Suite

Windstar Cruises

Luxury Cruises

Puntarenas (Puerto Caldera)

Rome (Civitavecchia)

Barcelona

Colon (Cristobal)

Venice

St. Maarten

Lisbon

Tahiti (Papeete)

Athens (Piraeus)

Edinburgh (South Queensferry)

Aruba

Vancouver

Reykjavik

Barbados

Amsterdam

Istanbul

Nice

St. Martin

Singapore

Monaco (Monte Carlo)

Copenhagen

Europe - All

Mediterranean

Europe - Western Mediterranean

Panama Canal & Central America

Italy

Costa Rica

Caribbean - All

Caribbean - Eastern

Spain

Panama

Europe - British Isles & Western

Europe - Eastern Mediterranean

Caribbean - Southern

Europe River

Croatia

Portugal

Douro River

Greece

France

U.S.A.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines

South Pacific

French Polynesia

Baltic Sea

Mexico - All

Caribbean - Western

Africa

Denmark

Morocco

Transatlantic

Alaska

Asia

Bermuda

Mexican Riviera

Pacific Coastal

Iceland

Netherlands

Sweden

Rhine River

Columbia River

South America

Canary Islands

Japan

Norway

Philippines

Turkey

Excellent

Very Good

Average

Poor

Terrible

Wind Surf

Star Pride

Star Legend

Star Breeze

Wind Star

Wind Spirit

A very much needed vacation

We really wanted to do a cruise around Japan and found this was the perfect itinerary and a great chance to try Windstar for the first time. We are frequent cruisers on Oceania & Azamara with several cruises on SilverSea and Seabourn. Windstar really impressed us. 

The ship was in great shape. We knew it was an "old" Seabourn yacht - so we expected it to be a bit dated. The soft goods all looked like they had been redone recently. In addition, the hard fixtures, etc were all in great shape - not something we were expecting. 

We booked a regular Oceanview cabin. We were shocked at how big it was! Very spacious. In fact the picture window was larger than the openings of the French balconies on other cabins. We thought we would miss the fresh air as we typically book a balcony - but given it's such a small ship, you are never very far from the open decks.

The cabin had a large walk-in closet with plenty of hangers. The in cabin safe was a little temperamental but did the trick. Shelves and a small dresser in the closet also added extra storage. The cabin in general had plenty of storage. Granted, we were on a 10 day cruise - so it wasn't as if we brought our entire wardrobe!

The bathroom had a double vanity. The shower was great with two shower heads. Great water pressure and temperature control. The shelves in the bathroom also provided plenty of space. Toilet on a bit of an angle which maximized space in the bathroom. 

Bedding was very comfortable. Not a lot of plugs in the cabin, but enough to get the job done. TV was our biggest frustration. Great information channels with the menus posted daily along with activities etc. However, while in port and even most nights when sailing, the channels were turned off. No news channels, etc. Only HGTV and Food Network worked everyday. Frustrating. They can blame it on agreements or satellites or whatever, but still frustrating. They did have a lot of TV shows and movies available on demand - all for free - so that helped. (Again, if this is our biggest complaint - we were really happy....)

We were surprised at how quiet the cabin was. Could really only hear if the neighbors slammed their cabin door. Other than that - pure silent bliss! No engines or anchors or noise from hallways or other cabins. 

They told us there were about 230 passengers on our cruise - so it wasn't full. We boarded in Osaka. There weren't any guests doing a back to back from the previous cruise as we were basically repeating that itinerary. Check in was super smooth. We boarded about 1.30pm and we were able to get right into our cabin. We went to Veranda for lunch (more on food later) and by the time we were done all our bags were in our cabin. 

The other guests were primarily Americans. I'd say 60% were American, 20% European, and 20% Hong Kong citizens. There were a few Aussies and Kiwis mixed in but not many. Average ages were probably 60 - 70. We are in our early 50s and felt like we were younger than most cruisers. We found our fellow cruisers to be very, very friendly. Easy to talk to people at almost every venue and event. No lifelong friends made on this cruise - but we found lots of people we really enjoyed spending time with aboard. 

