Windstar's Star Pride after renovation in 2020

[suncityga]

Our first time looking at Windstar... we are considering booking a May 2022 Black Sea Cruise (Istanbul to Athens) and we are a little confused by the 'Balcony' term used by Windstar.  We understand most of the ship's balconies on deck 5 are 'French Balconies' (~15 sq ft).

 

We are looking at Category SBS (Star Balcony Suite) and we have seen ship's photos and we do not see a 'balcony' where our cabin is located (# 537). We have been told that during the last renovation in 2020 the SBS cabins were redone to include a French Balcony.

 

Does anyone have first hand knowledge and/or photos that would help us?

 

Thank you very much!

[MindyJohn]

1 hour ago, suncityga said:

Our first time looking at Windstar... we are considering booking a May 2022 Black Sea Cruise (Istanbul to Athens) and we are a little confused by the 'Balcony' term used by Windstar.  We understand most of the ship's balconies on deck 5 are 'French Balconies' (~15 sq ft).

 

We are looking at Category SBS (Star Balcony Suite) and we have seen ship's photos and we do not see a 'balcony' where our cabin is located (# 537). We have been told that during the last renovation in 2020 the SBS cabins were redone to include a French Balcony.

 

Does anyone have first hand knowledge and/or photos that would help us?

 

Thank you very much!

Hi Lori and Raul !  I miss you guys.  That Black Sea itinerary looks fabulous!  My daughter Molly and I are booked on Star Breeze from St. Maarten in three weeks.  Our cabin is the normal Oceanview Suite and not a balcony, but a couple on our rollcall have upgraded so I'll get photos of theirs for you.  This will be my ninth Windstar and I'm sure you'd be pleased with the product.  Six were on the sailing vessels.  Our first try of the yachts was 2016.  John and I did a Caribbean itinerary on Star Legend and my sister and I did Hong Kong to Bangkok in 2018, again on Legend.  I love the oceanview suites.  They're huge, with a wonderful "living room" area next to the large window (the ov cabins they've added with the stretching switched to put the bed by the window), a spacious bathroom and large walk-in closet.  Much like a JS on RCCL.  With the port intensive itinerary in the Black Sea, you can give some thought to how much you'd be on your balcony.  Anyway, I'll get photos of each.  Here's a review of Star Breeze, but I wish it had more cabin pix.  Live From Star Breeze: What is Better on the Reimagined Cruise Yacht (cruisecritic.com) 

Edited July 2, 2021 by MindyJohn

[themutis]

Here is a photo of the Star Suite Balcony.  The newly added suites in the "stretched" area have their bed by the balcony, as opposed to having the living area by the balcony.  The balcony is only about a foot wide, so you won't be eating out there, but you could stand out there and enjoy the air and sounds of the ocean.

 

If you get the new deckplan, you can see that your cabin is a SBS with a balcony

Edited July 2, 2021 by themutis

[suncityga]

On 7/2/2021 at 11:08 AM, MindyJohn said:

Hi Lori and Raul !  I miss you guys.  That Black Sea itinerary looks fabulous!  My daughter Molly and I are booked on Star Breeze from St. Maarten in three weeks.  Our cabin is the normal Oceanview Suite and not a balcony, but a couple on our rollcall have upgraded so I'll get photos of theirs for you.    Here's a review of Star Breeze, but I wish it had more cabin pix.  Live From Star Breeze: What is Better on the Reimagined Cruise Yacht (cruisecritic.com) 

 

Hi Mindy, so happy to hear from you... we miss you a bunch too! Thank you for the link to the article, we could see the new French balconies in the photo of Star Breeze. If you can get additional photos, we would certainly appreciate it.

 

We have been considering an intense Black Sea cruise for awhile and we really love this itinerary. We were booked on Azamara Pursuit in Sept 2021 to cruise the Black Sea, but Azamara decided to move Pursuit to other parts of the Med and cancelled our cruise.

 

We are booked on Celebrity Xpedition in early August to the Galapagos. We still remember the fabulous photos and blog that you and John posted of your trip.

 

Hope you and Molly have a wonderful cruise and we look forward to sailing with again in the future!

 

Lori and Raul

 

 

[suncityga]

On 7/2/2021 at 11:18 AM, themutis said:

Here is a photo of the Star Suite Balcony.  The newly added suites in the "stretched" area have their bed by the balcony, as opposed to having the living area by the balcony.  The balcony is only about a foot wide, so you won't be eating out there, but you could stand out there and enjoy the air and sounds of the ocean.

 

If you get the new deckplan, you can see that your cabin is a SBS with a balcony

 

Thank you so much for your reply and photo. We have the new deck plan and a layout drawing of the new SBS cabins. Understand that the balconies are narrow, but we enjoy the sea air and the sounds of the ocean.

[honumaui]

We experienced a Pride french balcony (pre stretching). Even though it was narrow you could stand outside and see up & down the length of the ship. It was great for taking photos from our room. And the fresh air was nice. I've booked one again in 2022.  I would prefer having the sitting area by the balcony instead of the bed although have never experienced the reverse.

[suncityga]

8 hours ago, honumaui said:

We experienced a Pride french balcony (pre stretching). Even though it was narrow you could stand outside and see up & down the length of the ship. It was great for taking photos from our room. And the fresh air was nice. I've booked one again in 2022.  I would prefer having the sitting area by the balcony instead of the bed although have never experienced the reverse.

 

Thanks... we feel the same way as you do. We have experienced french balconies on river cruises and we look forward to enjoying it on Star Pride during this Black Sea itinerary.

[honumaui]

Great...Hope you have a wonderful trip. We also had our first french balcony on a river cruise. I think people that are used to the balconies on the larger ships are disappointed as they expect to be able to sit out there. Sorry, only enough room for your feet. But that is all you need to get a better view and take photos from the balcony.  And you don't get the subtle sounds and fresh air of the ocean through a window. If you are someone who spends most of your time on the pool deck the upgrade cost is probably not worth it. But it is nice to be able to get up and go outside in your PJs. if the mood suits.