# Using Staroptions to book cruises



## cubigbird (Oct 4, 2017)

Today we are excited to announce the newest benefit for Owners in the Vistana Signature Network™ — cruising with StarOptions®. You can now set sail all over the world and explore even more with your ownership.

As a 3-Star Elite Owner, you can book now using your 2018 StarOptions, and redeem 60,000 StarOptions or more toward a cruise. You will also be able to reserve a cruise through July 1 each year.

Whether it’s nightly stays, StarOptions banking, or the addition of cruising, we are always looking for new ways to add value to your ownership.
CRUISE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS





*See your StarOptions eligible for cruises.*
See complete Terms & Conditions.
LEARN MORE
COMING SOON
*2018 ELITE OWNER EVENT CRUISES TO THE WESTERN CARIBBEAN OR ALASKA INSIDE PASSAGE. BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR DETAILS!*



















 






You have received this message as a Vistana Signature Experiences Owner. Please do not reply directly to this system-generated email. Opt out of future offers or updateyour online communication preferences. Contact Vistana Signature Experiences, Inc. at 9002 San Marco Court, Orlando, FL 32819 or click here. 

©2017 Vistana Signature Experiences, Inc. ("Vistana") and Marriott International, Inc. ("Marriott"). All Rights Reserved. Vistana, its logo, Vistana Signature Network and StarOptions are the trademarks of Vistana or its affiliates. SPG, Preferred Guest, Sheraton, Westin and their logos are the trademarks of Marriott or its affiliates and are used by Vistana, an authorized partner of the SPG program, under license from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, LLC, a subsidiary of Marriott. Vistana and the programs and products it provides are not owned, developed or sold by Marriott or its affiliates. Vistana is solely responsible for its advertising, marketing, privacy and data collection practices.

Privacy Statement  |  Terms & Conditions  |  4867  |  13C  |  17-OOC-0050


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## cubigbird (Oct 4, 2017)

It appears that they are using II as the platform for this as it takes you to II asking you to deposit, which essentially makes it an II cruise exchange.  The cruise option does not appear to be booked through VSE.


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## cubigbird (Oct 4, 2017)

*REDEEMING STAROPTIONS FOR CRUISE TERMS AND CONDITIONS*
These StarOptions Redemption for Cruise Terms and Conditions (the “Terms and Conditions”) set forth the legally binding agreement between Vistana Signature Experiences, Inc. (“Sponsor”) and each “Participant”. Please thoroughly review these Terms and Conditions. You must also comply with all applicable cruise line terms and conditions, and policies and procedures, as made available by the cruise line (“Cruise Line Terms”). It is your sole responsibility to inform your traveling companion(s) and guests of the contents of these Terms and Conditions. The terms and conditions of purchase imposed by any third party providing programs or services directly to you shall apply. By purchasing a cruise (including related travel) through this Sponsor offer you agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions, the Cruise Line Terms, the terms and conditions of Vistana Signature Network (“VSN”) membership, and terms and conditions of purchase imposed by any third party providing programs or services directly to you.

ELIGIBILITY


Participants must be Vistana Signature Network (“VSN”) Members with sufficient available Use Rights to participate in the Cruise offer. Restricted or banked StarOptions and Vacation Ownership Interests (“VOIs”) purchased through an unauthorized resale agent or HOA resale offer, or VOI’s not enrolled in VSN are not eligible for this offer.
Only eligible VOIs with Use Rights in the year of or the year after the Cruise booking transaction date are eligible. Multiple eligible VOIs may be combined and applied towards a Cruise booking.
Cruise bookings can be requested and booked as early as January prior to the Use Year and no later than March 31 of the Use Year of the VOI being used towards a cruise for VSN Members. (VSN Elite Members have extended deadlines of July 1 for 3-Star and October 1 for 4-Star and 5-Star VSN Elite Members)
Participants must be 21 years of age or older. Guests under the age of 21 must be accompanied in the same cabin by a parent, relative, or guardian 25 years or older. Most cruise lines have specific age restrictions for infants, as well as pregnancy restrictions. Please consult the Cruise Line Terms when booking a cruise.
RESERVATIONS


