Sailing on a Star Clippers Cruise | Exploring the British Virgin Islands and West Indies
Sailing the Seas on a Star Clipper Cruise: A detailed summary of cruising on a Tall Ship.
There are many cruising options out there but if you are like us and cruising really isn’t your thing but you want to get out on the water, then a Star Clipper Cruise might be right for you.
In this blog post, I hope to share with you all we learned and experienced on our Star Clipper cruise and hopefully inspire you to step into a new way to travel the world by sea.
Before we get into the details, let me share a little about the Star Clipper company. Please note, this post is not sponsored in any way. We booked, paid for and experienced this trip on our own terms, with our own funds.
Star Clipper Cruises sail to a variety of locations including the Caribbean, the Panama Canal, the Pacific, Mediterranean, Southeast Asia and even offer a Trans-Atlantic cruise!
The ships are authentic tall sail ships that focus on sailing as opposed to using engines for power. They have engines and will use them if necessary to get to a port on time but in general, the majority of the time on your trip, you are truly sailing.
There are three ships in the Star Clipper fleet; Star Flyer, Royal Clipper and Star Clipper. The enterprise created by Mikael Krafft has been in operation for over 30 years.
We cruised on the Star Flyer.
Let’s sail!
A quick backstory; this was not our original plan for our December 2021 vacation. Our plan (since 2020) was to go Patagonia (Chile/Argentina) but pandemics and restrictions have thwarted those plans for the second year in a row.
We were determined to travel and thanks to the help of Adventure Life [also not sponsored] we learned there were some rooms available on the Star Flyer for dates that lined up with our original plans.
With some quick decisions and fast booking, we rearranged flights (thanks to Delta for making that so easy!) and before we knew it, we were preparing to head to St. Maarten to set sail on a Star Clippers cruise, our first cruise ever as family!
Departing from St. Maarten, we spent 8 nights aboard the Star Flyer. Our trip did include an extra day because it fell over Christmas. I’ll share more later about the ways the staff onboard helped us celebrate the holiday!
I’ve alluded to this already but let’s be clear, as a family, we are not cruise people. The extent of our cruise experience includes my husband attending Semester at Sea in college, I have taken one Carnival cruise with friends years ago and we cruised the Galapagos Islands in a yacht with two other people last summer. Crowds, strict schedules, controlled agendas and long periods of time in one place just doesn’t really appeal to us—so we’ve never really considered a cruise.
Curious about the Galapagos? Read all about that trip here.
Options on such short notice over Christmas were not plentiful and we wanted a relaxing vacation (or at least the teens did!) so we decided to try a Star Clippers cruise for three reasons; we had not been to the British Virgin Islands, weather looked perfect (hello 82 every day in Dec!) and the maximum capacity of guests was 140.
Turns out we had 94 other guests on board with us.
It was all lining up to be a great choice and SPOILER ALERT: it was!
No matter how much we are all over it, we have to talk safety in the times of a pandemic.
Let me start off by saying, the crew of Star Clippers did an amazing job keeping us safe and following necessary protocols.
The following info is based on requirements as of December 2021. Please check with local and travel authorities for updated information. As we all know, it changes constantly.
To arrive in St. Maarten, we were required to have a negative PCR test within 72 hours of departure or a negative antigen test within 48 hours. The boat required a PCR test, so we opted for that. This test was required regardless of vaccination status.
We were also required to complete the Electronic Health Authorization System application before departing the US and we had to be sure we had our vaccine cards and test results on hand for review at airports and seaport.
Despite all that, when we arrived to check in and board the boat, we were given another antigen test at port. The cost was included in our fees but we were not able to board until all came back negative (which thankfully they did).
We couldn’t help but wonder what would have happened if they didn’t but it was nice to know that everyone boarding was also negative.
On the ship, we were required to wear our masks when indoors, which mostly meant walking to and from our room in the halls and entering/existing the dining room and at the buffet. Anytime we were on deck we were encouraged to have them on but not required.
At the buffet, in addition to the mask, we were also given disposable gloves to wear when making our plates.
It was also required to wear our masks on the Tenders (the boats that transport us to islands and excursions).
Sanitizer was offered in many locations, staff wore masks at all times and crew was constantly cleaning and sanitizing the ship.
