Feb 10th NCL Star Mexican review

Review of our Feb 10 NCL Star Cruise:

Embarkation:

We stayed with a friend before the cruise. Was dropped off at the pier at noon and was on board by 1. Smooth process. Rooms were not available until 2 however. Therefore the feeding frenzy started immediately.

Ship:

The ship was in fine order and was clean. NCL had hand cleaning stations everwhere. Only complaint was the seats in the main show hall. They were very uncomfortable. The ship was well laid out and was easily maneuvered. Lastly, this was the friendliest staff of our 8 cruises. NCL had many delightful employees on this cruise.

Food:

Food was typical cruise cuisine – good and plentiful but below 5 star quality. Love the cool fruity soups. Lobster night (second night) wasn’t band (ended up with three tails). On the buffet lines they had a pasta bar that was very good. They also had a fresh made sandwich station that was yummy. They had a spicy duck salad one night that was absolutely delicious. You could get popcorn at the Spinnakers lounge for a light snack. The chocoholic buffet was the next to last night. Love those white chocolate dipped strawberries.

Entertainment:

Archie the cruise director was very good. NCL has the best entertainment that I have seen. They had an Andrew Lloyd Weber show, Pacific circus and the final rock show -Band on the Run. The Pacific show was all dance and featured Chinese acrobats. Reminded me of the old Ed Sullivan show at times. The Band on the Run show was very good (and very loud-love that). Never thought I would hear Alice Cooper (schools out) and Queen (several songs) on a cruise ship. Very good shows with talented singers and dancers coupled with a great stage production.

Weather:

LA temps were in the upper 60’s. The day of departure was sunny and no wind. It was hot laying out at the pool. The first day at sea was cool in the am and mostly cloudy. Around noon it became cloudless and warm. Didn’t see another cloud until the last day at sea. P.V. and Acapulco were warm- and no wind. We got really dark out in the sun. The sun was relentless and we were so glad we tanned before departure.

Ports:

We were supposed to do Acapulco, Ixtapa, PV then Cabo. Actually did Cabo, PV, Acapulco and then Ixtapa. Captain said they had an engine maintenance issue that necessitated the itinerary change. Therefore we had 1 day at sea before hitting Cabo and two days at sea returning from Ixtapa. We had no pre arranged tours so it made no impact on us. I didn’t hear anyone complaining either.

Cabo- We did our own boat tour of Land’s End with 1.5 hours on Lover’s Beach. Very impressive landscape. Beach is not for swimming –especially the Pacific side. One gal in front of us hurt her knee in the heavy surf. Cost for 2 was $20. Water Taxi dropped us off in downtown Cabo and we went to Cabo Cantina. Had the Waborita and enjoyed the great sound system. We also saw numerous whales from the anchored ship. Not close encounters but still exciting to see.

PV- I wanted to do a whale watching tour, but couldn’t get the wife to agree. We did our own taxi tour ($25US per person). Had 45 minutes in downtown PV to see the sights. Very interesting- especially the pole dancing/swinging show. If you think you have a tough job, climb a 50’ pole, do a dance at the top and then have four people swing around head first as they lower themselves for $50 tips. That’s like $12.50 per person and they risk their life’s every time as there is no safety equipment. Then went to a bar/eatery – El Set that had great views and good margaritas. We then did a tequila tour. Wife liked the day, but I sure wanted something else. Downtown PV is well worth a few hours.

Acapulco- Did our own city tour ($25each). Seen the cliff divers. It was equally impressive watching them climb up as it was to swan dive down. Did numerous stops. If I had to do it again, I would ask to go shopping in downtown Acapulco where the upscale shops were versus the local market area we went to. But all in all- a good day.

Ixtapa/Z town- We lover Z town (I don’t even attempt to write or say the town’s name). We went to Los Gates beach for $3.50 per water taxi. Corona’s were $1.50 each and buying a few gave you 2 chairs. Beach was nice. Z town was the quintessential fishing port with a perfect layout of shopping and bars. Absolutely loved that town.

This was our eighth cruise. First in Mexico. Mexico is quite different than the Caribbean.

The landscape in Mexico is quite dramatic. The Sierra Madre mountain’s are the backdrop for the entire cruise. Unlike the Caribbean where the high mountains are almost always cloud covered, the Sierra Madre’s were perfectly clear. The Caribbean beaches, history, differing architectural styles and lush tropical feel are way superior to Mexico.

However the perfectly clear views, the whales, and the stark dessert like landscapes (especially Cabo) make Mexico an exciting option to the Caribbean. The Mexican people were very warm to us.

Debarkation- was quite miserable. Took way too long and it appeared not enough customs agents were on duty. Lines were long, disorganized and many people worried about flights. Once off the ship however, the luggage pick-up and transfers (Sunday am) went very smoothly.

All in all a very memorable cruise. Will be glad to answer any questions.

So, what type of room did you have? How would you rate those accomodations? Did you use the Spa facilities? How many kids were on board? Any casino action? Did you use any of the speciality restaurants? We're going in late April, just got docs yesterday.

Thanks in advance

Stan

So, what type of room did you have? How would you rate those accomodations? Did you use the Spa facilities? How many kids were on board? Any casino action? Did you use any of the speciality restaurants? We're going in late April, just got docs yesterday.

