Norwegian Star Review
Excellent cruise because of companions - not the ship for sure.
Rating by category
Additional details
We went on this cruise because friends of ours invited us. We had been on Star before and - since we like the bigger cruise ships - do not like this layout of the bars and common areas too much. We refer to this class of ship as a small ship with illusions of grandeur because it tries to do everything big ships do but only dabble because the spaces are too small. Because we signed on late we had "sailaway" deal and so no choice of the usual five Norwegian freebies, which was annoying.
We have a big complaint about expanded size of smoking area for EUR cruise. 1/4 of pool area and also half of upper outdoor Sky High bar. Also, of course, the casino, but 1/2 of Spice H2O. There is an increased demand in Europe but those areas were underutilized. There is too much catering to smokers.
There were many complaints heard about things, especially luggage. This ship had been in dry dock and a large number of the crew changed. We encountered, several times, that we asked about a procedure and were given the wrong answer. Better to have said "I don't know".
Cabin Review
Mid-Ship Balcony
Seemed very spacious, especially the bathroom with the sink in the middle of the separated shower and toilet.
Port Reviews
Barcelona
Did two days touring Barca on our own before the cruise. Fabulous! Recommend the hop on hop off, note there are two different companies.
Florence (Livorno)
Very disappointed that the Cinque Terre was not available during our port stop. We - and others on the tour to Florence - were very disappointed that it did not include a stop at Pisa. We were certain that it did when we read the summary and booked it. Especially when we discovered that there was a "surprise" stop at a leather factory and store (sales job!) that no one was interested in which took an hour which we could have spent in Pisa.
Rome (Civitavecchia)
Booked a taxi at the pier that featured 7 stops. It was excellent and much cheaper than a ship's excursion
Naples
Booked a car at the pier to take us to Sorrento and a lunch overlooking the bay. Fabulous and much cheaper and intimate than a ship's excursion.
Santorini
Traveled to Oia and back to Fira on our own. Frustratingly long wait for the boat to go to Oia but worth it. Fabulous lunch in Fira overlooking the bay and then walked down to the port along with many overly friendly donkeys.