12 Nights Europe: France, England & Norway Cruise

All around good cruise

The Star may be one of the older ships in the fleet, but she is in good condition overall. We were in suite on the aft of the ship, our cabin was neat and clean. The cruise was during the summer in Argentina, so we had lots of SA families onboard along with many other nationalities. We missed the first three sea days due to airline delays but met up with the ship in Ushuaia so really can't rate embarkment, disembarkment was a breeze as we had a tour and were one of the first ones off the ship and our luggage was all lined up for us. The buffet area was always crowded with people both eating as well as just sitting, the MDR and O'Sheehan's was empty. Card and game players were encouraged to go to Ginza to play. We ate mostly in the MDR and O'Sheehan's as well as using our dining credits for Cagneys and LaCuchina. Missing Punta Arenas and the Chilian Fjords was too bad but we knew it before we left, missing Elephant Island was unexpected but probably a good call by the captain to avoid a major storm. We still got to spend a day in Paradise Bay. We had several college professors who gave daily talks on Antarctica, from history, exploration to ice types and climate change. These talks were very informative and really added to the experience. They were also on the bridge and other places around the ship during Paradise Bay and were pointing out the various features and creatures. All of the tours we arranged through NCL were very good as we saw penguins (a major point for the cruise) as well as seeing cities, great tango dancing, a century old winery, a gaucho show and BBQ, and a ranch growing olives, raising sheep, and becoming a B&B. Missing the first three days we missed at least one main show but were able to see one Tango show, an aerialist act, Paradiso, and the comedian. All were OK but we also found the music groups in the atrium and bars more to our liking - acts like a one man band, a guitarist/vocalist, and a violin group called vstrings. We did hear from both the captain and the cruise director on a daily basis. The new format of the Daily takes some getting used to especially for our aging eyes - they are using a finer print and one sheet of legal paper in landscape format. A nice touch was certificates proving that we visited Antarctica. I think it is too bad that NCL appears to be pulling out of this market just as people in SA are just starting to cruise as a vacation. If at all possible I would like to see the cruise go to Punta Arenas and the Fjords even if it means adding extra days so they don't have to burn as much fuel. That said between our run across the Drake to avoid the storm and our medical emergency run to Puerto Madryn we burned more fuel that planned.

People and Ports made this vacation special...