Cruise bookings are on a ‘first-come’, ‘first-served’ basis based on availability.
Cruise reservations may be funded fully with StarOptions or with established StarOptions + cash required based on VSN membership tier, sailing itinerary, stateroom category with base fare based on double occupancy and include port charges and taxes only.
Reserving a cruise is a final transaction and StarOptions cannot be reinstated for use for any purpose, including, without limitation, a Home Resort reservation, a Network Float Period reservation, StarOptions Banking, conversion to Starpoints with the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, external exchange or listing for rental.
Rates are based on double occupancy. Participants must have a minimum eligible StarOptions balance of 60,000 and an annual maximum balance of 200,000 StarOptions. (VSN Elite Members have higher annual maximums of 300,000 for 3-Star, 400,000 for 4-Star and 500,000 for 5-Star.) All offers are subject to availability, and capacity controls may apply.
Reserving multiple staterooms for a Cruise (same sailing date and itinerary) and reserving multiple cruises within a year is permissible up to annual StarOptions maximums.
Reservations must be confirmed in writing by Sponsor or its designee (“Booking Confirmation/Cruise Receipt”). This document will be sent to you within two weeks of the booking date. You must receive a Booking Confirmation/Cruise Receipt before arriving at the applicable ship. Passengers’ names must accurately reflect their complete legal names as they appear on their respective proof of citizenship documents. It is your sole responsibility to review and verify all information on the Booking Confirmation/Cruise Receipt for accuracy and completeness, and check the spelling of all names carefully. Notify Sponsor immediately if any changes or corrections are needed. Failure to do so constitutes acceptance of the information contained on the Booking Confirmation/Cruise Receipt as accurate.
Changes made to cruise reservations by the passenger are subject to change/penalty fee. The amount of this fee may vary by cruise line.
VSN MEMBERS


StarOptions may be used towards new cruise bookings only and cannot be applied towards a previously booked cruise. In addition, StarOptions may not be applied towards spa treatments, beverages, alcoholic beverages, specialty dining, prepaid gratuities, casino gambling, shopping, organized tours, babysitting or other fees as determined by VSN.
Cruise bookings may be reserved for a third party and may not be used for any commercial purpose, sold, transferred, bartered or exchanged for any other considerations.
Cruise bookings are not eligible to earn Starwood Preferred Guest® Starpoints awards or SPG benefits.
VOI Upgrade Transaction: Participant understands and agrees that he or she may only keep a cruise reservation for the VOI if the reservation is based upon the current year occupancy of the VOI and only if all maintenance fees and taxes for the VOI have been paid. Any cruise reservation based upon future year occupancy of the VOI will be cancelled.
FEES


Any additional cruise payments required that are not funded with StarOptions which are not received by its due date will result in your reservation being cancelled and you may be responsible for any applicable cancellation penalties or reinstatement fees.
Transaction fees apply and are charged at the time of booking and may vary by VSN Elite membership tier.
All fees, association assessments, network dues and taxes associated with the VOI(s) must be paid in full at the time of the Cruise booking.
Final payments will automatically be charged to the first credit card provided for deposit on the final payment due date as stated on your confirmation or invoice. If you wish to charge your final payment to a different credit card you must contact our Cruise Department before the final payment due date.
EXCLUSIONS


Ground/Air transportation and travel insurance are not included in cruise booking and are at the expense of the participants.
On-board services, including, without limitation, such as spa treatments, beverages, alcoholic beverages, casino gambling, shopping, organized tours, babysitting, optional specialty dining packages and prepaid gratuities are not included and are at the Owner’s expense and shall be paid directly to the cruise line. All prices may not be available at time of booking. All information is subject to change without notice.
Specific Cruise Lines may be excluded at the discretion of Sponsor at any time.
CANCELLATIONS


Cancellations must be made through a Cruise Specialist by calling 844 840 1581 or 407 903 4455and are subject to the applicable cancellation policy. Additional cancellation penalties by the cruise line may apply to the cancellation of on-board services as set forth by the Cruise Line Terms.
Cruise line policies may treat name changes and departure date changes as cancellations.
Neither the Sponsor nor its booking agent, Worldwide Vacation & Travel, Inc.* (“Booking Agent”) is responsible for the reimbursement of fees or penalties that may be incurred or forfeited as the result of cancellation of a cruise.
Reserving a cruise is a final transaction and StarOptions cannot be reinstated for any purpose, including, without limitation, a Home Resort reservation, a Network Float Period reservation, StarOptions Banking, conversion to Starpoints with the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, external exchange or rental.
In addition, any cash portion of Participant’s payment for a cruise will be subject to the Cruise Lines Terms which vary by cruise line and may be subject to penalty upon cancellation.
Cancellation will be effective as of the date of receipt of the request. It is the Participant’s responsibility to ensure receipt of cancellation request. Be advised that Sponsor and its Booking Agent, as the cruise administrator, forwards your payment for your cruise to the cruise line or other supplier. If for any reason you should cancel your cruise booking, your refund (less applicable penalties) will be returned to you by Sponsor’s Booking Agent, as cruise administrator, only when and to the extent Booking Agent receives a refund from the cruise line or other supplier. This refund may take up to six (6) to eight (8) weeks from the cancellation date.
GENERAL


