Over a month ago, I was lucky enough to be on a 7 night cruise through the Amalfi Coast. We witnessed a beautiful ship, delicious food, and spectacular small ports! However, in researching prior to the trip, there’s not much information about the specifics of what it is really like to be on board and the quirks this particular cruise line company has. I will (of coarse) be peppering my photos in between these points
*PLEASE NOTE: This post is not sponsored in any way, shape or form by Star Clippers. This is a completely honest review based on my Party’s experience on board.
So without further a due:
Here are 9 things you should know before you take a Star Clippers Cruise
1-It’s hard to find information before you go
I ALWAYS do research before I leave on any international trip to be sure I am informed before I leave. I felt like when I was trying to find specifics (what time you need to be there, the logistics in general) it was nearly impossible to find concrete times for anything. Even when I asked on their website chat - the hours are minimal and it takes a lot of begging to get port times, embarkation and disembarkation information. It didn’t really matter once we were on board because there was a lot of help, however, it was not readily available prior to the trip which made the whole boarding experience a bit chaotic. I will get into the specifics in a moment.
2-Boarding was chaotic (because we were misinformed)- Get there early!
Prior to leaving, I was implicitly told that embarkation was between 4-8pm with a departure at 10pm. My party was coming from the heart of Tuscany (Cortona, see picture to the left). After we spend all day traveling to Civitavecchia from Cortona, we arrived at 6 (right in between 4-8) and dropped our car off at the train station. After a 30 minute walk (because the shuttles were not running) we arrived and were rushed through the embarkation process in an empty cruise terminal. Confused about this whole thing - considering we thought we had plenty of time to board according to prior information- we were frustrated, what’s the rush? Turns out that boarding ended pretty much exactly at the time we got there around 6:30, we almost missed the ship! So why were we told the wrong information? I’m still confused why we were misinformed, but the moral of the story is GET THERE EARLY! I would recommend getting there around 1-3pm to make sure you embark correctly.
3-Built for retired passengers
Whilest aboard, my brother (30 years old) and I (28 years old) realized that we were 2 of around 10-15 passengers who were between 25-35 years old. Most everyone else on the ship was over 60, which to me was not a deal breaker by any means, but this was definitely not the type of cruise where you will see frat bros take overpriced shots at the bar.
4-The crew members get to know you!
It was quite refreshing that the crew was so small, less than 100 people representing over 25 countries. When you went to anywhere on the ship, it was always a familiar face. Sometimes, we were even greeted by name! I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know certain members of the crew.
5-Take advantage of your cruise director.
Meet Camilla; our cruise director (and tender captain), she speaks 3 languages fluently and whoever the cruise director is on your ship is there to help you! We really felt like she got to know us, she went above and beyond, giving us the information about literally anything on the ship including port information (I highly recommend you go to the information sessions every morning before you dock on the sun deck, it really helped us get our bearings). If anything this is just a commentary about how awesome Camilla is (Star Clippers are you listening?)
6-Intimate Ports (and lots of shopping at all of them)
This was by far one of the coolest things about these sailing vessels, it’s advertised all over Star Clippers website and marketing; smaller ports. Because the ports were smaller, these ports were not swarmed with thousands of other competition cruise ships, just regular tourists. Sometimes we were the only ship in the port (the picture above from Taormina is a prime example), there were even many other cruise goers who were in bigger ports and ended up traveling to the smaller ports we were docked at. On the downside, most of the ports we were in had a big focus on shopping first vs ruins 2nd.
The only downside is all the ports were so small that we were tendered into every port we docked at. Not a big deal considering that the tenders left from the ship and port every 30 minutes on strict schedule. Even though it is advertised as “Casual Elegance” with “no solid schedules” there are most definitely schedules that the vessel abides by, more so than advertised.
7-Interactive Programming
With such a focus on Ports, it is understandable that Programming would take a hit. There are no formal “broadway style shows”, but instead more off the cuff Talent shows and acts from the ports (like traditional Italian dancers outside Taormina). They let moments happen organically instead of making them forced. However, this can lead to some lackluster shows.
However, there is one giant exception - The Mast Climbing was definitely the most stunning part of the cruise programming. Great for exercise and photos! (see below)
8-Fancy food & not much else
The food on this ship is amazing! All the buffets are warm, with lots of options and the dinners are multi-coarse tastes of spectacular food! It’s the perfect way to try new things and experiment. My only complaint about this is that the meals were at very specific times, if you missed these times you often had to wait a minimum of at least 2 hours until the next community snack/meal was served. It kinda locked you in for the day sometimes (especially for your day at sea) it would have been nice to have on demand options in case you missed these meal times.
9-Spacious and Relaxed
Lastly, this ship is all about relaxation - theres no fancy dress code, no ridiculous shows, and no expectations. It is perfectly acceptable to stay on board while others explore the ports. It’s structure without rigidity and calm without compromise.
Passengers aren’t on top of each other and because of the intimate setting you will get to see everyone on the ship over and over again (just keep in mind that English, German, and French are the primary languages spoken on these ships - everything is in 3 languages).
Overall, had a fantastic time, I would definitely be back on one of these ships (if I can afford it lol) These (like any other cruise lines) are all about your experience, you’re not pressured to do anything you want to do. With all said - I would still highly recommend this experience, it really is a once in a lifetime experience that I would not trade for anything.
