Once I advised a buddy that I used to be taking a Maine Windjammer Cruise this summer time, she mentioned, “Oh, I can’t wait to see the photographs of you lounging on deck in a flowy caftan that’s blowing within the breeze.” I knew then that she was imagining a crusing journey within the Caribbean or the Greek Islands, and that wasn’t what I ought to count on from a Maine Windjammer Cruise.
However past carrying L.L.Bean versus resort put on, I frankly wasn’t fairly certain what was in retailer for me past good meals, stunning surroundings, and a singular journey expertise. I’ve spent loads of time driving up and down the Maine coast however experiencing the lighthouses and rocky shoreline from the water is an entire totally different expertise, one which I used to be eager to strive.
After spending three days and 4 nights aboard the Schooner Heritage, I realized first-hand what a Maine Windjammer Cruise is all about. The underside line is that this kind of crusing expertise isn’t for everybody, however in case you tick sure packing containers, a Windjammer Cruise is usually a bucket listing expertise that received’t break the financial institution.
If in case you have thought of a crusing trip or considered a Maine Windjammer Cruise, learn on to see if it’s the proper match for you.
Notice: My journey was hosted by the Maine Windjammer Affiliation and the Schooner Heritage. All opinions are my very own.
What’s a Windjammer?
If in case you have by no means even heard of a Maine Windjammer, let’s begin with some background. Within the nineteenth century, coasting schooners have been used to move fruit, fish, lumber, and extra between ports alongside the Jap Seaboard. These schooners have been crusing vessels with two or extra masts, also known as Windjammers or Windships. As soon as vans and trains changed ships, these schooners almost grew to become out of date.
Nonetheless, Maine artist Frank Swift rescued many of those schooners and capitalized on the rising curiosity in Maine as a “Vacationland” to supply crusing cruises to adventurous vacationers seeking to escape the hustle and bustle of city residing. This imaginative and prescient carries ahead to in the present day’s Maine Windjammer Cruises, albeit with just a few extra facilities.
At present, there are 9 schooners within the Maine Windjammer Affiliation, the most important fleet of windjammers within the nation, 5 of which have been designated Nationwide Historic Landmarks. Every vessel is individually owned, with its personal distinctive story, and every captain provides his or her personal character to the expertise aboard. With various climate and crew, no two sailings are precisely the identical.
What’s Maine Windjammer Cruise?
Maine Windjammers depend on the wind and tide, utilizing nothing however the sails, or generally getting just a little push from the motorized yawl boat, to navigate the waters of Penobscot Bay, off of Maine’s midcoast. This part of the coast is good for crusing holidays, providing a crusing trip that you simply received’t discover wherever else in the US.
Penobscot Bay is dotted with islands, each massive and small, that present each a scenic backdrop and numerous coves to anchor at evening. Maine Windjammers provide pleasure cruises from three to 6 nights lengthy, and there are schooners that may accommodate wherever from 16 to 40 passengers on board, plus a small crew.
Whereas some cruises have themes (e.g. Perseids Meteor Bathe, Lobsters & Lighthouses,…) or sail to particular occasions (just like the Maine Windjammer Days in Boothbay Harbor), most sailings haven’t any set itinerary. The ships sail wherever the wind, and their captains, take them to search out the very best climate and finest views.
The Maine Windjammer crusing season kicks off in early June and continues by late September. Every ship has totally different choices, however the Schooner Heritage that I sailed on presents three, 4, and six-night cruises, and the costs vary from $780-$1265 per individual (for 2022), relying on the size of the cruise and time of the yr.
6 Causes to Ebook a Maine Windjammer Cruise
As I mentioned earlier than, the Maine Windjammer Cruise isn’t for everybody. You might love cruising, however this isn’t your typical cruise. A Maine Windjammer cruise could also be best for you in case you meet the next standards:
1. You take pleasure in coastal New England surroundings
The Maine Windjammers omit of Rockland and Camden on Maine’s midcoast. Each of those scenic vacationer havens have a lot to supply guests, from Rockland’s sturdy artwork scene to Camden’s quaint harbor (see my options for issues to do in Rockland.) However there’s solely a lot that you would be able to see on the land until you hop on one of many day by day ferries to Vinalhaven or North Haven Islands.
A Maine Windjammer Cruise lets you see the coast from an entire totally different perspective. You’ll sail previous quite a few lighthouses in your journey, together with rocky coastlines trimmed with pine timber. A Maine Windjammer cruise can be a good way to identify wildlife. Many instances all through my journey I noticed seals, porpoises, ospreys, and different sea birds. The seals and porpoises favored to hold about and spy on us.
2. You Get pleasure from Assembly Fellow Vacationers
Should you take pleasure in group excursions and journeys and respect the chance to get to know like-minded people, you’ll respect the neighborhood facet of a Maine Windjammer Cruise. This isn’t a good selection for these looking for alone time.