You may be subject to additional terms and conditions as set forth by the Cruise Line Terms.
All travelers must have in their possession proper documentation required by the United States and any foreign port visited. The names on the Booking Confirmation/Cruise Receipt must match such documentation exactly. Travelers are advised to consult with the appropriate governmental agencies and embassies to determine what documentation will be required for them and their guests prior to departure. Neither Sponsor nor its Booking Agent assumes any responsibility for advising travelers of immigration requirements. No refund will be issued if you fail to bring proper documentation and you will not be allowed to board the ship.
Sponsor reserves the right to change the terms and conditions, as well as supplement, terminate or extend the Cruise offer at any time without notice.
TRAVEL INSURANCE


Travel insurance is available through a third party provider. Information about travel insurance is available at etravelprotection.com/wvt. For cruises, insurance may be purchased anytime up until 24 hours prior to departure. Air travel insurance may be purchased any time up to 24 hours prior to departure. Other restrictions may apply to the purchase of travel insurance under certain circumstances.
Travel insurance premiums are non-refundable and generally will not cover pre-existing conditions.
To file a claim for any insurance coverage purchased, please contact Allianz Global Assistance at 888.427.5047.
LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

NEITHER SPONSOR NOR ITS BOOKING AGENT SHALL BE LIABLE FOR AND DOES NOT ASSUME ANY LIABILITY OR RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY LOSS, DAMAGE, DELAY, DEATH OR INJURY TO PERSON OR PROPERTY ARISING FROM OR AS A RESULT OF THE ACTS OR OMISSIONS AND/OR REPRESENTATIONS (WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN) OF THE CRUISE LINE OR OTHER SUPPLIERS, REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE. SPONSOR’S LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING FROM OR AS A RESULT OF THE ACTS OR OMISSIONS AND/OR REPRESENTATIONS (WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN) OF SPONSOR WILL BE LIMITED TO THE FEES PAID BY YOU TO SPONSOR FOR THE CRUISE. IN NO EVENT WILL SPONSOR BE LIABLE FOR SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SAME. THIS LIMITATION SHALL ALSO APPLY TO SPONSOR, BOOKING AGENT OR ANY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE AFFILIATED COMPANIES, SUCCESSORS, ASSIGNS AND AGENTS.

*Booking Agent is a registered seller of travel in the following states: California: Seller of Travel Registration No. 2030985-50. (Registration as a Seller of Travel in California does not constitute approval by the State of California). Iowa: Travel Agency Registration Number 837. Washington: Seller of Travel Registration No. 601 765 244. Florida: Booking Agent is exempt from registration as a Seller of Travel in Florida (ST-10224). The law of California and Washington requires certain sellers of travel to have a trust account or bond. Booking Agent has bonds issued by Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland in the amount of $50,000 each in the State of California and the State of Washington. Booking Agent does not participate in the Travel Consumer Restitution Fund in California. Disclosures: Washington. If transportation or other services are cancelled by Booking Agent, all sums paid to Booking Agent for services not performed in accordance with the contract between Booking Agent and the purchaser will be refunded within thirty days of the receiving the funds from the vendor with whom the services were arranged, or if the funds were not sent to the vendor, the funds shall be returned within fourteen days after cancellation by Booking Agent to the purchaser unless the purchaser requests the seller of travel to apply the money to another travel product and/or date. California. Booking Agent is not a participant in the California Travel Consumer Restitution Fund. This transaction is not covered by the California Travel Consumer Restitution Fund. You are not eligible to file a claim against that fund in the event of Booking Agent’s default. Upon cancellation of the transportation or travel services where the passenger is not at fault and has not canceled in violation of any terms and conditions previously clearly and conspicuously disclosed and agreed to by the passenger, all sums paid to Booking Agent for services not provided will be promptly paid to the passenger, unless the passenger advises Booking Agent in writing, after cancellation. This provision does not apply where Booking Agent has remitted the payment to another registered wholesale seller of travel or a carrier, without obtaining a refund, and where the wholesaler or provider defaults in providing the agreed-upon transportation or service. In this situation, Booking Agent will provide the passenger with a written statement accompanied by bank records establishing the disbursement of the payment, and if disbursed to a wholesale seller of travel, proof of current registration of that wholesaler.


