Star Pride - Panama to Bridgetown

[frogfish12]

Hi came across this interesting itinerary on Star Pride, very few cruises go to San Blas and Bocas del Toro. Has anyone done this? 

https://www.windstarcruises.com/cruise/overview/collector/balboa-fuerte-amador-to-bridgetown/windward-islands-spanish-new-world/?pkgid=325076

Panama Canal, Bocas del Toro, San Blas, Santa Marta, Cartagena, ABC Islands, Mayreau, St Lucia, Bridgetown

 

I think Star Pride does this itinerary yearly but couldn't find anything on this board or any review. 

-Has anyone been on Star Pride recently. Was air conditioning running ok for all cabins? Any comments about the ship or food appreciated

-Is it true you can't set foot on San Blas Islands? I noticed there are no excursions for San Blas 

-Or if you have done this itinerary on another ship, let me know what you think

 

Thank you

 

 

Edited August 29, 2023 by frogfish12

[Ski Mom 2]

We are booked on this itinerary starting in Barbados in January 2024. We have actually been on the first half of this cruise (Barbados to Aruba) on Wind Surf just before the pandemic but have not done the second half. We did go through the Panama Canal on Wind Star several years ago but on a different itinerary. We haven’t sailed on the motor yachts and are looking forward to it!

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, frogfish12 said:

Hi came across this interesting itinerary on Star Pride, very few cruises go to San Blas and Bocas del Toro. Has anyone done this? 

Not yet, but I'm booked to do it (in reverse) January 11-25, 2025.  My sailing doesn't seem to be selling well – it just went on sale and I saved a bundle by rebooking.  Well, actually I didn't save a bundle because with the new fares I was able to upgrade from S1 to BS for very little more money than I was originally paying!  In checking which BS cabins were still available, Windstar told me that only 1 had been booked [so I make 2 out of 20].

[ridethetide]

11 hours ago, frogfish12 said:

Hi came across this interesting itinerary on Star Pride, very few cruises go to San Blas and Bocas del Toro. Has anyone done this? 

https://www.windstarcruises.com/cruise/overview/collector/balboa-fuerte-amador-to-bridgetown/windward-islands-spanish-new-world/?pkgid=325076

Panama Canal, Bocas del Toro, San Blas, Santa Marta, Cartagena, ABC Islands, Mayreau, St Lucia, Bridgetown

 

I think Star Pride does this itinerary yearly but couldn't find anything on this board or any review. 

-Has anyone been on Star Pride recently. Was air conditioning running ok for all cabins? Any comments about the ship or food appreciated

-Is it true you can't set foot on San Blas Islands? I noticed there are no excursions for San Blas 

-Or if you have done this itinerary on another ship, let me know what you think

 

Thank you

 

 

I did an itinerary from Colon to St. Martin pre-Covid on the Star Breeze or Legend. It included from your list Cartagena, Aruba, and Bonaire. Cartagena was a wonderful place to visit, and Bonaire offered lovely drift snorkeling. I've been to Mayreau, St Lucia and Bridgetown on other Windstar sailings, and loved them. Although I have never been to San Blas, it is supposed to be gorgeous, and is indeed a tourist destination. Perhaps the day at San Blas is the beach party and that's why no excursions are offered. I just recently disembarked from the Star Pride, having done the Iceland circumnavigation. We didn't need air conditioning in Iceland. Food and service were impeccable as always. 

[AmateurGO]

Re:  I just recently disembarked from the Star Pride, having done the Iceland circumnavigation. We didn't need air conditioning in Iceland. Food and service were impeccable as always. 

Ridethetide, we will be on that Iceland circumnavigation starting this coming Saturday (9/2).  Any comments on clothes to (not?) bring or things to (not?) do?  Any other useful comments for us?  All our other cruises (well, other than Alaska) have been in warm waters, like the South Pacific (Wind Spirit) or the Adriatic Sea (Wind Surf), or Caribbean (WInd Star, Wind Surf).

Thanks!

[ridethetide]

4 hours ago, AmateurGO said:

Re:  I just recently disembarked from the Star Pride, having done the Iceland circumnavigation. We didn't need air conditioning in Iceland. Food and service were impeccable as always. 

Ridethetide, we will be on that Iceland circumnavigation starting this coming Saturday (9/2).  Any comments on clothes to (not?) bring or things to (not?) do?  Any other useful comments for us?  All our other cruises (well, other than Alaska) have been in warm waters, like the South Pacific (Wind Spirit) or the Adriatic Sea (Wind Surf), or Caribbean (WInd Star, Wind Surf).

Thanks!

We were extremely lucky in that we only had one day where the weather was "Icelandic" (windy, rainy, cold). It was in the 50s and 60s the other days with lots of sun and calm seas. You can't count on that delightful weather, however. I would bring a rain jacket, parka with hood, waterproof hiking shoes/sneakers, waterproof pants, fleece shirt or jacket, sweater, wool socks, warm hat and gloves. I wore fleece-lined leggings frequently. Bring a bathing suit for the hot tub, sauna, and steam bath. Dressing in layers is the best way to go. You will love the cruise. Wishing you smooth sailing.

