The SuperStar Gemini – a real Star cruiser

Boarding in Adelaide yesterday for a short cruise to Sydney via Melbourne, The Mole was not sure what to expect from the Singapore based SuperStar Gemini, with a reputation preceding her as being very popular with Australians and The Mole also having recently visited the fabulous SuperStar Aires in Singapore.

In any case, the first impression when pulling up at Adelaide’s cruise terminal, which is miles away from the city, was that the Gemini is not a large ship and neither did I expect her to be at under 20,000 tons, but she is not big, more like a large yacht than the increasingly massive cruise ships we seem to see in Sydney.

Now, there are those amongst us who prefer to cruise on large ships and good luck to you, but there are also those amongst us who prefer cruising on smaller ships and good luck to us too!

So, the feeling you get the moment that you board the Gemini is that you are boarding a vessel that is very smart, yes perhaps a little dated in just a few areas, but spotlessly clean and very well maintained indeed. 

The welcome is amazing and you very quickly realise that the welcome and very high standard of service aboard this compact vessel applies right across the whole vessel and every single Star person on board.

The crew is without question the friendliest, most courteous I have even seen or experienced on a ship anywhere in the world and at the same time, they are highly trained and extremely efficient, delivering a very high quality product. 

This applies to ever single member of the crew that you bump into, from waiters, to stewards, to the guys incessantly cleaning, painting and maintaining this excellently maintained vessel, the chefs, the managers, every single person, which I found quite amazing.

They also come from a wide range of countries, with all the officers Scandinavian and the crew ranging from India, to the Philippines to Vietnam, Japan, etc, etc, but all with the same passion for what they do and delivering service with a smile………and they are on board for 10 month contracts working very long hours.

Now, before anyone says anything or makes a comment, The Mole is adamant and passionate about telling it the way it is and I promise you if the SuperStar Gemini was not like this, then I would say so.

So, enough from me today, the satellite must be overheating and more importantly, a cocktail must be waiting – but before I go, one quick tip for agents or any TravelMole subscriber. 

Have no hesitation in booking your clients on the SuperStar Gemini and if you miss the opportunity of getting your clients on her while she does her circumnavigations around Australia, arriving back in Singapore on 17 February, 2008, you may have missed her in these waters forever as she will be cruisng back in Asia from then on, havign also been sold from early 2009.

For further information visit www.starcruises.com or www.cruiseagents.travel.

More from The Mole tomorrow on location on the High Seas from the SuperStar Gemini.