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©2017 Vistana Signature Experiences, Inc. (“Vistana”) and Marriott International, Inc. (“Marriott”). All Rights Reserved. Vistana, its logo, Vistana Signature Network, A Better Way To See The World, Friendship Rewards Program and StarOptions are the trademarks of Vistana or its affiliates. SPG, Preferred Guest, Starpoints, Aloft, Design Hotels, Element, Four Points, Le Méridien, Sheraton, St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, Tribute Portfolio, W, Westin, Heavenly, Heavenly Spa, WestinWORKOUT and their logos are the trademarks of Marriott or its affiliates and are used by Vistana, an authorized partner of the SPG program, under license from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, LLC (“Starwood”), a subsidiary of Marriott. Vistana is not owned or operated by Starwood or Marriott. Vistana and the programs and products it provides are not owned, developed or sold by Marriott or its affiliates. Vistana is solely responsible for its advertising, marketing, privacy and data collection practices.

This material is intended to encourage the sale of Vistana Signature Experiences all-villa resort interests classified by state legislation as timeshare sales. This is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation of offers to buy in any state or other jurisdiction in which registration requirements have not been met. Vistana Signature NetworkTM is a registered Exchange Program.

This advertising material is being used for the purpose of soliciting sales of timeshare interest(s).

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## VacationForever (Oct 4, 2017)

I tried going through the whole process - login to VSN and then it takes you to the II login... after selecting SOs, then it crashed... taking too long to connect to .....


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## grgs (Oct 4, 2017)

Same thing happened to me.


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## RLG (Oct 5, 2017)

Same crash for me.

Obviously, the question we all want answered is "how much credit are staroptions worth toward a cruise"?


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## Helios (Oct 5, 2017)

If these exchanges work the same as II cruise exchanges the value will be pretty bad.


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## vistana101 (Oct 5, 2017)

You'd think they'd make sure the system would not crash on its first day!


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## okwiater (Oct 5, 2017)

vistana101 said:


> You'd think they'd make sure the system would not crash on its first day!



As soon as it redirected to intervalworld, I knew it would be bad. What a garbage website.

Even the Villa Finder, which worked close to perfectly at launch, has been ruined since the ILG takeover.


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## BCIRIS (Oct 6, 2017)

Has anyone gotten this to work yet on the website?  I don’t expect it to be a good deal but still curious to check it out...


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## VacationForever (Oct 6, 2017)

BCIRIS said:


> Has anyone gotten this to work yet on the website?  I don’t expect it to be a good deal but still curious to check it out...


Just tried again.  Still getting the same error.


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## Lansdowne (Oct 7, 2017)

We have had the same problem.  They really should check it for bugs before announcing...


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## clotheshorse (Oct 8, 2017)

Wow, you wonder how these project managers of these launches keep their jobs.  What happened to testing before launching?  Unacceptable.  Separately, the value exchange will not be worth it.


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## tperez (Oct 10, 2017)

Well it almost worked.  I was able to get past the first few screens before getting a system error.  So I guess that is some progress....  Still no clue about the redemption value yet.


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## BCIRIS (Oct 11, 2017)

Well I was finally able to price out a cruise on Interval using StarOptions.  It would have only saved me $500 using 80,000 StarOptions than just booking one directly thru Princess's website.  Totally not worth it just as I'm sure everyone expected.


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## VacationForever (Oct 11, 2017)

BCIRIS said:


> Well I was finally able to price out a cruise on Interval using StarOptions.  It would have only saved me $500 using 80,000 StarOptions than just booking one directly thru Princess's website.  Totally not worth it just as I'm sure everyone expected.


Thank you for reporting... Boooo to Vistana and ILG.


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## Helios (Oct 11, 2017)

Sounds just as bad as the old II cruise exchanges.


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## VacationForever (Oct 11, 2017)

Helios said:


> Sounds just as bad as the old II cruise exchanges.


I think it is worse.  Early last year I used one (small) side of my SDO to book II cruise, it took $800 off the price.


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## Passepartout (Oct 11, 2017)

BCIRIS said:


> Well I was finally able to price out a cruise on Interval using StarOptions.  It would have only saved me $500 using 80,000 StarOptions than just booking one directly thru Princess's website.  Totally not worth it just as I'm sure everyone expected.


Hope springs eternal, but you REALLY already knew this, didn't you?


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## gravitar (Oct 12, 2017)

I own a 2BR Lockoff EOY Even at Lagunamar. I did a comparison on using the new SO for a cruise, depositing the studio side, depositing the 1BR side, depositing the 2BR and booking direct with NCL as a Bronze Latitudes member.

