Anyone on the 'new' Star Princess? How are things?

Has anyone gotten any feedback on the Star Princess condition since they boarded for the May 15th sailing in Copenhagen? I scanned the boards but didn't see any updates at all. I was curious what condition the ship and crew were in? Is eveything just like any other cruise? Are there any cabins out of service? Any notice at all of the damage? Smoke smell?

If anyone has any updates...please let us know!

Thanks!

I can't believe no one has posted yet! The Internet Cafe is quite busy this morning. The ship was here waiting yesterday when we got here about 9:30 am, although we weren't allowed to board until almost noon. We didn't notice anything unusual on our deck (Dolphin). Sometimes we thought we smelled a bit of smoke, but then again, it could have been someone's cigarette, so definitely not real noticable. We took a walk down the Aloha and Caribe decks this morning. The only smell was more like new carpeting than smoke. We noticed there weren't any names on the suites mid-ship on Caribe, so perhaps they aren't ready yet. Everything else seems like a normal cruise. Our table mates are from Wales and they had no idea the ship had been out of commission for the last 7 weeks! They were quite surprised that it hadn't just arrived from a Transatlantic cruise.

We'll probably be back at some point since we have free Internet and it keeps us amused on a sea day!

I can't believe no one has posted yet! The Internet Cafe is quite busy this morning. The ship was here waiting yesterday when we got here about 9:30 am, although we weren't allowed to board until almost noon. We didn't notice anything unusual on our deck (Dolphin). Sometimes we thought we smelled a bit of smoke, but then again, it could have been someone's cigarette, so definitely not real noticable. We took a walk down the Aloha and Caribe decks this morning. The only smell was more like new carpeting than smoke. We noticed there weren't any names on the suites mid-ship on Caribe, so perhaps they aren't ready yet. Everything else seems like a normal cruise. Our table mates are from Wales and they had no idea the ship had been out of commission for the last 7 weeks! They were quite surprised that it hadn't just arrived from a Transatlantic cruise.

 

We'll probably be back at some point since we have free Internet and it keeps us amused on a sea day!

Glad you were able to board and take your cruise.

Did you happen to walk by cabin C414 on Caribe? Have they put anyone in there? I would love to know since that was the cabin we were in.

Hope you have the best cruise filled with calm seas and beautiful weather!

Carolyn

We also boarded 5-15. We walked all four decks A_B_C and D and could not detect any smoke smells. There are several cabins that are not labeled as occupied, so I believe that they are still finishing repairs. No mention of the fire is made amoung the crew. It appears that most were sent to other ships or sent home - they appear to have started the European season with a fresh group. Embarkation went smoothly. Some of the staff are brand new, but they are very accommodating if they don't know the answer to your question, they are quick to find someone who can help you.

We have a balcony on Caribe and noticed that each balcony now has a sprinkler system. Our cabin was not damaged in the fire. I haven't spoken with anyone who is in a fire-damaged cabin yet.

It is buisness as usual and the shop appears to be almost at capacity.

Hope this helps.

Thanks to Frank Grosse for all his work at taking and posting pictures of the repair process. It was very reassuring to see the webcam looking towards copnehagen when we logged on Sat. from our hotel in Copenhagen.

FYI - Copnehagen is not as large as we imgained. We were able to walk to many places - several hotels are very convenient in the downtown area. Be sure to take a Netto canal cruise!

Thanks so much for posting. I have also been wondering how the Star looks now! I'm not surprized that the smoke smell has almost been irradicated. It really wasn't that strong on the starboard side after the fire. Y'all have a great cruise. I hope to sail on the Star again someday...

Thanks for posting! Have a great cruise!

Gointostpete/catravelers- I was on the sapphire a few weeks ago and we made friends with an Australian Photographer named Nicole. Well she is now on your ship can you tell her the trouble makers from the sapphire fire week say hello if you happen to run into her. She is a very sweet girl so if you like taking pictures find her and she will take some goods ones of you.

Thanks

Desiree

If anyone responds, how is the food on the Star. Have read a number of neutral and less than positive remarks but this is so subjective. Just booked or 12/2 but still holding our options open so to speak. What about the entertainment? Thanks

Thanks for posting live from the Star. I was wondering if Princess has already changed out the balcony furniture to metal as I had read somewhere?

Yes, Star cruisers please post your thoughts as we are all curious.

May God bless the Star Princess and all who sail upon her.

http://www.cruise-ship-report.com/News/051606.htm

sounds good for me to book a cruise

Has anyone gotten any feedback on the Star Princess condition since they boarded for the May 15th sailing in Copenhagen? I scanned the boards but didn't see any updates at all. I was curious what condition the ship and crew were in? Is eveything just like any other cruise? Are there any cabins out of service? Any notice at all of the damage? Smoke smell?

 

If anyone has any updates...please let us know!

Thanks!

http://www.cruise-ship-report.com/News/051606.htm

she must be working for this Web Magazin:)

This "report" sounds exactly like what's been posted here, almost word-for-word.