There really isn't any entertainment to speak of - and that was just fine for us. Every night there was an activity in the lounge (newlywed game, liars club, etc) - but no real shows or DJs etc. Perfect for us. The entertainment manager Kat was great. Very easy going and ensured there were plenty of things to do - especially on our one sea day. 

Food was very good for a cruise ship. Not quite Oceania - but close. Their partnership with the James Beard foundation really worked well. Every day in the main dining room (Amphora) there was a starter, main, and a dessert from a different James Beard award winner. That added a nice touch to already impressive menus. We were very pleased with the main dining room. We ate dinner at two of the included specialty restaurants - Cuadro and Candles. Cuadro was tapas and very good. While it was very seafood intensive, it was top quality and very authentic Spanish tapas. Candles was pretty good. We went twice. First time was average and second time was very good - hence the "pretty good" score. Nice salad choices, great steaks/meats and sides - plus yummy desserts. We did the Star Grill (outdoors) a few times for lunch. Enjoyable to be outside and enjoyed the food. Just didn't want to be outside for dinner while at sea. 

We enjoyed the Yacht Club lounge/coffee shop the most of the public areas. The baristas were awesome. Very engaging and great personalities. Sandwiches and coffees, teas, etc available all day - plus cakes and cookies, not to mention afternoon tea each day. It's a nice space. Quiet area with great views. 

We enjoyed the evening port talks the most. The excursion team leader did a great presentation each night of the next day's port. He spoke a lot about the tours the ship offered (which were did 4 and thought they were great and fairly priced) but went into even more detail. He was super helpful to those not booked on tours and gave great insights and hints into enjoying even the smallest of towns we visited. We were really impressed with him and the team. Normally these are just sales pitches for ship's tours. This was everything but. 

The crew on the ship were amazing. We've sailed with great crews before and found Azamara crew to be our favorite. That being said, this crew was right up there. They remembered your name after a day or two. They were engaging. They offered whatever they could and were readily available. Never had to look far for someone to help with anything. As they had been to our ports a number of times, they made great suggestions by port and were super helpful. 

Our only other complaint is that Windstar charges for internet. You can "buy up" to all inclusive for $89 per day per person ($10 more per day if you sign up on the ship). But we really didn't see a value in that. Neither of us drink much and we found the $35 for daily internet to be excessive. We had one sea day and bought access for that one day for one device. It was pretty fast (Starlink) but thought $35 was excessive. Guess to each there own - but this was the only other thing we found lacking. Ironically, if we had free internet it would have fixed the no TV channel issue for us! Should also mention since we were in port everyday for most of the day (except the one sea day) - we had cell service which was just fine for our needs. 

Overall, would give Windstar a 9 out of 10. We were really worried about the small ship and no balcony and both of those turned into assets instead of liabilities. The crew was really great. Food was better than expected. A really, really nice cruise. Very happy we did this cruise and will be back. Not quite sure we'd do their sailing ships - but we'll definitely be on one of their yachts again!

First Time on Windstar Yachts ... We'll be back!

Mykonos

We were attracted by the interesting Asian itinerary and the small ship size ( 300 pax max ) 

The cruise was of a high quality with both the hardware and software ( service levels ) in top order. The positive and optimistic attitude of the crew from the Captain, Officers to deck hands was outstanding. This created an excellent passenger experience.

The cabin was extremely comfortable and expertly maintained by the delightful stewardess Siri - every request was met with a professional "can do " attitude and a broad smile. We had an ocean view cabin ( first time without a balcony for many cruises ) which was spacious and expertly designed. Having viewed the option of having the bed next to the window or French balcony, which was the layout on the inserted new section of the ship, our preference was for the original layout where we could sit by the window and checkout the sunset or port activity from the surprisingly large window.

Cuisine aboard was of a consistently high standard, in all food outlets. The Executive Chef was often around the ship asking for passenger feedback, as was the Captain.

Special events were set up by the crew and entertainment staff which included dinner under the stars on the top deck, a very proficient open air, night at the opera, performed by the Entertainment DIrector, a full service beach BBQ at a delightful private venue on One Hundred Island, Philippines and an ongoing Open Bridge policy save for arrival and departure procedures. Access to the foredeck and spa pool was continuous

The itinerary offered great variety. The Excursion staff and guest lectures provided detailed, useful information and background data. We used four ship's excursions ( all more than satisfactory if slightly on the pricey side ) and did our own thing in other ports.

