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Norwegian Star Dry Dock

DreamingBig1

By DreamingBig1,
in Norwegian Cruise Line

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don't-use-real-name

don't-use-real-name

Posted
Posted
Hey Robert! I sure hope they plan on changing those windows in the Family Suites! :eek: Speaking of family suites....waiting on your review while on the Dawn in your SD. :)

 

annietownsend:

 

Review for you NCL DAWN

Sailed 1/11-18 MSY rt MSY

 

Flew down the day before stayed at airport hotel overnight - next day return to airport to take NCL

chartered motor coach to port ($20 charge).

Bus takes about 25 minutes to go the 12 or so miles from the airport to the port.

At port stateroom baggage is off loaded from the bus and then the bus moves on another block letting

the cruisers off at the security check-point (you know the drill checking for weapons of mass destruction

and alcohol) - after security a line forms for general check-in where you get your photo taken and your

key card. For suites etc. a special area is set aside for check-in photo and then you are escorted to the

lounge for refreshments and getting your key card and other paper work from the Concierge. After a

short wait one of the butlers escorts you to your stateroom and then on to Cagney's.

That done got familiarized with the layout of the ship - almost identical to the NCL STAR except some

restaurant names and meeting rooms change. Stateroom baggage delivered to door by cabin steward

about an hour and half before sailing - good deal time to air out clothers and get settled in - dress code

noticeably absent on sail away night - NCL Freestyle at its best !

 

Stateroom data - Suite 12030

Similiar to the NCL STAR there are 24 suites forward of the ships library - 12 on each side.

The first stateroom either side of the library is just like the one you had on the Star - floor to ceiling

windows and NO Balcony followed by -5- suites with a smaller balcony than I had on the Star -

which was great these were not so invasive of the interior space and instead of a coffee table to

eat room service meals a standard size table with 4 chairs was in place. Another neat feature was the

cordless cell type phone provided for the cabin to take anywhere on the ship.

Forward of the 1 suite with no balcony and the 5 with are 6 more balconyless suites. You remember

the slooping floor rising as you walked the passageway to the bow that is where these 6 are.

At the forward end of Deck 12 are the 4 Deluxe Owner suites with no balcony and floor to ceiling windows.

A note about the suites with balconies - unlike the one I had on the Star with a cover over the deck

these on the Dawn are open with no awing thus are exposed to the weather and other elements.

A privacy element is in play because from Deck 13 above people can view down into your balcony.

While at tender port at Belize the rain was so monsoonish that it fell on my balcony deck and seeped

past the calking to flood the carpet interior. Maintenance came with a wet/dry vacuum and did a number

followed with two giant snail like blower fans to dry it all out.

Other than that the stateroom has all the features that the Star did - double sinks separate shower and bath

closet space in foyer to the bathroom - but I like the more liveable space provided on the Dawn.

The price difference varied around $2000 more for the Balcony. For others reading this review realize

that for that amount of savings one could go up one Deck (13) and get all the fresh airing and viewing.

One last critic - do you recall the running jogging track on the Star running thru the tunnel on Deck 13 ?

On the Dawn this track is moved further aft near the Star Bar and Cagney's. But the die hard runners

still use the old track running right over the first five suites causing a thump a thump a thump of feet

pounding on the ceiling at some of the most inconvenient times of sleeping. NCL tried to inhibit this by

moving some deck lounging chairs in a pattern to discourage this but then even moving the furniture

on the deck caused unpleasant noise - nature of the beast - no satisfactory solution.

 

 

Sailing away - temps in the am near freezing and later in the high 40s to low 50s.

Later that afternoon the weather turned foul with light misting rain and then the heavy can't see the

hand in front of the moved in and stayed with us all the way to the Mississippi rivers end at the delta.

Next day at sea middle of Gulf of Mexico seas were OK occasionally an abnormal wave would tip the

bow up and tickle the bottom of the hull of the ship - sort of like the seas north of Cabo on the Star.

Must have something to due with the profound weather being experienced all over.

 

Cozumel great weather - sunny partly cloudy temps in the high 70s.

