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Windstar Cruises

Wind Surf

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Reviewed by: Sally Hayes
# previous cruises: 10+
Date of Trip: March 25, 2000
Itinerary: Caribbean - Eastern

This is a review of Windstar's Windsurf . The cruise was taken back to back to the Millennium cruise for which I recently wrote a report. After disembarking the Millennium in Ft. Lauderdale on Jan 21, 2001 we flew from Miami to Barbados that same day and boarded the Windsurf for 7 days of ultimate pleasure.

We arrived at the Barbados airport from Miami on time. Because we didn't have transfers to the ship we took a cab and arrived at the passenger terminal at 6:50 pm. Since taxicabs are not permitted on the pier it required another transfer of luggage, etc to a shuttle van that carried us the last couple of blocks to the ship. At this point we were confronted with the prospect of climbing a very long & steep gangway to the Main deck even though there was another short, nearly level gangway entering Deck #2 positioned next to the main gangway. After completing the long climb to get on, we were welcomed aboard by the Captain. We were then escorted to the large Windsurf lounge where we were handed a rum punch and a sheaf of papers which we were instructed to fill out before proceeding to the check in desk . After finishing with the check in we were instructed to go to the bar to have our credit cards entered into the ship's computer. Finally, after all of this nonsense we were escorted to our room!. . . . . At this point I have several observations and questions regarding the embarkation procedures. I know recently, when the ship was in dry-dock new gangway entrances were installed so that the steep gangway would no longer be required. Even though this new gangway was installed, it wasn't used. Why was all this paperwork required at the last minute after boarding. If there is a need for all of these forms then send them to the passenger with the other cruise documents. Two of these forms were "Hold Harmless" agreements for my wife and I, if we participated in any of the diving or watersports. Since we had no intention of indulging in these activities, why were we required to complete them? Credit card information should be taken at the Front Desk anytime during the cruise, as is done on the rest of HAL's fleet. Why is all of the embarkation check in done on board when there is a passenger terminal located at this port? The answers to many of the above questions seem obvious . . . . it is easier for the crew!. . . . . . . What about the guests? Shouldn't their ease and comfort be paramount?

While walking around the ship that first night, after boarding, everything looked beautiful. However in the bright sun, the next morning and as the week progressed more and more areas show they need a little more TLC than they are presently receiving. Generally, a number of areas need repainting or touching up. . A broken table was left on the deck the entire cruise. . The varnish is nearly worn off the wood surrounding the main pool on Star Deck, it badly needs to be re-done.

As with most ships, the interior of this vessel is mostly being spotlessly maintained. An exception to this is the interior of the elevators. Sadly the inside walls of the elevators are covered with a fabric wall covering which is covered with stains, grease marks, etc. In the Windsurf Lounge many of the glass or plastic top cocktail tables have glass marks on them. Throughout the ship one can see HAL's influence in the beautiful floral arrangements and greenery. They were outstanding and received much favorable comment from the guests.

The Restaurant: The Restaurant is a nicely decorated room that presents wonderful food . The menus used during this cruise were diversified and well thought out, with something for everyone. The food presentation & preparation was excellent. The laid back atmosphere of this ship sneaks into the dining room, where without really noticing the guest is finding every meal an adventure in indulgence.

The Bistro: This is a secondary restaurant to the main dining room, located on the Star deck. Although reservations are required to eat here each night, I found the menu, service & ambiance no different than the main dining room. If anything, this room is less formal in decor than the dining room. In any case the food served here is splendid.

The Veranda Cafe: The decor of the room is cool and relaxing for those who wish to dine inside, as well as, being warm and tropical for those wishing to eat outside. The quality of food in this partially self service restaurant, used for breakfast & lunch, is far ahead of this same type cafe on most ships. Although Seabourn uses a very similar arrangement on its small ships this cafe is every bit as good. At breakfast, the fresh fruit display was splendid. with an ever changing display of fresh fruits, melons & berries. The only negative I experienced here was the bacon. It is the same thin, tasteless variety HAL has been using the past year, because it is so thin it is either overcooked and dry or undercooked & greasy. Lunch here is a pleasure with the option of eating all, or part of the meal from the buffet or grill or ordering from your waiter that day's specials from the kitchen. This facility is not large and requires many of its guests to sit outside on the deck, uncovered from the sun, or wait for a table to become available inside.

