The Jewel was just refurbished in 2018 and is still very new looking. At 2350 capacity she is my size. The seating in the common areas was clean and comfortable. I had a ocean view with 2 persons and it was OK. Beds were new and we had enough space. Entertainment is always a mystery to me. They only play for 45 min and sometimes at really odd times. We ate mostly in the main dinning room and the ...
Cruise number 14 for us. Panama Canal passage on the list of " must do ". The price seemed very reasonable, although with Norweigan the extras add up like one of those $29 airfares that actually costs $229 when you pay for all the necessary extas.
We had put in a "bid" for an upgrade that works like an auction over about a week period. Day before cruise received an email stating that our bid ...
We arrived early into Panama City airport, and the transport started with an impromptu tour of Panama City and a pit stop for breakfast as we couldn't arrive in Colon before 11. The ride to Colon was purely functional, and we didn't view much that was photo worthy. Embarkation felt like sort of a mess in Colon, and it was a relief to finally get on the ship.
My bucket list included full ...
Insane-level service by bar waitresses; surprisingly good but limited entertainment (nothing going on in the day); average food, even in the pay restaurants, but no bad meals; some of the worst shore excursions I've ever been on; one of the easiest embarkations ever and the easiest debark in more than 10 cruises (I literally walked off the ship, no line, and was on the street in San Diego in ...
We were looking for a small ship and Wind Star seemed the best choice. We don't care for the mega ships. Star Pride cabins are suites nearly 400 as ft with living area, walk in closet, bathtub mini bar. Lovely lounges are spacious. Entertainment is live music and port talks, a few receptions. Crowd is mellow. No kids. Long days in port with easy on and off as there are only 200 passengers. ...
We were excited about this cruise, having been on a cruise on the Royal Clipper several years ago and expecting it to be a similar experience. We were disappointed that it wasn't.
Prior to the cruise the admin left a lot to be desired as we didn't get any final documentation until a few days before we left despite having paid in full when we booked. Although loyal Windstar cruisers on CC ...
Whichever direction your cruise is traveling through the canal, you will be flying into or out of the Pacific Ocean end of the canal, Panama City. Since we were going towards the Pacific, our Embarcation was in Colon, about 1 ½ hours from Panama City.
Windstar notified us a couple of weeks in advance that they needed to do some maintenance just before our boarding, so the Embarkation would be ...
My husband and I are in our 60s and have traveled around the world creating our own itineraries and arranging our own transportation. We never thought cruising was for us but in the last few years we have sampled several medium to large ships with friends (Royal Caribbean, Princess, Carnival). The Panama Canal transit with WindStar seemed a pleasant way to experience a small ship ...
I love Windstar’s small-boat (148 passengers) approach to cruising, but I found this particular boat, their flagship, to be lacking and I was also dismayed by several avoidable missteps by the ship’s management.
The destinations are a wonderful experience. The Panama Canal, Panama City and Costa Rica in January are absolutely must-do experiences. The destinations are 5+.
Windstar (really ...
We chose Ponant for this trip because we were looking for a more intimate cruise experience. We have been on large cruise ships (3000+ passengers) and felt it was time for a more refined trip.
One of the best things about being on a smaller ship is that the embarkation and disemarkation process. All of the crew members were courteous and professional. Also, there was rarely ever a line. Once ...