Island Windjammers

St. Maarten

Caribbean - All

Caribbean - Eastern

Caribbean - Southern

Caribbean - Western

Mexico - All

Excellent

Terrible

Sagitta

Diamant

Vela

This was perfect for our family.   The grandsons were totally all about using the rope swing off the side of the ship, paddle boarding, snorkeling, kayaking, night time swimming with the underwater lights, visiting different islands, and just having fun.  They felt comfortable with the crew, interacting with them,  and loved the popcorn machine. 

 Since they were so involved, the adults, could sit back, read, sun, or have a cold beverage with the blue sea as a backdrop. 

The crew of the Sagitta was always readily available if we needed help or had a question.  The food was excellent, presentation was lovely, and served with the beverage of choice. 

It was good to have daily shore excursions to the different islands. Each was different and each experience was different.

I would recommend this to anyone with young adolescents due to the many options available for entertainment. 

One important item, we have many wonderful memories to take with us.

Awesome trip, especially for our grandsons, ages 13, 14, 15 16, 17.

I travel with Island Windjammers on their Sagitta ship and had a wonderful trip. Our Capt Matt was incredible, the ops man Andrew took great care of us and the rest of the crew was tremendous. They looked after our needs and were a delight to be around. 

The food and service were great. Being able to eat a lot of our meals on deck was great. We also had a few meals on shore which was a nice surprise. 

With the small ship we were able to go into smaller ports away from the large cruise ships and had a lot of the places to ourselves. it was nice staying away from the large crowds and have beaches and towns to just us and the locals. 

I would highly recommend traveling with Island Windjammers and look forward to making another trip with them again in the future. This was my first cruise with them but definitely not my last.

Outstanding Trip

A friend recommended it.  I’d never been to these islands.  I don’t like large cruise ships.  An Island Windjammer cruise looked like a good idea.  It was a GREAT idea.

The ship:   clean, comfortable, safe.  I went barefoot a lot and did not get a splinter all week on the smoothly polished deck.

My cabin (deluxe with a solo surcharge):  perfectly designed.  Comfortable beds, bigger bathroom than my last river cruise.  I particularly liked the reading lights and shelves at each bed for books, water, etc.

The Food:  delicious with a Caribbean flair, service was always quick, courteous and dishes were served hot.  The chef graciously accommodated an entree change request I made one day.  

Activities:  so much fun!  We had several choices each day, well explained and vetted by our Operations Director.  Our transportation, guides and sometimes food were excellent.  Even at sea.  I attended “Andrews Knot-Tying Class” one day and can now proudly type a monkey fist!

The crew:  courteous, accommodating, fun and friendly.

This is a wonderful experience for an adventuresome traveler who is out for a memorable vacation on a unique vessel with a friendly and accommodating crew led by an impeccably capable Captain.  I highly recommend it and look forward to more cruises with them.

A week in paradise

We chose this cruise because it was a personable size schooner with the right amount of people.  We liked the islands that were on the itinerary and looked forward to the snorkeling.  We arrived 2 days before embarkation, so we were able to check out Tortola before we left for the week.  It was well worth arriving early, as there are many things to enjoy on the island, including the experience of driving on the left side of the road! 

Our whole week went smoothly, thanks to the conscientious and skilled crew.  They had very positive and helpful attitudes.  The crew had informative tips about the island's local 'watering holes'  and the good places for snorkeling.  The crew were always aware that people were safe.  The spacious Owners cabin availability was worth planning our trip around. The food was delicious and perfectly prepared.  We would definitely do this cruise again, next time arranging a ferry to Anegada for additional snorkeling to see coral and  colorful fish.

Our first Island Windjammer cruise was an exciting adventure

My husband and I traveled on Windjammer Barefoot cruises in the 1990's and 2000's, and loved the casual atmosphere, amazing Caribbean scenery, and the thrill of sailing on a tall ship.  We've been watching Island Windjammers for several years, and decided to give it a try -- and what a treat!  We set sail from St. Lucia, and criss-crossed the seas connecting the islands of the French West Indies/Windward Islands for 12 nights.  We were a small passenger group, with 10 staff members and 8 passengers (the Sagitta berths 24) -- all of us got along well, and we had many enjoyable days and evenings chatting and swapping tales.  The snorkeling was reportedly amazing; we focused on relaxing and diving, and thoroughly enjoyed the entire trip.  The greatest surprise was the quality of the food.  George, the chef, ended up cooking without an assisting cook for most meals, and the cuisine was fresh, delicious, original --- in a word, outstanding.  It's easy to see why Island Windjammers won 2016 Cruise Critic awards for both value and dining!  We stayed in the Owners Cabin, which was spacious with (according to the ship's Captain) the most comfortable (and only King-size) bed on the ship.   We had two couples and four singles, including a number of sailboat owners, and everyone was thoroughly delighted with the entire experience.   This is probably not a trip for small children, as the stairs/ladders are steep and the ship rolls -- but we were told that families have traveled well, with all parties having a great time.  The crew goes out of their way to ensure that all passengers feel pampered and appreciated -- and we do!  Give them a try.

