Travel Agent is sailing aboard Windstar Cruises’ 12,995-ton Star Breeze this week. Revitalized and “stretched” in late 2020, the ship departed on its inaugural cruise (the first voyage since that refit) from its new home port of St. Maarten on Saturday and is now sailing the Caribbean.
While the ship’s capacity is 312 guests, only about 80 passengers—cruise guests, Windstar executives and news media are aboard this first sailing. Here are tidbits from our brief time aboard and a tour given by Milton Ceklic, the ship’s hotel general manager.
50 More Suites Including Grand Owner's Suite: Fifty more suites were added in the revitalization and stretching of the ship. At the top end, those include two new 1,374-square-foot Grand Owner's Suites, No. 640 and 641, much larger than the two preexisting Owner’s Suites forward and another two Owner’s Suites midship. The new Grand Owner's Suites have a roomy living area, separate dining area with a table that can seat six people (although only four chairs are placed routinely there, but two more are available as needed), a separate bedroom and bathroom with both a tub and a separate shower, plus a private balcony.
New Grand Owner's Suites // Photo by Susan J. Young
And a new category of suite at the entry level of fares are the 10 Star Porthole Suites, still very roomy and the same space-wise as balcony and oceanview suites at 277 square feet. Essentially, they just have large portholes rather than windows or a balcony. Everything else is the same.
New Suite Décor and Mattresses: Whether the suites were on the ship before or are brand-new in the added mid-section, all have received attractive new suite décor with blue and tan/cream muted tones, new carpeting, drapes and curtains.
Most notably, every suite has new mattresses, linens and pillows; the line also did that for crew cabins, as well. From anecdotal comments at dinner last night, the mattresses are quite comfortable. Guests in our group (including this reporter) liked them and slept very well.
New TVs in All Suites: All accommodations have new flat-screen, wall-mounted TVs and a new entertainment system with movies, TV, account look-up, wayfinding and “service ordering” such as for room service. The crew also have the new TVs in their cabins.
New Showers, Two Sinks in Bathroom: In some bathrooms within the new section, large, tiled showers were added with no tub. Some guests desire that, Ceklic noted. That said, we toured many accommodations that still had both a shower and a tub, and accommodations descriptions are being updated on the line’s website. One thing that won’t change is Windstar’s commitment to two sinks in every bathroom. Those are in every suite.
New Framing for Balcony Suites: Previously, suites that were called Balcony Suites essentially had what most advisors consider a French balcony. Now, the guest can open the door and actually step out onto a narrow balcony. While there’s not enough room for chairs (given the balcony width), it is a way for people to get fully outside and get a bit better view.
To accommodate this change, Windstar pulled the balcony framing into the suite a bit and built out a bit more flooring to provide the space for those step-out balconies.
Flipped Layout: Also new is that many of the new accommodations created by the “stretch” project have a flipped layout—with the bedroom area closest to the balcony, window or portholes, and the living area adjacent to the entry door. But existing accommodations remain the original layout. This provides a mix of choices for guests, depending on who else is staying with them in their suite and what they prefer. There remains a pull out sheer drape, as well as a light blocking drape that can be pulled between the two areas.
Pull-out Sofas that Convert to Beds: When it comes to sofas, some are pull-out convertible to beds, others are not. That’s true for both the old and new accommodations.
Illy Self-Serve Coffee Machines: While guests in all suites can order complimentary coffee via room service, the Deluxe Owner’s and Grand Owner's Suites now have a self-serve Illy Coffee machine with coffee selections in their suite. Accommodations with the Illy machines include Nos. 431, 500, 501, 531, 600, 601, 627, 640 and 641.
Suite Pricing Philosophy: In touring the various suites with Ceklic, the “look” of the previously existing suites that have been totally refreshed and the new accommodations added during the stretching are quite similar. The new bedding, carpeting and other soft goods are the same for all suites. The cabinetry looks slightly different between old and new accommodations, but really the “feel” of the accommodations is much the same.
