Norwegian Star Review
NCL Star - NYE Cruise - Mexican Riviera - Incredibly Disappointing
Rating by category
Additional details
My husband and I sailed the Norwegian Star on 12/28/2014 for the 7 Day New Year's Eve Cruise to the Mexican Riviera. We're both in our mid 40's and traveled without family or children.
Let me preface this review by stating that we are avid cruisers, having cruised many times over the last ten years. Recently, we've been sailing exclusively with Norwegian cruise lines and this was our 6th cruise with them. We often sail holiday cruises, particularly New Year's cruises, and this was not our first time on The Star. That should give you some insight into who is writing this review :)
The ship is in reasonably good condition and clean. Some public areas do show wear and tear but it's nothing significant or off putting, just signs of an older ship (she's about 14 this year). For cruisers accustomed to the larger ships of late, The Star will feel small and lacking in amenities.
Cabin Review
Family Balcony
Our Balcony Stateroom was perhaps the WORST part of the trip. We booked a mid ship balcony which are on decks 9, 10 and 11. The website shows that they are 203 to 220 sq. ft. with balconies that are 37 to 54 sq. ft. Close to our sailing we were "upgraded" to a Family Balcony on Deck 8. The room they put us in was at the front of the ship directly above the theater. I called NCL many times to change our room and complain about the location, noise, etc and they would not change the room saying it was an upgrade, it had a larger balcony, the ship was fully booked, etc. We attempted again at the pier but with no luck. Not only was our room small, but the balcony was enclosed around the perimeter by the ships hull since we were so close to the front of the ship (this prevents water spray from coming on deck, mostly). This inhibited our view, created a tin can noise effect and negated the lovely experience of having a balcony. Horrible.