I agree, it sounds like the writer just took posts from here and wrote an article from it. Guess it's legal since this is a public forum but not exactly a stretch on their part either.

It's interesting that the crew was sent home from our 3/19 sailing and not brought back. Of course, legally it's a smart move on Princess' part so that if anyone did bring a suit against them, they would have to find the employees and pay big attorney's fees to go to their home countries and depose them.

It's interesting that the crew was sent home from our 3/19 sailing and not brought back. Of course, legally it's a smart move on Princess' part so that if anyone did bring a suit against them, they would have to find the employees and pay big attorney's fees to go to their home countries and depose them.

The implication being that perhaps Princess is partly at fault and so they got rid of the crew so they couldn't be held? From what I understand the staff performed pretty admirally - from posts here, anyway.

Agreed. I think that the comment that many of the crew were sent home is pure speculation from someone who really doesn't know how these things work. I thought that it was documented earlier that some crew, those nearing the end of their contract, were sent home. The rest stayed on board and had various assignments related to the two wet docks. (Some of the work done may have been totally unrelated to the fire). In fact, I think we had pictures posted by a crew member from the Bahamas. At any rate, some are probably new and some probably stayed on board and worked. Regardless, if Princess or the authorities wanted to depose or otherwise contact these guys they would be able to. Most crew members re-up and most were probably anxious to get their new contracts. Princess doesn't have to go to the ends you describe CJ to protect themselves.

The implication being that perhaps Princess is partly at fault and so they got rid of the crew so they couldn't be held? From what I understand the staff performed pretty admirally - from posts here, anyway.

I am not slamming how Princess handled things, I'm not. The majority of the staff was wonderful and the majority of things were handled beautifully. I can tell you that those in muster station D had a different experience than those in muster station C but that is besides the point. This has nothing to do with what happened or why I said that. And, there were really only a hand full of posts here from people that were on that particular cruise compared to how many actually were on the cruise. I also don't remember seeing anyone else who lost a cabin on here to hear anyone else's experience either.

Don't be naive to think that Princess didn't have their lawyers on this thing from the minute the captain called headquarters about the fire at 3 am. Everything that was done and said from that point forward by both crew on the ship to staff here in the states was done carefully and by the book. Princess is a large company with their own legal team and they were involved from moment one. They have a special legal team just handling this situation and everything to do with it. There are reasons that different actions were taken and some of them were to protect themselves. There are going to be people that try and sue, it's human nature. Whether it's the woman who lost her husband or anyone else, that's the way it is. (for the record, I am not nor ever was.) The report showing that the balcony dividers were highly combustible and added to the intensity of the fire will only add fuel to the fire shall we say. According to a top attorney that we know that handles these types of cases and is highly respected in the legal community in the state of Florida and NY, the crew was sent home to protect themselves and make filing a suit all that more difficult. You have 6 months to inform a cruise line of your intentions and then another 6 months after that to file suit. Making things a bit more difficult is worth it for any cruise line and they are all known to do this.

Face it, Princess is going to do what ever is best for their company's sake and the sake of investors, bottom line. It's the way it is for any large company. There is nothing wrong with it, it's how things work.

Just because I have said this, doesn't mean that I hold anything against Princess or hold them responsible for anything. I personally still have my cruise booked on the Crown for 11/4 and if I felt that they didn't handle things well I would have canceled and would go with someone else.

To get back to the topic, where is everyone on the sailing???

Are you all enjoying yourselves? Hope you're all having a wonderful cruise and that the ship looks beautiful.

We're having a great time here on the Star! Left Stockholm just a couple of hours ago.

We are in A416 and the cabin doesn't smell of smoke but there is a strong smell of new carpeting. The cabins below us on the Caribe deck (suites) do not appear to be occupied. In fact one has several, what look to be glass panels for sliding doors, propped up on the balcony. So I don't think these cabins are done yet.

We had a nice CC gathering on Tuesday with about 25 people. The bartender had been on the Star during the fire. She said that some of the crew returned and others are new. It seemed to a mix. She went home for 5 weeks and then met up with the Star in Germany a week before they sailed. About 30 - 40% of the crew stayed on board the entire time the Star was being repaired.

Our balcony furniture is metal. There is also a sprinkler but I do not think they are operational yet. Some part of the piping still has a plastic covering on it. i have no idea what this part is or what it's function is but it is hooked up to the same pipes.

I'm off to the casino. I've done really well there the last couple days!:D :D

Sorry it took so long to post but we're having such a good time I just didn't make the time to get on the internet.

Please forgive typos, I'm rushing to get back to the tables!

Carol

We're having a great time here on the Star! Left Stockholm just a couple of hours ago.

We are in A416 and the cabin doesn't smell of smoke but there is a strong smell of new carpeting. The cabins below us on the Caribe deck (suites) do not appear to be occupied. In fact one has several, what look to be glass panels for sliding doors, propped up on the balcony. So I don't think these cabins are done yet.