With that in mind, pricing for the suites is being based on type of suite—porthole, window or balcony—not whether a suite is old or new. “There’s not much difference between the old and the new,” says Ceklic. We’d have to agree, having eyeballed a sampling of both types of suites.
Stretch Elements: With the additional space that added more accommodations, the stretching also resulted in the addition of a new mid-ship stairway and a new mid-ship elevator that travels between Deck 3 and Deck 8.
New Specialty Dining Venue: The ship has a new specialty dining venue—Cuadro 44 by Anthony Sasso, an eclectic Spanish restaurant designed in partnership with the James Beard Foundation-recognized chef, a 13-year veteran of the Michelin-starred restaurant Casa Mono. Cuadro 44 has 36 seats, but with social distancing and staggered dining times, Ceklic estimates there may be only 22 or so diners at once here.
Cuadro is the Spanish word for "frame" and ships are constructed in frames, so yes, this was Frame 44 when this ship was originally built. Guests can expect inventive, modern Spanish cuisine in an intimate venue with table seating. In addition, there’s a small bar with stools facing the open-air galley, so diners can watch the chefs at work. Reservations are required but this restaurant is complimentary for guests.
Amphora // Photo by Susan J. Young
Dining Room Enhanced, Acoustics Improved: Previously, some guests commented that the main dining room, Amphora, was a bit loud at points. The dining room was thus reconfigured; the line added acoustical enhancements and now “it’s much quieter,” according to Ceklic.
Also added were new wine walls and all new chandeliers. The 224 seats in this restaurant are enough to allow for one seating, which is the line’s standard policy. But that said, with current health/safety protocols, only 110 or so people will be seated at once, thus requiring two seatings.
Multiple Dining Venues: Despite the ship’s size, guests have plenty of dining choices, including the new Cuadro 44, Amphora, Candles (a 62-seat outdoor steakhouse for evening dining) Verandah (a 138-seat casual eatery for breakfast and lunch), and the new Star Grill by Steven Raichlen. While the ship previously had a Star Bar, now the addition of Star Grill gives guests choices for classic barbecue and grilled items.
Located on the outside beck adjacent to the Verandah, Candles is covered by a new canvas awning, but if it’s raining heavily, diners can be moved inside the Verandah. With staggered dining times, Ceklic says that 30 to 40 guests will likely be the maximum dining at Candles at the same time. While Candles is complimentary for 99 percent of menu items, Windstar charges $25 if a guest orders the T-bone steak.
Also, the Yacht Club Café is an all-day snack bar, and complimentary 24-hour room service is available.
Star Breeze's new pool // Photo by Susan J. Young
New Pool and Whirlpools: Previously, Star Breeze did not have a proper pool in the way that many guests desired. Now, it does. In fact, the pool is elevated so guests in the pool can take in views of not only that deck but the surrounding waters or a nearby destination. In addition, the pool deck area was also rebuilt with new showers and a new whirlpool. A second new whirlpool is located on Deck 5 forward.
New, Larger Star Boutique, Relocated Library: A new, much larger Star Boutique was created by removing the casino and library entirely, with Windstar stating that the casino was not well-utilized by guests. In addition, the popular Compass Rose lounge was refreshed and also gained more space with the removal of the casino.
The library is being relocated inside the Yacht Club. In addition, the line removed a small lifeboat within what’s now the larger boutique. That smaller lifeboat isn’t needed anymore, as the line has added two new larger lifeboats, plus two tender lifeboats in the ship’s newly added mid-section.
Completely Redesigned, Enlarged World Spa: The World Spa has been completely redesigned and enlarged with a new gym overlooking the deck. Windstar added a Motion Studio for yoga and other classes, as well as a new Relaxation Room and a new Barber Shop (joining the spa’s beauty salon).
A new “experience shower” can accommodate one person or a couple with changing lights and multiple spray jets. In addition, World Spa now has four treatment rooms, an increase of one treatment room, plus a new steam sauna and regular sauna.
Stay tuned this week for more coverage of Windstar Cruises’ Star Breeze.
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