was very concerned for our comfort.  The staff could not have been more helpful and professional.

We were in Puerto Chiapas on the Day of the Dead.  The town is small and dusty, but has a great typical central market.  We walked to the municipal cemetery where the town's people were cleaning and decorating the grave sites.  Families has brought huge picnics with them, music, drinks, children played and cracked festive hollow eggs over each other's heads.  The streets around the cemetery had many booths with decorations, flowers and food for sale.  The entire sceen was a delight to see as the people celebrated the lives of friends and family.  This should have been a destination for a tour.

  Awesome, loved the ports and excusions,  the crew, food,entertainment and officers all were great to us.. Tony Winkler lead the way  with being on are greatness list.  He went out of his way to make sure we were happy and he and other officers were all very visable.  Ports were all new to us being from the east coast.  Both of us are looking forward to doing the same cruise again

The Panama Canal experience was fantastic.  While out of your control, the calm seas and great weather made the two weeks superb.  Staff very efficient, friendly, and well-trained.  Very personable!!  Experience with dr./nurse was positive.  Seems like parts of the ship were in need of upgrading and redoing.  Food was great and selection was wonderful.  Entertainment was superb most evenings.

Suggestions for changes:

1.  Smoking in the casino was awful.  There is need for better ventilation in some parts of the casino.  The side by the Stardust was horrible and the smoke just hung in the air there. 

2.  When the talks were given on many topics, they were often repeated on the TV later or the next day.  Info could be given regarding when the talk will be on tv so choices could be made as to what could be attended live or what could be viewed on TV at another time.  

3.  More and better marking of handicapped seats in the Stardust.  Not enough seats marked.  When the white covers are put over the seats, they should indicate handicapped in the front as well as on the back.  It was difficult to get handicapped seats and very difficult to know if the people seated needed the seats.  Many times people did get up and move or did not sit there at all when they were told the seats were for handicapped.  A very good place to mark more seats is that middle aisle that has more leg room available (for getting to the seats and also for actual sitting).

There needs to be more seats for handicapped.  

The itinerary was very good.  Would have preferred fewer ports in Mexico and at least 1 stop on the caribbean side of central america. 

Would not recommend the shore excursion to Todos Santos (from Cabo).  The town looks nothing like what you see on the internet or on the postcards they sell.  The town was a dust bowl and the two-lane road to get there is not paved along one section. I did manage to get pictures of the outside of Hotel California and a few around the grounds.  OK, but nothing to write home about.

We would highly recommend the Sea Lion Encounter in Puerto Vallarta.  We've done the dolphin experience and swam with the stingrays prior to this cruise.  This is the first time we've seen a sea lion encounter shore excursion and it was outstanding!

The ship was in great condition - very clean and updated.  Nice bed linens, pillows and towels.  The food and service in the dining rooms was excellent.  Meals came out hot and everything we tried was delicious.

Whenever we encountered a staff member or officer, we were always met with a warm, friendly smile and a cheey "hello".  The shops on board were average.  Of course, logo items are always expensive as are toiletries.  We were running low on a few things after 14 days.

The variety of entertainment was quite good.  We only saw a few of the shows.  Mostly we enjoyed the small venues with a single singer or trio.  The best show of all was the crew show on the last sea day.  There were singers, dancers, commedians, magicians and some wonderful acrobats.  Don't miss this jewel.

this cruise was a disappointing experience, starting with the reservation mess up that didnt put our party of four with adjoining rooms. we booked 10months in advance and neither cheap cruises or NCL would take any responsibility for the error. the food was substandard and the ship was old and small. the only thi g we enjoyed was the entertainment crew and the bartending staff. 

Just completed a 14 day cruise on NCL Star through the Panama Canal.  Nice ship, good food and dining room service. Very good evening entertainment.  Discovered it is a training "new staff" ship, therefore, the steward was adequate but not well versed in little things.  The ice bucket was hit or miss on being filled.  No bathmat, lotion or notepaper.  When we requested these items, we were told they were not on the kit.  The supervisor supplied the items.  The question is, were they missed by the stewart or not provided as we were in an oceanview stateroom not a balcony room?  We, as an older couple, did not find enough activities to keep us busy during the day.  We don't make crafts or play cards.  Sports, this time, were not an option.  Became a bit bored.  Ports of call were fair.  Did not get off the ship in Cabo San Lucas or Punta Arenas in Costa Rica.  Did enjoy other ports except we were in Cartagena on a holiday (theirs) and many attractions were closed.  If booking with NCL, call them and ask about amenities.  We probably will use other cruise lines in the future as we  have cruised on Holland America, Princess, and Cunard with much better cruising experiences.

Food was excellent except soups were too salty.  Ship was really clean and nice and new.    Smoking on decks was annoying.

Library had good books but only 15 seats.  Time to board and de-board was too long and poorly organized.   Ports were all interesting particularly Hualtuco. 

The only reason this cruise received 4 stars and not 5 was the Market Place buffet.

Not only was the food the same every day, especially breakfast, but due to the weather, sitting was frequently at a premium. Dinners in the Aqua Restaurant were very good, just not excellant.

On the good side, our cabin was spotless and our cabin steward was always on top of things.  There were plenty of activities on sea days, the stores offered a variety of goods at a variety of prices.

