For the price that you pay which is quite exorbitant I don’t think this experience lives up to the cost or the hype. While the crew and the staff on board as well as the guide are absolutely lovely and the service was great the boat is old, creaky and smelly.. The air-conditioning barely worked and people complained non-stop about the Aircon not working. There were no fans even on deck which are desperately needed to combat the unbearable European summer heat. Unfortunately it did not live up to the expectations and certainly not to the reviews I’ve seen on site. The boats need full renovations and need to be fully updated in order for them to be able to get a higher rating.
- Anonymous, 25/08/2024 14:46, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your review - we’re pleased to hear that you found our crew, staff, and service to be excellent. However, we regret to learn that the boat did not meet your expectations. We maintain a high rating of 4.7/5 stars for this departure, and our internal reports did not indicate any air-conditioning issues raised by yourself or any other guest. We encourage guests to raise any concerns with our Onboard Rep so we can address them swiftly. For transparency, we provide detailed imagery and information about each of our Explorer ships on our website to help guests make an informed decision about their accommodation. We appreciate your input and comments as we continue to enhance our services.
The boat has everything from under 18 to 65 year Olds plus. Given we spend most of the time on the boat it's frustrating that you put people who have limited interest groups or different stages of life. We were told this was suited to 30 to 40 year Olds. The experiences and tours were all for old people and the boat has very limited toys or experiences so all you can do is eat bad food, sunbake and drink to put up with the small talk - give more information to people prior to joining as Croatia is lovely but this isn't a great way to do it
- Jeremy , 13/08/2024 02:58, Travelled in a Couple
Dear Jeremy, Thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear you found Croatia lovely and we hope you enjoyed visiting the various islands. We're sorry to hear the cruise didn't meet your expectations. We couldn't find any correspondence regarding the age range advised to you, however this cruise type is open to all ages over 18, but typically appeals to a more mature traveler. We aim to offer a variety of meals using fresh local produce, so we regret any disappointment in this area and water toys aren't included, but can be brought on board. We provide detailed pre-departure information via email and on your Online Account, which includes everything you need to prepare for the cruise. We appreciate your input and thank you for your review!
The bedrooms need a major upgrade they’re a sauna and the boat is in need of maintenance as water leaked through the roof in the dining whilst eating lunch
- Jack, 23/07/2024 11:22, Travelled in a Couple
Dear Jack, Thank you for leaving us with your review. Our Standard Ships are popular with budget conscious, independent travellers on extended travels throughout Europe. Our Premier and Ensuite ships offer the added benefit of air-condtioned cabins compared to our Standard ships which you chose to travel on. We regret any issues experienced during your cruise. It is common for the more traditional, wooden ships, which are full of charm and history, to face occasional leaks during severe weather conditions, which was unfortunately experienced in the small part of the dining room during your week. Your comments help us in our ongoing efforts to maintain and enhance our vessels. Thank you.
I felt throughout the whole trip I was being asked to pay extra for random aspects such as bus transfers, water ferry’s. I feel like I don’t understand where my almost $2000 went. The crew and guide were amazing but all the hidden extra costs are not explained properly. I feel the initial price should be increased or have a lump sum you can do at the start with card instead of having to try get exact cash for everything. We had a ratio of 19 females to 3 males which is just ridiculous. I feel there should be allocated spots for males and females to have an appropriate dynamic. The people I was with were amazing and did save the trip and I really did enjoy myself but the random hassles all throughout the trip really did not make me want to rebook with sail Croatia again.
- Jessica, 19/06/2024 09:19, Travelled Solo
Hi Jessica, thank you for your feedback and for providing us with 5-star feedback. We're pleased to hear that you enjoyed the crew, guide, and fellow travelers. We aim to ensure a good mix of people on all our ships, however it does heavily rely on who has booked taking into consideration solo travellers, groups, friends, and couples. Our pre-departure information and website outline the inclusions and our Sales Team are available to answer any questions you may have around budgeting for your cruise. We appreciate your suggestions and will consider them as we strive to improve our services.
Tour guides were really great. Rides were awesome. Food was mediocre, but the rooms could be GREATLY improved for little cost. A thicker mattress, better sheets and a nicer comforter goes a long way. Also, we believe the pictures on your website were misleading for the accommodations.
- Anonymous, 27/05/2024 08:20, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there, thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear that the Tour guides were really great and that the rides were awesome. We are disappointed to hear that your view of the cabins did not match those of your fellow travellers onboard. I have checked the feedback collected for this departure and the cabins received an average score of 4.73 out of 5, however we appreciate your suggestion for improvements which we have shared with our Operations team. Once again thank you for joining us this spring.
Was a fun trip and weather was fantastic. Only down side was the quality of the boat and the quality of the food. Food was bland, stodgy and without any vegetables or salad. Boat had many issues including no hot water, door handle fell off and air conditioning didn’t work. However the crew was genuine and friendly.
- Phillip, 13/05/2024 06:49, Travelled in a Couple
Hello Phillip, we wish to thank you for taking the time to review your Cycle cruise with us this season. We are very happy to read you had a fun trip and the weather was on your side, this is great! We are also pleased that you found the crew to be genuine and friendly. We are sorry to hear that you found the food bland and we will make sure that this feedback is passed onto our Operations team for improvement. Thank you for a wonderful week on board exploring Croatia with us.
Croatia as a country was amazing and beautiful. However, the sail was disappointing. Our representative was not very engaging and for the price you pay, you don’t get a lot for it. Considering you pay prior, the drinks at the bar are expensive and ‘happy hour’ is only 10% off which isn’t worth it. They offered limited water and if you wanted a bottle of water you had to pay. Even when unwell, there is no bottled water that is accessible and you are not able to bring bottles from off the boat. As a couple, we were given two single beds and other groups of friends that requested single beds were in rooms with doubles. Overall, not worth the price you pay and we weren’t very satisfied and actually left the boat early due to being unwell and not being able to access cold water.
