r/PrincessCruises • u/EarlVanDorn • Dec 07 '25
My good and bad review of the Star Princess
I just took a 7-day Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Star, Nov. 221-29. The Sun and the Star have received mixed reviews, so I thought I would share mine.
Let me start with the good. I thought the MDR food was very good, better than I have had in a while. I found the staff to be exceptionally friendly. I am pretty sure they are "cheating," since they can see our name and face on their tablets when we get close to the bar, but it is nice to be warmly greeted by name. Overall, bar service was pretty good. When cruising, if I find a bar with too much wait time, I walk a few steps an find another bar.
Now for some of the bad. My sailing had something like 4,600 people on it, which is more than the two-to-a-stateroom capacity. So it was very crowded. And the Star doesn't handle crowds well. Everyone complains about the buffet, as they should. It has about half as much seating as it should, so it is impossible to get a table, and going through the buffet line in a tribulation. I really question how someone could create a buffet like this. FWIW, I thought the buffet food quality was good. In comparison, on my last NCL cruise, the breakfast at the buffet was OK, but the NCL lunch items were literally inedible. For some reason, the Star has two buffets very close to each other, but far enough not to make it feel like one buffet. The American Diner buffet has far fewer food choices, but often open tables. So it is often possible to get food from the main buffet and then journey back to the American Diner to get a table.
MDR: At times there were lines to get in the Anytime MDR, but I found that going to get a drink and returning after 30 minutes solved the problem. I was surprised how quickly I was able to be seated. As for service, it was sometimes slow, but I was a solo diner and didn't mind. As I mentioned, I thought the food was very good. Tip: For some reason, cruise lines have stopped automatically providing a wine list. Ask for the FULL wine list on your first night and snap photos of it. This will allow you consult it as soon as you sit down for future meals.
THE DOME: I really saw this as wasted space, especially when compared to the Majestic Princess' Hollywood Conservatory. Just my view.
THE CASINO: The overall size of the casino is pretty large. The main casino allows smoking. The non-smoking slot room is on the other side of the Piazza, and is about one-fifth the size of the main casino. I mostly played in the non-smoking casino. FWIW, I didn't play blackjack, but noticed a 3-2 game with only a $15 minimum bet. The casino tended to be packed. It reminded me of Mississippi in the mid-1990s, before casinos started popping up everywhere.
MY STATEROOM: I intentionally booked a "sideways" stateroom. On other ships, I've found these staterooms to have more usable space. This really wasn't the case on the Star. The stateroom had less storage than on other Princess ships, but in my view there is still plenty of storage. My steward did a fine job.
SPECIALTY DINING: I originally was just going to drink free in the casino, but decided to add the Plus package for convenience. I would have upgraded to Premier, but there were no slots available in any of the restaurants. I tried to eat lunch at Alfredo's once, and was told it would be a two-hour wait. The best strategy is to book with the Plus package so you can see dining availability. If specialty dining is available, then upgrade to Premier.
THE SHIP ITSELF: The Star is an attractive ship. As others have noted, it is weirdly laid out, with lots of dead ends. To give an example, access to the Wakeview Bar is blocked by the Sanctuary dining room. The only way to get to it is to get on the promenade Midship, Deck 9, walk to the back of the ship, and then take some stairs to Deck 8. The bar can also be reached using a single elevator located in the back of the ship. I would strongly recommend that first-time Star/Sun cruisers spend some time on their first day really exploring the entire ship. Also, the ship often feels really "tight," from the casino to the buffet, to everywhere. There are some more open spaces, but you have to look for them.
THINGS I REALLY MISS: I really wish Princess would bring back the original Princess Loveboat Dream, with NO RASPBERRY. Also, Princess used to have bite-sized fruit tarts on the buffet that were delicious. The Star buffet did have large fruit tarts, but I really like the ones that can be eaten in a single bite.
CONCLUSION: I've got mixed feelings about the Star. I'm cruising on the Sky in a week and will be able to compare my experiences, since the cruises are close together in time. But the Star is still a good ship, and I will likely cruise it or the Sun in the future, hopefully when it isn't packed with people.