Thanks in advance

Stan

Not the original poster, but I'll take a stab at your questions:

- We were in an AF mini suite on deck 11, 11566 - a little forward of midship. Great room, nicer than similarly priced cabin on RCI Voyager class. We loved the provided bathrobes so much we actually bought a pair as souvenirs ($45 each, had to ask the cabin steward as they are considered housekeeping items and are not sold in the gift shop)

- Did not use the spa, though we wanted to. Considered the $15/day indoor pool access becaused we loved the "adults only" area on our RCI cruise 2 yrs ago, but were glad we didn't buy the access -- completely indoors, enclosed, below decks, bleh. We bought the sunshine! Maybe on an Alaska or fall itinerary when sunbathing would be less plausible...spa prices seemed high even for cruising. They did have a few specials that were attractive ($79 for 20 min massage, 20 min facial, 20 min something else), so I'd suggest looking for those.

- Not too many kids on board in mid-Feb, but that's why we like to cruise at this time of the year. Though the reception desk had a "sorry, no room changes can be accomodated" card on display on sea day 1, the ship didn't "feel" full....but that may be a symptom of Freestyle Cruising more than anything else?

- Liked the specialty restaurants, but making reservations and changing them can be tricky and potentially costly. Several times we couldn't get seating when we wanted because they were "full", but many tables remained empty during those times. Low staffing? Kitchen capacity? Limits on number of meals per day in each restaurant? I don't know, but there were definitely some kind of capacity controls going on.

Something we *didn't* anticipate though was the EXTRA charges for some dishes in the specialty restaurants. Be aware that Soho charges $15 pp usually, but if you order lobster or surf and turf, it's $20 or $25. At Cagney's, you pay $20 usually, but surf and turf is $25. There are a couple more dishes like that that are served "A La Carte" instead of being "included" in the cover charge. Did NOT like that. Felt like we were being double and triple-dipped.

Also, you're explicitly limited to 1 appetizer, 1 entree, and 1 dessert as "included" in your cover charge. On RCI at least, the cover charge was flat, and we could order as many dishes as we liked, just like in the main dining rooms.

Hope this helps!

Thanks for your review!

I was also on this ship in January with DH and DS (14). I seen kids, but DS did not ever meet up with anyone. He played at the arcade a few times and every time he went to the teen center no one else was there. He still had a great time though and has said he would gladly go again.

FYI for kids: we purchased the smoothie coupons ($38.50 for 20) for DS and you are able to use them for any non-alcoholic drink, which was nice because DS likes Pina Colada’s (virgin of course). I never had a problem when going to the bar and ordering for him, and once had to get oj at night for my husband and the bartender said I could use the coupon for that also. DS ended up not using 8 of the coupons so we gave them away when we got off the ship (they are just tear out coupons in a book).

We have cruised HAL and RCCL before and would gladly go on the Star again.

You have to go the Music of the Night show, it was absolutely fabulous and I would love to see it again.

We had an inside cabin on deck 10. We are on the go so much that we are just in the room to change and sleep. Our freinds were on deck 8 with an obstructed view. To pay a couple hundred $ more to look at the side of a lifeboat is folly (in my opinion). The cabin was average size. The shower was decent size. It was large enough to fit in comfortably.

Not a large group of kids- typically for a mid Feb trip. Did run into some teens that were looking for a crew member who was dressed up one night in a gorilla suit. They looked like they were having a blast.

We did not use any of the Spa services. We played a couple of slots. Nice casino for a cruise ship. By the way-they sell some strip tickets they call crack-its (or something like that). On the last day you got 2 free strips and an NCL bag. So if you like strip tickets ($20 per 4 then $20 for 6 on the last show)-wait until the last show to buy.

This is the first cruise in a long time that we didn't use any of the specialty restaurants. Planned to but we just did'nt make it. Talked to many folks who said they were good.

Please explain - what are strip tickets?

we used the spa for 8 days. 70 dollars each for 2 people in the same cabin. well worth it if you love fresh water pool and hydrotherapy tub in which you could lie down completely. also perfect sailaway views from back of ship and padded cots so comfortable that you cannot help but fall asleep at times even when you are not trying to. most relaxing and quiet part of the ship great for people who want to get away from louder outdoor saltwater pool and hot tubs and enjoy a quieter atmosphere We love to swim and enjoy hot tubs especially the lie down variety. If you have similiar interests this is the way to go spend your money here instead of the specialty restaurants. we found versailles food to be excellent as well as la trattoria and endless summer also you can order extra entrees in the free restaurnts and try many different types of food. we often ordered three entrees to share between the two of us and had 2-3 desserts as well. the food was generally outstanding. the shows were very good and the musicians also were above average loved this cruise including all the ports especially Zhi and Ixtapa

Strip tickets- they are cardboard strips that you peel off approximately 10 strips. Below the peel off is slot machine type symbols. If you match the symbols you wind anywhere from $1 to a free NCL cruise. I believe the top $ prize was $1,000.

They were sold mostly during the shows.

Most times we have cruised with NCL the top prize on the crack it tickets was a free cruise. Sometimes it's 2 free cruises. On our first cruise some one we knew won the cruise. Most we have ever won is $200. I was pretty happy with that. Went right down to reception and placed it on our onboard account!

Wow! Thanks. We'll look into that. This is not our first NCL cruise, and we've never heard of them!