Cruisemas 2009

Overview:

A few years ago, we decided to start traveling for Christmas. The reasons for a departure from the traditions of the season are another story. This opportunity was a blessing and evidence that anything is possible. For all logistical purposes, we should have not been able to take a vacation this winter. Yet there we were on, floating on the sea while celebrating the Christmas holiday. What an amazing gift of experience.

I spent Christmas 2009 on the Norwegian Star- the Mexican Riviera was beautiful and warm this time of year. Although I dreaded the drive to LA, it was an easy ride from our home in Oregon. I had allowed us plenty of time to arrive before embarkation, given the potential of dangerous winter weather. My daughters, ages 10 and 16, slept for most of the ride as we elected to drive through the night, rather than approach major California cities along Interstate 5 during the rush of the weekday rush hours.

A Great Stay in LA

We arrived in Los Angeles at 9:00 am the day before embarkation and I was pleasantly surprised to find that we could check into our room early. The Doubletree San Pedro offered a “park and cruise” option that allowed us a nights stay and a week worth of parking for one rate. This also included 2 cocktails and 2 breakfast buffets during our stay. The hotel was beautifully situated on the marina, and offered the rest we needed after our long commute. Te girls and I took a little time in the pool to soak up the Southern California sunshine. The following morning after check-out, it took only a few minutes for the shuttle driver to load our luggage and drop us off at the port.

Some Frustration is Soon Forgotten

Embarkation at the Port of Los Angeles was poorly managed. We arrived at noon, and although moved quickly through the security terminal, we had a very long wait to check in. They divided passengers into separate lines, depending on the type of accommodations reserved. Although our daughters were staying in an inside stateroom, our balcony booking allowed us all into what appeared to be a shorter line. This proved very wrong, and we watched people get into the general boarding line and snake their way to the front in no time. Our slow line was ultimately combined with the “Lattitudes” line. Rather than sort us out at the front of the line for the next available agent for ALL passengers, there were only a few agents allowed to service the line. It was as though we were punished for spending more on our stateroom. I had the opportunity to discuss this with the assistant cruise director, Jeff, who was greeting people in line. Although he explained that the line agents are not employed by NCL, I would have hoped for less excuses and rationalization (my pet peeve). Like most uncomfortable situations, soon after we were onboard, the wait in the line was forgotten.

Our Space

Our balcony stateroom on deck 10 was very nice- plenty of shelving in the closet and bathroom, yet only a few drawers. Luckily I packed for freestyle cruising so I was able to fit all items away and the luggage easily fit under the beds. The bathroom was larger than expected, providing additional privacy for the toilet as needed. My husband laughed about the 13 inch television set. With no activities offered after midnight, a night-owl like him is limited to TV. On the positive side, they broadcast cartoon network. The balcony felt private and was a great investment for the time spent out there during the week ahead. I rarely saw our room attendants, yet their prompt and detailed attention to our stateroom was so helpful. My daughters had an inside room just down the hall. The space was tight, but efficient. I immediately cleared out the mini refrigerators and stocked them with the water and soda I had carried onboard.

The ship is very nice. I knew from research the Star is a bit older of the NCL ships, yet it is very well taken care of. I was a tiny bit disappointed not to see more Christmas décor, but they did a beautiful job in the main atrium. It took me a couple days to get my bearings onboard. It felt a bit like a labyrinth, yet at times I enjoyed getting ‘lost’ and discovering new places. We soon figured out it was better to cross the ship on our cabin deck before using the elevators to the more public areas. (For example, it was a real pain to cut through the buffet, looking for the Kids Club). I was impressed that smoking is not allowed anywhere inside other than the casino and cigar bar- which are very near to one another. Passengers are allowed to smoke in their cabins, yet I rarely smelled any cigarette smoke while onboard.

The food was great! Having cruised only RCI in the past, and reading some previous opinions of the quality (or not) of NCL food, I kept an open mind. We dined only at the main dining rooms for dinner, Versailles and Aqua. I thought the service was prompt/professional, the menu/presentation inventive and quality was more than satisfactory. For those who have compared the food to Applebees probably stuck to the cafes or played it safe on the ‘offered everyday’ side of the menu. We passed through a grabbed a bite at the buffet a few times, always taking our plates elsewhere as the dining tables were packed and noisy. Good selection and quality was usually better than average. Blue Lagoon offered 24 hour dining convenience, but the entrees were delivered to the table randomly (it was odd). Room service was fairly limited and lacked consistency.

The notable disappointment came with their failure to offer lemonade as a beverage option. To quote my DH “they will feed me prime rib or lobster, but not offer a glass of lemonade that probably costs them a nickel”. I saw very few people drinking soda in the main dining rooms.

‘Freestyle Cruising’ is awesome in some respects. Who would have guessed that we were ready for dinner every night by 5:30? I would have never assigned us to early dining if we were forced to choose during booking, yet we seemed to early every night. This also provided the option to my husband to go to dinner twice on the same night (seriously recovering from ‘cruise appetite’ at the moment). The laid back approach goes far beyond dining, as we felt our fellow cruisers were much more relaxed than we have seen on prior cruises. I was a bit disappointed that it was not more formal at dinner, yet appreciated the casual atmosphere. I understood that more formal venues were available through Specialty Dining for a fee per person. I can see where cruisers new to NCL feel disconnected with crew. Although they always had a smile and offered quality service, there was little opportunity to get to know any of them unless you made a conscious effort (asked for the same waiter, waited for room steward, frequent the same bar, etc). Nothing against the crew; I just think the concept limits these opportunities.