Overall we found Star Breeze to be excellent and would happily return, if an interesting itinerary was offered. We have no hesitation in recommending Windstar's Star Breeze

Excellent Boutique Cruise Experience

Brisbane

Our experience started out really rough at the Port in Vancouver.  No one seemed to know what the heck was going on and where to send us.  There was a lot of walking involved and a lot of waiting!  We arrived two hours after our embarkation time and still had to sit and wait at least 45 minutes to board.  We found there to be little to no direction throughout the cruise.  When in port they utilized One Shuttle bus that ran once an hour and had no sighnage so that we could find where to pick a bus up if we had not taken it from the ship.  On Catalina there was not marking as to which pier we needed to catch the tender back.  The Oceania ship had a nice set up a table and cold drinks and a sign that said Oceania so ppl knew where to get their transfer....Nothing at all for Windstar.  This was the case everywhere.  There were no staff or signs telling you where to go.  They do not place the paper Daily Schedule in your room.  It's on the TV.  Once you are away from your room, you have no idea where or what time anything is happening.  You had to go to the service desk to get any port information like a map!!  Would have been so helpful if they put one in your room the night before.  We had free internet with our package which was a joke.  I know ship internet is slow, but this was ridiculous!  It barely worked and only while on board.  There is no app so when off the ship, you have no information.  Evidently, Windstar chose not to pay the fees necessary to use the television stations while in port, so there was no news or live TV whenever you were in Port.  Overnights were especially annoying with no news!  The first overnight we had was Victoria, CA.  They changed the schedule and did not stay docked for the night.  They had to go out to sea and anchor then go back to the Port in the morning.  If you had any late evening plans, you had to cancel.  No explanation, so the only conclusion was it would be too expensive for them to pay dock fees, so they floated!!  Same thing happened in Seattle.  Instead of docking at the Downtown Seattle port, we were 40 minutes away with traffic.  They only ran one bus, so you wasted a lot of time scheduling around their departure.  We had no idea of the bus schedules because they never posted them anywhere not even on the daily planner on the TV!  If you missed the shuttle, you wasted an hour on board waiting for the next one.  All of it was so poorly run, you would think it were their first cruise!  Conclusion:  They cheaped out on everything because the boat was 1/2 empty and they just didn't get enough money for the sailing.   

That all being said, we were surprised that this cruise was perhaps one of the best times we have had on a cruise ( I've been on approx 40) in spite of the ship being Tired, Old and in need of a lot of updating!  We had the best time with the people we met on board.  The crew, Starring PJ as the head of entertainment, was FANTASTIC!  The Captain was Great...Personable and available!  They have an open bridge policy that makes it easy to pop in anytime.  The staff in all areas of the ship were the best I've ever sailed with.  They were efficient, friendly and totally professional.   For the most part the food was some of the best I've had on a cruise!  The chef was fantastic!  In the main dining room we found the food to be delivered very hot which is mostly not the case on cruise ships.  There were many unique dishes as well as ordinary meals that were excellent.  There are specialty restaurants that are included, but you do need to make a reservation.  As this shipped sailed more than 1/2 empty, the specialty restaurants were not open every night.  We found the Spanish Restaurant to be the weakest of them all.  The food was not hot and the selection was not desirable.  Everyone we spoke with had the same opinion of it and many people canceled their reservations.   The low occupancy of the ship created more than a problem at the restaurants, almost all shore excursions were canceled due to no interest and lack of the min number needed.  The shore excursions on this cruise were more expensive than I've ever seen on any cruise.  On our last day we had a late flight out and had chosen a day trip ending at the airport.  There was lack of interest, so it was canceled.  This made our departure day very difficult because we had 7 hours with nothing to do.  It's not easy sightseeing with 4 pieces of luggage!  There were storage places, but I wasn't trusting them with my carry ons that held a lot of expensive items.  