We had a nice CC gathering on Tuesday with about 25 people. The bartender had been on the Star during the fire. She said that some of the crew returned and others are new. It seemed to a mix. She went home for 5 weeks and then met up with the Star in Germany a week before they sailed. About 30 - 40% of the crew stayed on board the entire time the Star was being repaired.

Our balcony furniture is metal. There is also a sprinkler but I do not think they are operational yet. Some part of the piping still has a plastic covering on it. i have no idea what this part is or what it's function is but it is hooked up to the same pipes.

I'm off to the casino. I've done really well there the last couple days!:D :D

Sorry it took so long to post but we're having such a good time I just didn't make the time to get on the internet.

Please forgive typos, I'm rushing to get back to the tables!

Carol

Carol, so glad to hear you're having a great time. It sound like the ship looks great. Enjoy the rest of your time. Interesting to see that our cabin isn't occupied.

I am not slamming how Princess handled things, I'm not. The majority of the staff was wonderful and the majority of things were handled beautifully. I can tell you that those in muster station D had a different experience than those in muster station C but that is besides the point. This has nothing to do with what happened or why I said that. And, there were really only a hand full of posts here from people that were on that particular cruise compared to how many actually were on the cruise. I also don't remember seeing anyone else who lost a cabin on here to hear anyone else's experience either.

Don't be naive to think that Princess didn't have their lawyers on this thing from the minute the captain called headquarters about the fire at 3 am. Everything that was done and said from that point forward by both crew on the ship to staff here in the states was done carefully and by the book. Princess is a large company with their own legal team and they were involved from moment one. They have a special legal team just handling this situation and everything to do with it. There are reasons that different actions were taken and some of them were to protect themselves. There are going to be people that try and sue, it's human nature. Whether it's the woman who lost her husband or anyone else, that's the way it is. (for the record, I am not nor ever was.) The report showing that the balcony dividers were highly combustible and added to the intensity of the fire will only add fuel to the fire shall we say. According to a top attorney that we know that handles these types of cases and is highly respected in the legal community in the state of Florida and NY, the crew was sent home to protect themselves and make filing a suit all that more difficult. You have 6 months to inform a cruise line of your intentions and then another 6 months after that to file suit. Making things a bit more difficult is worth it for any cruise line and they are all known to do this.

Face it, Princess is going to do what ever is best for their company's sake and the sake of investors, bottom line. It's the way it is for any large company. There is nothing wrong with it, it's how things work.

Just because I have said this, doesn't mean that I hold anything against Princess or hold them responsible for anything. I personally still have my cruise booked on the Crown for 11/4 and if I felt that they didn't handle things well I would have canceled and would go with someone else.

I doubt that Princess did anything in the case of the fire on Star Princess except save the ship and the lives of – save one – all on board. To imply that they are disbursing the crew to avoid legal entanglements implies that Princess is somehow at fault. I understand that you don’t feel Princess is at fault, but your post didn’t imply that at all.

... According to a top attorney that we know that handles these types of cases and is highly respected in the legal community in the state of Florida and NY, the crew was sent home to protect themselves and make filing a suit all that more difficult. You have 6 months to inform a cruise line of your intentions and then another 6 months after that to file suit. Making things a bit more difficult is worth it for any cruise line and they are all known to do this....

cjskids,

Of course, Princess has significant interests to protect. But in this case, the disbursal of personnel does not appear to have been done for sinister reasons. The crew was sent away for one important reason - Princess didn't want to pay them to do nothing. Better to have them off the ship and furloughed (or whatever other procedure they have) than to keep them intact on a non-revenue generating vessel.

As reported by Carol who is on the Star out of Copenhagen:

...The bartender had been on the Star during the fire. She said that some of the crew returned and others are new. It seemed to a mix. She went home for 5 weeks and then met up with the Star in Germany a week before they sailed. About 30 - 40% of the crew stayed on board the entire time the Star was being repaired...

This scenario doesn't fit the part of a Machiavellian scheme by Princess to shelter itself from possible lawsuits.

I never meant to imply that Princess has some big grand scheme to get rid of employees because they were at fault. I only said what I have been told by attorney friends and contacts. It's wonderful that the crew is back.

I will still stand by the opinion that everything that has been done, said, or written by Princess has been thoroughly passed through their legal teams.

...I will still stand by the opinion that everything that has been done, said, or written by Princess has been thoroughly passed through their legal teams.

Amen. We are in total agreement on this point.

I never meant to imply that Princess has some big grand scheme to get rid of employees because they were at fault. I only said what I have been told by attorney friends and contacts. It's wonderful that the crew is back.

 

I will still stand by the opinion that everything that has been done, said, or written by Princess has been thoroughly passed through their legal teams.

I guess I don’t understand the point of mentioning this if it wasn’t to imply there was some effort on Princess’ part of subterfuge. Kudos to the cruise line for taking such action to protect the ability to continue to deliver the product we all take so much for granted.