Touring the NCL Star
Once we finally left our bags in our room, we headed to the top of the ship where we started a tour of the NCL Star. Up at the top are the sports courts, jogging track, bier garden and private suites. Deck 12 is the pool deck, which seems to be a favorite among guests as there were already quite a few people up there. The Market Cafe, the buffet on this ship is also located on this deck. This has to be the ugliest buffet that I have seen yet. Rather than looking like a pleasant space to enjoy a meal, the room is set up like a high school cafeteria with all the charm of an institutional dining area. The tables are lined up in rows. The only advantage of this is that it is easy to see the overloaded plates of many of the diners. Personally, I am not a big buffet fan because I hate watching the people who obviously haven´t seen food for years and need to compensate for not having eaten for the past few hours.
The gym, spa and kids´ club are all on this deck. The gym is not large, but does have a separate room for classes like yoga and spinning. The spa has a very nice area available for an additional fee of $10 per day or $85 for the cruise. I was surprised to hear that booking treatments does not give a free pass to this area, which I thought I remembered as a perk for booking a treatment. Perhaps I am thinking of a differnet cruiseline that does this.
Deck 9 has the internet cafe just above the atrium. The area is quite pleasant and quiet. The usual cost of internet access is 75 cents per minute although specials are run throughout the cruise. We usually go to onshore internet cafes where the prevailing Mexican rate is $1 per hour. According to the future cruise consultant, access to the NCL website is free.
Located on Deck 8 are staterooms and Endless Summer restaurant and bar. Restaurant reservations for all restaurants are made in Endless Summer. This is an open area that overlooks the Atrium.
Stay tuned for the rest of the tour.
Sail Away