Maine Windjammer Cruises have a tendency to draw adventurous vacationers from throughout the nation. Many are retired professionals, though there could also be some households (though this could be higher fitted to some tweens/teenagers than younger youngsters that want shut supervision.)
Day-after-day brings alternatives to work together with and get to know your loved ones vacationers. All meals are served household model, lending themselves to dialog. On deck, the visitors and crew work collectively to boost and decrease sails or handle the ship. Whereas crusing or within the quiet evenings, both throughout “cocktail hour” or after dinner, visitors collect in camp chairs on deck and float from one group to the opposite, making dialog.
As a result of everybody on board interacts with one another, I feel solo vacationers will really feel simply as comfy as these touring with a buddy, household, or important different. The neighborhood facet of the expertise jogged my memory lots of one in all our favourite household holidays on the 9 Quarter Circle dude ranch in Montana.
3. You Wish to Go together with the Move
In case you are somebody that doesn’t like their trip to be too structured and enjoys simply going with the move then you’ll respect a Maine Windjammer trip. There’s no set itinerary and the place you’re going can change by the day, or by the hour, relying on the climate. All you already know is that you’ll be crusing.
Likewise, your days are pretty unstructured aboard a Maine Windjammer. The rhythms of the day revolve round two issues — meals and sails. You’ll quickly catch on that espresso hour begins round 6:30 am, adopted by breakfast at 8:00 am. After that, it’s time to increase the sails and catch a breeze to your subsequent vacation spot.
The day could also be spent flying with the wind or shifting extra slowly with the breeze. Lunch will come out when the crew is in a position and by late afternoon, the captain has discovered a spot to anchor for the evening.
It’s then time to decrease and fold the sails earlier than breaking open no matter beverage you introduced on board for cocktail hour. That is the time when you possibly can go for a swim or take the small row boat out for a view of the Schooner from the water. You might even get a crew member to take you out on the small sailboat that accompanies the Schooner.
Dinner is a luxurious feast, adopted by a selfmade dessert. You may be amazed by the standard of meals that the crew prepares over a wood-burning range. After dinner, visitors collect to speak, play video games, have a look at the celebrities, or perhaps have a sing-a-long.
Bedtime comes early and visitors slowly say their goodnights and make their approach beneath decks to be lulled to sleep by the light rocking of the ship.
4. You’re an Journey Traveler
When you might not contemplate a crusing cruise a type of journey journey, I feel you want to have an adventurous spirit to finest take pleasure in a Windjammer cruise. This isn’t a luxurious cruise with soft lodging. In reality, the cabins beneath the deck are fairly small and rustic. On the Schooner Heritage, cabins provide both a single mattress, two bunks, or a double mattress.
House is tight, with simply sufficient room to show round and storage is even tighter. Our cabin had two small cabinets, however you don’t typically need to depart objects on them in the course of the day as they’ll doubtless slide off whereas crusing. There was house to retailer small duffel or tote luggage below the decrease bunk. In any other case, the cabin simply consists of a sink with cold and warm water, towel racks, coat hooks, {an electrical} outlet, and studying lights above the mattress.
You will have seen that I didn’t point out a rest room. Schooners provide shared loos on the primary deck. The Schooner Heritage had three marine heads, one in all which additionally functioned as a non-public marine bathe (principally a kitchen sink hose to rinse your self). On our ship, two of the cabins truly had personal loos. Nonetheless, these nonetheless have a little bit of an odor so watch out what you would like for.
I considered the lodging as a type of tenting on the water. In case you are comfy tent or cabin tenting with a shared rest room and bathe home, you’ll in all probability be high quality on a Maine Windjammer cruise.
I’ll admit that sometimes a non-public rest room is a should for me, even when glamping. However regardless of that desire, I nonetheless loved the journey of a Maine Windjammer Cruise. I’d have a tricky time on a six-day cruise, to be trustworthy, however the three or four-night was fairly doable as soon as the warmth wave broke (there isn’t any air-con so a small fan is one thing that I might suggest you pack for a Maine Windjammer Cruise.
5. You Get pleasure from Visitor Participation
Maine Windjammer cruises offer you as a lot alternative to take part as you need. It’s a nice alternative to study just a little bit about crusing with out taking classes or shopping for a sailboat. The crew actually appreciates the assistance hauling traces and elevating sails. Additionally they don’t flip down a little bit of assist in the kitchen, particularly relating to cleansing up.
You actually don’t have to hitch in. I spent one afternoon sitting in a comfortable nook on the deck studying an excellent e-book. So if you’re feeling just a little drained or lazy, don’t really feel responsible. There can be loads of alternatives to hitch in.
6. LOBSTER!
A spotlight of all of the Maine Windjammer cruises is a conventional New England lobster bake on the seashore. In some unspecified time in the future in the course of the cruise, your captain will discover a abandoned seashore and drop anchor. The crew will row the visitors and provides ashore for both a lunch or dinner lobster bake.
