Star Legend

The 1992-built (as "Royal Viking Queen") and acquired in 2015 from Seabourn (as "Seabourn Legend"), the Star Legend cruise ship is the third and last of all three identical superyachts in the Windstar fleet - together with Star Pride (Seabourn Pride) and Star Breeze (Seabourn Spirit).

History - construction and ownership

Windstar Cruises is a luxury travel brand operating a fleet of smaller-sized ships (mega-yachts) with capacity up to 340 passengers. The company call at 150 ports throughout the Caribbean, Central America, South Pacific, Asia, Europe. Currently, Windstar is a subsidiary of Xanterra Parks and Resorts (USA's largest national and state park concession management company).

The 340-passenger ship Star Legend was constructed in Bremerhaven Germany (by Schichau-Seebeckwerft) and inaugurated in February 1992 by the shipowner Kloster Cruise. Seabourn Legend was originally named "Royal Viking Queen" and operated by Royal Viking Line (1972-founded/1998-defunct). In 1995 the boat's name was changed to "Queen Odyssey". Operated by Royal Cruise Line (1995 through 1996), the vessel was sold to Seabourn Cruises and renamed "Seabourn Legend". In April 2015, the ship left Seabourn and (in May) joined Windstar's fleet as "Star Legend".

An interesting fact is that Seabourn Legend was featured in the film "Speed 2: Cruise Control" (1997, starring Sandra Bullock, Jason Patric, Willem Dafoe). In the movie, Alex Shaw (Jason Patric) and Annie Porter (Sandra Bullock) became trapped on the cruise ship, where navigation computers had been reprogrammed by a computer hacker (Willem Dafoe), who had set the ship on a collision course with a supertanker.

Decks and Cabins

Star Legend staterooms (156 total, in 13 grades) are all outside and in suite categories - the lowest being Porthole Suite (10 cabins). All cabins are with modern amenities including fully-stocked minibars, Wi-Fi Internet, smart HDTVs (infotainment system), spacious wardrobe with electronic safe box, phone (direct dial), large bathroom (double-sink vanity, bathtub, shower, WC-toilet, L'Occitane bath products), premium bedding sets (top-quality pillows and linens), fresh fruits and flowers.

The largest accommodations are the 3-Bedroom Grand Owners Suites (1375 ft2 / 128 m2, with included outdoor terrace).

The boat has 8 decks, of which 6 are passenger-accessible and 4 with cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

A major Star Legend plus is the wide variety of eating options for such a small ship. Star Legend guests may choose from various inclusive dining options - AmphorA Restaurant, Yacht Club, Sky Bar & Grill. Windstar travelers usually like to dress up. There are 2 formal nights on weeklong cruises and 3 on 14-day voyages. On these nights, a lot of the men wear tuxedos. Women wear luxury cocktail dresses or ball gowns. Other nights are casually stylish (jacket for men, but tie optional; nice outfit for women), or casual (no jacket for men; sundress or slacks for women). For those who do not like formal nights, the Veranda Cafe offers a casually stylish alternative.

Follows the complete list of Star Legend restaurants and food bars.

• AmphorA Restaurant (ship's dining room, open-seating; offers 5-course gourmet dinner menu which is changed daily; along with onboard-made bread, in all ports of call the executive chef goes to the local markets to shop for fresh ingredients)
• Candles Cafe & Veranda (a smaller "dining room" which offers buffet-style breakfast and lunch, as well as a la carte menu through the wait staff; its indoor area is called "Candles Cafe" and features floor-ceiling panoramic windows; the outdoor seating area is called "Veranda" - in the evenings, it transforms into "Candles Grill" al-fresco steakhouse)
• Star Bar (serves the top deck open-air-area).
• Cuadro 44 by Anthony Sasso (deck 6 aft-portside-located specialty restaurant with an Iberian food menu)
• Star Grill by Steven Raichlen (deck 8 midship-located alfresco dining venue serving complimentary BBQ food)

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

Activities onboard Star Legend are very limited and range from food market purchases to performances by local musicians. Public areas include the casino, library, computer center, WindSpa, fitness center, pool and three whirlpool tubs.

Follows the complete list of Star Legend lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues for kids, teens and adults.

• The Marina (retractable watersports platform for water skiing, windsurfing, snorkeling, kayaking; the ship provides water rafts, wakeboards, paddleboards and a water trampoline island; the steel cage forms a swimming pool in the sea)
• A Whirlpool (with sunbathing area and lounge chairs)
• Card Room (bridge and board games); Library; Screening Room
• Computer Center (discount Internet packages and rates per minute)
• Lounge (ship's theatre/main show lounge for live evening entertainment)
• The Boutique Shop (now Signature Shop) sells duty-free luxury fashion clothing and accessories
• The Casino (gaming lounge aft on deck 6, with blackjack/roulette gambling tables, slot machines) was replaced with the Cuadro 44 restaurant.
• Compass Rose (ship's main bar lounge with grand piano)
• The Wellness Centre (WindSpa, Beauty Salon, Gym). WindSpa (operated by Steiner) has treatment rooms (for massages), Saunas, Steam Rooms.
• The Fitness Center (with floor-ceiling windows; has free weights, treadmills, elliptical machines; offers complimentary exercise classes); Courtyard
• Pool Area (with one rectangular swimming pool, two whirlpools on platforms and a 3rd whirlpool at the ship's bow, sunbathing and shaded areas)
• The Yacht Club (Constellation Lounge with floor-ceiling windows for 270-degree views)
• The Sun Deck (with padded luxury sun loungers and deckchairs).