Buffets: There are no late night buffets on this ship. One night for dinner, a large Caribbean themed dinner buffet was set up in the foyer of the Main deck utilizing the Windsurf Lounge and surrounding areas to dine. This buffet was well done, obviously requiring many hours of preparation, it was enjoyed greatly by the guests.

Bakery: The breads produced by this bakery were excellent. I don't know how many of the desserts were made on board versus commercially purchased, however whatever their origin they were all excellent. The traditional HAL bread pudding, offered each day at lunch was a huge success.

The bar prices here are slightly higher than those I paid late last summer on the Maasdam. The dining room wine list is surprising complete for a ship this small. In addition, there was always plenty of Wine Stewards available in both of the restaurants, as well as, the Veranda at lunch. The Filipino bar staff is very friendly and competent.

The dining room service was excellent. The same dining room stewards that work the Restaurant & Bistro at night work the Veranda for breakfast & lunch. The Indonesian staff is more reserved than the bar staff, however the service they provide is wonderful.

As I mentioned earlier in this report the Veranda Cafe is somewhat small & requires the use of a number of tables outside on the deck. Most of these tables are unprotected from the sun & because of this many guests find them unsuitable for dining. Since this restaurant is adjacent to the Bistro I strongly recommend part of the Bistro be used as an overflow area for the Veranda all of the time, rather than only using it when weather precludes the use of the outside tables. The service in this restaurant is outstanding. Stewards never leave an unoccupied table with dirty dishes on it . Every table is immediately bussed as soon as it is vacated. The Maitre 'd and his assistant are always on the floor insuring the flow through this restaurant is smooth.

Bars & Lounges: This is as friendly a group of service personnel as I have ever seen on a ship. In addition to being delightful, they are knowledgeable, entertaining, and helpful while providing excellent service. However, as nice as they are, they have the bad habit of speaking their native language while conversing with each other in front of passengers.

The stateroom on Deck #2 was nice. Although there was not a designated seating area. There was room enough to move the two chairs around to watch the TV without one of us sitting on the bed. The rooms are well equipped with VCR, CD player, mini-bar and refrigerator. The closet space was small, but adequate, the storage space was fine, except all drawers were very difficult to open. The bathroom was very small, however it had an unusually large amount of storage space. The lighting around the mirror was very poor. It was difficult to shave and impossible for my wife to use for makeup. The lighting controls were quite different than I've seen before. Since no one showed us where they were when we arrived in the room, I had to call the Front Desk before retiring the first night to ask how to turn off the reading lights. Finally, The bed was made up as a queen size bed. The dust ruffle around the bed was not pressed, in fact it was so wrinkled it looked like a rag .

We did not meet our room steward until the second day of the trip. As I stated earlier we had a problem finding light switches on the first night. Prior to meeting him on the second day we had a life boat drill. I hadn't a clue where the life jackets were stowed. After checking all the normal stowage places I was again about to call the Front Office when I noticed a couple of small decals depicting life jackets near the ceiling against one wall of the room. I had finally discovered their hiding place! During the entire trip the room was kept spotless & was cleaned every day by 1100am. There was fruit in our room, however, it never was refreshed. By the end of the cruise the grapes had shriveled to large raisins.

I didn't have a lot of contact with these personnel. What few questions I directed at them were answered promptly and courteously.

There is no Cruise Director on this ship. Instead there was a Host, Bruce, And a Hostess, Kim. Since there are no formal activities These two handled all passenger information, printed the daily schedule, shore excursions, etc. In addition, there was a staff of four who ran the water sports program

The two musical groups on board were excellent, the quartet, Rain, played nightly in the Windsurf Lounge. The duo "Mr. Jones & Me" played in the Compass Rose.

Because of the small size of the ship no formal briefings for excursions was held. A booklet describing each of the excursions was placed in your room. They were generally discussed on the welcome aboard video. However, any specific questions could be directed to the Shore Excursion desk during the hours it was manned.

Windstar is doing a fine job filling a niche in the small ship luxury cruise category. Although nothing is fancy about this ship except its magnificent sails, it still radiates laid back comfort and a relaxed atmosphere that I've not seen on any other vessel. For seasoned cruisers this is the ultimate in sublime rest & relaxation. Although, I mentioned some small areas needing attention, they can be corrected with very little effort.

After the embarkation circus at the start of the cruise, everything was wonderful. Windstar has developed a product that many other companies would like to emulate. At the end of this cruise I have never seen more contented passengers. The only ones that were unhappy were those that envied the lucky passengers who were doing back to back cruises and had another week of heavenly relaxation ahead of them.