- Nikita, 04/09/2023 05:18, Travelled in a Couple
Hi Nikita, thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed your time in Croatia and its beautiful coastline. However, we are disappointed to learn of your lack of enjoyment onboard. The drinks prices are set per ship and an estimated price list is available for your perusal via our website. The bedding configurations onboard our Navigator cruises are not confirmed until 1 week prior to departure, and these can either be made up of; bunk bed, twin bed or double bed configurations. I can see that a double bed wasn't requested in this instance. In regards to the water cooler, water is available onboard this boat 24/7 from outside the saloon area and you are welcome to re-use your own water bottle. Upon checking our internal reports, I can see that our Onboard representative had tried to make you as comfortable as possible whilst your partner was unwell by bringing tea and water to your cabin, and even offering further medical assistance - we hope that he has made a full recovery.
Aircon was not working properly and the bedroom fascilities were terrible. No changing of sheets, towels or pillows when we were in a HEAT WAVE and many on board were sick was not good. Whole experience was uncomfortable. Chef also prepared wintery hot meals when we were in a HEAT WAVE. Very disspointed with the experience.
- A, 03/09/2023 14:02, Travelled in a Couple
Hi A, thank you for your review. We are disheartened to hear of your experience and we hope that you were able to enjoy other aspects of your cruise. Our Premier ships include a mid-week cabin service which includes rubbish removal, floor and bathroom cleaned and a bed linen change. Additional towels can be provided upon request. All cruises include 3-course lunches which is usually a starter, main and dessert - I'm sorry to hear you were unhappy with the meals served, our chefs aim to provide a variety of meals using fresh, local produce and we are pleased to see that the overall feedback rating for the meals served during your week was rated 4.6 out of 5 stars. We understand that there was another group onboard who experienced sickness for less than 24 hours, due to reasons not relating to the cruise. Upon checking our internal reports, there were no reports of issues with the air-conditioning onboard. We have a rigorous process in place for any issues that arise onboard, which is outlined in your pre-departure information. Following this process ensures that no incident is left unreported and gives us the best chance to resolve this during the cruise for you. Again we thank you for your feedback, and we hope you enjoyed your time in Croatia as a whole.
“Tuna” itself was really good, the aircon worked and the chef was fantastic. It was quite spacious for an ensuite boat. A few notes on this trip- the Tour guide was very unenthusiastic from check in on day 1. This was in regards to everything from excursions, to pub crawls. The pub crawls were very unorganised and communication overall could have been better. Restaurants for dinner were very average. Although Excursions were fun, they were well overpriced. The breakfast advertised was a buffet with an assortment of sausages/meat, eggs, pastries, cereal, fruit etc. The breakfast provided was continental style with one type of egg, toast, cereal and fruit, which was a bit of a let down.
- Sarah, 16/08/2023 00:37, Travelled Solo
Hello Sarah, thank you for your review and feedback of your cruise with us this summer. I'm very pleased to see you enjoyed the quality of your ship Tuna and the fantastic chef on board, thank you for these comments! I'm surprised to see your 2* review as feedback submitted at the end of your cruise was very positive, overall. We're disappointed to hear that the tour guide's enthusiasm and other aspects of the cruise did not meet your expectations, Sarah. We do appreciate your feedback and this will be passed onto our Operations Manager in Split. We do hope to welcome you back on board with us in the future. Thank you!
Our tour guide was not involved in the group at all. He did nothing to combine the different groups and so as a solo traveling it was unenjoyable. I feel as though he did the bare minimum, but didn’t even give adequate information. For example, when we went on the buggies there was a 30 mins break where we could have gone swimming but he didn’t mention this to us. So, the whole group missed out and were extremely hot. He never went out of his way to communicate much at all
- Sarah , 24/07/2023 03:29, Travelled Solo
Hi Sarah, thank you for taking the time to write your review. We are pleased to inform you that our internal reporting shows that the majority of guests on your ship provided great feedback for the cruise and the service provided by our onboard Rep. However, we are disappointed to learn that your experience did not align with the rest of the group's positive feedback and this will be passed on. Thank you again for your feedback and we hope to welcome you back at another opportunity.
I enjoyed the Sail Croatia experience, however, do feel that it can be very much luck of the draw when it comes to other boat personnel, which is such a crucial aspect of the week. When there are multiple large groups on each vessel, it can be hard to really get groups interacting all together, especially for solos. The other issue can be around age disparity. Perhaps more transparency over the booking arrangements of each boat could help this.
- Edward, 11/07/2023 14:52, Travelled Solo
Hi Edward, thank you for taking the time to review your Navigator cruise with us this season - it was a pleasure to have you on board. We're very happy reading that you enjoyed your Sail Croatia experience, this is great. With regards to your feedback on fellow travellers, I will be sure to pass this onto the relevant teams. All of our Navigator cruises are open to guests aged between 18 and 39 years old, so the age range is quite wide and our Reps work hard to create a good group dynamic that everyone on board can enjoy. I can see you had other solo guests on your cruise, which is always nice to see. We hope to see you join us again! Thank you.
The advertising for Sail Croatia isn't clear because the Navigator cruise is marketed for ages 18-39 but this blog post from the official website says the cruise is perfect for people under 30: https://www.sail-croatia.com/set-sail/which-ship-type-is-right-for-me-a-navigator-guide Also got food poisoning from the boat so I had to miss an activity I wanted to go to although some activities were overpriced for what they were. For example, the buggying in Korcula cost 60 euros but involved a half an hour break where you just sat around doing nothing. The ziplining involved driving back the way you had just come by boat for 40-60 minutes and then having to wait to be driven all the way back afterwards so it takes up a lot of unnecessary time. Also the bike riding in Mljet is just a bike hire, literally no helmet or anything else so this was expensive for what it was too. On the first day the check in ended up being later (after 12 pm) and we missed the first day swim stop. Refund me.