  I call this ship a rust bucket because of the fact that they say they did so much work to it during covid yet it has a myriad of patchwork paint Everywhere!  There are mixes of flat and gloss painting all over the ship inside and out.  It looks cheap, old and very tired.  There were rust drips in many places and worst of all it smelled of sewage in many locations, including the rooms, especially every time we were in port.   We heard from a few people that their cabins leaked and flooded.  We had problems with our a/c (which they fixed), but it had all the makings of the old Carnival ships that were all over the news a few years back!   Some of the doors leading to the outdoor spaces were so heavy and hard to open, I needed help and I'm not weak or handicapped in any way.  This ship is not set up to easily maneuver with a wheel chair.  There ware some ramps to doorways but the edges are so high I can't imagine a wheel chair could get over it unless someone is pushing.  

I fail to see how this cruise lines can sell cabins at a luxury fare and stay in business.  I'm thinking the sailing was 1/2 empty because the ships are getting a reputation as well they should.  We paid a very discounted fare so I did not feel as badly about the fact the ship was no longer a luxury ship.  We did meet a lot of people that were booked long ago and paid a much higher fare and did not have an included beverage package.  They were not very happy to find out so many people had booked in July thru Sept with included drinks.  Not a good feeling!    

We met people who had their itinerary on this ship canceled, chose this new itinerary and were not offered the same inclusions on this new itinerary as they had on the cruise that was canceled.  Very Poor Management and people need to know when a cruise line rips people off!  Windstar is now owned by a conglomerate and perhaps they just don't know how to run a cruise line!  Bottom line, for a cheap price and good itinerary, this is a decent ship.  If they start cutting back on food and drinks, I personally think they will find themselves in Chapter 11 quickly!

Out of the ordinary 

Before the pandemic, we took many cruises including 10 on Windstar.  While we also enjoyed sailing on other cruise lines, we choose Windstar mainly for dining and relaxing. We loved the elegance and size of the Star ships before the stretch.  When we heard that the ships were being stretched, we wondered how it would change the ships. Would there be enough space to accommodate more passengers?  Since this sailing had 130 guests, we still don’t know how a full ship of 312 guests would feel.  What we do know is that the renovations are superb.  We chose an older suite. We prefer the bed near the bathroom. The new bathrooms are beautiful.  .  The veranda added more indoor space plus restrooms.  The spa is beautiful.  The expanded deck area and pool is spacious.  Added outdoor seating near the Star Bar and grill is very comfortable.  New tender and boarding area is a great improvement.  We were eager to try the new restaurants. We are big fans of the Steven Raichlen tv show. Unfortunately Star grill was only open for lunch. With a limited menu and cool temperatures, we chose to eat lunch in the veranda.  Cuodro 44 was a pleasant change.  However, the dining area is very tight. It was the only place on the ship that I felt crowded.  Candles remains my favorite.  We ate there twice. Aamphora is in the new section. It is slightly larger than the old Aamphora.  Design is similar to the older dining room. Added booths add some privacy.  Food in Aamphora was excellent.  Loved the crab clusters, halibut, and filet.  Due to cool weather, the deck bbq was in Aamphora.  Line dancing was in the Compass Rose.  The newly added band was a great addition. They played different music every night. The duo from Brazil was very good.  Cruise director added to the nightly entertainment. We enjoyed the music and had a lot of fun.  Crew was friendly and eager to please.  We enjoyed the ports. Having previously visited all of the ports except Catalina, we weren’t interested in tours.  Most excursions were canceled. Some people were disappointed.  We had a great time.

You may wonder why I didn’t give the review  stars.  There were some things that were better before the pandemic. The new toiletries aren’t as good as the lemon verbena. The new bodywash is minty.  Not a fan of feeling peppermint clean. Pumps attached to the wall were not refilled. Our cabin was often not made up until late.  Laundry service was hit or miss. We bought unlimited. On previous cruises, if we put our laundry bag out before breakfast, it was returned that afternoon. On this cruise, we got some things back promptly. Some laundry wasn’t returned for 2 days. Laundry also damaged a dress shirt.  

Disappointed that we never ate dinner at Star Grill.  