Did a Tequila tasting shore excursion - Excellent highly recommend.

 

Belize - raining and then raining and then drowned like rats and the water in my stateroom issue.

Sister and husband went to shore and got thorougly drenched. Belize is a tender port and NCL was

using the private tenders from Belize. Most of these where open with no coverage from the elements.

The rain did not abate nor give any relief to any shore goers until very late - sail away time.

 

Roatan - pleasant sunny weather to start off with then clouded up temps in high 70s low 80s.

Went a shore to walk over to Coxen Hole - the further along I got I became disgusted with the filth

and poverty I observed - the streets and roads where muddy and wet from a recent rain - I turned around

and left back to the ship. A shore excursion away from the port would have perhaps been a better

way to visit this place.

 

Costa Maya - bright sunny day with temps in the high 80s and lower 90s hot hot hot.

Went a shore to walk about the port - not much to see here just the merchant vendors and a small

beach to go swimming and an ajacent pool to go swimming and get your picture taken with dolphins.

I was not interested in taking a 5-6 hour tour of the Mayan ruins in hot baking sun. From the ships

deck you can see inland for 20-25 miles of flat land with nothing of elevation - nada zip line - no ruins

visible. I remember the shore excursion I had on the Star at Puerto Chiapas seeing the ruins there

and I have seen all I need to see in person - I will let National Geographic be my tour guide here in the future.

Candidly I like cruising more so than shore excursions

 

Back to sailing away and a day at sea - - -

 

Wish the Mississippi river transit was during daylight hours - been to the end of the Great River Road

ending at Venice LA. watching the ocean going ships go by thrilling even better when you are one but

sadly this portion of the trip is during the dark of night.

 

Ending the cruise in New Orleans - not so bad except for the long walking and transit inside the cruise

terminal. Walk down the gangplank to the terminal and walk a quarter of a block to drop down to another

level either by stairs esculator or elevator - pick up baggage and walk some more to clear CBP then

walk the previous distances back to the other end of the cruise terminal to catch the airport port transfer.

Catching cabs/taxis and other private transportation a bit shorter but it is sort of like being an animal in

a trapped centrifuge. Fortunately signage and personal direction is available - just move along folks these

are not the droids you where looking for !

 

No one was hurt on this voyage and nothing damaged beyond repair - I did achieve Platinum status so

for my next trip I expect more bang for the buck - still puzzled why NCL rations out the cookies - what

do you have to do - jump through flaming hoops - voluteer to be part of the magicians disappearing act -

be a hypnotist patsie - do a zip line on the ships flag semaphores and dropping into the 3 foot pool?

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sassyredhat

sassyredhat

Posted
Posted

- still puzzled why NCL rations out the cookies - what

do you have to do - jump through flaming hoops - voluteer to be part of the magicians disappearing act -

be a hypnotist patsie - do a zip line on the ships flag semaphores and dropping into the 3 foot pool?

 

So totally agree. The only way we were able to get cookies was from our butler.

He said NCL only puts out cookies after 9PM. That is insane. :eek:

Thank heaven for a penthouse suite and a butler. He brought us a plateful of cookies every noon.

 

Patti

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craig-n-carol

craig-n-carol

Posted
Posted
So totally agree. The only way we were able to get cookies was from our butler.

He said NCL only puts out cookies after 9PM. That is insane. :eek:

Thank heaven for a penthouse suite and a butler. He brought us a plateful of cookies every noon.

 

Patti

 

Well I guess that kills the no carbs after 7pm rule for non-suite pax. :p I would think one could also call room service for cookies if they didn't have a butler.

 

I just can't imagine life without cookies, at any hour, OMG!! :D

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Freespir8

Freespir8

Posted
Posted
annietownsend:

 

Review for you NCL DAWN

Sailed 1/11-18 MSY rt MSY

 

Stateroom data - Suite 12030

Similiar to the NCL STAR there are 24 suites forward of the ships library - 12 on each side.

The first stateroom either side of the library is just like the one you had on the Star - floor to ceiling

windows and NO Balcony followed by -5- suites with a smaller balcony than I had on the Star -

which was great these were not so invasive of the interior space and instead of a coffee table to

eat room service meals a standard size table with 4 chairs was in place. Another neat feature was the

cordless cell type phone provided for the cabin to take anywhere on the ship.