- Anonymous, 10/07/2023 06:33, Travelled Solo
Thank you for sharing your feedback regarding your Sail Croatia experience. Regarding the age range on board we appreciate you bringing it to our attention. We have the correct age noted on our Navigator pages and will update the link provided. The activities offered are a highlight for many guests and we understand the frustration when activities do not meet expectations. Your feedback regarding the pricing has been noted, and we will pass it on to the appropriate department. In regards to food poisoning, upon checking our internal records I can see on the 3rd July you had notified the onboard representative that you were unwell the night before. The onboard representative assisted immediately and no further issues were reported hereafter. There were also no incidences relating to food poisoning onboard. Regarding the check-in time, we aim for a check-in from 10:30am. Any delays in the process will be communicated to our guests. Thank you for sharing your concerns, and we value your input. If you have any further questions or require additional assistance, please feel free to reach out to us.
As a solo traveller, this experience was very disappointing and I regret my decision to travel with Sail Croatia. There were so few solo travelers and zero effort from anyone to integrate us into the group, so I spent a very lonely week on board.
- Sarah, 28/06/2023 07:14, Travelled Solo
Hi Sarah and thank you for your review. I have checked the details, and your boat had a well-balanced mix of travellers onboard, including 8 solo travellers. We are pleased to inform you that our internal reporting shows that the majority of guests on your ship provided five-star feedback for the cruise and the service provided by our onboard Rep. I have checked your feedback also, and we are pleased to know that you rated us 4-5 stars in other areas and would still recommend us, thank you. We do hope to have you join us again in the future.
We still had fun on this trip because of the people we met and places we went, but there were a lot of let downs. We sailed on a premier ship and paid extra for the accommodations. In Sail Croatia's mind, this meant we should pay more for everything. Our drinks were 75% more expensive then the other sail croatia boat and the crew squeezed us for money. Designated dinners were to expensive, poor quality restaurants with commish going to the guide. Guide said there was no way to get food in Mljet for under $25 and pushed everyone to pay $25 to eat on the boat (Food in Mljet was $10). Crew was not aware of the upcoming excursion details and refused to provide any day plans until 10am the day of so everyone would be on the ship longer. Guide left me on the side of a road to wait for an excursion van for 20 min because the ship was leaving early. Cruise was for 7 nights, but the last day had no activities or places planned and guide/crew just docked and left us. Rooms were constantly wet.
- Conor, 14/06/2023 17:33, Travelled in a Couple
Hi Conor, Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback on your recent trip with us. We are glad to hear that you were still able to enjoy your trip, thanks to the people you met and the places you visited. However, we understand some aspects didn't meet your expectations. Regarding the pricing of drinks, we would like to clarify that the prices may vary between ships and information about this can be found on our website under our 'Travel Resources'. We want to assure you that our crew and representative on board work diligently to facilitate a great week for all our guests and that our crew's intention is to enhance your experience. Furthermore, the feedback we received from your departure week was predominantly positive. However, we take all feedback seriously and are committed to addressing any concerns raised. We appreciate your feedback and if there is anything else you would like to discuss, please feel free to reach out to our customer support team directly.
Better cleaning, more friendly, variety with the food, in rainy days have some entertaining even border games or something, the cruise itself is not cheap and of top of that we have to pay more more, a lot of my travellers wee really dissatisfied!!! Never ever will Travel again with you guys I will not recommended neither to my friends!!!!
- Marta, 22/05/2023 14:29, Travelled in a Couple
Dear Marta, thank you for taking the time to review your cruise with us this season. I am very sorry to hear you felt this way about your experience. Unfortunately we are unable to guarantee the weather, so it is a shame that you did not have the best weather during your time with us. Overall for your departure I can see most guests that joined the cruise have said in feedback that they would recommend us, so I am sorry to hear this is not the case for you. Thank you for joining us Marta and for taking the time to review your experience.
I’m so lucky that I met such an amazing group of people on this sail Croatia because without them I would’ve been very disappointed. The food served on the boat was almost inedible, most people skipped it and ended up buying their own food. The crew on the boat were quite rude and made no effort to remember dietary requirements which almost resulted in some dire situations with multiple members on the boat. The bar on the boat was pretty much always closed which made it difficult at ports where there were no external bars - everyone had a few early night which isn’t exactly what you picture when you sign up for sail Croatia. Although the bar being closed wasn’t all bad as the drinks were so overpriced hardly anyone could afford them. Another issue with the bar being closed is that you’re not allowed to bring any food or drinks onboard - this is inconvenient when you need something to eat or drink and there is no way to purchase anything on board. Thank god I had a good group!
- Chloe, 12/09/2022 10:24, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for your review Chloe. We are really pleased to hear you met some amazing people on your cruise. We have high expectations and aim to provide our guests with lovely, fresh meals week after week, so we are very disappointed to hear the meals served didn't meet your expectations. Dietary requirements are passed on to the chef, and we encourage guests to introduce yourselves to the chef and discuss any additional requests with them. The bar is open during the day, generally up until midnight unless instructed by the crew - we appreciate you bringing this to our attention and we will discuss further with our Operations Team to ensure our high levels of service are maintained. Thank you.
I m vegetarian and I had a constant monotonous and unhealthy diet of eggs and cheese at each meal of the day. No vegetables, all cheap and badly cooked. To be fair. The ship crew were fine. The guides adequate. The hikes were not interesting bar one trip to a national part. Just uphill to a viewpoint. Every viewpoint and trail looked the same. The other guests were a good and lively bunch. Many felt the same but there was group pressure to say how great everything was.
