Chapter 8: Your Bucket List Isn’t Complete Without a Transatlantic Crossing

Imagine the freedom to do absolutely nothing. You wake when you wish in a comfortable bed, stretch, enjoy a healthy, delicious breakfast prepared by a chef and have the entire morning to enjoy fresh coffee, read or just sit back and savor the clean ocean air.

While aboard a transatlantic cruise, there is no pressure to do anything in the morning, afternoon or evening. You only need to choose which meal you wish to eat next. You could spend every moment in your luxurious private room if you wanted to. Every evening promotes restful slumber and the peace of knowing that come tomorrow there is no pressure yet again. These are reasons why a transatlantic cruise belongs on everyone’s bucket list.

If you like to keep busy, there are plenty of activities to enjoy aboard a transatlantic cruise as well, including dancing, taking a class, working out, playing pool, swimming, shopping, catching live entertainment and more. It all depends on what you enjoy — no one can tell you how to spend your time, even if it involves an entire day at the spa.

A transatlantic cruise also lets you experience crossing the Atlantic Ocean. Many people see the Atlantic only from the shore. It appears endless, and it is hard to imagine the other side. A transatlantic cruise takes you across vast, mysterious waters and lets you experience the depth and distance first-hand.

You’ll get a taste of life at sea and feel the pleasure of days spent without booked schedules. As you watch the sunset over the horizon, casting its warm glow over deep sapphire waters, you’ll feel the tedium of traffic jams, alarm clocks and obligations slip away.

Windstar Transatlantic Crossings

Unlike flying, there is a romantic element to sailing across the Atlantic. You experience the vastness of the ocean with your own eyes. You reach your destination with a new perspective, having felt the distance you traveled more intimately.

Transatlantic cruising flourished throughout the late 1800s and early 1900s, after the invention of the steam engine. Many passengers had enough wealth to enjoy vacationing on the sea, as they traveled to England from New York.

Ships of the old days were fashioned in grand, ornamental styles designed to capture the elegance and luxury of Victorian hotels and clubhouses. Passengers dined on first-class fare in opulent dining halls and enjoyed games, drinks and conversations afterward.

Although our sense of luxurious style has evolved from the early days of cruising, the principal ideas remain the same — to relax, be pampered and savor life at sea.

Windstar offers a range of transatlantic crossings to destinations that are just as indulgent for the senses as the cruise itself. Here are some examples, to inspire you to lose time and enjoy living on your terms so you can reconnect with your dreams and what it means to feel alive.

1. Ocean Crossings

The Ocean Crossings cruise is a 12-day transatlantic cruise that starts at $1,299 per person. You’ll start in Bridgetown, Barbados, where you can shop for local handmade crafts or specialty products. Perhaps add a colorful locally-made scarf to your wardrobe to capture the spirit of a seafaring style or enjoy the fragrance of tropical blooms as you leisurely browse the many shops and cafes in the historic capital of Barbados.

If you’d rather dive into adventure, visit Harrison’s Cave, a sparkling limestone cave replete with streams and deep clear pools. You’ll board the ship at 6 p.m. when the journey towards relaxation under dazzling stars begins.

For the next eleven days, you will have freedom and the option to savor sweet solitude. You’ll enjoy the liberty to do what you wish when you wish and to be whoever you desire to be. While aboard the Star Breeze, you’ll enjoy a private suite as if the yacht was all your own.

The Star Breeze welcomes 212 guests, unlike larger cruise ships that house thousands of passengers. Here, it is all about you. You are treated as if you were on a private yacht — pampered. Indulged. Every meal is crafted with inspiration from seasonal and local ingredients and influenced from each port. You’ll enjoy a world-class dining experience at every meal.

Want to request something special? In the mood for a decadent delight? While aboard the Star Breeze, you can choose what you want to eat, and when, where and with whom you wish to dine. Meals are cooked at your request, or you can feast in one of the ship’s restaurants. Every meal in all venues is included in your voyage, including 24-hour room service.

Anytime you wish to escape to delicious solitude, all you have to do is step foot in your comfortable, luxuriously furnished suite, and enjoy ocean views in privacy. Stretch out on Egyptian cotton sheets and savor the letting go of thoughts, worries and everything left behind on land.

When you’re ready to spice up the evening or explore the yacht’s activities, you can engage in conversation in a lounge or club, or feed your mind and soul in the library.

To get your body moving, go swimming in the pool or recharge at the fitness center. Relieve muscle tension in the spa.