Before disembarking, everyone was required to get another antigen test (again included in our cost) and as far as I know, all 98 of us were negative, so clearly they did an excellent job keeping us safe. Maybe those daily reminders to follow protocols worked!
Ok, now that we have safety covered (at length). Let’s talk about going from Airport to Seaport.
Thanks to the assistance from Adventure Life, transportation was arranged to take us from the airport to the seaport. I highly recommend you make arrangements before you land! Our flight was an hour late and the experience would have been much more stressful had we not known someone was ready and waiting for us.
The ride to the seaport takes about 20-30 minutes depending on time of day and traffic. St. Maarten is not big but it is crowded and it’s mostly two-lane roads so things can get a bit chaotic.
Our driver was helpful, informative and got us to the port with no trouble. The cab ride cost us $40 USD.
Once arriving at the port, we were directed to a boarding area where we had to fill out a lot of paperwork, review our documents and take the above mentioned antigen test. The whole process took about 45 min and that may be in large part to the fact that we were some of the last to arrive. After they checked us in, they closed up….I think they were waiting for us!
They also took care of our luggage (we didn’t see it again until we got to our rooms) and we were offered a ride on a golf cart to the boat. Despite having just reviewed our documents, we still have to present them 2-3 more times before actually stepping on the boat so pack your patience and hold onto your documents, esp. passport and vaccine card!
Our Cruise Itinerary
Once on board, we were offered a welcome drink, light appetizers and the relaxing had begun!
Our itinerary was as follows; in our 8 day trip, we visited 10 islands. Details about each island can be found on this post but below is the complete list. There was one last minute change. The Captain was alerted that Saba would not let us disembark on the island so we went to Barbuda instead.
Have you ever heard of Barbuda? That makes two of us.
For a complete review of all islands, check out this blog post I created for you.
Anguilla
Jost Van Dyke & Tortola
Norman Island
Virgin Gorda
Anegada
Barbuda
St.Kitts & Friar’s Bay
St.Bart
St. Maarten
Curious what the ship is like? Here is what you can expect.
If I’m to be 100% honest, I kept my expectations low when it came to the interior of the ship. Some of the pictures I had seen made me think it might be small, outdated or dark. Thankfully those first impressions were not accurate.
While this ship is very traditional with dark woods, gold accents and rich decor colors, it did not feel worn down, old or unclean. In fact, it had quite a charm about it and everything was immaculate! All seating, bedding and interiors were spotless. At any point on any day, you will see someone cleaning and the attention to detail is remarkable.
As expected on a tall ship, the rooms are small but definitely manageable and impressively clean (can you tell I have a thing for cleanliness!). For our family we had two rooms; one for the parents and one for the kids. We both had a queen size bed in our rooms and while the kids shared a bed, the option for two twins was available. Other rooms we saw offered bunk bed options in case you have more than 2 kids.
Bathrooms are small but the water was very hot and pressure was great. They cleaned our bathrooms 2-3 times a day and that made everything more manageable.
The rooms themselves offered quite a bit of storage. A place to put suitcases under the beds, closets with shelves and hanging space and a few extra drawers as well as small seat and desk. For two people it was manageable in every way.
Beyond the rooms there were two pools (albeit small), a piano bar, deck bar with bar and table seating, library, ample deck seating with lounge chairs aplenty, a large dining room. Walking around you never felt crowded or without a space to relax.
Warning this next section might make you hungry. Let’s talk food.
Put all plans to diet to the side when you board a Star Clippers Cruise. You will not go hungry for one minute and you certainly will enjoy some amazing food.
Let’s start in the morning.
For the early birds, there was a continental breakfast served daily in the Piano bar with coffee and light pastries.
Breakfast: Served daily from 8am to 10am. This is an extensive all-you-can-eat buffet with every option you can imagine and main selections were rotated daily. There was an omelette station every day, hot coffee and tea were served at your table.
Lunch was served every day from 12pm to 2:30 pm. I’m not sure if it was hunger or selection but lunch was the favorite meal on board of our family; so many unique options to choose from, changing every day. Desserts to blow your mind and a variety of cuisines during the week (think Mexican, Italian, etc). There was often fresh fish, roasted meats and always fresh fruit.