Hope the attached PDF works...... If anyone can post the attached as a table that would be great


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## remowidget (Oct 29, 2017)

Has anyone found any benefit with this?


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## RadioDave (Nov 7, 2017)

After experiencing the same site challenges as everyone else, I was finally able to use the site and speak to a representative last night about a specific cruise. The prices indicated on the site were the same as the standard on-line prices which we all know are often subject to further discounts or on-board perks. The on-line cost for two people was $8,998. I told them that I had 240,000 star options to apply. My cost, with options applied, would be $7,366. That makes the dollar value of 240,000 star options as $1,632 plus a $59 exchange fee. Not much of a benefit.


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## VacationForever (Nov 7, 2017)

I tried earlier this week on a cruise that I have booked in 2019 using 80000 points.  It is a cruise that costs $9000 and I receive $800 OBC from my travel agent.  Using SOs, the price was a mere savings $200, not countng the exchange fees.  So you are definitely worse off using SOs to book a cruise.


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## Helios (Nov 7, 2017)

VacationForever said:


> I tried earlier this week on a cruise that I have booked in 2019 using 80000 points.  It is a cruise that costs $9000 and I receive $800 OBC from my travel agent.  Using SOs, the price was a mere savings $200, not countng the exchange fees.  So you are definitely worse off using SOs to book a cruise.


wow, what a waste.


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## KevSki (Nov 9, 2017)

We just got an email from Vistana inviting us to an "exclusive elite owner cruise". Two cruises, one 7 day Alaska cruise beginning May 25th starting at 195K star options + $2370 or one 7 day western Caribbean cruise beginning Oct 7th starting at 148.1K star options + $890. I haven't priced out the same cruises yet using just cash.


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## VacationForever (Nov 9, 2017)

KevSki said:


> We just got an email from Vistana inviting us to an "exclusive elite owner cruise". Two cruises, one 7 day Alaska cruise beginning May 25th starting at 195K star options + $2370 or one 7 day western Caribbean cruise beginning Oct 7th starting at 148.1K star options + $890. I haven't priced out the same cruises yet using just cash.


Per person or for 2? Which cruise line?


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## controller1 (Nov 9, 2017)

VacationForever said:


> Per person or for 2? Which cruise line?



Those prices are for two people.

The Alaska cruise is Celebrity Cruises. The Caribbean cruise is Royal Caribbean.


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## VacationForever (Nov 9, 2017)

controller1 said:


> Those prices are for two people.
> 
> The Alaska cruise is Celebrity Cruises. The Caribbean cruise is Royal Caribbean.


Thanks.  Then the next question is what sort of stateroom and is that on Solstice or Millennium.  

I am sure the cruise will include a couple of additional perks like a couple of cocktail parties and a couple of free shore excursions thrown in.  

On the Solstice, both the Ocean View and Balcony starts at $1549x2, plus around $200 to $300 total on port fees and taxes.


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## KACTravels (Jan 9, 2018)

They bumped this again with another email:  
BOOKING DEADLINE EXTENDED FOR THE EXCLUSIVE ELITE OWNER EVENT CRUISE
Due to popular demand, we've added a few more staterooms and extended the deadline for booking the exclusive Elite Owner Event Cruise in 2018. You can choose seven nights through the *Alaska Inside Passage* or the *Western Caribbean* but act quickly while space is available.

It says you have to call to book and it does include 2 Excursions, 2 Private Cocktail Parties, One on Board Perk, Prepaid Gratuities, port charges and taxes.  Alaska - Only Cabins left are "Veranda" which does have a small balcony.  195,000 SOs + $2,370.  Probably not the greatest value, but we are thinking about it since we have too many SOs to use this year and live outside Seattle.  Saves us on Airfare, Rental Car, Food etc...

Anyone going or thinking about it?


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## blondietink (Jan 10, 2018)

I think if you live in Seattle and have the Staroptions to burn, then this would be an OK deal for you.  I would only consider the Western Caribbean one because of where we live, but we would still need to travel to Florida.  I don't think the pricing on the Western Caribbean is very good at all for the amount of Staroptions you need to have, the not so very good ports and the time of year, hurricaine season.


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## KACTravels (Jan 10, 2018)

Thanks for your thoughts on this Barb.  We have decided to do it - did the (fuzzy) math and the value comes out to about the same $$ as if we were renting out our Home WKORN.  Hopefully it will be a great experience and since we don't plan on staying in the Seattle area forever, we want to do an Alaskan Cruise before we leave.  I'll give a recap when we return.


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