Island Cruises, Island Star

What a disappointing Christmas and New Year on the Island Star. Only one deck party in 15 nights, poor entertainment and like a 2 star floating hotel. Party of two adults and two teens, most evening entertainment for adults only and teenagers bored from start to finish as most of the teen zone did not happen and take place. Trips of the ship 3x the cost of local tours of the Caribbean. Tours cancelled and still waiting for a refund three weeks later. A very poor effort for Christmas with one small tree in guest relations and one even smaller tree on ship, a poor atmosphere and hardly any effort put in by the Islands Star. New Year a little more effort with balloons and hats and party below deck but NOTHING for the children of all ages to do. A very tired and worn out dirty smelly ship that is going to be the Thompson Destiny 09 so beware this is not a cruise that I would wish you on for the holiday of a lifetime. Shopping is a joke as prices dearer than the UK. With only two small shops and some tables put out like a car boot sale. The casino is full of old American slots that have seen better days and the kids arcade zone costs £1.00 for 20 seconds of gaming a complete rip of f games also years old pac man ect. Cans of coke at £1.45 and cocktails at £2.60 upwards. Nothing else to do on ship except swim and jacuzzi if you do not mind ruining your swimwear in the chlorine which was way to strong and stained all clothing and hurt your eyes. Use the spa most treatments are from £45-100.00. The Gym several cycling and running machines, weights and balls. Expensive for personal trainer. What a nightmare from start to finish and we are looking forward to Islands Star reply to our 10 page letter of complaint & horrifying photos. We flew with Thomas Cook and even the aeroplane was tatty old with a glass mirror stuck with duck tape, the seats we were in we even had to hand hold the TV which is difficult when disabled.Still no reply or refunded trip as of 21/1/09 appalling customer service and yet you take the payments instantly!

Been cruising before, but this was the first on time Island Cruises. We did the Caribbean 15 night cruise in December 2008.

After a 10hr flight we got to the port and sat in the heat for an hour and half before they let us off. No one knew what they were doing. We then had to queue in a shed for another hour and half before we actually got on the ship very late, and there was no-one to show us where to go, and our luggage didn't arrive in our cabin until 11.00pm, so not a good start..

Now to the cruise itself. Basically the staff were extremely helpful and friendly, the food was good and the ports of call amazing. The entertainment was really good and our cabin was kept clean. The downside is that the whole ship is really tatty and in need of refurbishment. The corridors all had stained carpet and dirty walls and all the public areas were well past their best We had 4 days at sea and we could never get a sunbed. People were out at 5.00am putting towels out, but there were a lot of beds empty most of the day with only a book or towel on.

The majority of people were quite loud and liked a drink, some starting at 10.00am in the morning. Each to their own though and we found a little haven in the Captain's Bar, which was a small friendly, supposedly quiet bar which we used to go to. But after a couple of days that was overtaken by some louder people who didn't quite grasp that not everyone in the bar wanted to know their life history. But never mind, we still enjoyed ourselves and have booked another cruise, but on Royal Caribbean, where hopefully the women won't have tattoos all over their body, drink pints, smoke like troopers and think everyone wants to "have a laugh". Island cruises is ideal for people who like the Butlins culture, this is not a derogatory remark, each to their own, but it wasn't for us. The food, entertainment and staff were faultless..

This was the best experience of my life and I have been abroad a lot, you just cant beat this everyone on this boat were top drawer no kid. 7 days was not long enough. True bliss

1st cruise, 2 adults 2 teenagers. On entering our cabin for first time, it stunk of sewage. At every port bad smell of sewage and diesel. Food in beachcomber was barely warm, coffee and tea was in a plastic cup. Entertainment wasn't all that good. Pestered a lot to buy drinks, soon learnt to say no. Ship looked tired and worn out decor. We paid thousands for this cruise, to be honest, never again, most certainly not on the Island Star.

Just got back and had a wonderful time - quite a pleasant surprise as it was our first cruise. Quite a broad spectrum of people on board, from various backgrounds......suspend your preconceptions and enjoy it, we did, and absolutely loved it.

2 adults and 2 kids had a great week. Arrival and check-in was smooth - no hanging around. Cabin was kept spotless with clean linen and towels. Plenty to do for the kids who enjoyed the shows. Didn't go on organised trips as this would have been very expensive for 4 but made our own way around in the ports with plenty of local info available on ship and in the ports.Food was generally OK but the "themed" nights were disappointing as they seemed frightened to be really authentic with spicy foods so was all a bit bland. All in all a good holiday and we would almost certainly go again.

We were first time cruisers and having booked we then looked at the reviews! With some concern we set off and have to say that the whole process ran VERY smoothly with very limited queuing. We were pleasantly surprised by the whole experience and have included some detail below. For mass catering the food was VERY good - plenty of choice and good quality - and the Island restaurant (formal seating for buffet service) was just right for an informal atmosphere. We were always asked if we wanted to share a table, so we could have sat with just the two of us if we wanted to (but half the fun is to meet new people). We used the beachcomber restaurant once or twice, but that was a bit too much like a works canteen atmosphere and had no advantages over the Island. We did not try the restaurants where you had to pay extra - there seemed little point. The only area of improvement would be a better selection of veg with dinner, but there was plenty of salad and fruit so no problem getting the five a day!

Entertainment was fine - theatre good, some singers excellent, others less so.Excursions VERY expensive, but the one we did (Monumental Rome) was good, and the 'light lunch' was good, including wine and three courses. I'd have liked to do one of the bike tours, but as that would have been £58 for two of us to potter along on a borrowed bike we gave it a skip! Most of the ports of call had plenty to do and see, with local bus rides getting you further afield at very low costs (recommend the bus ride to Nice.... well worth the couple of euros bus fare)Drinks were pub prices, and contrary to other reviews we found the regular requests of whether we wanted a drink fine; a polite 'no thanks' was all that was needed if you did not want one, and if you did order you didn't have to move as the drinks were brought to you. There were also plenty of 2 for 1 offers as well - not sure how people can complain at that!Cabin was fine - only noise was when manouvering as we came into port, but that was minor as we should have been out of bed by then anyway! Cabin was spacious (restricted view outside cabin - budget level!) and well maintained with daily cleaning and bed making all included, along with fresh towels - all of these were in good condition, though old enough to actually dry you (new ones are hopeless in that respect!). We have zero complaints - we'd do it again. I think many of the complaints I have seen are down to expectations. This is meant to be an informal cruise and to be honest, if you look at the pricing it is very good value for money.

Dirty, smelly, stained carpets worn out towels and sheets, plastic plates and cups, unprofessional senior staff including the captain, rude waiting on staff. I am so disappointed with the Island Star and this stressful low standard excuse for a cruise.

We took cruise on Island Star from 30/8/08 to 07/9/08 for our 25th Wedding Anniversary. Could not have had a better time. We would definitely go again.

This was our first cruise and we all enjoyed it so much we can't wait to go again. The "cashless" system on board was very well thought out and worked very well (although it is very easy to get carried away spending!) The staff were always friendly and helpful and the rooms were kept spotless - we especially liked the "towel animals" our steward left us each day. I couldn't get over how much the ship was cleaned. The captain was very down to earth and joined in a lot of the fun. There was always plenty to do on the ship and always plenty to eat. The food was always varied and balanced. The "free" seminars were very useful, but mostly entailed a "sales pitch" at the end of it (but you didn't have to buy it if you didn't want to) Overall I feel I am a new convert to cruising - Thank you Island Cruises