Cocktail hour was offered at the Tropical Bar every day from 5pm to 6pm. A lovely display of light sandwiches, fruit and one main appetizer that was freshly prepared each day. It was a treat to have after coming back from being onshore or to start the evening events.
Each day the bar served a special cocktail ($5) and you could sit on deck and watch the sunset. Magical.
Every night from 7:30 to 10pm, dinner was served and what an affair that was. This was the most formal of meals. Always sit down service, menus, drink orders and impeccable service.
For a sneak peek into the dinner offerings, guests could head to the Piano bar to see the display. There were also wine pairings for the menu selections.
The extensive options included something for every palette and they even had some basic options in case you had a picky eater or allergy.
As a family, you are assigned a table and you sat there for every meal. The same staff served us every night and we truly got to know them. We were all on a first name basis by the end of the cruise.
Dinner was a wonderful time to come together and talk about the day. No phones, no distractions just conversation and good food!
Dinner is a little dressier than we expected it to be (compared to meals on our Galapagos Cruise) so do be prepared for that. There is a dress code for men (collared shirts, no t-shirts or shorts). Jackets are not required.
Everything about service on the boat was FIVE STARS.
I cannot begin to overstate how incredible the service was on our Star Clippers cruise. Every single crew member on board was polite, friendly, helpful, informative and courteous. Each and every one of them made each and every guest feel valued and cared for.
Everyone said hello, had impeccable manners and the amazing part was they knew our names, quirks and really got to know us. They were playful with the teens, accommodating in every way possible. They do a small presentation on day one to introduce the staff and crew and it really helped put names to faces.
We loved being around them so much, they truly made the cruise a memorable experience and saying goodbye to them was not easy! They take a lot of pride in their work and it shows in everything they do.
Excursions: Ways to explore the islands you visit.
One thing we were a little unclear on before getting on board were what excursions would be offered. We kept thinking we had to choose them before arriving and we were wrong. The offerings & signups are done onboard, in the library on a first-come, first serve basis. Don’t stress, there was plenty to choose from and plenty of spots.
Not every island had an excursion but if they did, it was always more than one. We did three in total, St. Kitts, Barbuda and Virgin Gorda. I’ll share more about on the blog post about the individual islands.
I will say all the ones we went on were family friendly, informative and not too strenuous for us. They were a nice way to break up the “beach routine” and explore a little more of the bigger islands. Most were short trips which still allowed us time to enjoy relaxing on the beach if we so desired.
All excursions have a fee with them and your room will be charged accordingly so be sure to read the info carefully. They range from $40-95 per person.
All the fun that is included in the cost of your cruise
Bring on the water activities & onboard demonstrations and activities.
On every island, the Sports Team of the Star Flyer offered many water sports to partake in. On shore, you would find options to kayak, paddle board, water ski, laser sail, surf and more. They would also offer water aerobics and ways to play on your own such as volleyballs and other sporting equipment. All of it is included in the cost of your cruise. Do note that if someone under the age of 18 wants to water ski, an adult must ride the zodiac with the child.
Not everyone who was on ship left the boat and if that is your preference the boat offers ways to entertain you as well! Each day there were activities on board from the morning story time with the Cruise Director to tours of the Engine room and demonstrations from the crew such as how to make fun towel animals to how to use a sextant to tying a sailor’s knot.
For the more adventurous souls, multiple times during our sailing there were opportunities to climb the Mast. I almost did it but chickened out when I realized we were still moving! The kids seems to sleep in late every morning it was offered. Teenagers.
Each night the cruise offered after-dinner entertainment. Jerby was our entertainer extraordinaire. Playing the keyboard, singing and dancing; each night he has a theme to entertain us with. Beatles, Queen, karaoke and more. He would take requests too!
During dinner he would play classical tunes at the piano and on Christmas we gathered around the piano to sing Christmas carols and watch “Santa” pass gifts to the many guests.
One tip I wish I had known: Don’t miss the Talent Show Night! Apparently it was a ton of fun watching the crew perform with their many talents. Not too many guests performed but they were encouraged to do so. From what the kids told us, there was lot of dancing, laughter and fun times had by all.
Christmas at Sea
Speaking of Christmas, it was quite the memorable celebration on board.