Casual relaxation with continual pampering!

Izmir

I am delighted to give high marks to the company Island Windjammer, it's ship the Sagitta and the crew!

Booked this trip to celebrate my birthday and was not disappointed. The entire experience was amazing! The ship was beautiful, our room was comfortable and the bathroom spacious. But the best part of the trip besides the beautiful locations, was the crew! Each and everyone of them went above and beyond to ensure we were safe, comfortable and well fed. And the food was amazing!! Each crew member was very helpful and friendly. This is a very well run ship. 

We are not usually the types that do group tours, but we did every excursion the Sagitta offered on this trip and loved each one! We had an amazing time on each island and while simply hanging out on the ship.

A huge shout out and thank you to Island Windjammer and the Sagitta's crew! You guys (and gal) are the best! 

We'll definitely be back!!

Best vacation yet!

I have an extensive history of traveling to many countries around the world for over the past 40 years. I have taken a couple of cruises prior to this trip. Most notably I went to the Galapagos islands which was incredible and a fantastic experience. I have always been fascinated by 19th century sailing ship stories  such as Joshua Slocum's tale of Sailing Alone Around the World, 1898. We decided to go on a Windjammer tour because we wanted to experience the feeling of sailing a schooner. I was told that this was a sailing vessel and that we would participate in working the sails. The Sagita which is sold as a motorized sailing vessel. I was told the motors would only be engaged when the winds failed. 

 Windjammer arranged a hotel at the Marigold Hotel the day before our department. They told us it would be only a five minute taxi to the ship. As it turned out the Marigold Hotel was on the other side of the island and was  an hour drive to Rodney Bay  which unnecessarily cost us an additional $45. We paid for transfers to and from the ship in advance and never told to expect this. 

I'd like to begin by stating some of the positive facts of this trip. First, excluding the captains,  The entire crew was friendly and helpful and generally a pleasure to be with.  The chef, Lenny,  was excellent. I have several food allergies and he went above and beyond to ensure that the food I ate met my dietary restrictions. I am very grateful to Lenny.  Every day we had a cocktail hour and without exception  Lenny provided us with new and interesting hors d'oeuvres and cocktails  

 The cabins were clean and met my basic requirements.  Onboard there were sufficient deck chairs for us to enjoy the views and relax. Fortunately, the Caribbean is so beautiful that no matter how much you mismanage a voyage  you can't help enjoy the environment.   

I will now detail the facts of the Sagitta that caused such distress.  The source of this information I quote from the mouth of Captain Stefan,  a German man from the island of Dominica.  I will never understand why he told me this sensitive and damaging information to me while giving us a tour of the bridge.  Captains Stefan  claims to have been Captain on 35 National Geographic ships to Antarctica.  The first shocking surprise was Captain Stefan revealing the  true history of the Sagitta. Stefan told us the Sagitta was never built as a sailing vessel. He told me that the hull was not even built in the shape of a sailing vessel. I had wondered and asked why were the sails never being raised. He told me that the Sagitta could not sail and that they did not even have adequate sails on board even if they wanted to sail. According to Stefhan, the ship was built as a laundry boat for the Navy. This gives a whole new meaning to the expression that we were sailing on a tub,pardon the bad pun. I asked Crystal, the tour guide, why the sails  were not raised when I was told to wind was only 10 kn and her feeble excuse was the winds were too strong and they would tear the sails apart. After Captain's revelations I learned the real reason for their not being raised. Captain Stefan also told me that the masts we're not capable of holding sails The purpose was only decorative and to give the impression that the ship was meant for sailing. 

The cruise did not follow the stated itinerary. We ended up spending two days in Dominica, which according  Frommer's, which I found on the ship,  Dominca is the worst island in the Caribbean and a must to avoid. The entire  beach was literally covered with broken glass. There were no hotels, bars or any facilities and I wonder why they chose two days of my vacation to spend there when there were so many other wonderful choices which they didn't take us to, including Guadalupe which we were supposed to go to.  I wondered if the reason for this was that Captain Stefan  was from Dominica.