[AmateurGO]

Thanks for the positive weather report, even if it is "history" now.  We will keep our fingers crossed that we will be as lucky, but will pack understanding that is unlikely.  Thanks for the clothing suggestions.

[mnocket]

15 hours ago, AmateurGO said:

Thanks for the positive weather report, even if it is "history" now.  We will keep our fingers crossed that we will be as lucky, but will pack understanding that is unlikely.  Thanks for the clothing suggestions.

We're all packed and ready to head to the airport in 5 hours!  I still can't figure out why The Weather Channel shows forecasted temperatures 10 degrees colder than other forecasts, but I've concluded that they are odd man out and we can expect mid 50's temperatures for the next week or so.  It does look like the sunny days are gone☹️ We are so ready to start our first post-Covid cruise!

[frogfish12]

-I don't drink alcohol so don't want to get a package. I don't see a zero-alcohol package. What drinks are complimentary on Star Pride? juices? Is there refillable water and does it taste ok? 

-Does anyone know what are "Star Collector voyages"? Is it something special or just two 7-night combined? Thank you

 

@Ski Mom 2 so you are doing the 14-night in January, I hope you can do a report. Happy cruising!

 

In case anyone is wondering, some didn't have air conditioning on Star Pride for days so I wanted to know if there's any problem this year

 

Edited August 31, 2023 by frogfish12

[ridethetide]

6 hours ago, frogfish12 said:

-I don't drink alcohol so don't want to get a package. I don't see a zero-alcohol package. What drinks are complimentary on Star Pride? juices? Is there refillable water and does it taste ok? 

-Does anyone know what are "Star Collector voyages"? Is it something special or just two 7-night combined? Thank you

 

@Ski Mom 2 so you are doing the 14-night in January, I hope you can do a report. Happy cruising!

 

In case anyone is wondering, some didn't have air conditioning on Star Pride for days so I wanted to know if there's any problem this year

 

All soft drinks, juices, coffee and tea are complimentary.  They provide two carafes of drinking water daily, which I found to be quite good. Star Collector voyages are cruises that combine two or more itineraries back-to-back. 

[Ski Mom 2]

In addition, Star Collector cruises include free laundry. The laundry service is a dream! Out first thing in the morning and typically back to you by evening. 

[curlyp]

We are booked Star Pride Bridgetown to Balboa Jan-Feb 2024. I wonder what tours have you taken along this route? Looking forward to many different ports and beaches.

 

Paul Deis

[Scubaloey]

We are booked December 9 from the Panama to Aruba portion.  Have been on the Pride twice before it was "stretched."  Lois

 

[new_cruiser]

On 8/31/2023 at 1:41 PM, ridethetide said:

Star Collector voyages are cruises that combine two or more itineraries back-to-back. 

In addition to the included laundry, Star Collector voyages usually have a lower fare than buying the two (or more) segments individually. You will be booked in the same cabin for the whole Star Collector. 

Before COVID, they didn't do itineraries that ended in Fuete Amador so they didn't do Panama Canal cruises from Aruba to there. They would do that itinerary a few times a year when they moved a ship from the Caribbean to Panama but it would end in Colon unless you stayed on for the next segment and ended in Costa Rica. Panama decided to promote Fuete Amador as a cruise port and put in docking facilities which I think were completed in 2022.. It was only a tender port before that. I recall reading at the time that they were also doing some financial promotions to encourage cruise lines to start using it.

 

That change to the port allowed Windstar to have Panama canal cruises that originate in the Caribbean and terminate at the Pacific side of the Canal. So those cruise only started in 2022 and given the passenger capacity of Windstar ships and light post-pandemic passenger loads, it's no surprise that reviews of the itinerary are sparse. 

 

We were also on the Barbados to Aruba cruise pre-pandemic with Ski Mom but continued on for the next 3 segments. The segment from Aruba was almost identical to the current Aruba to Panama one except it didn't include San Blas and it terminated in Colon. Wind Surf is too tall to go through the canal. We had a partial canal transit through the locks on the Caribbean side to the lake and back.

[Misty Morning]

I am also looking at this itinerary which I find interesting but would likely do it from Barbados to Panama given the prevailing winds blow from east to west

[frogfish12]

I'm still waiting, hoping someone can do a report on the 14 night from Bridgetown to Balboa (vice versa) or either 7-night segment. There is report on the ship but as new_cruiser said Aruba to Balboa is a new itinerary and I'm very curious about visiting San Blas, Bocas del Toro and Santa Marta from a Windstar cruise.

[Ski Mom 2]

As I stated in an earlier post we sailed on Wind Surf from Barbados to Aruba in 2020 just prior to the Covid shutdown. I’m happy to answer any questions you might have about this portion of the cruise. 
 

We will be sailing again on this same cruise but continuing on through the Panama Canal beginning in January 2024. 

[igoplaces]

We are on the jan 20th 2024 Barbados cruise but getting off at Aruba.

We did the Windstar panama canal cruise in 2021 -- it was great but would not do another panama canal cruise unless it was a super bargain as " ive been there done that and do not need to do it again" kinda thing.  

 

Ill follow here and am also on the roll call