Christmas Eve was definitely the big night—with a fancy dinner of lobster and filet mignon. If you happen to cruise over Christmas, be sure to pack something nice. We were a bit underdressed b/c we had no idea.
The dining crew had a lovely performance for us and Santa even made an appearance. Another thing we didn’t know until last minute was that if you bring a gift to the ship store, they will wrap it and present it to your loved one from Santa. Since we are cruise-newbies, we did not know this so we did some last minute shopping in the store and our kids were gifted with a belt and sunglasses (ha!). If there was a next time, I’d pack a small gift and offer that instead!
A little more about the demographics of the guests.
I would say 70% of the cruise guests were 55 and above. The other 30% comprised of younger couples, families and a few solo travelers. Thankfully there were four other families with teenagers so once we were able to connect them, the teens hung out for the rest of the trip together. It was such a pleasant surprise to find families with similar age kids and I know the kids were happy about it.
A few things we did not know before our cruise
As I’ve stated a few times, this was our first cruise as a family and we often joked that we were “cruise virgins”. It was painfully obvious that others had done this before and we had to figure it out as we went. Thankfully our travel experiences helped a bit but here are a few things I wish I had known beforehand.
Riding the tenders.
On our trip to the Galapagos, we used Zodiacs to get from the boat to shore (so fun!). Since the Clipper was bigger and had more people, we were transported by Tender (pictured below).
While the Tenders can transport more people at once, I found them to be more difficult to board and disembark, esp in rough seas. Thankfully we are all very mobile but there sure were some tense moments with the older folks and those with mobility issues. We all held our breath at times but the Tender Crew were amazing; so helpful, patient and careful.
The trick to the Tender is that you have to use a ladder down the side of the boat, so it moves a lot and if the waves come crashing in, it can bounce and be very jarring. My advice, have your hands free, watch for instructions, take the help (aka hands) of the crew and watch where you are stepping. Once you get on, WATCH YOUR HEAD! I learned this lesson the hard way (too many times), you go to stand up but you are still on the bench and you slam your head into the roof. It hurts.
The tender rides vary from 5 to 30 min depending on how far from shore the boat has to anchor. It can be a bit bouncy and rough. Our crew drove slow to keep it as mild a ride as possible but it had it’s topsy turvy moments.
As it stands now, Star Clipper requires you to wear a mask on the tender despite it being open air, so always have a mask with you and if you are going to a beach (which is often!), don’t forget a towel. The boat provides them on deck but not on the tender or on shore, so be sure to grab one.
“All of us have in our bodies the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean, and therefore, we have salt in our blood, in our sweat, in our tears. We are tied to the ocean—and when we return to the sea, whether it is to watch it or to sail it, we are going back to where we came from. ”
A few things to keep in mind when you are packing.
Obviously, the clothes you pack will depend on your destination and time of year, so I’ll leave that you to but a few things I wish I had known or done differently are:
Gear you will want to pack:
A small dry bag. There are not many wet landings but if we had a dry bag, I would have brought my DSLR to a few more islands.
Water shoes: pack a pair of Tevas, Keens or Chacos. I had mine and for those wet landings and was glad I had them.
A small camera bag/backpack. If you are the family photographer like me, you’ll want a small bag for your camera. I only brought my Peak Design 20L Everyday backpack so that meant that anytime I wanted to bring my camera, I was lugging my big backpack. I like the bag but it’s heavy and on the beach in 82 degree weather it got a bit cumbersome at times. I wish I had packed a smaller day bag.
A small beach bag. I grabbed this last minute and it was a lifesaver! Bring a small bag to take with you to the beach or pool. Big enough for sunscreen, a towel, book, wallet and phone. You will use this almost every day.
A small day purse. My go-to travel purse is my All Night Festival Bag from LuluLemon. It’s easy to pack, fits my phone, wallet, sunglasses and has room if I need a light layer or buy something small. It goes on every trip with me!
Outlet converter or a surge protector. The outlets in your room are not plentiful! They are a hybrid of US and European outlets (2 prongs) so you can get by if you are traveling from the US but keep it in mind if you are not. We happened to bring an extra surge protector/power strip and it was very handy for our needs.
