Norwegian Star Review

4.0 / 5.0
2,583 reviews

Great crew, poorly maintained ship, 3-star company

Review for Australia & New Zealand Cruise on Norwegian Star
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Tu4shore
6-10 Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Feb 2017

The Star has a lot to like: the hotel staff including the cruise director, restaurant and passenger service are outstanding and the entertainment is excellent. Unfortunately, despite a great crew the ship and company get three stars from me because it shows signs of being poorly maintained and the company (the crew does better) is extremely poor about communicating with passengers, making appropriate decisions or prioritizing maintenance.

We sailed on the Star from Hong Kong from 16 Jan to Auckland 6 Feb 2017, a combination of two cruises. The ship encountered single Azipod failure (on of two main propulsion units) December 10, 2016, which were not solved and resulting in canceling two ports in the Hong Kong to Sydney portion of our cruise. We were never notified of this cancelation despite company claims to the contrary. Further, we talked with people who were sold excursions to the canceled ports just a few days before the cruise. No one was given the opportunity to cancel for refund, despite this significant change more than a month before scheduled departure. The company offered total compensation of $200 per cabin on board credit for the lost ports, period. (Ports were canceled because the ship cruised more slowly in a single Azipod)

The crew thought they had repaired the one Azipod during an overnight in Singapore but the opposite Azipod failed between Singapore and Bali. This resulted in canceling three more ports in the cruise to Sydney and two more ports, and also deleting the cruise in Milford Sound in the Sydney to Auckland portion. The company increased their offer for the first segment to $500 total for the five missed ports, sparking a near riot. The company ultimately increased their offer to $1000 plus 100% future cruise credit, which seemed to satisfy most passengers.

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