Star Princess Jan 2008

1/26/08-Barb Brandt
Star Princess sailing from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Valparaiso, Chile 12 nights. Advise clients that the flight from Atlanta to EZE is 9.5 hrs nonstop overnight. Our arrival was around 8:30AM with smooth immigration and passport control. There is a taxi information desk near baggage claim where I paid for the taxi to the Sheraton Libertador. Our USD is strong in Argentina. This Sheraton is in a great location about a half block from Florida St which is a huge pedestrian mall with shops and restaurants. It's a great place to watch locals interact with impromptu tango shows on the mall. I booked a restaurant independent of a tango show and found out from several people on the ship who did them together and were disappointed. The restaurant was in a local neighborhood and is famous for typical Argentine beef. It lived up to its reputation. Food was not fancy, but very tasty. The tango show was at 11PM at Cafe Tortoni which looked like an old-fashioned coffee shop. The tango theater was in the back of the shop. I had to go to pay for the tickets in advance. Suggestion: Spend the day walking around and sightseeing, take a nap around 4PM when you can check into your room and sleep for a few hrs, get up and shower and go to dinner about 9PM followed by the tango show. This worked well for us.
Boarding the ship was very slow. A priority boarding pass from Princess helped us get on the ship after about 90 minutes in line. The Star holds 2600 pax. We had an inside cabin cat. II. Very comfortable on Deck 12. Open dining assessment: very busy early and again around 8:30PM when the Latin Americans like to dine. Wait staff OK, but there is no personal service with this system. Food delivery very prompt, food "3 0ut of 5", not bad, not excellent, just OK. The conservatory area which is 2 levels and has a pool which is covered was a big plus on this itinerary. We had 5 days of either windy, chilly weather in the S. Atlantic or rain. It's very nice to be able to be protected by glass from the elements. The area also serves as a "spill-over" space for the buffet restaurant. Horizon Buffet- Fresh salads and lots of good fresh fruit. Skywalkers Nightclub- This was a popular place to sightsee especially when we were circumnavigating Cape Horn which was a thrill! Our weather was partly sunny and seas were calm. There was commentary when we were in this area which was so educational. Education at sea- 2 excellent lecturers with packed theater each time. Dr. Solfot was a professor emeritus from UCLA and his lecture content was often about the history, geography and culture of S.America. The other lecturer was very knowledgeable about penguins. We did do a Land Rover shore excursion on the Falkland Islands to a penguin rookery. They are such entertaining little creatures......1000's of them! They are very friendly with tourists. Falkland Islands are essentially some very big rocks in the S. Atlantic about 200 miles from Argentina. More sheep than people with few trees. Montevideo is across a big bay from Buenos Aires. We went on an all day coach tour (quite boring) and ended at a winery which was moderately interesting.
Because of high winds (think howling, screaming winds), and rough seas we were unable to port in Ushuaia. The Chilean fjords are rugged Andes mountains meeting the sea in the Patagonia region. It is somewhat like the inside passage going to Alaska but larger bodies of water. Windy, rainy weather is typical making the scenery quite forbidding. Essentially, no population here. Punta Arenas, Chile in very southern Chile- small city not far from more penguins. Some interesting colonial architecture. Puerto Montt, Chile near a coastal range of the Andes and Osorno Volcano. A pretty seaside small city. We did a strenuous hike (it was listed that way) to a place called Alerce Lodge. The group was physically fit and quite a bit younger than most of the passengers on the ship (think average age mid-70's) The scenery was lovely, lots of dense forest, we crossed a lake on a Huck Finn type raft and moved from 1 side of the lake to the other by pulling on a rope. Food was beef again and adequate fare. Valparaiso is a coastal city about 90 minutes from the Santiago airport. Entering through this port was challenging. Chile is very strict about plants and food entering their country. We had to set our bags on the floor and guards with dogs sniffing came past before we could enter the terminal. Santiago has lovely architecture from the colonial era, is bustling and quite modern in many repects, is very polluted and has lots of graffity.
Overall assessment: not for a novice cruiser or anyone who is put off by poverty and dirt. Interesting culture, some beautiful scenery. Princess has diluted their product. I did keep my shipboard account printout to add up the typical onboard charges and make a comparison with cruise lines that are more inclusive. The ship was very clean, the crew at the shore excursion desk were not very knowledgeable about tours and had difficulty communicating with English speaking guests. Some excellent entertainers. A terrific Superbowl party! The Vista Lounge was decorated with red, white and blue balloons and was packed- food was chips and pizza.