Entertainment in the Stardust was enjoyable. I am a bit spoiled with mostly Las Vegas show experiences to compare with, and a bit underwhelmed with the choreography and timing of the dancing; I thought the acrobats during the “Cirque”-like Show was very random. Their entrance on the stage appeared unplanned and costuming never complimented the acts in performance. Overall, considering this is a cruise troupe, it was entertaining. Although I wasn’t impressed with the Magician, the Mentalist was amazing and the Second City comedy team was very funny. I highly recommend arriving 30 minutes early for better seating- and watch out for broken seats that had been apparently occupied by very heavy people in the past- it was quite uncomfortable to stay supported when the lower part of the seat was sloped down towards the floor.

The pool was lovely but chilly in my opinion. My 10 year old daughter didn’t seem to mind until she realized it was salt water. She stayed busier with the kids club as they had a lot for her ‘tween’ group to do, and rarely lumped them with the younger children. My older daughter felt that most of the participating teens were closer to middle school in age, but managed to fairly quickly find a group of older kids that she spent time with occasionally during the week.

Looking for adult activities, I would review the Daily, and decide that a nap was the best option. The daytime activities were limited, unless you like to play bingo or attend seminars that ultimately lead to a sales pitch for product/service. The nightlife options were less than impressive. Unless you wanted to hang with the 18-20 year old crowd grinding to hip-hop at a deafening volume in the Spinnaker Lounge, there were no choices after midnight. I saw a few ‘1-man bands’ at the smaller pubs, yet often during show hours in the early evening and the family karaoke in the Carousel Lounge was fun, but not so much a place to relax with adults. We made the best of it, and spent many more hours on our balcony while sipping cocktails. (who says you never are in your room? People that don’t get balconies!)

The Ports

This was my first visit to any city in Mexico on the Pacific side. The water is lovely and a bit choppier than the Gulf. December was beautiful, with an average of 80 degrees and always sunny. Much of our first two days at sea provided a distant view of the shoreline.

As we approached Cabo, I was struck by the amazing architecture; it appeared as though many of the buildings were cut right into the side of the rock. It became obvious this area is famous for its sports fishing as what seemed like hundreds of vessels trolled along the coast line around us. Our patience was tested as groups of passengers tendered across the bay to a small dock. We spent our time waiting walking the promenade and laughing at the local birds descending into the water for lunch.

We located a flee market near the docks, full of local vendors. The bright and inspiring colors of Mexico sprinkled among housewares, clothing and a variety of souvineers. Although somewhat competitive, the vendors were not overly aggressive. We continued along the pier sidewalk and explored a few blocks back. A short snack at the Shrimp Shack was well deserved. Afterwards the girls played with the artwork and even had a chance to hold a 2 month old lion!

Our second stop was in Mazatlan. The cruise dock was not impressive as we were able to watch armed inspectors opening shipping cartons just yards from where we left the boat. An inexpensive taxi ride took us to El Cid resort, which is right on the beach and boasts the largest pool in the city. The beach was shallow yet provided the perfect water for boogy boarding and swimming.

I am unsure of whether I would visit Mazatlan again. The town seem very crowded and although some areas were recently renovated, the streets sprawled in confusing directions and were scattered with trash at times.

Puerto Vallarta proved one of the most beautiful sites of our vacation. We walked off the boat and within 15 minutes discovered Krystal Beach. The nh hotel was situated on the beach, allowing cruise passengers use of their gorgeous sand and pool area. My time on the lounger was spent soaking up the sun and moments intentionally impressed into memory.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day were spent at sea returning to the California coast. Talk about relaxing! I had expected a little more to do onboard, yet frankly the napping was completely appropriate. Our port side balcony provided the breathtaking sunset view I had dreamed about preparing for this trip. We exchanged small souvineers and ate more food than I dare to admit.

Time to Go Home!

Planning for disembarkation was confusing because I couldn’t figure out where to go to exit the boat. The printed information was helpful in deciding when to leave, but didn’t tell us where to go when ready. The channel promising information on a loop was not broadcasted as noted in the material, and I was a little worried that I had “missed” something. I realized that last morning they failed to tell us the day before to probably prevent passengers from lining up ahead of time. After they made an announcement around 8:15 am, it was fast! We decided to use the EXPRESS option which meant we walked off the boat with our luggage rather than tagging it, leaving it outside of our room the night before to then look for it the next day. We were picked up by the hotel, returned to our car and back on the road to Oregon by 9:00 am.

Overall, NCL provided a lovely holiday getaway for our family. Because I wanted to relax a lot in my cabin, this particular cruise suited me fine. I am not one to say ‘never’ but I am ‘unlikely’ to cruise with NCL again- a little TOO relaxed for my taste. I prefer more onboard activities and a bit more formal consistency without searching for the same server or adding daily dining fees to cost of the cruise. As infrequently as I cruise I will probably try out another line before coming back to NCL.