Windstar Cruises to Invest $250 Million into Star Class Ship Expansion

Windstar plans to invest $250 million into renovating and lengthening its three Star Class vessels, increasing capacity and enhancing public spaces.

The Star Breeze, Star Legend, and Star Pride will each be lengthened to increase capacity by 24 percent, from 212 to 312 passengers.

Each of the three ships will be cut to allow the installation of a new 84-foot section, bringing the ships' total length to 453 feet. The ships will still be small enough to access the smaller ports and harbors that Windstar favors, the cruise line said.

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The expansion will include the creation of 50 new suites to each ship, bringing the total to 156, representing an investment of more than $267,000 per passenger berth. Two new, larger Owner’s Suites will combine existing suites to create up to three-bedroom, two-balcony suites.

The upgrade will be made on Star Breeze, Star Legend, and Star Pride, in succession between October 2019 and November 2020, and will take place at the Fincantieri Shipyard in Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

The project will also see the creation of state-of-the-art public spaces including two new dining locations; new shops and retail space; a much larger fitness center; and a new world-class spa. Two new dining experiences include an "intimate, alternative dining restaurant" and a casual barbecue space adjacent to the top-deck Star Bar. The ships' Veranda restaurant will be expanded, and the swimming pool will be enlarged, reconfigured and elevated to offer better views, along with an enhanced outdoor deck area.

Windstar said it will also take the opportunity to re-engine the ships with more fuel-efficient and environmentally responsible propulsion systems.