Review of 14 day Cruise on NCL Star from Buenos Aires round trip to Ushuaia, Paradise Bay Antarctica, the Faulkland Islands, Puerto Madryn, and Montevideo - Jan. 5th 2025. For anyone considering this itinerary, don't hesitate. I will count it as one of the most memorable trips of my life - right up there with a cruise out of Venice to the Greek Isles. My understanding is that this ship won't be doing this itinerary for the foreseeable future after March of this year, and for the cruise and land portions of the trip, the people make the difference, and they really did on this trip for my wife and I. Buenos Aires is very similar to New York in the "vibe" of the city (good and bad) but i would be happy to go back. Our issue was, although our hotel was great in many ways, and close to many sights, the immediate area was not ideal. My wife had a (somewhat) valuable opal charm snatched off her neck as we walked through Plaza Levalle at dusk in front of Teatro Colon on the way to dinner (thankfully, she was not seriously hurt). Ironically we had been warned by a prior guide about this issue, but she had changed shirts and forgot. Next time, I would ensure a slightly better area for the hotel. Uber or Lyft is common and reliable. The food in Buenos Aires and the sights are amazing. I was privileged to see the "Grandmothers" protest that has occurred every Thursday for the last 50 years. Most amazing for us was a trip to a Gaucho ranch in San Antonio de Areco just over an hour outside the city. We enjoyed a trip to the museo dragi, a wonderful chocolate shop La Olla de Cobre to get some Alfajores (delicious local things that are a merge of cookies and candy) and we then went to the Ombú de Areco ranch for an Asado lunch (their term for barbecue) and we had ALL parts of that steer (tasted like it was killed days prior) - the intestines were FANTASTIC. The show they put on was great as well, and our guide introduced me to maté (pronounced "mah-tay") - an herb drink similar to a strong green tea - I'm now hooked! More highlights from Buenos Aires: The tango show at El Viejo Almacen was just as fantastic - especially the boleadoras used as a percussion instrument. Others were the Buenos Aires synagogue, the colorful neighborhood "La Boca", and The Recoleta cemetery was also amazing - I could spend another entire day there. As for the NCL Star itself, if food is your focus, i'd rate it "good" to " very good" in the free dining venues, and really good in most of the specialty venues. I happened to discover "congee" for breakfast on this cruise. I’m not sure if this particular ship did it well, or it normally tasted this way on any ship, but if you like unusual and savory breakfasts, seek it out on the buffet. It tastes like chicken and rice soup reduced down to the consistency of oatmeal - i added some chili oil and garlic and onions for some extra flavor. I remember a main dining Italian wedding soup that was quite good, and a split pea with ham that was too thin. The lunch buffet Pho station had great soup options too. Desserts were consistently good, like the Panna cotta and the chocolate orange mousse in the main dining room. I will point out that for this ship, Le Bistro was not as good as other venues - several other cruisers shared the same opinion. Specifically, the escargot had too much parsley and not enough garlic, the endive salad didn't have much dressing, and my poached pear dessert was frozen, so the usual warm chocolate sauce got cold quickly. If you are thinking about Ginza for a specialty dining outing, I say yes - you can get the sushi, which is delicious, the Chinese food more than satisfies a craving, and the desserts are some of the best on the ship - the five spice chocolate mousse must have changed recipes because its now really great, and the fried dessert spring rolls filled with lychee custard are really decadent. Ruelito in Ginza was a great waiter for us. If you like sushi, the sushi venue is one of the best for specialty dining - loved that tuna wonton volcano! La Cucina is in the running also for the best specialty venue on this ship - the steak I had and the Osso Bucco my wife had were great. Cagney’s is a close second - we ate there twice and my lamb chops may have been better than the steak I had the first night. But inconsistent sides were provided- we learned to stick to the truffle fries and creamed spinach. The entertainment was very good, with standouts being a tango show, the production show Paradis, their first production show (club theme - forgot the name), and the Broadway cabaret by the ship's singers and dancers ( who were great in all they did). My wife, though, thought the venue for the cabaret show was uncomfortable. Last night of the cruise had a comedian that was also really good. I believe they had one comedy magician that was OK. Ports were a memorable experience. Ushuaia had the Tierra del Fuego National Park, with some beautiful vistas at the "fin del mundo". Cruising through Paradise Bay in the Antarctic was beautiful - we saw amazing icebergs, whales, and penguins. The lectures and experts NCL provided for this area were very informative. Save your winter gear for the Falkland Islands (we were lucky to make it after missing Elephant Island) - seeing the penguins was beautiful but it actually felt colder on their beaches than when we cruised Antarctica! Puerto Madryn was also great - we saw sea lions from a vantage point above them, and we stopped at a Welsh village tea house, where we were serenaded by a choir and had the most amazing pastries I've ever had in my life! Montevideo is a laid back version of Buenos Aires and I would love to come back there. Tried South American style pizza there - really good (imagine the standard Pizza Hut crust, but not crisped up in an oiled pan - it's baked and the slices are kept fluffy and soft - with light sauce, lots of cheese and fresh herbs and toppings). Of course, the people make this ship's standout service the highlight, so i want to give a "thank you" to: Dewa, the bartender, and Alvin, a server at the casino bar. (Thanks for the introduction to the "Hot Toddy"). In fact Ybalto and the entire casino staff were always welcoming. You can get a great old-fashioned "made with passion" from Alexander in Proof. Thanks also to Lestron- a waiter in Gatsbys, Rico, a waiter in Versailles, our cabin steward Mirabel, Lorenzo the guitarist, Cherryl, a waiter in Gatsbys and elsewhere, Dani the assistant cruise director, and many many others! Spa pass was also definitely worth it to us (and I apologize to the people I disturbed as I snored on the hot stone benches). Time limits were actually enforced most of the time, so thanks to the spa manager as well. Other than some clogged toilets in the women's public bathrooms when disembarking, it was a very pleasant experience on the NCL Star, as their crew make an effort to make our vacation better. Buenos Aires cruise port terminal is a bit of a hot, chaotic mess, but I consider it a small price to pay - just look for the ladies with the "NCL" signs and follow them.

An excellent itinerary and a great cruise ship.

We arrived in Lisbon two days before the cruise using NCL's shuttle from the airport to our hotel, also booked through NCL, The Marriott. It is a very good hotel we were very pleased with our room and the food. The only downside was the long wait for room on arrival. If you have not been to Lisbon before you may find the Marriott a little out of the way of the old town. We had been before and since the Lisbon Zoo was a short walk from the hotel we spent a day at this excellent zoo. The shuttle to the ship was well organised as was embarkation. Our balcony cabin was very clean and very comfortable. We ate mostly in the MDR and found the food very good. We had five meals in speciality restaurants where we found the food to be excellent. Entertainment is good though there is a need for some new productions from the ships singers and dancers. We had seen both productions they performed before. The two British singers and violinist were excellent. Excursions were very good and lots of choice in most ports. The organisation prior to getting on the buses needs looking at. Excuses about buses being late because of traffic are not good enough and people blocking exits need to be made to move by security. We found the crew to be very helpful and provide excellent service. We miss the turndown service that used to happen on NCL ships. Public areas on the ship were always very clean and the ship never felt too crowded. Disembarkation was very easy and a shuttle tooks us directly to the airport. We thoroughly enjoyed our cruise on the Star and look forward to the next time. Highly recommended.