- Eve, 05/09/2022 06:00, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your review here Eve. I'm happy to hear you found the ship crew and guides to be of good value. We are very sorry to hear of your disappointment with the meals served - upon checking the average ratings for your week onboard, the chef was rated 4 stars. Upon request, the chef would be more than happy to offer more of the foods you can eat as they are used to all kinds of dietary requirements. We value each piece of feedback provided and we encourage our guests to share their experience in their own words with no pressure, so we are disappointed to read this. It's reassuring to know that all guests would recommend our cruise and rated us overall 4-5 stars. We thank you for providing your review, as it is only with such comments we can look to improve our services wherever possible. Thank you
-1st view of boat was filthy cabins and carpets -no welcome on-board - left to wonder around -1st 2nights no air conditioning -3rd night no hot water -couldn't lock cabin door -no key for internal locker -hostess very rude & didn't know how to work equipment to provide hot water or couldn't be bothered. -Staff underwear hanging outside out cabin door. -bedding not changed until after 5th night even though we were sweating like mad with no air con. -would have been good to have sea toys/paddleboard/laylo type etc. to enjoy. -couldn't buy single glass of wine, had to buy whole bottle. Also fridge was broken so couldn't be kept for next day. -on return from hikes, no staff available to serve drinks. Thankfully our tour guide Mate dealt with these issues as without him it could have been a whole lot worse. Mate deserves full credit for making this an enjoyable trip regardless of the issues we continually faced.
- Anthony, 27/06/2022 12:27, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there Anthony, thank you for your review. We are really pleased to hear that your rep Mate was helpful and professional and made your trip enjoyable. We have a rigorous process in place for handling any issues that may arise whilst you are on the sail, which is included in the Pre-departure information emailed to you before the tour. Following this process gives us the opportunity to try to resolve an issue during the trip, and work with you in finding a suitable solution to ensure all parties are happy, if given this opportunity. Guests are encouraged to report incidents themselves to their Onboard Representative, and if they feel no action is taken by their Onboard Representative, you are then welcome to escalate this to our Operations Manager and/or Managing Director. This ensures that no incident is left unreported, especially if we are made aware of the issue, and gives us the best chance to resolve this during the cruise for you. Upon checking our internal records, I could not find any reports raised to your representative regarding the air-conditioning, cabin door lock, broken fridge and key for internal locker. I understand that on the 2nd day the Captain was made aware there was no hot water, and this was rectified within 20 minutes. We operate a mid-week cabin service which includes changing of bedding. I'm afraid paddle boards are not included on our cruises however, at times past guest may leave their water toys onboard for others to enjoy. Upon checking the feedback for the week, guests have provided 4-5 star ratings from the meals onboard to the cabins and Tour Guide. We really do hope that your time in Croatia was enjoyable and that the issues experienced didn't detract from your overall enjoyment.
We had a great time, exceeding our expectations. The guides were excellent, knowledgeable and friendly. The only negative was the food. Breakfast was fine but better quality coffee and juice is needed. Unfortunately the other meals can only be described as brutal. There were so many meals not eaten it was a waste of money for the ship. Too much salt and not enough salads. Prior to exercising and just following exercise it is difficult for the body to process such food. We would happily pay double the current food allowance to improve this situation. The cook needs to look at the guest profile and judge the style of food accordingly ( nationality, sex and age ). Is it a case of all ships cook the same meals on the same days , if so maybe this is part of the problem.? Also a daily menu should be displayed on the notice board to enable guests to choose what/how much they eat. I am aware that space is a factor but it would be very easy to improve the quality and reduce the waste. Good luck
- Hilary, 04/10/2021 13:42, Travelled in a Couple
Hi Hilary, Thank you for your review. I'm pleased you had a great time on our cruise and to hear that it exceeded your expectations is just wonderful! We know that your guide Ivana would have provided you with a wealth of knowledge, and detailed history about each destination. It's lovely to hear you had a nice time Hilary and after reading your feedback for breakfasts, you rated this 5- stars, and would highly recommend our cruise to others, thank you. However, we are disappointed to read of your dissatisfaction with the lunches onboard, mainly being too salty or not enough salad. Our chefs generally create a meal plan for the week, and aim to provide meals using fresh local produce, catering to a wide range of palettes and tastes, however we understand that this is not always possible. If our chef is made aware, they will look to make immediate improvements for the overall satisfaction of guests onboard. All your comments have been passed on to the chef via our Operations Manager and we will look to improve our services wherever possible. Thank you.
It took visiting another sail croatia ship to learn what we were missing. We were made acutely aware our voyage was the last of the season by the staff and how much they looked forward to commencing their vacation. We found the excursions to be underwhelming, poorly (even ineptly) lead and over valued. The kitchen staff and Maria are great friendly workers. The captain aloof. Boris and his two helpers, the shipboard lovers, should be marooned. Guest alcohol supplies were low or non-existant and the coffee machine is a bad joke. Being tied up to other vessels, where we were warmly welcomed to tour, made us aware the competition offers an elevated experience and of essentially the same cost as SC. BTW, there is signficiant bruisng on my right buttock and lower back from where I slipped on the wet interior stairs and fell. Boris never thought to follow up on if I needed any help (other then giving me a towel to dry the stairs so I could try and help others avoid a similar fate). Hmmmmm!!?
- Steven, 14/10/2019 07:18, Travelled in a Couple
Hi Steven, Thank you for taking the time to submit your review. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed some aspects of your cruise and we thank you for your comments on the kitchen staff and Maria, however we are sorry to hear of your disappointment in some areas. Our extensive range of excursions are our most popular and have received raving reviews so we are disappointed to hear this. Our ships are equipped with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages , if there is a particular beverage you wish to enjoy then the staff can try to source this for you. We have a vigorous process in place for any issues that may arise on our cruises, upon checking, I am unable to locate any reports for the incident which took place. I have also spoken with your representative Boris, and he has advised that a towel was requested at one of your swim stops, as there was water on the floor but there were no incidences of anyone falling on your cruise. We hope that you enjoyed your time in Croatia overall, and that the issues onboard didn't detract from this.
I came on Sail Croatia alone which was fine since I met tons of nice new friends on the cruise. My issue was with our guide. He was very unenthusiastic the whole time, made sexist comments, and generally made me feel uncomfortable as a solo passenger by making rude comments. I have good things to say about the boat, the captain, and his crew as the boat was always in good condition, and we safely got everywhere we were going, however the bartender was another story. Although he freepoured the drinks, he was unpredictible in his attitude, sometimes being happy and friendly, and sometimes getting angry with passengers for ordering certain drinks or ordering lots of drinks. This made me feel uncomfortable going to the bar to order drinks. Finally, since the whole crew was male and our guide was male, I felt disadvantaged on the boat as a solo woman, since they were all more friendly with the male passengers. Overall, a more friendly, enthusiastic guide would have improved my experience.
