Cruising Ireland: NCL Star

You can read about our Pre & Post-Cruise here ß

The atrium on the NCL Star is the highlight of this ship.  It is beautiful.

 

The Highs:

There is something nice about smaller cruise ships.  I enjoy how easy it is to get to all amenities by taking the stairs.  It takes only one time taking the stairs from deck 7 to deck 14 on a big ship, to appreciate smaller ships. 

 

We were able to collect on our platinum benefit of a behind the scenes tour (no photos).  This tour did not include the bridge, which would have been awesome to see.  We started at the theater where we learned about how and where they source their main production shows and their rotating entertainment acts, how the contracts work, and what life on cruise ship is like these staff members.  The production supervisor took us down the employee stairwell to the dressing room so we could see all the costumes.  It was a very time room for so much production crew.  Our next stop, accessing the stairs and I95, the main corridor that employees use, we walked through the kitchen galley and then saw the laundry.  After we spotted them making a delicious looking sandwich, we headed to the buffet for lunch which made it extra special.

 

After seeing behind the scenes, it once again brings home the point of how hard employees in the cruise industry work to ensure vacationers are happy, well fed, thoroughly intoxicated, and have clean linens and towels.  What a massive machine floating on the water.  This is a fantastic perk that we look forward to redeeming on future cruise ships.

We did just fine in an inside room.  We have not sailed an inside room since our first cruise on NCL Pearl to Alaska.  This was our test to see if we could start cruising at a lower cost and I think we passed the test.  The only thing I missed was not being able to see the water and/or pop out and be on the balcony anytime.  We kept the bow camera on when in the room and apart from being unable to get to outside decks (more on that below), I was still able to wonder and not feel stuck in the room.  I think I also slept better too!

 

We always love our Cagney’s dinner and this cruise we tried Le Bistro and La Cucina.  We won’t be back to Le Bistro as this type of fine dining doesn’t appeal to us, but we enjoyed La Cucina and we will dine there again.

 

I loved my morning baristas at the Atrium Starbucks.  They were a highlight of this trip along with a few of the service staff.  We had met a waiter named Fabian who stood out to me.  I spotted him again in the buffet and he let us know which restaurant he would be later that night so we could request to sit in his section.  There was some confusion on making this happen but we it was nice to see his smiling face throughout the remainder of the cruise.  I also enjoyed the friendly bar staff.

 

The Lows:

A smaller ship meant less seating in the public areas and with the weather that impacted our route, the ship felt overcrowded.  The outside decks were closed a good majority of the time and the inside areas packed.  It was hard to find a place to sit at breakfast and lunch and with so little indoor space, we felt the impact of the closures.  It also meant we were not able to see the Northern Lights (weather dependent) because you could not get out to any outer deck away from light.  This is the one time having a balcony would have benefited us. 

 

NCL really dropped the ball this vacation when it came to managing the tender ports.  Our one tender port stop had long delays to exit the ship and a long wait time to get back on.  Also, the meeting point for excursions was unorganized.  Sometimes this happens on vacation, and you must make the best of it.  I tell ya, when waiting in line to board the tender for 1 hour and 20 minutes, I sure wished I’d bought that bottle of Irish whiskey at the port. 

 

Entertainment and things to do on small ships is always lacking.  We didn’t take in many shows and there were not comedians on this sailing.  Having such a fun group of friends make it just fine skipping the entertainment and we really loved the band, Exell.  They were great and most nights we listened to them sing. 

 

Some High & Some Low:

The bars on this ship were just so-so.  Sugarcane Mojito Bar was a small section inside a specialty dining area, so the best seating was at 5pm where I was first in line so I could grab a spot.

 

I enjoyed the selection of beer on this cruise which I am no sure if it was our sailing in Europe or I just didn’t know where to find it.  NCL is not typically known for their beer selection so I’m eager to see what our next cruise holds.  We stopped into the Proof Whiskey Bar often and I enjoyed many sidecar drinks in the Bliss Lounge by evening.  I mean, I can usually find a drink when alcohol is involved!

 

I would sail NCL Star again and am looking forward to getting on a bigger ship again in the future.