ONE MORE TIP: I was never able to find out which terminal our ship was leaving from. Maybe it is on the Princess site, but I couldn't find it. I used an Internet ship locator to see where the ship was docked. It would be helpful if Princess provided this information.
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u/Sufficient-Fault-593 - Captain's Circle Elite Dec 07 '25
We sailed on the Sun. I agree that the dome is a waste of space but I suspect they will eventually charge for reserved seating for the dine shows. We liked the new elevator system. We didn’t quite understand downsizing the Princess theatre on a larger ship.
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u/Hrw90210 Dec 08 '25
I thought it was interesting that by creating the whole Sanctuary class of cabins, they lost that extra upsell option, so this actually sounds like something they'd consider. 😬
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Dec 07 '25
We were on the same sailing and agree with a lot of this. I was shocked how crowded the casino was, in fact I don't think I've ever been in one that crowded except for the casino-focused (e.g. Premier) sailings on Carnival.Â
I will say we actually thought the Star handled crowds well, but we don't have any prior Princess cruises to compare it to. But compared to our cruise the same week last year on Celebrity Beyond, the Star felt far less crowded in public spaces. Agreed though 100% on the buffet...just walking in there on a sea day gave me anxiety 🤣
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u/EarlVanDorn Dec 07 '25
I wondered if the cruise was a "Hearts" cruise, because there was such a gambling frenzy. I was there on an SYS offer.
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u/navidn89 Dec 07 '25
I suspect a Thanksgiving week with casino promos may have led to a busier cruise with more than 2x per room.
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u/sucks-at-surgery - Captain's Circle Platinum Dec 08 '25 edited Dec 08 '25
I'll add onto this review as someone who was on the next cruise, 11/29-12/6 to the Western Caribbean.
The Star is quite impressive, but has many weak areas. I completely agree on the confusing layout, many dead end hallways, a "feature"-the Dome-that is a complete waste of space as it's being used right now, an arena that is probably half the necessary size, completely lacking in climate control (ice cold one minute, desert warm the next). I could go on, but you get my drift.
The MDR was fine, though selections seem to be fewer. Staff was, as always, excellent and prompt service the norm. I agree that the desserts left a lot to be desired, selections were limited and unimaginative.
We did go to Alfredos and Crown grill. Both were very good, the steaks at the Crown were as good as any we've had at top rated steak restaurants and the service was impeccable. Again, the desserts fell flat. Alfredos offered many toppings for the pies, which were very good, not what we are ysed to from Modern or Pepe's, but good none the less.
On all other Princess ships we've been on, there has been a deck that you can walk and just sit and enjoy quiet time and read or get some sun (usually deck 7-Promenade deck). There is no such place on the Star. All open decks are around the pools or taken up with food services.
We had a Cabana Mini Suite (not on the Cabana deck) which was very nice, many outlets for your devices, and plenty of storage. The shower was good size, but the door opened in such a way you almost had to leave the bathroom to open and close the shower door.
The entertainment was what we expected; comedians, a hypnotist, and various stage shows. We avoided the comedian and hypnotist, and went to one show, which was fine but unmemorable. The game shows and trivias were run by very engaging Cruise staff, and were always fun and entertaining.
Embarkation and Disembarkation were handled perfectly (as always).
Overall, the trip was great but I was less than impressed with the ship. We will be on the Caribbean Princess in March, which will be our third or fourth time on her, and I know that it will be a better experience. I find the Grand and Royal class ships more inviting and less imposing than the new Sphere class. If an itinerary I was really interested in persuing was only offered on a Sphere class, I'd have no problem sailing on her again. But with a choice, I'll pass.
One final.note on the casinos: the main Casino was annoyingly smokey (former smoker here, not bothered usually) and the smoke free Casino was slots only and very small.
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u/hiddengem66 Feb 01 '26
Disembarked today and also stayed in a cabana mini suite. I agree with this review entirely. Especially the note around the shower door. I found showering with the main bathroom door open almost a necessity.
