My wife and I have taken 30 cruises in 7 years. 25 on NCL. This was our first time on the Star, and will be the last on this ship.We are not snobs, nor wealthy expecting extravagant meals or entertainment so our comments will reflect those issues that the Star gets a failing grade. We normally are very easy to please so this is my first complaint about a cruise.

The offers this fall gave a choice of freebies, one of which was "free booze". That created a significant amount of loud, annoying and drunken behavior. We are all okay with enjoying drinks, but to get hammered from 9AM until late into the night was ridiculous.

We took advantage of the 4 free meals which with the 2 we get as Platinum members meant 6 nights in the specialty restaurants. Overbooked, the reservations made were beyond 30-50 minutes late. Service was slow, not because of the the servers, but getting the meals from the kitchen created the problem. The food once served was excellent and surprisingly at the appropriate temperature. However, meals were taking upwards of 2 hours for completion. The overall crew was not overly friendly compared to other NCL ships where they were wonderful. NCL has decided to add $7.95 for room service, with the exception of a Continental breakfast. That is pure "nickel and diming". Our cabin steward though efficient, never introduced himself or said hello for 7 days!. The beds were like sleeping on concrete, and when we requested a foam "eggcrate" it was about 1/2 inch thick. The comedian was terrible and received only a few polite laughs. Casino was like a smokers paradise, with a choking haze. Disembarkation was very disorganized and took longer than the larger ships which have twice the passengers. Read more