- Anonymous, 07/10/2019 14:03, Travelled Solo
Hi there and thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed the company of your fellow travellers and found the captain and crew helpful, and boat to be in good condition, thank you. I can see that we had 20 females and 16 males onboard your cruise, with 5 solo travellers. We are family owned and each of the ships we work with are also family-owned and operated. Together we make up Sail Croatia. Although our Reps are employed and trained by Sail Croatia, our ships and their captains are in charge of employing their own crew, ensuring their staff maintain a high level of service throughout the cruise. We are disappointed to read your comments regarding the guide and bartender. We have passed these comments on to the appropriate departments to provide further support and training where required. We are sorry to hear you felt uncomfortable, we encourage guests to notify our Operations Manager for any issues that may arise onboard so that we can resolve them immediately. We hope that overall, you enjoyed most aspects of your cruise and Croatia as a whole. Thank you.
The cabin rooms could have been a bit more spacious. While we spent very little time in our cabins ( except to sleep), they really were small.
- Patrick, 10/09/2019 04:31, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there. It's great to hear you had a really great trip! Our Standard ship cabins are smaller than the other ship types, this is stated on the website. I'm sorry to hear you were disappointed with the size of your cabin but pleased that you still enjoyed your time in Croatia. Thank you for joining us!
We upgraded to the premier navigator cruise and had a ship that was not nearly up to the standard of the ships depicted in the ‘premier navigator’ video. Our ship was basic only with the added extra of aircon. The crew were fantastic however the group asked for the spa, which was filthy, to be cleaned many times which wasn’t done. The spa was advertised as one of the premier added bonuses and it was extremely disappointing that we couldn’t use it. The food on board exceeded expectation.
- Madeleine, 04/09/2019 14:20, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there and thanks for your review. It's great to hear that the crew were a great inclusion on your cruise. The ships used on our Navigator Premier page vary in style, some more traditional, rustic wooden ships and others more modern steel ships. Our Premier ships offer spacious cabins, (generally 6-8m2) with ensuite and air-conditioning. The jacuzzi may not be available at all times due to conditions such as electricity consumption, fresh water usage onboard and weather conditions however, we will be investigating this further. We are so happy to hear that you enjoyed the food - it's not easy producing great meals for so many people with a limited kitchen but the chefs manage to do that which is amazing. Thanks again.
Lets start with the good experience. Staff onboard the ship Captain, Sailor and Tour guide were fantastic! It is them that makes the trip worth while. On another note, the sales team are terrible with their service. I told them from the beginning I am travelling with my partner and requested a double bed. They said it depends on the availability as first come first serve. When we got onboard, two girls who DID NOT request for a double bed got one and my partner and i got stuck on a bunk bed. There were only 3 couples on the ship. 2 whom got a double bed, except us. I would have been fine with it had we missed out because we booked later and the 3 doubles were already requested. It is upsetting when somebody gets .a room they didnt request and someone who really really wanted it doesnt. The rooms are ridiculously small and most of all there is no air circulation, if you left your door open, you would smell diesel, or others coming back in the early hours from partying. RIDICULOUS!
- Anita, 03/09/2019 01:04, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for taking the time to leave us with your review and feedback of your Navigator cruise with us this season. We are so pleased to hear that you were happy with the staff on board and that they really made the trip for you. I understand we have been in touch with you via email with regards to your comments on the double bedded cabin. Bedding arrangements are never guaranteed on our Navigator cruises, I'm afraid. This was advised prior to booking and travel. Your further feedback has been passed onto the relevant departments and I do hope this did not deter you from having an amazing time in Croatia. Thank you for joining us.
Let me start by saying this was my 3rd trip with Sail Croatia so they do know what they’re doing to keep bringing me back. However, this time was disastrous and much lower quality than I expected: at one of the swim stops the boat left us, the jacuzzi was non-operational for half the trip and cold water for the second half. It was one of the things I was looking forward to is enjoying the jacuzzi on the top deck. The guide and crew only apologized for leaving us in the water and sailing away after an email was sent to the company. They made a good effort by comping the entire bar bill for the week and a bottle of great red wine which was a nice gesture. But not even a hint of apology prior to written communication still left a bad taste in my mouth. This should never have happened. The crew needs to watch their guests in the water very attentively and the guide take responsibility instead of deflecting blame on the passengers themselves.
- Mark, 13/08/2019 22:24, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there and thank you for your review. We value your comments, especially as this is your 3rd cruise experience with Sail Croatia. We're sorry to hear there were issues with the jacuzzi, at times it may not be available due to conditions such as electricity consumption, fresh water usage onboard and weather conditions. Upon checking our internal reports, I can see that your Representative was in constant communication with you regarding the swim stop rules. We advise all our guests that everyone must stay close to the boat, for health and safety reasons, this is also reiterated in our Pre-departure information, our Sail Croatia App and advised during your welcome speech. We are sorry to hear this had happened - upon checking our records, once the swim stop concluded, the sailor called out to all guests to advise the swim stop was over. As you were further away and behind another boat, our sailor didn't see you, nor did you hear the call out, so the boat had departed. After speaking with your representative, Kate was immediately apologetic and offered to reduce your bar tab and provide a free bottle of wine as a gesture. We will pass your comments on to our Operations Manager to ensure that our sailors reiterate the importance of the swim stop rules. Thank you again for all your comments here and we do hope that the issues onboard didn't detract from your overall experience.
Was not happy with my sail. I was the oldest on my boat I was solo also which is fine. But the oldest boy was 21. Majority were 18-20 year olds. I made friends on another boat Vosica. I wish I was on that boat. Was a bigger boat with people my age doing the same route. Was very dissapointed a shame you couldn’t have put other solo travellers of similar age on the same boat.