When we boarded the ship, we were given a nice welcome letter thanking us for being loyal guests. It listed all the level 3 benefits that we were to receive. It was signed by the hotel director and captain.  Our sea card also listed the same benefits.  As level 3 we were supposed to get discounts and OBC. We got discounts. However, no OBC. Thought it was an error.  We were told that we were not entitled to OBC because we got a discounted fare from a travel agent. We were told that you only get it if you book direct.   Seemed crazy.  It was a real disappointment.  Since we had previously taken many Windstar cruises before the Yacht club was tiered, we obviously chose Windstar because we liked the previous cruises. 

While we still don’t know how the expanded ships will handle being full, we loved the trip.  It was our first time flying and cruising since March2020.  Looking forward to sailing again.

Pago Pago

After reading about Windstar on this forum and talking to my sister (who loved Windstar), I had high hopes for our first cruise with them. Well, the cruise is over and all I can say is I’m disappointed. We have some wonderful memories and we were impressed by a number of things but over all, it was a letdown. Maybe I just expected too much.

This was not our first covid cruise, it was our third. It probably doesn’t help that this was our first cruise after a near-perfect Oceania cruise. We have been loyal Celebrity fans but saw some interesting itineraries on Windstar and Oceania and decided to give them a try. We are big fans of Oceania now and have already booked a few more cruises with them. Windstar, not so much.

We were on the Star Breeze and it’s beautiful! Our room was wonderful; big and well-appointed with lots of storage. Unfortunately it had serious problems with the HVAC and we were usually too hot and, with no ventilation, we felt stifled. We could leave the door open during the day but we couldn’t do that at night.  We got very little sleep on some nights because of the heat. Windstar was very responsive when we’d call or complain to reception but you can only complain so many times before it gets irritating. Speaking to others on the ship it seemed to be a common complaint. One couple told us the staff had replaced their thermostat 4 times. They replaced ours too but it didn't help.

The staff and crew were some of the best we’ve had. The officers were readily available and very personable. Our room attendant was very nice and like all the other crew members, seemed very happy with her job. I sympathized with her since she seemed to have a huge work load. Some days our room wasn’t made up until noon and several times we came back after dinner and found that our room wasn’t turned down yet.

Our cruise was a transpacific so all sea days. We love sea days and especially enjoy lectures and classes. Our guest lecturer was John Clauson, author of “Missileman: The Secret Life of Cold War Engineer Wallace Clauson”. My husband enjoyed the lectures and attended every day. I’m not a fan of politics and only attended the first lecture. There seems to be an audience for this subject but I was disappointed. I would have preferred lectures related to cruising, the ocean or Polynesia. The cooking demos and classes with the drink director were great.

I knew the internet wasn’t include so that was no surprise. I missed it more than I thought and prefer cruise lines that include it with the fare. I did sign up for the last day so I could check-in to our flight. I think a lot of people had the same idea since it was so slow as to be almost unusable.

The food in the main dining room was wonderful. I don’t think we ate anything that wasn’t prepared perfectly.  I preferred the menu on Oceania but that’s just my personal preference. The buffet was also very good. The Star Grill didn’t impressive us. None of the food actually seemed “grilled” and just seemed coated in a heavy sauce. 

We were “required” to pass a covid test to disembark. The test was unwanted, unnecessary and expensive! We paid $138 for two people for a test that nobody looked at! It left a bad impression and seemed more like a money-grab than anything else. Not a great experience on our first Windstar cruise. I emailed guest relations after the cruise and they referred me to https://cibtvisas.com/ as if it was a regulatory website.  I notice the Windstar website now offers these test as an option but we weren’t given an option.

Not impressed

Our first Windstar experience, and while it wasn't bad, in certain areas it was disappointing.  I realize that all cruise lines are struggling to get back to anything near "normal", so some our our experiences were somewhat to be expected.  Highlights were the itinerary, spaciousness and layout of our Classic Suite cabin, friendliness of the staff, and their handling of any Covid-related issues.  

Neither of the Jacuzzi's on board ever got above 80 degrees, and many people brought this to the crew's attention.  No explanation as to what the issues were.

We paid significantly more for our  Classic Suite (#500), on the port side, forward.  Our friends did the same on their own Ocean Vista Cabin on the starboard side.  If you're thinking of booking either, be aware of a couple of things:  The "private veranda" is extremely small and barely can handle two small chairs and a 24-inch table.  Plus, due to the physical structure of the ship, there's a wide metal band that spans the balcony front to back that makes one feel very confined.  Unfortunate that this ship doesn't have real sit out verandas.  But the layout of 500 and 501 is great, with plenty of room, but would definitely NOT pay the premium for either of these suites.

