Windstar Cruises is building a better sister ship. The line's next newbuild, the 224-guest Star Explorer, is due for delivery in December, and the company is quietly fixing the annoyances it discovered on the Star Seeker, its first new yacht-style ship under the current expansion.
The big one? Food logistics. On a media call on October 8, chief operating officer Stijn Creuplandt explained that the Star Seeker's layout put the main galley a full deck below the main restaurant, so waiters burned time and energy running up and down stairs carrying handwritten orders. Windstar's first fix was simply adding crew to support service. Then over the summer it introduced tablets: servers now key orders in at the table and they land in the galley instantly, and the same system handles "calling a check" so the kitchen knows when a table is ready for its next course. Creuplandt says the back-and-forth is gone and service delivery has noticeably improved.
The Star Explorer will launch with the tablet system already installed, and Windstar plans to roll it out fleet-wide. There's a hardware upgrade too: the new ship will carry extra freshwater capacity, which matters given the itineraries she's slated to sail.
As for her predecessor, the news is good. The Star Seeker has beaten the targets Windstar set for her and ranks among the highest-rated ships in the fleet, with crew reportedly keen to come back for more contracts — usually a decent proxy for how a ship is run.
President Chris Prelog says the Star Explorer is on track for on-time delivery, with shakedown cruises planned before her first commercial sailing on December 28 — a New Year's voyage. Crew and senior officers are already assigned, and he reports no outstanding challenges.
For travellers eyeing a sailing, the rollout plan is straightforward: the Star Explorer spends winter and spring in the Mediterranean, then heads to London for her naming ceremony and inaugural voyage on June 1, 2027. If you like being on a ship early in its life, the winter Med season offers smaller crowds and freshly delivered everything; if you want the celebratory atmosphere, the London launch date is the one to circle. Either way, you'll be getting a ship that has already absorbed its sister's teething problems — smoother restaurant service included.