It takes a while to construct the hearth, gather seaweed to cowl the lobsters, and cook dinner every part up, giving visitors an opportunity to go for a swim or take a hike alongside the seashore to stretch their sea legs.
Our afternoon on “Lobster Island” (truly Mc Glathery Island) began with chips and dip, adopted by hamburgers, sizzling canine, and watermelon. Quickly these attractive soft-shelled lobsters have been able to crack open, together with recent Maine corn.
I can’t describe the enjoyment of selecting aside my recent lobster on a seashore, with nothing however a rock to make use of as my desk. Butter dripping down my face and nobody round to note besides my shipmates, who had already seen me bleary-eyed and stumbling to the toilet within the early mornings.
4 Causes Not to Take a Maine Windjammer Cruise
If in case you have learn this far and you’re nonetheless occupied with a Maine Windjammer Cruise, then you’re in all probability an excellent candidate for this kind of trip. Nonetheless, there are just a few different issues to bear in mind earlier than you e-book:
1. You Have Younger Youngsters
The viewers of the Maine Windjammer Cruises developments a bit older. On my crusing, there was one household with one teen boy and one younger grownup daughter. Nonetheless, the remainder of the visitors have been both retirees or within the 50+ age group (my buddy being one of many solely exceptions.)
That isn’t essentially a motive for households to remain away. In reality, it could possibly be particularly enjoyable to e-book a Windjammer cruise with a gaggle of buddies or as a multi-generational journey. Nonetheless, I might not need to carry young children on board.
Not solely is there not lots of room to run round with out getting underfoot of crew and visitors, however mother and father would must be consistently vigilant, particularly when crusing. When the Schooner heels, the boat can actually lean fairly a bit and it’s straightforward for unfastened objects (telephones, water bottles, and many others.) to slide by the small openings on deck. You’ll need to preserve a detailed grip on younger youngsters at the moment.
2. You Have Meals Allergy symptoms
The Captain and crew of the Schooner Heritage did an excellent job accommodating these visitors with sure meals sensitivities or dietary restrictions, similar to gluten sensitivity, vegetarians, or no seafood. Nonetheless, when you have a severe meals allergy I feel it will be difficult to forestall cross-contamination within the small galley.
That is one thing you’ll need to discuss with the workers earlier than reserving to see precisely what they may accommodate. Simply take into account that if there is a matter, a hospital might be 45-minutes or extra away by boat.
3. You Have Mobility Points
There have been a few passengers on our cruise that had mobility points and I give them lots of credit score for working by the problem. Nonetheless, in case you do have mobility points you need to think twice about whether or not or not the setup is nice for you.
To go beneath decks to the cabins or galleys, you want to descend a steep staircase, ideally backward for security functions. This additionally means you want to climb up and down these stairs when you want to use the toilet. For these of us that have to rise up and go in the course of the evening, that is probably not the most secure state of affairs.
Whereas crusing, shifting across the deck might be treacherous in case you aren’t regular in your toes, particularly when the ship is heeling. Even those that are regular on their toes want to hold on when the wind is actually blowing. And, decks can get slippery so good boat footwear or supportive footwear with non-skid soles are obligatory.
Additionally, take into account that you’re both sitting on camp chairs that aren’t tremendous supportive or resting on a deck cushion on the onerous deck or galley roof with out again assist. The cabin mattresses additionally aren’t precisely Tempur-Pedic, so you’ll really feel all of your creaky joints within the morning.
4. You Aren’t a Morning Particular person
The ship’s crew rises with the solar and instantly will get to work swabbing the decks (sure, that is known as a factor) and getting ready for the day. The ocean birds additionally wish to welcome the morning, even earlier than the solar makes its look.
There aren’t many secrets and techniques saved on the ship, as sound travels simply and you’ll hear your fellow shipmates rise and begin their days. I extremely suggest an excellent set of earplugs for all passengers, particularly gentle sleepers. I truly received’t journey with out my Bose Sleep Buds (that is my affiliate hyperlink, in case you click on and make a purchase order I’ll obtain a small fee however even when I didn’t, I’d nonetheless sing the praises of the Sleep Buds.) I’d be a wreck with out these miracle-working noise-canceling earbuds that additionally play sleep sounds that masks ambient noise.
Even with earplugs, it’s onerous to disregard the dialog, laughter, and banging coming from above, together with the solar streaming in. You don’t need to rise up early on a Windjammer cruise, however it’s fairly onerous to not. Plus you need to be prepared for the breakfast bell at 8:00 am.
So what do you assume…is a Maine Windjammer Cruise for you? Regardless of the drawbacks, I’m glad I had an opportunity to expertise this distinctive sort of “cruising.” It’s far more genuine than these large cruise ships anyway!
My fellow shipmates all had a beautiful time too. For some, it was their tenth voyage aboard! Others have been returning for his or her second or fourth crusing, whereas most of the newbies have been strategizing on how one can get different {couples} to hitch them subsequent yr. Even a number of the crew had first been passengers in earlier years.
Save this to Pinterest