- Isabella , 13/08/2019 13:09, Travelled Solo
Thank you for your review. We try to get a good mix on all our boats, taking into consideration a number of factors such as; age, nationality, gender as well as solo travellers, groups and couples to name a few. Having a look at who booked on your boat, we had 6 travellers of similar ages to you. In saying this our travellers are within the 18-35 years age range, the makeup of each boat heavily relys on who has booked. We hope that this didn't detract from your overall experience in Croatia as a whole.
Food on board was average at best,some days great some days terrible. Breakfast needs a rethink and an upgrade to the coffee machine is required. Maybe brunch rather than breakfast and lunch given we all go for dinner in the evening. Staff were great and the boat was brilliant. Menu card and restaurant recommendations at the start of the trip would be helpful rather than when we arrive in port. Overall a great experience and one we would recommend to friends and family.
- Ian , 05/08/2019 18:59, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for your review - we appreciate all your comments. We are pleased to know that you would recommend us to family and friends and that you enjoyed your accommodation and the inclusion of the lovely staff onboard. Our chefs aim to cater to all tastes and at times, we understand that this may not be possible. However, upon request the chef may be able to provide you with more of the foods you enjoy. We appreciate your comments on the coffee machine and this will be passed on to the captain. We find that having breakfasts and lunches included on our cruises, gives our guests just the one meal to budget for and gives guests the opportunity to go out and try the delicious local cuisine for dinner. Our representatives provide guests with all the information for each port daily as we feel our guests enjoy receiving this information just as you are arriving into port. Thank you for choosing to sail with us!
Before booking my tour I asked to be put in a boat with solo travellers, as I myself was travelling solo and they said it would not be a problem. To my surprise I got put in a boat with couples and and people who knew each other. Careful going on the smaller boat because you might be stuck with people who are close and will be hard to make friends.
- Fatah, 02/08/2019 09:11, Travelled Solo
Hi there. Many thanks for your review. I'm sorry to hear of your disappointment of the tour. I have looked through previous correspondence and can see you were advised we only had availability on our Under 35s Yacht Tours for your requested departure date, so we did not have any other options available for you at the time, I'm afraid. Our Under 35s Yacht Tours consist of a group of usually 6 to 8 yachts sleeping 8 passengers on each sailing together in a flotilla, so it usually a very social experience. I checked and can see your departure had 47 guests across 6 yachts to enjoy the social experience on board. Thank you for joining us this season :)
- Navigator cruise was advertised for Young Professionals, yet our boat had a vast majority being over 50. Thankfully we (24y/o's) had two other amazing couples to experience it with. I heard the week prior only had 1 couple under 50 (I would of requested a refund if I was them). They need to ensure the weight of ages is reasonable so each generation can experience it their way. - Staff were atrocious. Incredibly rude, dismissive, literally rolled their eyes at all of us when we would enter the salon to get a drink. Had the audacity to leave a tip envelope on our last day (of which we gave nothing). Sail Croatia MUST have involvement in the selection of crew as it knocked 2 stars of our review, easily. - Recommendations for restaurants, bars and the tours offered were way below expectations. Again, this is a cruise for a "Young Professionals", so we want beautiful food, amazing cocktails and awesome experiences. Need to have different recommendations for each cruise type.
- Anonymous, 16/07/2019 22:53, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there, thank you for your review. I've looked further into the ages of the passengers that were on board Cristal with you and around a third of your fellow travellers were in their thirties or under. The rest of the passengers on board were in their forties, fifties and 4 were in their sixties. Our Explorer cruises are designed for young professional and ‘young at heart’ travellers looking to blend socialising, sightseeing and relaxation with an average age on-board from 25-60. In your review you mentioned Navigator cruises which is a different type of cruise to the one you booked which was an Explorer cruise. Our Navigator cruises are for passengers aged 18 to 35 years old looking to party, socialise and explore Croatia. I have passed your comments onto our Operations Manager with regards to the crew on board Cristal. Thank you for brining this to our attention and for joining us this season :)
Excursions were poorly planned with a lot of waiting time and timing did not make sense with the rest of the day scheduled. Swim stops were random in the middle of the sea and not in pretty locations as advertised. Some of the excursions offered were not even possible to complete due to timing constraints. The food was cheap, very small portions, and the drinks were under poured. Our ship was lucky enough to be equipped with AC which we paid for directly to the captain, except it "didn't work" 2/7 nights and we still had to pay for the full 7. The captain was very cheap and would shut it off thinking we wouldn't say anything. We weren't allowed to swim when parked in Port and there mostly wasnt time to beach bc of lunch at 1-230pm. Lunch was way too long for no reason. No snacks provided in between meals. They assumed as budget travelers we wouldn't notice all the corners they cut. Overall very poor. We left the boat 2 nights early. Would not recommend unless you want low class travel.
- Jillian, 01/07/2019 16:24, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there, thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. I'm sorry to hear you were disappointed with some aspects of your Navigator cruise. Excursions are subject to minimum and maximum numbers. Also, due to limited time in each location, some excursions do occur at the same time as others, it's not always possible to take part in more than one excursion at the same destination, I'm afraid. I've looked into your comment regarding the air-conditioning on board and you were booked onto an Ensuite ship where air-conditioning is not included in the cost of the cruise. I've been advised the captain did offer air-conditioning to the whole ship at an additional cost per person, per day and when this was not working for the final 2 days of the cruise this was then refunded back to everyone. It is not possible to swim in the ports as it is not safe to do so. This is a rule on board all of our ships as we would not want you to come into any harm by swimming where the ships are docked. Daily breakfast and a 3 course lunch is included in the cost of your cruise, however snacks between meals are not included. We have a process in place which is shown in your pre-departure information, so if you do have any issues at all on board we hope to resolve them before you disembark. I have looked into this further and I cannot see that you left the cruise early or raised any of these concerns with your on board Representative. We appreciate you taking the time to provide us with this feedback and we hope that you enjoyed other aspects of your cruise and that the issues onboard didn't detract from your overall experience and Croatia as a whole. Thank you.