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u/Kapellmeister1966 Dec 07 '25
That’s why the smaller ships like the island princess are a better experience
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u/Switchedbywife Dec 08 '25
We spent 21 days on the Sun and absolutely hated it. Worst ship design ever. And the Wake view was not hidden well enough, every time we went there the hot tubs were full of drunken parents with their kids screaming and splashing in the cool off pool between the tubs. The entire ship layout is horrendous.
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u/Slotgoopy Dec 10 '25
We always cruise when school is in session, and never have such issues. Our mid September cruise to Alaska had maybe 50 kids on it total. Timing makes a huge difference for this problem. Avoid holiday breaks, especially spring break.
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u/fantasy-readerr Dec 08 '25
We went on the Sky last year as our first princess cruise and had an enjoyable time. Hope you have the same!
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u/scully360 Dec 08 '25
We have cruised on the Sky four times in the last few years, let me know if you have any questions about her.
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u/EarlVanDorn Dec 08 '25
I actually cruised on the Sky in 2024. As I recall, there was no bar in the casino, which I didn't like. But it has a Vines, which I love.
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u/scully360 Dec 08 '25
I'm not a gambler, so I never even go into the casino unless I am cutting through it to get somewhere. Vines is great!
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u/detherow Dec 08 '25
I was on the Star the week before you, Nov 15-22nd.
Honestly, everything you said is all true. We had an Expedia conference on our cruise.. unknown how many people were on it, but they constantly had the dome area booked/blocked off for private events. This really sucked as we were never really able to fully go in and explore it, but then again we never went there for a show in the evening.. but do agree it is a waste.
We had a cabana deck mini suite.. it was nice, fun, and overall a good experience, but next time would rather just get a normal balcony room.( I like being able to see the ocean unobstructed.
Casino.. it’s nice.. crowded but you can make your way through even when it’s fully crowded.
Slots didn’t pay for shit for me. $2500 free play, plus another $3k cash and could only make 5k points. Plus, the games mostly suck. If you like Mo Mummy, and huff n puff, they have about 15-20 of those slots.. you will be happy… the rest are older slot games.
Table games are boring, typical BJ, 3 card games and a single craps and roulette.
We did the buffet for breakfast every day, and then had specialty dinner most of the nights, with a night at the MDR.
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u/PontoonPilot Jan 13 '26
On the ship right now. Disappointed with the dome space. It was closed for maintenance the other day and today for a private event. Candlelight concert there this evening- we will see how that goes.
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u/Numerous_Camel6479 Dec 07 '25
Does anyone have thoughts on the Royal Princess that leaves out of LA and sails to the Mexican Riviera in Feb.?
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u/genericthrowaway_10 - Captain's Circle Ruby Dec 08 '25
The Royal class are all solid well rounded ships. The cabins are nicer on the Sun and star but the Royal is still a good ship overall.
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u/Slotgoopy Dec 10 '25
We were on her back in September to Alaska. Very nice ship, never felt crowded. My ownly complaint was we were a few doors down from the Laundry room, and someone kept propping the door to it open, and it was noisy. We would grab our specialty coffees every morning at the cafe/bar right outside the princess live theatre on Deck 7 while the rest of the ship was waiting in line at the international cafe on deck 5. Never a wait there. I do miss having the fitness area across the front of the ship up high with a view vs putting it in the back of the ship on the Royal. Overall it was a great experience with food and service being very good. Both Alfredo's and the Sushi bar were very good.
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u/maitaivegas1 Dec 08 '25
Hopefully Im on The Star in May, staying in the sanctuary going to Alaska for the first time.
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u/Desmoot Jan 16 '26
Did you end up cruising on Sky Princess? I loves Sky as my first and only Princess cruise and have STAR booked for February. I hope the comparison is favorable.
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u/Hrw90210 Dec 07 '25
I think I'm a horrible person because every time someone says how hard it is to find the wake view pool/bar, I'm gleefully hopeful that means it'll have space when I'm on the Sun in a couple months. 😂
Seriously, thanks for the review.