| Gayle |
May 16th, 2002 05:16 AM |
We have been on 8 Windstar cruises over the past 18 years. When we first "discovered" theses little gems of the cruise world, it was the mid eighties. They had two ships and were privately owned. The experience was wonderful as the ships were sparkling new, the crews European with a staff ratio of 4:1. The ports of call were all teeny out islands with no large ports and the food was spectacular. But our greatest memories are of going to the top deck around midnight, where we'd find a few other couples. The staff had retired, the bar was completely open and we all brought our own CDs tapes (note the era) and we'd pop in our music choice and dance barefoot on the deck under the blanket of stars. Those were wonderful trips...Carribean, Mediterranean and South Pacific.<BR><BR>Then the line expanded and was bought by Holland America. Everything changed. We still tried a few cruises since we enjoyed the itineraries and the small ship size and informality. But it was not the same. The quality of everything deteriorated. You had to pay for drinks, including soft drinks and bottled water, the food became formulaic and mediocre, the staff nice but not attentive. So the summer of 1999 on the Amalfi Coast was the last trip.<BR><BR>We found the ships were shabby, the beds uncomfortable, the linens quite tattered, the ship's appointments not in great shape. Despite this we tried again with Spain and Portigal in 2000, only to be disappointed. So we're done with Windstar.<BR><BR>However, that said, friends went on the ship they acquired from Club Med and refurbished and said it was sparkling and lovely. They did a Carribean route and were very happy.<BR><BR>
|