But the real issue with either of these pricey suites is that they are subject to extreme noise anytime there's any activity by the crew down in the anchor/chain area directly below and in front of the cabin.  Even at anchor, as the ship sways on the anchor, the sound of the anchor chain grinding on the ships opening for the anchor is really annoying and should be corrected in some fashion.    I had politely complained about this issue three times (at the reception desk), and each time the person there said that someone would get back to us to discuss.  No one ever did.  Upon disembarkation, I politely asked that a Windstar representative contact me, and no one has.  

I'm not interested in getting any discount or money back or anything, and I made that clear on each occasion, but merely wanted to let them know that something should be done relative to either the way the crew deploys and secures the anchor, or figuring a way to muffle that sound.  It really was a very loud "clang" every 20 seconds or so, anytime we were anchored.  

So, I believe the followup was poor, and I feel that I presented our concern appropriately.  No need to be a jerk when trying to resolve an issue. 

Food was OK, but really nothing to be excited about.  Not much consistency, and waiters were super helpful in trying to get the kitchen to do it right.  

I believe the overall experience of this cruise through French Polynesia was fantastic, due to the kindness of the local people, the excursions (many done on our own), and, of course, the beauty of the islands.  We would love to go back, but most likely will choose a different cruise line.  Perhaps Oceania or Silversea,

Average food, great crew, decent service but nothing outstanding

This was our first international trip since February 2020.  We had actually booked this cruise for November of 2020 but of course it was canceled and we were able to rebook for early December 2021.  We didn't feel we would be comfortable on a large cruise ship with 3600 plus passengers.  The Star Breeze has a capacity of 312 passengers.  Our cruise had 125 passengers so my wife and I felt very comfortable on this ship as social distancing was not a problem.  All passengers wore their masks while in doors, unless you were eating or drinking.  It was easy to social distance on the pool deck during large activities.  Enough talk about masks and social distancing.

We thoroughly enjoyed this cruise.  The staff was so nice and always helpful.  Our location was the Tahitian islands so we were in paradise.  The food was excellent and there was a nice variety.  There were several speciality restaurants on board that required reservations.  Our cabin was spacious and very well maintained by our cabinet steward.  The entertainment venues were small but they were appropriately sized.  There is no casino, which was a nice for a change.  The entertainment was not quite what we are used to but the performers were all very talented and the musicians were excellent.  The ship offered a nice variety of excursions

In the aft section of the ship on deck 3 there is a very nice marine activity section.  You can swim right off the stern of the ship.  There is a trampoline, kayaks and other things to do in the water.  

Overall this was a very nice way to re-enter the world of cruising.  I would go on another Windstar cruise.

Easing ourselves back into cruising

After being trapped inside for months, like everyone else, we tried to visit anywhere we’d be accepted! We’d had so many trips canceled we were pleased to go anywhere! Tahiti it was! 

We booked back to back cruises so after visiting the Tuamotus we circled French Polynesia twice! What we missed the first time because we were on different excursions, we got to see the second time around. It was 19 days of pure heaven! 

We were the first ship back to the islands since the Pandemic closed them down and the people were so excited to see us they made us feel like family! 

There were only about 110 passengers on this ship that usually sails with over 300 so the ship was nearly empty and we had  more crew than passengers!

Excursions:

Fakarava and Rangiroa were gorgeous and the water crystal clear! The snorkeling was fantastic at both atolls! Great excursions!

We snorkeled with sting rays and sharks twice on Bora Bora and each time was excellent and the boat crews outstanding! Again crystal clear water, beautiful Coral heads and tons of tropical fish.

The Motu picnic in the shallow water was super fun, too!

We had an excursion every day and each one was excellent! No complaints here! We met every morning in the big lounge and we’re given waters and towels.

Stateroom: 

Excellent! We had French-style balcony suite so the only deck was about a foot wide but since we were usually too busy to have enjoyed anything else we were fine.