As for clothes:
Day events are very casual. Shorts, t-shirts, bathing suits and cover ups are what you’ll need most. If you can pack quick dry items, those will come in handy for beach days and wet landings.
They do dress up on the boat for dinner more than I expected. We brought “dressier” clothes but some went all out. I only bought 3 options for dinner and rotated them (like a mini-capsule). It helped with packing and gave me options.
If you are traveling on the boat over a holiday, be sure to bring something dressy. As I mentioned, we did not have anything special for this day and I wish we did.
Currencies, gratuity and all things money:
Currency: This one can get a little tricky since you visit so many islands in the course of the trip. In our paperwork, it listed 6 different currencies we might experience! The hard part was many islands were minimally inhabited and we didn’t see a single bank except for St. Maarten and St. Barts! Thankfully, every place we went accepted US dollars. There were 1-2 spots that were cash only so be sure to have some cash on you.
Everything on the boat can be charged to the room, including gratuity.
Since we brought up gratuity, let’s discuss it. At the end of the trip, the crew will give you a comment card, final invoice and on that card is a spot to include gratuity. They split the option into two—Crew and Service. Which means, those you see every day such as waiters, bartenders, sports team, entertainment, etc. Service is mostly those you don’t see and some you do. Your hospitality crew such as cabin stewards, laundry, cooks, engineers and all those that work sight unseen in the gulley.
Once you experience a Star Clipper cruise you will see first hand how hard everyone works and how they are so deserving of a generous tip, esp if you travel over a holiday. They left their families behind so we could vacation over our holiday. We talked to many, and they have 6 to 10 month contracts with the boat, which means that’s how long they go without seeing their own loved ones. It’s remarkable how much care and effort they make everyday to create a magical experience for us.
Unlike me and my family, almost everyone on the crew was multi-lingual. We traveled with many Europeans so each announcement was made in English, German and Dutch. Our Cruise Director, Peter knew multiple languages and even wrote all the daily newsletters is 2 languages.
We had no issue getting around the islands either. All guides, restaurants and others spoke English, often with a beautiful accent but never with a language barrier.
A review of our entire experience
As I’m sure you can tell from this very long blog post that all in all, we had a great experience on the Star Clipper cruise. Service from every angle was 5 stars and we loved the fact that there were only 94 other guests on board with us.
The food was phenomenal, everything was so clean and there was great balance of activities and down time to create the type of vacation you desire most. By the time we had to say goodbye to the crew, we were all a bit emotional. We truly miss their smiling faces, laughter and above and beyond service. We especially loved their “performances”, whether it was Christmas, Pirate Night or our final night on board, they had a few treats up their sleeves that made it so much fun. I won’t spoil it for you!
The boat had it’s own sense of old world charm, there was plenty of seating and it’s hard to complain about amazing views, gorgeous sunsets and sailing on open water. It wasn’t the most modern or technical savvy boat compared to the new cruise ships on the market but honestly, I loved the simplicity of it. It was so nice to unwind, unplug and enjoy the pleasures of life like conversation with new friends, dinner with no phones and reading a good book to fall asleep to every night. It was truly a memorable experience, one we all felt more connected and more rested in the end.
I think the Star Clippers cruise is great for anyone that loves to sail, wants to avoid the big cruise ships, likes to explore lesser known island and wants to experience the BVIs and West Indies in a slow and intentional way. It was truly a unique trip that I would recommend to anyone over the age of 10. If you are traveling with grandparents, obviously that is their primary market but be sure you/they are mobile, steady on their own and can handle stairs and can lift their knees to a 90 degree angle. Unfortunately, this is not a handicap accessible trip, the boat is not equipped for wheelchairs.
The only thing that didn’t get 5 stars for me were some of the islands and excursions. For me, it’s why I don’t gravitate to cruises in general. Being limited to what and where I can explore and to be shuttled around on an agenda isn’t my favorite way to travel. Add to that, some of the islands were a bit sparse and/or still suffering from hurricanes and more.
This blog has gone on for way too long so I’ve written a separate one reviewing all the islands we visited. If you are curious where we went and what we saw, check out this new post about all the islands.
If you have any questions about our experience, please drop them in the comments below.
Celebrate open waters, Explore the Caribbean!
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