Awesome people but terribly planned. If someone took maybe 15 mins to use common sense to plan this it would have gone so much smoother. The lack of communication was laughable. Excursions that were offered were decent but nothing I would go out of my way to do. The swim stops were a joke. We would stop the boat in the middle of nowhere overlooking a construction site. Also, pretty lame that once the boat was in port you couldn't go in the water unless you went to beach.
- Anonymous, 01/07/2019 14:04, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for your review - we appreciate your comments. The excursions offered are optional and we're sorry to hear that none of the excursions appealed to you. Our swim stops generally take place in secluded bays in the middle of the Adriatic Ocean overlooking the coast and the sites are spectacular. Upon speaking with the representative, she confirms that the construction site was near the town centre during the time of sail. In regards to swimming in the port, we mention in our Ship Rules (emailed to you prior to the cruise and available onboard) that swimming at the port is prohibited as a safety precaution as there are generally many ships docking and departing so is not a safe swimming zone. We do hope that you enjoyed other aspects of the cruise and that these issues didn't detract from your overall experience.
Dear Sail Croatia Firstly I want to say Alex and I very much enjoyed the accommodation on the boat and we were very impressed with the helpful friendly staff. Generally we thought the holiday was good value. My only criticism was the quality of the lunches and the repetitive breakfast menu. Cordial substituted for orange juice wasn't appealing. On most days I couldn't eat the main meal. The food offered was poorly cooked. On one occasion the fish was undercooked and covered in a very thick sauce, inedible. The vegetables were often overcooked. The chicken breast was dry and tough.. The entrees and desserts were generally acceptable. Our group of 6 travellers discussed the food and we all agreed a barbecue or smorgasbord of fresh salads could be offered. I understand some guests enjoy a hearty 3 course lunch however I do think there is room for improvement with the food. I'm not sure whether its your budget or the skill of the cook, or both..
- Anonymous, 27/06/2019 06:17, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there, thank you for taking time to leave us a review. We are really pleased to hear that you liked the accommodation on board and that you were impressed with the on board staff. Thank you for your comments on the food. Our chef tries to cater to a wide range of tastes, however at times we understand this is not always possible. We will pass your comments onto the relevant team so we can improve in the future. Thank you.
We booked the sail for late May. The itinerary did not match what was guaranteed on the website. Major clubs were closed and some excursions were cancelled. We expected a party boat and the our boat “Tuna” was definitely not that. Absolutely no money from the captain has gone into this boat to make it fun. We sailed along side “Penelopa” (the standard boat - same route) and watched their boat have a whole different experience. They had speakers that were loud and actually worked. They had party lights. They had two bars. They had no noise restrictions. They had a silent disco. Our group on board Tuna felt ripped off as we got none of these party features, having paid more for the en-suite rooms. Six people left our boat due to the lack of vibe and other reasons. Not only that but the bar staff was unprofessional and quite unapproachable. This made us feel uncomfortable. If we didn’t have such a lovely group of people on board the experience would’ve been 1 star.
- Maddie, 03/06/2019 07:55, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for your review. Upon checking your feedback for the week, we are really pleased to know you found the cleanliness of the cabin and meals to be 5-stars, thank you. In regards to the clubs and bars in Croatia, these are not guaranteed and are all subject to season opening times. Each of our boats are operated individually by the captain and crew, we are sorry to hear you found the overall experience was not as expected. We appreciate your comments regarding the crew, stereo speakers and party lights - all your comments will be passed on to the relevant department to look into this for you. We understand that there were adverse weather conditions at the time of your cruise which is unavoidable and very unfortunate. Alternative solutions were offered however, as the weather effected the most part of the week, our Rep did everything possible to ensure everyone was enjoying themselves as much as possible. We understand that some guests decided to depart early due to this. We hope that the issues didn't detract from your overall experience in Croatia and we thank you again for all your comments.
I would like to warn others considering booking any cruises with Sail Croatia. I had 8 items of ladies clothing taken from our cabin wardrobe after I had left them there after departing the ship. The cleaning staff came in immediately after we walked out, knocking on our door to get in while we were still packing up. In our haste the clothed were left behind. Not noticing they were missing until the next day, we emailed Sail Croatia and notified them. The cabin was apparently checked and nothing found. And that was the extent to which Sail Croatia went to try and get my clothes back from the cleaning staff who did our cabin. Visited the Sail Croatia office in Split expecting something at least to be done, they promised to stay in touch. I had to email them to try and get some answers. The "Operations Team" were contacted so I was told in a reply and nothing was found. Phoned the office and was told the clothes would have been disposed of! Very upset customer.
- Angela, 28/05/2019 08:48, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for your review. I can see from your onboard feedback, provided to us at the end of your cruise, that you gave us a rating of 5-stars, this overall rating includes; the staff, onboard meals, ship in general, optional excursions and your onboard representative. Thank you for this. However, we are sorry to hear of your disappointment mainly regarding the items left in your cabin. We do state on our Pre-departure information, and via the welcome speeches onboard, that all items must be removed from your cabin at the end of your cruise and that Sail Croatia will not be held liable for any lost items. I can see that you had also emailed us once you realised the items were left behind. Our process is that any left items found by the cleaning staff will be handed to our Lost Property team and logged via our internal records. However, once followed up with our Operations Team unfortunately no items were found by the cleaning staff. We have since provided you with an insurance letter so that you can recover the costs of the items via your Insurance company. We do hope that the result of your lost property didn't deter from the amazing 5-star experience you had onboard. Thank you again for your review!