On the 13th day, you’ll arrive in Lisbon, Portugal. Feeling rejuvenated, uplifted, and ageless you’ll be ready to cherish the spellbinding elegance of a charming, historic city.

2. Star Collector: Caribbean Carousing and an Atlantic Crossing

This cruise is not just a crossing — it’s an expedition. For 24 days and from $3,899 per person, you’ll board the Wind Surf to sail from St. Maarten to Lisbon.

The Wind Surf is Windstar’s showstopping sailing yacht and welcomes 310 guests to join her as she crosses the Atlantic and journeys from one port to the next. Aboard this newly renovated ship, you’ll enjoy the luxurious trademarks of Windstar from Egyptian cotton linen to fresh fruit and flowers in every suite. From each destination, you’ll have a pampered retreat to return to and unwind and to savor the memory of each experience.

Before you set sail for Lisbon, you’ll spend eleven days exploring the lush tropical Caribbean paradise and charming seaside towns. You’ll have the chance to relax on tranquil beaches, shop for unique treasures or taste local delicacies.

For example, on day six you’ll visit St. George in Grenada, or the “Isle of Spice,” where you can treat yourself to nutmeg ice cream in perhaps the most beautiful Caribbean city. You’ll have endless opportunities to enjoy one of our excursions to enhance the experience. Whether you wish for a private, guided vehicle tour to comfortably enjoy your personal itinerary or whether you want to scuba dive, kayak or sail your own ship — there’s an excursion for you.

After indulging your senses and your spirit in ten different Caribbean towns, you’ll journey to Lisbon, Portugal. While crossing the Atlantic aboard the Wind Surf, you’ll get to transcend time and self and become part of an ocean which holds so many mysteries, treasures and secrets untold.

When you arrive in Lisbon on day 25 of your journey, the world will be off your shoulders and instead, before you, welcoming you, embracing you and thanking you for being here.

3. Star Collector: Classic Crossing to Spain and More

Board the Wind Star for 23 days from $3,599 per person and escape to Barcelona. This cruise gives you the perfect balance of sea-time and port exploration, as you’ll get a taste of the Caribbean and the best ports on the western Mediterranean. By the end of your journey, you will have had the chance to browse exotic goods in Morocco, wander medieval streets in Spain, soak in the sun in Barbados and of course — cross the majestic and mysterious Atlantic.

You’ll depart in Bridgetown, and head for the sea, arriving in Lisbon on the 16th day. From there you will spend a day in Tangier, Morocco, considered the gateway to Africa by many, followed by a day in Malaga, Spain. In Malaga, you’ll have the option to view a collection of Picasso’s work at the Museo Picasso Malaga or spend the day tasting some of the world’s most exquisite wines.

You’ll then travel to Cartagena, Spain, a popular seaport with endless opportunities to engage with the local culture. Or you could venture off to the ancient city of Murcia. The magnetic Ibiza calls you next. This vibrant coastal city offers dozens of eateries for tantalizing fare and is situated near water as blue as polished gems.

On day 23 you’ll visit Tarragona, Spain, home to Spain’s most important Roman ruins. You’ll end your voyage in colorful, creative and friendly Barcelona where you can taste as many tapas as your heart desires.

Travel Bucket List Ideas

If you have a transatlantic cruise on your bucket list, you can cross it off with Windstar. Make the most out of your journey and create a list of items to enjoy along the way. Here are some ideas for your transatlantic bucket list as you travel far and wide:

• Get a massage every day you’re at sea: Massage has many health benefits from easing anxiety to helping digestive disorders. Dare yourself to get a daily massage and savor every moment of it — you deserve it.
• Go a week without looking at your phone: Reconnect with your dreams, thoughts and emotions in peaceful solitude without digital distractions. You’ll emerge with a clear view of where you’ve been and where you are going. Plus, you might realize how much technology was stressing you out.
• Have breakfast in bed: Imagine waking up and having a delicious breakfast and fresh hot coffee delivered to you while you are still warm and cozy under the covers. No need to drag yourself out of bed to brew a pot of coffee and fry up some eggs. Treat yourself to breakfast in bed at least once in your life and make sure it includes your favorite items like fluffy slices of french toast and sticky maple syrup.
• Enjoy a daily sunset: More often than not we miss the sun setting. Life at sea gives you those moments and it’s breathtaking. Watch the sun dip into the horizon, casting its glow over navy blue water for a touch of daily magic in your routine.
• Give yourself permission to be pampered for days: When you are on a cruise, you are royalty. You are allowed to be pampered, to enjoy every moment and to never feel like you must serve anyone or anything. You earned it.