Forward of the 1 suite with no balcony and the 5 with are 6 more balconyless suites. You remember

the slooping floor rising as you walked the passageway to the bow that is where these 6 are.

At the forward end of Deck 12 are the 4 Deluxe Owner suites with no balcony and floor to ceiling windows.

A note about the suites with balconies - unlike the one I had on the Star with a cover over the deck

these on the Dawn are open with no awing thus are exposed to the weather and other elements.

A privacy element is in play because from Deck 13 above people can view down into your balcony.

While at tender port at Belize the rain was so monsoonish that it fell on my balcony deck and seeped

past the calking to flood the carpet interior. Maintenance came with a wet/dry vacuum and did a number

followed with two giant snail like blower fans to dry it all out.

Other than that the stateroom has all the features that the Star did - double sinks separate shower and bath

closet space in foyer to the bathroom - but I like the more liveable space provided on the Dawn.

The price difference varied around $2000 more for the Balcony. For others reading this review realize

that for that amount of savings one could go up one Deck (13) and get all the fresh airing and viewing.

One last critic - do you recall the running jogging track on the Star running thru the tunnel on Deck 13 ?

On the Dawn this track is moved further aft near the Star Bar and Cagney's. But the die hard runners

still use the old track running right over the first five suites causing a thump a thump a thump of feet

pounding on the ceiling at some of the most inconvenient times of sleeping. NCL tried to inhibit this by

moving some deck lounging chairs in a pattern to discourage this but then even moving the furniture

on the deck caused unpleasant noise - nature of the beast - no satisfactory solution.

 

Roatan - pleasant sunny weather to start off with then clouded up temps in high 70s low 80s.

Went a shore to walk over to Coxen Hole - the further along I got I became disgusted with the filth

and poverty I observed - the streets and roads where muddy and wet from a recent rain - I turned around

and left back to the ship. A shore excursion away from the port would have perhaps been a better

way to visit this place.

 

Costa Maya - bright sunny day with temps in the high 80s and lower 90s hot hot hot.

Went a shore to walk about the port - not much to see here just the merchant vendors and a small

beach to go swimming and an ajacent pool to go swimming and get your picture taken with dolphins.

I was not interested in taking a 5-6 hour tour of the Mayan ruins in hot baking sun. From the ships

deck you can see inland for 20-25 miles of flat land with nothing of elevation - nada zip line - no ruins

visible. I remember the shore excursion I had on the Star at Puerto Chiapas seeing the ruins there

and I have seen all I need to see in person - I will let National Geographic be my tour guide here in the future.

Candidly I like cruising more so than shore excursions

 

Back to sailing away and a day at sea - - -

 

Wish the Mississippi river transit was during daylight hours - been to the end of the Great River Road

ending at Venice LA. watching the ocean going ships go by thrilling even better when you are one but

sadly this portion of the trip is during the dark of night.

 

Ending the cruise in New Orleans - not so bad except for the long walking and transit inside the cruise

terminal. Walk down the gangplank to the terminal and walk a quarter of a block to drop down to another

level either by stairs esculator or elevator - pick up baggage and walk some more to clear CBP then

walk the previous distances back to the other end of the cruise terminal to catch the airport port transfer.

Catching cabs/taxis and other private transportation a bit shorter but it is sort of like being an animal in

a trapped centrifuge. Fortunately signage and personal direction is available - just move along folks these

are not the droids you where looking for !

 

No one was hurt on this voyage and nothing damaged beyond repair - I did achieve Platinum status so

for my next trip I expect more bang for the buck - still puzzled why NCL rations out the cookies - what

do you have to do - jump through flaming hoops - voluteer to be part of the magicians disappearing act -

be a hypnotist patsie - do a zip line on the ships flag semaphores and dropping into the 3 foot pool?