Went on the Navigator North trip with the Tarin boat. We had no overnight power for 2-3 days when docked in port, therefore our fans in the room did not work in the intense heat, People resorted to sleeping on the roof as the cabins were unbearably hot. We also couldn't charge our mobile phones in order to take pictures the next day, set alarms, etc. Our water dispenser was taken off the boat a day before the cruise ended because the boat was going to be used by another company the following day. The whole boat vibrated when moving, making sleep in the morning extremely difficult. Eggs were not provided for breakfast every day. In fact the were on a random scheduled according to how the chef felt. One day I woke up for breakfast only to be told the eggs had already finished.. The next day I woke up earlier and was told eggs were only made every second day and not daily. On the plus side we did visit some pretty cool places and met some amazing people. Tarin and Ivanna were great!
- Anonymous, 18/09/2018 01:55, Travelled Solo
Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your review! It is great to hear you that you enjoyed the destinations visited on your Navigator Cruise, and that your Tour Manager and the crew onboard Tarin ensured you had a great week onboard. Cooked breakfast isn’t provided on our Navigator cruises as an inclusion and we are very pleased to hear you had enjoyed a hot breakfast on certain days throughout the week. I have checked our internal reporting system and unfortunately I was unable to find any reports of feedback referencing the fans and water dispenser onboard. Had your onboard Tour Manager been made aware of your concerns, we would have been more than happy to resolve these issues whilst you were on the cruise. Thank you again for your feedback, as only through this feedback, can we improve our products and services.
Meals were not up to my expectations. There were no attempts by staff to help the travellers mingle and get to know each other at the beginning of the cruise. A wine and cheese on the first night would have been good.
- Anonymous, 29/05/2018 13:44, Travelled in a Couple
Thank you for your review. Customer satisfaction is important to us, and we’re sorry to hear that meals didn't meet your expectations. I have looked into all reviews provided for your departure and have found that rating and traveller satisfaction was very high for this week. Thank you for your recommendation in regards to wine and cheese being offered on the first night. We will be sure to pass your feedback to our team. We thank you again for submitting your review and we hope that you enjoyed your time in Croatia overall.
No air conditioner working half the trip No fitted sheets Heads very basic, door does not close Boat should stop off for a swim every day during transit Cycles were in great condition
- Michael , 21/09/2016 07:22, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there and thank you for your feedback on our Cycle cruise. We are pleased to hear you found our bicycles to be in great condition. We see that you were booked on our Ensuite boat - we provide a fan in each of our Ensuite cabins as air-conditioning is not included on this boat type. We recommend booking a room on our Premier boats if you prefer air-conditioned cabins. I'm sorry to hear you had an issue with your door - we have rigorous processes in place and upon searching our records, I couldn't see that you had raised the door issue with a crew member or representative. Had they been made aware of these issues, they would have rectified this as soon as possible for you. Swim stops generally take place daily however, at times it may not be possible due to the weather conditions or guests on the boats requesting to get to the next destination earlier. If it isn't possible, your captain/crew would advise the reasoning behind this. We hope you had a great time overall.
Unfortunately myself and my partner didn't enjoy our cruise. As we made friends for a few couples and others on board our opinions all had been of the same. The premier plus ship was not as appeared on the inside as it did on the outside. The room we had was for a couple. We found two single small beds pushed together, we actually fell through the mattresses. On the first day our port window blew open, we advised one of the ship hands who came to take a look at the problem, he played around with it as he had not know about the issues and said he would fix it before dinner time. At dinner I told the bartender, she said that she had been telling him for over a month now about the window in cabin 6. Unfortunately it didn't get fixed and throughout the rest of the journey nothing seemed to work to lodge the window closed. The food on the boat "3 course meals" was absolutely disgraceful. I would barely call frozen meat and fish and canned fruit and VEGETABLES 3 course. Utterly disappointed!
- Warren , 16/08/2016 17:22, Travelled in a Couple
Hi there, thank you for your review. I am sorry to hear that you didn't enjoy your time on your Sail Croatia Cruise. We are very proud of the ships in our Premier Plus fleet and work hard to ensure they are all maintained to the same high standard. Our cabins are either fitted with double beds or twin beds which are fixed or can be pushed together to create a double. We try and accommodate everyone’s bedding preferences when doing our allocation, due to the high number of couples we have on-board, sometimes we can only accommodate them in a double bedded cabin if 2 beds are pushed together. We are sorry to hear about the porthole in your cabin. We have rigorous procedures in place for any issues that arise on-board our cruises, which is included in the pre-departure information emailed to you before the cruise and is outlined at the welcome speech. The first step is to communicate with the crew. If this does not resolve the issue, the second step is to contact our representative in which case we log this in our central reporting and manage the issue onboard until it is fully resolved and customers are happy. We also supply the contact details for our Operations Manager and Managing Director in the unlikely event you are disatisfied with any response from our team members. This procedure does then give us the opportunity to resolve an issue during the trip and follow up or check historical issues. We are always looking at ways to improve our services and understand that food plays an important part of your holiday so we appreciate your comments here, and will look into this. Thank you again for your review.
This tour is definitely suited to people who just want to party. I didn't know a lot about Sail Croatia before I went on this tour so I was surprised that it was just all Aussie's and Kiwi's. The food was pretty terrible. We had to skip 2 islands because of the weather. I didn't like how we had multiple tour managers, it would have been nice to have one for the entire trip. But apart from that I met a lot of cool people and got to see the spectacular islands.
- Carla, 15/08/2016 19:39, Travelled Solo
Hi there, thank you for your review. It is great to hear you met a lot of cool people and enjoyed the islands. Our Navigator cruises are designed for 18-35 year olds looking to socialise with more of a party-type atmosphere. We try our best to ensure our website is clear to guests about the experience of each cruise, and we are happy to assist if anyone is unsure of which cruise to choose. We also have an online cruise assessment which you can use to find out which cruise is best suited to you. Our cruises are very popular with New Zealanders and Australians as well as various different countries, and where possible we do try to ensure an even mix of travellers onboard our boats taking into consideration ages, nationalities and genders, however this heavily depends no who has booked. Your comments about food will be looked into so we can improve this for the future. With regards to you having multiple Sail Croatia Representatives, this is something that we are currently assessing.
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- Russell, 02/06/2016 05:29, Travelled in a Couple