Windstar Baltic cruise -- does Windstar "work" for this destination

[nendrum]

Hi -

 

We are considering doing the Windstar Baltic cruise in Aug of 2013. We did a Windstar cruise to Costa Rica last year and it was absolutely wonderful We were once of the last cruises on the Wind Star before its renovation, but even though we were on the un-renovated boat, I had no complaints. It was a magical experience. I believe that this year they are no longer doing that Costa Rica cruise that we did... surprised that they have dropped it because I think it worked very well.

 

Anyway, here are my questions concerning the Baltic. I would love to hear from anyone who has done this cruise with Windstar in the past.

 

1. One couple on our Costa Rica cruise -- who had many Windstar cruises and were big Windstar fans-- said that the Baltic cruise didn't work well for them because it was very rough. They said that a bigger boat would have been better and advised us to look at another cruise line. I was surprised to hear this since we had one very rough day on our Costa Rica cruise -- when we went to Nicaragua -- and I was VERY pleasantly surprised at how stable the Wind Star was in the high wind and choppy seas. Has anyone else experienced unpleasant sailing in the Baltic with Windstar?

 

2. I talked to a friend of my mine who travels to Finland each summer. He said to expect temps to max out in the low to mid-70s and likely be in the 60's some of the time. I'm wondering if Windstar keeps the outside bar open on this cruise. Is it possible to sit out he deck and have a drink, even if, in the evenings, it's in the 60's. Or do they shut things down. Does the hot tub still run? I've seen one review of the Windstar Baltic cruise that said that because of the weather, the Baltic cruises really doesn't lead to a great cruising experience -- no lounging in the sun on the deck etc. I could see that if you were confined to the inside parts of the ship it could feel fairly confining. Any thoughts/feedback?

 

3. Wish that the Baltic cruise was on Wind Star rather than Windsurf -- the bigger boat. Would love to hear from people who have been on both ships -- how much bigger does the Wind Surf feel? I loved the smallness of the Wind Star and really don't want anything bigger!!

 

Thanks!

[lovecruisingtoo]

We have been on all the Windstar ships. We much prefer the smaller ships. The Surf was nice but you lost a lot of the feel of the ship. You couldn't really appreciate the sails etc. I know other people feel very differently but that is our opinion.

 

As for the Baltic, we sailed on Oceania Regatta for that cruise and loved it. The bigger ship allowed you to be inside (and warm) but not feel like you were on a mass marketed ship.

 

I believe the reason Windstar has not used the smaller ships on the Baltic run is because of the distance between ports. The Surf is faster than the smaller ships and can therefore make it between ports easier.

[nendrum]

Thanks for your reply. So was it often too cold to sit out on deck? during the day and at night? Or just at night?

 

What you say about the larger size of the Wind Surf makes sense.

[Zuzie1]

We have been on all the Windstar ships. We much prefer the smaller ships. The Surf was nice but you lost a lot of the feel of the ship. You couldn't really appreciate the sails etc. I know other people feel very differently but that is our opinion.

 

I'll add my opinion - recognizing that everyone has their own - DW and I just got off the Surf and loved it! Having never been on any other Windstar cruise I have nothing to compare it to, but we did get plenty of sail time. Every night we would sit out on deck gazing at the sails and not a soul passed us -- felt like a pretty small ship to us.

 

We spoke to many cruisers who had been on Windstar plenty of times -- some preferred the smaller ships (the majority), but their was a healthy minority who preferred the Surf (for various reasons) -- some enjoyed the space, others said it was much calmer in rough seas, etc.

[r&rd]

We have been on 27 Windstar cruises - on all of the ships and almost every itinerary. We have never been to the Baltic but have been on a British Isles/Denmark cruise and a Lisbon to Oslo sailing. We had fairly bad weather both times so you really couldn't sit out on deck. In those venues I prefer the Surf where there is more indoor space. Sometimes the sailings up north are calm seas and blue skies - other times, not so much. If the seas are rough I don't think the Windstar ships fair much worse than the larger ships - its the weather that changes the experience. Would we do the Baltic on Windstar? Maybe, but we know we are gambling on the weather conditions.

[cynbar]

We're doing one of the early Med cruises in April on the Wind Surf. Weather onshore should be warm and pleasant for sightseeing, but we're thinking the decks may well be quite cool while we're at sea. Does anyone have any feedback on the Surf when most passengers are indoors during the day? Is there enough space to comfortably lounge around or does it seem really crowded? How about the Veranda for breakfast and lunch in bad weather? I have seen reviews that said cabins are small but you only sleep there anyway, so I don't think we'll be relaxing much in our cabin like we can do on a bigger cruise ship with a balcony and sitting area. We just want to be prepared, still very much looking forward to our 4/21 cruise.

[r&rd]

If weather is bad breakfast and lunch are moved to the dining room. There is some covered outdoor space which is nice but I don't think anywhere is "crowded" on any of the ships. Also, most itineraries don't have many, if any, sea days so it really isn't much of a problem.

[nendrum]

Thanks so much for all these replies. Very helpful. Still curious to what extent the outdoor facilities of the ship are available even if the weather is not conducive to sun-bathing. Does the bar open outside, for example, even if you might have to be sitting in a sweater? Or might it be the case that on these cruises there just aren't enough people willing to do that so that they don't staff the outdoor facilities? Would love to know....

 

I'm certainly not expecting that this cruise will feature weather like our Costa Rica cruise! I'm actually not really a sun-loving person and would be quite happy in mid-60's to mid-70's. I grew up in the British Isles so I know how Norther European weather can be!!

["Wandering Wino's&quo]

Thanks so much for all these replies. Very helpful. Still curious to what extent the outdoor facilities of the ship are available even if the weather is not conducive to sun-bathing. Does the bar open outside, for example, even if you might have to be sitting in a sweater? Or might it be the case that on these cruises there just aren't enough people willing to do that so that they don't staff the outdoor facilities? Would love to know....

 

I'm certainly not expecting that this cruise will feature weather like our Costa Rica cruise! I'm actually not really a sun-loving person and would be quite happy in mid-60's to mid-70's. I grew up in the British Isles so I know how Norther European weather can be!!

 

One night several years ago we were on the Windsurf sailing between Barcellona and Lisbon and the sky lit up with streaks of lightning as we sat outside of the Compass Rose bar, as far as I can remember the bar remained open and we continued drinking. Very exciting and very beautiful. Bring a sweater or light jacket for the evening and you should be fine.