Norwegian Star Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Cruise was nice. The ship is a bit smaller than we have been on, and if you are counting on your entertainment being the ship then you might be disappointed. This cruise is about the ports, and we enjoyed all of them!!! We used the excursions, and they were great. We had a great time!

We cruised with NCL in 2018 on the Spirit and had a stellar experience. This year on the Star, we were a little disappointed for a few reasons. The ship was recently refurbished and we appreciated it - it was like brand new in many aspects. We really appreciated the updated staterooms (particularly the USB ports next to each side of the bed and the real hairdryer!). However, the layout of the ship is not intuitive and just didn't feel like a home in some ways. First, each stairway/elevator should be a vertical path to access ALL floors, but this was not the case on the Star and it was confusing. Second, NCL could put signs at each elevator/stairway to show which side is Port or Starboard, since the colored doors aren't visible on each floor. Third, there is NOT ENOUGH seating for the buffet and it was a huge problem. Too many 4-tops mean wasted seats. NCL needs more 2-tops, more seating in general, and it was disappointing there was no outdoor seating for the buffet (unless you wanted to walk all the way to Spice H2O). Finally, we were very disappointed there is no forward viewing lounge inside. As for the crew - the stateroom stewards and bar/restaurant staff were great on the Star, but the Shore Excursion staff were not knowledgeable about the details of their tours. In particular, one of the ShoreEx managers was rude and condescending to us, to other guests, and to fellow crew members. In addition, we interacted with numerous people on the Guest Services desk and on EVERY occasion, they either did not know the answer to simple questions, or they gave us incorrect information. or they gave us conflicting information. It was VERY frustrating and makes NCL look incompetent and unprofessional. Finally, the Upgrade Advantage program is VERY frustrating. NCL absolutely must be more clear and transparent about how the program and process works. We got conflicting information every time we called or emailed NCL, and their website doesn't provide enough clarity. It caused A LOT of frustration and angst beginning at 3 months before our cruise, up to 48 hours before our cruise, which was NOT enjoyable. If we could've gotten more accurate information about the process from their website or call center, it would've been better. I'm sure many people complained to NCL that the embarkation process at Tarragona was an absolute disaster. I'm VERY upset we had to rearrange our plans AND PAY for the cost to travel from Barcelona down to Tarragona, only to deal with the mess of an embarkation day. I'm not sure what the solution is, but it would be nice if there was a better process to tender, other than having to wait in a line for 3 hours to get tender tickets (guests started queueing at 7am for 10am ticket distribution for Santorini). That's not a relaxing vacation. The WiFi on the ship was also a disaster. We paid $350 for the unlimited package and it only worked about half the time, and when it did work, it was horribly slow. I get it that we're at sea, but NCL shouldn't ask their guests to pay that much for a sub-par product. Fortunately, the Internet Manager realized the issue and gave us a small credit to our account, which we were happy with. Overall, we still enjoyed our cruise and we do plan to cruise with NCL again next year. This was an absolutely fabulous itinerary, visiting so many amazing ports.

We loved this cruise. The time went fast and we were never bored. Got lucky that the Atlantic was calm most of the time. Can’t wait to do it again. We love the freestyle cruising of Norwegian.

I had great expectations for this trip but my experience was not pleasant at all due to the noise problem in our room. Unfortunately I didn't even have the option to leave the cruise because we were in the middle of the ocean. I still have like 4 next cruise deposits to use in the future but I would need to forget all the inconveniences of this trip to decide take another cruise with NCL soon.

Very nice cruise with great ports of call, but it all ended in disaster due to Norwegian's failures during disembarkation.

Love the days at sea, bar package and most ports. Staff is great and this size ship is our preference as there is very little crowding, waiting in line, etc. the daily military meetings were outstanding!!! Should be a cruise line standard!

The ocean was so smooth almost lake like at times. The stewards were wonderful. The food so so. Sailed transatlantic 2018 on the Queen Mary 2 and have already booked another transatlantic on RCL for 2020. Never again will I book another cruise anywhere on NCL. According to many passengers this is also how they felt "never again".

Food was ok at best. Staff was great. Entertainment was very good. Please wash the windows and glass on balconies.

I'll do it again, and just pack less - and not book any excursions until I'm onboard. I'll also see more shows and participate in the games onboard more. Just so much to do, and not enough hours in the day!

We had a good time, however did not like the layout of the ship.

I would not at all recommend Norwegian. The staff is not trained well, not helpful, not friendly. The food is mediocre. The entertainment is lacking, especially at sea days and the cruise is completely disorganized when it comes to disembarkation. I would highly recommend Disney!

Had a great time and looking forward to our next cruise

This is the first cruise I've ever had problems in. I was even surprised when someone from the front desk told me that I couldn't bring any outside drinks/snacks from the ports (Disney, Carnival and Celebrity allows it).

We had a nice time - we mainly wanted to relax and we surely did that. Getting on board was good - we arrived a bit later than planned but that seemed to work just fine - no waiting in lines. Our room was nice, quiet, clean (bed was hard) and the balcony was very nice to sit out and enjoy - the chairs on the balcony were comfortable (unlike the seating inside the room - not very comfortable couch to sit and watch TV or read or just relax on. Room attendant was seen a few times, did a nice job - but no towel animals!?! The food on the buffets was good. other amenities were fine as well.

The show was the best part ! Food is good but line is too long and ports are worthwile to visit . Overall once is enough !

Glad to say we visited the Mexican Riviera! Bonus for us was having one of our sons and his family also on the same cruise.

only three ports gave us ample time to relax, swim in pool and enjoy on board activities

This ship is GINORMOUS! There was so much room to move around! And then, we could go to the sanctuary of our cabin (and balcony). Really looking forward to the next one.

We had a great time. The ship wasn't too impressive, given some of the newer, fancier ships out there today, but for our family of 4, with 2 teenagers, we didn't need the 'extras'. Entertainment was really good (better than I've seen on any of our other cruises). Food was outstanding. If you can get the Unlimited Drink Package as a promo..DO IT! Good stuff like Grey Goose...all day long. :)

Not the best experience, buffet room no organization people have to move in their chairs to allow you to get to your table. Not very friendly