We were in the newly added section of the ship and everything was new and shiny! We’d been on this ship when it belonged to Seabourn and it was about the same with some updates and a good refurbishing. 

Service:

OMG! This was the best service Ever! The crew and staff were outstanding in every way! 

Our two cabin stewards were fun and super friendly and took care of our every

Food:

Well, all I can say is that we were beyond pleased with every meal we had! Since some of our excursions were early, long and tiring we had room service for breakfast almost every day and all I can say is No complaints! We got exactly what we wanted and the service was outstanding! 

We went to the Yacht Club as often as we could and the baristas knew our coffee choices and had it started as soon as we walked in! They somehow always know your name and greet you with a huge smile.

Windstar puts on the most fun, included BBQ evenings on a private Motu that were the highlight of our cruise! We got to go to two night BBQ’s (with Polynesian dancers as entertainment) and one daytime BBQ and all three were excellent! Great food! They also put on a great deck BBQ with wonderful food and fun entertainment. Very nice!

We only had a couple meals in the main dining room and they were excellent. 

We aren’t big drinkers so we didn’t buy the drinks pkg. but the wine and drinks were very good!

Embarkation and Debarkation:

Well organized and fairly easy considering we all had to be tested prior to boarding. They greeted us so warmly we knew it would be a great cruise and it was! Don’t wait to try Windstar!

Trip of a lifetime!

We've previously cruised only on larger ships (Princess, RC and Celebrity) and we were really interested in trying out the small ship experience.  Since the destination (Tahiti) was the highest priority to us, we placed a much lower priority on evening entertainment, the pool "scene" and the casino.  We went into this cruise expecting that we might find the evening a bit too low-key for us and while evenings were relatively quiet, everything else that we experienced with Windstar MORE THAN made up for that.  And besides, we were so beat from full days of activities that it was really nice (and relaxing) to listen to the live bands in the evening, after dinner, and then call it a night by 10:30.

Our room - We were on the 6th floor in an oceanview suite and were initially concerned that we might miss having a balcony.  However, since the ship is smaller, it was no effort to quickly/easily get to the outdoors so we really did not miss it at all.  We were delighted with the bathroom (a full sized shower and a double-sink vanity) and we were also quite pleased to find a walk-in closet.  The room had been recently refurbished and it really was tastefully done, very comfortable, and quite roomy.  We'd give our room a 10/10.

Food - the best that we've had. In addition to the buffet items for breakfast & lunch, items can also be ordered off of a menu and room service is available all day.  We thought the variety at dinner was quite good and we really appreciated the fact that we could show up for dinner at any time within a 2 hour time window.  How wonderful to have that flexibility and how relaxing to NEVER have to worry about waiting in line!  Amphora (main dining room) was lovely, food was very good, and service was superb.  Candles (specialty dining at no extra charge) was wonderful from all aspects.  Two beach bbqs (one in the day, one in the evening) were great as well.

Bar/Drinks- We decided to purchase the "all-in" package because even though we knew that we might not "break even", it was really nice to simply order drinks wherever and not worry about it.  It was also really nice to just pull a coke, ginger ale or beer out of the mini fridge and not think twice about it (and it was refreshed every day).  Every single bartender on board was fantastic and the service was incredibly quick.  The team was always on stand-by ready to take an order (whether we were out on the pool deck, at lunch or dinner, at the beach bbq, everywhere). Even the beverage manager was visible every single day.

Service Overall - the crew on the Star Breeze exceeded my expectations in every way.  Room attendants were great, the dining team in all venues were terrific, and even the individuals running the tenders, the water platform staff, the musicians, the security team, the specialty coffee baristas, and housekeeping staff were so friendly and helpful.  

Excursions - typically, we've booked excursions through 3rd parties because we've found ship excursions to be expensive and crowded.  In this case, we booked 2 excursions and they were great.  The group was kept small, the guides were terrific and we were really appreciative that the destination team was so hands-on.  Prior to leaving the ship, water bottles and towels were provided.  

I've read through these boards through the years and people can get a little hung up on the officers, who's who, who's visible, etc.  I've never really cared about it, however, during the week we had conversations with several officers simply because we were walking down the hall and they stopped to talk with us.  When does that happen?  It was obvious that they really care about their guests' experience. We also loved the fact that we were able to check out the bridge and spend about 15 mins with the 3rd officer.