In conclusion, you cannot plan a more awful cruise even if you decided to sail to Gilligans Island and end up on a deserted island. i'm writing this review as a public service to all prospective future clients of Windjammer.  Be wary of squandering your hard earned vacation days and money with a company that so flagrantly misrepresents in their marketing material who they really are and what they offer.  In my opinion, this is shameful behavior.




Community Editor's Note:  The following statement was provided to us by the management of Island Windjammers and appears in its unedited entirety:  "Sagitta is a motorsailer, as she is clearly described on our website, and as is carefully explained in our FAQ's. Island Windjammers does not book hotels on behalf of our guests, but does provide links on request to select properties which offer discounts to Island Windjammers guests. The planning information given to all guests at the time of booking states that IWJ vessels in St Lucia will be berthed at Rodney Bay until December 2015, at which time they will relocate to Marigot Bay".

Windjammer: Pirates Of The Carribean

I have been interested in a windjammer cruise for years and finally convinced my family. After looking at several options we chose Island Windjammers, and could not have enjoyed our trip more. I should say that the Sagitta, while it has sails, was powered by a motor. That may make some say that it was not a true wind jammer cruise, and they would have a point. However, that did not detract from our enjoyment of the trip. The crew was wonderful. There was nothing that we wanted for. It seemed as though no sooner did you ask for something than a crew member was there to help. The food was OUTSTANDING!! How the chef was able to produce so much wonderful food from small a small galley was hard to imagine. There is a rope swing from the rigging that my daughter, her friend, and I loved swinging from to splash into the Caribbean. The ports of call on each of the islands were fun, and much more remote than if we had traveled on a large ship. We are all certified SCUBA divers and the cruise director did a wonderful job locating dive shops for us to use (I reviewed two of them.)

     I will warn potential travelers to bring motion sickness meds. While in the lea of the islands the boat is very calm. When travelling between the islands, mostly at night, you will be tossed around your bunk. After the first night I thought "Oh no, what have I done.) After the first night we were better prepared for a couple of hours of rough seas and adjusted just fine. It all made for a geat adventure.

We would do it again!

If you liked the old Barefoot Windjammer cruises, you'll love an Island Windjammer cruise. We got on the ship with 22 strangers and got off with 22 new good friends. You know you're going to have a good time when you know all your shipmate's name and the crew's names in the first couple days.
The Sagitta is a 120', 3 masted sailing ship. Room enough for 24 passengers and a crew of 10. The cabins are compact but large enough not to feel cramped. Lots of drawers and shelves for storage (as much as any hotel room) and the bathroom is very functional with a separate shower. The rooms each have their own controls for air conditioning. The seas can be a little bumpy at times, but not enough for most people to bother needing medicine. If you're prone to car sickness or air sickness, get an over the counter remedy and take it each morning.
The food is excellent. 3 great meals each day with fresh fruit and vegetables purchased during the island stops. All the wine you want is served with dinner (and far into the night if you so desire). At 5:00 each day snacks and a rum punch are served. During the snack time you learn about the next days itinerary. In addition to the free rum and wine, there is a cooler with iced down beer and sodas available all day long (all included in the price). Dressing up for dinner usually meant putting on a clean tee shirt...shoes sometimes.
The islands visited are small islands that are too small for the cruise ships to dock so they are not crowded. The Sagitta Operations Manager lines up tours, excursions, taxis or if you want to go out on your own, she gives you tips on island attractions. If you don't want to do anything when the ship anchors off the islands, relax on a lounge chair on deck and enjoy the sun and beauty of the seas. Most taxi fares are about $10 per person, where ever you go. Everyone on the islands takes the US dollar and give back change in US dollars. If you want to go to the island and do a little shopping and go back to the ship, the crew runs a small motor boat from the ship to the island every hour on the hour. If you miss it, get a beer ($1.50 to $2.00) and wait for the next one.
If you are into photography, these cruises are a dream come true. The islands are made for photography...white tan sandy beaches, crystal clear turquoise blue water and quaint little towns.One day, the crew set all the sails and then loaded up all who wanted to and circled the ship with a dingy so we could snap pictures of the ship under full sail. That was a special touch you won't get with a big cruise ship.
If you book a cruise from St. Maartin, go a couple days early or stay a couple extra days and explore the island. One thing that is a must is the Sunset Beach Bar. The bar sets at the start of the airport runway and planes are literally a few feet above the beach when they land. Great for pictures.
Our cruise on the Sagitta was one of our best trips ever. If you want to see tropical islands up close, feel the sea breeze in your hair and be totally relaxed for a week or more...call Island Windjammers.
 

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