Itineraries

Star Legend itinerary program is based on Mediterranean cruises with departures from ports mainly in France, Italy, Spain. In Northern Europe, the Windstar Legend ship cruises in the Baltic Sea on Norwegian Fjords itineraries and to Iceland leaving from Denmark and the UK.

In November 2016 Windstar announced a return to Asia (for the first time in 3 years), deploying in the region Star Legend for winter 2017-2018. The Asian program included exotic itineraries leaving from Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore to ports in South Korea and Japan.

In 2018, Windstar homeported Star Legend in Vancouver. There, the ship will operate 3 distinctive itineraries from May through August, including 11 and 12-day voyages from Vancouver to Seward; 14-day sailings from Seward to Vancouver; and a couple of 12-day cruises leaving roundtrip from Vancouver. The line plans to offer pre-and-post cruise land extensions.

Star Legend was operated by Seabourn as "Seabourn Legend". The vessel was initially built for and owned by Kloster Cruise, and operated by its subsidiary Royal Viking Line under the name "Royal Viking Queen". In 1995, Kloster Cruise transferred it to their other subsidiary Royal Cruise Line and renamed it "Queen Odyssey". In 1996, the ship was purchased by Seabourn Cruises. Seabourn Legend entered Windstar's fleet in April 2015 (in active service since May 2015).

Star Legend's godmother is Gloria Bohan (CEO of "Omega World Travel" agency - corporate travel management, business meetings, events at sea). The christening ceremony was on May 25, 2015, held in Civitavecchia (Rome). Ship's 3-week drydock 2015 refit and refurbishment was done in Genoa Italy. The renovation project cost USD 8,5 million and included stern-to-bow renovations, expansion of Veranda Cafe and Star Deck, adding Yacht Club, new resistance swimming/infinity pool, whirlpool.

Fun fact is, that Seabourn Legend was the background in the "Speed 2" movie. Annie Porter (Sandra Bullock) and her boyfriend Alex Shaw (Jason Patric) LAPD Police Officer are trapped onboard while all navigation computers have been hacked by the criminal mind John Geiger (Willem Dafoe) setting the Seabourn Legend ship on a collision course with a pretty large tanker.

During ship's week-long drydock 2017 refurbishment (December, in Singapore) was installed Transas A-Suite (e-navigation system) and Navi-Radar 4000 (by DP Marine) with incorporated JRC sensors. The system consists of 2 radars (X-band and S-band), Dual ECDIS (Electronic Chart Display and Information) system, K-Nav ECDIS (route planning station (by Kongsberg Maritime) and PilotStar NX (autopilot by Anschutz). Also were modified all consoles and the ship's antenna.

WINDSTAR cruise ship reconstructions 2019-2020 drydock refurbishments review

On November 15, 2018, Windstar announced company's "Star Plus Initiative" - drydock refit and refurbishment program budgeted USD 250 million. The project was partially financed through Export Credit facility guaranteed by SACE Italy (financial and insurance products and services). The "Star Plus" drydocking project includes enlarging (stretching) and engine upgrades for fleet's three Star-Class vessels (in brackets - completion dates) - Star Breeze (February 20, 2020), Star Legend (July 2, 2020) and Star Pride (November 20, 2020).

Windstar's "Star Plus" project increased the fleet's capacity by 24%. When completed, the project resulted in bigger capacity (254 to 320 passengers, 140 to 190 crew), increased GT tonnage/volume (9975 to 12995 tons), increased length (134 to 159 m), more staterooms (106 to 156), adding new venues and public spaces, machinery upgrades (new Wartsila marine diesel engines). The project was scheduled for the period October 2019 through November 2020, at Fincantieri's shipyards in Palermo (Sicily Island, Italy) and Trieste (Italy).

The ships' drydock lengthening includes cutting each vessel in two and installing a new (prefabricated) midship section with length 25 m (83 ft). Vessel's LOA length was increased from 134 m (439 ft) to 159 m (522). The midship section has an additional elevator. These sections were built (pre-fabricated and assembled) in Trieste, then barged to Palermo to be inserted into the vessels.

Following the drydocks, each ship now has 2 new dining venues (Cuadro 44 by Anthony Sasso, Star Grill by Steven Raichlen), new / expanded retail shopping space (Signature Shop), enlarged Gym (Fitness Center with Motion Studio for classes), expanded wellness complex (WindSpa by Steiner), new bar lounge (deck 5), larger sundeck and swimming pool (deck 7), new tender loading area (deck 3 midship), two new tender boats (90-seat each), new whirlpool and enlarged swimming pool (on deck 8), expanded and upgraded staff-crew areas and crew cabins. The two new dining venues are a specialty restaurant (Cuadro 44, aft-portside on deck 6, the former Casino area) and a casual outdoor BBQ restaurant (Star Grill, adjacent to Star Bar on deck 8).

Ship's powerplant was upgraded from four Bergen diesel engines (model B33:45, combined power output 7,3 MW) to 4x Wartsila engines (model Wartsila 46F, combined output 5 MW) running on the cleaner ULSD (ultra-low sulfur diesel) fuel.

Each liner received 50 new cabins (to a total of 156), which (based on the total investment) means shipbuilding cost per berth USD 267,000. Among the new cabins are two Midship Owner Suites and two enlarged Forward Grand Owner Suites - all located on Deck 6. All existing staterooms were completely refurbished, including bathrooms, balconies, sliding doors, furniture, equipment. The new public spaces and staterooms were designed by the NYC-based "The Johnson Studio at Cooper Carry".