Finally, a comment about the nickel & diming that we, too often, have experienced on other lines.  It doesn't exist on Windstar.  Here are just a few items that are provided with NO additional fee:

Tour of the bridge

Bottled water

Specialty coffee bar (lattes, expresso, cappuccino, etc)

Use of steam room, sauna, relaxation room and heated loungers in the spa

Fitness classes

Specialty dining

Use of snorkeling gear (you sign it out for the week), kayaks, water trampoline

24 hour room service

So yes, Windstar is more expensive than the larger cruise lines and no, there isn't a casino, poolside antics, and an onsite nightclub, but Windstar is now the cruise line for us, even if it means we have to cruise less frequently.  The food, service, and so many extra special touches really struck the right chord for us.  Did I mention how much we loved walking down to the 3rd floor to use the water platform?!

Hats off to the Star Breeze crew and many thanks for an outstanding cruise from EVERY aspect.

First time on Windstar and it was fantastic!

We decided to try a different cruise line as our favorite has been Celebrity.  We have sailed Carnival, Norwegian, Princess, Royal Caribbean, and Celebrity in the past.  Since we had never been to French Polynesia, we chose Windstar and wanted to try out the Star Breeze which had just undergone expansion and refurbishment.  Of course due to Covid, we had 2 cancellations before going on the 10/28/21 sailing.  We had also had 2 flights with Air France cancelled which made us have to shuffle to change our flights for our sailing.  First of all, the Star Breeze is a beautiful ship with large cabins.  We had a Oceanview cabin with large picture window which was wonderful.  The bathrooms are also large with double sinks and large shower.  The best part of the cruise was the staff as they are all so friendly and welcoming.  I never heard an official number of passengers on the ship but it was rumored to be about ⅓ full at approx. 100 passengers.  This made for a wonderful feel of not being crowded.  We looked forward to trying the food which we had heard was one of Windstar's assets.  For the most part, the food was very good.  Due to the ship being ⅓ full, I suspect that variety of food offered was lowered.  There were limited meal hours offered on the ship plus room service.  Our biggest disappointment was the last night of our cruise.  We had waited until midway through cruise to make a reservation for one of their alternative restaurant, Candles so the only day still available was the last night of the cruise.  Candles was supposed to be about steak and was on the after veranda of the ship.  I had the filet which was somewhat rubbery and had absolutely no flavor at all.  My husband felt the same way about his filet.  The creme brûlée was only so-so.  I had previous creme brûlées on the ship that were wonderful.  The main dining room was serving lobster and grand mariner souflee that we had to miss because of our Candles reservation.  We considered going to the dining room after Candles to try the food that night but did not.  For breakfast, we usually ate at the Veranda and my husband would have the custom made omelets and I usually had pancakes that were good and a Belgian waffle which was also good.  The orange juice tasted fresh squeezed and we enjoyed it.  Many of the desserts in the buffet were very good and a bigger selection than in the dining room.  The main dining room is very beautiful.  We were able to eat just the 2 of us the entire cruise.  We are early to be people so didn't see the shows they offered usually at 9:30pm .  The Bora Bora dinner on a private island was great and the Polynesian show including the fire twirlers was excellent.  We went with many of the Windstar shore excursions that were very good.  Communication could be improved as we were always confused on what deck to go to get off the ship and when what time gangway was opened if you were going off independently.  They also didn't offer water at the gangway which was an inconvenience when leaving independently.  There were towels but no water.  The shore excursions met in the lounge which is where they got their water.  To sum it all up, we were very happy with our Windstar experience.  It was too bad that our last night of dining was so disappointing.  The staff is wonderful. I would give the rating a 4+. If you are looking for big time entertainment shows, this is not the ship for you.  Also, did not see any children which may be the result of the vaccine requirement.  We liked the laid back experience of the ship as we are seniors and no longer require the go-go atmosphere that we once did.  We still may go back to Celebrity for the variety of food but also may also try Windstar again. The decision will most likely be made by the itinerary of the ship.

Our First Windstar Experience on the Lovely Star Breeze

Filters

1-10 of 123