The iterary was awesome and the tours were outstanding.

So glad we went.

This cruise offered a glimpse of several countries at an affordable price. In this present economy, this trip would be unattainable by most working stiffs, such as myself, if one had to lodge, eat and travel between the destinations on their own. Cruising brings it all together. The countries visited were awesome. The itinerary was port intensive but not overwhelming. Ship was well maintained and crew very friendly and helpful.

Because this cruise is on my schedule to take Baltic sea trip and my family had taken it a few of years ago when we went to Alaska. Stateroom is very clean and good services. We also like the entertainment activities. Food is good, I love so many fruits. I think the check-in, check-out, and food providing are not good organized. To access internet is more expansive than the cost on Royal Caribbean Cruise, and not convenient to use because we have to set up an account that cost price too.

This was a fine adventure. The ship was modern, clean, well maintained. Staff were competent, friendly, attentive. Dining was pleasant, usually, except for two occasions when the market café was crowded. The stateroom was more comfortable and roomy than I'd expected and it was always clean. Our steward was alert, knowledgeable, and pleasant.

We were very lucky to cruise in late August 2013, when the weather was very unseasonal and warm. It was a picture perfect 70+ degrees everyday. We had never been on NCL before, and the Star was a very nice ship. We liked the freestyle dining, and there were alot of options. We thoroughly enjoyed the cruise, the ship, and most importantly the destinations. I would recommend this ship and cruise to anyone who is flexible, not looking for perfection, but overall very good. This is not a cruise for someone looking for "top gourmet" food. There was a tremendous choice for music on board, and the performers were all very good. They had a selection for everyone, so if you wanted to dance, sing, be quiet and listen, you had those options. The cities we visited were very interesting, lots to see, and tended to keep you on the go constantly. It was a really good time, and we enjoyed it very much.

We had a great cruise food service & entertainment were the best! The tours were also very good. The only bad thing that happened was someone took my camera While on the ship.

Very nice Ship, good service, the route was good but the time in some ports of call was not enougth (ex. Tallinn, Stockholm...), The food was good, but they should have more diversity from day to day, every day was almost the same things (level 12) I understand you have the same food in the pool area (hamburgers, hot Dos, etc.) but not in other areas. You should have more variation of menus from day to day specially for people that don't eat meat (vegeterians or vegans) because you don't have a lot to choose from, and arfer couple of days of eating the same food you get tired.

good over-all experience,service and food in main dining room very satisfying.having the penthouse suite,as well,I am certain,allowed us some "special favors". my wife and I have cruised most of the other lines, and we rate N.C.L.,in our top grouping

Cruising the Baltic was a fantastic experience on the NCL Star. The staff was outstanding and one of the good experiences on board. They were always willing to go out of their way to help. Our room steward was always trying to help and seemed to love pleasing us. The ship, though, is old and in need of refurbishing, now. The rooms were smaller than I anticipated and that was frustrating because you don't have enough room to move around. Our balcony railing glass was not clean and difficult to look through. Another part was the auditorium seats were mostly broken. It was very hard to find a good seat. Also, I returned from an evening in St Petersburg and in the Market Café there were only hot dogs or cheese chips to eat. Everyone had hurried out of the ship for the evening adventures and returned to no food! That really made a poor impression on me about the food service. On the positive side the shows at night were great. I especially loved the final show which was spectacular. Our cruise director was outstanding also. That always helps when you can enjoy that part along with his smiles.

Room was nice and very adequate, beds comfortable. Quality of food in all dining rooms we ate in were way below average in comparison to that served on other cruise lines we have been on. Food some times serves luke warm that should have been served hot and taste and preparation of lots of food were just simply not very good. Meats (especially pork chops) often overcooked and dried out. Toilet paper and Kleenex really poor quality - so very thin - hard to wipe your rear end on or blow your nose without going completely through the tissue. Entertainment the last evening of the cruise was very good -- entertainment on other nights very amateur and did not meet up to entertainment we had experienced on other cruise lines. If cruising again, we will choose other cruise lines and would not be quick to recommend Norwegian to others.

The excursions were fantastic. Main compliant is that at least 4 days are needed in St. Petersburg. There is so much to see there and the people were very nice. In Germany we didn't go to Berlin as it was such a long bus drive. We just wandered around the town and went to the beach there. My granddaughter and I quickly realized that we had made the right decision; what a lovely town. My grand daughter really liked the teen club and spent most of her on board time with the teens,. A great way for the young people to meet one another. I didn't rate this as a 5 star as we didn't care for the food. There was great quantities but very little variety in vegetables especially and what there was was quite undercooked. I don't like having to use a knife to cut my cooked cauliflower, parsnips, etc. I am gluten intolerant and was told that I should tell the maiter'd this but he wasn't interested and told me to tell my wait staff, who told me that I needed to tell someone else and so on. A few times I didn't guess correctly about there being gluten in something and ended up being sick. I also would have liked to see more variety in adult activities, especially for older singles. Since I don't drink, gamble or collect art there wasn't really very much for me to do on board. Luckily, I had taken 3 books with me but I got tired of reading. The views from the ship were fantastic and the evening shows were really spectacular. I would definitely recommend this cruise, especially if you are interested in history and architecture as both are outstanding. My grand daughter is ready to go back and we haven't been home for a week.