This winter, escape it or embrace it; Either way, a small ship can get you there. Think warm-water classics like the Caribbean, the Panama Canal and Costa Rica, or island-hopping through Southeast Asia and the Canary Islands. Then there are the outliers: French Polynesia and Tahiti, where Windstar sails year-round through tropical waters, and the Mediterranean, our new favorite way to spend the season, minus the summer crowds.
This winter, escape it or embrace it; Either way, a small ship can get you there. Think warm-water classics like the Caribbean, the Panama Canal and Costa Rica, or island-hopping through Southeast Asia and the Canary Islands. Then there are the outliers: French Polynesia and Tahiti, where Windstar sails year-round through tropical waters, and the Mediterranean, our new favorite way to spend the season, minus the summer crowds.
Picture yourself on a warm winter cruise with a Latin beat, filled with bucket list sights to see along with dreamy beach days. My first …
Ask a dozen travelers to picture a cruise, and most will describe the same scene: turquoise water, a swim-up bar, a beach with a hammock. That’s the Caribbean — and it’s a wonderful, well-earned classic. But a few thousand miles east, off the coast of Northwest Africa, another archipelago offers an entirely different kind of escape. The Canary Islands trade palm-fringed beaches for volcanic peaks, tropical humidity for eternal spring, and beach clubs for tapas bars tucked into cobblestone plazas.
Caribbean’s yacht harbors give Windstar’s small ships an advantage. Rather than crowding into the same mega-ports as the big cruise lines, our yachts slip into harbors too small, too shallow, or simply too special for larger vessels.
As a travel photographer who loves the outdoors, the Tahitian Islands have long been at the top of my list of exotic destinations to visit. From tropical landscapes to fiery sunsets, these are some of my favorite photos from Windstar’s Dreams of Tahiti
Did you know that rainforests abound in the region? In fact, rainforests (not to mention volcanoes) set the stage for our favorite hikes in places like Nevis, Puerto Rico, Dominica , Tobago and more.
Once one of the greatest cities in the Mediterranean, ancient Ephesus, just outside the Turkish port of Kuşadasi, remains an extraordinary site by any measure. …
As Windstar’s shipyard and newbuild teams prepare for the launch of Star Explorer, its second new addition to the fleet in two years, attention now turns to the leadership team responsible for making sure it is ready for its debut. Windstar has announced the slate of officers who will be part of the inaugural season.
And, for insights from a different lens, we read the world’s top travel and lifestyle magazines and websites for insights on how to craft more interesting trips.
Windstar has begun a multi-million-dollar, multi-year refurbishment initiative for Wind Surf, Wind Spirit and Wind Star
It occurred to me, traveling to Malaga to be part of Star Seeker’s weeklong shakedown cruise, that the last time I was so excited about experiencing a new style-for-Windstar voyage was, when, after a handful of sailings on my beloved Wind Surf, I was introduced to Star Legend at its christening.
In April, Windstar President Chris Prelog shared a now-official and no-longer-secret announcement of good news: Windstar has acquired two motor-yacht ships, to debut in December …
Traveling with friends is an excellent option for any vacation. You can reconnect with your friends, experience new cultures and make lasting memories. The experience …
Trish and Brooke Harwood have cruised all over the world, but their most recent voyage — a two week sailing from Lisbon to Rouen (and …
Windstar isn’t one size — it’s several small ones. Depending on which ship you choose, you’ll sail with anywhere from 148 to 346 fellow guests. And you’ll never be lost in the crowd. In fact, one of the line’s biggest strengths, whichever size ship you choose, is how personal and intimate the experience will be.
The science is in: stepping outside your routine may be one of the most powerful things you can do for your mind and body. Global …
Last year, we gave each other one holiday gift: a Caribbean cruise that took place over Christmas.
Are you a huge river cruise aficionado looking for some fresh new itineraries that offer tastes of both rivers and oceans?
It seems fitting that our 7-night cruise from Rouen to Bordeaux was also designated a James Beard Foundation voyage. Windstar has partnered with the foundation for 11 years now, sailing its award-winning chefs alongside guests and folding their dishes into Amphora menus, and this trip felt like a perfect showcase of why.
We all already know this: Italy is a beautiful country with extensive history and dramatic scenery and yet what keeps us coming back (and we’ve visited both on-land trips and via Windstar cruises from summer to winter) is its culinary and vinophile traditions (among others). Whether the dishes are familiar or not, an Aperol Spritz cocktail, pictured above, simply doesn’t taste the same at home as it does in Taormina!
Tobler, in addition to overseeing many crucial functions, including housekeeping and public spaces, is a visionary whose gift for the culinary arts has lifted the line with new accomplishments.
One of the most popular aspects of Windstar’s partnership with the James Beard Foundation is its chef-led culinary cruises.
Now in its 11th season, Windstar’s partnership with the James Beard Foundation for chef-hosted cruises continues with a new lineup.
The six acclaimed chefs — José Garzón, Belinda Bishop, mother-daughter duo Kirsten Dixon and Mandy Dixon, Gabriel Kreuther, and David Uygur — will bring their regional culinary expertise and signature dishes to sea and host market tours on their itineraries.
It’s Saturday morning on our 11-day James Beard Foundation cruise through Portugal, Spain and France. “Shop with the chef” is a complimentary excursion offered, (when possible) on specific itineraries.
Ocean crossings — most commonly the journeys between Europe and North America each spring and fall as ships reposition for the seasons — are one of the most underrated experiences in travel.
I was told my borrowed horse Luther had just two speeds as we headed out for our sunset ride through El Salobre on the island …
And yet, here’s the thing: in the spirit of adventure, would you purposely set out on a cruise where you didn’t know where you were going? Yes!
When Windstar announced last fall that it would be extending its Mediterranean season to year-round (from spring/summer/autumn), the first thing I wondered was this: How would a cruise in November–early March be different from one during the traditional April–October time frame? How would the new timings materially change the experience?
Recently, Chryssi and Steve Zeleny (pictured above), who traveled on Star Pride in the Caribbean last fall, wrote us a letter that we have not been able to forget. We hope you will be as moved by their experience as we all have been at Windstar.
The first Windstar ship I ever experienced was Wind Star in the Caribbean, the 148-passenger sailing ship. The most recent was Star Legend in the …
