When it comes to holidays, what makes the difference between A and A+?
Honesty in journalism forces us to admit that sometimes things don’t work out quite as well as we’d like. Our latest run on Star Flyer, a 115-metre barquentine with capacity for 166 passengers, was a wonderful experience. We had been forced by the pandemic to cancel it two years in a row, and we were ecstatic to be on board. Everything went smoothly, and we had great sailing weather, but the experience did not match up to our first trip on that ship 2 ½ years ago. It is interesting to speculate why.
COVID
The biggest difference, of course, was the social distancing and masking requirements. On the previous trip, meal seating was ad hoc. People moved around on different days, and we had some wonderful conversations and got to know our fellow-passengers well. This time, we had assigned seats in the dining room. Last trip we had four people at a dinner table for 6, giving us two guests every meal. This trip we had 5 people and we were assigned our own table, so we spent much more time within our own bubble.
Wearing masks 100% of the time inside and most of the time on deck was a definite social cooling mechanism as well. Generally, we did not mingle with the other passengers as much, which was a drawback for sure..
Cruise Director
The person who deals most with the passengers is the heart and soul of the travel experience. Our Cruise Director this trip was a personable, well organized German guy, and everything worked smoothly. He was an information specialist, giving us talks and a daily newsletter with data about clipper ships, sailing and the ports where we visited. This cruise had a relaxing and laid-back atmosphere.
The woman running the last trip was an Italian firebrand, who could turn a crowd into an audience with the flick of her microphone. She fostered a “summer camp for adults” atmosphere that kept us all hopping.
Itinerary: Destination vs Repositioning
Our trip last time was through the Greek Islands and up the Adriatic coast from Athens to Venice, a distance of 1255 kilometres in 12 days. This year’s trip was a delivery, as the ship was moving from its winter range in the Caribbean to summer in the Eastern Mediterranean. We rode from Malaga, in southern Spain, to Malta, a total of 1691 kilometres in 9 days.
There is a great deal of difference between the two types of cruise.
When setting up a destination cruise, the ship owners choose an area filled with good stops and set up a course between the best ones. In a delivery, the course is of primary importance, and the destinations are chosen because of their place on the map.
So, our trip in the Eastern Mediterranean consisted of less sailing time, and more time visiting small cities with good access to tourist sites. Often the tenders would drop us off right in the middle of the old harbour, within easy walking distance of shops and cafes. Our journey across the Western Mediterranean gave us longer voyages, with only five or six hours in larger commercial ports. The ship was able to moor at the dock, but it was about a kilometre walk into a bustling modern city. The best option was always to pay 50 euros a person for the shore excursion by bus.
Weather
While our original trip had some great sailing, weather was generally calm, and the big ship was usually stable. This time we had a lot of sailing. One of the sea days was a real screamer. The wind came in behind us, they put the square sails up and we really “hauled ass.” However, we had one day when we were crossing a transition zone, and the winds were angling over a bigger swell from a system in another direction, and the motion of the ship was quite unsettling. Double beds aren’t made for heeling over; both of you keep ending up tangled on the low side.
The Bottom Line
If you hold to the maxim that “adventure is discomfort remembered later,” our more recent trip was a blast. However, our original voyage was the perfect storm, and you just can’t predict when that sort of event is going to happen. Our next trip will be in November on the Royal Clipper, a five-masted full square rigger, down the trade winds from Barbados through the West Indies to Panama, 2200 kilometres in 12 days. Sounds like a pretty good bet.