 

Thank you so much Robert for writing this for me! You are the best! I love hearing the comparisons between the two sister ships. Congratulations on Platinum status...now NCL is really going to know who you are! :p The key for the cookie rations is to tell your butler how much you like them. My husband is affectionately known as the cookie monster. On our last trip, Bagus kept us stocked with a dozen cookies each afternoon.

 

Sorry to hear about the water issues in the suite. I saw a youtube video of 12028 and the suite did appear bigger than on the Star. As you mentioned, the Star appears to use part of the suite itself for the balcony whereas the Dawn actually added the balcony in addition to the room which probably accounts for the lack of coverage overhead. I am even more convinced that we made the right choice though in choosing the forward facing suite on the Dawn for our next trip after reading your review. Noise is a deal breaker for us and having the sounds of the pool deck and running track right above us would be deal breaker. Although we will have the bridge looking down on us, we won't have the additional potential other items falling on our deck. :eek: We will miss that spacious bathroom and high ceilings though!

 

On our last trip to Costa Maya on the Star, we found this great beach area and had the best massage right on the beach. Our butler recommended this place to us...we took a cab for 5 bucks and it took us to the main beach area. We looked for the "red awning" and asked for the owner. He completely hooked us up with a $20.00 massage and prime seating on the beach where we could see the ship from where we sat. Still a favorite memory of mine and looking forward to going back in November.

 

We didn't like Roatan much either...like you though we cruise more for the ship and the cruising than the ports.

 

Thanks again for taking the time to write your review for me. :)

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wspdude

wspdude

Posted
Posted

I called NCL and verified it was going into dry dock after deportation in Los Angeles on March 1 from conclusion of our Panama Canal cruise from Miami departing February 16th.

Dry dock will be in Seattle.

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Coasty

Coasty

Posted
Posted
I called NCL and verified it was going into dry dock after deportation in Los Angeles on March 1 from conclusion of our Panama Canal cruise from Miami departing February 16th.

Dry dock will be in Seattle.

 

Wrong, drydock will be in Portland

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  • 4 weeks later...
missintuitive

missintuitive

Posted
Posted
Hey Robert! I sure hope they plan on changing those windows in the Family Suites! :eek: Speaking of family suites....waiting on your review while on the Dawn in your SD. :)

 

 

What's wrong with the windows in the family suites? I'm cruising in one in the star in Nov.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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don't-use-real-name

don't-use-real-name

Posted
Posted

Would be very interesting if someone from NCL was taking photos of the

dry-dock repairs to post later.

Looks like even with a tele-photo lens that the up close work will not be

visible.

If someone has a small craft and can get near the dry-dock maybe more

photo opportunities.

With safety regs not a chance to see the belly (keel) of the beast but then

who knows.

Anyone from Portland - has the news media done any follow up to the

initial telecast ?

These dry-dock repairs are rare - once maybe in five to ten years and

are an opportunity to get a better idea of how things function and are fixed !

 

For all those who have provided the photos so far "MAHALO NUI LOA"

"THANK YOU VERY MUCH" !

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dongordon

dongordon

Posted
Posted
The Star will dry dock in Portland, Oregon on or about March 3rd. It will stay for about two weeks while they do engine and hull repair/updates. They will also move Moderno to deck 12 across from Cagney's and install O'sheehans in it and Blue Lagoons place. They will replace carpets and polish stuff as well.

 

The trip to and from Portland will not carry passengers.

 

I also heard from one of the crew members that the "Wine Cellar" part in Le Bistro would be removed. :(

Too bad, I loved that part of Le Bistro and dined specifically in that area so I could listen to the entertainment in Gatsby's during dinner.

 

Too bad they could not place the "Great Outdoors" on this ship as they have in the Jewel Class ships. One of my favorite places for breakfast on the Gem and the Jewel. :)

 

Don

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swedish weave

swedish weave

Posted
Posted (edited)
Just off the phone with NCL..."as it stands the Star will be in dry dock until the 17th"...Portland to LA in half a day? Could others call for info?

Thanks

Terry

 

Wow !! They will have to whip the old girl into a heavy lather to make it to LA in that time !!

 

The mileage charts show the distance to be 825 miles or 717 nautical miles.

Edited by swedish weave
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